Chapter 126: Alex: I Am F*cked

  When Alex opened his eyes again, it was already dusk.

  “What a terrible dream.”

  Pressing his forehead, Alex let out a sigh. He had just had a dream—one where an argument broke out among the group, followed by Keiichi deg to explore the Irie ic alone. On his way, Rena and Shion stopped him. Then… things inexplicably desded into utter chaos.

  To be ho, Alex remained calm about the first part of the dream. However, the tter developments left him utterly dumbfounded.

  Rena and Shion had both suddenly "transferred their affes"—and fallen for him?!

  How was that even possible?

  Frankly, Alex found this turn of events utterly unbelievable.

  It was strange. Despite being a cssie-guy-many-girls" harem setup, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni barely touched upoheme of romance. Perhaps it was due to its 1980s setting, but the characters’ expressions of affe—both male and female—were remarkably restrained. Sure, there were some ses of teasing or provocative outfits, but these moments felt more like pyful pranks rather than the overt advaypiodern harem anime.

  As the only male protagonist, Keiichi Maebara had never entered into a romantic retionship with any of the female characters. Uer harem series, where the female characters secretly harbor feelings for the protagonist while he dithers and refuses to make a decision, in Higurashi, both the male and female characters were still in the earliest stages of uanding love. The closest sembnce of romance came from Mion and Shion Sonozaki, but eveheir feelings remai the level of i crushes.

  In this sense, pared to the numerous female characters in modern anime scrambling to win the protagonist’s affe (sometimes even literally jumping into his bed), the characters in Higurashi were almost excessively pure.

  Perhaps that was why Alex had never sidered such a possibility. Sure, Rena often brought him lunch, but Alex khat was just part of her nature. As for Shion… Well, while Alex often discussed “that matter” with her, her intense feelings for Satoshi iory were so vividly portrayed that he had never ohought he’d end up stealing her heart—iviragic story a "green hat" twist.

  This had to be a joke. They were in Hinamizawa, not Sakakino Academy. He wasn’t Makoto, and he had her messed around with anyone nor left anyone hanging. How had thied into such a bloody clusion all of a sudden?

  Was this some sort of prank?

  Recalling the dream’s climax—Rena and Shion’s duel, Rena hag Shion to death with a hatchet, and then smashing Keiichi’s head into pulp—Alex couldn’t help but shiver.

  Yes, it was just a dream… It had to be just a dream…

  Knock, knock.

  At that moment, a kno the door interrupted his thoughts. Hearing it, Alex quickly gathered himself.

  “e in.”

  The door creaked open in respoo his invitation, and Alex saw Rika Furude step into the room. She forced a faint smile before hesitantly speaking.

  “Sorry to disturb you, Sensei. Do you have a moment?”

  “Of course. But… why are you alone? Where are the others?”

  “They’ve all left and gone home.”

  “Hmm…”

  Hearing Rika’s reply, Alex’s expression shifted slightly. It reminded him of the dream. If the dream were accurate, Rena would now be following Keiichi… Wait. Could it be that the dream wasn’t just a dream?

  A sudden unease gripped him. If things truly unfolded as they had in the dream, he should leave immediately and stop the impending flict. But just as Alex eaihis thought, he once agaihat peculiar, indescribable yet om premonition.

  It warned him that if he acted now, things might spiral to an irreversible oute.

  What was going on?

  At this moment, Alex stood frozen in pce. If that dream wasn’t just a dream, then he had no choice but to intervene. After all, if Rena killed Shion and then Keiichi, it would mean the plete failure of Alex’s mission. Furude Rika would never accept such a world. She had been looping for over a hundred years, all in search of a world where she and her friends could all find happiness. If that wasn’t possible here, she would undoubtedly leave and seek another world.

  Both emotionally and logically, Alex had to stop this from happening immediately. But his premonition was holding him back. Wait a minute… Alex’s expression suddenly darkened as realization dawned.

  He finally saw the trap this world had set for him!

  Since arriving here, Alex had been brimming with fidence. He felt secure, vihat there was no ce of failure. The reason was simple—he knew who the true mastermind was and uood the nature and cause of the "Hinamizawa Syndrome." As long as he followed the plot, he believed he could "clear the game."

  But now, Alex finally realized that he himself had already fallen victim to the "Hinamizawa Syndrome," likely progressing to Stage Four! He was now incapable of making a firm decision or judgment.

  Should he trust his dream? His premonition? Or his instincts?

  Alex felt as if he were trapped in a giant whirlpool. He had ohought that his thh knowledge of Higurashi: When They Cry's plot ehere would be no surprises. But now he realized that ignorance might have been a better option.

  If Alex didn’t know the plot of Higurashi: When They Cry, he might have dismissed the dream as nothing more than a dream and trusted his intuition. After all, these kids had strong bonds of friendship and camaraderie. He would have believed in them. But… that wasn’t possible.

  Because iory of Higurashi: When They Cry, those very friends who were "so close and loving" each turned against one another due to various reasons, succumbing to madness and wielding ons against their closest panions. The Keiichi of one arc destroyed everything. Even when Mion and Rena faced him with determination and smiles, urging him to trust them, Keiichi still killed them without hesitation.

  Shion, too, had her moments—murdering the elder, imprisoning her sister, and cruelly killing Satoko, whom she was supposed to protect. And as for Rena, she even pted taking dowire school to achieve her goals.

  It was this kind of "love turo murder" storylihat made Alex uo trust their friendship. If even one of them succumbed to the syndrome, the sequences would be unimaginable!

  Now Alex realized that he had unwittingly fallen into the same trap. He couldn’t trust the dream, couldn’t trust his premonitions, and couldn’t trust his own magic. For every doubt, he could e up with a rational expnation in his mind.

  At this moment, Alex remembered the words Rex had once said while teag him divination magic:

  "For a divination mage, the future is merely a choice. But that choice does not guarahe result you desire. Even if you see the future, that future may ge because you saw it. As a divination mage, you must decide how far you are willing to accept the sequences of the future. Remember, a divination mage is not a god. Even gods ot escape the grip of fate. Never fet: when you fidently try to ge fate, the choiake bees an inseparable part of fate itself."

  Now Alex finally uood the meaning of Rex’s words.

  In a sense, Alex had been ag like a divination mage all along. By "knowing the plot," he had been able to manipute events in those other story worlds. The only exception was the world of Dark Souls, which he didn’t know much about. Luckily, that world was a straightforward, linear story. All Alex had to do was hone his bat skills, and his decisions had little impact—there simply weren’t enough people left alive to ge anything.

  But now, Alex saw the hidden danger and trap in this approach.

  He koo much, so much that he couldn’t make a clear decision.

  Go? It was just a dream. Plus, his premonition warned him that going might bring uable sequences.

  Don’t go? But what if it wasn’t just a dream? Would he wake up the day to find two corpses? No, wait—Rena would likely dispose of the bodies and say they were too sick to joihering!

  Only now did Alex fully grasp the malice this world had toward him.

  It seemed that no matter what he chose, the oute would be a BAD END.

  (End of Chapter)

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