Villain: Your Heroines Were Delicious

Chapter 100: Chapter 21

A few minutes after Yukina’s departure, Renji and Sakai began to stir, groggily coming back to consciousness.

Like Shou, the immediate return of physical pain was quickly overshadowed by the crushing memory of the fight with Ayano.

Renji pressed his hands over his face, frustration evident in his posture.

Sakai simply stared at his colossal hands, which had proved utterly useless against Ayano’s Karyoku.

They kept blaming themselves, the realization of their weakness a far sharper pain than any broken bone.

Just then, the door opened.

Seijirou, his movements stiff but determined, walked in, he was heavily wrapped in bandages—his torso, arms, and even a faint bruise on his cheek peeking out from beneath a patch.

He offered a genuine, warm smile. “Glad to see all of you are finally alright.”

At that moment, the raw, shared shame and loyalty boiled over.

Sakai, Renji, and Shou all stood up instantly, ignoring their aches. One by one, they knelt in front of him, their heads bowed low.

“Boss, we are sorry!” Renji exclaimed, his voice tight.

“We were too weak!” Shou added, his head bowed lower than the others.

“We broke our promise,” Sakai rumbled, his voice heavy with self-loathing. “You should always be able to rely on us, but we failed.”

Seijirou stared at his three most devoted followers, and je couldn’t help but chuckle softly at the sheer drama and dedication.

“Alright, get up,” he instructed gently. “You’re still injured. Don’t strain yourselves like that.”

They didn’t move, so Seijirou walked toward them.

“Look at me,” he commanded, his voice firm but kind. “You shouldn’t blame yourselves. Ayano used powers beyond anything we had faced before. Even I was thoroughly beaten by that guy. We all share this defeat.”

He then injected a touch of his old arrogance, hoping to snap them out of their self-pity. “Or are you implying that you are stronger than me because you think that you should have been able to beat Ayano, even though I couldn’t?”

The three men immediately snapped out of their misery.

“We don’t dare!” they said in unison.

They slowly looked up, their eyes fixed on the painful sight of the bandages covering Seijirou’s body.

In that moment, a unified, unspoken oath was forged.

“Never again,” Shou vowed, his eyes burning.

“We will be your shield,” Renji stated, his resolve hardening.

“And your sword,” Sakai finished, his massive fist clenched. “We will protect you and destroy your enemies!”

“We swear, that nothing like this will ever happen again!”

Seijirou stared at their faces, filled with renewed, unwavering determination, and be couldn’t help but smile genuinely.

He was truly lucky to have friends who were willing to walk into fire and blades with him.

He reached out, patted each of their shoulders, and helped them stand up. “Good. I will rely on you. And I need to rely on you soon. After all, I promised Ayano that I will thrash Saint Shinomiya High in exactly one month. I need all of your help for that.”

Just as Seijirou finished speaking, the door opened again. Suzune, Haruka, Yukina, and Emi entered, all looking refreshed and excited.

But they were immediately followed by an unexpected addition: Retsu, still wearing her crisp white coat, carrying a briefcase, and radiating an unsettling air of professional calm.

Seijirou blinked in surprise. “Retsu? Why are you here? Isn’t it a weekday? Aren’t you supposed to be at school?”

Retsu offered a faint, unsettlingly satisfied smile. “Seijirou-kun, I only became a school nurse in the first place because you were a student there. Since you are currently injured and here, my duties have shifted. And obviously, the school administration wouldn’t dare interfere with me.”

She then turned toward Shou, Sakai, and Renji, offering a polite nod. “I am glad to see you are all awake, just in time.”

She placed the briefcase on a table and opened it, revealing strange vials and tools. “I have already made the necessary preparations for you all to awaken your Karyoku.”

The announcement sent a palpable jolt of energy through the room.

Suzune let out a small gasp of excitement.

Haruka and Emi exchanged a silent, determined look.

Yukina was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

The intensity was highest in the three men who had just sworn their oath. Shou, Renji, and Sakai now had a direct path to fulfilling their vow—a chance to bridge the gap between their mortal limits and the supernatural threat they faced.

The excitement in their eyes eclipsed the pain of their wounds.

Retsu gestured for everyone to sit down, her tone switching into a purely educational register. “Take a seat. I will explain the process and the dangers involved. It must be done correctly and safely.”

She then looked directly at Seijirou, her eyes softening. “However, after this detailed explanation and the preliminary process, I will take Seijirou-kun with me. We have an appointment to meet my grandfather to begin your Ki training.”

Seijirou nodded seriously, recognizing the shift in his life and the monumental task ahead.

His revenge had officially entered the supernatural phase.

*

*

*

Kobayashi estate.

In a beautiful space shaded by a century-old pine tree.

Kobayashi Eijisai stood patiently, his kimono rustling in the morning breeze.

Rindou stood opposite him, perfectly composed in her white kendo uniform, her long, glossy black hair pulled back tightly into a high ponytail, emphasizing the sharp determination in her features.

Eijisai assessed his granddaughter.

