Chapter 1: Contact with the Enemy, Protagonist / Encounter with Kaimori-chan (Part 1)

Not long after I arrived in the classroom, a female classmate—Classmate A—quickly announced an incoming enemy attack. Apparently, our class wasn’t exactly a peaceful haven so much as a battlefield. Of course, in this case, when someone said “enemy,” there was only one person it could possibly refer to.

"—Look, Ryuzouji-kun. He came again today."

Well then. Already here first thing in the morning, huh—our protagonist. In other words, the version of me that exists in the game’s world.

—Ryuzouji Masataka.

Tall, refreshing-looking, athletic, rich parents, and popular on top of that. A being that feels like it was born from some kind of bug in reality.

Watching the male student run toward me, I felt like a general witnessing the enemy army charging across a battlefield.

But seriously… when you turn the game-world version of me into real life, he’s this handsome?

That does not make me happy in the slightest.

…But honestly, shouldn’t you be heading to the courtyard to see Kaimori-chan, or up to the rooftop to see Takamiyagi-senpai, instead of coming to this classroom? Especially those two—they’ve got time limits. You’re lacking the proper mindset of a protagonist. Get it together.

Maybe my disapproval showed on my face, because the protagonist spoke to me with a worried expression.

"W-Why are you making that face…? Ah, could it be you’re not feeling well?"

"My health is… fine, though…"

Man, I’m not used to talking like this…

But inside my heart, I always have Shione-chan, the perfect example to model myself after. Thank you, full voice acting. I’ll do my best not to disgrace you. Watch me.

Alright. Now I need to guide this guy toward the other heroines.

Courtyard or rooftop… which should it be?

Well, I’m a Kaimori-chan supporter, so maybe we should go to the courtyard first. Even if he and the heroine ultimately decide things themselves, a little favoritism should be allowed. Yeah, that works.

Pressing my hands together subtly, I opened my mouth and tried to steer the protagonist naturally.

"Sorry… I kind of want to go to the courtyard."

"You wrinkle your brow like that just to say that!?"

Ah, crap. Looks like it really showed on my face after all.

I simply smiled sweetly at him. The protagonist turned slightly red and stopped pressing the issue. What an easy guy.

Still, I shouldn’t make him suspicious here. Even if he does start suspecting something, it can wait until after I’ve secured a route other than mine.

"Hey… I want to go right now…"

I tugged on his sleeve again, reinforcing the point.

Honestly, what I really wanted to do was kick him in the butt and yell, “Hurry up and follow me!” But I wasn’t confident he’d obediently follow if I did that, so I held back.

Then one of our observing classmates hastily cut in.

"Wait, wait, Shione-chan! Class is about to start!"

"I’ll be back. If she’s insisting this much, there must be a reason."

The protagonist said that with a sharp, determined expression.

You gullible idiot. Though technically you’re the game-world version of me.

…Well, whatever.

Right now, Kaimori-chan should be dealing with her accident event. So even if it’s during class, she’ll be in the courtyard searching for the pendant she dropped—the one that belonged to her late father.

Alright. Let’s go.

A girl was rummaging through the low hedges in the courtyard, pushing the leaves aside as she searched desperately for something.

Normally, her face would probably be full of lively energy. But right now, it was twisted as though she might burst into tears.

—Kaimori Ayumi.

The underclassman character.

Since her father died when she was young, she has a deep longing for the idea of family. A cheerful short-haired girl.

When she overcomes the risk of transferring schools and runs up shouting “Senpai!” at the end of her route, plenty of fans probably cried.

…Still, actually seeing the game world in reality feels a little strange.

After all, while the protagonist is off visiting other girls, Kaimori-chan keeps searching this courtyard alone for two weeks straight. Even on rainy days.

Isn’t that way too pitiful?

Couldn’t someone at least help her?

Anyway, the protagonist was still staring at me instead of looking around, so I pointed toward Kaimori-chan to make him notice her existence.

Seriously—look forward, will you?

"Huh? I wonder what’s wrong with that girl?"

Good. You noticed.

Now go help your future wife already.

"Actually… I dropped my father’s keepsake pendant out of that window over there…"

I couldn’t quite figure out how a pendant ends up flying out a window like that, but apparently that’s what happened.

