Death

Bai Yuze walked into a store, planning to buy some daily necessities and the items on his list.

For some reason, he glanced around and spotted a girl furtively looking this way and that.

Since Bai Yuze was behind her, she hadn't noticed him.

"I think her name is Kamuro Masumi."

While Bai Yuze was trying to remember, Kamuro moved. She pretended to browse the items, then, in the instant she turned her back to the security camera, slipped a can of soda into the bag she was carrying.

Bai Yuze, who had witnessed everything, could only think: What a show!

Knowing that Kamuro had a shoplifting habit, Bai Yuze stepped forward to greet her.

"Hey, classmate. That's not very polite."

Kamuro jumped at the sound of Bai Yuze's voice. She glared at him and cursed.

"Are you crazy? Don't suddenly start talking to someone right next to them, asshole!"

"Okay, that was my fault. But could you put back what's in your bag?"

Bai Yuze smiled, then got straight to the point.

"What stuff?"

Kamuro watched Bai Yuze warily, her hand unconsciously tightening around her handbag.

"It's not too late to fix this. I'd advise you to behave yourself."

Thud!

"Sorry."

Since Bai Yuze and Kamuro were standing together and blocking the aisle, a student accidentally bumped into Bai Yuze.

"It's okay."

Bai Yuze didn't mind. He stepped back to let the student pass.

"Hmph! Since you've already seen it, I'll stop pretending. But I didn't hear a phone camera shutter, so you don't have any proof, do you?"

Kamuro mocked him. Bai Yuze felt a little helpless, since phones here made a shutter sound when taking pictures. It was hard to do it without anyone noticing.

"Heh, classmate, looks like your act of justice is going to fail."

Kamuro gave Bai Yuze a scornful smile, then walked out of the store with a spring in her step.

Once outside, Kamuro smugly waved the bag in her hand at Bai Yuze.

A blade sliced through flesh with a sharp sound, and Kamuro's steps froze.

The next second, her head separated from her body.

Kamuro was dead.

Bai Yuze stared at the scene in disbelief. The girl who had been full of life just moments ago now lay on the ground, decapitated.

"Wasn't the punishment supposed to be paying back ten times the price or working it off?"

Bai Yuze carefully recalled the rules.

"Caught by a store clerk!"

Bai Yuze understood. If a store clerk caught someone stealing, they could still survive. But if they weren't caught, some bizarre force would kill the thief outright.

What surprised Bai Yuze even more was that the people in the store seemed used to this sort of thing. They simply carried on with what they were doing.

"Tsk. Every day, there are people who spend all their points, can't survive, and try to get things for free. What a bunch of trash."

"Haha, though that girl was pretty cute. If I'd known she was having such a hard time, I would've... Hehehe."

The two store clerks made no attempt to hide their malice. They assumed Kamuro was one of those second-year students who had spent all their points.

This made Bai Yuze curious. Weren't daily necessities and food available for free? Why would anyone be unable to survive?

Bai Yuze picked up a bottle of soda and headed to the register. After paying, he casually slipped the drink into his pocket, then pretended to be a second-year student and struck up a conversation with the clerks.

"Hey, you two. How's work? Are you both numb to this sort of thing by now?"

Bai Yuze asked casually.

"Ugh, don't even ask. People are dying in front of me all the time. I'm so sick of it."

Seeing a chance to vent, one of the chubby clerks immediately complained.

The other, a thin clerk, watched Bai Yuze warily.

"What do you want?"

"Me? What would I want? Hardly anyone in my class talks to me, and I don't want to go back to the dorm, so I thought I'd chat with you two."

"Hahahaha! What class are you in, kid? Hardly anyone talks to you? Did too many people in your class die?"

The chubby clerk slapped Bai Yuze on the shoulder and laughed. Bai Yuze couldn't laugh at what he'd said.

When the thin clerk heard Bai Yuze say he didn't want to go back to the dorm, he suddenly seemed lost in memories. He gave a cold laugh.

"Heh. Dormitory. Such a warm yet disgusting name."

Seeing the thin clerk look as if he were reminiscing about the past, Bai Yuze felt a little puzzled.

But the chubby clerk quickly cleared up his confusion.

"Hahaha, Lao Gao used to be a student at this school too."

"Heh. That's ancient history. You've paid, so hurry up and leave."

Lao Gao abruptly ended the conversation. Bai Yuze had no choice but to leave the store.

Outside, Kamuro's body still lay on the ground. Bai Yuze felt conflicted. Someone had died in front of him on the bus too, but those people had all come back to life.

Kamuro, lying on the ground, showed no sign of coming back to life.

Bai Yuze sighed and reached into his pocket for the soda.

The next moment, he froze.

Bai Yuze stared in disbelief as he pulled something out of his pocket with a trembling hand.

A piece of candy...

"When... when did this happen?"

Bai Yuze looked at the candy that had suddenly appeared in his pocket, his hand trembling.

Suddenly, his memories came flooding back.

"Sorry." "It's okay."

"It was him!"

Bai Yuze remembered the student who had "accidentally" bumped into him.

"Fuck! I got played!"

Bai Yuze was devastated and filled with regret. He should have realized it sooner. This was a bizarre school where people died at the drop of a hat. In an atmosphere steeped in despair, some people were bound to develop a desire for revenge against society.

Bai Yuze looked up and met the eyes of the student who had bumped into him earlier. The other boy looked at him with a mocking expression.

"You bas—"

Bai Yuze tried to run over, but his legs felt as if they were made of lead. He couldn't move.

He felt as if his heart were about to explode. Helpless and despairing, he fell to the ground and clutched his chest.

But the bizarre force didn't stop, even as he suffered.

At last, Bai Yuze's heart stopped beating. His eyes went blank, and his pupils dilated...

The killer sauntered over to Bai Yuze and searched his body.

"Well, look at that! He's got over ninety thousand points! What a windfall!"

The killer smiled and patted Bai Yuze's face. He didn't bother searching Kamuro's body.

In his eyes, Kamuro was just another worthless piece of trash with nothing to her name. Touching a corpse like that would only dirty his hands.

And her looks? Please. Once you had points, it wasn't hard to find girls. The killer grinned wickedly, imagining himself surrounded by beautiful women.

Bai Yuze could sense everything happening around him. He wanted to roar, to open his eyes, but he couldn't do anything. He could only helplessly feel his consciousness slipping away.

"Am I going to die? I really can't accept this."

Just then, Bai Yuze sensed a flash of red light.

"What's that... the orb?"

Bai Yuze found himself in a space where the only light came from a vermilion glow.

Whoosh!

The vermilion light suddenly began to expand. Bai Yuze closed his eyes instinctively. When he opened them again...

He found himself back in the store.

A girl was furtively looking around, and Bai Yuze was standing behind her...