My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 354

"Ah, senior!"

She jogged over and tried to grab my sleeve, as if protesting, "You're so slow~ (Note 42: A line from Shimakaze in the game Kantai Collection. The voice actress is the same as Iroha Isshiki in the anime.)" However, as soon as she saw the other two people behind me, she immediately bowed respectfully.

"Oh, thank you both for coming to help!"

"Hi, Iroha!"

"What do we need to do?"

Yuihama greeted him warmly, while Yukinoshita looked around the conference room.

I looked around the room; the table was still arranged in a rectangle, and the chairs were neatly arranged, suggesting that preparations had not yet officially begun.

"We need to rearrange the seating for the college entrance interviews here. The student council will also be present during the interviews to provide assistance as needed."

"Oh, the working hours seem quite long."

When I said that, Isshiki slumped her shoulders helplessly.

"Yeah, this seems to be part of the student council's work too... I always feel like we're just doing menial tasks..."

"There's no other way, the student council is just for doing odd jobs..."

"I've never heard of that... Sigh... If someone hadn't convinced me to become student council president in the first place..."

Whether intentionally or not, she kept stealing glances at this spot.

"That's enough... But even though you complain so much, you're still working very hard, aren't you?"

"Well, um... it's work, after all."

She turned away, embarrassed, and looked to the side. Then, she coughed lightly, waved the documents in her hand, and began to give me instructions.

"Anyway! We need to move the tables and chairs now, and then insert partitions in the middle to create six separate cubicles. Could you please help us move the heavy things, senior students and vice president?"

"Understood"—I nodded, secretly making a V-sign in my mind. After Isshiki confirmed, he looked at Yukinoshita and Yuihama.

"Then, ladies, please help arrange the chairs. One chair for the counselors and two chairs for the students. If you have time, please also prepare tea for the counselors."

She reviewed the documents and continued issuing instructions with surprising efficiency and decisiveness. It seemed she was already doing a very good job as student council president. The secretary, a girl with braided hair and glasses, nodded solemnly upon receiving the instructions.

Conversely, some people looked like they hadn't understood at all. Needless to say, that person was Yuihama.

"Squeak...squeak? A mouse?"

"It's not a pet's name..."

Don't think about Nyanta, Hamzo, Ebizo, or Kikuzo... Just as I was thinking about how to explain, Yukino stepped forward first.

"Counseling refers to providing advice and academic guidance. In the case of a college application interview, it's equivalent to receiving consultation from the student."

"That's right. In addition to teachers, we will also invite graduates and third-year students who have been recommended for admission to serve as teachers."

"graduate……"

Upon hearing those three words, Yukino's expression instantly furrowed. What a coincidence, the first person I thought of might be the same as her. And unfortunately, bad premonitions often come true.

"Then, I'll go and ask the counselor to come over. The rest is up to the vice president."

After finishing speaking, Yise left the meeting room. The vice president took over the follow-up work and began directing everyone to set up the venue.

When the vice president and I worked together to move the partition into the meeting room, he said apologetically:

"Thank you for coming to help. We really need more people here."

"Hmm—no problem. The tasks are all very clear, so there shouldn't be any issues."

When we were planning Christmas activities with other schools before, we couldn't even decide on the specific things to do, and we almost had to cancel the event. Compared to then, the situation has improved significantly now—not only in terms of Isshiki's sense of responsibility as student council president, her interactions with other members, but also in the relationship between the three of us.

Regardless of the initial impetus, if we can work together little by little to remove the heavy objects, things could indeed change.

We moved the tables and set up partitions; the girls' work was almost finished. Everyone worked quickly, so we were ready well before the interviews even started.

At the same time, some students arrived at the conference room early, loitering around the door and peeking inside from time to time. Every time that person moved, the familiar ponytail swayed along with them.

