I’ve Been Reincarnated as the Childhood Friend of a Doomed Heroine. Since I Don’t Want to Get Caught up in Her Bad Ending, I’ll Make Sure She Ends up Happy
The current situation has become extremely complicated.
To resolve it, I decided that the first thing I’d do was drop by the soccer club.
In the original story, it’s a given that Aoiko will be attacked later on.
And as for this event, it’s assumed to happen in the first place.
…Given that, it goes without saying that my stance on this matter is a bit complicated.
That’s because I want everything scheduled to happen in this world to unfold exactly as it does in the original story.
That’s only natural, since it’s the easiest way to maintain control.
My goal isn’t to ensure the heroine’s happiness, nor is it to plant romance flags or draw attention to myself.
I simply need to focus on preventing the ending where Shinori commits suicide by jumping off a building—that’s all I need to think about.
And to do that, the optimal solution is to resolve all the events exactly as they appear in the original story.
However, of course, I have human feelings too.
Wanting the timeline to follow the original story essentially means that even though I know about the event where Aoiko is attacked by Chagiri, I have to ignore it for the time being…
Honestly, it leaves me feeling unsettled.
I can’t be confident in my own actions.
I don’t know how I should proceed.
It’s probably possible to completely prevent Chagiri’s attempted assault.
But what would happen to the scenario then?
What would I do if order broke down even further and things spiraled out of control?
The timeline and the sequence of events are already completely warped as it is.
I have a feeling that if I, a mere background character, interfere too much with the original story, nothing good will come of it.
As I’ve said many times before, the only route I know of where Shinori doesn’t choose to take her own life is the timeline where she ends up with Akito.
Even if the person she loves shifts from Akito to me, unless I resolve the events leading up to that point, there’s no telling how things will turn out.
It’s a terrible choice.
If I protect Aoiko completely, the scenario might get distorted, and Shinori and I might die.
Conversely, if I try to protect Shinori and myself, Aoiko will almost certainly become the victim of an attempted assault.
For some reason, only Chagiri is a scumbag just like in the original story, and since he’s already made contact with Aoiko, it’s best to assume the incident will happen as planned.
It’s a tough call.
Aoiko’s situation is, after all, just an attempted assault, and it’s possible to take care of her afterward.
In fact, that’s the original intended storyline; in the source material, there were no depictions of Aoiko falling into a deep depression or becoming ill afterward.
That said, Shinori’s death is purely a matter of risk.
As for the probability of the latter happening, it probably isn’t that high.
However, if it does happen, everything will be over.
A certain attempted assault versus a low-probability but certain death, huh?
…But that line of thinking itself is wrong.
It’s as if I’m trying to say that the damage is minor as long as it’s just an attempted assault.
So what if the original story ended with a happy ending?
Do I seriously think that the experience of nearly being assaulted is something you can just brush off that easily?
Even if it was only an attempted assault, the emotional scars will last a lifetime.
I might even think it would be better to die.
S*xual assault is something that tramples on a person’s dignity and leaves a mark that lasts a lifetime.
Having witnessed Yukimi and Kisa with my own eyes, I just can’t wrap my head around it so easily.
So, anyway.
After agonizing over it endlessly.
I—chose Aoiko .
“Hey, Kyo-kun. What are you doing here?”
“I just happened to be passing by.”
I peeked out onto the field for a moment, but she spotted me right away.
As soon as Aoiko saw me, she ran over with a smile.
Since we often ate lunch together, before I knew it, she’d started calling me by a nickname.
It made me feel a little ticklish, so I scratched my cheek.
“Are you interested in the soccer club?”
“Not really.”
Maybe because she was on duty, she was carrying a huge stack of bottles.
They didn’t fit very well in her small arms, so I took a few from her.
We walked to the sink together, making small talk.
“Then what is it? Are you here just to see me?”
“Just killing time.”
“Well, you do look like you’ve got plenty of free time.”
“You’re picking a fight with me right now, aren’t you? I’m actually pretty sensitive to that kind of thing, you know?”
Actually, I’m not really that bored.
After school, I’m usually tied up with Shinori or Yukimi.
And sometimes I hang out with Akito or Ujiya, too.
Come to think of it, I’m actually enjoying student life more than I expected.
…That is, if I ignore the fact that I’m constantly getting dragged into life-threatening situations and shady incidents.
Still, she’s such a prickly woman every single time.
She must know I don’t have many friends, so this is really mean of her.
Besides, it’s true that I came to check on Aoiko, so denying it would be a lie.
“Are you sure? Won’t Shinori-chan kill you?”
“I’ll be fine. As long as you don’t let her find out, I’ll be safe.”
“Ahaha. Well, bye-bye then!”
“…You really do hate me, don’t you?”
While I’ve gotten closer to Ouka, things with Aoiko have always been like this.
Honestly, I’m grateful for that.
But enough with the jokes.
It’s good to see Aoiko looking so lively today.
She doesn’t seem to be getting any weird attention from Chagiri either.
So I guess I can head home for today—
That’s what I was thinking when—
“Kijima-chan! I’m here to help—wait, what? Why is this guy here?”
Speak of the devil.
When Kayaya Chagiri rushed over, he immediately glared at me.
It seems we ran into each other at the worst possible time.
Aoiko frowned at Chagiri’s harsh tone.
