Confession After School, On the Rooftop: Kurami Kagura's Harem Student Council
Spring, and the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. Kurami Kagura, a new student at Iris Private Academy, decides to run for student council president for the simplest of reasons: to have the authority to call his crush out to the school rooftop and confess his love. His oddball election speech unexpectedly goes viral, catching the attention of the school's three most beautiful girls.
The first to approach him is Shion Amakawa, the school's untouchable queen. She is perfect in every way... excep
Confession After School, On the Rooftop: Kurami Kagura's Harem Student Council - Energetic bomb, bouncing in my heart!
A few days had passed since the entrance ceremony. Spring sunlight poured down on the Iris Academy grounds, where the cherry blossoms had begun to scatter.
All seven hundred twenty students had been gathered in the gymnasium, their buzzing chatter rising all the way to the ceiling. The student council president's inaugural address was about to begin.
In the wings of the stage, Kurou Kagura clutched an empty can in his pocket.
*(It's fine. It's just like the speech. I just have to shout that I want to confess to the girl I like.)*
He had gotten through the speech by focusing on that alone. But now—
"—Student Council President, Kurou Kagura-kun."
The vice principal's voice echoed through the microphone.
All at once, the eyes of everyone in the gymnasium focused on Kagura.
*(Huh?)*
His legs wouldn't move.
It was only ten steps to the center of the stage. That distance felt impossibly far.
Kagura's mind went completely blank. During the speech, the feel of the coffee can had kept him grounded, but now the trembling in his legs wouldn't stop.
*(What is this? Why can't I move?)*
From the wings, the vice principal whispered.
"Nervous? Don't worry, just the greeting is fine."
Kagura nodded. But his mouth was bone-dry.
He somehow forced his legs to move and stood before the microphone.
The eyes of the entire student body pierced into him.
"Uh, um... a-a-a..."
His voice cracked.
A strange sound echoed through the gymnasium via the microphone.
A stir ran through the students.
*(Oh no. I can't get my voice out.)*
Kagura desperately sucked in a breath. His head was spinning. The speech had gone so well.
"I... I had stage fright... didn't I..."
He only realized it once he said it himself.
After all, that speech had been the first time he'd ever spoken in front of a large crowd. He'd been so caught up during the election that he hadn't noticed.
But now, he had no idea what he was supposed to say.
"I-I'm the s-student council president... K-Kagura..."
A wave of laughter erupted.
The tense atmosphere from moments before dissolved in an instant.
"What's with him?" "Isn't this bad?" "But wasn't he kind of like this during the speech too?"
The murmuring voices reached his ears.
Kagura's face turned bright red. Even his ears felt hot.
*(To hell with it!)*
"I'm Kurou Kagura, and I became president so I could confess to the girl I like!"
He shouted.
For a moment, the gymnasium fell utterly silent.
And then—
"BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
The entire student body burst into laughter all at once.
The laughter echoed through the gymnasium, loud enough to nearly burst through the ceiling.
In the wings, the vice principal held his head in his hands, and a teacher who seemed to be his homeroom instructor wore a strained smile.
Kagura returned the microphone to its stand and fled from the stage.
His legs tangled, and he nearly fell.
That drew even more laughter.
*(This is the worst...)*
Covering his face with his hands, Kagura disappeared into the wings.
The assembly ended, and the students filed out of the gymnasium in droves.
Kagura sat slumped in a deserted hallway behind the gym.
The steel wall was cold against his back.
"...So I had stage fright, huh."
He hadn't known.
Because he'd never had a reason to speak in front of people before.
During the speech, his mind had been so full of thoughts about the girl he liked that he hadn't had any room left to feel nervous.
But now it was different.
The moment he became conscious of having to "act properly as president," this was the result.
"*Sigh*... What am I gonna do now?"
A deep sigh echoed through the hallway.
"Hey! Kurou-kun!"
