My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

"I don't think this is an easy question... So let's test your geography skills. Please name two famous products from Chiba Prefecture."

The tone of Yukinoshita's question was exactly the same as when she had questioned Yuihama earlier; it seemed she wanted to test me as well.

"The correct answer is 'Chiba scenic spots, festival dances'."

"I asked about 'famous local products.' Besides, not many people know the lyrics to Chiba Oto's songs..."

Yukinoshita looked utterly defeated, but didn't she already know? It should be me who lost to her. By the way, "Chiba Ondo" is a local Obon festival dance, as popular as the local prefectural gymnastics. Speaking of prefectural gymnastics, every Chiba resident can sing and dance it. But this kind of gymnastics clearly doesn't have lyrics, so how can they sing it?

After quite some time, it was finally our turn to order. At that moment, Yui suddenly grinned mischievously.

"The introverted guy is buying drinks~♪"

"Hmm? Sure. What would you like to drink? Syrup?"

"Am I a rhinoceros beetle? If you don't want to invite me, just say so!"

"Oh dear, we've been found out. Anyway, I have no reason to treat you." Yukinoshita watched us go back and forth and sighed softly.

"That's enough, it's embarrassing. People who always expect the other person to pay are trash, I really dislike them."

It's rare for me to agree with Yukino's opinion.

"Yes, I don't like it either."

"Huh? I... I won't say it again!"

"But it's fine for friends to joke around. You can ask your best friends to treat you."

"Yeah, that's right. Anyway, he's not my best friend, so I don't care."

"This is shocking! So, does that mean I'm not considered one of your best friends?"

I watched coldly as Yuihama cried to Yukinoshita, and then it was finally my turn to order. I ordered a mixed coffee, and the shrewd and efficient barista immediately brought the drink over.

"That's three hundred and ninety yuan."

I reached into my pocket, but then it dawned on me that something had just happened. I bought a light novel at the bookstore, and then what? I paid with the only thousand yen I had on me, and the change I got back… Turns out I didn’t bring any money with me today! But the clerk had already made the coffee, and there was no going back now.

So, I quietly spoke to the two people behind me in line:

"Excuse me, I didn't bring any money with me today. Could you please pay for me?"

"……Rubbish."

Yukinoshita unhesitatingly regarded me as trash, while Yuihama sighed helplessly.

"Sigh, I just can't do anything with you."

Yui-chan! The goddess has arrived! That's it!

"Since I paid for that coffee, would the autistic guy like to just drink the syrup?"

...This demon, are you a goddess reincarnated?

"Hachiman, I'll go! Don't be shy!"

Totsuka smiled gently at me, like an angel! Just as I was about to hug him tightly, Yukinoshita's cold voice interrupted from the side.

Being too nice to him is not a good thing.

"Say those things after you've been good to me before."

In the end, Totsuka paid for my coffee. I thanked him and then went to find a seat. It was only right to do so while waiting for the three of them to order.

Four guests got up to leave, and I immediately took their place. After setting the trays down, I threw my backpack onto the sofa, but I threw it too hard, and it slid far away.

Just then, a pretty girl in a uniform at the next table gently held my backpack. She didn't complain at all, and her attitude was quite elegant and dignified, so I nodded to her in greeting.

"Ah, it's my brother."

This beautiful girl is my younger sister, Komachi Hikigaya. She was wearing her middle school uniform and waved to me with a happy smile.

"……what are you doing here?"

"Oh, Taishi invited Komachi here to discuss something."

After Komachi finished speaking, she turned to look at the seat opposite her. There sat a middle school boy wearing a high-collared uniform.

The other person bowed to me, and I instinctively went on alert. Why? Why would a boy be with Komachi?!

"This is Kawasaki Taishi. We talked about him yesterday, right? His older sister has become a delinquent."

Now that you think about it, I do have some recollection, but I didn't absorb 99% of it. All I remember is "The nightingale sang in Fujiwara Kyoto in 694." So what exactly happened that year...?

"He wants to know what he can do to turn his sister back to normal. Oh, and brother, listen too. Didn't you say you could tell me if you had any problems?"

