Chapter 31: Will You Keep Waiting?
Translated by Vine
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“Hmm…”
1:47 PM.
At the central fountain in the metropolis outside the academy, I sat on a bench, sipping coffee I’d bought nearby, staring blankly at the fountain.
“A date, huh?”
A man and a woman in a relationship doing something together.
That’s the definition of a date, as far as I know.
An act between lovers who share a relationship, share love, love each other.
In that sense, could Mars and I be considered “lovers?”
‘Not really, right?’
It might sound arrogant, but if I had to define it, I’d say:
A relationship where Mars unilaterally likes me.
A typical one-sided love. Of course, I’m not entirely uninterested.
“She’s pretty, at least.”
She’s one of the official heroines, so she has to be pretty.
Plus, she has big breasts, toned muscles… all very arousing.
Her personality isn’t particularly feminine, but it’s not like she has no feminine side at all.
When she’s embarrassed about something, or when she receives a gift…
Sometimes, she shows a feminine, almost female expression, and I can’t help but feel my heart flutter.
…It’s a bit embarrassing to admit.
But I have to acknowledge what I have to acknowledge.
“Her body is also… well, ahem.”
I suddenly remembered the feeling in my hand.
I touched her quite a bit back on the island, doing this and that, and the feeling was truly exquisite.
Unlike Ur-noona, she’s firm, I guess I should say.
If Ur-noona is infinitely soft-serve ice cream, Mars is like chewy pig skin──is this analogy okay?
‘Well, pig skin is delicious.’
The point is, it was delicious.
It’s ironic to use “delicious” to describe a person, but there’s no denying that it was delicious.
Considering all this about Mars, I couldn’t find a reason to reject her.
But if I still had to push her away, it would be because of the protagonist… but I still didn’t want to hand her over.
No, wait.
Mars isn’t mine in the first place, but anyway…
“I just… don’t like it.”
I just don’t like it.
What more can I say?
I chewed on the straw of my finished coffee, waiting for the time to come.
52 minutes…
56 minutes…
58 minutes…
And then…
“2:00 PM.”
She’s not here.
I stared blankly at my watch.
3 minutes…
5 minutes…
7 minutes…
…Even after about 10 minutes…
“…She’s not coming?”
Seriously?
Was she late getting ready?
I thought about calling or texting her, but decided to wait a bit longer.
She might have a good reason.
I sat quietly on the bench, staring blankly at the fountain, waiting for Mars to arrive.
Whoosh!
“Hmm…”
The fountain sprayed high into the air, brightly illuminating the surroundings.
The sight of the water, so healing to the mind, made me almost lose track of time.
I watched the fountain, the people, waited, and waited, and waited, and finally…
“What time is it?”
Probably about 20 minutes have passed, right?
I opened my phone to check the time.
[2:12 PM]
“Only 2 minutes passed? Seriously?”
I said I lost track of time, but it should have sped up, not slowed down.
I put my phone back in my pocket and looked up blankly.
‘She’s taking forever…’
It’s only been a little over ten minutes, but still…
…Oh, wait. Is it that?
If it’s true, my hand might involuntarily rise.
“Is she… deliberately late?”
You know, that kind of thing.
Purposely arriving late for a date to create a sense of relief, making it seem like they’re relieved to finally see you. A high-level psychological tactic.
Actually, that kind of thing shouldn’t happen in any relationship, but it’s not entirely unheard of.
‘If she really did that on purpose…’
I might just slap her across the face.
I picked up my phone and checked the time.
[2:21 PM]
“…Sigh.”
Let’s wait just 10 more minutes.
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“…..”
5 more minutes.
“…..”
3 minutes, no, 1 minute.
[3:00 PM]
Mars didn’t show up.
My head felt hot.
I wasn’t angry. Well, actually, I was.
I got angry about 30 minutes ago.
I got angry, calmed down, and now I’m just waiting to see who gives up first.
“It’s a good thing there’s a cafe.”
Iced Americano, Venti size.
I filled my stomach with coffee and called Mars again.
“…Hmm.”
She didn’t answer.
If this were a normal date, I would have left by now.
No matter the circumstances, being more than an hour late is a bit much.
But… the reason I’m still sitting here is because of one thing:
‘Did an NTR event trigger?’
