My youth romance is always confusing

"What's wrong? I never said our destination was that old, shabby hotel."

Nanami Mikazuki left the car and slowly stood beside me.

Her face, which had been expressionless all the way, now showed a half-smile, which inexplicably gave me a sense of déjà vu.

This feeling of smiling with a fake smile - ah! It's the Yukinoshita sisters, both of them seem to have this skill.

"Then, Miss Mikazuki is not someone without a purpose, right? Since you brought me here, it means you have something you want to do, right?"

I imagined the other person to be my high school self, and using the conversation skills I had acquired from fighting with Yukinoshita for more than a month, I tried to figure out how to communicate with this person.

After hearing what I said, Mikazuki Nanami did not answer my question directly. Instead, she looked at Sobu High School which was operating normally.

"Minister Hikigaya, why do you think a non-local company like ours would come here to seek partners?"

Although the girl in front of me was seeking answers from me, her eyes were always fixed on this school. No, perhaps, on something even more intangible.

I sensed that she had something else in mind, so I chose not to answer the question.

"It's not a good habit to answer a question with a question."

Having said that, I have already used this kind of words to evade questions.

Suddenly, Mikazuki Nanami let out a long breath and turned around, staring at me with her dark, deep eyes without any concealment.

——Just like a cat staring at a mouse.

"The answer is me. Because I'm coming to Chiba, this business will come to Chiba. To some extent, this is a tool used by the family to monitor me."

Another canary in a cage?

"Hey, miss, is it really okay to say such things to me, a stranger you've only met for one day?"

A bitter smile appeared on my face and I spread my hands to show my innocence.

But the cat was not going to let go of the mouse who wanted to pretend not to hear.

"Oh~ It doesn't matter. Outsiders like you won't say anything anyway, or no one will care even if they do. Besides, do you think my family doesn't know what I'm thinking? From the moment I insisted on coming to Qianye, they all understood what I wanted to do."

After saying this, Mikazuki Nanami laughed at herself.

"This is the only privilege I have as a student now. At least I want to go to a school that is far away from that group of people."

"So? You chose Sobu High School?"

I understood what this guy was thinking and continued what she was saying.

"Well, I've been thinking about this idea for quite a while."

At this point, she raised her eyebrows and looked at me, then continued to talk to herself: "That's why I brought you here."

"Me? Why me?"

Although I knew what she was thinking, I still didn't understand why she said so much to me.

When I came to my senses, we had been standing at the school gate for a long time. If a normal person had stood there for so long, the security guard at the school gate would have come out to ask what was going on, but Miss Mikazuki did not show any discomfort.

"Don't say so much, just go in first."

Before I could react, Nanami Mikazuki came forward, showed her ID, and took me into the school.

This was the place where I studied just a few days ago, but I felt a sense of strangeness here. I knew that this was the gap brought about by the ten years of time.

Mikazuki and I were strolling on the playground. There were some students taking physical education classes on the playground, so we were not particularly conspicuous.

"Now you can answer your senior's questions."

After finding a place with few people, Mikazuki Nanami stopped.

Noticing the change in the way she addressed me, I almost guessed the reason.

"After all, I'm coming here to visit the school, so of course I have to find a tour guide."

Sanriku swept away the gloom from before, straightened his chest and spoke to me with pride on his face.

——Yukinoshita definitely couldn't do this when she was in high school.

I reluctantly looked away, but at the same time I anticipated her answer.

"What if I'm not in charge? Besides, I was only there as a substitute because the person in charge was away."

I didn't ask her how she knew I came from Sobu High School. After all, that would be too easy to find out, but her plan still had obvious loopholes.

After hearing this question, Mikazuki just smiled disdainfully, "I wouldn't come if they were okay. Besides, even if they were here, couldn't I ask you or Yukinoshita-senpai to take me here?"

Although what this guy said was blunt, it was very convincing. After all, as a customer, she still had the right to make requests.

I put my hands in my pockets and hid under a tree to avoid the sun.

"So, now that you've come to Sobu High School, you want me to show you around?"

"Senior, don't try to get away with it."

Mikazuki sat on her chair and stared at me with her big black eyes.

"I want to ask what's so special about this school."

"What's special about Sobu High School? The only thing worth mentioning is the slightly more liberal school spirit and the high deviation in academic ability. The rest is——"

"That's not what I want to know!"

