I Reincarnated as the Villain of an NTR Game, But I Don't Want to Make the Main Heroine Unhappy so I'll Live Earnestly

Chapter 108: A Few Days Later

It was a morning a few days after I had dyed my hair black again.

“Ah, good morning, Kuzuhara-kun.”

“Yeah, good morning.”

While I was sitting at my desk in the classroom, looking at an English vocabulary book, a few classmates started coming in and greeted me.

(Haha, it’s so different from back then.)

Back when I was a blonde delinquent, I made a point of greeting my classmates first. But back then, everyone greeted me with a nervous look. Now, they greet me with a friendly smile. It’s really a pleasant change.

It seems like, little by little, the way the other students see me is changing. I’ve probably managed to shed quite a bit of the delinquent label.

Well, of course, that’s something I’m really happy about, but…

“Ah, Ku-Kuzuhara-kun, g-good morning…!”

“Hm? Ah, good morning.”

“Ah, Kuzuhara-kun, good morning! You came to school early again today!”

“Ah, yeah, good morning. That’s right, I was the first one to arrive in the classroom today.”

But recently, I’ve been getting approached by the girls in class a lot more actively. Just now, two girls who had just entered the classroom came up to talk to me.

“H-heh, is that so? Ah, were you studying in the classroom again today?”

“Yeah, that’s right. I still have a lot of subjects I’m not good at, so I’m trying to work hard.”

“Wow, that’s amazing! The midterm exams just ended, and you’re still working hard. That’s impressive! Ah, but I don’t want to disturb you while you’re studying, so I’ll head back to my seat! See you later!”

“Ah, yeah. Thanks. See you.”

The two girls who had just talked to me went back to their seats after some light chat.

Lately, I’ve been getting approached by the girls in class quite frequently. I also feel like there are more girls glancing at me from a distance.

Well, I kind of understand why the girls’ reactions have changed so drastically. It’s because…

(Well… This guy does look pretty cool, after all…)

It’s because Kuzuma is naturally good-looking. He used to be an intimidating presence with his bleached blonde hair, but his appearance itself has always been quite handsome.

When Kuzuma was a blonde delinquent, he used to spend his nights clubbing, picking up college girls or older women, and partying until morning. That’s the kind of thing only a good-looking guy can get away with…

But to the girls at our school, a delinquent guy with a bunch of piercings and bleached blonde hair was nothing but a source of fear. He wasn’t popular at school, but was instead someone they were scared of.

But after removing all his piercings, dyeing his hair black, always maintaining a gentle expression, and coming to school early every morning to study… Of course, this guy is going to be popular now…

So, it seems like I might be experiencing a bit of a popularity phase right now, but I’m not particularly happy about it. After all, there’s a girl I like.

(…Even so, she’s late today…)

While thinking about that, I pulled out my phone and opened LIME. There were messages from Yukimura.

― Kuzuhara: You seem late today. Is something up?

― Yukimura: Sorry, I overslept a little…

― Yukimura: So, I’d appreciate it if you could study on your own today…

― Yukimura: I’m really sorry (A cute bear bowing down stamp)

That was our conversation from a few minutes ago.

A few days ago, we made a promise to study together every morning, so recently, I’ve been studying with Yukimura early every day. But today, she hadn’t arrived at school yet, which was unusual.

I was a bit worried, so I sent her a message, but it turns out she just overslept.

Since it wasn’t anything like her being sick, I felt relieved. Though, I’m a bit concerned if she’ll make it in time for homeroom…

(Hmm, but still… The fact that I can casually exchange LIME messages with Yukimura like this is a big improvement.)

Lately, I’ve been talking to Yukimura every day at school, and we’ve been exchanging a lot of messages at home through LIME. So, I’ve been getting to talk with her quite often.

I hope to become even closer with Yukimura at this rate.

“Good morning, Kuzuhara.”

“Hm? …Oh, good morning, Kuroki.”

As I was thinking about that, someone suddenly called out to me from behind. When I turned around, I saw my classmate, Shuu Kuroki, standing there.

Kuroki is about 175 cm tall, a slim, good-looking guy. He’s in the basketball club, and he’s a cheerful and bright student. Well, I haven’t talked much with Kuroki, so I don’t know much more about him.

“Kuzuhara, you’re studying again this morning? Haha, you’re always working hard.”

“Hm? Ah, yeah. I’m trying to live seriously from now on.”

“I see, I see. I really like how you’re living now, Kuzuhara! Oh, by the way, there’s still time before homeroom starts. Would you like to chat for a bit?”

“Hm? Ah, sure, I don’t mind at all.”

I immediately accepted Kuroki’s suggestion.

I want to make the most of any opportunity to get along with my classmates, especially if I’m aiming to become a serious high school student.

—

Chapter 109: Becoming Friends with Kuroki

“Thanks. I’ll just take a seat here… there we go.”

Kuroki sat down in the seat next to mine with a smile. I decided to ask him something.

