I Was Reincarnated as a Mob in a Completed School Rom-Com Manga, and When I Tried My Best to Cheer Up the Broken Losing Heroines, I Realized I Had Surpassed the Original Story - 33

Chapter 33: Cultural Festival (Nazuna Akaboshi)

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After hearing about Kirari’s painful past, I was so lost in thought that Moe’s subsequent scolding didn’t register in my head at all. Could it be that the real reason Kirari created the Manga Research Club was because she wanted to meet that best friend again? My imagination ran wild.

“Hey, Onii-chan, are you even listening!?”

My sister’s sharp voice snapped me out of my thoughts as I sat properly in the corner of the clubroom.

“Ah, sorry, I’m listening……”

“I thought we could spend the whole day together today……”

Moe’s eyes glistened, wet with emotion.

“S-Sorry! I’ll make it up to you for sure!”

“Then, I want to go to the amusement park……”

“Got it! I promise!”

“But it’s gotta be before the end of the year… I don’t want it to be too cold……”

“I-I’ll figure something out……”

“Hehe. Then I’ll forgive you~”

Her expression changed so quickly to that dazzling, usual smile that I almost suspected she had been faking the tears. And just like that, the long first day of the cultural festival came to a close. Tomorrow, on the second day of the festival, the one-day-only Manga Club idol group ― ‘Colorful’ ― would hold its live performance. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the future of our Manga Research Club rested entirely on this performance. But before that, a trial awaited me that I had to overcome. I had promised to spend the festival roaming around with Nazuna, just the two of us, until the live show started at 3 PM.

“Kazuto-kun, sorry to keep you waiting……”

“No, I just got here too……”

Meeting Nazuna in the courtyard where we had agreed to meet, we exchanged a slightly awkward greeting. Her nurse outfit yesterday had been cute, but the familiar school uniform made her feel more approachable, like a real high school student. Besides, I doubted I could have interacted normally with her in that nurse outfit, so it was almost a relief that she broke my faint hopes.

“Where should we start?”

At my question, Nazuna’s expression was as if she had been waiting for me to ask.

“I want to go to the haunted house……!”

Starting off with the haunted house… I braced myself a little, but puffed out my chest to show my calm, manly confidence. Inside a classroom sealed off by black curtains, someone’s scream echoed every so often. Even though it was still morning, the eerily oppressive atmosphere made me feel as if we had stepped into a world completely isolated from the outside. I wanted to punch the me from five minutes ago, who had been so casually dismissive thinking it was just a typical high school festival attraction. Through the murky view, we slowly and carefully followed the maze-like path according to the route.

“Kazuto-kun…… I’m too scared to open my eyes……”

“I-It’s okay…… I’m watching over you……”

Nazuna’s voice trembled as she gripped my left arm tightly. The soft swell of her upper arm pressing against mine stirred my trained imagination.

“I’ll kill you!!”

“Aaaahhh!”

“Kyaa!”

“Die, yaaaah!!”

“Gyaaahhh!”

“Kyaa!”

For some reason, all the ghosts’ lines had a strangely strong murderous intent. And all of them were aimed at me. It was as if being alongside the most popular girl in school, Nazuna Akaboshi, determined how the rest of the school treated me.

Finally leaving the haunted house, I noticed tears slowly welling in Nazuna’s eyes.

“That was so scary……”

“Yeah, they really went all out… It was so realistic that I almost fainted a few times……”

“But Kazuto-kun protected me from the ghosts the whole time……”

“Th-That was just the bare minimum a man should do……”

“Kazuto-kun…… You were really cool……”

Her shy, upward gaze praising me nearly fried my brain. I felt like I could float up to the heavens right here and there. 

“W-Where to next!?”

“Next, I want to go wherever you want!”

“Speaking of which, I heard Moe and Kirari’s class has a booth where you can make handmade accessories… Maybe we could try that……?”

Nazuna’s face flamed bright red at my suggestion.

“C-Can we make matching accessories too……?”

“Y-Yeah… I think that should be possible……?”

“I want to go! I want to make them! I want them to be treasures!”

Nazuna’s eager little bursts came at me one by one, her face almost within reach.

“W-Wait―”

Her face was so flawless it made me want to smudge it with a permanent marker just to break the purity of it.

“Ah! I-I’m s-sorry……!”

Flustered, she turned her face away, covering it with her hands and crouching down.

“W-What’s wrong……?”

“I got too excited and rushed things. This isn’t proper, is it? I should behave more gracefully……”

“You don’t need to worry about that. Nazuna, you’re already perfectly charming as you are”

“Kazuto-kun… Then tell me, which version of me do you like……?”

Nazuna only turned her face toward me, still avoiding direct eye contact.

“As long as it’s you, I don’t mind anything. You don’t have to force yourself to dress up as someone else.” 

Hearing this, Nazuna sprang up, grabbed my hands with both of hers, and said to me.

“I’ve finally made up my mind!”

“Made up your mind about what……?”

“That’s still a secret!~♪”

Saying this, she laughed, looking refreshed and somehow radiant. She was both dazzling and elegant.

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