Although It’s Great that 【Heroine B】 Appeared
Translator: Skythewood
Editor: Deus ex-Machina, Ruzenor
After ending the conversation with Rika-sama and exited from the 【One Person Club】, the rain had completely stopped. The weather had suddenly turned sunny. However, Rika-sama was worried about my uniform being drenched, and stopped me from going. And of course, I didn’t have a problem with her suggestion. I won’t catch a cold from just this. After all, I was a top student in terms of health.
First was going home, then taking a bath immediately after that. I then moved to the clean living room.
Picking up the phone, I tapped on the icon for 【There are no heroines in my youth】 and started the game. The countdown screen was displayed. The waiting time was exceptionally long this time.
By my calculation, it would take until tomorrow morning. About 5am…? I need to get up early then. Could I get up in time? No no no, I had to get up, the time until the next game might be even longer.
Because nothing would happen for today—— Next would be the third day, Wednesday. What would happen next? What should I do tomorrow? More importantly, will my promise to have lunch with Rika-sama pass by peacefully? Would I do anything retarded? I just can’t wait.
But before the future comes, I had things I needed to do.
That was to read the instruction manual for 【There are no heroines in my youth】. After installing Pandora, I could access the instruction manual by pressing the button on the top right corner of the screen. By the way, things like saving and loading wasn’t there.
This game was a one way trip.
I need to talk to Pandora too—— Oh right, regarding the problem about loans. The loan system and the forced reparation if I lose the game still wasn’t clear. I had to get to the bottom of this.
Speaking of which, I had already borrowed 800,000 Sols, and I was wondering what was being used as a collateral for this loan? In the beginning, I didn’t pay much attention to it as it didn’t involve money. But to be honest, a heroine was more important than money.
However, I had a feeling that this game app wasn’t simple at all.
If I start from the source—— It would be the advertising email.
I opened my email app, and opened that mail from my inbox.
I read that mail once again. It ended after 【Next, please tap on the below URL】... Wait, there’s more? I was shocked. The scroll bar could be dragged down further. After a few lines of blank, there was a footnote in small fonts…!
【Note—— In the event that an error code appears during the game, it is possible to continue to proceed with the game. But in accordance with our company policy, we will advise ending the game… Our company will not be responsible for any losses and injuries that results from continuing the game.】
T-This… means that everything would be my own responsibility! Any problem that happens would be your own doing!
［P-Pandora!］
During times of trouble, we should rely on the assistance of the excellent AI. As she was installed in my phone, I just need to call out for her.
【Yes, Itsuki. Is there any problem?】
［An error code occured before the game launched, but I still started the game!］
I omitted all the details and stated briefly.
【I understand.】
［Erm, I have an ominous feeling that something terrible like losses or injuries would happen...］
【Yes. The chance of that is 100%.】
［One, one hundred percent? Not ninety nine percent? No matter what, a hundred percent is...］
【No, it is 100%. That is what the appearance of the error code means. That’s why we recommend terminating the game.】
［… That’s true.］
I couldn’t refute that.
【But making it through the game wasn’t impossible. It’s just that the game… will occasionally not match up with reality… Please be prepared for that mentally, Itsuki.】
［Not match… Not match… Not］
【Things will definitely work out.】
Because she had an optimistic disposition, she said encouraging words.
［… I understand.］
［Hey, Itsuki.］
I was talking to Pandora—— but from the perspective of a bystander, it probably felt like I was speaking with a phone seriously, which made Grandpa ask me worriedly. I turned back, and saw Grandpa actually stopped the 【Hell Scream 4】 he liked so much, as he pondered how to phrase his question. He seemed to have decided on a fast ball.
［A-Are you alright? You are talking to the AI voice function on your phone...］
［This is a special version! The type that could differentiate the content of a speech. Watch this. Pandora, a greeting please!］
【Nice to meet you Grandfather, I am Pandora.】
［——Woahh!］
Grandpa’s eyes lit up.
［It feels great to be called Grandfather by a girl! Although one of the players in 【Hell Scream 4】 on my friendlist is a girl that feels like a granddaughter too, we will meet one day… It will be great if 【Hell Scream 4】 has voice chat function…］
［A girl like a granddaughter?］
［Hmm? It’s a girl attending the same high school as you, though? She said she is in Honami High School. We were chatting just now, and I replied that it’s Honami High School here too, and it will be great if we can meet!］
Grandpa showed me a thumbs up as if he was expressing the ‘Good job’ he had done! I walked towards Grandpa and bent his thumb hard.
［That hurts! My grandson is abusing the elderly!］
［Tell me the details.］
Grandpa blew at his thumb exaggeratingly.
［The details, you mean how we get to know each other? Well, you know how much of a fan I am of the 【Final Dead】 series.］
【Final Dead】 was set on earth and mars, an online FPS with the wide range of maps and weapons as its selling point.
［I started getting close with a kid called Break on the Stage Clear leaderboard. You should know about Break too. Since she was a teenage girl, I faked the details a little, and used Itsuki’s identity to chat with her, fight together and duel with each other. You also played with Break on that account before, right?］
［Eh, it’s that person?］
In 【Final Dead】, I will login with the name January (Itsuki means January). It’s mainly used by Grandpa, but I will login and play occasionally too. That Break who was always online? Who will exterminate the enemy mercilessly to clear the stage?
［No, that has to be a guy…］
The tone might sound girlish, but this was the classic example of a guy building a persona of a girl.
［No, she is a girl! First year in Honami High School, your junior!］
But Grandpa didn’t back down.
［What’s your basis for saying she is a girl?］
The ones engrossed in FPS were mostly guys, so I couldn’t bear much hope in this.
［Based on my 73 years of life experience.］
［… Well, girl or not aside, it might be possible that Break is my junior in school.］
［That’s great, you have a friend of the opposite sex that love games.］
Both Grandpa and I refused to back down on Break’s gender.
［You must meet her in real life and invite her home. I will cheer for you! Well then, Grandpa need to get back to 【Hell Scream 4】... Don’t talk to me from now on, you got that? Absolutely don’t. This is a difficult stage, understand?］
［Got it.］
Tragedies could happen if one got distract in the midst of FPS. If someone talked to you during an important part, and you get distracted… All your hard work will be for nought. I then rolled around on the tatami mat minding my own business, while Grandpa became completely immersed into the TV screen. He focused on killing the enemy groups that appeared in concert with the music.
I followed my Grandpa’s lead, and started studying 【There are no heroines in my youth】.
First of all—— the instruction manual. I focused on reading, and questioned Pandora periodically.
I then confirmed that this game app was linked to reality, a system that predict encounters with the heroines.
Under most circumstance, by going life normally, anyone will encounter a member of the opposite sex you would get to know deeply, known as the ‘fated partner’. However, there were those with only shallow relationships, or wouldn’t meet such a person. And I belonged to the latter. Fortunately, the chance of such people getting into relationship wasn’t 0. It would range from 0.1% to 1%... probably. However, just this much probably was as good as nothing, and couldn’t be changed by the person alone.
And scraping up this paltry percentage, and turning into a visual game format, was what the app 【There are no heroines in my youth】 does.
This was amazing! Japan’s aging population problem could be solved by installing this onto every Japanese’s phone right? I asked Pandora.
【Everyone…? If we do that, the calculation will become very complicated. And… Itsuki’s competitors will increase too.】
She gave a bitter reply.
［Ehh?］
【Assuming there is a girl 【Heroine X】. And the chance of Itsuki getting together with her was 1%.】
［… Yes.］
I didn’t question or protest that. I just wish she could increase the percentage a little more.
【Next, let’s use the ace of Honami High School, Tsugawa Sakuya as an example opposite of Itsuki.】
［…Yes］
Tsugawa huh. A name that appeared in the choice branch before. A handsome guy who excels in sports, but hates the library.
【His chance of becoming a couple with 【Heroine X】 is 70%】
［He actually has a 7 in 10 chance?］
What the, this was a difference between heaven and hell! That was the gulf between us!
