"Should be far enough now, right?"
I muttered to myself when we'd reached a spot where the school gates were no longer in sight.
This was a rest area some distance from the school. It had security cameras, but with so few amenities, there was no one here besides us.
"Um, Hikigaya, you can put me down now."
Sakanayagi, whom I was carrying in my arms, suddenly spoke up.
Quite a few students had seen us on the way here, and their shrieks had drawn plenty of attention.
I knew there'd be another rumor going around tomorrow, but I was used to it by now and couldn't be bothered to care.
I gently set Sakanayagi down on a nearby bench, and Hiyori immediately handed her the cane.
"Thank you. Was it difficult carrying me, Hikigaya?"
"Not at all."
I wasn't just putting on a brave face. I meant it.
Of course, she had some weight—she was human, after all—but she was much lighter than I'd expected.
Sakanayagi probably weighed less than forty kilograms.
"Good. By the way, Hikigaya, what they said just now... Would you mind telling me about it, if you're comfortable?"
"I'd like to know, too. You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, but if you can..."
So they were still bothered by what those people had said.
Would those guys never stop until they'd turned my life upside down?
Honestly, I didn't want to remember any of it... But if I didn't explain now, they might start to suspect me, and that could ruin the relationship we'd built.
"All right. It happened like this..."
I took a deep breath and began to explain.
I told them everything: how my homeroom teacher had forced me to join a club in my second year of middle school, and how I'd been bullied right up until graduation.
"...That's about it. Now you understand why I chose this school, right?"
"Yeah. After seeing those four lunatics, choosing a school isolated from the outside world was definitely a wise move."
Sakanayagi nodded in understanding, without a hint of disapproval in her eyes.
Hiyori's gaze was gentle, but she looked at me with such sadness that my chest tightened with pain.
Perhaps trying to distract myself from that ache, I asked without thinking:
"You two... do you think less of me for being like that?"
I was afraid they'd reject me, yet I couldn't stop myself from asking.
"? Why would I think less of you, Hikigaya?"
Sakanayagi tilted her head as if she'd heard something absurd, making me seem like the one who was being ridiculous.
"But the requests the Service Club took on... We completed them, but the way we did it was awful..."
We'd fulfilled the requests involving Chiba Village, the school festival, and the school trip, but there was no denying the process had been brutal.
"Sure, but you delivered results, Hikigaya. That's what matters."
"You make it sound so simple."
"Of course. You might be able to earn recognition through hard work on a small task, but you can't afford to fail at an important one."
She had a point.
When a major project determined whether a company survived, failure meant being out.
"I know a little about the worlds of business and politics. The most important lesson is that results come first. No matter how good the process is, failure makes it meaningless. So even if the process was brutal, Hikigaya was right to complete the request successfully."
I see.
That was the judgment of Sakanayagi, a thoroughgoing rationalist.
But being affirmed so completely made me wonder if I really had done something wrong back when I was bullied.
"And besides, even if you were in the wrong, that doesn't give anyone the right to wish you'd been hit by a car."
Exactly.
Yuigahama Yui's "Huh? Of course it does! If you'd been there and gotten hit instead, it wouldn't have died!" had genuinely made me want to kill her.
In any case, I was relieved that Sakanayagi didn't think less of me.
The problem was Hiyori.
I turned toward her nervously and saw her slowly coming closer...
"You've been through a lot."
Before I knew it, she'd pulled me into her arms, pressing my face against her soft chest.
Warmth and a sweet fragrance enveloped me all at once.
"My, my..."
Sakanayagi's teasing voice came from beside us.
I couldn't see her with my face buried against Hiyori, but I could easily imagine the mischievous grin on her face.
I was already thinking she'd tease me about this later when I felt something gentle on top of my head...
"Hachiman, you've done your best. There's no one here who'll bully you. Please take it easy for the next three years."
I felt her gently stroking my hair.
She was probably petting my head as if she were soothing a small animal.
"Maybe the way things turned out wasn't admirable, but you really did give it everything you had, Hachiman. Thank you for all your effort."
Her words filled my heart with happiness and peace.
I hadn't completed those requests just to earn anyone's approval.
But after spending my middle school years being rejected outright, Hiyori's warmth and comfort were so precious that I nearly burst into tears.
"...Thank you."
That was all I could manage to say.
Five minutes later, I finally broke free from Hiyori's embrace and let out a long breath.
Honestly, if even those two had rejected me like the people from Sobu, I might really have fallen apart.
"Sorry for causing you trouble."
Especially Hiyori. I'd just selfishly clung to her like a child.