From a distance, PE teacher Jin'nai Kouji approached, waving his hand. Thirty-five years old, short hair, wearing a jersey. The students called him "Jin-sensei."
"So this is where you were. I've been looking for you."
When Kagura looked up, Jin'nai grinned.
"That greeting just now was amazing! I've never seen the gymnasium laugh that hard!"
"...Sensei, you're not exactly praising me, are you?"
"No, no, we've never had a president who could get laughs like that. You're a real find."
Saying that, Jin'nai clapped Kagura on the shoulder.
"Anyway, I've got a favor to ask. The club activity introductions are about to start in the gym, but we're short-handed. Could you help out, with your authority as student council president?"
"My authority as student council president...? Can I even use something like that?"
"Of course you can. You're the top of this school, after all."
Kagura stood up.
*(I've gotta do my job as president properly.)*
This might be a chance to make up for that huge failure earlier.
"Alright. I'll help."
When he returned to the gymnasium, the club introductions had already begun.
It was a regular event where each club performed to recruit new first-year members.
The volleyball club spiked, and the brass band played a lively tune.
"Oh, the basketball club's next."
At Jin'nai's voice, Kagura looked toward the stage.
There, a single female student stood.
A high ponytail.
Her bright brown hair bounced with every movement. Her large, round cat-like eyes sparkled, reflecting the gymnasium lights.
She was about 160 centimeters tall. Slender, but with lithe limbs and the toned physique of an athlete.
She wore a basketball club uniform. Her number was seven.
"Okay, next up is the girls' basketball club!"
Her voice rang through the gymnasium.
A voice bursting with energy, as if coming from the very pit of her stomach.
"I'm the ace, Hayami Kanata! I'm gonna show you a dribbling demonstration today, so watch closely, everyone!"
Hayami Kanata.
Though only a first-year, she was apparently already famous as the basketball club's ace.
She picked up a basketball and started bouncing it lightly.
*Thump, thump, thump.*
A rhythmic sound echoed through the gymnasium.
*(Amazing. It's like the ball is stuck to her hand.)*
Kagura found himself captivated.
But.
That's when it happened.
Kanata's gaze turned toward the new students who had come to watch.
So many eyes were on her.
"—Ah."
Her fingertips trembled slightly.
The ball slipped from her hand.
The mishandled ball bounced in a strange direction—heading straight for her face.
"Whoa!?"
*(Oh no!)*
Kagura's body moved on its own.
Before he knew it, he had rushed up onto the stage.
Just before it hit Kanata's face—he caught the ball firmly with his right hand.
The gymnasium fell dead silent.
"Huh...?"
Kanata looked up at Kagura, her eyes wide.
Her large cat-like eyes were opened even wider.
"You okay?"
When Kagura held out the ball, Kanata's face lit up.
"W-Whoa! You caught that on reflex!? You've played basketball before!?"
"Huh? No, I did kendo in middle school—"
Before he could finish, Kanata lunged at him.
"Seriously, thank you! I was about to smash the ball right into my own face! You're a lifesaver!"
With too much momentum—
*CRACK!*
Kanata's face slammed directly into Kagura's face.
"OWWWWW!!!"
They both shouted simultaneously and crouched down on the spot.
Something warm trickled from Kagura's nose.
A nosebleed.
Kanata was also holding her nose.
"Y-Your face is way too hard, dammit!"
"You're the one who crashed into me!"
"Shut up! It's your fault my nose is bleeding!"
"Mine's bleeding too!"
At the sight of the two arguing, the gymnasium erupted in laughter once again.
Jin'nai approached, clutching his stomach as he laughed.
"BWAHAHAHA! Are you two doing a comedy skit!? Anyway, get to the nurse's office!"
The nurse's office.
In the quiet room where white curtains swayed, the two sat on adjacent beds.
Both had stuff in their noses. Kagura held a tissue to his, Kanata a piece of gauze.
