Chapter 59: A Normal Date "Hey, check this out."
Standing before the Comedy Duo, I unleashed the magic I'd learned from Frey.
With my legs pressed together and my body held stiff, I leaned forward, defying gravity as I stood at a sharp diagonal to the ground.
"…What the hell are you doing?"
Right, I wasn't exactly expecting a standing ovation.
It was infuriating that Michael Jackson's secret weapon, the Lean, looked like a pathetic parlor trick to these bastards who lived and breathed magic every day.
"Then how about this?"
I performed MJ's second secret weapon, the Moonwalk. Masayoshi simply bit his straw and sucked the last of his juice with a loud, slurping sound.
Dammit, I'm done. I'm not doing this anymore.
As I was about to quit due to the lukewarm reaction, Mary, who had been watching nearby, beamed.
"Yeon-woo, you're a great dancer! Is there anything you can't do?"
"Heh, at least you recognize talent."
"Yeah, yeah! But why are you using magic for it?"
…Well, because I can't do it physically.
Mary hopped up energetically and performed a Moonwalk even more perfect than mine. And she did it without a lick of magic.
Watching Mary dance happily in the middle of the classroom without even any music playing, I felt my spirit deflate and slumped back into my seat. Yukina whispered to me, a faint, almost imperceptible smile on her lips.
"I liked it."
Don't pity me. The damage is already done.
Seriously, why did Frey teach me something like this?
Soul Chain was incredible, sure. It was a spell that pushed my utility to the absolute limit.
But I had no idea what I was supposed to do with Mana Barrier Melting.
Mana Barrier Melting.
Despite the intuitive name, this spell—which I had no clue how to actually use—was one that existed in the game as well.
It provided a measly 1% damage reduction. It increased with proficiency, but even at max level, it only reached 2%. It was a total trash skill.
It was so useless that I didn't even recognize it at first; the memory only surfaced later.
There's a limit to how many spells you can wrap around your body depending on your skill level, so why waste a slot on a 1% buff? Unless you were in a truly desperate situation with nothing left and were scraping the bottom of your soul, there was no reason to use it.
Furthermore, true to its name, it had a penalty where it shaved away your Mana Barrier to produce its effect, making it a spell no one would ever look twice at.
However, while it was useless in combat, it was surprisingly fun.
The principle behind the damage reduction was that you could melt the Mana Barrier surrounding your body to create specific shapes.
You know those tropes?
In worlds with Qi or Mana, characters would form a cross-like shape over their finger and act cool, saying things like, "Can you see it? If not, you aren't worthy."
Since it was a trash spell, it only extended about an inch from my body, but I could use it to fix my position or move.
That MJ performance from earlier took me three days of agonizing effort to pull off. And yet, Rio copied it instantly without even knowing the magic formula.
Damn, that guy really is an elite among elites.
I wanted to kick him in the shins, but I was in a good mood today, so I held back.
Frey's assignment was to find as many diverse ways to utilize Mana Barrier Melting as possible.
She probably didn't teach it to me for practical use, but rather as a teaching tool.
She must have been frustrated because I couldn't modify spells at all since I didn't understand the underlying principles.
I should work hard and earn some praise.
"Hey, do something about him."
While I was pondering how to use Melting, Masayoshi nudged me and whispered quietly.
In the direction he was looking, Takeo was glaring at me.
Of course, it wasn't because he wanted to kill me; he was just trying to find the right timing to talk to me. His face was just naturally fierce, so it came off that way.
"I don't know anyone like that."
"Just accept his apology already."
"What I hate most is character laundering."
"…Laundering? What are you talking about?"
Do they not use that term here?
Takeo seemed to have cut ties with his old thug group and had been spending his time alone lately, but there was no way I was going to build a friendship with him.
The redemption event ended quickly because of me, but in the game, they really put him through the rinse cycle.
The innocent kid trusted and followed his older brother~ The brother deceived the younger one~ He actually has a warm heart~ He's kind to stray cats~ and so on. They used so much detergent I thought I'd drown in the bubbles.
So what? Does being nice to a cat erase the fact that he bullied kids?
Is it okay that he oppressed and cursed at his own teammates on the deserted island? Does it not hurt the kids he beat up just because he was in a bad mood?
If he were like Yukina, who was forced to do things under orders, I'd give him some slack.
But everything he'd done up until now was of his own volition, acting like a typical thug, bullying and hitting people.
Redemption is only valid after you've done at least as much good as the harm you've caused. Does saying "Oh, I'm a good person starting today" just make all the sins vanish?
I had no intention of entertaining him, so I ignored it, but the Comedy Duo—losers to the core—seemed intimidated by him and kept glancing nervously.
"Um… Yeon-woo."
"Yeah, what is it?"
What a surprise—Angelica was talking to me? I mean, we'd exchange greetings if we ran into each other, but this was the first time she'd approached me herself.
Behind her, Akito's followers were staring intently in our direction.
Did she lose a penalty game or something?
"Was I too loud? Sorry."
"A-Ah, no. That's… that's not it…"
Angelica hesitantly twiddled her fingers in front of her chest, looking down.
Yukina caught a glimpse of this and stood up from her seat.
"I'm going to the school store."
"Wait, Yukinon! That thieving cat is—urk!"
"Stop talking and just come on."
Mary tried to say something, but Yukina hooked an arm around her neck and dragged her away, with Jade following along.
Uh… I'll say it again, but I'm not as dense as Akito.
Everyone seems to be misunderstanding something, but there's no way Angelica could like me.
Sure, right now Angelica looks like a middle school girl facing her first love.
But she's already joined Akito's Sex Research Club. By now, hasn't he probably already felt her up?
