Reiji almost facepalmed at Riku's ridiculous words. He could understand Yui's anger, because her character setting basically made her very temperamental and fiery.
But the protagonist acting this way was honestly very disappointing.
Ever since Reiji had come to this world, he had been wondering what type of person the main character of the game would be, what traits he would absorb from the many possible pathways.
Maybe he'd be the caring and quiet type?
Or even the outgoing and cheerful persona?
Perhaps a more niche role, focusing heavily on studies or a particular skill?
But this..... He seemed like the cardboard cutout of an average high school boy going through puberty. Prideful, selfish, immature, and ignorant amongst other things.
It was nothing less than disappointing, considering he had all the tools to become something....better.
Well, considering how Riku had been acting so far, it seemed like he was hell-bent on making bad or mediocre choices.
But there was this gnawing feeling at the back of his mind that things weren't as simple as they seemed, making him more wary.
"I-I said what I said! You can't go around accusing me of strange things!" Riku scoffed.
Even though his body was trembling ever so slightly, he couldn't bear being looked at like he was trash, especially from someone as beautiful as Yui.
Reiji frowned, glancing at poor Hina who was still cowering behind her friend.
She looked like she wanted to intervene, stop this conflict somehow, but the intimidating look on Yui's face and Reiji's mere presence didn't make it easy to step in.
"What part of what I said was false?" Yui hissed dangerously, her eyes narrowing at the audacity of the puny wimp in front of her.
"That...." Riku wasn't able to make himself say the words. Even pointing it out would feel like it would place him the back foot.
But before he could think of a way to phrase it without making himself look bad, Reiji cut into the argument again.
"Why the fuck are you guys even arguing? You don't even know each other, so can't we just move on and forget this ever happened?"
Yui turned to him sharply, making sure that her dissatisfaction was clear.
"I'm telling you, I'm not lying! I didn't like the way he looked at me!"
"I'm not saying that you were lying, but come on. Are you going to go around cursing at every guy that gives you a look? If that's the case, then I hate to break it to you, but you'd have to start arguing with like 99% of the guys around here," Reiji explained calmly, but he was slightly amused at this.
He wasn't exaggerating, Yui was so beautiful that he had noticed many men glancing at her as they walked around.
Maybe she had only started fighting with Riku because it was so blatant, but Reiji couldn't help but believe that he had some sort of protagonist halo that made villains more susceptible to conflicts with him.
In fact, Reiji himself strongly felt like punching his defiant face right now.
Yui paused at his words, trying to take it in. Her mouth opened and closed as if she was trying to think of a response.
"...What does that mean?" She finally asked, her voice so soft that he almost didn't hear her.
"You know what that means," Reiji responded with a chuckle.
Yui turned a little red again, but she had visibly calmed down, making him sigh with relief.
But of course, the idiot was not to be outdone.
"Why are you guys whispering to each other, I'm still here! Now, apologize!" Riku snapped, gaining more confidence as he realized Reiji had no intentions to start a fight.
This time, it was Reiji's turn to lose his patience.
"Hey, dude. I don't know what your problem is, but just leave us alone and move on."
He took a small step towards Riku, standing right in front of him. The obvious height difference and disparity in physique made Reiji look a lot more overwhelming than the brown haired man who stood at around 5'7.
The protagonist gulped nervously at the sudden change in dynamic and took a step backwards almost at the same time.
He struggled internally, wondering what he should do, a dangerous balance between fear and the drive to appear cool. Then, he felt a slight tug on his sleeve, glancing back at Hina who had watery eyes.
"R-Riku, let's leave," She begged softly.
'Nice, a perfect exit!' Riku celebrated.
"Hmph, fine! We'll leave because Hina seems scared," he snorted, quickly turning around to scamper off with the spectacled girl in tow.
Reiji's eyes turned cold at the disappearing back of his classmate, a myriad of thoughts running through his mind.
"Finally, we can continue on our date!" Yui gleamed, earning her an eye-roll from the tall man in front of her.
"...This isn't a date."
***
"Good thing you stopped us Hina, otherwise it was about to get ugly," Riku grinned, flexing his non-existent muscles.
