⑦

Tutor's Duty______________________

How hard is it to keep someone alive? I imagine parents might have a better answer than I do. It probably goes something like this: give them food, clothes, shelter, and an education. Attention is optional. But that's just the basics. Parents don't expect their children to die, not really.

In my case, they weren't children. They were girls, teetering on the edge of womanhood, and according to my lovely chat with Death, it's my job to keep them alive. I have to be their tutor while saving them from—Death, the one who put me in this mess. And that, apparently, should make sense.

I'm not even somebody to them yet. That's going to be a challenge. I'm just a regular, run-of-the-mill immortal.

I turn the knob to the room where five girls await. The door creaks open, and Sohee's voice greets me, sharp and accusing.

"Sunbae, you said you'd be back soon, but it's been an hour."

I did say soon. The same guy who don't even know what day is today.

"Sorry about that," I say, taking a seat beside her.

Mei averts her eyes, trying to cope with her fear of men. And here I am, silently speculating about how each of them will die.

Mei might be shocked to death. Shizuka could get electrocuted in her bathroom. Carrie might get her hair caught on a tree branch while a killer chases her. And Claire... a bullet from a Glock-19. Wow, there are so many ways to die...

"I accept."

"Sunbae?" Sohee's voice breaks my reverie.

I look at each of the Negative Girls. None of them seem pleased to hear the word 'accept' out of my mouth. But I don't care—I have to do this. I have to die.

"I want to be the tutor."

So, that's that, folks. Here, at this moment, my tutoring journey begins with five beautiful and cute girls. Where will it take us? What dark backstories will we uncover? Will there be a doki-doki scene once I gain their favor? Maybe even a sexy one? And then—

"Great, Sunbae. Now it's the girls' turn."

…Oh.

I thought my decision was all that mattered. But we're doing this democratically. Fantastic.

Without hesitation, the voting begins. And goddamn, it's disappointing.

Carrie snorts. "Hell no, I refuse to be his student."

Shizuka immediately counters. "I'll accept, but only because I want to piss Carrie off."

Carrie bites her lip, glaring daggers at Shizuka.

Sohee looks at Mei with a pleading expression. Mei grips her hands tightly, her eyes squeezed shut. "I'm sorry, Sohee. I can't."

That's another no.

Sohee's shoulders slump, but she quickly composes herself. "Then what about Claire's vote?"

"She's not here," Carrie snaps. "Just put her down as a no."

"But wouldn't that be deciding for her?" Sohee protests.

Carrie crosses her arms, unimpressed. "It's her fault she's not here. And I'm sure she wouldn't want a tutor anyway. Remember last time?"

Shizuka interrupts with a smirk. "Let's just put her down as 'not voted.' It's the safest option."

Sohee sighs, her eyes glancing at me, full of apology. I can do the math. One yes, two no's. Hooray, I've failed. Time to die, then.

But Sohee isn't ready to give up. She stands tall, trying to rally the others.

"Look, maybe you could reconsider. Sunbae's a good guy—he helps you with more than just your studies. Mei, maybe having him as a tutor could help with your androphobia. Sunbae isn't like those men you're afraid of. And Carrie, you two could become friends. He's good at games—maybe he could be your gaming partner. Though, I don't want you playing games all the time..."

I don't expect anything, and nothing is what we get.

Mei shakes her head, eyes downcast. "I'm sorry, Sohee."

"I don't want a noob tutoring me!" Carrie blurts out. "Final."

Sohee bites her lip and turns to me, her eyes wet. "I tried, Sunbae."

"Thank you, Sohee."

She doesn't seem to believe me. But I mean it. Thank you.

If this time don't work, then next time. Before that, let's just use the time we have.

"What would change your mind?" I ask.

Out of everyone, Carrie replies first. "Nothing. Unless you become a woman. That'd help us feel more comfortable."

"I'm a woman."

That's what I say. A simple, obvious lie.

They stare at me, bewildered.

"…" No one laughs.

Shizuka, deadpan, asks, "Transgender?"

"No, just kidding."

"Maybe if you were funnier, we'd accept you," Carrie says.

I'm sorry I wasn't a clown in my past life, Carrie.

She glares at me. "What are you looking at, asshole?"

Sohee warns her. "Carrie."

"Hmph."

Hey, this tiny red dragon is a gamer isn't she? I had plenty of experience with such kind of people. Don't they like challenges?

I wonder...

"Carrie, would you call yourself a true gamer?" I ask.

She raises an eyebrow. "Of course I am. Any challenge, I'll beat. Who do you think I am? I'm Carryyourash."

