is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kazuto Okada. It was serialized in Akita Shoten's seinen manga magazine Young Champion from 2006 to 2009, with its chapters collected in eight tankōbon volumes. It was adapted into four live-action films released from 2007 to 2009. A live-action television drama miniseries is set to premiere in November 2023. The manga was licensed in North America for English release by Yen Press.
Plot
The story is centered on a 15-year-old high school student named Hideo Aiba (Atsushi Ninomya), a member of a school club called the Roman Club. (ROMAN here is a rendering of romance, vernacular fiction; the club's supposed purpose is the search for ghosts, UFOs, and the paranormal.) The story centers around his quid pro quo relationship with a girl named Kurumi Sahana (Akane Suzuki). Most of the events begin as an outing of the Roman Club. Occasionally, Hideo will be out on his own with Kurumi. This is usually at night, serving to contrast the playful daytime events.
Characters
Hideo has short black hair and a small build. He is the new Roman Club president, and is Kurumi's voluntary plaything. His physical strength and bravery are both lacking in the beginning. Kurumi uses her reward system to get Aiba to change his cowardly and lackluster habits. As time progresses, his strength and endurance improve as Hideo jogs and works out to handle his frustration. Hideo maintains strong feelings for Kurumi, and does anything she tells him to do to get a "reward", going so far as to resist a judo arm-bar from the schools martial arts champ. His feelings lead to jealousy when other men grope Kurumi, or talk to her privately, or buy her things he cannot afford. This leads Hideo, along with his workouts, to strive for self-improvement.
The school's mysterious new transfer student. She is quiet and self content, but is also Hideo's "master". She has a frail frame, short black hair, a small bust, and few inhibitions. Kurumi plays at naivety, yet is well aware of Hideo's attraction to her. She joins the Roman club to be closer to Hideo. She tortures Aiba by getting him to the brink of orgasm, but refuses to let him ejaculate. She lives alone, only letting Hideo in on this secret. Not much is known about her past or her family background except it is hinted that her parents are dead and that she lived in an orphanage with her siblings.
Member of the Roman Club. He has a peeping fetish, and is often called an octopus face. His opaque glasses conceal his eyes most of the time. For reasons unexplained, he is balding in his teenage years. His classmates frequently use this to insult him. Katsu develops feelings for Kyouko by vol. 2. He first reveals this overtly when attacking Yasu for exploiting Kyouko sexually. He again defends her in vol. 4 by taking a punch from Yasu that was meant for Kyouko.
Member of the Roman Club. He has a leg fetish, and a doll he admires named "Aimu", alt "Ayu". He is a coward, frequently running away from anything threatening. He has some real world skills, as seen in Ch. 5. He volunteers to cut the schools security cameras and disable the locks so the Roman club can swap sofas with the faculty lounge. He also lasted the longest before being found in the Roman club's hide and seek game. Ex-president The former President of the Roman Club. At 17, he is the only member of the Roman club who is not a freshman. He was expelled after being seduced into anal sex by an O.B. assassin. His preference is well known by those around him. Members of the Roman club use this to tease the Ex-president. He responds by attempting to bite the offender's head, declaring, "all those who make fun of my preference must be eaten!". In the manga Ibitsu, written by the same author, the Ex-president makes some appearances being referred as "Moto".