Heroine’s Love Story

"Ishida, what's wrong?"

Naoka Ueno looked at Ishida Shouya, who had just run into the classroom and collapsed onto his desk. Concerned, she leaned in to ask.

"None of your business!"

Ishida's choked voice came through, trembling. It was clear he was crying.

Ueno was caught off guard. She had never expected the usually reckless, fearless Ishida—who spent his days instigating all sorts of trouble—to cry like this.

At the same time, her admiration for Hojou Kyousuke grew even more.

No one knew, but she was the only one at school who had discovered the real reason why those kids who used to bully Hojou Kyousuke had suddenly transferred out.

In fact, she knew far more than their homeroom teacher, Takeuchi, or anyone else.

That afternoon, she had returned to school after forgetting something, and that was when she witnessed everything.

In the locker room, Hojou Kyousuke stood by the door, staring down a group of boys who had been sneaking around, clutching his indoor shoes in their hands.

"Is that all you've got?"

The boys inside flinched at his words, startled.

When they turned around and saw who had spoken, their guilt turned into anger.

The leader of the group, a chubby kid, stepped forward.

"Huh? What are you talking about? We just found these shoes on the ground and were about to put them in the lost-and-found."

"Hah."

Hojou let out a cold laugh, his tone dripping with condescension.

"Pathetic cowards who can only pull petty tricks in the shadows."

"You bastard! Say that again!"

Enraged, the chubby kid and his friends rushed forward, surrounding Hojou.

Peeking from outside the room, Ueno held her breath.

She had no idea why Hojou was provoking them despite being outnumbered.

"Did I say something wrong? I'm standing right here. What are you going to do about it?"

"I…"

For a moment, the chubby kid faltered.

"Useless. Let me show you how it's done."

Hojou Kyousuke had been training as a runner since childhood.

He wasn't as big as the chubby kid, but his body was far stronger.

With a quick step backward, he twisted his body and delivered a powerful punch straight to the chubby kid's stomach.

Even with layers of fat, the blow sent shockwaves through him.

His eyes bulged, and he doubled over, clutching his stomach in agony.

But Hojou didn't stop. He followed up with a brutal knee strike to the kid's pudgy face.

With just that, the chubby kid collapsed onto the ground, groaning in pain as he clutched his face and stomach alternately.

His friends were frozen in fear.

Even though they were used to bullying others, it had always been through underhanded tactics.

They had never encountered someone as ruthless as Hojou.

Terrified, they scrambled back, afraid he would turn on them next.

"Listen up. Tomorrow after school, I'll be waiting outside. Bring more people if you want. The few of you aren't even close to being a challenge."

With that, Hojou gave the chubby kid a sharp kick.

"Got it?"

"Y-yeah, we got it!"

Shaking, the boys nodded frantically.

Ueno quickly ducked behind a corner as Hojou exited the room. Her heart was racing.

"A hero!"

Her small hands clenched into fists in excitement, and her deep blue-violet eyes sparkled.

Everything about Hojou Kyousuke's actions fit her idea of what a true hero should be.

That day, Ueno walked home in a daze, her mind full of thoughts.

How could she get close to him?

As far as she knew, the only person at school who talked to him was Sakura Yamauchi from Class 1-B.

That night, she tossed and turned, imagining different scenarios—sometimes picturing Hojou protecting her like Doraemon, giggling to herself, and other times frowning in frustration, unsure of how to bridge the gap between them.

It wasn't until deep into the night that she finally drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, even her younger brothers were up before she managed to get out of bed.

"Naoka, Naoka, you're going to be late," her grandfather called.

Upon hearing that, Ueno snapped awake.

"I have to hurry! If I don't get to school fast, I won't see Hojou Kyousuke!"

She rushed to get ready and dashed out the door.

At the school entrance, she caught sight of him.

But he was holding a girl's hand!

"Sakura, move faster! We're gonna be late!"

"Huff… huff…"

The girl, completely out of breath, was being half-dragged forward by Hojou.

"Just… let me rest a bit! If I'm late, I'm late! People are bound to be late sometimes!"

For a moment, Ueno felt like the girl had a point.

She slowed her own steps unconsciously.

"Don't try to use your twisted logic on me. If you hadn't stayed in bed so long, we wouldn't be in this mess."

Unmoved, Hojou continued to pull her along.

Ueno furrowed her brows, confused by their conversation.

But then, she heard the girl's next words.

"I told you today was my rest day! You can't just barge into a girl's room and drag her out for a morning run before she even washes her face!"

Sakura Yamauchi's voice rang loud and clear.

Ueno's face flushed.

Barging into her room? Dragging her out?

Before she could hear more, the two separated inside the school building, each heading to their respective classrooms.

That entire day, Ueno found herself stealing glances at Hojou.

Luckily, he spent most of his time sleeping in class and didn't notice.

After school, Ueno stayed behind under the excuse of helping clean up, remembering the fight that was supposed to take place.

She wanted to see if she could help.

But what she saw was completely different from what she expected.

The same Hojou Kyousuke who had seemed like a hero yesterday was now getting beaten up by the chubby kid and over ten of his friends.

Or rather, it looked like they were the ones getting beaten up.

Although Hojou barely seemed to take any hits, several of the bullies ended up crying.

Still, Ueno couldn't understand how things had turned out this way.

She watched in a daze as Hojou calmly walked toward the police station.

What is he doing?

Curious, she moved closer—and witnessed an unforgettable sight.

Hojou picked up a rock and tore his clothes with it, then rolled on the ground, covering himself in dirt.

Finally, he punched himself in the nose, smearing the dripping blood across his face and body.

Ueno's jaw dropped.

Her already large eyes widened even more.

Then, the same Hojou who hadn't made a sound when he was supposedly getting beaten suddenly burst into tears, wailing loudly as he stumbled into the police station.

Later, Ueno's grandfather used his police connections to find out what had happened.

"A hero!"

She easily saw through Hojou's plan.

The adults thought it was just another case of school bullying.

But only she knew the truth. Hojou Kyousuke wasn't just strong—he was a genius.

From that day on, he was permanently engraved in her heart.

"Sorry, Ishida," she thought. "But Hojou is just too amazing."