Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 5 - Chapter 1

Yurika’s Grand Plan

Monday, November 16th

“Nijino-san, u-um...” Harumi mustered all of her courage to say.

“What is it?” Yurika asked, oblivious to how Harumi was feeling. She simply looked back at her across the table with her usual carefree expression, all while sipping on her orange juice through a straw.

“A-Actually, there’s something I want to ask you...”

Quite some time passed before Harumi could bring herself to say those words. Long enough, in fact, that the coffee in front of her had gotten cold. Even though it was in one of the coffee shop’s paper cups designed to make it cool quicker, a considerable amount of time had passed.

“Please, ask me anything! I’d do anything for you, Sakuraba-senpai!” Yurika accepted with a smile before she even heard the request.

The two girls became fast friends after they ran together during the sports festival. To Yurika, Harumi was an upperclassman she respected and one of her few friends. Because of that, the thought of refusing her never even entered her mind.

Seeing Yurika like that, Harumi let out a sigh of relief and said, “Thank you, Nijino-san.”

“So what is it that you want to ask me?”

“Th-That’s...”

But when Yurika asked about the heart of the matter, Harumi began hesitating. Her cheeks turned red and she looked down.

Keep it together, Harumi! If you back down now, nothing will change!

After scolding herself, Harumi looked back up. Her face was still red, but her determination shone through.

“What I want to ask you... is about... Satomi-kun...”

Satomi-kun. The moment she spoke his name, Harumi’s heart began pounding. It was always like that, and it was growing harder and harder to keep it to herself. That’s why she’d come to Yurika.

“Satomi-san? What, did he say something mean to you?!”

The moment Yurika heard Koutarou’s name, the first thing that popped into her mind was his everyday behavior. He wasn’t a bad person, but he had a rough side. And no matter how much she tried, she couldn’t get him to believe in magic. Yurika figured Koutarou had hurt Harumi’s feelings by saying something careless.

“He can be pretty coarse sometimes!”

“N-No, it’s not like that!”

“But you know, Sakuraba-senpai, even though he’s like that, he still has a gentle side to him. So just—”

“That’s not it. I know that Satomi-kun is a good person. That’s why I’m so troubled!”

“...Huh?” Yurika was so astounded at Harumi’s tone of voice that she completely forgot what she was about to say.

“Satomi-kun is good person. He understands the struggles of others. He’s diligent, earnest, and just a bit reckless. But that’s the problem.”

Harumi’s voice returned to its normal, peaceful tone. Hearing that, Yurika took a sip of her orange juice now diluted by melted ice and straightened up in her chair to listen to what Harumi had to say.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Th-That’s... I... I want to get along with Satomi-kun...”

“Get along? But you already get along so well. You’re knitting together every day in the knitting society and everything.”

In Yurika’s eyes, Koutarou and Harumi already got along quite well. Aside from their daily club activities in the knitting society, their performances in perfect sync with each other during the play at the culture festival had made their connection obvious. To her, the two of them were in a wonderful senior/junior relationship.

“I don’t mean it in that way. I mean it, um, differently...”

Harumi’s cheeks turned even redder and her gaze plummeted down towards the table. She was too embarrassed to look Yurika in the eye. Her clenched hands resting on her knees were trembling. It was a small miracle she’d barely managed to squeeze out those last few words.

“S-So you meant it like that?”

Finally catching on to what Harumi meant based on her behavior, Yurika’s cheeks began turning red as well. The two girls both stared at the table, blushing in silence for a while. However, this time, the silence didn’t last nearly as long as it had the first time around.

I need to keep it together... This won’t do!

Harumi scolded herself again and pushed forward.

“But Satomi-kun is... I’m precious to him, but because of that, he doesn’t want to go any further...”

“Ah, I see... That’s probably true.” Yurika understood what Harumi was saying. “Satomi-san can be mindful of the strangest of things.”

“That’s why I... I want Satomi-kun to treat me more roughly... like he does with you or, um, Theiamillis-san...”

“Like me and Theia-chan?”

