Nexus Translations

Chapter 13: Spreading the Faith The live stream went on until late at night, and I, who watched it until the end, was sleep-deprived. My eyelids felt as heavy as if they were laden with lead, involuntarily trying to close against my will. My head was foggy, and I almost got into an accident while riding my bike to school. Sleep is important! Rubbing my sleepy eyes, I took my seat and decided to take a nap right there in the morning. “Good morning, Tachibana. You look sleepy this morning. Did you stay up late?” Takahashi, the one person who treats me the same despite being in a dire situation, asked as he patted my shoulder. His kindness was so touching and warming… But May is fast approaching, and with Golden Week just around the corner, it’s been as hot as midsummer, so I’d prefer to avoid getting too close if possible. “Yeah, a little. Actually, there’s a streamer I want to recommend to you.” “Huh, streaming. I didn’t know you were into that, Tachibana. We’ve been friends since the f...

Chapter 11 - The human heart doesn’t always work out that way (4) “Has he, has he left… huh?” Last night, Park Ha-eun almost faced a serious incident. For her, usually timid and faint-hearted, this event was bound to be a huge shock. A massive truck was bearing down on her, and at that moment, she was powerless. She couldn’t do anything. Not even blink or move her legs. Park Ha-eun’s defense mechanism was merely to switch off mentally, leaving her tragically vulnerable to sacrificing her legs. “Eventually… I was saved… by a stranger, no less.” Thanks to the miraculous timing of a man with a bread bag over his head, Park Ha-eun was able to escape from the truck. Through her half-closed eyes, she could see herself being carried out of the crosswalk in the arms of the man with the bread bag. And after everything was over, she saw him hastily leaving the scene. “Why did he do that…?” Despite the lingering fear, Park Ha-eun couldn’t stop thinking about the bread bag man. She wondered why he...

Chapter 12: Leave Your Worries to Hoshimiya Azusa☆ It seems that because of Kushibiki, I’ve become firmly established as the villain. Even when I’m in the classroom or walking down the hall, just being on school grounds means I hear rumors about me. Aren’t whispers supposed to be unheard by the person they’re talking about? I don’t understand why they whisper within my hearing range. Really, it hurts… It seems I’ve become their toy even more than during Ayase’s time, and it’s become popular to give me funny nicknames. Misunderstood guy, self-destruct king, assault trooper, lower-half radar, etc. They have no sense. I wish they’d come up with something cooler. But still, it’s amazing how easily badmouthing comes to them. I really wish they’d use that imagination for studying or on other areas. I can tolerate being the only one accused and talked about. There’s no actual harm done because they are all cowards. I should be glad that no harm has been done, but because of what Kushibiki sta...

Chapter 10 - The human heart doesn’t always work out that way (3) “Ugh, it’s so hot.” As I thought I had definitely gotten far enough away after escaping the alley, I tore off the bread bag that had been wrapped around my head in one go. The heat that had been contained within my disposable mask, now torn and turned into a bread bag, dispersed in all directions. It was a moment when I realized for the first time that steam could rise from a person’s body even in March. “Well, I guess it’ll resolve itself now.” With my anxiety now gone, I continued walking down the street without any urgency. At the same time, I pulled out my smartphone and accessed the national reporting website. Even in this fictional world, there were likely security cameras, so catching the culprit should be straightforward. Of course, having cameras didn’t guarantee that we’d catch the truck driver immediately, but given the nature of this story, the odds were in favor of the main characters. The criminal would be ...

Chapter 11: The Unacceptable Man The lunch break eventually ended, and although Kushibiki said “It’s okay,” I wonder what she really thought. She had something to do with Takahashi, but for some reason, he followed me when I left my seat. I wish he would consider Kushibiki’s feelings a little. She’s definitely angry. This way, we’ll get nowhere. Leaving it to the two of them would take forever. To take the initiative, I went to Kushibiki right after school and called out to her. “Kushibiki, can I talk to you for a sec?” She was engaged in a lively conversation with two female friends, but upon hearing my voice, she seemed slightly puzzled. I felt terrible for disturbing her, but I focused on my mission. “Um… do you need something?” Her expression revealed a mix of agitation and confusion. The other girls nearby were eavesdropping with curiosity. “It’s kind of awkward here, can we go somewhere else?” “Sure. Megumi, Sana, see you tomorrow.” Kushibiki said goodbye to her friends, slung he...

