Chapter 11: Volume 1 - CH 4.3

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I thought it was unusual for Shimotsuki-san to talk to me in the classroom, but it was because of her amazing math test grades. The class average was exactly seventy points, but more importantly, she had scored two points higher.

“Let’s celebrate when we get back! After all, I got a seventy-two!”

Though she was whispering, Shimotsuki-san seemed to be excited as well.

For today, she seemed to pay no heed to the stares of those always around her.

“I’m really a ‘you can do it if you try’ child…that’s right, no matter what, I’m going to boast about it to my mum! Just a minute, let me make a few phone calls!”

Declared Shimotsuki-san as she left the classroom.

Only one more class left for today. After school, I’ll immediately get back.

(Let’s see, first of all, I’ll go home, drop off my stuff, then go shopping…as for, huh?)

As I was making plans inside my head, I suddenly noticed that the classroom had become quiet.

Although it was short, it was now recess time. That being the case, normally, it would be noisy, and yet, everyone stopped in their tracks and stared in my direction.

Usually, they would hardly stare at me since I was so plain, but today, frightfully, I was caught up in it.

I had a bad feeling about this.

As I was thinking about such a thing, Hanagishi, who was sitting in front of me, turned around and spoke to me.

“Nakayama…you, when did you get so close to Shimotsuki-san?”

After being told that, I finally realized.

(──N-Not good. Me and Shimotsuki-san were talking, which means, we must have stood out!?)

This was something I feared.

A dull boy like me, talking to Shimotsuki-san, a flower on a high peak, sure enough, it would seem unusual.

I was floating. That had slipped out of my head from the very beginning.

“You were awfully close, but what on earth kind of relationship do you have with her?”

Most likely, Hanagishi’s question represents the thoughts of my classmates.

Everyone was bewildered by the relationship between Shimotsuki-san and me.

“N-No, it’s nothing…it’s just a normal relationship.”

“Normal? There’s no way that kind of thing is. The normally expressionless Shimotsuki-san was smiling, you know?”

Just as I thought, I was being watched.

Moreover, Shimotsuki-san and I seem to have a very different relationship based on the surrounding people looking at us.

“It’s quite a feat for Nakayama-kun to be friends with such a cute girl. I’m envious. I wish I could go out with someone like that one day.”

“W-We’re not dating.”

“Is that so? Huh, well, then it’s my misunderstanding. Sorry.”

Hanagishi has an easy personality.

So, he immediately dropped the subject when he sensed that I didn’t seem to want to talk much about it.

I appreciated that very much. But…there were even more things I ought to worry about.

(Ryuuzaki, he saw it too, didn’t he?)

Fearful, I turned my line of sight towards his seat.

If I was lucky, he might not have seen what had happened. I bet on that slight possibility.

(──Such a thing, there was no way.)

My fleeting hope withered and extinguished right away when I saw Ryuuzaki glaring at me.

Even the usually thickheaded Ryuuzaki would not have failed to notice it when I was standing out like this.

◆

After class was over, Shimotsuki-san immediately came to see me.

Similar to a moment ago, Shimotsuki-san brought her face close to my ear and spoke to me in a small voice.

“Nakayama-kun, I’m going home for a bit today to get some allowance from my mum. I got a high score, so I’m going to beg for a lot. What do you think?”

Shimotsuki-san seems to be in high spirits. That was charming, but I couldn’t bring myself to smile from the bottom of my heart, probably because I was still thinking about Ryuuzaki.

“Ah? Nakayama-kun, what are you looking so worried about?”

And now, Shimotsuki-san, who had a keen sense of sensitivity, also noticed something unusual about me.

But, she didn’t seem to understand what I was thinking hard about.

“P-Perhaps…you’re worried about whether or not I can get on the bus properly? It’s okay. I’m a genius who scored a 72 in maths, remember? Of course, I can remember how to get on the bus. Y-Yep, no problem at all!”

She puffed her chest out, muttering something a little off.

Naturally, I wasn’t worried about that…but I had other more significant matters to be concerned about. That being the case, I guess I’ll have to take her word for it concerning her getting on the bus.

