Someone Who Believes They Can Live Normally in a World Where Chastity Is Reversed (Did You Think You Could Live Normally in a World With a Male-To-Female Ratio of 1:5?) - Chapter 58: Literature Loving JK's Will

After receiving shocking confessions from Koiumi and Mizuho, I spent several days unable to organize my thoughts at all. I laid on my bed, staring at my smartphone, letting time pass by.

What kept swirling in my mind were, unmistakably, thoughts of them.

—

[I love you. I can’t hold it back anymore! Even if it’s impossible now… please… see me not as a sister… but as a girl.]

[At the very least, since the day I first met you, Masato, I’ve only had eyes for you.]

[I love you. Since that time, I’ve always… always loved you, Katasato Masato-kun… This feeling, this feeling alone, is not a lie.]

[So, let me say it. Let me convey it. Since the day I met you, I’ve always—I’ve always loved you, Katasato Masato-kun.]

“…Haa…”

I was genuinely happy to receive their affection. However, I also knew that leaving things as they were wasn’t right.

What should I do?

If asked whether I liked them or not, of course, I liked them all. But if asked if this was romantic love…

“I don’t know…”

I thought they were all attractive girls. Each one of them was wonderful, to the point where I felt they were too good for me.

Even though I still had my pre-transmigration sensibilities, I had desires appropriate for my age.

But no matter what, the words spoken by the girl I dated in the past were etched into my mind and wouldn’t leave.

“Katasato-kun, you’re like that with everyone, aren’t you…”

She said that with a sad face, and all I could do was apologize.

I couldn’t treat anyone specially. My nature of wanting to be kind to everyone couldn’t be changed now.

“Is it running away to think, ‘If it makes someone feel bad…then I’d rather not’?”

As I stared blankly at the ceiling, a notification came on my smartphone. I picked up the phone from beside my bed and turned on the screen.

<Shinomiya Shiori>: [Masato-san, I look forward to studying with you today as well.]

“…Oh, right. Today is Shiori-chan’s tutoring day.”

The current time was 10 AM. I forced my heavy body to get up from the bed.

“Well, Shiori-chan is relatively easy to deal with…”

Unlike when we first met, Shiori-chan now interacted with me in her true personality, not her formal one. That made it easier for me, and above all, it was fun.

Shiori-chan was interesting.

“I need to bring the answers to her homework too…”

I hadn’t felt like doing anything these past few days, but I had prepared the materials for tutoring. Seeing Shiori-chan’s grades improve was simply gratifying.

I decided to push aside the problems that had been swirling in my head for now. Today, I resolved to focus on tutoring Shiori-chan properly.

—

“So, you can translate this part like this… Oh, be careful with that word; it’s easy to misspell.”

“Ugh… I know I make a lot of spelling mistakes, but I just can’t get the hang of vocabulary lists…”

After arriving at Shiori-chan’s house, the tutoring session proceeded as usual. Without her formal mask, Shiori-chan spoke her mind more freely, and words flowed smoothly.

“This part is almost correct, though??? It’s really frustrating to be marked wrong just because I didn’t use the past tense.”

“Fufufu…”

Her words were sometimes so amusing that I couldn’t help but laugh. She probably didn’t worry as much about what I thought of her anymore.

Previously, Shiori-chan had been somewhat stiff during lessons, but recently, she seemed much more relaxed and focused on her studies.

Of course, she didn’t say anything inappropriate during lessons and was serious about her work. During breaks, she would joke around without hesitation…

But honestly, unless the harassment from a beautiful girl was extremely severe, it didn’t bother me at all.

…Maybe in this world, I could get away with harassment too… No, I should stop. That wouldn’t lead to a good future…

“Alright, let’s wrap up today’s English lesson here.”

“Ughhh, I’m so tired. I’m really tired.”

“Yeah, let’s take a break.”

After about an hour of lessons, we took a break.

As I praised Shiori-chan, who was slumped over the desk, I drank the barley tea she had prepared. While drinking, I checked my smartphone, which I hadn’t looked at for a while, and saw several notifications.

—

<Mizuho>: [Masato, make sure to come to class the day after tomorrow!]

<Mizuho>: […You don’t have to overthink it.]

<Mizuho>: [Just having you in class with me makes me happy.]

—

<Maeda Yuka>: [Masato-san, I’ve been selected for the regional team…]

<Maeda Yuka>: [I’m worried, so could you help me practice again?]

<Maeda Yuka>: [Whenever you have time is fine…!]