Those were perhaps the most unexpected words of all. Yurika would much rather Koutarou treat her the way he did Harumi. She wanted him to be nice to her and respect what she had to say. Really, she just wanted him to believe that she was a magical girl. And yet, despite all that, here Harumi was saying that she wanted to be treated like Yurika. Yurika didn’t get it.

“Y-Yes. So please tell me... What do I have to do to get Satomi-kun to treat me like he treats you or Theiamillis-san?”

At that moment, Harumi was remembering the way Koutarou practiced his acting with Theia.

If Satomi-kun treated me the same way he treats Theiamillis-san...

Koutarou definitely wasn’t gentle with Theia. He had no problems voicing complaints, and at times the two of them would even end up in fist fights. But Harumi knew that Koutarou was only complaining to her or fighting with her because he trusted Theia. Compared to that, Harumi felt like she was being treated like a customer or even a princess. Koutarou was just too careful around her.

“...Maybe I should start by changing my appearance. Theiamillis always looks so energetic, and Nijino-san, you have... cosplay, was it? You’re good at that...” Harumi mumbled as she began playing with her long hair. If it came down to it, she was ready to cut it. She was that serious.

“Y-You shouldn’t do that! Nothing good will come from being treated like us! Satomi-san is mean and has no problems hitting me on the head!”

“But Satomi-kun has never hit me or been mean to me...”

“And he’s never been gentle with me or said I was precious—”

Ah...

Yurika realized something and had to stop herself mid-sentence.

Maybe that’s not true... Satomi-san has been nice to me...

He still wouldn’t relent on the magical girl thing, but he had helped her with the Hercules beetle. And when their manuscripts were rejected, they ate instant noodles together to drown their sorrows. Sure, Yurika had been bullied and done things stupid enough to warrant a bop on the head before. But Koutarou had also been kind to her in his own way. She’d experienced both sides of the coin.

The same is probably true for Theia-chan. In that case...

And with that, Yurika finally realized what Harumi was really getting it.

“I understand, Sakuraba-senpai! I might not be of much use, but you can count on me to help!”

“Th-Thank you, Nijino-san!”

Tears formed in the corners of Harumi’s eyes as Yurika smiled and accepted. Harumi smiled back at her, but Harumi’s smile was so beautiful that Yurika lost her breath.

If Satomi-san saw this, it would probably be a one hit KO...

Yurika couldn’t help feeling like that beautiful smile had been wasted on her.

“Now that I think about it, Satomi-san does tend to tease us when we’re talking or doing something together.”

“I see...”

Harumi was taking notes as she listened to Yurika. She had been lecturing her on Koutarou’s behavior for a while now.

That’s right. Satomi-san isn’t usually the one to start things, is he...?

As she was explaining all this to Harumi, Yurika was also starting to think she was getting a better feel for the kind of person Koutarou was.

“But when it goes too far, he’ll hit me on reflex. Since he’s quick to get into fights, it seems like things often end up that way.”

“He often get into fights with Matsudaira-san as well.”

“I think Mackenzie-san is a special case. Even though it looks like they’re always fighting, they’re still friends. Maybe that’s just how boys are.”

“Maybe something happened between them a long time ago that makes their daily fights pale in comparison.”

“Maybe... But let’s get back to Satomi-san,” Yurika said, returning them to their original topic. What was important right now was figuring out how to help Harumi. “Simply put, I think you should be more selfish, Sakuraba-senpai.”

“Selfish?” Harumi asked, blinking repeatedly as if she couldn’t comprehend the word.

“Yes. Compared to me and Theia-chan, you hardly say anything at all to Satomi-san.”

“Hardly say anything? That’s not what I’ve been trying to do...”

“Well, let’s say you’re feeling thirsty.”

Since Harumi wasn’t following, Yurika tried explaining using an example. The ice in the orange juice she was holding crackled as she waited for Harumi to reply.

“All right.”

“What would you normally do, Sakuraba-senpai?”

“Um... I think I’d pour some tea for myself and ask if Satomi-kun would like some too.”

