Shirai Shiori loved love—and hated it.
That wasn't contradictory.
What she loved were the pure, heartfelt emotions between boys and girls in books. What she hated was the so-called "love" in real life, steeped in lust and shallow comparisons. Frankly, she felt that using the same word for both was an insult to the very concept of love.
Ever since entering high school, all the girls around her seemed to talk about were makeup, food, and men. "That senpai in the soccer club is sooo hot," "Does he have a girlfriend?" "If he was my first, that'd be totally fine," and so on… It was like they couldn't wait to auction off their virginity to the highest bidder. Disgusting.
There was no romance—only desire. And not even emotional desire. Just surface-level affection.
They loved appearances. Bodies. Status. They just wanted the envious stares of other girls, wanted to bask in the attention.
Shallow vanity.
Shiori had seen this kind of thing in darker, more cynical novels and thought she understood it. But she hadn't expected it to be so pervasive—not just among adults, but right here, in high school.
How bleak.
And so, naturally, she distanced herself.
That's right—Shirai Shiori wasn't the one being isolated. She chose to isolate herself.
If it hadn't been for Aizono Moe being in the same class, Shiori's high school life might've ended up as a full-on tale of solitary legend.
In her view, she agreed with Anri Hitomi's philosophy on friendship: that quality mattered more than quantity. Having just one or two true friends in a lifetime was enough.
To her, meeting Moe and Anri, becoming close with them, passing the entrance exam to the same high school, and even joining the same club—it was nothing short of a miracle. She cherished it deeply.
She treasured them. And their rare, hard-earned bond. She had sworn to herself that she would protect them, no matter what.
Which was why it felt like a betrayal when Anri brought the enemy into their midst.
She was sure Anri had her reasons. But bringing a boy into an all-girls club? That was reckless no matter how you looked at it.
Shiori had even heard that Anri rejected the Literature Club application of some guy named Sumiya something-or-other. At the time, she'd assumed Anri was trying to keep the club exclusively female and had felt reassured leaving all recruitment duties to her.
And now here she was… bringing a boy.
Shiori did trust Anri—but only on the condition that Anri remained rational.
And Anri had her moments. She could be intense. Say heavy things that left people feeling emotionally burdened. As a long-time friend, Shiori knew that well.
And women in love? Stupid. Even geniuses turned into fools.
Moe was too innocent to notice these things, but Shiori prided herself on her emotional insight.
She didn't have firsthand experience herself, but she'd read countless romance novels. Her theoretical knowledge was practically encyclopedic.
And there was definitely something off about these two.
This wasn't just imagination. Anri's behavior toward Kuroba Akira was clearly different from how she treated Moe or herself.
That difference—the kind that only existed between a man and a woman—reeked of romance.
How did this guy manage to get past someone as sharp as Anri? For her to fall for him, he must have comparable levels of intellect and emotional awareness, right?
Anri wouldn't be swayed by just looks or kindness, that was for sure.
So did they have some kind of romantic mind game going on? And in the end, was Anri the one who fell first?
Shiori didn't want to sabotage her friend's love life. If Anri had found someone worth loving, she was ready to offer her blessing.
But that was the catch—he had to be worth it.
And from what she'd seen so far, this guy was not passing the test.
Back when he used to come to the library every day, diligently taking notes, Shiori had thought he seemed serious. She'd even considered talking to him about books.
But seeing him now… she realized she'd been wearing rose-tinted glasses.
Kuroba Akira did not give off respectable vibes.
If all he wanted was to chase after Anri, that might have been tolerable. But the way he looked at her and Moe—there was something unmistakably hungry in that gaze.
And when a man looks at a woman with that kind of intent, it's not love he's after—it's her body.
What was Anri thinking, bringing a guy like that into the club? Had love really made her stupid?
That look… like he was mentally licking us from head to toe. Disgusting.
Does he think this is his personal harem now?
Tch. Men really do think with their lower halves…
She couldn't say anything out loud—Anri had brought him, after all. Kicking him out would only cause rifts among them.
But don't even think about stirring up some romantic nonsense in this club.
I won't let you get away with it, you pervy bastard!
Unbeknownst to him, Kuroba Akira had already been flagged by the Literature Club's Anti-Horndog Task Force.
He'd only come to the club to say hi, meet the other members, and figure out what exactly he was expected to do.
Taking a cup of warm tea from the class rep, Akira rested his cheek on his hand and asked,
"So this is a club, right? Don't we have any actual activities? Like reading and writing book reviews or something?"
"About that…" Aizono Moe gave a strained smile. Shirai Shiori stayed silent.
Once again, it was the class rep who answered.
"The Literature Club is currently… inactive, Kuroba-kun."
"Huh? Inactive? What does that mean? Did the student council shut us down?"
"No, they haven't officially interfered. But the reality is… the club doesn't have anything it can do anymore."
"Huh?"
"Back in the day, the Literature Club was involved in all sorts of things—publishing school papers, drawing chalkboard murals, making posters for other clubs, organizing book clubs… But decades ago, a conflict broke out within the club. A group splintered off and formed the Journalism Club, which then took over most of those responsibilities. Since then, anytime the Literature Club tries to start something, the Journalism Club beats us to it."
Akira sipped his tea, rolled his eyes, and muttered,
"So we got totally sidelined, huh. This club's basically just an empty shell now."
"That's one way to put it. After the split, the club never really recovered. It hasn't been disbanded, but only because we still have a few members left… and because the club's so old. It's one of the original founding clubs from when the school was first built."
"No wonder the student council has their eye on it. A club with more symbolic value than actual purpose—wasting resources. As long as the member count drops low enough and no new members join, they'll have a reason to cut it completely. Just say it's outdated and no longer needed…"
That being the case, even without Sumiya Ryouta interfering, the Journalism Club might've tried to block their recruitment efforts.
And even if they managed to recruit people, the Journalism Club would probably continue undermining them. The student council was likely in their pocket too.
"Class rep, you really picked up a hot potato here…"
"I know. But you'll help me carry it, won't you, Kuroba-kun?"
"Of course. You already knocked me up, after all."
"Hehe. I'm counting on you. If you can fix the Literature Club, maybe I'll keep making you bentō next year too. Maybe even the year after… I could handle all three years' worth of lunches, you know?"
"Class rep, my lady! This humble servant will give you his undivided loyalty!"
From across the room, Shirai Shiori watched their banter—and once again, she was sure of it.
Those two are definitely up to something.
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T/N:
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