"Forget it, I don't want a harem anymore."
"..."
Kevin glanced at the clock. Lin harem dream lasted only nine hours, from nine in the morning until six in the afternoon dismissal.
What a brief and fragile dream.
But Lin was always a person of short-lived passions. This was good; it reduced the number of times he caused trouble for others.
"If I think about it, if all the good women liked me, wouldn't all the other good men be lonely?" Lin declared truthfully and righteously. "I'm not that selfish. Besides... don't you think this is unfair to girls?"
"...I'm surprised you realized the problem so quickly."
Kevin picked up his bag and grumbled: "Lin, girls are very possessive. If you really find a girlfriend, she'll only want you to focus your attention on her alone; she wants you to be hers exclusively. The situation in TV dramas and novels where a person can share the same lover with others is basically a fantasy."
"No wonder you have a girlfriend. You already have a thick barrier between you and me."
"Stop that." Kevin rubbed his forehead. "Lin, don't say I didn't warn you. Your personality is a disaster that most people avoid, but for some people, it might be..."
Kevin suddenly stopped, as if thinking about something.
"Hmm? What?" Lin asked, confused by the abrupt stop.
"No, nothing... that shouldn't happen."
A girl so obsessed with Lin that she wants to do that to him every day... that shouldn't exist, right? Although being in close proximity to Lin reveals that his personality isn't quite as he presents... no girl would see through his overly flamboyant outer personality, would they?
Kevin chuckled self-mockingly at his unnecessary worry.
Lin walked alone on his way home. When he was by himself, he would stop his usual chatter and quietly ponder things.
He looked at the falling leaves, which became soaked in muddy water and eventually washed into the sewer.
Sentimental?
He wasn't that sensitive. The events that had become traumatic for him were so distant that he was almost forgetting them; they couldn't affect him much.
But occasionally, after separating from Kevin, he would genuinely sigh that he had too few friends he could open up to.
People in this society like to wear masks, whether good or bad. Often, all people can see is the mask on the face. Over time, everyone gets used to that mask representing the person, even if... it's not the person's true face.
"Ugh, why am I overthinking this! Anyone is fine, just hurry up and tell me you like me! I'll accept anyone!"
Lin couldn't stand his own overthinking.
He couldn't take it anymore! Right now, he just wanted to bury his head in a pink-haired older sister's chest! He didn't want to think about anything else!
"Alright, I like you."
A voice like the sound of nature rang out by his ear.
...
Lin fidgeted, nervously glancing at the gray-haired young woman beside him. He, who was usually so eloquent, was now as if choked, unable to utter half a sentence.
He was confessed to.
He was confessed to in the middle of the street.
Although Lin would say he should have many girls liking him, when a girl actually told him the four words, "I like you," without blushing or shortness of breath, he was at a loss.
Why did he feel so... weak underneath the surface?
No, no, this was just the first time someone else had taken the lead.
But... who is she?
Lin couldn't recall ever having contact with this young woman. Her school uniform indicated she was a student at Senba Academy, yet Lin had no impression of her whatsoever. How could she say she liked him?
"Ahem, could you tell me your name..." Lin wanted to slap himself as soon as he spoke.
What was this? A sweet junior high school romance? It was unbelievable that he was speaking in such a tone.
"Prometheus." The gray-haired young woman's voice was remarkably ethereal, but her expression was too wooden to be human, more like a doll.
"Prometheus, huh..." Lin searched his memory again, still having no impression of the young woman or her name.
Strange. A girl this cute, even if he didn't know her, he should have some memory of having interacted with her.
"I've been watching you for a long time." Prometheus seemed to have noticed Lin confusion. She spoke slowly, "It started at the entrance ceremony when you hit that perverted gym teacher."
"Eh?"
It started that long ago?
"My older sister also graduated from Senba Academy. She was sexually harassed by that gym teacher for a long time, but because the gym teacher had leverage over her, she could only endure it silently. Only after graduation did she quietly tell me to be careful of that gym teacher."
"Oh~ So it's repayment for a favor~" Hearing the background story, Lin immediately regained his composure. He stared mischievously at Prometheus: "Is that okay? We haven't had any actual physical contact, have we~"
His laughter gradually became unruly, adopting the flavor of an ancient lecher.
"It's nothing, I made it up anyway," Prometheus said expressionlessly.
"Uh..."
Lin rampant expression instantly vanished. He suddenly realized that this girl seemed to have some issues.
For instance, since they met, her gaze had been fixed on him without deviating. Even though no emotion was revealed, Lin detected a strange feeling from it.
"Does liking someone require so many reasons? You've been doing things to grab attention since the start of your enrollment, and I am your audience." Prometheus's lips curved into a faint smile. "You are the type I like. Is that not allowed?"
"And I can also allow you to have a harem. I won't disturb you with other girls, and you don't even need to make any promises to me."
"I just wanted to tell you this."
After silently lowering his head for a few seconds, Lin looked up at Prometheus, somewhat dazed.
Isn't this the ideal situation?
"Really?" Lin stared at every muscle on Prometheus's face.
Prometheus, with her unchanged expression, nodded: "Really."
"Phew... this..." Lin felt happiness came too suddenly. A sharp light flashed in his eyes. "Then... why don't we try holding hands first?"
"..."
However, at this question, Prometheus shook her head indifferently.
"Uh..."
It was indeed a bit too hasty.
"I want to go to your house today. Is that okay?" Prometheus asked.
"Of course."
Lin enthusiastically set off with Prometheus.
He failed to notice the expression that crossed Prometheus's face as she looked at his back while following him...