12. Hikigaya Hachiman Takes Notice
"Good morning, Hachiman!"
"Well... good morning, Jabami."
In the continuous rain, Hikigaya had just gotten off the bus and opened his umbrella. He noticed a cheerful girl, dressed in a princess-cut style, waving at him from the platform. Her bright smile seemed to drive away some of the gloom of the rainy weather.
'From the extent to which her little boots are wet from the rain, it looks like she's been waiting for me for over ten minutes.'
Hikigaya walked over casually, pretending as if nothing was out of the ordinary, and walked alongside her.
"Oh, how annoying," Yumeko said, her words contradicting the broad smile on her face, which was so sweet that it seemed to almost overflow. "Aren't we already friends?"
"Just call me Yumeko~"
Hikigaya could even see the white breath coming from Yumeko's pink lips, sweet like honey, a misty, ethereal aura surrounding it.
His face reddened.
"Cough, uh, well... whatever makes you happy."
"By the way, Hachiman, I couldn't sleep last night because I was so excited. I wonder if today I'll be able to find a more interesting gambling game?"
When they reached the classroom door, the two stopped.
Hikigaya Hachiman, rarely surprised, looked inside.
Saotome Mary's desk was covered with colorful graffiti, marked with dirty and humiliating words.
[Go die, idiot]
[You deserve it, wryyyyy!]
[Mongrel!]
[Washboard, short, poor, lame!]
[Trash special student! Bottom of the bottom for life!]
There was even a doll resembling Saotome, her clothes ripped off and limbs broken, discarded on the desk like it was meant to shatter Saotome's self-esteem.
Saotome lowered her head, her hair covering her expression.
Behind her, pairs of malicious eyes filled the classroom with a gloom even darker than the weather. They watched her with gloating expressions, their glasses gleaming white, mouths twisted into smiles, ready to burst into laughter.
"Only the sun and human hearts cannot be looked at directly; human hearts are hell, others are hell."
Hikigaya's heart grew cold, and he sighed softly, realizing how much further he still had to go.
He had misjudged things.
He prided himself on being an observer of human nature, but he couldn't see through their hearts. He understood that Saotome's loss would inevitably lead to a terrible backlash, but he hadn't expected it to be this severe.
He looked around, at the people who had once feared Saotome, now showing their deadly fangs aimed directly at her, ready to deliver the fatal blow.
Twisted, frantic... everyone was already deep in a man-made hell, unable to escape the abyss of gambling.
But somehow, Hikigaya didn't feel fear or the urge to escape.
His long-dormant heart stirred with a faint but strong pulse.
He was excited.
"Heh."
"Saotome, what's going on here—"
Yumeko hurried over to Saotome Mary's side, her face full of worry and concern. "What happened? Is this bullying...?"
"Annoying!"
Before she could finish her sentence, Saotome growled lowly, interrupting her with a violent tone.
Clang—
The sound of chains echoed in the air, symbolizing humiliation. Saotome Mary gripped the "Stray cat" name tag tightly in her fist, her face contorted in a twisted snarl as she glared at Yumeko.
"It's because I lost to you that it turned out like this!"
The feast had begun—
"Hey, hey, hey, Saotome, put it on quickly!"
"Hurry up, put the name tag on! You have to put it on~"
"If you break the rules, your debt will increase!"
"Mongrel! Mongrel! Mongrel!"
The synchronized chants echoed, trampling on the heart of Saotome's fall into the abyss. Trembling, she lifted the mongrel tag and, with a flick of her twin tails, it was hung around her neck.
"Hahaha! She put it on!"
"Saotome-sama, hurry up and kneel down to be our footstool! Isn't that what you like best?!"
Once the stray cat tag was on, the three girls who had yelled the loudest rushed over, surrounding Saotome. They spat on her, and their hands pushed and shoved her.
Seeing that she still refused to kneel, they grew more vicious and issued their final ultimatum, "Hey, Saotome, do you want to go against the student council rules?"
"I..."
Saotome's tightly clenched fists showed signs of loosening, revealing her white fingernails, though the struggle was futile. At Hyakkaou Private Academy, winners stand tall, losers fall. Saotome Mary knew this all too well, as before her loss in the gamble with Hikigaya, she had always been the beneficiary of this system.
In this famous school, a class system existed, but it was not determined by academics, sports, or family background. Only the strength of one's gambling abilities mattered.
It was this system that allowed a student from a modest background, like her, to rise above the wealthy elite. Outside of school, her parents would only give her 10,000 yen to buy a gift for a rich friend's birthday. But here, she could control the wind, taking millions from the hands of the privileged.
Of course, the world is fair.
She could only fail once. After one failure, she would fall into the abyss of endless gambling.
She had already made peace with that fact.
Hikigaya calmly watched the scene unfold, with no intention of intervening.
No matter what terrible consequences Saotome had to face, they were the result of her own actions. He had already fulfilled his duties as a player in this game.
He respected the fate of his opponent and abandoned any thoughts of helping her.
At this point, if he were an ordinary protagonist of a typical story, he might have jumped out and yelled at the students bullying Saotome, "Enough! If you bully her, I'll bully you!" Such a clichéd and boring storyline.
But Hikigaya was no ordinary person. Life had never been smooth sailing for him. If he helped Saotome, he would be breaking the rules of this little society. And breaking the rules? Was Hikigaya Hachiman in a position to do that? Clearly not at this moment. Moreover, breaking the rules wouldn't benefit him in any way. What he needed to do was use the rules here to become a stepping stone for his own life.
Heroic acts of kindness? Too boring.
He watched as Saotome Mary, her fists still tightly clenched, refused to give up, but slowly lowered her proud head in front of the three girls, getting down on all fours and offering her back as a footstool. A look of admiration appeared in his eyes.
Saotome Mary... maybe she was the same kind of person as him.
Her fists remained clenched. The breath of pride in her heart hadn't dissipated. As long as she still had that breath of life, there was a chance to live.
After this crushing defeat, she might evolve into something even more terrifying.
Good luck, Saotome Mary. I acknowledge you.
Hikigaya Hachiman lightly patted Jabami Yumeko's back, signaling her to mind her own business. He guided her past the onlookers and into a corner of the classroom, where they began to pull out their books and study.
For Saotome Mary, the girl still holding onto some semblance of life, Hikigaya gave her the utmost respect.
The sky remained gloomy, but the heavy rain had ceased.
The first light of dawn was about to break through the clouds.