Vol 1 Chapter 12: Fake Rei (Prologue: Encounters Arrive with a Sense of Déjà Vu)

“…Are you saying that one of them is Himeno-senpai?”

“Y-yeah… that’s what people are suspecting. And I also heard that one of them looks exactly like Miyauri. Given their fighting styles and abilities, people are convinced it’s Rei’s doing.”

From that description alone, it definitely sounds like Rei’s original lineup—Miyayuri, the kickboxer, Shuso Shoko, the boxer, and Himeno-senpai, the Nippon Kempo practitioner.

…Wait a second. Someone who looks like Miyayuri and knows martial arts? No way…

“Ryouma-senpai, let me ask you one thing—what fighting style did the one who looked like Miyayuri use?”

“The one who looked like Miyauri… I heard she used boxing. Ah!”

Even Ryouma-senpai, who isn’t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, seemed to realize it.

“Miyayuri can box, but her main style is Muay Thai.”

If there’s someone who looks like Miyayuri and uses boxing, it’s probably Rurei—the girl who gave me that fist wrap the other day.

Now that I think about it, she was getting into it with some delinquents. At the time, I assumed they were just harassing her, so I stepped in to help. But could it be that she was the one who started the fight instead?

“But when she fought me, she started in a boxing stance, right? Maybe she thinks that’s enough to handle small fry?”

“That’s possible, but what about the third person—the kickboxer? In Rei, the only pure kickboxing specialists are Miyayuri and me. So if there’s another kickboxer in the mix, that alone proves it’s not Rei.”

Technically, Kei uses MMA and has fought in kickboxing matches, so she could be considered a kickboxer. But even a slight misunderstanding needs to be cleared up.

“Then… what if it was you in drag?”

“Don’t be ridiculous!”

I’m not Azuma-kun—I’d never do something like that!

“Oh, sorry about that… but I’m also concerned about the one who looks just like Orito Tachibana Hineno.”

That must be what worries Ryouma-senpai the most. With a little thought, it’s obvious… I continued explaining so that even my flustered senpai could understand.

“Do you know when the former members of Bloody Red Road were attacked?”

“Ah, I heard it was about three days ago…”

“In that case, Himeno-senpai isn’t in Tokyo anymore. She moved right after the graduation trip.”

“Hah! That’s definitely true! …damn, that really gave me a scare…”

I could hear genuine relief in Ryouma-senpai’s voice over the phone.

Well, this is something I could have figured out myself without asking, but just how clueless is Ryouma-senpai… or is his love for Himeno-senpai so overwhelming that it’s thrown him into confusion?

“Besides, I’ve probably met those girls before. They do resemble her, but they’re completely different from Miyayuri.”

As I explained, the picture was gradually becoming clearer to me.

Should I call them Fake Rei, perhaps?

It seems that the girls in Rurei—a group of martial artists much like those in Rei—are attacking delinquents indiscriminately while claiming to be Rei, though their purpose remains unclear.

“It appears you might have a lead… what’s your connection with those girls?”

“I’m a victim.”

They must have mistaken me for one of the delinquents and ambushed me, knocking me out.

Well, I got knocked out, but I ended up receiving those fist wraps, so I can’t complain.

“Senpai, what do you plan to do about them?”

“It’s pathetic, but there are even talks of someone asking me to take them down… even though I’m just a regular person who’s graduated from both the gang and school…”

But if someone asks, Ryouma-senpai—who cares about his friends—would never be able to refuse.

That girl Rurei also seems to be a pretty strong boxer, but she doesn’t stand a chance against the pro boxer Ryouma-senpai.

Though it’s their own fault, it would be a shame for a girl I just met to get taken down, and there’s no way to revert Ryouma-senpai back to the old him.

“Understood. It’s troublesome if they continue rampaging under the guise of Rei… I’ll handle it and sort things out.”

I wasn’t exactly eager to do it, but I decided to volunteer as the unlikely negotiator.