Breaking Up With the Heroine in an Otome Game

2 – Let’s Break Up (2)

003.

Romance Hero Academy is a female-oriented game.

You could say that the main goal is to form relationships with numerous men and enjoy various sweet and somewhat bitter romances.

Heirs to wealthy families, top clans’ bloodlines, classmates who are ex-celebrities, etc.

Naturally, when you lead your academy life, you’ll find yourself being pursued by handsome and talented men one by one.

Just like bees intoxicated by the scent of flowers.

But here’s the thing.

What if there was an unknown guy clinging to the girl you have a crush on?

Would I accept without complaint that I’m receiving special treatment just because we’ve been together for a long time, maintaining a blissful romance?

No. There’s no way.

With no ability, talent, or decent family background, I could never accept my lover monopolizing the attention of the one I love.

Why?

The reason is simple.

As I mentioned earlier, this world is a reverse-harem game.

Unlike the typical bubbly romance visual novels celebrating love, it’s a reverse-harem visual novel tinged with ominous, slippery decadence, obsession, and jealousy.

That’s the true nature of Romance Hero Academy.

‘As a female-oriented game, the male protagonists’ personalities… are really no joke.’

The male protagonists each have a very high sense of self-esteem.

They might not openly express jealousy, but as the story progresses, their dissatisfaction and fixation will accumulate.

If I fail to manage intimacy and favorability, the male protagonists will perceive me, Jin Suyeon’s only male friend, as an ‘enemy’ or ‘obstacle.’

Of course, as they are half-claiming to be heroes, they won’t openly bully me, but the problem lies with various NPCs who try to please the male protagonists to gain their favor.

They will willingly torment Lee Jinhyuk to earn the approval of the male protagonists.

Malicious rumors, ostracism, exclusion, harassment, manipulation.

In a very sinister way, they will act within the lines not to get caught by others.

The more I think about it, the more daunting my future academy life seems.

As a character made to be a scapegoat, I’m not getting a fair treatment.

However, there’s one solution to all of this.

A very simple solution.

Well, there’s no need to think, right?

If the fact that I’m dating Jin Suyeon is the cause of harassment, breaking up with Jin Suyeon would be the end of it.

So, I declared a breakup to Jin Suyeon.

“….”

“….”

With that, a silence fell between the two of us.

A sense of inexplicable desolation filled the small room.

“Ah.”

But that didn’t last for long.

“So, I was just playing a little joke…… Anyway.”

As if speaking to herself, Jin So-yeon muttered under her breath, then soon lifted the corners of her eyes with a sullen expression.

Then, she began to act like the lovelorn heroine of a romantic sitcom, filled with playful mischief.

“Heuk…so mean.”

Her appearance resembled that of a playful cat or a mischievous little girl.

“Did you find another girl, by any chance?”

She whimpered with a voice half-mixed with tears.

“Jin Hyuk-ah… How could you do this to me…!”

She even pretended to sob openly.

‘I kind of expected it, but she’s really reacting this way.’

Their close relationship made this sort of reaction possible.

They had often played cruel jokes on each other.

April Fool’s pranks, surprise hidden camera shows, and more.

“Well…yeah.”

“Huh?”

“Actually, I found a girl I like separately.”

For now, he casually shook his head as if it was nothing, intending to go along with the playful atmosphere.

“One who’s much prettier and kinder than you.”

*Sobbing* “A breakup to start a new relationship is the worst~.”

They laughed playfully, exchanging silly jokes.

“Did you really find someone you fell in love with at first sight, like you half-jokingly mentioned during the entrance ceremony?”

“Who knows? Maybe.”

“Hey, don’t do that again~. Why don’t you tell your older sister a little secret?”

A subtle smile played on Jin So-yeon’s face.

She giggled and poked my side.

She didn’t look like a lover who had just heard a breakup declaration. It couldn’t be helped. My relationship with Jin So-yeon wasn’t a typical one.

“Anyway, let’s stop joking around now.”

“Aww~.”

“So-yeon-ah.”

“Alright. I got it. So, what do you want to say, Jinhyuk?”

Jin Soyeon looked at him with a slightly serious gaze, only then did she shrug her shoulders, seemingly ready to listen intently.

