323話 走る狂気
朝はやっぱり眠い。
以前の自転車通学とは違い、空調の効いた車通学だとどうしても心地よくなって意識が遠のいてしまう。そういえば電車通学をしてる友達が、冬になると椅子の足元から出てくる暖房の気持ちよさに負けて意識を狩り取られるとか言ってたっけ。
そんな事を思い出しながらぼんやりと窓の外を眺めていたのだが――
「......え?」
信じられない光景が目に飛び込んできたため、うたた寝へと
さんが警告を発するが、正気を疑うような惨状を目のあたりにした衝撃で1ミリも動けなかった。
「こちらにぶつけてくる危険がございます!」
菊岡さんは信号待ちのため、車を一時停車している。他の車も同じで、動いているのは対向車線からくる白い普通車のみ。ただ、その車は全く
その白い車は歩道へと突っ込み、何人もの通行人を跳ね続けているのだ。
俺が目撃しただけでも、すでに3人は
なんの躊躇いもなく猛スピードで人を吹き飛ばすその異常さに身の毛がよだつ。同時に言いようのない恐怖に身の危険も強く感じた。
ただただ、何もできずに、その地獄絵図を無様に眺めていることしかできなかった。
時間にしてほんの一瞬、だけれど全てがスローモーションになってしまったみたいに世界はゆっくりと流れていて、不気味な感覚に呑み込まれてしまう。
4人目の犠牲者......自転車に乗っていた高校生が弾かれたところで白い車は車道へと戻り、あろうことかそのまま平然と走り続ける。
唖然とする俺をよそに、ボコボコにつぶれた白の車体は鮮明な赤を飛び散らせたまま横を通過してゆく。
「ひき、逃げ......?」
そう気づいた時には何もかもが遅く、俺はすぐにスマホで救急車を呼ぼうとする。だが、指が震えてうまく数字が打てない。
番号は......110じゃなくて、いや、119だったはず......?
「訊太郎さま、大丈夫です。少々お待ちくださいませ」
混乱する俺をフォローするかのように、その後は菊岡さんや目撃者数名の大人陣が通報と救急要請を出していた。
俺はその様子を、押し寄せる恐怖心に抗いながら見ている事しかできなかった。
現実はゲームとは全く違う。
人間がすぐ目の前で無残な扱いを受け、苦しみながら血を失い、肉塊となる。
その残酷さに慄きながら、得体のしれない不安が急速に増殖するのを感じた。
『なあ、聞いた? 今日だけでひき逃げ事件が2000件を超えたらしい』
『たった1日だけで......? ひき逃げって、年間で1万8000件ぐらいじゃないのか?』
『君、詳しいね』
『これでも皇宮警察志望だからな。犯罪率のデータは一通り頭に入れてある。ちなみに検挙率は27%ほどだ』
『そう......。僕の友人も今日、被害にあって救急搬送されたのだけど......彼は大丈夫だろうか......』
『偶発的なひき逃げならば、犯人は動揺心や利己的な考えでとっさに逃げてしまうケースが多いらしい』
『......今回は故意に通行人を、何人も撥ねる事件が多いのだとか』
『むしゃくしゃしてたり、追い詰められた人間が突発的な事件を起こすっていうけど、それにしたって......理想郷とまで言われた日本でこれだけの事件が一斉に起きるなんて、何が起きたんだ?』
『海外のようにストレス社会でもなく、不景気に落ち込んでるわけでもない、皇家が安寧と繁栄に導くこの日本で、こんなにも多くの事件が発生するなんて......』
『そうだよな。まるで人も金も、余裕のない国みたいな惨状じゃないか』
朝、ひき逃げ事件に遭遇した俺は色々とショックで午後から登校した。
けれどそこでも待っていたのは、不穏な噂話だ。
クラスメイトが囁く内容が耳から離れず、スマホでニュースを見れば今日だけでひき逃げ事件が大量に発生している、といった記事が大きく取り上げられていた。
帰宅すれば、父さんが『物騒だ......この状況で訊太郎に寮生活などさせるものか! 初等部の生徒と同じ扱いで、自宅通学の申請をごり押しするぞ!』と明後日の方向に意気込んでいた......。
ちなみに俺は中等部扱いなので、もうすぐ寮生活が始まる。とはいえ基本的にいつでも家に帰ってよいし、御曹司やご令嬢の家庭事情的に寮に縛り付けることが無理なのだ。では、なぜ寮生活を実施するのかといえば、学園の敷地内は警備が厳重であり、通学時のリスクを減らすといった事情が主なご名目となっている。
確かに今、懸念事項がひき逃げのみだったら、学校から出ない寮生活の方が安全な気もする。
「多分、危険の回避方法は他にもあるんだろうな......」
思いつくのはクラン・クランだ。
今朝のように人々が被害を被るのは決して、決してあってはならない事件だと思う。ましてや、その刃の矛先が今回はたまたま他人に向いてしまったけど、もし夕輝や晃夜だったらと考えたら、ゾッとする。
......あのひき逃げ事件が、クラン・クランとどう結びつくかはわからない。
けれど、この異常事態はおそらくゲームが深く絡んでいるとみていいはず。そして既に最悪すぎる事件は起こっているけど、『
『あらぁん、天使ちゅうわん! しばらくぶりねん♪ 学園でのことや通学時の事件については聞いてるわよぉん』
ログインと同時に、ジョージからフレンドメッセージが届く。
ジョージは日本皇立学園の体育教師、もとい軍閥科の中でも体術専行なのだが、ゲームの中で現実の話題を振ってくるのは珍しい。
『ああ、ジョージ。ちょこっと大変でした』
『いやぁん! こっちじゃ、普通に接してよぉん! あちきと天使ちゅわんの仲でしょん♪』
『ところで天使ちゅわん、何かと大変だったと思うから、こういった内容を伝えるのは酷かもしれないけどぉん......』
ジョージにしては妙に歯切れの悪い間が空いた。
『ちょっとクラン・クランでも酷い事態が起きてるらしいのぉん』
『【鉄と鎖の腐敗都市ギルディガリオン】? とかいった怪しげな都市で開催されるイベントに? 参加したいがために、
傭兵
にわざとなるって傭兵が出始めちゃってるのよねえん......』
『どんな、方法なの......?』
ジョージは一拍の溜めを置いて、その事実を軽い口調で伝えてくる。
