The Fruit of Desire~ Even a Bullied Gardening Club Member like Me Created a Harem~ - Chapter 17

“Huh? You want to talk to my sister? Ren-senpai?” Mizuki asked, surprised. Misaki was Shinichi’s girlfriend, the person who bullies Ren. Mizuki gazed at him anxiously.

“Yeah. We haven’t talked in so long, so I was wondering what she thinks about everything that been happening lately.”

Ren’s words carried a deep desire to face the issue of his own bullying.

“I really think you shouldn’t… My sister’s kind of a romantic and can be pretty insensitive, you know…”

However, after seeing Ren’s sincere expression, she changed her tune: “Buuut if it’s a request from senpai, I guess I’ll do it~♡”

Though Mizuki was reluctant at first, she gave in to Ren’s earnest request and invited Misaki to the gardening club.

–

A few days later, Misaki parted ways with Shinichi and came to the gardening club’s room.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Shirakawa Haruka, the president of the Gardening Club.”

“Nice to meet you too, I’m Asakura Misaki.”

Just then, Misaki’s younger sister Mizuki arrived.

“Oh, you’re already here, Onee-chan. Hi, Ren-senpai, Haruka-senpai! Let’s do our best today too!”

Then behind Mizuki, the advisor Risa appeared.

“Oh? We’ve got a guest today. Are you thinking of joining?”

“No, I’m just here to observe today… Oh, and thank you for looking after my sister Mizuki.” Misaki bowed deeply.

“Oh no, not at all. We’re short on members in the Gardening Club, so she’s a big help.”

“Yep! Both Ren-senpai and Haruka-senpai are super nice!”

Behind them, Risa muttered in a tragic voice, “The teacher is here too, you know…”

After that, they briefly explained the Gardening Club’s activities. Although it gave of a peaceful laid back image with flowers and plants, Misaki was surprised to learn it involved a lot of physical work, like weeding, checking for disease, removing pests, pruning, and seasonal plant care.

Then Haruka, Risa, and Mizuki left the clubroom first, leaving Ren and Misaki behind.

“…It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Since we talked, just the two of us,” Misaki said, unable to hide her nerves, her cheeks slightly flushed. Her eyes shone with an awkward but warm smile.

Ren, also looking nervous, said, “Yeah, I wonder how long it’s been since we properly talked,” while meeting her gaze. A sense of the distance they had kept lingered in the air.

“Have you been doing okay?”

“Yeah, I’m doing well. I’m glad to see you looking good too, Misaki.”

“Ren-kun, first of all, I’m sorry!”

With determination, Misaki lowered her head in a deep bow to Ren.

“Eh!? W-What for?”

“During that theft incident… I couldn’t bring myself to trust you, Ren-kun…”

She looked at Ren, sincerely apologizing with all her heart.

“Y-Yeah, don’t worry about it… I heard what happened from Mizuki too.”

With tears in her eyes, Misaki said, “…Yeah, when I heard that Mizuki was attacked by a man… and she shut herself away… Then Shinichi told me to watch out because you kept looking at me, so I started to wonder…” She spoke while staring intently into Ren’s eyes.

In his heart, Ren couldn’t help but think Misaki might be a little insensitive after all.

“Speaking of Mizuki, she was super grateful to you, Ren-kun. She said you saved her. You punished the villain and stopped the bullying! That’s amazing, Ren-kun.”

Ren was struck by a tightening in his chest. It was truly the fruit’s power and Mizuki’s courage that were remarkable. He felt what he did wasn’t different from what Ryuji had done.

“Mizuki, she’d been holed up in her room for some time, and I was really worried. Still, it made me a bit sad that she didn’t talk to us about it.”

“N-No! Mizuki-chan just didn’t want to worry Misaki or the rest of her family…”

“Yeah, I get that. I probably would’ve done the same. But still, as family, it made me a bit sad.”

“That’s why I’m really glad Mizuki can go back to school happily. Thank you so much, Ren-kun.” Misaki narrowed her eyes in a smile and bowed to Ren once more.

Ren was flustered by Misaki’s gesture and didn’t know how to respond. Although he wanted to reply sincerely, he couldn’t find the right words.

“Yeah, that’s right. The Ren-kun who helped Mizuki, there’s no way he would steal anything.”

