Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093094101424177/episodes/16818093094101567020
Cruel.
Characters who drop out of a story are—in other words, the same as dead. If they don’t appear, they don’t exist. If they don’t exist, they are as good as dead.
The fate of a defeated heroine is a well-worn topic that has been discussed since ancient times.
But I never thought I would be involved in it myself.
Once that happened, it was a different story.
“—Is it over once I display this?”
I looked at the books stacked flat in the library.
I was assigned to be a library committee member at the same time as advancing to the next grade. I like manga and novels, and I don’t dislike the unique smell of books. It was just that I resented having to stay after school from time to time.
Before I knew it, the setting sun was shining through the window.
The humid wind of the rainy season caressed my cheeks.
The voices of students engaged in club activities echoed in the distance.
“—Is it really impossible for me?”
The voice was filled with tension. I couldn’t help but stop what I was doing.
I looked around to see where the voice was coming from, but there was no one else around. I assumed it was the drama club practicing and tried to continue my work, but another line of dialogue reached my ears.
“I’ve been watching Keiichi all along ! All along !”
Keiichi—I recognized that name. He was in the same class as me.
No, maybe there was someone else with the same name.
It seemed like the voice was coming from outside. Probably from that Keiichi guy too. As I kept working, I listened in, and it sounded like a confession. Hmm, this was none of my business.
(…But who knows who’s listening? They’re pretty bold.)
It was out of curiosity. Peeking is probably not a good thing to do.
I had no intention of teasing or mocking them. I just wanted to see the face of the girl who was confessing so boldly and the face of Keiichi who was receiving it. …I quietly stood near the window, relying on the voice.
“Wow, really? Keiichi…is it Sera Keiichi?”
My voice accidentally got louder with surprise, and I covered my mouth.
The girl confessing her feelings was Orimoto Ryoka. She was a beautiful girl with striking chestnut-colored hair. Not only was she attractive, but her straightforward personality also made her popular with both boys and girls.
On the other hand, the boy was Sera Keiichi. Nicknamed the “gal game protagonist.”
He was undoubtedly handsome and also very popular. It was common knowledge that Sera and Orimoto were childhood friends. Hmm, it seems Orimoto has finally lost her patience.
“You said you wanted to talk…I thought maybe, but are you serious, Ryoka?”
There’s a reason Sera is called the protagonist of a gal game.
His good looks play a part, but more than anything, he’s the center of a harem.
I hear that not only Orimoto, but also seniors, juniors, and other members have joined the harem.
And yet he’s not dating anyone, so the resentment from the guys is intense. I don’t understand what handsome guys are thinking. But since I’ll never have anything to do with him, it’s fine.
“I want to move beyond the childhood friend relationship. I like you, Keiichi.”
“… I’m happy about your feelings. That you like someone like me. ….But…”
“I’ll become cuter ! I’ll also work hard on cooking !”
Orimoto’s voice trembled, but it was wrapped in cheerfulness.
It’s none of my business to eavesdrop, but honestly, it’s painful to watch. Too painful.
I’ve never confessed my feelings or been confessed to, but it’s clear that the chances are slim.
“…Could it be that you like someone else?”
“…I’m sorry, Ryoka. I knew you liked me.”
“Who do you like? Someone I know?”
Thinking from Orimoto’s perspective, it was so awkward I felt like vomiting. …If it were a stranger, it might be bearable, but if the person I like starts dating an acquaintance or friend, it’s despair.
“I can’t say. If I did, Ryoka, you would be sad.”
“What’s that? So that means they’re my friend…I see.”
“Ryoka, I…I was happy to be your childhood friend.”
Was that meant to be comforting? It sounded more like he was rubbing salt into the wound.
Orimoto’s voice, which had been trying to stay strong, began to tremble even more.
“Yeah, me too. —Thank you, Keiichi.”
“…I’m going home. You should go home too, Ryoka, before it gets dark.”
