"Yuta look! That weird kid with red hair is crying!" That's really mean Rika! Like to absurd levels, so stop that! Also you're a kid too...
I sigh. "Don't make fun of others Rika! And don't point at them too!" Well, she's usually like this, so I'm used to her personality.
It's been some years since I have been isekai'd, but sadly I lack any amazing powers, though at least I get to enjoy a new life.
To be more specific I want a great, amazing new life! A life that is worthy of an anime protagonist, harem and all!
So Rika is my first step! She's going to fill the role of childhood friend in my life! Huh? What's that? Grooming? Don't think too hard about it!
That's been my motto ever since I got reincarnated, so I decide that I will simply act my age!
Rika pouts. "Buuut Yuta! C'mon, he looks all stupid and stuff!" If there's one thing I learned about Rika throughout our friendship is that she can be immensely sadistic.
Which is worrying and all, but hey I haven't caught her torturing any neighborhood cats yet, so it's fine!
Though her grandma swears on her life that Rika is a bad kid... To be honest that just makes me sympathize with her more.
I give her an admonishing look. "That isn't an excuse to make fun of him..." I then smirk. "Even if he does look a bit goofy with that hair." Perhaps he's the real protagonist!?
Rika smiles. "I'd knew you would understand what I meant! That's why you're the best Yuta!" I see my grooming skills are powerful indeed.
Rika blushes a little. "A-and that's why... " She looks down. "That's why..." My harem protagonist instincts are activating!
I smile smugly. "That's why...?" A important event is definitely about to happen! I can feel it!
Rika finally looks at me. "T-that's why we should get married when we grow up!" Hah! I knew it! My harem protagonist life has truly begun!
Don't worry Rika, even when a tsundere is fighting a rich girl for my attention I won't forget you!
Normally the childhood friend loses, but I plan on getting the harem ending, so it should be fine, be free to believe in yourself Rika!
I give her an immediate thumbs. "Yeah, we should definitely get married!" I have now captured my first target!
Rika almost jumps in happiness. "Yay! A quick decisive answer, as expected of my Yuta!" Oh!? You're already calling me yours!? I approve!
I nod to myself. "Yeah, there's no way I could reject you Rika." What kind of groomer rejects his victim!? Not that I'm a groomer of course.
She blushes. "Okay... But I have something extra! Something to really seal the deal!" Are we going to make the legendary pinky promise!?
She starts taking something from her pockets. "I took this from my mom's stuff." Oh, then it must be important.
Rika's mother is dead after all, and so is her father... Well her father is technically missing, he went hiking with Rika and disappeared.
They found Rika, but not his body... Her grandma told everyone in the neighborhood that Rika isn't right in the head.
It was a horrible thing to say to a kid. I will ignore the fact that Rika purposefully manipulates adults to get her way, I don't need to think about that.
I never saw Rika killing a cat, but I saw her killing birds before.I have to remember my new life motto! Not thinking about stuff too hard!
The cold probably got her father, it was snowing, there's no way it was something else, there's absolutely no way.
Rika shows me a pretty black box, it looks expensive. "Oh? What's that?" I'm definently curious now, it looks way more special than a pinky promise.
Slowly my future, yet present childhood friend opens the box. "I-it's the proof of our love Yuta!" It's a heavily decorated ring, it looks even more expensive than the box.
She looks me in the eyes. "It's my mom's marriage ring! A-and now it's yours... As long as you stay with me forever that is!" That's a easy choice!
I give her a smile. "Okay, then let's stay together forever and ever Rika." Hopefully you are okay with harems!
She excitedly hands me the ring over. "O-okay! Here it is!" I slowly take the ring from the box, it's something precious, so I'm being gentle with it.
Rika gives me a look of anticipation. "Now put it on Yuta... Well, I know it was made for a woman to wear it, but..." It's fine, I get it.
I put it on my finger, it's a little to big right now. "It's fine Rika, I'm proud to wear the proof of our love." Her eyes lighten up. "It was a gift from my fiancee after all." I can almost see hearts in her eyes.
Rika blushes. "Wow, you're way too good at this Yuta... Well, it's just like mom used to say..." Oh? Her mother's wisdom is normally pretty weird.
Rika continues. "You've gotta be careful when marrying lady killers! Because they don't stop at one lady!"
Rika glares at me. "Mom and dad used to fight because of stuff like this all the time so... Let's never do that, okay Yuta?" Oh, boy... I guess I have plenty of time to convince her to accept the harem plan.
I give her an awkward smile. "S-sure, you're the only girl for me Rika." Sorry Rika! Your mother was absolutely right!
Rika laughs in happiness, but then she suddenly looks serious. "Yuta, just promise to stay by my side okay? No matter what I do, no matter what I become, stay by my side."
