Translator: Haruto.

After a couple more rehearsals, the day of the play finally arrived.

The stage has been set up perfectly… I think…

The audience is in their seats! I’m in full health! Let’s raise those curtains, shall we?!

“Guys, I have some bad news. Aoyama-kun is feeling a little under the weather today so he’ll be staying home.”

“Huh? Then who’ll be the protagonist?”

“What are we going to do…?”

That little…

I know I’ve wished he’d catch a cold before, but dude, couldn’t you have chosen a better time?

“Well, it is what it is. Is anyone willing to replace him as the prince?”

“Um, I play a vassal of the prince so I’ve got his lines down.”

“Oh! That’s great!”

“No, to be honest, I’m not sure I can play that role well and I don’t really want to be the center of attention either.”

Then, in the middle of this emergency meeting, a new idea comes to light.

“Hey, how about we just make the piggy duke the protagonist? The beauty and the beast kind of thing, remember?”

The entire class got goosebumps!

“That could work!” they all said.

Heck no!

Hold up a second! Let’s not jump the gun, okay?! Pretty please?

“What do you think, Amane-chan?”

“Hm? Me?”

Alright, Amane, just tell them you disagree.

Trying to convey that desire, I look Amane straight in the eyes.

“Shuu-kun as the protagonist…? Hehe, I love it! Let’s do it!”

And she lands the final blow.

It’s all over.

No, wait! I still got a chance!

“What about the old lines and the overall plot…?”

“Relax, I’ve got it all figured out. And if you ever find yourself in a pickle, you can just come up with something on the spot.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!”  

Thus, hell began.

I spent the little time I had trying to ram line after line into my head, improving my acting skills, getting ready to improvise if need be, and so on and so forth.

And thanks to such efforts, the school play started taking form again.

Also, Princess Amane is freaking cute.

That last part is very important.

“I believe in you.”

The curtain rises to the scene where the princess finds out about the piggy duke’s past and throws herself into his arms.

“You trust me? Even though this terrible pig curse has been cast upon me?”

“It is naught but proof of your efforts to protect the people. You’ve taken the curse upon yourself in order to protect us, which is why my faith lies in you.”

Bam says the sign a couple of kids are holding as the prince makes his way into the scene.

“That’s enough! Piggy Duke! You shall return the princess to me!” the prince shouts while raising his cardboard sword to the sky.

“You are… Ah, that prince from the south, huh…”

“You villain! How dare you abduct the princess?! I’ll put an end to your days!”  

The final showdown is here.

In the original story, the prince defeated the piggy duke, and the couple lived happily ever after. But now that the plot has taken a strange turn…

“Hahaha, take a look at me, prince. I’ve been despised and rejected by those around me for as long as I can remember. To be honest with you, I cared very little about my own fate…”

“But you know, my desire to live has been reignited. I wish… I wish you could find it in you to give this poor fellow another chance.”

A battle ensues regardless.

The clashing of cardboard swords echoes around the room.  

The piggy duke is backed into a corner.

“This is the end.”

Now, here’s where normally the protagonist would somehow turn the tables on his opponent.

But hey, things are never that easy.

Clatter

“Huh?”

Amane’s shocked voice resounds through the venue.

A moment later, the tall platform Amane was standing on collapses.

“No!”

It all happened in the blink of an eye.

I used Divine-Blood Strengthening.

Who cares if they find out?! I need to save her!

“I’ve gotta make it!!!”

I catch Amane in my arms.

Such movements put a huge strain on my five-year-old body, and it’s like I can hear my muscles screech in pain.

I grit my teeth and make sure Amane is safe.

Clank

A loud noise is heard around the room as the whole platform falls to pieces.

Unable to endure the jump, the pig mask made out of cardboard I was wearing breaks.

“I’m okay. Thank you, Dear Duke.”

“!!!”

I see, the show must go on, huh.  Alright then…

As the audience breaks into chaos seeing the platform collapse, Amane’s voice rises.

“Dear Duke! Your curse has…!”

Aah, so that’s how she wants to play it. Since my piggy mask cracked, we can just say the curse was dispelled.

What a great idea! I’m in!

“Yeah, the curse… is broken.”

A second later, the narrator, aka our teacher, makes an appearance.

“Incredible! Thanks to his love for the princess, the piggy duke managed to break through the chains of his curse and recover his long-lost strength!”

Nice one, Teach… You even gave the piggy duke the means to turn the tables on the prince with that “long-lost strength” or whatever.

“Alright, now’s my turn!”

I look into the prince’s eyes.

“Ha! Who cares if your curse’s been broken?!”

Oh, this kid knows how to improvise.

I say my next line and swing my sword his way.

Things progress as planned and finally…

“And that’s how the duke and the princess lived happily and peacefully for the rest of their days.”

Clap, clap, clap.

Phew, looks like it all went well.

By the way, it seems the platform had been deteriorating for a while.

“You did great, Shuu-kun. Thank you!”

“Nah, it’s all thanks to you guys.”

My classmates gather around me with smiles on their faces.  

“I can’t believe you managed to catch Himeyuri-san!”

“I know, right? It was freaking awesome!”

“You were so cool!”

One after another, they express their impressions, which are, I might add, truly fit for their young age.

I feared someone noticed me using Divine-Blood Strengthening, but it seems my worries were unfounded.  

“Shuu-kun! Hey, Shuu-kun!”

“Hm?”

I turn around and…

Kiss.♡

A soft sensation lands on my cheek.

Amane is next to me.

“Thank you for saving me.”

Blushing, Amane looks up at me.

I can tell how my own face turns red, and I hear a puff as if steam was coming out of me.

My face feels warm.

A = When is done by a beautiful girl.

(A Kiss + Blushing + Looking up at you) x A = Falling in love.

Seriously, if a man doesn’t fall in love after experiencing something like that is because he plays for the other team.

I’m already in love with her so it’s fine, but man, I’d have been in real trouble if this would have happened a few years down the line. Thank goodness I’m a kid.  

My homeboy lies dormant still.

The people around me begin teasing me but I don’t care.

All that matters to me right now is how adorable she is.  

At that time, I was still unaware of the fact that my parents filmed the moment she kissed me.  

Previous Chapter – Contents – Next Chapter

Consider supporting me on Buy Me a Coffee!