The next day.
Tanaka got up, washed, had breakfast, and headed to school in his uniform.
The uniform of Sobu High School looked nice, but because he was a little overweight, it didn't really suit him.
Touching the armor core on his chest, Tanaka felt reassured.
Yesterday, after realizing this was an anime world, he had been afraid it might turn out to be a dangerous world.
If this really was a supernatural world and he wasn't prepared, he would be in serious trouble.
For that reason, he didn't store the Mark armor in the system space. Instead, he carried it with him at all times to avoid delays if danger appeared suddenly.
…
Tanaka had transmigrated here during the last two days of Golden Week, and now it was the beginning of May.
The weather was pleasantly mild.
As he neared the school, he could see students walking along the road in groups of twos and threes, all wearing the same uniform.
This made him recall his social life in his previous life.
"It's already been a month since school started, and I don't have a single friend. I haven't even spoken to anyone.
That way, no one will recognize me. That's fine, I guess."
Even so, Tanaka couldn't help but feel a little lonely.
Although he hadn't been very social in his past life, he had always had at least a few friends to talk with whenever he went to school or switched classes. He had never been this isolated.
…
When he arrived, he opened his shoe cabinet.
There were no love letters inside, and his indoor shoes hadn't gone missing.
In the past, his predecessor had been bullied—his shoes were often thrown away or dirtied by others.
But after starting high school, he had learned from that and tried to keep as low a profile as possible.
And since it had only been a month since school began, bullying hadn't really started yet.
He changed into his indoor shoes and walked into his classroom.
Class 1-D.
There were seven classes in the first year: A, B, C, D, E, F, and J.
Each class had more than twenty students, with fewer than two hundred students in the entire grade.
Class J was the international class, commonly known as the "top class."
Yukino Yukinoshita was in Class J.
Class F, on the other hand, was the protagonist's class, where most of Oregairu's main characters were.
Shizuka Hiratsuka was also the homeroom teacher of Class F.
…
Tanaka found his seat.
It wasn't the classic "back-row-by-the-window" spot often called the king's seat.
Instead, it was a less noticeable desk in the middle-back area.
After sitting down, Tanaka played with his phone while casually observing the classroom.
Most of the students were already grouped together, forming small circles of friends.
Looking around, he noticed hair colors ranging from red, yellow, blue, silver, and even green.
Tanaka couldn't help but grumble inwardly.
As expected of an anime world—there are way too many crazy hair colors.
But after looking carefully, he confirmed there weren't any characters he recognized.
Despite the variety of hairstyles, their appearances were otherwise ordinary.
A few looked decent, but none stood out as main-character level.
After a while, Tanaka lost interest and went back to fiddling with his phone.
······
About ten minutes later—
The classroom door opened. At once, the chatter inside died down, as if someone had pressed a mute button.
Tanaka glanced up from his phone toward the entrance.
A tall, well-proportioned girl with long silver hair tied into a high ponytail walked in. She exuded a cold, aloof aura, the kind that made her seem untouchable, almost like a delinquent.
Everyone's attention followed her, but she seemed unconcerned. She even covered her mouth and yawned lazily.
With a single look, Tanaka knew—this girl had to be a main character.
Her overwhelming presence was on a completely different level compared to the students around her.
This, combined with their current setting, immediately made him connect her to a character from his memory.
Kawasaki Saki.
One of the heroines of Oregairu. Though she didn't appear often, she was extremely popular.
With just one episode, she could rival Yukino Yukinoshita and Yui Yuigahama.
Her popularity came from two things.
First, her flawless looks.
Second, despite her cold exterior, she was kindhearted at her core.
She adored her younger sister and worked part-time to help with tuition so as not to burden her family.
On top of that, she could sew, cook, and clean.
She was gentle, virtuous, independent, and self-reliant—a model of the perfect wife and mother.
······
Tanaka quickly lowered his gaze when Kawasaki Saki walked straight toward him.
She stopped at the empty seat in front of him, gave him a brief glance, then sat down.
After tidying her desk, she picked up a book and began reading intently.
The classroom, which had fallen silent when she entered, slowly came alive again. But the noise was much quieter, as though everyone was afraid of disturbing the "queen" at the front.
Tanaka stared at Kawasaki Saki's back, baffled.
*Wait—wasn't Kawasaki Saki supposed to be in Class F with the other protagonists?
Why is she in my class? And sitting right in front of me?
Could the system have changed something in this world for my sake?
No… that seems unlikely, but still…*
Unable to figure out why Kawasaki Saki was here, his thoughts soon began drifting.
*Kawasaki Saki really is beautiful.
She's proof that anime girls can be flawless, unlike real-life girls with all their flaws.
And that figure of hers would make Eriri cry with envy. There probably aren't many her age who could compare.*
*Also… she smells so nice.
Ever since she sat down, I've caught this faint fragrance. Is it shampoo?*
*Now that I think about it, she doesn't seem to have any friends.
Since I sit right behind her, that puts me at an advantage.
But with the way I look, if I tried talking to her, she'd probably just give me a disgusted look, like I was garbage.
And yet… just imagining it is exciting!*
Ahem. No, no, I shouldn't be thinking like that.
*If I remember correctly, in the original story Kawasaki Saki worked part-time to pay tuition so her family wouldn't struggle.
But the job she took was at a bar. That's not really the kind of place a high school girl should be working.
If I took a picture of her there, I could say something like: "Kawasaki-san, you wouldn't want anyone to find out about this, right?"*
No… what am I thinking? I'm a decent person. I can't do something like that.
······
And so, distracted by Kawasaki Saki's sudden arrival, Tanaka's mind wandered, and before he knew it, the morning had already passed.