My Mental Choices Are Completely Interfering with My School Romantic Comedy

Volume 2 Chapter 3.2: Who Is This?

“Good morning, Rokumata Kanade-kun.” (T/N: Playboy, a guy who has 6 women.)

The next day. The moment I stepped into the classroom, Yukihira launched an attack.

“Could you not say things that could cause serious misunderstandings…?”

Well, considering what I declared yesterday, I guess it’s not entirely unjustified…

“Alright, then I’ll rephrase it in a more intellectual way—Kaze no Rokumata Saburou-kun.”

“That just makes it even more indecent!”

“Aha-ha, well, in a way, it was kinda badass and admirable, though.”

Ouka jumped into the conversation with a grin.

“…But seriously, what was that all about?”

“What was what all about?”

“A-ah, never mind, nothing! Ahaha!”

Ouka laughed awkwardly, brushing it off. But yesterday, she reacted strangely too. Just what is she hiding?

“Anyway. What happened yesterday was basically an accident, so just forget about it… or, well, actually, you can’t forget it, but… I mean, I do need you to say ‘I like you,’ but… ugh, I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore…”

I was getting so flustered, I couldn’t even string my words together properly.

“An accident, huh? Well, considering you’ve never even held hands with a girl before, Amakusa-kun, I suppose it was a bit unnatural.”

“D-don’t assume things like that!”

…Not that she was wrong, though.

“Yeah, now that I think about it, you didn’t seem all that serious when you said it.”

Ouka peered into my eyes with a piercing gaze, making me instinctively look away. There’s no fooling her—Ouka can see right through people.

“Well, whatever the reason, I will never say it.”

Yukihira delivered a completely hopeless declaration.

“Ahaha, but I already did, you know?”

“…You already said it?”

Yukihira turned to look at Ouka.

“Yup! ‘Cause I do like Amacchi!”

“…I see.”

Ouka… sometimes your innocent way of thinking is kind of a blessing.

“…Amakusa-kun. Depending on the conditions, I might be willing to consider it.”

What? Just now, she was adamantly refusing—what made her suddenly change her mind?

“Conditions?”

“Yukichi-sensei.”

“…It’s money, isn’t it?!”

“Or perhaps Hideyo-sensei.”

“IT’S STILL MONEY!”

“I’ve been hiding this for a long time, but… the truth is, if I don’t keep consuming money, I’ll die.”

“YOU’RE KANEGON?!”

No good… Yukihira will have to be dealt with later.

Ouka and Yuragi have already cleared, so that leaves Yukihira aside, meaning the remaining targets are… Konagi, Reikadou, and the Student Council President, Kokubyakuin.

Of those three, the one most likely to say it first is… yeah, obviously, Konagi.

***

And So, Lunchtime.

“Yawakaze, Yawakaze.”

I made my way to Class 2-15, which was located at the far end of the school building, and called out to Yawakaze.

“Ah, what is it, Amakusa-kun?”

“Can you come over here for a sec?”

Thanks to a certain *choice* I made the other day, I had said something outrageous to the girls of Class 15. Because of that, stepping inside felt like walking into a lion’s den. I gestured for her to come out instead. Yawakaze, ever the obedient one, trotted over without hesitation.

But—

“Ah—uwaaah!”

…She tripped.

“A-are you okay?”

“Ah, yeah. Thanks.”

She stood up with a sheepish smile. Her legendary clumsiness remained as impressive as ever.

“So, what’s up today, Amakusa-kun?”

“Ah, well, it’s about yesterday—”

“Y-yesterday… you mean when you confessed to everyone, right?”

Her face turned red as the memory resurfaced. Ugh… somehow, even I was starting to feel embarrassed.

“N-no, that’s not it! It wasn’t a confession about six people at once, or anything like that…”

I quickly tried to steer the conversation in another direction.

“Look, even I know this about myself, but… I do a lot of weird things, right?”

“Ah, yeah.”

She nodded so earnestly that it kind of hurt… but I didn’t have the time to dwell on that.

“Because of that, the girls in my class always give me these cold stares, and every day is just rough, you know?”

“O-oh… that sounds tough…”

Even though she hesitated a bit, she genuinely looked concerned. Trick—no, *persuading*—such an innocent girl made me feel a little guilty, but…

“But if even someone like me could get the popular girls to say ‘I like you,’ even just as a formality, I thought maybe I’d gain a bit more confidence.”

