002 – I’m Just a Passerby!

"Oh, come on!? Don't mess with me!!"

That was all Souta managed to shout before his body twisted into the white light and vanished.

By the time the light faded—

His rented apartment's sofa was empty.

Just like that, without any preparation, he was forced into an isekai adventure.

A strange, weightless sensation overwhelmed him, making him dizzy.

It felt like falling from a great height—his instincts made him shut his eyes tight.

It was the same feeling he got when riding those high-speed water slides at theme parks—he never dared to open his eyes during the descent.

Fortunately, it didn't last long.

The moment his feet felt solid ground again, Souta slowly opened his eyes to assess his surroundings.

His rented apartment was gone.

Instead, he found himself standing in a damp, grimy alleyway.

The ground was slightly wet. The walls were covered in graffiti. Plastic bags and bottles were discarded in the corners. A foul smell lingered in the air.

It was a dirty, abandoned alley—the kind no one cared about.

At that moment, Souta finally let go of the naive idea that this was all an illusion.

Holy shit… I actually transmigrated!?*

"Ara ara, you wouldn't happen to be… Akizuki-san, would you?"

A soft, elegant female voice—tinged with a hint of surprise—sounded behind him.

The voice was graceful yet clear, carrying a sweet charm that was undeniably pleasant to the ears.

Souta instinctively turned around.

And there, stepping into his field of vision—

Was a girl in a red gothic dress.

She was breathtakingly beautiful.

Her long, raven-black hair, tied into twin-tails, fluttered gently in the wind.

Her delicate limbs looked so fragile that they seemed as if they'd break under the slightest pressure, evoking a sense of deep protectiveness.

Even Souta had to admit—

This girl possessed an irresistible, devilish charm—the kind that could ensnare any man's heart with just a single glance.

But—

He snapped out of it instantly.

Because he noticed something.

The girl's heterochromatic eyes—

Her right eye was a deep crimson.

Her left eye was a golden clock face.

And combined with that highly recognizable dress…

Tokisaki Kurumi.

And not just any Tokisaki Kurumi—

Spirit Mode Tokisaki Kurumi.

Oh shit—

I CAN'T AFFORD TO MESS WITH HER.

"No, I'm not! I'm just a passerby!"

Facing the girl's curious gaze, Souta forced himself to stay calm and responded in fluent Japanese.

At this moment, he was insanely grateful that he had once, out of pure interest, signed up for a Japanese language class.

He had even passed the JLPT N2 exam and spent countless nights practicing his listening skills with NHK broadcasts.

At the very least—he wouldn't have any communication issues.

"And besides… My name isn't Akizuki. I'm Kujo Jotaro. You must have mistaken me for someone else, miss."

Rokuhara Souta firmly denies being Akizuki Kōzō

After all, Akizuki Kōzō had just been flirting with Tokisaki Kurumi a moment ago. If she recognized him now, who knew what would happen?

Tokisaki Kurumi was, after all, a Spirit who had killed over ten thousand people.

Hearing his denial, the black-haired girl scrutinized him with a sharp gaze.

A few seconds later, as if she had thought of something, she pulled out a phone—an exact replica of the one Souta had found—and casually tapped on the screen to send a message.

Bzzz…

A vibration came from Souta's pocket.

Souta: "..."

He distinctly remembered throwing the phone away in panic when he was engulfed by the white light.

How the hell had it ended up back in his pocket?

This damn phone is screwing me over!

Tokisaki Kurumi smiled sweetly, her soft lips parting as she spoke:

"To think Akizuki-san would pretend not to know me… How heartbreaking."

"And besides… both 'Akizuki Kōzō' and 'Kuujou Joutarou' are fake names, aren't they?"

Her tone was as refined as a noble lady's, but her gaze carried a subtle pressure, as if silently accusing him:

"You're really not an honest person, are you?"

"Ahem… That was just a joke earlier. Don't take it seriously."

Realizing he couldn't keep up the act, Souta had no choice but to admit his identity as Akizuki Kōzō.

He forced himself to stay calm, maintaining a friendly smile as he spoke:

"And besides, nicknames are just random picks. It's like how I never use my real name online. You're not mad about something so trivial, are you?"

Souta could feel the cold sweat forming on his temples.

The sheer shock of transmigrating—combined with the fact that Tokisaki Kurumi was actually real—had momentarily overwhelmed his ability to think.

But now, his brain snapped back into action.

And a terrifying thought hit him like a truck—

Tokisaki Kurumi preferred to kill people in secluded alleys.

Souta remembered it very clearly—in the original story, a few thugs who had tried to assault her were lured into an alleyway and brutally eliminated.

And judging by how familiar she seemed with this place…

This clearly wasn't her first time doing something like this.

And now, he was in a deserted alley…

Could it be…

Had he just walked straight into her crime scene?!

With this realization, Souta's gaze instinctively shifted past Kurumi.

And the moment he saw what was behind her—

His pupils shrank in horror.

Not far away, on the ground, were several pools of fresh, undried blood.

Three severed feet—still wearing bloodstained shoes—were scattered nearby.

Earlier, he had been too focused on Kurumi herself to notice.

Now, the full scene was sinking in.

"..."

A slight twitch formed at the corner of Souta's eye.

Yeah… She really is a Spirit who's killed over ten thousand people.

He forced himself to act natural.

Kurumi seemed to notice his reaction.

With a smile, she teasingly asked:

"Did you see it? So? Does it disgust you, Akizuki-san?"

"No, I believe you had a valid reason!" Souta declared, putting on the most righteous expression he could muster.

With a firm and unwavering tone, he continued:

"I know you. You never kill good people. Can you tell me what happened?"

"..."

Kurumi paused, clearly taken aback.

She gave him a curious glance before replying:

"Even back when we chatted on the phone, I could sense it… Akizuki-san, you really are different from other people."

"If it were anyone else, they'd already be trembling in fear, looking at me like I'm some kind of monster."

To be honest, I kind of want to tremble too… Souta complained internally.

But he couldn't show it.

"There's not much to explain," Kurumi continued casually.

"I simply ran into a few men whose minds were filled with nothing but lust. They wanted to assault me, so in self-defense, I 'ate' their time and sent them straight to hell."

She spoke nonchalantly, as if she were merely reciting a grocery list.

It was clear that she had no psychological burden about taking lives.

She also wasn't worried about hiding anything from Souta.

After all, from their previous phone conversations, she knew that Souta had extensive knowledge about her—even things she had never told anyone before.

She had even suspected that he could see the future.

So, talking about this wasn't a big deal.

"That's about what I figured," Souta nodded.

"The security in this area must be terrible. A beauty like you must run into scumbags like that all the time."

"Oh my? Is Akizuki-san… complimenting me?"

Kurumi's cheeks flushed slightly—whether she was genuinely embarrassed or just playing along, Souta had no way of telling.

"It's just the truth!" Souta waved his hand dismissively. "Not really a compliment."

After a slight pause, he added:

"Besides, since these men chose to trample the law, they have no right to complain if someone enforces justice outside of it."

"Also… just call me Rokuhara Souta. That's my real name."