The school nurse had left, saying, "I'm just going to the staff room for a bit, so stay quiet and rest."
Silence fell.
The commotion from earlier felt like a lie.
"...Ah, man. I went and did it again."
Kanata murmured quietly.
It was different from her usual energetic voice. A small voice, like a deflated balloon.
"Again?"
"I'm a klutz. Like just now, I always mess up when it counts. Ever since I was little."
Kanata looked down, staring at her own knees.
There were several scrapes and scars on them. Like badges of honor for her.
"Back in elementary school, I messed up big time at a basketball game. It was an important match, but I missed a shot and our team lost. Then my teammates told me, 'It's your fault'... Ever since then, my hands start shaking at crucial moments."
Kagura listened silently.
"In high school, things were going well at first, but I'm still no good. I wanted to show off in front of the new students, but I messed up again. Maybe I really am hopeless... I act cheerful, but honestly, I hate myself."
Her voice trembled.
The girl who was always laughing now looked like she was about to cry.
Kagura thought.
Even if she was clumsy, even if she messed up.
But earlier, when she laughed in the gymnasium, everyone around her had smiled too.
"But you know,"
Kanata looked up.
"When you laugh, it cheers me up too. So I think you're great, even if you're a klutz."
Kagura had simply said what he was thinking.
No hidden meanings, just his honest feelings.
"...Huh?"
"Because earlier, in the gym, when you laughed, everyone else laughed too, right? I think that's amazing. Being able to laugh off your mistakes is pretty cool."
Kanata's eyes widened.
A warmth spread gently through her chest.
Until now, she had only been able to protect herself by laughing off her failures.
But this person—
He told her she was "great even if she was a klutz."
For the first time, she felt like someone had accepted her just the way she was.
*Thump.*
Her heart leaped.
"...You're a weird one, aren't you?"
Saying that, Kanata pressed the gauze to her nose and gave a small laugh.
It was a different smile than before.
Relaxed, and faintly warm.
*(What is this feeling?)*
Kanata placed a hand on her chest.
Her heart was still pounding.
She looked at the boy with the messy hair in front of her.
His hair stuck out like he'd just woken up, and his bright brown eyes darted around restlessly.
But there had been no lie in his words earlier.
He meant every single one.
*(I... to this person—)*
"Alright then. My nosebleed's stopped, so how about I help clean up the club room?"
Kagura stood up.
"Huh? The club room?"
"Jin'nai-sensei asked me to help. There's still cleanup from the club intros, right?"
Kanata gasped.
*(That's right! A chance to recruit him as a manager!)*
She jumped to her feet.
"Alright! I'll show you the way! Let's go!"
She removed the gauze from her nose, grabbed Kagura's arm, and dashed out of the nurse's office.
The clubroom building.
Room three on the first floor was the basketball club's room.
In the roughly twenty-square-meter space, lockers lined the walls, and photos from past tournaments were posted up.
"This is the basketball club room! C'mon, hurry up and come in!"
Kanata energetically swung the door open.
In that instant—
*RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!!!*
From inside, a massive avalanche of basketballs came crashing down.
"Whoa!"
"GYAAH!?"
The two were buried under a mountain of balls and collapsed into the hallway.
Orange balls rolled everywhere.
"Oww... Come to think of it, after practice yesterday, we just piled the balls up carelessly..."
"You really are a klutz!"
"Shut up! It's your fault I was so nervous I forgot!"
"My fault!?"
Kanata turned bright red.
*(Because my heart's been pounding like crazy and I can't think straight!)*
But there was no way she could say that.
She stood up from within the mountain of balls and pointed at Kagura.
"L-Look! I'm a klutz, so I figure every day's gonna be like this! But!"
"But?"
"If you become our manager, I'll make you laugh every day! I wanna do basketball together with you!"
Kagura stared blankly.
Kanata's face was bright red, and her ponytail swayed like the tail of an angry cat.
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