Based on my last monologue, you probably have a rough idea, but I'm a reincarnator. That's not to say I was hit by a truck like in a common anime, or Called, or met a god. I became aware of myself when I was three years old.
According to a certain study, the oldest human memories are usually from around the age of three. In that respect, I'm a perfectly normal child. If I didn't have the memories of my previous life, that is.
When I first remembered, I was quite confused. My body wouldn't move as I wanted it to, and on top of that, I thought I was dead, but then memories of another child were mixed in. Anyone would want to cry. It was lucky that my parents, who saw me squatting on the stairs and crying, mistook it for me falling down the stairs.
Reincarnation... I never thought it was real. However, I couldn't possibly believe such a spiritual phenomenon, so I borrowed my parents' computer and looked up this world. The result was that the time I must have died and the time I was born in this life overlapped.
Honestly, it sent shivers down my spine. I went back in time, you know? It's much creepier than reincarnation. At the same time, another fact became clear: "the world I was originally from and this world are different." The general flow of history is the same, but the post-war prime ministers and major disasters that left their names in history are subtly different.
So, I came up with a common template idea: the possibility that I had gotten into an anime world or something similar. If that's the case, it becomes quite a pain. Because reincarnated people generally don't have good things happen to them. They're forced to fight, and I heard from a friend in my previous life that there are more works where the main character has a terrible time, but I want nothing to do with that.
...But there was nothing I could do, so I decided to live as a slightly clever child. I've always been good at giving up.
Fortunately, my family environment in this life is quite good. My father is a civil servant, and my mother is a housewife. Being an only child, I was raised with great care. Or rather, just getting a warm meal is already a perfect score.
It's not that I don't want to repay my parents, but I was in a state of what's commonly called burnout syndrome. Well, I died once, so that's a good enough reason to be burned out, right?
And so, having spent such a childhood, I made sports my hobby, as I mentioned earlier. I never touched them in my previous life, but they're surprisingly fun. Of course, I wasn't doing it just for fun. Athletic ability is determined by how much you move your body when you're young. My dream is to be a kept man, so to do that, I first have to be popular.
Luckily, I was born quite good-looking, so my face is fine. I wasn't bad at studying either, so all that was left was sports.
However, spending all my time in local sports clubs naturally meant I had no contact with girls. So, I was convinced that if I talked to an isolated girl, she would fall for me, based on my meager knowledge of romance novels. I spoke to a girl who was always alone in the classroom, reading a difficult-looking book. She was incredibly cute even in first grade, and since my brain was that of an adult, I thought I could talk about books.
"Is that Darwin's On the Origin of Species? You're reading a really difficult book, aren't you?"
"...Yes. You seem to know it well, too."
She replied with such polite words, but it was obvious from her expression that she was incredibly surprised. Now I know for sure that the girl I just spoke to, Arisu-chan, is undoubtedly a gifted child (a child with a significantly higher-than-average IQ). I've heard that children with this gift struggle with the intellectual gap between them and others. Besides, a first grader can't even read the kanji in On the Origin of Species.
After that, I regularly talked to her. But her attitude was cold, and she didn't respond to anything I said, so I changed targets to a different girl. Was that when her behavior started to change? About a week after I stopped talking to her, Arisu-chan called me out.
"Why have you been avoiding me recently?"
"Huh, no, I'm not trying to avoid you..."
The one who was waiting for me behind the gym was not a confession, but a strong gaze that said she wouldn't allow any excuses.
Arisu-chan continued to talk while I was dumbfounded.
"If my memory serves me correctly, I don't believe I did anything to displease you. But if I did, and I was unaware of it, then I apologize."
"No, I'm not avoiding you because I'm mad or anything."
"Then why?"
"Well... you didn't seem to have much fun talking to me, so I thought maybe you didn't like me."
Quick question: Do you know the secret to lying? When you want to lie without getting caught, it's effective to blend in a little truth instead of making it 100% a lie.
In this case, I'll drop one drop of the truth, "I thought you disliked me," into the lie, "I'm looking for another candidate to be my kept man."
I figured she probably didn't like me that much anyway, and if it just fizzled out here, that would be fine... such a naive idea must have been my mistake.
"When did I ever say I disliked you? Judging based on speculation is what fools do."
"...I'm sorry."
She scolded me with such strong words, but being told that by a beautiful first-grade girl wasn't scary at all. However, the feelings behind those words squeezed my chest tightly.
I think she was lonely. She was suddenly avoided in a situation where she had no one else to talk to. No matter how smart she was, she was still a child who had just graduated from kindergarten. I had approached her as an adult, and then left her just as quickly. I couldn't complain even if she called me the worst.
However, her words in response to my apology were completely unexpected.
"Please come over to my house next time. I'll forgive you then."
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"I'm in Class A, and Tsugumi-kun... is in Class D, is that right?"
After a few dozen minutes on the bus, the two, who had arrived much earlier than scheduled, were looking for their names on the list posted in the entrance.
"Oh no. Arisu-chan, don't be lonely because we're in different classes, okay?"
"Tsugumi-kun, aren't you going to be unable to go for a walk without your owner?"
"Who are you calling a pet?"
Whether he had woken up or just because they had arrived at school, Saito's mood had shifted as if a switch had been flipped. While she was exasperated by his demeanor, Arisu Sakayanagi was a girl who would always accept a challenge.
This exchange, where Saito would snap and Sakayanagi would counter and take him down, had become a kind of aesthetic for those close to them.
About ten minutes later, after exploring the campus, they returned to the front of the classroom. A crowd of new students had already gathered in the entrance.
"Well then, since people are here, I'll go back now."
"Okay. Wait for me in the classroom after the entrance ceremony."
"Understood."
After parting ways with Sakayanagi, Saito headed straight for the Class D classroom. When he opened the sliding door, half of the seats were already filled, and everyone was in lively conversation.
(I should've come a little earlier. I tagged along because Arisu-chan was curious, but... oh well. My seat is... oh, by the window in the back. Not bad.)
Saito checked his desk on the seating chart posted on the blackboard. He seemed to be in a good mood for getting a seat that's generally considered a good spot.
After settling down, Saito looked around and gently tapped the shoulder of the male student sitting in the seat in front of him.
"Wh-what is it?"
The male student turned around timidly, surprised to be spoken to.
"Nothing, I just thought I'd say hi since we're sitting close. My name is Tsugumi Saito. My hobbies are all kinds of sports and board games. Nice to meet you!"
Saito said, extending his right hand. The male student was surprised by how he was so forcefully closing the distance, but he didn't feel particularly uncomfortable. That's only natural. Saito's communication skills, the most important ability for a kept man, are maxed out. It's difficult to outright reject his friendly smile.
He was no exception, as he shook his hand back and introduced himself.
"My name is Kiyotaka Ayanokoji. I don't really have any hobbies, but I'm interested in everything. It'll be a long relationship, so I'd be happy if we could get along."
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The two would later become close friends, but the people themselves at that moment had no way of knowing.
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