We Never Learn - Characters & Cast

Initially, his motivation is purely pragmatic: to secure a scholarship to ease his family's financial burden. As the series progresses, his motivation evolves. He becomes genuinely invested in the girls' personal and academic success, often prioritizing their goals over his own. Ultimately, his motivation becomes intrinsic, driven by the joy and purpose he finds in teaching and helping others realize their potential.

Nariyuki starts as a hardworking student focused solely on achieving academic success to support his family. His singular goal is to get the VIP scholarship. Through the process of tutoring the girls, he transforms from someone focused on his own success to someone who finds fulfillment in helping others achieve their dreams. This journey of mentorship and shared struggle leads him to discover his true passion: becoming a teacher, like his late father. His arc is about realizing that his greatest strength isn't just his own academic diligence, but his ability to inspire and support others.

Her main motivation is to follow in the footsteps of her late mother, who loved astronomy, as a way to feel close to her. This dream is what pushes her to confront her greatest weakness. Romantically, her motivation becomes a complex desire to see her friends happy, which often conflicts with her growing love for Nariyuki.

Known as the "Sleeping Beauty of the Literary Forest," Fumino begins as a genius in literature who is terrified of math. Her primary struggle is her strained relationship with her father, a math professor, following her mother's death. Her arc involves gaining the confidence to pursue her dream of astronomy and reconciling with her father, largely through Nariyuki's support. She also acts as a confidante for the other girls, often trying to help their romantic pursuits while suppressing her own feelings for Nariyuki, creating a significant internal conflict. Her journey is about learning to be true to her own heart, both in her career ambitions and her romantic feelings.

Her primary motivation is to study psychology to overcome her inability to comprehend emotions. This desire stems from a deep-seated wish to connect with people on a more meaningful level. As she develops feelings for Nariyuki, her motivation to understand emotions becomes more personal and urgent.

Rizu, the "Thumbelina Supercomputer," is a master of logic, math, and science but is completely inept at understanding human emotions. Initially cold and distant, she views emotions as illogical variables. Her journey, guided by Nariyuki, is about learning to understand the feelings of others and, more importantly, her own, including her love for him. She grows from someone who relies solely on logic to someone who can embrace the unpredictable nature of the human heart. Her passion for games, which she always loses due to her inability to read people, serves as a metaphor for her overall struggle and development.

Uruka has two clear motivations: to earn a sports scholarship to pursue her swimming career and to confess her long-held feelings to Nariyuki. She struggles with the fear that confessing will change their friendship and distract him from his own goals. Her decision to study abroad forces her to confront this fear and take a decisive step in her life.

An athletic genius and swimming prodigy, Uruka is academically hopeless in all subjects. Having been in love with Nariyuki since middle school, her arc is not about discovering her feelings, but finding the courage to confess them and balance her love for him with her dream of becoming a world-class swimmer. Unlike the other girls who undergo significant changes in their worldview, Uruka's is a "flat arc"; she remains steadfast in her truths (her love for Nariyuki and swimming) and instead influences and changes the world around her, particularly Nariyuki, by encouraging him to pursue his own happiness. Her journey is about moving forward with her life and dreams without the burden of an unconfessed love.

Her initial motivation is to prevent her students from making what she perceives as the same mistakes she made, pushing them towards paths of guaranteed success. Over time, her motivation shifts to genuinely wanting to see them happy and succeed on their own terms. She also becomes motivated to find her own happiness, which she had suppressed for years.

Mafuyu, known as the "Ice Queen," starts as a strict teacher who believes students should only pursue their natural talents. This belief stems from her own past as a celebrated figure skater who abandoned her passion, feeling it isolated her from a normal life. Her arc is about rediscovering her passion and learning from her students that it's okay to pursue what you love, even if it's difficult. Through her interactions with Nariyuki, she gradually sheds her cold exterior, revealing a clumsy, caring, and vulnerable side. She evolves from a rigid ideologue into a supportive and more open-hearted mentor and individual.