Chapter 48: The Occult Club [1]

After Donald and Roy settled in, they narrated almost everything that occurred on the expedition to their grandmother, which was actually a bad idea because she went hysterical when she heard that the Rank 1 Gate they challenged was a false gate.

The day went by leisurely, and night fell unceremoniously.

During dinner, Donald suggested they buy a new car with some of the money, since the current sedan was far too small and leaving Nana without a vehicle when they traveled wasn’t nice. Nana and Roy agreed with him, and the latter suggested they get a bold, robust black pick-up truck.

Shortly after, Roy returned to his room for the night, having ignored the warm feeling in his chest for some time now.

He sat on his bed and summoned the neon cube.

“With the constant restarts, I’ve been spending a lot of time signed in,” Roy muttered.

~Tap to sign in~

Roy wasted no time and tapped on the cube. After the usual vertigo, he found himself in his Nullspace.

The monotone voice of his system welcomed him back, and the world of LOVE.exe materialized over the empty space.

Pierre was in his usual seat when the familiar pink panel appeared.

[Welcome back, Host, to Highschool Re:Date to Live, Live to LOVE.exe! It’s another day to fall in love again!]

[Host, choose one of the following options to continue:

(A) Restart simulation;

(B) Continue from last checkpoint.]

Pierre didn’t hesitate. He tapped Option A.

[You have selected Option (A), restarting the simulation in 10…]

Roy leaned forward. “Let’s see if you can actually find it.”

The countdown ended, and Pierre woke up in his bed at Level 1.

Roy immediately switched to real-world time and watched Pierre rush through the levels with efficiency. Level 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7—all cleared in rapid succession.

Then came Level 8.

+

[Main Story #8 — The Devil Wears Glasses]

Current Stage: Class A — 1st Semester, 2nd Year.

Target: [Hanabira Reina].

Story Description: “Hanabira Reina is President of the Occult Club, and has always set her eyes on anything spiritual, mystical, and rumors say—demonic. Smart, logical, and bespectacled, she is seen as an outcast and feared by all. No one knows she bears a lonely heart beneath her big chest. Oh, who can come to her rescue?”

Difficulty: MEDIUM.

[…]

+

Pierre chose the Goth-style uniform again and left his house.

[Day 1 – 5: During school days, you maintained your distance from Hanabira Reina and engaged more of your classmates, teachers, and others in casual conversations.

You began exploring the school, visiting areas you had never visited before. You start keeping a collection of colourful rocks found around school, believing they have some value.]

[+20 Reputation.]

[Day 8: After school, you stop by the Occult Club and are surprised to find that it only has two members, other than Hanabira Reina. You introduce yourself and mention that your reason for joining the Occult Club is that you like Reina-san. The other two members are shocked. Reina-san blushes and proceeds with the meeting…]

[+10 Affection.]

“First, I would like us to share our individual experiences with the paranormal. S-So, who wants to start?” Reina asked.

One of the other two members, aside from Reina, was a chubby girl with a bowl cut and glasses.

“Once again, my name is Kirishima Ayame. Last holiday, my dad took my brother and me to our village, and there were quite a number of traditions to keep demonic spirits out of your house. It was said that a long time ago, a malevolent spirit once possessed a boy. He slit the throats of his parents and then killed himself.

“I thought they were just trying to scare us, but every night, I heard someone knock at our door. The first time I heard the knock, I went to open the door. I don’t know what would have happened if my dad hadn’t stopped me.”

Right then, time slowed down, and three options appeared before Pierre.

[A: Remain silent.]

[B: *Laugh* Do you guys really believe in folktales and ghosts?]

[C: Did you ever catch a glimpse of what the door?]

Pierre thought for only a second and chose Option C. He had always chosen A before.

’I have to be more active in the club activities this time. Who knows, the secret level might just be here…’

Pierre asked his question, and Ayame nodded.

“That first time I heard the knock and went to open the door, I saw the shadow of a boy from underneath the door. I believe it is the ghost of that boy who killed his parents.”

Reina clapped. “Wow, that is amazing, Ayame-chan. Did you bring back any souvenirs?”

“N-No, just a talisman to ward off evil spirits.”

Pierre was a bit shaken by Reina’s jovial response to matters of slit throats and a haunted village. Her weird fascination was something he was used to already after the number of retries.

“That is great. Kurosaki-san, do you have anything you would like to share?”

Kurosaki Choji seemed to ponder for a few seconds.

“I don’t have any recent experiences. Sorry.”

“Hm, okay. How about you, Pierre-san?”

[A: There’s nothing.]

[B: Lie.]

[C: I don’t like ghosts.]

’I always say there’s nothing.’ This time, Pierre chose Option B and lied.

“Back home, there was a time I woke up in the middle of the night because of a heavy knocking sound from my wardrobe. I thought it was a mouse, but when I opened the wardrobe, there was nothing. I brought out all my clothes and slept, but that same night, it started again. I knew it wasn’t normal, so I stayed underneath my blanket. I only got up when the sun came out.”

“Your story reminds me of the ghost in the girls’ locker room,” Kirishima-san, the chubby, bespectacled girl, said.

And Pierre asked, “What ghost?”

“You haven’t heard?” Kurosaki Choji voiced. “They say there’s a red-gloved ghost haunting our school. It bangs on the girls’ lockers and weeps at night, according to the rumours.”

Reina smiled widely and clasped her hands.

“H-Heh. Today’s assignment was going to be writing an essay on an urban legend from your hometown, but why don’t we investigate this case instead? As the Occult Club, it is our duty to get to the bottom of things like this in our school…”

’This is different,’ Roy thought.

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