Your POV:

"Well He is kinda like you (y/n)..." Rantaro explained, "his self esteem is low enough for his future to be affected...."

Those words echoed through my head like a tape recorder. The way he said it. The meaning behind his words...

I left the room without a word. The words still echoed through my head as I left the Game Room. The words seemed to get louder and louder and louder. I grasped my hair with my hands, seeming like I was going to let out a scream of distress.

I felt tears seep down my eyes slowly. The emotions I had kept in were unleashed, and what Rantaro said triggered it. I started to sob lightly, feeling sad about what I've become. The things that happened in my life caused me to turn into a creature. A creature of self hatred. A creature that was a negative force upon itself. I had to accept that fact if I had to move on from this.

"He is right...." I muttered.
"I knew it..." Rantaro replied from in front of the door.

I wiped my eyes slightly and looked down. It was embarrassing enough to be crying like this. This was the second time I've broken down. It seemed like it was never ending.

"Now that you know that you're self esteem issues will effect your future, you can finally try and get better," Rantaro explained, "and I will help you."

I then looked at Rantaro with a look of shock on my face.

"You really don't have to help me," I muttered in response.
"I want to help you. It's my choice is it not?" Rantaro asked in response.
"Ok fine... you can help me.... you've already helped me a little, so why not?" I muttered with a blush on my face.

Rantaro smiled at me. It was the same type of smile he showed me after the situation with Miu. It was another beautiful smile that was genuine. It caused a smile to firm on my face.

"You seem very happy about winning this..." I muttered with a smile.
"I guess you could say that. For some reason, I really want to help you," Rantaro replied with a slight chuckle.
"Is it because you think I'm cute?" I asked in response.

Upon realization on what I said, I blushed madly. I looked to the side with an embarrassed look on my face. Rantaro seemed to be chuckling at my nervousness.

"It would be a lie if I said part of that isn't true," Rantaro replied with a shrug, "in any case though. I want to help you because I care about you. You need help, and it seems like no one wanted to help you. I want to be the person who helps you escape from your self hatred. I want to see you with a smile on your face that shows us that we can do anything. You've been saying stuff that a leader would. You have what it takes to be a leader. You need to realize the many good things about you that I see."

My eyes widened when I heard him say that. I breathed in and out slowly. A blush formed on my face once again.

"For some reason.... I feel happy...." I admitted, "hearing you say that.... makes me happy...."
"That's what I was hoping that you'd say that," Rantaro replied.
"It makes me feel at ease for some reason. It makes me feel like I can do anything..." I replied.
"Well then let's keep that feeling going, yeah?" Rantaro asked in response.
"Yeah... I guess...." I replied nervously.
"You're being shy, it's kinda cute," Rantaro chuckled.

My face lit on fire when he said that, my face turning an even darker shade of red than it already was. I covered my face with my hands in an attempt to hide it.

"S-Stop that! Y-You're flirting!" I exclaimed.
"Maybe I am. Maybe I'm not," Rantaro replied with a shrug.
"You're messing with me!" I shouted.
"Where did you get that idea. I called you cute because I care about you. Don't people show affection by calling others nice names like cute, pretty, beautiful, stunning. I can go on, and you are all of those things," Rantaro replied casually.

I then face planted on to the ground from the overwhelming embarrassment I felt. Well more like being to flustered to even stand. I let out a shaky sigh when I heard something light touch the ground. I managed to lift myself slightly, and and roll onto my back. Once I opened my eyes, I was met with a very surprising sight.

Rantaro had his hands on each side of my body caged. His legs were also on each of my sides, keeping my legs from being crushed by him. He was on all fours, having me pinned and cornered.

Sweat formed on my face as my eyes widened and the annoying blush staying on my face. His eyes still held the soft look despite the situation at hand. I could feel his warm breathing on my face. I shuddered slightly.

"R-Rantaro? What are you—" I stuttered before getting cut off.

Rantaro lifted his hand and placed it on my lips, silencing me. My blush increased tenfold when this happened.

"Shhh. Just enjoy the moment," Rantaro muttered.

Soon enough, his face inched closer to mine. The feeling of his breathing on my face got warmer and warmer. He closed his eyes, as our lips were soon inches apart. He got a tad bit closer. I closed my eyes, getting a feel of what was going to happen. My eyes suddenly snapped open when I felt him flick my nose. I blinked twice, my eyes widening in surprise.

"Just kidding," he said as if it were a joke.
"Wh-Wha?" Was all I could manage to said.

Rantaro got off of me, offering his hand for me to take. I took his hand getting up, still being surprised about the whole ordeal.

"Wh-Why did you do that?" I stuttered.
"Because I thought it would be fun to mess with you. We should go now," Rantaro replied.

I nodded silently. Rantaro and I then made our way though the gray hallway and back upstairs. Once we got to the first floor hallway, we went straight through the hallway. One thing was different though. There was an opening now the area we had to go around. It was an Entrance Hall of sorts.

