Chapter 384
There are Kirishima Ai and Takanashi.
And the president.
What hurt her even more was that these bubbles contained images of them spending time with Haihara.
What exactly does this mean?
Although the meaning was unclear to others, Sakaki Chika understood almost instantly what the woman was about to say.
Even so, she still didn't want to face it.
The woman pointed to each picture and patiently explained—
"This child's name is Kirishima Ai, right?"
"Although she originally had no connection with Teacher Haihara, just like you, she was more conspicuous and courageous than you."
"Children who cry and fuss always attract more attention and love from their mothers."
"She's always bickering with Teacher Haihara, whom you like. She's willful, stubborn, and clumsy, but without realizing it, Teacher Haihara is looking at her more often than at you."
Sakaki Chika acted as if she hadn't heard anything, showing no reaction whatsoever, only lowering her head even further.
This reaction did not surprise Tachibana.
She stretched out her finger and casually popped the bubble containing Kirishima Ai and Haihara, then looked at the person in the next bubble.
Her gaze turned colder when she saw the bubble:
"And her, Kazama Kiriori."
"Isn't she the person you admire the most?"
"She's better than you in every way, and she also has the relationship you crave most. She's spent the most time with Teacher Haihara, so she's definitely the most important person in the world to Teacher Haihara."
"With Teacher Haihara, she can hug me whenever she wants, kiss me whenever she wants, and sleep with me whenever she wants."
"Maybe they'll grant you even more outrageous requests."
"How wonderful it would be if Teacher Haihara were my mother! But why does Kazama Kiriori, who is already so outstanding and lucky, still want to take things from you?"
The woman spoke in a cheerful voice, as if coaxing a child.
But every word sounded so harsh to Sakaki Chika.
Because every word a woman says reflects, in the eyes of the young girl, her own ugliest thoughts.
These thoughts made her feel ashamed and disgusted, and she even felt an unspeakable shame when she was with other friends.
"Even Takanashi seems to be secretly having a closer, ambiguous relationship with Teacher Haihara."
Why does Teacher Haihara show more favoritism towards them than towards you?
Why do they all want to take away what you have left?
That's outrageous!
She lamented.
Sakaki Chika kept shaking her head, trying to justify herself:
"It's not... like that..."
The girl's face showed a mixture of fear and anger; although she was timid most of the time, she could occasionally turn into a terrifying hysteriac.
This is exactly the kind of look Tachibana wanted to see.
Suddenly, Tachibana revealed a radiant and beautiful smile, more captivating than before, and no one could resist being moved by it.
"But it's alright."
"I will help you fulfill your wish."
"I've already sent Little Prison Flower and the others to help you deal with those troublesome and annoying 'friends.' They're quite excellent; after all, they're the result of my hard work."
Another bubble has appeared.
This time, it's a scene of Magic girls being attacked by hordes of "Prison Flower".
Although none of them individually rival the Magic girls of today, the sheer number of Prison Flower is almost despair-inducing.
"With these..."
Previously, Sakaki Chika had only wavered, but this time she seemed to finally be moved.
Ignoring the vines binding her, she began to struggle, but without her transformation, her body was too weak.
Even with her wrists and ankles chafed and bleeding from the rough, sharp vines, she couldn't break free.
"They are more capable than you think."
"Furthermore, even the strongest among you, Xiao Thousand Sins, has plenty of ways to deal with her after entering this world. For example, guess what special abilities this tree possesses?"
The Demon King spoke leisurely.
However, Sakaki Chika did not continue to listen to her, but instead continued to waste her energy in what she considered foolish.
That's all I have to say.
It wasn't until Sakaki Chika was tightly bound by the vines, clenching her teeth and making painful noises, that she finally lost the strength to struggle.
Then, they were completely plunged into despair.
Her eyes dimmed, and her face turned a pitifully pale white.
At this moment, Tachibana slowly approached Chika again.
She stroked Sakaki Chika's face, like a mother, gently pressing her forehead against Sakaki Chika's:
"From now on, just listen to me."
