Translator: RaidenTL
The next morning.
I drove to Miyuki's house and found her fidgeting awkwardly out front.
She seemed incredibly embarrassed about yesterday, so much so that even after spotting my car, she couldn't bring herself to approach it.
Beep.
I pulled up in front of her and gave the horn a very short tap, making her shoulders jolt.
She cautiously opened the passenger door and offered an awkward greeting.
"Hey... Matsuda-kun... You're early today...?"
"I told you I'd be early. But why do you look so drained? Get in."
"Okay..."
She slowly climbed in and placed her hands primly on her lap.
Letting out a dry laugh, I messed up her bangs.
"Ah...! I told you not to do that...!"
I don't know why, but the way she whined in that small voice was just so damn cute.
"Did you get home okay yesterday?"
"Home...? Yeah, I got home fine..."
"You couldn't find your keys."
"....."
Miyuki's face flushed bright red.
She just stood there, opening and closing her mouth, looking utterly mortified about having called me by my first name yesterday.
I chuckled as she turned her head to look out the window, just like she did before, and started the car.
After winding through the neighborhood, we entered the main road leading to school. Miyuki asked, a hint of confusion in her voice.
"What about Tetsuya-kun...? Aren't you picking him up?"
"Nope."
"Why...?"
"Let's just go like this, the two of us, sometimes."
As I subtly revealed my feelings, Miyuki sucked in a sharp breath and pursed her lips.
She stayed like that for a moment, then said,
"B-But, for Tetsuya-kun..."
She must feel bad about leaving him all by himself.
Soon, it won't be 'sometimes,' it'll be every day, just the two of us. You'd better get used to it now.
And be prepared, because I'm going to do all sorts of things to you.
The image of driving past Tetsuya while slipping my hand between Miyuki's legs... that could be good.
A scene where a flustered Miyuki spots Tetsuya and flinches, getting even more turned on by the strange sense of depravity...
Yeah, that's not bad at all.
"I already told him. Said I had to stop somewhere this morning, so he should go on his own."
"Did you tell him you were stopping somewhere with me?"
"No."
"Really...? Then he should be contacting me..."
Bzzz-!
The moment Miyuki finished her sentence, her phone vibrated.
It must be Tetsuya.
He's probably going to happily ask Miyuki to go to school with him.
I glanced at Miyuki and asked.
"Is it a text? Or a call?"
"A text..."
"What's it say?"
"He's asking if I'm awake..."
Miyuki reached for her phone, then hesitated.
She seemed to be thinking of an excuse to give Tetsuya.
After a moment of deep thought, her fingers moved quickly.
"Haaah..."
A long sigh escaped Miyuki's lips.
She must feel guilty for lying in her reply.
This time, you couldn't even explain honestly because I'd already lied for you. That must have been tough, right?
I completely understand how you feel.
You might feel guilty now, but eventually, you'll become numb to the lies.
You might even start to find it thrilling.
He's the one who rejected your courageous confession.
He deserves whatever he gets, so don't you feel guilty.
I held my palm out in front of Miyuki, who was shifting uncomfortably.
"Hold my hand."
"Why...?"
"Why do you think? I want to hold it on the way."
"....."
At my straightforward words, Miyuki hesitantly placed her hand on top of mine.
As if that wasn't enough, she even interlaced her fingers with mine on her own.
Then, I rested our clasped hands on her thigh.
The moment the back of my hand touched her thigh, her body twitched.
She looked startled, but she made no move to push my hand away.
Glancing at her briefly while driving, I said,
"My arm will get tired holding it up, so I'm just resting it here."
"....Wh-Who said anything...?"
"Just so you don't get the wrong idea."
"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding...? I-I'm not doing that...! You're the one... thinking weird things... You're such a pervert..."
First she got angry, then she started muttering to herself...
After expressing her embarrassment that way, Miyuki brought her other hand over and slipped it under the back of mine.
Cupping my hand with both of hers, she said,
"I-It's dangerous to drive with one hand... especially since you said you had an unused driver's license..."
For the rest of the drive to school, she kept muttering things she didn't mean while stroking my hand as if it were a doll.
"We should start preparing for the cultural festival next week, right?"
At the Class 1-A professor's words, the entire class buzzed with excitement.
The cultural festival.
It's a classic event, milked for all it's worth in every romantic comedy.
Each class picks an activity—a maid cafe, a haunted house, a play, a band, a dance performance—and competes against the others. And one of the most common clichés is enjoying the festival with the heroine after the main event is over.
It's also an event where the heroines often get into catfights.
It's a crucial turning point where the true heroine is chosen from among the many... but that's a cliché from a typical romantic comedy.
I'm going to make love to all three of them.
However, right now, Miyuki is the only one with whom I've built a meaningful relationship.
So for this year's festival, I'll have to enjoy it with her alone.
As for Class 1-A...
"You guys' eyes were sparkling when the haunted house was mentioned before, right? Take this chance and do it."
Just as the professor said, the class unanimously decided to run a haunted house.
Miyuki, being the main heroine, will play a Yuki-onna... a Snow Woman, a role that highlights her beauty and pale skin.
There's a fan-service scene where her usual warm image is completely reversed, and a small incident occurs there, too.
I'll have to enjoy that in my own way later.
As for Tetsuya, he's supposed to dress up as the somewhat cool Shuten Doji, but this time will be different.
I'm gonna make you a Kappa, no matter what, you bastard.