“You know, what I just said.”

“Ah, the break-up thing?”

As if it just came to her mind, Jin Soyeon’s eyes blinked.

“I think it’s about time to quit now that I’ve entered Union Academy.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah.”

Jinhyuk stared intently at Jin Soyeon.

Then.

“I see.”

Jin Soyeon slowly nodded her head, as if understanding.

“…Ah, anyway, what was I saying.”

She let out a long breath.

A smile crept onto her strangely stiff face.

She playfully patted my shoulder as usual.

“I thought you were going to say something else.”

“I just wanted to try saying it too–the break-up thing.”

“It must be nice~ Kicking such a pretty girl to the curb.”

Jinhyuk and Jin Soyeon talked casually about breaking up, as if it wasn’t a big deal.

Thinking about it rationally, one might find our reactions a bit strange, but in reality, Jinhyuk and Jin Soyeon weren’t genuinely dating.

We were what you’d call ‘fake lovers.’

Pretending to be lovers, being in a fake relationship.

‘A fake lover. It’s a setup that usually appears in real games.’

Would you say they were the royal road, appearing out of thin air in love comedies, pure romance comics, romance fantasies, and so on?

However, it was almost distressing if they didn’t appear in subculture genres now.

“Once we graduate from the academy, our school life is over, so shouldn’t we try to experience a real romantic relationship?”

“Wow? So you’ve been thinking about dating since you just entered?”

The reason Jinhyuk and Jin Soyeon became fake lovers wasn’t anything special.

Jin Soyeon, who had received countless love confessions from boys since she was young, asked me, “Boys are annoying; can you pretend to be dating me?” and that has continued to the present day.

As the heroine, Jin Soyeon, who had experienced hardships due to her outstanding beauty since she was young, I couldn’t refuse her request in the past, which made me the target of jealousy for many men.

But not anymore.

Because I must now break off this hollow relationship.

“I didn’t know our Jinyeok wanted to date so badly~.”

Jin Soyeon chuckled and plopped down on the bed.

“Men are all wolves, wolves~. hahahahaha…….”

I quietly looked down at Jin Soyeon’s face, who was laughing and joking around.

I observed her for a while, but she was no different from the usual Jin Soyeon.

She didn’t seem to attribute any particular meaning to the idea of ending our fake relationship.

‘Anyway, is everything really okay? I can’t tell just by looking at her.’

I scratched my temple pretentiously.

There was one fact I secretly worried about.

It was impossible to know what Jin Soyeon was really thinking since she was almost always laughing.

‘Still, seeing her reaction not taking it seriously, there may not be any big problems.’

How should I put it?

There is one setup regarding Jin Soyeon.

Not a particularly remarkable setup.

Just the very clichéd setup of secretly liking a childhood friend.

This setup was given to her in the game so that she would become a heroine of sorrow when I died and received a significant shock.

Anyway, if the game’s setup is followed, Jin Soyeon might be secretly liking me.

…of course, well.

I’m not sure if that’s really true or not.

She’s just messing around and playing pointless jokes like that.

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Also, the ambiguous phrase ‘secretly’ bothered me.

It’s a difficult expression to judge objectively.

Moreover, her reaction when I suggested ending our fake relationship was too calm.

It made me doubt if she really likes me or not.

In the game, Jin Soyeon’s inner thoughts were not expressed very much.

Despite being a playable character.

‘Considering Jin Soyeon’s character setup… well, it could be possible. But her reaction is so ambiguous that it makes me hesitate on how to respond.’

Although I deliberately mentioned breaking up,

I wondered how Jin Soyeon would react.

“Soyeon, what about you?”

“Me?”

“Yes.”

She blinked her eyes a couple of times and pointed at herself with her index finger.

“Don’t you want to try having a proper relationship too?”

“I’m fine without it.”

Jin Soyeon casually answered while fiddling with her penguin doll.

“Relationships are a bother~.”

“Really?”

“Of course, with this appearance, guys won’t leave me alone. Ah! Do you think Jinyoung might regret having broken up with me? Even if he tries to hold onto me later, it’ll be useless, right?”

“There’s no cure for princess disease.”

“Hmpf. What are you talking about?”

