Chapter 1 – I Want to Compliment the Mob Heroine Until She's a Flustered Mess
Let's rewind the clock a bit.
Two months ago. It was a scorching hot day, right before the start of summer vacation. I was in the library, quietly observing... no, let's say admiring a certain girl.
"Hnngh..."
She was on her tiptoes, trying to reach a book on a high shelf. But since she's pretty short, her fingertips couldn't quite reach. Her hand was trembling from the effort. It was adorable.
Her long black hair was a little frizzy at the ends, and she always wore the school’s navy-blue tracksuit instead of the regular uniform. Even her skirt was longer than average. There wasn’t a hint of allure about her, just simple, unpolished charm. And that was exactly what I liked about her.
And best of all... her bangs were so long they completely hid her eyes. She was the perfect example of my favorite character trope, a mekakure, or "blinding bangs."
(Mobuko-chan... is really so cute.)
Her name was Mogami Fuko. She was the mob heroine from the manga I loved so much, ‘I’m So Done With Rom-Coms (sob),’ a series that got cancelled before it could even finish.
She was this sweet, devoted girl who only ever watched the protagonist from afar, and was constantly getting her name wrong by the rest of the cast. The way she quietly corrected them with, “My name is Mogami...” every single time was just the cutest thing ever.
(I'm so glad I got reincarnated...!)
I thought, thanking my incredible luck from the bottom of my heart.
Because the truth was I, Sato Satoru, was apparently a reincarnator.
Until recently, I’d been just a normal high school boy. I hadn’t even realized this was a manga world until one day my memories suddenly came flooding back, and I finally understood who I really was.
In my previous life, I was a 28-year-old single office worker. My hobbies were reading manga, playing games, and watching anime. And now, somehow, I was living inside one of my favorite manga, a series I loved but which had been cancelled too soon.
I have no idea how this happened, but... hey, since I'm here in my favorite manga world, I might as well make the most of it, so I figured, why not meet my favorite heroine, Mobuko-chan, in person? And that’s why I was here today.
"I-I can't reach it..."
Whoops. While I was lost in my thoughts, Mobuko-chan was struggling. She hadn’t noticed me yet, but I should probably help her.
“Want me to grab that for you?”
“...!?”
She must have been shocked that I'd gotten so close. Her whole body jolted, and the next thing I knew, she was... losing her balance.
“Ah.”
Since she’d been standing on tiptoe, the momentum sent her falling forward… straight toward me.
"Look out!"
If she fell like that, she’d hit her face. Panicking, I reached out and caught her just in time.
“Oof.”
Her face landed squarely against my chest. At the same time, I felt something... squishy... press against me. Whoa, she's surprisingly... wait, now is not the time for that.
Anyway, I held her firmly so she wouldn’t fall.
“Are you okay?”
“Eh? U-Um...”
She looked dazed and flustered, still in my arms. God, I wish she'd stop being so adorable with every little reaction. I had to fight to keep a stupid grin off my face.
"I'm glad you're not hurt... You should be more careful next time."
“I—I’m so sorry for causing you trouble!”
"It's fine. Don't worry about it... Mogami-san."
“...Eh?”
Nice. I'm doing a pretty good job of acting natural, if I do say so myself. Maybe I'll just head home for today. I was perfectly satisfied just getting to see my favorite character in person... or so I thought.
"How... do you know my name?"
"Well... you know, we're classmates, right?"
“But... there’s no one besides my family who knows my name.”
C'mon, don't say something so sad. ...Though, she was right. In the original story, not a single other character ever actually called her by her proper name.
But I, of course, knew her name.
“You’re Mogami Fuko-san, right? Of course I remember.”
Crap, this is bad. Does she think I'm some kind of creep? Did I overstep? Maybe I should just cut this short and get out of here.
That's what I was thinking, but...
“Hic...”
“You’re crying!?”
Without any warning at all, she just... burst into tears. I couldn't see her eyes behind her long bangs, but I could hear her sobbing and see the tears streaming down her cheeks. There was no mistaking it.
"S-Sorry! Did I do something strange? Ah, perhaps you didn't like me calling you by your name!?"
Was I being too chummy? We just met, after all. I quickly apologized and tried to back away... but that wasn't it. Mobuko-chan just shook her head.
"N-No... I'm just... happy."
“Happy? About what?”
"I just... I didn't think anyone... actually remembered my name..."
...I-I see!
(It's because she's that much of a mob character, she's never had anyone other than family call her by her name before, huh?)
That must have been it. But still... to think she'd be so happy she'd cry, just from someone remembering her name.
“U-Um… what’s your name?”
“Me? I’m Sato Satoru from Class D. Nice to meet you.”
“Yes! It’s nice to meet you, too!”
She looked genuinely delighted.
“Ah, I'm sorry! For crying all of a sudden... I was just so surprised that someone actually... called me by my name."
"Of course I remembered it. How could I forget someone as cute as you?"
“—!?!!?”
And just like that, from that one little word—"cute"—her face turned an amazing shade of bright red. It was almost funny. Even her ears were red. She looked like a ripe tomato.
D-Dammit, seeing her react like that... I'm not going to be able to stop myself.
(Now I just want to compliment her even more...!)
I know my existence here is an anomaly, so I was thinking it'd be better if I didn't get too involved with her... but... ah, to hell with that.
For now, I just want to shower Mobuko-chan with compliments and do whatever it takes to make her smile.
