The Winning Heroine's New Route

Amiya Kitsuragi, a hardcore loner in his previous life, remained the same even after being trapped in this light novel world. In his old body, his phone had only two contacts: his family and his childhood friend. Now, in this unfamiliar body, it was no different that his phone still only had his family’s numbers saved. He couldn’t recall giving his number to Shinomori or Erina, nor did this body seem to have any old friends. Amiya was confused, and frankly, it freaked him out. This was the first time he’d been invited to join a group chat by a stranger.

Gulp. This has to be a scam group, right? One of those where they lure you in, brainwash you, and suddenly you’re a cult member or something.

I glanced at the group’s profile picture which was of a cute cat. People in a group with cat pfp can't be a bad person, right? Curiosity got the better of me, and I gave in to the temptation, pressing the green “Join” button. And just like that, I was in.

Huh? There were only three people in the group, including me. I checked the other members’ profile pictures, one had a dandelion flower and other had cat just like the group's. No clue who they were since it wasn’t their face as profile picture. 

Ping! Ping!

Another message popped up. “Kitsuragi-kun, hi hi! (≧▽≦)/” It was from someone I didn’t even know, accompanied by an adorable waving sticker.

“Who are you guys? What is this group? What do you want from me? Also how do you know my name” I replied, my fingers trembling slightly.

“LOL! Kitsuragi-kun, you’re so funny!”

This isn’t funny at all! I’m getting texts from strangers! I remember my mom from my old world warning me about scam calls and prank texts. This had to be one of those.

“Erina-san joined too quickly when I invited her. It freaked me out, It didn't even took seconds for her to join.” the stranger texted again. Wait a minute, if Erina was here too, then this wasn’t a stranger, it had to be Shinomori-san. But only two of us are talking currently, so I assume Erina-san is probably offline.

I flushed with embarrassment. What was I even thinking, being so guarded?

“Anyway, how did you get our numbers? I don’t recall exchanging them,” I asked, but it didn’t take five seconds for her to reply.

“The forms we filled out for the club! We had to put our numbers there so as the club president, I thought we should make a group. Hehe!” She added another goofy, cute sticker but this time with a tongue sticking out.

Ah, I see. Normies don’t even think twice about making groups like this. Every time I received a message, the notification sound was so loud it made me jump. I quickly turned the volume down it was annoying and nerve-wracking at the same time, it was too soon for me to get used to it.

“Um, Kitsuragi-kun, come to DMs.”

“I don’t play Dungeon Muffins?” I texted back.

What even is DMs? Is that some kind of normie code?

“You’re so silly! Alright, check your DMs now.”

Ping! Ping!

Just how fast does she type? From now on, I’m titling her Sonic Fingers.

[Sonic Fingers : A reference to Stein's;gate where Okabe Rintarou titles Kiryu Moeka as Shining Fingers.]

I pressed the button to go back and saw the message she sent privately. Wait, this meant it was just the two of us texting back and forth like those stupid couples do in movies and dramas!

“Well, you know the library titles are limited, so we’ll be visiting Kinokuniya.”

Kinokuniya exists in this world too? Even though the map of Japan is all messed up here, some stores and brand names match my old world. Unlike other light novel titles where everything’s completely different, this world has light novel settings but still has functioning countries, working governments, and even different brands. Though country names are same in this world keeping the map entirely changed. The media’s entirely different too, though. It’s strange how some things align while others don’t.

“I’m sorry, Shinomori-san. You’ll have to be patient with me when it comes to recommendations.”

“It’s fineee, we’re friends!” She sent another cat thumbs-up emoji, it was cute.

We chatted for a while, and I found myself getting used to texting her. We talked about random books, and I even recommended some light novels to her the ones which were already in my shef. Then she started gushing about cats with no surprise there, given her cat pfp that she adores cats. Strangely, I was getting into the conversation more. I never thought texting on a phone could feel so different yet so... nice.

