(A/N: This is an edited chapter. Later chapters that don't have this note might suck in redaction.
You've been warned.)
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[A day in the life of a sus]
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...
"Oi, Suzaku, did you watch the news yesterday?"
"About the villain who robbed a store near here? Yeah, I saw it. He got beaten up pretty badly by that hero."
"It was really cool!"
"Hmm? Oh yeah... Very cool"
"What's with that lack of reaction...? Well, whatever. That's just like you."
"What do you mean by 'that's just like me'? I am the most expressive person you can find."
"Says the guy whose only facial expressions are being bored and yawning."
"Give me a break. It's not my fault that math is the most boring thing that can exist in the world."
"Then why in the world do you have such good grades in it?"
"That's just because I'm awesome—sadly, that doesn't make math any better."
"Well, I can't help but agree with you on that."
I snorted. 'Finally, someone gets it...'
Bobbing my head in satisfaction, I turned to look at the clock on one of the walls. Then, my expression soured once I realized what hour it was.
"Oh come on... break is already over? Does this school want us to die from exhaustion?" I groaned, fed up with school already, even though this was just the second period.
The enigmatic figure beside me chuckled, "Stop exaggerating... Besides, now we have the Quirk Counseling class, it's the best!"
"For you, it may be, for me, it's the 2nd most boring class..." I planted my face on the table, dejected at being subjected to this torture.
"How can you say tha—?!"
"Everyone, go back to your seats."
He was about to say something, but the teacher made his entrance before he could finish and told us to sit. Fortunately, I was already in my seat like the prophet I was, so I didn't have to do anything.
It took a minute or so for all my classmates to return to their seats. While at it, our teacher left his things on his desk, and then immediately began scribbling something on the board, his voice filling the entire classroom as he began with the class.
"Very well, we will start from where we left it the other day. So, tell me... What was the last thing we saw... Err... Suzaku?"
'Come on, man...'
Clicking my tongue internally as my expression instantly soured up, I stood up and answered the teacher's question in full detail.
—Or at least, what I could bother to remember.
"We, uh, we saw something about the reasons why using our Quirks to harm other people is bad... I think."
Obviously, I muttered that last part.
"Yes, very good, Suzaku. Now, can someone tell me the reasons why using our Quirks irresponsibly is wrong? Err... Tsuneo?"
"Because... that's what All Might said?"
"No—I mean, yes, but that's not—"
As the attention diverted from me and class went on, I closed my eyes and made sure to give my glasses a slightly darker color so the teacher wouldn't notice I was about to enter hibernation mode.
Why did I find this class so boring, you ask? Well, it's mostly because I simply couldn't give a damn about the indoctrination going on here.
I wasn't saying they were brainwashing the kids or anything like that. Actually, I thought this class was pretty good at preventing future villain uprisings, as it gave the young children a pretty good view of what is good and bad, which may come in handy depending on the environment in which the child is growing.
However, for me, an adult who has already come to terms with my own values and principles—somewhat—this class had no point.
And while they were kids, I'm sure my classmates would normally agree with me on its boringness, as the teacher often delved into morality and whatnot, something that, by any means, kids should find boring.
—If it weren't because our teacher was an evil master mind, often making us draw ourselves as superheroes, or think of cool phrases that a cool and righteous superhero would use.
That much was enough to win the kids' favor and turn this class into their favorite, while also paving a slow but steady path in which we hope and aspire to become such symbols of good.
In fact, I bet his next line will be: "Alright, everyone. Why don't you draw yourselves doing something nice as heroes?"
"Alright, everyone. Why don't you draw yourselves doing something nice as heroes?"
'Too predictable, teacher.' I sighed while shaking my head helplessly, surrendering to my destiny. 'At least this is better than math.'
Resigned, I picked up my pen and got to draw whatever came to mind, giving my creativity free rein upon my notebook.
—A minute or so later, my masterpiece was finished. And, not to the surprise of my classmates, it was pretty well drawn.
'Piece of cake.'
I might be a kid now, but during my previous life, I had some pretty decent skills at drawing.
Nothing too extraordinary, but I was skilled at it.
And, already aware of my skills, most of the kids immediately rushed in to see what my great hands had given life to. Since this wasn't the first time the teacher made us draw something, they were familiarized with my superhuman artristy.
"Whoa, hey, Suzuki-kun, what's that?"
"That little thing looks cute. What is it?"
"I like how he is punching a bad guy despite being so small."
What I had drawn was a picture of a crewmate from Among Us punching your stereotypical image of a thief. You know, a man with stripped clothes and carrying a bag of money on his shoulder.
An image worth being considered a shitpost in some other reality.
Here, however, it was a masterpiece.
I had made it without minding too much the details since I wasn't taking this seriously, but it looked pretty comical to see a crewmate punching a thief without apparent context.
Of course, none of my classmates had a clue what the crewmate was.
'Heretic fools, don't you know that what you are seeing is an image of God?!—though, on second thought, God is actually an impostor, not a crewmate... Did I just commit heresy?'
After a moment of bafflement, I shrugged.
'Well, either way, amen.'
"What did you draw Suzaku?"
'Hmm?'
