I Was Helping Out With The Harem Plan Of The Romcom Protagonist I Admired, But Now That I’ve Realized He’s A Scumbag, Next Time I’m Going To Stop It And Make The Girls Happy Myself - Chapter 6 & 7 (Cuz posting 50 chapters in a row is exhausting)

Chapter 6: Bullying

The next day.

Once again, Jinguuji and Takasaka-san were talking. Just like yesterday, the instant I stepped into the classroom, Takasaka-san’s cheeks flushed red.

And today it wasn’t just lip color—she’d even taken off her glasses and switched to contacts.

Her beautiful violet eyes were on full display.

Naturally, every guy in the class had his gaze stolen.

But she was already completely hooked on Jinguuji.

Even if someone wanted to talk to Takasaka-san, that spot was already occupied, and no one was even “allowed” to get close.

I could probably force my way into the conversation, but I couldn’t bring myself to do something that tone-deaf.

Because no matter how you looked at it, they were clearly in a good mood together.

Still, that didn’t matter. If I tripped up here, I wouldn’t be able to protect the beautiful girls waiting down the line—let alone my own sister.

I had to steel myself and join their conversation, even if it ended up meaning nothing.

The moment I resolved myself and tried to step in—

“Hey, hold on—”

A girl’s voice called out, and a hand landed on my shoulder.

I whipped my head around and my eyes went wide.

The girl was the second heroine from Jinguuji’s harem.

Hina Kisaragi.

Why was she here…? She wasn’t supposed to show up until later—

“You were looking at that girl. Do you know something?”

And then I remembered.

Hina Kisaragi—the so-called childhood friend slot for the “protagonist.”

A heroine who’d liked him since elementary school.

So she saw her precious “protagonist” talking with another girl… and got jealous.

“Just to confirm—when you say ‘that girl,’ you mean Takasaka-san?”

I asked back, just in case.

“Hm. So her name’s Takasaka. What’s her first name?”

A question answered with a question. It wasn’t even a conversation, but I continued anyway.

“Her full name is Yuzuki Takasaka, but why do you—”

“Yuzuki Takasaka. Got it. Thanks.”

Cutting me off, Hina Kisaragi said only that, then returned to her own class.

We never exchanged names. It ended with the bizarre interaction of me simply handing over someone else’s name.

While that was going on, homeroom started, and in the end I achieved nothing.

Today, once again, Jinguuji and Takasaka-san just got closer.

※

Lunch break after classes ended.

Once again, I assumed Jinguuji and the others were chatting happily in the classroom—except, for some reason, neither of them was there.

My plan, which I’d foolishly thought would be simple, was falling apart. Where did the two of them go?

Without even eating lunch, I searched for them like a stalker.

Cafeteria, rooftop, courtyard—I made the rounds, but they were nowhere.

It’s over.

Just as I was about to fall into despair, I caught sight of long black hair I recognized. It was Takasaka-san.

She disappeared toward the back of the school building, where there were fewer people.

Maybe she’d arranged to meet Jinguuji there.

Unease clawing at me, I followed.

But right as I turned the corner, one student stopped me in my tracks.

That person was—

“Jinguuji…”

The name slipped out, but Jinguuji didn’t seem to care. He looked like he was focused on something else entirely.

“Hey. Could it be… you’re stalking Yuzuki?”

“Huh…?”

I couldn’t hide my shock, and a voice escaped me.

The word “stalking,” coming from Jinguuji’s mouth.

Sure, what I was doing right now was unnatural enough that calling it stalking wouldn’t be wrong.

Even if I hadn’t admitted it to myself, this was absolutely stalking.

Jinguuji stared at me like he was saying, Don’t lay a hand on my woman.

Do I have to back off for now…?

I bit my lip and forced myself to stay calm.

Between me and Jinguuji, a strange atmosphere hung in the air—nothing like what you’d expect from the first day of school.

He looked calm at a glance, but his breath was slightly trembling. Voices of students talking drifted in from the courtyard. And then, suddenly, an angry shout rang out from behind the school building ahead.

Jinguuji and I both turned our eyes toward the sound at the same time.

That direction was the place Takasaka-san had gone alone.

