The First Injury and Collaborator - 3

Even late at night, the lights in Schale's office are still on. Sensei is there, busily typing away at the keyboard.

"Ugh... it never ends. How long do I have to keep doing this..."

Then, someone comes in.

"Sensei, what are you doing up so late?"

"What do you think, I'm working. Things have been crazy lately, it's a real pain. My workload has doubled."

"You're very busy. Right? Do you ever feel like you want to quit sometimes?"

"I do, but I can't. I want to rest, but what can I do? I'm the Sensei. I have to work hard for the students, don't I?"

"Ahaha."

BANG!

The sound of a gunshot echoes through the office, and Sensei's pure white uniform turns crimson red.

"Huh...?"

He clutches his stomach, but blood keeps flowing out from between his fingers. He can't muster any strength to stand up. In pain, Sensei struggles to turn his head and look to the side. And what he sees is a smile filled with pure malice.

"Who gave you permission to call yourself Sensei? We don't need someone like you."

"What are you talking about...?"

Click.

A gun is pointed at Sensei's head. But Sensei can't even resist.

"Just die quietly. It's for our sake, right?"

BANG!

* * *

"Ugh...!"

With a faint groan, Sensei opens his eyes. But his vision is blurry as if obscured by fog. And his mind is still not fully clear, he feels dizzy. His body also feels weak. But Sensei's brain is desperately telling his body to get up, that he must get up. He struggles to put strength into his body.

"Ughh...!"

The first place to regain strength is his mouth, and from there, strength gradually returns. From his mouth, it spreads to his eyes, from his eyes to his face, and then to his hands, arms, stomach, legs, and feet. And finally, his heart.

"Ughhh...!"

Energy spreads throughout his body. And now, Sensei is fully conscious and can see the world clearly.

".....Where is this?"

It's an unfamiliar place. Everything is unfamiliar. An unfamiliar ceiling, unfamiliar walls. Everything was dark. But the light coming in through the window was bright. The first thing Sensei thought when he saw this was:

'Am I still dreaming?'

Sensei tries to pinch his cheek with his hand. But the moment his hand comes into view, he realizes that it's not a dream.

"Huh.....?"

His left hand, with its ring and pinky fingers severed, no, crushed. The left hand was wrapped in white bandages. Where the fingers were missing, the bandages were soaked with blood. And as he realized this, a sharp pain shot through him. As he instinctively tried to reach for it with his right hand, Sensei felt severe pain in his right shoulder as well.

"Ugh...!"

When Sensei looked closer, he saw that his shirt was off, and his left hand and right shoulder were wrapped in bandages. The bandages on his right shoulder were also soaked with blood. And his mind fully returned.

"It wasn't a dream... It was all... real."

Missiles fly at Schale, being chased by police and students, hiding from people, running and running, and finally being caught by a student. After being shot, the girls of the Shittim Chest protect him until the end before fading away, and he loses consciousness.

"How am I alive? There's no way I could have survived that situation."

And at that moment, someone flashed through Sensei's mind.

'Arona! Plana!'

Sensei immediately tried to get up, trying to put strength into his legs, but his legs wouldn't cooperate. It was only natural, as he hadn't been able to eat, sleep, or drink properly for a while, and he had exhausted all his remaining energy in that final escape.

"Damn it, I have no strength at all."

He tries to put strength into his legs again, but his body doesn't move as he wants it to. The best he could do was to sit up and lean against the wall. And in that state, Sensei falls back into thought. Why is he here? And who gave him this treatment?

'Who is it? So many strange things have been happening lately.'

No one is visible around Sensei. Because of this, a sense of unease starts to grow within him, and he tries to get up again.

"Ugh...!"

But his body still lacks strength. In his current state, this was the best Sensei could do.

"This is crazy. I can't do anything like this."

Then it happened.

Creak.

He heard the sound of a door opening. And then, the sound of footsteps approaching him.

'Is it the person who saved me? No, of course, it is.'

Sensei was thinking about how to start the conversation, feeling grateful. But when he saw the person's face, that thought immediately vanished.

"Huh?"

"...Huh?"

