Daigaku de Ichiban Kawaii Senpai wo Tasuketara Nomi Tomodachi ni Natta Hanashi Volume 1 Chapter 1
It had already been a month since I became a second-year university student.
The cherry blossoms had long since fallen, leaving only green leaves swaying in the breeze. The vibrant, exciting mood that had filled the campus during the start of the semester had vanished, as if it had been nothing more than a fleeting illusion.
The cafeteria, once noisy and packed with curious, wide-eyed freshmen, was now calm. Students sat around chatting in relaxed tones, holding casual meetings or just laughing with their friends.
“Mas, the usual again?”
“Yeah. Please.”
Even before I could place my meal ticket on the counter, the cafeteria auntie had already guessed what I wanted. With her skilled hands, she began preparing my usual udon.
Ever since last year, I’d ordered the same thing—plain udon—for lunch almost every day. By now, she could probably recognize me just by the sound of my footsteps.
“Oh, right. How’s it going? You told me you’d take things more seriously as a second-year, didn’t you?”
“Ah, well… it’s harder than I thought.”
By “how’s it going,” she meant have I made any friends yet.
I—Itomori Kaname—had always been at the bottom of the social hierarchy since middle school. I spent my youth buried in books and study materials, living quietly in my own little world.
That’s why I wanted my university life to be different. I thought maybe—just maybe—I could change. So I dyed my hair a bit, started learning about fashion, and even joined the tennis club.
...But I didn’t really fit in. The club atmosphere felt off, and I started skipping more and more until I stopped going entirely. At a group date, I couldn’t even manage to say a single sentence. After that, the invites stopped coming.
By the second semester of my first year, I’d gone right back to being just another lonely guy—just like in middle school. A “Bocchi-kun,” through and through.
“But it’s fine. I don’t really feel uncomfortable being alone.”
When I said that, the cafeteria auntie smiled gently and placed my bowl of udon on the counter.
“Eat up, now.”
I took a seat near the cafeteria entrance, pressed my hands together, and murmured a quiet itadakimasu.
Just then, three male students walked into the cafeteria, their eyes immediately drifting toward the back of the room.
“Whoa, that’s my first time seeing her.”
"She’s even prettier in person.”
“…I kinda wanna try talking to her.”
“Don’t even think about it.”
They said it in perfect unison, holding their meal tickets like offerings as they headed toward the counter.
I slurped my udon slowly, my curiosity getting the better of me. I turned my head and looked in the direction they’d been staring.
A group of guys and girls were sitting there, all of them strikingly good-looking.
But among them, one person clearly stood out—like a single star shining in the night sky.
Tennouji Akebi.
Her golden hair spilled down her back like threads of sunlight, reaching all the way to her waist. Her eyes shimmered with the color of sunflowers—bright and clear, like jewels reflecting the summer sun.
Her face looked like it had been sculpted by a master artisan—delicate, flawless, almost too perfect to be real. She was tall, elegant, and had the kind of figure that would make even professional models feel insecure.
Now in her third year, Tennouji-senpai had won the university’s beauty contest two years in a row. Ask anyone on campus who the most beautiful girl was, and you'd hear her name without hesitation.
“Tennouji-san, are you free tonight? We were thinking of going to that restaurant you mentioned before!”
The guy asking was flashy—dyed reddish-brown hair, dangling earrings, and a slightly too-eager smile that couldn’t quite hide his real intentions.
Senpai didn’t even blink. She simply raised her head and spoke softly.
“Tonight, huh?”
“I’m sorry. I already have dinner plans with my father. Maybe another time.”
Her voice was gentle, her tone calm. Her expression didn’t change—serene and flawless, like a beautiful porcelain doll.
If a normal person had said it that way, it might have come off as sarcastic or even cold. But not her.
Tennouji Akebi’s aura—like a noble princess from another world—made every word she spoke feel genuine. She looked so different from everyone else, so distant and graceful, that even her rejections felt elegant.
“Oh, I see… I mean, it’s been happening a lot lately, huh? Not that I think there’s anything weird about being close to your dad or anything.”
“Now that I’m a third-year, there are a lot of things I want to talk about regarding my future. I tend to worry a lot, you see.”
“Ah, right. Makes sense. Okay then, maybe next time.”
