Since Futaba Rio had been temporarily removed from the simulation list,
Minami could no longer see her affection level or current status.
Which ant he had no clue why she was looking for him.
As far as he was concerned, she was the stereotypical science girl—
And in daily life, they had zero overlap.
Plus, given Futaba Rio's personality in the ani,
She didn't seem like the type to care about others too much.
So what exactly did she want?
Minami ran through a bunch of possible reasons in his head, dismissing them one by one.
Surely, it couldn't be because he was just too amazing and had completely won over this ani character—
"...Actually, that's totally possible."
Minami raised an eyebrow.
After all, in his eyes, no high school girl could possibly resist his charm—
He was that confident.
Thinking about that, Minami reached out and pushed open the door to the science prep room.
"Ah... you're here."
First ca a flat, emotionless "Ah."
Then, a completely indifferent greeting from Futaba Rio.
Her golden eyes—hidden behind the fras of her glasses—lifted toward him.
And then she asked, completely matter-of-factly:
"Do you want so coffee?"
Coffee?
Minami's gaze drifted toward her hands.
He saw her scooping a powder-like substance from a glass container labeled "coffee powder" and pouring it into a beaker.
Then, she added water.
Below the beaker was a wire gauze resting over a lit alcohol burner, the kind used for chemistry experints.
She stirred the dark brown liquid with a glass rod in slow, circular motions.
To any outsider, it probably looked like she was conducting a science experint rather than brewing coffee.
But clearly, Futaba Rio had zero awareness of how strange this seed.
She simply looked up again, her voice calm and steady.
"What's wrong? Do you want so coffee?"
"......"
Minami's eyes drifted toward the labeled container—
The one that clearly said "Potassium Permanganate."
Then, just as calmly, he politely refused.
"No thanks, I'm good."
"Is that so?"
Hearing his response, Futaba Rio nodded expressionlessly.
She didn't insist.
She simply finished stirring, used wooden tongs to lift the heated beaker, and set it aside to cool.
Once it had cooled down enough, she reached for another container—
And that's when Minami finally spoke up.
"...You good?"
Because what she just grabbed was a bottle of hydrogen peroxide.
Without hesitation, Futaba Rio scooped out so white powder from inside—
And casually dumped it into her coffee.
"Ah... it should be fine," she replied.
As she watched the white particles dissolve, she took a small sip.
"This should be sugar."
"......"
Minami stared at her.
Are all science girls like this?!
"No need to be polite, Minami-kun," she said, still calm and expressionless after taking a sip.
"Make yourself at ho."
"Alright."
Hearing that, Minami imdiately dragged over a long bench and sat down.
Then, with zero hesitation, he reached out, grabbed so of the snacks she had prepared, and started ripping open the packaging.
He casually tossed so into his mouth as he scanned the room, checking out the surroundings.
"..."
Futaba Rio glanced at him.
She didn't say a word.
She had told him not to be too polite—
But wasn't this just a little too much?!
Futaba Rio, with her ever-serious personality, let out a small sigh, feeling sowhat helpless.
Just as she was still deep in thought, Minami, on the other hand, spoke up nonchalantly:
"By the way, Futaba-san, is it just you in this science prep room?"
"Because I'm the only mber of the school's Science Club."
Futaba Rio answered flatly, without the slightest hint of concern.
This was a small privilege granted to her by Shuka High, considering she had won awards in national physics competitions.
"Is that so?"
Hearing her explanation, Minami didn't press further.
Instead, after scanning the room once more, he casually placed his hand on the desk.
"Well, now that I understand the situation with the Science Club, let's get back to the main topic... Futaba-san, what exactly did you call here for?"
With the conversation redirected, Futaba Rio also stopped stirring her coffee.
Her golden eyes lifted, fixing on Minami.
A brief silence followed.
Then—
"..."
She muttered sothing softly.
"Hm? What did you say?"
Minami looked at her in confusion.
Her lips had clearly moved.
He could hear sothing faint,
But the volu was so low,
That he couldn't make out what she was saying.
"Ugh—"
Hearing his question, Futaba Rio's originally calm deanor visibly wavered.
A soft blush rapidly spread across her fair face.
But in the end, she took a deep breath,
Forcing herself to maintain her usual indifferent tone,
And raised her voice just a bit:
"I... wanted to ask you, Minami-san, how I could beco as popular with the opposite sex as you are."
There was an undeniable quiver in her voice.
After all, for soone as serious, introverted, and socially awkward as Futaba Rio,
Just saying those words felt incredibly embarrassing.
However, compared to her own embarrassnt,
Minami was more... surprised.
This ti, he had heard her loud and clear.
But...
The nationally awarded physics prodigy of Shuka High was asking him a question straight out of a teenage romance guide?
That alone felt completely surreal.
And more importantly...
"Futaba-san, how exactly do you know that I'm popular?"
Minami raised an eyebrow.
After all, his popularity wasn't exactly public knowledge.
At most, people might have seen him being confessed to by Gotoh Hitori on stage at the Shuka Festival.
But for the majority of the school,
He was still that reserved, academically gifted student who barely interacted with others.
So then...
How exactly did Futaba Rio know?
Hearing his curiosity, Futaba Rio responded decisively this ti.
