Chapter 301

“Senior Matsuda!”

Sitting on a sloping rock and drinking the Peach Milk I had bought at the School Store, I turned my head at the welcome sound. Hiyori and Miho were walking this way. Did they come out as soon as the second information session ended? Judging by the time, that was the only explanation.

I stood up, dusted off my pants, and greeted them with a smile.

“Is the session over?”

“Yep.”

“What about the President and the manager?”

“They’re preparing for the third session right now. It seems they’ll talk about the matter with the Judo Club after the sessions are over.”

Her voice sounded the same as always. Considering she had called out and approached me first, she didn’t seem to be dwelling on what had happened earlier.

Not that I had scored any points with her. Hiyori wasn’t the type to view incidents like that favorably. Since we had almost no relationship right now, she would judge right and wrong with strictly neutral eyes. This ordinary attitude was likely the result of that judgment.

The one good thing was that Hiyori now knew the justification for the incident was on my side, and that I would step up when I saw an injustice. What mattered was that she saw a positive side to my personality, rather than just some delinquent nature. Though, of course, a closer look at the details would reveal a complicated web of factors at play.

“How was it?”

“The manager was so kind and funny, so I think we enjoyed listening. Right, Miho?”

Flinching at her name, Miho hurriedly nodded.

“Yeah. Wait... yes. The peaches were delicious.”

She was a little scared, but the look in her eyes was favorable. Was she somewhat like Bread Girl? I had the feeling that talking to her would be surprisingly fun. Feeling awkward under their gaze, I scratched the back of my head and asked.

“Aren’t you going to the Archery Club’s session? Didn’t you say you were interested?”

“We’re planning to go after resting a bit.”

“Oh?”

“Yep. By the way, is that Peach Milk? I heard it’s good...”

Hiyori recognized the Peach Milk in my hand. She must have tried it before... the whole world really was full of peaches. Chinami would love this.

“Do you want some? I can buy you a new one.”

“No, thanks. But are you okay?”

She was bringing up the previous incident. Usually, wouldn’t someone hesitate to talk about such a sensitive matter if they weren’t close? Trying to satisfy her curiosity with clear eyes utterly devoid of malice—it was so like Hiyori.

“I’m fine. What about you two?”

“We just watched, so of course we’re fine. But Senior.”

“What is it?”

“Your uniform is ripped.”

“This on my chest? I can just get it tailored later.”

“No. Not there, your pants.”

“Huh...?”

Startled, I looked down to see that the crotch of my pants was indeed torn open. Why hadn’t I noticed? Was it because I was wearing thick underwear?

When did it rip? Don’t tell me it happened while I was fighting that bastard? No. If that had been the case, I would have felt the cold breeze and noticed the moment I stepped outside.

Maybe the fabric had already been strained, and sitting on this rock just now was the final straw? God, I hoped so. I really didn’t want to suffer any more embarrassment.

The only saving grace was that the tear wasn’t visible when I stood up. Hiyori must have only noticed some loose threads sticking out. My red underwear... I almost got caught.

Still, our Hiyori was incredibly bold. Usually, people would pretend not to notice something like that; I hadn’t expected her to point it out. Just please don’t go doing this for anyone else.

“T-thanks.”

When I thanked her in a fluster, Hiyori offered an innocent smile.

“Don’t mention it. But do you have to go to class like that?”

“I have a spare, so I guess I should change...?”

“Right?”

“Right...”

Why was she prying into every little detail? She was making me feel awkward... I had a feeling that events with Hiyori would be much more unpredictable than I had imagined.

“We have more places to look around, so we’ll be going now.”

“Alright. See you.”

“Yep. By the way, do you use the School Store often, Senior?”

“I tend to.”

“Do you like bread too? What’s good there? Can you recommend one? I want to try it.”

Didn’t you say you were leaving? Why did she keep talking to me while glancing down at my torn pants? It wasn’t as if my dick was sitting wrong or anything... Was she teasing me? It felt burdensome, but it was also bound to turn me on, so I wished she’d stop looking.

