Chapter 17: Delusion.

Translated and Edited by: ynlucca.

Common Honorifics:
-san: A polite suffix, but not excessively formal.
-kun: A common suffix among friends and younger people.
-chan: A common suffix among people you’re close with, mostly used for feminine nicknames and girls, since it’s cutesy and childlike.
-senpai: A common suffix and noun used to address or refer to one’s older or more senior colleagues in a school, workplace, dojo, or sports club.

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“Wait a minute! The person Saki likes is me, right!?” Matsuyama yelled.

“Why would’ya think that, bucko?!”

I couldn’t help but speak in a way I never had before. Truth be told, I couldn’t begin to fathom how he arrived at such a delusional conclusion. Saki, who stood right across, had this disgruntled look on her face. The only thing I took from this is that his mental fortitude was something amazing, for better or worse.

Still, Matsuyama’s eyes landed on Saki with hope, and a stern belief gleaming within. Our classmates also observed the situation unfold, especially the boys.

“You like me, right?!” His eyes bore straight through her.

“Even if hell froze over, that would never be the case.” But despite all he believed, her refusal was crystal clear. She wanted nothing to do with him.

“Back in our first year, when you were asked if you had anyone you liked, you said it was me! Didn’t you?” Yet he still persisted.

“Huh? Is that so?” I couldn’t help but be surprised.

“There’s no way something that ridiculous would happen. I’m completely in love with Akito.”

“A-ah, yeah…” I looked down, heat irradiating from my cheeks.

“Oh~? Akito, are you embarrassed?” She asked coyly.

“Hey! Don’t ignore me! —Wait, is that it?!” Matsumoto was pitifully trying to get our attention. Meanwhile, Saki glared at that guy, who was completely lost in his own fantasy world. It was almost impressive how he wholeheartedly believed he was the protagonist and couldn’t be convinced otherwise.

Amazing how far his convenient imagination can go…

Undeterred, Matsumoto tried to corner me like a detective finding a culprit.

“Saki, if Akito is threatening you, I’ll help you right away! Just be honest and tell the truth!”

In response, she cupped her mouth with a hand. “Akito, let’s go. I’m feeling nauseous.”

“That’s it! I’ll take you to the infirmary later, and you can rest your head on my lap! So, tell the truth now!” Before I could react, Matsumoto had already taken my lines. Moreover, he added some incomprehensible words to them.

Saki seemed fed up with his persistence. “Sigh… This is my complete fault.”

Ultimately, it was her responsibility for not being mindful of the context when she jokingly said she fell for me again. With a sigh, she decided to explain.

“I’ve liked Akito for the longest time now.”

“Liar!”

“Ugh. Akito~!” Saki grumbled at the stubborn weirdo in front of her. “I can’t take this anymore! I don’t want to talk to him!”

In just three seconds, Saki gave up on explaining, feeling defeated by someone who seemed not to understand human speech. She sought solace by leaning on me. Our classmates, meanwhile, were despairing at her confession and attitude.

Unfortunately, Matsumoto wasn’t giving up. On the contrary, her confession and behavior only served to irritate him more, and he kept glaring knives at me.

“Don’t touch Saki, you jerk!”

He seems like a child whose favorite toy has been taken away.

That was my impression of Matsumoto. Saki had become tired of looking at and listening to him, and I felt the same way.

I might lose my sanity if I stay here any longer.

Thus, I decided to leave the battlefield along with her. “Let’s go home, Saki.”

“I’ve been waiting for those words! Let’s!”

“Wait, wait, wait!”

As we tried to leave the classroom, he blocked us with acrobatic movements like some sorta half-baked ninja. Looking around, I noticed that some classmates were already disillusioned with Matsumoto’s desperate behavior.

“Saki! Snap out of it! The only one worthy of being by your side is me, a virtuous, talented, and good-looking guy! Having that creepy panda around you will tarnish you, you know!?”

He might have an overly inflated self-evaluation, but I wish he’d stopped trying to put me down. Not that it bothers me. Well, he’s acting like a child.

However, Matsumoto didn’t break, and his reason was blown away. Moreover, he looked at me while saying all that.

“Oh, but I want to be tarnished by him~!” Saki cupped her cheeks and squirmed, imagining some unfathomable scene.

“Hold on, what are you saying?!” He couldn’t believe his own ears.

Upon hearing those words, the classmates who used to like Saki cried out in despair once again. And Matsumoto’s sanity was gone.

“You bastaaaaaaaaaaard! Give me back my Saki!”

He lunged at me, but…

“Oops!”

He tripped on a desk leg and fell. And then…

“Ouch!”

He hit his face on the floor. The class was enveloped in bewilderment, and no one could utter a word. A dead and awkward silence soon filled the room.

What should I do here?

I had zero clue what kind of response to give as Matsumoto suddenly began screaming. He’d tangled his legs with a desk and kissed the floor head-first. Not quite worried, I approached and checked his unmoving muscles. Yup, he was alive, just unconscious. Saki and I exchanged glances.

“Let’s go home now.”

“Yeah… It’ll be troublesome if he wakes up now.”

We left the classroom and the school without any further incident. Our classmates just watched us without saying anything.

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“♪～”

Saki was in a great mood. She clung to my arm, looking delighted. However, we were outside, and it was honestly embarrassing to be seen like this by so many people.

“Saki, people are watching, so let go…”

“No!”

She immediately refused.

“Oh well,” I gave up. “I’m just glad we got through the tests. I guess I won’t be expelled now, right?”

This whole circus made me forget for a moment, but I was in danger of getting expelled if I didn’t do well on the tests. That showdown with Matsumoto was one thing, but passing with good grades was the most important of all.

“Of course. Now I can finally do teenage things with you! And in peace!”

“I-is that so…”

To Saki, that seemed more important than my potential expulsion. She looked at me with a beaming smile, happy as she’s ever been. “Yup! During the test weeks, I held back a ton. From now on, I’ll go all out to win you over!”

“Huh? That was you not being serious?!”

“Of course not. That was just a warm-up,” she licked her lips.

“O-oh.”

We did various things like sleeping together and feeding each other lunch, and now she tells me it wasn’t even her full effort? I felt like banging my head against the wall, fully embarrassed.

“Hehehe! I’m looking forward to tomorrow!” She smiled mischievously.

“I’m not so sure I can handle your full-on assault,” I expressed my concern.

“Huh?”

Saki looked on with her mouth hung wide open. What? Did I say something weird here? I backtracked my own words, trying to figure out what I’d said.

I quickly realized that my worries were unnecessary as Saki grinned evilly. I felt like a frog being stared down by a snake. “Oh, if I go all out, you’ll become captivated by me… Is that it?”

“Ack!” I realized I made a slip of the tongue, but it was far too late.

“Oh, now I’ll make sure to go all out and win you over! Look forward to tomorrow and the days after that!”

“Please be gentle with me…”

“Nope!”

“Argh…”

I sighed. Continuing this conversation would only make me look bad, so I decided to change the topic.

“Anyway, would you like to eat something at my place? I can whip up something nice if you don’t mind,” I suggested.

“Sure, I’ll have whatever you make.”

“Alright, then let’s go to the supermarket first.”

“Okay.”

“And, Saki, would you please let go of my arm?”

“No way~♡”

“Fine…”

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