The Kansai Villain’s Rebirth: I Accidentally Ended Up With a Harem. - Chapter 16: The Kansai Boy, Bewitched.

The Kansai Boy, Bewitched.

October.

The sweltering heat of late summer had finally begun to ease a little. The sports tournament was just around the corner, and after that came the first midterms in over ten years.

I’d been flipping through my textbooks, working on practice problems here and there. Maybe it’s because back in high school I didn’t have any friends and spent all my time studying, or maybe it’s thanks to this cheat-level body and mind of Tennouji Daiki—but either way, the problems practically solved themselves. Academics and sports alike, both came effortlessly. I had to admit, inheriting these “specs” was a huge advantage.

Not that I planned on slacking off. No, this time around, I figured I’d try to aim for the top of the class. I’d do my best for the sports tournament too.
…Not that I’d actually started studying yet. The exam range hadn’t even been announced.

Still, reading had been going so smoothly lately that it was hard to stop.

The light novel Fuyuki-san lent me on Friday had been surprisingly interesting. It was about a hero who fell into darkness and became a demon lord, conquering the world—but it wasn’t so much about conquest as it was about cutting down evildoers. Even after his “fall,” the hero continued to fight against evil. It was fascinating.
And the cool-headed heroine somehow reminded me of Fuyuki-san.

The illustrator’s depiction of the fallen goddess really hit my sweet spot—black hair, semi-long, wolf cut, and glasses. Cool and composed, yet constantly flustered by the demon lord’s antics—it was hilarious. She was the only straight man in a cast of chaos, and without her, the whole thing would’ve fallen apart.

“Doesn’t this girl kinda look like you, Fuyuki-san?”

She had denied it when I said that, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the illustration. Maybe it meant something. Nah, she said it didn’t, so it probably didn’t.
Still… I couldn’t help but think—no, she definitely looked like her.

That thought was still bouncing around in my head when I got to school.

“Waaah! Rin-chan, you’re seriously so cuuute!!”

Before I even stepped into the classroom, I heard Natsume-san’s high-pitched voice echoing through the hall. Again, huh? She was probably gushing over Fuyuki-san like always. Not that I disagreed, but… wasn’t she a little too hyped today?

“Morning,” I greeted.

“Ah! Tennouji-kun! Yo yo! Hey, look, look! Isn’t Rin-chan super cute today!?”

“Huh? What do you—”

Wait. …Huh!?

That was Fuyuki-san!?

Her black hair was still the same color, but—she’d cut it into a wolf cut! And… she was wearing glasses!?

“F–Fuyuki-san…?”

“…D-Don’t look at me…”

She turned away, awkward and flustered—not her usual cool, unreadable expression, but a shy, uneasy one. And those red frames… they made her look even smarter. The way they contrasted with her dark hair—it was perfect.

“Cute…”

The word slipped out before I could stop it.

She flinched—visibly—and quickly looked away again. Crap. Did I say something I shouldn’t have?

“Heehee♪ Rin-chan, you’re happy Tennouji-kun complimented you, huh?”

“N–No! I–I’m not…!”

Her stammering was so rare that it almost made me grin. She was honestly adorable like that. The expression on her face—it was something I’d never seen before, not even in the “original game” version of her.

In that world, Fuyuki Rinko never changed her hair color or style, no matter what happened. Even if she’d been “corrupted” by Tennouji, her black hair stayed the same.

Wait a sec. If she ever went full delinquent—dyed hair, tongue piercing, that whole look—she’d probably be insanely popular. No, no. I’m just biased because I like wolf cuts. Forcing that on her would probably earn me a death glare colder than Antarctica.

“Fuyuki-san, you wear glasses…?”

“She does!” Natsume chimed in. “She wore them in middle school ‘cause contacts weren’t allowed. Doesn’t she look super cute with them?”

“She does,” I said without hesitation.

“T–Tennouji-kun?”

“Ah—sorry…”

“U-Um… it’s not weird, is it?”

“Not at all! The hairstyle suits you perfectly—and the glasses are adorable!”

“W–Wha—!? T-That’s… I-I didn’t do this because of that novel character you said I looked like or anything, okay!? I just… wanted a little change, that’s all!”

Natsume just grinned like a cat who’d caught a mouse.

“I-I see… Well, it’s a great change. Really. You look amazing.”

“E-Enough already! I get it! Stop staring at me!”

“Rin-chan’s so cuuute~!”

“Ugh, you’re so loud!”

…Man. Between Natsume’s black hair and Fuyuki’s wolf cut, the two of them were killing it.
Wait—does that mean Akiya might’ve changed something too? No way… Don’t tell me she went full bleach blonde. Please, no.

“Morning~”

“Yaaawn…”

“Ah, Mio-chan! Look! Look at Rin-chan!”

“Eeeeh!? Rin-chan!? Wow, you look adorable! You’ve really changed!”

“Morning, Mio. Yeah… just felt like trying something new.”

“Aww, you even went back to glasses! I think they suit you better, honestly—you look so mature!”

“R-Really…?”

“Hmm… I dunno,” a voice cut in. “Looks kinda plain to me. You should’ve gone short. And glasses make you look more like a kid.”

…What an idiot.

***

Fuyuki Rinko’s POV.

I decided to take the plunge and change my hairstyle.

When I told the stylist—who’d been cutting my hair since middle school—that I wanted a wolf cut, she beamed.

“Wow, bold choice! Don’t worry, I’ll make it look cute!” she said enthusiastically.

And… well, it turned out good. Too good, maybe.

When I saw myself in the mirror, I almost didn’t recognize the girl staring back. She looked like someone else entirely—and that “someone else” was me.

“Rinko-chan,” the stylist said thoughtfully, “with this cut, glasses would really bring out your charm. You should switch back! I bet someone will call you cute for sure.”

“C–Cute…?”

I was never the type to care about words like that. But when she said it, I found myself putting the glasses back on.
And to my surprise, it didn’t look bad at all.
Mom loved it too, which was… nice.

Then came the real test—Shina, Mio… and… Tennouji-kun.
Why was his opinion the one that came to mind?
No, that wasn’t it. I didn’t change my hair because of him, or because of what he said about that novel character. It was just… a change of mood. Yes. Just that.

So on Monday, with a new image and a slightly nervous heart, I went to school.
Shina, who had started arriving early lately, was the first to notice.

“Whaaa!? Rin-chan, what happened!?”

“Just an image change,” I replied.

“Whoa! Rin-chan, you’re seriously so cuuute!!”

Her exaggerated reaction made me blush a little—but being called “cute”… I couldn’t deny, it made me happy.

“Thanks,” I murmured.

“I wonder what Mio and Tennouji-kun will say?”

“W–What does Tennouji-kun have to do with this!?”

Why bring him up? I’d been trying not to think about him… yet just hearing his name made my heart stir uneasily.

Then, before I could calm down—he arrived.
Part of me wanted him to see.
Part of me desperately didn’t.

“…Cute,” he said softly.

!?

I wasn’t cute. Not in the least. Just a cold, expressionless girl with no charm.
And yet… hearing that word from him made my face burn red hot.
It embarrassed me—but also made me happy.

Until he opened his mouth.

“Eh, I dunno. Looks kinda plain to me. Should’ve gone short. Glasses make you look like a kid anyway.”

…And just like that, the fragile warmth I’d been feeling shattered completely.