Since this world is the NTR Academy world…
Around that time, I finally remembered the “Date Event.”
[Date Event]
It’s nothing special, really.
It’s an event where the heroine arrives later than the appointed time.
Every 10 minutes past the appointed time, a choice appears:
Will you wait? Or will you leave?
If you choose to “wait,” your stamina and fatigue decrease, reducing the number of actions you can take that day.
On the other hand, if you choose to “leave,” you avoid the stamina drain and can pursue other heroines, progressing through different routes.
As long as you don’t confess, you don’t become their boyfriend, after all.
There’s no need to wait for a heroine who won’t show up, especially for efficiency-focused players.
‘The problem is, this game screws over efficiency-focused players.’
If you leave the date location, the heroine, upon arrival, triggers an NTR event with other extra villains.
Furthermore, if you try to flirt with another heroine, and the original heroine witnesses it, the NTR event accelerates by two ranks.
If you’re not careful, the heroine who was just kissing you yesterday could end up spreading her legs for another man.
That’s why the Date Event always required diligent saving and loading… and I only realized this now.
Well, it’s a good thing I noticed, even if it’s late.
“Ugh… I’m full.”
I drank so much coffee that my stomach was bloated.
I wish she would just hurry up and come…
“? Chrono?”
“…Is that Juno?”
Turning my head at the familiar voice, I saw Juno walking towards me.
“What are you doing here? Oh, right, you said you had a date with Mars.”
“It’s not a date. By the way, you… are you on a date with your boyfriend?”
I saw the protagonist walking towards me from across the street.
But for some reason, there was someone else with him…
“Long time no see.”
“Hi, Chrono!”
“…Merck, too?”
Is this guy serious?
I stared at the protagonist in disbelief, and he just shrugged, as if asking what the problem was.
“What? Is there a problem?”
“There is a problem… well…”
I slowly turned my head towards Juno.
Are you okay with this? Does Hera’s apostle forgive infidelity?
‘Well, it’s possible, but…’
As I said before, she’d only tolerate it if the Affinity Rank is 10 (Max).
But this is still early in the tutorial. Even if Juno is the main heroine, and her NTR rank doesn’t rise easily… she’s still witnessing blatant infidelity right in front of her?
At least in the dungeon, there was a reason. But this time, there’s no reason, and it’s clearly a date.
Merck is even holding his arm.
‘What is this situation?’
This is just betrayal, right?
Is my vision blurry?
I was about to ask Juno what she thought of this situation, and…
“It’s fine with me.”
“…”
“Really. I’m so happy to be able to go out with Ther after so long!”
“…Is that so?”
Barely safe, I guess.
Anyway, I better rub my palms together during their date.
Otherwise, her NTR rank is likely to rise.
“Are you… jealous?”
“…Ugh.”
I should just shut up.
I waved my hand dismissively.
It’s not worth talking about.
“Hmph. You can’t even manage your own girlfriend.”
“…”
“Why don’t you give her to me, since you can’t handle her anyway?”
“…”
Does this guy even know?
That Juno‘s eyes, right next to him, are half-dead, and Merck, holding his arm, is looking at him with amusement, as if saying, “Look at this guy.”
I, too, was speechless and kept my mouth shut. The protagonist turned away, saying he’d seen something interesting.
Yeah.
Just go away.
And don’t come crying to me later when you get NTR’d.
“Um… but Chrono, how long have you been waiting here? I passed by here 30 minutes ago, and your posture is exactly the same.”
“I’ve been waiting for an hour. I don’t know when she’ll come.”
“Really? I didn’t think Mars was like that… She’s a really bad person…”
Ah.
This is it.
“Then, Chrono, do you want to hang out with me instead of Mars? Juno and Ther are here, so it can be like a double date!”
“…Seriously?”
Heroine capture event.
But with Merck added to the mix.
As I said before, Merck is the apostle of liars, the apostle of thieves. If you accept this offer directly, you’ll never truly capture her.
Anyway, a double date offer after I’ve been waiting for so long.
‘Just like the apostle of thieves…’
Her actions are truly vicious.
I stared at her in disbelief, and the protagonist hurriedly stepped in and stopped Merck.
“I don’t think a sudden double date is a good idea.”
