Same Kind? No Thanks

Outside Class B's classroom.

"Let's head back to our own classroom too, Akimoto-kun." Suzuran Ayano tugged on Akimoto Yoichi.

Akimoto Yoichi nodded, withdrew his gaze from the gyarus, and said, "Yeah, let's go."

"Were you looking at those girls with the exaggerated outfits just now?" Suzuran Ayano asked curiously.

"Our eyes met," Akimoto Yoichi replied.

"Ha! That girl is totally your type, isn't she, Akimoto-kun?" Suzuran Ayano teased him as she leaned over with a grin.

"She was looking at me. If I avoided her gaze, wouldn't that make it seem like I'd lost? I like girls with culture and knowledge, the kind who can tutor me for free."

Akimoto Yoichi answered casually.

"So you're looking for a girlfriend just to get free tutoring?" Suzuran Ayano smiled.

That said, that gyaru was also a heroine: Nagase Kumari.

[Character: Nagase Kumari]

[Height: 165]

[Weight: 102]

[Health Status: Sleep-Deprived]

[Number of Kisses: 454]

[Personality: Walking Red Flag, Clumsy and Timid, Dependent]

[Academic Rating: C]

[Athletic Rating: A]

[Likes: Street Racing, Handicrafts, Ramen, Red/Gold]

[Heroine Entry: Together Forever—Wants to fall asleep in reliable arms]

[Effect: When together, both parties' observation increases by 20%, and they will not forget anything (effect limited to devoted love interests and Blondie)]

It was not uncommon for a gyaru to be the heroine.

Especially in certain anime, bullied fat otaku and gyarus were practically a standard pairing.

Of course, Fukayama Midori had not downloaded the app, so he had no way to punish gyarus like them.

Having found a new heroine, there were now two heroines in Class B, including Nishida Yuki.

However, Akimoto Yoichi had no particular thoughts about it. Like Nishida Yuki, this gyaru heroine's Heroine Entry was art-related, making it completely useless to him.

She was not even in the same class as Akimoto Yoichi, so he could not mooch off her entry buff.

Of course, if Nishida Yuki was a female animal trainer trying to tame a lion, that made Akimoto Yoichi—who was being treated as that lion—very unhappy, so he had rubbed her face into the dirt a few times.

As for this gyaru heroine, who had yet to speak to Akimoto Yoichi or provoke him in any way, the reason even Blondie Akimoto Yoichi disliked her was the number of kisses listed.

The gyaru heroine, Nagase Kumari, had been kissed 454 times and was sleep-deprived.

Suzuran Ayano had zero, and Nishida Yuki, whose attempt at taming him had failed, also had zero. Akimoto Yoichi would rather accept Nishida Yuki than get involved with this gyaru heroine.

Nagase Kumari was currently the only heroine with any kisses on her record.

The setup for heroines like this was probably something about having a complicated family life, living optimistically despite it all, being starved for affection and rebellious, then being moved by the kindness of some gentle male lead.

Although most harem stories did not specifically mention whether the gyaru heroine had ever had a boyfriend,

in practice, the male lead was just putting a lock on a shared bicycle. He would not care whether she had once been an innocent girl; if he loved her, he should not care about her past.

Her past had already been so painful and pitiful. The male lead should cherish her even more.

Like those stories Akimoto Yoichi had seen, such as Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway, being a gentle guy was the male lead's greatest—and only—strength.

Akimoto Yoichi, on the other hand, could not accept that. Heroines like that could be left for Fukayama Midori to handle.

And at that very moment, Fukayama Midori really was handling one.

"Hey, Otaku-kun, why were you with that Blondie just now? Don't tell me you're not actually a good student either?"

The dark-skinned gyaru sitting on top of a desk called out to Fukayama Midori curiously and asked.

"Doesn't look like it. You've got such a harmless face, just like this buzz-cut guy."

Another tall gyaru raised her foot and kicked him.

"Yeah, I totally can't tell that you're the kind of person who hangs around that scary Blondie." Nagase Kumari also looked at Fukayama Midori curiously.

She twirled her pink hair around her fingers, her cartoon-patterned nail art especially eye-catching.

Fukayama Midori, whose chair had been kicked, gave an awkward smile. Shaking his head, he answered, "I-I only met Akimoto-kun today."

"Oh, so he took your allowance?"

"A guy like you looks easy to bully at a glance."

"Hahahahahahaha..." Nagase Kumari propped up her cheek and watched Fukayama Midori with amusement.

Entangled by the three gyarus, Fukayama Midori's eyes could not help drifting toward their outfits, which violated school rules.

"That doesn't mean we're easy to bully! We just don't like fighting, right, Fukayama-kun?"

Tachikawa Tokuo, the new friend Fukayama Midori had just met, spoke up.

"R-right." Fukayama Midori shot Tachikawa Tokuo a grateful look and nodded in agreement.

"Tch, that's just an excuse. Don't you know that in nature, males who can't fight lose their wives, children, and territory?" The dark-skinned gyaru looked at the two of them with disdain.

"Exactly, exactly! Weaklings like you deserve to starve to death out there!" The tall gyaru kicked Fukayama Midori's desk several more times.

"Stop it, you two. Can't you see Otaku-kun is troubled?" Nagase Kumari spoke up to stop them.

"How boring."

"These two don't even have the guts to resist us. Are they girls or something?"

Mocked like that, Fukayama Midori and his new friend were left speechless.

When he looked at Nagase Kumari again, his gaze carried a trace of gratitude. Though Nagase Kumari seemed hard to approach, much like Akimoto Yoichi,

perhaps Nagase Kumari was actually a good person too, just like Akimoto-kun?

Just as Fukayama Midori thought that, a hand covered in bracelets and bangles reached out in front of him.

"Since that Blondie didn't extort you just now, why not lend me some money? Please, I'm really strapped for cash. I haven't even sorted out lunch yet."

Huh? Fukayama Midori was a little stunned.

He looked up and saw Nagase Kumari's grinning face.

Though she was asking him for money right now—no, borrowing money—

Nagase Kumari was actually quite cute up close. Even though her makeup was a little heavy, it could not hide the fact that she had naturally good looks.

Moreover, a strong scent wafted from Nagase Kumari as she leaned close to his desk, and there were marks on her neck that looked like mosquito bites.

Through the collar of her uniform, Fukayama Midori could also see pretty black lace trim and straps.

"B-borrow money? I-I didn't bring much." Fukayama Midori rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a little over a thousand yen.

"Thanks! I'll pay you back later, Midori-kun."

Nagase Kumari directly took the thousand-yen bill and returned to her seat.

Her two gyaru friends chuckled nearby, their gazes at Fukayama Midori becoming even more arrogant.

Even Tachikawa Tokuo, the new friend Fukayama Midori had just made, shook his head and comforted him. "It's fine. I'll share some of my lunch with you."

Maybe Nagase really did not have money for food. Maybe she would pay him back later?

Fukayama Midori muttered to himself inwardly.