Chapter 9 - The human heart doesn’t always work out that way (2) Due to the producer’s insistence on maintaining coherence in the strangest places, I had no choice but to wander aimlessly through the dark streets at night. Sadly, the location of the incident was not clearly explained within the work. There was only a fleeting illustration of being overwhelmed by a darkly projected truck on a desolate night street. So, the only thing I could do now was to comb through places where Park Ha-eun might go, trying to find her before the incident occurred. “Why does a smoker like him have such good stamina?” The process would have been incredibly difficult for an ordinary person, but at least for Lee Ji-woon, it wasn’t so arduous. For the Kim Tae-yang, who was beyond an ordinary person in physique, a sprint was nothing more than a trivial exercise. (T/N: changing 'golden sun to Kim Tae-yang) In a way, it was fortunate. If I had been possessed by the protagonist, Yoon Dong-gun, and realize...

Chapter 10: Tachibana in Distress In the end, my lunch break was ruined because of Takahashi, who followed me around like a goldfish’s shit. Even though I read the situation and left my seat to give Takahashi and Kushibiki a chance to talk without interruption, that idiot ruined everything. I ended up feeling a bit sorry for that fluffy girl. She was trying to talk to Takahashi because she needed something from him, but that light novel protagonist wouldn’t read the air and kept talking to me instead. The typical dense protagonist found in romantic comedies. It’s somewhat annoying when you’re reading it, but it’s infuriating when it happens in real life. Is that really the standard for protagonists in romantic comedies? Takahashi is probably doing it naturally, which makes it worse. It’s something that will never change. This time, since Kushibiki couldn’t talk to Takahashi, maybe I should set it up for her. It would be too pitiful to leave it as it is forever. The next chance for Kush...

Chapter 8 - The human heart doesn’t always work out that way (1) The belated memory struck my mind with force. Why didn’t I realize it sooner? Perhaps it was because the game I briefly played a few months ago had left only a fleeting impression, making it challenging to connect the dots. Or maybe, I was just being careless. After all, retrospectively, the incident didn’t seem to have much to do with Lee Ji-woon. Park Ha-eun. The main heroine of the game, and simultaneously the character with the most divided opinions among players. The reason for this love-hate relationship among gamers stemmed from Ji-woon’s obsession, triggered by past memories, as I mentioned earlier. From the perspective of someone playing the protagonist, it was uncomfortable to see the heroine showing interest in the golden sun. (Even if it wasn’t necessarily romantic affection.) However, even those players didn’t genuinely dislike Park Ha-eun as a character. Well, perhaps “couldn’t” is a more accurate word. Toda...

Chapter 9: Classmate Kushibiki-san Thanks to the protagonist, Hiroto Takahashi, the strange rumors have subsided. I’d like to commend Takahashi, but I’ll hold off because I don’t want to encourage him too much. The problem was resolved through Takahashi’s somewhat forceful methods. As expected of a protagonist, he managed to eliminate the noise, which benefits me as well. So, for now, I’ll express my gratitude to my friend Takahashi. As originally intended, the distance between Takahashi and Ayase has also narrowed. Let’s consider that a positive outcome. Things have settled down around me, and I can breathe a sigh of relief. But when I relax, I tend to get sleepy, even during class. However, as I’ve realized over the past few days, I’m still quite close to being a loner. If I don’t take notes, passing the tests becomes precarious. Come on, couldn’t I just ask Takahashi to show me his notes? No, no, no. A true loner like me prefers to study alone. I don’t want to associate with those w...