A girl with long, blue hair, holding a black plastic bag, made eye contact with Sensei. And she looked as if she was moved, no, relieved.

"You're awake...!"

"......Huh?"

But Sensei's expression contorted, and his face turned pale. The first thing that came to Sensei's mind when he saw her face was his last memory.

Bang!

And at this moment, fear began to creep in. His reason and thoughts, everything became impossible to judge properly.

"Aaaahhh!!"

Unconsciously screaming in fear, Sensei tried to force himself up, but he lost his balance and fell.

"S-Sensei!"

As she started to approach Sensei, he flinched and raised his hands. And he leaned back and started to tremble.

"S-Stay back...!"

Sensei squeezed his eyes shut. Overcome with panic, he could only cower in fear. Before Sensei's reason could reach him, the fear deep within his heart had already taken hold. Overwhelmed by fear, he couldn't think straight. He was defenseless against whatever she would do next.

".....?"

But nothing happened. Even after a few seconds, nothing happened. And at this point, the fear began to recede, and reason returned. And he put his hands back down and opened his eyes. And what Sensei saw was a girl kneeling on the ground, trembling.

"N-No... I-I didn't mean to... That's... I..."

Sensei could see her eyes trembling. And at this point, Sensei could properly recognize her.

'Saori...?'

"I-I'm sorry... I-I... I didn't mean it..."

Tears were falling from her eyes. The girl who had twice betrayed her benefactor was breaking down..

"What have I... done...?"

And at that moment, Sensei forced himself to gather what little strength he had and reached out to her. And he hugged her and said.

"Saori, you... saved me."

At those words, she looked at Sensei in surprise. And she started to speak in a trembling voice.

"No... I tried to kill... Sensei..."

But Sensei continued.

"You brought me here and treated me."

"No... I..."

"Thank you."

And hearing those words, Saori started to cry, as if something had snapped inside her.

"Ugh... sniffle... I was supposed to... repay you for that kindness... I was going to... but I...! Ugh..."

"Why are you crying? Your face will get all messed up."

"Sob, sniffle... I'm sorry... Sensei... I've betrayed you again...!"

"You didn't betray me."

"Uwaaaaah...!"

And as Saori cried endlessly, Sensei silently hugged her and patted her back. And for the first time since the incident, Sensei met a student who could be on his side.

* * *

A little while later, Sensei was eagerly shoveling porridge into his mouth. To him, who hadn't been able to eat or drink properly for almost a week, it was an incredibly delicious porridge.

"Honestly, I thought I was going to starve to death. With surveillance everywhere, I couldn't even buy food properly, I thought I was going to die on the street. Thank you!"

"Sensei, you shouldn't eat so fast."

After drinking some water, his face definitely looked more lively. Just yesterday, he was practically a corpse, but now he was definitely a living person.

"Phew, that was good. It's been so long since I've had a proper meal..."

"Is that enough...?"

"It's plenty. I'm so indebted to you."

"Don't say that... I..."

But Sensei just smiled and said.

"It's okay, what's important now is that you brought me food, and I was helped by it."

".....Sensei."

Sensei repeatedly thanked Saori, but she kept her head down. Sensei, who responded with forgiveness again to her, who had harmed him twice, was a being she couldn't dare to look up to.

"...Come to think of it, I forgot something..."

And once again, they flashed through Sensei's mind.

"Saori! By any chance... did you see the Shittim Chest, the tablet? I was holding it at the end...?"

"Ah, wait a moment."

Saori immediately moved and brought Sensei the powered-off tablet.

"I tried charging it, but I couldn't turn it on."

"No, just charging it was enough. I think I can turn it on. This... that... what was it? Oh, right."

Sensei turned on the Shittim Chest and said the password to call them.

"We thirst for the seven wailings. We bear the koan of Jericho."

And at that moment.

"Ugh..."

A sky-blue-haired girl and a light purple-haired girl appeared on the tablet. And the first thing they saw was none other than Sensei.

"Sensei...?"

"Arona."

"Sensei!!!!"

And she started to cry loudly. Startled, Sensei said to her.

"Wh-What's wrong?"