In my memory, her name was Honda… or maybe Suzuki… wait, or Yamaha? None of those are right, it just sounds more like a motorcycle brand. Judging from her delinquent-girl appearance, I'd believe her 100% if she said she could ride a motorcycle. Motorcycle, motorcycle… Bike… Kawasaki Bike (Note 43: a Japanese comedian)? Hmm, probably Kawasaki.

Seeing Kawasaki standing at the door, unsure whether to come in, I finally took the initiative to speak up.

"You might have to wait a little longer."

"……oh."

She froze instantly upon hearing my voice, offering only a brief, cold reply. This person always treats me like this…

However, since she was already here, it didn't seem right to leave her standing at the door as punishment. So I decided to go out and chat with her to pass the time.

"So, you're here for a college admissions interview too?"

"Well, I guess so..."

Kawasaki seemed a little flustered, a reaction no different from most girls. While her appearance was indeed intimidating, her willingness to participate obediently in the college entrance interview showed she was still a very nice girl. "Uncle will definitely have a good impression of you if he sees this." "Hmm."

Moreover, now is a good time to ask her about choosing a group. Although I don't know if it will be of any use.

"So, which school are you planning to apply to?"

"Huh? Me? I... I'm going to apply to a national or public liberal arts university... I guess."

"It's all so clear, are you still not confident...?"

Even after deciding on the national and public liberal arts universities, the only remaining question was which school to choose. But then, the final decision suddenly became uncertain.

"Do you have any objections?" Kawasaki squinted at him.

"Report, no objections whatsoever."

I was startled by her, and my tone became involuntarily respectful. Please, have some mercy and get rid of that fierce attitude… Besides, how could I possibly have any complaints about you? So stop stirring up trouble like those keyboard warriors online. Besides, this person might easily unleash a Burst Punch (Note 44: a move from the *Final Fantasy* series of monks. The original pronunciation of "monk" is the same as "complaint" (in Japanese). In Japanese online game chat rooms, people often claim to be martial artists in real life.)…

"Now that we've decided on a direction, is there any need to attend a special interview?"

"...Our current results are a bit mediocre, so I'd like to hear some opinions."

I infer from this statement that Kawasaki lacks self-confidence. However, her decision to apply to national or public universities should remain unchanged.

—Ah, I understand. She has several younger siblings. Every family has its own troubles.

There's a saying: every family has its own problems. Hayama and Yukinoshita are probably no exception. Given Kawasaki's situation—a large family with a younger sister still in kindergarten—a national or public university is undoubtedly the best choice considering their future. It must be said, Kawasaki is truly a considerate and loving older sister, quite unlike the other older sister.

"By the way, your sister, you know... Mimi? How is she doing?"

"Huh? Who are you calling?"

Kawasaki glared at me mercilessly. Wait, wait a minute! I just accidentally remembered the name wrong… a big sister complex… okay, so what's her sister's name again… Hachihachi? That seems to be how she calls me. If I'm Hachihachi, then she's… Kawakawa?

I thought of a few more similar names, and finally remembered one that stuck with me. I clapped my hands and started speaking:

"That's right, it's shasha."

At that moment, his voice seemed to have been drained. When Kawasaki came to his senses, he immediately took a step back, his cheeks flushed, and fired off a barrage of words:

"Why are you calling me that! We're not like that—"

"Oh right, it's Saki. So that's why—"

No wonder that little guy called her "Sasa". I understand now. Kawasaki himself, however, couldn't understand at all and took another big step back.

"……Clam?"

Stop yelling and shouting, don't you find it noisy? Or are you Mr. T from a temple? No, since your name is Kawasaki, you should change it to Ms. K—oh, I finally remember, it's Jingjing.

"Ah, it's Jingjing. Jingjing."

Kawasaki was finally satisfied, but he still glared at me.

"If you forget again next time, I'll beat you up."

"Oh, yes..."

No… It’s not just your sister, I often forget even your name, I only remember your name as Kawasaki. I simply couldn’t bring myself to say that… However, when his sister was mentioned, Kawasaki’s attitude softened somewhat, and his tone became much gentler than before.