"It's painful, it's very sad, isn't it?"
"If you're feeling down, talk about it. Confide in someone you like, because giving pain is a true form of love."
"You hope someone will come to your rescue in a situation like this, right?"
That was Sakaki Chika's deepest wish.
Not just at this moment.
Rather, it refers to every moment of the past.
When you are in pain, sad, tired, or helpless.
When she felt hopeless, she would silently cry out, "I'm so desperate, someone please save me."
"If only a mature and reliable adult, like a real mother, could come and save me."
"So, now, tell me your wish."
"Tremble like a little rabbit, beg her for help just like before, and then kind-hearted Teacher Haihara will come to your rescue."
The scene before her eyes was reflected in Sakaki Chika's pupils.
Her gaze was momentarily blank and lifeless, filled only with despair and the instinctive urge to cry out for help in her fear.
The image shows a gloomy, black-haired girl of high school age.
She seems to be walking towards the firm.
Although reason tells me this is dangerous, this is a trap.
But her vulnerable self kept saying she hoped someone would come and save her, just like before.
Then, Sakaki Chika opened her lips, trembling.
Her lips touched back and forth.
When I finally mustered the courage to make a sound, it all stopped abruptly.
Hurry up...
If you just ask her for help.
Ask your teacher for help.
She couldn't hold on any longer...
However---
"..."
For a moment, Tachibana looked confused and surprised.
She saw that Sakaki Chika, who had been swaying unsteadily, had completely closed her mouth and eyes, and would no longer look at Haihara in the picture.
The girl, without her voice trembling, said:
"I don't need..."
"Even if Teacher Haihara doesn't need me, it doesn't matter, just stop talking."
She seemed to have given up on herself.
Yet it was as if they had made up their minds and mustered their courage.
It seems that everything Tachibana just said has become a mere scrap of paper.
Soon, Tachibana's expression changed from gentle to dark.
Until his gaze turned cold.
"Looks like you're just like Ailu, you're not obedient at all."
Her tone was full of disappointment.
After that, Sakaki Chika discovered that the vines binding her had suddenly begun to loosen.
But instead, the bubbles behind Tachibana gradually coalesced, constructing a distorted picture in front of Sakaki Chika.
The scene depicts Sakaki Chika's most terrifying past.
Her old home, cluttered with empty bottles and covered in IOUs.
She instinctively wanted to back away, but Tachibana gently stroked her back, and then she felt the woman pushing her.
It's time to teach this disobedient brat a lesson.
The woman gently stroked her back, but she wouldn't heed the girl's pleas; she would unhesitatingly subject the girl to the most terrifying experiences.
"Then, let me show you for sure what kind of person your grandmother would be without Star Flower, without all the help I've given you, and what awaits you there."
"In time, you will understand what you truly want."
The next moment, Sakaki Chika Tachibana pushed into the nightmare woven by the Demon King by Tachibana.
It seemed that endless despair awaited her.
This time, there won't be a reliable adult to save her.
Chapter 151 Sakaki Chika's Past (Please refresh this chapter)
Everything here reminded Sakaki Chika of the nightmare created by the Nightmare Dragon Crystal.
At that time, she also dreamed about everything she feared.
However, that nightmare was very short-lived.
But this time, the nightmare brought back to her everything from the past she wanted to forget and never look back on, in such a clear and real way.
Before her lay the gray-toned remnants of her past "home".
The air was filled with the aroma of alcohol.
There were rolled glass bottles on the ground, which made Sakaki Chika subconsciously walk more carefully, because she still instinctively remembered that the man would sometimes accidentally break the bottles, and she had once been cut on the foot by a shard of glass, which prevented her from training for a week.
Her face changed from initial confusion to deathly pale and panicked.
Why did she come back here?
After that man disappeared from her life, she clearly sold the house and threw away everything in it, so why did this place reappear in front of her?
Her first instinct was to go to the front door of her house, wanting to escape.
She looked panicked and tried to press the doorknob, making several creaking sounds, but she couldn't open the door.