I Just Wanted a Peaceful Life After Transferring, but I Fell into a Rom-Com Trap and a Hidden Battlefield No One Knows About - Chapter 09: We Who Got Swiftly Swept Up By Rumors

Chapter 9: We Who Got Swiftly Swept Up By Rumors

“What are we gonna do? The rumors just keep getting worse and worse…”

I couldn’t take it anymore. And I figured Tsunekawa was probably at her limit too. So during lunch break, I secretly called her to a secluded corner where no one else was around to talk about this.

“Sorry, I never thought it would turn out like this.”

“It’s not your fault. You were just worried about my injury. The real problem is—what do we do now?”

“I called Ouka and Ayana too. Let’s all figure this out together.”

“Huh? Are you serious? Just the two of us sneaking around to talk like this is already risky enough. If those two come as well, won’t we get caught and make things even worse?”

“It’s fine. No one ever comes here. Relax. Oh—there they are.”

Tsunekawa glanced toward the corner, and when I followed her gaze, I saw Nakano and Satohama walking toward us.

“Yo, Nagisa-chan~”

“Hello, Misaki-kun~”

Nakano and Satohama greeted us cheerfully, waving with bright smiles. Satohama, as usual, was acting way too familiar with me—even though we’d literally just met.

“O-Oh…”

Still… how can they be laughing like this? Do they not realize the situation we’re in?

“Alright, let’s talk about how we’re gonna deal with these rumors.”

“Actually, I don’t think we need to.”

Satohama spoke with a big grin.

…She doesn’t care about the rumors at all? Don’t tell me she’s planning to just let the misunderstanding continue?

“Honestly, I feel the same.”

Wait, Nakano too?! You guys might be fine with it, but I’m not!

“No, we have to come up with a solution. Letting people keep misunderstanding us isn’t an option.”

As expected of Tsunekawa, my classmate—she sees things the same way I do!

“If anyone asks, we can just say we took Misaki-kun to the infirmary because he was injured. He was wiping blood off his forehead with a handkerchief, right? Even an idiot could tell he was hurt.”

No, no, no! That logic is totally flawed! Sure, that’s the truth, but most people didn’t see what happened firsthand. They’re only hearing the rumors, and they’re not going to bother verifying the truth.

To them, the rumors are the truth now. They’ve already accepted them as “objective reality.”

…But there’s one thing that’s been bothering me.

They had no prior connection to me—so why did they suddenly decide to help me to the infirmary? And why were they even in that mostly empty bathroom in the first place?

I don’t think they’re scheming anything, but still… it’s a little suspicious.

“Now that you mention it… something’s been bugging me.”

“Huh? What is it?”

“How did you even know about what happened back then, Satohama?”

“Oh, Momiji-chan told me!”

“Tsunekawa?”

“Yeah, I happened to see some delinquents in the hallway, and they were the exact same guys from the train that morning. When I saw you running after them, I thought, No doubt about it! It’s those guys from before! I figured you were going after them for revenge. After all, they really roughed you up this morning. I was worried you’d get hurt again, so I followed you. Then I saw you go into the bathroom with them.”

“And then Momiji-chan came to tell me. Since there wasn’t much time, Ayana-chan ran ahead, but she couldn’t catch up to you.”

“I see…”

That explains how they all ended up together later.

“The real problem is, we’re the only ones who know the truth. If we try too hard to explain ourselves, it’ll just make us look like we’re hiding something. But like Ouka said, even if we tell the truth, there’s no guarantee they’ll believe us.”

“Then we just have to beat the crap out of anyone who doesn’t believe us!”

Too violent! I can’t believe Satohama just said something like that with a straight face!

“Satohama-san, no violence!”

I hurriedly objected. If she actually went through with it, she could probably take down most guys with just a few hits. And if that’s how we “resolved” things, wouldn’t the guys she beat up be the real victims? It’s not like they committed some unforgivable crime…

“If we can’t do this or that, then what can we do? This is so annoying.”

You don’t have to say it—I know it’s annoying! That’s exactly why I called Tsunekawa to talk about it.

“Then maybe we should just ignore it? If we act normal around each other, the rumors will eventually die down on their own.”

Nakano suggested, then looked around for everyone’s opinions.

Wait, wait, wait! What do you mean by that?! If we ignore it, isn’t that the same as admitting it’s true?!

And what do you mean by “act normal around each other”? As friends? Just as classmates?

“That’s actually a good idea.”

“I agree!”

Tsunekawa and Satohama both sided with Nakano.

“Wait, hold on. I don’t get it…”

“Huh? Nagisa-chan, are you just too dumb to understand?”

“Hey! I’m not dumb! Satohama-san, isn’t that a little harsh? I just don’t get what you guys are trying to say.”

“Misaki-kun, what’s confusing you?”

Tsunekawa asked, noticing my puzzled expression.

“Why do we have to ignore it? Wouldn’t that be the same as admitting it’s true? And why do we have to act like we’re close? That just makes it seem like the rumors are right.”

“You’re misunderstanding. Ouka didn’t mean it that way. Ignoring it is just so we don’t make things worse. And when we say ‘act normal,’ we don’t mean fueling the rumors—we just mean showing that we’re normal friends, nothing more.”

Hmm… I kinda get it, but I kinda don’t.

“Anyway, let’s go with this plan! I’m sure it’ll work!”

Nakano puffed out her chest and declared confidently.

Well… since I’m in the minority here, I’ll just go along with it for now.

It’s not that I actually think this is the best way.

I just don’t have much of a choice when Tsunekawa and Satohama are both on board with it.