Behind the school building, just as I expected, Takasaka-san was there—and facing her were three girls who clearly didn’t like her, wearing distorted smiles.

“Hey. You’ve been getting way too cocky lately.”

The leader’s smile twisted into something that looked like it was made from the blackest parts of a human being.

“I don’t care if you think your face is cute—quit batting your eyes at people.”

The two girls behind her chimed in, agreeing.

And then the leader threw out another harsh line.

“What, you trying to act fashionable when you’re basically a plain potato girl? Putting on lip color like you’re something special.”

They kept getting more worked up, but they didn’t put their hands on her. At this rate it looked like it would end as verbal abuse only.

If so, then Takasaka-san’s response was the correct one. If they won’t touch you, the most effective move is indifference.

Or at least, it should’ve been.

But Jinguuji decided to do something unnecessary again.

If he’d done nothing, it probably would’ve ended right there—yet Jinguuji, unable to hold back, raised his voice.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

Sure, you could argue Jinguuji’s action was “right.”

But sometimes, even a good deed becomes meddling.

And in Jinguuji’s case, it wasn’t even a good deed. It was just a move to raise a heroine’s affection and make himself the romcom protagonist.

Jinguuji stepped between them as if protecting Takasaka-san. The girls’ leader glared—then, the moment she recognized who he was, she faltered.

Jinguuji met her with a hard stare.

“Tch. Let’s go.”

Grinding her teeth, the leader gave up. The trio returned to the classroom.

This is absolutely bad. He definitely lit a fire in those girls’ hearts. It might look fine now, but later it’ll turn into a bigger mess—maybe even something irreversible.

But Jinguuji, unconcerned, turned back and smiled gently at Takasaka-san.

“You okay, Yuzuki?”

“Yeah. I’m okay. Thanks.”

Takasaka-san thanked him with a delicate little voice.

Watching it, all I could do was stand there, frozen in place.

Chapter 7: The Reason for the Bullying

After school, once all the classes had ended.

Students carrying their bags filed out of the classroom one after another, their voices bright as they chatted about their plans. Jinguuji was among them.

Looks like he had somewhere to be.

In no time, the classroom got swallowed by silence, and the comfortable stillness clung to my skin.

Why is a classroom, after everything’s over, always this cozy? I almost wished this moment could last forever.

And in that absurdly laid-back mood, I was absentmindedly watching one girl.

Takasaka-san finished packing with awkward, unsteady hands, and then three girls led her away somewhere.

The instant I saw it, I snapped back to reality and hurried after them.

I didn’t think there’d be a second call-out on the very same day.

I guess that’s how much the lunchtime incident had gotten under their skin.

※

The four of them headed to another deserted spot, and the leader of the girls’ group immediately fixed Takasaka-san with a stare full of murderous intent.

Takasaka-san’s eyes fled down and to the right, trying to avoid meeting that gaze.

Her body was trembling slightly. Even so, I could feel her stubborn will: she was going to endure it.

“What is it this time?”

Takasaka-san started, keeping her posture firm.

“Listen—”

The girl in front stepped in close, and in a low, grimy voice said:

“You’re annoying. Can you just disappear?”

It wasn’t just an insult—it was a denial of her existence.

Jealousy between girls runs deep.

“Why… why are you doing this to me…?”

That mosquito-small voice made the girl’s face twist.

“I told you already, didn’t I? You’re. An. Noy. Ing.”

The leader pressed in with a harsh tone, right on the verge of throwing a punch.

No—she wasn’t on the verge.

She’d already gotten physical.

Her hand was gripping Takasaka-san’s hand roughly.

“I’ll say it again. Can you disappear?”

The air behind the school building had turned so strange it made lunchtime feel cute by comparison.

And of course, at the one moment that actually mattered, the so-called protagonist wasn’t here.

In a situation like this, the right move is to call a teacher. Before it turns into something bigger, I have to report it.

Disgusted with my own cowardice, I started to head for the staff room—

“Please… stop. You’re bothering me.”

Takasaka-san’s trembling voice stopped my feet.

When I turned back toward the back of the building, I saw her: she’d shaken off the girl’s hand, her legs trembling faintly.