Jin Soyeon sulkily stuck out her lips and shot me an unhappy glance.

“From the beginning, even after rumors started saying you were dating, several boys kept confessing to me.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

Was it back in middle school?

Several guys secretly confessed their feelings to me.

To them, a goalkeeper like me seemed easy enough to penetrate. Well, objectively speaking, Jin Soyeon and I weren’t fitting partners.

“They kept boasting about how much better they were than you, asking why on earth I was dating you, and saying that they’d treat me better… sigh.”

Was it because of bad experiences caused by various guys?

Jin Soyeon didn’t seem to have a positive view of men.

Of course, thanks to her bright and outgoing personality, she got along well with both boys and girls without distinction. However, it seemed that she didn’t want to establish a good relationship as a romantic partner.

“Are you really not interested in relationships?”

“Aren’t I telling you that I’m not?”

“Who knows, maybe there might be a really great guy?”

For example, male protagonists who have good abilities, handsome faces, and solid backgrounds?

“You really… sigh. Fine, go ahead and enjoy your relationships.”

Soyeon, who seemed displeased, stared at me.

However, thinking about the future, it would be better for Jin Soyeon and the male leads to build a positive relationship.

It’s no wonder, as the male leads are as talented as Jin Soyeon, boasting abilities, backgrounds, and wealth above all others.

In the future, they will be valuable allies in resolving various issues.

‘If Soyeon starts her academy life in earnest, it would be difficult for her to handle everything on her own.’

The difficulty of this female-oriented role-playing game is quite high.

If one makes a mistake, there’s a high chance of encountering a bad ending.

In that case, this world would become a mess.

The ending of a world that has lost its protagonist is never good.

This is the world I will have to live in, whether I like it or not.

I cannot leave everything to Jin Soyeon without any thought.

Ah, of course.

I hardly have any intention of fighting myself.

Even though I am a master of this game, if I had to face monsters and villains, what could I do other than die?

From the beginning, the monsters and villains of this game are truly horrifying.

An NPC like me, who has neither talent nor ability, would just become a lump of meat if I recklessly step forward.

Though I would fight myself if I have no other choice, thankfully, there are people who will fight on my behalf.

Jin Soyeon, the heroine who has been chosen as the center and protagonist of this world.

‘Depending on how I guide Soyeon and the male leads, the future will change drastically.’

Alright.

There’s no hiding it at this point.

I plan to make use of them.

The greatest talents in the world, Jin Soyeon and the male leads.

Ah.

But don’t misunderstand when I say “use.”

I don’t mean to use them as mere tools.

Soyeon is my favorite character and childhood friend.

I would never treat Soyeon harshly.

On the contrary, I intend to support her without any envy.

I will take advantage of my past life’s memories to gain all sorts of benefits for her.

Of course, the best method would be for me to be killed in front of Jin Soyeon, but there’s no way I could die on purpose just for her awakening.

Well… depending on the situation, I could at least pretend to be dead…

“What’s he thinking about now?”

“Ah, sorry. I’m just a little sleepy.”

“You’re sleepy even though your girlfriend is right next to you?”

“We decided to stop pretending to be a couple.”

“Ah, right.”

Jin Soyeon twirled her hair around her finger.

“Anyway, if you’re sleepy, go back and sleep, okay? Tomorrow is the start of our academy life for real.”

“Yeah… That’s true.”

I nodded my head.

It’s okay for me to leave since we’ve already said what we needed to say.

“Jinhyuk.”

“Yeah?”

Suddenly, Jin Soyeon’s voice stopped me.

“Thank you for all this time, helping me. It must have been bothersome for you.”

“No, it’s fine. It’s what our relationship called for.”

“Our relationship… “

Jin Soyeon wore an enigmatic smile.

“Then, see you tomorrow, Soyeon.”

“Okay, take care, my ex-boyfriend Jinhyuk.”

“Sweet dreams, my ex-girlfriend Soyeon.”

“Ah, gross!”

As usual, our conversation ended with such meaningless words.

“…”

Just before closing the door.

I glanced back while the door slowly closed.

I caught a glimpse of Jin Soyeon’s face, staring blankly at my retreating figure.

Her eyes, how should I put it?

They seemed more subdued than usual.