I Became a Squinty-Eyed Character with Time Stop Ability.

The sky had darkened as the sunset faded.
Despite this, many people still walked the streets of Tokyo’s Shibuya.
A city where fluid movements of wheels and shoes coexist with stationary crowds.
As the red traffic light turned blue, people on the main road began to march in unison.
“Apocalypse LoveCom” protagonist Kitagawa Kenichi and the “Fire Priestess” Ichinose Hotaru also stepped forward toward the train station across the street.
Perhaps it was because they had bought all the clothes they liked and school supplies they needed at the shopping mall.
Hotaru stared intently at her childhood friend who seemed somehow cheerful and happy, and casually brought up a topic.
“Hey, Kenichi.”
“Hm? What?”
“I was a bit worried about our first day of high school, but it was better than I expected, right?”
“Well, I wasn’t particularly worried… but something did feel good.”
“Did you make many friends?”
“Come on, you were with me all day. During breaks, I only chatted with Shiki. Other than that, I just briefly greeted Sawamura, who sits next to Shiki.”
“T-that’s true.”
“Man, in all my life I’ve never met someone whose interests match mine so perfectly besides you. Baseball, soccer, favorite songs, even anime. Hey, could Shiki be my doppelgänger?”
Ichinose Hotaru chuckled as she watched Kenichi contemplating this with a serious expression.
It was quite amusing.
From facial features to voice and speech patterns, everything was completely opposite, yet he called him a doppelgänger.
‘But the height… Shiki was quite tall too, wasn’t he?’
Hotaru glanced at the size difference between herself and her childhood friend next to her, estimating the height.
“Huh, is Ichimaru-kun actually taller?”
“Hmm? What did you say?”
Hotaru tilted her head, trying to recall memories, just as her childhood friend gave an ambiguous response.
It was hard to get a clear impression because of his characteristic grinning expression and manner of speaking.
Thinking back on it, their newly made friend, Ichimaru Shiki, was indeed physically impressive.
Similarly, that person she saw half a year ago was definitely…
[The train is arriving.]
Hotaru, who had been desperately trying to squeeze out the memory, eventually touched her brow and muttered.
“Hmm, my memory gets fuzzy there.”
“What on earth have you been talking about?”
“No, it’s just…”
After a moment’s thought, Ichinose Hotaru spoke in a deliberately playful tone.
“Doesn’t Ichimaru-kun seem like someone with many secrets? Don’t you think he’s hiding something from us? He gives me the impression of a villain from manga or movies.”
“Whoa, Hotaru. That’s a bit harsh. Well, I know what you mean. Hmm, the impression of a villain hiding secrets, huh?”
“Well, I’m sure he’s not hiding anything bad.”
“I suppose not.”
Afterward, Kenichi’s face showed deep contemplation.
Hotaru quietly waited for her childhood friend’s answer without saying anything more.
Though he seemed foolish at times, he was a longtime friend who occasionally offered perspectives different from her own.
He boarded the arriving train and seemed to be recalling something for a while, then, unconsciously gripping the train handle, he suddenly answered.
“He had incredibly strong grip strength.”
“What?”
“No, I don’t know if ‘grip strength’ is the right word. The sensation of holding Shiki’s hand was… how should I put it.”
After pondering briefly, Kenichi finally replied.
“Like holding a heavy machinery?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
When Hotaru chuckled, Kenichi also smiled along with her, but in truth, there was something he couldn’t bring himself to tell his childhood friend.
Even he thought it was absurd.
Though he didn’t show it earlier, when he shook hands with Ichimaru Shiki, it felt like facing a monster.

