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?)

“Haah…”

Recently, I’ve been sighing a lot. And the frequency increased as the weekend approached.

What used to be an event I looked forward to, I now faced with mixed feelings.

“You’re way too obvious. Thinking about the prince again?”

“Oh, that completely defeated prince?”

“Until recently, you were annoyingly energetic on Fridays.”

Surrounded by my usual group, I was slumped over my desk. The cultural festival had ended, and we were in the middle of the second semester. I should be in the prime of my youth, but the sky in my heart remained cloudy.

“Well, just give up. You clearly don’t have a chance, and besides, he’s not with just one person, right?”

“From what I heard, he was attacked by a middle schooler? That’s too crazy—what kind oferotic doujinshi is this?”

“If he’s making moves on so many girls… that prince is quite the player…”

“Shut up, shut up, shut uuup!”

Unable to bear the inconsiderate conversation happening above my head, I flailed my arms wildly.

“Don’t throw a tantrum… it’s the truth, isn’t it?”

Hatsumi, still tanned despite summer being over, bluntly said this to me, and all I could do was groan.

“So the prince was a playboy…”

“He is NOT a playboy.”

A playboy referred to someone who juggles multiple women or changes partners frequently.

But I don’t think Masato-sama was that type of person.

“But he’s already dating at least two people, right?”

“No, he wasn’t actually dating Igarashi-senpai the other day… and that loli girl didn’t seem like Masato-san approached her first…”

“It’s more problematic if he’s attacking them without dating them.”

“That’s true.”

Masato-san simply has a quality that attracts girls.

It’s because he was a good person, because he was defenseless, that he drove us crazy. Well, to be honest, I was also caught up in his charm…

“But doesn’t that mean you could also have a chance if you attacked him, even without dating him?”

“…”

…Come to think of it, that might be true.

I consider it seriously.

Honestly, I think my chances of winning the heroine race and becoming Masato-san’s girlfriend were low.

No matter how much I, a former plain girl, tried to reach beyond my grasp, he was not someone within my reach.

“Hey, she’s actually thinking about it seriously.”

“It’s sad to watch a friend get arrested.”

Ignoring these guys…

…It’s true that Masato-san didn’t have a specific partner right now.

If that’s the case, then maybe now…

Even if I approach him a bit forcefully, he might not reject me…?

I didn’t have even a micron of confidence that I could become his girlfriend, but I was confident that he viewed me favorably.

Recently, he’d been telling me I was very approachable. Though definitely not in a romantic sense.

If I seized an opportunity, I think I could honestly create some small memories with him.

…Well, if I did that, there’s a good chance he’d dislike me.

“This one’s no good, she really has the face of a criminal.”

“Wasn’t she always like that?”

“That’s crossing the line.”

When I finally snapped and stood up, Hatsumi and Mana scattered like spiders, saying “Whoa, she’s angry~”

“They’re way too rude…”

“Well, but you did have a scary face just now, Shiori, like you were too serious.”

“Ugh…”

Miaki, the only one who remained nearby, said lazily while carefully doing her nails.

Miaki has a boyfriend.

We always teased Miaki, who had been in a relationship for quite a long time, but deep down, we genuinely respected her.

So I felt like asking her.

“Miaki, what would you do if your boyfriend or someone you liked had someone else they liked?”

“…What would I do, you ask…”

Miaki spread her hands to admire her beautifully painted nails, then thought for a moment with an “Hmm.”

“I probably wouldn’t care much even if my current boyfriend got another girlfriend or two. As long as he still pays attention to me properly, isn’t that fine?”

“I-is that how it works?”

“I mean, we’re in a world where there are fewer men, so it’s natural for women to be without partners more often. If someone seriously considers dating you, isn’t that something to be happy about?”

“…”

“The idea that loving only one person equals sincerity is a concept that will change soon. They’ll probably introduce polygamy soon anyway. I think as long as I’m included in the framework, that’s fine.”

Miaki added jokingly that she’d cling on if she got dumped. As expected, Miaki’s way of thinking was mature. Completely different from mine.

I think about it again. If Masato-san were to become someone who dated multiple people…

Could someone like me even make it into that framework?

No matter how many times I considered it, I couldn’t confidently think “I could make it in.”

*****

And then came the next day, after I had somewhat sorted out my feelings. As I was enjoying class with Masato-san, a shocking fact dropped on me.

“W-wait a minute. And just now, you said ‘too,’ right? Does that mean from multiple people…?”

Recently, Masato-san had been looking increasingly troubled.

Guessing that his worries were most likely related to women, I put on my best “good woman who can give advice” act and listened to his story.

