Cursed 06: School Goddess and School Idol

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Chapter 6: School Goddess and School Idol

“Eh, so Manabe-san studied psychology.”

“Although I wasn’t particularly good at it, that is to say I barely passed.”

Daiki Manabe-san laughed a bit.

Currently, he was supporting his team member as she, Eriko Nabeshima, was writing up a report.

“Eeeeh? But you were praised as a brilliant investigator even when you were in training, from what I heard!”

“Most of my success is because of my abilities in a physical … altercation, not my investigative skills. Unfortunately, I’m not that smart of a person as you may have been led to believe, haha.”

“Jeez, that’s probably not true at all. Although I can tell that you definitely aren’t suited for desk work.”

Well, if he hadn’t taken most of the day off, he would have tagged along with the other detectives on the scene, but he did, and that’s why he’s here.

To tell the truth, Daiki-san always wondered why he decided to become a criminal investigator. It was a fact that he did better on the field as a police officer… but …

Daiki-san gently pushed the thought of his fiance being enamored with the crime investigation shows being the starting point out of his mind.

Tappatappatappa

Even as she gossiped, Nabeshima’s fingers never stopped moving.

Daiki-san stood up and stretched.

Information organization also isn’t his strong point.

“Nabeshima-san, can I get you a cup of coffee?”

“Un, please do –“

Kacha

The door to their small, communal office opened.

“Excuse me, is Supervisor Endo in?”

A tall man with sleepy-looking eyes and rough, messy hair looked in.

It was a man Daiki-san had seen around, but he wasn’t exactly known to him. But now that he’s seen him up close, and not just across the building … hm. This man exudes an aura of strength.

Although, it’s because it’s Daiki-san that he noticed. People who don’t have the [Strength] Sub-Blessing probably wouldn’t have noticed.

To be fair, people who don’t have the [Strength] Sub-Blessing probably wouldn’t have cared enough to have noticed.

“Supervisor Ooishi. My apologies, but Supervisor Endo is out currently, concerning the robbery yesterday.”

Nabeshima disengages from her computer to look up at the man.

“Is that so.”

With that, and a bow, the man closed the door and left.

“Supervisor Ooishi … then is he the Supervisor of Unit 2? He seems … sturdy.”

Daiki-san asked, taking advantage of the fact that Nabeshima had looked up from her work. Not that it seems it would have mattered.

“Ahhh… yes. He was well-known in his early days… but now he’s the Supervisor of Unit 2…”

“…Excuse me, Nabeshima-san, but I’ve been noticing… is there something between Unit 1 and Unit 2?”

Daiki-san had noticed subtle digs from his coworkers in Unit 1 before, but he had been hesitant to bring it up in a room full of people. Now, with only Nabeshima in the office, it was a little bit easier to ask.

Slowly, with a look of twisted frustration, Nabeshima turned her head creakily to look at Daiki-san.

“Because they take our cases, and always close them as unsolved. Every single case they take! Even though they have a good team of competent people that we would kill to have on our unit, they still leave things inconclusive!”

Daiki-san was shocked, both at Nabeshima’s fervent outburst, and that a unit like Unit 2 could still be operating.

“I-is that so… Perhaps the Chief should be informed about this. But to think they leave all their cases unsolved…”

“Of course that would just be a cover-! I mean, who would actually think that a unit full of capable people would continuously fail to come through with results every. Single. Time!”

Daiki-san pulled back a little at Nabeshima’s yell.

“I-is that so?”

“There’s no doubt, they’re hiding the results that they’re coming up with! I bet they’re doing it to cover up crimes! They must be working for the Saitou family, or someone equally powerful here! One day I’ll prove it, even if there’s nothing that will link all their cases together, I’ll find it one day!”

With that, Nabeshima went back to furiously typing, muttering darkly to herself under her breath.

So it’s about a conspiracy theory, huh?

Daiki-san quietly decided that he was going to try to stay out of this…

————–

“Yeah, so like, 75% of the people from our middle school come here and make half the student population. The other half is, like, from various other schools in the area, so yeah, this high school is pretty big? Well, I guess you can also look at it like our middle school was small, haha!”

Where is he getting these statistics?

I’m already feeling tired from all of this…

Mitsuo Higuchi, a guy with dyed, light brown hair pulled back in a headband, is chattering away nonstop. It seems like, of the people who know him, most call him either by “Guchi” or “Mitsu”.

The quiet guy with long bangs behind him, giving off a mild delinquent-ish aura, is Shigeru Endo. It seems like most people just call him by his last name, Endo, but Higuchi calls him “Shige”.

They’re probably what you’d call best friends. Although Endo seems to threaten, ah, no, perform violent skinship.