“Then, let’s meet up at Nakayama-kun’s house! See you later!”

With a wave of her hand, Shimotsuki-san quickly leaves the classroom.

She seemed to be in high spirits, and her steps were light. Fluffy, as if she had sprouted wings.

In regards to that, my body was as heavy as lead.

I felt depressed, thinking about what would happen immediately after this.

“Nakagawa, may I have a word?”

See, I thought you were there by now.

I guess he let it pass due to the small amount of break time we had, but just as I thought, he won’t let me go home right away.

(Just in case, I’m going to switch.)

I didn’t feel like I could fake it anymore but believing in a slight possibility, I changed my consciousness to that of 『a mob who looks as if he’s putting up a fight but actually has no chance of winning 』

──Click.

A switch flips in my head.

By now, the usual me had disappeared.

“W-What’s going on all of a sudden? You look scary…hey, did something happen!?”

“Yeah, I had something of a bad experience…something was going on that I didn’t know about. You took advantage of it and became friends with Shiho, right?”

…Just as I thought, he’s wary of me.

Witnessing my relationship with Shimotsuki-san up close, Ryuuzaki was fuming with anger.

“Go out with me for a minute. There are too many people here…let’s talk man to man.”

It looked like I didn’t have a choice. After declaring that unilaterally, Ryuuzaki walked out of the classroom with rough steps.

“Hey, Ryuuzaki. What’s the matter all of a sudden? C-Calm down…ah, perhaps, did you score badly on your tests!? D-Don’t worry! It doesn’t affect your midterms!”

“Never mind that kind of thing. Just shut up and follow me.”

“A-Ah, yes. Sorry…are you angry? I’m pretty scared. I’m not very good at dealing with such serious airs.”

As I followed along, arranging words that matched my happy-go-lucky character, we arrived at an empty classroom that seemed to be not in use. It looks to be some kind of storage room, with many desks, chairs and various kinds of furniture arranged in a straight line.

“Come in. There’s no one else around here, so we can speak unreservedly.”

“Hey, it’s dusty. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go outside?”

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“Don’t worry about that. Just come in.”

──Does he think a mob character has no right of veto?

The corners of my mouth rose up at the intimidating air.

(Sure enough, this guy looks down on me.)

Well, even if that appears so, I’m not angry about it anymore.

“If you insist. By the way, can you make it short? I’m a little tired after the test.”

“Then, I’ll get straight to the point. What did you do to Shiho?”

Now, what’s the proper answer to such a stupid question…how about you ask her, but I want to be gentle as much as possible.

“I said, what did you do to her…you asked her about her test results. And then, Shimotsuki-san showed off her test results, laughing as if she was in a good mood. Like I said. I could tell.”

I feign coincidence.

Trying to explain that it was a miracle that I could talk to her.

“Usually, when I try to talk to her, she ignores me…why I guess I was just lucky this time around!”

“──Don’t try to dodge the question, okay?”

However, Ryuuzaki wasn’t as simple as before.

“If it was just a coincidence, then why was Shiho smiling?”

“Huh? That’s, well…if anyone got a high score on a test, they would laugh, wouldn’t they?”

“At that level? That’s impossible.”

It seems like my explanation about Shimotsuki-san’s laugh didn’t satisfy him.

“That girl’s not very good at expressing her emotions, that I can confidently say. She can only laugh with someone she trusts…I too, also had a time when I saw her laugh once. But she was laughing at me. Me, her childhood friend, I’m supposed to be the special one…and yet, she was laughing with you, such a thing, that’s not normal at all!”

….For Ryuuzaki, Nakayama Koutarou was not an equal.

That’s why he can say this.

『There’s no way she can laugh with you while she laughs at me. 』

Good grief, he really is a…main character through and through.

He was special to Shimotsuki-san, he believed it, and he had no doubt of it.

“I mean…Nakagawa, your efforts really paid off. Shiho may certainly be cold. But with you talking to her so many times, I can see that she’s beginning to trust you.”

“Eh? S-Such a thing, there’s no way that’s true! After all, when Ryuuzaki’s looking, she’s always ignoring me, you know?

