"Zero, one, two..."
On the dark green exercise mat, Kitahara Sousuke began doing pushups with flawless form.
An earphone rested in his ear.
He wasn't listening to music but a novel.
Naturally, it was Kasumi Utako's Love Metronome, Volume One.
The heroines active at Toyogasaki Academy, Katou Megumi, Kasumigaoka Utaha, and the golden-haired loser, each one of them stood out as exceptionally outstanding in Sousuke's eyes.
Already brilliant in their own right, they also carried the weight of the favor he had always held for them in his previous life. Kitahara Sousuke really liked them.
If he stubbornly claimed he had no interest in Utaha-senpai, even he would find himself laughably dishonest.
The so-called "legs you could admire for years" referred to Senpai's long legs in black stockings. Honestly, he could probably enjoy that view for at least a decade.
Not to mention her looks, intelligence, and figure, all of it top class.
She had both a beautiful body and an interesting soul.
Unfortunately, having arrived in this world too late, he missed that key moment one year ago when Kasumigaoka-senpai had hit a low point in life. He couldn't support her then, and lost what may have been a once-in-a-lifetime chance.
Having missed that opportunity, and now facing a Senpai who had already matured from her slightly naive first-year self, it would be incredibly difficult to touch her heart again.
But Kitahara Sousuke had no plans to give up on such a remarkable girl.
He didn't know if another opportunity would ever come where he could get close to Utaha-senpai the way he might have a year ago.
In any case, if he wanted to understand her deeply, Love Metronome was worth reading.
Because the novel's heroine, Sayuka, was essentially Kasumi Utako's alter ego, a character born from her longing for romance.
Reading the entire book was necessary. Very necessary.
There was just one small issue.
Despite how beautiful the prose was, Sousuke wasn't interested in this genre at all.
He had no desire to give himself a stomachache out of boredom.
And he couldn't afford to spend too much time reading.
So his solution was simple, listen to the audiobook.
This way, even if he wanted to stop, he couldn't. All the content and plot would get stuffed into his brain whether he liked it or not.
Incidentally, he was listening to a translated version from overseas.
Senpai's work had decent popularity, so the translations had been released quickly.
He felt a little guilty toward her.
Of course, he had still purchased the full set of novels. They were lined up neatly on the most visible spot on his bookshelf.
"Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred."
While listening to the book, he smoothly finished one hundred perfect pushups.
He paused for a moment to check his condition.
He went for regular physical checkups.
So far, the training hadn't caused any harm. And after several months, Kitahara Sousuke could finish the entire routine easily.
This was the so-called Saitama training method.
Compared to the potential results it promised, the effort required was surprisingly low. Naturally, Sousuke wanted to try it out.
After all, this world was different from the one he came from. What if this training actually worked?
And even if it didn't make him stronger quickly, he wouldn't be disappointed.
At worst, there was no shortcut.
But the foundation he was laying down every day would never betray his body.
With that belief, Kitahara Sousuke trained every single day.
Ten kilometer run. One hundred pushups. One hundred squats. One hundred situps.
Without exception.
Fortunately, Japanese high schools finished early, and since he belonged to the going home club, he had more than enough time.
Once he completed the basics, he moved on to his other skill training.
Like placing a flat wooden board on sharpened stakes and meditating while sitting perfectly balanced on it.
Anime like Dragon Ball and Naruto had similar training regimens. So in a two-dimensional world like this, why wouldn't he try them?
If his house had a waterfall, he would have gladly tried the Saint Seiya method of training under one too.
...
He walked out of the training room in his house, which he had remodeled specifically for his daily grind.
Sousuke wore a black tank top, his defined arms showing off lines of powerful muscle.
His entire physique radiated strength from top to bottom.
It was just unfortunate that this type of male body didn't seem all that popular in modern society.
"Ninomiya kun..."
"Sensei..."
"Meow..."
A questionable teacher-student romance drama was playing on the TV.
The small white kitten had taken over Sousuke's usual seat, tail curled, eyes focused on the screen as if it were watching high art. It seemed to be thoroughly enjoying itself.
Even within the same species, personalities could differ more than between people.
Some cats felt anxious and panicked in a new environment and needed time to adapt.
Others made themselves right at home on day one, racing around and clawing at everything without a care.
The cat living with Kitahara Sousuke was definitely the latter.
While it didn't damage anything, its confident demeanor gave the impression that it saw itself as the true owner of the house.
Kitahara Sousuke, clinging to a sliver of hope, had named it...
Vanilla.
Maybe it was just his imagination, but he sometimes caught a sighing, exasperated look in those clear blue feline eyes.
Still, in a world this strange, who was to say what was impossible?
If his pet cat someday turned into a catgirl, that would be the ultimate win.
He had picked up cat food, goat milk, and litter on the way back as if it were nothing.
Ignoring the lounging Vanilla, Sousuke headed straight to his room.
Reading Kasumi Utako's novel helped him understand what Kasumigaoka Utaha longed for through Sayuka.
So, after Saint Megumi and Senpai, he now needed to understand the preferences of a certain blonde...
No, a certain blonde twin tailed beauty.
He would always "like" Eriri.
And where else to understand her better than on the internet of this world?
Really, it was the obvious choice.
With that, he turned on his computer, opened the browser, and went straight to the familiar site.
He typed "[Kashiwagi Eri]" into the search bar.
"Now, let me truly understand your essence... Eriri."
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