Though thinking about it again… it’s weird, right?

You’d have to be headbanging while walking down the hallway for that to happen.

Well, whatever.

Alright, let’s search.

Though personally, I already know where it is.

It’s quietly sitting beneath the cover of the drainage ditch in the corner of the courtyard.

…Actually, now that I think about it, isn’t that suspicious too?

Could Kaimori-chan be getting bullied…?

The location is weird, and why would I know something fell there?

Don’t tell me the one bullying Kaimori-chan was the protagonist—me?

I shot a suspicious glance at Masataka, who was rustling through the grass beside me.

No… that can’t be it.

More importantly, why does this guy refuse to move away from me even while searching? Think about efficiency a little.

We searched the nearby bushes for a while, but of course we didn’t find the pendant.

The reason we didn’t run straight to the drain was simple: objectively speaking, it would look incredibly suspicious.

But at this rate, we wouldn’t find it even after a month.

And if a month passes, I’ll be forcibly sent overseas.

Still… going straight to the drain would look weird.

So I came up with a plan.

First, I scattered some coins from my wallet onto the ground.

Clink, clink—they bounced and rolled in every direction.

Then I started walking toward the drainage ditch as though I were chasing after something.

As expected, Masataka followed me.

I pointed to the concrete drain cover.

The coins had scattered about thirty meters away, so realistically none of them could have rolled this far—but once we “found” something here, it wouldn’t matter.

…Oh. Looking closely, there’s a small hole in the edge of the drain cover.

So that’s how the pendant fell in.

…Still, that’s some terrible luck, Kaimori-chan. Are you sure your everyday behavior is okay? You’re not going around kicking roadside Jizo statues or anything, are you?

"Masataka-kun… the thing I dropped went in there… my precious coins…"

"…Ahh, man. …But isn’t this impossible…?"

Don’t give up so quickly. You can do it. I guarantee it.

I stared up at him, pouring those feelings into my gaze.

Masataka scratched his head roughly, then thumped his chest confidently.

"Ah, stop looking at me like that! Fine! Leave it to me!"

"Eh? Over here…? W-What are you doing…?"

Kaimori-chan, who had caught up behind us, looked back and forth between Masataka and me several times.

Her expression clearly said she was witnessing something strange.

Fortunately—or maybe unfortunately—she didn’t say anything more.

Then—

"UOOOOOOOHHHH!!"

Despite the fact that classes were clearly in session, Masataka shouted loudly as he tried to lift the heavy concrete cover.

The two of us simply stood nearby and watched his heroic effort.

With a heavy thud, the cover finally moved.

And there it was.

The pendant.

If it hadn’t been there, all his effort would’ve been completely wasted—but thankfully, all’s well that ends well.

Meanwhile, Kaimori-chan snatched up the pendant, hugged it tightly, and began shedding delicate tears.

Oh… thank goodness… that’s great…!

"This—this is it!! Thank goodness… thank you…!! Thank you so much…!"

For some reason, it felt like she was thanking me, so I pointed toward Masataka to remind her who actually found it.

That’s right. This is your potential boyfriend candidate.

"Thank you!"

After thanking all of us again, Masataka looked quite pleased with himself.

Good, good.

Now Kaimori-chan should have him engraved in her mind as her savior.

…Hmm?

If connecting him with the other heroines works this smoothly, maybe it’ll happen faster than I thought.

Yeah. Definitely.

"Whaaat!? You’re a senpai!?"

The three of us—Kaimori-chan, me, and Masataka—sat together drinking juice she bought to thank us, introducing ourselves properly.

For some reason, she seemed extremely surprised.

I mean, Masataka obviously looks older than her…

The guy’s like 180 cm tall.

Are there that many tall people around you, Kaimori-chan? Are you a basketball team manager or something?

Maybe my thoughts showed on my face, because Kaimori-chan waved her hands hurriedly.

"It’s just… you’re small…! Ah, sorry! I mean—sorry!"

Shut up. Mind your own business.

I’m small and thin because I’m sickly.

I’m probably under 150 cm right now.

No wonder my field of vision feels so low.

But I can’t break Shione-chan’s gentle image, so I just smiled sweetly.

"It’s okay… I think it’s understandable…"

"Can I call you Shione-senpai?"

