Chapter 15: Unholy Gathering

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Translator: Soafp

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[Konatsu PoV]

Even though it was freezing cold outside, the karaoke box room was filled with heat.

The smell of alcohol, cigarettes, perfume, and sickly sweet juice mixed together, while electronic music and loud laughter echoed from the speakers on the ceiling.

Glowing displays, flashing lights, coats and bags carelessly thrown across the sofa—

It was a space filled with desire and indulgence, completely cut off from the outside world.

I sat in the corner of that space, chewing on my straw with boredom.

“…Seriously, this pisses me off.”

A low voice reached my ears.

The one cursing as he fiddled with the karaoke remote was Yuji Godai.

Next to him, a woman snuggled up to him, laughing softly while clinging to his arm.

“Hmm? What's wrong, Yuji-kun?”

“What’s wrong? It’s obvious.”

Godai twirled his vape with one hand while pulling the woman closer with the other.

The woman let out a delighted “Kyaa!”

“Hey, Keita, you're pissed too, right?”

Godai called out to Keita Takamatsu, who was sitting on the sofa across from him.

Takamatsu picked up a can of beer, chugged it down, and slammed the empty can onto the table.

“Tch… Damn it.”

“Could it be about that café earlier?”

Another woman laughed mischievously, tapping her cheek with her bright red nails.

“What, what happened? Something between you and Keita-kun?”

The woman next to Godai leaned forward eagerly.

“You guys are seriously too lucky!”

One of Godai’s friends exclaimed excitedly.

Another guy chimed in with agreement.

“You met that super-famous actress and that popular singer? That’s insane! Normally, you'd just be lucky to get their autographs or something!”

“Wait, and you saw them flirting with that guy, right? What’s up with him, knowing all these celebs? Makes no sense.”

“His name’s Aizawa. And yeah, they were kind of acting like that.”

Takamatsu muttered with frustration.

“When we went to the café, that guy Aizawa was sitting next to them. Marin Kousaka and Kagura Shinomiya.”

“No way!”

One of the women gasped.

“The actress Marin Kousaka? That incredibly beautiful one? And Shinomiya Kagura, that artist who’s been trending lately?”

“Wow, how do you even get connected to celebrities like that? What kind of trick did he pull?”

“I have no idea. That's exactly what pisses me off.”

Takamatsu cracked open another beer and downed it in one go.

“It already irritates me enough that he was hanging out with Miyabi and Aoi, the girls we’re after. But why the hell is he connected to celebrities?”

“Seriously.”

Godai scoffed, blowing out a cloud of vape smoke.

“Miyabi and Aoi are top-tier girls at school. So why are they getting all worked up over some loser like him?”

One of the women giggled as she crossed her legs.

“Hey, does that mean you’re just jealous, Yuji-kun and Keita-kun?”

“Hah? No way in hell.”

Godai snorted.

“Eventually, Miyabi and Aoi are gonna be ours. It's just unnatural for them to be hanging around some nobody.”

“Exactly. I'm not letting that loser get in the way.”

Takamatsu tossed the beer can onto the table.

—Pathetic.

I internally sighed in exasperation as I fiddled with my straw.

These two only thought of Miyabi-senpai and Aoi-senpai as trophies or something.

But I didn't say anything about it.

In fact, it was more convenient for me if they kept thinking that way.

No matter what happens to Miyabi-senpai and Aoi-senpai, I only have one goal—to ruin the relationship between those three.

So, I couldn't let these idiots mess things up with any reckless actions.

“…Please don't do anything stupid, senpai.”

Godai frowned slightly and said,

“Hm? What's up, Konatsu? You seem kind of pissed.”

“Obviously”

I replied, picking up the glass on the table and tracing its rim with my fingers. I sighed inwardly.

These two were really making things worse.

Earlier today, Godai had realized that the book Miyabi-senpai had was one that I had plagiarized. Panicking, he came to consult with me.

I never expected that when I casually picked a book at the bookstore about a childhood friend as a subject, it would turn out to be such a famous work. It was a huge miscalculation.

Luckily, Godai had no interest in books, so he didn't realize that the book he plagiarized was well-known. But if Miyabi-senpai ever read it and noticed—everything would be ruined.

So, I invited Miyabi and Aoi to the cafeteria during lunch break, giving Godai and Takamatsu the opportunity to sneak into the classroom and steal the book.

That was a close call. If we had been any later, everything would've been exposed.

And yet, what are these two doing now?

It was already a near-impossible situation, and they just had to go and make contact with people, even getting caught by Miyabi-senpai and Aoi-senpai in the process.

“If you get involved with Keita-senpai in front of Miyabi-senpai and Aoi-senpai, it'll be a problem. If they find out you've known about him from the start, it'll completely ruin everything.”

“Hah, don't worry about it.”

Godai grinned smugly as he wrapped his arm around the waist of the woman next to him.

“I'm just following your plan to win over Miyabi. It's all good.”

“I'm with him. I'm gonna make Aoi mine.”

Takamatsu casually brushed his hair back.

—Idiots.

Seriously, these people.

I absentmindedly twirled the straw in my drink, staring at the shimmering liquid.

Right in front of me, the men laughed and drank, carelessly talking about their desires. The women beside them leaned in, sweetly murmuring while clinging to the men.

Everyone was just thinking about themselves.

To them, Miyabi-senpai and Aoi-senpai were nothing more than “trophies” to be won.

They'd take whatever measures they could to satisfy their desires, and yet they still believed they were in control.

It was ridiculous, ugly, and completely pointless.

But thanks to them, my plan was proceeding smoothly.

I would continue to manipulate them and tear apart the relationship between those three.

I would watch everything crumble with my own eyes.

That moment will be my—

I slowly raised my face and smiled coldly.

“…Well, I guess it's fine.”

Trying to keep my voice calm, I quietly spoke.

Godai, bored by my lack of reaction, snorted and pulled the woman closer.

Takamatsu, holding a beer can, lay back on the sofa with an expression of disinterest.

I glanced at them once more before reaching for the remote control.

The screen displayed an extensive list of songs.

I casually scrolled through, pretending to choose a song, simply buying time.

“…Alright, I'll sing.”

With a faint smile, I picked a song.

The light from the display illuminated my twisted face, casting shadows.

The intro began to play from the speakers. Under the flickering karaoke lights, I slowly lifted the microphone.

I couldn't let this plan fail.

Everything had to go exactly as planned.

For the sake of getting my revenge from that time…

I silently kept smiling.