Returned from Another World, Earth Turned Out to Be Quite the Fantasy Too. Also, Losing Heroines, Stop Looking This Way. - Chapter 40

Chapter 40: “Anzu isn’t at fault, right?” ②

“Wait, Anzu.”

“Leave me alone!”

After school at the junior high, Kazuto Miyahara was holding onto the arm of Anzu Ayakawa, his childhood friend and first love, trying to prevent her from doing something foolish.

“I don’t know what happened with my brother, but don’t drag Natsuki-kun into this.”

At first glance, Kazuto, with his light brown hair and sloppily worn uniform, might seem like a carefree student, but his eyes were serious.

He sensed that Anzu was about to cause trouble and was earnestly trying to stop her.

He was relieved that he had caught her before she could do anything, yet he was also anxious whether he could stop her himself.

“Don’t talk about that guy!”

“That guy? You mean my brother? What exactly happened? You were always clinging to him before.”

“That’s because Anzu was being messed with by him!”

“You’ve been saying that since yesterday. What did he do to you?”

Kazuto was exasperated.

It was surprising that his brother Yuto had gotten a girlfriend, but that was beside the point. The problem was with Anzu. No matter how much her love went unrequited, it irked him that she was trying to approach Natsuki with an attitude of innocence, after having bad-mouthed him for so long.

Kazuto, for his part, had his own troubles because of his brother, but Natsuki’s family was already apart. And there was no doubt in his mind that Anzu was the cause.

“I’m saying I was being messed with! I never liked that guy at all! The only one for Anzu was her Onii-chan.”

“Don’t mess around.”

“―!”

Anzu’s words halted at Kazuto’s voice, unusually filled with anger.

“I’ve always been watching you guys. I know that you have always loved my brother. There’s no mistake because you yourself said so.”

“That is—”

“But if it’s different, that’s fine. However, I can’t believe that you’ve always liked Natsuki-kun. Normally, you don’t hurl abuse every time you face someone you like.”

“…”

Anzu didn’t argue. No, she couldn’t.

As Kazuto said, every time Anzu saw Natsuki, she would say things like, “Unlike Yuto-san, you’re dumb,” “You’re too ugly compared to Yuto-san,” “You’re worse at studying than Yuto-san,” “You’re worse at sports than Yuto-san,” “Compared to Yuto-san…” “Yuto-san is better,” “If it were Yuto-san,” constantly picking on him.

Even a female student rumored to have a bad personality in Natsuki’s grade was worried enough to ask, “Hey, Yura, are you okay?” due to how terrible Anzu’s behavior was.

If Natsuki dared to talk back, Anzu had gone as far as to make up things to the teachers and cry to Yuto.

Even the teachers knew about Anzu’s behavior.

Yet now, it was questionable which mouth could claim to have liked Natsuki.

“Anzu isn’t at fault.”

“…There’s no way something so childish would work.”

“It’s different. He’s the one who messed with Anzu!”

“What exactly did he do to mess with you? And, I don’t mind you speaking ill of my brother, but you were just crying to him a moment ago, right? Because of that, Natsuki-kun and my brother had a disagreement. After saying all that, why go crying to my brother?”

“That’s because he saw Anzu crying and asked what happened…”

“You just told him what was convenient for you, right? …Anzu, you’ve always been like this.”

“Eh?”

“Don’t you realize it?”

Kazuto sighed deeply.

Anzu Ayakawa was a girl who became strange whenever his brother was involved. So, even if it was truly his brother’s fault she became weird, he could grudgingly accept it. But that wasn’t the only problem.

Being from a single-parent family with a busy father who was often away, she rarely came home and hung out instead.

She also associated with women of dubious character she met through his brother.

She’d quickly spend her allowance and then beg her father for more money. Recently, when a stranger approached her, Kazuto had to intervene to stop her from following him.

Among the girls around Yuto, there were those who disliked Anzu. Her obsequious behavior was conspicuous, and she used her status as Yuto’s childhood friend to assert dominance, leading to complaints from girls who were made uncomfortable by her, quickly spreading stories to her advantage and then crying to garner sympathy. Her usual behavior was not commendable.

Despite Kazuto’s attempts to reason due to their childhood friendship, conversations with Anzu were futile, filled with “but,” “because,” and “Anzu isn’t at fault.”

This incident was no different.

Even if Anzu had moved on from Yuto getting a girlfriend, it seemed odd for her to suddenly switch her affections to another boy. Kazuto couldn’t help but question if years of affection could change so instantly. Even if that were possible, approaching Natsuki without any apology for past actions, claiming innocence, would understandably anger not just Natsuki.

Even Kazuto doubted Anzu’s sanity upon hearing her side.

“…I’m glad Anzu has stopped chasing after my brother. But Natsuki-kun is off-limits. As his childhood friend, I can’t allow that.”

“…What do you mean? Why should I listen to you! Anzu cares about her brother the most. You act all high and mighty, but you just want Anzu to like you instead, don’t you!?”

“You’re out of your mind… When did I ever say that?”

“That’s the only way I can see it! I don’t need your approval! My brother would accept me! He would forgive me and hold me!”

Shouting like a child in a tantrum, Anzu ran off.

Kazuto, intending to follow, stopped, realizing his words wouldn’t reach her.

“—Love cools down over a hundred years, huh.”

Indeed, Kazuto still harbored feelings for Anzu, his first love, not entirely without affection.

That’s why he wished she wouldn’t do anything foolish and tried to stop her if she was wrong.

However, his patience had worn thin.

He realized that whatever he said was futile.

Even now, students aware of the relationship between Anzu, Yuto, and Kazuto looked at him with a mix of curiosity and pity.

Unable to bear it, Kazuto sent a message to Natsuki, warning him to be careful, and sent a similar message to Anzu’s father.

“Sigh… If my brother really did something, he should properly resolve things or at least follow up properly.”

Kazuto sighed, feeling burdened by the trouble caused by his brother, not knowing how many times he had done so.

―Fortunately, Kazuto later received a message from Anzu’s father that he had found and taken care of her. 

She had apparently been on her way to confront the Yura family, and Kazuto was relieved that the worst had been avoided.

Yet, given Anzu’s behavior, he was certain she would approach Natsuki again, which gave him a headache.

“I hope Natsuki-kun takes a day off tomorrow.”

Whether Kazuto’s wish was heard is unknown, but Natsuki was absent the following day.

〜〜Afterword & Additional Notes〜〜

This was from Kazuto’s perspective.

To him, it seemed as if Anzu was merely shifting her target to Natsuki after being rejected by his brother, and he was astonished by her lack of reflection on her past behavior.

I would appreciate any follow-up and reviews of the work.

Thank you very much!