157 You're What!?

"Well, one of my subordinates' fathers is the editor-in-chief of the magazine," Kyousuke explained.

"And the guy who negotiated for me is super reliable, so we managed to get a pretty sweet deal. Even the placement in the magazine is up near the front."

"Subordinates? Like, from the kendo club? Or student council?" Eriri had a sharp ear—she picked up on the odd choice of word immediately.

"Uh… Well, technically, yeah. But to be precise… they're more like my biker gang underlings."

Kyousuke didn't bother hiding the truth. They were already friends, there was no need for secrets anymore.

"Biker gang!?" Eriri's eyes flew wide. She planted both hands on the couch and leaned forward, bringing her face inches from his.

Sadly, no nosebleed-inducing benefits for him. Kyousuke sighed internally.

"Ugh, I feel like you were just thinking something super inappropriate!" Her intuition was terrifyingly sharp.

She instantly recoiled, arms folding across her chest as she eyed him with thinly veiled disgust.

Kyousuke's gaze drifted down briefly to the flat stretch of chest she was trying to guard, then immediately turned to look out the window with a dramatic sigh.

"The sunset sure is beautiful today."

"You jerk!!" Humiliated in a way she'd never experienced before, Eriri practically exploded.

She clambered across the sofa, grabbed him by the collar, and started shaking him violently.

"Ever since I started sleeping better and exercising more, I've grown a full centimeter! I am growing!!" Her voice was high and flustered, full of embarrassment and fiery determination as she did her best to defend her pride.

"Yes, yes, of course. Eriri-sensei is growing up fast. Keep up the good work."

Kyousuke kept his eyes on the window, offering no resistance as she shook him.

"Pervert! What do you mean, 'growing up fast'!? That's so rude!!"

Eriri felt like she was going to lose her mind.

Ever since this idiot had stepped into her room, her emotions had been on a nonstop rollercoaster.

She'd gotten angrier in the past ten minutes than she had in the past year.

But then she realized what she'd just blurted out and quickly released him, scooting back to her side of the couch.

"S-So what's this about a biker gang? You mean, like the kind that gets into street fights all the time?" Her face flushed red, and she tried to play it cool like nothing had happened.

Biker gangs were a fringe part of society, sure—but they were oddly popular in otaku culture, especially in anime and manga.

It was kind of funny, that Japanese otaku were often the ones being bullied by delinquents at school, yet they were obsessed with delinquent-themed stories.

Of course, delinquents in anime and manga were always cooler, their being picture as a noble outlaws who lived by their own code.

"If you count kendo practice matches as fights, then yeah, we fight all the time."

Kyousuke shrugged.

Honestly, ever since that incident with Toman, he hadn't been involved in any real street brawls.

Whether it was the reputation of the Rampaging Angels before he took over, or the fear his own solo takedowns had instilled in rival gangs, no one had dared to mess with them since.

If it weren't for how terrifying his underlings looked, he might've mistaken them for a bunch of volunteers from an odd-job agency.

"Dummy. Sparring doesn't count. I mean real fighting! Like—peng! bang! bang!"

As she said it, Eriri mimed swinging a bat, making a series of dramatic sound effects with her mouth.

Her exaggerated movements were so adorable Kyousuke nearly burst out laughing, but his instincts warned him: Don't push it. She'll actually claw your face off.

"Ah… well, that kind of fight happened too, but only twice since I became the boss. And even then, it wasn't all that…"

Kyousuke copied her bat-swinging gestures and added his own weak little "bang" sounds.

"Only 'hup! hup!' like that," he added, miming some light sword swings.

"*Wait—you're the boss? You're the head of a biker gang!?"

Eriri's eyes widened again, her mouth forming a perfect little "O." Her dumbfounded expression was ridiculously cute.

"Yeah… through a weird series of events, I ended up becoming the leader of the Rampaging Angels."

"You mean the Rampaging Angels, the legendary gang from Bunkyo that protects students from bullies?"

Eriri's bright blue eyes sparkled with awe.

Sure, she might draw R-18 doujinshi, but in real life she was still a sheltered, well-behaved rich girl.

These glimpses into a wild, unfamiliar world were way too thrilling.

