Chapter 174 Hagimoto Masaki ① (Sugita Group ⑰)
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
I’ll be the first to admit it: back in elementary school, I was the star. The life of the party. I used to pull these little pranks that would have the whole class in stitches. Harmless stuff, really. Just kids being kids.
Then this girl transferred in. She was a timid, mousy little thing. Kind of cute, I guess. Naturally, I targeted her too. It was just a quick skirt-flip, but the girl started bawling like I’d killed her cat. From that day on, my social standing took a nosedive. I went from the popular kid to “the creep who makes girls cry” overnight.¹
School was hell after that. I was ghosted by everyone. My stuff would go missing, or I’d get pinned for things I never even touched. No one believed a word I said. To top it off, the girl who started the whole mess ended up transferring again, running away like a coward.
By the time I hit middle school, I’d gone full delinquent. I spent my days on “revenge tours,”² tracking down my old classmates to beat them senseless or shake them down for cash. Then, in my second year, the girl who ruined me showed up again. The mousy look was gone; she looked confident, sophisticated. Her whole vibe had shifted, but she had a rare name, so I knew it was her the second I saw her.
Naturally, I went to pay her a “visit.”
But I got slaughtered. Not by her, technically, but by the woman serving as her attendant. I tried to force myself on the girl as “compensation,” but that woman grabbed me, threw me like a sack of grain, and beat me to a pulp. I’ll never forget the look in her eyes – like she was staring at a cockroach.
”Just as I suspected… men truly are such vulgar, foolish creatures,” the attendant spat.
She wasn’t just looking down on me; she was some kind of militant feminist who despised every man on the planet. She said the same shit to every guy she crossed.
Whatever. I didn’t care about the help. The real problem was that girl hiding behind her, acting all high and mighty while doing absolutely nothing. “I hope you’ve learned your lesson. Don’t go around hurting people anymore,” she preached.
Then do it yourself, you bitch. Hiding behind a bodyguard while lecturing me… she looked dignified, but she was the same trash underneath. But with that attendant there, I couldn’t touch her. She spent her days playing the hero under the protection of her family’s status and that feminist psycho. Back then, she was so brainwashed by that woman she was a total man-hater herself.
I couldn’t stand being pushed around, so I started running with Sugita. If she was going to use her family’s power, I’d just hide under the wing of the law through Sugita’s connections. It worked like a charm. After that, the most they could do was nag us. I even filed a police report the next time they tried to get physical. They actually got hauled in, and I squeezed a massive settlement out of them. They might have had big mouths, but they couldn’t lay a finger on us. Serves them right.³
I just never thought this shitty cycle would follow me all the way to high school.
Once we hit high school, we kept doing whatever we wanted. Hidaka joined the crew, and every day we spent our time tormenting the toy Sugita found – Natsumi. For some reason, even as the Student Council Vice President, that woman just watched from the sidelines and never tried to stop us.
Then the teleportation happened. Honestly, I don’t give a damn about the Demon King. I just want to live how I want. If anyone gets in my way, I kill them. No hesitation. Come to think of it, the first time I killed someone in this world, I didn’t feel a thing. I just thought, Oh, they’re dead. I just want to enjoy myself. Eat when I’m hungry. Take whatever woman I want. That’s it.
* * *
”Hey. Wake up.”
”Gah-!?”
Someone dumped a bucket of water over my head, jolting me awake.
”What the hell!? Wait… where am I?”
I sat up and scanned the area. We were in a forest, deep in the woods. It felt familiar, somehow.
”This is the place where you all left me to die,” a voice said. “Don’t you dare tell me you’ve forgotten.”
”Left to die…? Wait, Natsumi!?”
I finally realized who it was. So Natsumi was the one who splashed me? Well, this worked out perfectly.
”Man, I’ve been looking for you, Natsumi!” Hagimoto said, a grin spreading across his face.
”What a coincidence. I felt the same way. Although, I’m the one who hauled your ass out here,” Natsumi replied.
”Whatever, that doesn’t matter. Hey, Natsumi… why don’t you let me join your group?”
”…………Huh?”
Natsumi stared at me like I’d just grown a second head.
”Think about it. Being with Sugita isn’t exactly a party anymore. Besides, Sugita’s finished, right? All he can do is steal. But you’re different. You’re the real deal. You even turned Hidaka into a girl. If I’m on your side, I can get in on the good life. Look, I’m not gonna ask for your women or anything. Just let me have a go at Hidaka and we’re cool. Come on, what do you say? I’m stronger than I look. You won’t regret it.”
I let the words spill out in a rush. To be honest, I’m confident I’m stronger than Hidaka – and definitely stronger than Sugita. It’s all thanks to my Unique Skills.⁴ This had to be a good deal for Natsumi… right?
”I’ll even go kill Sugita for you if that’s what it takes. So… let’s just let bygones be bygones, yeah?”
”Let bygones be bygones, you say…”
Natsumi’s eyebrow twitched. Did I say something wrong?
”Do you even remember what you did to me?” Natsumi asked quietly.
”Eh? Ah… well, you know. It was just a little prank, right? Don’t get all worked up over it.”
