In This World That Favors Men, I... ~Starting a Sweet School Life in a World With a 1:8 Gender Ratio~ - 81

Chapter 81: Candy Shop

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On the morning of the final days of the long holiday, Karen Kousaka was meeting up with Seiko Kougyoku.

“What a nice day.”

Their meeting spot was in front of a shopping mall along the back approach road. The fresh green of the roadside trees was vivid to the eyes. The weather was pleasant and it was the perfect day to go out.

Since their destination, a candy shop, opened at 11:00, they had agreed to meet fifteen minutes prior. As Karen approached the meeting place, she immediately noticed a large—no, unusually long—car parked on the street.

Whoa, a limousine? This is the first time I’ve seen a real one. Can this thing even make turns at intersections? Driving this car must require some serious driving skill.

The shiny, spotless white limousine naturally drew attention. It seemed to be attracting the gaze of everyone else who was also waiting at the same spot. At that moment, as if perfectly timed, a uniformed female driver stepped out from the driver’s seat and swiftly opened the rear passenger door from the outside.

“Good morning, Karen-sama.”

“Morning. …So this was your car, Kougyoku-san.”

Descending gracefully from the opened door with a smile was Kougyoku, dressed in casual clothing.

It’s my first time seeing her in regular clothes, but wow, she’s got an amazing figure and she’s even more beautiful than usual.

“Seeing you in casual clothes feels really fresh somehow.”

“Does it not suit me?”

Kougyoku tilted her head slightly, looking uncertain. She had clearly dressed for the occasion. A light pink loose-knit sweater, a short floral pleated skirt, and black over-the-knee socks—an adorably girlish outfit fitting for a high school girl. Incidentally, Karen was wearing a light gray chunky-knit sweater with denim pants—an ordinary, everyday look. She wondered if it was a bit too casual and reflected on her outfit.

“No, it suits you. You look super cute. I could stare at you all day.”

Karen offered her a sincere compliment. Kougyoku, cheeks faintly blushing, looked up at her with a shy smile on her face.

“Really? …Then I’m glad.”

“Shall we get going?”

“Yes. Thank you for taking me around today.”

“I’m not sure how good I’ll be at playing the escort, but I’ll try to walk slowly for you.”

She had a tendency to walk briskly and assertively, something her close friends often pointed out. But walking with Kougyoku, a sheltered young lady, meant she had to be more mindful—something Karen was fully aware of.

“Karen-sama. Um… May I… Link arms with you?”

“Sure. That way, we won’t get separated.”

Kougyoku-san said she usually travelled by car and doesn’t have much experience walking around town. She also mentioned this would be her first time visiting the back road leading to the shrine and that she was worried about getting lost.

If they actually got separated, it would probably cause quite a stir. Karen figured that must be why Kougyoku clung tightly to her arm.

Such slender arms. …If I were a guy, this would be like a dream come true. Going out alone with a graceful and gorgeous high school girl like this? This is pure bliss.

＊

Perhaps because the streets weren’t too crowded, they arrived at the candy shop rather quickly. Since it was just before opening time, a short line had already formed.

“There are already this many people in line.”

“Yeah. It’s supposed to be a popular shop, but with only this many people, I don’t think we’ll have to wait long.”

“Can cotton candy be made that quickly?”

“They’re big, so it takes a few minutes to make each one, but people usually buy them in groups rather than one per person, so the wait time’s not too bad, apparently.”

“How big is ‘big,’ exactly?”

“I think it’s about the size of three or four of your heads, Kougyoku-san.”

“That’s certainly big. In that case, perhaps one would be enough for the both of us?”

“Yeah. Let’s buy one and share it.”

“Yes, I’d love to.♡”

While they chatted, the shop opened. They purchased a giant, rainbow-colored, cone-shaped cotton candy. It was freshly made and looked fluffy.

“Looks like there’s a seat open. Let’s eat it inside.”

If I let Kougyoku-san eat while walking, someone would probably scold me from somewhere.