*

After receiving Renka’s message, I went to the First-Year Hallway. Seeing Chinami standing at the entrance to Class D with a tearful expression, I panicked and sprinted over. Crossing the quiet hallway now that the session had ended, I stopped right in front of her and asked.

“Why are you crying?”

Had that Judo Club member retaliated? If so, I would run over there this instant and deliver the punishment of death. Just as that thought crossed my mind, Chinami let out a deep, heartfelt sigh and spoke.

“So many prospective freshmen came... We couldn’t give out peaches to everyone...”

“...Is that so?”

“Yes... If I had known this would happen, I would have brought more...”

Seriously, she made that kind of face just because they ran out of peaches? She scared me for a second. Still, I was relieved it was nothing serious. Though it was probably a grave matter by Chinami’s standards.

“Are you okay, Junior? You didn’t get hurt using your body earlier, did you?”

“Yeah, well... I’m perfectly fine. My pants ripped, but I changed.”

“Your pants ripped? Don’t tell me that guy...”

“No. It wasn’t that... I think it happened when I sat on the large rock in front of the School Store.”

“Whatever happened, it’s that guy’s fault.”

Believing that all the blame lay with that bastard, Chinami’s fury seemed ready to pierce the heavens! It wasn’t scary in the least, just incredibly cute.

“Where is the President?”

“She’s talking with the Judo Club president. It looks like it will be resolved smoothly. Neither of them wants this matter escalating to the Student Council.”

“Thinking about that bastard... no, that guy who insulted Master makes me uncomfortable.”

“I’m more worried about you, Junior. I would be so, so sad if you got disciplined because of such a shameless scoundrel. Phew...”

Chinami let out a sigh like an old soul. Biting my lower lip to stifle the laughter bubbling up my throat, I replied.

“As long as this doesn’t reach the Student Council, I think it will be fine. Master also said things would likely work out, right?”

“Still, there’s a chance things could go wrong, so I can’t help but worry. Do you want a peach?”

“I thought you said you ran out.”

“I saved one just for you, Junior.”

“Then should we share it?”

“I think that’s a wonderful idea.”

Flashing a sly smile, Chinami slipped into Class D and returned holding a tiny plastic box containing exactly one slice of peach.

Squatting in the corner and sharing the peach in secret like survivors who had barely scrounged up food in the apocalypse, we stood up just as Renka and the Judo Club president emerged from a classroom.

“I am Chiba Takeshi, president of the Judo Club.”

He looked at me and introduced himself out of nowhere. The surname Chiba sounded tough, but Takeshi felt like the name of a guy who would easily fall victim to NTR.

“I’m Matsuda Ken.”

“The member you had trouble with was a regular member. Because he was skilled and amiable, I entrusted him with an important position, but I never expected something like this to happen. Going forward, I will be sure to thoroughly vet issues regarding character as well.”

To offer a polite apology as well as preventive measures... He had a terrible eye for people, but I liked his personality. However, his way of speaking felt too middle-aged for a student. The former leader of the Superi circle was like that too... What was that guy’s name again? I couldn’t remember.

“We plan to expel that member immediately. I am truly sorry.”

At Chiba Takeshi’s follow-up words, I nodded slowly and asked.

“How do you plan to handle this incident?”

“Inoo and I agreed to resolve it completely at our level... but I suppose the coaches will need to be informed.”

“Then I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

“I’m glad. By the way, I heard from one of the prospective freshmen who attended the session that you used a judo technique... Have you trained before?”

“A long time ago.”

“For how long?”

“Just for quite a while.”

“As a hobby? Or seriously?”

Was the favorable look in his eyes just my imagination? This was a completely unexpected situation. Suddenly, he started looking like that judo senior from the famous basketball manga who relentlessly chased down the red-haired protagonist.

“Why do you ask?”

