(The main heroine is Sakanayanagi. I'll also take Hiyori, Ichinose, and all the other female characters, teachers included.)
(I'll take Yukino and Komachi after I've trained them properly.)
(This is a sweet romance, and all the heroines are adorable and full of sugar. As for the other characters, there's no need to go easy on them in the story. Anyone I'm not going to take, for instance, will be dealt with in an unusual, exciting way.)
(If you're into turning into a pervert, multiple heroines, a bloodbath, and everyone sleeping together at the end, stay. If you're only a half-hearted pervert, you can leave.)
--
The bus from the station was empty.
After all, it had only just arrived and started picking up passengers, so that was to be expected.
I sat in the fourth row from the back, reading a book.
I opened the window, and the warm spring breeze brushed pleasantly against my cheek.
At this rate, I might fall asleep.
As I read, the bus gradually filled up.
I looked around. There were office workers, high school girls in sailor uniforms, and mothers with children. Though they each took a seat, they all turned to look at me.
I couldn't blame them. My uniform stood out too much.
I deliberately ignored their gazes and turned the page again... when someone gently poked my shoulder. I looked up.
"Um... would it be all right if I sat next to you?"
A girl with flowing silver hair and a gentle air stood before me.
She was wearing the same uniform as I was.
I glanced around. There were two empty seats besides the one next to me... Ah, now there was only this one.
(A girl sitting next to me is such a hassle... Oh, well.) "Go ahead."
"Thank you! Oh, I'm Shiina Hiyori. Since we're wearing the same uniform, I guess we're classmates. I hope we get along if we end up in the same class."
"...Hikigaya Hachiman."
I sighed inwardly and gave her my name. She thanked me, then sat down.
A pleasant fragrance wafted over. I focused on my book and gave her nothing but my name.
But Shiina, sitting beside me, eyed the book in my hands with interest, then suddenly leaned closer.
"A Study in Scarlet? Hikigaya, do you like Conan Doyle?"
"Ah, yeah..."
Taken by surprise, I nodded without thinking.
"I see! I like him too!"
As she spoke, she pulled out a copy of The Sign of Four.
Unlike my Japanese translation, hers was the original English edition.
This girl was a serious bookworm.
"Not many people our age read these days, so I'm happy to meet someone who shares my interests~"
She smiled, leaning close enough that she almost seemed about to kiss me, but there wasn't a trace of disdain in her eyes.
So this was what a natural, sweet girl was like...!?
"Yeah. Back in middle school, hardly anyone read..."
There were tons of people who played mobile games or read manga, but only a handful of us read books, me included.
Actually, after I was ostracized over something in middle school and my belongings kept getting destroyed, I stopped reading at school.
As I thought back on it, the bus slowly pulled away.
The girl beside me kept talking about Conan Doyle, and I had no choice but to do my best to keep up.
Honestly, I was nervous as hell, but her gentle manner made it impossible to turn her down. Besides, there was none of the disdainful look I'd been subjected to in middle school in her eyes, so I could just about manage.
"...You love reading this much. Are you thinking of becoming a librarian after you graduate?"
"That's one possibility, but since I got into Advanced Nurturing High School, I'd like to try out a few more options."
Fair enough. Shiina and I had both gotten into Advanced Nurturing High School, one of the top schools in the country, with a guaranteed path to further education and employment.
You'd think our futures were secure, so it made sense to consider our options.
But what mattered to me was the rule that "students may not contact the outside world or leave campus after enrolling, except in special circumstances."
In middle school, I'd been forced to join a club, and every day from my second year until graduation had felt like hell.
The club members pressured me to apologize and insulted me every day. The faculty advisor would hit me at the drop of a hat, my classmates spread rumors about me, my little sister helped the club members demand that I apologize, and my parents took their side and tried to kick me out.
I only managed to escape after threatening to report them to the child guidance center and the police.
My parents were overjoyed when I applied to Advanced Nurturing High School.
I'd wanted to get away from my family too, so it was a win-win.
At last, I'd have three years of peace.
My dream was to keep my head down and focus on studying, get into a good company after graduation, and marry a woman who could support me so I could be a househusband.
"Hikigaya, is there a career you'd like to pursue?"
"Ah... I haven't decided yet. I applied because of the support system."
I gave her an evasive answer.
To be honest, I didn't want to talk to girls—or anyone, for that matter—but Shiina was just too cute.
She was sure to become one of the most popular people at school.
If I treated her badly, the others might hold it against me.
That would go against my goal of living a peaceful life.
From now on, I planned to stick to the principle of "don't start conversations, respond politely if someone talks to me, and don't get involved in trouble unless it affects me."
I looked out the window. A luxury car was coming toward us, and suddenly a dog darted into the road.
Wait, could that car and that dog be...?
Thud!
"Sa-Sabre!"
At the moment the bus passed the car, I heard an impact and a familiar cry.
Perhaps the driver didn't want to get involved, or maybe there was a car behind us. Either way, the bus didn't stop and kept going.
"That's so sad..."
Shiina looked sorrowful.
The other passengers whispered among themselves, but I—
(That idiot... Had she learned nothing from what happened when we started middle school? Put a leash on your dog.)
I despaired of Yuigahama, Sabre's owner, ever learning.
Counting what happened at the start of middle school and the time at the mall, this made three times now. They said three strikes and you were out. Poor Sabre, stuck with such an idiot for an owner.
As the bus jolted along, I silently mourned Sabre and prayed that the high school life about to begin would be peaceful.
Before you continue