Chapter 45: Don't Get Obsessed with the Princess
Both of them froze in place.
Takumi snapped out of it first. He quickly glanced around—no one had seen. He let out a quiet breath of relief.
The golden-haired princess had countless admirers at school. Any guy who got even a little close to her would receive anonymous threats or straight-up beatings. Just yesterday he'd suddenly scrapped with that scythe-haired punk, and Takumi was pretty sure it was because he'd been hanging around Ryūko more these past couple days. He had zero interest in becoming public enemy number one among the entire male student body. Plenty of those guys were rich, powerful young masters—Goda Taiga was just a small fry among them.
[Even with magical power and the ability to hop into a 2D world whenever I want, I'm not paranoid about getting targeted by the government or anything. But this kind of trouble? Better avoid it for now.]
Takumi cleared his throat.
"I'll come to the appointment after school."
While Ryūko was still dazed, he hurriedly returned to his seat, grabbed his Sprite, and stepped out onto the outdoor corridor to drink. Suddenly a hand clapped his shoulder. He turned—his shitty friend, the lolicon Aoki Haruto, looking pissed.
"Hey hey, I saw that."
"Saw what?"
"The kiss. With the princess."
Takumi spat soda straight into his face.
He hurriedly clamped a hand over Haruto's mouth.
"What the hell are you babbling about?!"
"Mmph mmph!"
"What?"
"Did they fight? Aren't Hoshino and Aoki supposed to be buddies?"
Their scuffle drew stares from nearby students. Takumi dragged Haruto away—unconsciously burning magical power to boost his stamina—and in a flash they were gone from the corridor, stopping only in a corner by the stairwell.
"You trying to get me killed?!"
"Guh—cough cough!"
Haruto, who'd nearly been choked by his collar, gasped for air.
"You're the one trying to strangle me!"
Once both calmed down a bit, Takumi gave a wry smile.
"I was just messing with that shiny golden ojou-sama. Who knew she'd react so hard? Ended up… accidentally sparking."
"Better 'accidentally sparking' than 'accidentally discharging.' Technically it wasn't even a kiss—just 'skin contact.' Don't worry, lips sealed. But what did you say to make the princess react like that?"
"I suddenly got interested in you. That's all. She's probably heard confessions a million times—how'd a half-joking line like that shake her so bad?"
"What?! You actually got interested in the princess?! Unbelievable—no, this just shattered my entire worldview, values, and morals!"
"The hell? I said it was a joke! Why's it destroying your three views? In a normal world, even a sixty-year-old geezer falling for her wouldn't be weird, right?"
"You said it yourself—that's a normal world. But you're not normal. I still remember what you said back in your chuuni phase."
Haruto coughed dramatically, then pinched his voice high.
"'I'm really grateful you like me, but I have zero interest in the deformed mushrooms of the real world. Now, if you guys had 2D moe attributes, I might consider it…'"
Takumi's face instantly turned beet red.
That was his black history—he'd completely buried it!
He grabbed Haruto's collar and yanked hard.
"Forget that right now, you bastard! You damn degenerate who wrote 'Grandpa is actually a super cute girl'—how the hell is your memory perfect for this crap?!"
"Cough—let go! It hurts! You remember my elementary school stuff crystal clear—how could I forget your chuuni phase?!"
"No way. Might as well strangle you now—argh, forget it!"
After some roughhousing, they finally got serious.
Haruto's expression turned grave.
"No more jokes. Seriously—if you're passing notes and doing cute little flirty stuff with your seatmate, I'd totally support it. But the princess? Absolutely not."
"Who's flirting? And why the hell were you staring at me the whole class, you peeping pervert?"
"I'm serious. The princess is off-limits. Forget 'equal social standing' crap—you don't even know how many low-key young masters at this school are after her. Almost everyone in our class could be bought off by one of them to watch her every move. Since you're known as a hopeless otaku, even though you've gotten closer to her these past two days, no one's taking you seriously yet. Only small-timers like Goda Taiga would rush out yelling about teaching you a lesson—only to get wrecked by you instead. But he's nothing."
"I already know that. I don't even fully understand the princess's real background, but she's undeniably the school's ojou-sama. Tons of guys want her. I never cared. Sure, I'm a fake otaku, but my passion for 2D still blows the real world out of the water. Of course… there are exceptions. If I really fall for the princess someday, those so-called young masters? I wouldn't give a damn."
"I seriously don't know where your confidence comes from. Hidden martial arts skills? Useless. Even if you were Bruce Lee it, wouldn't matter. Power always trumps fists. Whatever. Pointless to say more. If the princess actually falls for you, those guys can't do shit anyway. The Ryū family's influence is insane."
————
"She's definitely a witch. A witch. I'm innocent."
"That girl really is a witch."
"Ryūko-san's mother, please control your daughter. Because of her, my twins—who've been close since childhood—actually went and dueled with knives. If it hadn't been discovered… the consequences are unthinkable."
"Ryūko-san, didn't I tell you not to talk to boys? You said you like eating wild berries, and the whole class's boys secretly went into the mountains and got lost…"
…
"Yu-chan, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I made a pact with the devil—offered half my lifespan and your future love as sacrifice—to gain magical power. It helped your father build everything from nothing and finally get the Ryū family recognized again. I'm so sorry, Yu-chan. When you turn eighteen, you'll become a witch too. The charm you exude… it's just the natural aura of a witch."
"That's not real! I don't believe it! I'm not a witch! I don't buy into that superstitious crap!"
"Yu-chan!"
Outside, a torrential downpour raged. Ryūko walked numbly through the rain, suddenly wishing it was an apocalyptic flood—God's tears cleansing the world.
"I really am a witch… A witch. The thing people cursed and hated me for since I was little… it's actually true. Why? Why?!"
"Ojou-sama, are you sleepwalking? Wake up!"
A gentle voice reached her ears—like magic, it cleared the chaos in her mind. She snapped back to reality and saw an unfamiliar boy—no, someone her age, vaguely familiar, but she couldn't place him.
"Here, take the umbrella. Hurry home. A shiny golden ojou-sama like you acting all dramatic like you're heartbroken."
"Ojou-sama, I suddenly find myself kinda interested in you?"
The boy's voice echoed in her ears again. Her heart jolted. In disbelief she turned—wanting to see the one man unaffected by her charm.
But their lips brushed together impossibly.
Inside her, the witch's power stirred—like a vassal trembling in awe before an emperor's praise.
"Damn it… what the hell is wrong with me?!"
Ryūko buried her face deep in her arms, face-down on the desk like an ostrich. She couldn't let anyone see—her cheeks were flushed crimson, like she'd downed the strongest wine. That unexpected intimate contact brought no anger… only uncontrollable joy. She couldn't even force herself to hate it.
"This guy is even more bewitching than me! Absolutely. But Mom said my love was already sacrificed. Every man will only be captivated by my beauty—true love will never bloom. And if I fall for someone… the devil's curse will descend. That man will eventually die by my own hand."
"Don't doubt my words. That devil is unprecedentedly powerful. Even I suspect his real goal in making the pact with me… was you, Yu-chan. I'm so sorry. Truly sorry."
Ding-dong-ding-dong—the bell for class rang.
Ryūko forced herself to calm down and lifted her head.
Just then a figure entered through the door. Their eyes met.
The memory of that brushing kiss surged back. Ryūko hurriedly turned away, unable to face that gaze.
[Is she mad? Sigh… guess my joke earlier went too far.]
Takumi sighed softly, returned to his seat, and began the last class of the day.
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