“As I expected, I hear he’s not going to be transferring right away yesterday.”
The next morning. Just after the morning homeroom, I turn my attention to my neighbor. There was Yukihana reading a book by the window as usual.
I had received some information from Miura in the library yesterday, so I did my own research, but there was no information about a new student coming to the school yet, nor was there any rumor that he was going to come. Miura said it would start next week, but I decided to be on the lookout for it now, just in case. I will be on the alert in all directions from at least this week, taking into account the possibility of faked information and Miura’s betrayal.
(Well, how did I get in touch with her?)
Yukihana is gracefully reading a novel next to me, but come to think of it, there isn’t much conversation between us. She doesn’t talk to me out of curiosity, and we don’t talk about common topics. We are just strangers in close proximity. We are not even friends. That’s the relationship between me and this girl at the moment.
(There is not much information that can be read from her facial expression)
Even though she has no facial expression, I can at least read some of her psychological state and emotions. But it doesn’t make much sense to do that now. At the very least, I need some kind of trigger.
(Should I involve someone? If so, who should we involve?)
Kisaragi and the others in this classroom are honestly out of the question. They might cause another problem, and it would take a lot of effort to cover it up every time. Above all, neither Yukihana nor I get along with the classmates very well. The fact that we’re almost always alone with each other has become a barrier here. I don’t feel awkward, and there’s nothing wrong with it either, but it’s a little difficult to deal with.
In the end, it seems that I have no choice but to struggle on my own. Either way, it was clear and there was no problem.
(For now, I’ll try talking to her after school.)
I decided to observe her all day today, and if I didn’t notice any strange behavior, I would ask her directly. Either way, I still had to figure out what was going on as soon as possible. First of all, I need to find out what the problem is not on the chairman’s side, but on Yukihana’s side. Without knowing the situation, it would be impossible to predict the chairman’s future moves. Above all, the chairman is definitely involved in the problems that are happening in the Yukihana family.
(Maybe there’s something bigger going on behind the scenes than I assumed.)
At least that’s what I think at this point. I lost in the past because I didn’t fully believe in this possibility. That’s why I’m going to move cautiously this time and slaughter them when the best opportunity presents itself.
“……”
For the time being, let’s make all kinds of assumptions……and just as I was thinking that, I felt eyes on me from next to me, so I pretended to be reading my textbook to cover it up. Apparently, Yukihana lifted her head from the book and looked at me.
I was now able to take advantage of the negative side effect of being able to feel other people’s gazes on me. If I had continued to stare at Yukihana, she would have been completely suspicious of me. If that had happened, it would have been twice as difficult for me to make my move.
“Sit down. It’s time for class.”
I turned my attention back to the teacher who was in charge of my first period and entered the room with the first chime.
Then, after school.
“……”
Yukihana is still reading a book while listening to music on her earphones. Kisaragi and others have already gone to club activities, and a classroom with no one to get in the way would be heaven for Yukihana. However, I feel a little uncomfortable.
(As I recall, Yukihana used to go home as soon as the chime rang.)
In the past, Yukihana has been keeping a fine distance from her classmates, as if she didn’t want to stay in this classroom for too long. However, I have the impression that she has been staying at school longer than me recently. At least yesterday, when I came back to the classroom to get my stuff from the library, Yukihana was still reading a book. And it’s the same today.
I wonder if these trivial changes are also the result of the anomalies I’ve heard so many times before. Thinking back, it was clear that she interacted less with her classmates, including Kisaragi. It seems to be true that something has changed within Yukihana Ruri.
Now, let’s talk to her for the first time in a while.
“Do you enjoy reading books so much?”
“……Not really.”
“I see, it’s a romance novel, so you won’t get bored.”
“…….I told you to forget about it. I’ll kill you.”
I tried to talk to her under the guise of whimsy, but at a quick glance, she didn’t seem any different from before. It’s probably because I’ve been talking to her for the first time in a while that she’s in a slightly bad mood. The number of people who talk to her has been extremely low lately because Kisaragi has been looking for me all over the place. This may be a very pleasant situation for the person herself.
Yukihna’s expressionless face changed to a blunt one, and she took her eyes off her book to look at me. I guess she’s wondering why I rarely talk to her.
“….Hey.”