Renka, along with Chinami and the kendo club, will be running a skewer shop, so I'll have to stop by.
I need to buy some yakitori for my dear Miyuki.
"The class president and vice president will lead the students on matters related to the festival... Now, let's begin class."
"Booooo-!"
A chorus of boos erupted from the class.
A vein bulged on the professor's bald head, forming a cross-popping mark, and the students fell silent at the sight.
A hot-blooded teacher—no, professor—who seems short-tempered but is actually warm-hearted.
Another cliché.
Guess I should be glad there wasn't a throb! sound effect, huh?
I let out a quiet, light laugh and focused on the lesson.
When first period ended and break time began, Miyuki discussed various things with the vice class president.
Then, she came over to Tetsuya's desk with a pen and paper.
"Miura-kun can be Shuten Doji. He's slender, so I think it'll suit him," said the vice president, looking at Tetsuya's dumb face.
So their conversation was a debate about the ghost concepts.
"Shouldn't Shuten Doji be a bit bigger? I think someone who can intimidate others would fit the image better," Miyuki immediately countered.
Her gaze wasn't on Tetsuya, but on me.
"You think so?"
"Yeah."
I had been acting indifferent, but I furrowed my brow at Miyuki's next words.
"Matsuda-kun, you're going to be in costume too, right?"
"No. It's a pain."
"If you're not planning to participate, I'll have to refuse. Unless you have something important, everyone in class has to take part."
"Who said I'm not participating? I'll just check tickets at the entrance and handle any trouble-making customers. Isn't that better?"
At my words, the vice president nodded as if it made sense.
"That might be better. Matsuda-kun is reliable... If he's at the entrance, I doubt any customers would try to cause trouble."
The class's opinion of me was starting to change.
Because I was quietly attending class and Miyuki, the class president and a member of the student council, often showed how comfortable she was with me, the others were slowly starting to open up.
It's about time for that jealousy-inducing cliché, the love letter, to make an appearance...
I guess it'll take a little more time.
"We can't just leave the ticket checking to Matsuda-kun... If he's alone, he might just ditch his post and go look around the festival."
I ignored Miyuki's cheerful joke from beside me and stood up, my chair scraping against the floor.
Miyuki asked, "Where are you going?"
"The school store."
"Then can you get me a strawberry milk? And one for Makoto, too... I'll pay you back when you get here."
Who the hell is Makoto?
Ah... that must be the name of the vice president, who was staring at me with sparkling eyes.
I nodded with a look of utter annoyance and casually walked out of the classroom. From behind me, I could hear the quiet conversation between Miyuki and Makoto.
"I can't get used to it, no matter how many times I see it."
"What?"
"Matsuda-kun going to the school store by himself... He used to just order other kids around. And today, he's even getting stuff for you and me..."
"He's gotten a lot nicer lately. He doesn't cause trouble anymore..."
"Yeah. He seems like a different person."
My hearing is better than you girls think.
I can hear every word.
During lunch, and after school at club activities...
Everywhere I went, the only topic was the cultural festival.
It's a once-a-year festival, so it's understandable, and I'm looking forward to it too, but...
'This is getting old.'
I'm sick of hearing the same thing from everyone around me.
Can't they just prepare quietly? They always have to make such a fuss.
Of course, it's a different story when Miyuki, Renka, or Chinami are the ones talking.
"Junior Matsuda, which group will you be participating with for the cultural festival?" Chinami asked, holding a bamboo sword that looked long relative to her short stature.
I replied after completing a round of forward, backward, left, and right footwork drills.
"I'm with my class, senpai."
"Is that so? I heard Junior Miura is also participating with his class... What is your class planning?"
"A haunted house."
"Oh...?"
Chinami looked up at me with intrigued eyes.
There's a height difference of over 30 centimeters, so the angle she has to tilt her head up is pretty funny.
But suddenly, a question popped into my head.
I know Chinami is incredibly skilled.
But how does she overwhelm her opponents with such a small frame?
I get that there are no mixed-gender matches in tournaments from middle school onwards, but I heard that during club practice, even the third-year male kendo members struggle against her...
Is her technique that good? I'd like to see it for myself sometime.
"A haunted house... That sounds very fun...! I'm intrigued...! Are you going to dress up as a ghost too, Junior Matsuda?"
"No. I'm just going to check tickets at the entrance."
"Really? You have a large build, so I think you'd look great in a ghost costume... What a shame."
"I asked the other seniors, and they said the kendo club is doing a skewer shop... When you take a break to look around, you should come with Inoo-senpai."
"Hee... I'll think about it positively. Oh, right...!"
She clapped her hands as if she'd just remembered something and continued.
"Your posture during the footwork drills earlier was excellent. Have you been practicing on your own?"
"No. Inoo-senpai helped me out for a bit yesterday."
"Really...? When?"
"When Master went to check the equipment yesterday."
"I see. Does she teach better than I do?"
"No. Inoo-senpai's teaching is too harsh. I much prefer my kind master's instruction."
"Heehee."
Chinami let out a light laugh.
Placing a hand on her hip, she chided me.
"Renka is the captain of our kendo club, so it's only natural for her to be strict. She's also our ace, so you should be grateful for her instruction. Don't you agree?"
Though her words were a reprimand, a smile lingered on Chinami's lips.
Meaning she wasn't displeased at all.
She thinks of Renka as a good friend, but it seems she also feels a slight sense of rivalry toward her...
If I play my cards right, I think I can use this.