Hearing my classmates' ruckus as they surrounded me and my illustration, the teacher walked up to my seat and eyed my drawing with an interested expression in his eyes.
So, knowing he was yet another devoted fan of my work, I answered very truthfully.
"I drew myself as a hero stopping a thief…"
"... That's you as a hero?" He looked at me weirdly for a second.
I nodded.
Then, an awkward silence befell us.
Eventually, though, he simply nodded with a slightly dazed expression and went back to his seat. Probably not wanting to deal with the enigmatic mind of a prodigy like me.
So, with the nuance gone, I was finally free to do as I pleased again.
'Ah, benevolent Impostor, thank you once again for allowing me to rest on another class. Amen...'
I did a small prayer inwardly aimed at the drawing of the amogus figure. Then, leaning back, I darkened my glasses and closed my eyes, planning to click the skip scene button for this class.
-Chatter-
-Sigh...-
However, with all the noise around the classroom as my classmates eagerly discussed hero stuff like obsessed nerds, it became a tad hard for me to fall asleep.
Thus, knowing that sleeping was probably not going to work this time around, I passed on to the next activity that was surely gonna keep me occupied during the next hour or so.
My pupils ascended, locking onto my target.
My eyes narrowed like daggers.
And soon, a bead of sweat rolled down my forehead. This was, after all, a serious matter.
'Hmm... If that lamp were to fall... Who would die?'
I began thinking about which one of my classmates would die first if the LED lamp hanging above us were to fall.
It was a trick that always worked when one wanted to while away the time.
...
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| A few minutes later... |
...
"Finally... I was so bored that I thought of every possible way that lamp could fall on each of us—yeesh, who would have thought that a lamp would be so dangerous?"
Stepping out of my classroom with a relieved look, I glanced around the hallway with both of my eyes squinting slightly.
'No one in sight...'
Having checked the perimeter, I decided to go and eat something at the outer part of the school. Where my classmates would not see me.
Today I brought a snack with me. So if I wanted to enjoy it properly, I had to stay away from those hungry harpies in the form of children.
So, having sneaked away from my still-chattering classmates inside the classroom successfully, I sneakily began making my way outside.
It took me about two minutes to get there undetected. Once there, I found an empty bench and claimed it for myself. Sitting with a relieved gasp, and pulling my backpack up.
But before opening it and taking out its contents, I looked carefully at my surroundings, fearing that any of my classmates might have followed me here.
It didn't seem like that was the case, though. I was completely alone.
'Good, let's eat.'
Thus, seeing no obstacle in my way, I quickly opened my bag and took out the good stuff.
Some chips.
-Schrkrkrk...-
As I opened the bag, the aluminium foil began doing its usual screech. Making me frown slightly. I was trying to be sneaky here!
The noise continued even as the bag was already open, making noise as I dug for an appropriate chip to begin the banquet.
Fortunately, it didn't take long before I found one that looked good. I quickly pulled it out and took the first bite with a contented look on my face.
-Crunch...-
"Hey, Suzuki, what's that?"
"Suzuki-kun, can you give me some?"
"Give me some chips, plebeian."
"The teacher said that sharing is a very good thing... Don't you think so, Suzuki-kun?"
"Oh, I know those chips. They are very good! It would be great if someone would share some of them with me..."
I deadpanned as my surroundings suddenly became filled with noise.
'... Greedy little goblins, I bet they can sniff the snacks from kilometers away...'
Groaning inwardly at the abnormal teleporting abilities from my classmates—metaphorically speaking, none of them had a teleporting Quirk— I stood up, sighed, and left the bag of chips on the bench.
Then, I walked away.
Of course, not without taking a handful of chips for myself before that.
Once I did that, all of the greedy bastards threw themselves at the bag of chips like hungry dogs, arguing with each other, pulling each other's hair, and even going as far as fighting.
I, of course, just watched from the sidelines with a haughty expression on my face.
'Watch as gluttony consumes you all, mindless beasts... For this is what your filthy desire brings to you all...'
While I healthily enjoyed a good moment without smartphones present, someone suddenly tapped my shoulder.
Turning my head slightly, I saw a boy about my age, with slimy hair—not as in greasy, but actually slimy—, a smartass face, and sporting an amused grin.
"Your expression is too obvious, Suzaku."
"I don't know what you are talking about, my comrade, Arata."
The kid in question was called Morikawa Arata... Or just Arata if it was too annoying for you to remember his whole name. It was for me. I had a bad memory.
He was one of the few kids I actually considered a friend and someone who seemed to be as lazy as me when it came to school matters. (Which was why we got along so well)
Though, his laziness was innate. While mine, I only developed it after I died.
Well... Maybe I was a bit lazy before that, but it definitely got worse after I died.
Anyway, back to what I was talking about. His Quirk was called "Dynamic hair", and it allowed him to control his hair as if he were moving another limb, while additionally having the ability to turn it hard, liquid, or gassy.
Though when not doing anything with it, its neutral state was slimy, just like now.
It was a pretty cool Quirk, in my opinion. However, when considering that every Quirk seemed amazing in my eyes, as a previously quirkless human, I didn't know if my opinion was worth anything.
