Hachiman Hikigaya, who returned from his studies after completing his training.

Compared to other girls, based on what I've observed on a daily basis, Hikigaya is the most comfortable to be with.

Even Ichinose's flattery, which occasionally forces Hachiman to do things against his will, can't compare.

"Do you really like Ichinose-kun, Hachiman?"

"Based on what I know about you, you don't like gentle girls like Ichinose, do you?"

After all three of them sat down on the cushions on the ground, Shiina stared blankly at the two people stuck together opposite her, and immediately hit Ichinose's sore spot.

This is something Ichinose also knows, which is why she was so eager to resign from her position as leader of Class A and forcefully declare her ownership of Hikigaya to the other girls.

Ultimately, it was she who forcibly attached herself to Hachiman, and some of those two words could even be removed.

“Look into my eyes and tell me, Hachiman.”

When Hikigaya, whose gaze was somewhat evasive, was about to speak, Shiina looked him straight in the eye with a firm gaze.

The girl, who usually exudes a soft and ethereal aura, today possessed a sharp and determined presence, as if she would not give up until she achieved her goal.

This made him completely abandon his prepared explanation; he couldn't bring himself to lie to someone as earnest as Shiina.

"I have to take responsibility for Honami."

After a long silence, Hikigaya said something that displeased both Shiina and Ichinose.

Chapter 178 Mutation

"And what about me?" Shiina looked up, her gaze calm.

The first time I made friends with fellow book lovers, the first time I went shopping with friends, the first time I went to karaoke with friends, the first time the two of us went to see a movie together, and the first time I cooked for a boy.

All sorts of memories intertwine to form the story of my first time liking a boy.

Beneath her calm face, bitterness spread through her heart, a feeling she had never experienced before in her life.

After getting used to being alone in junior high school, she felt her mindset gradually shifting towards a state of tranquility and detachment, which made her occasionally feel a strange fear of being alone in the future.

What rescued her from this situation was Hachiman Hikigaya, who tirelessly greeted her with a smile.

"It's all my fault. You can punish me however you want, Hiyori."

In fact, he could have confessed Ichinose's matter to Shiina the day after they returned to the cruise ship from the deserted island, since Shiina is not someone who can't keep a secret.

He only found the answer now to the question of whether he thought Shiina wouldn't like him or that Shiina liked him and that's why he kept it from her.

Neither.

The truth is that he also developed feelings for Shiina that he shouldn't have had at the time.

Feeling guilty, Hachiman lowered his head. "I don't ask for forgiveness anymore. I will do whatever I can."

Now that things have come to this, having recognized his own ugly selfishness, he has no intention of making excuses. He clearly had many opportunities to explain Ichinose's situation to Shiina, such as when Shiina was confessed to at the school gate, and when Shiina borrowed items to run a race at the sports festival.

Just by observing the teacher's shifting gaze after confirming the note, he could guess what Shiina's note contained.

"Let's eat first." Shiina's voice was devoid of emotion.

When Hikigaya looked up, he only saw Shiina's somewhat thin back as she walked into the kitchen, while Ichinose beside him looked at him with a hint of dissatisfaction.

"Let's eat first."

Ichinose stood up from the cushion and followed her into the kitchen.

After a silent dinner, Shiina left the room without saying a word.

Ichinose was basically the same, except she added a goodbye.

Looking at the dining table, which was empty for the first time, Hachiman couldn't even manage a helpless smile.

He really brought this on himself; maybe he should just drop out of school.

...........

...........

Early in the morning, Hikigaya yawned and sat up in bed. The digital clock on the wall showed seven o'clock.

After a quick breakfast, he went for a walk on the deserted beach; it was Saturday.

The morning sea breeze was gentle, and the waves rhythmically lapped against the man-made island. The rising sun was not very hot.

This was the first time he had come here in broad daylight. He usually came with Kushida late at night, when only the moonlight shone on him.

Tired of the unchanging seascape, Hachiman started practicing the martial arts routines taught by Horikita Manabu by the railing on the beach. After finishing Horikita's routine, he would practice a routine taught by Kiryuin.

After repeating this several times, he lay on the ground, exhausted and unable to breathe properly.