“That’s right… I didn’t do it,” Ren said with firm emphasis, holding back tears in his eyes.

“Besides, you’re a rice guy, Ren-kun. You only eat onigiri! You once said bread was heretical! I’m sorry, when someone put rotten pastry bread in your desk, I should’ve remembered that.”

“Ahaha, you remembered. But I wouldn’t go as far as to call bread heresy.”

“…Ren-kun, you were being harassed by someone, weren’t you? I’m sorry, I had no idea.”

“…Yeah.”

“That’s right, I’ll ask Shinichi-kun to stop the culprit who’s harassing you, Ren-kun.”

The words stabbed into Ren’s heart. Misaki was unaware that the true culprit behind Ren’s bullying was Shinichi.

“No, it’s okay… I’m sure it’d just bother Shinichi-kun…”

“That’s not true. Ren-kun helped Mizuki. Shinichi-kun will act if I ask him. Besides, Shinichi said he wants to apologize because he blamed you too much the other day!”

“Misaki… do you… like Shinichi-kun?”

Ren asked Misaki, hesitating.

“Yeah, I like him. When he confessed I wasn’t sure… But he’s cool and kind. I realized that you don’t have to already be in love before dating. Learning to love him after starting to date is okay too…”

On Misaki’s face, you could see the unmistakable glow of a girl in love.

“I see… is that so.”

Ren’s throat felt parched. The more Misaki praised Shinichi, the more Ren felt suffocated. Every word she said praising Shinichi felt like a noose around his neck.

Suddenly, the silence in the clubroom was shattered.

“Argh! This is so frustrating!”

With a bang, the clubroom door flew open and an angry Mizuki stormed in.

“M-Mizuki!? What’s wrong!?”

Mizuki turned her eyes to Ren and spoke to him pleadingly.

“Ren-senpai! You have to tell my sister clearly! Her boyfriend, that Shinichi guy, has been bullying you all this time!”

“What!? Shinichi-kun wouldn’t do something like that! Right, Ren-kun?!”

After a brief silence, Ren answered in a heavy tone.

“…No, it’s the truth. I’ve been getting bullied by Shinichi all this time.”

The atmosphere in the clubroom instantly tensed. Mizuki’s accusation and Ren’s confession shattered the previously calm mood. Misaki couldn’t accept the truth, only staring back and forth between Ren and Mizuki.

“B-But, is there any proof that Shinichi was bullying Ren-kun?”

“The victim, Ren-senpai, is the one saying it. That should be enough!”

Misaki struggled to speak, but her face began showing increasing suspicion.

“Okay. Then I’ll ask Shinichi-kun…”

Upon hearing those words, Ren’s face twisted in fear as he shouted, “Th-That can’t happen!” He was terrified of what kind of retaliation might come if Shinichi found out the truth.

Taken aback by Ren’s sudden panic, Misaki looked at him again with suspicious eyes and asked, “Why? …Why not?”

“Because… if Shinichi-kun finds out…” Before Ren could finish, Misaki interrupted angrily, “You’re trying to deceive me, aren’t you?”

“I told you, that’s not the case!”

“Mizuki has nothing to do with this!”

“I hate it! That the boyfriend of my own family is the one bullying Ren-senpai! It makes me so angry! A bad guy who bullies the person I love and who helped me! On top of that he’s popular, respected, and even happy!”

Mizuki couldn’t hide her anger and finally shouted with tears in her eyes.

“Shinichi-kun isn’t that kind of person! Don’t say bad things about him! Even if its true, since it’s Shinichi-kun, he must have had his reasons. Like he said, he did feel Ren-kun’s gaze. Maybe there was something he felt guilty about?”

“Enough already! Use your own head for once!”

Misaki couldn’t retort to Mizuki’s words and looked at Mizuki and Ren with a troubled expression.

“Mizuki! Calm down a little,” Ren said, trying to soothe the heated Mizuki.

Meanwhile, Misaki looked at them with a pained expression. Ren resolved to be honest with her as well and spoke to her.

“Misaki, let’s give things some time. But I want to say this clearly. I’m not lying. I’ve been bullied, and I didn’t steal anything. The reason I was watching you… sorry, it’s because I liked you.”

