RP Chapter 49

 Chapter 49 - The Consequences

Volume 3, Resonance 6, Part 7

Novel Title: 共鳴熱情 オメガバース (Resonance Passion: Omegaverse)

Author：岩本薫 (Iwamoto Kaoru)

Illustrator：蓮川愛 (Hasukawa Ai)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists: MC- 遠峰一紗 (Toomine Kazusa), Lemur & ML- ゼロ (Zero)

*Moved from knoxt.space, the original site of translation.*

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Feeling a heavy sense of unease, Kazusa headed to the lounge for his evening shift.

The shift was off to a bad start. Lycaon and the rest of the slum gang were on duty, forcing Kazusa to stay on alert throughout his workday. But no major trouble occurred.

The real problem began after his shift.

Trying to avoid running into Lycaon and his gang, Kazusa stayed behind voluntarily, helping with cleaning and kitchen duties. He only returned to the backroom around 1 a.m. Slowly, he cracked the door open and listened carefully. There were no voices or sounds.

Relieved, he exhaled, opened the door, and stepped inside. Kazusa made his way toward the locker room, only to realise a few seconds later just how naive he had been.

The slum gang was waiting in the locker room, lying in wait as though anticipating their prey to step into their trap.

"....!"

Kazusa quickly tried to turn around and escape. But it was already too late. Lycaon lunged at him, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him back into the locker area. Without warning, his face was slammed hard against a locker. A loud thud echoed and a sharp pain shot through his forehead.

"...Ugh..."

Lycaon roughly spun Kazusa around by his shoulders. Their eyes met—Kazusa’s gaze locked with Lycaon’s. His eyes were gleaming with a predator’s fury.

"Don't you ignore me, you glasses-wearing punk!"

"But... you told me not to talk to you..."

"Shut up!"

Lycaon snarled, grabbing Kazusa by the front of his shirt and violently yanking him to the ground.

"Whoa!"

Kazusa's still-healing left knee buckled under the sudden force, and he tumbled onto the floor. His glasses flew off from the impact. Just as he reached out to retrieve them, a boot came down, kicking them away.

"Ah!"

The glasses slid across the floor. Before he could crawl after them, Lycaon kicked him in the side.

"Agh...!"

Kazusa's breath was knocked out of him by the pain. He curled up instinctively, but another kick followed, making his whole body convulse violently. The blow to his solar plexus triggered a wave of nausea.

"...Ugh...!"

Unable to hold it back, he retched, vomiting bile. As Kazusa continued to heave, Lycaon's companions, Jackal and Fossa, started to look uneasy.

"Hey," Jackal muttered. "Isn't this a bit much?"

"If we go any further, he might actually die. What are we gonna do then?" Fossa added, his voice tinged with concern.

"Cut it out already!"

"You're losing it, man!"

"Let go of him!"

Kazusa, barely managing to lift his head. He saw that Jackal and Fossa were restraining Lycaon, who looked furious. Their eyes met once again, Lycaon's gaze was filled with seething hatred.

"Fine! I get it, let go of me!"

Lycaon angrily shrugged off their hands and stormed over to the corner of the room where Kazusa's glasses had fallen. He stomped on them and a loud crack filled the air.

"No...!"

"Serves you right," Lycaon sneered.

With a contemptuous laugh, Lycaon called out to the others, "Let's go." He led Jackal and Fossa out of the locker area. Shortly after, Kazusa heard the creak and slam of the door closing.

Now alone, Kazusa slowly crawled over to where his glasses lay, cradling his injured left knee. When he picked them up, he saw that both lenses were cracked, and the frame was bent. Still, he put them on—better than nothing—but the cracks distorted his vision. Leaning back against the locker, he gingerly rubbed his throbbing solar plexus. He lifted his shirt to check and saw two bruises forming where he'd been kicked. He would have to put on a cold compress when he got back to his room.

"...He heard the piano last night...," Kazusa muttered.

And most likely, Lycaon knew that Kazusa had visited Zero's room last night. Not just last night—he must have noticed long before then.

There was no other explanation for the hostility Lycaon had shown from the very first meeting.

The reason Lycaon hated Kazusa was Zero.

(What am I supposed to do now?)

Kazusa stood up slowly, the pain in his solar plexus subsiding somewhat. He filled a bucket with water and began to wipe the dirty floor with a rag. This time, he managed to clean up without spilling the bucket. After putting his tote bag over his shoulder and leaving the backroom, his steps felt heavy.

The peace that had washed over him while listening to the piano last night had once again been clouded by a fog of confusion.

(What should I do?)

Lost in thought, Kazusa took the elevator up to the sixth floor. When he stepped out, he froze in his tracks—standing in front of his room was a tall man.

"―――Zero!"

(Of all the times...!)

As he tightly gripped the shoulder strap of his tote bag and unconsciously began to step back, Zero, who had been looking down at his smartphone, raised his head.

"...!"

His expression quickly became tense. His face grew more and more severe as he closed the distance between them, seemingly forgetting the agreement they had made. Kazusa stopped him about fifty centimetres away with a firm, "Stop right there." Zero halted, his shoulders trembling, and in a frustrated voice, asked, "Where are your glasses?"

"I broke them when I tripped earlier. But I have a spare, so it's fine."

Kazusa tried to brush it off as casually as possible, but Zero didn’t let it go.

"Was it Lycaon?"

The sudden direct hit caught Kazusa off guard, making his entire body tremble with unease.

(Damn it.)

Zero was not the kind of man to miss even a brief moment of hesitation. He slammed one hand against the wall next to the elevator. As if applying pressure, he looked down at Kazusa with piercing eyes that gleamed brightly from above.

"It was Lycaon and his gang, wasn’t it?"

His follow-up pressed Kazusa harder. Kazusa shook his head quickly. "N-No, that's not it."

"Don't lie to me."

"I'm not lying."

Cornered, Kazusa twisted his body to escape his interrogation, but a sharp pain shot through his solar plexus. Reflexively, he placed a hand over the sore spot, and in that instant, Zero grabbed his wrist.

"Ah!"

A jolt of electricity surged through him but faded as quickly as it had come. Still holding Kazusa’s wrist, Zero removed his hand from the wall and lifted Kazusa’s shirt. Seeing the bruise, he frowned and asked, "What’s this?"

"I... I got it when I fell..."

"Falling wouldn't do this. Someone kicked you, didn’t they?"

Zero, frowning with concern, denied Kazusa’s claim and covered the bruise again by pulling down his shirt.

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*Translator’s Note: I really can’t stand Kazusa being a goody two-shoes. -K

Next update: 2025.08.04

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