Even if I don't want to think with a "game brain," Akito definitely has some weird power that sprays pheromones all over the heroines.
Looking at Ailee, who became a follower along with Angelica, it seemed like they'd already banged.
But even if Yukina is mistaken, is she really leaving the room for Angelica's sake? It feels like something Yukina would do, but it's a bit sad that she isn't showing any jealousy.
As Mary was dragged away, drawing the attention of the other students, Angelica looked overwhelmed and bowed her head, her face turning beet red.
"A-Ah, the weather is nice today, isn't it?"
"Uh… so you like rain?"
They said it would clear up in the afternoon, but looking out the window, it was still pouring.
At my response, Angelica glanced out the window, her eyes darting around before she gave an awkward laugh.
"O-Oh… I love rain… Ah, I-I should go stand in the rain."
Muttering to herself, Angelica turned around with stiff, robotic movements and hurried out of the classroom.
Hey, if you act like that, I might actually get the wrong idea.
Watching Angelica flee after failing to even hold a proper conversation with the person she clearly liked, Rio sighed and looked at me.
"Why do these things only happen to you?"
"Face diff."
"Don't say it so confidently. It's annoying."
She's in that follower group, so she should be under the direct influence of Akito's power, yet she likes me?
It was hard to believe. Of course, my face is god-tier. That's an undeniable fact.
Is it just my face? I'm rich, tall, fit, have a great personality, top grades, and perfect skills. I'm the complete package.
But I didn't think I could beat the power of a blessed game protagonist.
This is a game for Akito, by Akito, and about Akito. Could I really defy the world itself and surpass that?
No matter how great I am, that seemed unlikely.
And even if there was a possibility, if she's meant to be with Akito, I shouldn't interfere.
He needs to build his party, and I can't risk hitting the "world destruction" switch by getting in the way.
After classes ended, I left Yggdrasil alone.
Sometimes I'd head back with the others, or with Yukina if our schedules lined up, but she was… how should I put it? Not the clingy type.
We were practically a couple, but Yukina never forced her schedule on me or vice versa.
To put it more romantically, it felt like a long-term relationship.
We trusted and loved each other, but we didn't interfere with one another and did our own thing. Well, something like that.
I find the Korean style of dating—where couples are constantly glued together—a bit tedious, but sometimes it does feel a little lonely.
Especially when she hasn't given me any signal for over a week, saying she needs "time to prepare her heart."
I'm seriously going to turn into a delinquent. I'll just pounce on her and give her endless pleasure.
Dammit, Yggdrasil is unnecessarily huge—like four or five universities put together—so the walk back alone felt lonely.
As I was grumbling to myself, someone grabbed my sleeve. I turned around.
"Yukina? Didn't you say you had training today?"
"Uh… today… I decided not to."
It was unheard of for the diligent Yukina to skip training unless it was an absolute emergency.
Having been raised with brutal training in the Organization, she performed routines that would make other students shudder with indifference.
Moreover, she felt that receiving help from me was a debt, so she worked even harder to be of use to me.
That Yukina was now hesitating, avoiding my gaze.
"I… my heart is… ready…"
At her words, I silently pulled out my smartphone and made a call.
"Yes, I'd like to reserve a room."
"Wait! Even if I said I'm ready, booking a room right away is—w-what are you doing?!"
"Ah, was that too unromantic? I'll reserve dinner too. Which course? Just give me the most expensive one for two. I probably won't be able to taste anything today anyway. Eh? Is that important right now? Do you know what today is? A birthday? No, today is Sex Day. No, no, I'm not asking you to provide a woman. Forget it, just reserve the room and the meal."
Hearing my reservation call, Yukina looked around anxiously, worried someone might overhear, and lowered her reddened face.
Finally, the day I'd been waiting for—the day I'd have sex with Yukina—had arrived.
I hung up and took her hand, which had been clutching my sleeve to prevent me from running away.
"What about home?"
"…I told them… I wouldn't be coming back today. Somi-san is looking after Haruna."
"Right, you won't be able to go back. Because I'm going to wreck you."
"…Please, calm down."
Right, let's calm down like Yukina said.
Whew— Whew—
Taking slow, deep breaths to steady my heart, I looked at Yukina and smiled.
"Shall we go get you wrecked then?"
"You haven't calmed down at all!"
Blushing, Yukina carefully pulled a ticket from her pocket.
It was an admission ticket to a nearby amusement park.
Not a massive theme park, but more of an American-style one? Anyway, the kind of small amusement park you see in foreign teen movies.
Good grief, teasing me until the very last second—you really are a master of push-and-pull.
But I understood why she'd bought the tickets and asked for a date.
It was likely the "normal daily life" she'd dreamed of since her days in the Organization.
Thinking of her feelings, the brain that had migrated to my dick seemed to return to my head.
Only then did I truly see Yukina's state.
The shyly offered ticket, and the fear she held—despite believing it wouldn't happen—that I might reject her.
The sight of a normal girl gathering the courage to ask the person she liked on a date was so cute it made my dick throb.
…No, dammit. Dick, read the room.
"Sorry."
"Eh…?"
"No, no. I'm not rejecting you. I was just thinking too much about myself. I'm sorry."
Yukina, who had turned pale with misunderstanding, let out a small sigh of relief upon hearing the rest.
I let go of her hand that I'd been gripping and interlaced our fingers.
"Let's go to the amusement park like normal people, ride the Ferris wheel like normal people, and share an ice cream like normal people. Specifically, a five-scoop one. It's okay for the ice cream to be special, right? Oh, and let's kiss like normal people."
"..."
"I love normal things. Today is the day I have a normal date with a normal girl."
With every repetition of the word "normal," the smile on Yukina's lips grew wider.
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