Meanwhile, across town in an abandoned warehouse that served as the unofficial headquarters for the local delinquent gang, Kazuma was having what could generously be called a bad day. He was slouched in a beat-up chair, his face still showing the bruises and cuts from his recent encounter with Haruto, when one of his underlings came bursting through the door with news.
"Boss! Boss! You gotta hear this!" The kid was practically bouncing with excitement, his eyes wide with the kind of gossip that spreads through high schools like wildfire.
Kazuma looked up with irritation. "What now? Can't you see I'm trying to think here?"
"It's about that guy who beat you up, boss. Haruto."
That got Kazuma's attention. He straightened up in his chair, wincing slightly as his bruised ribs protested the movement. "What about him?"
"There's this absolute goddess at his school, boss. I mean, we're talking supermodel-level beautiful. Long black hair, perfect face, body that could stop traffic. And get this—she made him a fancy lunch and fed it to him by hand right in front of everyone!"
The other gang members who had been lounging around the warehouse suddenly perked up, gathering around to hear the story. Kazuma felt something twist in his stomach, and it took him a moment to recognize what it was. Jealousy. Pure, burning jealousy.
"Fed him by hand?" another gang member asked incredulously. "Like, actually put the food in his mouth?"
"With chopsticks and everything! And she was looking at him like he was the only guy in the world. The whole classroom was going crazy with envy. I heard some dude literally said he was so jealous he could die."
Kazuma sat there listening to this, and suddenly his entire youth felt like it had been completely wasted. Here he was, eighteen years old, and what did he have to show for it? A bunch of scars, a reputation for violence, and a gang of misfits who spent their days hanging out in abandoned buildings. Meanwhile, some random guy his age was getting hand-fed by what sounded like a literal angel.
He looked around at his crew, really looked at them for the first time in a while. They were all nodding and making appreciative noises about this mystery girl, and Kazuma suddenly realized why. The women in their world were... well, let's just say they weren't exactly the soft, feminine type. Most of the girls who hung around delinquent gangs were tough as nails, with muscles that sometimes put the guys to shame. They could throw a punch as hard as any of them, smoke like chimneys, and swear like sailors.
Kazuma respected strong women. But there was something to be said for the gentler side of femininity too. The kind of girl who would wake up early to make an elaborate lunch for someone she cared about. The kind who would feed you with her own hands because she wanted to take care of you. When was the last time anyone had shown him that kind of tender affection?
"Boss?" one of his guys asked, noticing his distant expression. "You okay?"
Kazuma snapped back to reality, realizing he'd been staring off into space for who knows how long. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just... thinking."
"Thinking about what? That pretty girl?"
Another gang member laughed. "Can you imagine? Some of us don't even remember the last time we talked to a girl who wasn't covered in tattoos and leather."
"Hey, remember Yuki from the Serpent gang? That girl had biceps bigger than mine," someone else chimed in.
"And what about Rei? She could crush a beer can with her bare hands. Scared the hell out of me."
Kazuma listened to them compare notes about the various tough women they'd encountered in their delinquent lives, and the jealousy in his chest grew stronger. Here was this Haruto guy, probably never thrown a serious punch in his life, and he was living what felt like every guy's dream. A beautiful, gentle girl who wanted to take care of him, who looked at him with genuine affection, who made him meals and fed him like he was precious to her.
What did Kazuma have? A bunch of guys who were now debating whether Sachiko from the Crimson Wolves could take Haruto in a fight.
"She'd destroy him," one of them was saying. "Remember when she head-butted that guy from the Dragon crew? Blood everywhere."
"Yeah, but she also burps louder than my uncle after a beer festival."
Kazuma closed his eyes and tried to push down the wave of bitterness that was washing over him. He'd chosen this life, hadn't he? The fighting, the territory wars, the constant need to prove himself through violence. But looking back now, it felt like he'd traded away any chance at the kind of simple, sweet happiness that apparently guys like Haruto just stumbled into.
"Alright, enough," he said finally, standing up from his chair. "Don't you idiots have somewhere else to be?"
"Aw, come on boss," one of them said with a grin. "Don't tell me you're not curious about this girl. Maybe we should pay her a visit, see what all the fuss is about."
Kazuma felt a flash of something dark and possessive, but he pushed it down. "We're not going anywhere near her. Just... just go find something useful to do."
But even as his crew started to disperse, muttering among themselves, one particularly bold member hung back. This was Koji, a newer recruit who sometimes had more mouth than sense.
"Hey boss," Koji said, his tone carefully casual. "You're not really gonna let this slide, are you? I mean, this Haruto guy beat you up, embarrassed you in front of everyone, and now he's got this perfect girlfriend feeding him like he's some kind of prince. Don't you want to... I don't know... get some payback? Maybe steal the girl?"
The warehouse went dead silent. Everyone who was still within earshot froze, waiting to see how Kazuma would react to that kind of suggestion. For a moment, Kazuma just stared at Koji, his expression unreadable.
Then he smiled. It wasn't a nice smile.
"You know what, Koji?" Kazuma said conversationally, walking slowly toward the younger gang member. "That's a really interesting suggestion."
Koji started to grin, thinking he'd hit on something brilliant.
"There's just one problem with it," Kazuma continued, still smiling that dangerous smile.
"What's that, boss?"
Kazuma's foot connected with Koji's backside so hard that the kid went flying, stumbling forward and nearly face-planting into a pile of old tires.
"I'm not a piece of garbage who goes after innocent girls just because I'm jealous," Kazuma said, his voice still pleasant but with an edge that made everyone in the warehouse take a step back. "Anyone else have any brilliant ideas about harassing random women?"