My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 137

"Haha! Jun, you can't say that! That time was just for fun. I'm planning to be more serious this year, but I don't know if the school will let me come to practice often... So Yukino, how about it~ Anyway, you guys happen to need a performance group~"

As if that wasn't enough, Haruno hugged Yukinoshita's shoulders and continued to plead.

"For my adorable little sister Yukino, I'm willing to do anything I can for you!"

"Don't joke around... my sister always..."

Yukinoshita brushed Haruno's hand away, took a step back, and glared at her.

"Me? What about me?"

Haruno met Yukino's gaze head-on without looking away. The smile on her lips was undeniably cute, but as I watched, my legs inexplicably began to tremble.

"...You're doing this again."

Yukinoshita bit her lip in resentment and looked away from me.

"..."

As a result, we both lowered our eyes at the same time, perhaps even staring at the same spot on the floor.

"Oh, it's Hachiman. Hee-ha-lo~"

When Haruno noticed my presence, she greeted me in an unusually cheerful voice, completely out of place with the atmosphere. What kind of greeting was that? Is it the end of the century? (Note 44: Haruno's greeting was originally "ひゃっはろㄧ". "ひゃっはㄧ" is the laugh sound used in Fist of the North Star.)

"Sister Yang Nai..."

Ye Shan, who entered the meeting room a few steps later, stood next to me.

"Hi, Hayato."

Yang simply raised his hand in greeting, and Ye Shan nodded slightly in return.

"Is there a problem?"

"I'd like to sign up for a performing group and play the orchestra at the school anniversary celebration. And it sounds like it would be really fun to bring back alumni. Don't you think that would be a lot of fun?"

"You're still the same as ever, doing whatever comes to mind..." Ye Shan's tone was tinged with helplessness.

I know he and Yang Nai have known each other for a long time, but their interaction now seems a bit unnatural, perhaps because of their tone of voice.

So, they've even skipped the honorifics...?

I looked back and forth between Hayama and Haruno. Haruno noticed my gaze and immediately broke into a big smile.

"Hmm? Oh~ I've known Hayato for a long time, he's like a younger brother to me. You can talk to me like that too! Or would you prefer me to call you 'Hachiman'?"

“Ahahaha…”

I gave a dry laugh to express my refusal. In any case, I didn't want Haruno to call me that. Besides my parents, the only person who could call me "Hachiman" was Totsuka.

Yang Nai probably felt that the jokes had gone far enough, so she turned to look at Yukinoshita.

"Well then, Yukino, may I sign up?"

"If you want to sign up, then go ahead... Besides, I don't have the authority to decide."

"Huh? Really? I thought you were definitely going to be the chairperson. Didn't anyone around you recommend you for the position?"

Yukinoshita was indeed nominated, and precisely because she was Haruno's younger sister.

Yang smiled slightly, as if she had seen through the whole thing, while Yukinoshita turned her gaze elsewhere.

"Otherwise, who is the chairman? Xun is already a third-year student, so it's impossible... Could it be Hachiman?"

That joke wasn't very funny. I shrugged, using that as a way of telling her the answer.

In a strange and tense atmosphere, the conference room door suddenly opened.

"Sorry I'm late~ I was busy with class activities~"

The person who opened the door was Minami Sagami. Despite what she said, she showed absolutely no remorse.

However, there was no scheduled meeting today, and the current work progress is ahead of schedule, so it's understandable that we might relax a bit.

"Senior Yang, this is the chairperson."

After the introduction by Senior Xun, Haruno immediately looked at Sagami and began to sized her up.

It was that same look again—a chilling gaze that assesses a person's worth and chills them to the bone.

"...Ah, I'm Sagami Minami."

Sagami was intimidated by Haruno's gaze, and spoke in a voice so soft it was like a mosquito buzzing.

"oh……"

Yang Naiming clearly wasn't very interested in her, but he still sighed slightly and took a step forward.

"The chairman of the school anniversary organizing committee is late? And because of a class activity? Oh..."

Her voice was deep and authoritative, seemingly emanating from her diaphragm, quite intimidating. Every word she uttered penetrated Sagami's body. The person who was so lively and cheerful just a moment ago instantly transformed into a cold expression, further revealing her malice. What made Haruno more terrifying than Yukinoshita was the stark contrast between her different attitudes; more importantly, it was the completely undisguised and outward display of her dark emotions.

If you obey me, I will maintain a friendly relationship with you; if you turn against me, I will strike you mercilessly—Yang conveyed this fact directly through his attitude.

“Th-That’s…”

Sagami was racking his brains for a way to defend himself when, suddenly, Haruno smiled again.

"That's exactly how the chairperson should be! Those who sit in this position truly know how to enjoy the school anniversary celebration! Excellent, excellent! Hey, what did you just say your name was 'Xiang'? Blind date? Whatever, whatever, you're the chairperson's junior, right?"

"No, thank you so much for the compliment, senior..."

Haruno's unpredictable expression aroused Sagami's suspicion, but she still put on a smile to match.

This was perhaps the first time Sagami had received recognition since becoming the chairperson, and her cheeks flushed with excitement. Haruno continued:

"Oh, by the way, there's something I'd like to ask the chairperson, junior. Actually, I'd like to participate in the school anniversary performance, but when I talked to Yukino about it, she kept hesitating. Am I not pleasing her...?"

