At Kiyoka's strong request, I went to check on our captured classmates.
Personally, I didn't want to show her because I didn't want her mental state to get unstable, but she said she absolutely had to make sure.
Kiyoka peered down the deserted hallway. "So, like, they're not even here......"
"Maybe it's not this place?"
We visited the soldiers' barracks where the assault had been happening, but our classmates were nowhere to be seen.
"Were they not given rooms?"
"I don't know...... As soon as I got brought here, I, um...... was totally about to get done to, and Yoshito saved me right then, so I wasn't, like, given a room or anything."
The soldiers had been given private rooms that were a bit fancy, like solitary cells, but if that's the case, what was that room for, the one where the assault was happening?
Could it be that even before our classmates were brought here, women were brought from somewhere and the same things were done to them?
Kiyoka tugged lightly on my sleeve. "Wait...... maybe it's underground?"
"Underground?"
"I mean, dungeons and basements are totally the usual thing, right?"
"Yeah, true. Then let's look for stairs."
For starters, we didn't even know if there was a basement, but we looked for stairs anyway. The space under the big staircase going up to the second floor was blocked off with a wall.
I thought maybe the space under the stairs was a storage room, but there was a room next to the staircase area, and you could go down to the basement from there.
But in front of the stairs going down, there were iron bars and a guy standing watch.
"Whoa, it's actually here."
"It's, super creepy, isn't it?"
"I mean, of course it's creepy."
"Yeah, totally, I guess......"
Still inside the Item Box, we passed through the iron bars and went down the stairs, coming out into a dim hallway.
The hallway continued left and right from the stairs, and each side had four pairs, eight iron doors, so sixteen rooms total.
"Want to try this way first?"
"Okay."
"Whoa...... is that Haneda?"
Kiyoka gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth. "Oh my god, that's, so awful......"
We passed through the iron door into the first room on the right hallway, and a guy in a rough sack-like robe was lying on a bed.
It looked like he wasn't even given underwear, and his junk was hanging out.
Haneda is a mob character like me, doesn't stand out in class.
I don't remember him leaving much of an impression, but I feel like he used to be a bit chubbier. Now his cheeks are all sunken in.
I thought he was asleep, but his eyes were open.
His eyes were open, but it felt like nothing was reflected in them.
Watching him stare at the dirty stone wall with those clouded eyes, there wasn't a single trace of life in him.
The cell had nothing but the bed and a big pot.
Probably a pot for going to the bathroom.
Since the Item Box wasn't open, he couln't see us and hear us, but smells didn't carry through.
It shouldn't smell, but just looking at it made me feel sick, like I could smell something awful.
"Let's check the others."
"Okay......"
We moved to the next room, and there was Nakagawa, the smartest kid in class.
He was lying on the bed in the same sack-like robe, but with a dazed look on his face, he was playing with his erect junk.
Drool hung from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were completely gone.
"Did they drug this guy or something?"
Kiyoka shuddered, turning her face away to hide against me. "I literally can't...... this is, so scary......"
It made sense that Kiyoka turned her face away and clung to me.
Even after being abused like that, to be lost in jerking off—either he was drugged, or his head just broke.
Even I felt something cold run down my back.
The only ones in the right hallway were Haneda and Nakagawa. The rest, the girls, were in cells along the left hallway.
"This is, horrible...... way too horrible......"
"Don't look anymore."
There were four girls captured in total. Three of them were in the same sack-like robes as Haneda and the others, curled up on beds or hugging their knees.
But Sakaguchi, the smallest one, was lying completely naked on the bed.
Like Haneda, her eyes were open, but she probably wasn't looking at the ceiling or anything.
Her mouth was half-open, and her thin chest was moving up and down, so she seemed alive.
Her body, which looked young for her age, was covered in countless bruises and bite marks.
She seemed to be bleeding from between her legs, but I couldn't tell what that blood was from.
"Hey, Yoshito. I really want to use Purification Magic on them."
"Wai—if you do that, they might figure out you came back."
"Yeah, you're right."
"You're right...... If you're the only one safe while everyone's like this, they won't just hate you......"
Kiyoka clenched her fists, her voice trembling. "Even so! Like, even so, I seriously can't just leave this alone!"
She was right—this situation was beyond anything I'd imagined, and it didn't look like their wounds had been treated or disinfected at all.
If Kiyoka used Purification Magic, it would at least lower the risk of infections, and more than anything, it should help them mentally.
"Okay. If after we save all of them, something happens and Kiyoka gets hated on, just make me the bad guy. Say I stopped you from helping."
"That's, not......"
"It's the truth. I really am holding Kiyoka back right now. By my own choice, I'm letting these guys die."
"Yoshito......"
"Well, even if you say that, the ones who'll hate will hate. But don't forget—all the blame is on me, and I'm on Kiyoka's side."
Kiyoka buried her face into my chest, her shoulders relaxing slightly. "Yoshito...... okay, I totally get it."
Kiyoka nodded while burying her face in my chest.
"Also...... no mental Purification Magic."
"Wait, why?"
"This environment. If they don't use their hatred for those guys like a fighting spirit, I don't think they'll hold up mentally."
"I get it...... Nakagawa and Sakaguchi both look, like, so bad."
"Yeah. Instead, really focus on the image of disinfecting their wounds."
"Okay, totally got it!"
After that, I had Kiyoka use Purification Magic on all six cells, one by one.
While the captured people were surprised, we moved to the next cell, trying to keep Kiyoka's presence as hidden as possible, but it was probably impossible.......
Trivia:
1. The discovery of the underground cells reveals a systematic pattern of abuse, suggesting that the soldiers have been victimizing people long before the classmates' arrival.
2. Haneda's and Nakagawa's conditions highlight the psychological and physical toll of their captivity, with Nakagawa's drugged state implying forced compliance or mental breakdown.
3. Yoshito's decision to let Kiyoka use Purification Magic, despite the risks, shows his internal conflict between protecting her and helping their classmates, while also acknowledging the potential backlash they might face.
Notes:
• Kiyoka - Dark‑skinned gyaru classmate, blunt, casual, uses feminine pronouns. Survivor of soldier assault, vengeful, threatens captors. Wields Cleaning Magic to purify objects/people, seeks to level up. Freeloader in Kuroi’s Item Box, virgin yet bold, constantly teases, presses against him, enjoys fun in other world, panics under stress, sleeps cramped together.
• Yoshito - Male protagonist summoned to another world who hides inside an Item Box while preparing to return to Japan. Pragmatic and calculating, he worries about the growing power of his companion's magic. Harbors violent urges toward the Soldiers who mistreated his classmates.
• Haneda - Family name of Naoto Haneda, a classmate locked up with Hiroshi who frequently seeks reassurance from him.
• Nakagawa - Family name of Hiroshi Nakagawa, the short, intelligent classmate nicknamed "Hakase" for his academic prowess.
• Sakaguchi - The smallest girl in Yoshito's class, repeatedly violated by soldiers.