In This World That Favors Men, I... ~Starting a Sweet School Life in a World With a 1:8 Gender Ratio~ - 96

Chapter 96: Saturday – Ren Yuuki Part 2

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“Sorry to keep you both waiting. Alright, let’s go. This way.”

“This way?”

“Not to the eat-in area?”

Temporary eat-in spaces had been set up along the shrine path lined with food stalls. But the direction Yuuki gestured toward was the exact opposite of the eat-in area.

“It’s crowded and noisy over there. If you don’t mind, want to come to my house? It’s really close.”

“Eh? Your house, Yuuki-kun? Is it really okay to just show up out of the blue?”

“The rest of my family is out at the shrine, so it’s just my grandma at home. If that doesn’t bother you, I’d be happy if you’d come. You had something you wanted to talk to me about, right?”

“Y-Yeah. In that case, I’ll take you up on the offer, if that’s alright with you?”

“As long as we’re not being a bother…”

“Haha, you two are being way too polite. I’ll at least serve you some tea, so come on.”

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“Eh? This is the place…?”

“It’s big, but kind of normal? I guess?”

“Right? It used to be an old-fashioned Japanese-style house, but it got too worn out, so we rebuilt it.  We have a big family so the house looks pretty big, but the inside is pretty modern. Come on, let’s go in.”

“Pardon the intrusion~”

“Thank you for having us.”

“Babaa-chan, I’m home.”

As the three of them stepped into the entryway and called out, a refined, petite woman immediately appeared. She was Yuuki’s maternal grandmother. Though called “Babaa-chan” by a high schooler, she still looked quite youthful.

“Welcome back. Oh my, do we have guests?”

“They’re friends from school. We’ll be having lunch in the dining room. You two, this way.”

With that, Yuuki started heading inside without hesitation.

“My, aren’t you in a hurry. Let your guests introduce themselves, at least. Nice to meet you, I’m Midori, Ren’s grandmother. Thank you for always looking out for him.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Mika Nabeshima from the same class. Sorry for dropping in on you so suddenly.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Saki Tawara, also in the same class.”

“I can’t offer much, but please make yourselves at home.”

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“So? What did you want to talk about?”

As soon as lunch ended, Yuuki prompted the two girls, who had been fidgeting the whole time, to talk.

“Um, okay then… We don’t have much time, so can I get straight to the point? We heard that the arranged marriage fell through. Is that true?”

“Sorry to bring up something so personal, but we really want to hear the answer from you directly.”

“It’s true. I’m not hiding it or anything, so it’s fine for me to talk about it.”

Yuuki answered flatly, as if it didn’t bother him at all.

“Then, does that mean you’re single now?”

“Yeah. That’s right.”

“In that case… In that case, would it be okay if we re-applied to be your potential girlfriends?”

“It depends on how you feel, Yuuki-kun, but… We want you to reconsider dating us.”

“…Hmm. I figured that’s what this was about. But, are you two really okay with that?”

He looked slightly weary as he asked the girls, who were seriously asking for a second chance.

“What do you mean, ‘okay with that’?”

“Back on White Day, I turned you down without even giving a reason. And even after things changed, I left it all unresolved. Honestly, that was pretty cold of me. On top of that, I’m not exactly a great catch.”

“A great catch?”

“Yeah. As a potential marriage partner. I’ve got a bunch of nosy female relatives breathing down my neck, and there’s a chance family circumstances might affect who I can marry. Plus—well, I hate to admit it myself—but I’m pretty selfish.”

Cold and selfish. That was how Yuuki described himself.

“Selfish? I don’t think so. Sure, the arranged marriage thing caught us off guard. But aside from that, I knew what kind of person you were—including your personality—when I confessed. Because… I love you, Yuuki-kun and because I love you, I want to be with you.”

“I feel the same way as Mika. It all started with love. It really hurt when you turned me down, but that feeling never went away. That’s why I hoped we could start over from there.”

“…But still. Even if we’re talking romance, what about marriage? Would you really be okay with a selfish guy like me? Honestly, it’s not that I dislike either of you, but if you asked me whether I love you, I can’t give you a clear answer yet. Are you really okay with someone who can’t return your feelings equally?”

“If you see our feelings as just one-sided pressure, then I’m truly sorry about that, but you’re the only person I can imagine harboring these feelings for, Yuuki-kun. There’s no one else I would choose.”

“Same here. I’m not the kind of person who can just switch who I’m in love with like flipping a switch.”

“I see… Hmm, what should I do…”

Yuuki looked a bit troubled. He seemed to be carefully choosing his words. After thinking for a while, he spoke again, as if confirming something.

“…I’m happy to hear how you both felt, but honestly, there are so many things I want to prioritize over romance right now. Even if I started dating one of you, or both of you, that probably wouldn’t change. If I were a girl, I wouldn’t pick someone like me. So… Are you still okay with that?”

“Yes! We’re okay with that.”

“You’re the one I want, Yuuki-kun!”

The girls responded without hesitation or doubt. Slightly overwhelmed by their energy, Yuuki gave his answer.

“…Alright. Then, let’s just give it a try for now. We’ve got exams and everything, so let’s keep it low-key. I’m looking forward to dating you two, I guess.”

Persistence had won the day.

“Yay! I’m looking forward to it too!”

“Looking forward to it too! Woohoo!”

The tension in the air vanished completely. With the atmosphere now relaxed, the three of them exchanged contact information and immediately created a group chat on their messaging app.

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