Monday, November 18, 2024

[LN] Drowning in Summer : Volume 1 Chapter 4 Part 1


Volume 1

Chapter 4 Part 1



Translator : PolterGlast



August 30th.

The day has finally arrived.

I had designated a beach a short distance away from the residential area where we live as the place to kill Serina.

The beach we visited yesterday was not suitable for the murder because it was a little far from where Serina lives and it was a famous beach among the locals with many tourists. There was also the childish reason that I simply did not want to stain the place of my memories with blood.

The reason I chose a beach was not because of the typical setting found in novels. A wide, flat area is much better for keeping an eye on your surroundings than a place like a forest where you don't know who might be lurking. After all, what we feared most wasn't being seen by someone during the murder, but being caught before the murder was carried out.

Fortunately, the beach we chose as the murder site was not scenic and there were no houses nearby, so it was seldom crowded, regardless of the time of day. It almost seemed like the place itself was telling me to kill someone here, but that was probably just an auditory hallucination that only I, a crazy person, could hear.

We were making plans in a private karaoke room. Unlike a café or family restaurant, the private room allowed us to avoid the eyes of others when we were having disturbing conversations.

On the monitor attached to the wall, a video of idols dancing was playing.

 

"The location is good, but how are you planning to call her out there?" Hikaru asked.

"I want you to call her there," I said. "Serina has a crush on you. I'm sure she'll come happily."

"Huh? Really?"

"Yeah. Besides, if I remember correctly, she did confess to you once."

Hikaru made a sour face. "I don't remember at all."

"What a terrible person," I said while chuckling.

 

At that moment, our eyes met, and we stared at each other for a while. After a while, unable to bear it, we both burst out laughing. We no longer had any guilt about taking someone's life.

 

"But, asking her like that feels like I'm taking advantage of her feelings."

"Junior girl?"

"Don't talk about it."

 

We laughed again.

 

"Well, let's talk about the plan," I said, and began to outline the murder scenario. "First, Hikaru will call Serina on a public phone and give her a reasonable excuse to come to this beach."

 

It's a bit of a hassle, but there's no other way since Hikaru doesn't have a smartphone.

 

"A reasonable excuse, huh? ...Alright."

"When Serina shows up, I'll come out and talk to her. It probably won't take more than three minutes."

 

I wanted to talk to Serina one last time. Once she's dead, we won't be able to talk anymore. I felt that would leave a bad aftertaste. I didn't want to keep thinking about her in the future.

I tucked the knife I bought at the home center into my belt, hidden by the hem of my clothes.

 

"After we're done talking, I'll use this."

 

With this, I'll stab Serina.

 

"After the call ends, there probably won't be anything for you to do, but if she tries to escape, please help me."

"Understood. If Rin collapses after the murder and can't walk, I'll carry you princess-style."

"I'd hate that, but if it comes to that, please do."

"Leave it to me. I think the public phone booth was near the station, right? What time?"

"Around Around 7 p.m. She has an early curfew."

 

It's 9:00 a.m. now, and we still have ten hours to go. I wondered what to do until then, but I'm sure the day will pass in a flash. We can just eat together and chat. I know that time seems to pass twice or three times as fast during times like this.

Hikaru is using my smartphone to look for a café that serves a late breakfast. As I watched his profile, muttering about how picky I am with food, the words slipped out of my mouth.

 

"Hikaru, you're my Masaki."

 

Hikaru's eyes widened in surprise.

For whatever reason, he pulled my hand and told me to run away. He pulled me out of my worst days. My gray days had been vividly colored by his appearance.

It was an enjoyable escape, despite everything that happened.

It was all thanks to Hikaru.

 

"Look at that silly face," I laughed, poking his shoulder. "Well, please take care of me."

 

---

 

Deep down, I thought this summer would last forever. I unconsciously tried to convince myself of that.

I mocked myself for being an idiot.

All times eventually come to an end.

But I want to believe that there is a meaning in the way it ends.

 

---

 

The beach, with its tumultuous sound of waves, had a desolate atmosphere as if it were isolated from the rest of the world. The sun had already set, and the surroundings were dimly lit and extremely desaturated compared to the daytime. Beneath the leaden sky, gray waves rolled in and out.

 

I was waiting for the moment to come from a small observation deck across the road from the beach.

I wondered if Hikaru had managed to call Serina. I was sure that he would be able to lure her out with his words, but Serina was no fool either. There was a possibility that the plan would go awry if she became suspicious and didn’t come.

 

While I was feeling anxious, Serina appeared on the beach after a few dozen minutes.

She appeared, descended the stairs to the beach, and looked around. She must be looking for Hikaru.

 

I left the observation deck and ran down the stairs Serina had taken. A few dozen meters ahead, I saw Serina's back as she faced the sea. I approached her and called out, "Serina."

Serina's eyes widened when she caught sight of me.

 

"Why are you here?"

 

She looked like she had seen a ghost.

 

"I asked Hikaru to call you," I said, trying to sound calm. "I wanted to talk."

