Volume 1 Chapter 5

Volume 1 + Chapter 5: The Kiss And Since Ancient Times, Beauty Has Stirred Strife

The text box’s demand left me exasperated. Surrendering so inexplicably like this felt somehow humiliating.

Unable to calm down enough to continue reading, feeling restless, I closed my book, turned to the moon princess beside me, and asked.

[Hey, do you really want me to grow my hair long?]

[Huh? Is Little Yuu willing to grow it?]

Not expecting there to be room for negotiation, the moon princess looked at me in surprise. Her sky-blue eyes sparkled brilliantly, quite beautiful.

[I’m willing. Come closer.]

I tried my best to make my smile pleasant and innocent.

[Mn? Why do I need to come closer?]

The moon princess asked curiously as she moved closer, until the distance between us became shoulder-to-shoulder.

I hadn’t expected the moon princess to be so amenable, and I was momentarily stunned.

Hmm……

Thinking that my next action would serve as a lesson to the moon princess, a lesson titled “Beware the Wolf”…

I closed my eyes without hesitation and kissed her. Her lips were very soft, with a faint milky fragrance.

I extended my tongue, licking them as if savoring the taste, then smiled at the moon princess, who hadn’t yet registered what happened.

[Now I have a reason to grow my hair long.]

Realizing she had been lightly taken advantage of, the moon princess opened her small mouth as if to speak, then closed it again. Silently, she shifted away.

[Ha.]

Amused by her reaction, I let out a laugh tinged with mockery.

No longer looking at the moon princess’s response, I cheerfully opened my book and resumed reading.

If you provoke a wolf, you must be prepared to be bitten.

Still too green, huh~

This little episode hadn’t lingered in my thoughts, so much so that I never anticipated the reactions of others afterward, nor the consequences that would follow.

——–

An hour and a half of playtime passed like that. Hearing the bell ring, I closed my book, stood up, and stretched.

Just then, a gentle breeze blew. I closed my eyes in comfort to enjoy it, when suddenly someone grabbed my hand.

Because I always kept up with physical exercise, my body’s instinctive reaction was to pull upward.

[Wah!]

[Mmf!]

The moon princess, who had tried to retaliate but failed, tumbled onto me.

Even though the moon princess was a girl, to me, also a girl, and a child at that, she wasn’t light at all.

Her attempted revenge succeeded on a different level. Nearly winded from being crushed, I snapped crossly.

[Hey, how long are you going to lie there, you? You’re so heavy!]

[!!!!!! I am NOT “you”!!!

I have such a cute name, Yuna!!!!

Can’t you just remember it?!!!!!

And!!!!!!

Yuna is!!!!

Not heavy at all!!!!!!!!]

The moon princess cried out, and I was stunned senseless by her little fist-pummeling. For the first time, I wondered if I’d gone too far.

Was bullying a little girl like this really okay……?

My hand brushed against the handle of her parasol. Even this dusky evening sun might still harm her, surely.

Not daring to be careless about such serious matters, I immediately raised the parasol to shield the sunlight falling on the moon princess’s hair.

[Ah… that… Yuna, right? Mm… It really is a very cute name!]

After all, it was the name she’d told me yesterday, I hadn’t forgotten it. I’d just been momentarily dazed from her assault.

As I spoke, I scrambled to recall her name. Thankfully I remembered, inwardly, I breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

My mind was still processing the content of her earlier outcry.

Wearing a forced smile, I met the gaze of the moon princess beneath the parasol.

Seeing the teardrops welling in her eyes, I felt embarrassed for the first time.

[Ah… Little Yuna isn’t heavy at all, I was just joking. Such a cute Little Yuna is as light and fluffy as an adorable marshmallow.]

Straining my brain for compliments, I was unusually flustered. The moon princess, amused by my clumsiness, finally stopped the teardrops from falling.

[Yuna hates being suddenly kissed.]

[Mn mn mn mn! I’ll never suddenly kiss you again.]

[Not “you”, Yuna!]

[Mn mn mn mn mn, I’ll never kiss Yuna again.]

I thought, Whatever you say, milady, as long as the teardrops stop, anything goes.

Seeing me obediently correct myself, the moon princess finally smiled. Looking at her like this, I thought, no wonder people say.

Children are demons when they cry, angels when they smile.

Having gained a profound understanding of that saying now, I could only add, You couldn’t be more right.

Yuna took the parasol from my hand and stood up. I exhaled in relief and rose as well.

My gaze caught the little red parasol out of the corner of my eye. I turned to look.

The sun princess stood there quietly, watching me with some indescribable emotion.

Her eyes, the same sky-blue as Yuna’s, felt far deeper than her younger sister’s.

[???????]

I didn’t understand why she was looking at me like that.

Frowning, I was about to speak when I saw the sun princess avert her gaze and trot off to catch up with Yuna.

The two sisters huddled together, whispering about something.

Not particularly interested in what they were saying, I turned and spotted my underling running toward me. I bent down, picked up the book that had fallen on the ground, and dusted off its cover.

[Boss!!!!! Did you score the princess?!]

My underling, using such vulgar phrasing the moment he reached me, got whacked soundly with my book.

I thought it was just my underling running his mouth, but somehow, this became common knowledge throughout the class and even the entire grade.

Seriously, do they all forget I’m a girl?

Little kids as young as they are, yet such voracious gossips. For the umpteenth time, someone asked if I liked the princess, I pretended not to hear.

Expertly, I waved my underling over and pointed at the little boy from another class who’d just asked. I drew a finger across my throat, signaling my underling to handle it.