Even while fear gripped her, she still stood up to them. To anyone watching, she looked like a completely different person from the Takasaka-san I knew from my previous life.

She’d grown in such a short time.

Because Jinguuji hadn’t “saved” her, she had to handle it herself—and as a result, she’d grown so much she was unrecognizable compared to before.

In my previous life, Jinguuji stole her chances to grow.

Overprotectiveness can choke off a person’s growth.

And now, in front of that stronger Takasaka-san, was a girl raising her fist high.

Reality is cruel.

If this were a romcom, the protagonist would stop the punch in a cool, dramatic move and protect the girl.

But I can’t do that.

Because I’m not the protagonist. I’m just a person.

So I only had one kind of method available to me.

—Click. Clickclickclickclickclickclickclickclickclick.

The quiet space behind the building was filled with the sound of rapid camera shutters.

Naturally, the girl reacted, freezing her raised fist right in front of Takasaka-san.

“Who’s there!?”

I covered with a lie I came up with on the spot.

“Sorry. I didn’t know anyone was here. I thought no one would come back here, so I was recording a vertical video.”

It was a pathetic excuse.

“Huh? You don’t rapid-fire shots for a vertical video. Quit the weird excuse and delete it. Now.”

“And wait—if you look close, you’re Thief-kun, aren’t you?”

“Oh wow, it really is. Hey, Thief-kun. Can you delete what you just took? We’ll help you out and overwrite that ‘thief’ nickname for you.”

“No. I mean, there’s nothing to delete. I didn’t actually take anything.”

Obviously, that was a lie.

There was no way I was handing over evidence this decisive. But if I didn’t say something like that, who knew what they’d do.

My hope was pointless—they saw through me instantly.

“Don’t screw with me! Like hell you didn’t! Delete it! You thief!”

After that, the two hangers-on joined in, chanting “Thief! Thief!” again and again like they were trying to grind it into me.

I don’t mind being called “thief,” but hearing it right in front of Takasaka-san gave me this weird, itchy discomfort.

From her perspective, I’m just a thief—the guy who tried to shove the blame onto her.

As I stood there feeling miserable, getting branded “thief” over and over, without warning—

“That’s not true!!”

Takasaka-san shouted.

I couldn’t understand what she meant.

“Hah!? What’s not true? Say it.”

“That’s…”

For some reason, Takasaka-san looked at me. The look felt like it meant, Say it yourself.

But really—why were these girls so obsessed with Takasaka-san in the first place?

Sure, she was popular with boys, so jealousy leading to bullying is the easiest explanation—but for some reason my brain rejected it.

Could it be—

“Do you like Jinguuji?”

I wasn’t sure.

But if that was it, then it made sense: she got jealous seeing Takasaka-san close with Jinguuji, and started harassing her.

The moment I said it, the leader’s face flushed bright red, like the answer had hit dead center.

“H-Hah!? Why would it be that! What’s there to even like about a guy like that!?”

“Wait, Anna… that’s what this was?”

So her name was Anna. Anna’s face turned even redder.

“I thought you were bullying Takasaka because guys were into her.”

“Tch…”

Anna looked down for a moment, then—

“It’s not true!!!”

She yelled, then fled on pure embarrassment.

Her two hangers-on hurried after her in a panic.

And just like that, Takasaka-san and I were left alone behind the school building.

I never imagined Jinguuji had been stringing along other girls too.

What a sinful guy—in more ways than one.

“Um…”

More urgent than that, though, was dealing with the girl standing right in front of me, trying to speak.

But there was only one move I could make.

“Oh—right. I’ve got work after this. I need to go.”

“Wait!”

“Bye!”

I hurried away like I was running from Yuzuki Takasaka.

The “work” thing was a lie. I’d already quit my part-time job.

Since I didn’t need money anymore, there was no point continuing. What I needed now was time to think about how to stop the “harem plan.”

That was the excuse.

The truth was, being alone with Takasaka-san felt awkward.

Of course it did.

Being alone with the guy who tried to frame you—if the air didn’t turn tense, that would be weirder.

In other words, it was plain old running away.

Hating myself again for how pathetic that was, I stopped by the staff room on my way out and left the school.