I Reincarnated as a Mob Character in a Romcom Manga—After I Kept Comforting the Third “Fanservice” Heroine When She Got Dumped and Cried, I Feel Like She’s Started Directing Some Seriously Heavy Feelings at Me - Chapter 55 & 56

Chapter 55: The Gloomy Mob Starts Training

“Eh? You want me to introduce you to my martial arts master?”

Just as she was about to take a sip of her Mitsuya Cider, Chloe Mitsushima stopped and stared at me in surprise.

“Yeah.”

I nodded and took a sip of my Pocari Sweat.

“Since you’ve already figured it out, I won’t hide it anymore. I remembered my past life. In that life, I was seriously ill. I had a heart condition. I wasn’t even allowed to run around—hell, the doctor wouldn’t even let me walk properly.”

Back then, even standing on my own two feet and crossing a room wasn’t something I could do freely.

But now?

This heart felt brand new. I could probably sprint as much as I wanted without collapsing.

That’s why I made my decision.

“I’ve never really exercised before. Not in my past life, and not even after being reborn as Reiji Jeromiya. Before I remembered everything, I apparently used to look down on sports. Thought it was something only meathead idiots did.”

“Whoa… that’s kind of creepy. Is that what it’s like to remember a past life? You can look at yourself that objectively? That’s… unsettling.”

“Seems like it. It’s almost like my past life’s memories overwrote Reiji Jeromiya’s. But the me right now isn’t like that. I finally have a healthy body. I want to move it. I want to push it to its limits.”

I took another sip of Pocari to wet my throat before continuing.

“You’re amazing at martial arts and all that, right? So I figured asking you would be the fastest way.”

At that, she let out a thoughtful “Hmm…”

“I see. Okay, I get why you’d think that, Jeromiya. But if that’s the case, couldn’t you just join one of the sports clubs? Baseball, soccer, something like that?”

“I considered it. But the old Reiji Jeromiya was way too much of a total amateur. If it’s a team sport, I’d probably just drag everyone down.”

“My master is super strict, you know? He’s built like a walking muscle statue. Sure you can keep up?”

“That’s part of what I want to find out. I want to test myself. And besides… you remember what happened the other day, right? I got beaten down one-sided by a whole group. I honestly felt pathetic from the bottom of my heart.”

I stared out into the distance.

Across the massive school grounds of Seiran Private Academy—home to one of the top sports programs in the country—the soccer and track teams were running hard, sweat scattering into the air.

Their bodies looked honed. Sharp. As if every bit of excess had been carved away.

They didn’t look like ordinary high schoolers. They looked complete.

Forget technique—if Reiji Jeromiya had at least possessed a body like theirs back then, maybe… just maybe, I could’ve rescued Chloe in a cooler, cleaner way.

“I just… felt it deep down. I have to get at least a little stronger. Strong enough not to be dead weight. If I can’t even manage that, there’s no way I can keep calling myself the war buddy of someone as dazzling as you…”

Stronger.

Back in my past life—when I was a sickly guy who didn’t even know if I’d see tomorrow—that was something I never even dared to wish for.

I was so weak that even a cold breeze could spike a fever and land me in the ICU.

But now?

I’d already died once.

And somehow, I’d been given a new role—Reiji Jeromiya.

I finally had a healthy body.

There was no way I wanted to waste it doing nothing.

This was the first real wish I’d ever had in my life.

And it was a wish born from meeting Chloe Mitsushima.

Well… sure, if someone wants to laugh and say, “Since when does a gloomy loner talk like that?” I can’t really argue.

I took another sip of Pocari.

Beside me, Chloe let out a soft, knowing laugh.

“…So basically, Jeromiya, you like me and want to get strong enough to protect me. That’s what this is about, right?”

I instantly sprayed Pocari everywhere and choked.

“Geh—! Gah—! Cough, cough—!”

While I desperately tried to clear the liquid that had invaded my windpipe, Chloe watched with a shameless, teasing grin.

