I Managed to Bring Down the Entire Family of That Impossible-To-Conquer S-Class Beauty, Completely Filling in Her Outer Moat
โโMonday.
Fumihiko headed straight to the bookstore first thing in the morning, bought a certain magazine there, and went to school.
That magazine was none other than โRyuul,โ a fashion magazine.
Let me tell you, it’s the issue featuring my glorious self.
Yesterday, that pathetic loser was getting cocky playing with my China, but now it’s my turn!
โGood morning, everyone!โ
Entering my classroom, I gave a dazzling greeting to the rabble like tossing breadcrumbs to a crowd.
I couldn’t care less about the other girls besides China. But it wouldn’t hurt to scatter some bait, so I did it reluctantly.
Feeling good from the cheers, I’ll put this to use right awayโฆ!
No matter how much China tries to avoid me out of shyness, she can’t ignore me if I’m in her mom’s company magazine.
โHey, everyone! Guess what? I got featured in a fashion magazine!โ
As soon as I said that, the girls in my class swarmed around me.
As for China herselfโฆ Tsk. She’s just staring at her phone with that smug look.
Well, whatever. Once these girls start squealing, she’ll have to take notice.
I flip through the pages, searching for the one with me.
โโฆHuh? Wait, what? This is weirdโฆ Where am I? Huh?!โ
Something’s off. No matter which page I look at, I’m nowhere to be found.
As I kept flipping back and forth through the pages, I heard giggles coming from somewhere.
Amidst that, one student spoke up.
โAhhhh! This page has Nozomu in it!!โ
โHuhโฆ?โ
Where that girl pointed, that damn annoying introvert was featured.
In response, the other students started shouting too.
โWhoa, really? That’s awesome!โ
โNozomu’s kinda invisible in class, but in private he’s super energetic, right~?โ
โWatarai can do nails? I kinda wanna get mine done by him too.โ
โI totally respect him!โ
โโฆCould it be that Nozomu is actually a super hot commodity?โ
Why the hell are you girls even interested in this guy?! Dammit!!
Suddenly feeling uncomfortable, I turned my face toward China.
And there it was. The moment they started talking about the introvert, China had been staring with shining eyes.
(โฆNo. No, no, no, no, no, no! Why her?! She wasn’t even looking at me before, she wasn’t interested in me at all! Why the hell is it this guy, Watarai Nozomu..?! The sparkle in China’s eyes should be all mine!!!)
Even though he hadn’t touched me, I felt like he’d just smashed my face to pieces.
โ~~! Dammitโฆ! H-hold on, I’m gonna go to the bathroomโฆโ
Suppressing the urge to explode in the classroom, I stormed out and dashed into an empty classroom.
And then, I let my rage explode.
โFuck youโฆ Whyโฆ?! Why is it that bastard and not me who gets my China!!? Die!!!โ
Her eyes were wide and round like I’d never seen before, so cute.
But whyโฆ?! Why was it aimed at Watarai Nozomu instead of me?!
โWhyโฆ?! Why, why, why?! Why the hell was he in the magazine instead of me?! I’d sell way more copies if I was featured!! Is that president an idiot?!โ
Damn introverted Nozomu. For some reason, he was close with Hina-san, China’s motherโฆ
Was it connections? Or did he threaten someone? Whatever it is, there’s gotta be something behind this! Otherwise, this couldn’t happen!!
I gathered a bunch of students in the classroom and flipped through it, but I wasn’t in there. All that trash was.
Making me look like an assโฆ!
โI’ll expose himโฆ I absolutely can’t forgive that guyโฆ! I’ll make that piece of trash pay!!โ
Suppressing my rage with nowhere to go, I left that empty classroom, carrying my hatred inside.
ใใ๏ผใใ๏ผใใ๏ผ
Glancing at students weary of the weekdays arriving as if it were natural, I headed toward the classroom with a light step.
My hobbies make every day fun, and yesterday was full of good things, so I’m in a great mood!