Led by Karen’s unconscious sense of chivalry, they sat side by side on a sofa seat in soft pastel colors. The sweet aroma filled the store, and looking around, every single customer was a girl. The line continued to grow, with people coming in one after another. In response, the staff made enormous cotton candies at an astonishing pace. Watching it was surprisingly entertaining.

“Karen-sama, would you like the grape flavor?”

Kougyoku tore off a purple-colored piece and held it out in front of Karen’s mouth.

“Uh…”

“Oh, I’m sorry. You probably don’t want to eat something straight from my hand, right?”

“Not at all. That’s not the case at all.”

Karen, who had just been caught off guard, quickly took the cotton candy into her mouth, while Kougyoku watched the scene with dreamy eyes. Karen was completely unaware that she was being looked at with a gaze far sweeter than any cotton candy.

A guy probably wouldn’t be able to walk into such a cutesy place with ease. Good thing I’m a woman in this world.

As she was thinking that, the line moved forward, and she saw a tall young man entering the shop, accompanied by three girls.

“Wow! This place is super cute!”

“Yuusei-kun, how’d you even know about this shop?”

“Look, look! Over there! They’re making cotton candy right now! It’s huge!”

Tch. A harem guy, huh? And not just a girl on each arm. It’s one guy with three girls and they’re all cute. Ugh, they’re all clingy too. Just explode and die already! …Wait a sec, that face…

“Karen-sama, is he someone you know?”

“Not exactly, but the guy who just walked in looks like a student from another school who came for the exchange event.”

“Exchange event… That would mean a male student, yes? …That man?”

Kougyoku said, narrowing her eyes slightly.

“Yeah, that’s him. There’s no mistaking it.”

There’s no way there are that many ridiculously good-looking guys walking around so nonchalantly in this town like that.

At the time of the exchange event, Karen had thought, “The level of men in this world are insane,” but after looking into it later, she found out that boys from that particular school were exceptionally handsome.

“Karen-sama, do you find that type of man appealing?”

“Not really. I don’t care about guys. But a guy with three girls… That’s just a bit much.”

“Are you against polygamy?”

“For me, just having one person I truly love is enough.”

Any harem that’s not mine is completely unacceptable.

“My. I feel the same way.”

“You too, Kougyoku-san?”

“Yes. I want to spend my life with just one person—the one I love.”

“That’s the ideal, isn’t it? Even if it might be hard in this society.”

“If I can just find that one person, it’s not hard at all. I absolutely intend to make it happen.”

“Ahaha. Kougyoku-san, you’re surprisingly passionate.”

“Do you dislike passionate people?”

“Nope. I think it’s great to have that kind of mindset.”

That harem guy already left, huh? Pretty sure they’re on a date. Lucky bastard, getting a harem date. I’m bitter, but honestly? I’m super jealous. Ahhh!! If only I were a guy.

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“The student council president from St. Catherine’s Academy was there, at the shop earlier.”

A stunning beauty with a super memorable short haircut. That aura… She looked like she was wearing wings of radiance on her back. There was no mistaking it. That must be her. 

“Really? It was so crowded, I’m surprised you noticed. What kind of person is she?”

“Kind of like Kurazuka Star, maybe?”

Like someone who’d sing boldly on stage. Definitely playing the male lead, of course.

“The famous charismatic student council president, huh. I kind of wish I’d seen her too.”

“Is she really that famous?”

“Oh, absolutely. Apparently, even though she enrolled from outside the school in high school, she was chosen as one of the ‘White Roses of Catherine,’ which is something that never happened before.”

“I heard that rumor too. They said she received passionate support from the students and won by an overwhelming majority.”

That was amazing, but I could understand why. She really had that kind of presence, like a domineering aura that made people unable to look away from her.

“So basically, she’s a beauty, right? Yuusei-kun, is she your type?”

“Yeah, definitely a beauty, but she kind of has too much presence, or rather, she’s too cool… Like, she’s so far above my league she’d never even register me romantically.”

Not that I really know her or anything. She had that crisp, confident air, like the kind of upperclassman girls would totally look up to. Someone like me would probably get kicked aside without a second thought. That was just my personal impression of her, though.

