After school, I devoted myself to club activities just as I had during the break, both to strengthen myself and to momentarily forget about the various headaches plaguing me.
“Huff… huff… huff…!“
“Good, Shin! Keep it up! Never take your eyes off your opponent! Only strike with a big move when you’re sure they can’t avoid it! Don’t just use your fists! Use your whole body as a weapon to throw them off!”
I threw a quick punch, keeping it compact and powerful—but then followed it up with an elbow strike. However, senior Burge effortlessly dodged the feint. At the same time, the moment my knee strike approached his face, he leaned back and avoided it without so much as flinching.
I was so surprised by his movement that I stopped for a moment. In that instant, Burge’s hand landed on the side of my neck.
“——I lost.”
I raised both hands in surrender. Senior Burge, sensing the tension dissipate, removed his hand from my neck.
“Yeah, you’ve really improved! If we’re talking pure martial arts among the first-years, you’d probably be in the top three.”
“Thank you! It’s all thanks to you and Mr. Doban.”
“Hahaha! You really know how to flatter! Well then, I’ve got some good news for you! Look, Hera’s waiting for you in front of the clubroom door.”
I immediately turned 180 degrees in response to Burge’s words. Sure enough, there she was—standing in front of the clubroom, watching me.
When Hera noticed me looking at her, she smiled brightly—almost like you could hear a sound effect, “Paaa!”—and jogged over to hand me a towel and some tea.
“Hello, Shin! That fight just now was incredible!”
Hera praised me enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. She was wearing the school’s designated gym clothes, and with that look, she really seemed like a manager.
“Manager Hera… I wish I could capture this moment in a picture… I want merch so badly.”
I’d give up all my money if I could get a figure, an acrylic stand, a board, buttons, a tapestry, and a rubber strap of Hera, smiling as she handed me a towel and tea. And if they made a special edition with voice clips, I would have no regrets in life.
“——Shin? You’re staring off into space. What’s wrong?”
“Huh? Oh, no, it’s nothing. I was just lost in thought…”
As I seriously thought about Hera merch, she leaned in with a concerned look on her face, peering at me. Her face was so close, and she was so unguarded that I couldn’t help but get flustered.
Ah… she’s such an angel for worrying about someone like me. There’s no one better than Hera.
As I gazed at her, overcome with emotion, Hera’s face gradually turned red, and she shyly looked away, perhaps embarrassed by the intensity of my gaze.
“Um… Shin…? It’s kind of embarrassing to be stared at like that…”
“Ah, sorry.”
“No, it’s not that I don’t like you looking at me…! It’s just that I’m not used to being looked at so closely… It was a little embarrassing, or rather, I got embarrassed because it was you, Shin… Ah, no, I mean, uh…!!”
Hera fumbled with her words, her face turning even redder as she covered it with her hands, looking overwhelmed like a character in a manga.
God, please, I beg you. Turn this version of Hera into a figure and an acrylic stand. It’s madness not to.
Hera, who usually looks cool and aloof (at least on the outside), was now blushing and spinning her eyes like a clumsy manga character—a divine display of gap moe. I can’t believe there are people who wouldn’t make this into a product. I’d even be happy to work on the project myself.
Has it been too much today? It feels like my inner otaku, which had been dormant for a while, is making a full comeback.
——Oh, right. Hera’s cuteness made me forget, but there’s something important I need to ask her.
“Hera, can we talk alone for a bit?”
“Alone!? Is it something you can’t tell anyone else…?”
“Yeah.”
According to Arthur, Hera remembers Kai, so I need to confirm that with her. And I also need to warn her about the situation based on our current assumptions.
It’s not like I, as an otaku, can sneak into Hera’s house to protect her. That would just turn me into a stalker.
“O-Okay… (Wait, is this a confession!? It’s just like in the shoujo manga! W-What should I say…? Should I say, ‘I like you too’? Or maybe, ‘Let’s do our best’? Well, I’ll figure it out when the time comes! Ah, my heart is already about to burst from the tension…)”
Kind Hera, like the goddess she is, agreed to my request. I immediately led her to the nearest empty classroom, a place where no one would be around, to avoid wasting her time.
I had no idea that as Hera followed me, she was casting a warm yet shy gaze my way, her heart full of excitement.
——
“So… this is about Kai? That’s what you wanted to ask?”
“Y-Yeah…”
Once we arrived at the empty classroom, I immediately started talking about Kai, but for some reason, Hera was trembling and glaring at me with teary eyes. Honestly, even that look was a reward for me, so—let’s skip the rest.
“…I was really expecting something else… I feel like such a fool for getting excited by myself…”
“Uh, um…”
Pouting, her cheeks puffed up like a chipmunk’s, Hera muttered sulkily while giving me a sharp side-eye.
Oh god, what should I do when a girl is sulking like this…?
As I seriously wracked my brain for a solution, Hera quietly muttered,
“…Shin, you’re such an idiot…”
——
At that moment, I was truly, deeply thankful from the bottom of my heart for having been reincarnated into this world.
