My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 15

What a pathetic skill this is! I feel like crying.

"Ugh..."

Yuihama was so frightened that she took several steps back, and her face turned pale.

"Hachiman, may I speak to you in private...?"

Snowdrop tugged at my sleeve and whispered in my ear...

"Who is this 'sword-wielding general' he's talking about?"

Her lovely face was right in front of me, and I could even smell her fragrance.

Unfortunately, what he said lacked any charm.

This problem can be solved in a single sentence.

"That's chuunibyou (middle school syndrome), chuunibyou."

"Chuunibyou?"

Yukino looked at me with a puzzled expression. At that moment, I suddenly realized that the shape of a girl's lips when pronouncing "zhong" was quite cute—a truly remarkable discovery.

Is that a disease?

Yuihama, who had been listening nearby, also joined the conversation.

"It's not a real disease; you can treat it as a popular saying."

The so-called "chuunibyou" refers to the behavior and speech that students around the second year of junior high school often do that causes headaches for everyone.

As for the level of the wood base, it is enough to be called "chuunibyou" (Japanese pronunciation is the same as "chuunibyou") or "evil eye" (a person who yearns for superpowers and mysterious forces and fantasizes that he has extraordinary power).

He longed for the special abilities and incredible powers that appeared in anime, video games, and light novels, and deliberately pretended to have such abilities himself. To make everything seem plausible, since he possessed such abilities, he had to add settings to himself such as a legendary warrior reincarnation, a chosen one of the gods, or a secret agent, and then act according to those settings.

Why do you do this?

Because he's handsome.

I think everyone around the second year of junior high school probably did something similar, like saying, "Goodnight, viewers of COUNT DOWN TV. This time, I'm bringing you a new song with a love theme, and I wrote the lyrics myself..." or practicing in front of a mirror, right?

The term "chuunibyou" (middle school syndrome) is an extreme example of this.

After I briefly explained chuunibyou (middle school syndrome), Yukinoshita seemed to understand. I had always felt that her mind was astonishingly sharp; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that she could draw inferences from one instance to ten. Even without explaining things in great detail, she could grasp their essence.

"I still don't understand..."

Compared to Yukinoshita, Yuihama complained in a low voice with disgust. "Well, I can't help it," she said. "If it were me, I definitely wouldn't understand just by listening to those explanations. It would be strange if Yukinoshita understood them."

"Hmm... In other words, he's acting based on his own creation?"

"That's roughly the idea. His character is based on Ashikaga Yoshiteru, the thirteenth shogun of the Muromachi shogunate. They share the same name, which may have made the concept easier to develop."

Why would he consider you a companion?

"They probably associated my name with Hachiman Daisatsu, whom the Seiwa Genji devoutly worshipped as a war god. You should know about Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine, right?"

Hearing this, Yukino suddenly fell silent. I looked at her, asking "What's wrong?", and she opened her eyes wide and looked at me, saying:

"That's surprising, you know so much."

"...It's alright."

Unpleasant memories almost flashed through my mind, so I turned my head away and changed the subject.

"It's really annoying that Zaimu-za keeps referencing history, but at least he makes his settings based on past history, so it's a little better."

After listening, Yukinoshita glanced at the woodblock and asked with an expression of utter disgust:

"...Is it any worse?"

"have."

"I'm just listening to this for reference, how bad is it really?"

"This world once had seven gods: the three pillars belonging to the creator gods, 'Wise Emperor Gran,' 'Goddess of War Meshka,' and 'Guardian of the Heart Hattia'; the three pillars belonging to the destroyers, 'Foolish King Otto,' 'Lost Sanctuary Log,' and 'Suspicious Rai Rai'; and the eternally indebted god, 'Nameless God.' They caused the world to repeatedly experience prosperity and decline, and we are currently in the seventh cycle. To prevent the world from heading towards destruction again, the Japanese government is searching everywhere for the reincarnations of these seven gods. Among them, the most important, and whose abilities are still unknown, is the eternally indebted god, 'Nameless God,' who is none other than myself, Hikigami—Hey, how come you're so good at getting information out of people! That's scary! I almost blurted it all out!"