“If it were me or Theia-chan, we wouldn’t serve any tea.”

“Is that so?”

Yurika nodded at the dumbfounded Harumi.

“I’m broke, so I mooch off of Satomi-san. And Theia-chan is a princess... I mean, she’s a high-class lady, so she would tell Satomi-san to pour some tea for her instead.”

“Y-You don’t say?!” Harumi’s eyes shot wide open, revealing her surprise.

“Yeah, so then he’d yell at us to quit messing around.”

“I-I see... That’s good to know.”

Impressed, Harumi continued taking notes. Mooching off of Koutarou or demanding that he pour tea for her were things that had never crossed her mind.

“In my case, I usually start complaining and Satomi-san eventually gives in and shares something to drink with me. In Theia-chan’s case, it turns into a fist fight.”

“I can’t even imagine...” Harumi was shocked at Yurika’s example.

But I can’t be so caught off guard. I need to do the same thing!

She did her best to give herself a pep talk and press on.

“Even if I should be more selfish, Nijino-san, I don’t know how...”

“It’s okay. I’ve read shoujo manga for over ten years. I have already thoroughly researched the topic!”

“Heehee, that’s our Nijino-san!”

A true cosplayer at heart! She really came through for me...

Harumi took a moment to appreciate Yurika in a way she wouldn’t have been too pleased about.

“To start, I think you should invite him on a date,” Yurika suggested.

“A d-date?!” Harumi was practically speechless at the thought.

“Yes! You can be just a little selfish by saying that you want to go somewhere with him. Then you’ll get to go out and do something fun together, and you’ll have a chance to grow even closer! It’s like killing two birds with one stone!” Yurika declared, emphatically planting her hands on the table as she leaned over towards Harumi.

“I-I understand what you mean, but... isn’t it a bit too soon for a d-date?”

Harumi was shy and modest. Receiving the sudden command to ask a boy on a date, she didn’t know what she would do.

“It’s okay. In this case, even a group date will do. We’ll use that as an entry point and gradually turn it into a date for just the two of you!”

At first they could start off with a group date. And as the date went on, the others would wander off or go do something else until it was just the two of them. It was a typical setup in the shoujo manga Yurika adored so much.

“Th-Then, will you come with us, Nijino-san?”

“Of course! Allow me to accompany you, Sakuraba-senpai!”

Yurika agreed to help Harumi with eager confidence and enthusiasm. She’d failed to notice a critical error in her plan.

“Ah, stop spilling it! And don’t make any noise with them!”

“Don’t be unreasonable!”

Koutarou and Theia roared from across the table at each other. It was a common scene during dinner in room 106. But today was slightly different. Koutarou wasn’t holding chopsticks in his hands, but rather several strange metallic tools.

“It’s not unreasonable! You were supposed to think of this as an aristocrat’s dinner party! How many times do I have to remind you?”

“I don’t care what you want to pretend it is; there’s no way I can eat properly with dental tools for silverware!

“W-R-O-N-G! That one’s exclusively for salad! Why are you trying to use it to eat rice?!”

Koutarou was holding traditional Forthorthian silverware. They were probably Forthorthe’s equivalent of a knife and fork, or possibly chopsticks, but the number of utensils and the variation among them confused Koutarou.

“There are so many! There’s no way I could remember what each one is for right off the bat!”

“I showed you examples several times over just a moment ago! I’ll do it one more time, so make sure you watch! You do it like this! Shee?! Yhou chan eaht jhust fine! Dho you get iht nhow?”

“As if I could get it after just watching you do it, idiot! It’s not a one hundred colored pencil set!”

“Who ahre yhou calling ahn idiot?! Thaht’sh noht the prohper whay to tahlk to your masther!”

“Your Highness, it’s poor manners to speak with food in your mouth.”

Although the cultural festival was over, Koutarou’s knight training had continued. He could have refused it, but he agreed when he was told it would help his acting for the second half of “The Silver Princess and the Blue Knight” that would be put on next year. He wanted to get his acting to a level where he wouldn’t hold Harumi back.