'No wonder so many shojo manga feature bad boys with hidden hearts of gold…'

The whole "prince in armor" trope was fine and all, but sometimes a little danger made things way more exciting.

"Yup. I think we're the last gang left in Bunkyo now," Kyousuke said casually.

Hearing him confirm it so easily, Eriri leaned back on the sofa, arms crossed, and gave him a long, analyzing stare like she was seeing him for the first time.

His hair was just normal, messy in a boyish way.

Sure, he was handsome, but in a "this-whole-package-works" kind of way, not the plastic pretty-boy type.

His face… no, that was the part that didn't make sense.

No delinquent in any manga she'd ever read looked this absurdly attractive.

He looked more like the elite honor-student type.

She even mentally drew a pair of glasses on him just to test it out.

But then she remembered the rock-solid muscles she'd felt when he picked her up during their first meeting. That insane strength...

Was this what they meant by a "refined monster"?

"Tell me everything, how you became their leader, those two fights I need the full story! I need reference material for my next drawings!" Eriri leaned in, clearly excited.

'…Was that really for reference material? Or was she just incredibly curious?'

While mentally poking fun at the situation, Kyousuke didn't refuse her request.

He casually began recounting how he had accidentally become the leader of the kendo club, the time he took down two rival gangs solo.

Once to save one of his underlings and once to help correct another's twisted view of love.

Eriri listened in stunned silence, jaw slightly agape, her little fangs peeking out in a dazed expression of disbelief.

"No wonder they let you be the kendo club's advisor... But seriously, Kyousuke, are you some kind of anime protagonist?"

"How are you this good at school and still some kind of kendo prodigy?"

It took her a long moment to finally close her mouth.

She licked her lips with a soft, pink tongue, trying to moisten them as she stared at him like he was a living urban legend.

"It's all thanks to my own hard work!" Kyousuke firmly denied her assumption.

Anime protagonist? As if.

He only had that annoying system that wouldn't say a word unless it was triggered by something dumb.

If he'd gotten this far, it was purely through relentless effort.

"That's just ridiculous... It's not like it's that impressive. I worked hard to get my art skills where they are too!"

Eriri let out a soft "hmph," puffing her cheeks slightly.

He was a whole year younger than her, and yet here he was—some kind of mythical figure.

And that nickname, "The Handless Demon," it really did sound like something straight out of a video game.

She decided then and there: the protagonist in Kyousuke's upcoming doujin was definitely getting that title.

As Kyousuke looked at her thick glasses, he suddenly felt a twinge of guilt.

Wait… something felt off.

"Hey, Eriri—where are your glasses?"

Every time he'd seen her before, she always wore thick-rimmed, black-framed glasses.

He'd been too focused on her looks earlier to notice—something was different today.

"Idiot, I'm wearing contacts," Eriri replied offhandedly, still mentally reeling from the sheer absurdity of Kyousuke's real-life action movie backstory.

"But... aren't contacts uncomfortable?"

This was the same Eriri who, purely for comfort, had worn a green gym uniform from elementary school well into middle school, even going so far as to buy a new set when it no longer fit.

And now she was wearing uncomfortable contacts at home? Why?

"Shut up! I wear them at school too, okay?"

Her voice was both defensive and flustered, and her fair cheeks flushed red all the way to her ears.

If her mom hadn't reminded her last time that Kyousuke was coming over, she never would've been caught dead wearing those clunky black glasses in front of him.

She'd made sure to get properly dressed up for today, all for this idiot and he was only now noticing?

"Well, if it starts to bother you, you should switch back to regular glasses. I think you look great in either one, honestly."

Kyousuke's tone was sincere. He meant it Eriri was beautiful enough that not even thick black frames could dull her charm.

"P-pervert! Who cares what you think?!"

Her cheeks were still flushed, but her eyes sparkled with a kind of shy defiance.

She flashed her tiny fangs again and gave him a half-annoyed, half-flustered glare that looked more adorable than threatening.

The image of Kyousuke helping her do those silly eye exercises popped into her mind, and her heart gave a little twitch.

"Alright, alright." Kyousuke chuckled to himself.

At this point, he could practically call himself the "Eriri Whisperer." He knew how to translate everything she said into what she actually meant.

"Anyway, about the convention on Saturday. What's your plan?" He smoothly transitioned to the second reason he'd come to see her today.