“Don’t you want to? Then I’ll just stay next to Chrono by myself!”
“…You’re the problem, aren’t you?”
Fuck.
Why are you glaring at me again?
I pushed Merck away and refused.
“I’m waiting to hang out with Mars. How betrayed would she feel if I suddenly went off with someone else?”
“But… I don’t think Mars is coming…”
“No, she’ll come.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“Because I believe in her.”
“…”
If you wait until the end, the event ends and the heroine shows up.
The reward is a +1 increase in Affinity Rank and avoidance of the NTR event.
That’s pretty generous for an NTR game.
I put the coffee straw back in my mouth and chewed on it. Merck looked at me with disappointment and stepped back.
“Hmph… Don’t come crying to me later when you regret this.”
“I won’t regret it, so just go your own way.”
“Tsk… How boring.”
Merck finally returned to the protagonist’s side.
“Chrono…”
“Yes?”
As Merck and the protagonist were talking to each other, Juno quietly approached me and asked,
“Will you keep waiting?”
“I have to.”
It would be a waste of time to leave now.
Plus, I have to avoid the NTR event.
“She might not come.”
“If she doesn’t, then… she doesn’t.”
Actually, I don’t think that’ll happen, but still…
“Chrono… Chrono…”
“…Yes?”
Her voice was strangely trembling.
As I looked up at her trembling, wavering voice…
“Are… are you not angry…?”
“…Um…”
Her face looked like she was about to cry.
She had her back to the protagonist, so he couldn’t see.
Her expression was full of frustration, sadness, and thirst.
I answered Juno,
“There must be a reason.”
“…A reason…”
Juno bit her lip.
“If she really didn’t come because she hates me, then that’s my fault. But if something happened to Mars and she couldn’t come, then it can’t be helped.”
“…Chrono, you’re so kind…”
“Call me a pushover.”
“…As expected.”
Mars, too.
Chrono, you, too.
And… probably me, too.
“Stupid… everyone’s stupid, stupid, stupid.”
“That’s harsh.”
Calling someone who’s waiting for you stupid.
Still, Juno‘s expression seemed a bit better. I gestured towards the protagonist with my chin.
“You’ll get in trouble if you talk to another man while you have a boyfriend.”
“Whatever. If my boyfriend can do it, why can’t I?”
“…Uh…”
That statement…
That’s a bit dangerous.
I hurriedly said to Juno,
“I’m a monogamy kind of guy.”
“Huh?”
“I’m not interested in harems or anything like that.”
“…Pfft… Ahahaha! Okay! Have fun with Mars!”
Juno smiled brightly and turned back to the protagonist.
I quietly muttered as I watched her go,
“…That line…”
Is a flag for NTR, not the kind where someone is forced into it,
But the kind where they actively approach the villain.
The former can’t be helped, but the latter is, well…
“Don’t worry about me, worry about yourself, protagonist…”
It’s self-inflicted, I guess.
I don’t know what that guy learned when he regressed.
‘Well, honestly…’
Is it any of my business?
He’ll figure it out.
I continued waiting for Mars, killing time.
“Hey…”
“Yes?”
Around 4:00 PM…
Someone was walking towards me from across the street.
“You… you…”
“Oh, you came?”
Mars finally arrived.
It’s hard to even see her face.
‘But… she looks good?’
She let down her usual ponytail.
She’s wearing a girlfriend-look outfit, which is unusual for her.
And she’s wearing light, but noticeable makeup.
The difference between putting in effort and not is huge. I inwardly applauded her.
“Wow, you clean up nice. You look pretty today.”
“…”
“…Yes?”
She walked towards me with her head down, stopping right in front of me.
“Hey… you…”
“What?”
Mars said,
“You──fucking asshole!!!”
The protagonist is hopeless. He’s going to get a lot of NTR notifications from Zues for the heroines very soon. I’m biased towards Mars so, she’s forgiven. Props to Chrono for complementing her. She put a lot of effort into this date despite the fact that she ended up showing up late for it.
Jupiter is freaking idiot. I cannot believe Juno never dumped his arse!
There is no way Juno is staying with him longer than 10 chapters max.
Nah ain’t no way I’d be pissed I’d prolly stay but I’d be fuming especially since I know I’d make it at least half an hour early.