"My name is Sakai Yuuji."
Well, that introduction alone doesn't really tell anyone anything meaningful. After all, what can a person learn from just a name?
"My name is Sakai Yuuji. I'm just an average first-year high school student, nothing special about me. My grades are mediocre, no favorite foods, and nothing I particularly dislike either."
"My relationships with classmates are ordinary too. Aside from being seated second-to-last by the window when school started, nothing interesting has ever happened."
"There's a cute girl who occasionally talks with me, but we only discuss normal school-related topics. Besides, she already has someone she likes."
"As a completely ordinary high-schooler, I have no special hopes for my high-school life. Continuing my mundane existence sounds perfectly fine—after all, my elementary and middle school days were also completely uneventful."
"Of course, unlike all those romantic comedies, I don't have a childhood friend or anything special like that. Just peacefully continuing such an ordinary life is really all I wish for."
At least, that was true until——
Bzzt———!
As a flash of red light passed by, Sakai Yuuji boredly twirled his pen on his desk. This history class, taught by an elderly teacher whose monotonous voice resembled an old wizard chanting a sleep-inducing spell, was incredibly dull.
If not for his seat being near the front, he'd surely have succumbed to the temptation of sleep by now.
Just look at the students in the back—they're already completely——
Clack—!
Yuuji's pen slipped from his fingers, loudly clattering to the floor.
The pen's small impact reverberated oddly in the deadly silence of the classroom. Even though it was only a slight noise, Yuuji felt as if he'd just shattered some priceless artifact.
But far more frightening and inexplicable than that sound was the scene now unfolding around him.
His elderly teacher stood frozen, chalk in hand, stiff as a statue before the blackboard. Every classmate around him was similarly immobilized, their faces fixed in the last expression they'd worn.
All color had drained away, leaving everyone a ghastly monochrome. The room itself seemed bathed in an unnatural red hue, like something out of a nightmare.
"Gah—!"
Yuuji jumped up from his seat in panic. His limbs trembled with uncontrollable fear, causing him to immediately lose balance and fall backward.
When people fall, they instinctively reach for something to hold onto.
Crash—!
Yuuji hit the ground hard, scattering textbooks and papers everywhere. The echo reverberated loudly through the empty halls.
But at this moment, Yuuji no longer cared about any of that.
What…what the hell is going on?!
He staggered to his feet, heart hammering wildly, looking around desperately at his frozen classmates.
Creak…creak…creak…
From the corridor outside came the chilling sound of plastic joints grinding against each other, drawing steadily closer to Yuuji's classroom.
"Haa…haa…haa…"
Hearing that dreadful sound, Yuuji's mind involuntarily flashed through scenes from every horror movie he'd ever watched. His breath grew rapid, and his heartbeat reached a frantic pace.
Calm down, calm down, calm down…!
Holding a hand against his chest and covering his mouth, he cautiously edged backward, his face pale with terror.
But he was only a normal high-schooler. How could someone like him possibly calm down in a situation like this?
Running out of the classroom now would be nothing but suicide. Whatever creature lurked in the hallway had clearly heard him already—it hadn't specifically targeted him before this.
If he rushed out now, Yuuji couldn't imagine any outcome other than death.
Even though his fear made his limbs awkward and clumsy, his basic reasoning remained intact. In such desperate circumstances, the only solution he could think of was hiding.
Crash—! Clang—! Bang—!
But Yuuji, in his frantic retreat, failed to notice the mop and bucket behind him. His foot slammed into the cleaning supplies, sending him tumbling again—this time even harder.
He crashed into a nearby classmate seated at the back, toppling desks and chairs with him.
Another thunderous echo rang through the building.
Outside, the scraping plastic sounds grew louder and more frantic, clearly drawn by the noise. Yet Yuuji's foot remained stuck in the metal bucket, completely immobilizing him.
He stared helplessly toward the classroom's rear window.
Through the thin curtain covering the glass, a shadowy humanoid silhouette suddenly appeared.
The sheer intensity of Yuuji's fear nearly caused him to faint.
Thank God the curtain's drawn—at least it can't see me directly.
Bang—!
The classroom door was violently shoved open.
With creaking joints and tattered parts scraping together, a large, worn-out doll shambled slowly into the room, its limbs awkwardly shifting with every jerky movement.
Creak—creak—creak…
The grating noise filled the classroom relentlessly.
Yuuji lay motionless, eyes squeezed shut in utter panic, heart thundering violently in his chest.
Seeing the terrifying doll step into the room, he dared not breathe loudly, nor move a single muscle—terrified that any small action might attract its attention.
Creak…creak…
The doll, apparently lacking any conscious thought, paused briefly, surveying the classroom. Then, turning toward the nearest frozen student—a girl—it moved closer.
Whoosh—!
The doll's mouth opened grotesquely wide toward the girl's face. A flame-like energy was drawn from her body, and within seconds, her figure vanished completely from this crimson-stained world.
But the doll didn't stop there.
Whoosh—!
Another burst of flame emerged from the doll's hand, quickly reassembling into the figure of the girl it had just erased.
"G-gah—aaah!"
Unable to suppress the horror any longer, Yuuji cried out involuntarily, immediately slamming his hands over his mouth, eyes wide with terror.
But the doll had already turned, directing its soulless gaze downwards, straight toward the trembling boy sprawled across the classroom floor.