Weren’t You Only Using Me As A Stand-in? [93]

In the employee break room of Haunted House, Kitahara Takeru winced in pain. “Hiss... careful, Nanami!”

Aoyama Nanami eased the pressure as she adjusted the bow on his bandage but muttered irritably, “I thought you didn’t feel pain?”

When she’d arrived with the staff, Takeru had already lost it. He was like the lead in The Shining, hammering his elbow into the door without pause, without fatigue, completely immune to pain.

Thanks to his persistence, he actually managed to bash a hole in the door big enough to fit his arm through.

He’d just started reaching in to unlock it.

Luckily, Nanami had arrived with backup just in time, and it took the entire staff piling on to subdue him.

Thank god Takeru’s brain had gone blank with adrenaline—he’d been so consumed by rage that he didn’t think to grab a weapon.

Because if he had triggered [Sword Mastery], it didn’t matter how many employees they threw at him—they’d be the ones on stretchers.

Even so, several staff members still ended up in the hospital after their encounter with Takeru.

It couldn’t be helped—elbows are naturally hard. And in Takeru’s case, boosted by adrenaline?

Adrenaline was no joke.

Adrenaline Buffs:
Strength unlocked to 100%, metabolic rate doubled, critical hit rate +50%, speed +50%, reflexes maxed out with time-delayed burnout, rage +200%, pain resistance +90%, burst potential +100%, intimidation +100%.

Put it this way: if the King of Hell scheduled your death at midnight, adrenaline might just buy you until dawn.

Once triggered, it granted strength beyond logic—turning a rational human back into a beast in seconds.

Like when you're running from a dog during a sports meet—you suddenly unlock turbo mode.

Sure, adrenaline won’t help you pass a math test. You’ll still fail that.

But that’s not its purpose. It’s not here to solve problems—it’s here to eliminate the source of problems.

Just look at that guy who sprinted across northern Myanmar in 9 hours flat. That’s adrenaline for you.

Looking back now, Takeru had to admit—“adrenaline” really was aptly named. If it wanted you to elbow something, you were gonna elbow it.

Of course, after Takeru’s rampage, the Haunted House shut down completely.

When the boss pieced together what happened, he tried to break it to Nanami as gently as possible:

“Nanami-san, maybe… it’s time for you to enjoy a nice summer break?”

High EQ: “Why not take some time off?”
Low EQ: “You’re fired.”

No matter how much Nanami pleaded afterward, the boss wouldn’t let her keep this landmine on the team.

Today it was elbowing employees. What if, next time, Takeru lost his temper and shouted at Nanami? Would he elbow her too?

And if that happened, what could he even say? He’d probably have to thank Takeru afterward.

“Nice elbow!”

With Shijō Maki and Kashiwagi Nagisa revealing their identities, the boss had long since abandoned any thoughts of retaliation.

He knew full well his own position. He was just a small-time haunted house operator. What was he gonna do—yell at these two heiresses like he had any authority?

Just to avoid future “attention,” he didn’t even bother asking for compensation from Takeru. He’d planned to pay everything out of pocket.

Luckily, Takeru—stingy as he could be—was still a man who owned up to his actions.

He not only covered the medical expenses, but also paid a generous settlement to each injured staff member, and even footed the haunted house’s repair costs.

This time, Takeru had bled financially.

His wallet was drained—he even cashed in reward points to convert into cash.

Each person got eight million yen in compensation. That alone totaled 40 million.

And that didn’t even include repair costs or hospital bills.

Some staffers, who just hours earlier had been threatening to stage protests at the city office, suddenly shut up. A few even called Takeru personally to say, “Bro, next time you do a payout like this, count me in. As long as you don’t kill or cripple me, I’m good with anything.”

One guy even started undercutting the others:
“Bro, hit me—I’ll give you a 20% discount!”

Seriously?

They were… competing for beatdowns now?

You absolute clowns.

No wonder market rates can’t rise—because of jokers like you.

Takeru took responsibility, the boss was satisfied, the beaten staff were thrilled—only Nanami was left thoroughly miserable.

She lost her job. Didn’t even get a cut of the money.

Hell, if she’d known one elbow was worth eight million, she’d have volunteered on the spot.

Knowing Takeru, if she’d taken a few hits, he’d probably have given her even more. That’d have paid for her whole university tuition.

I, Aoyama Nanami, paid not by my parents, nor relying on family, but solely by the generous sponsorship of top donor Kitahara Takeru, achieved financial freedom and paid my way through college. Applause, please.

No wonder people always say—opportunity is often right in front of you, and you still miss it.

So true.

Missing that chance? Nanami wanted to scream.

She decided: she would ignore Kitahara Takeru for the next month.

…Though, to be fair, even a gym bro got a rib cracked by one of Takeru’s elbows. Could she really survive a full-powered shot from an angry store manager?

She glanced at the busted room door on the monitor, and at Koyasu Tsubame—still trembling, clearly traumatized—and thought,

Yeah. Some people really earned their money today.

---

“Tsubame, are you okay?”

The store manager approached Koyasu Tsubame, whose expression had drained of all color. Her face was pale as ash.

Honestly, some staff getting beat up was minor. As long as Tsubame wasn’t hurt, it was fine.

“I-I’m okay…”

Tsubame forced out a shaky smile, but her glances at Takeru were still filled with fear and unease.

She’d always known men had more physical strength than women.

But she hadn’t realized… the gap was this big.

He looks so ordinary, but he had that kind of power inside him? Terrifying.

If Aoyama Nanami had arrived even a minute later, Tsubame didn’t dare imagine what might’ve happened to her.