“Heh, you’re getting scolded now.”

“Hom nom nom...”

As Koutarou made fun of Theia, she hurriedly chewed up what was left in her mouth. And as she swallowed it all down, she brought her face closer to Koutarou’s.

“It sounds like you really have a death wish, Koutarou.”

“Hardly. I’m all set for a long life.”

Protruding veins became visible on Theia’s forehead, but Koutarou just continued to grin. Neither of them showed any sign of backing down.

“If you want, I could change the script and have you standing on stage buck naked.”

“You wouldn’t dare do that to your beloved Blue Knight. You might do it if it was just me, but your precious Blue Knight being involved changes everything, doesn’t it?”

“Tch, why choose now of all times to be insightful? Curse youuu!”

“Your praise honors me, Princess Theiamillis!”

“Aaaaargh! Why don’t you just try showing me some respect for once?!”

“Hmm... Maybe because it’s my hobby?”

“Don’t ask like I’d know the answer!”

Koutarou and Theia’s argument began heating up. It was common for the two of them to fight, but lately it had started getting more intense.

“What does it matter? Just hurry up and eat, jeez!” Sanae finally interjected.

By clinging on to Koutarou and “possessing” him, Sanae could taste whatever he did. But since Koutarou and Theia were fighting, Sanae had to wait for her dinner. She was anxiously pouting as she waited for the two of them to finish fighting.

“Besides, what’s with this drill? What am I supposed to eat with this?!”

“That’s for breaking the hard shell of a nut from northern Mastir! It’s a tool used for traditional dinners!”

“They’re not even listening... Call me when you’re done, okay?”

Still pouting, Sanae let go of Koutarou and floated away. However, her eyes remained fixed on the food on the table.

“Jeez, I can never really tell if they get along or not...” Sanae continued to complain.

“...”

What Sanae said was enough to make Yurika, who was ignoring the commotion and focusing on the food lined up on the table, look up. Since Koutarou was supposed to be learning how to eat like a noble tonight, Yurika had been invited as a guest. And since she was broke, she ate whenever she got the chance. She was happily gorging herself as Koutarou and Theia argued, but her hands stopped moving when she heard what Sanae had muttered.

“Can’t tell, huh...?”

Pausing from stuffing her face, Yurika stared at Koutarou and Theia, who were still bickering.

“Then bring me this stupid nut! This’ll be a piece of cake!”

“You said it! In that case, I’ll bring it out. Ruth!”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

As the situation developed, Yurika saw no opportunity to intervene.

What I can say, for better or worse, is that there’s no room for me to join in. I can kinda understand how Sakuraba-senpai must feel...

Ever since her discussion with Harumi, Yurika had been taking a closer look at Koutarou and Theia’s relationship. At this point in time, she could clearly understand what had Harumi so worried.

“Something must have happened while we weren’t around that changed their relationship.”

“Kiriha-san?”

When Yurika turned around to look at Kiriha, she found her pouring tea after finishing her dinner.

“What makes you say that?”

“If they really hated each other, they wouldn’t be that stubborn with each other.” Kiriha put down the kettle and smiled wryly. “I might not be able to stand idly by for much longer either. If I’m going to seduce Koutarou, I should hurry.”

“...There might be some truth to that.”

Yurika chose to ignore whether or not Kiriha was being serious, but she understood the sentiment. She felt that it would be for the better if Harumi jumped into action sooner rather than later. If the two of them could just stop being so stubborn, there was no mistaking that they would instantly be much closer. That was all she could think about as she watched on.

“Just how hard is this thing? This nut must be at least as hard as your head.”

“Hmph, you’re all talk. That’s why I said you need to practice.”

Theia carefully reached her hand across the tea table in defiance of the hostile atmosphere.

Today’s game was Jenga. Players pulled out pieces from the bottom of a tower of blocks and placed them back on the very top. If the tower fell over, it counted as a loss. Although the rules were simple, it required a lot more concentration and precision than one might think. That also meant that there was a good deal of strategy involved. Players could intentionally place blocks in a way that made the tower less stable, putting pressure on the next player. That was really why Koutarou had been teasing Theia. He was trying to ruin her focus in the middle of her turn to get her to screw up.