どうやら俺の嫌な予感は当たっていたようだ。
現実での轢き逃げ事件多発の原因は......クラン・クランで馬車を活用し、キル行為に走る
327 Episode 323 Running Madness
I'm asleep in the morning.
Unlike previous bicycle trips, air-conditioned trips can make you feel very comfortable and unconscious.Speaking of which, my friend who goes to school by train said that in winter, he can hunt his consciousness by losing the pleasure of heating coming out of the feet of his chair.
Remembering that, I was looking out the window, blurry.
"... eh?
The incredible sight jumped into my eyes, causing my consciousness to lure me to lie awake at once.
The driver, Kikuoka, issued a warning, but he was unable to move for a millimeter due to the shock he saw when he saw a tragic state of mind.
"There is a danger of hitting us!
Mr Kikuoka is temporarily stopping his car in order to wait for a signal.The other cars are the same, only white regular cars coming from the opposite lane are moving.However, the car was completely unusual (...).
The white car is jumping into the sidewalk and jumping at many passers-by.
Even if I just witnessed it, the three of them have already continued to run.
Without hesitation, the anomaly of blowing people away at a fierce speed brings hair to my body.At the same time, I felt danger from unspeakable fear.
However, there was nothing I could do but look at the hell picture in an unusual way.
For just a moment in time, the world is slowly flowing, as if everything had become slow motion, swallowed by creepy sensations.
The fourth victim... The white car returned to the driveway when the high school student on the bicycle was hit and kept running flat.
The white body that crumbled against me passed by with a splash of bright red.
"Hiki, run away...?
Everything gets late when I realize that, and I'll call an ambulance on my phone right away.But my fingers are trembling and I can't hit the number well.
The number isn't... 110, it should be 119...?
"Messenger, I'm fine.Please wait a moment. "
After that, Kikuoka-san and several adult witnesses called and requested medical attention, as if they were following me confused.
All I could do was to resist the fear that pushed me in.
The reality is completely different from the game.
Humans are immediately treated in the presence of the unbroken, suffering the loss of blood and becoming meat clots.
With that cruelty in mind, I felt the anxiety that might have been acquired grow rapidly.
"Hey, did you hear that?Today alone, there were over 2,000 hit-and-run cases. "
Just for one day......?Hit-and-run, about 18,000 a year?
