Megumi Katou pressed her lips tightly together, her straightened posture leaving no room for argument.

"…Fine."

The bald thug's face remained blank as he nodded and then pointed to the other side of the room.

"If you can fix my leg, I'll let you live. I swear, my brother and I won't lay a hand on you. But don't push your luck. Go sit over there by yourself."

Megumi hesitated for a moment, glancing at the girls huddled in the other corner. She bit her lip and, clearly struggling, quietly moved to sit alone in the corner.

The bald man's gaze then shifted to Tomoya Aki, who was still crouched by the wall, covering half his face in fear.

The thug licked his lips and scowled, though his tone was reluctantly playful. "Tch, you little brat, you can go too. I'll keep my word."

"O-Okay, sure."

Tomoya Aki exhaled in relief, tears welling up in his eyes as he quickly scurried over to Megumi's side.

Megumi looked at her classmate in disbelief.

"Tomoya… don't tell me… it was you?"

Megumi wasn't stupid. In fact, she was far too sharp.

Tomoya's behavior made it painfully obvious he had struck some kind of deal with these thugs. That was the only reason they'd spared him.

And remembering how he'd been shouting to open the door earlier… it wasn't hard to piece it together.

"I… I…"

Tomoya Aki buried his face in his hands, his voice trembling.

He'd always been nothing more than a hardcore shut-in otaku. After being slapped repeatedly, after watching his classmates get murdered one by one, he'd been so terrified he had wet himself.

Noticing the disappointment in Megumi's eyes, a heavy, suffocating emotion filled his chest. He wiped his tears and choked out, "Megumi, I… I didn't have a choice. If I didn't agree to their terms, they would've killed me. You didn't see… you didn't see how the others died…"

As he spoke, he curled into himself and started sobbing uncontrollably.

Megumi pressed her lips tightly together, her face filled with disappointment. She no longer said a word.

Everyone had the right to survive. Tomoya was no exception.

But the way he had chosen to survive… Megumi couldn't accept it.

At that moment, she realized they were not the same kind of person.

Blaming him now was pointless.

What should I do next?

Megumi's mind raced.

The men in front of her were cold-blooded killers. She couldn't place all her hopes on their mercy.

They had guns, and one of them was carrying a grenade. If the others in the room didn't have the will to resist, there was nothing Megumi could do alone. Trying to fight back now would only get her killed.

"I'll go get the supplies."

Megumi frowned but ultimately chose to steady the situation first.

She got up and rummaged through the cabinets, soon returning with a household medical kit.

The bald man casually stretched out his leg when he saw her.

Meanwhile, the grade director carefully brought over two steaming bowls of instant noodles, placing them on the coffee table as if he were handling treasure.

"Ah, finally! I haven't eaten all day, I'm starving!"

Aizawa immediately grabbed a bowl and devoured it hungrily. The bald man tucked his gun back into his waistband and began eating his noodles at a more leisurely pace.

The only sound in the living room was the slurping of noodles.

No one else dared to make a sound.

Especially the other girls.

They all knew the moment those two finished eating, their nightmare would begin.

"Do something. Think of something quick!"

The middle-aged female teacher sobbed as she pushed the male teacher who had clashed with Yuito Aikawa earlier. But he was completely helpless.

The thugs had two guns. Charging at them now would just be suicide.

Just then, a girl suddenly stood up.

Her delicate face was twisted in panic as she bit her lip and took a step forward.

"W-We'll let me go, and I'll tell you a secret."

"Oh? A secret? Let's hear it."

The bald man put down his bowl and casually pulled his gun from his waist.

The girl hesitantly walked over, trembling, and began whispering in his ear.

Megumi's eyes widened in shock.

"Youko… have you lost your mind? How could you do this?!"

"Shut up and mind your own business."

The bald man immediately shot her a vicious glare, and Youko unfazed by the outburst simply raised her voice so everyone could hear.

"She's lying to you. She never called the police. The police hotline is dead. No one's coming to save us."

"Youko?"

Megumi could hardly believe what she was hearing.

Why would Youko betray her?

Megumi had been pleading for her life just moments ago.

But Youko just sneered, her eyes filled with resentment.

"What? You think I'm wrong? You claimed you knew first aid to save yourself. You jumped out to grab the chance. What's the difference between you and me? Besides, emergency first aid is a standard high school elective. Who here can't do it? If you hadn't spoken first, this job would've been mine."

"That's enough! I don't want to hear another word."

The bald man impatiently waved his hand.

Youko immediately shut her mouth, sneaking a flattering glance at him and smiling nervously.

"Boss! I can do the job too. I'll do it even better than her. There are plenty of other women here. Just… let me go."

"Not bad. There aren't many people here, but it seems there are some interesting ones."

The bald man seemed genuinely amused.

"You've got some talent, girl."

Youko smiled eagerly, even shooting Megumi a smug, victorious look as she leaned closer to the bald man.

But right then he calmly said,

"Wanna know why I was in prison? I've always hated traitors."

"…Eh?"

Youko's smile froze on her face.

Her body trembled violently as a powerful force suddenly gripped her from behind.

Aizawa raised the fire axe high and slammed it into her skull without hesitation.

Hot blood splattered across Aizawa's face.

He didn't even flinch.

Yanking the axe free, he kicked Youko's small body to the floor.

Blood and pale brain matter oozed from her forehead. She died without even making a sound.

Her wide eyes still held that look of disbelief.

She probably never understood why it had turned out like this.

She had surrendered.

She had exposed Megumi's lie.

So why was she still killed?

Why was it that Megumi could live, but she couldn't?

"Idiot. Trying to play games in front of us?"

Aizawa spat on Youko's corpse and wiped the blood from his face with his palm. His entire body radiated pure malice as he glared at the others.

"All of you better stay in line. This is what happens to anyone who steps out of line."

The others felt like they had fallen into an ice-cold abyss.

Everyone stared at Youko's corpse, their entire bodies trembling.

Their faces were so pale, they looked worse than the floor tiles.

Some with weaker stomachs couldn't hold it in any longer and started vomiting

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