When I Started Capturing the Academy Princesses, Things Turned into a Battlefield - V2 Chapter 03: Is the Childhood Friend the Winner?

Chapter 03: Is the Childhood Friend the Winner?

Monday morning.

It was one of those mornings that just felt nice.

Normally, Mondays are kind of depressing,

But the Monday after midterms felt completely different.

It’s not like I hated the tests, but it was still a huge relief to have them over.

That wasn’t the only reason I felt good, though.

Right now, walking beside me—was my childhood friend, Tsukihi.

Going to school with the most beautiful girl on campus…

Of course I was feeling a little hyped.

Well, it would’ve been perfect if not for—

“Having to walk with Aniki is the absolute worst.”

Yeah. If she weren’t here.

“Tsuki-nee, why’s Aniki tagging along?”

“Just for a change of pace.”

“It’s not a good change! He’s ruining my mood first thing in the morning.”

“I think it’s cute when siblings walk to school together. And this way, I get to walk to school with Yuu-kun. Isn’t that right?”

She looked at me, and I nodded in response.

If Tsukihi and I walked to school together alone, every guy in a 500-meter radius would be glaring daggers at me.

There’s no way I could handle that kind of heat.

But if Ayane came along, it changed things.

People would assume I was just tagging along with her—nothing to see here.

“But still—”

“No more complaining.”

Ayane still looked annoyed, but Tsukihi was gently calming her down.

Seriously though—

She’s the one who told me to confess, and now she’s acting like this?

Doesn’t she get that if we actually started dating, walking to school together like this would be the norm?

…Dating Tsukihi, huh.

After we made up, midterms happened right away,

So I kind of pushed any thoughts about romance to the side.

But maybe it’s time I start thinking about it seriously.

Do I actually have feelings for Tsukihi?

I asked myself that.

Honestly, I’ve always thought she was cute—both now and back then.

Being around her like this definitely made my heart race.

But if someone asked whether that was really “love,”

I wasn’t sure I could say yes.

Because once, I’d already given up on her.

Besides, things are different now.

I have a favorite Vtuber.

And an in-game wife.

It’s not like I’ve met either of them in real life,

But they’re still the two girls I think about most.

And then there’s something else.

I still don’t understand how Tsukihi really feels.

Even if that guy from middle school was her cousin’s boyfriend,

It was still true that she went out shopping with some hot upperclassman.

So it’s probably safe to say she likes good-looking guys.

Not that many girls hate pretty boys anyway.

As annoying as it is to admit… I’m definitely not a pretty boy.

“Hm? Is something wrong?”

“—N-Nothing!”

I quickly looked away in a panic.

“I bet he was thinking something weird. Totally checking out your chest or legs or something.”

What a rude girl.

Well, no point overthinking it.

If I don’t make sure Ayane becomes a Princess, my embarrassing secrets will be exposed.

I’ve got no choice but to give it everything I’ve got.

And when it comes to the top candidate for the “Mission Princess,”

It’s clearly Tsukihi.

We’ve known each other since we were kids, and the fact that she made me a bento means she probably doesn’t hate me.

First things first, I need to help my annoying little sister win the General Election—securing my own safety is top priority.

“By the way, the ball game tournament’s coming up soon, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, next week. I totally forgot with all the midterm stuff.”

“It’s kind of like a little reward after the tests. What event are you joining, Yuu-kun?”

“Soccer. I’m not particularly good or bad at sports, but in soccer, I won’t stand out too much. I’ll just hang around in the back and go with the flow.”

I wasn’t bad at sports.

But I wasn’t great either.

In small-group events, messing up makes you stand out too much,

So I always preferred large-team events like soccer.

“What about you, Tsukihi?”

“Basketball.”

“Figures. That one’s always popular.”

Lots of girls in my class had picked basketball too.

“Do your best, okay? I’ll be cheering for you.”

“Thanks. But you should focus on your own game too.”

“Aniki’s probably gonna be useless anyway. Just don’t score an own goal, alright? That’d be seriously embarrassing.”

…Shut up.

