Weren’t You Only Using Me As A Stand-in? [64]

“Nee-nee, onii-san, buy a ticket~!”

On the bustling street, nearly every few meters someone was handing out flyers or event tickets for underground idols.

To get those tickets sold, these idols would go to just about any length.

Just earlier, Kitahara Takeru had seen a girl crouched inside a cardboard box, pitifully handing out tickets—that’s how far some of them were willing to go.

He didn’t spare her a glance. Without reacting to the idol, he continued walking with Kamikawa Rie toward the crowd gathered up ahead.

As they drew closer, the two realized a "Singing Contest" was being held at the shopping mall.

But calling it a “contest” was generous—it was more like karaoke scored by a machine.

Every participant got a small prize just for singing.

And the winner? They could choose from a variety of “grand prizes.”

Takeru scanned the prize list. Pretty underwhelming, really.

Probably the most valuable thing there was a 10,000 yen gift card.

There were plenty of onlookers, but very few actual contestants.

From what he could tell, there weren’t even ten people competing.

Takeru even suspected some of them were just plants from the event organizers.

Still, among that small handful of participants, he spotted a familiar face.

Should’ve guessed. Total gyaru move.

Takeru rubbed his chin as he looked at Watanabe Akari on stage.

Every time he went out to have fun, he’d bump into her. Without fail.

Because gyaru girls were either out playing, or on their way to go play.

“Let’s go.”

Takeru watched for a while, then lost interest and was about to leave.

“Takeru, I want that.”

Kamikawa Rie tugged on his arm and pointed at the stage.

Takeru followed her gaze. It was a life-sized teddy bear—easily as tall as a person.

“You like that thing?”

He turned to look at her in surprise. He hadn’t expected that from her—so she did have a girly side after all.

“No, not that. I mean the box under it.”

He looked again.

There was a small box tucked beneath the bear, containing a pair of matching couple mugs.

Takeru didn’t even need to guess what she wanted them for.

“Why don’t we just go buy some?”

It wasn’t like they were expensive.

Even if he was broke, he could afford that much.

“It’s not the same.”

“How is it not the same?”

What, were they the Holy Grail or something?

“I don’t care, I want those!”

Kamikawa Rie was now in full stubborn-brat mode.

Women are so much trouble.

Speechless, Takeru was shoved to the registration desk.

He tapped the counter. “Hi. I’d like to sign up.”

“Your name is… w-wait, Store Manager?!”

The girl at the sign-up table looked up—and immediately stood in shock upon recognizing him.

“Aoyama?”

Takeru was just as surprised to see Aoyama Nanami there in a temp staff uniform.

“You’re working a second job?”

If he remembered correctly, this girl already worked five-hour shifts daily at his store.

Any time he showed up, she was there hustling.

He’d already bent the rules to let her work that many hours—high schoolers weren’t legally supposed to work over 35 hours a week.

And now she was moonlighting without telling him?

“Please, Manager—don’t fire me.”

Nanami clasped her hands together in a desperate plea. “I really can’t afford to lose my job at the convenience store.”

Takeru paid her a great wage—1,200 yen an hour.

To put that in perspective, Tokyo 7-Eleven and FamilyMart night shifts usually paid around 1,150. Maybe some izakayas went slightly higher, but rarely over 1,300.

Jobs over 1,300? You only saw those around Kabukichō or karaoke joints.

Any higher, and you were looking at... escort clubs.

High pay, easy workload, and—most importantly!

Any leftover fried food and bento at the end of the day? Takeru let the staff divvy it up for free.

Nanami had worked a lot of jobs.

But it had been a long time since she’d come across a boss this generous.

She really didn’t want to lose this one.

Takeru frowned, struggling internally for a long moment, then silently picked up a number ticket and turned away. “Fine. I didn’t see anything.”

If it weren’t for the fact that she was hardworking and alone in Tokyo chasing her dreams, he really would’ve fired her on the spot.

Still too soft, Takeru sighed inwardly.

Didn’t want to play the good guy, but couldn’t go full villain either.

Probably why, in his past life, he never made it very far—never poor, never rich, and definitely never rich enough to afford a Range Rover.

He got in line, taking a spot at the very end.

Ahead of him, Hoshino Ai—wearing an earpiece—was awkwardly trying to make small talk with the guy in front of her.

“Ai-chan, Ai-chan, turn around.”

A voice came through her earpiece.

She was currently filming for an Asahi TV variety show.

The premise? Disguise herself as a contestant, chat up random people, and once she won the contest, remove her mask and sunglasses to reveal her identity—then capture the reactions.

Kind of like that hypnosis prank show with Ishihara Satomi.

Except Hoshino Ai was still a junior idol. She wasn’t anywhere near Ishihara Satomi’s level.

Ai followed instructions and turned around.

Under the sunlight, Takeru’s features looked even sharper—his roguishly handsome face paired with that black stud earring made her heart skip a beat.

Compared to his good-boy look before, this version of Takeru definitely had more pull with girls their age.

Look closely and you’d realize—most girls, when picking a guy, were drawn to the ones with a bit of edge.

Because girls only looked obedient on the surface. Deep down, they had rebellious hearts.

And the "bad-boy" types? They knew exactly how to spark that rebellion.

“Hi there~” Ai greeted cheerfully.

Takeru glanced at her behind her mask and sunglasses, looking like some third-rate celebrity, and gave a slight nod—then went back to playing on his phone.

Ai was completely ignored—but she didn’t get flustered.

She tiptoed to peek at his screen. “Whatcha playing?”

“Arknights.”

“Ohh, I know that one—it’s super popular in Japan.”

“Is that so.”

...

Ai tried everything she could to strike up conversation, but Takeru wasn’t biting. His replies were ice-cold—stoic and unwavering like he’d inherited the Will of Fire.

He was nothing like Uchiha Obito—falling for some woman and betraying the village.

Don’t be fooled by how he acted around Shijō Maki or Nakano Yotsuba. Takeru wasn’t easy to deal with.

In his mind, there were only three kinds of women:

• The ones the system selected—who could drop gold.

• Irrelevant background extras.

• Kamikawa Rie.

Ai was starting to get discouraged.

Come on, at least give me something.

I finally got a spot on a variety show here!

The show producers were even considering pulling her from the segment.

This footage? No one would bother watching.

“What are you doing here?”

Before the host could intervene, Watanabe Akari spotted Takeru and stormed up to him.

“Why do I keep running into you?! Are you stalking me?”

Takeru gave her a strange look.

Do you not own a mirror? Even a puddle?

Stalking you?

What for, exactly?

Your inability to drop coins, or your bad attitude?

---

T/N: ooooh he didnt get a buzzut its more like hmmm

if it is buzzcut then its just emiya alter heuheuheu

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!