"I had absolutely no intention of trying to trick you into telling me anything..."

"I feel really uncomfortable..."

"Yuihama, watch your words, or I'll have suicidal thoughts."

Yukino sighed as if in surrender, her gaze shifting back and forth between me and the timber pedestal.

"So, you mean Hikigaya-kun is the same kind of person as him? No wonder he knows so much about swordsmen and generals."

"No, no, no, what nonsense are you talking about, Yukinoshita-san? How could that be? The reason I know so much is because I took Japanese history as an elective! And I played 'Nobunaga's Ambition'."

"Yeah?"

The snow beneath her eyes was filled with suspicion, as if she wanted me to die.

But I will not back down, because I am not like Zaimokuza. I can look Yukinoshita in the eye with my own eyes, because what she said is wrong.

I am not the same kind of person as the woodworker, but I "used to be".

The name "Hachiman" is quite rare, so for a while, I really thought I was special. It's understandable that someone who has loved anime and manga since childhood would have such fantasies.

Imagine someone lying in bed, dreaming of possessing mysterious powers that one day will awaken and drag them into a war that threatens the very survival of the world. To prepare for that moment, they begin writing a daily divine diary and submitting a report to the government every three months—hasn't everyone done something like that? Hasn't everyone?

"...Okay, it might have been the same before, but it's different now."

“Well…”

Yukinoshita smiled mischievously, then walked towards the woodwork stand.

As I watched her retreating figure, I wondered: Am I really different from Timber?

The answer is yes.

I no longer indulge in foolish fantasies, nor do I write any more divine diaries or reports to the government. Lately, I'll at most write a "list of names I will never forgive." The first name on that list is, of course, Yukinoshita.

I won't make sound effects to play with my Gundam model, I won't build the strongest robot with laundry clips, I've graduated from the stage of making self-defense weapons from rubber bands and aluminum foil, and I'll no longer use my dad's coat and mom's faux fur scarf for role-playing.

I am different from the wood base.

Just as I came to this conclusion, Yukinoshita appeared before Zaimokuza. Yuihama whispered, "Yukino, run away!" You're making Zaimokuza sound pitiful.

"I understand roughly. Your request is to cure your emotional distress, right?"

"...Hachiman, I have traveled a great distance to this place to fulfill my wish, in accordance with the contract I made with you. It is a noble and sacred desire, and my only wish."

Zaimokuza looked at me, ignoring Yukinoshita's presence. "You even use first-person and second-person pronouns haphazardly; just how chaotic is your mind?"

Then I suddenly noticed something—whenever Yukinoshita spoke to him, he would always turn to look at me.

I can understand how Zaimokuza feels. If I hadn't known Yukinoshita's true nature and had been approached by her, I would have been at a loss and wouldn't have been able to look her in the eye properly.

But Yuki doesn't have the heart of an ordinary person; she doesn't understand how to appreciate a man's pure feelings.

"I'm talking to you now. Please look at me carefully while I'm speaking."

The sound beneath the snow was quite cold, and she grabbed the wooden stand by the collar, forcibly pulling him back to the front.

That's right, Yukinoshita herself is quite impolite, yet she expects others to be polite. Because of her personality, I was also trained to greet people proactively as soon as I entered the clubroom.

After letting go, Zaimokuza coughed a few times. It seems this isn't the time for acting.

"...Goo, goo-ha, goo-ha-haha, that really scared me."

"And don't talk like that."

"..."

The wooden base, indifferent to the snow's coldness, silently bowed its head.

"Why wear a coat this season?"

"...Ugh, uh-huh. This is equipment to protect my body from miasma; it was originally one of my twelve divine artifacts. After I was reincarnated into this world, I specially transformed it into the form most suitable for this body. Hahahahahahahaha!"

"Don't talk like that."

