Episode 67 – I’m gonna crush you

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After Saving a Beautiful Girl Who Is the Target of a Handsome Guy With a Dangerous Secret Face, I Found Myself Destroying His Entire Harem and Playing with All of the Beautiful Girls

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The house and the store were on fire.

The fire was so high and strong that it seemed useless to extinguish it now, and I froze in my tracks.

“Ha! Kozue, Hitomi san!”

Both of them should have been at home or in the store, unless they had gone shopping or something.

The fire was so high and strong that I couldn’t help but think that they were in the middle of this fire right now.

Could they possibly still be in this fire?

I’m breathing hard as all sorts of worst-case scenarios come to mind.

　
“Kozue, Hitomi-san……!”

I couldn’t help but try to get closer to the fire – at that moment.

“Ryo-chan!”

I hear a voice from behind me.

I turned around and there were Hitomi and Kozue.

Hitomi-san jumped into me with her hands outstretched.

I caught her and she pressed her face against my shoulder, spilling tears.

“Ryo-chan, Ryo-chan ……!”

“Hitomi-san ……! Thank God you are safe.”

“The Arataki group rescued me. But it was really close.”

“Kozue ……”

Kozue looked at the burning house and store, then looked down at the photo in her hand.

“What’s that?”

“The photo. It’s the only picture I took of you and your father together, and I didn’t want to burn it.”

“…… I see.”

Kozue’s clothes had burn marks on them, and perhaps she had jumped into the fire just to get this picture.

But that’s how full of memories this picture is.

It’s the only picture I have of my father, who hates photography, and it’s the only picture I have of him.

“How did this happen? ……”

I can hear the sirens of fire trucks in the distance.

But it is not a reassuring sound.

It was clear from the ruthlessly growing fire that there was nothing we could do.

The three of us could do nothing but stand there and watch the fire burn.

After that

The fire was safely extinguished, but all that remained was the blackened store and house.

Kozue and Hitomi were taken by ambulance to the hospital to be checked out as a precaution.

I was left alone, looking at the burnt ruins.

　
“Ryosuke-kun. There you are.”

“…… Arataki-san. Can you tell me what happened?”

“…..Yeah”

Arataki-san looked at the burn marks and began to speak with a look of anguish on his face.

“According to the guy who was at the store, masked men suddenly barged into the store and set the fire. He said he tried to put out the fire immediately, but he got into an exchange of fire with the men. Meanwhile the fire got stronger, so ……”

This means that “someone” burned down my house and store.

And obviously with malicious intent.

–Maybe.

“I’m sorry!”

Arataki-san bowed his head.

“Following the kidnapping incident last time, we Arataki’s group couldn’t do anything about it! They got what they wanted and ……we are really sorry. ！！！！”

“…… Arataki-san, please raise your head.”

“We can’t do that! As a member of the Arataki clan, as a “friend” of Ryosuke kun’s father, I’ve done such a…… thing!”

“Please raise your head, Arataki-san.”

“Ryosuke, kun …….”

I call out quietly.

“It’s not something you should feel responsible for, Arataki-san. In fact, I’m grateful to you. I’m grateful to you for saving Kozue and Hitomi san.”

I don’t even want to …… imagine what would have happened if we had lost them.

“And the one who is to blame is the big asshole who set the arson. Arataki-san did nothing wrong.”

“Ryosuke-kun,……”

There is a man who did this to me, to us.

And even now, he’s breathing in peace.

……That guy is to blame for all of this.

The fact that he made Arataki feel this way, and the fact that I have to feel this way, it’s all his fault.

“Hey, that.”

“That was the scene of the fire earlier, right?”

“It’s burning up like crazy.”

“Is it bad?”

“Is it a fire hazard?”

“This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen. ……”

A gallery had gathered, peering at the burnt remains outside the yellow tape the police had put up.

“………….”

Suddenly, I felt something that caught my attention.

I stared intently into the crowd… and then…

“Hihi.”

“！！！！！”

I caught a perfectly clear “malicious” gaze.

It is definitely from “that guy” …….

“Sudo. ！！！！！”

Kicking the ground immediately, I followed after Sudo.　

I frantically followed his back through the back alley and onto the main street.

But from there, I couldn’t feel any sign of Sudo.

I lost him,……

The feeling of hatred welled up inside me.

The inside of my body burns like a flame.

My rationality was being overtaken by my emotions.

More and more, my thoughts are narrowing. ……

A dimly lit room in a building.

There I was watching the footage from the surveillance camera owned by the Arataki group.

“Here. The men came in from the front of the store.”

I checked the video.

The masked men entered the store as if they were rushing in, throwing Molotov cocktails one after another.

In no time at all, the store was engulfed in flames and the Arataki group, which was guarding the store, engaged in a battle.

After a while, the men fled the store.　

Then they went outside.

“! This is …….”

One of the men, perhaps running out of oxygen, hurriedly took off his mask.

The man’s face was familiar.

I saw him when Sudo tangled with me in front of the hospital after we rescued Moeko.

[Hokuto-sama!!!!]

One of the men who took the stunned Sudo to his car.

There was no doubt – it was him.

This means that the culprit, the “mastermind,” has been revealed.

I had originally thought it was him, but now I’m sure of it.

“ – Sudo Hokuto.”

I say the name.

“！！！！！！！！！！！！”

The sludgy emotion boils in my body.

I’ll never forgive you.

I’m going to crush you …… by me, by me alone.

The emotion of anger takes over my body. ……

♦ ♦ ♦

*Sudo Hokuto’s point of view

“………… ha!”

Aah…… it’s the best!

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