“I’m Shiho’s childhood friend. I understand her better than anyone else.”

“Do you really understand each other that much!?”

Hah…overreacting when it’s so not like me. I’m super tired.

But I think I finally get the whole story.

(Ryuuzaki, he recognizes me──doesn’t he?)

As far as I could tell from the conversation, Ryuuzaki was not blaming me at all.

Without a doubt, I had expected him to be angry at me like before.

“Then, why are you angry? I’m scared, so please be more gentle…”

“I’m not angry at you. Me…I’m angry at me.”

The moment I heard that──a chill ran down my spine.

(Oh no.)

Perhaps it was because I was a mob character that I was able to sense it.

(Ryuuzaki had resolved himself.)

A dreadful feeling overcame me.

Usually, Ryuuzaki’s calm, and at first glance, he would seem like a very ordinary high school boy. But now, he felt like something 『special』, similar to that of Shimotsuki-san.

“Until now, I’ve let my guard down. I thought Shiho was a girl only I could understand. After all, she has a pretty face, but she has a nasty personality…I thought she would never open her heart to anyone.”

Calmly, Ryuuzaki Ryoma says so.

The calm tone of his voice was conversely eerie.

“However, I, as her childhood friend, thought I was the only one more special than anyone else. I thought I would be able to steadily deepen my relationship with Shiho, albeit slowly compared to others, so I didn’t meddle too much with her up until now. But, oh, how I was wrong.”

“W-What are you talking about…? Ryuuzaki, don’t you think you might’ve made a mistake? You’ve known each other since childhood, and you’re much closer to Shimotsuki-san than I am!”

Create a misunderstanding.

Give him the impression that his assumptions are incorrect.

If you don’t, you’ll be in trouble.

Hoping strongly, I put together the words of affirmation for Ryuuzaki.

However, Ryuuzaki simply laughed off those sweet words.

“Ahaha. So you thought so, too, didn’t you? But, Nakagawa, that’s not true at all…I was made aware of it by looking at you. I was resting on my laurels as a childhood friend and didn’t make any effort. That’s why Nakagawa has now outsmarted me.”

“O-Outsmarted you? M-Me? S-Such a thing can’t be true…”

“I won’t let you say 『that’s not true』. Quit pretending that you’re losing in such a petty way. You’re trying to catch me off guard and use that opportunity to get even closer to Shiho, aren’t you? I’m not saying that it’s sneaky, but you ain’t half bad. However, Nakagawa, you underestimate me.”

No good. Ryuuzaki has snapped out of his foolishness.

(Damn. Has the daily life of the harem protagonist come to an end…)

The protagonist is a creature that awakens only when confronted with the greatest difficulty. The preparation stage begins now.

From this point on, Ryuuzaki Ryoma transforms into a true hero.

He has recognized me, someone of a lower rank, and has confronted and accepted his weaknesses.

“By now, I’m no longer satisfied with our relationship as 『childhood friends』. As a man, I will attack Shiho. Naturally, with 『seriousness』. Nakagawa…I like Shiho too.”

──Finally, he said it.

Ryuuzaki Ryoma, the main character, has put into words the feelings he had been keeping vague until now.

“From now on, you’re not my friend──you’re my enemy.”

In the wake of his clear hostile actions, it made little sense for me to play the role of a bait dog.

“N-No way, an enemy…”

“There’s no point in playing dumb with me. You are unmistakably an enemy…no. It’s slightly different. Rival, yes rivals, perhaps that’s the relationship we have.”

Saying this, Ryuuzaki held out his hand to me.

Without allowing me to choose, the second handshake was forced upon me.

Naturally, it had more force than before.

Ryuuzaki was grasping my hand so tightly that it was liable to injuries.

“…Huh? You, your names not 『Nakagawa』, is it?”

This was probably because of how close we were when we shook hands. The embroidery of my name on my chest seems to come into view, making Ryuuzaki realize that he got my name incorrectly.

“『Nakayama』, not Nakagawa. Yeah, I’ve memorized it…next time, I’ll get it right.”

Thus, this was the first time I was truly recognized by Ryuuzaki Ryoma.

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