I wish I could’ve made friends like this in my previous world.

Amiya smiled faintly at the thought. It was still too soon to fully adjust to this world, but meeting new people had already started to change him, even if just a little. He’d just made two friends recently, something warm and new that was slowly melting away the icy walls of his past.

“Bye bye, see you tomorrow at school!” she texted.

I replied, trying to match her energy. “Cya.” I had to search on Doogle every time she used those mini abbreviations. Why do normies make everything so complicated?

❋❋❋

The next morning, I was walking to school when I spotted her, Ootori Shea the losing heroine, with her fiery red hair swaying with every step, just like yesterday. I was behind her, and with fewer people around, walking behind a girl felt a creep or stalker was following her. More than that, I didn’t want to talk to her. The losing heroine who was now will be taking the winner's place, thanks to me changing the plot to save a background character, who is now my friend too. Everything was going smoothly, so I kept my distance, walking slower to avoid her in a distance.

“Oi, why are you walking behind me like a stalker? Oh wait, you are the Fukada Erina's stalker,” she said, turning around abruptly.

“S-s-sorry! I’m going back home! Ha ha ha!” My voice quivered. Why are the light novel girls so scary? Except Shinomori-san, of course. Please save me! Last time, I tried walking ahead of her, and she yanked me back, accusing me of being suspicious and then we exchanged few words. This time, trying to stay behind failed too.

“Haah? Why home? Let’s just walk together. We’re both going to school anyway, and I think we’ll keep running into each other like this. It’d be awkward if we ignore each other every day.”

“O-oh...”

Shea made her point clear. Even she felt the awkwardness too. If you see a classmate on the same path, you’d at least say hi or bye. Ignoring each other while walking to the same destination in silence? That’s just weird, we both get it.

We started walking side by side. Her posture was like a model’s with confident, fierce, and overwhelming. A bright character with a fiery mood.

“So, you told me last time that you know a little about Hitsugi, right?” she brought up the topic. I’d seen her talking to the main character, Hitsugi, a few times. Was she trying to make a connection now?

“Are you interested in him?” I asked, looking straight into her eyes.

“W-what are you talking about? It’s not like I like him or anything! He’s just frustrating, a dumbass who thinks he can do anything with his lazy self!”

Ah, the classic tsundere line.

“So, you want to win against him?” I smirked, knowing exactly where this was going.

Her eyes sharpened as she looked forward, keeping pace with me. “Yes,” she said firmly.

Just as I expected. She would’ve brought up Hitsugi eventually. I tried avoiding her, and I was scared of her, but honestly, I knew everything about her personality thanks to the light novel. A typical tsundere was easier to handle than characters like Erina, Hitsugi or even the side characters.

“He’s dense, and that’s his weakness. But if you can’t even take advantage of that, then you’re denser than him, I can't tell anything other than that as I am not entirely sure.” I stated.

“So, I’m fooling myself by being denser than him?” Shea continued, understanding my point. “It’s exactly what he told me too... Hmm... I see.”

Wait, what? Someone told her about Hitsugi’s weakness before me? What was that just now?

“Wait, Shea-san... Does that mean someone else told you the same thing I just said?”

“Ah, forget it, Kitsuragi-kun. Thanks for letting me know. I’ll definitely make him appreciate my home cooking today! Ugh, he always has that ‘I don’t care’ face. It’s so frustrating!”

Her expression turned scary, so I didn’t push further. Maybe I was overthinking it. Everything was going smoothly. Ootori Shea would fall in love with Hitsugi, and they’d develop feelings for each other. It was a win for everyone. Shea wouldn’t be the losing heroine anymore, with that she wouldn't go into rampage and involve Shinomori.

❋❋❋

The classes flew by at 2x speed. The day felt faster, and having already gone through third-year of knowledge, the lessons were boring. But revising first-year textbooks wasn’t so bad. During short breaks, I could see the trio of Shea, Hitsugi, and his buddy Joji talking to eachother. If this were the original light novel, Erina would’ve been in their group too. But now, she was in the literature club with us. Not a bad change.

