Votes for Canvassing Votes! 5k

"It is dangerous to get involved when your friend is being bullied and you are unable to help them."

Um.

In other words, it means staying out of it.

This might sound a bit unethical, but the people in this class think there's nothing wrong with this viewpoint.

"Besides, I don't think we should be too harsh on Hirata," Kushida continued, steering the conversation off-topic. "After all, I received help from him before."

"Yes, I was helped too."

"Hirata did help me."

"Actually, I sometimes feel that Hirata is too stressed. He always needs to help others and doesn't have any free time for himself. Now that I know the reason, I think he doesn't need to be so tired." A girl joined the conversation.

The new speaker was Meiyu Wang.

The top English student in the class.

She is also a girl that many people know and may like Hirata.

Therefore, it's natural for them to speak up for Hirata.

To be honest, although Hirata revealed some terrifying aspects of his past, he really didn't do anything to wrong everyone in the class.

Only.

Some people don't pay any attention to Hirata's reputation at all.

"How did you do that?" This was Hachiman's seatmate, a girl with long black hair, staring intently at him.

But Hachiman knew.

What she wanted to ask was how to get Hirata to give up his obsessive idea of dropping out of Yamauchi and then directly choose to awaken and drop out of Yamauchi.

In response to this.

Hachiman felt there was no need to hide it.

"I told you, he's always been paranoid, right?" Hachiman said. "Although he helped the class a lot, he was just trying to redeem himself."

"But this redemption has become distorted."

"If they can't even drop out of school to get rid of a classmate who's dragging them down in such a simple situation, then he will become an obstacle in future exams."

"Although I have no hope for this class, if problems continue to arise, we are not absolutely safe."

"So I told him to face the facts."

"Just two days ago, I sent him to apply to the school for a loan to leave campus. Students are allowed to leave, but it costs 500,000 yen a day. As long as he pays the price, he can leave," Hachiman said. "So, I sent him out of school to see his friend who committed suicide."

"And this is something he has to face himself."

I see.

Suzune Horikita understood.

Hirata felt guilty towards his friends, which is why he transformed himself into a little sun.

So, does that mean his friend who committed suicide because of bullying actually didn't die?

Then there is indeed still hope.

So Hachiman Hikigaya is making him confront that friend, confront his psychological barriers.

"However," Suzune Horikita, also somewhat curious, "Would you proactively help Hirata?"

"It should be said that Hirata's own good fortune," Hachiman said.

Oh?

Horikita looked over; it seemed that Hachiman had experienced something she didn't know about.

Chapter 29: Vote for votes! 5k

Horikita felt that Hachiman might have done something again, something she didn't know about.

In fact, he really didn't do anything to Hirata.

Rather, it's more accurate to say...

It was just a coincidence.

Hirata was furious the day the exam was announced, and then skipped class that afternoon.

This caused concern among some students, but a small number of them felt that this meant either Yamanouchi or Hirata would drop Yamauchi, and that the dropout exam was over and they were safe.

Then there's another concern: each person can cast 3 critical votes, so if they receive a lot of critical votes, say 39, then wouldn't that also be considered a violation?

So I started building a small team.

Instead of voting against each other, we should vote for each other's Appreciation Vote.

These are all visible actions. Of course, these are things that people with extremely poor interpersonal relationships would worry about.

Hachiman doesn't need to worry.

In fact, he didn't even care about Hirata.

But.

I still ran into Hirata.

That evening, Hachiman, Classmate Sakayanagi, and Kamuro returned from the Shopping Street and were heading back to their dorm.

But while passing by the green belt, they unexpectedly discovered Hirata in Hachiman's class, sitting on a chair, lost in thought.

Kamuro was the first to discover him.

It was only after Classmate Sakayanagi reminded Hachiman that he discovered the Hachiman.

"You two go back first," Hachiman said to them, and neither of them refused. Or rather, when they were almost at the dormitory, the two groups would usually deliberately go in at different times.

Because both Hachiman and Classmate Sakayanagi can be considered representatives of their respective classes.

In the fierce competition among classes, it is possible for students to attack each other's targets and disrupt each other's mental state.

Therefore, although the two parties sometimes eat together, they still maintain a distance in public.

Putting aside the fact that this is not true, being attacked would be a huge loss.

Hachiman also noticed that some of his classmates had also noticed Hirata.

The students merely glanced at Hirata before quickly leaving.

The reason is obvious.

It's probably because of Hirata's violent behavior during the day and his childish fantasy of class stability that they don't want to interact with Hirata now.

This is the power of the Hirata explosion.

His classmates, who were usually on good terms with him, felt afraid to approach him.

Or rather, most people only see Hirata's perfect side.

It's unimaginable that Hirata- kun could be so irritable. An honest person suddenly becoming irritable is much more terrifying than someone who has always been rude.

So when they saw Hachiman walk towards Hirata, the other classmates left as if they had been granted a pardon.

Finally, when she looked at Hachiman, her gaze was something like, "Please."

I think about it briefly.

"Hirata—— "

Hachiman walked toward that place with his hands in his pockets.

"Hachiman Hikigaya—— "

Hirata looked very dejected.

Even though it had only been ten hours, he seemed completely listless.

This is a manifestation of how he is tormented by his own inner turmoil.

He probably didn't eat dinner either.

"I was thinking of welcoming the new year with the whole class—" he said, "But...why did it turn out like this?"

"I am powerless once again. I can only watch helplessly as all of this happens."

The "again" he's referring to probably means not intervening when his friend was being bullied in the past.

He came to this school to atone for his sins, to prevent himself from doing the same thing again, but now, facing this withdrawal exam, he feels powerless because he knows that someone will have to drop out.

It felt as if I had once again stood by and watched.

"Yes, can I entrust it to you?"

Hirata suddenly looked up and said, "I know you and Horikita played a big part in getting Class C this far, but... I really wanted to entrust Class C to you guys—"

This isn't a nice thing to say.

It seemed like he had affirmed her, but it was more of a trust or entrustment.

In other words...

He is now actually considering dropping out of school.

Hirata now is a sick Hirata.

From the moment he enrolled until now, he has been striving to be the kind of Hirata who can help others and lend a helping hand.

But just like Hachiman said in class, Hirata, stop being so paranoid, you're twisted.

Because.

He was left to cool off for ten hours.

In the end, he still decided to drop out of school.

What is this if not pathological?

From the moment he ignored his friend, watched his friend being bullied and then suffering irreparable consequences, until now, his mind has been pathological.

Or is it...?

Hachiman remembered something.

That is, when she met Karuizawa, her vulnerable side and the side that was being bullied were discovered, and although she immediately complied, there was still a layer of obstacle in her heart.

That was a wound on her abdomen, a wound from a past fight that nearly cost her her life.

They dare not mention or expose it at all.

That was her past, which she was terrified of.

It is a weakness.

So.

Hirata's current actions may just be self-deception.

He actually knew what he needed to do, but he didn't choose it; he was afraid.

"You should leave the school," Hachiman said.

"Leaving... school... do you mean dropping out..." Hirata's voice wasn't as forceful.

He had just announced that he wanted to drop out of school and then entrusted the class to someone else, so logically he should have known that dropping out meant leaving the school.

But now I'm not so decisive anymore.

So that's how it is.

Hachiman watched Hirata's expression intently.

It was quickly confirmed that Hirata did indeed have something in his heart.

"You came here seeking self-redemption, but I don't deny your efforts last semester and up until now," Hachiman said. "But, Hirata, these aren't what you really wanted, are they?"

"Or rather, it's something you've always been afraid to face."

"You want to atone for your sins. You've even done a lot for it."