"Yesterday morning, when I was leaving my house, I saw you walking with a very beautiful, pink-haired girl."
"Cough—!"
Minami nearly choked on his own saliva.
Since he hadn't officially confird his relationship with Gotoh Hitori,
To avoid misunderstandings, he hurriedly explained:
"I was only helping her carry her performance equipnt."
"Is that so?"
Futaba Rio showed no particular reaction to his explanation,
Simply nodding blankly before continuing:
"Then, at school, I saw you walking around the festival with Shinjo Akane, the second-ranked student in our year."
"That was also because I was helping her move so equipnt. When we were done, we just grabbed breakfast together."
"Is that so?"
Again, Futaba Rio didn't question his words,
And instead continued:
"In the Maid & Butler Café, I was sitting right at the next table. You were having lunch with several cute girls, and then they all confessed to you."
"..."
At this point, Minami fell completely silent.
There was no need to argue anymore.
Because this ti,
She was absolutely right.
But—
He couldn't help but glance at Futaba Rio.
So, basically, this girl had done nothing all day but watch him?
"Futaba-san, do you... happen to have a thing for stalking people?"
Minami asked bluntly.
Because honestly,
The first ti could have been coincidence,
The second ti might have been bad luck,
But a third ti?
There was no way that was just random chance.
And sure enough—
As if to confirm his suspicions,
The previously calm Futaba Rio suddenly shifted her gaze away, looking visibly guilty.
She had, indeed, intentionally followed him.
Because she was curious.
Really, really curious.
Until yesterday, she had always assud that Minami was just like her—
Soone who was "bad at socializing,"
Soone who "kept to themselves,"
Soone who "focused only on academics".
At Shuka High, she and Minami were practically seen as the sa type of person.
And because of that, she had held onto a false belief:
That Minami was, in essence, her "kindred spirit".
Which was why, when she saw him effortlessly interacting with multiple girls,
She couldn't comprehend it.
Soone she thought was just like her...
Had so many friends?
She couldn't help but watch him more closely.
And the more she observed,
The more shocked she beca.
Minami knew so many girls.
So from their school,
So from other schools.
And every single one of them was incredibly attractive.
"Minami-san is known as a quiet loner in school... I always thought we were the sa..."
At this point, Futaba Rio fell into silence.
And as the listener, Minami had finally pieced it all together.
"So, because you thought I was just like you, but then saw that I was so well-liked, you figured that you could do it too... And that's why you approached ."
Minami paused, then asked:
"Am I right?"
"...Yeah."
Futaba Rio didn't deny it.
anwhile, Minami rubbed his temples.
Futaba Rio's personality really was exactly like in [Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai].
A lonely, socially withdrawn girl who wanted to connect with others.
But because of her "science geek" tendencies and her habit of isolating herself in the science room,
She had almost no friends.
Even in class, she barely spoke to anyone.
But that didn't an she didn't want to.
She wanted to be "needed."
And that was the real reason she had asked how to be more popular.
Now that he understood everything,
Minami exhaled lightly.
But—
"You seriously think you can be like ?"
He asked.
"Of course."
This ti, Futaba Rio nodded confidently.
Since Minami could be so popular,
Then she should be able to—
"Wrong."
"Huh?"
Her eyes widened in shock.
"You can't be like . At least, not right now."
Minami leaned forward, eting her gaze.
"Social skills aren't sothing you master overnight. Just because I can do it, doesn't an you can."
Futaba Rio frowned.
"Minami... you're acting like you could make anyone like you if you wanted to."
"Exactly."
Minami nodded without hesitation, his confidence unshaken.
Which left Futaba Rio utterly baffled.
She just couldn't comprehend—
Where the hell did this man's absurd level of confidence even co from?
It felt like the word "insecurity" had absolutely nothing to do with the man standing before her.
But—
"That's exactly how it is."
Minami, showing no intention of sparing Futaba Rio's feelings, got straight to the point:
"I have so many people who like , while you hide away alone in this science prep room with no friends. That's the fundantal difference between us."
Ugh—
Futaba Rio felt completely shut down by that statent.
Her face flushed bright red, but she had no way to refute it.
Because it was true.
Minami was popular.
And she was alone.
But... did he really have to be this blunt about it?!
In the end, under his unwavering gaze, she could only mumble weakly:
"...I do have friends."
"Oh?"
Minami perked up imdiately.
Here it was!
This was exactly what he had been aiming for.
The reason he had pushed so hard with his words was to find out whether the Futaba Rio of this world was actually connected to Sakuta Azusagawa and Kunimi Yuuma.
If things followed the original story...
Minami thought for a mont, then casually asked:
"Then, Futaba-san, who exactly are your friends?"
"...My classmates, Sakuta Azusagawa and... Kunimi Yuuma."
Knew it...
Hearing those two nas co out of Futaba Rio's mouth,
Minami let out a long breath.
His suspicions had been confird.
Just like how Utsumi Sho and Hibiki Yuuta existed in this world,
It was only natural that Sakuta Azusagawa and Kunimi Yuuma would too.
(TL Here: Mass Release Tomorrow... Well, for the patreon that is.)
Reviews
All reviews (0)