Shizuka mumbles, "More like Carryyourass."

Carrie flinches but recovers quickly, her ego intact.

I press on. "Then how about a game"

"Game?" she asks, intrigued.

Her attention is caught—that's what matters. Now to reel her in. "But if you lose, you say yes."

Carrie narrows her eyes. "And if I win?"

"I'll give you anything you want."

Her eyes widen. "Anything?"

I nod. I sound like a genie offering three wishes.

The others watch us closely. Mei looks nervous, rubbing her fingers together. Carrie seems to be considering it, but then she hesitates.

"Hmph, you think money can solve your problems?" she scoffs.

I choose my bait carefully. What does a gamer want more than anything? Not a girlfriend, no. Ah, got it.

"RTX 3060."

Carrie's jaw drops. "Wha—what?"

"RTX 3060." I say like I have it.

Her eyes light up. "Hell yeah! I'm in. Now, what's the game? I'll win, no doubt."

Ah, it worked. I once read a doujin where a group of schoolgirls baited a shouta with an RTX 3060. Who knew that would actually come in handy?

"What's the challenge?" Carrie repeats, eager.

"Rock-paper-scissors."

The simplest of them all.

Carrie sniffs, stretching her arms, "Heh, right. Let's—"

"Pl—please wait a second!" Mei suddenly shouts. She looks at Carrie, worry etched on her face.

"What's your problem?" Carrie snaps.

"Ca—Carrie, if you lose, then... Mei will vote yes. That makes him..."

Carrie shrugs her off. "Yeah, yeah, I got this."

Shizuka, not even looking up from her laptop, comments, "Rock-paper-scissors is all about probability. Even pros can lose. It's risky. What if you lose, Carrie?"

Their gazes lock, and Shizuka presses on. "Will you carry the burden?"

Carrie falters, then shakes her head. "You're right. It's not fair for one game to decide our fate. I refuse the challenge."

What a hypocritical line.

I push one last time. "You're backing out?"

"Yes. What? Gamers can refuse challenges too!" she huffs, turning back to her console.

Shizuka shrugs, resuming her work. Thank you for your deed.

I've failed and it doesn't feel bad.

Sohee sighs. "So this is it, huh?"

The bell rings, echoing the end of this timeline.

Oh, look at that. It's the end of the school day. And my life.

She's coming to kill me now.

Last time, I was lucky enough to enjoy both pleasure and pain until I died. But I doubt this time will be the same. Only Life is coming, and she's bringing her knife. Only pain.

But no worries—I've got something to help me die faster.

I reach into my pocket and pull out a small pill container.

Sohee notices, her brow furrowing in concern. "Oh, you're going to take that? Are you ill, Sunbae?"

"Quite so." I have this non-dying fever.

The school bell echoes through the room, signaling the end of the day. The Negative Girls start packing up, eager to leave.

Carrie, short and petite, walks over to Sohee and holds out her hand. "As promised," Sohee says, handing back her earphones.

Carrie snatches them away with a smirk. "Thank YOU. Now I'm off."

Shizuka slips her laptop into her bag and gives me a dismissive smile. "See you never, Sunbae."

Mei nods to Sohee, her voice soft. "I'll be waiting at the gate."

One by one, the Negative Girls leave, until it's just me and Sohee alone in the room. And Sohee, as always, wants to make sure everything's okay.

"I'm very, very sorry, Sunbae."

I shrug. "It's not your fault."

I pop open the pill container and pull out a small tablet. It looks like any other pill you'd take to blast away a headache, but this one will blast the life out of me.

Am I really going to swallow this? I wonder if it'll taste like dying by jumping off a building.

"S-Sunbae? Are you just going to swallow it dry? Wait—" Sohee puts her bag on her lap and pulls out a water bottle, offering it to me. "Use my water," she says with a weak smile. "That's the least I can do."

"Thank you, Sohee." I take the bottle from her.

Before Life can kill me, I place the pill on my tongue and wash it down with a gulp from Sohee's bottle.

"I'm sorry," she murmurs, her eyes downcast. But when she notices me drinking from her bottle as if I'm sucking on a cow's teat, her cheeks flush. Her eyes, hidden behind cloudy glasses, dart to my face. "Sun-Sunbae, you—"

I glance down and notice she's holding a plastic cup. I didn't even realize. Oh well, what's the problem? An indirect kiss? For me, that's bullshit, but I guess Sohee is a normal teenage girl.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Sohee. I thou... I thought...um—"

The bottle slips from my hand, hitting the floor as my head collapses into Sohee's lap.

Everything goes black, a faint smell of sweetness lingering in the air...