Ah, I think I acted on impulse yesterday, blurting out things like, "Leave this to me, you guys go ahead." If it were for my own sister, I would definitely be willing to help; but this is my sister's friend, and a guy at that, I just can't bring myself to do it...

"I see. But, wouldn't it be better to discuss it with your family first? Yes, not only is it not too late, but it's actually too fast now."

Will he obediently take the bait and listen to my advice, which at first sounds reasonable but is actually completely useless? And then quickly leave my sister and go back to his own home!

With this in mind, I took on the role of a senior student and offered guidance to this boy named Dazhi.

"Um... lately my sister has been coming home really late, and she completely ignores our parents. No matter what I say to her, she just gets angry and says it's none of my business..."

Dazhi lowered his head and said, it seemed he had run out of ideas.

"Right now, the only person I can rely on is my brother."

"It's not quite right for you to call me 'brother'!"

"What are you arguing about? You're like a stubborn old man."

Just then, a calm voice came from behind me. I turned around and saw that Yukinoshita and the others had arrived. Komachi saw that the group was wearing the same uniform as me and immediately assumed they were my companions, quickly flashing the smile typically reserved for receiving clients.

"Oh, everyone! I'm Komachi Hikigaya. Thank you all for taking care of my brother."

She greeted us with a bow. My sister has always had a knack for putting on a show for others. As for the other man, Kawasaki Taishi, he also bowed and introduced himself. However, the angle of his bow was somewhere between a nod and a proper bow; it was hard to tell which was correct.

"Are you Hachiman's sister? Nice to meet you. I'm Totsuka Saika, who's in the same class as him."

"Ah, nice to meet you~ Wow~ You're so cute! Right, brother?"

"Yeah, but he's a boy."

"Haha, you're joking again. I really don't know what this brother is talking about~"

"Ah, um... I really am a boy..."

Totsuka blushed and looked away shyly. Huh? This guy really is a boy, right?

"Huh...really?"

Komachi nudged me with her elbow and asked me.

"Sorry, I'm not entirely sure, but it's probably a boy. Although he's really cute."

“I-I see…”

Komachi still stared at Totsuka with a hint of disbelief. Whenever she uttered compliments like, "Your eyelashes are so long~ Your skin is so beautiful~", Totsuka, blushing deeply, would fidget nervously, trying to escape her gaze.

He looked so adorable, I wanted to keep admiring him. However, I received a distress signal from his eyes, so I pulled Komachi aside.

"Alright, that's enough. And this is Yuihama, and next to her is Yukinoshita."

After my brief introduction, Komachi looked at the two of them. Yuihama met her gaze and then introduced herself with a "hahaha~".

"N-Nice to meet you... I'm Yui Yuigahama, the classmate of the autistic guy."

"Nice to meet you... Huh? Um..."

Komachi stopped what she was doing and began to carefully study Yuihama's face; Yuihama broke out in a cold sweat and looked away. "Are you a snake and a frog?" After the two stared at each other for three seconds, a voice finally broke in.

"...Shouldn't it be about time?"

Despite Yukinoshita's composure, she had waited far too long. With just a cold remark, she had managed to draw Yui and Komachi's attention to her—truly impressive. Yukinoshita's voice was icy and clear, like a soft whisper in one's ear, yet perfectly audible. The feeling was like listening to the silent accumulation of falling snow.

So, the scene fell silent. To be precise, everyone forgot to breathe. Komachi stared wide-eyed at Yukinoshita, and from an outsider's perspective, she seemed instantly captivated by her.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Yukino Yukinoshita, and I'm Hachiman's... What? We're neither classmates nor friends... I'm sorry, but I guess we're just acquaintances?"

"Why are you saying you regret it, and then using a question...?"

"Wait a minute, is 'someone I know' even an appropriate term? My knowledge of Hideya-kun is limited to his name; more accurately, I have no interest in anything else about him. Does that count as knowing him?"

That's a really harsh statement. But thinking about it carefully, the term "acquaintance" is quite vague, unlike "friend," which is more understandable. If you've only met someone once, can you call that acquaintance? If you've met someone many times, can you still call that acquaintance? And how much do you need to know each other to be considered acquaintances?

Using vague terms is indeed inappropriate. Therefore, we should use established facts.

