Chapter 24: Bubbling Love

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This was why she felt so close to Hikari.

She didn't even know why. Just moments ago, Coach Togo had threatened her, but now, standing close to Hikari, she felt an unusual sense of comfort and security, a warmth that grew stronger the nearer she stood to him. They were so close, anyone seeing them from afar might have mistaken them for a couple.

'Is this...the scent that people say smells so nice on guys? It's my first time noticing it…'

Akane sniffed softly, curiosity sparkling in her eyes as she caught a unique scent coming from Hikari.

As a baseball club manager, she never had a chance to stand this close to Katase Shoya before. In fact, most of the time, her only encounters were with the smell of sweat from club members, noticeable even from several meters away. But Hikari's scent was...different, and it intrigued her.

Caught up in her own thoughts, Akane stole a glance at Hikari's handsome profile from time to time, unaware that someone not far behind was observing her every move.

"Hey! Katase, isn't that our baseball team's manager, Akane?" a teammate nudged Shoya, snapping him out of his intense gaze fixed on Akane's retreating figure.

"Ah, yeah, that's her." Shoya managed to force a smile in response.

"Akane looks really close with that guy. They're practically glued together. Are they dating or something? Man, I'm so jealous—Akane's super pretty." one teammate complained.

"And her figure. Man, she's got such a big chest. I'm dying of envy here." another chimed in.

"No… no way! Akane wouldn't date another guy." Shoya declared with conviction.

"Come on, Katase, are you really into Akane? You know we're not allowed to date in the club, right? But still, it's possible that guy is her boyfriend. Imagine him getting close to a girl as pretty and, well, endowed as Akane—doesn't that make you want to lose your mind?"

"I... I'm... I'm her… nothing." Shoya stammered, almost blurting out that he was the one Akane had promised to be with, her true boyfriend.

But then he paused, remembering his dream—his dream to compete in the next big baseball tournament. If anyone knew he was dating Akane, that dream would go up in smoke.

'No, I can't let this slip. My dreams are far more important.' [T/N: Mad respect bro, a true man]

Though Akane had promised herself to him, Shouya now had to sit and listen to his friends fantasize about his girlfriend with a guy he barely knew. Frustrated, he clenched his teeth.

'Is she...actually betraying me? No, I need to talk to her later and find out exactly who this guy is.'

'I'm only keeping our relationship secret for the sake of my dream. Akane, without my consent, how could you go and get close to another guy? Can't you just hold back a little longer for my sake?'

'The thought of being dumped, of Akane walking away with another man…'

'No… no way…'

———

On the other side, Hikari and Akane had just reached her classroom.

Standing at the door, Hikari gave her a polite nod before heading into his own classroom.

Akane opened her mouth to speak, hesitated, and finally held back what she wanted to say.

She actually wanted to thank him again and maybe try to be friends. After all, he'd saved her, and he was rather good-looking. Not exactly love at first sight, but who doesn't appreciate a bit of eye candy? She simply felt like befriending him, purely platonically, of course.

As she lamented her missed opportunity, Hikari unexpectedly turned back, stepped out of his classroom, and said to her, "Oh, by the way, Akane-san, if Coach Togo ever tries to threaten you again or does anything inappropriate, please let me know immediately."

With that, he turned and left again, disappearing into his classroom before she could react to his sudden return.

"I..."

She had been just about to suggest exchanging contact info, but the words stuck in her throat.

'Why do I feel like... Hikari-kun is more concerned about Coach Togo than me?'

Akane murmured under her breath. With her attractive face and ample figure, she'd received her fair share of attention from boys, even from strangers

But today, it seemed Hikari was more indifferent to her than most, as if his attention on Coach Togo somehow outweighed any interest in her.

'It must be...my imagination. No way Hikari-kun would actually care about Coach Togo,' she thought with a wry smile, shaking off the odd notion before heading back to her own classroom next door.

'Maybe I should ask for his contact information after class,' she thought to herself.

Little did she know, Hikari was indeed more concerned about Coach Togo than her. Right now, his primary objective was to thwart the notorious bull-headed villain, Coach Togo. As for Akane, who already had a boyfriend, he didn't have much reason to engage with her.

In fact, his preferences leaned more towards mature women like Lady Mira, who'd raised him—though, admittedly, using her as an example might not feel quite right. [T/N: Mah nigga]

———

'How many Pure Love Points did I get for that hit on Coach Togo?' Hikari mused as he took his seat and checked his system's rewards log.

[Ding! Host has successfully thwarted Coach Togo's attempt to threaten Akane, upholding the spirit of pure love!]

[Reward: +50 Pure Love Points]

[Ding! Host has struck Coach Togo with a 'double hit,' crushing his arrogant attitude and furthering the spirit of pure love]

[Reward: +100 Pure Love Points]

'Not bad. I scored 150 Pure Love Points in total, plus the 30 I already had, making it 180 in all—just enough for a ten-spin pull,' Hikari calculated.

Although it was fewer points than he'd earned helping Yukino Mifuyu, he understood why; after all, Mifuyu was a yuki-onna, not an ordinary human. Taking down Coach Togo would still be worthwhile, as it might yield more substantial rewards.

'All right, let's go for the ten-spin pull!'

Hikari didn't hesitate. In this chaotic world, where enemies seemed to be everywhere, every bit of strength counted. Hoarding points wouldn't do him any good, so he went ahead with the draw.

[Ding! Spinning…]

[Ding! Congratulations! Host has acquired: 'Pure Love Guardian Paper Crane x10']

[Pure Love Guardian Paper Crane: A tool designed to help the host uphold pure love. The host may assign these cranes to track specific targets, gaining live visual insight into the target's surroundings. Should the target encounter any threat to pure love, the crane will immediately alert the host and provide the target's exact location. (Note: Tracking is limited to females the host has interacted with or those he remembers)]

[Notice: Pure Love Guardian Paper Crane is now available for 10 points each in the shop]

'Oh? This is good stuff.'

Reading through the crane's description, Hikari raised an eyebrow in approval. Although his Pure Love Aura Vision allowed him to detect nearby threats, it couldn't cover everything.

In this world, female leads were abundant, and rivals even more so. Solely relying on his aura was insufficient; some heroines were in entirely different locations. While he was here at school, he couldn't keep an eye on Mira back at home.

But with the Pure Love Guardian Paper Crane, he could keep tabs on Mira and other key heroines he'd encountered. It was like having a mini surveillance drone with a future-predicting function. For instance, if he had sent a crane to shadow Akane earlier, it would have alerted him when she decided to meet Coach Togo in the storage room.

In other words, it was an exceptionally useful tool.

Now he had Pure Love Aura Vision for close detection, the Pure Love Crane for long-range tracking, and the Clear Mind Amulet for ultimate protection.

He tried pulling one crane out and examined it in his hand. The crane had an invisible coating, blending seamlessly into its surroundings. Only someone who knew to look for it could spot it; otherwise, it was entirely undetectable.

'Unbelievable, it's like an invisible drone with a camera.'

After examining it for a moment, Hikari released his first 'Pure Love Guardian Paper Crane' with Akane as its target. He was mildly surprised as the crane veered not toward her classroom but toward the field.