I Realized I Was the Cheating Bastard in a Hentai Manga only after I Had Already Stolen the Heroine - 25-26

Chapter 25: This Looks Familiar

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It was already mid-summer vacation. As usual, Kyouko and I were out on a date. Today we had gone to a cat café to play around with the cats, and after that we came to the shopping mall to grab dinner.

“Shuuya, you’re popular with cats too, huh?”

“At least say they liked me… Being told I’m popular with males doesn’t make me very happy…”

“Fufu, you were covered head to toe in cats, after all.”

Thanks to that, I had a hard time brushing off the fur… Well, I couldn’t say it felt bad having them flock to me.

“So, what should we eat? Anything you’re craving?”

“Hmm… Something light! Japanese food! …Soba!”

“Got it. I think this mall has soba, right?”

Well, that was probably why she chose soba in the first place. I doubted Kyouko would pick a place that wasn’t even here. As we were walking toward the soba shop—

“…Huh? Isn’t that the President-san?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah, that’s definitely the President.”

What Kyouko had spotted was our student council president and classmate, Kanae Ryuugasaki, standing at a cosmetics shop a little ahead of us. Top of the class, spotless in conduct, entrusted with the position of student council president as a second-year.

She’d scolded me more than once last year about my appearance, but over time we grew friendly enough to talk normally.

…Wait a second. This situation… I’ve seen this before.

“…Hey, doesn’t President-san look kinda jittery?”

“Yeah… She seems a little suspicious…”

“Ah…! …Did you see…?”

Kanae slipped a lipstick from the display case into her bag. Just as I thought… But now that I’d seen it, I couldn’t ignore it.

“We can’t just overlook this. Let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

We hurried to call out to Kanae before she could leave the shop.

“President.”

Kanae, who hadn’t noticed us at all until then, literally jumped in shock.

“Wha—what… Hiiragi and… Takanashi…?”

“President, put back the lipstick you just put in your bag. Right now. If you do that, we’ll keep quiet.”

“…!”

The quickest way to prove a shoplifter guilty was to state exactly what they took and where they put it. Kanae’s face drained pale at once. No—paler than pale, almost white.

“President, it’s not too late yet. If you haven’t left the store, you won’t be charged with anything, okay?”

Strictly speaking, the act of shoplifting was already complete the moment she put the item into her bag, and she could be detained. But I wasn’t about to say anything that heartless.

“I… I understand… I’ll do as you say…”

Kanae took the stolen item out of her bag and put it back on the shelf. …Fortunately, it seemed the clerk hadn’t noticed. We left the store just like that.

Yeah, there was no doubt about it… This was exactly like in the manga. Yes. Kanae Ryuugasaki was one of the NTR heroines in the original manga.

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Chapter 26: What Should I Do…?

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Kanae Ryuugasaki was a proper young lady from a good family. And, unbelievably enough for someone her age, she even had a fiancé. In the manga, she was caught shoplifting on video by me, and I blackmailed her, saying that if she didn’t want the video to spread, she’d have to have sex with me.

On top of that, even the sex itself was filmed, and she couldn’t stop herself from getting entangled with me. Eventually, she was betrayed by her fiancé, and ended up ruining herself. Of course, I wouldn’t do anything like that. But I couldn’t just pretend I hadn’t seen the shoplifting, so I called out to her.

Kanae was walking behind us, her head down. She was looking very dejected. Kyouko and I talked as we walked, trying to figure out what to do next.

“Okay, Shuuya. What should we do from here? We can’t just part ways like this, right?”

“Yeah, that’s true… To begin with, when people shoplift, it’s mostly not because of money problems. Most of them are looking for a thrill, something like a coping mechanism. As we all know, the President comes from a wealthy family. She’s definitely not struggling for money, so I suspect she was looking for a thrill too. Sorry, Kyouko, but do you think you can listen to the President’s story and help her up somehow?”

“Yeah, I got it. In that case, let’s go somewhere quiet with a few people. President, is it okay if we walk outside for a bit?”

“Yeah… I’ll do whatever you two say…”

She really had given up on herself… We had to do something about this…

We left the mall and went to a nearby park. Even though the sun had gone down, the heat still lingered. But there weren’t any people around, so it was a good place to talk.

“Alright then, sorry. Kyouko, I’m counting on you.”

“Okay. Leave it to me~♪”

“…Hiiragi, are you going somewhere?”

“Well, it’d be kinda off to just say goodbye after seeing something like that. I thought I’d at least hear you out, but it’s easier to talk to Kyouko than to a guy like me, right? I’ll stay at the park entrance and make sure no one comes.”

“…No, Hiiragi, you can stay. It was the two of you who caught me. I’ll tell you both everything…”

We probably looked like we were trying to intimidate her into confessing… Well, to be fair, it wasn’t completely off the mark either. After all, Manga-me really did blackmail her to ruin.

“…Hey, President? Shuuya said that people who shoplift are looking for a thrill. Is that true for you too…?”

“Thrill… Ah, maybe so…”

“…Were you dissatisfied with your everyday life?”

“…Dissatisfied, huh. …You know, my family is fairly wealthy and I’m aware that they’ve given me a good life. I know it’s pretty ungrateful for someone in my position to complain…”

“Even if you’re wealthy and live a good life, dissatisfaction still happens. That’s just how people are.”

“Did you hate the path your parents laid out for you…?”

“…I wonder? It’s true, I’m expected to inherit my parents’ business eventually… And my marriage partner has already been decided… But I’ve already accepted it. I respect my parents, and I’m proud to be able to take over after them.”

“Then do you have complaints about your marriage partner… Your fiancé?”

“…I think he’s a good person. He always smiles, he supports me, he’s a sincere man.”

“The way you’re saying it, it sounds like there’s something there, though?”

Well, I already knew why from the manga.

“Yeah. Originally, our marriage was a political arrangement. And my family is the stronger one.

My fiancé is named Seiji Agasa. Seiji-san’s company has been in decline recently…”

Kanae kept speaking with her eyes downcast.

“Our family wants the knowledge of his company’s field. But it doesn’t have to be Seiji-san’s company specifically. On the other hand, he has no choice but to cling to my family. Because of that power balance, sometimes Seiji-san seems afraid of me. Like he’s hiding his feelings so he won’t incur my displeasure. I guess that’s where my dissatisfaction came from.”

Yeah, that’s probably part of it. But I know it’s not just that. I know, but how should I tell her…

“Well, that’s the end of my boring complaints. Do whatever you want with me now. But if possible, please don’t go after my family. If you promise that, I’ll do anything.”

“Hmm, we don’t actually plan on doing anything to you, President… Don’t you trust us?”

“Sorry. I know both you and Hiiragi enough to believe you wouldn’t do something like that. But I’ve also been taught that there’s a world where people exploit you once you show weakness. Trusting is difficult. I know I’m saying something awful to the two of you who stopped my crime before it happened…”

“Well, it’s true we’re the ones holding your weakness here… …Hm? Holding it one-sidedly…? Ah. …Nihi♪”

Oh? It looks like Kyouko just thought of something.

That side, she had the look of a mischief brat though. Like she just thought of a prank or something. 

“Then, maybe I’ll give you one order~♪ Hey, President? Let me borrow your phone with the camera on, okay?”

“Ah, yeah… If it’s just that. …Here, take it.”

“Thanks♪ Hey, Shuuya~♡ Take off your pants and show me your butt~♡”

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