“Geez. What do you mean ‘so far above you’?”

“But I’m glad it’s not like that.”

“Here you go, Yuusei-kun. Next is the orange flavor. Say ‘ahh’♡”

Held in front of my mouth was a bite-sized piece of orange-colored cotton candy.

I’ve been getting fed like a baby bird this whole time. Honestly, flirting in public like this is super embarrassing… But this is a date. Yeah, a date.

So I obediently took a bite. Yep, orange flavor. Tasty.

“Make sure you try Kyoko’s grape flavor too. Here—‘ahh.’”

Whoa there. Don’t go sticking your finger in. 

But still, I took a bite.

“Yu-Yu-Yuusei-kun, strawberry flavor for you. ‘Ahh.’ Kyaa♡”

Chomp. Delicious. But… This felt kind of hectic.  Still, they all looked so excited feeding me. Their eyes were sparkling, like they were really enjoying this. Everyone was smiling, and the mood of the vibe was going incredibly well. Of course, I was having fun too. …Even if I was super embarrassed.

“I was worried we wouldn’t be able to finish it, but with four people eating it, it was gone before we knew it.”

“And there were so many flavors, so we didn’t get bored of it.”

“Grape, lemon… The cotton candy is kind of fun to eat.”

“Alright, let’s head to the shrine and write our ema next?”

“Yeah, let’s go~”

Having finished our cotton candy, we decided to head to a famous nearby shrine. To pray for success on our college entrance exams. The crowds had already grown quite a bit, and since the four of us were walking close together, we couldn’t move very fast. Even so, we wove through the crowd, passed through the shopping street, and waited at a large intersection for the light to change when—

“Ah! Look! Look at that!”

“What?”

Shizu pointed, startled, at the giant monitor mounted on the wall of the tall fashion building ahead.

“I-It’s Y-Yuusei-kun!”

“Huh? Whoa, it really is!”

Yeah, that was me. The commercial for EXA. Thinking back, I guess the commercial was supposed to start airing today.

“Ahhh! You look so cool!”

It felt surreal. The face I saw in the mirror every day was now blowing up on a huge screen in public.

“Yu-Yu-Yu-Yu-Yu-… Why? …Oh right! I need to record it!”

Record it? Huh? Hello? Yuuko-san????

“Yuuko, calm down. You don’t have to record it right here.”

“But-but-but it’s Giant Prince! GIANT PRINCEEEEE!”

Um… The real deal is right here, you know… Also…  Is bigger really better?

“Easy now. Yuusei-kun, sorry. Could you wait a second?”

Honestly, I’d thought a commercial for convenience store pudding would air briefly during a midday variety show or something. I never expected it to be a full-blown street ad. They’d said it was a product they were really betting on and I guess they meant it.

Of course, since I was out and about, I didn’t know this at the time—but at that very same moment, the same commercial was airing repeatedly on TV as well.

A national broadcast during Saturday lunchtime.

All across Japan, countless viewers were stunned into stillness by a devastatingly handsome young man with a sweet face, cheerfully eating the new convenience store pudding product. Their eyes glued to the screen, captivated.

…And elsewhere, too.

“Takeda-kun♡ I can’t believe we’re meeting again like this. Is this fate? I’ve always… Always wanted to see you. You’re still so dreamy. You’re Maya’s prince♡ I love you… Kyaa♡”

In one particular convenience store, a suspicious-looking high school girl stood there, gazing dreamily at a giant promotional poster.

“Excuse me, dearest customer, but please don’t peel the posters off.”

Unable to resist just looking, she had resorted to more direct action, prompting a clerk to intervene.

“I’ll take this to-go, please.”

“I’m afraid that poster is not for sale.”

“Not for sale? Oh, I get it. I just need to buy the pudding to get it, right? Then I’ll take all the pudding you have.”

“That’s not how it works… Dearest customer! Please don’t! Don’t peel it off!”

“Nooo! I’m taking Takeda-kun home with meee!”

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