Chapter 28: I Really Regret Playing the Love Rival…

What’s so enjoyable about living the life of a high school girl…?

It’s not like I don’t have a Reality life of my own.

Even if it’s tough and exhausting, at least it belongs to me.

…Not to mention the original identity and habits—right now, all of this is nothing more than a reluctant compromise, so how could the thought of “just go with the flow and enjoy it” even pop into my head?

Xiao Chun Miura’s heart grew cold, a vague and indescribable emotion swelling in her chest.

According to the System, it would be about two more years before she could return to her original Reality World.

Until then, she would have to keep living in this body.

Two years.

Would something change completely?

Xiao Chun Miura wasn’t sure.

But it was obvious that changes had already crept in.

—If she truly had no special feelings about her current body, that would be a lie.

If she really didn’t care, then when she fell into Kanzaki Sou’s arms yesterday and felt his chest and warmth, she wouldn’t have reacted the way she did.

…It’s hard to argue otherwise.

If I’m being honest, I was embarrassed at the time.

Since she would never speak of it, Xiao Chun Miura didn’t find it “that” unacceptable to feel embarrassed inside.

But.

Xiao Chun Miura couldn’t fool herself—feeling ashamed meant that, even if she wasn’t conscious of it, she was indeed influenced by her body to some extent.

—Back then, she would never have felt embarrassed touching a man’s body.

It was just physical contact between the same gender.

What’s there to be shy about?

But now, it was different.

…Yesterday evening, she felt ashamed just from touching a man’s body and feeling his warmth and embrace.

This was something that would never have happened when she was still in a male body.

“……”

Xiao Chun Miura sighed quietly in her heart.

…Huang Yang.

What on earth are you turning into—get a grip, will you.

“Miura-san?”

Hearing Kanzaki Sou call her again, Xiao Chun Miura snapped back to reality and looked at him.

“You seem a bit distracted. Is your body not feeling well?”

Kanzaki Sou asked with concern.

“I’m fine, Kanzaki-san.”

With heavy thoughts weighing on her mind, her attention was elsewhere, so Xiao Chun Miura’s reply sounded a bit airy.

“…Alright, if you feel unwell, you can go to the infirmary. I can handle things here, so don’t push yourself.”

After observing her for a few seconds, Kanzaki Sou spoke gently.

Then, as if matching Xiao Chun Miura’s mood, he reined in his visible concern.

“Then, could you help me enter the information of the books I just retrieved into the System? I’ll do it too, but there’s a bit much—could you lend a hand?”

“—Ah…Ah, y-yes!”

Then, pulled back to reality by those words, Xiao Chun Miura looked at Kanzaki Sou in a daze.

He was still smiling gently, as always.

Xiao Chun Miura hurriedly reached out to take the books, but as she pulled her hand back, she accidentally bumped into a stack of books already prepared to be returned to the shelves.

Her fingertips tingled instantly, and the stack of books teetered.

Kanzaki Sou reacted swiftly, steadying the stack before it could topple.

“Yo—”

Because of this, their fingertips inevitably brushed for a brief moment.

The touch was warm and fresh—just like the impression Kanzaki Sou gave.

Xiao Chun Miura’s face flushed uncontrollably, and she instinctively apologized.

“—Sorry!”

“No, it’s alright. It was just reflex.”

Faced with Kanzaki Sou’s calmness, Xiao Chun Miura felt as jumpy as a startled kitten.

With his help, they steadied the stack of books together.

However, as her gaze moved away from the pile, she caught sight of a pair of eyes fixed on them.

—Crap.

It was an ordinary interaction, too ordinary to be worth mentioning.

But under that gaze from not far away, it felt like an unforgivable crime.

She didn’t even need to see the face beneath the book to imagine—

Kondo Haruka’s expression must be extremely displeased right now.

Xiao Chun Miura couldn’t help but steal another glance.

—Oh no.

The Modern Microfiction Anthology in Kondo Haruka’s hands was being squeezed so tightly that the book’s edge was crumpled.

Xiao Chun Miura quickly averted her gaze.

***

For Xiao Chun, the rest of the work time felt like endless torment.

