Even though he was rejected by the two most beautiful girls in his grade, for some reason they seemed to be fond of him Volume 1 Epilogue

Epilogue: Eita Sasaki is Flustered

A few days after the cultural festival ended.

Before the festival, I couldn’t wait for it to start, but now it’s already been days since it wrapped? Time moves way too fast. Give me back my fun festival time… Nah, never mind. The bad memories outweigh the good. I’m never wearing that butler outfit again.

That aside, with the big event over, the students’ restless energy had settled, and calm had returned…

“Eita, bento.”

“Eita-kun, we’ve been waiting!”

…Or not. As for me, I’m still a pincushion for the whole school’s glares.

Things have eased up a bit post-festival, but the piercing stares still hurt like hell.

I’m not asking for rescue—just give me a wall. No, scratch that, I need something to make me invisible. Maybe a blue tanuki could pop up with a “Tada!” and hand me an invisibility cloak? No? Figures…

Looks like I’ll be enduring these glares for a while… I shrugged, closing the rooftop door behind me while shooting a deadpan look at Yuzu, who was striking a “gimme bento” pose.

“Here, your order’s up,” I said. “And Yuzu, demanding ‘bento’ the second I show up? Take a page from Mei’s book and at least act happy I’m here. Or, like, bare minimum, say hi.”

Yuzu blinked blankly for a moment but quickly raised her arms in a half-hearted cheer, her expression unchanging. “Yay… Mm, bento.”

This girl’s so unenthused I’m tempted to sock her one. I felt a flash of irritation, but… I’ve accepted that’s just Yuzu, so I tamped down my anger.

They say fights only happen between equals, right? So, as someone leagues above Yuzu, I can handle her oblivious jabs with mature grace. Growth.

“Here’s your bento,” I said.

“…Eita didn’t snap back. Did you eat something bad?” Yuzu asked.

“Eita, game noob,” she added.

“Wow, rude much? I didn’t eat anything weird—I’ve just grown into a cool, mature adult.”

“Let’s do this! I’ll crush you to bits!” .

“Uh… I’m starting to forget what ‘cool’ even means…” Mei muttered.

I’d fallen for Yuzu’s taunt in a heartbeat, pointing dramatically with wide eyes, only for Mei to let out a shocked noise at my lightning-fast flip. 

Mei’s really gotten used to our banter lately, huh? She used to be so flustered and adorable… Not that she isn’t insanely cute now, but I kinda miss those early reactions.

As I reminisced like some old geezer, Mei suddenly lit up.

“Oh, right! Look at my phone screen!” she said, pulling out her phone with a bright smile.

Yuzu and I exchanged a glance and leaned in to see—

“Mm, our photo,” Yuzu said.

Yup, the photo we took at the festival was set as her home screen.

The gal-pose shot we got swept up in, where the face-value gap was just brutal. I’ve rarely felt so out of place. If you asked a thousand people, they’d all say, “This average butler’s in the way.”

But contrary to my thoughts, Mei was beaming with a dreamy smile.

“Isn’t it amazing? It’s my favorite!” she gushed.

“O-Oh… Yeah, it’s great,” I managed.

How could I say I don’t wanna look at it ‘cause I’m too out of place? With that smile, I had no choice but to agree.

I was struggling to keep my face from twitching when Yuzu, unusually, paused eating her bento to fiddle with her phone.

“Mm, matching,” she said, slightly smug as she showed off her home screen. Same photo.

Mei’s eyes sparkled as she turned to me expectantly.

“M-Maybe Eita-kun too…!” she said, hopeful.

“…Sigh…” I exhaled.

“N-No way…” Mei faltered.

“Mm, Eita’s heartless,” Yuzu accused.

I averted my eyes from Mei’s hopeful gaze, and she instantly looked uneasy, her eyes wavering, while Yuzu glared at me with a half-lidded stare.

The guilt was crushing, but…

“No, wait, there’s a reason for this…” I started.

“A reason…?” Mei echoed.

“Mm, let’s hear it,” Yuzu said.

Why does this feel like an interrogation? No, focus—time to explain.

“See, guys tend to show each other their phones or peek at them, right?”

“Girls do that too,” Mei pointed out.

“Uh, Mei, could you hold off for a sec? Please?”

Crap, Mei’s words have some serious edge today. I’m slipping into polite mode. Guess I’ll sit seiza here.

Unable to bear the pressure, I dropped into seiza on the floor and continued.

“So, uh… If my friends saw that photo, I’d get way more than just teased—it’d be a disaster. That’s why it’s not my wallpaper.”

“Oh… But yeah, that’d put you in danger, huh?” Mei said, looking a bit disappointed but also apologetic, as if aware of her own influence.

Mei’s such a good kid. Truly a big-hearted, perfect beauty… Wait, “in danger”? What’s that mean?

“Mm, hand it over. Your phone,” Yuzu demanded.

“Oh, sure,” I said, distracted by Mei’s comment, and handed it over without thinking.

But then it hit me.

“Wait, why am I giving Yuzu my—!”

I forgot. She totally knows my phone’s passcode. She even unlocked it when we swapped LINEs.

“Mm, here,” Yuzu said, handing it back.

“Yuzu, you didn’t…” I muttered, cold sweat dripping as I took the phone. Sure enough, both my home and lock screens were now that photo. Did you have to do both?

“Mm, change it and I’ll punch you,” Yuzu warned.

“Punch me? You’re going straight to violence!?” I yelped.

“Y-Yuzu-chan, that’s a bit…” Mei hesitated.

“Mm, it’s the only way to make Eita keep it,” Yuzu insisted.

Yuzu didn’t flinch under my shocked stare or Mei’s wary look. No surprise from someone who moonlights as a VTuber in the depths of the internet.

She knows me too well. But at least let me change the lock screen…

—Bzzzt.

“Mm?” I tilted my head at the LINE notification sound.

A notification during lunch, when I’m with Yuzu and Mei—who make up most of my messages—is rare. It’d have to be Kouta or Kazuki, but…

Curious, I checked the message.

Mizuki: Yo, big bro

Mizuki: Do you know what snacks Yuzu-san and Mei-san like?

It was from my sister Mizuki, who should be at school right now. And the message made no sense.

Yuzu and Mei’s favorite snacks? Why’s she asking that?

Eita: Oi

Eita: Why do you wanna know?

As I sent the reply, a bad feeling crept up. More like a hunch that something’s going on behind my back. My gut’s usually spot-on with these things, so I can’t just brush it off. Every fiber of my being is screaming to dig deeper.

As if to confirm my suspicions, Mizuki replied.

Mizuki: They didn’t tell you?

Yup, confirmed. Something’s definitely happening without my knowledge.

I silently closed my phone and turned to the two.

“…Hey, I gotta ask… You guys got any plans nearby?”

When I did…

“…Ah,” Mei let out a small noise.

“Mm, forgot to mention,” Yuzu said, clapping her hands as if just remembering.

If this were a gacha game, that’d be the guaranteed SSR animation.

“…So, what plans?” I asked cautiously.

In unison, they announced:

““We’re visiting Eita-kun (Eita)’s house today!””