I grin. "Sure, that's what marriage is... Well, if it makes you feel safer we can get married right now." We can't, obviously.
She blinks in confusion. "Really?" Then she smiles. "Okay Yuta! Let's get married right here and now!"
I nod. "Sure, sorry I don't have a ring to give you though." My parents are alive, so I sadly can't steal their stuff.
She waves me off. "It's fine! Let's get married already! I do by the way! No objections! So now you have to say you do as well."
I smile. "I do, and if someone wants to object I'll fight them!" Our marriage doesn't even have a priest.
Rika jumps. "Yay! Now I'm no longer Rika Orimito! I hated that name!" That's news to me. "Rika Okkotsu sounds way better!" Both of our names are weird by the standards of this world.
There's a shift in the air, Rika gazes deeply into my eyes. "Yuta, I'll give you my everything." That's what I'm hoping for.
...
"That's... lots and lots of blood." I might throw up, I'm not used to gore, specially since it happened so suddenly.
At least I'm grateful Rika pushed me out of the way, that car almost hit me. The car hit her, so now she's dead instead of me.
I hope she gets reincarnated somewhere nice, she certainly deserves it, considering her last moments were spent saving someone.
"Someone call an ambulance! Quickly!" Oh? They're calling for help? That's good, maybe that means Rika can still be saved.
This isn't fair, none of this is fair. I'm killing that stupid fucking driver, that fucking bastard can't even respect basic traffic laws.
This isn't fair, I want Rika back. She doesn't deserve to die like this, she's just a young girl, so someone please bring her back to life.
Seriously, isn't there anyone with an overpowered ability around here!? Use it please! There's a young girl dying!
I want Rika back. She's my childhood friend, she can't just die like that. This isn't how things are supposed to go!
I want Rika back. She's my wife already and she promised to give me her everything! And I know Rika never lies to me!
I hate death. "Yuuuta~." Huh? What was that? Did Rika just say something? It sounded like her.
I approach her corpse. She's not dead, she can't be dead. She's definitely dead, her entire body is broken, she isn't breathing. She can't be dead.
She promised me her everything. "Rika! Are you okay!?" So she's okay, she has to be okay! She should be okay.
I'm the protagonist of this world, and as such I won't lose my childhood friend to something so dumb like this.
"Yuuta~, I'm okay~!" She's fine, I knew she would be fine, but this was quite the scare, I doubted my plot armor for a moment.
I breathe a sigh of relief. "Geez, you scared me for a moment." Her body isn't moving, her body isn't breathing. I want Rika back.
My heart is beating fast. "Yuuuuta~! I love you~! I suuuper duper love you~!" Yeah, that's what I expect from my childhood friend.
Why isn't her body moving!? Why is she still all bloody!? Why is she not breathing!? She's fine right!? She's talking!
"H-hey Rika are you sure you're okay? You aren't getting up..." Move already! Breathe already! I want Rika back!
Her corpse doesn't respond. "I'm fine! See!?" It's a corpse, she's a unmoving corpse, an unthinking, dead person.
I want Rika back.
Hands grab my legs, something is pulling itself from Rika's corpse. "I love you Yuta~!" It's not human, it's Rika, it's not human, it's Rika.
It looks like a ghost, I finally scream. "Ahhhh!" Rika is dead, but she's very much alive.
"Yo Shiki, you're okay dude? You seem a bit... Nervous." I'm worried about him, he's the only friend I have after all.
He sighs. "So you caught me huh? You're surprisingly perceptive as always Yuta, but I'm fine." You just said I caught you, so you're clearly not fine.
I raise an eyebrow. "You do know I'm just going to keep bothering you if you don't elaborate right?"
He hesitantly nods. "It's just that... I'm moving, it's time I finally go back to the Tohno's I guess it's a little nerve wrecking."
I give him a comforting smile. "It's going to be okay, don't worry, besides... Worst case scenario you can crash in my apartment for a while."
He smiles. "Thanks for the offer, but I'll pass. I have to confront my family head on, I have to face Akiha head on."
I make a curious face. "That's your little sister right? If she's cute make sure to introduce her to me." The harem plan hasn't progressed at all, even after years.
Shiki makes a distressed face. "And have Rika target my sister? No way in hell, you can stay the hell away from her, you damn lady killer." And there's the reason why.
Rika isn't exactly happy with me talking with other women, she can actually become rather furious about it.
To be honest that applies to guys too, Shiki is the rare exception, but I've met him years ago, so she probably feels more comfortable around him.
I shrug. "Rika likes you, so she probably wouldn't hurt your little sister." Hopefully she wouldn't. One day Rika will accept the harem plan, she has to!
Shiki sighs. "I don't think she likes me, in fact, I'm surprised she tolerates me at all, considering our introduces to each other was awful."
