She didn't seem to have much of a presence in class, either.
In a way, was she someone like him?
"Come join us tonight! If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask my big brother directly!"
Haruka Hasebe thought it over, but didn't answer right away.
She wasn't particularly interested in study sessions, and she wasn't very close with the other students, either.
Still, she wasn't opposed to the idea.
"I'll see how things go tonight."
Haruka Hasebe gave a noncommittal answer.
"Okay! You're welcome to join us, Hasebe!"
Haruka Hasebe turned her gaze toward the distance.
Where she looked, Keima Katsuragi stood nearby in nothing but his swimming trunks, completely absorbed in a game.
Airi Sakura was crouched in an even more secluded corner, curled up almost into a ball as she tried her best to avoid making eye contact with anyone.
"Big brother!"
Elsie hurried over to Keima Katsuragi and told him about Haruka Hasebe.
"Why are you suddenly adding people to the cast on your own?"
"Huh? Weren't you planning to hold a study session anyway, big brother? There's no harm in inviting a new classmate!"
Elsie puffed out her cheeks like a goldfish, then added in a quiet voice,
"Besides, Hasebe seems to be one of your targets, too."
"That's right."
Keima Katsuragi nodded.
On the first day of school, Keima Katsuragi had memorized which of his classmates were targets.
Suzune Horikita, Airi Sakura, Kushida Kikyo...
And Haruka Hasebe.
At first, Keima Katsuragi had prioritized the three of them: Suzune Horikita and the others.
Airi Sakura's personality was relatively simple, so she should be the fastest to win over.
Suzune Horikita was the slightly tsundere type. She was a bit more extreme than the characters in games, but the difficulty of winning her over was only moderate. Once he helped her untangle a few of her issues, all that remained was a little "watering."
Kushida Kikyo was the most difficult of the three. Cases like hers weren't all that common in games, either. Keima Katsuragi felt the timing wasn't right yet, and that he needed to observe her from the shadows and wait for an opportunity.
For Keima Katsuragi, keeping three routes going at once was a fairly safe number.
After all, if he juggled too many people, it could lead to unnecessary trouble, or even cause everyone's affection levels to drop.
His encounter with Shiina Hiyori had been purely accidental—though Elsie's "mysterious intervention" had played a part, too.
But Shiina Hiyori wasn't in his class, after all, so they didn't spend much time together. For now, that shouldn't cause any problems.
But now Haruka Hasebe had suddenly entered the scene...
"Whew."
Keima Katsuragi sighed. In a public place like this, he couldn't explain his reasons to Elsie in detail.
He'd just have to take things one step at a time.
"Heh."
Just then, a scoffing laugh that Keima Katsuragi could hear rang out beside him.
Suzune Horikita walked up to him, wearing what seemed to be a smug smile.
"Looks like you don't get much exercise, Katsuragi."
Keima Katsuragi had a slender build. Since he was usually obsessed with gaming—and often stayed up late to play—he rarely exercised and didn't have much muscle definition.
"I don't have time for that. I spend all my free time gaming."
Keima Katsuragi's voice was perfectly calm, as if he were stating the obvious.
"That's so like you."
Suzune Horikita was starting to find Keima Katsuragi's answers unsurprising.
"Katsuragi!"
Kushida Kikyo hurried over to Suzune Horikita and stopped in front of Keima Katsuragi.
Suzune Horikita raised an eyebrow slightly and shifted a little to the side.
She had the feeling Kushida Kikyo had come over on purpose.
"Kushida, what is it?"
"Nothing in particular. I was just worried about you, Katsuragi! Be careful—your game console could get wet and break! The lockers are over there!"
As she spoke, Kushida Kikyo bent forward slightly, making her figure even more noticeable.
Suzune Horikita wasn't badly proportioned.
But next to Kushida Kikyo, she couldn't compare.
"I've already put it in a waterproof case, so it's fine."
Keima Katsuragi replied, but never once took his eyes off the game screen.
The girls in the game world were still more captivating.
