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 18

Chapter 18

Side: Yuuji

When I went to school like usual, the classroom was already buzzing with noise.

“Hey, did you hear? Yamashita apparently got expelled.”

One of my classmates from Academy SP said that.

“It’s not just Yamashita. I heard most of the ‘Hagoromo Conglomerate faction’ quit school too.”

“Well, after getting beaten that badly, I guess so. Weren’t they on escort duty for Hagoromo-san when Gyokuhoutai activists jumped them?”

“Yeah, I heard everyone ended up seriously injured.”

The news spread with a mix of shock and unease.

Basically, most of the students in Academy SP had enrolled here for one simple reason—

To build connections with a conglomerate heiress.

But they probably never imagined that the heiress would actually be targeted, or that they themselves would get dragged into something that dangerous.

In other words, for people who came here hoping to take the easy route to powerful connections, the Gyokuhoutai incident was a brutal wake-up call.

That said… there were also voices saying something different.

“Hmph. They failed to protect a conglomerate heiress when she was about to be killed right in front of them. Total failure at making connections. Guess they figured there was no reason to stay at this school anymore.”

“Pathetic. That whole ‘Hagoromo Conglomerate faction’ was a joke. That Yamashita guy turned out to be nothing special either. I heard he was begging Gyokuhoutai for his life.”

“Still, doesn’t this mean Hagoromo-san is basically free now? What do you think—trying to get on good terms with the Hagoromo Conglomerate could be a smart move.”

“Don’t. Switching factions now will just get you dirty looks, you know?”

The students who had entered this school fully prepared, determined to form ties with a conglomerate, now looked down on Yamashita and the so-called “Hagoromo Conglomerate faction,” mocking them for their weakness.

On top of that, clear lines were starting to form between factions.

Before anyone realized it, a deep divide had taken shape inside this single classroom.

In short, once you picked a faction, switching to another was basically forbidden—that kind of unspoken rule had settled in.

Yeah… the gal game did mention something like this too.

Which meant that since I’d already chosen the “Sara Hagoromo route,” going after any other heroine was practically impossible now.

Or rather—

The moment I tried, it’d spark some serious backlash.

“H-Hey…”

The moment I sat down at my seat, the classroom fell silent.

Everyone was sneaking glances at me—some wary, others just plain surprised.

“That’s him, right? The guy who protected Hagoromo-san after Yamashita got taken out by Gyokuhoutai?”

“Yuuji Takahashi… He doesn’t really look like anything special. Is he really that good in a fight?”

“Could be fake, you know? I heard there was some infighting inside Gyokuhoutai too. That story sounds more believable.”

Looks like all kinds of rumors were flying around.

Maybe because I looked way too much like a background mob character, plenty of people couldn’t quite believe that I was the one who actually protected Sara Hagoromo.

It felt like opinions were split right down the middle.

Still, one thing was clear—

I’d suddenly become someone whose name everyone in this class knew.

“Ossu, ossu!” [*Good morning]

Wakita appeared from outside the classroom, chopping the air with his hand as he walked in.

He headed straight for my desk.

“You heard about Yamashita-kun and the others?”

“Yeah. Sounds like they all quit.”

“Exactly! Which means…”

Wakita flashed a big grin and gave a thumbs-up.

“…Your era has finally begun!”

“Huh?”

“Don’t ‘huh?’ me! Right now, the entire Hagoromo Conglomerate faction is just you and me, Yuuji! Which means… Sara Hagoromo-san is basically all ours now!”

“Ah—so that’s what you mean…”

“YAHOO! We did it! All the obstacles are gone! The Hagoromo Conglomerate has influence even among Kanto trading companies, you know? This could seriously benefit your dad too! He might even land a president-level position in one shot! Man, this is great, Yuuji! Now you can finally repay your parents—”

“About that…”

I cut in and told the overly excited glasses guy straight.

“I’m done getting involved with Sara Hagoromo-san.”

At those words, Wakita—“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHH!?”—screamed at the top of his lungs.

