Please, Defame Me More
The first semester after enrollment.
The most thrilling stretch of a lifetime — and, at the same time, the one destined to hurt the most.
"Hey, hey—! I told you not to get mixed up with her."
"…Why?"
"Haven't you heard the rumors? The second she transferred in, she slapped the Saintess across the—"
My brilliant groundwork was already bearing fruit this early. Kids, the easiest way to get close to someone is trash-talking a third party. So go on — tear me apart. Hurry up and let those lilies bloom already.
…Wait. She was the Saintess? That I genuinely did not know. She just looked pure and pretty, so I figured she was the popular-girl type and went over and hit her.
Characters like that tend to spread rumors the fastest, too.
So, well… maybe it wasn't all bad.
Does that mean I'll hit my goal of becoming a total outcast loner even sooner?
Hah.
Trash me more, more—
Bully me until I'm a complete wreck♡
Click—
I was mid-delightful brain-rot when a set of footsteps drew closer.
……Who's this coming over to me.
A follower of the Saintess, maybe?
Hah — is the revenge event already here?
So there was a clever little friend planning to close the distance with the Saintess by going, Who do you think you are, hitting our Saintess—!
Ahh, how adorable♡
"…You know me, right?"
…No, of course I don't.
But this is the revenge event, right? I stayed up late yesterday lost in delusion, so I'm already exhausted.
Still, it's kind of fascinating. Red hair can actually look good on someone. Most of the time it just gives off stir-fried gochujang vibes and creeps me out.
"Who are you."
That aside — any chance you could just leave me alone to live quietly as an outcast? Ever since you walked into the classroom, everyone's gone dead silent. They're all staring over here. Haaah. The gazes feel so electric….
"……Follow me."
……Whine, whine.
Well, nothing for it now. Flip the word "crisis" around and what do you get?
Sisirc, that's what. As if there's any "opportunity" in this.
Still, getting stomped into the dirt in front of a crowd might actually work pretty well.
Of course I'm not a masochist who gets off on being hit, okaaay♡
Ah, but I do kind of want to get hit at least once. And then I'd let out a textbook little haang— moan, too.
Then she'd look at me with pure disgust, right? And that would be the express lane to outcast status. Gotta try that sometime.
But her face looks weirdly familiar. What's the word… that… hmm.
My empty skull can't remember. Heh.
"How far are we going? Why don't we just do it here?"
Perfect timing — the hallway was already packed with people. This was the ideal moment. Beating me up would be a fantastic way to score points with the Saintess.
Looks like we've got a decent audience, and I'm embarrassed, so let's wrap this up quick.
Here— the cheek of the nasty bitch who trampled your love. I'll hold it out nice and easy for you. How about it? Hm?
…
……Her reaction's a little slow. Should I shake my face around a bit?
No — better to tilt it slightly so it's easier to hit.
…
"……What are you— no, I said follow me…."
"……."
What.
I've never met someone this didn't work on. Granted, I only just thought of it and tried it for the first time.
I stared blankly after Gochujang as she walked off. What is with this girl. Seriously, what.
…Is she a tough opponent?
Oh — she turned around.
"Finally, you've come to your—"
Eck.
What? Why'd she suddenly grab my wrist? What does this girl plan to do with me? Discipline me until I collapse into a mess of total submission?
Ah. Is it that?
A group lynching? Or maybe a gangbang?
…Hmm. If they all go at once, nothing's going to fit. Plus it's better when there are more eyes watching.
……No idea.
Might as well just give her the defeat-and-submit routine she wants.
"……"
……Gochujang.
This girl might actually be a more upright person than I gave her credit for.
She dragged me up to an empty rooftop and even locked the door behind us. Should I rename her Passion? Or maybe Fire Chicken?
"……You really don't know me?"
"Who are you supposed to be."
What is she even talking about all of a sudden.
That thing where you state your name before a fight… whatever those martial-arts guys do. Must be that.
"You… ah."
She seemed to realize something all at once. I could practically see a lightbulb icon pop up over her head.
Still, no matter how I look at her, that face is weirdly familiar.
"……I see. Thank you for yesterday."
"……?"
Ah, so this is what it feels like to get secondhand embarrassment. She's putting on a whole one-woman show over here.
"Honestly, I didn't even know who you were, and I never expected you'd get angry on my behalf."
"Huh?"
Oh wow, now she's banging the gong too?
"That girl… haah, she's actually been a close friend of mine since we were little, but we… had a bit of a fight."
"Eh?"
What on earth is this girl saying? Does she have a delusion complex like me or something?
"Anyway, I'll make sure to tell people you just misunderstood the situation, so I'll do my best to clear up the rumors quickly."
"Uweh?"
I have no idea where to cut her off. Not that there weren't plenty of chances.
But it's entertaining, you know? Like watching a youth drama. And I didn't even subscribe — this is free. Free!
No, but hang on — I'd rather she didn't clear those rumors?
She's going to tear down the tower I worked so hard to build? Even the military would get roasted for that. Ever heard of a thousand-day construction project?
"…And this is a small token of thanks."
As she said it, Gochujang held out a tiny ring she'd been fidgeting with in her hand.
Waaah, a present. And a ring, no less!
……Eh, why a ring of all things?
"I… have a matching one, you see. So."
Whoa, her face had gone full gochujang too. Super red. You could make kimchi with that.
"Probably… no one at the academy will give you any trouble over it."
My brain couldn't make sense of any of this. Ah — is she empty-headed too?
Hmm, well, that would explain it.
But honestly, even an empty-headed person wouldn't gift someone a ring. And she said they're matching couple rings.
"Ah, anyway— see you around."
With that, Gochujang spun on her heel and headed straight for the rooftop entrance.
…See me around for what.