Yang even deliberately blew her nose, striking a pose that was hard to bear. While that expression was certainly calculated, it was rather cute, and I really couldn't be too harsh on her.

“Eh…”

Sagami looked at Yukinoshita.

Yukinoshita maintained her sullen expression, refusing to even glance at Sagami.

"...Sure, we don't have enough performing groups right now anyway. If alumni come back to participate, it will help improve...the connection with the local area?"

Sagami was simply reciting something someone had said before, yet she spoke as if it were her own original thought.

"Yay! Thank you!"

Yang deliberately hugged Sagami tightly, then released her and looked into the distance, murmuring:

"Yeah, it feels so great to be able to come back to my alma mater after graduation. I'm going to brag about it to my friends next time; they'll be so envious!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, including myself, we all sometimes have this sudden urge to go back to our alma mater..."

Sagami listened to Haruno's words and pondered for a moment.

However, Hayama and Yukinoshita seemed to have given up and let out a short sigh.

Sagami, completely oblivious to their reaction, clapped his hands and suggested to Hinano:

"I see... Well then, Haruno-senpai, you can invite your friends to join us!"

"Ah, great idea! I'll contact them right away."

"Please, do as you please~"

As soon as Sagami finished speaking, Haruno excitedly picked up her phone and quickly made a call. Yukinoshita hurriedly stopped Sagami.

"Sagamami-kun, wait a minute—"

However, Sagami simply told her in a lighthearted manner:

"Isn't this great? We're in need of performing groups, and this also establishes connections with the local community."

Despite her smug expression, it's unclear whether she realized that her suggestion was actually the result of Yang Nai's subtle manipulation.

"Besides, although I don't know what problems you have with your sister, these two things are unrelated."

"..."

Anyone who observes Yukinoshita and Haruno's interactions even briefly will understand that they don't get along. Sagami noticed this and said something that left Yukinoshita speechless.

For the first time, Sagami felt he had surpassed Yukino, and a smug smile appeared on his face.

"I knew it would turn out like this..."

Ye Shan's words seemed to imply that he understood everything. I was somewhat bothered and silently looked at Ye Shan, demanding that he explain himself, but whether intentionally or not, he said nothing more.

"Then, I'll take the application form and go back."

After he finished speaking, he left the meeting room.

Of those not members of the school anniversary executive committee, only Yukinoshita Haruno remained at the scene.

After finishing her phone call and receiving the performance group application form, Yang Nai continued her discussion with Xun-senpai, Sagami, and her friends.

Yang's presence here didn't particularly bother us, but because she was a very conspicuous person, every move she made attracted everyone's attention, making everyone uneasy.

Of all of them, only Yukinoshita was determined and refused to look at her no matter what.

Suddenly, Sagami's group burst into cheers. I turned around and saw Sagami chatting happily with her friends, while Senior Sister Xun nodded kindly to her.

Yang glanced at me, then got up and walked over.

She deliberately chose the seat next to me.

"Young man, are you working hard?"

"...Yes, there is."

"However, this is a bit of a surprise. I thought you would never take this kind of job."

"Yes, I think so too."

"Hmm... So it was Xiaojing who did it."

Yang nodded in understanding. However, compared to me, the other person present should have surprised her even more.

"If we're really talking about surprises, isn't your younger sister even more surprising?"

"Really? I knew from the beginning that she would be participating."

I didn't understand what that meant and looked puzzled. Yang Nai stared at my face and added her explanation.

"Think about it, she feels awkward being in the club right now, and I, as her older sister, have served as the chairperson. These reasons alone are enough to explain why she would participate."

Although there was a hint of mockery in her tone, I still considered each reason carefully. The atmosphere within the Service Club was certainly far from good, but the most important thing was Haruno herself. I think I could somewhat understand what kind of person she was to Yukinoshita.

"Although the former doesn't seem to be going very smoothly."

Yang Nai chuckled as if looking at something amusing, and added.

The relationship between these two sisters is more complicated than I had imagined from observing them from the sidelines.

Whether it's brothers or sisters, comparisons are inevitable, and there are often situations where people judge who is better or worse. At least I have a younger sister, but brothers and sisters are different in gender, or perhaps we've made up for each other's shortcomings as we've grown up, so I don't feel like I'm being compared to anyone.

But if they are the Yukinoshita sisters, they are as similar as twins.

My older sister is exceptionally talented.

The younger sister is just as talented as her older sister, yet she still hasn't been able to surpass her.

If one of them is a little slow-witted, they might cause a fuss, but their personality might not be so eccentric.

Yukinoshita repeatedly challenges her sister's phantom, seemingly having a way to defeat it, but ultimately failing. Avoiding the achievements Haruno has made could have made things much easier, but her pride, or some other strong emotion beyond pride, prevents her from doing so.

After thinking about this and understanding these things, I began to wonder if Haruno was planning to do something for her sister in a different way.

"Excuse me... what exactly are you planning?"

I stated my question directly.

The most terrifying thing about Haruno is that you can't guess what she's thinking. It's strange to say this, but based on my long-term observation of humanity from a negative perspective, I still can't understand Haruno.

What do I have to say for you to believe me?

"..."

I can't believe it. Yang Nai's image is already deeply ingrained in my mind, and no matter how profound her reasons or how lofty her ideals, I can't take them seriously.

At this moment, she must have been well aware of the significance of my silence.