My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 178

I patted Yuihama on the shoulder. She seemed tired of waiting too, and her reaction was a little slow; she just turned her head away.

"What's up?"

"How about taking a taxi instead?"

"Hmm..." Yuihama frowned upon hearing this. "Taxi? But they're expensive, we can't spend too much money."

The negotiation ended there, and she turned her head back to continue waiting for the bus.

She now resembles a typical housewife. Even during the school anniversary celebration, she was particularly frugal with money.

However, as someone determined to become a stay-at-home husband, I naturally have no reason to lose to her—I mean, in terms of talking nonsense and the alchemy of squeezing out money from somewhere, I have no reason to lose to her.

"Yuihama, you know, taxis in the capital area do give the impression of being expensive, but in Kyoto, most of the taxis are small cars, so they're relatively cheaper. You'd be missing out if you didn't take this opportunity. Besides, if everyone splits the fare, it won't cost much."

“Eh…”

Hmm, still not accepting? I thought I had come up with quite a few reasons to persuade Yuihama, but it seems that it is still not enough to move her heart. In that case, I have to change my strategy.

"Think about it carefully, isn't wasting time here even more of a loss?"

"Really?"

Yui gave it a perfunctory response, treating it as a small pastime to pass the time while waiting. This woman…

In such situations, it's essential to first pique the listener's curiosity.

Do you like going to Disneyland?

"I like it. So what?"

Her reaction this time was different from last time; she turned her entire upper body, not just her neck. My knowledge of Chiba is second to none, and I have a considerable understanding of Disneyland. Of all my knowledge of Chiba, the only thing that might interest Yuihama is Disneyland. Therefore, I decided to approach her from this angle.

"It's also a popular dating spot."

"Yes, that's right."

Yui nodded in agreement.

"But now there's bad news."

"Huh? What?"

She finally became curious and turned her whole body towards me. Once I was sure she was really listening, she continued.

"Couples who go on dates at Disneyland all break up."

"Ah, I've heard of that. It's like a curse."

"That's right. But if you think about it carefully, you'll realize that breaking up was an inevitable outcome."

It's not some mysterious force at work; it's purely due to human psychology.

"As the wait for a ride goes on, it's inevitable to feel anxious, and you'll eventually run out of things to talk about. As anxiety builds, the silence increases, and even a romantic partner can lose interest. Simply put, it's the opposite of the 'suspension bridge effect.'"

"Oh, I see."

Yui nodded repeatedly in admiration; it seemed she was finally willing to accept. Seizing the opportunity, I continued to persuade her:

"Don't you think that's similar to the current situation?"

"Me and you? I don't think so."

Yuihama's expression returned to one of confusion. Her answer was completely unexpected, and I was momentarily at a loss for how to react.

"No... I meant the Ministry of Revenue and Ebina."

"Oh, I see..."

Yuihama realized she had misunderstood and lowered her blushing face in embarrassment.

"Look for yourself."

I pointed slightly to the two people at the front of the line.

They seemed quite bored while waiting. Ebina chatted briefly with Miura, occasionally fiddling with his phone; Keibu stepped outside, brandishing his wooden sword. "Hey, you really bought that thing..."

"Um……"

Seeing the far from pleasant atmosphere, Yui crossed her arms and began to struggle. Okay, now it's just one step away!

"Don't forget, the enclosed space inside a taxi can help increase intimacy."

If someone were to get into the same taxi as Conan, it could lead to a fatal accident.

Yuihama finally realized what was going on.

"Ah, I see... I'll go talk to them. Hey~"

She waved enthusiastically to the group members who were ahead of her in line.

"Should we take a taxi instead?"

Everyone looked puzzled. Most high school students perceived taxis as expensive, and besides, taxis weren't a common mode of transportation for students, so some resistance was understandable. However, I really didn't want to squeeze onto a bus with a bunch of people, so I joined in the persuasion.

"If we choose a small car and split the fare among the four of us, it won't actually cost much."

"That makes sense."

Fortunately, Hayama was quick-witted. With the endorsement of a powerful leader, things became much easier. Neither Miura nor Tobe said anything, and Ebina nodded, quickly bringing Kawasaki into the same camp; Totsuka also had no objections and followed suit.

So we left the group and headed to the taxi stand.

There are eight people in total. Logically, they should be divided into two cars, with four people in each car.

Hayama and Miura stood at the front, followed by Kawasaki and Totsuka, then I formed a wall to ensure that the remaining Tobe, Ebina, and Yuigahama would all get on the same bus. The wall plays a crucial role here. Whenever there's a ball game, I'm always assigned to defend the extra positions; my defensive abilities are well-known.

Ye Shan led the way, guiding everyone to the taxi stand.

"Then, get in the car."

Upon arriving at the pick-up point, I urged Hayama to be the first to board. That way, everyone else could simply board in order.

"Okay, Yumiko, go in first."

"Okay~"

Miura followed Hayama's instructions and got into the car without saying a word, but Hayama remained standing by the car door, calling out the next person's name.

"Ministry of Revenue, it's your turn."

The expression on the face of the Ministry of Revenue member at the back of the line lit up.

"Okay, got it~ Ebina, let's come together!"

"Okay~ then Yui, Sasa, I'll be going now."

Kebu and Ebina stepped forward and boarded the car in order. While waiting, Ebina waved to Yuihama and the others.

