Chapter 11: As Expected of Harem Protagonist

As Expected of Harem Protagonist

"Haa~..."

I hate myself.

I get carried away on my own, and then I get depressed on my own.

Even if I thought that way, Yuuki might have thought differently.

I jump onto the bed with a thud. My clothes and hair are disheveled, but that doesn't matter to me.

I'm just a best friend...

If I were just a classmate like everyone else in the harem, would I have had a chance?

... I'm aware that I'm pretty cute, even by my own standards. That's because, having been a man in my previous life, I'm well aware of what's considered cute by male standards.

But in the end, Yuuki only sees me as family or a best friend, or a guardian.

An unpleasant fantasy keeps crossing my mind.

I confess my feelings, only to be rejected. He then tells me; "Let's stay the way we are."

.....

No, that's not good.

That's right, it doesn't matter what he says. I'll just go through with it.

Yuuki has no way to refuse me.

Yeah, I should think positively.

At least he doesn't hate me, so there's definitely a possibility.

Even if it's different now, if I work hard from now on, Yuuki's feeling for me should change.

Luckily, it's summer vacation, so I have plenty of time.

Even though Yuuki is so happy with his harem, he probably won't go out with anyone from it. He doesn't seem to have the courage for that.

He gives off the vibe that he hates everyone in the harem, but you never know when that feeling might change to affection.

I'll try to get Yuuki's attention on me during this summer vacation.

I'll call it "Yuuki MUST LOVE Haruka Operation."

I'll ignore whether it's lame or not. It's a sign of my resolve, so I have to put that on.

For now, I'll try my best starting tomorrow.

.....

.....

So, just for today, it's okay.

"......"

—Even if I cry, it's okay.

★

The next day.

"So.... I came here...."

I arrived at Yuuki's house because he asked me to do our homeworks together.

"Fujii-senpai, I don't understand this part."

"Um, Akari-chan, you move this here to this, and then...."

.....

"Fujii-kun, um, can I ask a question too?"

"Yes, yes, well... I don't understand it either, sorry..."

.....

"Yuuki-kun, is there anything you don't understand? I can teach you if you want."

"...This one and all the rest..."

....

Wait, what?

He was making some kind of harem.

Did he notice my feelings and ask, "You're a harem member too, so let's study together"?

Hmmmm...

Why did I fall for a guy like this? 

...I guess it can't be helped.

I'm getting really annoyed. This guy's playing with people's feelings.

Also, I'm completely out of place here.

Couldn't you at least say something? 

I mean, you're the one who called me here?!

"Oh, Haruka's here."

"Huh?"

.... That's it.... ?

Alright then.... I guess I'll just go home....

"See you later."

"Uh, no, wait a minute!"

I thought he might talk to me, but I didn't expect it to be in this situation. He didn't even notice me after I arrived at his house.

I was shocked. I have no choice but to demand compensation. Yuuki really is an unforgivable person.

Well, no matter how unforgivable he is, it would be a shame to just leave like this, so I should listen to him for a bit.

After all... it's just a request...

"So, what do you want?"

"Well, I was hoping you could teach me something."

... I glance around briefly.

Our eyes meet. One pair, then another, then yet another.

"Do you even need me here?"

"They came to my house for some reason."

"And you let them in?"

"...Well, they did come..."

"Hmm. Well, I guess I could teach you something like studying."

Yuuki probably has his reasons.

..... Probably.

I was a university student in my previous life, so I can still handle high school level studies.

I don't feel like teaching someone who's brought four girls home in the middle of the day, but I don't want him to fail in the exam, so I'll teach him anyway.

Are you going to university too, Yuki? I'm totally planning on going. ...Though I do need to do some reviewing for that.

If we do go, maybe we could go to the same university.

"Kirihara-senpai, can you teach me too?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Go ahead and ask me anything."

Hmm, it feels good to be relied on.

My slightly bad mood is all Yuuki's fault, it's all his fault. It's his fault for calling me and then ignoring me without even noticing my arrival.

The girls in the harem aren't to blame.

They're all cute, and cuteness is justice.

Well, I think I'm not losing either in that field.. but still...

"Kirihara-san, you.... is there something wrong? You've been avoiding eye contact a lot when you're talking to Fujii-kun."

"Huh? No, nothing's wrong."

"Really? If Kirihara-san liked Fujii-kun, we'd be rivals, so that's good."

"Ah, haha."

I've realized this since I was reincarnated, but girls are really picky about love. They connect even the slightest difference to love.

What Sakura-chan is trying to say is that she thinks I like Yuuki. I wish she'd stop misunderstanding things...