"I don’t mind… Ah… I mean, that’s fine."

"Why did you repeat the same thing? …Ah—did you correct yourself? Oh—"

Hehe.

Kaimori-chan and I ended up looking at each other and laughing at the same time.

Right—she had that habit of correcting herself too, didn’t she?

Still… yes, this is good.

This girl should always be smiling cheerfully like this.

As a representative of the players, I declare it now: anyone who makes this girl sad will be sentenced to life imprisonment without trial.

"So that means Masataka-kun is also a senpai, right? Come on, say something."

Hey. Say something yourself.

You’re not a bear statue or a human anatomy model.

I stopped talking and simply watched the two of them interact.

…However.

Even after some time passed, contrary to my expectations, the two of them showed absolutely no signs of starting a conversation.

…Sorry, me-from-the-game-world. The actual conversations weren’t displayed in the game, so I can’t exactly help you out here. …Ah, but wait. Since we talked about the pendant earlier, that should give you an opening to ask about her family situation. At the very least, you should do that.

Well, if we wait a little longer, the conversation should start flowing.

…Or so I thought.

Ten minutes passed, and unbelievably, the total number of words the two of them had spoken was four.

Four.

Even a pair of three-year-olds would talk more than that. …Are you two maybe just shy?

But this is bad. Just watching this is awkward…

The me in this world has such low potential.

Well, no—that’s not entirely fair. He is a guy who can deliver when it counts.

And right now is one of those times.

So hurry up and show it already.

At some point Masataka had turned to face me, so I tried sending those thoughts his way.

But it didn’t seem like the message was getting through at all.

You dense idiot.

…In that case…

I stared intently at Kaimori-chan’s pendant.

Come on—you’re curious too, right?

You’re thinking something like, “Why were you searching so desperately for that?”

Maybe because my eyes were getting a little bloodshot, Masataka looked slightly intimidated—but he did shift his gaze toward Kaimori-chan’s pendant.

Good, good. I knew you were a man who could deliver.

Just as I expected, Masataka hesitantly spoke to Kaimori-chan.

Alright. Now we’re getting somewhere—

"So… could you maybe give me that pendant?"

What the hell are you saying?

Didn’t you see how happy she was when she found it?

Masataka, you’re staying after class for remedial lessons.

"Ehh!? No way! I can’t! This is my father’s keepsake—"

Ah—but somehow we’re on the route now.

That works.

Kaimori-chan, as expected of my number three favorite heroine—you’ve got a big heart.

Masataka and I listened solemnly as she told us about her circumstances.

Since the contents matched what I already knew from the game, I’ll summarize.

Apparently Kaimori-chan’s mother works extremely hard, but because of that, Kaimori-chan ends up being alone at home late into the night.

So even though she feels lonely, it’s difficult for her to talk about it with her classmates.

At school she laughs and enjoys herself—but when she goes home, she spends the whole time alone.

That contrast is painful for her.

I already knew that, but hearing it directly like this still hits hard.

Anyone hearing this would want to help her somehow.

Kaimori-chan stared down at the ground as if holding something back, speaking quietly in lonely little murmurs.

"Maybe it’s selfish of me… but sometimes I suddenly feel like… I’m all alone right now…"

But after hearing her story, Masataka simply said,

"I see…"

And then fell silent.

…Seriously?

What’s wrong with this guy?

Even that Pepper robot you see standing around at phone shops has more charm than this.

Hey you—at least say something like “Then I’ll stay with you.”

I forcefully turned Masataka toward Kaimori-chan, then leaned in and whispered behind his back.

"Then I’ll stay—"

"Then… I’ll… stay…?"

"—with you."

"…with you…"

It ended up sounding like delayed audio in a bad broadcast, but whatever.

Masataka understood the intent.

And the fact that he actually said it while looking at Kaimori-chan earns him points in my book.

"Um… but… we only just met today… I’d feel bad making you do that much…"

Uh-oh.

Kaimori-chan looks a little uncomfortable.

Did Masataka mess up the wording?

This won’t do.

Alright—leave it to me.

I’ll show you how it’s done.

"What Masataka-kun means is that now Kaimori-chan has one more place where she can say things like this. So from now on, if there are times when you’re hurting and can’t tell anyone… he wants you to talk instead of keeping it all bottled up."

