Chapter 19: Fated for the Cleaver?

“Mio, are you going to your part-time job?”

“Yeah, the afternoon shift at FamilyMart. It won’t be late. Same as yesterday, I get off at eight.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Mom just wanted to give you a little gift.”

Natsume Chiho walked over to Natsume Mio with a small box, unzipped her backpack, and stuffed it inside.

“Eh?” Natsume Mio was slightly taken aback and said, “Mom, what is this?”

“Something to protect yourself with,” Natsume Chiho said with a slight smile, waving at Natsume Mio. “Come back early, okay?”

“Oh, oh…”

As Natsume Mio left the house, she reached into her backpack and took out the thing her mother had just put in.

After just one glance, she quickly stuffed it into the very bottom of her backpack.

It’s actually a box of Oka… why this kind of thing!

Looking back at her front door, Natsume Mio muttered to herself. It must be because of what she told her mom this morning that she was thinking this way…

That scene just now was just like when she got her first period in middle school. Her mom had said the same thing.

“Mio, a little gift for you~”

And then she had stuffed a pack of sanitary napkins into her hand.

At that time, when she first saw the bloodstain on her bedsheet, she was so embarrassed she wanted to secretly wash the bedding herself.

Now, six or seven years had passed. Although it was still a “little gift,” the contents of the small box had changed…

It felt like her backpack had gotten heavier…

However, her mom didn’t need to worry about this kind of thing at all. She wasn’t that little girl from back then anymore.

Clearly… I’m already prepared…

Mio touched the small pocket on the side of her shoulder bag.

In fact, when she went to her part-time job at the convenience store yesterday, she had already put one inside.

Of course, she hadn’t used it.

She didn’t know if she would get to use it, but it was definitely right to be prepared. What if Ken didn’t have any?
At that critical moment, if they had to interrupt things to make a trip to the convenience store, all the mood would be gone.

First the train, then a transfer to the bus, she made her way to the familiar residential path.

There was still a while before her shift started. She first walked slowly to the front of Sakamoto Ken’s apartment and leaned against the wall to look.

Her gaze swept across the windows, one by one, and settled on the middle unit on the second floor. That was Ken’s room.

But she couldn’t see anything. In broad daylight, the inside of the room was darker than the outside, so looking at the room from the street outside, she could only see the reflection of the sky on the glass.

Although there wasn’t much to see in a dilapidated apartment building, Natsume Mio still stood there for nearly five minutes.

It wasn’t until her phone alarm went off, reminding her that there were only five minutes until her shift started, that she turned and walked quickly towards the convenience store.

…

Inside the room.

Sakamoto Ken had slept from six in the morning until noon and had only just woken up a short while ago.

He had just heated up the bento he brought back last night in the microwave and was now sitting by the window, looking through the manuscript in his hand.

The light here was good during the day. He didn’t need to turn on the lights if he opened the curtains.

He had noticed Natsume Mio when she appeared downstairs and had been watching her silently, seeing what she wanted to do.

Sakamoto Ken was sure that Natsume Mio couldn’t see him inside the room. After all, he had verified the reflection of the glass himself.

One time, in broad daylight, passionate sounds had come from next door again. Upon careful listening, it seemed there were three different women.

So, with the mindset of gathering material, he had gone downstairs and tried to look through the window.

But during the day, there was a difference in light between the inside and outside, so he could only see the boring reflection of the sky.

He tidied up the manuscript paper, picked up his pen, but suddenly had no mood to continue drawing.

He picked up his phone and browsed a few manga apps he often read.

A very famous series from Kadokawa Shoten had updated the manga version of Steins;Gate: The Committee of Antimatter a few days ago.

In fact, he had read it in his previous life. This was considered a connecting piece between the main story and the sequel, Steins;Gate 0.

If it were in the past, seeing the title Steins;Gate wouldn’t have given him any particular feeling.

But now…

“Everything is the choice of Steins Gate.”

Sakamoto Ken silently recited this line.

The world is not a single timeline but is composed of countless parallel realities, each representing a possibility.

If one tries to change a small event in the “past,” the entire world line will change as a result, somewhat similar to the “butterfly effect.”

But in Steins;Gate, the key is that numerous world lines will converge. Within the same attractor field, no matter how things are changed, they will ultimately lead to a predetermined outcome.

So, my rebirth ten years ago, and the changes I’m making in the “present” world line, is that equivalent to changing the “past” for the previous life?

Doesn’t that mean I’ll still get the cleaver in the end?

Once bitten by a snake, ten years scared of a well rope.

Sakamoto Ken rubbed his temples. He thought he had already become mentally desensitized, but subconsciously, he still hadn’t walked out of that psychological shadow.

I must be overthinking it…

The prerequisite for the cleaver was to meet all three of them again and develop intimate relationships with them simultaneously.

Most importantly, after developing intimate relationships, he had to be caught by them.

Sakamoto Ken had reviewed it. If he had been just a little more cautious in his previous life, he wouldn’t have ended up with that ending.

Now that he had a second chance, there was no way the same plot would develop.

At the very least, he only knew Natsume Mio offline right now.

Even though he had already formed some kind of connection with Mikazuki Haruna, at most, she was just a manga serialization competitor he had never met.

According to the timeline of the previous life, he wouldn’t meet Haruna for the first time until nearly half a year later.

By then, he would have already moved out of this dilapidated apartment and be living in a place closer to the school.

…

Mikazuki Haruna directly contacted the editor-in-chief on LINE.

Although it was the weekend, the editor-in-chief replied immediately.

Ono Tomohiro: 「Sangatsu Haru-sensei, the editor-in-chief said at the time that if there were no particularly strong competitors in the near future, your work would be scheduled for serialization in the main magazine. It’s still not possible to confirm right now.」

Sangatsu Haru: 「Editor-in-chief-san, do you think I have a good chance?」

Ono Tomohiro: 「This week’s reader survey results are out. Your ranking is not bad, it’s just that another work is performing particularly strongly.」

Sangatsu Haru: 「Which one?!」

Ono Tomohiro: 「Chainsaw Man. It’s currently ranked first among the new works. You are in second place.」

Sangatsu Haru: 「…I’ve read that one. How far behind am I?」

Ono Tomohiro: 「Chainsaw Man‘s recommendation count is 6,719. Sangatsu Haru-sensei, your work has… 2,811 votes.」

Sangatsu Haru: 「That big of a difference?!」

Ono Tomohiro: 「Sangatsu Haru-sensei, don’t be discouraged. We ultimately count the total votes for the entire month. If the popularity of your subsequent content picks up, it’s still possible to surpass it.」

Mikazuki Haruna leaned back in her chair, sullen. The computer screen in front of her displayed the serialization page for Chainsaw Man.

The comment section for the second chapter of Chainsaw Man already had over three hundred posts, while her second chapter only had over a hundred, many of which were posted by herself.

Haruna hadn’t expected that Chainsaw Man could also manage two updates a week.

When she was drawing Miss Sniper, it was because she had the complete picture in her mind that she could draw so quickly.

This Sakamoto Ken, could he really be a genius?

She carefully recalled the experiences in her dream. That Sakamoto Ken rented an apartment near the Kanzaki Academy of Art. She had been there several times.

That is to say, if the dream is real, then I should be able to find him.

Thinking of this, Haruna picked up the car keys placed by the desk and stood up to go downstairs.

She walked quickly to the garage in the courtyard and started her Porsche.

(End of Chapter)