“I know. …Bye !”
The “bye” was the loudest sound. A single footstep.
Keiichi left. Orimoto stared intently at his back. But Keiichi never looked back. It felt like that gap would never be bridged, and I felt depressed too.
(What a mess. …I’ll take today’s events to my grave, Namu Amida Butsu, Namu Amida Butsu.)
I thought it would be a suffocating event where two extroverts would get together… but it was the complete opposite.
I ended up witnessing a scene of total defeat. I pursed my lips.
Orimoto just kept staring in the direction Keiichi had left.
Before I knew it, the setting sun had turned a pale purple. Orimoto slowly looked away and leaned his back against a tree with a weak movement, as if he didn’t care if his uniform got dirty.
“Just look back for once. …….Ah, you idiot, you stupid, you fool…!”
This is bad. An aura of despair was overflowing from her entire body.
She wiped away her tears with her fingertips, sobbing softly.
Her expression was pale, and if someone introduced her as a dead person, I would have believed it. I couldn’t bear to watch Orimoto any longer, so I quietly moved away from the window and continued my library committee work.
─────
“—I guess she’s gone home now.”
Watching the confession scene had caused me to fall behind in my work.
However, it was my responsibility, so I finished it quickly.
After getting ready to go home, I couldn’t help but glance out the window. Orimoto was nowhere to be seen. A faint star appeared in the distant sky. …I guess I’ll go home too.
I locked the library door and returned the key to the staff room. It was a routine I was used to by now.
Being a library committee member wasn’t particularly demanding work, but it did take up a surprising amount of time.
I took turns with the other library committee members to arrange books and handle lending duties. Today was my turn. Whether it was bad luck or good luck, I trudged along.
“Well, I saw something unbelievable.”
As soon as I passed through the school gate, I let out what was on my mind.
A scene involving the popular boy in my class, Sera Keiichi, and his childhood friend, Orimoto Ryoka.
…And the beautiful Orimoto was defeated. If the boys in the class found out, Sera might be killed. I’m fine with staying out of it, so I’ll pretend I didn’t see anything.
“…Hmm, oh.”
On the way home, at the station. I spotted a certain man inside a fast-food restaurant.
It was just a coincidence, but it was definitely Keiichi. Surprisingly, he was smiling. Considering he had rejected his childhood friend’s once-in-a-lifetime confession after such a long relationship, Keiichi seemed surprisingly nonchalant.
“Huh, so that how it is.”
I muttered unconsciously. He was with a girl.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t see her face from the angle I was at, but I could tell from her back. What made it certain was that both Keiichi and the girl were wearing uniforms. They were from the high school I attend.
“Scary, scary, I didn’t see anything.”
After rejecting her, he was chatting with another girl at the fast food restaurant.
It seems that popular guys have a completely different set of values from introverts like me.
I averted my gaze from Keiichi and hurried home.
—If Orimoto had witnessed that scene, he would have gone crazy. It was a chaotic situation.
I returned home, finished my homework, and read the manga I had been saving up.
…That’s how my day went. After that, I took a bath and went to sleep. It was an ordinary day, nothing out of the ordinary. It was the everyday life of an average guy, nothing to write home about.
The only thing different was that I happened to catch a glimpse of the top-tier guy rejecting the top-tier girl. Even that will fade from memory in a few days.
Study moderately, go to university moderately, and become a cog in the wheel of society.
I have no clear future prospects or vision.
That’s me, Kasugai Kotaro.
I vaguely thought that such a daily life would continue unchanged.
That thought is probably correct. My reality won’t be like an anime.
But—it seems someone has changed.
“…Why, why won’t anyone talk to me !?”
The next day, a female student stood at the school gate.
Her name was Orimoto Ryoka. She was the poor girl who had been rejected by Sera Keiichi, the handsome harem guy, the other day. …With a tragic expression on her face, she was screaming.
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