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 112: Meeting Kirishima-senpai at Work for the First Time in a While

After finishing a study session with Yukimura, I went straight to my part-time job at the convenience store after returning from school.

“Good work!”

“Yeah, good work—oh! You finally dyed your hair black, Kuzuhara-kun!”

As I entered the store after changing into my uniform, Kirishima-senpai, who had arrived earlier, greeted me with those words.

“Oh, yeah, I finally got it done on my last day off. So, what do you think? Does it suit me?”

“Yeah, yeah! It looks great! You look like a serious and dependable young man now, which is really good!”

“Haha, really? Thanks!”

As promised before, I asked Kirishima-senpai for her opinion on my black hair. She gave me a lot of praise.

“But, you know, anyone who knew your old mischievous look would be shocked to see you now. Didn’t your classmates make a fuss?”

“Well, yeah, they made a bit of a commotion.”

On the first day back with my black hair, all my classmates stared at me, and even Yukimura looked really surprised.

“Haha, I figured. But I really think this look is good for you. I liked the old Kuzuhara-kun with the flashy blonde hair and all those piercings, but the serious young man style suits you too! You’ll definitely be popular now!”

“Seriously? It’s reassuring to hear that from someone as popular with the girls as you, Senpai! But I don’t think just dyeing my hair will suddenly make me popular.”

Kirishima-senpai said I’d be popular, but I just laughed it off.

Sure, the girls in my class have started talking to me more, but this will probably settle down soon.

“No way, you’ll definitely be popular! So, Kuzuhara-kun, do you have a girlfriend now?”

“Oh, no, unfortunately not.”

“Really? Haha, then you should get a girlfriend soon, right? December will be here before you know it.”

“Ah, yeah, you’re right… December will come quickly if I don’t act soon…”

It’s late October now, and at this rate, December will arrive in no time. And December means Christmas, the big event for couples…

(If only I could make use of that event somehow…)

But Yukimura and I aren’t a couple or anything, so making use of Christmas as the ultimate couple’s event is going to be tough…

(But still… if I could spend such a wonderful event like Christmas with Yukimura, it would definitely be fun!)

We’re still just friends, so it might be hard to ask, but there’s more than a month and a half left until Christmas.

So I’ll do my best to become close enough with Yukimura to hang out on Christmas!

“Did you forget about Christmas? So, you don’t have any plans yet, do you?”

“Yeah, that’s right. But I’m planning to try and set something up with a girl for this year’s Christmas!”

“That’s the spirit, Kuzuhara-kun! I’m rooting for you to find a wonderful girlfriend before Christmas!”

“Thank you! What about you, Senpai? Are you going on a date with Mayuka-san for Christmas?”

“Haha, of course! Well, I’m planning to have fun with Mayuka every day this winter, regardless of Christmas.”

“Wow, that’s really enviable!”

Kirishima-senpai said this with a big laugh. It seems like she’s still head over heels for her girlfriend, Mayuka-san, and I can’t help but be a little jealous.

“Oh, that’s right! Can I take a picture of you today? I want to show Mayuka how you look with black hair.”

“Of course, feel free! I’d love to hear her opinion too, so take as many as you want!”

“Haha, got it!”

I wanted to hear Mayuka-san’s honest opinion, so I quickly agreed to Senpai’s request.

“Okay, I’ll take it now… Say cheese!”

“Cheese!”

—Click!

“Got it! I’ll send it to Mayuka and ask for her thoughts. Haha, she’ll probably be really surprised!”

“Yeah, she might be. Let me know what she says when she replies, okay?”

“Of course, I will! Alright, let’s do our best at work today!”

“Yes, let’s! Looking forward to working with you today!”

And with that, I worked hard with Kirishima-senpai as usual.

—

Chapter 113: Early Morning of the Next Day

The next morning.

“Morning!”

“Morning.”

As usual, I arrived at school early, and Yukimura was already seated at her desk, studying. I greeted her and took my seat.

“You’re early today. Did you not stay up late last night?”

“Of course not. I don’t stay up late that often… probably.”

“Haha, I see, I see.”

I joked, and Yukimura responded with a slightly uncertain tone. Judging by her response, she probably stays up late reading novels sometimes.

As we continued our small talk, I noticed a tennis racket case hanging on the side of Yukimura’s desk.

It feels like it’s been a while since I’ve seen her with a tennis racket at school.

“Oh? Do you have practice today?”

“Yeah, I do. We had a break because of midterms, but now that they’re over, practice resumes today.”

“Oh, right. I remember you mentioning that before.”

Now that she mentioned it, I recall Yukimura saying that all the clubs had a break during the exam period.

“So, tennis practice starts again today. Good luck with it. I’m cheering for your tennis club.”

“Thanks. Um, actually…”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Well… um…”

“Huh? Oh, I get it.”

Suddenly, Yukimura started to fidget nervously.

It didn’t take long for me to realize why. So, I…

“Oh, of course, I get it. Just let me know when your match is, and I’ll be there to cheer you on. So, once you know the date, tell me, okay?”

“Okay. When the practice match schedule is decided, I’ll let you know. But it’s probably going to be on a Saturday or Sunday… is that okay?”

“Yeah, as long as I don’t have work, it should be fine. Just let me know once you have the details.”

“Okay, got it.”

I reassured Yukimura that I’d be there to support her at her tennis match. But then, I thought…

(When you think about it, this kind of feels like an event straight out of the main game.)

In the original visual novel, there was an event where Yukimura brought a homemade lunch to cheer on the protagonist at his soccer practice match. It was such a heartwarming youth event.

But what’s different here is that instead of the heroine supporting the protagonist at his practice match, it’s me, the villain, supporting the heroine at hers.

…No, it’s not just a little different. It’s completely different.

(But I’m really happy to get to see Yukimura on the weekend, so I’ll do my best to make a delicious lunch for her!)

I decided that I would make a tasty lunch for Yukimura. Besides, it’s been a while since I made a bento, and I’m looking forward to it.

But now that I think about it, where do we keep the lunch boxes at home? Do we even have any? Hmm, I should probably find some time to organize the house…

“Oh, right. I almost forgot… um…”

“Hm? What now?”

As I was thinking about the bento, Yukimura suddenly stopped writing and pulled something out of her bag, handing it to me.

“Here, this.”

“This is… oh, is this the novel you mentioned yesterday?”

“Yeah, that’s it. It’s a long book, so it might take a while to read, but it’s really good.”

Yukimura handed me the romance novel she had talked about yesterday.

I had imagined it would be a paperback, but it was a slightly larger hardcover book. This definitely looks like it’ll take some time to get through.

“Thanks. I’ll try to read it as soon as I can.”

“There’s no rush. I’ve already read it all, so return it whenever you finish. Take your time reading it.”

“Got it. But I want to discuss it with you soon, so I’ll try to read it quickly.”

“Okay. I’m looking forward to it.”