The Unseen Consequences

‘I was late, my hair disheveled, bursting into class just as the bell rang. My usual image as a cool, elegant lady was utterly ruined. It was incredibly embarrassing.’

‘As if!’

‘Oh, dear me~ I’m so sorry, but my family’s driver wasn’t raised on a diet of blandness; overtaking cars on the road is mere child’s play for him. We arrived at school precisely on time, you see.’

‘And what’s more, Xiaobai, who clung to me the entire way, terrified by the blistering speed, was absolutely adorable~ I should give the driver a bonus next time~’

After morning assembly concluded, nothing particularly noteworthy transpired at school today.

If there was anything to remark upon, it would probably be the lobbying army outside the classroom, who had been explicitly forbidden from entering.

Their immediate arrival once class ended was truly quite bothersome.

“Leidi-chan, look! Isn’t this the department store where Xiaobai competed in the cosplay arm-wrestling match? The news reports an explosion happened after the competition!” Takagi, from the desk in front, turned around, holding her phone with an intensely serious expression.

“What?! An explosion!”

“No way?! Let me see.”

“It’s true……”

“Wow…… it looks absolutely dreadful……”

As these words were uttered, everyone nearby gathered around, their curiosity piqued.

‘Honestly, I had assumed this news would be noticed concurrently with Xiaobai’s arm-wrestling competition announcement. Had it really been delayed by a full day?’

‘Perhaps it was due to Xiaobai’s influence.’

“It’s truly fortunate that Leidi-chan and Xiaobai left there beforehand…… Just looking at the photos from the scene, it seems utterly devastating……”

“Indeed, we were quite lucky,” I replied, forcing a casual smile.

Displayed on the phone were shattered walls and load-bearing columns, twisted, exposed rebar and steel plates, and a terrifyingly cracked ceiling and floor.

‘All of this…… I had caused with my own hands……’

An impulse—a demonic urge—had completely consumed me in that moment, driving me to recklessly obliterate the perceived sin before my eyes.

Had Ruka sister and Brother Mingdao not intervened in time, I likely would have wrought irreversible consequences.

But, if time were to rewind, if I were to return to that moment when I saw Xiaobai emerge, eyes reddened, opening the door, I believe…… my actions would remain utterly unchanged……

A touch.

A familiar warmth settled on my right shoulder; it was Xiaobai’s hand.

I could not see her face, nor did she speak; the connection between us was simply that gently resting hand.

Nevertheless, from that faint warmth, I felt it—I felt every single nuance of it.

“Thank you.”

I turned and smiled at Xiaobai, and she returned my smile, her unchanging gentleness radiating within it.

‘Mm, I promise you, I will change.’

“It’s really strange, isn’t it? The interior of the department store was so severely damaged, yet no one died, and not even a single person was injured. Doesn’t everyone find that highly suspicious?”

Amidst the chattering discussions, Aki suddenly interjected, causing Xiaobai and me to freeze for a moment, and instantly silencing everyone else.

No, more accurately, it ‘froze’ the entire class.

“Not only that, but the customers seemed completely unaware of what had happened; they all looked utterly bewildered during their interviews…… It feels really eerie……” Ami added, perfectly complementing her sister’s observation.

‘At this point, not a single person in the entire class was speaking…… They must have all been thoroughly spooked…… Would an apology in my heart even help?’

“A paranormal incident?! That’s definitely going to become an urban legend!”

Pfft—

‘If anyone had been drinking water, they would undoubtedly have spat it out!’

‘Yamada, are you some kind of ultimate mood killer?’

However, thanks to his intervention, the icy silence in the classroom began to thaw.

“Even an idiot has their uses sometimes.”

“I suddenly feel like saying thank you to you……”

“You’re not usually just pretending to be dumb, are you? Could you actually be incredibly smart?”

Everyone playfully nudged and teased him, all while laughing.

It seemed his thoughtless comment had unexpectedly boosted his popularity.

“Aki, please give me back my phone. It wouldn’t be good if the teacher found out.”

“Here, it’s yours.”

As class was about to begin, Takagi extended her hand to Aki, ready to retrieve her phone.

Aki, in turn, handed the phone back to Takagi.

All of this transpired right before my eyes.

But then—

“Ow!”

Suddenly, something struck my head!

“Thud—!” The object fell onto the desk with a resonant sound.

“……”

“……”

“……”

Observing the item that had landed on the desk, everyone gathered around us fell silent.

Aki and Takagi, in particular, remained motionless, yet their eyes seemed almost ready to pop out of their sockets……

‘The object that had struck my head was Takagi’s phone, which had just been right in front of me……’