Classroom of the Elite: The Eroge

Chapter 4 Act 1: Scene 4

?In order to take his mind off of his newfound 'power' for a while, Kiyotaka opted to take a nap inside the bus on the way to his new school. However, he also knew that this was only going to prolong the inevitable because there would be nothing that can stop this dating simulator from going nuts once he arrives at the campus.

Surely, there would be a lot of beautiful girls at school whom the dating sim can consider a 'Potential Heroine', and Kiyotaka was already dreading that possibility.

The young man himself was a calm and rational person but since this situation involved something that was completely out of his control and had no chance of manipulating to his advantage, it was starting to get to him.

Perhaps the feeling of being helpless and defeated can be considered a consolation prize?

Anyway, he wanted to enjoy his high school life, damn it! He didn't want to be a 'protagonist' or whatever status this stupid mechanic treated him as! Kiyotaka was also sure that there's a 'potential heroine' somewhere inside this bus, which made him decide to take a nap instead.

Unfortunately for him, his nap wouldn't last long with the voices that he would hear afterwards.

"Excuse me, shouldn't you offer up your seat?"

"What are you talking about, lady? Why should I offer up my seat when it's clear that I am the one using it?"

Kiyotaka tried to ignore the two voices, but also felt interested in seeing what was going on. But it also means opening his eyes and possibly causing his 'power' to activate again. He was even in a public place where he can be seen, and that scenario is bound to create some problems for him...

Oh, screw it. He'll just take a little peek at what's happening and that'll be it. Nothing more.

Opening his eyes, Kiyotaka then took a glance at the ongoing commotion that was happening behind him.

There was an office lady who appeared to be scolding a young man with slicked back blonde hair, sitting in an arrogant manner with his arms folded and his leg crossed over the other. The blonde man was wearing the same uniform as him, so he must be heading to the same school.

The office lady was standing next to an old woman. Now that he got a better look at things, it seems like the young man was being scolded for sitting on a priority seat.

"You're sitting on a priority seat, which naturally means you have to give it to the elderly. You seem like a high school student, yet you don't know such a thing?

"That guy feels like he's too prideful to even think of giving up his seat," Kiyotaka was tempted to go back to his nap now that he knew what was happening, but he ultimately decided to watch for a bit just to see where this goes.

"I don't understand. Priority seats are just priority seats, nothing more. I am under no obligation to move and because I am the one sitting here, I will choose whether to move or not. Am I supposed to give this up simply because I'm young? Ha! What nonsense," the blonde man laughed.

"W-What kind of attitude is that towards your superiors...?!"

The blonde man smirked. "Superiors? While it is true that you and that old woman have lived longer than me, you are in no way superior to me. In fact, you don't even know who I am, do you?"

"Y-You're just a high school student! Honestly, just listen to what the adults say!"

"Dearie, it's nothing big, really..." the old woman spoke in an attempt to defuse the situation, but it was no use. The office lady became angrier with every argument that was thrown towards her, while the young man continued to act arrogant without a care in the world. By now, the argument had gotten the attention of almost everyone in the bus, but it seemed like nobody wanted to intervene.

That is, until a girl with short beige hair, crimson eyes, and a well-endowed figure walked up to the middle of the vehicle with a pleading look on her face. Almost immediately, Kiyotaka tore his gaze away from the scene before a pink screen with white text could show up.

"I'm not looking to activate a dating simulator right now, of all times..." he shook his head while inwardly cursing whoever it is that gave him this power. Oh, who was he kidding? He would surely meet this girl again because she was wearing the girls' uniform of the same high school that he's going to.

"Excuse me? Is there anyone here who would be willing to give up their seat? Please?"

Kiyotaka then heard the girl's cute voice, and he could already tell that she easily got everyone's attention just from her appeal and kind nature alone. Well, maybe except the person who was seated to his left.

Beside him was a girl with long black hair and red eyes reading a book entitled 'Crime and Punishment'. In short, she was a beautiful young woman. Kiyotaka was interested in her choice of reading (because of what it was about), but he was also curious about whether she was too busy reading to notice the issue that was happening around her or she didn't care at all.

While he was looking at her, the brown-haired teen failed to realize what he was doing and it was too late for him to do so when a familiar pink screen appeared above the girl's head.

[Horikita Suzune: 'Icy Loner']

p?nd?`no??1--?o? [Relationship Status: ?]

[Affection Points: 0/100]

[Heroine Summary: Suzune is the younger sister of the current Student Council President of Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, a talented young man named Manabu whom she looks up to very much and desires to be like him one day. She chose to go to the same school as him for the sole reason of following in his footsteps, as well as to make him acknowledge her. Unlike her brother though, he is very isolated and refuses to make friends of any sort, believing that she is above everyone else and doesn't need social connections to achieve her goal.]

"I got distracted. How embarrassing," the young man thought to himself in disappointment. This dating simulator power was clearly going to be annoying to deal with. "Well, I suppose this means that this girl, Horikita Suzune, is a Heroine like Nanase."