【?Actually?】
［What else would I say?］
【If it is Itsuki, I thought you will say ‘only’.】
［The topic is different from that time on the roof! Not just that, even the mentality is different from then!］
【Is that the reason? I have much to learn… So with 【Heroine X】 as the example, there might be a chance of people competing for the same target. Itsuki might be able to raise your chances from 1% to 60% through the predictions. But Tsugawa Sakuya can use the same means to increase his chances from 70% to 99%.】
If that was so, wouldn’t that be a lost cause?
【And so, people with low probability of finding a lover would use this app most efficiently. They will bring out the most from this app.】
That means it would get me onto the starting line, right? Although I wasn’t at the starting line yet… And had even fallen into debt.
［I want to ask you about the loan.］
【Have you read the instruction manual yet?】
［I did… But I still can’t figure it out.］
The collateral for the loan. It was something taken from me. The instruction manual said 【Exchanging the future possibility of the customer into a currency known as Sols, which is reflected in the possible loan amount. The expenditure will be virtual during the loan period, and will only become actual when forced reparation is executed.】
【I see… Explaining it in terms Itsuki can understand… Your 【luck】 will disappear, something like that?】
［My real luck?］
【Itsuki don’t have much fate with Heroines, but everyone else does. Isn’t that great?】
For some reason, I didn’t feel that was a compliment.
【Friends, success in the eyes of society, great accomplishment…By reallocating your luck in these matters into your love life, you can increase your chance of meeting a heroine. Let me emphasize this again. Itsuki, you need to confirm one heroine in the next 5 days.】
［… When you say ‘confirm’, do you mean removing the 【?】 from the game? What kind of situation is that in real life?］
【When the heroine acknowledge Tosa Itsuki as a human, and possess a certain level of good will towards you. It is only possible to fall in love from this stage on. If they detest you, or don’t know you exist, or don’t care you exist, then love will not be possible.】
Pandora told me the reasoning. That means that I was a detested, unknown or uncared-for existence to all the girls? Hahaha…! Should I laugh or cry?
［… I understand the conditions. Speaking of which, the time limit to confirm the heroine… if I can’t confirm one within five days, there will be a forced reparation of my loans right—— Specifically speaking, what will happen?］
【Itsuki haven’t read about the explanation regarding forced reparation, right? Instead of listening to my explanation, it will be better for you to read this part again.】
［That’s true...］
I shifted my gaze onto the phone. Normally, I should have read the instruction manual before taking the loan. I tapped on the link 【Regarding forced reparation.】.
【Read the details】 and 【Trial experience (Free Sols will be given)】 options appeared before me.
—— Free Sols? So I will get them for free if I go through the trial experience?
If there was such a special event, people wouldn’t want to read the instruction manuals. I usually wouldn’t read it either.
Anyway, let’s start from the top with 【Read the details】. Tap… No reaction.
I tapped again.
【I’m sorry, Itsuki. The connection with the main server seemed to be unstable.】
Such a situation could happen in other apps too. Unable to reach the server even though I could access the internet—— What should I do in such a situation?
Keep pressing! But the screen didn’t change as expected.
［Hahahaha! I’m beat!］
Grandpa’s laughter reverberated in the living room. I turned to watch the tv as I continued pressing. The battle on the ground had shifted to the sky.
【It is a temporary outage, and will be up soon… ah.”】
…… Ah?
I glanced from the corner of my eyes. My finger had slid onto the 【Trial experience】 link. And the screen changed quickly this time… It will be fine, right?
I already tapped 【Read the details】 plenty of times. Tapping there would definitely be——
【Tosa Itsuki-san’s forced reparation has been scheduled. For a better forced reparation experience, reading of the details and queries about it to your personal AI will be disabled. Experience time will be tomorrow 28th September Wednesday, 7:49am and the following one hour.】
［Erm, Pandora-chan］
【…Yes.】
［Can I cancel the trial…］
【No. Before you finish the trial, I can’t answer your queries about forced reparation.】
［Why did it turn out like this?］
【It is designed to act this way for players who chose 【Trial experience】 before referencing 【Read the details】. The rationale is that the experience for forced reparation will have a bigger impact this way.】
［More impact? Is the forced reparation… enjoyable?］
【Who knows…】
Pandora said with a troubled tone.
【I don’t think it is enjoyable, but it might be so for humans.】
This gave the terrified me a little courage. Maybe it could be… enjoyable? At least it didn’t seem to be something that brings suffering.
And so, with a hint of unease, I ended the question session with Pandora.
I looked at the countdown screen on my phone. Getting up at 5am huh… If possible, I want to play now. I suddenly thought of a question, so I said to Pandora:
［Hey Pandora. Is the amount of time between playing session in this game random?］
【This difference is dependent on the accuracy of the prediction. That’s why there will be some differences between sessions.】
［… So it’s not random?］
【Not at all.】
［Hmm.］
That seemed to be so. Wait, it will be annoying if the gaming time is always set early in the morning.
—— I will sleep earlier tonight then.
2200hrs… No, 2100hrs… No no, 2000hrs. I could get up on time then.
I walked towards the kitchen, and decided on my dish with whatever was inside the fridge. I then grab hold of the kitchen knife.
After choosing my dish, I proceeded to prepare my breakfast!
… The alarm rang. I reached out from under my covers, and knocked the top of my square alarm clock. It stopped. I pulled my hand back under the covers… At this moment, an electronic sound different from earlier disturbed my slumber. I reached out reluctantly, and groped around my pillow. I grabbed a phone-shaped item, brought it to my face and opened my eyes. I pressed the stop button on the screen. Phew, great, peace at last. I closed my eyes.
【—— Wake up. It’s 28th September 4:55am. Itsuki, don’t you want to continue the game?】
A gentle and soothing voice sounded out.
［Another 10 minutes...］
Hmm. I nodded in my head, and set off for the dream world —— However, 10 minutes later, an interruption occurred for the 3rd time.
【10 minutes have passed. It is now 5:05. Itsuki ……Itsuki!】
As if it was getting impatient, the phone started vibrating. To stop the vibration, I picked up the phone that slipped from my hand and brought it before my face. Stop—— There was no stop button?
【Itsuki! Get up now!】
A girl’s voice came from nearby, but I didn’t have any female sibling or childhood friend that would wake me so gently… The girl’s voice came from the phone—— The phone? My dull head finally started revving.
［……Pandora-chan?］
【Yes. Good morning.】
［…Good morning.］
So tired. I held back the urge to yawn. I got into bed at 2000hrs, even earlier than a grade schooler. I set the alarm clock I bought at the 100 yen shop to sound off slightly before 【There are no heroines in my youth】 could be played again. I also set the alarm on my phone as insurance. Lastly, I asked Pandora to wake me if I still couldn’t get up. Pandora agreed without hesitation. To be honest, I thought I could get up by myself. Despite getting sufficient sleep, my body was…
［Pandora-chan, thank you…!］
Pandora-chan was really capable!
【It should be fine now.】
The buzzing phone turned silent. I sat up and tap on my phone to launch the game. The countdown had already ended. Continue the game! Wednesday, the morning of the third day. I will preview today’s schedule with the game.
As I was thinking about that, a system notification popped up.
【Because of the split in the previous prediction, the system needed to be corrected. The prediction will be run again. Turning back time, sorry for any inconvenience.】
Running the prediction again? Turning back time? What the hell? The game started with all these questions in my head—— And I understood what it means in no time.
［It’s saying that it will calculate the actions that I took...］
Yesterday, I chose to visit the library in the game. This option was used in the original prediction. However, the time in the game had turned back to some time earlier, and I —— My avatar came to the rooftop. This make sense in the game, but I already went through what happened after school on Tuesday. However…
［Isn’t the weather clear…?］
Jumping from rooftop to rooftop. My avatar did what I did, and jumped over. And because he wasn’t affected by the adverse weather, he landed probably. He didn’t make a fool of himself—— was this guy really me? The meeting with Rika-sama was slightly different. 【Tosa Itsuki heard the sound of sobbing】, and then I met the sobbing Rika-sama. The Rika-sama I met had red eyes. So that was…?
