No Wonder I'm Unwanted in This Chastity-Reversed World

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Chapter 41

A week had passed since the field trip ended.

The lingering excitement—“That was so much fun!”—had completely faded, and life had returned to the usual rhythm of high school.

Back to normal. Yeah… normal.

For me, though, maybe it was a daily life I didn’t want to return to.

Because for some reason—I was the only guy who wasn’t being swarmed by girls.

In a world with a 1:20 male-to-female ratio, you’d think even someone like me—who was completely unpopular in my previous life—would have girls flocking to him, right?

But during lunch, after school… I was still sitting alone.

However—

The next day, I noticed something different.

“So let’s use when I leave the classroom as the starting time. And when I come back, that’ll be the end, alright? Make sure to keep things appropriate, okay?”

“Yesss~!”

“Ohh, I’m getting nervous…!”

“I hope I can keep the conversation going properly…”

It was almost the end of lunch.

On my way back from the restroom, I saw three girls gathered around Rui’s desk.

Seeing Rui surrounded by girls after school wasn’t unusual, but during lunch?

That was rare. Well, Rui is handsome, so I guess it makes sense.

But the problem was—The seat next to Rui was mine.

Not wanting to interrupt, I quietly approached, but—

The three girls suddenly returned to their own desks.

It almost looked like… they had dispersed because I came back.

“I’m back~.”

I casually took my seat next to Rui.

“Welcome back, Ikuto. I’m glad you made it back safely.”

“You’re acting like I went on some dangerous mission. I just went to the restroom.”

“No, no, it’s you we’re talking about. Of course I’d worry.”

Rui said it so naturally.

But seriously, I’m just living my life normally, aren’t I?

“By the way… did I interrupt something? Looked like you girls were having a good conversation.”

I glanced over at the girls who had been gathered around her earlier.

“No, not at all. Actually, I should be the one apologizing—we were taking up space, making it hard for you to sit down.”

“Eh, I didn’t really mind.”

They were probably just there because they wanted to talk to Rui.

I mean, she’s handsome AND a good listener! The total package!

“But still, I did kind of get in the way, huh? My bad—”

“Ikuto, you could never be in the way.”

Rui suddenly cut me off with an unusually firm tone.

“O-Oh… uh, okay?”

Something about Rui felt different today.

That thought crossed my mind for just a moment.

◆◆

After school.

As usual, I stood at a distance, watching Takahashi and Tanaka being approached by a group of girls.

But today… something was different.

“I can’t today! I’m grabbing crepes with Akarizaki after school.”

“Yeah, same here. Kamijo-san and I are stopping by Animate, so I’m busy.”

Even though they were surrounded by a crowd of girls, Takahashi and Tanaka were actually making eye contact and responding properly.

“They’ve… grown!”

Since the field trip, they had stopped tensing up as much around girls.

Even when girls approached them now, they exchanged a few words naturally instead of panicking.

It was clear that their male bodyguards—who had been watching over them all this time—were happy about it too.

I could see Akarizaki-kun and Kamijo-kun standing nearby, slight smiles on their faces as they observed the conversation.

I hope Takahashi and Tanaka continue interacting with girls without fear.

And I hope that, sometimes, they can hang out without their bodyguards around. That would definitely be fun.

Well, in the end, that’s up to them to decide.

And maybe one day, even though we’re all guys with different perspectives, I’d like to think… we could get along.

That thought crossed my mind as I rested my chin on my hand—

Until something unexpected happened.

“U-Um…!”

“Ichise-kun!”

Hearing voices call out to me, I shifted my gaze—

Three girls were standing there.

I recognized them immediately.

They were the same girls who had gathered around Rui’s desk during lunch.

Which meant… they were probably here for Rui again.

I glanced at Rui, who was also looking at me.

“Ikuto, you want to get along with the girls, right?”

“H-Huh? Well, yeah, of course.”

The unexpected question caught me off guard, so my answer came out sounding a bit unsure.

Setting aside my dream of being showered with attention by cute girls—

The truth was, I did want to be able to talk with them normally.

I mean, we go to the same school, right? It would be nice to get along.

“But I wouldn’t force it. Everyone should talk to whoever they want to talk to.”

There’s no rule saying they have to talk to boys.

If they weren’t approaching me, it just meant… we weren’t a good match.

And that’s fine.

“Don’t mind me. Go ahead and talk, Rui.”

Rui paused for a moment before—

“Ahhh, I think my stomach kinda hurts… I should probably go to the restroom~.”

“Huh?”

Rui suddenly stood up, her tone sounding completely unnatural.

“Alright, see you later.”

With a quick smile toward the girls, she walked right out of the classroom.

And just like that—

My male bodyguard was gone.

Now, I was left alone with three girls silently staring at me—and Kanoya-san watching from behind like some kind of supervisor.

“…”

Uh… what am I supposed to do here?

Back when I first started school, if I tried talking to girls, they’d just run away for some reason…

“Uh… ahaha… ha…”

I forced an awkward smile.

Alright, calm down, me.

Maybe I should take a deep breath first—

Just as I had that thought, I heard someone inhale sharply—

“Ichise-kun! I have a question! W-What’s your favorite food?”

“What kind of hairstyle do you like?”

“How do you usually spend your time at home?”

The three girls suddenly bombarded me with questions all at once.

…Huh? Wait. WHAT!?

It all happened so fast that my brain failed to process the situation.

“Everyone, please calm down. Ichise-kun looks a little overwhelmed.”

““”Yesss!”””

At some point, Kanoya-san had stepped in, and with her words, the three girls took a step back and collected themselves.

“Whoa… Kanoya-san, that was amazing.”

Without thinking, I gave her a small round of applause.

“Alright, Ichise-kun, go ahead.”

“Oh, uh, yeah.”

Wait. I can actually talk to them?

“Um, okay, starting with the first question… My favorite food is probably hamburg steak or fried chicken. I make them pretty often at home, too.”

“You cook at home, Ichise-kun!?”

“Oh yeah, now that you mention it, you looked super used to cooking back at the field trip!”

Oh? They actually seem interested.

“Yeah, my family doesn’t do any special treatment just because I’m a guy. We take turns making breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I handle house chores too.”

“Whoa~!”

“That’s so responsible~!”

The girls giggled excitedly at my response.

Oh… Ohhhhhhh!!

I’m actually talking to girls right now!

Having an actual conversation with them!

I mean, sure, I talk to Rui every day, and she is a girl… but since she’s so handsome, it never feels the same.

But today—

They weren’t cutting the conversation short.

They were making eye contact and actually listening to me!

I wasn’t getting mobbed like Takahashi or Tanaka, but—who cares about numbers!?

This moment alone was amazing!