Today was the first day of school.
The class was 1-A, and the students around him were all very ordinary young people.
The teacher on the podium was regrettably not Hiratsuka Shizuka or Kirisu Mafuyu, but just an old man nearing retirement.
"My name is Yoshida Saki. My hobbies are reading and... going, going shopping. Please take care of me in the future."
The long-haired girl with a pure appearance sitting in front of Sousuke introduced herself.
Because she had a naturally attractive appearance and had applied just the right amount of makeup, both boys and girls were immediately drawn to her.
Kitahara Sousuke ignored all of it.
During the self-introductions, he had already scanned through the class and compared everyone with the characters in his memory. Unsurprisingly, he ended up disappointed.
If you judged by appearances alone, even background characters in anime sometimes had more presence than the people here.
But Sousuke was never interested in just appearances.
His goal wasn't to chase after any random beautiful girl.
His heart only beat for his beloved "wives."
Their moe traits, their emotional journeys, those unique quirks that made them shine, everything about them was special.
At that moment, Sousuke sat there, staring intently at the male teacher on the podium with lifeless eyes. His inner monologue was filled with frustration and sarcasm, thinking how he definitely didn't have any kind of protagonist aura.
"I also really like teacher-student relationships."
"Where did all the unmarried beauties disappear to? If you've got the guts, come at me all at once, damn it."
There was no pain quite like the pain of comparison.
You had to understand, Aki Tomoya's homeroom teacher was another absolute stunner.
Heh...
Thinking of this, Sousuke folded his thick arms across his chest, veins bulging on his forehead.
He looked like a central air conditioner with how intensely he was radiating cold energy.
The students who had just been infatuated with the girl in front of him quietly turned away one by one.
Even Miss Yoshida Saki, who had seemed so confident just a moment ago, began to shrink under the pressure, doubting her transformation.
"Um... Kitahara-kun?"
The male teacher on the podium adjusted his glasses and called out.
Hearing his name snapped Sousuke out of his daydreams.
He had been busy sulking about Aki Tomoya's teacher and comparing it to his own sad reality.
In all honesty, he was just plain jealous.
Still, he had no intention of being a troublemaker.
As long as the teacher didn't mess up, Sousuke was someone who respected those who taught and guided students.
So he quickly stood up.
"My name is Kitahara Sousuke. I don't have any particular hobbies. Please take care of me in the future."
He stood up straight, gave a short bow, finished his concise self-introduction, and sat right back down without caring about how the others reacted.
Incidentally, his seat was in the last row by the window, the typical protagonist's seat had sadly not gone to him.
The classroom went quiet for a moment.
But seeing that he wasn't starting fights like some punk, the teacher quickly regained composure and resumed class, rambling about his life experiences whether anyone cared or not.
Sousuke just sat there, gazing blankly at the blackboard.
Aside from cram school, the workload in Japanese schools wasn't particularly heavy.
Except for Japanese history, none of the subjects posed any real challenge for him.
But school wasn't as free as vacation time either.
He couldn't train as freely as before.
He needed to find something productive to do.
Time passed quickly, and it was soon lunchtime.
After most of the students had left the room, Kitahara Sousuke slowly stood up from his seat.
He had been so exhausted yesterday that he hadn't even bothered to prepare a bento.
And he definitely had no interest in fighting over popular yakisoba bread in the school store.
He pulled out a few nutrition bars and silently walked out through the back door of the classroom.
"Makoto?"
A blond-haired boy in the hallway slapped the back of his friend with the soft, uke-like face.
The latter jumped as if struck by lightning.
"Whoa, you scared me... Oh, it's just you, Taisuke..."
Makoto placed a hand over his chest in relief.
"What's with you? You've been out of it. Don't tell me last night you, "
Taisuke, the blonde, couldn't go three sentences without bringing up something dirty. He immediately launched into a stream of pervy guy jokes.
"It's that guy just now. Don't you think he's scary?"
Makoto pointed nervously toward the corner of the hallway.
Taisuke just shrugged it off.
"Relax, Makoto. He's just tall. Guys like that usually look mean but aren't. If he ever messes with us, I can take him. I'll protect you."
He struck a boxing pose for flair, then casually draped his arm around Makoto's shoulder in a show of confidence.
His exaggerated actions made him look more like a circus clown than any kind of fighter.
"Um... thanks, Taisuke."
Makoto believed him, clearly comforted by the reassurance.
...
Kitahara Sousuke had no clue about the drama unfolding behind him.
He checked his phone, still no new messages.
He wasn't disappointed. These things couldn't be rushed.
Having solved his lunch issue and gotten a bit of fresh air,
Sousuke, completely unaffected by the heavy weights strapped to his legs, strolled around the school building.
He familiarized himself with the layout and gathered information along the way.
"The art club. So this is where it is. If only I had come a year earlier."
He paused in front of the clubroom, letting out a quiet sigh of regret.
If he'd come earlier, he might've had the chance to win over Utaha.
Though she was Eriri's obsession as a childhood friend, it wouldn't hurt to try, right?
But now, she was already a second-year.
Eriri-senpai... that title somehow sounded weirdly comical.
Still, joining the club now probably wouldn't be helpful.
If she was as busy as she was in the original story, he wouldn't see her much anyway.
So that was that.
"Tch..."
"Childhood friend, childhood friend... I want one too, someone to walk with me to school..."
Sousuke turned and walked away, sulking. His jealousy was only getting worse.
Sawamura Spencer Eriri, Hyodo Michiru, Hashima Izumi...
Thinking about how Aki Tomoya had three childhood friend types made Sousuke want to scream.
He was practically glowing with lemony jealousy.
He was a firm believer in the childhood friend route.
It took a while before he could squeeze all that sourness out of his system.
He resumed walking casually around the school.
"The library. Since this world is two-dimensional, maybe there's a literary girl waiting inside for protagonist-kun to stumble upon and start a story event?"
He glanced inside from the doorway but decided against going in today since it was already late.
But not long after he left, a girl stepped out of the library.
She held a book in one hand and wore square-rimmed glasses, not very common in this school.
Two braids hung neatly in front of her chest, and while her style was a bit old-fashioned, it was clearly well cared for.
Beneath her simple uniform was a figure her peers couldn't hope to match.
Sanshokuin Sumireko.
A girl who always spent her lunch breaks alone in the library.
"That person is..."
She stood silently at the library entrance, glasses reflecting the light.
Tilting her head slightly, she let the faintest smile rise to her lips.
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