I, Ryouta Izumiya, am undoubtedly at the absolute bottom of the classroom hierarchy.
I’ve always hated standing out. My introverted nature means that while I manage to keep my grades near the top, my only friend is Tanaka—an otaku buddy who isn't even in my class; he's in the one next door.
My romantic history is nonexistent. In all my years on this earth, I’ve never once had a girlfriend.
With my average height and plain features, I am the literal definition of a social invisible. In the ecosystem of Class 2-B, there’s no question that I’m at the very bottom.
Because of this, ever since my first year of high school, I’ve made a conscious effort to lead a quiet life, avoiding unnecessary interference with those around me. After all, the nail that doesn’t stick out doesn’t get hammered down.
However, even I have people I find difficult to deal with.
Specifically, the three S-rank beauties who sit at the top of the class caste: Yuria Ichinose, Rui Kuroki, and Airi Miyama.
They’re always together. There’s Yuria Ichinose, the brown-haired girl with a flashy, gal-like vibe; Rui Kuroki, the neat and elegant class representative with silky black hair; and Airi Miyama, a seductively cute girl known as the "little sister type" because of her sweet, sugary voice. All three are incredibly prominent in class—beauties that everyone acknowledges.
As someone at the bottom of the caste, I felt nothing but unease around these top-tier girls. I hadn't even spoken a word to them. It was obvious that getting close to popular people only led to trouble, so for an introvert like me, they were the primary targets to avoid.
By keeping my distance from them, I could maintain my peaceful, quiet existence.
Or so I had always believed.
☆☆
I’d had a terrible feeling since the moment I woke up this morning.
First, I was hit by a sudden bout of sleep paralysis the second I opened my eyes, costing me thirty minutes. Then, the horoscope on TV ranked my sign, Sagittarius, dead last. To top it off, the lucky color for the bottom spot was—of all things—rainbow.
Who wears rainbow? It’s basically a flare for unwanted attention. Despite my better judgment, I ended up changing into a pair of rainbow boxers I’d found in a New Year’s lucky bag, and thanks to that distraction, I was now on the verge of being late. (Seriously, what was I thinking?)
I hurried through the school gates, my nether regions feeling strangely restless in the unfamiliar rainbow underwear. I was already known as the class's resident introverted otaku; if I showed up late, I’d lose what little standing I had left.
(Is morning homeroom already starting? If it is, I’m dead!)
Our homeroom teacher, Yamada, was an anachronistic, violent man who constantly prowled around with a kendo stick. If I was late, he might actually bury me in the schoolyard.
Panicking, I burst into the Class 2-B classroom.
But instead of a lecture, I found my classmates in the middle of a chaotic shuffle. Everyone was clearing out their desks, clutching their textbooks and materials to their chests as they moved around the room.
"This is the first seat shuffle we've had all year, right?"
"Yeah. Yamada-sensei is so strict, I didn't think he’d ever let us change."
"We definitely owe this to the class rep for talking him into it."
From the snippets of conversation I caught, it seemed our class representative, Kuroki, had successfully persuaded Yamada to allow a seat change. The lottery had apparently already taken place, and everyone was heading to their new spots as indicated on the blackboard.
The names were neatly arranged in white chalk. I scanned the board and found mine: Ryouta Izumiya.
For an introvert, a seat shuffle isn't a fun event. I didn't have any secret crushes I wanted to sit next to, nor did I have a group of friends I hoped to be near.
Now then, where was I sitting...? Wait.
To my left was Yuria Ichinose.
To my right was Rui Kuroki.
And directly in front of me was Airi Miyama.
"...You’ve got to be kidding me."
I, the bottom-tier introvert, was now completely surrounded by the three most intimidating beauties at the top of the class caste.