... Well, I guess I do like him.

Why did I fall in love with him?

Is it because we've been together for so long?

It's been about ten years now.

If I could tell Sakura-chan just one thing, it's that Yuuki isn't a normal guy. He's happy about his harem, even though he pretends to be unhappy.

Only I know that fact.

... And I can't be happy about it.

Well, there's no way I could say something like that to Sakura-chan. Sakura-chan in front of me has her eyes sparkling so much; she's definitely in that mode.

She's been muttering to herself for a while now, probably having some strange daydream, and there's no sign of her stopping.

Okay, time to start on our homework. That's why I came here today. If I keep going like this, I'll forget my purpose.

I took my homework out of my bag and spread it out on the desk in front of me. Since it's all the homework for the summer vacation, there's a considerable amount, as expected.

On the other hand, if I finish this, I can play around all summer vacation.

Thinking that, my concentration increased.

For now, I'll just keep going with the momentum to finish everything—

"Kirihara-san, I finally won today."

"...What?"

"I finally visited Yuuki-kun's house."

".... I visit him almost everyday, though."

"Eh?"

Ayano-chan, who declares victory just for entering the house, is so cute.

.... But I'm not losing either!

I've been to his house since elementary school; that's childhood friend power.

I've even brought Yuuki to my house, so it's not an exaggeration to say I'm several steps ahead of her.

"I don't get it. Haruka, can you explain this part for me?"

"It's from last year's material, just look at the explanation yourself."

"... Why are you being so harsh only to me?"　

Whose fault do you think that is?!

★

After that, with four second-year students and one first-year student—a total of five—the homework was finished quickly.

That said, it wasn't completely finished; there were still some tedious things left, like book reports.

But summer vacation is still long, and if we proceed systematically, we should be able to finish it.

After finishing their homework, the girls from the harem seemed tired and went home. It's understandable they'd be tired after working straight for several hours.

I wonder why the school can't reduce the amount of homework?

They all looked tired, but at the same time, they looked satisfied. They were able to go home, after all.

On the other hand, Yuuki and I...

Click click....

...Clatter...

...Click click clatter clatter....

[1P-WIN]

"Hmph, still a small fry as ever."

"Ghhhh!"

As soon as we finished our homework, we started playing games. It was already past 6 PM.

Heh, I wonder what the most enjoyable moment in life is.

For me, it's when I beat Yuuki in this game.

I've never lost to him, though.

This game, where you can choose from many characters and fight on a chosen field, is something I played in my past life too.

In other words, it's a difference in experience.

"No, next! There's still next!! I'll choose this one!"

Looking at the screen at the sound of his voice, I saw the 2P's character ... Yuuki had chosen a round, pink character.

That one that absorbs anything and uses it as its own power to fight.

That's the character Yuuki always calls his signature character.

I've never lost to him, though.

I pressed the random pick to give him the ultimate humiliation.

Honestly, I'm an all-rounder who can use any character equally well. You could also call me a jack-of-all-trades; good at everything, master of none.

I still haven't forgotten about what happened today when I came to this house.

I'll engrave my existence in his heart and make sure he can never do the same thing again.

.....

[1P-WIN]

Large letters were displayed on the screen.

A strong character appeared for me, so I was able to easily beat him.

This should stop Yuuki from ignoring me.

.... Probably.

"Let's stop this game, it's ruining my pride."

"...Do you even have any?"

"I have!"

I stopped the game because of Yuuki's wish, but I can't think of anything else to do.

Thinking about it, games are easy since all you have to do is press buttons.

I glance at Yuuki's face.

....Hmm, that's the face of someone thinking about what to do. It seems he can't think of anything, just like me.

Looking at his face like this, Yuuki is kind of handsome, or rather, just a little bit above average.

He has no distinguishing features, though.

And yet, for some reason, he's so popular.

It would be a lie to say I don't feel uneasy.

It would have been fine if he wasn't so popular!

I wonder if he's the protagonist of something after all.

.... Just an example, of course.

"Hey, Haruka."

"Hm?"

".... On a second thought, it's nothing."

"You piqued my interest, so just tell me already!"

"Eh...?"

Yuuki's face is turning red.

Is the room a little too hot?

If it's hot, he should just say so and open the window.

I'm perfectly fine with him opening it without asking. This is Yuuki's room, after all.

... I remember today's event. 

From the moment I arrived, he had everyone from his harem in his house and they were having a fun conversation.

"As expected of harem protagonist..."

The way he talked with everyone, he really looked the part.

AN:

Don't fumble this.....