—

Mizuho’s concern pierced my heart.

She was kind and wonderful. As for Yuka… that’s amazing. Being selected for the regional team as a first-year… well, with Yuka’s skills, it’s not surprising.

Mizuho and Yuka.

I remembered the moments when they conveyed their feelings to me.

Honestly, I was so surprised that I was almost in a state of confusion, and both of them were relentless… I should stop here. Whether I like it or not, I’ll remember that time.

Both of them are usually so cute, but at that moment, it was like… I was completely the prey, or something like that…

As I was lost in thought, Shiori-chan, who had somehow recovered, appeared right behind me.

“Are you troubled by girl problems again, Masato-san?”

“Uh… well, yeah, I guess…”

“Ahh… this is why pretty boys… You helped me during the cultural festival, though…”

Thinking it would be wrong to lie, I confessed honestly. Shiori-chan’s demeanor didn’t change when talking about these things, which was a relief. Since becoming closer with Shiori-chan, she had occasionally given me advice.

“Is it Igarashi-senpai? Or is it another girl this time?”

“Ah, well, it’s Koiumi too, but…”

“Too?! You said ‘too,’ Masato-san! This is why popular guys… Did you finally get confessed to this time?”

“…”

Shiori-chan’s words, spoken with an exasperated pose, hit too close to home, leaving me at a loss for words. The unnatural silence made Shiori-chan’s eyes widen.

“Wait… did you really get confessed to?”

“Well, yeah, I did.”

“W-wait a minute. And you said ‘too’ earlier, right? So, from multiple people…?”

I was too embarrassed to say it out loud, so I could only nod with a wry smile.

“No… way…”

Shiori-chan seemed more shocked than I had expected. Reflecting on it calmly, I realized it wasn’t a topic to discuss with the opposite sex.

“Sorry, sorry, this isn’t a fun topic to hear, is it?”

“No, um… it’s not about being fun or not…”

Looking closely, I noticed Shiori-chan’s hands were trembling. Oh, was this topic that unpleasant…? I messed up…

“C-Could you give me a moment?! I need to cut down a lot of flowers, yes.”

Leaving those words behind, Shiori-chan hurriedly left the room.

This is bad… It’s not a pleasant topic, after all. It wouldn’t be strange if it sounded like I was bragging about being popular. I’ll apologize when Shiori-chan comes back. I’ve been too relaxed just because Shiori-chan is easy to talk to.

I know I’m emotionally unstable, but that doesn’t mean I can trouble Shiori-chan and get away with it. I sighed involuntarily. Lately, I’ve really been a mess.

—

After a while, Shiori-chan returned. However, her hands still seemed to be trembling, so I couldn’t help but speak up.

“I’m really sorry, Shiori-chan. It wasn’t a pleasant topic, was it?”

“No, no, it’s not a problem, but…”

“I find it easy to talk to you, Shiori-chan, so I end up talking about these things. It’s not good, is it?”

“Ah, um, well, about that…”

Shiori-chan interrupted me, which surprised me a little. She took a deep breath. What was going on? She closed the door behind her, more carefully than usual… why?

Shiori-chan walked over and came very close to me. A soft, pleasant scent unique to girls wafted over, and I involuntarily held my breath.

“Um, I’m really grateful that you find it easy to talk to me, yes, really.”

“Uh, yeah…?”

“By the way, why is that?”

Why, huh. It’s mostly a feeling, so it’s hard to explain…

“Since you stopped being so formal, Shiori-chan, I feel really relaxed and enjoy talking to you, so I don’t get nervous… something like that, I guess?”

“I see, that’s really nice to hear.”

If she understood, that’s good. What if Shiori-chan started to dislike me—

“But!!”

Shiori-chan’s voice was louder than I’d ever heard, and I was taken aback.

At that moment, our eyes finally met. She was looking up at me, her cheeks flushed. She seemed very nervous.

“Um…”

Was she struggling to find the words? I thought it wouldn’t be good to rush her in this situation, so I waited for her to speak. For some reason, I could hear my heartbeat.

After taking a few deep breaths, Shiori-chan met my eyes again. I thought she had a beautiful face when we first met. I realized it again when she came closer. I had thought I could interact with her casually, but this girl was undoubtedly…

“E-Even though I may seem like this, I’m still a girl, you know.”

The words she said while looking up at me had more than enough power to shake my heart.

(T/N: and with that, We are caught up, sorry for the long delay, my college kept me busy. Drop any suggestions for the next romcom I should do)