2 First Quest
"*Ike?*" I heard someone whisper in front of me but I ignored it.
"..."
"*Hey! Ike!*"
When I finally noticed a hand waving between my face and my textbook, I raised my head with a surprised expression. I was still getting used to being Kanji Ike therefore I didn't even realize I was being called.
"*What is it?!*" I frowned and asked in a whisper.
"*Wha-? Are you alright?*" Yamauchi asked me with a concerned face as if I was sick.
"*Of course, I just don't want to incur Chabashira sensei's wrath or attract unwanted attention. We can talk later, just turn back towards the board.*" I replied while thinking that this guy is real trouble.
'If I remember correctly, he is also the first one who gets expelled from the school. I should slowly make some distance between us, though I don't want to end up as a loner since it would make me look too suspicious. I guess Hideo Sotomura isn't a bad guy to befriend even if he is weird.' If it came to the worst, I was ready to switch sides and I was already planning how to counter any of Yamauchi's possible lies. I knew what kind of person he is and I wouldn't be surprised if he spread some weird rumors about me if we fall out.'
"But-" Yamauchi wanted to say more but I shooed him away with my hand which made him reluctantly turn back.
When I raised my head to focus on the teacher once again, I found her looking my way. She was frowning, however since I knew she wouldn't call out any small disturbance like this one, I instead started racking my brain over what caused this reaction from her. Was it because I refused to talk to Yamauchi or was it my desire to pay attention to the lesson?
I might be more intelligent than the previous Ike but I most likely know even less than him about Japan's history. All I know is a little bit from the lessons about second world war we had at my old school. If I want to keep at least average marks, I need to study during those lessons. Even though Chabashira's way of presenting was quite boring, I found the content slightly interesting which helped me pay attention.
And her looks most likely helped a lot too...which sounds a bit pathetic from me, to be honest.
[You have received the first quest: Raise the opposite sex's affection for you by 5 points.]
[Condition: It has to be the same person. Increasing the affection of 30 girls by 1 point won't work]
[Time limit: none]
While I was paying attention to the teacher, a blue text once again appeared in front of my eyes and I couldn't help but narrow my eyes.
'What is this? A dating simulator?!' I was naturally annoyed at this quest, however, deep inside me, I knew I was just trying to hide my insecurity.
[While the original Kanji Ike might not have been the most studious or intelligent, he certainly had no trouble making friends or approaching those of the opposite sex even if he got rejected, his confidence was almost unwavering.]
[You on the other hand, are bad in reading the room and only one rejection was enough for your self-esteem to take a drastic hit. Ever since that rejection, you haven't flirted with a single girl and simply thought of them as no different from your male friends. You subconsciously pushed away the thoughts of being attracted to someone. This is your very first test in this world.]
[You need to fight your insecurity if you ever want to leave this world]
Reading the numerous lines of blue text made me shudder. I was fairly confident in myself aside from this one thing.
'Why do I need to do this? Do I even need a partner to continue living a fulfilling life?' I subconsciously thought as if my self-defensive mechanism turned on.
[You certainly lived quite decent life despite this big flaw, however, I can see deep inside your heart. Your heart is longing for affection even if you try to deny it. You are in a state of denial, always trying to justify your actions to feel better about yourself. Denying true feelings is one of the hardest things for humans]
[Just to clarify the quest, you are not forced to flirt with girls, you may raise their affection even by helping them or by engaging in fun conversations. Obviously, their affection can also decrease either by your direct actions or by someone else's influence]
'Fuck' I closed my eyes while listening to Chabashira's colorless voice, hoping it would calm my racing heart down. I wasn't afraid of making conversation with girls but I felt like I received a direct hit after reading those harsh words...harsh yet true.
'Tell me, is this world based on anime, manga or light novels? The main plot should be the same but there could be some small differences'
[Based on all]
I frowned after reading the text 'What do you mean by "all"?'
[Since you possess knowledge of most of the main events in this world, there might be some small changes, be it in a person's personality, or the way groups are formed might differ from the original.]
