Under the not-so-subtle pressure from Eriri and Utaha, Tomoya Aki had no choice but to reluctantly agree to their request.
But that was just wishful thinking on their part.
"I wonder if Kitahara-kun would have time right now…"
Unlike the other three, each preoccupied with their own hidden agendas, Katou Megumi was quietly thinking about Kitahara Sousuke's situation.
She wasn't sure if that junior of hers would even have the time or interest to get involved in something like this… and truthfully, she herself hadn't fully decided to join this so-called team either.
Heroine, galgame… she didn't understand any of it.
Besides, it had been a while since school ended, and Kitahara Sousuke, a proud member of the going-home club, was definitely no longer on campus.
"Would it really be okay to call Kitahara-kun over for something like this?"
That was the question lingering in Katou Megumi's mind.
It might just end up troubling him, wouldn't it?
But Tomoya Aki was someone who specialized in troubling others. Right now, he looked like he wouldn't let her leave without giving an answer.
Their first encounter hadn't been smooth, and perhaps because of his heightened sense of urgency, Tomoya was even more persistent than he had been in the original timeline.
Actually, he was just plain troublesome.
Miss Katou needed someone to come to her rescue.
With a quiet sigh and a faint look of dissatisfaction aimed at a certain bespectacled otaku, Megumi dialed a number.
"Is this Katou-senpai?"
The familiar voice of her junior came through almost immediately. It sounded slightly hurried, as if he were in the middle of something.
"Kitahara-kun, am I bothering you?"
Katou Megumi asked softly, her tone curious but considerate.
If Sousuke was busy, then perhaps it really wasn't a good idea to call him over. That was what she thought.
But Kitahara Sousuke quickly reassured her.
"No, not at all."
"Just a small matter… give me about ten seconds."
His calm reply came through, and then something entirely unexpected followed.
"Ow! My hand is gonna break! Let go of me, you little punk!"
The speakerphone wasn't even on, but the shout was so loud and wild that the voice blasted through Katou's phone regardless. The terrifying scream drew the attention of everyone in the room.
"You pervert… want to say that again?!"
That line was unmistakably Kitahara Sousuke's voice, but it sounded like something straight out of a villain's dialogue.
"Waaah! Waaah! Waaah!"
"Let go! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I was wrong! I'll never do it again, please forgive me!"
Not only was a man's voice crying in pain, but faint screams from a woman could also be heard in the background. It was chaotic, almost absurd, and painful just to listen to.
Everyone froze and stared at one another in complete silence.
"He seems like a very energetic junior."
Utaha Kasumigaoka commented with forced calmness. But the leg that had been swaying beneath the table with ease now came to a quiet halt.
"Is it really okay to let someone like that come here?"
Eriri, sitting diagonally across, stopped eyeing Katou Megumi with suspicion and instead turned a doubtful glance toward her senpai.
Utaha didn't respond, sipping her juice slowly through the straw.
Originally, the plan had been simple. Invite over Katou Megumi's suspected boyfriend—the boy who had completely captivated Ethica-kun—and subtly intimidate him enough to discourage any competition before it even started.
Of course, the cruelty had to be measured. If Tomoya Aki were dealt too heavy a blow, he might lose interest in women altogether, and that would be a disaster.
Kasumi Utako was confident—this was the kind of confidence only a seasoned novelist could have.
But now, things were deviating from the script.
The noises from the phone only got louder, and it seemed like there had been more than one man screaming earlier.
Exactly ten seconds later, the chaos ended.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I ran into a bit of a problem, but it's all taken care of now."
"Katou-senpai, is there something you need? Go ahead and send me the address. I'll come over right away."
Sousuke's voice returned, calm and sincere, with a note of concern for Katou that hadn't gone unnoticed.
In fact, this was the very first time they had spoken over the phone. Up until now, all their communication had been through messaging apps.
The sudden call naturally made Sousuke think something urgent had come up.
Katou, realizing he had misunderstood, tried to clear things up.
"It's really not anything important. If you're busy, you don't have to come."
Her voice was gentle and casual, trying to assure him there was no rush. But to the others in the room, her words didn't exactly come off as convincing.
"It's not something unimportant at all!"
Tomoya Aki interrupted loudly, only to be completely ignored by Katou Megumi.
Meanwhile, Kitahara Sousuke noticed the subtle shift in her tone.
And… there were other male voices in the background?
He wasn't the jealous type, nor would he ever do something unreasonable like forbidding a girl from speaking to her male relatives.
But the noisy chatter and otaku-sounding vocabulary he picked up from the call gave him a very bad feeling.
That guy couldn't possibly be her cousin.
In Kitahara Sousuke's mind, there was only one person who could cause trouble for others anytime, anywhere, with obnoxiously loud and disruptive behavior.
"Heh… so he still hasn't given up."
Sousuke thought to himself as he stretched his fingers, the joints cracking with sharp, crisp sounds.
At that moment, he was standing in a train.
Several "corpses" lay sprawled across the floor.
A long-haired girl in a school uniform stood frozen, clutching Vanilla tightly to her chest, utterly shaken by what had just unfolded before her.
A few passengers who had retreated to the far side of the carriage were discreetly trying to take pictures. Sousuke shot them a cold glare, and the silent pressure made them sheepishly lower their phones.
He lightly tapped the rear end of a bald middle-aged man who had been trying to crawl away, instantly knocking him out and preventing his escape.
Glancing once more at the "corpses" on the ground, Sousuke calmly picked up his phone.
The moment he resumed the call, his expression softened completely.
"Wait for me just a little longer."
"It's really okay. Don't push yourself, take care of whatever you're dealing with first."
Katou Megumi had no idea what he was doing.
Though she'd heard the strange commotion earlier, she didn't think of Sousuke as someone who would ever bully others, so she was actually a bit worried about his safety.
"Hmm… I understand. Just don't hang up yet."
Sousuke wasn't the type to let his guard down so easily. Or rather, he couldn't afford to.
Even though he had cut off the root of their connection once before, things had come full circle and they had met again.
Megumi might say it wasn't important, but Sousuke had already decided—he was going to rush over right now.
A brief silence filled the line, the only sound being the faint static of the signal.
Several minutes later, the call reconnected.
"Alright. Everything's been handled on my end."
"Katou-senpai, please send me the address. I'm coming over now."
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