"Okay, see you later."

"Don't call me 'Shasha'."

Yui waved goodbye gently, while Sasa blushed and warned her.

Finally, Hayama sat in the front seat.

"...We're leaving now."

He closed the car door without turning around, giving me no chance to say anything.

Oh... I see.

Next, it was my turn to ride in the second car with the rest of the people.

"How should we sit?" Totsuka asked.

If things proceed as they are now, I should sit in the front seat.

"Um... I'll sit in the front, you guys sit in the back."

The taxi door opened automatically. After confirming that Totsuka, Kawasaki, and Yuigahama were seated, I opened the front door, got in, and fastened my seatbelt.

"To Renhe Temple."

I briefly told the driver my destination, and he repeated it with a smile.

The car quietly drove onto the road. While waiting at a red light, the driver spoke to us.

"Are you here for a graduation trip?"

"Yes, that's right."

I glanced at the driver and gave another brief reply. I wasn't intentionally being cold to him; I was just not used to this kind of perfunctory conversation.

"Where did you come from?"

"Tokyo."

Here's a little tidbit about Chiba people. When Chiba residents visit other places and are asked where they're from, they always blurt out "Tokyo." There's no way around it; even if they actually answered Chiba, they'd probably have to explain for ages, which is frustrating... I think it's the same reason why many Kanagawa residents like to pretend to be Yokohama residents.

I continued chatting idly with the driver. I never imagined that taking a taxi would lead me into such a trap…

Meanwhile, the three people in the back seat were talking about what happened in the girl's room last night.

"Yeah. Then, Saki got so into a pillow fight that she made Yumiko cry."

"There's no need to mention that..."

I saw Yuihama chatting happily in the rearview mirror, while Kawasaki displeasedly crossed his other leg. Speaking of which, Miura cries too much... Totsuka was writing on the side, sharing what happened in our boys' room as well.

"Pillow fights seem to be a lot of fun. We're all playing mahjong and UNO... Oh, and Hachiman even though he lost, he forgot to accept his punishment."

Even though the front and back seats are separated by only one seatback, it felt like they were on a completely different, distant side. It was really lively in the back…

Out of concern for the driver next to me, I didn't join the conversation in the back seat; I just stared blankly at the scenery outside the window.

× × ×

The Ninna-ji Temple we are going to is the very temple where the confused monk (Note 53) from the 52nd chapter of the novel *Tsurezuregusa*, as well as everyone knows, lived. He always regretted never having visited Iwashimizu Hachimangu Shrine. On one occasion, he decided to go and pay homage, but after visiting Gokurakuji Temple and Kora-sha Shrine at the foot of the mountain, he thought he had been to Hachimangu Shrine and missed the real Hachimangu Shrine on the mountain.

When spring arrives, this place will be covered in cherry blossoms, attracting even more tourists than it is now.

The temples and gardens here are equally impressive, attracting many tourists even in late autumn. However, being energetic high school students, all we could manage were comments like "So beautiful," "Yeah," and "It is beautiful." Where did all that energy from the movie village go...?

Actually, I don't know much about temples myself, so I'm not really qualified to comment on others. At most, I'll just talk to myself and show off a little, saying, "Oh, this is the famous place from 'Tsurezuregusa'." Besides, the focus of paragraph 52 isn't on Ninna-ji Temple at all.

After walking around the temple and courtyard, everyone had an expression on their face that said, "It's about time we left."

"Okay, next stop!"

Yuihama keenly perceived this and made this suggestion.

Incredibly, after everyone left Ninna-ji Temple with Yuihama, they all seemed to regain their spirits.

The next destination is Ryoan-ji Temple. The temple's name alone is cool, and with its famous stone garden, it's incredibly cool. Incidentally, in terms of the coolness of temple names, Tenryu-ji Temple isn't inferior to Ryoan-ji, but if we're vying for first place, we'll have to let Kinkai-komyo-ji Temple and Kyōō-gokkoku-ji Temple compete. As for Adashino Nenbutsu-ji Temple, we can leave it as a hidden character.

It takes about ten minutes to walk from Ninna-ji Temple to Ryoan-ji Temple.

Along the way, red-stained leaves kept falling.

Whenever I'm with a group, I always end up at the back. Yui, who was originally walking in front, gradually slowed down and unknowingly came up to my side.

"It's not going very smoothly."

Yuihama murmured with some disappointment, referring to the development between the Hobe and Ebina.

"Is that even a question? We can't even take care of ourselves, how can we have time to worry about others?"

"...Yes, that's right."

"and……"

"and?"

Moreover, their lack of success wasn't Yuihama's fault. This isn't some consolation; it's simply the truth.

Because of the Ministry of Revenue's personality, Ebina had no interest in him; more importantly, it was because of someone's inexplicable behavior.

His actions are undoubtedly a stumbling block to our success in fulfilling our mandate.

I don't know why he did that. But without evidence, words are meaningless, especially unfounded ones. So, I didn't voice my doubts; I kept them to myself for now. If I did speak them aloud and then discovered that my suspicions were true, it would be too late to undo the damage.

Staying at the level of doubt won't hurt anyone.

Yuihama was still waiting for me to speak, so I decided to say something trivial.

"We don't need to force them to get together. What's impossible will never come true no matter how hard we try."