“Theia is probably so thickheaded because she grew up eating these nuts.”

“I don’t have any problems using this thick head of mine to split your skull, you know— Uwah?!”

In her excitement, Theia had shaken the tower as she pulled out a piece, but luckily it only shook and didn’t collapse.

“Phew... That was close.”

As Theia wiped the cold sweat off her brow, she set her piece on top of the tower. Because of the way she placed it, the whole thing began leaning.

“Tch...” she sneered.

“Ha, as if I’d just let you have your way,” Koutarou jeered.

“All right, then I’m next, Koutarou,” said Sanae.

“Yeah.”

After Theia’s turn was Sanae’s. However, Sanae wasn’t good at doing complex or precise moves with her Poltergeist powers, so she possessed Koutarou and used his hands instead. She clung to his back with her arms around his neck and began controlling his arm.

“This still feels strange, no matter how many times you do it,” he commented.

“This is the power of the mysterious girl, Sanae-chan!”

Koutarou’s hands—normally boyish and rough in their movements—were now moving in a delicate and gentle fashion. It was a remarkable difference just from a different person controlling them. His hands now appeared oddly feminine.

“Hah!”

Sanae swiftly brought Koutarou’s hands towards the tower. Although they seemed feminine now, their motion was dexterous and brisk, fitting of a girl Sanae’s age.

“I’ve been wondering about this for a while, but isn’t getting possessed like that bad for your body?”

“Yurika, don’t just casually say such terrifying things!”

Yurika’s comment disturbed Koutarou, but since Sanae was in control of his body, his hands didn’t so much as tremble.

“But in anime, people always scream when they get possessed by ghosts,” Yurika continued.

“Oh, it’s fine. I have no intention of cursing Koutarou to death,” Sanae said, pulling out her piece and humming to herself.

“Sanae-sama gets along quite well with Satomi-sama, after all,” Ruth added.

“Yeah.”

Sanae smiled at Ruth’s comment. She then made her piece float in the air. It flew up to the top and landed with a clack.

“All right!”

“Sanae, if you can do that, you can do the rest without me, can’t you?” Koutarou asked.

“I can place the pieces just fine, but the problem is pulling them out,” she responded.

“You don’t say...”

“...Yeah, it’s pretty obvious that the two of you get along well enough,” muttered Yurika.

If Sanae-chan wasn’t a ghost, Sakuraba-senpai would probably have one more problem to worry about...

Yurika continued to think about Harumi’s dilemma as she watched Koutarou and Sanae.

“There’s no need to worry, Yurika.”

Seeing Yurika staring at them, Kiriha assumed that she was worried about Koutarou.

“Sanae is showing no sign of doing anything that might harm Koutarou’s soul.”

“Really?”

It was true that Yurika was worried, but not how Kiriha imagined.

“Karama, Korama.”

“Yes! Ho!”

“Reporting! Ho!”

Responding to Kiriha’s call, the two haniwas appeared from underneath the tea table.

“Sanae-chan’s current form is so stable that she hardly needs to absorb any of Koutarou’s energy, ho!”

“Our spiritual energy sensors don’t detect any evil spiritual power either, ho!”

“In fact, by doing that, Koutarou is using his mind and body in ways he normally doesn’t, so it should even be good for his circulation, ho!”

“I see. Then it’s all right.”

A normal girl wouldn’t have understood what Karama and Korama were saying, but Yurika was a magical girl. She simply nodded and patiently listened to their explanation.

“Koutarou, they’re saying you’re getting healthier thanks to me.”

“Whatever. I was healthy from the start, so I don’t really feel it.”

“God, you’re always like that! Why can’t you just be more honest with yourself and say, ‘Thanks, Sanae-chan! You’re as cute at ever,’ huh?!” Sanae demanded, pouting and squeezing Koutarou’s neck.