“H-Hey! That’s not what I meant…!”

“Oh, come on. Don’t get all shy on me. I actually like that about you, you know? The part where you seriously think about things and try to act on them.”

She said it so directly that my face heated up again.

I quickly looked away, pretending I hadn’t heard.

But she scooted closer, pressing her hip lightly against mine.

“Jeromiya, you’re really simple—and seriously devoted. Even if you had a sickly past life, most guys wouldn’t think this honestly just because something happened. And saying you want to get stronger because you like me and want to protect me? That’s basically a roundabout proposal. You seriously like me way too much, don’t you?”

“S-Shut up. Is it so wrong to think that way? What about you—do you not like it?”

“Nope. I’m actually really happy. Knowing you were thinking like that makes me happy. Hmm… if you feel that strongly about me, I guess I can’t refuse.”

“Alright.”

Chloe nodded with a small, satisfied smile.

“Alright, I get what you’re thinking now. I’ll ask my master if he’ll train you.”

“Oh, seriously!?”

“But just so you know—my master is really strict. You’d better be ready. You’re starting from basic stamina training, so it’s going to be brutal. Think you can handle it with the power of your love for me?”

“I can’t promise anything. But I’ll give it my best shot. I’ll finally make proper use of all the body cells I’ve been letting go to waste.”

“Good. Then it’s settled. Do your best, Jeromiya.”

We looked at each other and laughed there on the school bench.

◆

“…I see. So after that incident, you want to train yourself. Onii-sama, you’re so simple.”

“S-Shut up. What’s wrong with being simple? Even if I was outnumbered, getting beaten up like that was just… humiliating.”

“What’s humiliating isn’t that you got beaten up. It’s that you charged into a den of thugs alone, with no plan and no weapon. That’s just poor judgment.”

Eru placed her hands on her hips and began lecturing me.

“War isn’t won with brute strength. It’s won with brains. The fact that you can ignore that lesson and just assume ‘If I get stronger, everything will work out’ really shows how conveniently your mind is built, Onii-sama.”

“Give me a break! The situation back then was insane! And I did ask you to get a teacher before I went in! That’s why it only ended as an attempt in the first place!!”

“Haah… fine. If even a hopeless gloomy introvert like you is this serious about it, then I suppose you do have some determination.”

Even while sounding exasperated, Eru seemed to acknowledge my resolve.

“And besides,” she continued,

“I don’t think it’s a bad thing. For a loner Onii-sama who never had a single friend to be influenced by his one and only friend, Chloe-san, and say something like this… that just proves you’ve made a real friend. Especially someone completely opposite from you. For that, well done.”

“O-Oh… really? Thanks. I appreciate the praise.”

“Though it’s a rather pitiful kind of praise, if we’re being honest. …So, Onii-sama, don’t you dare quit after a few days and ruin the nice thing I just said.”

“I know, I know. When such a cute little sister says that much, her big brother has to try his best. I’ll push myself until I look like Sylvester Stallone.”

As I said that, I reached over and ruffled her head.

“Mmgh…”

She made a small protesting sound—but didn’t move away, letting me pat her in silence.

Chapter 56: The Sharp-Tongued Tsundere Who Doubts Everything

The next day at lunch, for once, I was alone.

I sat on my usual steps behind the school building, chewing on a sweet bun I’d bought from the school store.

…Man.

Just a little while ago, I hadn’t thought anything of it.

But today it tasted bland. Empty.

I let out a sigh, pulled out my phone, and opened LINE.

Then I reread the message from my beloved war buddy.

On the chat screen, right under a photo of Chloe Mitsushima loosening the buttons of her school shirt to boldly show off her cleavage, was the following message:

『Got a shoot today, so I’m off! Don’t cry just because I’m not there! Also, you’re allowed to use this pic as material up to three times!』

“Damn you, fanservice heroine… you shameless exhibitionist…! I’m so grateful I might actually cry…!”