“Ah, yes…”

"Then what about those fingerless gloves you're wearing? What's the point? They don't protect your fingertips, do they?"

"...Ah, yes. Uh...This is one of the twelve divine weapons I inherited from my previous life, a special gauntlet that can shoot out diamond wires. I deliberately exposed my fingertips so that I could operate it freely...That's it! Hahahaha!"

"Watch your tone of voice."

"Hahaha! Haha, haa..."

The woodworker initially burst into laughter, but then seemed increasingly powerless, even letting out a sorrowful sigh, before finally falling silent.

Yukinoshita seemed to feel sorry for him, and changed her tone from before, asking him gently:

"Anyway, as long as you get well, that's fine, right?"

"...Ah, this isn't an illness."

Zaimokuza looked away from Yukinoshita and replied in a very low voice. He looked troubled and kept gesturing to me with his eyes.

He looks completely ordinary now.

The timber stand couldn't maintain its pretense under the watchful gaze of the snow.

Ugh... I can't watch this anymore!

The wood support was so pitiful that I wanted to help it.

As I took a step forward, about to pull open the wooden frame beneath Yukinoshita, I heard a rustling sound under my feet.

Those were the papers that had been flying around in the office not long ago.

I picked up the paper and saw that it was covered with a bunch of difficult Chinese characters, a dark mass that caught my eye.

"This is……"

I looked away and glanced around the classroom, noticing that the manuscripts, measuring 42 by 34 cm, were scattered throughout the room. I picked them up one by one and arranged them in order.

"Hmm, you understand even without me saying it. That's impressive. It's worth it that we went through that hellish time together." Yui completely ignored Zaimokuza's sentiments and looked at the thing in my hand.

"what is that?"

I handed the stack of papers to Yuihama, who flipped through them rapidly. As she looked at them, question marks appeared above her head. Finally, she sighed deeply and handed the papers back to me.

"What's this?"

"I think it must be the original manuscript of the novel."

At this moment, Cai Muzuo coughed deliberately, indicating that he had something to say.

"Thank you for your insight. That is indeed my light novel manuscript. I wanted to submit it to a newcomer award, but since I don't have any friends, I can't hear everyone's opinions. Please read it."

"I always feel like you're casually mentioning something very sad..."

It's perfectly natural for someone with "chuunibyou" (middle school syndrome) to aspire to become a light novel author. Wanting to materialize one's aspirations is a normal emotion. Furthermore, it's not surprising that someone who frequently indulges in fantasies believes they can write great works. Besides, being able to combine one's interests with one's work is indeed a kind of happiness.

Therefore, it doesn't surprise me too much that Zaimokuza wants to become a light novel author.

To our surprise, he brought his artwork to show us.

"There are some websites and discussion threads online where you can submit your work; you can post it there."

"No, they speak too directly. If I get criticized and deemed completely worthless, I might die."

...So fragile mentally.

However, when there's a barrier between people online, it's true that one can be quite blunt when speaking to them. If it were a friend, one would likely be more considerate and speak more tactfully.

Normally, given our relationship with the timber maker, we wouldn't offer overly harsh opinions. After all, no one likes to say anything hurtful directly, so a conservative approach is inevitable. However, this only applies to normal circumstances.

"But……"

I sighed and looked to the side. When my eyes met Yukino's, I saw a blank look on her face. "I think Yukino's opinions will be even harsher than the criticisms from netizens on the submission website."

× × ×

Yukinoshita, Yuihama, and I each took the original manuscript of the woodblock home and read it in one night.

The novels written by Zaimokuza are in the genre of campus superpower battles.

This epic masterpiece is set in a Japanese city and depicts a mysterious organization and superpowered individuals with memories of their past lives appearing and disappearing under the cover of night. Then, an ordinary young protagonist discovers the power hidden within himself and defeats his enemies one after another.

By the time I finished reading this novel, it was already getting light.

As a result, I slept almost the entire time in class today, and I was still drowsy even in the sixth period. After finally getting through the class meeting, I went to the student union office.