“Yes. Thank you. And please let me know what you think of the food.”
with nothing more than a blank expression, she carried the elegance of a white rose—cold, refined, and mesmerizing. Just that alone was enough to make the guy flash a brief, enchanted smile.
But almost immediately, disappointment settled over his face when the reality hit him—she wouldn’t be coming.
“Dinner with her dad, huh…”
As I quietly clapped in admiration—half impressed, half confused—at her perfectly convincing performance, my phone buzzed from inside my pocket.
【Akebi: So, we’re drinking together again tonight, right? ♡】
The message popped up on my screen, complete with a sticker of a bunny holding a bottle of alcohol.
I slowly raised my eyes and looked back at Senpai.
Right on cue, she glanced over at me—her face suddenly breaking into a mischievous grin, her sharp little fang peeking out as she gave me a tiny wave, completely devoid of the reserved elegance she had just moments before.
“…Seriously?”
I typed a quick reply with a sigh.
She let out a small, satisfied hmph, then turned her attention back to the conversation at her table, her demeanor sliding effortlessly back to that of the flawless Tennouji Akebi—elegant, graceful, untouchable.
No one else seemed to notice. It was like nothing had changed.
Earlier, I told the cafeteria auntie that making friends was hard—but that didn’t mean I had none at all.
Lately, I had someone I could almost call a friend.
That person...
was Tennouji Akebi.
The most beautiful senpai in the university, and lately—
I’d been spending my nights drinking with her.
Why did this happen?
── Let’s rewind to a few days ago.
◆
“Ahaha, what the heck! No way!”
It was my second Golden Week since entering university. Just like last year, I holed myself up in my apartment. The only difference this year was the presence of alcohol. At the start of April, I reached legal drinking age, and I was instantly captivated by its magic. My dull days were now colored by intoxication.
Watching B-class movies while drunk was ridiculously fun—everything cheap and all the bad acting suddenly became entertaining.
“The shark head split open!? Stop, stop... my stomach—ughahah...!!”
I slumped over the table, trembling from the ridiculous plot. The movie ended while I was like that. As the credits scrolled from bottom to top, I let out a long sigh.
Silence for a moment. The peacefulness brought by the alcohol slowly faded, and a gloomy feeling began to creep in. The neighbors next door were throwing a party with friends. Their lively voices reminded me just how lonely I was—a university student drinking alone, watching garbage movies on a holiday.
“I wanna die…”
I always feel like this when I drink. My emotions become unstable, and the moment things settle down, that awful feeling comes crawling back. To drive it away, I chugged more alcohol. The burn in my throat, the aroma filling my nose, and then the comfort spreading through my body.
“...Eh? It’s already empty?”
After downing the last gulp, my glass and the bottle were both empty. I checked the fridge—nothing. The clock read past eleven. I could’ve just gone to sleep, but somehow, it didn’t feel like enough.
“Waaah, that was close!”
I tried to walk straight, but I stumbled left and right. Wobbling, I made my way through the messy corridor and reached the front door. With my wallet in hand, I stepped out into the night.
My apartment was located very close to the shopping district, so even late at night, the streets were still bustling. Avoiding the drunk crowds, I headed for the nearest convenience store.
“…Hm?”
Someone familiar was walking toward me. I tilted my head to get a better look. She wore a white top and black skinny pants, a beige trench coat over it, and black boots. The whole look was effortlessly stylish. A perfect embodiment of “elegant and captivating,” the kind that makes you instinctively stare.
What stood out the most was the dazzling blonde hair and golden eyes—shining vividly even in the dark. It wasn’t dyed, nor were they colored contacts. That beauty was natural, something noble, even sacred.
“Tennouji-senpai…?”
Tennouji Akebi. The most beautiful senpai at our university. Always the center of attention because of her looks and popularity, but this was the first time I seen senpai out on the streets.
Maybe she was just coming back from a night out. But this wasn’t the way to the station. Up ahead were only cheap bars and love hotels. Nothing decent.
“…”
Our eyes met. Senpai’s usually calm, lake-like gaze was now filled with unease and fear.
...What the hell?
Because I was so stunned by senpai’s beauty, I hadn’t noticed the two burly guys beside her. Both of them looked rough, and they were placing their hands on senpai’s shoulders as if they owned her.
“Ah… I see now.”
Looking at senpai’s face, it was obvious—she was being coerced. And with the love hotel just ahead… yeah, it wasn’t hard to guess what was going on.
