It was April, the sun was high, but the weather was still cool. Chiba City, Soubu High School. It was considered one of the schools with the highest student academic rankings in Chiba. Most students who could get into this school had put in a lot of effort.
Ring—ring—ring. The sound of the class bell rang out. The girls chirped and laughed together like larks, while the boys slung their arms around each other's shoulders, roughhousing.
Students left the classrooms in groups of three or five, preparing to participate in club activities or head home, as this was the last class of the day.
In an inconspicuous seat by the window in the back corner. A boy with a delicate face and bangs slightly covering his eyes got up from his desk, rubbing his sleepy eyes.
"School's out, so early! As expected of the wonderful two-dimensional world," Mochizuki Yo thought, his lips curving up.
Thinking back to his student life in his previous world, everyone had classes from eight in the morning until five in the afternoon. Then they were given an hour to eat, and in the evening there were evening study sessions and cram schools. Even if this allowed students to achieve good academic results, it was truly torture!
Now! School life in the two-dimensional world is truly blissful; students actually get out of school at three o'clock. Furthermore, the school encourages club activities, and many students participate.
It's not hard to guess that Mochizuki Yo was also one of the reborn into the two-dimensional world, and of course, he had a cheat.
Slightly regrettable was that Mochizuki didn't fully understand the stories of the heroines in the two-dimensional world he was in, and some he had forgotten most of due to the long time that had passed. Some were even new anime series that he hadn't had time to watch before transmigrating.
In this life, he decided to eat when he should, drink when he should, and live a free, carefree, and lazy life!
Naturally, Mochizuki created his own 'Go-Home Club'.
Now, Mochizuki Yo was leisurely making his way home.
"This is truly youth, but how could club activities be as good as going home to play games?" Mochizuki Yomuttered inwardly.
Mochizuki Yo walked on the way home, planning in his mind what flavor of instant noodles he should eat tonight. Or should he order takeout?
Mochizuki Yo arrived at a convenience store, one he passed by every day on his way home.
He picked out several tubs of instant noodles in different flavors. And a 1L bottle of cola.
The moment he stepped out of the convenience store, the sky unleashed a torrential downpour.
"Damn, I have to go back and buy an umbrella."
Umbrellas at convenience stores aren't cheap. What a loss!
Although he had an umbrella, the rain was heavy, and Mochizuki Yo felt that many parts of his body were still getting wet.
Fortunately, his home was just past the park.
Mochizuki Yo looked into the park.
"Huh, in this heavy rain, why is someone sitting on the swing?"
It seemed to be a girl wearing the same school uniform, and she didn't have an umbrella.
Sitting alone in the rain in such weather inevitably made one feel strange and curious about what had happened.
People are all curious, and although the rain was heavy, Mochizuki still walked over, wanting to see what was going on.
"Hey, you'll catch a cold sitting in the rain like this." Mochizuki Yo walked up to the girl and held the umbrella over her head.
The girl looked up in surprise, and rainwater slowly flowed down her delicate face. Perhaps there were also tears mixed in.
This girl had waist-length dark flaxen hair. Because she was soaked by the rain, her face was a little pale, especially her lips. Strands of her long hair stuck to her face, but they couldn't hide her exquisite appearance. She was a standard beautiful girl.
"Mo, Mochizuki... Yo Student." The girl was a little surprised, saying the name while thinking.
"Shiina Mahiru Student, huh, you actually know me." Mochizuki Yo was even more surprised that the popular Angel of the school was getting soaked in the rain. And she actually knew him, this transparent person.
"Of course I do, we're classmates, and..." The rest of her words weren't spoken aloud.
Mochizuki felt a little guilty, giving an awkward smile.
"But, Angel, can you tell me why you're getting soaked in the rain here? At least find somewhere to take shelter?"
"Please don't call me by that name, and thank you for your concern. I just wanted to sit here." Shiina Mahiru's cold voice came, slightly different from how she spoke at school.
Huh? Wasn't the Angel rumored to speak gently and cutely? To be approachable? Why does it feel like she's being fierce towards me...
"Sorry, but in this weather, at this time, it's quite dangerous for a girl to be in a place like this."
"Besides, Shiina Student, you're completely soaked right now. What if you get sick or run into a bad person?" Mochizuki Yo said helplessly.
Shiina also seemed to notice something was wrong, looking down at herself. Then she immediately hugged her arms to her chest, and a little redness appeared on her fair cheeks.
"It's, it's not dangerous at all, and don't look around."
This is the cute Angel. Her figure is also good. As expected of the student with the highest popularity among first-years.
Of course, Mochizuki Yo didn't say this aloud.
"Hai~ hai~, I'll lend you the umbrella. Anyway, I'm almost home."