[Hey! If you’re a man and you like her, just say so!

Not daring to answer, you’re a coward!

I’ll never acknowledge you like that!

Never!!!!!

Ugh!!!!!!]

I signaled my underling with my eyes, he took the hint and covered the noisy little boy’s mouth.

Yawning, I took a sip of lemon water and continued reading.

To that little boy’s words, I had only one thing to say. I’m a girl, thank you very much.

The treatment I’d received so far was that of a male protagonist. Was the difference between short hair and long hair really this vast?

Feeling helpless about everything, this question drifted through my mind.

As usual, I rested in the tree shade, lying on Yuna’s lap with my eyes closed, feeling her stroke my hair.

Why do women, whether older or younger, all love touching other people’s hair so much?

Ever since I promised not to kiss her without warning, Yuna had grown bolder in her intimacy toward me.

If I were truly a girl who liked other girls, I’d have long been conquered by a Yuna like this.

After all, she’s not only super cute, but she also gets this close, this often.

Any girl who liked girls would be sunk, that’s Yuna’s cunning.

Even though I’d already agreed to become friends and grow my hair long, Yuna still used her own methods to seduce me.

She wanted me to become infatuated with her, to obey her every request without question.

I saw right through her tactics, but there wasn’t much I could do.

Because every time she made a request, the text box would appear with the demand [Do not refuse].

Breathing in her naturally pleasant scent lingering in the air, I felt fortunate, for the first time, that I didn’t like anyone.

——–

[The first meeting with the game’s male lead was at Yuna’s house. The game’s male lead was an elegantly handsome little boy.]

My hair had grown to shoulder length. I casually tied it up with a simple hair tie and accepted Yuna’s invitation to visit her home.

A butler-like man led me to a room. Before I even entered, I could hear Yuna’s delighted laughter and those cloyingly sweet words.

[Tomoya-nii is so amazing!!!!!!]

Tomoya-nii????

I’d never heard Yuna use such a saccharine tone before. Inexplicably, I felt a twinge of distaste.

I looked up and noticed the butler watching me with a smile. I paused briefly.

When the voices inside had quieted down, the butler knocked.

[Please come in.]

With permission, the butler opened the door. Seeing it was me, Yuna laughed joyfully and ran over.

She grabbed my hand and pulled me in front of a little boy.

[Tomoya-nii! This is the best friend I told you about, the one I made at school.]

At the same time, the text box appeared with a demand, [Duel with the game’s male lead, Horikita Tomoya].

Duel????

Fight this little boy?

I looked Tomoya up and down. It wasn’t that I looked down on so-called protagonists, but I really doubted he’d last a single move against me.

Yuna, the heroine, would probably fall for the game’s male lead.

And if he was the game’s male lead, surely there was something extraordinary about him.

As a yuri-supporting side character, even if I dueled, I probably wouldn’t win against the male lead.

Best case was a draw, the norm would be defeat.

In other words, I should duel him at whatever he was best at, and the result would be either a draw or a loss.

And whatever Yuna had praised him for, that was likely his strongest area.

In an instant, my thoughts aligned. I began looking for the male lead’s specialty.

After scanning the room, the most probable thing was the competitive karuta cards laid out on the floor.

Competitive karuta uses the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu and follows rules set by the All Japan Karuta Association. It’s a serious competitive activity.

So this is what a romance game male lead excels at?!

Feeling like I’d fallen behind the trends of gal games, I fell silent.

Even if I could hardly believe it, I had to fulfill the text box’s demand. Sighing, I rolled up my sleeves.

[Horikita-san, would you mind playing a match with me?]

[Huh? … Not at all.]

Though he didn’t understand what was happening, seeing even the sun princess yield her spot to me, the game’s male lead reluctantly returned to his seat and prepared.

As expected, after completing the duel demand, I ended in a draw with the male lead.

Honestly, I was shocked.

I had anticipated it, but I never expected this guy named Tomoya to keep up with me.

I was always confident in my reflexes, I could even say this was my first loss.

Even a draw was still a loss.

Me, going all out, could only manage a tie with the game’s male lead?

Breathing lightly, I rolled my sleeves back down.

[Thank you for the match.]

[No, thank you for the match.]

Despite my arrogant, unbowed posture, the male lead politely bowed in response.

Boring. So lame.

I walked over to the table, picked up the drink the butler had brought in, and took a sip.

Rock sugar pear tea. I widened my eyes slightly in surprise.

I thought it was a soft drink, but it was stewed rock sugar pear, and served warm, perfect for after exercise!

So good.

I finished the cup quickly, still wanting more, and eyed Yuna’s cup.

[Wh-What? This one’s mine!]

Yuna noticed my gaze and quickly turned her back, guarding her cup of rock sugar pear.

Tch.

That cup’s a no-go. I switched my gaze to the sun princess’s cup instead.

[Would you like some?]

It was the first time the sun princess had spoken to me. Her first words to me were something delightful.

[May I?]

[Mm.]

With permission, I cheerfully leaned toward the sun princess and drank directly from the straw in her cup.

A few sips, satisfied. I pulled away from the straw.

[Little Yuu is so unsanitary!]

Yuna, chiding me, shoved me aside and produced a new straw from who-knows-where, replacing the one I’d used.

Oh, right, that straw had been used by the sun princess.

Not particularly bothered by being rejected, I shamelessly pretended not to notice.

We played a few other games casually. At dusk, I took my leave and followed the butler, who escorted me out.

[https://ko-fi.com/golden_dragon]