"In any case, we're all students in the same year at the same school."

"That makes sense... Well then, allow me to correct myself. Unfortunately, I am Yukino Yukinoshita, who attends the same school as Hachiman."

"Unfortunately, that line is still the same!"

It's not just you who feels regret; I feel incredibly regretful too!

"Because I can't think of a better way to describe it."

"It's alright. From our conversation just now, Komachi already knows about your usual relationship, so it's fine."

Komachi spoke gently to Yukinoshita, who was still deep in thought. "It's so nice to have a smart little sister, but it's a pity she doesn't love her brother enough."

"What should I do?"

"Hmm? Ah..."

When we turned around, we realized that Dazhi had been left out the whole time, completely at a loss for what to do.

I already felt completely ignored, but there were people there who only knew Komachi, so that feeling of unease must have been even stronger. Being taken to some strange place as someone you "know" is definitely unsettling. Plus, everyone there was older than me, so I became extremely cautious in my words and actions. And because I was so cautious and didn't dare to speak much, I attracted attention and was asked, "What's wrong? Why aren't you saying anything?" It was enough to make you want to die. So, I could only pretend to listen attentively, nodding occasionally, or constantly wearing a knowing smile.

From this perspective, the fact that Daishi is able to make an effort to say something shows that he has excellent social skills and is likely to have a bright future... but he is not yet at the point where Komachi can be entrusted to him.

"I'm Taishi Kawasaki, and my older sister is a second-year student at Soubu High School... Ah, my older sister's name is Saki Kawasaki, and recently she's started going astray, or rather, she's become a delinquent..."

I felt like I'd only heard that name a short while ago. I started rummaging through my memories, adding milk to my coffee at the same time. In that instant, a torrent of memories washed over me. The stark contrast of black and white liquid gradually blended, stimulating my vision… That’s it! It’s that woman in the black lace!

"Saki Kawasaki from our class?"

"Kawasaki Saki-san..."

Yukino didn't recognize the person, and after repeating the name, tilted her head slightly in confusion. As for Yui, upon hearing the name, she immediately clapped her hands—truly befitting a classmate.

"Ah, is that Kawasaki-san? She seems a bit scary, or maybe a delinquent...?"

"Aren't you friends?"

"We've talked before, but we're not really friends... Hey, don't ask girls these kinds of questions, they're hard to answer."

Yuihama's words were somewhat evasive, suggesting that the girls were divided into various small groups, cliques, factions, and guilds, making the situation quite complex. In short, from her statement, it's clear that the two didn't get along well.

"However, I've never seen Kawasaki-san be particularly close to anyone... She always seems to be sitting in her seat, staring out the window in a daze."

"Ah, that's certainly true."

Based on Totsuka's addition, I recalled Kawasaki's appearance in the classroom. Her slightly gray eyes were always gazing at the drifting clouds; her gaze wasn't directed at the classroom, but rather towards a distant place that didn't belong here.

When did your sister start to change?

“Y-yes!”

When Daishi was suddenly asked a question by Yukina, his body jolted.

Let me explain. Taishi didn't simply find Yukinoshita scary; he was also nervous because the person speaking to him was a beautiful older woman. This is a normal reaction for middle school boys. I probably felt the same way when I was in middle school, but now that I'm a high school student, all I feel is fear.

"Hmm... My sister studied very hard in junior high, which is why she was able to get into Soubu High School. She was also very good to me back then, often cooking for me, and that didn't change until my first year of high school, until recently..."

"So it only started to change after your second year of high school?"

Taishi answered my question with a "yes," while Yukinoshita had already entered thinking mode.

"Among the things that changed after you entered your second year of high school, is there anything with a particularly suspicious reason?"

"It's probably a re-assignment of classes, right? After being assigned to Class F."

"So, it happened after I was in the same class as Hachiman."

"Hey, why are you making it sound like I caused this? Am I some kind of germ?"

"I didn't say that. It's your paranoia that's too severe, Hachiman."

"You clearly said that I heard the word 'bacteria' very clearly!" (Note 27: The pronunciation of "Hachigaya-kun" and "Hachigaya-bacteria" is similar.)

"I just accidentally bit my tongue."

He's pretending to be innocent!