I Became a Time-stopping Narrow-eyed Character

Chapter 16

"Aaaaah!"

Right in front of the door was Ichimaru Shiki.

Kenichi screamed as if he had seen a ghost and fell backward.

Holding a steaming bowl, Shiki made a slightly hurt expression and spoke.

"Kenichi, if you're that scared, it makes me sad, you know? I even made porridge for you. Now, come on, open your mouth and say 'ah'!"

"......Why are you doing this?"

Of course, as someone who had been kidnapped, Kenichi felt neither joy nor comfort, only fear.

After narrowly escaping death and waking up, he found himself in a place he had never seen before.

'......What does he want from me?'

If his attitude had been consistent, Kenichi might have been able to predict his next move.

But Ichimaru Shiki, who always wore a sly grin, was someone impossible to read—whether he would nurse him back to health sincerely or beat him senseless.

......Just until the other day, Kenichi thought he knew him well, but now he couldn't tell which part was real anymore.

His former friend and current kidnapper, Shiki, still spoke with a smiling face.

"Haha, I told you, Kenichi. You have the duty to protect the world from now on!"

"No, I've never heard of such a duty......!"

"Ah, right. The other day, you also awakened the bloodline destined to fight monsters for life, didn't you?"

"......."

A destiny to protect the world.

A bloodline destined to fight monsters.

To Kenichi, who had lived as an ordinary person for the past seventeen years, it all sounded absurd.

To be precise, it felt surreal that someone he thought of as a friend suddenly kidnapped him and started spouting such nonsense.

An unfamiliar sensation he had never experienced before.

Yet, considering what he had seen so far, he couldn't completely ignore it.

'......Especially Shiki, this guy is dangerous.'

Kenichi was honestly afraid of Shiki.

Last time, in his panic, he hadn't noticed, but today he saw it clearly.

When Shiki drew his sword, the entire classroom..., no, the entire world seemed to freeze in place.

A truly unbelievable 'power.'

It was a sight too extraordinary to believe it had been caused by a single human.

Not to mention, his physical abilities seemed to surpass human limits as well.

Just by looking at his appearance, he seemed like a final boss, but the skills he hid inside were truly of a final boss level.

'Even while clashing swords, he kept smiling the whole time.......'

The way he relentlessly cornered Kenichi with a seemingly kind expression was truly bizarre.

It was beyond unsettling—to the point of being terrifying.

Rather than fighting this guy, it would be a hundred times better to play a game of cat and mouse with red oni in a school at night.

Thud.

As Kenichi scrambled backward and his back hit the wall, he hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"......Let's talk, let's have a conversation. Shiki......we're close friends, aren't we?"

"Haha, we're talking right now, aren't we? Oh, were you referring to a 'conversation of the body'?"

"......."

Kitagawa Kenichi finally realized.

That all the times he thought he had good conversations with Shiki in the past, it was actually because Shiki had been accommodating him.

Back then, their topics of conversation always aligned well.

But now, as Shiki continued to force the conversation, Kenichi felt like he was losing his mind just listening.

"......Ugh."

Watching Kenichi press himself even closer against the wall, Shiki slowly shook his head.

Despite his best intentions, it seemed his sincerity hadn't been properly conveyed.

It couldn't be helped.

"Hmm, if communication is this difficult, it's a mutual problem, so let's try a different method."

Saying so, Ichimaru Shiki handed the bowl of porridge to the servant, Dokomo, who was standing nearby, and then extended his hand to Kenichi, who was stuck to the wall.

"Kenichi, how about a walk to clear your head?"

"......What?"

The protagonist of 'Apocalypse Love Comedy,' Kitagawa Kenichi, stared blankly at Shiki's outstretched hand.

"......Alright."

Unable to muster the courage to refuse, he agreed.

***

"......Wow."

Kenichi, who had been trembling in fear and unable to appreciate Shiki's kind intentions, seemed to cheer up as soon as they stepped outside.

He exclaimed in awe as he looked around the Shihei Residence, where the darkness of night and the moonlight coexisted.

That reaction didn't change even when he encountered members of the family dressed in traditional attire—sorcerers.

'Is it really something to be this excited about?'

It felt like watching an orange puppy, cooped up at home for a long time, finally going out for a walk.

His personality was simpler than expected.

Kenichi ran around the gravel courtyard, his eyes widening at every sight—the pond where golden koi swam and the neatly arranged green bonsai.

"Wow! I've only seen a mansion like this in manga."

So, it's because of manga, huh.

If I had known he would enjoy it this much, I would've shown him around earlier instead of making porridge.

Thinking of the abalone porridge I had poured all my effort into, now left untouched, left a bitter taste in my mouth.

I worked so hard to make it.......

'I'll get my revenge during training later.'

Worried that he might try to escape, I had been quietly watching him from behind. Once we had roughly toured the mansion, I spoke to Kenichi.

"Alright, let's move on to the next location."

"......Where is that?"

As soon as I spoke, tension immediately spread through Kenichi's entire body.

Was he worried I'd beat him up again?

Since it would be troublesome if the protagonist, who was supposed to later defeat monsters with great vigor, fell into depression, I had no choice but to revise my plan.

"Hmm, I guess I'll have to beat you tomorrow instead of today."

"......What?"

"Haha, it's nothing!"

"......."

Kitagawa Kenichi made a sour face, but at least the news that he wouldn't be beaten today seemed to give him some courage, as he followed behind me with bold steps.

"Shiki-sama, good evening."

"Shiki-sama, if you can't sleep, would you grant me the honor of serving you personally..."