Housaka Joji, the supporting character who helps Hitsugi navigate his dense feelings, plays a vital role in the original plot. But now, he’d probably help Hitsugi develop feelings for Shea instead of Erina.

The day passed peacefully, almost like the plot's genre had shifted from drama to slice of life. It felt quite nice. I exchanged a few words with Shinomori during class, avoiding too much interaction since I didn’t want to be labeled as Erina’s stalker again but instead Shinomori's name. Even though I’d declared myself Erina’s friend yesterday in the library, I avoided interacting with her. She seemed to understand and didn’t even glance my way completely ignoring me. Yeah, that kinda hurt, but whatever.

After class, everyone headed to their clubs except for the go home clubs who went home. Shinomori, Erina, and I stayed behind in the class, making our way to the literature club after everyone slowly left the class—aka the library. It was as to not get peoples attention, walking alongside with Erina was a bad idea since my reputation is already low because of what I did that day on recess.

“I guess treating you like dirt is the best course of action,” Erina said coldly, reading No Sister No Life, the light novel I had picked up yesterday from the shelve but now Erina was reading it, as If I have guts to ask the volume back. Thankfully, my sister Tamaki already owned a copy of volume, so she lent it to me for reading yesterday when we had our make-up cake as she was pouting. But now those words were directed at me.

“Hey, Erina-san, if you step on dirt, sometimes you can’t ignore it, you know? Also, treating me like dirt is a bit rude.”

“So, a dirt like you wants to get stepped on by me? Disgusting pervert.” She glared at me with disgust. “Well, you might be right. It’d feel like stepping on dog poop which would preety be hard to ignore.”

Aren’t you being a bit too cold? Yesterday, she was smiling after joining the club, though she was still cold. But her sharp tongue was too much. Did she still hold a grudge against me? I couldn’t figure her out. Unlike Shea and Shinomori, who were easier to read, Erina was as dense as Hitsugi. It was hilarious how they’d been compatible in the original plot of light novel, typical main characters.

“Um, well, Kitsuragi-kun, Erina didn’t mean it that way. It’s only been a day since we all started mingling. I bet she’s just shy,” Shinomori said, trying to soften the atmosphere. She’s so kind.

“Y-yeah.” I had to agree with Shinomori to keep my image intact. Girls dropped honorifics so fast getting together, while I was still stuck using them. It felt like I was being treated like dirt.

“Shinomori, you pamper Kitsuragi-kun too much. He might start feeling attracted to you, you know,” Erina said, smiling at Shinomori.

Hey, why can’t you smile like that when talking to me? That’s unfair!

“W-w-whaaaat? N-no way!” Shinomori flailed her arms in denial.

Her desperate reaction stung. She didn’t have to go that far with the denial waving her hands desperately. But as expected, I had no chance with her anyway. Romance wasn’t for me.

“By the way, Erina, why are you reading that light novel? Is it that interesting?” Shinomori asked, pointing at the book.

“Yes, it’s not bad. The world-building is good. I didn’t expect it to be this well-written,” Erina replied calmly, with a smile. The smile which was only for Shinomori.

“You’re right. The world-building is interesting, and the characters are lovable. I love the brother-sister duo and how they beat games in different worlds,” I agreed to Erina's opinion.

Shinomori clasped her hands. “Oh. I thought Kitsuragi-kun was a sis-con. I’m sorry,” she said, bowing slightly.

“D-don’t worry, Shinomori-san. It happens.”

I realized why she’d been weirdly glancing between me and the book yesterday while I was reading. The title had created a grave misunderstanding.

“Well, I thought he was a sis-con too, but after reading the novel, I changed my mind,” Erina said, smiling at Shinomori. Then she turned to me vanishing her smile, her sharp lips dancing as she threw verbal knives. “He’s a hardcore sis-con.”

