Chapter 70: Afterstory & Prequel – 19: Not Even Worthy of a Battlefield

The final day of Golden Week, late afternoon, at the high school baseball field. The baseball team, having just returned from their away games, quickly disbands, all visibly worn out.

Incidentally, we won all the practice games. It was as if my awful slump before the training camp had been a lie—I was hitting like crazy and pitching just as well. That said, my sweeper pitch was still useless. Damn it, I just can’t get the right grip on it. Is there some secret trick I’m missing? …Yeah, probably not. Life’s not that easy.

“Seriously, Kyugo, you’re such a mess. You’re always so worried about your hair, but if I hadn’t been there, you wouldn’t have even taken care of your nails during camp, right? You’re a pitcher, for crying out loud! Or, like, forget that—you’re a high school sophomore! What kind of guy lets his nails grow long? It’s so gross. Totally screams ‘virgin.’ Virgin, virgin, virgin, virgin.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. Thanks for helping me out, seriously.”

It’s true, though. With everything going on, I’d completely neglected my nails. Plus, I joined the camp on such short notice that I forgot to bring any nail care tools. If it weren’t for Maika, who came fully prepared, I’d have been in trouble.

Still, Maika’s in an absurdly good mood as she massages my forearm and complains about me. She’s been going on for a solid six minutes, looking way too pleased with herself. And yet, her hands haven’t faltered for a second, skillfully working on my brachioradialis. Impressive—this spot tends to tighten up on me a lot. She even gave me massages during our fight, though we both stayed awkwardly silent the whole time back then. That was… painful. She’s probably ecstatic to finally have someone to rant at again, and honestly, it’s relaxing to listen to her.

“…Both of you, hurry up and head home already, okay?”

Ogikubo-senpai towers over us, sitting face-to-face on folding chairs, her tone full of exasperation. Next to her, the team captain is nervously glancing around. I decide to let it slide. Some things are better left alone.

“We knooow. I’ve got dinner to make, too. You two shouldn’t overdo it either, okay?”

Maika, ever tactless, throws that out, her golden hair practically sparkling with smugness.

Ogikubo-senpai, her cheeks faintly flushed, grabs the captain’s hand and drags him off, his face now bright red.

And so, Maika and I are left alone in the clubroom. This is the first time it’s been just the two of us since that night sharing a bed three days ago. And the first time since officially becoming pitcher and manager…

As I sit there, lost in thought—

“Kyugo-senpai. I’ve told you many times to leave the massages to Nakano.”

“And, like, Kyugo, on the bus earlier, you kept leaning on me while you were asleep. You drooled on me, you know. That’s so gross. Don’t sleep with your mouth open. Seriously. I don’t even care about the drool, but it’s bad for your health. If you’re going to sleep anywhere, you need to use those mouth-sealing strips. Even I would struggle to stick them on your lips without waking you.”

“I… I’ve got no comeback to that.”

Maika even pays attention to my sleep habits. At home or during trips, she adjusts the room’s temperature and humidity for me. This time, she didn’t just bring the mouth strips but also Megurhythm eye masks and even my pillow. Still, if she really wants to help me sleep better, the best thing would be for her to stop wearing such skimpy clothes at home at night. Seeing her curvy thighs or her H-cup figure is way more stimulating than any light. At least she doesn’t dress like that outside. Honestly, I wish she’d never show skin to any guy but me.

“Don’t ignore me, Kyugo-senpai. And Maika-san, you glanced at me just now, didn’t you? How can you casually pretend I’m not here?”

“Oh, sorry, Nakano. My bad.”

“Kyugo is so pathetic, crying to me during camp because of a wet dream. If I hadn’t been there, everyone would’ve found out, you know? Seriously.”

“Maika, that’s enough. Stop with the complaints.”

Nakano stands frozen at the entrance to the baseball clubroom, dressed in her tracksuit.

Although Nakano had interrupted my train of thought, Maika doesn’t even pause her ranting spree, completely ignoring the intrusion.