“This is troublesome.”
Since becoming this body, my hearing has improved considerably.
I sensitively perceive both the sounds of people smacking their lips while eating at restaurants outside and the boom-bang-bang! of the bull-headed monster charging at me.
All my senses have simply become more acute.
Therefore, the monster’s loud roar as it charged was particularly unpleasant to my ears, and its foul smell also added to the discomfort.
Ordinary people live in a different dimension from these monsters and can’t sense them at all.
But merely by “seeing” it, I’ve been placed in the same world as the monster.
The same applies to saliva.
“It’s such a nice day, and it would be quite troublesome if blood gets on my clothes.”
Seemingly unconcerned with my worries, the bull-headed monster drooled as it managed to squeeze through the alleyway and charged at me with a boom! boom!
─Uwooeoeoe!!!
It swung its large hand.
“Oh my.”
I quickly dodged, and its fist slammed into the ground where I had been standing.
Bang! A small crater formed in the shape of the monster’s fist.
“My, that’s criminal property damage, you know?”
Despite my concern for my well-being, the bull-headed monster, Mr. Minotaurus, continued to approach me with its head still very much heated.
─Grrrrrr.
It looked ready to devour me.
I don’t want to associate with such an uncute creature, but if I leave now, it might wander the city and devour someone who has the “ability to see.”
There was a possibility that another outsider might handle it, but rather than worrying about it all night, it was better to eliminate it here.
“Yes, I can’t help but be concerned.”
Swish, I drew the dagger from my sleeve and offered the creature one last piece of advice.
“If you promise not to eat people, I might spare your life?”
──Uwooeoeoeoeoe!!!
“I figured as much.”
Bang! Bang! Bang! As the monster charged at me again, I pointed my small blade at it.
Though the blade was tiny compared to the monster’s large body, it was enough.
I swung downward.
“Evil Spirit Extermination (惡鬼滅殺).”
Slash! With the sound of cutting, the Minotaurus’s limbs were severed.
In an instant, the legs that supported its body disappeared, and it fell face-first onto the ground, screaming.
─Kueeeeek!
Goodness, no matter how many times I hear it, it’s a noisy sound.
If only to stop this noise pollution, I had to exterminate it quickly.
I approached the creature, which was wailing and looking at me with a pitiful face, and gave it my final greeting.
“Sleep well.”
Squish! I plunged the dagger into the bull’s forehead.
With its death, both the monster’s remains strewn about the alley and the fist-shaped crater completely disappeared.
As I quickly got up, I muttered as I sensed presences elsewhere.
“I should deal with that quickly too.”
Judging by the recently increased number of specimens, it seems that the promised day is approaching.
Anticipating the imminent upheaval, I hurriedly moved toward another dark alley.

Just because I enrolled at Karakura High School doesn’t mean events unfold immediately.
If there were battles from the very first scene of the game, it wouldn’t be a dating sim anymore.
‘Well, Apocalypse LoveCom isn’t an ordinary dating sim… it’s a completely insane game.’
But it seemed to follow some basic conventions, showing brief introductions of the heroines and glimpses of their daily lives.
The same applies even now that it has become reality.
The triggers for the game episodes were the school setting, the protagonist Kenichi, and time.
According to the game’s setting, “the promised day.”
I also needed time to adjust to the school and the main characters, so I didn’t feel any impatience and calmly lived the daily life of “Ichimaru Shiki.”
About two weeks like that.
During breaks and lunch, I socialized with protagonist Kenichi and Fire Priestess Hotaru, and during class, I studied diligently with my desk partner, Sento.
Though our conversations weren’t very smooth, we occasionally peeked at each other’s notes, picked up dropped items, and seemed to have established our own kind of relationship.
Eris Betelgeuse showed a somewhat displeased expression whenever our eyes met…
I also got to know other classmates.
For teenage boys, nothing is more effective for bonding than games or sports.
During PE class.
I kicked the soccer ball hard.
By the time the goalkeeper widened his eyes, the soccer ball had already smashed into the net with a bang!
Woooosh! The soccer ball spun around in the net for quite a while.
“Wow, Shiki, you madman!”
“That was sick!”
“Just tell us straight. You’re a Terminator sent by the government, right?!”
“Hahaha, how could that be? Such things only exist in fairy tales!”
Well, there probably aren’t any fairy tales featuring Terminators, but I denied it anyway.
Honestly, I don’t know much myself.
I’ve tried to find out about the origins of this body, but no useful information has surfaced.
Who knows whether I’m a government Terminator or an assassin dating back to the Edo Shogunate era?
‘There is someone I can ask later.’
But that’s a story for after the episode begins.
So it’s right to focus on what’s ahead rather than my mysterious past.
Nodding my head while reviewing my plans, I approached Kenichi, who was in his sweaty gym clothes.
He was gulping water at the drinking fountain, and when he noticed me approaching, he smiled cheerfully.
“Shiki. You were amazing as expected.”
“Oh, it’s nothing special. I just have somewhat decent motor skills, so I ran hard.”
“If that’s ‘somewhat decent,’ then all the sports club members should pack up and leave in tears.”
Kenichi giggled, and each time his body shook slightly, the cross-shaped accessory hanging from his neck swayed.
…The ability-nullifying demon sword that transforms into an incredibly cool design when awakened.
Recalling my plan, I barely suppressed the desire to snatch it and asked Kenichi:
“You wore that cross necklace even during soccer. Is it something important to you?”
When I asked, Kenichi opened his eyes wide and glanced at his necklace.
A cross-shaped necklace with slightly faded decorations, probably from being worn for a long time.
Looking at it, he smiled while gazing into space, as if reminiscing about something.
“This is my grandfather’s keepsake.”