Parameter Supremacy: The Man Who Seizes a Harem Through Sheer Effort.

Malicious Rumors.

Two weeks had already passed since September began.

I had grown used to being back at school after the long break. Both academics and club activities were going smoothly. My daily stat-grinding was progressing exactly as planned, and I made sure to take proper rest for stress management.

In a word, I was in peak condition.

***

Today, as usual, I met up with Shiina and joined Moe along the way, the three of us walking to school together.

Nothing seemed particularly different from normal. It was my usual pleasant, endearing daily life. Or at least, it should have been.

However, for the past few days, something had felt off. Whenever the three of us walked together, other students would glance our way while whispering among themselves, their expressions clearly suspicious.

Even Shiina and Moe had started to notice.

“Hey, do you think people are talking about us?”

“Yeah… I was thinking the same thing, Ryuuji.”

Moe answered our shared suspicion.

“Maybe they’re just gossiping about you and Shii-chan dating? Matsuri-chan did shout ‘girlfriend’ really loudly, after all.”

That made sense. It was a reasonable guess.

Moe’s explanation was convincing. Even though we hadn’t made any public announcement, a few people who overheard Matsuri’s loud comment had probably spread the news that Shiina and I were now dating. It was plausible.

But something still felt wrong.

I already knew that rumors about Shiina and me being a couple had existed even before summer break. Neither of us had ever bothered to deny them.

So why would the fact that we had officially started dating suddenly spark new rumors all over again?

It was possible I was just being overly sensitive because it involved us personally, but it felt strangely belated for people to be chatting excitedly about it now.

Still… it was all just speculation.

“No point overthinking it. As long as it doesn’t cause any real harm, we can just ignore it.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Both Shiina and Moe nodded in agreement.

***

“Sorry, Ryuuji. The teacher called me about club stuff, so I can’t eat lunch with you today! Go ahead and eat with Moe!”

During the start of lunch break, Shiina told me she wouldn’t be able to join us.

Thanks to her third-place finish at the Inter-High, she had been busy the past few days with school newspaper interviews and photoshoots.

“Can’t be helped… Alright then.”

“Moe, let’s go eat.”

I called out to Moe, who was sitting at her desk. For a brief moment, I thought I felt the classroom stir.

“?”

Maybe it was just my imagination. Still, I had an odd feeling that the temperature in the room had dropped slightly.

“Yeah. Sure. Let’s go eat~”

Hearing Moe’s adorable reply, my focus returned to the girl in front of me.

“Alright, let’s go.”

With that, Moe and I headed off to eat lunch together. The only thing I couldn’t shake was the unpleasant stares I felt on my back.

***

The hot days continued. Seeking a cooler spot, Moe and I spread out our lunches in the school cafeteria.

In front of Moe was an elaborate, delicious-looking homemade bento.

Today’s main dish appeared to be bite-sized hamburg steaks.

In contrast, my lunch was just a random assortment of leftover side dishes from yesterday stuffed into a container with some white rice.

Compared to Moe’s bento, it looked pitiful, but at least I had her beat in volume.

I piled the side dishes onto my rice and shoveled it into my mouth.

Across from me, Moe was working hard to open her small mouth wide, chewing the hamburg steak with cute little “munch munch” motions.

It was supposed to be one bite, yet somehow it took her three. The demi-glace sauce clinging to her lips looked strangely seductive.

I found myself staring blankly at those lips.

“Hm? Ryuuji-kun, do you want some hamburg steak?”

Noticing my gaze, Moe picked up a piece with her chopsticks and held it out right in front of me.

It was embarrassing, and I was conscious of the eyes around us. I hesitated for a second, unsure what to do.

Moe’s expression turned slightly awkward.

“Ahaha, you don’t want it, right? It’s just my homemade stuff…”

Hearing her say that made it impossible for me to refuse.

“No, it’s not that. I was just embarrassed. I’ll take it.”

I leaned forward and ate the piece she offered in one bite with an “Aahn.”

***

After finishing our lunches, we were drinking the bottled tea we had bought on the way to the cafeteria… but something was definitely wrong.

The other students were clearly talking while looking straight at Moe and me.

Moe seemed to have noticed as well and kept glancing around nervously.

“People really are gossiping about us.”

“Yeah… It’s kind of scary…”

“Yeah. At the very least, it doesn’t seem like good rumors…”

Exactly. These were definitely bad rumors. I could feel contempt and malice in many of the stares. Some glares were so obvious it was impossible to miss.

