Reborn With The Milf "Harem" System

The rooftop door slammed behind them, the heavy metal echo rolling down the stairwell like a warning bell. They had come back again, hoping to get more...evidence, but it was déjà vü all over again. Rika stumbled, clutching Renji's arm as her legs barely kept pace. Her breath was ragged, her chest heaving as though each inhale was scraped raw by the cold air that had clung to that girl's presence.

Renji didn't slow. His hand wrapped firmly around her wrist, pulling her along as they descended two flights at a soldier's pace, steps calculated but quick, every nerve burning with the instinct to keep moving. Behind them, the silence was deafening. No footsteps followed. No whispers. No scrape of shoes against concrete.

But Renji didn't trust silence anymore.

They burst onto the fourth floor landing. The corridor stretched ahead, lined with darkened classrooms. The after-hours school felt alien—emptied of students, the usual warmth stripped away. Just shadows and echo. Rika pressed against him, her nails digging into his sleeve. "She'll follow us…" Her voice cracked with certainty. "She's not done."

Renji stopped just long enough to grab her chin, forcing her eyes to him. "Listen. If she shows again, we don't freeze. We move. Understand? Fear slows you down, Rika. And I won't let fear make me lose you."

Her lips trembled, but she nodded. "Y-Yes…"

He kissed her hard, quick, rough, grounding her in heat before the chill swallowed her whole. "Good. Now keep up."

They took the hall at a jog. Each fluorescent bulb overhead flickered faintly, buzzing with that static hum that set Renji's teeth on edge. The lights hadn't been this bad earlier. He could feel her presence, lingering, like fingerprints on glass after a storm. The girl wasn't gone. She was waiting. Watching.

Halfway down the corridor, a sound echoed behind them.

Clink.

The same metallic drop as before.

Rika's body froze, but Renji yanked her arm, forcing her forward. "Ignore it. Don't look back."

"But!"

"I said don't look!" His tone cut sharp, commander's steel hidden beneath the teenage voice.

Her breath caught, but she obeyed, staring forward as tears prickled her eyes.

The exit stairwell at the far end came into view. Salvation. Renji's grip tightened, pulling her into a sprint. His chest burned, his muscles coiled, his soldier's instinct screaming at him to survive.

Then....

The lights above them snapped off.

Pitch black swallowed the hall.

Rika's scream choked in her throat, her hands clutching Renji like a lifeline. He didn't waste a heartbeat. He pulled her against him, feeling her chest heave against his, and drove them both forward into the dark.

Their shoes slapped the tile floor, the sound bouncing through the void like war drums.

And then—her voice.

Soft. Sweet. Wrong.

"You can't run forever."

The words slid along the corridor walls like oil, seeping into their ears from every direction at once.

The system.....wasn't working, no voice, not help, nothing.

Rika whimpered, nearly tripping, but Renji caught her by the waist, hauling her into the stairwell door. He shoved it open, the metal groaning before slamming back against the wall.

They spilled inside. Dim safety lights glowed weakly, just enough to paint their shapes in orange haze. Renji locked the door behind them, his chest rising and falling with heavy breaths.

Rika collapsed against the wall, tears streaming down her cheeks. She covered her mouth to muffle her sobs. "Renji, she...she—"

"I know," he cut in, pressing a finger to her lips, his other hand already braced against the wall, body shielding hers. His gaze was locked on the door. "But she didn't stop us. She could've… but she didn't."

That thought gnawed at him. He'd seen enough predators to recognize when prey wasn't being killed just toyed with.

And this girl… she was toying with them.

The stairwell felt safer, but Renji knew it was an illusion. Concrete walls and steel doors didn't keep out what they'd just seen. He kept one hand on Rika's trembling back, the other brushing the rail as they began to descend.

Their footsteps echoed hollowly, the rhythm too loud, too fragile against the silence that pressed in from above.

