Chapter 29

A year has passed since I graduated from elementary school, and it's been three months since I started attending Shuchi'in Junior High School in Tokyo. I also turned 12 last October.

The classroom is noisy because the teacher called for self-study, which basically means "do whatever you want." To pass the time, I'm reading a book. My seat is in the back corner of the class, where the sunlight helps me read.

"Hey, what are you doing after school?" asked Fujiwara Chika as she sat in front of me.

"I'm going to the gym. Why?"

"Shame~ 'coz there's a cool ramen place I want to try!"

I hum. "I'm free after that. Let's do it at 7. Wait, why don't you ever hit the weights with me?"

She shook her head. "Nah, I'm too lazy for that, Masamune-kun. Jogging around my neighborhood feels like enough for me. Here... I thought you were an otaku? But, you go to the gym? You're not lying, right?"

"You don't have to believe me."

"Haha, hm... well~ I don't believe it~~~~~" I could sense her honest feeling from her expression.

"How can you mock me so openly like that, and straight to my face?"

She pouts. "I'm just saying something objectively true. After all, I can't imagine Masamune-kun lifting weights when you're this thin. So, please don't hurt yourself, alright?"

This girl must be imagining me deadlifting 600 lbs or something. However, I decide it's not worth debating.

She's the type of girl who gets along with everyone, yet, at the same time, people around her try to avoid her because she can't read the atmosphere. Since she sits directly in front of me, she keeps trying to talk to me, even though I've made it clear to everyone else to leave me alone.

The girl with long pink hair and a hairband, Fujiwara Chika, definitely won't leave me alone.

About this school—since the students here have attended the academy since kindergarten, they've already formed their own cliques. That's why an outcast like me and an airhead like her can get along pretty well. Though, we just recently became friends by accident. 

I haven't really had any friends here since I started junior high, probably because of my otaku-like appearance. I let my hair grow down to my shoulders, and my eyesight has gotten worse, so I have to wear thick square framed glasses. On top of that, I'm tall but skinny after a long journey from obesity.

That's why I decided, it's time to start bulking up after losing so much weight.

But that's fine. It's not like I came here to make friends. School is just a formality to keep my family happy. I mean, come on, I already have a degree in business administration. I know it doesn't make me some genius who knows everything, but still, let's just enjoy this youth by making more money.

[To start the system, please find a suitable partner you like.]

This screen keeps popping up, interrupting my monologue.

And it's still trying to force me to find a "suitable partner." I've been ignoring it for over two years now. Sure, the system has made sudden developments, trying harder to get my attention.

After all these years of living in this world, I've slowly accepted this bug as part of me.

Even though it keeps telling me to find a "suitable bitch," I've never followed its instructions.

I live life my way. I don't need some four-dimensional being telling me how to live, including this system.

Still… after two years… I'm kind of... curious about how this system works. It never explains anything beyond that same line.

After all, it's probably something unique to me.

Therefore, the part of me—my human side is curious, though I am still cautious about it. But I think it's safe. Alright, let's do this.

[Would you like to see your potential partner's rating?]

Damn it. Yeah, I do.

[Confirm!]

As I sit in class, letters suddenly appear above the heads of all the female students—and even the teacher who just walked in.

Whoa… even when I died in 2030, I never saw anything like this.

[The ratings of potential partners start from the lowest: D, C, B, A, and S. The higher the rating, the higher the rarity of the gacha.]

[The gacha rarity includes: Common, Normal (N), Rare (R), Super Rare (SR), and Super Super Rare (SSR).]

[With the selected partner, the user can see the partner's likeability toward the user.]

[Warning! Gacha won't be distributed unless the user has a girlfriend.]

I see...

This is so lame.

Basically, unless I have a girlfriend, I won't get anything from the system.

Looking around, most of the class is filled with D, and C ratings above their heads.

Wait, Chika is an A.

"Hm..." I hum quietly, "Hey..."

Chika turn her body as her eyes turn rounded, "What is it, Masamune-kun? I think this is my first time you're calling me. Right? Hehe~"

"Nah, just normal question. Who is the most popular girl in school?"

At my sudden question, she titled her head, "Eh?" her cheerful smile dropped, speechlessly.

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