"I thought I'd never see you again! I couldn't protect you until the end... I thought I lost you!"

"I'm alive, see? Haha..."

"Sensei. I'm glad to see you again."

"Yeah, I'm glad to see you two again too."

"Waaaaah!!!"

"Oh boy, she's crying too."

Sensei scratched his head, looking troubled. Thinking that kids these days are so sensitive.

"Sensei. But how are you alive? Did you manage to escape somehow?"

"Ah, that? I was helped by the person over there."

Sensei turned the Shittim Chest to introduce the person in question. The two children saw the blue-haired girl. And they expressed their gratitude to Saori.

"Thank you for saving Sensei!"

"I also express my gratitude."

"???"

They can't hear her voice. The only one who can hear their voices is Sensei. But to somehow convey their gratitude, they wrote on a piece of paper, and Saori was bewildered by this.

"No, I...."

And Sensei put his index finger to his lips and looked at Saori. Saori was very flustered. She wasn't the one who saved Sensei, but the one who tried to kill him.

"Thank you so much!"

"I... um... uh..."

Last night, they couldn't properly identify Saori and were only focused on deflecting the bullets that were hitting Sensei, so they couldn't identify her. Because of this, a funny thing happened where they were thanking their enemy.

"For now, rest. I'll call you again when the time comes."

"Huh..? What do you mean."

Sensei turns off the Shittim Chest again. He felt like he should conserve power, but he also had something to say to Saori without them hearing.

"So, first of all, Saori. I have a lot of questions. So I need your help."

"I'll help with anything. What is it?"

Sensei's expression turned serious, and he said.

"So, the first thing I want to ask is, why did you try to kill me?"

"Huh....?"

And at those words, her expression turned dark again, and she started to tremble. And realizing that his words had been taken in a very bad way, Sensei immediately panicked and said.

"No, no! I'm not blaming you! Other kids suddenly tried to kill me too, so I'm just asking!"

"I... I didn't mean to..."

"No, there must have been a reason! Then, I'll pass on this question! Next, what was the next question..."

Sensei was really flustered. He regretted starting the questioning like this. Just as he was about to move on to the next question, she spoke again.

"No. I'll tell you. It'll only sound like an excuse, but I have to tell you."

"O-okay..."

Saori told Sensei with a dark expression.

"At some point, hatred suddenly started to well up inside me. My insides were boiling, and my head was hot. And the target of that hatred was Sensei."

"Why did you hate me?"

"It... it doesn't make sense now, but I thought Sensei was the one who drove us into hell."

"Huh?"

Saori continued speaking with difficulty, as if in pain.

"It was Sensei who beat Azusa until her halo was destroyed, it was Sensei who tried to kill the princess. And it was Sensei who taught us about futility, and it was Sensei who made us train like machines. I thought Sensei was the cause of all our misfortune. So I thought I had to kill Sensei. But even though it was a completely nonsensical memory, I couldn't deny it. The more I tried to deny it, the more the hatred grew."

And hearing this, Sensei asked Saori.

"Saori, then... do the other Arius Squad kids think of me that way too...?"

"Terribly, yes. They thought that Sensei was the cause of Arius's downfall and their unfortunate past. But they were finally able to see the light, so I thought I had to do it. So, I did it... but it doesn't make sense, does it? Sensei was the one who saved us in the first place...!"

She was trembling again. And she was blaming herself.

"Why couldn't I see this simple contradiction? Why was I so stupid and didn't realize it? So I did something so stupid again..."

"......I see."

"I'm really so...!"

Then, Sensei grabbed her hand with his right hand and said.

"No, it's not your fault. The problem is the person who caused this situation. They're very vicious. In your situation, you would have definitely wanted to kill me."

"Sensei..."

And here, Sensei could draw one conclusion.

"Right, so the students are being manipulated into seeing me as their enemy, even their memories."

"........That's right."

Sensei was silent for a moment, and then he came to another conclusion.

"Then, I have to solve this situation for sure. When my body recovers, I'll go out and try to solve the problem. I don't think it's a problem I can just run away from."

But at these words, Saori was very alarmed and said to Sensei.