What was with the difference? Could this be, the effect of the error code that would definitely cause problems…? Well, if it was only to such an extent, it was still understandable.
Rika-sama’s lines being dubbed was a pleasant surprise! I didn’t know what technology was used, but it sounded just like Rika-sama’s voice. It would be a let down if the 【Heroine ?】 wasn’t dubbed. This should be the way!
After 【Heroine A?Mochizuki Rika】 made her appearance, the story progressed similarly to reality. Invited by Rika-sama to the 【One Person Club】, then left after promising to have lunch together. My avatar then went home, took a bath, chat with Pandora, had dinner, got nagged at by Grandpa about various things then slept and woke up——
As expected, the game cut out a lot of the details, and will express them in simple terms. My conversation with Pandora was also simplified to 【Chatted with Pandora for a while】. This happened quite often, even my dialogue with Rika-sama was like that. There seemed to be some traces of cutting corners. Was this… because of the error code too? Or just the character of the person who created 【There are no heroines in my youth】? No matter what, what I was playing was like a recap, so that was fine. But from the morning of the third day onwards—— It would be preview, so I had to pay more attention.
I tapped the screen with a serious face. It was finally time for the preview —— and heading into the unknown future.
My avatar left my house and went to school. As I woke up very early, my avatar reached school very early too. And then, after reaching school, the narration 【Tosa Itsuki experienced forced reparation】 was given. The specific content was omitted… Which made me concerned…
No! The important thing was the heroine! My lunch break with Rika-sama!
Even I could figure that out by the third day.
The lessons would be shown in narrative form—— but I was wrong?
The first and second period passed by peacefully. During the third period, something beyond my expectation happened.
On Wednesdays, the third period was English Expressions II. But the teacher was on urgent leave, so we had combined lessons with another class. Which class was it?
Class 2-1! Speaking of class 2-1 —— That would be Nakajima-san, Nakajima Konoha’s class! In 【There are no heroines in my youth】, she was the female student who served as the model for my heroine, right after Rika-sama!
Following this development, she will make her appearance.
After meeting Rika-sama, I will finally meet another girl! Finally…! Finally, the premonition of the second heroine debuting was here!
She had not appeared in the game yet, but it should be confirmed the moment I learned about having classes together with class 2-1! I continued the game in silence.
The combined class was in the library. Including my avatar, the students from class 2 all headed over there. The class 1 students had reached there before us. The narrative text appeared. The content of the class was to pick a book and discuss it freely within your group, and write an essay to critique it. Could it be, since it’s class 1… My chance to spend time with Nakajima-san would happen to my avatar?
—— The choice branch appeared.
【Muster your courage and talk with Nakajima Konoha.】
【Choose a book and do the critique with your friends seriously.】
【Pick up the school scenery album from two years ago.】
【Puppurapi?】
The first option then. There wasn’t any other option, right? Choosing books with friends? That means Gon-chan and Kazuya? I could chat with them even when there wasn’t any combined classes! The school scenery album from two years ago… It wasn’t clear what meaning there was behind this. Even if there was, it would lose to the charm of the first option… Puppurapi? It was a
【Pu】 last time, now it ends with a 【Pi】. Was the Puppura thing also because of the error code?
So far, there had only been three options, but a fourth one appeared this time.
—— In conclusion, I chose to speak with Nakajima-san.
Go for it, my avatar!
When the portrait of 【Heroine B? Nakajima Konoha】 appeared on my phone screen, I felt my thirst had been quenched.
Her black long hair had a hair clip and plaits. She was shorter than Rika-sama’s portrait, and had the qualities of the cutesy style and beautiful style.
Nakajima-san was heroine B…! I bit my lips on learning this fact.
However, my avatar didn’t make any move to approach her.
I stared at the unchanging screen on my phone.
I didn’t thought that another choice branch would appear!
【Compliment Nakajima Konoha’s appearance.】
【Pick a fight with Nakajima Konoha.】
【Grope Nakajima Konoha’s breast.】
Third one then… I restrained myself from pressing the third option in a panic. It would be a blissful moment for a moment if I groped her. But after that would be hell.
So the third option was NG… I decided.
Should I compliment her looks, or pick a fight. Considering the mundane options I chose on the first day, I should choose quarreling with her here. Well, in some stories, two people would start with a fight, and their relationship would start to warm up over time… But that wasn’t possible here. This was reality! No, even though it was a game, it would turn into reality in a few hours.
Taking interpersonal relationships into consideration, I should compliment her instead.
But speaking of which, could my avatar find a normal topic to talk about with Nakajima-san?
If it was me…! If it was me…! Oh no. I couldn’t think of anything…! That was why——! That was why this option appeared here! If I was in front of Nakajima-san, I would become more nervous!
… After choosing to compliment her.
【—— Your large eyes are like unsculpted gems. Your long lustrous hair will sway gently in the wind even if you comb it with just your fingers. I have never seen a girl as pretty as you. And your kindness… You helped me before, and although it might just be something trivial to you, I still want to thank you.】
My avatar went craz-… acted uncharacteristically. Speaking words of praise fluently, he finished such a long line in one breath. I tapped several times before he complete his compliment.
【That is a surprise.】
Nakajima-san said. Because she was 【Heroine B?】, her lines were dubbed. Even though it was just one line, her voice had such destructive power! And she seemed to have taken it positively? Choosing to compliment her was the right choice… That’s great.
The conversation with Nakajima-san then begun. I have to remember it well… And so I tapped along slowly. As my avatar didn’t have much lines, I should be able to pull it off in reality… Nakajima-san was unexpectedly eager to speak. My avatar didn’t stutter with Nakajima-san leading the conversation! And so, my avatar finished the third period—— perfect. I properly introduced myself while talking to Nakajima-san too. Nakajima-san should acknowledge me as Tosa Itsuki now.
I nodded my head in agreement. This should be the ideal development of a love simulator!
And the game could continue, it didn’t turn into a countdown screen.
After the fourth period, lunch break.
My avatar headed to the rooftop… And Rika-sama was waiting for me there.
I had to memorize the lunch scene with Rika-sama well, and prepped myself up.
Alright, I pressed next eagerly!
［Your……］
After finishing my revision of the game, I was now walking to school with a phone in one hand, mumbling to myself. As I didn’t looking at my phone screen, I wasn’t part of the crowd that had their head lowered down.
［Your large eyes are like unsculpted gems. Eh… I want to comb your long lustrous hair… rustling in the wind.］
【Wrong, Itsuki. It’s your long lustrous hair will sway gently in the wind even if you comb it with just your fingers.】
I scratched my head in response to Pandora’s accusation.
The next play session would be after my lunch with Rika-sama. It would be a while more until the next gaming time. From my experience with the preview, going with the choice I made in the game would be the correct way to go.
But what troubled me was the long lines my avatar said to Nakajima-san in the library.
Leaving its length aside, I was hesitant about the content. My avatar said it without any help, which meant this was the result of memorization…!
I talked to myself as I proceeded.
I… I will make sure my meeting with Nakajima-san——【Heroine B?】and my lunch with Rika-sama yield results! There was only three days left…! I had to confirm the Heroine in five days!
By the way, Rika-sama and Nakajima-san was actually my potential heroine… Was using girls out of my league as reference a great move, or overestimating myself….
Near the school gate, as the lines were pretty embarrassing, I shut my mouth and stopped practising. There were too many students around.
There was a student council election event going on at the school gate. So it was this season again. Honami High School was holding its election right now to nominate its new president, vice president and other members. Since I always come to school right before I was late, I had never seen the morning election events before today. This was all thanks to my effort in getting up early.
Wait, election… that means!
Nakajima-san was running for the seat of the student council president! Maybe I could get to see her? As I was thinking about that, I looked around and only saw the male student running against Nakajima-san, but she herself wasn’t here.