"It's okay. You must have been under a lot of pressure, Hikigaya. Don't worry about it."
"That's right. If you're ever feeling overwhelmed again, just tell us."
"It's a big help to hear you say that. What should we do now? We were planning to go shopping after our walk, but I'm not in the mood anymore."
Even with their support, there was no denying that those people's words and actions had affected all of us.
The two of them nodded in agreement, feeling the same way.
"In that case... Would you like to hang out in Hikigaya's room?"
"Oh, that sounds nice. Hachiman, didn't you buy a lot of things recently?"
Now that Hiyori mentioned it, I had.
After earning 1.5 million points, I'd bought a television, a game console, a VCR, a digital camera, a voice recorder, and a mini camera, all with the future in mind.
The TV and game console were just for entertainment. The digital devices were to help me gather evidence in case I ever clashed with another class.
After all, Chabashira-sensei had already eavesdropped on a conversation between Hiyori and me.
But...
"I bought them, sure, but I can't really picture you two playing video games."
It was hard to imagine Sakanayagi and Hiyori playing console games.
They'd be more likely to sit in their rooms and play chess.
"I see. Well, we're both a little tired. How about the three of us take a nap together?"
"Wait, Hiyori! Don't spring such a shocking suggestion on me out of nowhere!"
At this hour, "take a nap" meant the three of us would sleep together in my room, right?
"That sounds fine to me. But if Hikigaya doesn't want to, we don't have to."
Sakanayagi said that, but there was amusement in her eyes.
She definitely thought I'd chicken out.
I was used to this sort of thing by now, so I wasn't angry, but it was still annoying to always be the one getting teased.
"...Sure. Let's all take a nap together."
And so I decided to strike back at Sakanayagi.
Her reaction was...
"Huh...?"
Her eyes widened a little, as if she hadn't expected me to agree.
Seeing Sakanayagi look surprised was oddly amusing.
"What's wrong, Sakanayagi? Didn't you say it was fine?"
"Well... I suppose it's nice to see you fight back for once."
She muttered the last part under her breath.
I couldn't just let her tease me one-sidedly forever.
"Let's go, then."
With that, we left the Nature Park.
Just then, I noticed a police car sounding its siren in the direction of the sports field. It made quite an impression.
"Come on in."
""Excuse us.""
When we arrived at my room, I let them inside.
Sakanayagi looked around with interest.
"This room feels so lived-in. You can make it look like this once you've saved up enough points?"
"Pretty much, though it did cost quite a few points."
I'd spent nearly 200,000 points on my recent shopping.
I still had over a million left, but I didn't plan to buy anything expensive this month.
"I see. I'd like a television, too. It would let me keep up with what's happening in the world."
You could read newspapers in the library, but to get up-to-the-minute news, you needed a TV.
"If you want to watch one, you can come by anytime."
As long as no one took my terminal, I'd be fine. And Sakanayagi didn't seem like the type to steal anything.
"Really? Then I'll drop by sometime."
"Sure. So, are we really going to sleep?"
I'd brought them to my room at Hiyori's suggestion, but I wasn't sure if she'd meant it seriously.
"Yes. To be honest, I'm a little tired and want to rest. You two must be tired, too—especially you, Sakanayagi."
I couldn't deny it.
Being around those people had taken a serious mental toll.
"I can't deny that."
Sakanayagi was already frail, and now she must have been exhausted, both physically and mentally.
"Then let's stick to the plan and rest. Is it okay if we use Hachiman's bed?"
"Sure. I'll sleep on the floor, and you two can use the bed."
"? Weren't all three of us going to sleep in the bed?"
Hiyori's innocent remark made the corner of Sakanayagi's mouth twitch.
(What do we do, Sakanayagi? You only agreed to Hiyori's suggestion so you could tease me, right?)
(...I'm sorry about that, but it's really hard to stop Shiina.)
True enough.
Hiyori was so adorably absentminded it was almost frightening. She'd make all kinds of outrageous suggestions without meaning any harm.
As I was thinking that, Hiyori started walking while still holding my arm. With our hands joined, she pulled Sakanayagi and me along toward the bed.
"Hachiman, is it okay if you sleep in the middle?"
"...Fine."
I'd lost the will to resist, so I silently climbed into bed. Sakanayagi lay on my right, and Hiyori on my left.
"Good night."
""...Good night.""
Hiyori wished us good night, and Sakanayagi and I could only reply.
How could anyone possibly sleep in a situation like this?!
An hour later...
"..."
Exhausted by Yukinoshita and the others, the three of us lay close together and drifted off to sleep.
Before you continue