You're familiar with it.
This is still an imperial police aspiration.I have all the data on the crime rate.Incidentally, the prosecution rate is about 27%. "
Yes... My friend was transported to the ambulance today because of the damage... is he okay...? "
"It seems that accidental hit-and-run often results in the killer fleeing with agitation and selfish thoughts."
"... this time, there have been many cases of deliberately calling on passers-by."
"What happened to the sudden incident of a squeaky or chased human being in Japan... when they even said it was an ideal place?
"I can't believe so many incidents occur in Japan, where the royal family leads to peace and prosperity, not a stressful society like overseas, nor a depressed economy...."
I see.It's like a country where people and money can't afford it. "
When I ran into a hit-and-run in the morning, I went to school in the afternoon in shock.
But what was waiting there was a disturbing rumor.
The content whispered by my classmates was not out of my ear, and when I watched the news on my smartphone, there were a lot of hit-and-run incidents just today.
When I got home, my dad said, "It's a mess... in this situation, you're letting Xintaro live in a dorm!Treat junior high school students the same way you apply to go to school at home!"and I was delighted in the direction of the day after tomorrow...
By the way, I'm a middle-class student, so my dorm life is about to start.However, basically, you can go home at any time, and it is impossible to tie the dorm to the samurai or your daughter's family situation.Speaking of why dormitory life is carried out, the campus grounds are heavily guarded, and the main reason is to reduce the risk when going to school.
Certainly, if the only concern right now is running away, living in a dormitory that doesn't leave school feels safer.
"Maybe there are other ways to avoid danger..."
It's the Clan Clan that comes to mind.
I think it is a case that people should never be harmed, like this morning.Not to mention, the tip of the blade happened to be suitable for others this time, but if I think about evening shine or shaking night, I feel terrified.
... I don't know how that hit-and-run affair connects to the Clan Clan.
However, this anomaly is perhaps deeply intertwined with the game.And the worst case has already happened, but when I thought of the idea of 'still (...) just running away', I immediately logged into the Clan Clan.
Ahhn, angel chuuun!It's been a while  I've heard about what happened at school and when I went to school.
You'll receive a friend message from George at the same time you log in.
George is a Physical Education teacher at Imperial College of Japan, and is also a specialist in physical arts in the Faction Department, but it is unusual for him to shake the subject of reality in the game.
"Oh, George. It was a bit difficult.
Yahn! Here, treat me normally!Aren't you close to angels? "
"By the way, angel Chuwan, I think it's been a lot of trouble, so it might be terrible to convey this kind of content..."
For George, there was a strange gap between bad teeth.
Something terrible is happening to my clan too.
"[Corrupt City of Iron and Chains Gildigarion]?Events in suspicious cities like this?I want to participate, but the mercenaries are starting to come out deliberately as criminal (Gilty) mercenaries... "
Not a war criminal (Judah) mercenary, but a criminal mercenary......?
That's not true. After consulting beforehand and building alliances between the mercenaries (clans), it seems that we have discovered a way to become... criminal mercenaries more easily than to kill each other and become war criminals mercenaries.
What kind of method...?
George leaves a sip of cache and tells the fact in a light tone.
Apparently, I had a bad feeling about this.
The frequent hit-and-run incidents in real life... were the result of a sharp increase in mercenaries (players) using horse-drawn carriages in clan clans.
I Became a Beautiful Girl, but I’m still an MMO Junkie
美少女になったけど、ネトゲ廃人やってます。
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/i-became-a-beautiful-girl-but-im-still-an-mmo-junkie/
Adventure Comedy Fantasy Gender Bender Mystery Psychological Shoujo Ai
Accelerated Growth Adapted to Manga Age Regression Alchemy Appearance Changes Appearance Different from Actual Age Beautiful Female Lead Chuunibyou Curious Protagonist Cute Protagonist Demi-Humans Disabilities Doting Older Siblings Fairies Famous Protagonist Fast Learner Friendship Loli Male to Female Misunderstandings MMORPG Multiple POV Mysterious Illness Older Love Interests Overprotective Siblings Past Plays a Big Role Past Trauma Pill Concocting Popular Love Interests Race Change Sword And Magic Virtual Reality Weak to Strong
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n0170db/
星屑ぽんぽん