Other pedestrians noticed too. But scared off by the men’s appearance, no one stepped in. They just glanced over and walked away.
Me too—I lowered my eyes. Senpai and I were just students from the same university. We had zero connection. Just strangers.
Sure, I pitied her. But I’m not stupid enough to risk my own safety. I’d left the “play hero” phase behind back in elementary school.
── Or so I thought.
“Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doing, bastards!!!”
I wasn’t stupid enough to risk my life… if I were sober. But I was drunk. My unstable emotions surged with rage at what I was seeing. I dashed forward like an idiot athlete and launched a flying dropkick into one guy’s face.
“Hah!? The hell are you!?”
“Shut the hell up, you scumbag!!”
I landed a hit in his gut, then another punch right to his nose. I didn’t give him a second to react, just hammered weak points one after another.
“How long were you planning to keep touching senpai with those filthy hands you bastard!!”
As he staggered, I gave him one final strike to the groin.
That was karate, taught to me by my dad. I hadn’t used it since elementary school, but somehow, with alcohol in me, the muscle memory came flooding back.
“You little... you’ve gotta be kidding!!”
The other guy I kicked in the face earlier stood up, blood dripping from his nose, and lunged at me.
The size difference was absurd.
If we were boxers, I’d be lightweight, and he was heavyweight.
He grabbed me by the neck with arms as thick as logs, and my feet lifted off the ground.
In that desperate moment, something inside me awakened.
I knew this feeling.
As the man’s rage blasted through me, I gave in to that uncontrollable urge.
“Uweeeeeeehhhhh!!”
“Uwaaaaaaaaahhh!!”
I don’t have much alcohol tolerance, but I had drunk nearly two liters tonight. In a state like that—running, punching, kicking—of course I was going to throw up. Being lifted only made it worse.
My powerful projectile vomit hit the guy full on, and he fled in half tears.
“Wait up, dammit…!” the other guy tried to follow after him, leaving me and senpai behind.
“Whoa! That was awesome!”
“Sick, bro!”
“Are you a fighter or something!? Damn, that was epic!”
The crowd, who had been totally indifferent before, suddenly erupted in applause and praise.
Meanwhile, my head cleared up post-vomit, and reality hit me.
Violence. Charges. Expulsion.
Those scary words paraded through my mind. Cold sweat poured down my back.
If the cops showed up, this would get messy.
I had to get out—fast. I took one step back. Then another.
That’s when someone tugged on my clothes.
It was senpai.
I’d only ever seen her from a distance at University, but up close, she looks even more stunning.
Radiant, dignified, and almost too enchanting for someone just a year older than me. So beautiful it felt violent. And her sweet, fresh scent made me painfully aware of the situation.
We stared at each other for several seconds.
Among the onlookers murmuring things like “Damn, that was crazy,” senpai’s eyes suddenly welled up with tears. In the next instant, she overflowed, and senpai burst into a full-on sob, completely unrestrained—so different from the composed image she always had.
“Waaahh!! That was so scary!!!”
“Eh, wait?! Waaah!!”
She lunged forward and clung to my waist, knocking me to the ground.
With senpai burying her face in my chest, sobbing uncontrollably, everyone’s attention zeroed back in on us. I knew this wasn’t good, so I gently patted her back.
“I-I’ll call a taxi. Let’s go home, okay?”
To a random passerby, it probably looked like we were some overly affectionate couple on the street.
If someone from the university saw this, who knows what kind of rumors would spread—and none of them would be good for senpai.
That’s why I offered to go home. But senpai didn’t respond.
I scratched my head in confusion, trying to think of what to do next.
“…Uhhh, my place is nearby, so maybe we can rest there for a bit? Crying out here… y’know, it’s kinda awkward, right?”
If she refused, I’d call a taxi no matter what and shove her in it.
I spoke with that resolve, but senpai didn’t hesitate—she slowly nodded.
“…Yeah, let’s go. Together.”
Sniffling, she gripped the hem of my shirt with both hands.
The way she moved didn’t match her perfect looks at all, and I nearly blurted out, “What the heck is this adorable creature?” but managed to hold back. In situations like this, there are things you can and can’t say or do.
“Well then… uh, it’s this way. Come on.”
Senpai gave a small nod and quietly followed, clinging to the hem of my shirt like a baby duck trailing its mother.
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