Academy SP 〜An Ex-Mercenary Reincarnated as a Mob in a Gal Game. I Ditched My Bodyguard Job to Enjoy High School Life, but When the Ultra-Rich Heroines Were About to Get Killed, I Stepped In… and Somehow Built a Harem Powerful Enough to Control Japan〜 - Chapter 116 & 117

Chapter 116

Side: Suiran

Current Time: 13:35 (5 minutes until the assassination attempt)

…He really was a strange person.

I looked up at the boy walking beside me.

Yuuji Takahashi-kun.
Also known as—Yuu-kun.

He was around 175 centimeters tall, probably?

It wasn’t like he had some unbelievably handsome face or anything, but the sharpness of his profile and his well-built frame gave off an incredibly masculine impression…

Honestly, I might actually be into that kind of thing.

And on top of that, he had these slightly airheaded moments that made him kind of adorable.

He was completely different from anyone I’d ever met before.

Most people who approached me only cared about the name “Kousaki Conglomerate.”

Boys, girls—it was always the same.

Well, every now and then, there were people who forgot about my position as a Kousaki and genuinely saw me as a romantic interest instead.

…Both boys and girls alike.

The boys would call me behind the school building to confess, while the girls stuffed my shoe locker with love letters.

I did date a few people out of curiosity before, but none of those relationships lasted very long.

Ah, but I kept things proper, okay?

We never took pictures together or anything like that, and I even used the Kousaki conglomerate’s private security to make sure the media never found out either~♡.

Ever since I was little, I’d always been conscious of things like that.

As the daughter of the head of the Kousaki conglomerate… or rather, as the granddaughter of Chouichirou Kousaki in the public eye, I’d constantly been a topic of discussion in the media.

And well, it felt a little awkward saying it myself, but I was cute, so I naturally stood out a lot.

Because of that, even though I wasn’t some celebrity, rumors about my relationships and love life would still spread around constantly.

So ever since I was little, I’d always had to be careful about the way I lived.

At first, I honestly thought I’d been born into such a troublesome family.

But after seeing everything the Kousaki conglomerate had done for Japanese society—and watching Grandfather stand at the front lines working for Japan’s peace—

…I started wanting to do something myself too.

That was why, as a way of helping Grandfather, I began actively participating in international exchanges and assisting with hosting important figures from around the world.

Grandfather used to scold me sometimes, saying, “A student’s main job is to study!”

But this was the path I chose because I wanted it.

And as my worldwide connections and public recognition continued growing, more and more people started approaching me while expecting something in return.

Even Shin Morimiya-kun was like that.

I’d known him since childhood because of the Kousaki conglomerate’s connections, but that boy seriously adored me way too much…

…sigh.

You could tell just from spending time with him.

He wanted to strengthen his ties with the Kousaki conglomerate, sure—but at the same time, he was obviously hoping our relationship would become something more than friendship too.

You could practically feel his enthusiasm overflowing from him.

It wasn’t like I hated it or anything, but… I was tired of it.

Being pursued by people who weren’t my type was exhausting, you know?

Even if I didn’t look it, I considered myself pretty detached when it came to these things.

At this point, I didn’t really care anymore when people labeled me as “a Kousaki conglomerate person.”

No matter what kind of family I was born into, I believed I was still myself.

As long as I understood that, it was enough.

But still… constantly being surrounded by people like that made all my relationships feel boring.

I was always smiling and laughing on the outside, but the number of times I genuinely laughed from the bottom of my heart had gradually become fewer and fewer.

Isn’t there anyone more interesting out there~?

And just as I was thinking that—

I started hearing rumors about Yuuji Takahashi-kun.

“There’s an Academy SP student making conglomerate heiresses fall for him one after another.”

Even I couldn’t ignore a rumor like that.

Making conglomerate daughters completely obsessed with him…

Just what kind of person was he?

So I used a tiny bit of the Kousaki conglomerate’s influence to investigate him, but strangely enough… he came from a completely ordinary trading company family.

