When I Started Capturing the Academy Princesses, Things Turned into a Battlefield - V1 Chapter 15: The Goddess Won’t Give Up

Chapter 15: The Goddess Won’t Give Up

“Good morning, Tsubasa-senpai!”

“It’s such a beautiful day today!”

“Tsubasa-sama, you’re as dazzling as ever!”

The moment I arrived at school, I was greeted by the usual sight.

Tsubasa Shiranui walked down the hallway, leading a group of adoring girls.

The scene honestly looked straight out of an anime—a prince walking through the halls, surrounded by noble ladies-in-waiting.

As I watched, one person stepped forward from the crowd.

The group of noble ladies instinctively made way, as if they had rehearsed it.

“Good morning, Tsubasa-chan.”

Misuzu Tsuchiya greeted her and took her place right beside the Princess-Prince.

It was almost too perfect—like a prince and their royal fiancée.

They looked so natural together that it almost felt like a scene from a divine masterpiece.

“Good morning, Misuzu.”

A few days had passed since that conversation.

Now, Shiranui and Tsuchiya were back to being best friends—as if nothing had ever happened.

I had no idea what they actually talked about.

All I did was set up the meeting—after that, I left everything in their hands.

By the next day, they were right back to how they were before summer break.

“Huh. So they did make up, after all.”

A voice came from the seat next to me.

“They looked kinda awkward around each other not too long ago. Well, I figured those two would be fine in the end.”

Kazama muttered as she gazed out into the hallway.

“Were you actually worried about them?”

“Well, it’s not like we’re strangers.”

…Right.

Now that I thought about it, Kazama was in the same class as those two back in our first year.

Back then, Shiranui wasn’t considered one of the Princesses yet, but I distinctly remembered how people lost their minds over having so many beautiful girls in one class.

…Were they actually friends?

I kinda wanted to ask, but if I did, it might seem like I was interested in the Princesses—and that would be way too much of a hassle to explain.

So I kept my mouth shut.

“But, honestly? What I’m really curious about is the Mob-kun who went out of his way to help them.”

“…!”

Oh, crap.

She saw me.

“W-What are you talking about?”

“Come on, no need to hide it. It’s not like you did anything wrong, right?”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“Uh-huh. You were sneaking off to have secret meetings with the Princess-Prince after school, but sure, nothing happened.”

…Yeah. I was completely busted.

Kazama leaned in close, lowering her voice.

“So? What actually happened? I don’t know much about why they fought, but you were obviously involved, right? Spill it—I wanna know—”

And that’s when it happened.

Shiranui turned toward me.

For a moment, our eyes met—and she smiled.

But almost immediately, something shifted in her expression.

Her smile vanished, her mood darkened, and she suddenly looked away, irritated.

…Huh?

“…Kanbara-kun, what did you do?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“If you don’t know, then never mind.”

Kazama seemed to suddenly get annoyed, then walked off toward her friends.

…What the hell was that about?

She hit me with that weirdly cryptic comment, then just left?

I had no idea what was going on with her, but thinking about it wasn’t going to get me any answers.

And honestly? It probably didn’t concern me anyway.

◇

Lunchtime.

As usual, I was killing time in the empty classroom, messing around on my phone.

I was just about to head back when—

The door suddenly swung open.

“Oh, Yuma-kun! I thought you’d be here.”

Misuzu Tsuchiya stepped inside.

“…How’d you know where to find me?”

“Yukina-chan told me! She said you’re always in here.”

That chatterbox Fairy…

Tsuchiya walked in and sat down right in front of me.

I almost found my gaze drifting down toward her chest—but I fought back that primal temptation and focused.

“I never got the chance to properly thank you. These past few days, I’ve been making up for lost time with Tsubasa-chan… but I really wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude. This whole thing really helped me. Thank you, Yuma-kun.“

“Well… I’m just glad I could help.”

Not that I actually did much.

All I did was geek out over Vtubers with Shiranui and set up a meeting spot for them. That was it.

Honestly, they both wanted to make up anyway. Even if I hadn’t done anything, they probably would’ve reconciled on their own before long.

That’s what I told myself—but deep down, I was a shameless, opportunistic coward.

Since this was making me look good, I sure as hell wasn’t going to correct her.

“You know… being back by Tsubasa-chan’s side made me realize something.”

“Realize what?”

“I still love Tsubasa-chan. If anything, being apart from her only made my feelings stronger. That’s why—I won’t give up. No matter what, I’m going to make her fall for me!”

Her voice was clear and unwavering, filled with absolute conviction.

She had made up her mind.

And as I looked into those fiercely determined eyes… I felt a painful squeeze in my chest.

I finally accepted the truth—

She was never going to see me that way.

I had just witnessed a girl I once had a crush on confess to her closest female friend, get rejected, then make up and double down on her feelings.

And I hadn’t just watched—I had actively helped make it happen.

It was a mess of emotions.

But the most complicated part?

Right now—right in this moment—with those determined, sparkling eyes…

Tsuchiya had never looked more beautiful to me.

“If I gave up after just one heartbreak, I’d never get anywhere in love! And I already have the gender barrier working against me—if I backed down now, I’d never stand a chance! So I’m starting over from scratch. Next time, I’ll definitely make Tsubasa-chan fall for me!“

She looked so different from the person I used to know.

The self I had been back then—the one who had given up on Tsuchiya—felt so much weaker in comparison.

Maybe that’s why—

“Go for it. I’m rooting for you!”

—those words just slipped out of my mouth.

…Wait. Was I actually supposed to be rooting for her?

If I remembered correctly, wasn’t I supposed to be winning over Tsuchiya?

The moment the words left my lips, I suddenly remembered the whole blackmail situation.

But let’s be real—this was impossible.

There was no way I could pull this off.

At this point, Tsuchiya and I were 100% locked into the friend zone. There wasn’t even the slightest chance I could flip the script and turn this into a romance.

…Knowing that rotten little sister, she’d probably tell me to aim for Shiranui next.

But if she did, there was zero chance that would work.

For starters—Shiranui hated men.

And on top of that, she was one of the most insanely popular girls in school. I didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell of making her fall for me.

Hell, if I even tried, Tsuchiya would probably kill me on the spot.

Yeah. With these two, it was never going to happen.

I’d just have to be honest and tell Ayane there was no way I could pull this off.

She’d probably bitch me out for it, but honestly? I doubted she ever actually expected me to succeed.

Besides—I managed to reconnect with an old friend.

And I even got closer to a fellow Vtuber fan.

If nothing else—I’d call that a win.

“So, Yuma-kun…”

“What is it?”

“If I ever need help again, can I come to you for advice? Like I used to?”

“…Every once in a while.”

“Really!? Thank you so much!”

Well… at least I got something out of this.

No other guy got to see the Goddess of the academy smiling this innocently up close.

That alone had some value.

“If you ever need help, Yuma-kun, just let me know! I’ll do everything I can to help you!”

Funny.

Because right now was exactly when I could use some help.

As our conversation wrapped up, Tsuchiya started heading for the door—

Or at least, I thought she was.

“Actually—can I ask for advice right now?”

“…Huh?”

Instead of leaving, she suddenly spun around—practically vibrating with excitement.

“You’ve actually spoken to Tsubasa-chan now, right? From a guy’s perspective—what do you think of her? Did you notice anything interesting? I need as much information as possible! I have to be fully prepared for my next move!”

I couldn’t help but let out a tired chuckle.

The Goddess refuses to give up.