Ryoma Ryuzaki is obsessed with his childhood friend Shiho Shimotsuki.
He seemed to be disturbed by the fact that she had eaten lunch with another boy.
He wondered why Shimotsuki and I were together.
He wants to know what we were doing together.
āItās nothing, really. I donāt think thereās anything that Ryuzaki should be concerned about.ā
I hesitate and let my thoughts wander.
The reason why I am hesitating to give a definite answer is because depending on the answer, I might get in trouble with Shimotsuki.
For example, letās say I told him the whole truth.
Suppose Shimotsuki explained that she really didnāt like Ryuzaki and was only having lunch with me because we had become friends.
A normal person would back off when they realize that they are disliked.
But Ryuzaki is no ordinary person. He is a ā protagonist ā.
āShe doesnāt like me? No, Shiho just doesnāt know the real me! If she gets to know the real me, sheāll like me! So letās try to approach her more!ā
Itās not surprising that such a thought process was formed.
Ryuzaki is that type of protagonist.
Usually, heās slow and indecisive.
But when he is determined, he will go straight for it.
The protagonist is a creature that gets more motivated the more he or she is pushed.
Oh, Iām spiteful.
It was one-sided, and the pressure that seemed to be trying to fill in the other personās thoughts was making it difficult to breathe.
Iām sure that Shimotsuki, the target of this pressure, will suffer even more than me.
Thatās why I canāt tell him the truth. Shimotsuki rejects Ryuzaki like that.
She called me a friend even though I was just a plain, ordinary mob character.
She saw the value in me and admired me.
Iām very happy about that, but on the other hand, I donāt have anything to give back to her, so I actually feel a little guilty.
There was nothing I could do to make her happy.
At least, I wanted to be careful not to cause her any trouble.
āNothing? Itās not like youāre alone with her in a deserted place like this. ā¦ā¦ Are you hiding something about Shiho from me? Is there anything bothering you, that you canāt tell me about?ā
What do I say?
What should I say to the protagonist who is so delusional that he canāt see whatās best for himself?
āMaybe Shihoās asking you for advice so she doesnāt bother me? If so, please tell her. ā¦ā¦ We are childhood friends and I donāt care if she bothers me. If youāre not telling me, itās all right! Just tell me exactly whatās going on and Iāll do the talking!ā
How can he think of something so convenient?
If I say something badly, it might put a heavy burden on Shimotsuki.
Perhaps Ryuzaki is in a hurry.
I think heās also concerned about me in a corner of his mind.
Maybe Shiho Shimotsukiās special someone is me and heās getting anxious.
Thatās why heās searching hard for a reason.
He is looking for a convenient reason to convince himself.
If thatās the case, then I have to erase it.
I need to erase my existence from his mind.
As long as Iām not there, Shimotsuki can go back to her normal life.
For Ryuzaki, as a childhood friend who is sickly and likes to be alone, she can spend her time without much interference.
Yes, thatās right.
All I have to do is erase my presence from Ryuzakiās mind.
Iām good at that. Itās a simple thing to do, because the only advantage of being a mob character is that you donāt have much of a presenceā¦