【Itsuki, it’s 7:49. The forced reparation experience is about to begin.】
［Roger.］
Speaking of which, if something happens on my way to school… Wait, nothing happened? I looked around me to confirm. Nakajima-san’s opponent was making an announcement via microphone. His student helpers were giving out pamphlets. Among the students filing into school—— was Rika-sama.
There were several students following her as if they were her minions. From what Rika-sama said yesterday, this group was probably following her of their own accord. Rika-sama adheres to the three principles faithfully, and wouldn’t approach that group on her own, and she walked towards her classroom with a displeased and cold expression. But behind that expression, she was almost at her limits.
Suddenly, Rika-sama’s icy gaze turned my way.
That surprised me, but her eyes didn’t fall on me as expected. The one who was acquainted with Rika-sama was Regist-san, not Tosa Itsuki. She didn’t particularly liked me, so anyone wearing a Recycling Bag could replace me. What a depressing fact.
She was afraid of strangers. If not for what happened yesterday, I wouldn’t have imagined… However, why was she like that? Why did Rika-sama feared strangers so much? She was rich, had a beautiful appearance, and I think her academics wasn’t too bad either. She was popular with the opposite sex too. If not for her fear of strangers, she could enjoy her youth properly. It wouldn’t be strange if there wasn’t any particular reasons for this. Such cases do exist. But more likely than not, there would be a reason behind this.
Rika-sama left and I became motivated, walking forward energetically.
［Morning, virgin］
Really now, why was there a guy starting the morning with such crude words.
［Hey, virgin!］
I didn’t feel any malicious intention, but the guy being bullied was really sad. If they went overboard, the other party couldn’t answer back amiably. This voice sounded familiar, but it must just be my imagination.
The footsteps approached my back. And then, he came to my side.
［What’s the matter, virgin, why are you ignoring me?］
That was my friend Yamai Gonzaburou, Gon-chan. Because Gon-chan lived quite far from school, he would leave plenty of time everyday for his morning commute to avoid being late. Therefore, it was rare for me to meet him on the way to school. And this morning was one of those rare times.
［Gon-chan…So Gon-chan is someone who will take revenge in such a way! I was wrong about you!］
［Revenge? What? Virgin, why are you mad?］
His harmless expression and his contradictory words multiplied the effect!
［Yamai! I promise to call you Yamai from now on! I promise! So please show mercy!］
So please don’t call me virgin in public anymore! Where did your empathy as a samurai go!?
［Ah… It’s fine to call me by my given name. Akari wants to call me Gon-chan. From Gonzaburou, the nickname Gon-chan doesn’t sound bad on second thought. Isn’t that right, virgin?］
［You mad! You’re definitely mad!］
［I’m not mad, virgin］
It was true that I’m a virgin! But shouldn’t this be kept under wraps? Then I could pretend that I actually have experience, right? Wasn’t everyone like that too!? I wasn’t aware of it, but did I do anything that incurred the wrath of Gon-chan? Maybe because I addressed him as Gon-chan and…? He said it was fine, but he was actually bearing a grudge?
［What the… I’m just calling you by your name, do you have to be so mad?］
［No, like I said, my name is……］
［Isn’t it Dou and Tei, Doutei?］
<TL: His name 道帝 and 童貞(Virgin) are both pronounced Doutei.>
［Doutei…? That’s, me…?］
［Yes. Why are you acting so weird?］
Gon-chan nodded calmly, and looked very natural.
［Yo Yamai, Virgin!］
The morning training group in tracksuits was running from the staircase to the school gate. The guys from class two waved at us.
［Morning, Doutei!］
［Leaving Gon-chan aside, it’s rare seeing Doutei come to school at this timing!］
Another two person greeted us.
［……］
I pushed myself to wave back, and the tracksuit group ran off.
Aside from Gon-chan, three people had called me by that name! Called me Doutei! What kind of joke was this…!
My name… Is there anything with my name on it…? The student handbook! I hurriedly took out the student handbook I treated as a miscellaneous item from my breast pocket. My photo was on it. The name was…?
The name written in bold letters was 【Doutei Doutei】. I felt a little faint and staggered a little. How was this possible… You have got to be kidding me. Virgin Virgin. Virgin two hit combo. And despite the name being a virgin, it used a cool kanji that means emperor! God is dead!
<TL: His family name 堂庭 is also Doutei.>
This continued after I reached the classroom.
［Morning, Doutei-kun］
Virgin-kun. The polite greeting from my female classmate scored a critical hit to my heart…!
［Doutei-kun. Doutei-kun, can you fill this in? This is a survey for the whole class…］
And this was the only time when the female students would talk to me!
The one hour after forced reparation began was spent in humiliation. I was call 【Doutei】【Doutei】and 【Doutei】 countless times… My given name and family name were both virgin! There was no escape!
This was the first time I hoped so sincerely that Homeroom and the first period will come earlier.
After setting up my phone, I hid it between my text book. I couldn’t wait for lunch break anymore, and waited for the seconds to tick away.
Exactly one hour has passed. It was still in the middle of first period, and I took my phone that was in vibration mode from the side of the desk, using the textbook as a shield. As expected, a notification popped up.
【Forced reparation experience is now finished. During forced reparation, according to the loan amount, you would need to live as 【Doutei Doutei】 for a set amount of time. We seek your kind understanding.】
Kind understanding your head ahhhhh!
【Furthermore, your name will affect your body. During your time as 【Doutei Doutei】, you may not have sexual intercourse. All sorts of situation will be prohibited and impossible to come true.】
Can I cry now?
【Thank you for your hard work. As a reward for your experience, 2000 Sols have been sent to your account.】
Which means, if the forced reparation happened to me, I would have to spend a certain amount of time—— depending on my loan… About a year? It might be longer than a year—— I would be addressed by the people around me as Doutei Doutei and live out such a shame-play. On top of that, I would be a real virgin all that time too, and wouldn’t climb the stairs of becoming an adult. I didn’t think it was a bluff or a threat. I didn’t know the reason, but it would become reality, that was how the game 【There are no heroines in my youth】 was!
Three years of high school… giving up like this would be fine—— As if! Spare me the misery of graduating with my right hand as my lover!
If I couldn’t confirm a heroine in five days, it would be better if I didn’t start the game in the first place… Or would this persist until I was 30 or 40 years old…?
It seemed that you could use magic if you stayed a virgin until 40? Haha. What kind of magic would that be. I did heard such an urban legend before…
—— I only played in the hope that a heroine would appear in my youth. This shallow emotion landed me in the claws of forced reparation!
With this conviction in mind, I focused on the third period.
Just like how the game was, the third period was a combined class with class 1 inside the library. I decided to execute the option 【Muster your courage and talk with Nakajima Konoha】!
I had to talk to Nakajima-san quickly, I imagined myself turning into a wolf and started moving.
First was following her inside the library!
Like the game, today’s lesson was to choose and borrow a book, and write a book report to be submitted later. There were students who had already started discussing. Conversations could be heard everywhere inside the library that was usually quiet. And of course, there were students who had fallen into a dilemma.
Nakajima-san… Where is Nakajima-san...
Honami High School’s library was huge, and there were many shelves too. There were also plenty of blind spots. And couples would act intimately inside these blind spots away from the gaze of the people around them. I already seen quite a few couples during this lesson.
—— I found Nakajima-san. I wanted to approach her and started moving. Nakajima-san was moving around a lot. She was talking to her female friends, and walked away—— She’s alone now! That’s my chance!
I closed the gap between Nakajima-san and me. She was about a meter away from me.
She was so small, and looked just right for me to hug… Her hair looked so nice, even though it was long, it wasn’t too gaudy and the hair clip was simple too. Her plaits were perfect as well, and her face was even more perfect.
… Her portrait was nice, but the real person was still the best.
As expected of the pure style beauty that was the pride of our school.
—— Now that I think about it, this was the second time I met Nakajima-san in real life.