”Just a little, huh? Fine then… eat this.”
Natsumi reached down, ripped a handful of weeds out of the dirt, and shoved them in my face.
”Eat it. Do that, and I might think about it.”
”Whoa, hang on. No way. There’s no way I’m eating that.”
”But you tried to make me eat stuff like this, didn’t you?”
I choked on my words. I had. Back before we were teleported. I’d stuffed dead bees and all kinds of crap into his lunch box.
”If you don’t like that, you could always strip naked, get on your hands and knees, and say: ‘Please, bestow discipline upon a pathetic, microscopic piece of trash like myself’ – “⁵
”Screw you! I’m not doing that!”
”But you made me do it. I won’t let you say you forgot.”
I ground my teeth until they creaked. I had made him do it. But… but!
”But… Sugita was the one who ordered that!”
”And you were the one who carried it out. No matter how you spin it, you’re just as guilty. Now, do it. You want to be my ‘comrade,’ don’t you? Or are you going to eat the grass?”
There was no way in hell I was going to get naked and beg in front of Natsumi. If those were my choices…
”If I eat it… you’ll let me in?” I asked.
”Yeah. I’ll consider it.”
”…Fine.”
I steeled myself, grabbed the weeds Natsumi was holding, and shoved them into my mouth. I started chewing. It was bitter. That raw, grassy stench and foul bitterness coated my tongue. I almost gagged.
”If you puke, it doesn’t count,” Natsumi warned.
Son of a bitch! I forced myself to swallow, fighting the urge to vomit. My mouth felt disgusting. But with this, I was finally in –
”Oh, nice job,” Natsumi said. “Anyway, I thought about it, and I’ve decided not to let you join.”
”You bastard! That wasn’t the deal!”
”I said I’d consider it. I never said I’d actually do it.”
God dammit! He was right. He only said he’d “consider” it. I couldn’t believe I’d fallen for such a pathetic word game.
”So… you never had any intention of letting me join from the start?”
”Isn’t that obvious? Why would I ever do something so convenient for you? I brought you here to get my vengeance.”
”Tch… you really think you can talk big just because I played nice? I’m gonna make you regret ever turning me down!”
I summoned the Great Scythe from my Item Box.⁶ It was a massive, curved blade that had come as a set with my Unique Skills. It looked like a nightmare to wield, but for some reason, it felt as light as a feather in my hands. I spun the scythe over my head, squaring off against Natsumi.
”Now then… I wonder which one of us is really going to be regretting this?”
”Keep barking, you piece of shit!” Natsumi yelled.
He just stood there with that smug, annoying grin. I lunged, swinging the scythe in a wide, lethal arc –
—
Summary:
Hagimoto Masaki reflects on his history of bullying and his eventual downfall in the old world before being transported to the current fantasy setting. In the present, he is confronted by Natsumi, whom he once tormented, in the very forest where Natsumi was left to die. Hagimoto tries to manipulate Natsumi into letting him join his group, but is instead humiliated and forced into a direct confrontation.
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Trivia:
- Hagimoto considers himself stronger than Hidaka and Sugita.
- The girl who ‘ruined’ Hagimoto’s life is actually the Student Council Vice President.
- Hagimoto once successfully extorted money from the Vice President through a police report settlement.
- Hagimoto has zero remorse for his first kill in the new world.
- The Great Scythe feels unnaturally light to Hagimoto despite its size
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Character Insight:
Hagimoto exhibits classic sociopathic traits, viewing his horrific bullying as ‘pranks’ and feeling no guilt for murder. Natsumi’s motives have shifted from survival to calculated psychological and physical vengeance, displaying a ‘cruel irony’ in his methods.
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Behind the Scenes:
The author uses Hagimoto as a foil to show that the isekai system doesn’t necessarily reward virtue, but Hagimoto’s narcissism makes him blind to the psychological growth of those he bullied.
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TL Notes:
Notes:
• Sugita – Sugita Kazu. The leader of the Sugita gang and the primary bully of Natsumi Sasaki. His grandfather is the Superintendent General and his father is a Police Superintendent, so the two of them covered up all his crimes. Because of this, he does whatever he wants wherever he goes. He has a lean build, sharp features, and a calculating gaze. Possesses the ‘Steal’ (窃盗) skill and uses it to brainwash women.
• Natsumi – The protagonist. Height 168 to 171 cm, weight 57 to 59 kg. He has a baby face, but he hides his eyes with his bangs. He was bullied by the Sugita gang just because his name sounded like a girl’s name.
• Hidaka – 182 cm, 79 kg muscular man—ex-Sugita gang member and Kendo club alum, now Hero-class wielding Holy Sword Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi and Unique Skill
• Hagimoto – One of the members of the Sugita gang who actively bullied Natsumi. At first glance, he looks like a cool, smart guy with glasses, but he is actually vulgar and has a foul mouth. Wields a large scythe named Grimm Reaper and possesses the Unique Skill Sariel’s Protection.
• Masaki – One of the members of the Sugita gang who actively bullied Natsumi. At first glance, he looks like a cool, smart guy with glasses, but he is actually vulgar and has a foul mouth.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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