“Have you lost your mind, Yuuji!? She’s the Hagoromo Conglomerate’s heiress! The daughter of the most powerful family in Kanto!! You’re really going to give up a fair-skinned, flashy E-cup gal like that!?”

“Shut up already. I’m done. I’m really done with Sara Hagoromo-san.”

If things followed the original story, there shouldn’t be any more incidents where Sara would end up dying.

I’d heard from the police that they were surrounding her with bodyguards now, so she should be safe.

There was no longer any role for me to play.

Honestly… getting involved any further would just mean dragging myself into unnecessary trouble.

“I ended up drawing way too much attention because of this whole mess.”

“T-That’s not a bad thing, is it? Showing your strength, proving how tough you are, making people acknowledge you—that’s an honor for a man, right!?”

“What honor? That’s just stupid. I’m tired of that kind of fighting. I only want one thing now—peaceful days.”

“Hah!? What are you, some mercenary coming back from the battlefield or something!?”

…Yeah. A mercenary who came back from the battlefield, actually.

“Either way, we’re basically already out of the ‘Hagoromo Conglomerate faction.’”

“That’s just something Yamashita said on his own—!”

“It’s fine already. Guarding a conglomerate lady is supposed to be the job of adults around her. We’re students. What we’re supposed to do is study… and have fun, right?”

“Well… yeah, I guess.”

“And anyway, there’s no role left for ‘Academy SP’ now. Come, let’s just hit the arcade again today.”

I said that and waved my hand dismissively, shutting Wakita down.

Honestly, I’d reflected a lot on what happened this time too.

Even if it was in the heat of the moment, I’d gone way too far on that Gyokuhoutai founder.

If Wakita hadn’t stopped me, it could’ve been ruled excessive self-defense.

I might’ve ended up in juvenile detention—and expelled from school.

My entire youth almost got destroyed in just one week.

Spending so long surrounded by fighting had warped my sense of violence.

My reactions were way beyond what normal people would ever consider reasonable.

To keep the “fighter” inside me from waking up again…

I really needed to make fighting completely off-limits from now on.

“Alright, I’m taking attendance. Get to your seats.”

Itabashi-sensei walked into the classroom like he always did, and morning homeroom began.

He mentioned that Yamashita and the others had withdrawn from school, and gave us a verbal warning to be careful since some dangerous people had been hanging around the academy lately.

And with just that, homeroom was over.

It seemed the school was still sticking to its stance that whether or not we protected a conglomerate heiress was entirely up to our own “initiative.”

In other words, no matter what kind of danger we got dragged into, they had no intention of taking responsibility.

Well… from a teacher’s point of view, the worst possible outcome would be one of the Four Great Conglomerates’ daughters getting hurt.

If Sara had actually died yesterday, the academy might’ve faced serious social retaliation from the conglomerate.

Seen that way, it was probably just risk management.

Still… it felt unhealthy. And blatantly unfair.

This was probably what people meant when they talked about the ugly side of Japanese society built around conglomerates.

That was why I decided to distance myself from the whole “Academy SP” system—

A setup clearly run for the convenience of adults.

Honestly, someone who felt this way probably should quit.

But with Papa and Mama in this new life having such high hopes for me, dropping out felt a little too cruel.

I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.

So instead, I chose to keep my distance from conglomerate heiresses.

If I did that, no one would have any reason to complain.

I felt a bit bad for Wakita, who had been fired up about making connections left and right, but hey—

it was just his bad luck that he latched onto me instead of Amagaya, the proper gal-game protagonist.

Might as well give up and enjoy a clean, wholesome youth!

With that thought, I put on a smile—almost like I was wishing it into reality—and glanced at Wakita, who was sitting next to me, clearly unsatisfied.

—But at that moment, I didn’t realize something.

That Wakita was wearing a bold, dangerous grin.

“Fufufu… Yuuji. It’s not going to be that easy. No matter what it takes… I’ll make sure you get involved with a conglomerate heiress. Fufufufufufu…!”