In This World That Favors Men, I... ~Starting a Sweet School Life in a World With a 1:8 Gender Ratio~ - 130

Chapter 130: Shouting Love at the Center of an Otome Game

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“Senpai, what did you want to talk about?”

Today, Kurara Tsuzuki had been summoned by an upperclassman named Yamagata. Normally, she would have ignored such a summons, but this time felt different—like something serious was going on.

That was because the message card handed to her by a classmate upon arriving at school had read, “Come to the lounge after school, I need to talk to you about Karen Kousaka. It’s important.”

“Ugh. Could this be the bodyguard event?”

Since her brain still operated in otome game logic, that was the first possibility that came to mind. Naturally, her instinct was to run from trouble. So, the moment homeroom ended, she had tried to dash out of the classroom…But before she could, the door opened from the outside, and a tall, graceful beauty entered. Her searching gaze locked straight onto Kurara.

“You must be Tsuzuki-san. I’m Maya Yamagata, a friend of Karen. I figured you wouldn’t know where the lounge is, so I came to get you.”

With the eyes of her classmates all on her, Kurara reluctantly followed Maya out. As they walked down the hallway together, she kept looking for a chance to escape.

“Please, don’t be so wary. I’m sure you were surprised to be suddenly called out by an upperclassman, right? But there’s nothing scary about this. I just wanted to hear your side of things—to make a fair judgment.”

“What do you mean by ‘a fair judgment’?”

“You’re currently the center of a lot of rumors at this academy—and not the good kind. Karen, the person you’re close with, is an especially famous figure here. So with so many people watching your actions, all sorts of speculation are flying around.”

“So basically, they’re just jealous because I’m close to Karen-senpai? And you actually took those rumors seriously enough to drag me out here?”

“I won’t deny there’s jealousy involved, but there are also people who are genuinely worried about you. Some think you might end up having to leave the academy, or that you’ll get caught up in something bad. One of the reasons I called you out today was to offer advice—so you can avoid that kind of situation. That’s why… I think you should hear me out—”

“Oh no! There’s a suspicious person!”

“Why is there a man on campus? And he’s young, too!”

“Could he be someone’s parent?”

“But look at all the security guards—”

Apparently, a suspicious individual had entered the school grounds—right below them, in fact. It was unheard of for someone to infiltrate so close to the school building. The atmosphere turned chaotic in an instant. Students flocked to the windows facing the courtyard to get a look at what was happening below.

“Eek, how scary! He’s shouting something!”

“He’s going wild! But what on earth is he yelling about?”

The sound of the commotion drifted in through the open windows.

“Sir, please calm down!”

“Let go of me! I came here because I have something important to say!”

Amidst the voices of female security guards came a young man’s voice—youthful enough to belong to a student.

“This voice… No way, Kan-kun?”

Kurara let out a surprised gasp. The voice of the man causing the disturbance sounded an awful lot like Kanjurou Oda—the former capture target she had successfully romanced.

“Tsuzuki-san, do you know him?”

“I can’t say for sure without seeing him, but it sounds like someone from my previous school.”

Hearing that exchange, the nearby students all turned to look at the two of them at once. Their curiosity piqued, they made room by the window so Kurara and Maya could step forward. It was one of the larger windows. From there, they could clearly see what was happening outside—but, of course, they were just as visible from the outside.

“…It is Kan-kun. But why did he come here?”

Kurara tilted her head, muttering to herself.

“Kuraraaaaaa!”

Suddenly, a desperate shout called out her name, making her jump.

“Kurara! I came to get you!”

Held down by security guards, Kanjurou looked up and shouted, eyes locked on Kurara. Kurara was suddenly reminded of the chaos that had happened back at Azuchi Momoyama Academy.

When they’d parted ways, she’d told him, “I’ll never forget you. But… Goodbye,” since that was the standard farewell line used when parting with a capture target in an otome game.

Even then, Kanjurou had tried to cling to her. So she had delivered the finishing blow: “You and I aren’t meant to be. After all… You’re from a different world.” She thought that line had been enough to end things cleanly. 

So why now, several months later?

“I love you, Kurara! I’m in love with you!”

Completely oblivious to Kurara’s thoughts, Kanjurou launched into the love confession of a lifetime.

“I’m sorry for making you feel uncertain because I didn’t say enough! I have to apologize. I didn’t have the resolve I needed! I was stupid, tied down by my family. Sure, you looked at other guys, and that was all my fault!”

Kanjurou seemed to take a breath before continuing.

“But I won’t hesitate anymore. That’s why I’ll keep shouting—the love you want. As much as it takes. As many times as it takes!”

