"Thank you so, so much!"
Kushida Kikyou thanked Shikime Natsu again, her eyes filled with a gratitude that showed no sign of pretense. Is this what you'd expect from an ally of justice?
She really is an incredibly kind and good girl.
"You're welcome."
Shikime Natsu waved his hand dismissively. It was a simple gesture; giving up a seat to someone in need was the most basic thing one could do.
"My name is Kushida Kikyou. It's nice to meet you."
Kushida Kikyou placed a hand on her chest as she introduced herself to Shikime Natsu. It had to be said, this girl's development was a bit much. Even in her student uniform, her impressive curves couldn't be hidden. It was almost as exaggerated as something out of an anime, though thankfully not to the point where her chest was bigger than her head. That kind of aesthetic, often seen in manga, was something Shikime Natsu just couldn't comprehend.
"Shikime Natsu. A pleasure."
"Well then... Shikime-kun, a pleasure to meet you!"
Kushida Kikyou replied cheerfully. However, as they spoke, her gaze flickered for a moment. It was brief, but Shikime Natsu caught it. Following her line of sight, he quickly noticed it had landed on Horikita Suzune.
Did my arch-nemesis radar just go off?
Now that he knew her name was indeed Kushida Kikyou, Shikime Natsu no longer suspected there was a problem with his cheat ability. After all, it had been dormant for so long that he had begun to think it was broken.
It seemed it wasn't broken after all. That's good.
Shikime Natsu quickly turned his attention back to his cheat ability. Right now, only two character portraits had appeared: one for Horikita Suzune and one for Kushida Kikyou. The rest were all black and white, with not even the characters' figures displayed.
As for the total number of CGs, the cheat ability didn't show that either. How was he supposed to collect them all? Still, looking at the vast expanse of black-and-white CGs, Shikime Natsu's determination grew even stronger. He had to unlock every single one!
This was the obsession of a gal game master!
It was just a shame he didn't have the Save/Load method.
Just as Shikime Natsu was brainstorming, the bus arrived at its stop.
"Well then, goodbye, Shikime-kun. I hope we end up in the same class."
Kushida Kikyou gave Shikime Natsu a very gentle smile and then got off the bus.
This struck Shikime Natsu as a little odd. In his mind, once you've gotten acquainted, shouldn't you walk to school together?
Besides, the school entrance was only a few dozen steps from the bus stop.
Perhaps it was just a girl's shyness?
Or maybe it was because his own character model was too good-looking. Perhaps Kushida Kikyou was worried people would mistake him for her boyfriend, which might make it harder for him to find a girlfriend at this school in the future. If that was the case, it was quite considerate of her.
Shikime Natsu silently gave Kushida Kikyou a thumbs-up in his mind and then stepped off the bus.
As soon as he got off, fresh air washed over him, and his view opened up. Before him was the school gate. From the outside, he could see the campus grounds, with two rows of cherry blossom trees lining the path. When a breeze blew, a few petals would flutter through the air, landing on the ground or on the shoulders of the students walking in.
The scene was quite beautiful.
Just as Shikime Natsu was about to walk into the school, a figure standing on the steps blocked his path.
Hmm... it was Horikita Suzune, the one who had glared daggers at him.
"Hey. On the bus, you looked at me three times, didn't you? What was that about?"
Horikita Suzune stood with her arms crossed, her wine-red eyes coldly scanning Shikime Natsu.
Three times?
Shikime Natsu was completely stunned. He hadn't expected the girl before him, Horikita Suzune, to be more attentive to the details than he was. He hadn't even realized he'd looked at her three times, but... now that he thought about it, that did seem to be the case.
The first time he looked at Horikita Suzune, it was out of admiration for her stunning looks. The second time was an inadvertent glance after seeing the CG, but he'd quickly looked away. The third time was because Kushida Kikyou had glanced at her, and he had followed her gaze. But—those last two times were extremely brief.
Should he praise Horikita Suzune for her keen observation skills, or...
"Are you a pervert?"
Shikime Natsu took a step forward, a look of playful interest on his face.
"???"
Horikita Suzune was completely baffled by Shikime Natsu's sudden remark. How had she suddenly become a pervert?
"What are you talking about?"
A flush of indignant anger appeared on Horikita Suzune's delicate face. In her entire life, this was the first time anyone had ever called her a pervert!
"Isn't it the truth? On the bus, my seat was diagonally behind you. You were reading a book at the time, but... how did you know I was looking at you? And you noticed all three times? Two of those were just for a split second, yet you still noticed. Doesn't that prove you were paying close attention to me?"
"Of course, I know I'm handsome, I'm used to it. But in the future, if you want to look at me, please do it secretly. Don't call it out. You might not think it, but I get scared when perverts stare at me. If you hadn't said anything, I wouldn't have noticed I was being watched. Please, try to restrain yourself a little."
Shikime Natsu spoke eloquently, his expression showing no trace of guilt, as if he were stating plain facts.
"That's enough! Stop talking nonsense!"
Horikita Suzune quickly cut Shikime Natsu off. If she let him continue, her reputation would be ruined. And if word of this ever reached her brother's ears...
Horikita Suzune didn't dare to imagine it. It was true she had paid a little extra attention to Shikime Natsu, but shouldn't a normal person act guilty when confronted like this?
What was happening? He'd completely turned the tables on her.
"Are we done here? Can I go now? Miss Pervert?"
Looking at Horikita Suzune's expression, he saw a faint blush on her small face. She was clearly embarrassed now that he'd called her out. Really, she needed to develop a thicker skin.
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Horikita Suzune glared at Shikime Natsu as if she wanted to eat him alive.
Fortunately, they were the only two lingering on the school steps, and the surrounding students weren't paying much attention. Otherwise, Horikita Suzune's reputation would have been utterly destroyed.
She had only paid a little extra attention to this guy, and now she was being called a pervert? The worst part was, she couldn't even refute it. She had indeed been holding a book on the bus, and Shikime Natsu's seat was diagonally behind her. If she hadn't been paying so much attention to him instead of her book, it would have been impossible to notice him looking at her.
So... was she the one in the wrong?
"I have a name! It's Horikita Suzune! Don't just call me whatever you want!"
Horikita Suzune spoke up. She couldn't have this annoying guy shouting the word "pervert" whenever he ran into her at school.
"I see, Horikita. So this is your roundabout way of trying to get to know me? Next time, you can just introduce yourself directly."
Shikime Natsu chuckled lightly. He clearly thought Horikita Suzune was using this little trick to tell him her name. Very interesting. This woman had piqued his interest.
"You...?!!"
Horikita Suzune's chest heaved with rage.
"Well, see you around. By the way, my name is Shikime Natsu."
Shikime Natsu walked up the steps, passing by Horikita Suzune.
I'd better not be in the same class as this guy!
Horikita Suzune prayed fervently.
What a truly awful personality!
___
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