“O-oh, I see…”

Well, out of the girls who were there yesterday, only three were actually considered *popular* in the official rankings, but Yawakaze didn’t seem to notice, so let’s just roll with it.

“Yawakaze, do you… dislike me?”

“Eh—n-no, not at all!”

She frantically waved her hands side to side. Seeing how sincere her reaction was, I felt relieved. If even *she* hated me, I’d seriously question my worth as a human being.

“Then, if you had to choose between liking or disliking me…?”

It was a total leading question, but I didn’t have the luxury of playing fair.

“Ah, yeah! Of course, in that sense, I’d say I li—”

“Hold it right there.”

“Huh?”

A Familiar Voice—and a Firm Grip on My Head.

As I hesitantly turned around, I was met with a lineup of all-too-familiar faces.

At the front stood Toudou Sakura-senpai, the leader of the Yawakaze Fan Club, flanked by her loyal followers. Their faces twitched with barely restrained fury as they glared at me.

“Uh, well, this is…”

“Let’s have a little chat over there, shall we?”

“Wait, no, this isn’t what it looks like—UWAHHHHHHH!”

I was dragged away, completely powerless.

And So, the All-Too-Familiar Punishment Time.

“What the hell were you trying to make Yawakaze-san say?!”

“You’ve been getting chummy with Konagi-chan lately, and I don’t like it!”

“How dare you lay your filthy hands on our beloved Konagi-tan?! Unforgivable, an outrage beyond measure!”

“I swear, if you don’t quit it, I’m gonna shove something up your—”

Okay, hold up! That last one was seriously messed up!

“Listen up, Yawakaze-san belongs to all of us. She’s not someone any one person should think they can have for themselves!”

Toudou-senpai loomed over me, her voice raised in righteous indignation as I lay sprawled on the ground.

…Like hell you have the right to say that. Weren’t you the one secretly betraying the others by sending Yawakaze presents behind their backs?

“From now on, don’t you dare go near Yawakaze-san again.”

Toudou-senpai shot me a sharp glare before turning on her heel, leading her squad away.

“Ugh… that hurt…”

“Amakusa-kun, are you okay?”

Just as I was pushing myself up against the wall, I heard a voice behind me.

“Yawakaze…”

She had run over and was now crouching beside me.

“Did those people… do this to you?”

“Ah… yeah, they did.”

“Geez… what’s with them? Every time a boy talks to me, they just take him away somewhere… but to do something like this? That’s just awful!”

For once, Yawakaze looked genuinely angry. She puffed up her cheeks in frustration, but rather than intimidating, it just made her look unbearably adorable.

Still, those so-called “guardians” of hers… After going to such lengths, not only did they fail to get noticed by Yawakaze, but they ended up making her mad. That was beyond pitiful.

“Yawakaze, don’t think too badly of them, okay?”

“Eh? B-but, Amakusa-kun, they did something terrible to you…”

“Yeah, but I kind of had it coming.”

I mean, if some guy that everyone called a pervert went up to a girl they liked and said, ‘Show me your panties,’ or tried to force her to say ‘I love you,’ it’d be weird if they didn’t get mad.

“Well… if you say so, Amakusa-kun, then I’ll try not to…”

She trailed off for a moment, then, as if gathering her resolve, opened her mouth again.

“A-Amakusa-kun… I… like you.”

“Huh?”

It was so abrupt that my brain momentarily failed to process it.

Seeing my blank stare, Yawakaze’s face turned bright red, and she started waving her hands frantically.

“N-no, not like that! I mean, as a person! You said every day was hard for you, and now you’re even getting beaten up… and, um, saying you’re ‘pitiful’ sounds kind of rude, but… I-I don’t even know what I’m trying to say anymore! I just thought… if this would cheer you up, then maybe…”

…What is this creature?

“A-a-anyway, um… goodbye!”

Clutching her burning cheeks, Yawakaze spun around and bolted.

“She’s seriously a national treasure…”

Just as I let out a sigh of admiration at Yawakaze’s pure-heartedness, my phone vibrated in my pocket.

I quickly pulled it out and checked the message from God—

《Yawakaze Konagi—CLEAR》

Alright… That’s three out of six already. Clearing half the mission in just a few days was a damn good pace.

Feeling satisfied, I started to walk away—only to have an immense force clamp down on my shoulder.

…With a growing sense of dread, I slowly turned around.

“Yo, we sure are seeing a lot of each other today, Amakusa-kun.”

There stood Toudou-senpai, for some reason wearing an unnervingly bright smile.