Volume 5 - CH 32

Leader

“Oi, Hideyori? You crying…….?”

“Just almost…….”

The girls are sitting at the counter while Takeru and I take the table seats.

They gave me an earful earlier so I’m now collapsed on the table holding my head.

“Girls are so scary……..”

“You are an only child after all. A woman can be super forceful you know.”

Perhaps it’s because he has Risa, Takeru’s words were extremely convincing.

I apparently have a younger sister I’ve never met though………

“You must have it nice…….being popular like that……..”

“Eh?”

“Sakuya and Tsugaru are a special case but every girl around me is more or less the same right…….I’m sure they actually hate my guts. I’m really fated to be hated………..”

“……..in your case, it only seems like that because you’re being too close to them. Aside from you and Risa, my relationship with the others is like a step behind you after all. Also, being a doormat is the way to become good at relationships you know.”

The Galge protagonist is preaching me about relationships.

……….it’s because you’re always one step behind that it always comes to the worst for the heroines every time right?

I think I can understand why he was so useless in the game now.

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.

“……..being so close and intimate with the girls would make them feel a sense of reliability from you so that’s probably why you’re so popular. I guess it’s more like a sense of security when you are with someone older huh? I seriously can’t think of you as someone of the same age after all.”

“You say something?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Said Takeru as he sipped his coffee.

.

.

Somehow, this Galge protagonist seems like he has a lot of romantic experiences so he looks real reliable to me right now.

A big difference from me, the absolutely unreliable Hideyori.

“You look all nice and withered you know……..”

“Maste~~r.”

“Hello, I’m Juumonji Takeru.”

“A~hh, the protagonist guy.”

“Protagonist?”

Master came over to the table and sat down beside me.

“You can leave the counter? I’ve always thought that you could only haunt it like a counter ghost you know.”

“You, saying it like that would make my daughter sound like she’s a coffee shop ghost you know………you see us like a pair of ghosts haunting a coffee shop or something.”

Master retorted while sipping his own coffee.

“I see. So you are Juumonji-kun. You certainly give an androgynous popular guy vibe huh.”

“What about the protagonist thing earlier?”

“Ahh, Hideyori-kun always says that you give off the feeling of a game protagonist you see.”

While giving some appropriate excuse, Master began scanning his profile.

“When I look at you two side by side like this, you really do look like some kind of villain huh.”

“……………….”

When he doesn’t sugar-coat it like that, it’s a little hurtful.

Seeing my mean-looking eyes in the mirror every day already made me realize that I’m certainly not a protagonist material though.

“It got awkward for you when you got surrounded by the girls so Master just escaped here right.”

“Their youth energy was too much for me. Personally, I think I’m gonna get along way better with a pair of withered guys like you two.”

“I’m withered too……..?”

Takeru bitterly smiles.

Perhaps these two are compatible, they don’t seem to be reserved around each other.

“Thank you, Hideyori-kun.”

“Ha?”

“I couldn’t even imagine Sakuya having this many friends after all.”

Said Master as he points at Sakuya who’s sitting sandwiched between Emi and Risa with a fatherly smile on his face.

She might still be treated like a weirdo by people around her but seeing her smiling happily and surrounded by friends like this made me think that she might be the person who has grown the most among the people I know.

………..that said, when she’s with me she often tears up and begs to be spoiled so in a way she might be getting worse though.

“Rather than when she told me that she made friends, seeing it with my own eyes still makes my heart move. That’s why I’m grateful to you, Hideyori-kun.”

“I only created a chance for her. Besides, even if they are all my acquaintances, they wouldn’t just get along with her because of that right. Sakuya wouldn’t have gotten here if she didn’t make an effort herself. She made friends through her own power. You don’t have to give me any credit for that.”

“………asking Hideyori not to be popular would be impossible huh.”

“Eh?”

Said Takeru with a bitter smile while Master nodded along with him.

“Hideyori-kun’s personality is real troublesome isn’t it.”

“He’s super dense too.”

“It’s irritating just looking at him right.”

“Even though he’s like that, I still like him though.”

“………..Ha?”

“Hey, I’m right here you know.”

I stopped the two who began bad-mouthing me.

It’s getting super uncomfortable here too.

“Master, move.”

“Where’re you going?”

“Somewhere not here.”

I avoided Master’s legs and slipped out before heading to the counter seat.

Good thing that the seat beside Eien-chan was empty.

“Ah, Hideyori-san.”

“Hideyori-kun, have you finished talking with Juumonji-kun?”

“Yeah, I don’t want to bother with them right now.”

I answered Emi’s question without hiding my bad mood and sat down in the empty seat.

“Ahaha…….” Eien-chan gave a bitter laugh in response.

“That person is your aunt’s younger brother right?”

“Yeah, Master is my aunt’s little brother.”

“You don’t really look that similar though.”

At Emi’s side is a glass of orange juice.

It’s clear that she still can’t handle coffee.

“Emi and Hideyori-san sure have a lot of friends. I’m jealous.”

Eien-chan mutters in a lonely tone.

“Then let’s go to the pool together, all of us!”

“Eh?”

“If we go to the pool together then Towa will get along better with everyone too! Right, Hideyori-kun?”

“…….why the pool though?”

“When you talk about summer then it has to be the pool right!”

I don’t want to rain on Emi’s parade.

Still, what is this?

Is this the game’s correction force at work………?”

I can’t help but wonder if I should stop this development.

Besides, Eien-chan clearly reacted earlier.

“I want to go.”

“Nn?”

“I want to go to the pool with everyone here!”

Towa holds Emi’s hand.

Perhaps she didn’t expect that, Emi looked stunned.

“I want to go too.”

“Sakuya?”

“I want to go to the pool with Emi, Towa, and everyone.”

“Tanikawa-san……..”

Sakuya who was sitting next to Emi leaned forward and chimed in.

She then squeezed on Eien-chan’s hand that was holding Emi’s.

Meanwhile, Risa and Tsugaru are looking our way with interest.

“Alright, let’s visit the pool together this summer. The plan will be handled by me and Hideyori-kun okay.”

“Me!?”

“Eh? But Hideyori-kun is the leader here right?”

“I am!?”

I haven’t heard anything like that before………

No one seems to disagree though.

“Yes, I………, I want to go with everyone!”

With her eyes sparkling, Eien-chan said with a tone that was filled with expectations.

Hearing her voice, Master and Takeru also directed their eyes to Eien-chan.

.

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Eien-chan’s regret.

Maybe deep inside, she wants to get rid of it.

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If that’s the case.

Then as her fan, I want to grant her wish. That’s the feeling that came from the bottom of my heart.