“He was helping me!”
“You’re an outsider. Don’t touch our club stuff with those filthy hands.”
No sooner had he said that than Chagiri snatched the bottle I was holding.
Then she shoved me with her shoulder and pushed me aside.
What a forceful guy.
Shrugging my shoulders at Aoiko, who was looking at me with concern, I thought to myself.
…I was worried about Aoiko, but isn’t it actually me who’s really caught this guy’s eye?
“Why would you say something like that? Besides, aren’t you in the middle of practice, Chagiri-kun?”
“Kijima-chan was working, so I wanted to help out—”
“You can’t use me as an excuse to slack off.”
At first glance, they looked like a close senior and junior.
But they were standing unnervingly close to each other.
From behind Aoiko as she washed dishes, he had his arms wrapped around her as if hugging her.
In response, Aoiko made a blatantly displeased expression.
—Sigh, I guess I have no choice.
“Hey, that’s getting in the way of her work. Back off.”
“Huh?”
At my words, Chagiri’s voice dropped even lower.
“Why the hell do I have to take orders from you?”
“Because you’re being creepy, and Aoiko-san over there is uncomfortable.”
I’ll meet a confrontational attitude head-on.
Normally, I wouldn’t handle things so roughly, but I had no choice.
If I didn’t make him understand his place right now, it would likely cause trouble later, so—unlike my usual self—I held his gaze without looking away.
Admittedly, I was also a little irritated.
It’s been like this ever since the aquarium.
He’s been acting in ways you wouldn’t expect from a senior, and there’s no way that doesn’t get under my skin.
Chagiri closed the distance, his gaze fixed on me.
Seeing that I wasn’t backing down, he moved in close, looking like he was serious about a fight.
But I wasn’t about to back down either.
Because… I didn’t feel like I was going to lose.
He slammed his shoulder into me with all his might, but I didn’t even stagger.
If anything, Chagiri, who’d thrown the blow, was the one who staggered back a bit.
His eyes widened.
He must have been completely underestimating me, thinking I was just some lanky, socially awkward guy.
But unfortunately for him, I hadn’t lived my life up to that point in vain.
This is my second life.
I know just how much physical ability matters when living as a man.
I was good at sports even in my previous life, and I had some knowledge of self-defense.
Needless to say, I’ve strengthened those skills even further since my reincarnation.
In fact, that’s why I hadn’t been too intimidated when I’d encountered dangerous situations several times so far.
I snorted derisively at Chagiri.
“Even if you go on a wild rampage from here on out, do you think your maternal family will come to your rescue?”
“Huh!? How did you—”
This time, Chagiri backed away, his face drained of color.
I took a step closer and tapped him on the shoulder.
“Come to think of it, that was quite a while ago. I hear the ringleader in that drug case was arrested, but I hope you don’t get dragged into it too.”
I’d been looking into it on the side.
Hayase’s older brother—the one we caught during the Yukumi incident.
He’s been turned over to the police on charges of drug possession.
And as for the drug distribution network—this guy is actually part of it.
In fact, the drugs this guy obtained were the very ones used when Kisa was assaulted.
She said she was made to drink something suspicious that looked like alcohol, but it was likely a dangerous concoction made by dissolving illegal drugs in an alcoholic beverage.
Since Yukimi made this assertion after hearing Kisa’s description of her symptoms and thoroughly investigating Chagiri’s surroundings at the time, it’s probably accurate.
Besides, it seems Chagiri had been experimenting quite a bit with drugs in other ways as well.
Apparently, he wasn’t just messing around with women—he was doing whatever he wanted.
…So, even if I were to bring this up, Chagiri wouldn’t be able to connect it to the Kisa incident and figure it out.
Chagiri, who had no idea I knew everything, fell flat on his butt.
He fell onto the water-soaked floor right after I’d finished washing the dishes, and a pathetic squelching sound echoed through the room.
“W-why did you—”
“I don’t know.”
For now, I’ll just keep him in check.
Since Yukumi and Kisa are also involved, it would be a bad move to complicate things too much by acting on my own.
This isn’t a negotiation, nor is it a condemnation.
It’s a stern warning not to do anything unnecessary.
Sure enough, perhaps because she’d been strictly silenced by the Sayama family, Chagiri was flustered.
And he wasn’t putting up a fight either.
“W-what are you talking about?”
Leaving a bewildered Aoiko behind, Chagiri ran off.
Apparently, it was a masterstroke—more so than I’d expected.
To Aoiko, who was standing there dumbfounded, I said,
“Keep an eye on that guy’s movements for a while. Also, don’t be alone too much. Stay with Akito or the other managers during club activities. You know why, right?”
“Y-yeah.”
She didn’t press me for details.
She just clenched her fists tightly.
—Phew.
There’s no turning back now.
I’d made my position clear to Chagiri.
This will inevitably cause some distortion in the scenario.
But even so, I was determined to protect her.
“I don’t really get it, but thanks!”
“If you’re even a little grateful, please keep this a secret from Shinori.”
“Ehehe, got it.”
Seeing her dazzling smile, I felt a little lighter in my heart.
This is okay.
Nodding as if to convince myself, I turned my back on Aoiko.
―◇―
[Aoiko Kijima]
Affection for Akito: 30% (→)
Affection for Kyota: 20% (↑)
Maiban