Rika clung to his sleeve, whispering like her voice might shatter the fragile air. "She's following us, I can feel it. She's—"

Renji cut her off. "Then let her follow. We just keep moving."

But his jaw was tight. He felt it too. That weight, like eyes pressing down from the shadows. The soldier in him catalogued it: not a ghost, not a hallucination. This was predatory behavior, circling, waiting for the right moment.

The third-floor landing came. Renji nudged Rika forward, glancing both ways down the hallway. Empty. No sound but the faint buzz of dying lights. He motioned her back toward the stairs. "Down. Keep going."

She obeyed, legs weak but carrying her step by step.

Two flights.

Three.

With each level, Renji's gut screamed louder. Like descending deeper wasn't escape at all, but into her waiting hands.

On the first-floor landing, the exit door stood before them. A thin pane of glass showed the faint glow of streetlamps outside. The world beyond, normal, alive, safe.

Rika nearly broke into a run, but Renji grabbed her arm before she touched the handle.

"Wait."

Her breath caught. "What? Why?!"

He leaned closer to the glass. His reflection was faint in it… but there was something wrong.

Behind his shoulder, where Rika stood, there should have been only two shapes.

But a third outline leaned between them.

A girl's face, smiling in the glass.

Renji reacted instantly. He shoved Rika backward against the wall, shielding her as his fist slammed into the glass. The pane cracked but didn't shatter, the sound exploding through the stairwell.

Rika gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. "Renji!"

He ignored the sting in his knuckles, eyes darting back to the reflection.

Gone.

Just him. Just Rika.

Renji's chest heaved with the adrenaline spike. That thing was playing with them, testing how close it could get before breaking them. He pulled Rika into his chest, his hand gripping her hair, forcing her to focus on his heartbeat.

"Look at me," he growled, voice sharp, commanding. "Don't look at anything else. Not the glass, not the shadows. Only me. You understand?"

Rika's tears spilled, but she nodded against him, whispering, "I trust you."

His jaw clenched. "Good. Because I'm getting us out of here alive."

He shoved the door open, the night air rushing in cool and sharp. The distant sound of traffic, the rustle of leaves, normalcy, salvation.

They stepped outside into the dimly lit schoolyard. The building loomed behind them like a black monolith, windows blank and empty, yet Renji swore he could feel those hollow eyes still watching from above.

Rika buried her face in his chest again, sobbing quietly. He kissed her hair, but his own gaze never left the rooftop.

The girl hadn't chased them. She hadn't attacked.

She wanted them to leave.

Or maybe....that's what you think

And that, somehow, was worse.

The night should've felt like freedom.

The cool air brushed across Rika's damp cheeks, the faint hum of cicadas filling the quiet. Streetlamps flickered along the road beyond the schoolyard, a promise of safety if they could just reach them.

But Renji's instincts screamed otherwise.

Every step across the cracked asphalt of the courtyard felt heavier, slower, like they were wading through water. His soldier's gut knew what this was, it wasn't relief. It was pursuit.

He kept his arm wrapped tight around Rika, practically carrying her forward. Her heels clicked unevenly against the ground, every stumble making her clutch him harder.

"Almost there," Renji muttered. "Just keep walking. Don't look back."

But the words were for her, not for himself. Because he did look back.

And there she was.

A hundred feet away, standing at the school doors they'd just left through. Perfectly still. Perfectly calm. Her uniform as pristine as ever, hair swaying lightly though there was no breeze.

And smiling.

Always smiling.

Rika felt it too, the pressure settling over her shoulders like icy chains. She whimpered, her nails digging into Renji's sleeve. "She's here… Renji, she's here…"

"I know," he growled. "But she's not touching you."

He quickened their pace, guiding her toward the street. The gate loomed ahead, its iron bars casting long shadows across the pavement. Just beyond, cars, lights, people. The normal world.

But with every step forward, the weight grew. Not just fear something heavier. Like the very air was thickening, trying to trap them in the schoolyard.

