---
Clatter!
The old sliding wooden door of the Japanese-style room was yanked open with a loud crash.
Standing in the doorway was a girl with short green hair and a delicate face, dressed in a red-and-white junior high school sailor uniform with long white socks. Her expression was strict as she shouted at Iura Shuu, who was still sprawled out in a starfish position on the bed.
"How long are you going to stay in bed?! Hurry up and eat breakfast! You're going to be late!"
A high schooler waking up later than his middle school sister—seriously?
"Okaaaay~"
After a short pause, a lifeless response came from the messy single bed.
Motoko Iura blinked in surprise.
In her memory, her endlessly energetic older brother—nicknamed the "human husky"—had never sounded this drained.
Even when he broke his arm during kendo practice or caught a high fever, he was still full of life, smiling infectiously, and goofing around with her like always.
"What's wrong with you?"
Though hesitant, Motoko stepped into the room with concern written all over her face.
Sure, she once swore to disown him after her crush turned gay upon seeing his dashing sword-wielding pose—but he was still her onii-chan, wasn't he?
Honestly, aside from converting her crush, dragging her into weird soft music sessions, and always calling her an idiot… he wasn't all that bad.
"Hey, what's the matter? Are you sick?"
She knelt beside the bed, one hand on the mattress, the other reaching for Shuu's forehead.
Because of her petite frame, she practically ended up leaning over him.
"I'm not sick. I'm just… in a bad mood."
Knowing he couldn't get away with lying there any longer, Shuu swatted her hand away, rolled over, and sat up with a mopey expression.
His sulky face only made Motoko more curious.
Her always-hyper, cheerful "human husky" of a brother—depressed? That was unheard of.
"What happened?"
Motoko immediately forgot about the clock. Her wide eyes sparkled with curiosity as she stared at him.
Unfortunately, Shuu had no plans to tell her the truth. After all, telling someone he had transmigrated would sound insane. What if she blabbed and he got taken away for secret experiments?
And if he remembered correctly… wasn't Motoko a little slow on the uptake?
Without warning, Shuu reached out and gave her head a firm rub, completely ruining her neatly styled hair. Under her death glare, he grabbed his uniform and sprinted out of the room.
"AAAAAAHHHH—!!"
"You jerk of a brother! Get back here!"
"And I was actually worried about you!"
Feeling like she'd been played, Motoko leapt up, fuming, and chased after him.
---
Ten minutes later, Shuu, a sandwich dangling from his mouth, his bag slung over his back, was sprinting out of their massive 500-square-meter traditional house.
The April sky was clear. The sun was warm. A gentle spring breeze rustled the trees.
It almost sounded like soft piano music drifted on the wind.
A sweet scent floated through the air.
Sunlight brushed gently against his cheeks, like a girl whispering by his ear—soothing and tender.
Cherry blossoms danced along the roadside, fluttering in the spring breeze.
Pale pink petals spun through the air like living fairies, swirling gracefully.
It was the kind of idyllic scenery only possible in a 2D anime world.
But Shuu, taking it all in, simply ran a hand through his green hair and sighed.
Sure, ending up in the world of Horimiya, a romantic comedy anime, was pretty great. Compared to all those dangerous, battle-filled worlds, this was peaceful and ideal.
But with all the characters to choose from—why did he have to become Iura Shuu?
In a world where every couple ends up together, Iura Shuu was the only guy who didn't get a girlfriend by graduation.
And honestly, just the green hair was enough to drive him crazy.
"Tch."
"No childhood friend, no girlfriend—now that's tragic."
"Nope. I was single in my past life, fine. But now that I'm in this pure, ideal 2D world, how can I not fall in love?"
"That settles it! While working on financial freedom, I'm definitely going to start a sweet high school romance before graduation! I'm not letting Miyamura and Ishikawa keep stuffing me with secondhand romance!"
"But… who should I go after?"
He walked with his head down, seriously considering this crucial question.
In anime, especially among high school girls, nearly everyone was pretty. The only differences were between pretty and prettier.
Naturally, he wanted the prettiest he could get.
Stylish girls, sweet girls, elegant girls—they all flashed through his mind.
Suddenly, his footsteps halted as he muttered, "Wait… why is she here? Is it just a coincidence, or...?"
Smack!
Before he could figure it out, someone slapped his shoulder hard, making him stumble in surprise.
"Morning, Shuu! What were you daydreaming about? I called you like three times!"
He didn't even need to turn around—he recognized the voice immediately.
He turned his head and looked down. A cute girl with short golden-brown hair was staring up at him, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.
Her hand was still half-raised. She wore a loose cardigan over her uniform, the sleeves so long they covered her hands and made her look even smaller.
Yoshikawa Yuki, best friend of Hori Kyoko—the female lead of Horimiya. She was cheerful, friendly, a little scatterbrained, and very likable.
She got along with everyone.
But deep down, like many girls in Japan, she was sensitive and hesitant to show her true feelings, afraid of bothering others.
Aside from being slightly less beautiful than Hori, Shuu thought she was way more girlfriend material.
Unfortunately...
"She's probably already got a thing for Ishikawa Tooru by now. But since he's into Hori, she's been hiding it."
If he didn't know the plot, he might've gone after her—what was there to lose?
But now that he did know... and knew they'd eventually end up together... how could he, a true romantic, ruin that?
"Hey, what's with that weird look?"
Yuki's voice snapped him out of it.
Shuu shook his head and flashed a teasing grin. "Nothing. Just wondering—did you steal that cardigan from your sister's closet?"
Yuki had an older sister in college—tall, gorgeous, and stylish.
Compared to petite, flat-chested Yuki, her sister was half a head taller at least.
"You jerk!"
Yuki's eyes widened. She raised her hand to smack him again.
But Shuu was ready this time—he dodged easily and took off.
Yuki, of course, gave chase.
"You idiot! Get back here!"
The two of them goofed around the whole way to school.
Once Yuki was huffing and puffing from the run, Shuu let her land a hit—just one—to satisfy her.
"Phew... I'm beat. Let me catch my breath."
Yuki bent over, hands on her knees, scowling. "You've got way too much energy."
"Not my fault," Shuu shrugged. "Dad made me train kendo since I was little. But you—you sound like you've got serious beef with your sister."
"I do not!"
Yuki turned away quickly.
Her sister treated her really well. Why would she resent her?
She was just… insecure about her body.
Even middle school girls were more developed than she was.
Skinny, short—she barely looked like she'd hit puberty.
Her sister's old cardigan, which had shrunk in the wash, looked like a trench coat on her.
Even though she was in her second year of high school—just one year from graduation—she was still behind.
Shuu had no idea he'd just poked her sore spot. After all, to a guy who loved anime, flat chests weren't a big deal... right?
Sensing she was getting annoyed, he awkwardly changed the subject.
Luckily, Ishikawa Tooru showed up just in time.
"Hey, Shuu, Yuki. Morning!"
The moment she heard Ishikawa's voice, Yuki straightened up like a spring and shot Shuu a death glare.
"This is all your fault! I look ridiculous now!"
Shuu blinked innocently. "…How is this my fault?"
"It totally is!"
Yuki huffed.
Sure, she was playful—but she was usually sweet and composed!
It was only around Shuu—the walking husky—that she lost control.
Now Ishikawa had seen it, and her image probably tanked.
Even though she knew Ishikawa liked Hori and not her… she couldn't help but feel disheartened.
---