Afterword

Have you ever thought about wanting to become someone else?

Someone living a completely different life—capable of doing things you can't, meeting people you couldn't otherwise meet, and going places you could never go. If you could become a person like that, every single day would feel like a fresh new experience.

But what if that person was entirely different from you? What if they were an insincere, unfaithful piece of trash? Just how would your daily life turn out?

This novel is the story of an ordinary, inconspicuous boy who has always lived quietly in the background, only to end up taking the place of his complete opposite—a scion of a massive corporation who basks in the spotlight, is incredibly popular with girls, and has a completely trash personality.

Furthermore, he has to navigate this position with the strict restriction that his true identity as a shadow double must never be discovered. Will he really be able to keep his secret hidden while playing the part of a popular ladies' man for the beautiful girls at the academy?

By the way, if you could be someone's shadow double, what kind of person would you want to be?

Experiencing the exalted feeling of being an immensely powerful authority figure sounds like fun, but it would be a disaster if someone targeted your life or forced you to take responsibility for everything.

As for me, I definitely want to be the shadow double of a billionaire! I'd love to experience taking a bath overflowing with wads of cash, lightly slapping people on the cheeks with stacks of bills, and making it rain massive amounts of money from a helicopter.

If it were my own money, it would be far too wasteful and completely impossible for me to do, but if it's someone else's money, I can do whatever I want with it. I have no doubt it would feel incredibly exhilarating!

Tomoo-sensei, who provided the illustrations for this work, has drawn the characters so incredibly beautifully! They fleshed out the finest details of the designs, and both the protagonist and each of the heroines have a far clearer, stronger presence than I had initially imagined myself. Thanks to them, the protagonist's dilemma of being passionately pursued, seduced, and envied by these girls feels all the more real.

I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to my editor in charge and everyone at the MF Bunko J editorial department for their various advice and cooperation regarding this work, as well as to everyone involved in the production, distribution, and sales of this book.

And finally, to all the readers who picked up this book and read it. I sincerely hope that you were able to savor and enjoy the strange, fascinating experience of living as someone else.

A certain day in 2026, Hajime Taguchi