Chapter 3: The Beautiful Girl Abandoned by the World

In all my life, I've never been ignored by people.

While I'm used to walking the path of a loner, I fortunately have a sense that I exist.

What happened to Orimoto?

After several days, there was no room for doubt that the female student called Orimoto was placed in an extraordinary situation.

That was the same impression from my perspective watching from the sidelines, not just from her own viewpoint as the subject.

「...No roll call today either.」

During this morning's homeroom.

After glancing at us, the homeroom teacher spoke the announcements as if it were completely business as usual.

(...Her complexion is awful.)

Dark circles are even showing under Orimoto's eyes. That she still falls within the category of a pitifully beautiful girl is probably because her features were well-formed to begin with.

Orimoto has no seat. But for these past few days, she comes to visit the class for brief moments like this, with an expression as if hoping for something, then turns on her heel.

By the time homeroom ends, Orimoto's figure is naturally gone. The wall clock is naturally moving.

I tried doubting myself, wondering if this was a dream.

I pinch my cheek. It hurts.

It's reality to a hopeless degree.

Her seat is gone.

Her existence is ignored.

She's getting thinner every day.

Even though she's someone I'd never have any involvement with, being shown such a death-like face every day makes me inevitably acknowledge her existence. Inevitably draws my interest.

「Hey.」

I ended up asking.

After homeroom ended, I tried asking a male student, someone I'm not close with but occasionally exchange greetings with, another subtle relationship, if he knew a female student named Orimoto.

But if I asked wrong, I might get attacked with "Of course you'd know her, are you crazy?" so I came up with what I thought was a good question, "What do you think of Orimoto?"

The result confirmed that this was indeed an abnormal situation.

Something about this is definitely wrong. I don't know the reason, basis, or proof, but it's definitely wrong.

「Orimoto? Who's that?」

This is the answer my not-quite-acquaintance gave. He seems genuinely puzzled.

There wasn't any stale atmosphere like he was being threatened by a ringleader to ignore her, or ignoring her as a result of hating Orimoto, just a tone of voice where he genuinely didn't know who this person called Orimoto was.

With my limited social connections, asking him is my limit, I can't get other cases.

But it's enough to make me think something's going on.

──At one point.

As if to support this phenomenon, Orimoto took action. In a big way.

─────

During class. It was an ordinary class period.

Some dozing off. Some diligently taking notes. Some secretly fiddling with their smartphones. Each doing their own thing in this typically student-like space. Incidentally, I'm the type who fights drowsiness, secretly touches my smartphone, and occasionally takes notes.

Several days since heroine Orimoto Suzuka started being ignored.

──That's when it happened. Orimoto, who had appeared in the classroom, clicked her way up to the teacher's podium.

「I can't stand it anymore! I'll show them!」

A voice driven by momentum that didn't belong in a boring math class reverberated against the walls.

Her chestnut-colored hair sways softly.

Eyes that seemed somehow distant, chilling, hypnotic, still her but somehow not her, with an eerie quality.

(What is she doing?)

What is she trying to do?

What is she about to cause?

Right now it's class time, and while there's some faint chatting, the overall atmosphere is wrapped in quiet.

This is completely out of place from start to finish, and I stop moving my mechanical pencil.

──I've never thought of Orimoto as annoying.

I don't find excellent people annoying in the first place, nor do I think about ostracizing and crushing them.

「Pay attention! Look, everyone! I think you can't ignore this, what do you think?」

It started with that one word.

The rough breathing was Orimoto's.

「I exist. I'm here.」

Her hair swayed even more. Her words trembled, and looking at her fingertips, they were trembling too.

Orimoto seemed possessed.

On the blackboard, characters were written large by Orimoto, who had grabbed the chalk as if snatching it. Filling up the board covered in mathematical formulas. The handwriting was quite beautiful and eye-catching in its own way, but the content carried an intense shock.

The formulas became unreadable, but the teacher didn't warn her about it. The students are following the teacher's lead too.

「Can't you really see me even with this?! I don't understand why I'm being bullied, why?!」

What's more, the students continued taking notes as if they could see the formulas and answers, and the breathing-mixed chatter continued as its. The minute hand of the clock kept intrusively entering my field of vision, making me feel annoyed and uncomfortable.

【I AM HERE】

Six characters. Just six characters dominated the blackboard. Six characters filled the green board.

Orimoto's rampage doesn't end.

She came down from the platform and stood in front of a certain student. Then she picked up their notebook. This student was supposedly good friends with Orimoto. You couldn't see their true feelings, but that's what they were rumored to be on the surface. Orimoto dangled the stolen notebook around.

Common sense would dictate either asking for the notebook back or getting irritated and fighting back.

However, she showed neither of those reactions.

「Huh, where's my notebook?」

The girl started checking inside her desk and bag with a puzzled look. She doesn't notice it swaying above her head. Orimoto smiled sadly.

「It becomes invisible, doesn't it? I knew it.」

Orimoto released the notebook. Immediately, while showing a color of uncertainty saying "Found it", that female student began taking notes from the board again.

Orimoto wanders around the classroom again.

Her firm steps seemed to show that Orimoto was normal, but what she was doing was outrageous, and I was scared to watch.

Next, Orimoto grabbed another student's arm.

They flinched and seemed slightly hurt, but when Orimoto let go, they reacted as if Orimoto weren't there, saying "It suddenly started hurting~"

「......I knew it. Everything.」

After making another round, Orimoto scratched her cheek.

In a lonely tone, she murmurs, "I see".

Strangely, that way of smiling closely resembled how Orimoto looked when she was rejected by Sera. But this time she seems to be lamenting more tragically than the previous incident. She may have leaped beyond resignation to what should really be called despair.

I see. I see, I see.

I see. This is, in the end.

(Seriously?)

I had entertained the ridiculous fantasy of "maybe they can't see her", but that was taking on an air of reality, which means the possibility that this falls under the category of supernatural phenomena has even emerged.

The fact that Orimoto's supplies had suddenly disappeared.

The fact that there's little basis for this being bullying.

The fact that she's not the type to be bullied.

I knew I should do something. What could I, facing this beautiful girl who's a stranger living in a different world, possibly do? I don't know.

Moreover, if this were bullying, then all the more so. If I stick my neck in, at worst I could become the target.

(But this is different.)

What should I do?

Only I can see her.

Probably, that's a fact. The reason, basis, and evidence are all unclear, and nothing but unknowns spread endlessly, but probably, maybe. Maybe.

(I don't understand what the hell this is...)

I'm just an ordinary person. A mob character at that.

What can I, who loves peace and hates having it disturbed, possibly do? Why me in the first place? Sera would be fine. Or some other handsome guy.

The questions maintained their form as questions and kept wandering on their own. ──But, however.

『......Kasugai-kun?』

The day when I would be discovered by the girl called Orimoto Suzuka was actually just around the corner.