I Will Do Everything In My Power To Bring Happiness To The Enchanting Beauty Who Can No Longer Smile. - Chapter 38: A New School Life.

A New School Life.

The school, already lively with the approach of Golden Week, had become even more abuzz due to a particular incident.

“No way… You’re serious about that rumor?”

“Dead serious. The Nation’s Ruinous Beauty showed up late to school with a guy.”

“No no no, we’re talking that ‘Nation’s Ruinous Beauty,’ right? She’s never had a guy around her… Wait, didn’t she recently start getting close to some ‘childhood friend’ or something?”

“Yeah, that’s the one. They were late together this morning.”

“You’re kidding…”

It wasn’t hard to overhear those conversations just walking through the school. And no surprise—they were all true.

In fact, it was even more than the rumors suggested. Last night, Tsubame and I stayed at a hotel together, and this morning, we arrived at school just in time for first period.

Writing it out like this really drives home how crazy that sounds.

Incidentally, Tsubame’s mother gave us a direct ride from the hotel to school. We’d even brought our uniforms in advance.

And now here we are. Of course, not everyone knows the full story, but enough for the rumor mill to go wild.

We did officially notify the school about being late. According to Tsubame and others, the school tends to be pretty accommodating when it comes to the Nation’s Ruinous Beauty’s requests. I guess it adds prestige if she graduates from here. Naturally, she still has to meet the minimum attendance requirements, but that’s a given.

What surprised me was that this special treatment extended to me as well—but I’ll gratefully accept it.

“Never thought I’d see the day you pull an all-nighter. The straight-A, stoic, untouchably pure jack-of-all-trades!”

“That’s way too many labels.”

“You’ve earned that many. Still, there were always rumors back in middle school that you liked someone… Who would’ve thought it’d be true?”

The one smirking next to me is my friend, Haiguchi Shirao. It feels oddly nostalgic—probably because those two days over the weekend felt much longer than they actually were.

“For the record, nothing indecent happened…”

“That pause says otherwise.”

“…Anyway.”

Yeah, I couldn’t bring myself to say “nothing happened.” At the very least, I had started feeling that way about her.

Trying to steer the conversation elsewhere, I glanced around. My eyes met with a few students whispering among themselves about us—they quickly looked away the moment we made eye contact.

“You really are standing out.”

“Well, yeah. That top model showing up with someone? Of course it’d stir attention. And lately, you’ve been seen with her more and more… I actually worked hard behind the scenes to make sure the rumors didn’t spiral out of control, you know?”

“You’re shy, but you’re oddly good at that sort of thing. I really appreciate it—thanks.”

Despite being introverted, Haiguchi is incredibly proactive. He’s always been good at this sort of subtle information management. He’s helped me out a lot since middle school… Funny enough, his girlfriend also tends to act boldly in unexpected ways, despite being super shy.

Grateful for his help, we made our way toward the gymnasium.

“By the way, I was thinking it’s about time you introduced me to Tsubame.”

“Ah… well… could you maybe wait another… three years or so?”

“Called it—but damn, that voice. Haven’t heard you whisper that quietly in a while.”

If “a voice like a mosquito’s” ever needed a definition, that was it. Honestly, Tsubame speaks more clearly than that.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at him. His shyness is especially extreme when it comes to girls—sometimes even with guys. I thought maybe having a girlfriend would help him open up a bit, but that clearly hasn’t happened. In fact, it might be worse.

Actually… his girlfriend is probably more shy than he is. While Haiguchi isn’t exactly quick to make male friends, she seems to struggle with talking to anyone.

“How’s your girlfriend doing with all this?”

“I tried asking her once. She said, ‘To stand before His Highness… expecting a mere insect such as myself to carry such a task is akin to asking an ant to bear an elephant.’ Immediate answer.”

“Okay, first of all—what is up with her vocabulary? And second—how do you remember that word-for-word?!”

