Who exactly is the boy the goddess wants to confess to!

Yasui Ryoto and Nakajima Satoshi learned the news almost at the same time—Tsukishima Rin, whom they had both pursued relentlessly for an entire year, was actually going to confess to some boy beneath the cherry tree in the school's back courtyard today?

They rushed out of their classrooms without a word and ran into each other at the corner of the hallway leading to the back courtyard.

The instant their eyes met, incredulous fury flared in both of them.

"Don't tell me the person Tsukishima-san is confessing to is you?!"

"Don't tell me the person Tsukishima-san is confessing to is you?!"

Their identical accusations echoed through the corridor. They stared at each other, then clenched their fists at the same time.

Ever since they had entered their first year of high school, both had been drawn to Tsukishima Rin, sparking a year-long open and covert rivalry.

It had long since become common knowledge throughout the entire second-year class.

When they heard the news from one of Tsukishima Rin's close friends, both men's first thought was that the other had finally succeeded.

The thought that the girl they had chased for a year might have been snatched away by the guy before them filled them with rage and resentment, yet somehow also gave rise to a strange sense of mutual respect.

After all, they both had to admit that the other was an opponent worthy of respect.

Yasui Ryoto came from a well-off family, was fairly handsome, and served as vice president of the shogi club.

He was quite popular at school and received confessions from three to five girls every year.

At only seventeen, he had already joined the Shogi Association's Shoreikai and become a fourth-dan player.

Within the Shogi Association's Shoreikai system, the ranks progressed from sixth dan up to third dan.

Once one broke through to third dan, they could become a professional shogi player.

That was the dream Yasui Ryoto yearned for, and he had always worked tirelessly toward it.

Yasui Ryoto knew his own talent well and was certain that he could rise from fourth dan to third dan before turning twenty, making that dream a reality.

Those who achieved such a feat before reaching adulthood were exceedingly rare, and it was the thing he took the greatest pride in!

Yet despite being so outstanding, he had always harbored special feelings for Tsukishima Rin.

For her sake, he had turned down every girl who showed interest in him.

The origins of those feelings could be traced back to every morning on the way to school.

Tsukishima Rin would always practice in the orchestra room on the right side of Cherry Blossom Avenue.

Every day when he entered the school gates, what Yasui Ryoto looked forward to most was pausing before heading to the school building to admire the lovely figure of the girl he liked and listen to the melodious music she played.

Tsukishima Rin was beautiful and widely recognized as the school's prettiest girl.

Even more coincidentally, she was Yasui Ryoto's classmate.

The time they spent together day after day made his secret crush increasingly impossible to suppress.

Thus, from their first year onward, he had devoted himself wholeheartedly to pursuing Tsukishima Rin and had never accepted any other girl's feelings.

But what frustrated him most was that throughout their entire first year, his pursuit had been constantly hindered by Tsukishima Rin's many suitors—none more so than Nakajima Satoshi!

"Don't tell me Tsukishima-san's crush is really a bastard like you?" Yasui Ryoto glared at Nakajima Satoshi through gritted teeth.

Nakajima Satoshi refused to back down and shot back, "That's what I should be asking you!"

Nakajima Satoshi was also a prominent figure at Moonlight Academy.

As the baseball club's second pitcher, his average pitching speed reached 135 kilometers per hour, and when he was in top form, he could even exceed 140.

That was an exceptionally impressive record among high school students!

Baseball club members were the focus of girls' attention at any high school, and Nakajima Satoshi also received confessions from three to five girls every year.

But he had no interest whatsoever in their advances. Tsukishima Rin was the only one in his heart.

The moment that made him fall for Tsukishima Rin could be traced back to the mornings when he walked through Cherry Blossom Avenue on his way to school.

When he had first entered high school, Nakajima Satoshi had felt deeply insecure about his baseball ability.

Competition within the baseball club was fierce, with many players vying for the second pitcher position.

With his abilities at the time, it had been nearly impossible for him to stand out.

The motivation that kept him going was Tsukishima Rin.

The baseball club's morning practice field was on the left side of Cherry Blossom Avenue, while the orchestra club practiced outside the first floor of the school building on the right.

One day, after being scolded by the coach for making a mistake in training, he had been made to run laps when he noticed the orchestra club playing outside on the first floor.

At first, he had not paid much attention, until a clear voice called out, "Keep it up!"

Nakajima Satoshi immediately looked up. He remembered clearly that Tsukishima Rin had been looking at him then.

In that instant—he became convinced that Tsukishima Rin had been cheering for him, and his heart skipped a beat!

From then on, whenever he heard Tsukishima Rin's music during morning practice, he would remember the encouragement she had given him that day.

That very motivation had allowed him to stand out from the many talented members of the baseball club and ultimately win the position of second pitcher.

It could be said that without Tsukishima Rin, he would not have achieved what he had today!

Ever since then, Nakajima Satoshi had devoted himself to pursuing Tsukishima Rin.

If not for the other suitors and that most irritating Yasui Ryoto constantly getting in his way, he felt he might have already been dating Tsukishima Rin!

"So, you were the one who received Tsukishima Rin's love letter, right?" Yasui Ryoto demanded harshly.

"No, shouldn't you be the one who received the love letter?" Nakajima Satoshi frowned and shot back.

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"That's what I should be asking you. What do you mean by that?"

"Don't tell me you didn't get the love letter?"

"You didn't either?"

The two stared at each other, each reading the same confusion on the other's face.

A moment later, a terrifying thought struck them both at once. Their expressions instantly shifted from confusion to horror, and a sense of having been NTR'd slowly rose within them. They cried out in unison:

"This is bad!"

"Oh no!"

Yasui Ryoto and Nakajima Satoshi hurried outside and turned their gazes toward the century-old cherry blossom tree.

There stood their longed-for first love—Tsukishima Rin—alone amid a shower of swirling cherry blossoms.

She nervously twisted her fingers together, her cheeks flushed red. Clearly, she was waiting for someone to arrive.

The romantic legend of the century-old cherry blossom tree was widely known throughout the campus.

Even most freshmen had heard the beautiful tale that couples who successfully confessed beneath it would grow old together.

Thus, whenever a student stood alone beneath the cherry blossom tree, it was almost certain that a confession was about to take place.

Even some teachers would secretly watch from the windows, privately discussing the students' innocent romances.

As the campus beauty who drew countless eyes, Tsukishima Rin had barely stopped beneath the tree before word spread like wildfire.

At that moment, who knew how many gazes from every window of the school buildings were focused on her.

Just then, Natsume Chikage, who had just finished lunch, slowly walked over with his bento in hand.

He looked around thoughtfully, vaguely feeling that there seemed to be more people in the back courtyard now than when he had been eating earlier.

Probably just my imagination...

At that moment, nearly everyone held their breath, waiting for the person Tsukishima Rin intended to confess to appear.

However, the instant Natsume Chikage arrived beneath the cherry blossom tree, his naturally handsome features and mature, composed aura made everyone present immediately understand—he was the boy Tsukishima Rin was about to confess to!