Chapter 109: Skipping School ①

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Translator: Soafp

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“A third-year female senior.”

Of course, there were countless girls who fit that description.

But only one person came to mind.

Yui seemed to reach the same conclusion. She turned toward me and spoke in a trembling voice.

“C-Could it be… t-the club president…?”

Exactly.

If the person who had died in Airi’s place was the Photography Club president, everything would fit.

She matched the conditions, and there was even a plausible motive.

(Pushed to her absolute limit, and then abandoned even by Nagasawa-senpai…)

Most likely, Nagasawa-senpai hadn’t been lying when he said he had cut ties with all the women she had stolen from others.

On top of that, she had been accused of offering female club members to Nagasawa-senpai.

Whether the accusation was true or not, causing a scandal like this must have earned her severe criticism from the alumni who had entrusted her with the position of club president.

Especially since the Photography Club had such a strong reputation.

Takagi looked back and forth between Yui and me with a puzzled expression.

“Eh? What? Do you guys actually know something?”

“No, it’s not like we have proof, but…”

Making sure nobody else could hear, I leaned close to Takagi’s ear and quietly whispered the Photography Club president’s name.

“Ah… yeah, that does sound pretty likely…”

“…You think so?”

“That president had an ex-boyfriend, right? Apparently the guy’s father is the son of her dad’s boss, and their fathers were really close. I heard that when her dad ran into financial trouble once, they even lent him money interest-free.”

“So if her father found out that they broke up because she cheated…”

“Yeah… from her father’s perspective, he’d probably be absolutely furious.”

Criticized at school.

Criticized at home.

And abandoned by the man she loved.

If she had chosen death, it wouldn’t have been hard to understand why.

I felt conflicted.

Honestly, it wasn’t as if I had no resentment toward the club president…

“Ren-kun, are you going to take the day off?”

Airi suddenly asked.

“Huh? No, if classes are still being held, I should probably attend. It’s not like I’m sick.”

“You look awful.”

“Sugawara-senpai’s right,” Takagi added. “You look pale as hell.”

…Was I really that bad?

Now that they mentioned it, I could barely feel my cheeks.

Apparently I had been affected more than I realized.

The person who died in Kokoa-san’s place had been a complete stranger.

But the Photography Club president was different.

“You know what? You’re right. I’ll take the day off. I’ll head home. The three of you—”

“What are you talking about, Ren-kun? Of course we’re taking the day off too.”

“Exactly! Don’t you realize you’ll just feel worse if you’re alone right now?”

“That may be true, but… Nodoka, weren’t you aiming for perfect attendance?”

“How long ago are you talking about!?”

It had only been about three months…

Though admittedly, so much had happened during those three months that our relationship had completely changed.

“Perfect attendance isn’t nearly as important as staying by Master’s side!”

“…Master? Fukagawa, what exactly…”

“Ah, that slipped out.”

Takagi looked between Nodoka and me before placing a hand on my shoulder.

“Uh… look, man. No matter what, forcing your own fetishes onto your girlfriend isn’t a good thing.”

“…Thanks for the valuable advice. I’d appreciate it even more if you could pretend you never heard that.”

If anything, it was Nodoka’s fetish.

Though maybe I wasn’t much better, considering I enjoyed it too…

At that moment, Yui, standing behind me, lightly tugged at the hem of my shirt.

The hand gripping it was visibly trembling.

“U-Um… would it be okay if all of us skipped school today…?”

I see.

Yui was taking this much harder than I was.

Which made perfect sense.

I’d only met the president a few times.

But for Yui, it was different.

Back when she was in the Photography Club, she’d spent a lot of time with her and gotten to know her well.

“Alright. Then let’s go home.”

I’d contact Mom later and explain why I was absent.

Given the circumstances, she would surely understand.

Just as I turned around—

“Hold up.”

Takagi called out to us.

“What?”

“I was thinking of skipping too.”

“You are?”

“Yeah. Remember when I said I’d treat you to a meal? I figured today might be a good time.”

Come to think of it, he had.

Maybe some good food would help both Yui and me take our minds off things, at least a little.

What had happened couldn’t be undone.

And considering I was, in a sense, one of the people who had cornered the club president, I wasn’t even sure I had the right to mourn her death.

“Alright. Then I’ll gladly take you up on that.”

“Hell yeah!”

“Was it Suzuki-kun? We’ll let you treat us too.”

“Um, Sugawara-senpai, it’s Takagi…”

“Ara, sorry. I don’t pay much attention to boys other than Ren-kun.”

“I mean, fair enough, but my name’s not exactly hard to remember…”

Still, was Takagi really planning to pay for all of us?

With this many people, the bill wouldn’t be small.

I should probably contribute something.

While I was thinking about that, Takagi took the lead and guided us to a restaurant.

“Seriously? A ramen shop?”

“What’s wrong with that!? Ramen isn’t cheap these days, you know!”

Well, he had a point.

In any case, we entered the ramen shop.

Just as we were about to sit down at some empty seats—

“Eh?”

The moment we saw the person sitting at the counter, we froze.

That person noticed us as well and widened their eyes in surprise.

Nodoka immediately hid behind my back.

“Eeeeeek!! Why is that piece of garbage here!?”

That’s right.

Of all places, Nagasawa-senpai happened to be at the very ramen shop Takagi had brought us to.

Naturally, Takagi looked completely shaken as well; he clearly hadn’t expected this either.

Nagasawa-senpai slurped up some noodles before speaking.

“…I just came here to eat. You guys came to eat too, didn’t you?”

“Well… yes.”

“You’re Fukagawa, right? There’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you. I’ll buy you a bowl of ramen, so quit standing there and sit down.”

His tone was as overbearing as ever.

Honestly, he was the last person I wanted to share a table with.

Still, there were things I wanted to ask him too.

But with Nodoka hiding behind me, I couldn’t answer carelessly.

After glancing at me, Airi spoke softly.

“I’ll stay with Nodoka-san. Come on, Nodoka-san. It’s okay. There’s nothing to be afraid of. Let’s sit a little farther away.”

“O-Okay…”

After confirming that the two of them had taken seats some distance away, I sat down beside Nagasawa-senpai.

I never imagined I’d end up eating ramen next to this guy.

Even sitting this close, I felt almost none of the nausea I used to.

Thanks to Airi and Nodoka, I had regained my confidence.

After taking a sip of soup, Nagasawa-senpai quietly asked:

“…Are you dating Miyo?”

“We’re not.”

What was he talking about?

“Then why are you always together?”

“We’re not always together. You’ve just happened to see us at those times.”

“Quit lying… You’re after Miyo, aren’t you?”

“Huh?”

Nagasawa-senpai frowned.

“Miyo’s cute, isn’t she? And despite appearances, you’re apparently some kind of genius when it comes to charming women. Are you trying to add Miyo to your harem too?”

“…”

Was that really all this guy ever thought about?

I was so dumbfounded that I couldn’t even respond.

Then my eyes happened to fall on the smartphone lying on the table.

It belonged to Airi, but…

(Hm? In the middle of a call?)