I Don't Want An Ordinary Life

Chapter 25: Confessions Are Useless, Trust Me

Kaguya turned to Ai Hayasaka and asked, "Have you found anything about Ronan's true identity?"

"No leads so far."

Hayasaka shook her head.

"For now, all we know is that he has a very close connection with IW. According to available records, he was once a second lieutenant in the Middle East operations unit and is currently affiliated with a research department in Japan. However, this identity seems more like something they allow us to see—his real identity remains unknown."

"I see... I don't think IW would target the Shinomiya Group's assets four years ago just because of an operations unit member. There must be a deeper reason behind this."

Kaguya sat in the back seat, deep in thought.

Although she wasn't allowed to interfere in family business, she had heard of certain organizations—ones her family had explicitly warned her never to provoke.

One of them is IW.

"IW, short for Isaac Worldwide, is a massive organization that rose to prominence after the end of the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Its industries span multiple sectors, including military, communications, healthcare, transportation, finance, and construction. It is one of the few organizations that even the Shinomiya family dares not challenge. The sheer scale of its influence is beyond imagination," Kaguya organized the information in her mind.

"Yes, its origins trace back to a military contractor that was active in war-torn regions during the most turbulent periods of international conflict. There are rumors that they built their weapons trade empire using the remnants of the former Soviet Union's legacy, though this remains nothing more than speculation."

Hayasaka added from the side, "At the beginning of the 21st century, many major international events were linked to them."

"Well, just another organization profiting off war."

Kaguya shook her head, her expression growing slightly more serious.

"But… this is one of the few organizations that even Father fears."

"Of course. From its early days, it was infamous for its ruthless tactics. Many members of its operations division have even stood trial in military courts, and some of their actions blatantly violated the Geneva Conventions… Yet, despite all this, the organization grew to a point where no one dared to accuse them of wrongdoing."

"What exactly is Ronan's connection to them? Why would this organization take action because of him?"

"That remains unclear for now. I did some digging into the organization's publicly listed leaders," Hayasaka said. "The first president was George Shechik, a former member of the U.S. Army's 75th Ranger Regiment, but he stepped down ten years ago. The second and current president is Sosuke Sagara, a Japanese national. Neither of them has any known ties to Ronan."

"The publicly listed leaders… meaning there's someone behind the scenes?"

"Yes. It's said that only those who experienced the events of 1999 know the true mastermind—someone who founded the organization and continues to pull the strings from the shadows. He was a nightmare for that generation… But no matter which channels I checked, there's no trace of him."

"…This is getting more and more complicated."

"Actually, Miss, there's no need for you to worry, is there? They have nothing to do with us students. Even if Ronan has a complicated background, he's not likely to do anything to you at school, right?"

"He did say he wouldn't cause me trouble, but…"

"But?"

"But he's definitely the one sabotaging my plans!"

Kaguya couldn't help but cover her face.

"He's definitely going to badmouth me in front of the President and stop him from confessing to me…"

"…Didn't you just say you didn't care?"

"In any case, I have to stay on guard against him! He will definitely do everything he can to interfere with things between the President and me!"

...

"President, to help you out, let's at least exchange our phone contacts… Oh, right, you guys in Japan don't use WeChat. Then let's add each other on LINE."

Ronan took out his phone, intending to exchange contact information with the President.

Since Shirogane had already decided to step into this mess, Ronan saw no reason to dissuade him. He might as well go along with it and assist the President in carrying out his plan.

"Uh… exchanging LINE is a bit…"

"Huh? President, are you getting shy all of a sudden?"

"No… how should I put this… Actually, I…"

Shirogane suddenly lowered his head.

"I don't have a phone."

"…"

"You already know how expensive smartphones are on the market. Even the cheapest ones would cost me months' worth of part-time wages, and I have to use that money to help support my family. By the time I get anything for myself…"

"Okay, got it."

Ronan reached for his backpack on the couch, pulled out a slightly thick smartphone, and placed it in front of Shirogane.

"This is…?"

"A phone. Borrow it for now. I'll use this to contact you."

"Oh, thank you very much."

After expressing his gratitude, Shirogane picked up the phone and pressed a button, but aside from the initial scan screen, nothing else appeared.

"Is this… broken?"

"Oh, it hasn't been registered to a user yet."

Ronan took the phone from Shirogane's hands, tapped a few times on the screen, and then pointed it at Shirogane's face.

[User confirmed.]

"This phone is a product of my organization, specifically designed for C4ISR tactical command systems. Since I always worry about unexpected situations, I usually carry two phones with me."

"Oh…"

Shirogane didn't quite understand what Ronan was talking about, but it sounded impressive.

"So, give me a general idea of what you need me to do. Gathering intelligence is easy, but the main goal is to bring you and the Shinomiya heiress together, right?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"Then remember what I told you before—never confess first."

"I know, I need to make Shinomiya confess to me…"

"If the Shinomiya heiress has any sense, she won't confess to you either," Ronan said without hesitation.

"Eh? Why?"

"Because confessions are useless."

"Huh?"

"After reflecting on my past heartbreak, I've come to understand the fundamental principle of romance," Ronan's eyes sharpened. "And that is—confessions are utterly pointless."

"…"

"Last time, I got hit with a critical blow from Secretary Fujiwara before I could finish explaining. But basically, love is a process of improving yourself to make the other person fall for you. A confession only serves to tell someone that you like them. The former is like slowly raising the stakes, while the latter is going all-in at once. Anyone with a bit of sense wouldn't go all-in."

"Ronan… Do you seriously believe confessions are useless?"

"Of course. If a single sentence could make someone wholeheartedly devote themselves to you, that wouldn't be a girlfriend—that'd be a mother."

"..."

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