Chapter 32: Renowned (Please Bookmark)

"Huh?"

Sato Shota stared in disbelief as Ryuuichi Sugawara actually admitted it.

"So, you really were the handsome guy in the mask that night?"

The red-haired girl was overjoyed to have her suspicion confirmed. She never expected that the handsome stranger she had met by chance in Shibuya, who had made her heart race, would actually attend her own school. What an incredible coincidence!

"I was indeed wearing a mask at the time... I’m surprised you recognized me." Ryuuichi nodded slightly, feeling rather taken aback. The hallway lights had been dim, and with the mask concealing his face, he had assumed the chances of being identified were slim.

"Huh?" Sato Shota stood there, completely bewildered by their exchange.

"Hehe, honestly, I wasn't entirely sure at first, but the more I looked at your profile, the more familiar you seemed," the red-haired girl explained, laughing with a touch of embarrassment at his surprise.

Others might not have recognized him, but she had been truly struck by the sight of him in that mask. It had left such a profound impression that she had even dreamt of him over the past few days.

"I see." Ryuuichi observed her reaction, wondering if there was any chance she had recognized the woman walking beside him that night as Yue Yamabuki.

"By the way, I'm Kyoko Utada."

"Ryuuichi Sugawara." Since she had taken the initiative to introduce herself, Ryuuichi provided his name out of basic politeness.

"I know who you are. You're the famous Ryuuichi Sugawara! You even represented the third-year students at the opening ceremony this spring."

"That is indeed true." Faced with such praise and flattery, Ryuuichi found it difficult to respond. He wasn't particularly good at handling these situations, so he simply nodded.

"I have one more question, though it might be a bit presumptuous. Would you be willing to answer it?" Leaving the introductions behind, Kyoko Utada continued.

"Go ahead." Hearing her lead-in, Ryuuichi’s heart sank, though his expression remained impassive.

"What is your relationship with the four beautiful ladies who were with you that night?" Once she had his permission, Kyoko asked her question impatiently. She and her friends had argued about this for days.

"Huh?"

As the conversation veered further off track, reaching a point beyond his comprehension, Sato Shota, watching from the sidelines, was completely stunned.

"They are my older sister and her friends." Having anticipated this question, Ryuuichi gave his reply without hesitation. Success! Regardless of whether she had recognized Yue Yamabuki, as long as he stuck to this explanation, the potential risk was neutralized.

"So, not your girlfriend?"

"No."

"Thank you so much for your answer. I'm done now; I won't disturb your lunch any longer." Satisfied with this, Kyoko Utada bowed in thanks and turned to run off.

Ryuuichi watched her go with a curious gaze. The triumphant Kyoko was excited, and she loudly shared the results with her close friends: "I told you! The handsome guy in the mask we met at the karaoke place that night was him, and he isn't dating any of those ladies."

Hearing her report, Ryuuichi finally felt at ease. It seemed they hadn't noticed Yue Yamabuki beside him that night. It made sense; human nature was naturally drawn to the opposite sex, and even more so, Yue had kept her head down and turned away to avoid being seen.

"Ryuuichi, Ryuuichi, did I just mishear things? I thought I heard that student, Utada, say you went to karaoke? And that you were with four beautiful ladies?" Sato Shota, having watched the spectacle, leaned in and cupped his ear to confirm what he had heard. He had to admit, he had stumbled upon some explosive news. The idea of Ryuuichi going to a place like a karaoke bar was already absurd, but to go with four beautiful women?

"My sister dragged me along."

"Didn't you say you were an only child? Where did this sister come from?"

"The sister from next door back home."

"How pretty are these 'beautiful ladies'? Can you introduce me?"

"Aren't you into lolis? Since when are you interested in mature women?" Ryuuichi looked at him, speechless. Based on Sato’s decision to choose Momoko-chan as his rental girlfriend, it was clear he had a type.

"Lolis have their charms, and older sisters have theirs."

"They all have boyfriends, so give up."

"Ryuuichi, you’ve kept this from me! If it weren't for Utada, I would never have known your extracurricular life was so colorful." Seeing that Ryuuichi wasn't going to introduce him, Sato grabbed his collar, protesting vehemently.

His friend's life outside of school was so interesting, yet he had never mentioned a word of it. By contrast, Sato shared every little detail of his life with Ryuuichi, even his experiences with rental girlfriends.

"I told you, I was forced to go by the girl from next door. I didn't even want to be there." Despite being caught, Ryuuichi stuck to his story.

"And you say that... plus you ran into the 'Gal Quartet' outside of school! How can you be so lucky?" Sato was so envious he could practically grind his teeth.

"What is the 'Gal Quartet'?" Ryuuichi quickly changed the subject to deflect the envy. He was asking a question to which he already knew the answer; he knew perfectly well that the "Gal Quartet" referred to Kyoko Utada and her friends.

"It's the social circle led by Yuki Kotori! They're all fashion-forward gals. They're quite famous—you don't know them?" Sato, who had been complaining, seemed to have hit a switch; he immediately calmed down to explain.

"I didn't know. I only met them for the first time when I bumped into them at karaoke."

"I guess your 'persona' isn't completely shattered yet." Sato stared at him, confirming he wasn't joking, and nodded to himself with a sense of realization.

"What persona? You're ridiculous."

"In all seriousness, have you really never seen Yuki Kotori before? She’s the one who won the school festival beauty pageant two years in a row!"

"I really haven't." Ryuuichi gave a firm reply after giving it some thought. If he had seen a beauty like Yuki Kotori, he certainly wouldn't have forgotten.

"You're in your third year of high school and you've never seen her? You really are something else." Seeing how certain he was, Sato didn't even know how to tease him anymore, instead giving him a thumbs-up of genuine admiration. Someone as pure-minded as Ryuuichi was truly worthy of consistently beating him on exams.

"Beauty pageant champion, huh..." Pondering this title, Ryuuichi couldn't help but cast a glance toward Yuki Kotori, who was not far away.

He had to admit, the blonde "gal" was indeed beautiful, a completely different type from Yue Yamabuki. Radiant, stylish, and alluring, she exuded an unparalleled presence with every smile and glance.