A Rider Doesn't Need a Youth Romantic Comedy [11]

The morning classes ended quickly.

Nothing interesting happened, except for a certain dead-eyed boy getting dragged away by an obviously furious Hiratsuka Shizuka.

The riajuu gathered together chatting and laughing, girls huddled in whispered conversations, occasionally glancing at the boys in class and sharing their opinions.

The boys had their own circles; different, but not particularly exclusive.

Occasionally, there'd be a chatty type flitting between groups, cracking jokes in one circle then jumping into another to continue laughing away.

Like this guy now, pulling over a small stool to sit down next to Sakamoto and Rōma.

“So, what do you want?” Rōma looked at the grinning guy, feeling a headache coming on.

How can I chase him away discreetly?

Maybe casually show off my tattoo?

But I don't even have one.

Should I quickly rub one out by hand?

“How about it? Wanna join my club?!” Aki Tomoya’s eyes shone brightly as he eagerly asked Rōma and Sakamoto.

Although Rōma had no idea what happened last night, it was indeed true that Aki’s club had been approved.

After spending the morning dazed, excited, and ecstatic, Aki Tomoya finally calmed down a bit...

Well, no, he wasn't calm at all.

Right now, he’d already begun searching for new members.

Though his club was established, if it didn’t meet the membership quota, it would soon be disbanded.

With Aki’s usual rotten luck, the club evaluation would be happening next week.

If he didn’t gather enough members by then, the student council would likely shut the club down.

Even though his club had just formed, the student council didn’t care about that at all.

From their perspective, the fewer clubs like this, the better.

They wasted funding and didn't produce results.

What good was a club like that?

Except for those clubs that didn't even care about money, every club took the evaluation very seriously.

“Your club, what does it do exactly?”

Although Rōma wanted to tell Aki straight out that he wasn’t interested, considering Aki’s experience last night, he decided to be a little more tactful.

“I want to create the ultimate galgame!”

Apparently mistaking Rōma’s question as a sign of interest, Aki enthusiastically launched into a passionate monologue about galgames and his lofty ambitions.

Honestly speaking, Rōma admired Aki’s passion quite a bit.

At the very least, he’d already met the first condition for success:

A genuine love for his dream.

In this regard, Aki Tomoya had indeed surpassed most people.

While others were still aimlessly enjoying their high school days, he had already set his sights on a goal.

This undoubtedly deserved encouragement.

Even Hiratsuka Shizuka approved Aki Tomoya’s club because of that.

“Nope, nope, I’m really not interested in galgames.”

After patiently listening to Aki Tomoya’s lengthy pitch, Rōma ‘tactfully’ declined.

He truly had no interest whatsoever in this sort of thing.

Not to mention being involved in making one.

“Then, how about you, Sakamoto-kun?”

Realizing Rōma’s stance was firm, Aki turned hopefully towards Sakamoto.

If Sakamoto joined, the club's membership wouldn't be a worry at all.

With just a bit of promotion, a bunch of girls would likely follow suit.

“Sorry, but I already joined a club.”

Though feeling a little guilty, Sakamoto decisively refused.

He knew Aki Tomoya well enough to understand that when rejecting him, you had to be crystal clear.

Otherwise, he’d interpret your hesitation as “having some interest.”

“This...”

Aki waved his hands helplessly in the air, clearly wanting to say something else.

If possible, he really wanted to say: “Just quit that club, please!”

But in the end, he swallowed those words.

Ultimately, they were just regular classmates.

Saying something like that would be crossing a line.

“Alright...”

Aki Tomoya dragged his chair away, his lonely back looking rather pitiful.

Watching Aki, now barely two meters away, Rōma casually shrugged.

Before approaching them, Aki had already tried recruiting several other boys.

He’d been rejected without exception.

In fact, if Aki had picked a different time and place, perhaps someone might have joined him.

After all, he’d even mentioned that the beautiful artist from Class A, Eriri, might join.

Though it sounded like a bluff, most guys still had some degree of interest in creating galgames.

But shouting it out loud in class—what are you thinking?!

The way the girls are looking at me is already weird enough, you know?!

Ignoring other people’s stares as usual, Aki Tomoya had inadvertently doomed his recruitment campaign.

With this minor episode over, the classroom returned to tranquility.

Those who wanted to pay attention went back to their lessons; those who preferred sleeping went back to sleep.

...

The scene shifted to another world—

“Joseph-san!”

An old doctor with a head full of white hair stumbled into the hospital room.

This luxurious ward specially designed by the SPW Group for Joseph looked more extravagant than even a typical mansion.

Even though Joseph himself didn’t care about such things, the people at the company had insisted.

Not only out of goodwill towards Joseph but also because of their deep, heartfelt respect for the old man.

The doctor now standing before him had followed Joseph for decades, seeing more than his fair share of life-and-death struggles.

He should have long passed the age of such clumsiness, yet today he lost his composure once again.

“Joseph-san!”

Looking at the elderly man lying on the bed, the doctor didn’t know how to begin.

This old man's body had already reached the brink of collapse—any further shock could push him over the edge.

“It’s Jotaro, isn’t it? Something happened. Just say it.”

Slowly opening his eyes, Joseph spoke in a deep, hoarse voice—even surprising himself with how rough it sounded.

“…Yes.”

“And Miss Jolyne, too...”

The doctor couldn't bear it anymore and looked away.

For an old man, this blow was simply too heavy.

“I see.”

Joseph weakly closed his eyes.

The anguish of loss surged through his veins, leaving him unable to calm down.

His heart screamed, demanding vengeance for his family—

Just like when he’d fought to the death against Kars.

But he was truly old now; his body was decaying, and his mind no longer sharp.

Looking back on Joseph’s life, his greatest weapon had never been Ripple or a Stand.

It was his mind—one capable of calm thought in any crisis.

Now, he couldn’t do anything.

But his younger self could!

A faint gleam flashed through Joseph’s eyes.

Joseph made an absurdly wild decision.

He’d go utterly crazy one last time before the end of his life.

---

This is a fan translation of 骑士不需要青春恋爱物语 by 青琮 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!