Whoa. Her boobs are practically glued together in that picture. In summer they’d probably get all warm and sweaty and smell ridiculously sexy…

I stared at her cleavage, heart pounding, already deciding I’d make good use of it later—

When suddenly—

An overwhelming wave of loneliness hit me.

So that’s it.

For the past month, I’d forgotten.

Because someone as bright and dazzling as the sun had been by my side every single day.

But originally… I was a loner.

And being a loner?

It’s way harder than I remembered.

Having no one to talk to.

No one you can believe truly understands you.

It’s brutal.

“Say, Reiji Jeromiya… why the hell were you such a loner…?”

While chewing on my sweet bun, I found myself asking that question out loud—to the version of me from before I regained my memories.

How did you endure this kind of suffocating loneliness…?

No matter how much I searched through Reiji Jeromiya’s old memories, I couldn’t find an answer.

So I kept going.

“I don’t really get it, but if you’d just greeted people properly, you probably could’ve managed at least one or two casual friends. Were you really too lazy to even do that? Was something that small really such a burden that you chose this kind of loneliness instead?”

Of course, asking myself didn’t mean I’d get a reply.

The sweet bun in my hand was almost gone, and I hadn’t tasted a single bite.

I glanced at my phone.

Forty more minutes left of lunch break.

Forty minutes without talking to anyone.

Forty minutes of just sitting here, listening to the steady beat of my brand-new heart.

This might be the most pointless forty minutes of my entire life…

That thought hit harder than I expected, and my shoulders slumped.

“This is bad… I finally got reincarnated, so I should at least try to make real friends from now on. Being a loner sucks. It’s like pressing a nurse call button and no one comes running. That’s an emergency. A full-blown emergency…”

Just as I was muttering and scolding myself for being such a pathetic loner—

Crunch.

The sound of footsteps on gravel.

I looked up.

“…Um, you’re Reiji Jeromiya-kun, right?”

Huh—?

No way. This is—

The sweet bun slipped right out of my hand.

A voice lower than you’d expect from a girl. 

Calm. Cool. 

Almost cold enough to freeze early summer itself.

A single strand of hair curved proudly above her head—an unmistakable ahoge that screamed main heroine.

Her long black hair, tied with a red ribbon, fluttered in the breeze. She gently held it down with a pale hand that looked carved from white porcelain.

If Chloe Mitsushima was the blazing summer sun in a clear blue sky—

If Kanade Nikaido was a bright wildflower basking in spring—

Then this girl…

The moment you saw her, you’d be overwhelmed.

Her beauty wasn’t just pretty—it was dangerous.

Like a winter spirit that could freeze everything alive and make it kneel at her feet.

Miyuki Hitotsuba.

The main heroine of this rom-com world, Schrödinger’s Love.

The sharp-tongued tsundere archetype herself.

And right now, she was standing in front of me, looking slightly unsure.

“Ah—uh—w-whoa…! Y-You’re… Miyuki Hitotsuba, right?”

I stammered so badly it hurt.

She nodded.

“…Yes.”

Then, avoiding my eyes for a moment, Miyuki Hitotsuba slowly opened her mouth.

“I’m sorry for coming up to you so suddenly… but I’d like to talk with you for a bit. Do you have some time?”

—Whoa, whoa, whoa, what is this? What kind of plot twist is this?

Completely confused, I still managed to nod.

“Y-Yeah, sure.”

Miyuki Hitotsuba looked slightly relieved.

She stepped down a few stairs and sat a couple of steps below me, letting out a short breath.

“I heard that lately you’ve been eating lunch here with Mitsushima-san. …Is she not with you today?”

“A-Ah, yeah. Chloe has work today, so she’s off.”

“Chloe… I see. I’ve heard that the two of you have become extremely close over the past month.”

“Y-Yeah, I guess that’s true. Wait, so it really is a rumor? About us?”

“Of course it is. A girl with such an eye-catching… chest… suddenly getting close to someone as plain-looking as you? It’s like all the stars in the night sky suddenly lining up in a straight row.”