When the first school term of the second year was about to end, a girl from my class, the handsome guy from the soccer club and me were summoned to the teacher’s office. My home room teacher asked us to do some work. The reason he picked us was because the three of us just happened to be around. Tsugawa was fine, but the girl! The girl was a big obstacle! She had the hots for Tsugawa! And then I started stuttering at the girl. The more anxious I was, the more my words stick together. The irritated girl started lashing out at me as I apologized in my heart. She wanted to do the job alone with Tsugawa, and I was caught in between. At this moment!
【Did something happen?】
Nakajima-san appeared. Aside from her beautiful face, there seemed to be a light shining from behind her. She smiled gently at me, and after waiting patiently for me to finish my stuttery sentence, she helped me explained everything clearly. And the three of us completed the task. Not four of us, but three. The female student from my class withdrew, and Nakajima-san stood in for her. And the teacher’s request was finished smoothly.
She left the deep impression of being a good person back then. Please be elected as the president.
And now, there were posters of student election candidates all over campus. Nakajima-san was the overwhelming favourite in being chosen as the president. No matter what, only the posters of Nakajima-san had reports of being stolen.
The school had to attend a rally between the fifth and sixth period on this Friday, 30th September. The candidates would give their speeches, and their nominee would also give speeches to state their support. The rest of the time would be the casting of votes after returning to our respective classrooms. The results would be announced next week, and the new student council would be inaugurated. My vote has already been decided to be cast for Nakajima-san. I haven’t forgotten the help she rendered me!
And now, she was right before me, 【Heroine B?】——Nakajima Konoha.
［N-N-N-Nakajima-san!］
I resolve myself to talk to her. Nakajima-san looked at me in surprise, and a moment later.
［——Your large eyes are like unsculpted gems. Your long lustrous hair will sway gently in the wind even if you comb it with just your fingers. I have never seen a girl as pretty as you. And your kindness… You helped me before, and although it might just be something trivial to you, I still want to thank you.］
Alright, I said it!
I memorized the lines my avatar said! I spent the earlier period on this too, and could finally say it in one go. What a sense of accomplishment.
Stay cool. With natural motions, I glanced at the screen of the phone I was holding in my right hand. Pandora’s voice couldn’t be silenced even if I turn my phone to vibrate mode. I couldn’t control it through the game settings either. Right now, she didn’t use any sound, and only answered with texts. How did I do without using a script!?
【Congratulations, Itsuki. Error rate is 0, you did it.】
Right? Right?
I nodded several times in my heart in response to Pandora’s message that was displayed on my phone.
This was a triumph!
<TL: I’m making a note here: huge success.>
However—— I felt a little uneasy. Why wasn’t Nakajima-san reacting?
Did I recite my lines wrongly? Impossible, Pandora said I passed… I started tensing up. I stole a peek at Nakajima-san. I will be more nervous if I looked at her directly.
I took reference from the three principles of the Mochizuki onii-sama and shifted my gaze skywards—— As I couldn’t see the sky, I stared at the ceiling to calm myself.
［That surprised me.］
She finally recovered.
［It’s a surprise… but still, thank you. I’m happy to be complimented like that.］
From Nakajima-san’s perspective, a male student she just met complimented her looks with extremely flattering prose. But she didn’t seem to mind that and accepted with her open heart.
［You are from class 2…］
［T-T-Tosa! Tosa Itsuki!］
And my performance here would be the moment Nakajima-san acknowledges me.
Fufu, Nakajima-san smiled a little.
［I will be in your care, Tosa-kun.］
［O-O-O-Okay!］
Just as planned. I am the one who is in your care!
［What kind of class is class 2?］
［The w-w-well known person here is Tsugawa Sakuya!］
My avatar answered like this in the game. Leaving that aside, I didn’t planned to say that, but I said that unconsciously… By the way, why did I have to say a guy’s name here? Well, it was the fact anyway. The famous people in class 2 would be the soccer ace Tsugawa and the president of the archery club Takeda, the two handsome guys… Although they both have girlfriends in other schools, a lot of people in Honami High School surprisingly didn’t know that,.
On Nakajima-san’s invitation, we selected our own books and sat down in a two seater desk at a corner of the library. I stuttered a lot and didn’t say anything interesting. But even so, her gentle smile didn’t disappear. Thanks to that, by the time the bell rang, I didn’t stutter anymore when I spoke to Nakajima-san.
［I enjoyed myself, thanks to Tosa-kun, I had a meaningful and enjoyable time.］
Nakajima-san carried her bag before her chest with both hands and stood up.
［It’s nothing...］
I scratched my head shyly.
［See you next time.］
She waved at me. Nakajima-san did that to me that was completely out of her league. She was definitely waving at Tosa Itsuki.
［Goodbye…］
Her words lingered in my ears, how wonderful. So there will be a next time, huh? I waved my hand briskly, and saw off Nakajima-san’s back as she left.
With a sense of accomplishment, I welcomed the fourth period with a brilliant smile. Even though Gon-chan was staring at me, I didn’t mind at all. Kazuya asked: ［Itsuki found a girlfriend too?］. I told him the truth probably. I didn’t!
There was still ways to go before confirming anyone’s status as a heroine. However, the chance to approach a heroine ——approach Rika-sama would be here at lunch break!
The time I fixed with Rika-sama was here. I took the beverage I brought from home with me to the snack shop, and purchased the egg mayo sandwich set and sweet paste bun. I took an extra white Recycling Bag. And headed straight for the rooftop! At the entrance leading to the rooftop, I took out the Recycling Bag. After hastily poking three holes for my eyes and mouth, I put it on, tied it around my neck and voila.
［…?］
I felt someone’s presence and turned back. No one was there… Was it just my imagination?
I walked up the stairwell and headed to roof access.
I will jump from the roof this time too —— there was no way I would do that okay? I went to the roof of the eastern building where the shed of the 【One Person Club】 was situated. I tried my luck and turned the knob, and it was locked as expected.
［Regist here!］
I announced my name, and knocked on the silver door. The door opened with the sound of the lock being opened.
［You are here, Regist-san! Sorry for making you wait!］
Rika-sama appeared with a brilliant smile. She looked completely different from the glimpse I caught of her at the school gate this morning.
［Thank you for having me...］
I was ushered into the rooftop. Rika-sama then secured the silver door with the thumb turn lock. Uninvited guest won’t be able to gain entry. Rika-sama was really thorough. If she didn’t do so, people might start to gather here.
I visited the 【One Person Club】 together with Rika-sama.
Unlike yesterday, two chairs were prepared right from the beginning. A lunch box covered in a green checkered cloth was on the table. Because of my impression of her being a lady from a rich family, my expectation of the lunch box being a big black square box fell short.
It was already time for lunch. I sat down and thought back on my game review session.
The lunch was explained with just one line. It was 【Tosa Itsuki and company had an enjoyable lunch】! This should be important! Give me more details!
But it wasn’t listed!
And so, I had to work hard in turning this into an enjoyable lunch!
［Bon appetit.］
After putting her hands together, Rika-sama undid the cloth around her lunch box, unveiling a small two layered lunch box that appeared plain like ours commoners.
［Bon appetit…］
I laid out my egg mayo sandwich set as I looked at Rika-sama’s lunch box. She opened the lid with her hands that was so white that I want to caress them.
［Uwah.］
The lunchbox was like a commoners, but the inside was completely different! No, the content could actually be considered to be normal. The first layer had three mini rice balls with different fillings. The second layer had an omelette roll, cherry tomatoes, octopus wiener, salad spring roll, meatballs and handmade pudding as dessert.
Even though these were the dishes, there were no signs of them being frozen food. Each dish was made to perfection, even the omelette roll alone was on the level of restaurant food. Be it the arrangement, combination and appearance, everything was perfect. This wasn’t a level a housewife could achieve… But the standard of a professional!
［Regist-san?］
Rika-sama seemed surprised, probably because I made a weird sound.
［Is Senpai’s lunch box… made by a professional chef?］
Rika-sama smiled happily.
［No, it’s made by onii-sama!］
O-Onii-sama?
