Insidiamini

(…)

"I want Kaede Sugimoto to die. Again."

Those words coming out of Kobayashi's mouth sounded so unreal, like a bad joke, but the serious expression on her face made it clear that wasn't the case.

A surge of anger rose in my throat, and I responded irritably.

"What the hell are you talking about?!"
"You want her to die again? How can you say that after calling her a good friend?!"

"I don't hate the person; I just hate the idea behind her. It's precisely because I care about Kaede that I don't want to see her walking around like a zombie."

"W-Why?"

"I have my reasons. I called you here because I thought you didn't like them either and, more importantly, because you didn’t like seeing Kaede as one of them."

"And how did you come to that conclusion? Just because I didn’t get up at that moment?"

"Yes."

"Isn't that a bit of a silly conclusion?"

"You were glued to Kaede when she was alive. What other reason would you have for not going over there?"

What other reason? As if I could just say, "I didn’t have the courage to talk to her because I’m still in love with her" so naturally!

"You like her, don’t you?"

"Yes, I like her."

Damn it! How did this damn girl figure that out so quickly? What kind of trick did she use to see through my feelings? No, wait! Had I already fallen into her trap from the very beginning?

“Girls aren’t clueless, Kikuchi. Maybe it wasn’t obvious to Kaede, but we all knew you were into her.”

“So, you already knew I liked her, and seeing the way I reacted, you assumed I wasn’t okay with her becoming a Revixit?”

“Bingo. Was I wrong?”

“I don’t know what to say. Things are too cloudy right now.
A part of me was really happy to see her again, but on the other hand, it’s strange knowing she’s already dead.”

“Revixits were made for the living to cope with grief, but that doesn’t mean it works for everyone. For some people, living alongside someone who’s passed away is more of a torment than a blessing.”

The way Kobayashi spoke made me feel like she was opening up a part of her heart, too. Maybe she really had good reasons to dislike the Revixits, but I still couldn’t understand how she could go so far as to use the word hate against them.

Her words felt like the missing piece of a puzzle in my mind. Having to face the girl I had fallen so deeply for every single day wasn’t going to help me move on from my feelings for her.

It was the complete opposite. From now on, I would be forced to look at that beautiful smile every day and think to myself, “If only I had said everything sooner, maybe things wouldn’t have ended up like this.”

Without realizing it, I let the words slip from my mouth:

“Yeah… Maybe that’s it.”

“I don’t blame you. It must be d—”

“But that doesn’t mean I want her to disappear either!”
“… She’s still someone special to me.”

“If you agree with her current existence and want things to stay this way, then that’s the burden you’ve chosen to bear.
I’m giving you the option to join me. I’ll move forward, even if you don’t want to.”

"What are you planning to do?"

Kobayashi turned her gaze toward the railing of the school rooftop.

"…"

A chill ran down my spine.

"You!"

"Don’t be an idiot.
I’m not that cruel."

No doubt, doing something like that would be the ultimate act of cruelty.

"Humans and Revixits aren’t the same, but trying to kill one of them isn’t much different from trying to kill a human.
I’m no murderous monster."

"I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant.

I just got scared for a moment."

"Either way, you can’t simply kill a Revixit in the biological sense like you would a human.
One of the reasons the digital mind isn’t integrated right after being scanned is that they need to prepare the android with a series of protocols to handle a wide range of situations."

"You’re talking about the preventive second-death measure, or something like that, right?"

"Yes. When the system detects that the Revixit is about to face a fatal situation, like a fall or accident, it simply shuts down all functions and emits an SOS signal.
If it detects any pattern of violence against the Revixit, whether physical or psychological, the system puts the digital mind into immersion mode and forwards information about the perpetrator to the police database.
That doesn’t happen with minor accidents, like stubbing your toe on furniture, since those small injuries don’t originate from human intent and aren’t considered lethal.
Actually, Revixits are equipped with a system that emulates the human nervous system. This tactile feature helps prevent accidents and also allows them to feel more like humans."

"It must be tragic for someone to experience death a second time.
It also prevents Revixits from being revived only to suffer at the hands of malicious people."

"The opposite is also true."

"Hm?"

"Revixits are bound by the first law of robotics, meaning they cannot use violence against humans. But there have been cases of people taking advantage of the fact that they became Revixits.
A Revixit’s body is designed to simulate a human body, but it’s still more durable than flesh and bone. People who literally had nothing left to lose because they were already dead managed to bypass that law to commit attacks and robberies.
After those incidents, system blocks were added to prevent Revixits from performing any actions considered harmful to humans."

"You seem to know a lot about this."

"… I tend to get carried away when I start talking about something.
But to sum it all up: violence isn’t an option."

Of course not. We no longer live in an age of barbarians capable of committing crimes against others with impunity. It’s rare for a murder to go unpunished these days since police tools can track down any criminal.

"So, what are you planning to do?"

"Why would I share my plan if you haven’t agreed to be my ally?"

"If you don’t improve your persuasion skills, you won’t convince anyone to become your ally."

"So, deep down, you’re interested."

I can’t deny it. I don’t want Kaede to disappear, but if Kobayashi’s solution isn’t something stupid and doesn’t make anyone’s wounds worse, I might just consider helping her.

"The easiest way would be to simply ask for her permission to attend school to be revoked.
But if it were just one student opposing her return, she wouldn’t have been allowed back in the first place."

That reminded me—there had been a vote in the classroom to decide if everyone agreed with Kaede’s return. Even though the raw numbers weren’t disclosed, it was easy to deduce from the low percentage that only one person had voted against it.

"So, it was you."

"Yes. I also spoke directly with the principal about the matter, but he told me, 'You can’t go against the will of the majority.'
Later, I found out that the principal is a close friend of Sugimoto’s father, so it’s also in his interest to have her back at school.
In the end, he even suggested the possibility that I transfer to another school."

"And why didn’t you accept?"

Kobayashi’s eyes lit up with fury, like a sudden explosion.

"And why should I accept?
Why should I be the one sent away?
I’m part of that classroom too! I made that same promise!
And above all… I’m the one who’s still human."

"…"

It was like pressing the detonation button on a bomb. My words weren’t meant to hurt her, but I understood how rude it sounded for me to suggest that she should be the one to leave.

"I’m sorry, I ended up saying something I shouldn’t have."

"… It’s fine."

Kobayashi regained her composure.

"Even though I can’t change the principal’s decision on my own, if I get significant support from the class, he’ll feel obligated to revoke it."

"So all that’s left for you to do is try to convince as many students as possible."

"Everyone likes Sugimoto; it won’t be that easy. It’s like swimming against the current.
But there’s a second option."

"A second option?"

"Even though they have a certain level of freedom, Revixits still need a guardian nearby.
Sugimoto wasn’t an only child."

That’s true, I remember Kaede mentioning she had a sibling.

"Her younger brother, Koji Sugimoto, joined the first year of this school."

"But convincing her family would be harder than convincing our classmates, don’t you think?"

"That’s why he’s a second option.
My plan is to convince them one by one, just like I’m trying to do with you right now.
So, what do you say? Will you stand by my side or not?"

"… I have one condition."

"?"

"Kaede’s heart cannot be hurt. She must not know about this conspiracy under any circumstances."

"Fine, I accept. I don’t want to hurt her feelings either."

I hope I’m making the right decision…