Renji's breaths grew sharp. He forced his body to push through the drag, every muscle straining like he was running against wind.

"Renji!" Rika gasped suddenly.

He spun, eyes locking on her. "What?!"

Her hand trembled as she pointed past him.

The girl.

Closer now. No longer at the doors. She stood halfway across the yard, though neither of them had heard her move.

Her steps didn't echo. Her shadow didn't fall under the lights.

Just her figure. Just her smile.

Rika's knees buckled. Renji caught her, hauling her weight up against his chest. His teeth clenched as his glare locked onto the girl.

"Stay the fuck away from her."

The girl tilted her head, curious, almost amused. Then she raised her hand—slow, delicate, like reaching for something fragile. Her finger pointed straight at Rika.

And for the first time, her voice carried across the open night.

"You can't protect her."

The words weren't loud, but they hit like a gunshot. Rika gasped, a sob choking in her throat. Renji's grip tightened around her, his own heart slamming against his ribs.

He didn't wait to see what she'd do next. He turned, dragging Rika toward the gate, every step fueled by pure defiance.

"Watch me," he spat under his breath.

The gate loomed closer. Safety loomed closer. But behind them, he could feel it, the presence sliding after them, silent, patient, as if this was all just a game.

And Renji hated games he didn't control.

The gate towered above them, old iron rusted at the hinges, but Renji didn't slow. He practically slammed Rika against it, one hand fumbling for the latch, the other holding her upright as her body shook.

"Renji—she's still—!" Rika's voice cracked, choked with terror.

"I know." His jaw clenched, veins tight in his neck. "Don't look at her. Look at me."

Her wide, tear-shined eyes met his, desperate, trembling. For a moment, the world shrank to just that her fear, his fire.

Then, click.

The latch gave. The gate groaned as Renji forced it open, the squeal of metal far too loud in the dead night.

And that's when he felt it.

Cold. Not the chill of air, but of something reaching through him, into him. His breath hitched, his body instinctively tightening like a soldier under fire. Behind him, her presence swelled, pressing against his back, whispering against his skin.

Rika whimpered, burying her face against his chest. "She's right there—I can feel her—"

Renji didn't look back. He couldn't. If he gave her the satisfaction, he knew it'd be over.

Instead, he hauled Rika through the gate, practically dragging her onto the sidewalk beyond. The second his foot crossed the threshold, the weight lifted, just a fraction, but enough to breathe again.

He spun, slamming the gate shut.

The girl stood just beyond the bars.

So close now, her pale face framed between the iron rods. Her smile remained, soft and serene, but her eyes....god, her eyes glowed faintly in the dark. Not with light, but with depth. Endless. Bottomless.

She didn't move. Didn't speak. Just stared at them.

Rika clung tighter, sobbing against Renji's chest. His hand threaded through her hair, his other fist tight on the gate as his fury boiled.

"You listen to me," he growled, voice low, lethal. "You ever come near her again, I'll end you. I don't care what the hell you are. Ghost. Curse. Monster. I'll tear you apart with my bare hands."

The girl blinked. Once. Slowly.

Then she stepped back. The shadows swallowed her whole, dissolving her shape until only the empty courtyard remained.

Silence.

No footsteps. No laugh. Just gone.

Renji's breath tore out of him, ragged, but he didn't let go of Rika. His arms stayed firm, anchoring her trembling body against his chest.

She whispered, broken. "Renji… what if she follows us? What if she never stops?"

His hand cupped the back of her head, pressing her into him. His voice was steel.

"Then she'll learn the hard way." His eyes narrowed into the dark school grounds. "I don't lose. Not to men. Not to ghosts. Not to anyone. If she wants a war—" He tilted his head down, pressing his lips against Rika's hair. "—then she just declared it."

Rika shuddered, but in his embrace, her sobs slowed. His conviction, his promise, it was the only warmth left against the nightmare's chill.

And though the streets ahead looked normal, Renji knew nothing about tonight was over.

This was just the opening shot.