Hearing that, Mizuki, tears welling up, snapped at Misaki, “…You really are insensitive and a hopeless romantic who never listens. You have no idea how we who were bullied feel.”

Mizuki’s words made the atmosphere even heavier. Ren was lost in thought about what to do, and Misaki was too shaken to say anything.

–

In the end, nothing was resolved that day. Ren asked Misaki and Mizuki to hold off on questioning Shinichi, and the three returned home.

After dinner, Misaki and Mizuki remained silent. When their mother asked if something had happened, Mizuki replied, “Just a fight.”

Alone in her room, Misaki reflected on the day’s events. If what Ren said was true, she was facing an unbelievable reality. She was confused inside, unsure how to confront the fact that Shinichi, whom she believed in, was actually bullying Ren.

A soft knock echoed, and Misaki’s door slowly opened. Standing there was Mizuki, her expression clouded.

“You should at least turn on the light,” Mizuki said as she reached out and clicked the switch. When the room lit up, Misaki’s worried face became clearly visible.

Misaki stared silently at Mizuki’s face for a moment, then finally spoke. “Mizuki… what kind of bullying did you go through?”

Mizuki was surprised by Misaki’s question, but inside Misaki’s heart, the desire to understand what Mizuki had gone through was growing.

“Do you really want to know?”

“Yes, please.”

Then Mizuki took a deep breath and began to talk about the bullying she had experienced herself.

“I was targeted by Ryuji, the popular troublemaker guy in our class.”

“I was powerless, he made me his target, and I was attacked and raped. He broke me both physically and mentally…”

Upon hearing Mizuki’s story, Misaki’s expression became filled with anguish. The idea that her sister had been violated in such a way was shocking to her. That’s what she thought.

“After that, I became really scared of men. Truly terrified,” she said sadly. “And at that time, he recorded a video… and used it to threaten me!”

Misaki’s eyes filled with tears as she heard Mizuki’s story.

“On top of that, baseless rumors spread around the class, and no one stood by me. He told me, ‘Become my woman, or I’ll post the video online if you tell anyone.'”

“I had no choice but to give up. I had two options: do as he said or just die,” Mizuki wiped her tears.

Her voice was fragile, and Misaki’s heart ached.

Misaki felt ashamed that she hadn’t noticed Mizuki had endured such a terrifying ordeal. She grieved that she hadn’t been there for her sister as a dependable older sister, and above all, she was filled with deep regret for not being able to support Mizuki.

“That’s when I met Ren-senpai.”

Mizuki’s eyes sparkled as she began to speak.

“Ren-senpai accepted me kindly.”

Using expressive gestures, Mizuki made her story more vivid.

“Then, Ren-senpai thoroughly beat that guy up and deleted the video. He’s my hero,” Mizuki said with a beaming smile.

Mizuki exaggerated the story greatly, painting him as an even bigger hero. Misaki, a hopeless romantic and somewhat naive, believed every word.

Hearing Mizuki’s words, Misaki’s heart filled once again with deep gratitude and respect for Ren. Her admiration and thanks grew even stronger.

Yet at the same time, Misaki couldn’t bring herself to doubt Shinichi. She struggled to figure out which was true.

Characters in this chapter:

Hayama Ren – First-year high school student, member of the Gardening Club. Has secretly been bullied by Shinichi since middle school. Became intimately involved with Haruka, Risa, and Mizuki. Gets excited when his desire to dominate is fulfilled.

Asakura Mizuki – A second-year middle school student and Misaki’s younger sister. Fell hard for Ren after he saved her. Became intimately involved with Ren. She recounted Ren’s heroic deeds to Misaki. However, the story was greatly exaggerated.

Asakura Misaki – First-year high school student. Used to be kind to Ren in middle school. But now they are distant. Recently became Shinichi’s girlfriend. After a big fight with Mizuki, she was told Ren’s heroic tale by Mizuki. She seems to believe the greatly exaggerated story.

Shirakawa Haruka – Second-year high school student, president of the gardening club. She is also kind to Ren. Became intimately involved with Ren. She was the one who brought in Risa and Mizuki.

Risa Tachibana – Middle School Teacher, Gardening Club Advisor. She brings in the perverted play. Due to the fruit desire being contagious, most of the wild acts are because of her, but Ren’s desire to dominate is totally satisfied.

Chapter length 5695 characters.