Escape Galge - Chapter 7.7

The classroom which is noisy during break time, changes to a different type of commotion when the door opens.
The one who opens the door is this schools number one ikemen, the subject of the girls adoration and the enemy of the dudes, the second-year Kagurazaka Aoi.
The unpleasant commotion that enters my ears stems from the shrill voices of the girls.

Sigh. It looks like Kii-chan and Kagurazaka-senpai reconciled.
It sure was a short dream.
Shuddap.

At the end of my gaze lays a blue-eyed beauty whose golden hair is softly curled.
My heart hurts as I look at the adorable figure toddling off when Kagurazaka-senpai beckons her.

The ambiance is different only around her.
Even when encircled, she gives off a radiance that wont be buried.
The other girls may beat me up and sayI dont want to be told that byyouif I tell them this but her surroundings are filled with background characters.
Without a doubt, she is the heroine.
As expected, a heroine is one attached to a hero.

Youre a background character after all. A background character wont goal in with a heroine. Occurrences likeI, the background character, together with she, the heroine!?is just the protagonist donning the mask of a background character. But you are merely a background character. A honest-to-goodness background character. Thats why the outcome is a given.
You are also a mere glasses background character right!

The one who boorishly pulls my leg when Im feeling sentimental is my long-time good friend.
This guy is the same type of human as me.
We are existences with transparent atmospheres, who arent perceived even when we enter peoples fields of vision.

Oi oi, I ask that you dont lump me, a glasses background character, together with you, a mere unlabelled background character.
Theyre the same, right.

I dont know what his speech and actions are acclaiming about, but each and everyone of them are so shameless that its provoking.

What are you saying. You can express my entire identity just by adding the pillow wordglasses. You do not know who its referring to if you hearbackground character, but if you sayglasses background character, in this class, you know its referring to me. This is the distinct difference.
Glasses isnt a pillow word and besides, is the glasses your entire existence! Then, will your identity disappear if everyone in class wears glasses?
Hahha! Theres no way a class like that exists, right. If there is, its something Id like to pay homage to!
Sure enough, talking to you is irritating.

I dont want anymore unnecessary stress.
Looking away from my bespectacled friend of whose everything is pitiful, I collapse on the table.

Itou-kun.

Someone calls my name so I turn my head towards the side.
I can see a skirt from my collapsed view.
After directing only my gaze, I find that its my classmate Kanagi-san, the girl who serves as our class representative.
Wearing a pair of silver-rimmed glasses, she exudes a seemingly intellectual aura.
Thats the case in actuality; she has the highest grades in class.
Appearance-wise, she wears glasses, and with her long black hair split into two and tied into braids, she gives an impression of being plain.

Teacher passed this to me.

Hastily lifting my upper body, I receive a printout as I give my thanks.
Looks like theres an error in the printout I submitted; a sticky note is stuck at the part that requires correction.
As I fold the printout with the intention of correcting it later, a scene of the protagonist and heroine going somewhere together enters a corner of my vision.

Sigh, Kii-chan

God-sama is cruel.
Just as you think youre being shown a dream, it changes into despair in the blink of an eye.
To think its become the worst scenario where Kagurazaka Aoi, who had been so broadly acquainted with girls, narrows down to only Kii
Theres no way a background character can beat an insistent protagonist.

As expected, Itou-kun, do you like cute girls like Torida-san?
She takes no notice of me though.

It appears that the cry in my heart reached Kanagi-san.
Even if my true motive gushes out, I dont feel embarrassed at all.
I can only laugh dryly.

But, you two chatted often, right?
It was only for a while though.

The day I saved her when she was running from Aoi.
On the spur, I tried to confess to her but having been disregarded, it wasnt brought to a conclusion.
Although she apologised the next day, we hadnt properly spoken ever since.
It was only to the extent of exchanging greetings.
The only salvation is that she still calls meEi-kun.
The other guys dont even get called by their first names by her so theyre considerably jealous of me.
Its my sole gratification.
Nonetheless in the end, thats it.
There aint no chance to be something like aspecial existenceto her.