She could clearly feel that gaze, never leaving her, following her like a shadow, forcing her to hide uncomfortably behind the computer—even though it was useless, she could still sense that stare.

At times like this, Xiao Chun Miura hated her own empathy, which was stronger than most.

She could understand others’ thoughts…feel their emotions…grasp their personalities.

For someone as sensitive and introverted as Xiao Chun Miura, these were easy things.

—Before, she had treated people like Kanzaki Sou and Kondo Haruka in this game world as NPCs, mere programs and data with no real personalities.

But now, at the very least, she had to see them as electronic lifeforms.

…To go as far as staking out the Library and picking a spot at the front desk that was out of sight.

If that’s just a program, it’s way too autonomous.

Xiao Chun Miura really couldn’t convince herself to see them as NPCs alone—ever since coming to this world, every moment spent with those two had felt vividly “alive.”

And so, Xiao Chun Miura’s powerful empathy quietly kicked in.

—But at this moment, all it did was make her acutely aware of Kondo Haruka’s icy gaze.

It gave her goosebumps.

Her introversion meant she spent more time hiding and observing others; she was never used to being stared at.

So when she fell into Kanzaki Sou’s arms in Class 1, she was flustered and at a loss.

But back then, at least everyone’s gaze was mostly just curiosity, not malice.

…Kondo Haruka’s stare now was terrifying.

Even though the Library was perfectly quiet, Xiao Chun Miura could almost imagine the sound of Kondo Haruka gritting her teeth.

The only good news was that Kondo Haruka didn’t seem about to come over—she was probably content to watch from afar.

At least it avoided the direct battlefield between Kondo Haruka and Kanzaki Sou.

Xiao Chun Miura prayed for time to pass faster, desperate to escape.

***

The situation didn’t improve in the afternoon.

Kondo Haruka had moved to the self-study area near Xiao Chun Miura, where the chances of being seen by Kanzaki Sou were lower; but for Xiao Chun Miura, dodging that gaze became even harder.

That oppressive stare shot over almost nakedly, without a hint of restraint.

Xiao Chun Miura felt like the air was being sucked out of the room.

Kanzaki Sou, meanwhile, was completely oblivious.

Like the male protagonist in the game, Kanzaki Sou was earnest and responsible. Once he started working, he was all business, never sloppy.

A virtue in him, but a disaster for Xiao Chun Miura at this moment.

Hoping he’d notice and save her from Kondo Haruka’s gaze was nearly impossible…If she tried to tattle herself—

God, who knew what vicious things Kondo Haruka would say about her to Kanzaki Sou in private.

“Miura-san, earlier Sakura-sensei gave me a task to make a Self-study Week Poster—I made a draft.”

After the work settled down and the students left the Library, with no one else borrowing or returning books, Kanzaki Sou, having worked diligently for a while, spoke to Xiao Chun Miura.

Immersed in work, she hadn’t noticed the strange atmosphere on the left side—Kanzaki Sou naturally scooted his chair a bit closer to her, turning his laptop so they could both see the poster draft on screen.

“I feel like it’s missing something eye-catching…Could you give me some ideas or suggestions, Miura-san?”

The conversation was perfectly normal, nothing to be wary of.

But as he leaned in, Xiao Chun Miura’s shoulders tensed.

…Kondo Haruka could see their movements but couldn’t hear their conversation.

The sight of them sitting side by side, looking at the same screen…

If Kondo Haruka saw that—

Xiao Chun Miura could practically feel a chill down her back, not daring to move her neck, staring stiffly at the screen.

But even as she stared at the colorful draft, her mind was elsewhere, fixated on that stabbing gaze behind her.

“Mm…It’s…It’s good…”

Xiao Chun Miura managed to reply awkwardly.

“Hmm? Don’t you think it needs something more?”

Kanzaki Sou blinked, surprised at her answer.

“Ah…Ahaha…Well, I don’t really understand design, so…”

“Hmm…Let me think, how should I explain—”

—You’d better figure out how to explain it!

Xiao Chun Miura screamed internally.

While Kanzaki Sou was still pondering, she was already on the verge of tears.

…Because the footsteps behind her had started, drawing closer, almost reaching her.