I couldn’t make out what they were saying, but it was clear the sentiment was negative.

“Moe, does anything come to mind?”

“Hmm, not really… But it reminds me of when I was bullied before, and it feels kind of gross…”

“Bullied?”

“Yeah. Because of my voice and the way I talk… the other girls didn’t like it…”

Moe gave a self-deprecating laugh.

“I like your voice and the way you talk. I think they’re cute.”

When I said that, Moe beamed with happiness.

“Ehehe. Thank you~”

Her bright, adorable smile made me blush without thinking. A faintly sweet atmosphere settled between the two of us.

But that was the worst possible timing.

“What are that cheating bastard and the slut being all lovey-dovey for?”

The contemptuous whisper drifted over from somewhere nearby.

I instantly looked at Moe’s face.

She was still smiling. Good. It seemed the ugly words hadn’t reached her. I felt relieved.

But I finally understood.

The reason the malicious stares were so much stronger when it was just Moe and me, compared to when Shiina was with us.

And those words just now. The rumors were targeting me and Moe.

Cheating bastard and slut. That had to be referring to us.

Cheating bastard. It was understandable that someone who didn’t know the full situation—seeing me dating Shiina while staying so close to Moe—would view me that way.

That part was my responsibility. I could accept it.

But “slut”? That didn’t sit right with me.

It was true that I had grown quite accepting of Moe. That was on me.

However, at least in public, I had always asked her to keep physical contact to a minimum.

So perhaps today’s bento-sharing moment was the trigger.

It definitely went beyond normal friend distance. It was the kind of interaction that required at least some level of affection.

That might be the cause. I felt sorry for dragging Moe into this.

Even so, I still wasn’t fully convinced.

The whispers and stares during our walk to school and inside the classroom had started before today’s lunch incident. Something didn’t add up.

I could accept being called a cheating bastard. I’d bear that title.

But I couldn’t help feeling anger at hearing a girl I genuinely cared about being called a slut.

The area around us was still buzzing. I couldn’t hear the exact words, but there were clearly many eyes fixed on us.

Moe had shrunk in on herself, clearly bothered by the attention.

“Moe, let’s head back to the classroom for now.”

“O-Okay.”

We quickly made our way back to our classroom.

***

After school, during club time.

Shiina and I were taking a break together in a corner of the dojo.

I still had no idea how far the unidentified rumors had spread. At least during club activities, no one had given us those kinds of stares.

It was possible some club members already knew about the rumors. But rumors were just rumors. There was a good chance they weren’t based on facts.

Moreover, if the content was something that could hurt people, it might be difficult for them to bring it up directly with those of us who would be directly involved.

Above all, we were kendo club comrades who had shared the same hardships. Having seen us every day, they might view the rumors differently.

All of this was still just my speculation.

“I think some weird rumor about me and Moe is going around.”

I told Shiina everything I had felt that day.

“Eh? Really?”

“Yeah. When I was eating lunch with Moe today, quite a few people gave us really malicious looks.”

“For real? Are you okay?”

Shiina peered worriedly into my face.

“I’m fine. I can handle this much. But I’m not sure about Moe. She mentioned she was bullied in the past. She might be feeling anxious.”

“Ah… That did happen, didn’t it…”

Shiina’s expression turned sad. She clearly knew about Moe’s past.

“From the bits I overheard, they were calling me a cheating bastard and Moe a slut.”

“Cheating bastard… and slut…”

“From the outside, a guy who’s dating you but stays close to Moe looks like a cheater. And Moe, who approaches me even though she knows I have a girlfriend, gets labeled a slut… Something like that.”

“I see. From an outsider’s perspective, it probably does look that way.”

“Yeah, I think so too. But both Moe and I have been keeping our distance in public.”

“In public, sure~ But when you’re alone, you get pretty close, don’t you?”

Shiina gave me a teasing, slightly narrowed-eyed look.

“It would be a lie to say we don’t. I’m serious about Moe too, and you’re the one who wanted this, remember?”

“Because I said so?”

“At first, yeah. But now it’s different. I’m seriously thinking about Moe because I want to.”

Shiina smiled gently.

“I see. That’s good.”

“…What?”

“Nothing. You really are manly, Ryuuji!”

“Even though I’m being called a cheating bastard?”