'I am not THAT knowledgeable about this world! I only remember a few main events but I definitely don't remember things like the exact results of the special exams!'
[Don't be so discouraged, as you progress with quests, you might actually remember more about this world. I will now unlock your innate gift to help you with your quest]
*----*
[Special Skills:
Silver Tongue lv. 1 (1/100) - (inherited from the original Kanji Ike; slightly increases your charm(0.2))
Eyes of the Reader lv. 1 (0/100) - (Innate skill, you may see everyone's affection for you. As this skill's level increases, you will be able to see much more such as current emotions, etc.)
*----*
The innate skill I received wasn't actually half bad since I could see who was genuinely trying to befriend me. I might be able to see if somebody who is hanging around me doesn't secretly hate me.
I also noticed that the progress in Ike's original skill went up and I started to wonder whether it was due to me turning Yamauchi down or whether it was during my conversation with the teacher.
I glanced at our main character and thought of the skill's name inside my mind.
A blue transparent text appeared above his head
---Kiyotaka Ayanokoji---
Affection: 0
???
???
As I thought...affection was 0 but I wondered if it was because he saw everyone as a tool because when I looked at the girl next to him the result was even worse
---Suzune Horikita---
Affection: -2
???
???
Was it because the old Ike was loud and lousy? Still, I doubt she hates me, it's just that she has no positive thoughts about me and why would she, right?
'Who would be the most ideal target for my quest?' I discreetly looked around the classroom without turning my head. When my eyes landed on one girl's well-endowed figure with short hair, I thought I might try out this I-want-to-be-friends-with-everyone-girl, however, she couldn't be farther from my ideal target.
---Kikyo Kushida---
Affection: -30
???
???
I quickly moved my eyes from her and the text above her head.
'...Yeah, what did I expect from this fake girl, though, I have no idea why she hates Ike so much? Did she already catch his perverted glances at her?'
After looking around for a while, I was in a state of panicking because most of the girls I tried my skill on had either 0 affection or even below. Everything turned even worse when I started feeling a bit nauseous, it felt like the whole world was spinning.
[This is a side-effect of using the skill too many times in a row.]
*----*
[Special Skills:
Silver Tongue lv. 1 (1/100, passive) - (inherited from the original Kanji Ike; slightly increases your charm(0.2))
Eyes of the Reader lv. 1 (1/100, active) - (Innate skill, you may see everyone's affection for you. As this skill's level increases, you will be able to see much more such as current emotions, etc.)
*----*
The system explained my situation and then added a further description of the skills. While I was listening to Chabashira's voice and contemplating what to do next, whether I should try befriending a certain girl from B class or try something else, a light bulb went on in my head. It would be too weird if I tried suddenly befriending some of the girls and they might even spread nasty rumors about me, however, who said it has to be "girl"
A certain figure with a cold expression became the center of my eyes once again.
---Sae Chabashira---
Affection: 1
???
???
'Bingo!' I clenched my fist and released a satisfied smile. I couldn't care less if that 1 point was from the old Ike or from my brief interaction with her but it was enough for me.
'Now that I think about it, I noticed her looking my way from time to time. Maybe she is impressed by my new hairstyle...yeah, who am I kidding. It's because I, Kanji Ike am paying an attention to her boring lessons, haha' I thought with positive energy beaming on my face as I adjusted my rubber hair band. I even slowly started accepting the fact that I am currently Kanji Ike.
'Now...how does one become a teacher's pet again? Hopefully she won't hate me for asking her questions about her lesson and thanks to paying attention, I have taken several notes throughout the period so I can ask her to elaborate on some things I don't understand. I can also help her with her textbooks. Frankly, I will feel calmer dealing with someone of her age.' Before I knew it, Chabashira became my "target". The moment I smiled at her while she was looking elsewhere, I noticed her shoulders shudder a little before she sharply turned my way which prompted me to look down into my textbook.