［Onii-sama’s hobby is making food, and he still brings a lunch box to school after enrolling in university. He said that making lunch for one or two person isn’t too different, so he made one for me too. This is really delicious. Ah, the omelette roll is made by me though!］
［Mochizuki-senpai is great at cooking too.］
［Ah, not really.］
Rika-sama turned fidgety. Her eyebrows drooped a little, and she looked so cute. The gap Moe of Rika-sama was really wonderful!
［In the past I went to help onii-sama with his cooking without thinking too much. Onii-sama then nabbeded me and trained me until he became satisfied with my standard before letting me go. I spent those days undergoing special training while getting yelled at, so I can cook even though I don’t want too...］
［… Ahh, special training while getting yelled at.］
I understand completely, it must just be like the time with the three principles.
［Yes, it was terrible.Onii-sama treats girls seriously, so he will make dessert himself as a gift on white day. He made desserts while teaching me, that time was really...］
Rika-sama repeated their conversations from back then.
【Rika, what did I ask you to make?】
【… Cream Puff.】
【Oh, so you remember what you are supposed to be making. Then Rika, what do you think this looks like?】
【Like a mayonnaise covered shiitake mushroom that had been grilled.】
【What a coincidence, I think so too… Do it again! Why did the cream puff become like this!? Did you follow my instructions when you made it? Are the measurement for the ingredients fine? The temperature of the oven? And the timing?】
【… Well, who knows?—— Eh? Onii-sama! Please don’t grab my head!】
【Hey. You! The ingredients measurement are just estimates, right? For snacks, the key is accurate measurements! The. Key!】
［You were like that back then, but he still managed to teach Mochizuki-senpai how to make omelette roll…?］
Onii-sama sure was strong.
［The importance of the measuring spoon and cup has been engraved deep within my heart, although I’m still far behind onii-sama.］
［Not at all, Mochizuki-senpai is amazing too. That omelette roll looks really nice. I only have guys in my home, and we aren’t that good with dishes like senpai and your onii-sama.］
Grandpa and I were both men, so our culinary level was average. Volume! Filling! That was the most important. The ingredients and seasoning were usually added in by rough gauge in large quantities. Whether it looked appetizing didn’t matter! That was how it was. I’ve made omelette roll before, but there would be scorch marks. Even so, I could make something edible if I do proper taste testing.
［…Erm, if you don’t mind, please have some?］
Rika-sama picked up an omelette roll and brought it to my mouth.
E-Ehh? My face hidden behind the Recycling Bag flushed as I became flustered. Could this be, the thing intimate couples do…? Or rather, even couples seldom do this, the alluring…? Was this really fine? Or was I too self-conscious? Or she just wanted to place it on the packaging of the bread!? No, if I don’t give this a try…!
I opened my mouth. The Recycling Bag was in the way… Even though I finally encountered such a scene…!
Rika-sama leaned towards me, and placed the omelette roll inside my mouth.
Yes~ the right answer ahhhh! This was something all men dream of trying at least once…! My wish came true…!
Lost in deep emotions, I realized Rika-sama seemed to be uneasy. I-I wonder if it suits your taste… that sort of expression! Oh no!
I moved my mouth and savoured the taste. The omelette roll Rika-sama made was the stock variant, it was a little sweet, a delicate taste guys like me and grandpa couldn’t achieve.
<TL: Omelette roll ⇒ Tamagoyaki. Stock variant ==> Dashimaki Tamago.>
Ah, I was so~ moved, and the taste was moving too. Was it fine for me to be so blissed?
［… Senpai, this is delicious!］
［T-This is just a simple dish.］
Rika-sama’s turned red, and it was very obvious because of her pale skin. She then smiled gently.
［Fufu.］
［What’s the matter?］
［I’m so glad that onii-sama taught me how to cook.］
［I-I see...］
I felt really bashful. I then chewed on my sandwich, and Rika-sama said she was interested in them. I offered her a piece I haven’t eaten yet. Rika-sama have probably never eaten the bread from the snack shop. But it wasn’t because she disdain such peasantry things. It seemed that the reason was, if Rika-sama went to buy bread, the chaos would trouble the snack shop. Which was the well known problems of celebrities. She wanted to try even more variety of bread. And the truth was, all the bread sold by the snack shop were delicious. I guarantee that.
Rika-sama seemed to find the taste satisfactory.
After lunch, Rika-sama brewed some tea. Yesterday’s tea was actually Darjeeling, and today’s tea was Assam.
And next—— the real thing begins now. I call forth the content of this morning’s preview into my mind. In the game, my avatar and Rika-sama spent an enjoyable lunch together, and Rika-sama provided some tea. I would need to take action next.
I also realized that this was the time to act!
［What time is it…］
I pretended to check the time, and took out my phone from my uniform’s pocket—— I acted as if I took something else out unintentionally, and placed it on the table. Although my avatar did this without looking awkward, it felt like an act, when I did so myself.
［!］
Rika-sama quivered a little, then stared at what I took out incidentally—— the tail plushy I picked up at the courtyard.
［Regist-san, this is…］
［Ah, no, it’s not mine… I picked it up somewhere. I planned to hand it over to the teacher’s office later, so I kept it on me...］
Rika-sama grabbed my hand as I was about to keep it.
［This is mine! Thank you!］
［Erm…］
That was dangerous! I almost blurted out that I would give it to her. Actually, I do want to return it to her. However, I still needed to mimic my avatar’s action. That guy was too suspicious of things! But he didn’t return the item at this juncture, so I have to do the same…!
［Is that so? Ah… but I’m not sure if this belongs to senpai... Is this really yours?］
That being said, my avatar was probably right. There wasn’t any names on the tail plushy, and considering the possibility that someone might lie to get this item, I should confirm this even if it was Rika-sama. But with its scent as evidence, did I really think that Rika-sama was lying?
My avatar! You didn’t understand at all! At that moment when I was holding the phone, I lowered my head painfully at how cold my avatar was.
［T-That is my amulet since kindergarten! That’s why it looked really dated, that stain came from ink, and it is still there no matter how many times I wash it. There are signs of it being mended here too. The strap was a birthday gift from onii-sama when I was nine!］
As if she wanted to hold onto the plushy with both hands, everything she said matches the script in the game flawlessly. This definitely belonged to Rika-sama. I already confirmed it.
［I’m sorry for suspecting you… I will return this to the owner then.］
Rika-sama held the tail plushy tightly as she peeked my way, and sighed in relief —— Alright, that’s enough. The situation developed just like the game. I then prepared to leave the 【One Person Club】. I was glad that the tail plushy was returned.
But I got caught off guard here.
［… It’s unsightly, right?］
Rika-sama said softly… Huh?
［Unsightly?］
［—— A toy when I was young—— A tail plushy. It’s weird for me to cherish this so much now that I’m in high school, right?］
［Not at all! Liking and cherishing something isn’t anything to be ashamed of no matter how old you get!］
Grandpa was over 70 years old, but he still love to play video games. He likes manga too, shonen manga from an era I didn’t know of, and the trending best sellers right now, he reads all of them. He was still far from retiring from the scene. Even now, he was waiting for his favourite manga on hiatus to restart again.
［I had a rag that was cut up terribly by scissors. My mom washed it when I was in middle school, and I had a huge fight with her over it...］
Because that rag was my personal possession. Even my mother wasn’t allowed to invade into that space. If it wasn’t washed carefully by hand, its lifespan would be reduced. And as expected, she wanted to throw it away. A horrible fight broke out between my mother and me who was stubbornly protecting it. I managed to kept it in the end, and brought it along when I moved to my Grandpa’s place.
［The smell and the feel of it are important…］
I shut my mouth after saying something weird. This conversation shouldn’t have happened… No, maybe it was omitted and stated in a simple narration? Rika-sama said quietly:
［Fufu, thank you.］
［I should be apologizing for saying such nonsensical things...］
［No, it’s fine. I’m glad you picked it up too… I didn’t remember when I lost it, and have given up after failing to find it. Since I lost it in school, I searched all the places I had been to before—— Although I found it in the courtyard in the end...］
［Courtyard…］
Maybe Rika-sama was talking about her first meeting with me.
