“So that’s what happened, ‘Baron’… what do you think I should do?”
‘Hahaha, a confession as a penalty game? That’s nice. Very high school-like. Call it youthful recklessness.’
After getting home, I consulted ‘Baron’—a member of the same team as me in a certain social game—through the game’s chat app about what had happened today.
Even though our team battles had just started today and we were right in the middle of important preliminary matches, I was using the team chat to discuss my personal problems. I felt a little bad about it, but he kindly listened to me anyway.
Even someone like me, who has few friends at school, has plenty of people to talk to online. In this day and age, there’s no rule saying your friends have to be limited to school… or at least, that’s the excuse I tell myself.
For the record, I chat on my smartphone while playing the game on my computer. I’m not good with voice chat, so I deliberately choose to do it this way.
“This isn’t something to laugh about, Baron-san… Try putting yourself in the shoes of someone being confessed to as part of a penalty game…”
‘Well, it’s not happening to me, so it is kind of funny… But honestly, I’m impressed they didn’t notice you. If they recognize you as the quiet guy in class, then you’re probably not as invisible as you think. That’s reassuring.’
That part actually surprised me too. More than the whole penalty confession itself, the biggest shock was the fact that those three girls actually knew my name. I’d assumed they didn’t even know my face.
After being stunned for a moment, I still managed to slip out of the classroom unnoticed. So tomorrow, I’ll probably be on the receiving end of that penalty confession.
“What should I do, Baron-san…? A confession as a penalty game…”
‘Why not just go out with her? You don’t have a steady girlfriend, right? Think of it as a chance for her to get used to boys—and for you to get used to girls.’
I couldn’t help but sigh at Baron-san’s easygoing response. If only it were that simple…
‘I’m against it!! Playing with someone’s feelings like that is awful… You should just reject her, “Canyon”-san!!’
“Please don’t make it sound so easy, Peach-san…”
Canyon—that’s my in-game character name. The one who objected was ‘Peach,’ a female player on the same team whom I get along with pretty well.
Well, I’ve never actually met Baron-san or Peach-san, so I don’t know their real genders. But Peach-san is probably a girl.
‘Why not? She’s just confessing. You can just turn her down.’
‘Alright, alright, calm down, Peach-chan.’
Baron-san tried to soothe Peach-san. At the moment, only the three of us were active in the chat. The rest of the team was probably busy fighting in the preliminaries, so no one else joined the conversation.
It was the team’s public chat, so they’d probably read it later… but for now, it was just us.
Peach-san said I should just reject her, but… if someone like me—the gloomy introvert—were to reject a confession from someone like her, how many enemies would I end up making? Sure, it’s technically her fault since it’s a penalty game, but only the people directly involved would know that.
Accepting is hell. Rejecting is hell. That’s why I asked Baron-san for advice…
‘Canyon-kun, aren’t you thinking that either way leads to hell?’
Baron-san’s message pierced right through my thoughts. My heart thumped hard. Even though this was just text on a screen, how could he read me so well? Then again, that’s exactly why I asked him.
‘In that case, accept the confession. I think that option has more benefits.’
“Benefits…?”
‘Whether you accept or reject, you’ll be exposed to curious stares and criticism. She’s popular, right?’
“Yes… extremely popular.”
Barato Nanami-san is very popular. She has a bright, adorable personality and treats everyone equally. Because of that, guys constantly misunderstand her friendliness as romantic interest and think, “Wait, does she like me?”
Her fashion is what you’d call gyaru-style. She wears her uniform in the cutest way possible, her skirt shortened to the absolute limit—so short it looks like you might see something, but never quite do. She leaves a few shirt buttons undone, boldly showing off her mature curves—far beyond what you’d expect from a high schooler.
Because of that, I’d always assumed she was the type who played around…
(I didn’t expect her to be inexperienced with guys…)
That must be why she turned down every single confession—from handsome sports captains, delinquent-type pretty boys, to smart and serious honor students.
She wasn’t used to men… so no one ever had a chance.
The fact that I find that gap kind of cute probably means I’m pretty easy myself… Still, even if it’s just a penalty game, being confessed to by her was beyond anything I could’ve predicted.
‘The guy who gets dumped after dating a popular girl for a month leaves a better impression than the guy who rejected a popular girl outright. Besides… you should see this as an opportunity.’
“An opportunity…?”
I assumed he meant the chance to get used to girls, but that wasn’t what Baron-san had in mind.
‘If you accept, you’ll be dating for at least a month, right? Then during that month… you should work hard to make her fall head over heels for you.’
‘Baron-san?! What are you saying?!’
“Huh?”
‘Ah, maybe “head over heels” sounds a bit old-fashioned? Did I just sound like an old man?’
That’s not what surprised me, Baron-san. I was too stunned to even type a reply. Even Peach-san seemed speechless.
‘Listen. You have a huge advantage. You know this confession is a penalty game.’
“Yeah… I know… but how is that an advantage?”
‘It’s a massive one. If you didn’t know, you’d probably get carried away by the fact that she liked you, wouldn’t you?’
He was right. Even as an introvert—no, precisely because I’m an introvert—being “chosen” by someone at the top of the school hierarchy would probably fill me with pride and change me in ways that aren’t exactly flattering.
“Yeah… I’d definitely get carried away. I might feel superior just because I was chosen.”
‘Exactly. And one month later, you’d be blindsided by a breakup. But because you know it’s a penalty game… you can stay calm.’
Calm? If I were calm, I wouldn’t be asking for advice.
Ignoring my inner turmoil, Baron-san continued.
‘Spend the month working hard. Make her genuinely fall for you. After that, you can break up as payback—or keep dating her. The choice will be yours. Personally, I think getting her to fall for you and continuing the relationship would make for a much more enjoyable high school life.’
“Baron-san… are you enjoying this?”
‘Of course I am. Oh, and keep me updated. Real high school romance stories are great entertainment.’
I slightly regretted asking for advice… but the more I listened, the more accepting the confession seemed like the better option. Maybe I was being brainwashed.
Even so, I made up my mind. I would accept her penalty-game confession.
‘Oh, but keep it appropriate for high schoolers. She’s not used to guys, so don’t go asking for anything physical right away.’
“I wouldn’t do that!!”
Don’t assume an introvert like me has that kind of courage!!
After that, I continued playing while receiving tips and advice from Baron-san about how to handle the confession. Peach-san remained opposed the whole time… but eventually stopped replying in the chat.
Incidentally, our team successfully made it through the preliminaries. Later, the other members would tease me endlessly after reading the chat log… but that’s another story.
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