Can't there be some sort of warning when a girl he comes across with is a Heroine? That's one of his skills, right? Or is the 'Heroine Summary' the extent of that skill? If it appears, then a girl is a 'Heroine' and if not, she is a 'Filler Character'. What a disappointing skill.

On the brighter side of things, the 'Heroine Summary' gave him valuable information about the girl, including who she is and what she's like.

"So this girl looks up to her older brother... he's someone to keep an eye on, if that's the case. I'm surprised that a girl like her is considered a Heroine. With that kind of attitude, we might not get along. In fact, I can tell that it would offend her if she ever finds out that there's someone better than her."

He was referring to himself but of course, he wouldn't do something stupid like showing the girl his true abilities within. That's a one-way ticket to getting attention and he didn't want that, considering what he's already dealing with at the moment.

While Kiyotaka was unaware of it, Horikita had noticed that he was staring at her, prompting her to give him an icy glare that looked like it could freeze lava itself. When he did realize it, he was too late. The girl looked pissed with him, and he knew why.

"You know, it is rude to stare."

As he thought of something to say as a response, Kiyotaka felt the world around him freeze and everything lost its color. The three choices appeared before him and for the first time, he actually felt grateful that his power intervened and saved him from a difficult situation. Kiyotaka truly had no idea what to say as an excuse to the girl and to make matters worse, he knew to himself that he was staring at her.

A. [You're right. I apologize for staring and I won't do it again.]

B. [That's an interesting book you have.... you must be a really smart person to be analyzing a book that plays with your rationality and morals.]

C. [I mean, can you blame me? You're too beautiful for me to ignore.]

*WARNING: Choosing the Wrong Choice will forever block this Heroine's Route.

Kiyotaka blinked. He thought about what surprised him more, the fact that there was actually a way for him to avoid romancing random girls whom he encounters or that the 'system was actually telling him how.

Well, since this was a chance to lessen the headaches that he would get from dealing with more than one girl, then he would take it!

"Based on how Nanase had reacted to the choices that I made earlier, the third option will surely affect Horikita in the same way. I'm staying away from that, which leaves me with the first two choices," he mused, turning his attention to the options that were left. "The first one sounds like something I would say, but it would be a waste to end a conversation between us. A perfectly normal conversation, without any danger of gaining those 'Affection Points' with her, that is. The second one looks better... and I can even talk to her with it."

Feeling confident about his choice, Kiyotaka pushed 'Option B' as the world around him went back to normal. He then felt his actions being taken over again, keeping him from saying anything although he could still think freely.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that," Kiyotaka thought, before turning his attention towards Suzune. "That's an interesting book you have... you must be a really smart person to be analyzing a book that plays with your rationality and morals."

After listening to his words, the glare on Horikita's face slowly softened until it completely disappeared. It was then replaced with a look of wonder, as she wasn't expecting him to say those words. In particular, what got her attention was how he thought of her as smart just because she was reading a specific book.

"I-Is that so?" she replied, before realizing her little blunder by stuttering slightly in her words. She quickly recovered by clearing her throat and straightening her posture. "Well, I wouldn't say that about myself. I simply like reading novels such as these. They are more interesting than anything that was published recently.

[You gained 1 Affection Point with Horikita Suzune!]

[Suzune Route has been Unlocked! You can now see 'Heroine Status' with Horikita Suzune!]

[Your current status with Suzune has changed to 'Strange Friends'!]

[Congratulations! You unlocked the Achievement: 'Quelling a Maiden's Anger'! You gained +1 in Charm]

Wha—

"Wait... that was the right choice...?" a dumbfounded Kiyotaka thought to himself as he stared at the four new notifications that popped up in front of him. "I thought for sure that I made the wrong choice. How was the second option the right one?"

It appears that Ayanokouji Kiyotaka still had a lot to learn about interacting with other people properly, even with a 'dating sim' superpower backing him up.

If there was a wall nearby, the young man felt like punching it and leaving a big dent in the process.

Unaware of what he was going through in his mind, Suzune decided to ask him something to sate her curiosity.

"Am I correct to assume that you've read this novel before?" she asked. It was actually surprising for her to meet another person who knew his fair share of books and novels, but she wasn't going to complain because the same can't be said for every other teenager these days.

Horikita's question was enough to snap him out of his thoughts, as Kiyotaka sighed to himself in defeat. There's no use getting hung up over the issue now. He would just have to accept and live with the fact that this girl, Horikita Suzune, was one of his 'Heroines' now. At least, according to this weird 'superpower' that he possessed.

Curse his weakness in social interactions!

"Yes, I've read it before. It was actually one of the learning materials in..." he replied, before stopping midway through his words. There's no way he can tell her that he had read 'Crime and Punishment' in that place, so Kiyotaka quickly thought of a good excuse. "...the school I've attended before."

The girl looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "Your former school had this novel as a part of the curriculum?"

"That's because the school I used to attend only accepted those who excel greatly compared to other students."

God, he hoped he was making sense. If he felt thankful for his 'superpower' earlier, he was now cursing it once again. Thanks to the fact that this girl was a 'Heroine', he was now having a hard time trying to keep this conversation afloat.