'Oh! We couldn't go through here before, right!? Looked like the iron gate opened... Did someone open it for us? I should check it out," I thought.

Rantaro was the first to walk in. I followed behind him in a shy manner. I mean why wouldn't I? Rantaro almost kissed me, and then flicked me like it was a joke. I looked around the open room.

"Oh! Is this the entrance hall?" I asked, "Right, Rantaro? This must be the entrance hall, don't you think?"
"Y-Yeah, I suppose so..." Rantaro replied.
"Which means..." I muttered.

Rantaro and I then gazed over to the door. It was a double set of old looking doors. They had a type of simple two row lattice design. Near the handles, there was an area that was shaped like a square with four diamond designs. On top of the doors had a blue sign that read "South".

"...that door must be the entrance. If we walk through it, we can escape this place, right?" I asked.
"Wait, I don't think we should open doors carelessly. I haven't seen this part of the building. It could be a trap..." Rantaro explained.
"Worrying about that isn't necessary. I have already examined the doors," someone said.

I turned my gaze towards a person who looked very creepy. He wore a brownish green hat and uniform. His hair was long and black, and his eyes  were a golden color. He had a mask over his nose and mouth, making me wonder how he could even breath. He had bandaged hands which struck me odd.

"Oh.... Uhhh..." I said in confusion.
"You wonder, "Who this is?" Yes... I shall make that clear first," the guy explained, holding the tip of his hat, "my name is Korekiyo Shinguji... I am called the Ultimate Anthropologist."
"Korekiyo? Anthropologist?" I asked in confusion.
"Please, call me Kiyo. As for anthropology, would you like a simple explanation?" Kiyo asked.

I looked at him with a curious glint in my eye. I was trying to formulate what to say to him.

'Well... he's a bit creepy.... on the other hand, I don't know what anthropology is....' I thought.

With a light smile on my face, I looked back at Kiyo.

"Okay, sure..." I told him.
"Anthropology....studies customs, legends, folk tales, songs, and much more. There may even be customs in your daily life, the origins of which you do not know," Kiyo explained, "for example...certain aspects of birthday or new year celebrations. Anthropology sheds light on traditions and customs such as these through rigorous analysis."

I kept looking at Kiyo as he talked. Even if he was a bit creepy, I still had to be polite and listen to what he has to say. It's the proper way to give yourself a good name.

"It is a study that examines the thought behind culture, faith, and customs," Kiyo finished.
"Okay....I sorta get it, but not really.... It sounds like a lot of fun, though!" I replied.
"Well of course it's fun... It is a study focused on humanity. I believe...that human beings are creatures who possess infinite beauty," Kiyo explained.
"Oh, ummm..." I muttered in response.
"I find all aspects of humanity—even the ugly parts—to be beautiful," Kiyo explained, "our present situation is rather...intriguing. What beauty will I be able to witness here? Kehe.... Kehehehe... People are wonderful."

'I was right.... he is a creep. I might wanna stay away from him...' I thought.

I avoided looking at him for a bit, still a bit creeped out on the whole "Humanity is beautiful" thing.

"Anyway, we can go outside if we just go though these doors, right?" I asked.
"You should find the answers to such questions on your own... The moment your hopes are shattered... That, too...may be beautiful," Kiyo explained.

I looked at Kiyo as sweat rolled down my face. The last thing he said really concerned me.

'Sh-Shattered...? What does he mean by that?' I thought.

I looked at Rantaro and sighed. He looked deep in thought about what Kiyo said as well. It seemed like he was as shaken up about it as me.

"Our hopes will be shattered? What...does that mean?" Rantaro asked.
"I'm not sure... it's not like it will be bad. I'm sure we will find the exit," I replied.

I walked to the door confidently. I looked up at the door.

"Th-Then...let's go," I said.
"What ever you say (y/n)," Rantaro replied.

Determined as I was, I couldn't bring myself to take the first step forward. It was an invisible force. An invisible force that has the upper hand against everyone. That thing was fear. Fear was stopping me from going though that door. What if beyond this door was the end of the world or something? What if my family was dead? What if my friends were dead? It would make me feel truly sad and upset. I would probably blame myself for everything.

"Ah, geez! I need to bring myself together. I need to get stronger!" I shouted in frustration, "Just because I'm scared doesn't mean I'm gonna Tun away! I gotta move forward!"
"(y-y/n)!" Rantaro shouted suddenly.
"Don't worry about it! Let's go Rantaro!" I exclaimed.

I muttered up enough courage to take the first step towards the door. I breathed in and out. With eager eyes, I opened the door, leading to our future. On the other side of that door was......

Sorry! That's where I'm ending this chapter. So I put in a flirty Rantaro moment I hope you guys enjoyed that. Also I'll be starting to accept fan art for the competition on Monday. Please please please participate in it. I hope most of you will. So anyway, Kiyo is my least favorite character from v3. He's really creepy. It pained me to write his lines out. I'll update next week! -CRUSIFIXdroid