"Sensei, no! Where are you going! Have you forgotten your current situation?"

"I know. I'm the worst terrorist, traitor, and enemy in Kivotos right now."

"Sensei, there's a kill-on-sight order for you right now. And all the students will be like me before. They'll try to kill you! And now there's even a bounty on your head! If you go out, you'll be dead in no time! At least if you stay here, you'll be safe. Until things calm down..."

"It's not a situation that will calm down if I just stay still, is it? I don't think it'll get better, it'll just get worse."

But Saori raised her voice even more and said.

"Still, no! Even if I go with you, there's no guarantee that I can protect you!"

And at those words, Sensei smiled and said.

"No, I'm going alone. Why would I involve you?"

"...What?"

"I have no intention of getting you involved in this. The target of their hatred is just me anyway, right?"

"What are you... talking about?"

"I'll try to end it on my terms somehow. If I can't, then there's nothing I can do."

Saori's eyes started to tremble again. And she said to Sensei again.

"Why? If that's the case, let's go together, how can I let Sensei go alone...?"

"Just being with me could get you into big trouble. In the worst case, we might end up on the pyre together. I can't ask you to help me. It would just be asking you to go to hell with me."

"Don't say such ridiculous things. Even if it's hell, I'll go with..."

"You can't!"

Sensei shouted. And at that sound, Saori flinched for a moment. And Sensei continued.

"Sorry, for shouting. But I promised you a future, didn't I? I can't ask you to do this."

"........"

"And I can't ignore this. I don't think it's just limited to me."

"....What does that mean?"

Sensei's expression hardened again, and he said.

"What if this situation wasn't targeting me, but another student? And what if the person who caused this situation could do that? It would be the worst-case scenario. So this needs to be resolved."

As soon as the students started to hate him, this was the first thing Sensei thought. As a teacher, he couldn't just let this phenomenon, where all hatred was directed at one person, continue.

"So I'm going to leave soon. Once my body is fully recovered, and..."

And at that moment, Sensei looked at Saori again. And he felt like her eyes had lost their light somehow.

"Um... what's wrong?"

"You can't leave."

"Um... huh?"

And Saori grabbed Sensei and said.

"I won't let you leave alone. If you do, you'll only die. And do you think I'll just let that happen?"

"Uh, uh..?"

"You say it like you're doing it for me, but what can you do alone? Gehenna, Trinity, Millennium, Kaiser PMC, and even the General Student Council are all after you, what can you do in this situation? You definitely won't be able to solve it."

And Saori grabbed Sensei even tighter and said.

"So you absolutely can't leave! If you still want to leave, take me with you! Otherwise, I'll confine you here so you can't leave. I can't watch you die anymore!"

"Wait a minute... calm down..."

"How can I be calm when you're going out to die?! Think again!"

As Saori grabbed Sensei's arm tightly, Sensei cried out in pain.

"Owww... m-my shoulder..."

Saori quickly let go of those words. And she lowered her head again.

"I-I'm sorry... I made a mistake... again."

"No, I'm grateful that you're worried about me. But... I can't take you with me..."

And again, at those words, Saori's expression hardened, and she said.

"Sensei."

"Y-Yes?"

"My will is firm. I won't let you leave alone. If you really have to go, then I'll go with you. That's the only condition."

".....Saori."

Saori hung her head again. And seeing this, Sensei sighed and said.

"......Alright. I can't leave even if I wanted to right now anyway. Let's talk about it again later for now."

"....Understood."

And so, Sensei ended up staying at Saori's hideout for a while.

* * *

"The number is unavailable and has been forwarded to voicemail...."

"........."

A woman is constantly making calls that don't return. And she keeps looking at her smartphone and sighs deeply.

"........Where did he go.."

And she looked at the wanted poster. Sensei's face was on the wanted poster. And taking off her fox mask, she looked at the wanted poster with her bare face and said.

"It doesn't matter where you're hiding or where you've run off to. I'll find you, no matter what, Darling... Until I find you with my own hands... please wait..?"

And she put her mask back on and left. And all that remained in that place were the remains of what were once automatons, their forms lost and shattered.