“Wait a minute! That doesn’t make sense! The plot’s completely different! Why are you making wrong assumptions?” I protested.

“Come to think of it, why would you even pick up this book out of hundreds? Was it the title? Don’t you agree, Shinomori?” Erina’s sharp tongue even made Shinomori nod in agreement.

I was defenseless. My body went limp as I melted into the air, unable to come up with a comeback. This world is tragic. Villains are made, not born. This was pure bullying, but I couldn’t use violence against Erina, a girl. I gritted my teeth.

God dammit! I wish we had gender equality was maintained!

But it was my fault too. I’d confessed to her suddenly at our first meet like a creep, helped her carry books like a stalker, and then told her I didn’t mean the confession seriously. Of course, she would hate a creep like me.

“Erina-san, I’m sorry. I know you hate me... but if it’s too much for you... I’ll resign from this club.”

Their eyes widened. The atmosphere turned tense. Did I say something wrong?

“Why?” Shinomori asked, her voice filled with emotion. She’d spent three years alone in this club in the light novel's origami plot. Now, she had Erina as a friend. A background character like me wasn’t even worth filling the spot, by any means it's already fine as it is.

“Kitsuragi-kun... I’m... sorry... I didn’t mean to...,” Erina mumbled, her voice trembling with regret. Her cold demeanor was gone. Her eyes were teary, and she looked at me with genuine remorse suddenly.

What? Did I mishear her? 

Her voice was barely a whisper, trembling with something unfamiliar regret. An ojou-sama character apologizing to me? Just minutes ago, those same lips curled in disgust at my presence. But now… now her voice quivered, her eyes shimmered with unshed tears.

She continued, her tone fragile, as if afraid her words might shatter between us.

"I don't hate Kitsuragi-kun, I just felt like making fun...as friends...I thought that's what friends do."

"..."

My breath caught in my throat. This reaction—where had I seen it before? Then it hit me. That scene. The one where Erina begged for forgiveness from Ootori Shea, the losing heroine. The moment she realized the weight of her actions, the guilt of stealing Hitsugi from Shea who was also her friend. That same heartbreaking expression from the light novel was occuring before me.

"I deeply apologize…" Her voice cracked. "I went too far. I’m bad at talking to people, so I keep my words short. But every time I try… I just end up hurting someone or they gets mad at me because of the way I speak."

Her head hung low, shoulders trembling under the weight of regret. And in that moment, I saw it was beyond the cold, refined exterior.

She wasn’t looking down on me in disgust all these time.

Perhaps she was just afraid.

Afraid of connection.

Afraid of hurting someone by her words again yet she couldn't help herself going with her personality. That's who she was.

And somehow… I found myself wishing that those tears so unfitting for someone as beautiful as her would never fall again.

Shinomori grabbed Erina’s shoulder and nodded at me, hinting for me to say something. I hadn’t expected things to turn out like this. The chaotic, fun atmosphere had turned gloomy because of me.

I already knew Erina’s personality from the novel, but talking to her in person was nerve-wracking. I’d given her enough reasons to hate me, but maybe I was just being too self-conscious.

She was just like me, lack of human interaction and she didn't knew how to interact, isn't that the same case as me? But there was no Hitsugi for her right now, Hitsugi was dense so her sharp words never reached him. As a friend of her, it is indeed my responsibility to take the cour of action within my hands, I am not good at confronting people like others. But atleast I can talk my heart out, that's the best I can do as a friend.

I reacted to Shinomori's gesture and spoke up.

“Sigh, I’m sorry too, Erina-san. I can’t read people well just like you I am bad at interacting people too,” I said, smiling nervously. “You should’ve smiled at me like you do with Shinomori-san. Of course, I’d misunderstand you thinking you hated me.”

“But I went too far...” finally the tear rolled down her cheek which she was trying to hold it in her eyes.