There wasn’t anything especially remarkable about his background either.

However, there was one piece of information that caught my attention.

It was an off-the-record report saying that the Satsuroukai yakuza group and the Kirishima conglomerate had worked together to “dispose” of the Tosa family.

To put it simply, Ayaka Kirishima-san had apparently been kidnapped by the Tosa family back then, and according to the official police story, Ashioka from the Satsuroukai was the one who rescued her.

But behind the scenes, I’d heard another piece of information—

That Yuuji Takahashi-kun might have been there too.

In other words…

Maybe Yuuji Takahashi-kun had actually fought against the Tosa family himself?

But if that were true, then it meant he came back from that situation with barely any injuries at all.

Which could only mean one thing—

He was that strong.

At least, that was what I started thinking.

Of course, I still had my doubts at first, but the moment I saw him casually overpower even Morimiya-kun, I realized his strength was real.

—Amazing.

That was honestly what I thought.

And at the same time, I became curious about where the source of that strength came from.

This was the first time I’d ever wanted to know someone this badly.

And also…

That strange feeling he had toward me kept bothering me too.

Mmm… this was completely just my intuition, but for some reason, I couldn’t shake the feeling that he saw me as someone special.

But it didn’t feel like the usual kind of affection countless boys had directed toward me before.

If I had to compare it to something…

Yeah—more like he treated me as his idol! ♡

Like—“I’d do anything for my favorite!”

That kind of feeling.

Well, even though plenty of people hated me publicly, there were also people who looked at me almost like some kind of idol (?), so I’d experienced similar attention before.

But somehow…

The way Yuu-kun looked at me felt even more intense than that.

I mean, he was practically ready to crush Morimiya-kun by force unless he handed over my guard duty.

At first, I wondered if it was jealousy because Morimiya-kun stayed close to me all the time…

But it didn’t have that dark, possessive feeling to it.

If anything, there was a strange sincerity behind it, and that only made me even more curious.

The more I learned about him, the less I understood him.

And because of that—

My curiosity only kept growing stronger.

But more than anything, it was probably—

The deep darkness hidden inside him.

This part was completely just my intuition.

But I could feel it in little moments here and there.

That inside Yuu-kun, there was some enormous darkness he could never tell anyone about.

And that only made me want to know even more about him.

But even now, I still couldn’t figure him out.

Mmm… he really was mysterious.

(He keeps glancing around restlessly.)

Even while happily chatting with Eleanor, I couldn’t stop paying attention to Yuu-kun as we walked through the crowded road leading toward the shopping mall.

(The professional bodyguards are already on full alert, but… Yuu-kun’s movements are even more intense. He’s even sweating—)

It almost looked like the movements of someone who already knew something was about to happen.

—He said he would “absolutely protect me.”

At first, I thought maybe he just had some hidden motive, like he was trying to flirt with a girl…

But those eyes of his were far too serious for that.

And before I realized it, my heart skipped a beat just a little.

(But still… when someone looks that worried, it starts making me nervous too…)

I tightly squeezed Eleanor’s hand.

“(Sui? Something wrong?)”

She looked at me curiously, so I smiled back at her.

“(No. It’s nothingl!)”

If there really was some kind of emergency ahead that even the Kousaki conglomerate’s information network failed to detect—

Then at the very least, I had to protect Eleanor.

If anything happened to her, Japan would without a doubt become an enemy of the United States.

America’s friendly relationship with Japan would instantly fall apart too.

And the worst possible future waiting beyond that…

…I didn’t even want to imagine it.

(Even if a terrorist attack really does happen, there’s only one thing I have to do.)

Protect Eleanor—

Even if it costs me my life.

Even in the worst-case scenario, if Eleanor became caught in a terrorist attack, then as long as I protected her with my life, the damage to Japan–U.S. relations could still be minimized.

—I’ll do it.

For the sake of protecting Japan.

Current Time: 13:37 (3 minutes until the assassination attempt)

〇

Side: Oumi (Member of the Anti-American Patriot Front)

Current Time: 13:38 (2 minutes until the assassination attempt)

…I have to do this.

