In This World That Favors Men, I... ~Starting a Sweet School Life in a World With a 1:8 Gender Ratio~ - 42

Chapter 42: It’s That Time of the Year Again

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“Takeda. You should probably make a decision soon.”

“Make a decision about what?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Your partner.”

“Huh?”

I had just logged into the game and joined an all-male party for the first time in a while when this conversation started.

“Come on, don’t just say ‘huh?’ We’re fine, but the girls are about to become exam students. If you plan to get engaged or married around graduation, now is the time to choose a partner.”

“Is this something I have to decide?”

“It’s not an absolute rule, but a girl’s engagement status can affect her future plans to some extent. So, if you have someone in mind, it would be kind to let her know sooner rather than later.”

Hmm. What should I do? I guess I haven’t really thought about it that seriously before.

In this world, choosing a partner was almost directly linked to marriage. Of course, it wasn’t impossible to date someone on a trial basis, but if things didn’t work out, the emotional impact on the girl would be significant.

Because girls took this stuff very seriously.

Even in a commuting marriage, where a couple wasn’t necessarily together all the time after getting married, there was a big difference between focusing on school or work while also looking for a partner and already having one and pursuing life without any doubts. It apparently made a huge difference in terms of the girl’s mental stability.

“If you’re not comfortable with dating someone your age, why not go for an Elder Partner? If you match with someone, you’ll get introduced right away.”

“Hmm. It’s not that I dislike dating someone my age, but I feel hesitant about things like matchmaking.”

Matchmaking meant being paired with someone based on registered data and a compatibility analysis. That kind of setup just didn’t sit right with me.

“Once you try it, you’d be surprised how well it works. But I get where you’re coming from. If you don’t like automatic matchmaking, how about joining a ‘Meeting Event’?”

“Meeting Event?”

“My Elder Partner—her name’s Keiko—has some friends coming for a ski trip during spring break. She was asking if we could invite some high school guys.”

“Is anyone else going?”

“So far, Yuuki and three guys from Class C. I also asked Katagiri, Hirano, and Wakisaka.”

Saitou would probably focus on parenting, and Uesugi already had three fiancées, so they weren’t invited. Still…

“That’s a lot of people.”

“Not everyone has given an answer yet, but we have a large lodge reserved, and if that’s not enough, Keiko said she’d arrange hotel rooms.”

“That’s impressive. A ski trip with a big group sounds fun.”

I was surprised they had planned this far ahead.

“We’ll cover the costs, so I’d be happy if you joined.”

“Wait, it’s free?!”

Is Keiko some kind of millionaire?

“Yeah. Keiko owns the ski resort. She said she’s only inviting respectable people, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

She owns a ski resort? That’s insane. So Houjou’s Elder Partner is basically a business mogul.

“Are you going, Yuuki?”

“If you go, I’ll go.”

“It depends on me?”

“Yeah. It’s more fun when you know someone.”

“I see. Can I take some time to think about it? I want to talk to my family first.”

“Of course, of course. I’ll be waiting for a good answer.”

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“Karen, why did you stop all of a sudden?”

“There’s a party of all guys over there. Isn’t that rare?”

While playing the game with the student council members of Catherine Academy, I spotted an unusual group.

“Where? Oh, that one? You’re right. Their avatars all look male.”

“But are they really men?”

“No way. It’s probably fake.”

“Why would anyone bother pretending to be a guy? I don’t get it.”

Maya, who disliked men, scowled. But was it really fake? Their body structures looked pretty solid.

“I’ll go check.”

“Karen, what are you talking about?”

“I’m just curious.”

In this world, it wasn’t easy to meet guys our age. I wanted to see what they were like before the upcoming event.

“Avatars don’t tell you what the person behind them is like! It’s dangerous to get close.”

“That’s exactly why it’s fine. Since it’s just an avatar, as long as my real identity isn’t exposed, there’s no risk. I’ll just take a quick look and come right back.”

“Wait. I can’t let you go alone. I’m coming too.”

“Can we join as well?”

Oh? Besides Maya, the other three seemed really interested. They had excited expressions on their faces.

“Alright! Let’s all go!”

And so, we set off to observe the guys in the game. …Or so we thought, but for some reason, we couldn’t move forward. Every time we tried to approach, a wall of players formed in front of us.

“Excuse me, can you let us through?”

“Um… I think I dropped something around here… Sorry, I’m looking for it.”

“Did you find it?”

“Nope, not at all.”

-Hey! Their lines are so scripted. Are they seriously blocking us on purpose?

A bunch of them suddenly appeared and started searching for something? Just how many people were looking for that thing?! More than ten players were wandering around in front of us, deliberately blocking the way. When we tried to go around, others moved to obstruct us, and even more people showed up to reinforce the blockade. No matter what, we couldn’t get close to the male party on the other side.

“This… They might be real men.”

Chiharu muttered.

“Why do you think so?”

“I’ve heard that, in the outside world, the few men that exist are surrounded by women who guard them and keep other girls away.”

What the heck?

“I’ve heard that too. But I didn’t think it would be this extreme.”

Seriously? A territorial dispute? So they were staking a claim over ‘their’ men?

“And the men are okay with this? It’s like being watched all the time.”

“Who knows? I don’t need to understand male psychology. We can’t get any closer, so let’s give up.”

While we stood there, the male party started moving away from us.

“Too bad. But oh well. I’ll just observe them properly at the event.”

“Karen, don’t tell me you’re interested in men?”

“No, not really. I just don’t see them often, so I was curious. I’d rather not meet them for the first time at the event if I could help it.”

“Oh, I see. But don’t worry. Safety is the top priority, and there will be security guards at the event. You won’t have to interact with men any more than necessary. I won’t let that happen.”

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