โHey, good morning.โ
Not addressing anyone in particular, I muttered a quiet greeting as I opened the classroom door.
As usual, I figured they’d glance at me and ignore me. But today was different.
โโฆHuh? What is this? Scaryโฆโ
All eyes were fixed on me, locked on like a laser sight that wouldn’t break.
Scared, I hurried to my seat and called out to Koki.
โThis is bad, Koki! It’s finally startedโฆ This is bullying!!โ
โYou idiot, no way!? There’s no bullying going on! This is it, I tell ya!โ
โHuh? A magazine?โ
What Koki showed me was a magazine.
It seemed to be a recent release. The cover featured a stylishly dressed woman and the word โRyuul.โ
โRyuul? Sounds familiarโฆ like I’ve heard it recentlyโฆโ
While I dug through my past memories, Koki flipped through the pages.
Then he pointed to one page and thrust it at me.
โThis is what everyone’s been wondering about!โ
โWh-!? This isโฆ!!โ
There, tucked in the corner of the page, was a photo of me. It showed me painting nails with a serious expression.
This was definitelyโฆ right. It must be the one taken when I painted nails for that reader model.
So this is what Chitose-san was talking about yesterday when we parted!
โSo here’s the thing~, Fumihiko was like, โI’m in it, let’s all check it out!โ But actually, he wasn’t in it at all. Instead, you were in it! Ha ha ha!!โ
โAhโฆ I guess I thought it was definitely going to be published back when we were at the shopping mall.โ
โThe way he kept flipping through the pages over and overโฆ I know it’s kinda mean of me, but I couldn’t help but laugh!โ
Still, I thought it’d just be about fashion, but they wrote a whole section on nails.
They even said stuff about me like โTruly artisan-level skill!โโฆ It’s so over-the-top praise it makes me blush just reading it.
Sighing, I feel a little resentment towards Hina-san who published this and Kagure Naku-san who wrote the comments.
โAh, um, Nozomu-kun!โ
โHm?โ
While I was reading the magazine, feeling a bit self-conscious, a few girls came over.
โDid you really do these nails, Nozomu-kun!?โ
โUh, ahโฆ yeah. Well, I guess so.โ
โWow! That’s amazing! You’re super good at this!โ
They surrounded me with squeals and shrieks. Was my time to be popular finally here!?
I thought so, but they were only complimenting the nails. They seemed completely uninterested in me personally.
I felt a little sad, but it wasn’t unpleasant. I’d accept it gracefully.
Suddenly, looking past the girls, I saw Amagiri san snorting indignantly while proudly puffing out her chest.
(What’s up, Amagiri sanโฆ? Is she like, โI have his nail polish though!โ? Damn, she’s cute.)
As I was mesmerized by Amagiri-san, one of the girls suddenly closed the distance.
โHey, this! Can I do it too!?โ
โWellโฆ I don’t knowโฆโ
I only want to do it when I feel motivated, and even if I tried now, I doubt I could make anything good.
Besidesโฆ
โ~~!!โ
I saw Amagiri-san frantically shaking her head side to side.
Seems she wants to keep my creations all to herself. I kinda wanted to enjoy feeling popular, but seeing how desperate Amagiri-san is, I’ll pass.
โI can only make them when I’m in the mood. So sorry!โ
โOh, I see~. Then I’ll ask you again when you’re feeling super motivated โกโ
โHahaโฆ if the chance comes up.โ
The girls scattered like spiders when they realized I couldn’t do their nails.
What is this? I suddenly felt incredibly sad.
I looked back toward Amagiri-san and saw her tapping away at her phone. Right after that, my phone vibrated.
Chi-na: Sorry my mom caused such a fuss! But I think you should brag more about how amazing your nails are!!
I looked at Amagiri-san again. She was smiling brightly and waving her hand slightly.
It seemed less about wanting to monopolize me and more about her genuinely caring about my well-being.
Is she a beauty inside and out? She has no weaknesses.
There’s no way I could feel bad about being praised by Amagiri-san. I’ll gladly accept it.
Maiasa