［Someone I didn’t know was holding it. I didn’t expect that, if I could only asked him directly, but I couldn’t do it. The other party talked to me, so I followed onii-sama’s three principles and ran away… I don’t know who that person was either. That’s why, I felt I wouldn’t ever get it back...］
Could it be… Rika-sama looked at me.
［Regist-san, are you…］
［No. I didn’t meet senpai at the courtyard before, and I picked this up somewhere else…］
［I see…］
［Yes.］
I planned to answer normally, but my tone might seem unnatural even though a Recycling Bag was covering my face.
［Regist-san?］
Rika-sama asked with a baffled expression.
［Ah, no, it’s nothing —— I need to return to class soon, senpai.］
I pushed the 【One Person Club】 to the back of my mind. In order to open the door leading to the stairwell, I reached for the thumb lock and thought:
I’m the male student she met.
Why did I refute Rika-sama just now?
If she knew I’m Tosa Itsuki, wouldn’t we progress our relationship even further?
No, I knew why. Because I didn’t want her to know that I was the male student who stuttered ［A-Ahhhhhhh!］
Rika-sama had a good impression of Regist-san. Regist-san speaks with Rika-sama as a normal junior. I didn’t want her to know he was actually the plain and normal me.
［I hope this won’t affect anything…］
The morning preview only lasted until I return the tail plushy to Rika-sama and leaving the 【One Person Club】. The phone screen then turned black and a countdown was displayed.
What would happen in the afternoon was still blank. What should I do if I ran into those two people again? I would be glad to meet them, but if I messed up and get hated… I feel uneasy without the guidance of the preview.
I took out my phone.
［!］
There was still one minute left on the countdown. I could continue in a short while… But no matter how anxious I was, I still needed to return to the classroom.
I turned the thumblock and opened the door with a sigh. I then turned stiff from surprise.
After opening the door—— Nakajima Konoha was standing right there. Leaning onto the wall within the stairwell, she looked this way.
［Hello.］
［… H-Hello.］
［Your voice is average…?］
In response to my greeting, Nakajima-san showed a confused expression. She then followed it up with a question:
［—— I have a request.］
I backed away to the door and nodded. Because of a strange sense of intimidation. How strange, even though Nakajima-san was smiling? Why did I feel like a herbivore being targeted by a carnivore?
［Can you take off that Recycling Bag?］
How could I take it off? I attended class with Nakajima-san in the library today, and she would recognize me if I took it off, right? Unlike Rika-sama, I couldn’t let her know about this. As Rika-sama had an irrational fear of strangers, she could accept Regist-san who wears a Recycling Bag as a hobby… But others would just think of me as a pervert. So I should leave the scene as an anonymous Recycling Bag guy…….
［Can you take it off?］
［…………］
［Please?］
［…………］
［Please?］
She increased her pressure. I gave up and undid the knot at my neck and took off the Recycling Bag. I lowered my head in greeting.
［H-Hello.］
I immediately heard a sigh.
［That’s it?］
—— That’s it? Nakajima said that? With such a disappointing tone?
［I thought I uncovered a new handsome guy… Don’t do such misleading things.］
［……Huh?］
［Ah… Ehh.］
Nakajima-san observed me from various angles… she then sighed and crossed her arms.
［No matter what angle I looked at you from, you are not handsome at all…］
I was being pitied, I got pitied so hard. But since just now, Nakajima-san’s words and tone sounded strange.
［I might not be handsome… but how did you mixed me up with one?］
Nakajima-san likes handsome guys? No, that should be normal for everyone, guys like pretty girls, girls like handsome guys. But Nakajima-san…
［Isn’t Mochizuki Rika someone who only goes after hot guys?.］
Going after hot guys… What an impactful phrase, haha.
［According to my intelligence network, Mochizuki Rika will shake off her followers and have lunch at the rooftop, which is well known. She have never invited anyone in before. However! I saw a male student went in just now! And he visited Mochizuki Rika’s place with a Recycling bag over his head! It was a romantic rendezvous between Mochizuki Rika and that male student. And with a guy covering his face. That must be a guy handsome enough to be on Mochizuki Rika’s level! That’s what I thought, but...］
The teary eyed Nakajima … san stood unsteadily, and as a gentleman, I decided to catch her before she falls.
［Your eyes are sharp, huh? But if it’s you, you are just one step away from being a pervert.］
She sighed unhappily.
［Hah——, I’m deeply hurt…］
My wounds were deep too!
［And so, who are you?］
In the end, Nakajima-san… No, there was no need for the san anymore! Nakajima asked me such a question.
［Tosa !Tosa Itsuki! Today! Combined lesson! Library!］
［……?］
Nakajima rest her chin on her hand, and looked at me with her head tilted.
［No idea.］
［You even said 【Please take care of me from now on】 and 【see you next time】……］
［I said that? Hah! That’s just being diplomatic. This is how I deal with everyone else aside from hot guys. Those who aren’t hot guys are really numerous, so I don’t want to make enemies carelessly. However —— it is a huge mistake to assume that I will remember and differentiate the hordes of non-hot guys I meet!］
So that was the reason why she was gentle and treated everyone equally… It just happened a few hours ago, and she had completely forgotten about it. The time and effort I spent to memorize my lines was…!
S-So what!? I still remember the surprised look she showed when I recited my lines. Nakajima showed such an expression and her mood turned great and clapped too.
［Ah! The overconfident generic face whose only commendable point is that you complimented me.］
［Generic, face…］
［I can’t help it either. If someone’s face value falls beyond a certain point, they all look the same to me. But generic face, I can tell from your compliments that you have a good eye for things. You also told me about Tsugawa-kun, I’m really grateful for that.］
Oh, so that’s how it was. Because of her personality, she readily accepted such over the top flattery…
Now that she mentioned it… What I talked about in the library was mainly about my classmate Tsugawa Sakuya. Because Nakajima wanted to hear more. The choice branch… about inviting Tsugawa Sakuya to the library appeared before. So that choice would lead to my meeting with Nakajima?
［Do you like Tsugawa?］
If she already has someone she liked, it would be impossible to remove the 【?】 from 【Heroine B?】right? The difficulty was on the level of 【Heroine B???】! However, Nakajima gave an unexpected answer.
［Hmm. I do like him, but that didn’t seem right either? Because I like Takeda-kun too.］
Nakajima-san was all smiles as the corner of her lips rose.
［Alright then, generic face, I will do you a service and tell you. I like hot guys!］
I got that subtly… No, I learned about that quite obviously.
［My goal is to form a reverse harem with hot guys! I want a boyfriend for Monday, one for Tuesday, another one for Wednesday, another one for Thursday, another one for Friday and another one for Saturday. On Sunday, I will decide who to spend time with depending on my mood.］
［… Six people at the same time?］
She wasn’t fazed by my dumbfounded comment at all.
［Don’t men dream about building a harem too? Being liked by cute girls and dating all of them. Isn’t this the same thing? There are cases where they like two person at the same time, right? Be it men or women, you would get sick of it if you only date one person. Having a rotating roster would definitely allow for a longer lasting relationship!］
［That might be so… But for the member of the rotating cast… wouldn’t it be like a fraud…?］
［Don’t look down on me!］
Nakajima widen her eyes with rage instantly. Her hands on her hips seemed to emphasized that her pride had been insulted.
［You’re wrong, I’m sorry!］
［I will get the other party’s consensus.］
She started preaching.
［Pretending to be dating one guy and toying with several men at the same time is just being unfaithful! It’s just being fickle! I won’t do something like that! I will tell each of the hot guys probably that I have another boyfriend and ask him to be my Monday boyfriend for example. I will get his permission. It can only be a reverse harem after all of us comes to an agreement right—— I think this is reasonable, but there will definitely be outsiders who will complain. The girls will be jealous because I am hogging all the hot guys! The boys will bear a grudge because I ranked them so far back!］
［What you said make sense…］
［It’s great that you get it, generic face. Going by the same reasoning, a harem is possible too. If the girls are okay with that, I won’t mind a guy in my reverse harem having a harem of his own… Or rather, wouldn’t things be smoother that way…? But that harem guy has to be a hottie too...］
That’s a great idea! Nakajima who brightened up with her hands together before her chest turned sullen a few seconds later and shook her head.