“So, what’s up? Did you want to ask me something since you suddenly wanted to talk?”

“Nah, nothing like that. I just thought I’d like to chat with you, that’s all. Oh, do you not like guys who come on strong like me?”

“Haha, not at all. In fact, I’m glad you came to talk. I was kind of bored since my usual conversation partner is running late today.”

I glanced over at the empty seat in front of me. That seat belonged to Yukimura.

“Oh? You mean your conversation partner is… Yukimura-san, right? I’ve noticed you two have been getting along really well lately. I even heard a rumor that you two were studying together in the library before the midterms. Is that true?”

“Yeah, it’s true. I didn’t want to get any failing grades, so I begged Yukimura to help me study before the midterms in the library.”

“Wow, so that rumor was true. And you were studying that hard for so long? That’s impressive! I barely managed to get through the midterms by cramming the night before. I seriously need to take a page out of your book.”

“Haha, thanks.”

Kuroki complimented me with an impressed look, and I smiled and thanked him.

“But it’s surprising to hear you and Yukimura-san are close. What do you usually talk about with her? Do you have any common topics?”

“No, nothing special. We just talk about ordinary stuff. Like how the last class was tough, what funny TV shows were on yesterday, or some amusing things that happened recently. Just small talk like that. I also ask her about anything I don’t understand in my studies.”

“Hmm, I see. Haha, you really do get along well, don’t you?”

I shared the details of my conversations with Yukimura, and Kuroki laughed as he responded.

“And it’s awesome that you ask her about studying too. It really shows how serious you are about improving. By the way, didn’t you score above average on all your midterms? I was surprised when I saw your name on the grade board.”

“Huh? Oh, you saw the grade board in the hallway too?”

“Of course, I did. Everyone was pretty shocked, you know? They couldn’t believe they saw your name up there.”

At this school, the names of students who score high on exams are posted on a bulletin board in the hallway.

Since I scored above average on all subjects in the recent midterms, my name was up there for the first time in my life.

Maybe that’s one of the reasons why people’s perceptions of me have started to change.

“Wow, I didn’t know people were that surprised. Well, I owe it all to Yukimura for helping me study. I can’t thank her enough.”

“Haha, I see. Yukimura-san is really smart and seems good at teaching. But it’s still surprising that you two are so close. How did you end up becoming friends? I remember thinking you and Mizushima-san didn’t get along well.”

“Huh? How did we…? Well, that’s hard to put into words.”

Kuroki suddenly asked me how we became friends. Well, it’s true that Yukimura and I had a pretty bad relationship before.

(The reason why Yukimura and I, who had a terrible relationship, became friends…)

I folded my arms and thought about it, then gave Kuroki the answer I came up with.

“Well, I think it’s because Yukimura was willing to talk to me, even though I was a good-for-nothing delinquent. And also because she was the only one who talked to me, haha.”

I joked a little as I answered. I really think that our frequent conversations were the key to becoming friends.

“I see. That makes sense. I mean, when you were that flashy blonde delinquent, the rest of us could only watch from a distance… Now that I think about it, treating a classmate like that was definitely not okay… I’m really sorry, Kuzuhara.”

“Huh? Kuroki…”

Kuroki’s attitude suddenly changed from cheerful to serious, and he bowed his head to me.

(…Oh, I see. He’s a good guy too, just like Yukimura…)

Seeing Kuroki bow his head, I thought about how lucky I was to be surrounded by such good people, like Yukimura and Kuroki. There are so many great people in this class…

Yet, I didn’t try to befriend any of them and instead acted like a lone delinquent…

(I really need to reflect on my actions and change…)

I reflected on my past actions and spoke to Kuroki.

“You don’t have to apologize. It’s my fault that people avoided me in the first place. But from now on, I’m aiming to be a serious student… So, I’d appreciate it if you could talk to me more casually from now on.”

“Of course! Hey, why don’t we exchange LIME contacts?”

“Sure, sounds good. Here, I’ll show you my QR code. Can you register me?”

“Got it.”

I took out my phone and quickly exchanged LIME contacts with Kuroki.

“Alright, it’s done. Nice to meet you again. So, can I invite you to hang out sometimes?”

“Yeah, nice to meet you too. Feel free to invite me anytime. Oh, and by the way, I love sweets, so if you’re thinking of inviting me to eat, keep that in mind, haha.”

“Really? You like sweets? That’s surprising! Haha, okay, got it. I know a great crepe place, so I’ll introduce you to it next time.”

“Oh, that sounds awesome. I’m looking forward to hanging out with you.”

And that’s how I became friends with my classmate, Kuroki. We also made plans to hang out together.

(Oh, come to think of it, this is the second classmate I’ve added to my LIME contacts.)

Until now, Yukimura was the only schoolmate whose LIME contact I had. This was the second time I’d exchanged LIME with a classmate. I hope to use this opportunity to get closer to more students.