I have to.

I believe every person is born with a purpose given to them by fate.

And this—

This is mine.

The role heaven itself gave me.

A duty that only I can fulfill.

“Hey, isn’t that Suiran Kousaki?”

“Yeah, the conglomerate girl. Her face is insanely pretty. And damn, those boobs are huge.”

“She totally gives off winner-of-life vibes~”

I pushed my way through the crowd.

Along the way, I heard the true opinions people held toward Suiran Kousaki.

“She’s in the way! What’s with that woman!?”

“She looks down on ordinary people from above.”

“What, is she trying to act like some queen? A spoiled brat who knows nothing about society! Go home already!”

And every time I heard voices filled with anger toward Suiran Kousaki, my conviction only grew stronger.

That’s right.

Assassination? Terrorism?

A cowardly attack targeting girls?

No.

That’s not what this is.

What I’m doing is rebuilding Japan.

I’m doing what’s necessary to change this country.

As long as the Kousaki conglomerate exists, Japan will keep licking the boots of the world’s superpowers forever.

To bring back the lost Yamato spirit—

Now was the time for me to fight, just like the patriots of the Bakumatsu era!

(This spot should do.)

I waited along the route where Eleanor—the daughter of the accursed United States Vice President—and Suiran, the granddaughter of the traitor Chouichirou Kousaki, were supposed to pass through.

Then I pulled a cold chunk of metal out of my bag.

A grenade—

One obtained through Touma’s connections.

(I practiced using grenades deep in the mountains out in the countryside. I’m fully prepared.)

Current Time: 13:39 (30 seconds until the assassination attempt)

(I used to be on the baseball team. A pitcher, too. The targets are about nine meters away.)

(Half the distance of a mound.)

Current Time: 13:39 (20 seconds until the assassination attempt)

(Calm down. I can do this. I will succeed.)

Current Time: 13:39 (10 seconds until the assassination attempt)

(I’m going to become a hero of this nation.)

A grin naturally spread across my face.

But then—

For some reason, I suddenly locked eyes with Suiran Kousaki.

My heart jumped.

Was this the instinct of someone carrying the blood of that “Dark Shogun” Chouichirou…?

Even the guards hadn’t noticed me, yet somehow that woman alone did.

“Eleanor!”

Suiran shouted, and her body moved instinctively.

It looked like she was trying to shield Eleanor.

But at this distance, there was no way she could stop it.

Everyone here—

Was about to be blown to pieces.

Hidden behind the two bystanders standing in front of me, I reached for the grenade’s safety pin—

Gash!
Gash!

But—

The pin never came out.

It wouldn’t move.

Not the metal pin—

My arms.

“Wha…?”

Two arms suddenly shot through the gap between the bystanders and locked tightly around my wrists.

Crack… creak…

My muscles, tendons, even bones groaned under the pressure as they were crushed like they’d been caught in a steel vise.

When I looked up—

There was a man standing in front of me.

Just some brat still in school.

But the terrifying look in his eyes instantly shattered my will to fight.

“—Found you, you fucking terrorist.”

The guy spat those words out and tightened his grip even harder, his fingers digging straight into my arms.

And in the next moment—

Blood burst out from where his fingers pierced into me, and a stabbing pain exploded through my body hard enough to make me scream.

Chapter 117

Side: Yuuji

“UGYAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

The man let out a pathetic scream.

My fingertips had torn through his skin, and all ten of my fingers were practically stabbed into his arms.

Yeah… that had to hurt like hell.

Right now, with my grip strength, I was forcibly making him hold the grenade in place without letting it drop or move.

(Looks like I made it in time.)

In the original story, Suiran was supposed to take the grenade blast at exactly 13:40 and die in the explosion.

Even though it was just part of the story, seeing the flawless Suiran Kousaki get blown apart like that had been an insanely shocking development.

Back then, Academy SP players—especially Suiran fans—were so traumatized by it that “13:40 = danger time” even became a meme online and started trending on social media.