She’d signed a liability waiver before entering the haunted house, sure—but she hadn’t realized it was for their side.

So basically… we’re the disposable ones?

Wait… he’s looking this way?!

Tsubame was still sneaking glances when she noticed Takeru’s gaze shift toward her. She immediately lowered her head and silently chanted in her heart:
You can’t see me, you can’t see me…

---

Sigh. So much for winning her over.

Takeru saw her look away and knew it was a lost cause.

Actually, when he was breaking the door down, the system interface had already popped up.

But he’d been too far gone to notice.

Now he finally saw it:

[Target: Koyasu Tsubame]
[Age: 18]
[Intelligence: 7]
[Charisma: 8]
[Stamina: 6]
[Origin: Kaguya-sama: Love is War – The Battle of Geniuses in Love]
[Crush: None]
[No boyfriend. Eligible for dating.]

Honestly, this was his first time seeing someone who was eighteen, didn’t have a crush, and was single.

He wasn’t abstaining because he was noble or anything—it was just that eighteen was his hard limit.

Takeru knew that in Japan, high school relationships often included sex. It was common.

But he couldn’t get past his own line.

It was like liking lolis in anime.

Online? Sure, you joke around and say, “Same here, bro.”

But if someone actually went after a real underage girl? In real life?

The internet would crucify you.

That’s why Takeru had always kept to himself.

At least eighteen. That’s the bottom line.

And now, after all this time, he’d finally met someone—and scared her off.

He wanted to kick himself.

Sure, he’d told himself not to touch the targets.

But couldn’t he have bent that rule just a little?

Among all his targets, there were still some normal ones—like Katō Megumi. Or Katō Megumi. Or... Katō Megumi.

Wait. Why were they all Katō Megumi?

Damn it—am I surrounded by Katō Megumis?

Takeru realized he knew plenty of quality women, but the only one he could seriously imagine a future with… was Katō Megumi.

Well—Hiratsuka Shizuka was great, too.

But the age gap…

She was eight years older than him. When he hit twenty-five, she’d be thirty-three.

Even if she had money and aged well, would she be okay with people whispering, “They look like mother and son”?

Takeru was lost in thought when someone suddenly grabbed his arm hard, making him wince in pain.

“What the hell?” he snapped.

The adrenaline rush had felt amazing. But now that it was wearing off, he was completely wiped out.

He was so weak that if a guy on peach gummies picked a fight, he’d probably end up cowering in a corner.

“Boss, I lost my job because of you! Don’t you think I deserve some compensation?”

Nanami loomed over him, hands on hips, face in his.

“I didn’t report you for working overtime—that’s already charity. And you want more?” Takeru flicked her forehead.

“Ow!” Nanami yelped, rubbing her head, sulking.

“Come on… at least a little something?”

Takeru gave her a friendly smile. “Nanami, how would you like to lose both your jobs in a single day?”

Nanami instantly shut her mouth. Scumbag Takeru! she cursed silently.

Just because he was a manager—so what?

One day, she would trample him underfoot!

…Not that she’d ever say that out loud. She barely dared think it.

She still had dreams of becoming a voice actress.

But if she wanted to trample Kitahara Takeru? She’d probably need to become a dominatrix.

...

“Watanabe, everything’s ready on my end.”

Kashiwagi Nagisa walked over, holding a stack of contracts.

To prevent future lawsuits, she’d called her family’s lawyer and had every staffer sign an agreement before Takeru sent the money.

“Thank you,” Takeru said, sincerely.

This time, he meant it.

Nagisa was actually a pretty easygoing person—if she didn’t have a crush on you.

What baffled him was: what exactly did she like about him?

He couldn’t tell if her confession had been genuine.

Was it because Shijō Maki was close to him, so Nagisa got curious and followed suit?

If she really liked Maki, shouldn’t she be warning him to back off?

Why confess?

Takeru didn’t get it.

“Don’t thank me. This mess was my fault,” Nagisa said softly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

She hadn’t expected him to lose control like that.

After a moment’s hesitation, she added, “I can help make up your losses.”

Takeru raised a hand to stop her. “Then I’d really be your family’s kept man.”

His wallet might be crying blood, but at least he was still free.

If he took her family’s money, he might as well start calling himself Kashiwagi Takeru.

“You’re greedy. You bend over backwards to please annoying women. But when I offer you money, you turn it down? What, is our money dirty or something?” Nagisa couldn’t understand him.

Takeru shook his head. “It’s different.”

The money he got from Kasumigaoka Utaha and Sawamura Spencer Eriri—he earned that.

Every train ride to Chiba. Every week spent picking the perfect restaurant. Every time he was their emotional support when they were down. Even backing off when they liked someone else…

That was work.

He knew he was just a stand-in. Never dared cross a line. Never imagined they’d fall for him.

He always played by the rules.

“You’re so stubborn,” Nagisa said with a bitter smile. “Can I buy you, then?”

Takeru chuckled. “As a host, I shouldn’t refuse a guest. But I won’t date someone who already has a boyfriend.”

He didn’t accept Katsura Kotonoha. He sure as hell wouldn’t accept Nagisa.

“What if I break up with Tanuma Tsubasa?” she asked suddenly.

“……”

Takeru froze.

He hadn’t seen that coming.

“He’s a good guy. I don’t want you to break up with him because of me. It’s not worth it.”

He rose from his chair. “I’m going to fix my makeup.”

As he walked away, Nagisa’s expression remained calm. Too calm—like the sea just before a storm.

A short distance away, Koyasu Tsubame watched their exchange with wide eyes, munching popcorn in spirit.

---

This is a fan translation of 不是说只拿我当替身的吗？by 雪碧加冰. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!