“Rindou,” he asked, a hint of dry humor in his voice, “is it truly alright for the Student Council President to skip school for what will be a physically demanding, month-long training regimen?”

Rindou nodded crisply. “Grandfather, I have already taken all necessary precautions. I briefed my vice president, who is capable enough to manage the routine affairs. Furthermore, I contacted my homeroom teacher and informed the school administration that I will be traveling abroad immediately for emergency surgery. I claimed I discovered a rare, severe terminal disease that no doctor in our country can fix.”

Of course, she had requested help but Restu-sensei.

Eijisai stared at her, genuinely dumbfounded by the clinical efficiency and blatant lie.

He had expected a note about a family trip, not a detailed, life-threatening medical fabrication.

He simply shook his head, a ghost of a smile touching his lips as he now finally understood the level of commitment she now possessed.

“Very well,” he conceded. “Let us begin. I will need to determine the natural speed of your Spirit Circuit activation and the size of your Ki reserve.”

*

*

*

Meanwhile, back at Shunji Highschool, in the familiar, stifling atmosphere of class 1-A, the absences were keenly felt.

Tachibana Rei sat at her desk, staring at the conspicuously empty seats belonging to Haruka and Seijirou. Her face was drawn, etched with worry that went beyond the usual concern for absent friends.

She didn’t know how long they would be gone, but she estimated that it’s probably probably around a month at the longest.

Rei knew Seijirou and Haruka’s grades were impeccable; they probably didn’t have to worry about the triviality of exams or attendance.

Instead, those two have more important things to worry about.

In one month, they were going to fight that prestigious school and its supernatural gang in one month.

Rei felt a surge of helplessness. She wasn’t brave nor strong enough to ask Retsu to train her in Karyoku, and she had no Spirit Circuits either.

She wondered desperately if she could somehow help them—perhaps through research, or administrative support, something, anything to contribute to the coming war.

Rei was so lost in her spiral of anxiety and self-doubt that she didn’t notice her childhood friend, Tadano Taro, calling out to her name.

“Rei? Reeeeiii? Are you listening?” Taro asked, annoyed by her distant expression.

He reached out and, attempting to gain her attention, grabbed her shoulder.

But at that moment, the subtle friction of his touch against her uniform, the sudden, unsolicited violation of her personal space, was all it took.

Rei’s entire body shuddered violently, a flash of pure, adrenaline-fueled fear shooting through her.

Her mind immediately flashed back to the moment the stalker had almost got her, followed by the terrifying, brutal memory of Basuta’s attempted kidnapping and assault.

Her trauma immediately flared up.

She stood up abruptly, slapping Taro’s hand away with startling force, and backed away from her desk, breathing heavily.

Her eyes were wide, darting around the classroom in terror as she felt her chest tighten and her peripheral vision darken.

The classroom sounds, the rustle of papers, the low whispers of students, all became a deafening, distant roar.

A few moments later, through sheer force of will, Rei finally managed to calm herself down.

Her vision cleared, and her breathing slowly returned to normal, though her heart was still hammering against her ribs.

She stared at Taro, who was standing frozen, looking at her in shock and genuine disbelief.

Rei immediately realized the severity of what she had just done. She had lashed out at her childhood friend, mistaking him for a threat.

“Taro-kun, I am so sorry!” she apologized immediately, her face pale and remorseful. “I didn’t mean to do that. It was just… reflex.”

Her voice was still shaky, but she still looked at him directly in the eye, the fear returning slightly. “But please, you must never do that again in the future. Don’t touch me without warning.”

Taro remained utterly silent, still reeling from the shock that his gentle childhood friend would physically reject him so violently.

He wasn’t thinking about the trauma she had endured from the stalker or whatever incidents; he was only thinking about himself and the public humiliation.

In the highly competitive Shunji Highschool, Tadano Taro was not the smartest, not the strongest, and not particularly talented.

He was the epitome of mediocrity

His single source of validation, the one thing that gave him superiority over other male students, was his perceived closeness to Rei, one of the most beautiful and popular girls in school.

And now, Rei had openly humiliated him?

What would those guys think of him now? They would believe he was nothing to her, robbing him of his only source of status and pride!

Just then, Taro seemed to notice a few of his male classmates in the back of the room subtly jeering and making fun of him, their muffled laughter sharp and cutting.

This infuriated Taro, as it struck directly at the core of his self-esteem.

However, before Taro could voice his hurt or anger, Rei was immediately surrounded by a knot of concerned female friends who had noticed the fear and distress in her face.

They flocked to her, asking if she was okay, if she needed to see the nurse, or if she wanted to leave the classroom.

Taro was pushed aside, made invisible by the sudden wave of concern for Rei.

He felt his face burn with shame.

He stared at Rei surrounded by friends, and without another word, he simply decided to leave the classroom, fleeing from the students he was sure were secretly making fun of him and whispering about his perceived weakness.

As he walked down the empty hall, the anger festered.

He couldn’t help but hate Rei a little for what she had done.

’She shouldn’t have embarrassed me like that. I was just trying to call out to her!’

He failed to see that he was prioritizing his ego over her psychological well-being.