I honestly think the two could get along, but I’m not going to push it. If I ever get the sense that she might be open to it, maybe I’ll try again. Then again, I haven’t seen his girlfriend in a while. She’s probably at the library, but ever since middle school, they’ve both preferred not to meet up too often on school grounds. I also feel a bit awkward meeting her without Haiguchi around.

With those thoughts in mind, we headed off to gym class.

***

“Hmm…”

“Is something wrong, Shigure-kun?”

“It’s just… I wish I could do something about this situation. Not that I hate it or anything—I’ve gotten used to it by now.”

It was lunchtime in our classroom.

As always, there was a conspicuous gap around Tsubame and me. No one approached us. I could probably call Haiguchi over, but even then, he’d do it reluctantly. Like I was thinking earlier—if I have to push myself, that’s one thing. But asking my friend to do it feels wrong, especially when he’s already done so much for me.

Tsubame glanced around the classroom. As her gaze swept across the room, it was amusing to see waves of students flinch in response. I was glad Haiguchi wasn’t among them.

“As long as you’re here, I’m fine. But…”

“Just so you know, I’m honestly okay with how things are now too. It’s just—well, I’ve always been a bit meddlesome.”

That trait of mine, which could be either a virtue or a flaw, had often helped others in the past. Though it did backfire badly once, which made me hold back for a while. But now… I think I’m okay. I know about Tsubame’s past, and with her, I won’t let that kind of mistake happen again.

“I just think… there are probably things you’d find hard to talk to me about. Stuff that’s easier to discuss with another girl. And I was hoping—on my own, really—that I could help fix that. If you’re not okay with it, I’ll stop.”

“It’s not that I dislike the idea. It’s very you, and I appreciate it.”

She responded with a soft smile after I whispered the word “on my own” for emphasis.

Still, there’s no way I can just go and find a friendly girl classmate to introduce to her. It’s hard enough just talking to girls, and on top of that, I’d have to be sure the person would never do anything to hurt Tsubame.

Maybe I’m being a bit overprotective, but I think this much caution is appropriate right now. I believe that if she had a peer—preferably another girl she could trust—her school life would be more fulfilling.

That said… it’s no easy task. For someone to gain Tsubame’s trust, they need to see her not just as the Nation’s Ruinous Beauty, but also as Sakakibara Tsubame, the individual.

And that’s incredibly difficult. Because Tsubame… is simply too beautiful.

“I’ll try just a little, since you’re the one saying it, Shigure-kun. …By the way, are there people like that around you?”

“Like I said before, I barely have any female friends. …There is one person who could be a candidate, but she seems to think I’m way out of her league. She’s pretty unusual, but a good person. I actually think she and you could get along well… Ah, and of course, she’s not the type who would ever hurt you, Tsubame.”

“I believe you on that. …Still, I see. She thinks you’re out of her league, huh?”

“Yeah, well… I guess part of that might be about you too, Tsubame. But honestly, her self-esteem is incredibly low. She’s like that with pretty much everyone. Though oddly enough, she’s incredibly proactive when it comes to the weirdest things.”

It seemed like she might’ve misunderstood something, so I felt the need to clarify. It’s not just with me… even with her own boyfriend, she was like that for the first month.

“By the way, Tsubame, is there anyone at school you think you might get along with?”

“Just you, Shigure-kun.”

“Well, we are together most of the time.”

…Maybe we should slow things down a little. Rushing too much usually doesn’t lead to anything good.

Reflecting on that, I quietly resumed eating my lunch. Tsubame’s lunch, too, had been made by her mother. With every bite, she softly murmured how delicious it was. …Though perhaps because we were in public, her expression remained unchanged.

“Sorry, Tsubame. I might’ve been pushing things too quickly—”

“—Ah.”

Just as I began to apologize, Tsubame let out a small sound. I stopped mid-sentence and looked at her, wondering what was wrong.

“Come to think of it, on the way back from P.E. earlier, I actually talked to a girl for the first time in a while.”

“…Mind if I ask what you talked about?”

And with that, she said something that immediately caught my attention. She nodded slightly at my question and began to explain.