That was why I remembered the exact timing so clearly.

The problem was—

The original story never revealed the terrorist’s exact location.

So I had to search through the crowd while calculating both the timing and the possible throwing position of the grenade.

And that was how I finally found this suspicious bastard.

After confirming the safety pin still hadn’t been pulled, I instantly snatched the grenade away with my right hand and kicked the guy backward.

“IT’S A BOMB!! EVERYONE GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE, NOW!!”

The moment I raised the grenade and shouted, the people around us immediately started screaming and running for their lives.

(Alright. That buys us some safety for now.)

I gently placed the grenade on the ground, then immediately rushed over to the guy lying on his back and grabbed him by the collar.

“Guh!?”

“I don’t have time to waste dealing with just youv. Sleep!”

If things were following the original story, then there should still be other accomplices nearby.

I tried choking him out immediately so I could deal with the rest as quickly as possible.

But then—

“…Long… live… Japan…”

The man grinned.

And the next moment, foam started spilling from his mouth.

A sharp acidic smell hit my nose.

(Don’t tell me… poison!?)

Looks like he’d hidden it somewhere inside his mouth.

…I see.

In the original story, these guys successfully assassinated Suiran and escaped afterward. Later, it was revealed that the masterminds were the Anti-American Patriot Front, but the story ended without them ever being caught.

A completely disgusting ending.

So this must’ve been their backup plan—if the mission failed, they’d kill themselves with poison.

He was seriously committed. Like some fanatical revolutionary.

Still… better this than letting him go wild.

Anyway, next—

I quickly stood back up.

(In the original… right. Two guards were also shot dead.)

Which meant—

The remaining accomplices were somewhere in this crowd carrying handguns.

If they placed the guy who just killed himself with poison on this side of the passage, then the remaining attackers should be spread evenly to the left and right.

In that case—

I looked toward the opposite side of the walkway.

And there they were.

Even while everyone else was panicking and running away, two men stood completely still, staring right at us.

The grenade attack was probably supposed to be the first step of their plan.

But after I stopped it—and after they saw their comrade kill himself with poison right in front of them—

The shock had clearly thrown them into confusion.

They were frozen in place.

Either way—

This was my chance.

“9 O’CLOCK!! THERE’S A GUY DRAWING A GUN!!”

One of the guards immediately noticed the men and moved into position to protect Suiran and the others.

What they pulled out were ballistic briefcases.

At first glance, they just looked like normal bags, but inside were bulletproof plates. Once unfolded, they functioned like portable shields to protect their targets.

“L-LONG LIVE JAPAN!!”

The instant the terrorists snapped back to their senses, they wildly fired their handguns.

“(Kyaah!!)”

“(Eleanor! Curl your body up!)”

While Eleanor screamed, Suiran threw herself over her protectively.

“RETURN FIRE!!”

The leader of the Kousaki conglomerate’s team shouted the order.

In this world, Japan allowed armed protection units when guarding important figures.

The Kousaki conglomerate’s guard force might’ve been a private organization, but since they were contracted by the government, they were legally permitted to use firearms.

But—

Just because they were allowed to shoot didn’t mean they could do it so easily.

“T-There are still civilians in the area!”

One of the guards hesitated as he shouted that.

Even in this version of Japan, it seemed firearm usage was handled very carefully.

And that tiny moment of hesitation—even just a fraction of a second—ended up giving the terrorists an opening.

“DIE!! DIE!! DIE!!”

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Even while panicking, the attackers kept wildly firing their handguns.

“PROTECT THE VIPS!!”

Using the ballistic briefcases, the guards formed a defensive wall almost like turtle shells.

The terrorists clearly weren’t used to handling pistols either—the recoil kept throwing their aim all over the place.

Thanks to that, nobody had been directly shot yet—

But the guard team was completely stuck on the defensive.

“Shoot already! Hurry up!”

After the leader yelled the order again, one of the guards finally raised his gun.

But—

BANG!