But Nakano, the ever-composed cool beauty, doesn’t seem inclined to back down. With an unwavering expression, she strides right between Maika and me.

“Ever since earlier, you’ve been… stop saying things that tarnish Kyugo-senpai’s name.”

“I’m not tarnishing anything.”

Even though Nakano’s voice is calm, there’s an edge to it. Maika responds in a similarly sharp tone, her gaze still fixed on my forearm.

What’s with this tense atmosphere? This isn’t like the clashes between Maika and Riko—it’s… colder. It feels like there’s no heat or even moisture in the air. These two have never openly fought before; if anything, they’ve acted like allies. But now, I’m getting the sense that there’s been some kind of silent cold war all along…

They were in the same club for three years, weren’t they? From what I saw back then, Maika never seemed to have any issues with the art club members.

Still, it’s clear Maika has her own feelings about Nakano. But what’s with Nakano? Could something have happened between them back in middle school?

“You are tarnishing him. Kyugo-senpai would never neglect his nails, drool, or do something like… like have a wet dream. That’s not the Kyugo-senpai I know. He’s my perfect prince.”

“Yeah, well, he’s the kind of guy who does do those things. That’s just who Kyugo is.”

It’s always the same—being Nakano’s ideal prince is way too hard. The bar is impossibly high. There’s no guy who could meet her standards. Right? Yeah, definitely not. Everyone has wet dreams once a month, don’t they? Mine just happen to be twice a month.

“Kyugo-senpai, you too. Don’t disappoint Nakano.”

“Well, but, you know, I’m only human… My nails grow, and sometimes I drool…”

“That’s not the issue here. What’s more important is… What was that nonsense during the meeting? That wasn’t the Kyugo-senpai I know.”

“Ah, right…”

That’s all I could say.

Yeah, that’s right. There’s definitely a reason Nakano sees Maika as a threat, and it’s my fault. Two days ago, I gave her that reason myself. I proved to everyone that while any other guy could easily meet her criteria, I couldn’t.

I confessed, in front of the entire baseball team, that I’m a siscon.

Not my true feelings, of course. I never spoke about how my “like” for Maika is based on romantic emotions. That’s something I’ve never shared and never will.

Instead, I played the role of an overprotective big brother as a self-deprecating joke, letting myself be teased to camouflage my true feelings. I made a deliberate choice to accept—or rather, actively embrace—the “siscon” label within the team and at school. By doing so, I ensured no one would ever suspect the truth: that my feelings for Maika couldn’t simply be dismissed as jokes about being a siscon or an overprotective brother. What I’m harboring is far more immoral and taboo.

The whole “pretending to have a bad relationship to hide my true feelings” thing I’d done before? That was just me trying to act cool. There was no need to fake anything so excessively—I’m not that strong.

The team’s reaction? Completely indifferent.

“Yeah, we knew that already,” and, “Obviously, you’re a siscon,” were about the extent of it.

It’s not like Maika or Riko showing up to watch my games was a secret. Honestly, when it comes to physical displays of affection in public, Riko is the clingier one. And since I have no romantic feelings for her, I’ve got no problem playing along and being openly affectionate with her in front of others. That’s probably the biggest reason everyone already pegged me as a siscon.

But no one has realized that the affection I feel for Riko is entirely different from what I feel for Maika. If anyone had figured that out, I wouldn’t have a place here anymore.

For a brief, fleeting moment, I allowed myself to imagine a future where I could introduce Maika to my teammates, classmates, and family as someone I’m “seriously dating.” But I quickly shut that dream down. There’s no point in indulging in meaningless fantasies—they only leave me feeling empty.

Still, all that drama essentially erased any drawbacks to Maika becoming the manager. On top of that, I even got to declare, “Anyone who looks at my sister in a perverted way is dead.” Talk about a win-win.