With that, Miyuki Hitotsuba turned slightly and stared directly at my face.

Her sharp, icy gaze locked onto me without blinking.

“…W-What?”

“No… I was just wondering. How did someone like you—who seems, well, kind of quiet—manage to get close to that boob monster?”

At that, her eyes narrowed, and she glared straight at me.

“Don’t tell me you’re blackmailing Mitsushima-san over something and forcing your way into her life? I did a bit of digging, you know. I heard you didn’t really have any close friends before. So why are you suddenly with Mitsushima-san? Or is it that you had some dirty motive from the start and got close to her because—”

“T-That’s not it! Sure, I was a loner before, I can’t deny that! But we just happened to connect over something and got closer, that’s all!”

“What ‘something’?”

“Uh—well, to be honest… she got rejected by Yaohara, right? I happened to be there when she was crying about it. I comforted her. That’s how it started.”

“…Huh?”

Miyuki Hitotsuba froze, completely caught off guard.

Then, slowly, she nodded as if something finally clicked.

“A-Ah… I see. So that’s how it happened. Mitsushima-san did say she got rejected by Yaohara-kun…”

“Y-Yeah. I just happened to be nearby. She was crying, so I handed her a handkerchief and tried to comfort her. After that, we started talking more often, and somehow we became close.”

“I see. I’m sorry for doubting you. Instead of holding something over Mitsushima-san, you were actually comforting her…”

For a moment, Miyuki Hitotsuba looked genuinely relieved.

But then her eyes sharpened again.

“Still—Yaohara-kun, that idiot…! He really never understands a girl’s feelings. I bet he rejected Mitsushima-san in some horrible way that left emotional scars. Unforgivable. I should give him about thirty low kicks later and teach him a lesson—!”

“N-No! Yaohara didn’t reject her in a horrible way! He turned her down properly, like a gentleman! There’s nothing for you to get mad about!”

“It’s not ‘nothing.’ That guy is always drifting from girl to girl. If he couldn’t return Mitsushima-san’s feelings, he should’ve made it clear much earlier. Instead, he stayed vague for over a year and then rejected her, doubling the damage when he finally did—!!”

What is she even trying to do?

She suddenly shows up out of nowhere, accuses me of something shady, clears me of suspicion, and then immediately starts unloading her fury onto Nayuta Yaohara.

Why did she come all the way here just to talk to someone like me?

While I stood there, completely lost, Miyuki Hitotsuba clenched her fist tightly.

“I absolutely will not forgive Yaohara-kun! Hurting her like that is inexcusable! After all, Mitsushima-san is my precious—fr—!”

She suddenly cut herself off.

“Hm?”

I looked at her.

Still clenching her fist, Miyuki Hitotsuba froze with her mouth slightly open.

And then—

Like a kettle starting to boil, her face turned bright red at an alarming speed.

“F-F—frie…! F-Fri—fri…! Mitsushima-san is my f-f-fri—!! Hah—hah…! F-Frie, f-frien…!”

She was bright red, eyes darting everywhere, even beginning to sweat as she stuttered uncontrollably.

Watching her melt down like that…

I slowly nodded in my heart.

—Ahh, right. That’s how she is.

It had been a while, but my knowledge of the original Schrödinger’s Love finally clicked back into place.

And without missing a beat, I decided to throw her a lifeline.

“—Friend, right?”

“Ugh…!? Y-Yes, that’s right! F-Fri… f-friend! That’s what she is!”

Like she had finally forced the word out, Miyuki Hitotsuba stood there with her black hair slightly disheveled, breathing hard.

Wow…

When I read the original story, I thought her tsundere reactions were funny.

But seeing it happen right in front of me?

It was… painfully awkward.

I looked at her with deep sympathy.

“Yeah… that’s right. Hitotsuba. You don’t really have any friends besides Nikaido and Chloe. I mean, sorry to put it bluntly, but you’re basically a loner too, huh.”

◆

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