Besides, its like she doesnt suit a person like me, who doesnt have any redeeming qualities.

Depressing.
Dear God, please teach me a wayto evolve from a background character into a protagonist.
It doesnt have to beeveryones protagonist, I wont ask for such extravagance.
As long as I can become the protagonist to a single girl, thats fine.

Theres no such thing!

Kanagi-san suddenly speaks in a loud voice, causing my good friend and I, the two of us, to be astonished.
I wonder whats up.
When our eyes meet, she averts her gaze awkwardly.

I think that Itou-kun also has a lot of good points. Even before, you did the cleaning in place of me who couldnt turn it down.

When I stare fixedly at her, she hesitatingly tells me the reason for her words just now.

Before?
Nothing comes to mind straightaway, so I dig through my memories.
Ahhcleaningshe says? There was something like that.

I think it was the day Kanagi-san was on cleaning duty.
Just at the moment I tidied up my desk and stood up to go home, I saw that there was some dissonance in front of the storage for cleaning tools.
As I didnt have the intention to get involved in the dispute, I pricked up my ears with the feeling of a curious onlooker as I passed by, and was able to hear their conversation.

Hey, please! We want to leave early today!
Still, as expected, doing it alone is

It was a conversation in front of the storage for cleaning tools so I was able to deduce quickly.
That the other three girls who were on cleaning duty pushed their job onto Kanagi-san and planned to go off enjoying themselves.

Isnt that going overboard?

Even though I didnt intend to get involved, I unconsciously stopped walking and spoke.
Its something that will be completed quickly if four people do it, but its too much to leave it to one person when you go off and have fun.

Hah?

However, bathed in the cold gazes of the three girls, I regretted speaking out.
Surrounded by the three in an instant, they grumbled that I shouldnt act cool and I was quickly defeated.
There was no way I could put up a fight in face of the intimidating mouths of the girls.

All three left to enjoy themselves in the end though.
Your consistency in being disappointed, brilliant.
Shuddap.

Your ability to irritate people is also unbeatable.
When I protest with my eyes, he actually returns a smile that further stirs up irritation.
Imma punch you anytime now yknow, your glasses is gonna break, yknow.

But you helped out after that, didnt you?
Thats well.

I wasnt much help, so thinking to at least lend a hand, I did the cleaning with her.
That is to say, that was theonlything I could do.
Im, such a disappointment.

I was extremely happy. Itou-kun is kind, and guys like that are wonderful, I think.

Leaving those words, Kanagi-san returns to her own seat.
I silently watch over that figure.
W-wonderful?

Looking at her side profile as she sits while facing downwards, the ear that can be seen from the gap between her tied hair is red.
The moment I realise that, I also realise that my own ears are hot.

Despite being an unlabelled background character, how impudent.
Sh-shuddap

I steal another glance at Kanagi-sans side profile.
Her skin is fair and clear.
If those silver-rimmed glasses are taken off, contact lenses are worn and her hair unravelled, she seems like shell be extremely cute.
Huh, was Kanagi-san such a cute person?

By the time I realise, I dont feel anything now even though I was so depressed before.
I didnt even notice that Kii-chan had returned to the classroom.
For me to not notice the heroine, have I become weird?

Heroine, huh.
I wonder whats a Heroine.
An attractive and good-looking girl?
A girl who takes actions that can become anecdotes and lives an enlivening daily life?

I look at Kanagi-san again.

I cant say for sure but I feel like Ive comprehend and gotten hold of something.

Sure enough, Im a protagonist too. And you arent just a glasses background character.
What, to think that you were suddenly enlightened. Did you think you became a sage just because you were praised a little? Dont get carried away. Sheesh, this is why background characters are
Yes yes.

Dear God, let me take back my wishI want to be a protagonistjust now.
It appears that its unnecessary.
The daily life of thebackground-character-cum-protagonist me, is enlivening and amusing in my own way.