Chapter 58: Her cunning.

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Translated and Edited by: luccayn.

Common Honorifics:
-san: A polite suffix, but not excessively formal.
-kun: A common suffix among friends and younger people.
-chan: A common suffix among people you're close with, mostly used for feminine nicknames and girls, since it's cutesy and childlike.
-senpai: A common suffix and noun used to address or refer to one's older or more senior colleagues in a school, workplace, dojo, or sports club.

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“Obsessed love, huh?”

We had taken the bus to Arashiyama. After everything that had happened, Hareta had been immediately swept away by his harem, leaving us with no opportunity to talk. In the end, Michiru and I were left to piece together and examine the information on our own.

“By ‘obsessed,’ do you mean Kanae has unusual preferences or quirks in love that aren’t considered typical?”

“Exactly. The phrase ‘Do you want to know?’ is another way of saying, ‘Are you prepared to learn?’ My guess is that Yusa was hurt by someone significant to her—maybe a lover or a close friend—because of her past. Whoever it was, they must have been very important to her.”

“I see. That actually makes sense. Now that I think about it, Kanae does seem to try to remain neutral or avoid directly addressing things. And she keeps a bit more distance from Kou-kun compared to the rest of us.”

If Michiru, who had spent so much time with her, said so, it was probably true. I leaned on the bridge’s railing and walked across, watching the river flow below after snapping a photo of Togetsukyo Bridge.

“Still, isn’t it amazing how a public school like ours has gathered so many girls with such tragic backstories? The more I think about it, the more I realize that none of them could love anyone but Hareta.”

“Yeah, that's true.”

“And you’re one of them.”

A strange pause followed. The sound of the water flowing beneath us was oddly soothing.

“Well… but, I mean, meeting Shinji-kun taught me that there are different types of love. I've really thought about what ‘liking’ someone means, so I'd appreciate it if you could cut me some slack on that. Or rather, you're the last person who should be saying something like that to me…”

The last part trailed off into a mumble I couldn’t quite make out. I wasn't interested enough to press her on it, so I let it slide.

“At the very least, you’re still sane enough to realize it when I point it out. If you’d gone completely off the deep end and stopped listening to anyone, things might not have gotten this complicated.”

“Do you regret it?”

“Not at all. No matter how miserable it gets, creepy things are still creepy.”

“…Honestly, if you were the kind of person who brought up your own past in moments like this, things would probably go a little smoother.”

This girl…

“Ah! Hey! What are you doing!?”

Not wanting to wound her by retorting, I used my ice-cold right hand—chilled by the open air—to press against Michiru's neck from behind. It might have been the first time I'd ever resorted to force.

“It’s nothing. More importantly, we've at least found a hint about the heroines’ pasts. Over the past six months, have you run into any events or clues that stood out?”

“Hmm… Maybe the opposite?”

The opposite? What did she mean?

“Like, we were all able to act like we ‘liked, liked~!’ you, right? Because of that, we didn't have to show the parts of ourselves we hated. So, in a way, when we were with you, we were all lying about who we were. That kinda stuff”

“I see. That makes sense.”

In fact, it had been Aomi-senpai who first noticed Michiru’s change. If even she couldn't pick up on the other heroines’ issues despite being in the same group, it wasn't surprising.

“Then let's flip the perspective.”

“What do you mean?”

“When something big happens, or when someone experiences extraordinary joy, they might still act calm, pretending like everything's normal. If that’s the case, it's probably because they're running from their trauma.”

“Oh, I get it! If someone stays unnaturally composed, it's because a bad memory is being triggered, and they're trying to avoid facing it.”

She caught on quickly, which was helpful.

“How about summer vacation? A time like that must have had its share of events. You probably watched everyone calmly from the sidelines, right?”

“Like Kokomi-chan’s boobs?”

“That was Hareta's lucky day. It's better when the heroines are the ones getting excited about his casual actions.”

“Hmm, that's hard. To be honest, I was too focused on you, Shinji-kun, to pay much attention…”

At that moment, I grabbed Michiru's ear with my cold left hand.

“Eek! Hey! Why do you keep doing stuff like that!?”

“Shut up.”

I hate girls like this—the kind who act all cutesy, especially when they're naturally oblivious to how manipulative they come across. You try to respond to their antics, and they just double down, asking, “What do you mean?” And when you're at a loss for words, they smirk like they've won.

And yet, I was starting to understand this girl more and more. That realization alone was enough to unsettle me. If only I had a bit of Kakeru's cunning. Then I could fight back without hesitation.

“What's with all the flirting, idiot Shinji?”

A sudden interruption came from a childish voice that somehow felt familiar. I glanced around the bustling crowd of students from various schools on their field trips, but I couldn't spot the source of the voice.

Hmm, was it just my imagination?

“It's not your imagination. Look down.”

Down? I lowered my gaze and found a cheeky-looking girl with fluffy, doll-like hair smirking up at me. I hadn't expected her to show up here.

“Hey, is Shu-un Academy also on their field trip today? Being a private school, I figured you'd be off somewhere fancy like Okinawa.”

“We're going to Okinawa after the New Year. Our school takes two trips a year, after all.”

“Must be nice to be rich.”

I slipped past her with a shrug. Standing still on the bridge would only clog the flow of people. Behind me, Michiru's cheerful “Long time no see!” rang out. For some reason, I could hear five sets of footsteps following me.

When I reached the riverbank on the other side, I turned around to look. Michiru was there, along with the cheeky girl and three others—a casually dressed girl I didn't recognize and two boys.

It seemed she'd gathered quite a group. Maybe I should've daydreamed about feeling like a boss like Jirocho of Shimizu¹ while I was at it.

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1 — Famous yakuza and entrepreneur. Also considered a folk hero in Japan. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimizu_Jirocho).

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