 

Serina wasn't wearing any makeup. Maybe she came in a hurry after being called by Hikaru. The only thing that adorned her was the colored contact lenses she always wore, but it was enough for her beautiful features. Serina standing on the beach was so hauntingly beautiful that I felt like I had suddenly been thrown into a movie scene.

 

"Huh? What do you mean?"

 

Serina distorted her pretty face and spat out those words. Her eyes filled with hostility, and I couldn't help but flinch.

Waves washed in and out on the beach. I could hear the waves crashing in the distance.

Serina opened her mouth again, but closed it once before opening it again.

 

"Are you having fun being a grade below me?"

"Yeah, it's much more comfortable than last year."

"You're still so insensitive."

 

Serina lowered her eyes once and then directed her knife-like gaze at me again.

 

"I hated that about you."

"Sorry."

"Just an apology isn't enough. Do you have any idea how much your insensitivity has hurt me?"

"But Serina, you didn't say anything. I won't understand unless you tell me."

 

I said it in a strong tone. I could see Serina flinch for a moment.

 

"You should be able to understand that much. Just figure it out."

 

Serina spat out those words.

 

"It's arrogant of you to expect me to figure it out when you didn't say anything yourself. You should say what you want to say."

 

I continued rapidly.

 

"That's what I hate about you!" Serina shouted angrily.

"What exactly? Tell me specifically. I won't understand otherwise."

"Stop it!"

 

Serina's scream echoed across the gray beach. The vibrating air struck my skin.

 

"You were meant to be alone. You're so insensitive and quick to hurt others with careless words. You should never be with anyone."

 

I let out a small sigh. I then patted the knife at my waist over my clothes as if to make sure, and walked towards Serina.

We've talked enough. All that was left was to thrust the knife into her chest.

Stab her, kill her, and that would be the end of it. That was my intention.

 

"...Hey, why did you spread those lies?"

 

It's pointless. There's no value in asking this. Since I'm going to kill her anyway. I thought I had already decided that it didn't matter whether I had a reason to hate Serina or not.

Yet, a question that had been in my heart all this time, slipped out of my mouth. I looked at Serina. I noticed a strong look of dismay in her eyes.

 

 

"Is this true?" It was the day of the opening ceremony of the third semester of the first year when I received a message from Miu.

I secretly checked a screenshot on my smartphone while the teacher was talking in the morning homeroom. That screenshot sent my high school life into hell.

It was a screenshot of a post on a social networking service, with two photos combined into a single image, and a short text in the center.

One photo, slightly blurry, looked like it was taken from the shadows. It was shot from an angle similar to a celebrity scandal scoop, and it showed me and Naruse Yoshiya, Miu's ex-boyfriend and a senior two years older than me, sharing an umbrella in the snow.

On the day the photo was taken, I remember staying late at school, and it started snowing heavily, but I forgot to bring an umbrella. When I was wondering what to do, Naruse-senpai spoke to me and offered to share his umbrella with me to the station. That was the whole scene.

The other photo was in sharp focus. It was also of two people sharing an umbrella, one of them being Naruse-senpai, and the other person's face was hidden so you couldn't tell who it was. They were going into a house, and a nameplate that said 'Naruse' was visible.

 

[Yorunagi Rin looks quiet, but she's actually a b*tch. She stole Miu's boyfriend.]

 

Such text was attached in white letters on a black background.

The icon part was cropped out, but judging from the font and image processing quirks, I could tell it was Serina's secret account.

There's no way that girl in the photo is me, because I've never been to Naruse-senpai's house.

I zoomed in on the photo.

It was probably Naruse Momoka—I think she's Naruse-senpai's younger sister. She was a third-year middle school student and should have been wearing her middle school uniform at the time, but you can't tell from her uniform because she's wearing a coat and a scarf.

When you put the two photos side by side, both of them look like me.

 

"Hey, Yorunagi, do it with me too."

"You idiot! Cut it out."

"What are you gonna do? Sharing an umbrella, huh?"

"No, something better."

 

From that day on, the boys started harassing me.

They were good friends with Serina and used to talk to me and go to the cafeteria with me. I thought it was a terrible slander, but they had been friends with Serina since middle school and were on Miu's side, preferring her over a newcomer like me. Of course, a girl who stole a close friend's boyfriend was an enemy.

 

If they had looked closely at the photo, they would have known it wasn't me. But I think they didn't care whether it was true or not. They just wanted a convenient toy to ridicule to pass the time.

The arrogant superiority of the strong who could hurt others for amusement. I was fed up with it.

 

They were smart enough not to circulate these photos to the entire class. The more they spread it, the more likely it was to be exposed as a lie, and the more likely it was that adults would notice the harassment they were causing. The photos were shared only among Serina, Miu, and a few other boys who were close to them. I don't know how Hikaru knew about it.

 

It wasn't spread all over the school so it's ok... no, of course it's not okay. Sexual topics are the most avoidable things for a sensitive sixteen-year-old girl. I didn't want to make any more noise about that kind of thing. And yet, Serina was stirring things up so much that it was beyond repair.