“Ugh, y-you’re hurting more than just my soul now!”

“Hmph, you really aren’t cute at all, Koutarou.”

Koutarou hit a sore spot, causing Sanae to frown and loosen her grip on his neck.

“That was hardly enough to hurt you.”

“Sounds like he’s okay to me.”

“You’re all so mean! I’m gonna prank you in the middle of the night!” Sanae threatened, sticking her tongue out at Kiriha and Yurika for laughing at her.

“Next up is Satomi-sama.”

“Oh, right. I almost forgot.”

Koutarou had been blankly staring at the girls, but he finally remembered that it was his turn when Ruth reminded him.

“I hate slowpokes,” Theia scoffed.

“Frankly, I don’t really care if you hate me or not,” Koutarou replied nonchalantly.

“What?! You’re telling me you don’t need a princess’s love?!”

“That’s right.”

Koutarou dismissively waved his hand at Theia and reached out for the Jenga tower.

“Then who do you want to be loved by, Satomi-san?” Yurika asked without warning.

“Whoa!”

Yurika’s question couldn’t have come at a worse time. Koutarou nearly pushed the tower right over. Fortunately, he was able to stop his hand just in time.

“Th-That was close...” Koutarou put his hand on his chest and let out a huge sigh of relief.

“Tch...” Theia unhappily clicked her tongue.

“Who does he want to be loved by? The adorable Sanae-chan, obviously! Right, Koutarou?” Sanae asked, still clinging to his back.

“I’m interested in your answer as well. It will be good to know for future reference,” Kiriha added, curiously turning towards Koutarou.

“Go on then. If it’s not me, then who is it?” Theia demanded.

“...”

Theia was in a somewhat sour mood after Koutarou telling her that he didn’t care if she hated him. But on the other side of the table, Ruth was looking at him with hopeful eyes. Their expectations differed, but all of the girls in room 106 were now staring at Koutarou. Who was he going to choose?

“That’s obvious,” he said. Unlike the girls who were waiting for an answer with rapt anticipation, Koutarou didn’t hesitate for even a moment. “It’s Sakuraba-senpai. If a wonderful and beautiful girl like that said she hated me, I wouldn’t be able to go on living.”

“Whaaaaaaaat?! It’s not me?!” Sanae was devastated.

“...Of course that’s who you’d go for,” Kiriha observed, casually sipping on her tea.

“That woman again?! I won’t stand for you choosing her over me! Take it back immediately!” Theia shouted.

“Of course. He’d even choose a beetle over me...” Ruth said, sulking.

Each of the four girls was disappointed in their own way.

“...Sakuraba-senpai, huh?”

Only Yurika reacted differently.

“How should I put it...? I want her to remember me as a good underclassman.”

“Can’t you just pick me?!”

“I guess that means that a frontal attack is my only recourse...”

“Take it back! I’m more charming than she is!”

“Of course, I knew this would happen...”

This could be a problem. Koutarou wants Sakuraba-senpai to like him, but he’s fine with the current distance between them... I need to do something to get them closer or else this is going to end in heartbreak, just like in my mangas!

While everyone else was getting worked up, Yurika was worrying about Harumi. Koutarou liked Harumi the most, but he didn’t have any intention of furthering their relationship. That was because the extent of his feelings for her was deep respect and gratitude. He didn’t think of himself as a man suitable for Harumi, even though Harumi did.

If something wasn’t done about this misunderstanding, there was a high chance that Koutarou would end up getting together with another girl. That wasn’t unique to shoujo manga. It happened in real life too.

As I thought, a date is the only way! If I go with them and manage to leave the two of them on their own...

Yurika was ready to get Koutarou and Harumi together...

“Just think about it! Take Yurika for example! How could I ever see someone so obsessed with cosplay as a romantic interest? It’s the same way with you guys!”

At least, she was until Koutarou said that.

“Who says I’m obsessed with cosplay?! Jeez, just when I was worrying about you!”

Instead, Yurika now began scheming how to get in the way of Koutarou and Harumi.