The Heroines Want to Confess.

Chapter 148: Mass Media Club

Monday, lunchtime.

Sakurai Saki arrived at the broadcast room located to the side of the rooftop of the school's academic building.

The Media Club—or Mass Media Club—broadcasts a school radio program every Monday. Topics include things everyone's talking about, recent juicy rumors, fashion trends... basically, they talk about anything.

Sakurai Saki didn't have a great impression of the Media Club, though it wasn't completely terrible either. These people were always spreading rumors about him, Fujiwara Chika, and Hayasaka Ai—stuff like sneaking into Fujiwara's house at night then eloping with Chika, or Chika fighting over Hayasaka Ai. There were even rumors involving him and Shinomiya Kaguya.

One glance, and it was obvious this club couldn't be trusted.

Opening the door to the broadcast room, Sakurai Saki saw two girls inside getting ready, adjusting the equipment while chatting with Itsuki.

One of them had straight, long black hair with bangs. It was Kose Erika from the Media Club, rumored to be a hardcore fan of Shinomiya Kaguya.

This girl didn't seem all that mentally stable, or so Sakurai Saki thought.

But at least she was way smarter than the five Nakano sisters.

The other girl had long chestnut-colored hair and an elegant, refined air—more accurately, a ladylike demeanor. She was also a member of the Media Club — Kino Karen.

She was the culprit who wrote all the fanfics pairing Sakurai Saki with various characters for the club.

Once, she even asked Sakurai Saki if he was okay with fanfics involving him and Shirogane Miyuki. The result? Sakurai Saki flatly rejected her.

Sakurai: ╭∩╮( ＾◡＾)╭∩╮

Damn you, if it's boy-girl that's one thing, but you're pairing me with another guy? Are you out of your fucking mind?

In short: dream on.

By the way, she was actually a fan of the "Saki x all" ship. In other words, she was fine with Sakurai Saki being with anyone—including herself!

"Sakurai-san~" Kino Karen waved at him. "Today's broadcast is about dieting. Want to join us?"

"I just came to check things out." Before Sakurai Saki could finish, he was pulled out the door by Itsuki.

Inside the room, the two girls immediately pressed their ears against the wall near the door.

"What's going on?" Sakurai Saki asked, pretending to be surprised.

That confused expression was entirely an act.

He had long waited for the moment when the other party would be both embarrassed and forced to go through with this—ever since last Friday.

She was being made to carry out a task he had assigned her.

This feeling... was thrilling!

ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )✧

"Can I please not do this?!" Itsuki really didn't want to announce her weight to the entire student body.

"You can't even handle something this simple?"

"But... but it's so embarrassing."

...

"What are they talking about?" Kose Erika squatted beside Kino Karen, their black and chestnut brown hair brushing against each other, their faces practically stuck together.

"Something embarrassing," Kino Karen whispered.

What could it be?

Something that makes Sakurai-san come to the Media Club and is also super embarrassing...

["I can't take it anymore. Stop, Sakurai-kun."]

["You can't take this much? Then what will you do when it gets harder? Give up?"]

["I... I want to, but it's my first time doing this... it's hard to accept."]

Karen & Erika: ( ˶°ㅁ°) !!

Kino Karen blushed bright red and suddenly stood up.

Those two... are playing some kind of master–servant roleplay!

Could it be they're even inserting something?!

Having to endure pleasure while broadcasting with us... this is way too stimulating!

"Ah!!"

Just as Kino Karen stood up, Kose Erika, who had been leaning against her, lost support and immediately fell face-first onto the floor, half her body landing inside the broadcast room and the other half sticking out into the hallway.

Sakurai Saki turned around and looked at her.

"What are you girls doing?"

"...Ehehe, we were just curious," Erika laughed awkwardly as she stood up.

"Curious?" Sakurai Saki smiled and said, "My relationship with her is completely normal—just a tutor and student, nothing more."

Tutor? Kino Karen, who was still pressed against the door, immediately had a bold idea.

[A Secret Between Me and My Private Tutor? Master–Servant Relationship]

✧✧◝(ᵔᗜᵔ)◜✧*｡ Coming soon! Stay tuned for the latest serialization from the Media Club!

I have a bad feeling about this. Sakurai Saki frowned.

Then, as if his radar had locked onto a target, he walked straight to the door and sternly warned Kino Karen, who was blushing furiously:

"Karen-san, I didn't make a fuss when you wrote stories about me with Fujiwara-san and Hayasaka-san, but don't involve her."

He was deadly serious.

Kino Karen nodded just as seriously.

But who knew if she actually took it to heart? The young ladies in this school always did whatever they wanted. They'd nod and smile on the surface, but behind your back... no promises.

"All right, you two get started with the broadcast. I'm heading back."

...

Heading down from the rooftop.

Sakurai Saki returned to his classroom. There was still a bit of time before class resumed. The school radio program usually aired in the second half of lunch break, giving everyone a chance to relax.

[Hello everyone~ It's time again for the weekly broadcast from the Media Club! This is Erika!]

[Good afternoon, everyone, I'm Kino Karen.]

[Today's topic—ta-dah~ summer weight loss!]

[Summer is here~ If you want to wear swimsuits or cute summer outfits, you've got to lose some weight! Otherwise, it's hard to catch the opposite sex's attention. "A~ Erika, your thighs are too thick, we're breaking up!" Situations like that can totally happen!]

[Erika, we haven't introduced today's guest~]

In the classroom, Sakurai Saki showed a helpless expression.

These weekly broadcasts were treated like comedy shows by everyone. The two hosts seemed like they were born to entertain.

[H... hello everyone~ I'm this week's guest, Nakano Itsuki.]

Itsuki's voice had no confidence at all.

It reminded Sakurai Saki of Iino Miko and Shijo Maki—they all had one thing in common: extreme fragility.

Itsuki was probably the "weak supporting role" among the five sisters.

Nino was the tsundere, Ichika the naked-sleeping maniac, Miku the quiet one, Yotsuba the cheerful idiot, and Itsuki the fragile side character.

One by one, not a single one of them was normal.

"Sakurai-chan~ Where did you go just now?" Hayasaka Ai looked over as Sakurai Saki returned to his seat.

"Just stopped by Karen's place."

The moment she heard that name, Hayasaka Ai felt a headache coming on. Of course she was familiar with those Media Club serials.

As someone involved in intelligence work, Hayasaka Ai was supposed to stay low-key. But ever since she got close to Sakurai Saki, her popularity had skyrocketed out of control. In the past, almost no one greeted Ai-chan when she walked down the hallway. Now, nearly everyone did.

This caused a ton of trouble for her intelligence-gathering missions.

When it came to anything related to Shinomiya Kaguya, Hayasaka Ai had to stay alert. It was one of her responsibilities as both maid and bodyguard.

Her job involved many things. For example, if she heard a bad rumor about Kaguya, she had to do her best to erase it—that was the bare minimum. The other tasks were even more complicated. In short, it was a job full of stress.

But today feels so light... it's weird.

Since morning, Hayasaka Ai had felt unusually energetic. Her mind was also sharper than usual.

Even so, she simply thought she had slept well the night before, so she didn't pay it much attention.