“It’s just that our talent pool for your weight class happens to be a bit thin right now. By any chance...”

Did she dislike Chiba subtly revealing his true colors? Renka, who had been standing quietly, abruptly cut into the conversation.

“What are you doing? Why are you trying to poach someone from another club?”

“Poach? There’s no law saying you can only do one club activity.”

“What... sure, it isn’t against the rules, but joining another athletics club that requires you to come to the Club Room every day is impossible...”

“I know. It was just a joke.”

“...Was that really a joke?”

“Yes.”

“It wasn’t funny in the least.”

“That stings a bit.”

Seeing his pitiful expression, it seemed he was genuinely hurt. Renka, apologize to him.

The Judo Club members soon left the hallway and returned to their own club. Renka and Chinami seemed disinclined to make a huge deal out of the incident. Since the cause and effect were clear, they were evidently writing it off as self-defense.

You could say the matter had been resolved well. Even if it wasn’t the case with Hiyori, I felt like I had scored some points with Renka and Chinami... Could that bastard have been divine providence, sent just to make me look good?

Ah... forgive me, God. I ended up doubting your hidden intentions. That didn’t mean I wouldn’t target that bastard’s family, though. I was going to make sure his name was struck from his family register.

“What do we do now?”

I asked while standing in the hallway by the stairs. Dusting off Chinami’s shoulder, Renka answered.

“I’m planning to go see the coach, and Chinami is heading back to class. What about you?”

“I don’t have anything to do, so should I tag along?”

“It’s not that you have nothing to do; you’re just planning to skip class.”

“Let’s just say I am.”

“Do whatever you want.”

Playing hard to get even though she liked it. I’d have to punish her on the way.

“Then... I’ll head upstairs first.”

Placing both hands neatly on her lower abdomen, Chinami bowed deeply at the waist. I flashed her a grin and said, “If you run into that guy, contact me immediately.”

“I think it’ll be fine. They said he’s been called to the Judo Club right now. And even if I run into him later, he can’t be stupid enough to pick another fight with me in front of others.”

It was so scathing I could hardly believe it came from the mouth of the pure, innocent Chinami. It just went to show how much she despised that bastard.

“That’s a relief, then.”

“Yes...! I’ll see you later.”

Chinami looked back at me several times as she went up to the Third Year hallway. She must have found me incredibly reliable for stepping up to defend her.

Looking at it this way, I felt that acting without thinking could be helpful sometimes. For a protagonist, events always unfolded in a positive direction, but sometimes I forgot that I was the protagonist.

“Hey.”

Walking alone with Renka toward the Club Room, I turned my head at her call.

“What is it?”

“You mentioned you quit sports. Was it judo?”

“Yeah. Didn’t I tell you that before?”

“Did you...?”

“You don’t remember? I’m disappointed.”

“D-don’t be ridiculous...! I just never heard it! Anyway, why did you quit? An injury?”

“None of your business.”

“Oh, come on...! If you quit because of an injury, you need to be careful when using your body, so that’s why I’m asking...!”

“Using my body?”

“D-don’t get any weird ideas...! I was talking about Kendo...!”

She was the one having weird ideas... It was hilarious how she shot herself in the foot and then tried to blame me.

Smack.

“Eep...!?”

Striding across the well-kept path between the athletic field and the school building, I smacked Renka’s butt. As she stiffened up, I chuckled to myself and thought about the aftermath.

Miyuki would inevitably find out about this incident. Even if I told the Judo Club or the Kendo Club to keep it a secret, there was no way to silence the prospective freshmen. It was only a matter of time before it reached Miyuki’s ears... so it would probably be better if I confessed first, right?

Still, my mind was at ease. I was confident that Miyuki, like Renka and Chinami, wouldn’t treat this as a massive issue.

This was why image was so important. Back in my delinquent days, getting into a fight would draw glares, but since I had shown a reformed attitude for a long time, everything I did was spun in a positive light. I felt incredibly proud. It really paid to live a good life.