 

When I found out that I would be in the same class as Serina and the others again in my second year, I felt a deep despair along with a sense of resignation. I continued to go to school for the first twenty days or so, but after the incident with Goto, I realized that I no longer had any allies and stopped going to school.

 

I don't want to think about it anymore. Their bullying was so ridiculous that it seems trivial now. I decided that I wasn't that fragile.

However, Serina remained tugging at my heart.

 

 

"Serina, remember when you were heartbroken and I left early, saying I had plans? I felt bad about it. I wish I had asked if you wanted to take a day off from your part-time job. I'm sorry. I didn't understand."

 

I thought that my many other insensitive comments and inability to say kind words had hurt Serina. I felt sorry. I felt it was my fault.

Serina said nothing. She just looked at me with murderous eyes.

 

"Serina, even you would never understand if I didn't tell you, right?"

I said calmly.

"It was painful for me. I was being falsely accused, bullied by the boys, and told all sorts of things that weren't true."

 

Words poured out of my throat one after another. These were all things that had been in my head for a long time, and I never thought the day would come when they would be released.

Oh, it's pointless. There's no point in saying this.

 

"Hey, tell me. Was I such a terrible person that I had to go through such pain? — Or was it just for your pleasure? Just for your amusement?"

 

I've always wanted to know. I don't want to make up. I don't need an apology for spreading the lie. I just want to know the answer to this question.

If I did, I might be able to hate Serina.

 

"Serina, I thought of you as a friend."

"Go die!"

 

Serina's angry voice echoed sharply across the quiet beach.

I quietly exhaled.

This must be her answer.

I quickly closed the distance between us. ―So that I could thrust my blade filled with hatred into her chest.

Serina took a step back. Meanwhile, I took two steps towards her.

 

Serina distorted her beautiful face and glared at me. I could see her clenched teeth through the gap between her lips.

When my left hand grabbed Serina's shoulder, she said,

 

"Why Natsuno-kun like someone like you?"

 

It was like an electric shock to my heart.

I even thought time had stopped.

I couldn't hear the sound of the ripples, and I was thinking about something with a completely blank mind.

 

"Huh?"

 

A dumb voice escaped my lips.

I tried to think about something. I didn't know what that "something" was.

Serina's pained voice brought me back to my senses. I had intended to grab her shoulder, but before I knew it, I was pressing down near her neck.

 

"What's that? What do you mean?" I shook Serina's shoulders and asked.

"Let go!" Serina shouted.

"Answer me."

 

I pushed Serina down onto the beach. I grabbed her shoulder with my right hand and put my weight on it. I pressed her thighs down with my knees, grabbed her wrist with my left hand, and pushed it down to the ground.

 

"Answer me."

 

Then Serina opened her mouth as if she had given up.

 

"... Natsuno-kun rejected me, but I couldn't give up, so I confessed again," Serina spoke stutteringly. I waited for her to speak with my eyelids straining.

"When I asked if there was someone he liked,"

 

My heart raced. Amidst the pounding of my heart that felt like it might shake my body, I put even more effort into preventing my hand from shaking as I gripped Serina's arm.

 

"He said, Yorunagi Rin,"

 

It felt like I'd been shot in the forehead.

My vision blurred, and I was overwhelmed by a floating sensation as if I couldn't tell up from down.

At that moment, I must have loosened my grip. Serina pushed me away and took a step back to put distance between us.

It would be bad if she escaped now.

I pulled out the knife and pointed its tip toward Serina.

Serina froze. Her pupils under the colored contacts narrowed.

I slowly approached her. My hand trembled along with my own heartbeat as I held the knife.

 

"What about that photo?"

 

Serina opened her mouth to hide her agitation.

 

"That day, when I was about to go home, I saw you and Yoshiya-senpai walking together."

 

Serina continued, her breath short due to her agitation.

 

"I thought maybe I'd have a chance if Natsuno-kun lost interest in Rin."

 

Serina retreated, but her back bumped into something and she stopped.

 

"Natsuno-kun."

"…………Hikaru."

 

Hikaru, who had appeared without me noticing, was standing there quietly.

I was confused by the relief of him coming to the rescue and the bewilderment of whether what Serina had just said was true.

While I was unable to do anything, Hikaru drew out a knife from its sheath with the same smooth motion as drawing a gun.

I heard a short gasp from Serina.

 

"Hikaru, wait!"

"Rin"

 

Hikaru called my name.

All sounds and scenery instantly faded away.

All I could see was Hikaru with a knife and Serina with a frightened face.

Hikaru's movement toward Serina seemed to be in slow motion, and I watched the unreal scene as if I were in the audience of a theater.

My body was stiff as if bound, my breath stopped, and I couldn't even blink.

I wasn't even allowed to close my eyes and prepare for the despair that was slowly approaching.

 

"…………Hikaru!"

 

I took a deep breath and finally managed to speak.

But it was too late.

All I could hear was a scream, the sound of the waves, and the spattering of blood.

And then, silence.

 

-----

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