Chapter 59 - When you like someone, you want to know everything about them, right?
It would have been very easy for me to just force my way out of this. I mean, there was absolutely no way I’d lose to a tiny girl like her in a contest of strength.
But she was weaponizing the very fact that she was small and frail. For example, if Wannai-san started crying and screaming that I hit her, no one around us would doubt her for a second. "Someone is hitting a little girl.” Just that suspicion alone was enough to mobilize the crowd.
Even if it was a completely false accusation.
“You know, Saiga always comes here on Sundays to buy from a takoyaki shop. He's a huge siscon, you see. And his cute little sister loves the takoyaki here, so he comes every week just to see her happy face.”
As expected of Wannai-san and her stalker tendencies. She had his entire behavioral pattern memorized.
“You really know a lot.”
“Well, of course. When you like someone, you want to know everything about them, right?”
“So that’s why you said you wanted to go to this mall’s movie theater…”
I finally understood the reason why she had suddenly wanted to change our destination. It seemed she had devised a meticulous plan, all just to make Sanada and Mogami-san run into each other.
“Nihihi~ Well, even I didn't know for sure if they'd actually run into each other like that, though. That’s Saiga for you... he always shows up like a hero the moment a girl’s in trouble.”
Below us, Sanada had approached Mogami-san, triggering the encounter event she had orchestrated. Mogami-san stood cautiously on guard, but maybe realizing Sanada had no ill intentions, she didn’t move away. Sanada, meanwhile, was taking a humble, apologetic stance. He looked like he was genuinely worried about her.
“Want me to tell you exactly what they’re talking about right now?”
“…You can tell?”
“Of course I can. I love Saiga, and I've taken a liking to Fuko, too. I can read the people I like like an open book.”
With that, Wannai-san began to act out their conversation, playing both roles herself.
『Mogami, what are you doing here?』
『Huh? Sanada-kun… why are you here?』
『Just some errands. I happened to see you and you looked troubled, so I thought I’d check on you.』
『I’m not really in trouble, but… um, do you happen to know Wannai-san's contact info?』
『Misuzu's number? Of course I do. Why?』
『Actually... we got separated. If you could, could you please contact her for me and ask where she is—』
Just as she reached that point, Wannai-san's phone rang. Down below, I could see Sanada holding his phone to his ear.
Her impressions of Mogami-san and Sanada didn't sound anything like them... but it seemed she'd nailed the content. Her phone was ringing right now. But she just ignored it and kept talking to me.
“See? Nothing major is happening. You don’t need to worry.”
“...So that's how you're doing it. You're setting it up so he can take advantage of Mogami-san's good nature.”
“Aha! I knew you'd figure it out~... If she receives kindness from someone, she feels compelled to return it. That's just Fuko's personality, right? So, after this... she probably won't be able to bring herself to say anything bad about Saiga anymore.”
She still didn’t answer the call. She was ignoring it on purpose, forcing me to watch the two of them together.
“I've never seen a girl that pure. That's why I realized I couldn't win against her... and also realized that I could use her. And you are in the way of that.”
...I thought she was taking me lightly. But I was wrong. She had properly sized me up, analyzed me, and evaluated me.
Maybe I was the one who had been underestimating her.
I deeply regretted that I'd only seen Wannai-san as a playful 'comic relief' character.
She really was, after all, one of the main heroines.
“Sato... no, Satoru. I have a request. Won't you give up on Fuko? Just let Saiga have her. You're pretty mature, aren't you? Think of it as letting the kids enjoy their youth. You could do that much, couldn't you?”
She knew my name.
She even understood my true nature.
She saw right through the man… named Sato Satoru.
“I haven't told you this, but... I actually kind of like you, Satoru. I’m glad I ended up liking you. That’s why I looked all sorts of things up about you ♪”
When you like someone, you want to know everything about them.
Because of that mindset, she had thoroughly investigated even a bland, nondescript guy like me.
And that was what led to this result. Everything was going exactly as she had planned.
I had been dancing in the palm of Wannai-san’s hand from the very beginning.