She interrupted me before I could finish my sentence. She looked as angry as a little lioness.

"Why do you think I chose Qianye, chose this place?"

"who knows."

I chose not to answer her question.

"Senior, please don't try to lie to me. Although I was still young at that time, I clearly remember that the heir of the Yukinoshita family was Yukinoshita Haruno. The current Yukinoshita Yukino was far from what she is now."

Does this guy know so much about the Yukinoshita family?

I looked deeply at her fair face, but unfortunately, I couldn't see anything from this face that was no less beautiful than those of the Yukinoshita sisters.

Sanriku had a gloomy face, as if he was dissatisfied with the man in front of him who was still evasive.

"Yukinoshita Yukino changed from an abandoned person to an heir when she was in high school. There must be some power here that can help her change."

"That's what I want to ask, Senior."

People like Mikazuki who speak directly are the most difficult for me to deal with.

Normally, it would be fine to tell her, but even I don’t know the answer to this, so I can’t answer.

I responded to her with silence.

Looking at the beautiful girl in front of me, I can't help but think of Yukinoshita in high school, beautiful and strong, but at that time I guess I failed to notice what was hidden beneath the surface. After all, people are people, and it is impossible to be perfect forever. So Yukinoshita is beautiful and strong, but at the same time she is fragile. I only understand this simple truth now under the influence of Mikazuki.

So I have to give her back, even if I don't have the answer.

So I took action.

"Follow me."

"Eh?"

Mikazuki, who had already given up hope, was a little at a loss when he saw Hachiman suddenly take action.

"Wait for me, Senior."

Following the familiar road, I slowly walked to the place where I met her.

But the service department that was originally here has disappeared.

Looking at the dust in the crack of the door, maybe no one has cleaned here for a long time.

I stopped in front of the door and thought hard for a long time.

"That's all I can tell you."

Looking at the club room in front of her that had obviously been abandoned for a long time, Sanriku didn't understand why this thing was the answer she was looking for.

"Senior, what is this?"

"I can't explain the reason why Yukinoshita changed, but if there is some kind of force in this school that prompted her to change, it is undoubtedly this."

After hearing Hachiman's affirmative answer, Mikazuki had to stop and think even though she didn't understand.

But no matter how you think about it, this kind of thing is not something you can figure out on your own.

"This used to be my and Yukinoshita's club."

"Club? What club?"

"Service Ministry."

I answered her expressionlessly, but I also knew that this name was not particularly nice.

"Huh? What's that? It looks funny."

Even though it was a mockery, there was a voice in Mikazuki's heart telling her that it was almost there, her answer would be here soon.

Looking at her expression, I knew I had to explain everything clearly.

So I began my parody of that girl.

"Rich people help the poor out of compassion, and people call them volunteers. For example, they provide financial support to developing countries, provide meals to the homeless, and provide unpopular boys with the opportunity to talk to girls. Giving a hand to those in need is the content of our club's activities."

I took advantage of my height as an elder to look down at Mikazuki Nanami from above.

"Welcome to the Ministry."

For some reason, Sanriku was stunned for a long time, and then suddenly laughed.

"What is that? Playing house?"

I can't deny her reaction. After all, I'm not Yukinoshita, and I definitely don't have her aura and persuasiveness.

"I'm really sorry for playing house."

Well, if it weren't for Yukinoshita at that time, I would probably have had a hard time staying in this club for long.

"But it was in this play that Yukinoshita found a reason to change, and people gradually understood and supported her."

Gradually, listening to what I said, Mikazuki stopped her belly laughing and instead immersed herself in my words.

“This is what you need.”

I uttered the final words as if drawing a conclusion.

Then silence fell between us again.

Nanami Mikazuki lowered her head and held the corner of her clothes tightly with her tender hands.

"so what?"

The silence was broken by a sound, perhaps crying or something else.

I looked at Mikazuki and noticed that her mental state was not right.

"Who knows, if you really think that's what you were looking for, then why don't you work hard for it?"

"How cunning! Senior just said that's what I want."

When she raised her face, the gloomy girl had disappeared, and the beautiful Mikazuki Nanami appeared again.

"Hey~"

After making a face, Sanriku trotted away.

This guy is such a shy child. And I’m sorry to compare her to Yukinoshita. This weird junior is more like the guy named Isshiki Iroha.

I shook my head and walked out of the school helplessly.