SH – Chapter 6 – When Did I Accidentally Set Up a Flag?

[The first part of this chapter occurs after MC makes fun of Irina, and before the duel announcement]

Well, I have finally gone and done it.

I exposed Irina’s private parts (preparation and review notes) while making fun of them.

As a result, I am now receiving even more scornful gazes from those around me than before.

But that’s okay.

Everything is going according to plan, and the story is progressing smoothly.

After spreading the word, I visited the student council room again after school.

“Sorry for intruding~! (Ojamashimasu~!)” (Louis)

As usual, I find Leila inside the room gazing out of the window with a somewhat melancholic air.

It seemed like she was too deep in thought to notice that I had come in.

However, there’s something captivating about a beautiful girl gazing wistfully¹ out of a window.

It’s the kind of scene that you want to capture in a photo, post it on social media, and will garner a lot of likes.

Could this be an opportunity?

Isn’t this a chance to surprise the same Leila who always maintains a dignified and cool expression?

Realizing this, I quietly approached Leila and—

I placed my hand on her shoulder and shouted near her ear.

“SURPRISE!” (Louis)

“KYAAAH!” (Leila)

She let out an incredibly loud scream.

Not the kind of scream a girl should let out.

Oops, I think I went too far.

She quickly noticed me and gave me an annoyed look.

“Ani… You could have at least warned me if you were going to surprise me.” (Leila)

“Well, if I warn you beforehand, it kind of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?” (Louis)

Does that mean that if I were to warn her in advance, she would be okay for me to surprise her? That thought is beyond my understanding.

“By the way, Ani… Are you okay?” (Leila)

Leila asked me with a worried expression in her eyes.

She is probably about the scornful looks I have been receiving lately.

“Fufu… sister dearest. Do you know what people in my shoes are known as?” (Louis)

“…? I have no idea.” (Leila)

“Fufufu, of course you wouldn’t. Oh well, it can’t be helped. Your kind Ani will tell you. We are known as… the cool guy who secretly manipulates the school from behind the scenes!” (Louis)

As I passionately explained, Leila once again gave me an annoyed look.

And this time, it was even worse than before.

“Ani… I regretted worrying about you. I’m going to claim damages for emotional distress. Just hand over your wallet and your life already.” (Leila)

“Sister dearest, why are you making an expression that a girl shouldn’t be making?! Didn’t anyone teach you that only mafia bosses make that expression!?” (Louis)

It was like the expression of a mafia boss ready to cut off the legs of an underling who failed at their job.

Man, that’s the face of someone who can easily take a life…

“…Ani, are you pushing yourself too hard?” (Leila)

Now, my sister was looking at me with a somewhat pitiful expression.

However, beneath those eyes, I could see traces of concern. Unconsciously, I averted my gaze and muttered.

“You know, males (otakus) are the type to go to great lengths to protect the smiles of the females (heroines).” (Louis)

It’s like playing through a high-difficulty eroge game all night long just to reach the heroine’s happy ending.

Or like being unable to accept the brutal ending of an anime, so you learn to try and draw doujinshis² to make up for it.

There are times when a man must take action.

And now was precisely one of those times.

“You’re saying something that sounds cool but also kind of lame, Ani.” (Leila)

“You think it’s lame!? I thought I said something pretty cool, though!?” (Louis)

“Saying out loud that you think you are cool isn’t making it any more convincing.” (Leila)

“Oh, uh, yeah. Sorry.” (Louis)

An older brother receives a stern critique from his sister.

How pathetic.

Ah, the conversation has gone off track again.

I put on a serious face and conveyed my request to Leila.

“So, you see, I have something that I would like the student council to announce.” (Louis)

“…What is it?” (Leila)

Leila tilted her head at my words.

I handed over a piece of paper.

Written on it were details about my intrusion into Irina’s room and the consequences I will face.

After reading it, Leila looked up at me with serious eyes.

“You’re serious about this, Ani?” (Leila)

“Yeah. I’m willing to push myself a little to see the person I like truly smile.” (Louis)

For a brief moment, Leila’s expression seemed somewhat sad. But soon, she looked at me with a resolute gaze and continued.

“I understand. If you’re that serious, then I won’t hesitate anymore. So, go and save her with everything you got. If you fail, I won’t forgive you.” (Leila)

“Yeah…” (Louis)

In response to her earnest words, I gave a short nod.

Now then… the final battle is about to begin.

But the chessboard is already perfectly set up.

With this, I’ll end up being disliked by all the students, including Irina herself, but Allen-kun will be able to come in and comfort Irina afterwards.

Isn’t this the perfect setup?

Maybe I have some kind of talent for matchmaking or something.

＋＋＋

And so, the day of the final showdown arrived.

The spectators surrounding the arena were all cheering for Irina while throwing harsh words at me.

Watching this scene from the backstage, I chuckled to myself.

Up to this point, everything went according to plan.

Yes – up to this point, everything went according to plan.

For some reason, my plan decided to go haywire at the very end.

I don’t know where I went wrong.

Perhaps I misunderstood her personality.

“Now that we’re alone, I’ll make sure to tell Louis properly… Thank you so much for doing so much for my sake.” (Irina)

She said that with a gentle smile.

…Why!?

How did it come to this?!

Why is Irina, who was supposed to hate me, smiling at me and even expressing gratitude!?

According to my plan, she should be saying something like, “I’ll never lose to you. I’ll make you regret picking a fighting with me” with a touch of disdain!

Seriously… where did the plan go wrong?

Was it the unexpected factor of me trying to steal Irina’s underwear?

Well, I wasn’t really trying to, but that is how it looked like in her eyes.

I vividly remember receiving a shower of scornful gazes from her at that time.

“Um… Irina. I did some terrible things to you, you know? I stole your underwear and made fun of your notes?” (Louis)

I decided to cautiously throw a jab and gauge her reaction.

However, Irina looked as if she understood everything from my words. She nodded and then continued by saying something unexpected.

“Hey, Louis. Even if you end up making enemies of the entire world, I’ll always be on your side. Don’t forget that.” (Irina)

What’s going on? What’s with this intense confession!?

Come on, this has to be a confession, right? She definitely likes me, doesn’t she!?

When did I unintentionally raise this flag!?

To make things worse, Irina approached me with a gentle expression and then enveloped my head in her slightly inflated chest.

“There, there (*yoshi yoshi*)… Just for now, you can lean on me and vent out everything, okay?” (Irina)

Gyahhh! I definitely messed up somewhere!

This is embarrassing, way too embarrassing!

Aaargh! I knew it, I can’t be the protagonist!

If this keeps happening every day, my heart won’t be able to take it!

My tarnished heart is being purified in such a beautiful way!

While I struggled, I couldn’t muster the strength to retort and ended up being held tightly and having my head petted until the match began.

…Seriously, how did things end up like this?

TL notes:

Thanks for reading!

Here we see MC’s plan falling apart for the better in real time.

My instincts are telling me that Louis used to do something similar to what he is doing right now but something bad happened that caused him to change. Leila is probably worried that the past will repeat itself. Not that we know what happened in the past, but obviously, Louis was never always like this.

Apparently there is a difference between “patted” and “petted”. Someone enlighten me on why two different words exist for the same meaning.