"Shiki-sama, the moon is beautiful tonight."

"Shiki-sama, I've acquired some rare tea leaves. If you feel like it, please visit my room..."

"Shiki-sama......"

Along the way, we encountered members of the Shihei Family several times. Each time, they greeted me warmly and treated me kindly, even though I was merely a guest.

They were truly good people.

However, Kenichi, for some reason, kept staring intently at the retreating figures of the servants and suddenly asked me.

"Shiki, what exactly do you do?"

His voice was filled with fear yet brimming with curiosity.

Sensing the potential for a closer relationship, I smiled and replied kindly.

"Hehe, are you curious? Kenichi, you can't even imagine how many things I've had to do to survive here."

"......What kind of things?"

"Ah, I've been through so many battlefields. You wouldn't believe how hard it was to adapt at first."

"......Battlefields?"

"McDonaldo, Dotteria, PapaTouch."

"......?"

"You could say I've conquered all the fast food joints in the area. Kenichi, you have no idea how many shifts I had to work to earn a living!"

"......."

After hearing my long-winded survival story, Kenichi briefly frowned but quickly returned to a kind expression when our eyes met.

"......Well, okay. If you don't want to tell me, I can't help it. But it's nighttime now, so what about school?"

"Hmm, it's nighttime because you were snoring away until now, Kenichi. As for school, I handled it by taking a sick leave for you! I even acted out that Kenichi was taken away in an ambulance due to a severe flu!"

"......Sick leave? An ambulance?"

Kenichi made a strange expression. Furrowing his brows, he spoke as if he couldn't understand.

"No, this isn't a hospital...... If I were taken away, wouldn't Hotaru have visited me?"

"Haha! I even got a large hospital in the city to cooperate, asking them to say that Kenichi was in critical condition and visits were prohibited! It was quite a simple task!"

"......."

After hearing about his own abduction process, Kenichi made a thoroughly exasperated face and silently followed behind me without saying another word.

The walk became a little dull, but since we were almost there, the boredom didn't last long.

Arriving at a building resembling a warehouse, I stopped before opening the door and heightened Kenichi's anticipation.

"Drumroll, aren't you curious about what's inside?"

"......Uh, yeah, I'm curious."

"Haha, I'm glad to hear that!"

"......."

"Alright, then I'll open it now!"

After confirming the anticipation of my one and only customer, I impulsively opened the door. The warehouse door opened easily, revealing the inside brightly.

"......This is."

Kenichi, who had briefly shown a dry reaction, stared blankly at the interior of the building.

Hidden inside was a pitch-black space.

But it wasn't just entirely dark.

Like stars, sparkling lights were scattered throughout the space, making it resemble the universe.

Even its seemingly infinite width.

The sensitive protagonist, Kenichi, seemed to like this place, unable to take his eyes off it.

"How is it? Do you like the new training ground?"

"Uh, the atmosphere is pretty...... huh? Wait, training ground?!"

Kenichi turned his head in shock, wearing an expression as if asking whether I wouldn't hit him earlier.

Well, as they say, a man's word is as good as gold. I wouldn't hit him unilaterally.

"But since time is limited, we must train, right?"

"You liar...!"

With a deeply frustrated expression, Kenichi shouted, and I kicked him in the butt.

Rolling across the floor, Kenichi followed behind me as I entered the inner space and closed the door.

─At that moment, all sound ceased.

Every tiny sound, from footsteps to breathing, and even the faint rustling of clothes and skin, disappeared entirely.

Kenichi, who had just composed himself, seemed to realize this as well and looked at me with a startled expression.

As always, the ever-kind gentleman, I merely smiled to reassure him.

This place was a universe crafted with sorcery and my abilities.

Naturally, no sound could be made here, and the space was almost infinite.

Moreover, it was unpredictable.

A space meticulously created to avoid being torn apart by the Demon Sword of Ineptitude.

This was Ichimaru Shiki's Room of Spirit and Time.

Though he probably couldn't hear me, I still felt good and spoke to him.

"Shall we start with ten times the normal intensity?"

Adjusting my sword, I took a step closer to the dumbfounded Kenichi.

Then, as he hastily summoned his sword, I showed him a slow, descending strike.

Boom─!

However, it was a powerful strike.

"......!"

Looking at Kenichi's bewildered expression, I, the kind tutor, reviewed my training plan.

Starting tomorrow, it would be the weekend.

So we had plenty of time.

"Haha, it'll be so much fun, won't it?"

Afterward, I continued to swing my sword with great delight.

***

"......O Hinokagutsuchi no Kami, I pray that my dear friend will recover from his illness. Please accept this offering and bestow your grace upon him."

The Priestess of Fire, Hotaru Ichinose, prayed to the god she served.

It was because her damn childhood friend, Kitagawa Kenichi, had suddenly fallen seriously ill and been hospitalized.

Wondering if he might be faking it, she checked her fortune, only to find he was indeed on the brink of death.

Though they had recently fought, he was still her best friend, so she offered a sincere ritual to the god.

With utmost devotion.

Perhaps thanks to that.

Three days later, from inside a building on the Shihei Family's mansion, two people emerged.

Having survived without dying, Kitagawa Kenichi looked at the clear sky and smiled brightly.

The body of an ordinary high school student had become as hard as steel and rugged like rock in just three days.

He had grown insanely strong.

Realizing this, Kenichi uttered a word of joy.

"Ken."

Behind him, Ichimaru Shiki wore a sorrowful expression.

"Well, he did get stronger, but......."

His intelligence had dropped.