I realized this world was different from the light novel. Despite being the same characters, there were nuances I couldn’t ignore. Erina’s trembling fist, overflowing with emotion, wasn’t something written in the novel. I’d been a fool, treating them like NPCs thinking everything here was a light novel settings. They were living, breathing people with their own consciousness. I knew it yet sometimes I had this complex just because I am In this light novel settings.

“Friends don’t say sorry to each other. And tears don’t suit your beautiful face. Keep smiling or else you might turn ugly like me.” I bit my lips in frustration then turned it into a smile looking straight to her face, as I pushed her my handkerchief to her hand. the trembling of her hands somehow calmed down.

“Huh? Are you still crying?” I asked bending a little low so I could see her face, as she turned her face down wiping it with my handkerchief, her hair hiding her expression. She looked like Sadako, But I could see her ears turning red. For some reason even Shinomori was flushed who was right beside her.

“K-kitsuragi-kun, that was smooth!” Shinomori exclaimed with a little jump.

“B-b-b-beautiful face?” Erina getting back to her sense stuttered which was unlike her, her hands shaking as she wiped her face with my handkerchief.

Uwah, scary!

After she wiped her tears, her eyes were still red and swollen. But she smiled at me.

“Thank you, Kitsuragi-kun...”

As she spoke, this time the smile, was directed to me. 

A gentle breeze blew through the window, flipping the pages of the light novel she’d been reading. It felt like Erina's smile had summoned air fairies into the library. The atmosphere was serene. Shinomori hugged her tightly with a jump. “Erina, you’re adorable. I’m glad I’m your friend~”

As I watched them, a smile naturally formed on my face. It felt as though our bond had grown even stronger than yesterday. Just a day ago, she was keeping her sentences short when speaking to us, hesitating even to ask if she could join the group. She was self-conscious, afraid of being a nuisance, and tried her best to suppress her usual cold demeanor. The way she was raised had clearly shaped her behavior.

After I officially declaring us as friends yesterday, she wanted to open up more, to joke around like friends do. Though her jokes felt harsh to me, I should have expected it, as after all, I already knew the story's plot. But back then, I had intentionally tried to make her dislike me naturally, hoping to prevent her from interacting with Hitsugi. In the end, it turned out to be a misunderstanding on both sides.

Come to think of it, she thanked me before too, if she hated me she wouldn't have probably thanked me at first place.

After everyone calmed down, we left school. Erina went the opposite way, while Shinomori and I walked together until the crossroads. We exchanged a few words about the day’s classes before parting ways.

❋❋❋

"Uwahhhhhhh!!!"

A loud cry echoed through the house. Tamaki, reacting instantly, barged into the room.

"Onii-sama!!!" My sister appeared before me, her eyes widening at the pitiful sight of her shirtless brother, surrounded by a mess of plain t-shirts scattered across the floor.

"Why are all my clothes so plainnnn?!" I wailed in frustration.

Of course, tomorrow is Saturday, the day of my date with Shinomori. Well, she might not call it a date, but I do. She’s supposed to recommend some books, but that doesn’t change the fact that this will be my first-ever date with a girl. Yet, the guy whose body I’ve hijacked is just as hopeless as I was in my previous life, no good clothes, no fashion sense, nothing.

I have nothing to wear.

I'm doomed.

Wearing these plain clothes is basically the same as going naked. No, actually, going naked might be better. Even if I rushed to a mall at this hour, my complete lack of fashion sense would make it pointless.

Just as despair threatened to consume me, I turned to my sister, who was still frozen in the doorway, drawn in by my scream.

Then, enlightenment struck. A savior had appeared. The great queen—my sister.

I stood up, newfound hope surging through me. Slowly, I walked toward her and placed a firm hand on her shoulder.

Shirtless.

"Get ready, Tamaki." I smirked.

"W-Wha—wbabababa—w-what?! G-Get ready for what?! S-S-Something lewd?!" She flailed, hands flying up to hide her face.

"We're going on a fashion hunt. Right now. And you are going to help me."