Immediately after, without explanation, Mochizuki Yodirectly propped the umbrella between the swings, over Shiina Mahiru's head. Then he turned around and ran away.
"Huh, wait!" Shiina Mahiru called out, but unfortunately, her voice was drowned out by the sound of the rain.
Even if he heard it, Mochizuki Yo wouldn't have paid attention to her.
A beautiful five-story apartment building. Mochizuki Yo climbed up to the third floor.
Arriving at apartment 301, he inserted the key and opened the door. Although the apartment had a spacious living room, it looked very crowded because it was piled high with various items.
However, Mochizuki Yo didn't care. He put down the instant noodles and headed to the bathroom, just wanting to quickly take a shower and change into clean clothes.
After showering, he was bare-chested, looking a little thin, but with his forehead and eyes revealed, Mochizuki Yo looked more handsome.
Mochizuki Yo made two boxes of instant noodles with different flavors, and then opened the cola, taking a refreshing gulp.
"Instant Noodle Proficiency +1, +1. Ding! Congratulations to the host for becoming an Instant Noodle Master."
That's right, this was Mochizuki Yo's system.
Compared to other systems with diverse functions, Mochizuki Yo's system was relatively ordinary.
As long as he repeatedly practiced a certain skill, he could gain proficiency.
For Mochizuki Yo, who wanted to live an ordinary life in the two-dimensional world, it was sufficient.
While eating instant noodles, he opened a computer game and skillfully logged in.
As soon as he went online, he was bombarded with messages.
Yōsei-sama: Mochizuki, where are you? Where are you? Why aren't you online yet?
Yōsei-sama: Get online quickly, hey.
Yōsei-sama: Damn it, are you seeing someone else behind my back?
Yōsei-sama: Baka, Stupid Wangyue, you're finally online. What happened today? Why are you so late? What if we fall behind?
Lazy Mochizuki: Cough, cough, cough, don't worry, didn't I arrive?
Lazy Mochizuki: There was a heavy rain today, so I got home a bit late. I also did a good deed on the way.
Yōsei-sama: Oh, what good deed?
Lazy Mochizuki: Nothing much, just helped a beautiful girl.
Yōsei-sama: Oh, a beautiful girl, so you went on a date with another beautiful girl and abandoned me, this beautiful girl, right!
Far away, in a luxurious villa area in Tokyo, a girl wearing only pajamas and wrapped in a blanket showed a trace of dissatisfaction on her face. Facing an ultra-clear, huge computer screen, she was vigorously typing on a mechanical keyboard, communicating with Mochizuki Yo.
Mochizuki Yo felt a chill down his spine. He wasn't going to catch a cold just from getting rained on once, was he?
Lazy Mochizuki: Who is so narcissistic as to call themselves a beautiful girl! And what date?
Mochizuki Yo expressed helplessness. Although Shiina Mahiru was indeed a beautiful girl, he truly just wanted to help her at the time and had no ill intentions.
Lazy Mochizuki: Just a classmate. Hurry up and teleport to the dungeon; we're about to start.
Mochizuki Yo felt he shouldn't waste time on this topic and quickly changed the subject.
Time in the game always flew by. Before he knew it, it was eleven o'clock.
Lazy Mochizuki: Let's stop here tonight. I'm going offline now.
Mochizuki Yo typed and sent this sentence in the chat box, then exited the game without waiting for the girl's reply.
Next, he opened a document on his computer desktop titled 're:zero - starting life in another world' and began typing.
That's right, this was Mochizuki Yo's other identity. A high school light novel author, though that wasn't quite right yet, as he hadn't published a book.
His parents had left behind a house and a sum of money sufficient to cover his future tuition, and then they went off to travel the world.
"Too bad I don't have a sister," Mochizuki Yo thought.
Of course, he was just thinking about it. If he really had a sister, Mochizuki was also afraid of what might happen...
But because the house was too far from school, Mochizuki Yo chose to rent an apartment near the school.
He had to incur an extra expense.
On one hand, the money left by his parents could only cover tuition, so Mochizuki Yo needed to earn living expenses.
He also hoped to achieve financial freedom sooner so he could live an even better 'lying flat' lifestyle!
Another reason was that he couldn't bear the loss of many excellent works from his previous life.
Thus, he began living the life of a plagiarist.
"Although I'm familiar with the plot, writing it myself is still very difficult! Aside from not fully understanding the heroines' stories, Mochizukiroughly remembered the novel's plot."
"Being a light novel author isn't easy either."
"Before I knew it, I had typed until one o'clock. I should be able to finish the first volume in a few more days. I hope it gets successfully submitted and published."
Considering he had school tomorrow, although he was somewhat reluctant.
Mochizuki Yo still decided it was time to go to bed and rest.