Vol 2 CHAPTER 16: End of Summer—My First “Trap” for You【Volume 2: With the Footsteps of Ruin Echoing, I Come Crawling for You 【NTR Execution Arc】】

It’s been almost four months since Kotofuki told me it was over.

In that time, nothing major happened.

Just like before, Kotofuki and I were still “just friends,” and Kotofuki and Ichinose-senpai were still a couple. Nothing changed.
But if you’re asking whether I spent those four months sitting there quietly with my thumb up my ass—well, no, not exactly.

Because I’ve got one hell of a collaborator: Takanashi Chiyu.

And she took the initiative, charging ahead—

“That thieving woman is making eyes at Satoru, and on top of that she’s saying things like, ‘I’m lonely, I wanna see you,’ okay?”

“Huh? N-No, wait… Don’t tell me you actually made contact with Kotofuki?”

“Hah? I didn’t. I’m holding back because you told me, ‘Don’t do anything on your own,’ remember?!”

“Then how the hell do you know that?”

“Because I checked Satoru’s phone. The message history was still there.”

“Ugh…”

Yeah. Pretty much like that.

Getting her to calm down and follow the plan I actually wanted was, honestly, a huge pain. But maybe she had her own reasons—because somehow, she’s been listening to me. As a result, nothing happened that would blow the whole plan apart, and things were progressing smoothly.

The mission I gave her was—

“Get as close to Ichinose-senpai as possible, and keep him tied down for the long haul.”

—That was it.

In other words: drag Ichinose-senpai out on dates as much as humanly possible.

Takanashi is his childhood friend—and also his ex—so right now, she’s basically sitting in that “keep girl” position for him. I was just using that to my advantage.
If Ichinose-senpai decided he didn’t want Takanashi around and tried to cut ties with her, that would’ve been a serious problem. But thankfully, he stuck to the status quo when it came to her.

A textbook conservative.

Or maybe “indecisive” fits better.

Like, if he just sits there doing nothing, things will magically get better someday. That kind of thinking feels very… modern. Refusing to take action yourself, refusing to take on unnecessary responsibility—honestly, it’s almost refreshing.

And for someone trying to set a “trap,” it was incredibly convenient. A target that just sits there is nothing but a stationary bullseye.
Easy to shoot clean through.

So I took advantage of that part of Ichinose-senpai’s nature and sicced Takanashi on him. Sure enough, he ended up glued to her.

Any gentleman or lady who’s ever tried two-timing will understand: juggling “the girlfriend” and “the keep girl” at the same time is a hell of a lot of work.

You have to manage schedules for two people, keep track of both of their situations without mixing them up, and—most importantly—you can’t let anyone realize you’re sneaking around with multiple women.
It’s not just “busy.” It’s insane (by Shinichi-nii-chan).

Two-timing is something only an aggressive, high-energy kind of person can pull off. For a normal guy, it’s not something you can pull off even if you wanted to. And Ichinose-senpai isn’t some special, overflowing-with-vitality type.

He belongs to that type people call an “introvert.”

So if he tries to practice two-timing, it’s obvious the hassle will make him want to take the easy way out. And eventually, his own time will start to feel more precious than dealing with both girls—until both relationships become half-assed.
That kind of ending is totally plausible.

And if that happens, Kotofuki will have more time alone. Which means she’ll have more time to think about what she really wants to do with herself.

I decided those four months were for that.

“As far as I’m concerned, I want to face that thieving woman already and settle this once and for all.”

“Not yet. If we want their breakup to be certain, we need to set the perfect stage.”

“Don’t come crying to me if it’s too late.”

“Ggh… I’ll be careful.”

Right. If I’m going to steal Kotofuki away, I had to wait for the right moment. Sure, like Takanashi says, if I take my sweet time, there’s a chance things could spiral into something irreversible… but hey—rush things and you’ll screw it up.

In this case, I chose “slow but sure” over “fast and sloppy.”

Because Kotofuki’s already been taken by Ichinose-senpai.

I’m starting in the negative.

I’m aiming for a comeback from there. I’m not about to use some half-baked scheme and ruin everything.

——

——

“August ends today, huh…”

Staring at the calendar in my room, I muttered that to myself.

Time really does fly—summer break is already about to end. Starting tomorrow, second semester begins, and I’ll have to go back to school again.

“It’s finally time…”

I’d been waiting for this.

The time to prepare is already over.

From here on out, I’m going to move proactively—go on the offensive—and steal Kotofuki away.

“Thinking back, it’s been a brutal four months—”

What comes to mind is how hectic the last few months have been.

After Kotofuki dumped me, I threw myself into self-improvement.

After I met my collaborator, Takanashi, we plotted together.

And then there were the days of strict yet sweet “training” with my teacher—my first ever—

“Everything… was for this moment.”

I stared at my phone, double-checking that there were no mistakes in the text.

The message was addressed to Kotofuki, and it read—

“Today, the guys in my class were talking about inviting anyone we can and going to the summer festival. If you’re up for it, Kotofuki, want to come?”

—A single, simple line.

This message would be the first step in my plan to steal her away.
I let out a small breath, then slowly hit send.

All that was left was to wait for her reply.

Normally, this would be a reckless invitation.

Inviting someone who has a boyfriend to a summer festival while you’ve got ulterior motives isn’t exactly praiseworthy, and if she turned me down, I’d have no right to complain.

But I’d laid the groundwork in advance.

Today, Ichinose-senpai isn’t with Kotofuki.

Because right now, he’s with Takanashi—at a huge fireworks festival in a neighboring prefecture. Of course, that’s a “trap” Takanashi and I set together.
All that time we spent applying like crazy for premium-seat tickets actually paid off.

“But still… I didn’t think he’d really prioritize Takanashi over his own girlfriend…”

And before I knew it, the words came out, half in disbelief.

I already knew Kotofuki had been desperately wanting to “wear a yukata and go to the summer festival” on the last day of summer break. I knew because Takanashi had seen the message exchanges about it.

So I’m going to grant Kotofuki’s little wish—when Ichinose-senpai won’t.

There’s nothing more satisfying than that.

Imagining the near future, I trembled with pleasure.

—Soon, soon. My dazzling future is right there!

Just as I was basking in it, I noticed my phone vibrating.

I picked it up and looked at the screen, and there it was—

“Is it okay if I come along?”

The exact moment she fell into the “trap.”

Ahh… I can’t wait.