As for why I’m stuck listening to Higuchi ramble … I’m really stuck listening.

It would be nice if he moved a little bit to the right or left… because my seat is on the line next to the windows, in the middle of the line, I can’t escape by getting out of my chair on the opposite side Higuchi is standing because there’s the window.

I can’t push my seat all the way back past Higuchi because there’s a desk right there.

That’s right, Higuchi has boxed me into my desk.

No good. I’m cornered. It’s the end of the line -!

Muuu-! I’ll have to do what I absolutely don’t want to do, my last ditch effort … gonna have to interrupt him and say something.

Even if it was only pretend for a while, playing hikkikomori for this entire life has made me a little rusty… how should I do this…

“…Mitsu. You talk too freaking long. Time to go home.”

“Eh? Ah, yeah, ok.”

Endo, banzai!

Higuchi is finally headed to the door!

I breathe a sigh of relief as I collect my things and prepare to head home.

“Hey, Kousei, so, like, you thinking of joining any clubs? What are your hobbies?”

…Eh. We’re continuing? Can’t be helped, if we’re all going to the shoe lockers, I guess.

“Basebal-, er, well, I read a lot.”

That was close. Higuchi reminds me too much of some of the guys I used to hang out with in a previous life. Calm down, me, don’t get carried away with the mood…

“Jeez, I was quiet this entire time, but even though I’m trapped in here, even I can tell time through the television! Mou, hurry up! You’re leaving school soon, right?”

Oh great. Another troublesome, talkative one – but it’s not like I can respond!

How troublesome!

“Baseball, huh? Wow, you going to join the club? They’re always out there, sweating their youth away … Shige and me, we’re the president and vice-president of the ‘go home club’, so…”

So he’s sticking with that…

“No, I’m also not going to join…”

“Eh? Eh? Gyaa! It’s so annoying that I can’t hear the other side of the conversation!”

How noisy…

I’m saved in that the disembodied voice is a girl’s voice while Higuchi is a guy, but I still have to be careful not to answer to the wrong one…!

“Suyin-chan… wait up…!”

The sound of pattering feet come from above us as we pass the staircase.

“It is just that A-Tsu is too slow!”

Two girls’ voices … one of them has a slight accent and speaks politely, although it’s a big contrast to what she’s saying.

Higuchi stops in his tracks, flinging is arms out to hold us back, and turns towards the stairs.

“Our goddess, she comes-!”

He exclaims.

What in the –

I look up just in time to see a girl leap over the railing –

Purple. Romantic, lacy, purple.

“Because of that -!?”

That unintentionally leapt out of my mouth, but… indeed. It’s a sight to worship – no, I mean, so that’s why Higuchi calls her a goddess?!

None of my former girlfriends had even ‘battle panties’ that shone with such brilliance -!

…Er.

Ahem.

The girl landed, and the flutter of her cream-kahki colored skirt came to a rest.

Because of the free show, I can’t help but look her over. What a good bodyline… it has a ‘tight’ feeling all over, like that of an athlete, but her natural structure makes her feminine curves stand out. And her chest is definitely … larger than the average woman’s, but not too large. Umu. It isn’t so large that it breaks the idea that she’s an energetic, athletic type, but it’s still larger than the average. What an amazing feat of …

Wh-wh-where am I looking?!

Ah… a China-girl? Her hair is done up in two buns on the sides of her head, complete with fabric covers, and there are braids coming down from them, as well as wrapping around the back of her head.

… How much hair is necessary to do that? Or like, how long does it take to do that in the morning?

Completely ignoring us, the girl turns and looks back up the stairs. Without any sign of impatience, she cheerfully says,

“A-Tsu, please hurry up!”

“Mou… Suyin-chan…”

Hearing that voice, Higuchi elbows me quickly and whispered,

“And after the goddess, the idol follows close behind.”

The owner of the second girl’s voice makes her appearance as she rounds the bend of the stairs.

Titanic!

Short, cute, with slender limbs, but … that chest. Even womens’ eyes would be drawn there immediately!

Shoot. I wasn’t always this kind of character! I swear! But it’s impossible that I’m not going off on a weird vector in this situation!

If the panties-goddess – no, if I call her that in my head, I’ll end up accidentally calling her that in real life. If the previous girl was the glamorous, energetic type, this girl would be the orthodox, traditional ojou-san.

The second girl was breathing roughly as she ran down the stairs, an arm crossed under her chest in an attempt to still the shaking.

“Ah-!”

She caught sight of the three of us boys as she panted on the top of the stairs.

Hm? Is she staring at me? No, right? Maybe?

“Tsurumi-chan, Suyin-chan, what class are you two in~?”

Higuchi asked.