"Huh? Katsuragi, are you planning to play games while swimming?"
Kushida Kikyo looked somewhat incredulous.
"That's right. Is there a problem?"
"I... Well... There should be a bit of a problem with that..."
Kushida Kikyo had never encountered this type of boy before, and for a moment, she didn't know how to respond.
"We're still holding the study session tonight, right? Are you coming, Kushida?"
"Um, well..."
For the first time, Kushida Kikyo's eyes darted away.
Volume One: Chapter Fifty: Even Kushida Kikyo Has Something She Fears
That one-hour study session yesterday had been the most painful hour of Kushida Kikyo's life.
They'd both been speaking human languages, and yet Kushida Kikyo had felt that communicating with Elsie was somehow difficult.
She couldn't help thinking back to some of her conversations with Elsie the day before.
"Elsie, this problem uses this concept... Do you understand?"
"I understand it perfectly!"
"Then what's the answer?"
"C!"
"...Elsie, this is a fill-in-the-blank question..."
"Then it's pi! It's pi, right?"
"We're studying English right now..."
At the thought, the smile on Kushida Kikyo's face seemed to freeze.
If she were dealing with an ordinary struggling student, she could be patient enough.
But Elsie was an entirely different case.
Normally, Kushida Kikyo would have agreed without hesitation, further cultivating her image as a kind and helpful person.
But now, her resolve was wavering.
"Um, I have other plans tonight! I'm meeting Ichinose! I'm really sorry!"
Kushida Kikyo once again wore a smile that looked utterly sincere.
"Ichinose? Ichinose from Class B?"
Keima Katsuragi asked.
He remembered that one of the cards also featured someone with that surname.
Honami Ichinose.
"Yeah. Do you know her, Katsuragi?"
"No, I don't. I've only heard her name."
Keima Katsuragi denied it at once.
"I see! That makes sense, though. Ichinose is incredibly popular among the first-years."
"Isn't that the same as you, Kushida?"
Keima Katsuragi suddenly looked up at Kushida Kikyo.
"M-me? No, I definitely can't compare to Ichinose!"
Kushida Kikyo hurriedly shook her head.
"Come on, I've always thought you should be the most popular person in our year, Kushida. You're pretty and you have a great personality."
Keima Katsuragi spoke up.
His voice was just quiet enough that Airi Sakura, who was farther away, couldn't hear him.
Keima Katsuragi's unexpected compliment caught Kushida Kikyo completely off guard.
She never would have expected such praise to come from someone like Keima Katsuragi, who was always immersed in games. Before she realized it, her cheeks had turned faintly red.
Suzune Horikita, standing beside them, wore an expression of utter confusion.
"Kushida!"
On the other side, a few other girls in the class called out to Kushida Kikyo. They seemed to be the most outgoing group of girls in the class. Two of them were Kei Karuizawa and Maya Sato, both the flashy, gyaru type.
"Sorry, Katsuragi! I'm going over to Karuizawa!"
Kushida Kikyo gave him an apologetic look.
Watching her walk away, Suzune Horikita frowned, then turned to Keima Katsuragi.
"How can you just suddenly say something like that? Still, I have to hand it to you. Even someone like Kushida seems to have no idea how to deal with you."
"If I didn't, I wouldn't have been able to talk to you alone."
"Huh?"
"Did you know Kushida before?"
"Me? I think we did go to the same middle school, but we never really interacted. As for anything else, I don't remember. Why?"
"Nothing."
Keima Katsuragi shook his head.
Kushida Kikyo and Suzune Horikita had gone to the same school.
That might be why Kushida Kikyo paid so much attention to Suzune Horikita.
Nearby, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was watching Keima Katsuragi, too.
There's no sign that Katsuragi exercises. Was I just overthinking it?
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka thought to himself.
If Keima Katsuragi were connected to the White Room—or an institution like it—maintaining his physical abilities should be an essential part of his routine.
But Keima Katsuragi didn't seem to exercise much at all.
That meant Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's earlier suspicions about his identity had all been wrong.
Before you continue