I Want to Fall in Love After Getting Reincarnated as the Heroine on the Verge of a Bad Ending, but My OP Older Brother Won’t Leave Me Alone!? - Chapter 23
Translated by: ShinigamiTori
Chapter 23 ? Sports Festival 4
“Yes, it’s fine, but…”
I didn’t recognize the dark-haired, black-eyed, apparently C-ranked male student in front of me. I immediately stopped to see if something was wrong.
Reinhardt and Yoshida seemed to have gone ahead first, so I asked Therese to wait a little while before returning to face the student.
“Thank you. Um, well, I thought you were quite cute, Wainwright-san. I was wondering if you’d like to be friends.”
“Eh?”
And at the unexpected words I was told, my heart jumped in surprise. Could this also be a result of the miracle of the event?
Because I’ve been exposed to so many tragic experiences on a daily basis, I’m so wary that for a moment I suspected it was some kind of prank or something. But judging from his embarrassed expression, it doesn’t seem like he’s lying.
Above all, Rene is a cute girl. Now that I’ve escaped from F-rank, it’s not surprising that I’m approached in this way.
“Um, then please take care of me.”
And the first thing I felt was a feeling of joy.
Maybe because I’ve been met with strong opposition until now, being approached with kindness and a desire to become friends like this genuinely makes me happy.
“Really? Thank you! My name is Darrell.”
“Ah, I’m Rene.”
“I know.”
He laughed when he said that; he seemed like a very nice person. I felt a little embarrassed when I saw the male students behind him saying things like, “Good for you!”
As I was thinking, hoping to gradually expand my circle of friends like this, Darrell continued with a hesitant tone, “Um…”
“If you don’t mind, I’d love to have you cheer for us in the relay race this afternoon.”
“Sure! Good luck.”
“Thank you, I’ll do my best!”
Seeing him smile so happily made me happy too. Eventually, I parted ways with him and apologized to Therese, saying, “I’m sorry for keeping you waiting,” and we started walking back to the field again.
“I-I was so surprised…”
“Rene is adorable. I’m sure you’ll make more friends from now on.”
Seeing me flustered, Therese smiled.
“You’ve always said you wanted to experience love, right?”
“Yeah. First, though, I want to make more friends.”
“But there are so many good-looking men around.”
“That’s true, but….”
Excluding my brother and the distant Arnold-san, I’m certainly surrounded by handsome guys now.
However, I definitely wanted to avoid falling for someone who seems like a capture target. It’s not so much because I dislike them, but it’s more like I’m afraid.
Even if I were to develop mutual feelings, I would probably doubt whether the other person’s affection is genuine or just part of the game’s system. That’s why I want to wrap up the main story around the Normal End and fall in love with a mob character.
“I’m rooting for you. Tell me all about it later.”
“Thank you, of course.”
However, I honestly can’t imagine myself falling in love with someone.
??While I say I want to experience love, I feel as if the day will never come when I will miss someone so much to the point that it hurts.
At that moment, deep down in my heart, I had that thought.
???
The relay race is held for each grade, starting with the first-year students.
Yutte-chan and I were watching from the front row. Our class was currently in second place in our grade, and it seemed like our classmates were putting in a lot of effort.
As I was cheering and watching Willy and Therese run splendidly, I suddenly saw the black-haired guy from earlier start running.
“That person over there told me earlier that he wants to be friends.”
“Eh~ he’s quite handsome. I’m kind of envious.”
Darrell was very quick on his feet and was doing a great job passing a number of people. Maybe it’s the “Event Miracle” effect, but he looks even cooler than before.
Our class finishes in first place, and the crowd cheers.
After that, the second-year relay race began, and when Julius’s turn came, Yutte-chan exclaimed, “Kyaa!” with excitement.
“Rene’s brother is really cool, isn’t he!?”
“Yes, he is.”
“With that level of attractiveness, I could easily develop feelings even for a sibling.”
“No, no.”
Even though we’ve just become like siblings, I also have a sense of ethics. As I continued to watch the game, a voice called out to me, “Rene-chan,” and I turned around to find Darrell.
His sweat was glistening brightly. Looks like he came to me as soon as the relay race ended.
“Did you watch me?”
“Yeah! I was really surprised at how fast you were running. Good job!”
“Thank you. Would you like to take a walk for a bit?”
There was still some time before my turn. While pondering what to do, Yutte-chan encouraged me by saying, “Go ahead,” and I ended up accepting the invitation.
We walk along while having casual conversations. His appearance and personality seem more mature than his age, making him incredibly easy to talk to.
“Being with Rene makes me feel strangely at ease.”
“At ease…”
In fact, I had the same thought about him since the first time I saw him.
Then, I realized something. The reason I feel strangely close to him is because he has black hair and black eyes.
In a world filled with vibrant hair and eye colors, seeing him with looks reminiscent of a Japanese person brings me a sense of comfort.
“To be honest, when I look at Darrell, I also feel at ea?”
“Rene.”
In the midst of that, I heard my name being called out as if to cut off my words. I was surprised to find that it was Julius, who pulled me closer to him.
“What are you doing?”
“W-Why are you here…”
“I saw you going somewhere with a guy, so I came over.”
Being so casual about such things can easily give off the impression that he has a sister complex. I can’t help but wonder what’s going on in my brother’s mind.
“Who is he?”
“This is Darrell, he’s in the class next door. Ah, by the way, this is my brother.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Hi.”
After I introduced him to Julius, Darrell said he didn’t want to interfere with my time with my brother and went back to the field.
Feeling a bit sorry for making him feel uncomfortable, I watched him walk away, and suddenly, my brother grabbed my chin. His intense ice-blue eyes locked with mine in such close proximity.
“So, why were the two of you in a place like this?”
“Darrell wants to be friends with me.”
“Heh~ And then?”
“We were actually talking about that…”
The atmosphere around him feels oddly tense. Why does it seem like I’m being accused of something?
“Why?”
“Why, you say…. I just wanted to become friends with him, that’s all.”
“Do you really think you can be friends with someone who has ulterior motives?”
My brother said that with a seemingly mocking tone, and even though he had a smile on his face, it was clear he was angry.
“Why are you angry?” I asked, and Julius’ eyes widened and a curious expression appeared on his face.
“Am I really angry?”
“Yes.”
“… Really? I was actually considering letting this slide for now. That’s odd.”
I had no idea what my brother meant. And he didn’t seem to understand either. What I was interested in was his response.
Eventually, before I knew it, Julius had backed me up against the wall, placing his hand beside my face. His beautiful face came so close to me that the tips of our noses were almost touching.
In this situation that’s too baffling to comprehend, I can only stare back at his ice-blue eyes. The air was thick with an unsettling silence, and it was my brother who eventually broke it by speaking first.
“I’m sorry, I seem to be angry.”
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