I nod. "That's true, but you grew on Rika after so many years, like a cancer she can't get rid off, but also one that failed to kill her."
The failed to kill her part is specially important, because Shiki did actually try to do that.
We had just met in the hospital, then suddenly he got a weird look in his eye and tried to kill her.
I was surprised about it, normally people don't notice Rika hiding in my shadow, but he did it... Thankfully he couldn't hit Rika, so his eyes didn't do anything.
She just kind of threw him into a tree, I honestly thought he was going to die, but then he was saved by the second member in my harem.
Shiki sighs. "What kind of comparison is that? Who likes a cancer anyways? Though I'm thankful Rika has given up on killing me."
I chuckle. "That's just because sensei forbade her, she's super scared of her." Sensei being the woman that saved Shiki's life.
Shiki looks up. "I wonder where she is right now, I certainly could use her wisdom..." What wisdom!? Sensei is the type of woman that goes around kicking kids in the face!
I also look up. "Yeah, I miss her amazing body, even to this day no other woman can compare..." I feel my shadow stirring. "Except for Rika of course!" Thankfully Rika decides to not come out.
Shiki glares at me. "Don't perv on sensei like that..." He smiles. "Even if her body was Indeed crafted by the gods." Shiki is enough of a pervert to rival me.
Actually, he might surpass me in perversion, if I wasn't here I could swear that he would be the protagonist of this world, specially with his powers.
I give him a smirk. "Hey, watch what you say about my woman." My shadow moves again. "I mean, feel free to say anything about Aoko, since we are not in a relationship." Rika calms down.
Shiki laughs. "Man, I can't believe you're still hoping for a harem when Rika acts like that." Please don't say this sort of stuff like that! "That's why people think you're afraid of women."
I sigh. "Ugh... Please don't start with that, it's not like I'm afraid of women, it's that they should be afraid of me." Well, of Rika to be more specific.
He chuckles. "Hah! Sorry, but normal people won't exactly believe that your girlfriend is a ghost haunting you."
I frown. "I know, but I wish people didn't go around spreading rumors like that." At least let me have a good reputation.
He shrugs. "I wish you good luck, but sadly rumors will always spread everywhere." Yeah, that's high school for you.
I sigh. "Whatever, but just for making fun of me I'm flirting with your sister." Rika gets mad again, I groan. "C'mon Rika, let me have this one..."
A monster appears behind me. "Don't be unfaithful Yuuuta~." But I want a harem! Harems are not cheating!
Shiki gives her a little wave. "Hello Rika." Though I do notice he steps back a little, he knows how dangerous she can be.
Rika ignores him, so I answer to her. "But Rika... Wouldn't be awesome to date Shiki's little sister?" It would be something I could lord over him forever.
She pauses a little to think, but then shakes her head. "No! You're mine~! Mine~! Mine~!" Ah, geez...
I nod. "Okay then, Shiki's little sister is off the table." Rika smiles and goes back to my shadow as if nothing had happened.
Shiki glares at me. "Akiha was never on the table in the first place." Every woman is in the table for me!
I smirk. "I can't help, but notice you're only talking back to me now that Rika is gone, you're scared of a little girl tough guy?"
He nods. "Of course I am!" Ah. "Also it's really bad that you go around saying you're dating a little girl, please stop."
I shrug. "It is what it is." Rika died in her loli age after all... Though it's not like that matters much, since she's can't change from big monster form.
He sighs. "Whatever... Though I do think it's kind of cool you guys are still together after so many years, like a couple that married in middle school and somehow made it work."
I raise an eyebrow. "It's not like I can ever break up with her." I smile. "Not that I would want to, of course." She's my precious childhood friend after all.
But seriously, I can't break up with her. Who knows how much damage she would cause if I tried?
Sensei had once said that Rika was a true monster, something that shouldn't exist in the modern era, something that could rival gods themselves.
'Queen of Curses' that's what sensei had called her, a being that had infinite mana and could destroy the world.
It was a scary title, and it was definitely something I could never let try to destroy the world.
Shiki smiles. "Well I hope I can make an unbreakable bond with Akiha, just like you made one with Rika." That's bad considering Rika is my girlfriend.
I smirk. "Shiki, Akiha may be your sister, but she's my woman." Shiki gives me a sarcastic reply. Rika gets jealous. It's the usual.
We all spend our day unaware of the dangers that live in this city.
AN: This was originally going to be a RWBY fic, but then I turned it into a Tsukihime fic.
So a couple of things: The JKK side of this fic is pretty non-existent, Rika is pretty much the only character from that series.
Also, she has been buffed, her whole schtick in the original is that she's an unstoppable monster that the protagonist can't control.
But if the original Rika was in the nasuverse she would immediately get bitch slapped and die, so she now has been buffed enough that she can still be worthy of the title 'Queen of Curses' in this world.