"This is not at all in line with the image of the student council president."

A middle-aged man with the build of an adult version of Horikita Manabu appeared in front of Hikigaya, his round-neck long-sleeved tracksuit jacket zipped up to its maximum.

Normally, people wouldn't do this, because a collar standing up like that could choke you.

"Who are you?" Hachiman stood up from the ground and asked knowingly.

He knew who this person was; he was a frequent visitor to Yuecheng.

The man who will become the acting chairman of Advanced Educational High School before they enter their second year.

As for why the current chairman of the board of directors, Sakayanagi, suddenly disappeared from the school at that time, he didn't know the reason at the time. He only knew that Tsukishiro had passed several unreasonable special exams.

"You'll find out later." Yuecheng smiled mysteriously. "Your skills are impressive and your stamina is amazing. Would you like to spar with me, an adult who has also practiced martial arts?"

He clenched his left fist, bent it, and stretched it upwards, while his right hand was tucked to his waist. He spread his legs and assumed a martial arts stance.

From the slightly brightening eyes of Tsukishiro, Hikigaya seemed to see a eager expectation, like an elder wanting to guide a younger generation.

“Sorry, I refuse.” Hachiman brushed the dust off his pants. “Fighting at this school will get you expelled, and I’ve never liked fighting.”

Although Hikigaya didn't know much about Tsukishiro, judging from his ability to temporarily occupy the chairmanship of the Sakayanagi family, which had been passed down through generations, he was definitely not a kind person.

Although he knew there were no surveillance cameras here, it was hard to guarantee that Yuecheng wouldn't resort to underhanded tactics to secretly record.

If the video is cut, he won't be able to explain himself.

"I'm sincerely asking for your guidance. Don't you want to know the difference between yourself and other martial arts masters?"

"Sorry, I just strained a muscle and I can't use my hand right now."

"Hehe, he really is a talent." Yuecheng put away his stance.

Today, he entered this school under the guise of wanting to learn about the current situation of Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, the greatest masterpiece of the White House, but secretly he was preparing to temporarily seize the position of chairman of the board of directors, Sakayanagi Shigemori.

It can't be said that meeting Hikigaya, a student who was in the same year as Ayanokouji but became the student council president, was a coincidence.

Hikigaya, who occupies the position of student council president, is quite useful to him, and he also greatly admires the abilities of his neighbor, Baba Yue, through the scroll. It would be best to recruit him for his own use.

If you can't set a trap today, so be it; there's always another day.

"See you next time, Hachiman Hikigaya from Chiba."

With a wave of his hand, Tsukishiro gradually disappeared from Hachiman's sight, leaving behind only a sentence brimming with malice or a twisted sense of humor.

This is troublesome; the visitor doesn't seem friendly.

Leaning on the railing, Hikigaya sighed inwardly and took out his phone, which he had deliberately turned off due to his agitated mood, and turned it on.

Even with his phone off, they could still find him accurately; Yuecheng must have considerable influence in this school.

He's just a minor student council president, why would you specifically seek him out?

They wouldn't be trying to use him for something, would they?

After the phone's boot animation finished, several red missed calls appeared in the notification bar, indicating that someone was urgently trying to reach him, and these calls were not from the same person.

Shiina, Ichinose, Kanzaki, Himeno...

"Hiyori, what's wrong?" Hikigaya immediately dialed Shiina's number. So many people calling within an hour of his phone being off meant something must have happened, and quite a few people knew about it.

"There are more posts slandering Hachiman on the school forum. One of the posts contains an audio recording of Ichinose confessing that she once stole something. It says that you used this to threaten Ichinose into getting back together with you, and that it was your idea to step down as the leader of Class A."

"The post also said at the end, 'Don't believe Ichinose's self-verification. She only did it because you threatened her.'"

Shiina's voice came through the microphone, filled with urgency and worry.

Chapter 179 Ichinose, who never leaves his room?

After apologizing to Shiina again and being hung up on, Hikigaya repeatedly called back his friends, except for Ichinose.

After being called a scumbag by Ji Ye, he had a pretty good understanding of what had happened.

