Vol 1 CHAPTER 7: First, I Talk to My Girlfriend ④【Volume 1: Preparation Arc】

“So what’s Ichinose-senpai like?” I ask Kotofuki, as if the serious talk is over and we’re just making casual conversation. But really, this is research for my next move.

She answers without any hesitation.

Though if I were to record every detail of what she told me, it would wreck my mental health. Who the hell wants to listen to their girlfriend describe the guy who stole her? So I’ll just hit the highlights.

In short:

Kotofuki and Ichinose—the other guy—met about a month ago. They ran into each other when he “heroically” saved her from some aggressive creep trying to pick her up.

Like something out of a manga.

I’m biting my tongue hard not to say what I’m really thinking.
Hang in there, me. Don’t give in.

After meeting like that, they discovered they attended the same school and started spending more time together. Given how they’d met, Kotofuki felt a flutter in her chest every time she saw him.

A flutter she never felt for me, her actual boyfriend.

She said, almost wistfully, “I thought… maybe this is what love feels like…?”

Shut your mouth! That’s not love! That’s cardiac arrhythmia!!

I want to scream it. But I don’t.
Stay strong, me. Don’t break.

As they kept meeting, Kotofuki sensed that he liked her too. So even though she thought I shouldn’t do this, I have a boyfriend, she found herself drawn to him more and more.

And then came the day.

Four days ago.

Ichinose-senpai confessed his feelings. Her mind went blank from shock, but she blurted out “I like you too” anyway. After that, she followed him to a hotel, and… well, they crossed a line they shouldn’t have.

I think I’m going to throw up.

No, I can’t—I can’t handle this.

The more I hear, the more damage accumulates. By the end, I’m ready to completely collapse. But somehow, I keep it together. The trick is to think about something arousing. When I mentally call on Johnny for reinforcement, he answers bravely: “Forget all that—I just wanna grope some boobs.”

Right. That works.

I clear my throat and manage to say, “So… I guess I’m frustrated.”

“…I’m sorry,” she says, as if tacking the apology on as an afterthought.

Yeah, you should be, you little—

And so ends my intelligence gathering. My body is already running on fumes, but I push myself for one more effort. I tell her:

“Kotofuki, one last thing—”

“Yeah?”

“I was trying to look cool earlier, but… honestly, I can’t just move on that easily. So could you give me a little more time? Just let me stay in love with you while I sort through my feelings. I promise I’ll get over it eventually.”

She nods, apologetic, like she’s in no position to refuse.

“And… would it be okay if I reached out to you sometimes?”

“Huh?”

“The truth is, this is what I really wanted to say first. Even if we break up, I want to stay connected to you as a friend. Is that… too much?”

“No! No, it’s not like that at all!”

She agrees without hesitation. Thank God this girl doesn’t know how to read between the lines. Now even if we end things, I won’t lose the means to contact her.

I’ve now delivered everything I needed to say. It’s been exhausting.

“Thanks. From now on, we’re friends instead of lovers, right?”

With that, I turn to the rooftop door, ready to leave. But suddenly she calls out, “Kudo!”

She looks at me with newfound resolve.

“I’m really… I’m really sorry—”

“You don’t need to apologize anymore. I’ve already forgiven you.”

I say it with a smile, and she gets tongue-tied, making a frustrated sound.

Then, after a moment, she thanks me with a genuine smile.

—But I don’t want this hollow kindness. I want the raw, corrupted affection from her core…

Well, today’s work has paid off nicely enough.

I joke as I tell her, “If Ichinose-senpai ever makes you cry, just tell me. I’ll go punch him.”

“Mm-hmm. If that happens… but it’ll be okay.”

“Right then.”

I open the door and leave the rooftop.

Walking from the bright outdoor air into the dim school building, my eyes take time to adjust. In the semi-darkness of the stairwell, I quietly speak to myself:

“Alright. Next up: I’m going to make Ichinose-senpai commit infidelity.“

Kotofuki said everything would be fine, but I’m itching to throw a punch anyway. And in breakup operations, the standard play is to give the guy a new woman to chase.

Vol 1 CHAPTER 8: Background Investigation【Volume 1: Preparation Arc】

The strategy I’m plotting is, put simply, this:

Make Ichinose-senpai cheat on Kotofuki, and arrange for her to witness it.

Simple, right? But don’t underestimate simplicity—there’s no more reliable way to tear apart a couple. If I pull this off, there’s a high probability they’ll split.

Of course, I want Ichinose-senpai to enthusiastically cooperate with finding a new girl, but I’m not sure it’ll work out that cleanly. I don’t know much about the guy’s character. If he’s genuinely virtuous, he won’t stray from Kotofuki.

But I think it’s worth a try.

From what I’ve heard, Ichinose-senpai has a pretty lusty streak. I mean, the guy literally went straight from confessing his feelings to checking into a hotel. I understand that relationships come in all forms, but the man reeks of the same pervert energy I’ve got. I’m trusting my instincts on this one.

I bet if I dig, I’ll find dirt.

Driven by something between conviction and speculation, I decide to thoroughly investigate Ichinose-senpai’s background.

First, let me recap the basics.

Ichinose Satoru.

A third-year student at our school. One year ahead of me and Kotofuki. Well-mannered, handsome, academically excellent—basically he’s got all the qualities a high schooler needs to stand out. The insufferable type.

From my initial research, that’s about all I found. Anything deeper required hands-on investigation.

I started with interviews.

I went to the third-year building and asked Ichinose-senpai’s classmates what they thought of him. What I learned was that his social circle is extremely narrow.

Apparently, he doesn’t really have friends.

No matter who I asked, I couldn’t get any personal information. When I talked to girls, I’d get “Oh, he’s handsome, yeah. Some underclassmen said they wanted to get close to him.” But the guys? They’d all say, “We’re not close. The guy’s standoffish,” or something similar.

Nobody even knew he was dating Kotofuki, a junior. This must be someone who doesn’t trust anyone. I couldn’t find a single person who could be called a genuine acquaintance—or so I thought, until—

One male student offered up crucial information.

“Yeah, I went to middle school with him. We weren’t close or anything though. The thing is, he always hung out with this childhood friend group? Like, since we were kids. He never tried to connect with anyone outside that circle. But all those other kids went to different high schools, right? So I figured maybe he’d start paying attention to people around him, but nope—apparently those guys still hung out with each other every weekend. So basically this guy spent two whole years of high school alone.”

Gold.

This actually sheds light on his character.

But what I learned was just that he suffered from severe social anxiety at school. It didn’t match the image Kotofuki had described. I started forming a less flattering opinion of Ichinose-senpai.

Which raises the question: why would such a socially withdrawn guy make a move on Kotofuki?

I was lost in thought when the male student added something I couldn’t ignore:

“Oh, come to think of it, didn’t he have a girlfriend? One of the girls from that childhood friend group? Pretty and younger than him? What happened with that?”

There it is. Dirt.