“Uwah!?”

One of the terrorists’ stray shots struck the guard’s handgun, knocking it right out of his hand and onto the ground.

“Damn it!”

Finally cornered enough to commit, the guards opened fire all at once.

But even then…

Their shots only grazed one attacker’s shoulder without causing any serious damage.

Some of them were even firing in completely random directions.

“COME ON THEN!! BRING IT ON!!”

The terrorist threw away his empty pistol and pulled another one from his pocket.

His movements were unbelievably clumsy.

And yet the guards were still panicking.

(This is painful to watch. A gunfight between amateurs like this…)

“Tch.”

Clicking my tongue, I started running.

“!? Yuu-kun!?”

I heard Suiran’s voice from behind me.

She was probably shocked seeing me charge straight into the middle of a live gunfight between terrorists and guards with nothing but my bare body.

But it was fine.

I had a weapon now.

Sliding across the ground, I grabbed the handgun the guard had dropped earlier.

Then, while rolling, I twisted my body sideways and stabilized my posture against the ground— …and raised the gun.

The barrel aimed straight at the terrorists’ hands.

BANG!! BANG!!

Two shots.

That was all I needed.

“Gwah!?”

“Gah!?”

The two men screamed.

I shot one straight through the right shoulder.

For the other, I aimed at the base of the middle, ring, and pinky fingers gripping the gun handle.

Both shots landed perfectly.

The first man collapsed while blood poured from his shoulder.

The second was blown backward, rolling around on the ground covered in blood while clutching his mangled hand and screaming.

“Uwaah…!”

“M-My fingers…! MY FINGERS!?”

For a brief moment—

Everything went silent.

Everyone there, including the terrorists who’d been shot, looked completely unable to process what had just happened.

“T-Take them down!!”

The team leader was the first to snap out of it and shouted the order.

The guards immediately rushed in and restrained the men all at once.

“Phew…”

After letting out a slow breath, I stood up and walked back toward the guard team.

“Here.”

“Huh? Ah…”

The guard I returned the handgun to stared back and forth between me and the pistol with wide eyes for several seconds.

“I placed the grenade somewhere away from people for now, but it’s still over there. And those guys might have more explosives in their bags. We should get everyone out of here.”

“Eh…?”

The guard leader just stood there with his mouth hanging open.

He probably never imagined he’d be taking instructions from some Academy SP student.

But with the situation like this, he had no choice but to listen.

Realizing that, he immediately started shouting orders.

“R-Retreat! Move the protected targets out now!”

I called out to Suiran, who was still shielding Eleanor with her body while staring at me.

“Let’s go.”

When I slowly reached out my hand, her eyes widened for a second—

Then she smiled.

“Yuu-kun, you look so cool~♡”

“Thanks.”

“You really were in the French Foreign Legion, weren’t you?”

“…I told you, I just like airsoft.”

“Reaaally~?”

Suiran grinned teasingly at me, but I brushed it off and quickly escorted the girls toward a safe area.

And then—

Eleanor’s knees suddenly gave out.

“Ugh… uuuuh…”

Her whole body trembled from fear.

“(Eleanor…)”

“(Sui… I was scared… I was so scared…)”

Eleanor clung tightly to Suiran and broke down crying against her chest.

“(It’s okay. Everything’s okay now.)”

Suiran gently stroked Eleanor’s blonde hair.

Even so, Suiran herself had just been targeted for assassination, yet instead of worrying about herself, she prioritized someone else first…

Yeah.

She really did think differently from normal people.

Even in the original story, there were countless scenes showing Suiran exhausting herself for Japan, for society, and for the honor of the Kousaki family.

And I’d thought this ever since then, but—

It felt like she sacrificed her own life too much.

Honestly, I wished she could live more like a normal high school girl.

…Wait.

I’m seriously sounding like some middle-aged guy right now.

Well, anyway—

We successfully prevented the assassination of Suiran Kousaki.

And just like in the original, all the culprits were captured too.

—All three terrorists involved in the attack.