That said, Nakano’s reaction was different. She didn’t say a word. She didn’t blink. She just stared at me. It was terrifying. But honestly, Maika, who was fidgeting shyly beside me, was so cute that I completely forgot about Nakano. If I ever introduced Maika as someone I was “seriously dating,” Nakano would probably pass out on the spot.

“And also…”

Nakano’s gaze flicked briefly to Maika’s face.

“On top of that, a woman who dresses so indecently has no place beside Kyugo-senpai. It’s also against the rules of the baseball team…”

She’s probably talking about Maika’s hair.

It’s true, the rules prohibit dyeing hair. But I got that rule abolished. It wasn’t a written rule anyway, and it was easy enough to convince the coach and team members to overturn it.

The key in situations like this is to persuade the person with the most decision-making power in the group. That’s the kind of person everyone else tends to follow.

So, who’s the opinion leader of our baseball team? Old man Watanabe is a gout-ridden coward obsessed with staying in his granddaughter’s good graces. The captain is… well, just the captain. And as for me, the ace pitcher and cleanup hitter… I’m, uh, uncut.

So naturally, the person with the most sway is the chief manager, Ogikubo-senpai.

I persuaded Ogikubo-senpai—or rather, I bribed her.

Before negotiating, I asked Maika if she knew anything about Ogikubo-senpai’s demands or weaknesses that I could use. That’s when I learned… apparently, Ogikubo-senpai and the captain have been harboring mutual crushes on each other.

Seriously? Even now, I still can’t believe it. I knew they were childhood friends, but… I didn’t need to know that. Well, I did ask, and once I knew, I used the information. But still, they’re the least romantic pair imaginable.

Armed with that knowledge, we devised the “Ogikubo-Mitaka Hook-Up Operation.” Essentially, we exploited Ogikubo’s very specific kinks—she’s into control and “release management.” Yeah, it was anything but romantic.

It wasn’t some grand scheme. Maika encouraged Ogikubo-senpai to take the leap, and I convinced the captain that abstinence and avoiding porn would improve his focus and earn him a regular spot on the team. Sure, the science on testosterone and performance is inconclusive, but there’s no doubt porn and addiction harm us as athletes. Moderation is key, and excessive ejaculation isn’t going to help anyone’s game.

And so, after some back-and-forth, Ogikubo-senpai and the captain started dating—or at least something close to it. Ogikubo-senpai was surprisingly cute when she shyly confessed her feelings. It was, unexpectedly, quite the romantic moment.

Of course, there was still the issue of the team’s no-dating policy. Ogikubo-senpai and the captain were the biggest proponents of that rule, so they couldn’t exactly backtrack without losing face.

That’s where I came in.

I proposed abolishing the no-dating rule in exchange for overturning the ban on dyed hair, allowing Maika to keep her adorable blonde locks.

It was a perfect deal. Since I was the one who suggested the no-dating rule in the first place, it was my responsibility to fix it. I pushed the proposal through with sheer determination and enthusiasm, and they reluctantly agreed.

Convincing the other team members was a breeze. Everyone wanted the no-dating rule gone. Whether they could actually get girlfriends was a different story. Some of them were even plotting to steal Tachikawa-san back from the basketball team captain. Again, whether they could pull that off was another story.

As for the hair-dye rule, that was even easier to handle. Most of the team didn’t even know it existed, and no one was against letting the manager look cute. Not that anyone’s allowed to see Maika that way, of course. One old rule was replaced by a new one.

We also clarified that the players don’t have to shave their heads. They’d just been doing it out of peer pressure. Everyone was thrilled about the change. These guys actually believe growing out their hair will make them more attractive. They think the basketball captain’s long hair is why he’s dating Tachikawa-san.

In the end, Maika officially became the baseball team’s manager.

But really, the biggest reason this all worked out was that Maika was already widely accepted—even before she joined. Players, the coach, and even parents had been looking forward to her joining.

Honestly, even if I hadn’t done anything, they would’ve convinced Nakano to accept Maika eventually. Yeah, no doubt about it.