And just like that, with our usual back-and-forth, we made it to school.

As always, I could feel everyone’s eyes on us.

“Okay, see you later.”

“Bye-bye, Onii-chan.”

Tsukihi and Ayane walked off together.

Still, that fake sweet act of hers never changes.

It’s honestly scary how good she is at it.

◇

After arriving at school, I headed toward my classroom.

It happened on the way there.

“Good morning. You two looked super close again today, Kanbara-kun.”

The one who greeted me was Misuzu Tsuchiya—also known by her title, the Earth Goddess.

She was the second girl I’d ever had real feelings for in my life.

She looked oddly cheerful.

“G-Good morning. It’s not like we’re that close. I’m just a tag-along.”

“No need to lie about it. Yoiyami-san is obviously your destined one, right?”

“That rumor’s not—”

“But hey, having a childhood friend is nice, isn’t it? Total winning heroine status.”

“…Winning heroine?”

That caught me off guard—especially after hearing nothing but “losing heroine” yesterday.

“Yup, winning heroine.”

“…You sure about that?”

“Totally! In all those super popular anime, the main heroine is often the childhood friend, right? Come on, think about it!”

A bunch of nationally famous anime popped into my head.

The one with the detective who turns into a kid…

The one where a robot cat comes from the future…

Or that one where the guy promises his late twin brother to take a girl to Koshien.

Yeah, in all of them, the heroine is the childhood friend.

Makes sense, in a way.

In a national-level anime, you can’t have the heroine cheat or get written off halfway through.

If they did that, the whole internet would go up in flames.

Once the childhood friend is set as the heroine, it’s basically a guaranteed win.

“Childhood friends are the strongest, you know. They share memories from when they were little, and they already know each other’s personalities. It’s practically like being married.”

Just as Tsuchiya said that—

“I wholeheartedly agree—childhood friends are the true winning heroine.”

The one who chimed in was none other than Arisa Hikawa—also known as the Ice Queen.

Here we go again.

These two really had been showing up together a lot lately.

“…Now that I think about it, are you two close or something?”

When I asked, they both nodded without hesitation.

“We had a chance to talk the other day, and we just clicked right away.”

“Yeah, once we got chatting, we hit it off.”

It felt like an unexpected duo at first…

But for some reason, it also made perfect sense.

“Anyway, back to the topic—childhood friends are absolutely the winning heroines.”

Hikawa stated it like it was a universal truth.

“The Princess who was ranked #1 before Yoiyami-san also ended up with a childhood friend.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yes. She graduated last year, but she used to be the vice president of the student council. She was such a wonderful person—I really looked up to her.”

Huh…

So even Hikawa had someone she admired.

“Just like Yoiyami-san, she held the top spot since her first year. People used to call her the greatest Princess in Himegasaki Academy history. She was so beautiful, even I couldn’t take my eyes off her.”

“Oh! I think I know who you’re talking about. I heard she ended up dating some guy who looked like a bit of a player.”

“That’s the one.”

I’d seen them too.

They graduated last year—

That flashy-looking guy and the insanely pretty senior walking together, looking so close.

I clearly remembered how just being around them made the whole hallway feel like a warm, happy space.

“Actually, that ‘player’ senpai was super popular too.”

“Really? That’s kind of surprising.”

“He only looked like a player. On the inside, he was really reliable and responsible. There was even some drama where girls fought over him—but in the end, the vice president won.”

…First I’d heard of that.

“In other words, the childhood friend is the winning heroine.”

“No doubt about it. It’s practically a universal truth at this point.”

That conclusion felt a bit too forced.

“That’s why you should really cherish Yoiyami-san, Kanbara-kun.”

“Agreed. You shouldn’t even glance at other girls—like, say, the cool and handsome types.”

“Or underclassmen. You should definitely avoid those too.”

…I felt like my thoughts were being subtly manipulated here.

But in the end, what they were both clearly trying to say was: Childhood friends are the winning heroines.

The words of a friend…

And an alliance partner…

Stuck in the back of my mind—just a little.