Ninety-nine percent of the anonymous posts on the campus forum were deliberately posted by that scumbag Nagumo. Besides the main post, there were other posts that seemed to be evidence of Ichinose secretly crying in a corner.

Adding to the fact that he learned from Himeno about Ichinose's unusual self-destructive behavior in class yesterday, Hachiman is now in a terrible predicament—even if he wasn't already in a mess, he'd still be in a mess. (Qi Order (IV) - Abandon the Master)

Nan Yun really gave him a huge, disgusting mess.

Although the reliable student council vice president, Katsuragi, quickly ordered the staff to delete the post, the memories of the students who had already seen it could not be erased.

The good reputation that he gained after becoming the student council president will probably fall again soon.

But that's not the point. The point now is Ichinose, who's been staying home all the time.

"Fanbo, Fanbo, what am I supposed to do with this?"

Sighing, Hikigaya hurried toward the dormitory building, and after more than ten minutes, he arrived at Ichinose's door for the first time.

Upon seeing him, Amakura, one of the two girls who had already arrived at Ichinose's door, angrily wanted to confront him, but was held back by Himeno next to her.

"Xiaoxue, what are you doing? Let me go!"

"I believe Hachiman would not do such a thing."

"Xiaoxue, even you?!"

Shocked, Hikigaya was forcibly dragged away by Himeno, who was pouting and somewhat dissatisfied. Hikigaya could only smile apologetically at Himeno.

"Fanbo, it's me." Hachiman gently knocked on the door. "Please let me in first, okay? Netkura looks like he's going to tear me to pieces."

He didn't know what to say to Ichinose once he went in; he only knew that he had no choice but to go in now.

If it were just a sudden revelation of his past theft, Ichinose, who was already somewhat prepared, predicted that he wouldn't end up shutting himself away from home and refusing to see his friends.

After waiting anxiously for a while, the door was quietly opened a crack.

After waiting a while and seeing that the gap hadn't widened, Hachiman pushed the door open and walked in, closing it behind him amidst Netkura's seemingly murderous gaze.

Smelling the faint fragrance that was exactly the same as Ichinose's natural scent, he entered a clean and tidy room filled with a girlish atmosphere, where cute cartoon decorations were scattered everywhere.

On the bed where several animal plush toys were sitting, a figure was completely covered by a thin blanket. Judging from the exposed curves, Ichinose was curled up facing the wall.

"...Are you alright... Honami?"

After hesitating for a moment, Hikigaya sat down on the edge of the bed and patted Ichinose on the back through the blanket, saying something very ordinary and useless.

He had little experience in comforting people, and couldn't think of any words of advice to offer.

"It's nothing." Ichinose's voice was somber, as if she herself was very disappointed.

This made Hikigaya's heart sink as he frowned, his mind racing, trying to figure out what to say to Ichinose to cheer her up.

"Just how much do you underestimate me, Hachiman?"

As Hikigaya was deep in thought, a thin blanket carrying Ichinose's strong body scent covered his head, and a pair of soft arms wrapped around his neck, pressing their full weight onto his back.

"This is your punishment for making me unhappy last night. But I also know that Hachiman can't do anything heartless, so I'm not as angry or upset as you might think."

"The fact that you came to my room despite Ma Zi and the others shows that I still hold a certain place in your heart, which puts my mind at ease a little."

"As for my past being exposed, I was already prepared to be honest with my classmates. I don't know whether to be happy or sad that Hachiman is so worried about me."

As Hikigaya lifted the covers to free his vision, Ichinose's charming smiling face appeared before him.

"You tricked me, Honami." Hachiman sighed softly, revealing a hint of helplessness and annoyance at not being fooled.

Although it was true that he had been deceived, the thought that Ichinose was alright still relieved him, especially since he was the one who was in the wrong first.

However, it's not unreasonable that he was deceived.

"Why not be honest with Netkura and the others about staying home and making your friends worry? That's not Fanbo's style."

"That's because your phone is off and I can't reach you, Hachiman. I think I need to hear your opinion before I can take any action."

Dissatisfied, Ichinose wrapped her legs around Hikigaya's waist and back like an octopus, pouting her delicate pink lips.