The Story of How I, a Guy Who Couldn’t Care Less About School Castes, Somehow Ended Up Making All the Five-Star Gals Fall for Me - Chapter 21: The Mysterious Letter

Chapter 21: The Mysterious Letter

“Kizuki-kun, let’s eat lunch together again today!”

The moment the lunch bell rang, Miyu came right over.

I had no reason to say no, so I agreed—and of course, that meant I’d be eating with the rest of the Fives too.

All five of us headed to the cafeteria, sharing a table while being stared at from every direction.

By now, I’d gotten used to the curious looks. No matter how you sliced it, it was obvious—I’d been spending way more time talking with the Five-Star Gals.

For Hari, I was her practice partner for chatting with boys.

For Hinawa, I was just a handy playmate to kill time.

For Miyu, I was her human wall to keep other guys away.

Every break, one of them would come talk to me, another would join in, and before I knew it, I’d be hanging around with all four of them.

“Completely oblivious, and yet you’ve managed to lure them all in… our little lady-killer.”

Platina Kongouji observed the bizarre situation as if it had nothing to do with her—even though she was one of the Fives herself.

“If that logic holds, doesn’t that include you too, Kongouji-san?”

That was about as much sarcasm as I could manage.

“Fufu, let’s not. I wouldn’t ruin your little moment of popularity by barging in.”

“You’ve got it wrong. I’d rather you backed me up here.”

“My, my. For you to ask me for help—you must really be at your limit.”

“They say a drowning man will cling to even a straw.”

“Well, for what it’s worth, my body is hardly as flimsy as straw.”

Platina stretched her arms high, straightening her back.

When she did, her chest pushed forward under her aloha shirt—far more prominent than I’d expected.

“My shoulders get stiff when they’re this big,” she said, deliberately showing off.

“……..!”

“I can feel some very heated stares coming my way.”

Her lips curled into a teasing smile, full of confidence.

“…I’ll be more careful from now on.”

“When your eyes dart around like that, it only makes it more obvious you were staring. Very unlike you, Kizuki-shi.”

She laughed like someone far too used to this game.

When I glared back in frustration, she seemed to find my reaction even funnier.

“Sorry, but I’m not exactly used to staring at girls’ faces.”

“What a luxury, to call that a weakness. Still… maybe that’s exactly why someone like you works for us.”

“…What’s that supposed to mean, ‘works for you’?”

What possible qualities could make someone like me appealing to the queens of the class caste?

“When you’ve got four girls like us lumped together, you get both sides. Some guys fawn over us, sure—but then there’s the jealousy, the hate, the shallow assumptions, the rumors, the prejudice… it gets exhausting.”

It wasn’t hard to imagine.

Gals as striking and glamorous as them were bound to attract more than just admiration.

Even if they looked carefree, they probably carried plenty of stress behind those dazzling smiles.

And maybe… using me as their sounding board was how they let some of that pressure out.

If so, that was a little cruel.

“So you’re telling me to just put up with it?”

“…Looks like you really are at your limit.”

“Of course I am. Do I look like the type of guy who can play girls like that?”

“By your own admission? Definitely not.”

She half-smiled, her words trailing like she was holding something back.

“If you’ve got something to say, just spit it out.”

“Then I will. To me, it actually looks like you’re the one unknowingly leading them around.”

Me? I was the one always getting tossed around by gal energy, not the other way around.

“Well, everyone except me, of course.”

“If you count yourself in, that makes me an even worse guy, doesn’t it?”

Platina’s expression stayed unreadable, like a mysterious mask.

But just for a moment, it felt… different.

“…Kongouji-san, are you angry?”

“Why is it that you only get sharp at times like this?”

She clicked her tongue and turned her face away.

“I don’t get it.”

“If you’re a man, at least try to figure out why a girl’s upset.”

“That’s way too high a difficulty level.”

“That’s why you’ll never build a harem. You’re too straightforward, too nice. And that’s exactly the problem.”

Like she’d had enough, Platina pulled away from me.

☆☆☆☆☆

“What’s this…?”

Morning.

When I opened my shoe locker at school, there was a letter inside.

Carefully picking it up, I saw the cute stationery was addressed: To Ikoi Kizuki-sama.

“So… not a mistake, then.”

Even with my name on it, I hesitated to open it.

For someone not used to receiving letters, it felt less exciting and more… terrifying.

Could it be a prank?

Lately I’d been spending a lot of time with the Fives.

Maybe some overzealous fan had written me a curse letter—or worse, a threat.

“Would anyone these days really go through that much trouble?”

If it were just harassment, they probably would’ve messed with my shoes by now.

In the end, the only option was to open it and check.

I tore the seal and unfolded the paper.

The contents were surprisingly simple:

It asked me to meet after school.

No sender’s name.

“Calling this a love letter would be jumping the gun.”

It was nothing more than an invitation.

Nowhere did it say anything about feelings.

For all I knew, it could just as easily be a challenge to a duel—or a trap.

Still, the handwriting was beautiful.

Elegant, refined—the kind that made you want to keep staring at it.

Just that alone made me feel a little goodwill.

And that was the problem—because beautiful handwriting could just as easily belong to a villain.

Even so, I couldn’t stop wondering about the owner of that beautiful handwriting.

From those elegant strokes, I couldn’t help imagining what kind of person they might be.

Ridiculous, really—like I’d turned into some Heian-era noble judging people by the brushwork of their letters.

Laughing at myself, I forced my thoughts back to what the letter actually meant.

“So… what should I do?”

It wasn’t like I could say for sure it was bullying or harassment.

And even if I did try asking for advice, there’d be no real way to “solve” it.

The only question was whether I’d show up to this meeting or not.

For a moment, I considered asking one of the Fives about it.

But I dismissed the idea almost instantly.

“…Yeah, that’d be a bad move.”

Something in my gut screamed it was the wrong call.

I couldn’t explain why, but I had this chilling sense that if I told them, things would spiral out of control fast.

“Guess I’ll handle this one alone.”

I slipped the letter back into its envelope and tucked it away.

For now, this secret would stay locked in my chest.