"If you have another chance to see Jingjing—or Jinghua—then you can play with her again."

"Hmm, okay, if there's a chance. But I feel it's unlikely."

"Um……"

She neither confirmed nor denied, only nodding in response. At that moment, the conference room door suddenly opened, and Yui peeked out.

"Hello, everything is ready inside."

Yuihama also noticed Kawasaki's presence, waved, and said "Hi" to her. Kawasaki bowed slightly in response, whether that counted as a return greeting or not was unclear.

"Are you here for a college admissions interview? Come in!"

At Yuihama's invitation, Kawasaki entered the meeting room. Then, I left the door wide open to allow the students who arrived later to enter.

As I crouched down to pull up the doorstop, I heard Kawasaki's voice above me.

"Oh right, I haven't asked you where you're going to take the exam."

She turned her head and looked here.

"Private liberal arts college."

"Humanities, right—"

She said listlessly, continuing to walk in the direction Yuihama had indicated. "Yes, that's right, I'm going to study humanities too. If we're in the same class again in our third year, maybe I'll have a chance to see her sister again. I'll hang out with her then."

× × ×

After Kawasaki, the other students arrived one after another. I glanced at the clock; the college entrance interviews would begin soon.

Chatter came from outside the open door. Yukinoshita, who was standing to the side, pricked up her ears, and Yuihama also came over and looked curiously into the corridor.

The voices of the speakers were all familiar. Sure enough, Yukinoshita Haruno arrived at the conference room accompanied by Isshiki, followed by Xun-senpai.

Yang saw me and waved to me without hesitation.

"Oh, it's Hachiman. Hee-hi-lo!"

"Hello there."

I lowered my head slightly, and Haruno smiled with satisfaction before looking at Yukinoshita. Yukinoshita didn't look away at all, and simply met her gaze.

"……elder sister."

"You're here too? That's great! I'll give you a proper consultation today!"

Haruno joked, and Yukinoshita's eyebrows twitched immediately, the atmosphere instantly becoming tense... Haven't I told you so many times? Please, if you want to argue, go home and argue, okay...?

Yuihama quickly realized the urgency of the situation and stood beside Yukino, speaking to Haruno:

"Ah, so the graduate who was invited is Haruno-neechan!"

"That's right, that's right. I heard that I could get a gift for helping out, so I decided to come♪"

Yang Nai was laughing so happily that I couldn't help but wonder if she was just really bored, or if she actually had no friends... Then I thought, Yang Nai is the likable type, she'll probably gain another admirer today. Isshiki clung tightly to her side, his eyes sparkling.

"It's so great that we were able to bring back such an amazing senior!"

"Are you sure? I'm not that amazing~"

Despite her modesty, Yang's composed smile revealed her confidence, even a touch of allure.

"You're too kind, Senior Haruno~ You're so cool, I admire you so much! I really hope I can be like you...hehe."

"Thank you--"

Haruno grabbed Isshiki and pulled her into his arms. Isshiki grinned, a malicious smile spreading across her face. Ah, this guy's planning to win over influential people, and even try to steal Haruno's methods...

Naturally, her opponent was no pushover either. As Yang Nai gently stroked her hair, a seductive smile played on her lips, as if she had already seen through her scheme.

I feel like I've seen something I shouldn't have... Iroha, please don't become the next Haruno! However, Senior Megure just watched them with a smile. It's clear that even a scene rife with undercurrents can be interpreted differently depending on the observer.

Under the influence of the healing aura—the gentle force field of Senior Xun—my heart calmed down.

She noticed my gaze, waved gently in greeting, and approached with light, crisp footsteps.

"Hachiman, it's been a long time—"

"Yeah... was Senior Xun also summoned?"

"Yes, because I've already been accepted into the school through the recommendation process."

Yuihama overheard the conversation and curiously leaned over to ask:

"Push, push Zhen? What does that mean?"