［Even though you’re forming a reverse harem, you will not compromise on dating anyone but hotties?］
This was an important question for me.
［Impossible.］
She answered with a serious expression.
［… Why is that?］
Nakajima placed her hands on her face that was blushing. Just going by appearance, she was a pure and beautiful young girl.
［Because I dig handsome faces. And those who look like hotties must be hotties on the inside too!］
［Eehhh?］
［What, you got a problem with that?］
The pure beautiful young girl morphed instantly into a carnivorous beauty hiding malicious intent behind her smile.
［There are people who looked ugly, but is a hottie in his heart too…］
［— Huh. Where?］
Where… I had no idea even if she ask me where…
［Please don’t raise an objection if you can’t even give one example. According to my experience, all hotties are hotties on the inside too. On the other hand, the ugly ones are twisted on the inside too! Not just boys, it’s the same for girls too. Those ugly girls are jealous of a miraculous beauty like me, and their mouth will turn even uglier! And when I reject the boy’s confession, they will try to overwhelm me with brute force…! Ahh, it’s maddening even when I think about it!］
［Huh?］
I stuck closely to the door to the roof.
Nakajima launched a spinning kick to the wall of the stairwell, and her skirt twirled about, exposing her panties—— The instant I was thinking about that, her kick landed perfectly. So strong.
［Phew.］
She tidied her hair and turned to me quickly.
［—— Let’s assume someone ugly but is a hottie on the inside exist. You might be right, but it’s too hard to find one. But, what if someone who is a hottie both inside and outside is around? It will be easy to find one. Is there any reason to choose someone ugly? Why don’t you think about it in my shoes?］
［There isn’t any reason to.］
［That’s right, why would I pick the ugly one, Sato?］
Nakajima nodded to affirm this.
［… It’s Tosa.］
［Tosa huh. I will forget soon anyway.］
Even if she tilted her head cutely, it won’t go back to the way it was.
The image of that gentle and pure beauty Nakajima Konoha was crumbling loudly in my mind. Nakajima was a carnivorous combative type who planned to build a reverse harem, that was the truth.
［T-Then your kindness towards me when I was with Tsugawa and the others in the teacher’s office?］
［… I did something like that? I treated the generic face Katou kindly?］
She didn’t remember as expected, damn it! I knew it.
［But, the one who was together with generic face was the ace of the soccer club Tsugawa-kun right? Then that is a reason! To show myself off in front of a hottie, Yamada! Isn’t that obvious?］
Katou and Yamada were referring to me?
［Please work hard on building your reverse harem...］
I was too arrogant. Actually, I thought for a tiny bit that Nakajima-san who treated me gently was… Not this Nakajima. I thought I could confirm Nakajima-san as a heroine without too much effort. I was too naive.
［Since it’s Nakajima … san, you have already found two or three members… of your reverse harem, right…?］
［…… Not yet.］
Was this a taboo question? Nakajima-san lowered her head meekly. What happened?
［That can’t be, isn’t there plenty of handsome boys in Honami High School? Tsugawa Sakuya from my class for example.］
［I’m not satisfied with just handsome guys. To realize my dreams, they need to be perfect and handsome!］
［……］
［… What, you don’t want to hear more?］
I didn’t ask because I don’t want to know, but she didn’t plan to let me off.
［What is your ideal?］
［Well...］
Nakajima told me about it cheerfully. Above 180cm in height, excellent grades and perfect in sports. Having academic abilities to enroll in the same university as her——Nakajima had the brains to reach the top 10 in exams, and got great results in all categories during the sports meet. She was good at fighting too. She hated fake hotties who style their hair and wear clothes to pretend to be a hottie. Hotties who were limited to posting their photoshopped profile pic to SNS were out too. Hotties who could still shine when they wear nerdy cloths were the real hottie. Great personality, dependable on crucial moments, and he needed to have a cute side too.
What the hell.
She said a lot more too… With how much she was demanding, there shouldn’t be many guys who could match her requirement. Or rather, wasn’t this the male character in a shoujo manga? Could it be, Nakajima… was the type who couldn’t get a boyfriend because her expectations was too high? But her outward appearance of a pure young beauty was great.
［Nakajima … san, have you had a boyfriend before?］
［Hmm…］
After describing her ideal prince, Nakajima sighed lacklusterly:
［You get it right? Generic face.… I can’t find a hottie that satisfy my requirements yet.］
That was obvious.
She then changed her depressed mood.
［So recently, I think I have to compromise. I’m in my second year already, this can’t go on. I took action for this before, but I only put in a small amount of effort. At this moment, I saw an illusion—— just a few minutes ago, I was hoping that Mochizuki Rika was meeting with a super hottie, and thought about NTRing her...］
<TL: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=NTR>
［NTR is a bit too much, right…］
［Isn’t it a person’s freedom to confess to a guy who already have a girlfriend? If he isn’t willing, the guy can just turn me down. Then I will give up right there. I won’t do more than that to obstruct a couple’s love. But if the party chose me, doesn’t that mean that guy likes me more than his girlfriend? That means it is my win in terms of love!］
She took a deep breath at this juncture.
［——But a generic face is just a generic face, so I won’t take you away from Mochizuki Rika’s side, don’t worry. Anyway, with my hope of meeting a super hottie I have never seen before shattered, I finally understand I have to compromise to some extent.］
I, I was of help? Hahaha!
［Actually… Mochizuki Rika’s hottie ex-boyfriend who knew her for the longest time will transfer in the second term… to this school tomorrow. I have high hopes of his growth… He was a hottie in his first year, but he was still a rookie hottie in the midst of developing. But the troublesome thing is that he’s only interested in Mochizuki Rika alone…］
［!Senpai’s ex-boyfriend?］
［Fu, you don’t know right, generic face! How pitiful. It was back in her first year, but they broke up because her ex went to study overseas, so maybe they will get back together?］
W-W-What…?
［Maybe that ex have become a true hottie now, so I will lower my expectations then! I will aim to form a reverse harem with all the hotties in school right now! Now that’s decided, I don’t have time to bother with Ito! Time for the hunt!］
She turned valiantly.
［Ehh? Nakajima …san?］
［What is it, generic face Katou?］
She reverted to calling me Katou again.
［I won’t be talking to Katou again, that’s why I turned back. So spit it out.］
［Erm~, aren’t you going to seal my lips? You know, like preventing me from blackmailing you about exposing your true nature or something?］
I carelessly said something that the minions of the baddies would say.
［Fu.］
Nakajima-san snorted, then placed the back of her palm on her chin, like the pose of an arrogant rich lady.
［Generic face, huh? Even if generic face say something like that, the teachers and students—— our credibility in their mind are on a completely different league! Don’t look down on the persona I built in order to realize my dream of a reverse harem! Laughable! There is no need to shut you up!］
After saying all that, Nakajima went down the stairs. I left the entrance and peeked downstairs. It seemed that Nakajima’s friends just happen to came, and I saw the both of them there.
［Konoha, I finally found you~］
［Sorry, I just wanted a change of scenery.］
She treated her female friend with her pure beauty persona. She looked back at me, and I locked gazes with the smiling Nakajima and felt my body shriek away.
That should be a 【Heroine B????】right. There wasn’t enough【?】.
I immediately took out my phone. I returned to the classroom and continued the game—— Now that I thought about it, it was already too late. Maybe I could take this level of setback better if I had the preview to prepare me.
I launched 【There are no heroines in my youth】.
What happened earlier was also shown in the game. A choice branch appeared, but it was selected automatically, so I could only watch the events play out.
【Sorry, I just wanted a change of scenery.】
After the Nakajima in the game said this line, the screen turned black. From the countdown, the next gaming session would be after school… The all important preview turned into a review…!
I have to pay more attention to the gaming time, I thought to myself.
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