The Kansai Villain’s Rebirth: I Accidentally Ended Up With a Harem. - Chapter 31: A Kansai Man’s Way—Showing True Hospitality.

A Kansai Man’s Way—Showing True Hospitality.

Going to school in casual clothes—it feels oddly refreshing.

I set off toward the meeting place with the three of them, dressed more like I was heading out for a stroll than to school. Now that it’s mid-October, the heat has finally started to die down. Good riddance—I never liked the heat anyway. The weather’s just right now.

Honestly, I’d half-expected everyone to show up in flashy, delinquent-like outfits, but they were all dressed surprisingly normally. Thank goodness I didn’t have to rush out and buy new clothes.

“Ah! It’s Daiki-kun! Daiki-kuuun!”

You’ve gotta be kidding me. There’s still thirty minutes until the meeting time, and yet all three of them are already here. And in their casual clothes… they’re radiant. Blindingly so.

“Hey, sorry, did I keep you waiting?”

“No, not at all. We just got here too.”

That’s definitely a lie. No way they just arrived—they’ve been waiting for a while, I can tell.

“Good morning, Tennouji-kun. I’m looking forward to today!”

“Me toooo! Let’s have fun!”

“Yeah. Thanks for coming, all of you. Well then, shall we go? It’s not that far.”

As we chatted on the way, I took the chance to look over their outfits.

Shina-san looked more toned down than during summer break—though her cropped top and shorts were still the same. Well, it wasn’t too flashy, and since it’s getting colder, maybe she’ll start dressing a bit more conservatively soon. Still, it’s good that she’s showing a little less skin.

Akitani-san, on the other hand… whoa. Her outfit was so composed—feminine, even. A brown slit skirt paired with a white top, and a tartan long skirt. Really stylish. She’d clearly put some thought into it. I had no idea Akitani-san was this fashionable…

Then there’s Fuyuki-san—w-wait, a miniskirt!? Black, no less!? And those over-the-knee socks… paired with a gray long-sleeve top with a lace ribbon at the chest… it all fits perfectly. Her hairstyle matched it too—it was dangerously perfect. I swear, in that moment, I was just grateful to be alive.

Seeing them all in casual clothes—it was an experience worth treasuring.

These were sides of them I’d never seen before… and it only made me fall even deeper for these “NetHaza heroines.”

And somewhere deep down, I began to think—

…that I wanted to be the one to make them happy.

Maybe things with Imamiya were already beyond saving. If that’s the case, then who’s going to bring happiness to Shina-san and the others? Maybe someday they’ll find someone they love and live happily on their own—and if that happens, that’s fine. As long as they don’t end up with a tragic ending… that’s enough for me.

“Hehe, I can’t wait to see Daiki-kun’s house!”

“Me too!”

“We’re not going there to play, you know.”

“Says the one who showed up first—wasn’t that you, Rin-chan?”

“……”

“Haha, well, don’t expect too much. Oh yeah, my dad said it’s fine if you look around the study, so you can take some books if you like.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, there’s a ton. Take your time.”

“Alright then, I’ll take a look.”

“Ehh? I thought we weren’t going there to play~ Heehee!”

“……”

“Geez, Rin-chan… behave.”

The three of them were cheerful and lively behind me. The thought that my favorite heroines were about to visit my house had me buzzing with excitement.

“Wow~ what a beautiful house!”

“It’s huge!”

“Really? I guess it’s got a few too many rooms, maybe.”

“Come on in, come on. Let’s eat lunch first before we start the study session.”

 “Thanks for having us.”

The heroines… were finally in my house. My nerves and excitement were both at their limits. Shina-san and Akitani-san called out “Excuse us!” as they stepped through the hallway into the living room.

“Whoa, it smells so good in here!”

“It really does…”

“Alright, let’s have lunch first. I’ll just warm it up a bit.”

I reheated the pasta. It was freshly made, so it hadn’t gone soggy, and I’d kept it covered so it wasn’t dry either. I tossed it in the pan for a quick warm-up. Shina-san peeked curiously over my shoulder, and Akitani-san leaned in too. Even Fuyuki-san seemed a little restless.

“Okay, done. There are plenty of plates—help yourselves.”

Four kinds of pasta. All of them turned out great. And now, my favorite girls were about to eat them… I had no right to be overconfident, but—please let it taste good!

“I want this one! The one with the crab!”

“That’s the blue crab one. I think that’s my best today.”

“I’ll take the mentaiko one—it was really good last time!”

“I’ll start with the carbonara, I think.”

“Then I’ll go with the vongole. Alright, dig in.”

“““Itadakimasu!”””

Now then… how will they react?

“Mm!? This is so good, Daiki-kun!”

“…I’m honestly surprised. You’re really good at cooking, Tennouji-kun.”

“Yeah, it’s delicious! You’re amazing!”

Yes! It worked! My whole week of making pasta paid off! I mentally pumped my fist in triumph. I’d made smaller portions so they could try different ones. Any leftovers would just become my dinner, so it was all good.

“Mio-chan, Mio-chan! This crab pasta is amazing! Like, insanely good!”

“Really? Then I’ll try that one next.”

“I’ll take the carbonara!”

“I’ll stick with mentaiko then.”

Perfect. I just wanted them to enjoy it. Time to serve the drinks.

“There’s Earl Grey tea and apple juice.”

“Ooh, Earl Grey? How elegant. I’ll have the tea.”

“I’ll take some too.”

“I’ll have juice! Oh—and those clams look so good.”

Wow… even the tea’s delicious…”

“My mom loves tea, so she taught me a lot. We’ve got tons of leaves stocked up—she comes back and drinks it sometimes.”

“Hey, Daiki-kun, how long have you been cooking?”

Well, I couldn’t exactly say “for about ten years counting my previous life,” could I? It’s only been about a month and a half since I reincarnated as Tennouji, and I’ve been cooking almost every day since then…

“I started dabbling back in middle school, but got serious in high school.”

“Amazing…”

To Akitani-san, it probably sounded unbelievable. But truthfully, I probably had more years of experience than she did. When I get into something, I really get into it—that’s how I got here.

“Uuuh, I wanna eat more of Daiki-kun’s cooking~”

“Well then, once exams are over, how about I make something special to celebrate?”

“Really!? Yay! Daiki-kun, I love you!”

“H-Hey, stop that!”

And there she goes again, clinging to me. Shina-san, seriously… you smell way too good. And her hand—on my stomach… her skin’s warm… soft… smooth—no, bad! Stop thinking like that!

“Shina?”

“Yeees~ But I really do wanna eat your cooking again.”

“Then how about next time, I help make it with Tennouji-kun?”

“Really!? That’d be awesome!”

“Shina and I can pitch in for the ingredients. We can all chip in, and you two can cook for us.”

“I’m totally in! I can’t wait!”

And just like that, it was decided—a cooking party at my place.

There was never an event like this in the original game, but then again, it’s already strange that Tennouji would be this close to them by this point.

I couldn’t help but think of Imamiya for a moment… wondering if it was alright for me to be doing this. But still… I think it’s okay not to hold myself back anymore. If I’ve been given this chance, then I’ll take it.

“Mmm… this crab tomato cream is really delicious.”

“Told you, right?”

“Fufufu, the vongole’s great too!”

I used to think I shouldn’t interfere too much—but if I can protect these smiles right in front of me…

If I can use this cheat-like ability to make sure they never lose that happiness—

Then I’ll give it everything I’ve got. That’s what I decided, right then and there.