I might ogle her from a distance with my filthy, delusion-soaked eyes, but I have zero intention of meeting her one-on-one.
Sigh. And what's with the ring. If you're going to give one, give it to that Saintess girl or whoever. The Saintess is Sugar, you're Gochujang — mix it up nice and sticky. Throw in that cute pink-haired friend standing next to them and you'd get a whole plate of spicy pork stir-fry.
Tonight's dinner is decided. Yeah.
Anyway, that aside.
I should return what needs returning. Having this on me short-circuits my whole system.
"Hey—"
SLAM——
Chasing after her was honestly too much of a hassle. The door had shut harder than I expected, and she looked pretty startled… hmm, I feel a little bad about that.
"Take it. You don't just hand rings out to random people."
"……."
Whether it means something or it's just a simple thank-you — rings are for people you care about, okaaay?
So hurry up and give that to the Saintess and go stir-fry some spicy pork.
By the way, the wind was really whipping around. Why is this Gochujang's hair so long? I can't see a thing in front of me.
Creeeak——
"The wind's slamming the door shut, so get downstairs already."
My hand tightened unconsciously around the doorknob. …If I let go and the door shuts again, is she actually going to jump out of her skin and fall over?
Only then did Gochujang hesitate, then slip past me.
Thanks to that, my face was a total mess. It's not like a cat flirting with its tail — this girl flirts with her hair?
Thud—
……I'm going to be late for first period.
Ah, right. The most important thing.
"And don't go around explaining things for no reason. It's annoying."
I can't lose this happy life where nobody pays attention to me.
Well, that settles our business. Time to head back to the precious nest of a joyful outcast loner — the very front seat of the classroom.
"……And with that, morning theory class is concluded."
"Mm—"
Food time.
Ever since my school days, my eyes would snap open on their own the second fourth period ended. Looks like that holds true in this world too. Habits really are wonderful.
…But these kids are so well-behaved.
Aren't you supposed to sit in your chair in a combat-ready stance, prepared to bolt at any second?
Every day used to be a five-minute standby. Guess these girls just aren't hungry. Works for me.
I stood up in a good mood and strolled leisurely toward the back door of the classroom. If I'd known it would be like this, I should've sat in the back.
I'd taken the front seat just in case the delinquents tried to pick a fight.
…Come to think of it, sitting in the back would've let me observe all the dense little connections the kids pass back and forth, wouldn't it?
Ah. I've made a grave mistake.
But that's that.
I'm hungry. Food.
…I'm seriously craving spicy pork stir-fry. Why doesn't this world have jeyuk? I wish that Gochujang and Sugar from earlier were here together. Sauce that sticky wouldn't even need a side dish.
But not a single person was racing toward the cafeteria. Are there really nothing but proper young ladies here?
Watching girls like these claw at each other over who's the bottom and who's the top is the real entertainment.
Maybe after lunch I'll check out the garden behind the school. I have a feeling there might be some lovely lilies there, sharing a lunchbox with the sweetest smiles.
Start of the semester… plus a quiet garden.
That clumsy flutter of not knowing what the other is thinking, turning a single word over dozens of times in your head before finally managing to say it, watching every shift in expression to keep the conversation going — that stuff is delicious.
Just thinking about it makes me hungry. Mmph. Ah — so overthinking is what's making me hungry.
Time to eat.
A corner of the cafeteria. The kind of seat no one would bother coming all the way out to. The farthest possible spot from both the serving line and the return window.
From here, I could freely observe the lilies just beginning to bloom.
Without a single interruption.
How blissful is this seat. Isn't this the true throne of the Chair King?
Haaah… today I'm kind of in the mood for childhood-friend content.
Why did I have to get isekai'd right when I was a second-year, of all times.
How much better would it have been if I'd possessed someone as a first-year?
One lovely lily blooming among the barren weeds. And I'd be the bee.
I'd suck the nectar nice and slow, and the pollen… well, that spreads on its own, so pass. If I stick around I'd just dirty it. Nope.
They say you don't mess with the laws of nature. Leave them alone and pure lilies will multiply on their own.
Still, I should be content that it's a new semester. Classes keep reshuffling, so those slightly awkward relationships where you only know each other's faces have a dark-chocolate kind of flavor too.
Or maybe one side is high-cacao bitter dark chocolate, and the other is high-sugar I'm so comfortable around her— chocolate.
What happens when those two rub together? Hm? They melt into each other, the concentrations keep mixing, and they go all sticky and soft. A round chocolate and a square chocolate, grinding against each other.
Until both of them become smooth, perfectly round chocolates. Trembling like cicada magnets. Haaah.
Ting—
……What.
I already finished eating.
Dammit… I wanted to have my lunch with 4D side dishes. I stuffed myself full enough on 2D last night.
Mmph, well, there's always tomorrow.
Now I can quietly kill my presence, do a little peeping, and head into afternoon classes.
"You there. Wait a moment."
Hah — here it comes. My porn.
Haaah… You, just a moment— mmm, ah, not there, ahhhn…♡ — which pair of cute young ladies' conversation is that going to be?
I turned my head with high expectations. Ah, of course I kept my expression hidden. Or rather — it was already hidden?
The character I possessed barely has any facial expressions to begin with. So as long as I roll my eyes carefully, I can peep to my heart's content.
Alright, alright — who's today's dessert……
…Eh.
"……You remember yesterday, don't you?"
"……."
Isn't that Sugar — the one I slapped yesterday. Ah, I should call her the Saintess now.
Where's Gochujang from earlier? But wait — is this actually the revenge event? Plenty of eyes watching, and the timing seems pretty ideal.
This is a golden opportunity.
Come on, throw your food tray in my face already.
And make a complete mess of me.
Smear me all over with sticky liquid——♡