He was also the kid to whom I was talking earlier in the class. And as you may have noticed from our conversation earlier, despite his dislike for school, he still seemed to find heroes cool.
"Come on, let's leave while they are busy fighting each other."
"Oh."
After nodding my head, we turned away from the heated discussion of my classmates and began walking away.
While at it, I handed him half of the chips I had taken for myself. Something he received with an excited smile.
'This sure brings me memories.' I thought, giving whoever was in my head a convenient flashback.
This guy and I became friends as soon as we entered the school.
During the first day, this kid was groaning out loud about how annoying school was, unlike what his parents had told him, so I also began complaining along with him.
Things developed pretty quickly after that. Having a common enemy really did make it easier for us to get along. However, the reason he disliked school was very different from mine, as he was what you would call... a genius.
Because of that, it seemed like school was a tad boring for him.
Like, he was an actual genius. This kid absorbed lessons through the classes as if his brain were a sponge.
On the other hand, I disliked school because I was just repeating the same process all over again, without the real need to do so.
In other words, I was an average dumbass with a big stock of knowledge ahead of our current school year.
But despite these differences, we got along pretty well.
He at least made school somewhat more bearable.
"Hey, Suzaku, wanna go play at the arcade after classes? I heard they put a new game there."
"Is that so? What is it called?"
Though, honestly, being his friend was making me strangely paranoid.
Why? Because I found it strange that I was able to become friends with a six-year-old.
Was it because the children in this world were smarter than in my previous world? Or was I slowly becoming more and more childish as I passed time among them?
I didn't know the answer, but hopefully it would be the first option.
Otherwise, that would mean that I was immersing myself too much in my role as a child... Which sounded terrifying.
"—I think it was called "Jumping Heroes". In summary, you have to jump on top of villains to defeat them, and there's some kind of final boss with a Dinosaur transformation quirk after a few levels that is pretty hard to defeat. It has gotten pretty famous after people started competing with each other for the best high score."
"Sounds like Super Mario..."
"Supah Mario? Who's that?"
"Don't mind me, just talking to myself... As for going to the arcade, I can't. I have something to do after classes."
"Well, that's new. What do you have to do?"
"I have to—"
-Screams-
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, amidst our chatter, voices of fun mixed with faint screams interrupted our conversation, making us turn in their direction with disbelieving faces.
Raising an eyebrow and feeling curious, I began moving in their direction.
Arata followed me as well without saying anything. Probably just as curious as me.
Though, as I saw him in my peripheral vision following behind, I couldn't help but feel a tad apprehensive about continuing with this investigation.
'Surely, it will not be some horny teens that are taking advantage of the few people that come to this zone of the school, right?'
Praying inwardly that the teens in this place had at least a bit of integrity and a sense of shame, I shook my head to shrug off the weird images.
Then, I sneakily glanced at the slimy kid behind me.
'Well, I can just cover this kid's eyes if it really turns out to be that kind of thing.'
Forming that small plan of action, we eventually got to the place where the voices were coming from.
And, luckily, it wasn't anything sinful—or maybe it was. I'm not that versed in religion besides adoring a certain god.
Some meters ahead of us, three kids, at least four years older, were beating up a kid of their same age. Probably a classmate of theirs.
'So that was it,' I nodded, massaging my chin sagely.
I admit, I got a bit startled by the view. After all, this was the first time I saw such blatant bullying here in this school.
Normally, the bullying that I had seen (As in this world, it seemed to be pretty common) had just been something more about downplaying others because of their quirks, rather than getting physical with them.
But well, I guess these types of cases still existed, even if I had not noticed them before.
'Talk about old school—Well, anyway, the mystery is solved. Let's leave and tell a teacher.'
After making up my mind, I turned around and prepared to leave.
Sure, I could try to intervene and help the poor kid, but knowing that I didn't know how to handle kids with enough emotional problems that they had to bully another kid to feel better, and that most likely if I tried to reason with them they would get violent with me instead, I simply thought that it was better to tell the teachers about it and get done with it.
That way, they would later call those kids' parents and tell them all about what their children did. And believe me, there's nothing more fearsome for children than seeing their parents angry.
However, as I was about to leave, my gaze noticed something—or rather, a lack of someone beside me.
Deadpanning, I turned back in the direction of the bullying and saw a familiar slimy hair running in their direction, yelling at them to stop.
'For being such a genius, he is pretty dumb sometimes...' I facepalmed, groaning in annoyance.
There was no way that was gonna end well.
I could just leave now and go tell a teacher... but I couldn't just leave that kid to get beaten alone.
-Sigh...-
Sighing, I cracked my neck and made my way to them, ready to unleash my gift with words upon them and bring this foolishness to an end.
'I mean, I'm an adult, convincing a bunch of brats that like to bully others can't be that difficult, right?'
...
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|A few minutes later...|
...
"Mrs. Suzuki, the reason I called you in today is that, during lunchtime, your son got into a quarrel with some students from higher years—and beat all of them up until they were left crying."
"Suzaku, what do you have to say for yourself?"
"Ahem... They started."
...
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-To be Continued-
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(A/N: Omnipresence in its fullest meaning)