“What is it?”
“…….Did you meet my brother?”
“Your brother?”
As the story took an unexpected turn, the question popped up in my head, but I returned the question to Yukihana while pretending to be natural so as not to show it on my face.
“I don’t have much interaction with juniors.”
“……Liar.”
Well, Nanase and I have been to Yukihana’s house, so that’s different. But the last time I talked to Yukihana Hisui was right before he ran in the relay at the sports festival. No but, why did she ask me that question?
“……My brother mentioned your name before.”
“I don’t know anything.”
It may sound like I’m fooling around, but I really don’t know anything about that. Maybe Yukihana Hisui knew me before? But I don’t remember meeting that guy, and since we were in different grades, we rarely interacted with each other. So how did he know my name?
Did we have a connection somewhere?
“……That’s just suspicious.”
“That being said, I don’t know what I don’t know.”
“……Also, I don’t know why you’re talking to me.”
“It’s just a whim.”
“……It doesn’t seem that way to me.”
Yukihana is more tense than when we spoke before. It’s as if she doesn’t trust all people in this world and is suspicious of them. The eyes are filled with hostility and distrust of others, just like mine when I was a shut in. That’s how I feel about Yukihana now.
(It’s going to be difficult to get her to talk.)
It may be possible to build a certain level of trust and extract information from her if I continue to talk with her for a long period of time, but the time factor rules that option out. It would be a foolish, not to mention premature, option to make Yukihana as an enemy.
In other words, I’ve truly run out of options.
(In other words, we have to face Shinya’ transfer next week without any information.)
It was good that I could get information about his transfer, but it was meaningless if I couldn’t get any more information than that. At this point, I’m completely behind the curve. I need to gather more information in order to outperform those who will come in the future.
“……”
Yukihana, on the other hand, had lost interest in me and was back to being a bookworm. It seemed that she was no longer interested in talking to me. I decided to refrain from talking to Yukihana, as it would only make her feel bad……but then I suddenly remembered.
“Oh yeah, Yukihana, I forgot.”
“……What?”
Yukihana looks at me with her eyes only, as if she doesn’t want to talk to me anymore. She always puts on a poker face, but now she doesn’t even hide it and makes a grumpy face. It seems that she hates me as much as I hate her.
“I have a favor to ask. With me…….”
And so I made a proposal, or rather a request, to Yukihana. It’s a very natural thing to do as classmates or acquaintances. Of course, this is not something I had forgotten. I just thought of it on the spur of the moment.
I was thinking of this as a countermeasure to the murderous glare that was staring at me and Yukihana from outside the classroom.
“……Why should I?”
“I suggest you listen to what I have to say. Maybe you’ll hear something interesting.”
“???”
Yukika was quite skeptical, but she seemed to have sensed something in my words and actions and agreed to my proposal. I ended the conversation with Yukihana, and while playing with my phone, I made a gesture as if I was leaving the classroom to go home.
“……”
I walked out into the hallway and walked past the person in a very natural way, as if I didn’t know him. As expected, the person follows me. He is probably trying to talk to me in an inconspicuous place.
(…..Then, I can’t help but take advantage of it.)
I was looking for information, and it was as if it came to me from the other side. Maybe Nanase took some kind of action. For example, maybe she told him what she said yesterday. And then she might have leaked something about me at that time. It’s possible that she did.
So I headed for a place where I would not be seen by many people, and I walked silently down the corridor. Then I stopped once to look at the bulletin board and waited for the person who followed behind me. Fortunately, there are no students in the area and no classrooms with club activities.
And then……
“Yo, you really beat me in that sports festival, didn’t you, Shiina senpai?”
Beside me, there was a short male junior who was staring at me. With a rough tone that doesn’t suit his small body and well-proportioned face, he stares at me as if I was trying to escape.
（….I knew you’d come.}
Then I made eye contact with this person, Yukihana Hisui.
His expression is somewhat fearless, as if he’s looking down on me. However, I should say that it’s a quintessence that he’s ready to react instantly without letting his guard down at all. But his high-pressure attitude remains the same, and he continues to put pressure on me. Is he trying to test me or……
“Oi, come hang out with me for a bit.”
Yukihana Hisui pointed with his thumb at the stairs leading to the rooftop and said that to me.