“Um… that is…”

“We are in the Class 1-B, we are. Guchi-chan, you were able to make it into this high school as well? Endo was expected to make it, so we can ignore that.”

The ojou-san stutters a bit as she makes her way down the stairs, but the panti – energetic girl responds promptly. And kind of curiously.

“Eeeeeh… I’m not that dumb!”

“Please don’t write someone off, and don’t call someone ‘that’.”

Higuchi and Endo both protest.

Un. The energetic-type girl is practically a cheekier Higuchi. If she were a bit more of a ‘little devil’ flirt, I’d say she’s my type.

“Suyin-chan, we need… to get going. My grandma…”

“Oooh, that is right! Bye bye, Guchi, Endo, New Guy!”

… New Guy, huh?

Chiring.

Uh-?

A beautiful, glass-like chime sounds as the energetic girl passed me. Ah… a small, ornamental birdcage is hanging from the ribbon on her hair-bun cover. Inside is a glass marble rolling around.

Although it’s something that should only last a moment, somehow I notice that, as if everything was slowed down.

In slow-motion, I watched as her eyes widened, and she turned to look at me… and then …

Uwaaah! The hue of her eyes changed! What is that?! A look like she’s made me her next target – on a shooting range!

Gyaa!

Even a lion will turn tail and run for its life if a predator like that is staring at it!

“Hm…”

Although she said it in a whisper under her breath, that ‘hm’ sent chills down my spine as she and the other girl disappeared down the hall.

“Can’t speak because of their gloriousness, huh? The two best beauties from our middle school, Tsurumi Minemoto and Suyin Zhou… wonderful, aren’t they?”

Higuchi’s thrown his arm over my shoulder.

I’m frozen out of fear, not admiration, hai.

Higuchi ignores my non-answer.

“That one’s a goddess, right?! Suyin-chan transferred in the last year of middles school – by the way, that’s written as ‘pure’ and ‘sound’, although the character for ‘pure’ is rare. A real China-girl! And she moves like that ALL the time, but won’t wear spats because they’re uncomfortable… kuuuu-! AND she doesn’t care about it, and greets everyone all friendly like that! She’s a pervert’s goddess!”

A goddess who’s a devil – a demon inside. And like, stop being a ‘gentleman’ and become an actual gentleman.  If you’re not careful, you’ll end up going down the path of no return, Higuchi-san.

“And as for Tsurumi-chan, well, she may be a bit slow, but cute is justice! Ah, and by slow, I don’t mean stupid. Tsurumi-chan is a genius, but, whatsit called, she thinks too much, so what I mean is she takes some time to respond to you, so literally, her speed is slow. But don’t you dare think that means she’s dumb!”

Hm. Despite being an open pervert, Higuchi might be a good guy.

Nn? But was it my imagination, that girl, Tsurumi-chan, she was …

“Well, they were both looking at Ishikawa-san, though.”

Endo said.

“Gyaa! Why Kousei again?! What’s wrong with ME?!”

Higuchi ruffled his hair with his hands as he screamed at the sky.

“… Sense of desperation?”

“That’s what it seems to be.”

Ah. The answer slid out of my mouth, and then Endo agreed to me… oops.

“WHHHAAAAT!”

Higuchi’s scream echoed through the halls.

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<a/n: The reason why Higuchi bothers spelling out Suyin’s name is because she writes it in Chinese. Although Chinese shares characters with kanji, the pronunciations can differ from the usual usages, or be uncommon (aka, not used in Japanese, either commonly or at all, but still recognized as a kanji that exists). Suyin’s ‘Su/愫’ is uncommon, but would be read as ‘makoto’ or ‘so’ (although there are other, more common characters for makoto/so) meaning ‘pure’, while her ‘yin/音’ is the normal one for ‘sound’ with the usual pronunciations ’on/in/oto’, but chances are she’d still have to pronounce it for someone for them to get which pronunciation to use.
This is why some anime/manga characters introduce themselves as “I’m *name*, written with *characters*” if their names are uncommon, or follow an uncommon pronunciation. I guess it’s kind of similar to saying, “No, my name isn’t ‘Seen’, it’s ‘Shawn’, but spelled ‘Sean’.”
Language is fun!
But this is why I love Japanese. The puns, double-meanings, and subtle hints they can make with the language’s intrinsic, and pictographic, traits are a lot of fun for me.
Of course conventionally, Suyin should probably just write her name in katakana while in Japan, but keeping it in Chinese characters just because she can’t be bothered to change it suited her in the end.
Also her obsession with cute and sexy underwear… did I mention this was a really crappy harem story a long time ago? Unfortunately (or fortunately), her tendency to not care about showing off her underwear stuck with her.>