But because it turned out to be the unexpected news of “confessions” from multiple people, I was shocked.

“N-no way…”

But thinking about it calmly, this was something I could have anticipated.

It was just me being overly optimistic, thinking everything would be “fine” indefinitely. Of course the world wouldn’t leave such a wonderful person alone forever.

“Sorry, sorry. This kind of talk isn’t interesting to hear, is it?”

“No, um… it’s not about whether it’s interesting or not…”

My emotions swirled around. I could feel my heartbeat speeding up.

If he received confessions. If he started dating someone. Could there be a chance he would accept me if I said “Then me too…”?

Impossible.

Not only would Masato-san not allow it, but more importantly, the women who came before me would never permit it.

If I were in their position, I wouldn’t want to allow it either.

Masato-san looked at me with concern. Even that expression felt dear to me.

Even if he might date multiple people, Masato-san’s time was finite. No matter how perfect or superhuman he might be, he couldn’t possibly date ten people.

Given Masato-san’s personality… he wouldn’t treat the girls he dated first lightly.

“C-could I have a moment please~?! I need to cut a lot of flowers, yes!”

I hurried out of the room to organize my confused thoughts. I went to the restroom, closed the door, and took a deep breath.

I slumped down on the spot and covered my face with both hands.

“Haah~…”

I never imagined this would happen. The me from just a few hours ago, who thought “For now, I’ll just enjoy my time with Masato-san,” seems like an idiot now.

I removed my hands from my face and looked at them.

“…Does this mean this might be my last chance?”

If I just normally gave Masato-san advice now and he ended up saying “Then I guess I’ll start dating her.”

Then Masato-san would probably never date me.

That means today could very well be my last chance. Since I only get to see him once a week.

If next week he told me “I started dating someone,” I’m not confident I could maintain my composure.

In the worst case, I might not even be able to see him anymore.

—The moment I thought I might not be able to see him anymore, memories of Masato-san raced through my mind.

[Shiori-san, you’re really wonderful. When I first met you earlier, I thought you were a beautiful girl.]

[I might want to see more of those aspects of Shiori-chan.]

[I already know so many wonderful things about Shinomiya Shiori-chan, there’s no way I’d dislike you or be put off by just that.]

“Ah, I can’t do this.”

Something trailed down my cheek.

I belatedly realized that, for me, the thought of losing Masato-san was more unbearable than anything.

“Hahaha… what is this, I don’t understand.”

Things like being able to stay close to him. Or not needing to be number one.

Always running away.

It’s only when faced with the possibility of losing a connection that my heart screams out in protest.

No matter how much I try to keep up appearances, nothing changes. No matter where I go, I was still just a shy, foolish girl.

I took another deep breath.

Making him wait too long would only trouble Masato-san.

I should just focus on what I need to do right now.

At that moment, I suddenly remembered what my friends and I had talked about yesterday.

[But doesn’t that mean Shiori could also have a chance if she attacked him, even without dating him?]

—To put it extremely.

The reason Masato-san felt comfortable talking to me now was because he didn’t see me as a romantic interest.

But if I made some physical contact, even somewhat forcefully. To be specific, if I were to, say, kiss him.

Couldn’t I at least make him notice me?

My heart rate increased again. Could someone as introverted as me really do something like that?

“…I have to go.”

No, I have no choice. If I want to keep seeing Masato-san, if I want to stay with him.

I have no choice but to do this.

I returned to the room.

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

“Ah, no, that’s totally, not a problem, but…”

“With you, Shiori-chan, I find it so easy to talk that I end up sharing these kinds of things too. That’s not good, is it?”

“Ah~ ummmm, a-about that”

I have to say it. My racing heart. Forcing my legs that seemed about to tremble to move closer to Masato-san.

“U-um, I’m very grateful that you find it easy to talk to me, yes, really”

“U-uh… okay?”

“B-by the way, why is that?”

“Since you stopped being so formal, somehow I feel really relaxed when talking to you, or rather, I enjoy it so much that I don’t feel nervous… something like that, I guess?”

“I-I see~ that makes me very happy.”

Masato-san’s expression relaxed. But that’s not good enough.

“B-but!!”

Masato-san’s eyes widened in surprise. I looked up into those eyes I loved.

“U-um…”

Ah, I’m so uncool right to the end. If this were a story, the heroine would never struggle for words at a moment like this.

…But even though I’m uncool, even though I’m an otaku, this person accepted me.

“J-just so you know, I-I’m also a g-girl.”

My face felt burning hot. Masato-san froze in surprise.

N-now’s my only chance!

Following my emotions, I threw myself against Masato-san’s chest.

“Shiori-chan?!”