I Was Reincarnated as the Villain in an NTR Eroge, but Since I Don’t Actually Want to Be a Villain, I’m Just Going to Live Normally - 5

Chapter 5: As I Returned to Class, the Students Started Whispering

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Hmm…Oh, right. Come to think of it, Sakagami is in the literature club, isn’t she?

I realized it immediately. Come to think of it, in the main game there were also scenes where the protagonist spent time with Sakagami in the literature club room, leisurely reading books together. So that meant Sakagami was a girl who loved books. Which also meant…Maybe… I might have just found a way to start a conversation with her.

Alright, then. Let’s try bringing up that topic right away.

“Hey, was it surprising to see me reading a book?”

“Huh!? Ah, n-no, it’s not like that! Um, well, kids these days don’t really read books, right? Lately, there’s news about how bookstores and libraries are losing demand, and the number of students using our school library has dropped a lot… So, seeing someone actually go to the library to read a book was kind of… It’s kind of rare, I guess…”

Sakagami replied in a flustered, stumbling way. Somehow, it seemed like she was panicking, thinking she might have upset a delinquent guy. But I wasn’t angry at all, so I said to her in as normal a tone as possible.

“Ah, I see. Yeah, I’ve heard about that ‘reading decline’ in the news recently. But I do read novels that have been adapted into dramas or movies quite a bit. So I like reading, and I also enjoy going to the library itself.”

“R-really…? Um, by the way, Kuze-kun, what book were you reading just now?”

“Just now, I was reading a coming-of-age novel called I Want to Travel with You Before Summer Ends. There was a cute little recommendation pop in the library that said ‘This Month’s Recommendation!’ and it caught my eye, so I picked it up and read it.”

“Eh… Eh!? You read Summer Kimi because of the library’s recommended pop-up section!? So… How was it…? Um… Was… Was Summer Kimi good…?”

From a completely flustered expression, Sakagami suddenly became excited as she asked me this. What was going on?

“Well… It was pretty good, actually.”

“R-really!? R-really!? Oh, that’s great! Actually, I made the pop-up section in the library. So if you picked it up because of that pop, I’m really happy!”

“Huh? That recommendation pop was made by you, Sakagami? Wow, that’s impressive. But why are you making recommendation pops for the library?”

“Because I’m in the literature club. I had a lot of books I wanted to recommend, so I asked a friend in the library committee and sometimes placed the pops I made in the library.”

“I see. So it was part of your literature club activities. Still, making such a cute and eye-catching recommendation pop is amazing. That pop in the library had a really great recommendation and visuals.”

“Eh!? Ehehe… N-no, that’s not true. It’s totally normal, really.”

I honestly complimented her, and while Sakagami humbly denied it, she smiled happily.

So that cute pop was made by Sakagami. I had no idea.

I thought that as I recalled the recommendation pop I saw in the library. It had cute illustrations and a clear synopsis, making it very easy to understand visually. And I honestly thought it was a wonderful pop that could only be made by someone who truly loved books.

“Haha, you don’t have to be so modest. It was really a great recommendation pop-up. Oh, by the way, if you have other recommended books, could you tell me about them too?”

“Ehehe… W-what!? M-my recommended books… Do you mean, Kuze-kun… You want to read more of my recommendations…?”

“Of course. Summer Kimi was really interesting, and your taste in books is amazing. So if there are other books you recommend, I definitely want to know about them.”

“K-Kuze-kun… Okay! If you say that, I’ll tell you about lots of other books I recommend! Um, well then…!”

Sakagami’s eyes sparkled as she eagerly shared many book recommendations with me. So we happily talked about recommended books while walking together toward the classroom.

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Not long after starting to talk about books with Sakagami… We safely returned to the classroom and we placed a huge pile of notebooks on the teacher’s desk.

“Phew, thank you, Kuze-kun. You really helped me out!”

“No problem. I’m glad I could help… Huh?”

Murmur…

While talking with Sakagami at the front of the classroom, I noticed the room was buzzing with whispers. The students looked shocked. And if I listened closely…

“H-hey, why is that delinquent guy with Sakagami-san…?”

“I-I don’t know… But wasn’t he rumored to be bad with girls? Does that mean he…He is going to assault Sakagami-san…?”

“Y-yeah, that’s possible… She’s really cute, after all…”

“Wh-what… Seriously… He’s so cruel… But what should we do? Should we call the teacher…?”

Whisper, whisper…

I could hear their hushed conversations. Well, Sakagami was known in the main game for being kind and cheerful, so she was popular with many students, regardless of gender. So if a delinquent guy approached her, it made sense that the class would be worried and whisper among themselves.

Well, this is my own fault, since I haven’t been coming to school and have been out partying at night… Huh?

“…!”

At that moment, I suddenly noticed someone’s gaze. And whose gaze was it… It was none other than Kakeru Kurase, the protagonist of the game. Kurase looked shocked as he stared at us, but the moment our eyes met, he immediately looked away. Naturally, if a delinquent made eye contact with him, he would avoid it.

Of course, it’s normal for Kurase to be shocked by this scene.

For Kurase, Sakagami was a precious childhood friend and one of the main heroines. She might have even liked him a lot, close to the point where they could start dating. And in the world of an NTR game, depending on the protagonist’s choices, they could very well already be together. So if such an important childhood friend (or girlfriend?) was with a delinquent, of course he’d be shocked.

But there’s no need to worry about that, Protagonist. I’m not a delinquent, and I have no intention of stealing Sakagami away. So go ahead and confess or do whatever you want. I, as a former game player, will fully support you.

“Alright. I’ll go back to my seat.”

“Okay, got it! Ah, let’s talk about books again sometime if you want!”

“Sure. Well, if I feel like it. See you later.”

“Yeah, see you!”

I said that, parted ways with Sakagami, and returned to my seat. The class was still buzzing, but it would settle down once the lesson started. So I ignored the commotion and quickly began preparing for the next class.

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