He poured out his heart, shouting one confession after another. In a world where the concept of a suspicious man was rare to begin with, and especially one who looked like a well-bred young noble, the guards weren’t sure how to handle the situation.

They were holding him down while also communicating back and forth with the academy, trying to figure out how to handle this unanticipated event that wasn’t in the manual.

“I swear—I’ll keep loving you even a hundred years from now!… Until you’re mine, until you accept my love again! I love you! I’m not giving up! I won’t give up! I’ll never give up! No one loves you more than I do! Just being near you isn’t enough to express how I feel. Love doesn’t come across through glances alone. I finally understand that! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you…!”

Even while being restrained, Kanjurou stubbornly continued to declare his love for Kurara. The scene was strikingly similar to the final moment of The 1001st Proposal—a bestselling romance novel that had been adapted into a hit movie and still held the record for highest box office earnings.

Two lovers, torn apart by class differences, forced to separate by those around them. But the man couldn’t give up on love. He snuck past the guards into the mansion where the woman was kept and shouted his love to her through the window.

It was the kind of passionate proposal that had captivated women across Japan and glued them to the screen. As the girls began to understand what was happening, their fear of the suspicious man turned into sparkling-eyed admiration. On the verge of fainting from excitement, they were utterly enthralled by the love confession playing out before them, their innocent maiden hearts completely shaken.

“How dreamy! It’s a love confession!”

“So romantic! ♡”

“I thought confessions of love from men only existed in fiction!”

“But who is he confessing to?”

“It’s like something out of a movie!”

To them, it was romantic and wonderful—because it wasn’t happening to them. Kurara, on the other hand…

(Th-this is terrifying! Why has sweet, obedient Kanjurou turned into a yandere!? Is this the yandere ending for Kanjurou’s route? What kind of scenario is this? Nobody told me about this!)

While Kanjurou was being dragged off somewhere by the teacher who had rushed over, Kurara took advantage of Yamagata being inexplicably spaced out and quietly headed back to the dorm.

“I don’t want this. I want to live freely. I hate a life where I’m tied down by someone! If only Momo-chan would come back, I’d leave this place in a heartbeat!”

St. Catherine Academy had descended into chaos. Would Kurara be able to escape the shackles of her past?

＊＊＊

In the midst of the students whose hearts fluttered at the scene of a romantic confession straight out of a love movie, one person stood there as if struck by lightning.

“Just being by someone’s side doesn’t convey your feelings. You can’t show love with just your gaze. I finally understand that now!”

Kanjurou’s words struck directly at the heart of every maiden. The one most shaken was none other than Maya Yamagata, who had witnessed the whole commotion up close.

Even though she liked him—loved him—she never expressed her feelings. She just watched over him from the shadows, telling herself that was enough. She had even taken the bold step of applying from outside just so she could attend the same campus.

But stirred by Kanjurou’s words, her trembling maiden’s heart cried out: “I want to tell him I love him.” That sincere feeling, buried deep within her heart, had awoken and begged to be let out. 

(I want to see him. I want to go see him right now. But there’s no way I could ever say those feelings out loud like that! But… If I don’t put it into words, he’ll never know…)

After agonizing over it for a long time, Maya finally made her choice.

The following morning. At the same station where she had often gone as part of the “Watchful Support Squad,” Maya was waiting for her beloved Takeda.

(Isn’t this action basically betraying the watchful squad I’ve been working with all this time?) 

Thinking that, Maya secretly consulted with Yuki, the current team captain. In response—

“Betrayal? No way! We’re going to support you with everything we’ve got, Maya-san!”

Encouraged by her kind junior’s firm words, Maya decided on the spot to go through with it the next day, before her resolve could waver. Having heard Maya’s decision, the members of the love watchful squad took up their usual coordinated positions that morning, determined to help her fulfill her earnest first love.

《The star has disembarked.》

《He passed the escalator—almost at the ticket gate.》

And then, the person she loved appeared—just as ridiculously handsome as ever. Seeing him again after so long made her feel faint, but Maya gave herself a mental pep talk and rushed straight toward Takeda. Startled, Takeda looked at her as she held out both hands together, offering him a single love letter filled with her feelings.

“I-I like you! Please read my feelings!”

“This… This is for me?”

Takeda took the letter from her hands. But Maya’s face burned with heat, and she couldn’t bring herself to look at him anymore. Bowing her head deeply, she turned and bolted toward the ticket gate. Once inside, she stopped and turned back, as if something were tugging at her.

At that moment, their eyes met—Takeda had also turned back to look at her.

…This love couldn’t be stopped anymore.

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