The Correct Japanese Terms of Homestay Seems to Be Marriage - Chapter 19

Drawing Attention

Even inside the train, after getting off the train, leaving the station, and while walking around town, Keitaro continued to feel strong gazes coming from various directions.

Feeling uncomfortable and slightly irritated, Keitaro inwardly grumbled.

“…Wearing a hat was definitely the right decision. It’s the same as yesterday; I feel stares from everywhere. Sure, Sofia is cute, but don’t stare so blatantly. Don’t they think it’s rude? After all, she’s just another person to them.”

He couldn’t help but feel annoyed. Somehow, it was irritating.

Keitaro himself, being tall, often found himself the subject of people’s glances, but that interest typically lasted no more than a few seconds. A brief “That guy’s tall” as they passed by, and once they were past, it was over. The memory quickly faded.

Yet, the gazes he was receiving now were entirely different. They didn’t fade away. The uncomfortable stares at Sofia walking beside him were hard for Keitaro to endure.

“Is it always like this?”

“What do you mean?”

“…Never mind.”

He tried asking quietly, but Sofia didn’t seem bothered at all. It was hard to tell whether she simply didn’t notice or had become too accustomed to it.

As Keitaro walked with his unresolved feelings, an annoyingly loud voice reached his ears.

“Whoa! That foreign girl is super cute!”

“Hey, hey, hey! We should totally hit on her!”

Two men with light-brown hair and frivolous looks, who seemed to have just come out of a café, holding cups of drinks, were proudly declaring their unpleasant intentions. From the content of their conversation, it was clear that Sofia was their target.

…

Keitaro just peered out from under the dark shadow of his hat with a sharp gaze at the two men.

Then,

“Yikes!”

“What the hell is with those assassin-like eyes!?”

Instantly turning pale, the two men scattered like spiders, running away.

The drinks in their cups spilled everywhere, apparently frappuccinos. But that’s hardly the point.

Normally, Keitaro’s lethargic and sleepy demeanor, along with a significant lack of vitality for his height, didn’t give off an intimidating aura.

But now was different. Perhaps because he was wearing his hat so low over his eyes, his aura seemed amplified. Keitaro’s naturally stern face made his glare quite powerful.

Enough to make grown men feel a threat to their lives and flee without concern for their appearance.

“Maybe it’s because I’m here, but compared to yesterday, there seems to be more people willing to take direct action… Well, that’s inevitable. If they think they can get past someone like me, they’ll naturally assume they have a chance. It’s clear I’m not in the same league as Sofia.”

Keitaro was concerned that his presence might be leading others to underestimate Sofia, making her seem more accessible than she is.

This reaffirmed his belief that interacting at school was absolutely out of the question.

“Anyhow, it was a good decision not to let her go alone. I don’t think Sofia would fall for something like that, but if they resorted to force, that would be a different story. The world is dangerous; it’s best to be cautious. I have to be her shield.”

Keitaro steeled his resolve.

He thought he had understood it yesterday, but Sofia was incredibly popular. Being in the countryside, where foreigners were rare, made her stand out even more.

Moreover, being an exceptionally beautiful foreign girl, it was inevitable.

“Sofia.”

“Ke, Keitaro?”

They had let go of each other’s hands to avoid drawing attention after boarding the train, but in this situation, they couldn’t afford to be so cautious. He couldn’t risk Sofia being taken away by some stranger.

Keitaro gently took Sofia’s hand as if to say, “I won’t let you go,” and held it tightly.

“Don’t go far away from me.”

Keitaro whispered, his words filled with a firm resolve. It wasn’t hard to imagine the effect such words whispered in her ear would have on Sofia.

“Yes…!”

Sofia’s face turned tomato-red, and she nodded vigorously.

And so, they walked hand in hand in public, focusing solely on their destination, walking without a thought.

Whether it was due to this or simply because Keitaro was oblivious, he didn’t notice. Not even the stares directed at him.

“That girl is incredibly beautiful, but then, who is the guy who can be with her?”

“…He’s huge. And somehow, I don’t feel like I can win against him.”

“To be with a foreign beauty like that, do you have to be on his level…?”

“Drink milk, aim for 180.”

Being on par with Sofia and not looking out of place is a tall order. Ordinary guys simply don’t match up. Any average person would only stir envy and hostility among the onlookers with thoughts like, “Why is she with someone like that!”

However, Keitaro was the exception to the exception. He fit right in, not just with his height, style, and the aura he exuded, but everything about him. It was to the extent that not even jealousy arose anymore.

To put it bluntly, Keitaro was cool. His popularity in elementary school wasn’t just due to his academic and athletic abilities, but his looks played a significant part as well.

Dressed in proper attire for going out, and not behaving suspiciously but rather confidently,

“…So cool…”

“Hey, look at the guy next to her. You don’t stand a chance against him.”

“I know, I know!”

He managed to captivate girls, to the point where their friends had to wave their hands in front of their faces to snap them out of their daze, simply by sitting beside Sofia.

But Keitaro was oblivious to this fact. He was remarkably insensitive to the goodwill directed at him, although he was quite sensitive to hostility, a sadly ironic situation.

In this regard, Keitaro and Sofia were quite alike. Sofia also didn’t notice the gazes directed at her.

However, the essence of their obliviousness was entirely different. For Keitaro, it was merely insensitivity, while for Sofia, it was because her interest in anything other than Keitaro was exceedingly thin.

Even yesterday, walking down the main street in a dreamy state of happiness at the prospect of seeing Keitaro again, Sofia didn’t notice the stares from the people around her at all.

Then and now, Sofia only had eyes for Keitaro. Meaning, when it came to affection directed at Keitaro, she was even more sensitive than he was.

“…Hmm…”

“What’s wrong?”

Along the way, Sofia seemed sullen, and Keitaro noticed her mood halfway through. Unsure of the reason, he honestly asked.

“It’s nothing.”

Sofia shook her head slightly.

There was no need to inform him of the reason. She had absolutely no intention of burdening Keitaro’s ears with unnecessary information.

“…?”

Despite her claim of it being nothing, her mood still didn’t seem great, so Keitaro couldn’t help but be puzzled.

“…Ah, I see.”

Eventually, it dawned on him. Sofia must have noticed the gazes directed at herself. Being scrutinized so rudely must have made her uncomfortable.

“Let’s hurry up. We’re almost there.”

“Ah, yes!”

Keitaro took Sofia’s hand and quickened their pace.

Their destination, the large shopping center “Tsumamoru,” was just ahead.