Aug 19, 2023
It's a very short light novel series but it actually tells what it want to tells without wasting anything, and it might just be the amateur me talking but it does feel like the author put a lot of thought into it.
The main character Asahina Wakaba is bullied by the girls at her school, and like many bully victims is the type who doesn't know how to stand for herself(although it does seem like it's a problem for most of the girls in her class).
Because bully got to bully, they trap her into the all too common "confess to x as a prank" game
...
and given they entrap her by making her break an object she believes valuable on top of her being a pushover she "accepts"
Haruto, the male main character presents as the stereotypical, fat otaku, into eroge, and other anime/manga etc... I say presents in the sense that although he is actually like that it's not all he is: he turn the other cheek when he is hurt, he has the self awareness to hold back himself from speaking only of his own hobbies, is considerate of others, and in general a pretty honest and friendly person, who always try to make other people happy: as such the bad reputation he gets at school, while not baseless is highly exagerated, as Wakaba soon learns.
Learning to know him better and his backstory, she ends up falling in love for real, as one would expect. Obviously though the fact it started on a lie wasn't forgotten and had to be addressed but i believe you can work out the general outline of an happy ending
I rate this work so highly for those few reasons
-Going by the story as well as the author own mouth, it is meant to be seen as the growing up story of both protagonist. Wakaba might present as more flawed than Haruto but at the same time i do believe in succeeded in showing that they both needed growing: Wakaba needed to learn that her extreme non confrontational attitude, and lack of asking for help(which was available from the start: her family would have absolutely helped her, multiple people in the class were affraid of the bully but nonetheless never liked them, and haruto and his friends as shown in the conclusion would have been able to be understanding if she told them) only made things worse for both herself and everyone else. Haruto however had his own growth prior to the story, having once been in middle school a very similar person to Wakaba, but he took the steps on improving himself to become the person Wakaba fell in love with
-The romance was short but gradual: Wakaba at first only knew of his bad reputation, but at the same time still had respect for him as another person and didn't want him to suffer, then after knowing him better more and more saw how kind he was and his strength of character, which made her fall for him. As for Haruto, he of course was always to the cute and seemingly kind girl that she looked like from the outsie, but he truly fell in love when he could see the similarities betwent them, what was behind her gloomy mask, and that she was at heart a tolerant person who wouldn't drop him whennever just because of his appearance
-Despite being a short series, the side characters are surprisingly good, with a particular care given to tie them to either the main characters in multiple ways, when it would have been just fine not to justify anything.
The only point i can possibly dock from this story is some tropey siuations, and the fact mayybe soe elmeent might feel too melodramatic, but i feel like they all serve their purpose well and make the story better
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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