The brown haired girl didn't reply, just following along quietly. Her hands, which were tightly gripped onto her plushie, were still shaking.
She hated conflict. Whether it was verbal or physical was irrelevant, she simply didn't want to be around any sort of argument.
"...You shouldn't have fought with them, Riku," she finally mumbled without raising her head.
Riku slowed down, his eyebrows furrowing in frustration.
"What's that supposed to mean? I didn't even do anything. It was that crazy delinquent and that woman randomly accusing us of things we didn't do!"
'Not us... just you. And it wasn't an accusation, I saw it too...'
Hina hadn't missed the look in Riku's eyes. The lustful glances he gave the woman, the fear and disgust when he saw Yagami-kun, and the happiness when she forced them to leave.
None of that escaped her. As timid as she was, Hina was also extremely observant and attentive.
She saw the way Yagami-kun tried to diffuse the situation multiple times, she saw the comforting words he gave the pretty woman called Yui, and she saw the worry in his eyes when he had looked towards her when she was hiding behind Riku.
She was confused.
And she was disappointed.
'Why can't you treat me that nicely?'
Riku walked off angrily as Hina looked on sadly.
***
"Wait, so they're forcing you to do two clubs?? That sounds so exhausting!"
Yui made a disgusted face at the Student Council's decision. They had resumed their leisurely stroll and were trying to get to know each other, occasionally stopping by some stores to see if anything caught their eye.
Reiji just laughed at her reaction, tilting his head playfully.
"It's not that bad you know? Both of my choices are something I know I'll enjoy, so it's actually more of a blessing instead of a punishment."
"I know cooking is one of them, you mentioned that before, but what about the second club?"
"MMA," Reiji responded.
"Huuuh? Well, that kinda makes sense for a supposed gangster," She giggled, covering her mouth haughtily.
A thought also crossed her mind, making her smile even more widely, though Reiji didn't seem to notice.
"Why does everyone connect it to my background!"
"Haha, it's only natural. But you don't seem anything like a Yakuza, are you sure you're not messing with me?"
"Hm? What, am I supposed to prove it to you somehow?" Reiji raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, show me your muscles and I'll believe you!" Yui grinned cheekily, staring unabashedly at his arms and chest.
Reiji rolled his eyes for the hundredth time today, sighing for the thousandth time.
"What do my muscles have to do with anything?"
"Everything. Now don't be shy, take off your jacket!"
"....You were harping at that guy for looking at you weird, and here you are being even more perverted," Reiji muttered amusedly.
"That's different" Yui said, crossing her arms proudly.
"How so?"
"Because we're dating, so it's ok."
"....First of all, where on earth have you been learning your common sense from? I'm genuinely worried that you're an alien trying to learn humanity's customs.... And secondly, we're not da-.... ah fuck it!"
Reiji gave up trying to persuade her, throwing his arms in the air exaggeratedly.
Yui, on the other hand, giggled at his reaction. Her eyes crescented into moons and she laughed freely.
Before either of them could continue talking, Yui's phone started ringing.
*RING DULULU RING DULULU RING*
She stiffened in place, slowly pulling her phone out of her pocket. Her expression was downcast when she saw who it was, picking it up after a deep breath.
"Hello?..... Ok, I'll be there."
She ended the call, but her expression didn't improve. She looked up at Reiji and stared at him for a few seconds.
Then, she held her phone out.
"I have to go now, so give me your number," she asked with wide and hopeful eyes.
Reiji just looked at her with an unreadable emotion, and then he took the device from her hands. After entering his number, he gave it back.
"Hmm, I'll save it as 'Hubby<3'," She smiled with satisfaction.
"....Just how many steps have we skipped today?" Reiji groaned.
"I'll send you a message on Chatly, so keep in touch ok?"
"Fine..."
Yui gave him one last look before walking off, though he noticed the hesitation in her steps.
'I need to figure out quickly what to do about him.... I don't know how long I'll be able to hold back from beating the living shit out of him, it's a lot easier to get angry in this body.'
Reiji clenched his fists as he watched her leave.
'I also have to find out what the FUCK is wrong with Riku.... I have a bad feeling about all of this.'
Reiji narrowed his eyes, thinking hard about what had happened today.
He had a lot to do.