The Harem Talent (Souta’s Perspective)
My name is Souta. Just your run-of-the-mill, unremarkable loner of a high school student.
My idea of paradise is watching anime and reading light novels—alone, with no one around to interrupt. I genuinely enjoy solitude. That’s why I keep friendships to a bare minimum and stick firmly to my solo lifestyle at school.
But that peaceful routine of mine? It ended when my parents got transferred overseas for work. I thought I’d get to enjoy the carefree freedom of living alone in high school! …Yeah, not even close. Just three months ago, I suddenly found myself back at the family home, stuck living with a brand-new stepsister.
Honestly, the universe seems dead set on ruining my dream of a quiet, solitary life.
And right now, case in point, I’m walking to school with said stepsister.
“Um, Chris… isn’t this kind of hard to walk like this?”
I gave her a sheepish smile as I looked down at Chris, my stepsister, clinging tightly to my arm while matching her pace with mine.
She simply shook her head without saying a word.
I mean, the stares we’re getting are painful. I don’t want to attract attention. I just want to enjoy a quiet, low-key loner life.
“How did it come to this…”
I muttered my usual line with a sigh and turned to glance at Chris—who, frankly, was one of the main reasons I had to keep saying it.
Chris is a distant relative on my mom’s side. Due to some complicated family matters, she came to live with us three months ago, and just like that, she became my stepsister.
She’s part foreign, with straight, platinum-blonde hair that flows down to her waist and vivid blue eyes—a breathtaking beauty.
With looks like that, of course she stands out wherever she goes.
And on top of that, she’s completely unashamed about declaring her love for me.
Apparently, it’s because “we made a promise a long time ago,” or something like that. Did we meet somewhere before? Wait… don’t tell me this is one of those reincarnation scenarios or something?
“Hah… no way.”
I let out a weak laugh in spite of myself.
And right then, a bright, high-energy voice snapped me out of my thoughts.
“What’s with the pervy grin so early in the morning, Sen-paaai~♪”
Practically bouncing into view was Rinka—a mischievous first-year beauty, often ranked on par with Chris in the “cutest girl” polls.
“Hey now, calling me pervy out of nowhere? That’s a bit much, don’t you think?”
“Ehh~? But aren’t you totally ogling my chest right now~?”
Rinka wrapped herself around my free arm and, without hesitation, pressed her surprisingly full chest—especially for a first-year—right up against me.
“N-No I wasn’t! I didn’t look! Not even a little!”
“Ufufu~ You’re adorable when you panic, Senpai~”
Then, with a sly glint in her eye, she leaned close and whispered softly, “It’s okay if it’s you, Senpai~”
At that, I frowned slightly.
Rinka has a deep-seated fear of men, born from a certain incident in her past.
Back when she first started school, her cute looks and figure attracted the wrong kind of attention. A group of delinquents tried to corner her on her way home, and the trauma from that day still lingers.
As fate would have it, I was the one who stepped in to help.
I struck a serious martial arts pose and flared my fighting spirit—and maybe thanks to that, or maybe to Yukiya’s sheer physical presence (he was with me at the time), we managed to scare them off without even throwing a punch.
Ever since then, even this devilish little beauty Rinka has been unusually attached to me.
Ahh… my precious, precious loner life, slipping further out of reach…
As I sighed to myself, caught between two beautiful girls holding onto my arms, yet again, another voice cut in from ahead—this one cool, crisp, and commanding.
“Good morning, Souta-kun.”
The one addressing me was none other than Azaka-senpai—the perfect student council president. Flawless looks, top of the class, unbeatable in sports, and an absolute overachiever.
“Good morning, Student Council President.”
“Hmph—Azaka, remember! Just Azaka!”
“R-Right, Azaka-senpai…”
She leaned in suddenly, closing the distance, and I instinctively recoiled a bit.
My first encounter with her? About as ordinary as they come—straight out of a school slice-of-life.
One day, I was enjoying my usual alone time on the school rooftop, when Azaka-senpai approached me out of nowhere.
“Hey, you there! How would you like to become my right hand in the student council!?”
She was incredibly pushy, and in the end, I gave in. That’s how I ended up as the student council’s “general errand boy.”
I didn’t want to get too deeply involved, so I stayed in the shadows, always deflecting credit to the official members. But ironically, that low-profile approach seemed to strike a chord with Azaka-senpai, who naturally only grew more interested in me.
Thinking back on all that, I turned my attention to the present moment—where three striking girls were once again stirring up trouble right in front of me.
“You two, please step away from my brother.”
“Ehh~? Chris-chan should move first, not me~”
“First-years are such a handful. Come on, Souta-kun, let’s head off together.”
And once again, the three of them had taken hold of both my arms in their usual tug-of-war.
Watching the same old routine unfold, a thought suddenly popped into my head.
“Wait a sec—where’s Kanae?”
Normally, she’s standing a few steps behind us, watching with that gentle smile of hers…
“Now that you mention it, she wasn’t at the usual spot this morning, was she, Nii-san?”
“Maybe she overslept? Kanae-senpai does give off that laid-back vibe.”
“It’s also possible she went on ahead. Once we get to school and see whether she’s there, we can call or message her.”
I sighed again, shrugging and slowly shaking my head.
Honestly, Kanae… You really are the most high-maintenance childhood friend I could ask for—
“Well then, shall we get going, Nii-san?”
“Yeah! Let’s gooo~!”
“Hey! You two have had more than enough time at Souta-kun’s side, haven’t you? It’s my turn now!”
And just like that, the battle for my arms resumed.
Seriously, give me a break. For someone like me—a gloomy, introverted loner—this level of attention is pure torture.
And so, piece by piece, my loner life continues to be consumed.
Haa… I give up already—