"Oh… is that what you meant…? Thank you very much. If something makes me feel down again, I’d be happy if you’d listen."

For some reason she directed that to me.

Y-yeah, I’ll listen too, but say it to him as well!

However, despite all the glances I kept sending her, Kaimori-chan didn’t seem to pick up on them at all.

She just smiled warmly at me.

…Masataka exists, right?

He’s not some invisible entity only I can see?

No, people recognized him in the classroom earlier, so he definitely exists.

At the same time, I realized something:

At this rate, Kaimori-chan probably isn’t going to say the same thing to him.

So I moved behind her, grabbed both her shoulders, and firmly turned her toward Masataka.

Then I whispered behind her back.

"If something happens that makes you feel down—"

"Eh? Umm… if something happens that makes me feel down…?"

"I’d like you to listen too."

"I’d like you to listen too…"

Alright—problem solved!

Now we’re definitely on Kaimori-chan’s route… even if it was a little forced.

Masataka, just wait until you see the final CG illustration for her route.

You lucky guy!

"Thank you so much! Shione-senpai! Ryuzouji-senpai!"

After we promised to eat lunch together later that day, Kaimori-chan waved her arms energetically and headed off.

You might be wondering why she called me by my first name but Masataka by his family name.

There’s actually a reason.

When Kaimori-chan truly trusts someone, she calls them simply “Senpai.”

Still, at this rate, I really want to see the version of me in this world get called that soon.

"Shione… did you somehow know that girl was in trouble in the courtyard earlier? Is that why—"

I ignored the inconvenient question flying my way.

…Right.

More importantly, there’s something I need to confirm.

I passed Masataka, who was walking slightly ahead of me, then turned around with a bright smile.

My skirt fluttered lightly—making me look unintentionally cute—but I’ll accept it as a necessary sacrifice.

"That girl earlier was super cute, right?"

"Y-yeah… I guess."

"Did you fall in love?"

"…No. I already have someone I like."

"…………Ah. I see. …Well then. Forget it. End of discussion."

You bastard.

Well, whatever.

As long as you recognized Kaimori-chan’s existence today, I’ll give you a perfect score.

If the two of you get even closer during lunch later, that’s more than enough.

Just leave the matchmaking to me.

"Man, Shione-senpai, your lunch is really delicious!"

"Right? Right? And listen to this—it’s all homemade!"

"Why are you the one bragging about it, Ryuzouji-senpai…?"

And so lunchtime arrived.

The three of us—me, Kaimori-chan, and Masataka—sat together in the courtyard eating lunch.

I had a bento.

The other two had bread from the school store.

I focused on eating as politely and delicately as possible, which naturally made me talk less.

And for some reason, the two of them barely spoke either.

…Seriously, you two—try showing a little interest in each other first, okay?

"But Shione-senpai, isn’t there a lot of food here? Can you finish all this…?"

She had a point.

When I opened the lunchbox earlier, I realized there was clearly enough food for two people.

I don’t remember Shione having a huge appetite, but if this is a side of her that just never got shown in the game…

Honestly, discovering something like that is pretty exciting.

While I was secretly moved by this revelation, Masataka happily began picking at my side dishes one after another.

Watching them disappear at a rate measured in seconds, I realized the truth.

…Well, I guess that’s just the appetite of a high school boy.

Still, if you’re going to eat this much, you’d better work for it later, Masataka.

But what worried me a little was the way Kaimori-chan—sitting beside me—was clearly looking at him like he was some kind of freeloader.

I mean, he did help you earlier, you know?

This won’t do.

I quickly changed the subject.

"Hey! Actually, I was planning to go to the shopping street today because I have something to do. Kaimori-chan, would you like to come with us? Just the two of us might feel a little uneasy."

"After school…? Is this because of what I said earlier? Are you worried about me?"

"Nope. We’re just uneasy."

I repeated the answer and glanced toward Masataka.

Kaimori-chan nodded with an understanding expression.

She figured it out immediately—but somehow that makes things a little complicated.

You know he’s your future boyfriend candidate, right?

You do understand that part…?

Well, you don’t have to realize it right now.

Just… someday, okay?