My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 421

Hearing a faint cough, I looked over there.

"……Happy New Year"

Yukinoshita buried her mouth in her scarf and said, "Well, it's actually kind of embarrassing to say 'Happy New Year' in a proper way."

"Ah... well, Happy New Year." She was a little embarrassed, her fingers nervously clutching the edge of her scarf.

After offering New Year's greetings, Yukinoshita pointed to the back gate and said, "Then, let's begin the worship."

Paper lanterns illuminated the uphill path leading to the shrine. We slowly ascended, passing sturdy tree trunks on either side. Visitors moved close to the shrine itself. This shrine was the largest in the area, so it was very popular. Even at midnight, the number of visitors only increased every minute.

Yui looked around in the crowd, seemingly very interested in the stalls on both sides.

"It's like a festival!"

"Well, so many people is a great opportunity to make money... I really want to go home soon."

After saying that, Yui pouted: "You always say things like that right away... Since we're here, let's eat something first!"

However, Yuihama, who was walking towards the roadside stall, was stopped by Yukinoshita, who grabbed her scarf.

"Let's finish our prayers first." With a slightly serious tone, Yukinoshita nudged Yuihama and turned her face towards the shrine gate. The line was really long; it wouldn't be good if there were too many people waiting.

No, there are just too many people, I want to go home...

Hopefully, there will be some space above it. Just as I was thinking this, the shrine finally appeared before my eyes.

"Come and make a wish?" Yuihama turned to the two of us with a childlike expression.

"We don't usually make wishes during the Lunar New Year... it's not like the Qixi Festival."

"Making a wish on New Year's Day is more like making a vow than a wish," Yukinoshita said, looking at Yuihama with a slightly serious expression.

Yuihama muttered dejectedly, "There are so many wishes I want to make come true, so many future hopes I want to see, that I want to tell the gods..."

Isn't this bribing the gods? If it were that easy for the gods, the world would be perfectly peaceful long ago.

“Normally only non-believers would say that…” Yukinoshita pressed her temples.

"But I still hope my wish comes true..." Yuihama said, a little confused.

As the crowd gradually dispersed, Yukino sighed and smiled as she spoke:

"Even if it's not necessarily useful, saying it out loud will make me more determined."

“Well, I have something I want to make a wish about.” Yuihama pulled Yukinoshita along, offered the sacrifice, rang the bell, bowed slightly, and then clapped her hands twice together.

Closed his eyes.

Making an oath before God always feels somewhat solemn.

I followed suit, bowing and clapping twice, and put my hands together.

Making a wish... or rather, making a vow...

I glanced at Yukinoshita and Yui beside me. Yukinoshita had her eyes closed quietly, breathing softly. Yui was frowning and muttering something. What they were wishing for or vowing, I couldn't know. I closed my eyes too.

Although I didn't make any wishes, I simply hoped to solve the problem through my own efforts, not to make any specific wishes.

Well, I hope Komachi passes the exam smoothly... It's something I can't change no matter how hard I try.

Act Two

After the worship, I was freed from the crowd. I turned my head, as if to relieve my fatigue. Wow, so many people… so many beautiful girls in shrine maiden outfits, and even nurses in uniforms… oh wait, no nurses. I walked past the group of shrine maidens and arrived at the stalls. All sorts of stalls were packed with people.

Mascots, arrows, amulets, and other items attracted crowds of people. I queued up to buy the amulet I wanted and drew a fortune stick along the way. I shook the wooden box and handed the slip of paper that had fallen out to the saintess. She glanced at it, smiled, and handed me the fortune stick. After thanking her, I walked over to the two of them.

Yuihama smiled niconiconi, while Yukinoshita frowned and stared at the thing in her hand.

"What happened?" she asked, walking towards the two of them. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"It's alright. We drew lots too." Yuihama said, showing me the lot she had in her hand, which had the words "Great Fortune" written on it in big letters.

I see, I roughly understand what happened. Seeing how happy she is, I can guess pretty much what's going on.

Then look at Yukinoshita. Yukinoshita is pouting slightly, staring intently in their direction.

"How did it go, Hikigaya-kun? You drew lots too, right?"

"what"

As they opened the fortune slips in their hands, Yukinoshita and Yuigahama also came over to take a look—

Xiaoji.

I have absolutely no idea whether I should be happy or not... Oh well, that makes sense. After all, I only spent a paltry 100 yuan, so of course I can't have too high expectations.

—May my vows in the void ensure my safety and well-being, and may I never have to repay them.

Is this a reminder about my health...? Just as I was considering whether to tie it here, Yukino next to me took out her fortune slip and looked at it:

"……lucky."

There was a hint of pride in her tone. Still the same as always, unwilling to lose to anyone… Yukinoshita gave a satisfied hum and flicked her loose hair.

Yuihama, smiling as she watched the snow fall, said:

"But thankfully, no one drew the unlucky one."

"...Well, yes."

As if reflecting on her earlier competitive behavior, Yukinoshita turned her head away with a slight blush.

Then their eyes met mine: "That bag... amulet?" I looked at it with great interest.

"Hmm? Ah, this? Well, consider it Komachi's wish to be accepted."

“Is that so…” Yukinoshita tilted her head and agreed, “How about we go and write an ema together?”

"Ah, great! Komachi-chan's wish has been granted!" Yuihama happily pumped her fist.

"...There might be a queue." I glanced at the ema (votive plaques) booth from afar; it was packed with people. I was almost ready to give up.

I didn't answer immediately, and hesitantly began to say:

"Okay, thanks."

Yukinoshita and Yuigahama blinked at each other. What's wrong? Is it strange?

"...What?" He felt a little uncomfortable being stared at.

"It's nothing, just a bit of a surprise," Yukinoshita said with a smile.

"Yeah, it's strange that Xiaoqi says 'thank you' and stuff. I thought she wouldn't like queuing." Yuihama laughed, seemingly amused. Is it strange? I say thank you too. Thinking this, she said with dissatisfaction:

"Because I'm the kind of person who would abandon my dignity for my sister. If it weren't for Komachi, I would have gone back long ago."

"It seems that what has been abandoned is not dignity, but common sense..." Yukino sighed sadly and walked towards the stall.

After taking a couple of steps, she suddenly stopped and turned around: "Then, shall we set off?"

Yuihama grinned foolishly at Yukinoshita, then walked behind me and nudged me, saying, "Let's go, let's go~"

"Hey, no, I'll walk by myself..."

The three of them walked together to the end of the line.

Act III

After waiting in line for a long time, it was finally our turn.

Yukinoshita's handwriting is beautiful, while Yuihama's bold characters exude a silly charm. I scribbled on it like a madman. It's almost impossible to decipher what wish I wrote! I really worry about the gods who grant wishes… But ultimately, I guess I'll just use it as a talisman. Writing it strangely so the gods can see it at a glance might be a good thing.

I hung the three ema (votive plaques) high up, begging you, handsome god, please let Komachi pass away... Namo Amitabha... *clap*, wish fulfilled. I turned to look at the two of them:

"It's done."

The girls nodded in satisfaction. Although I hadn't planned it intentionally at first, I'd already achieved my goal of going to the shrine. Thinking about what else I needed to do… well, everything's done.

"What do we do next? Go home?" I asked after making sure nothing was forgotten.

"I already said I wasn't going back... why do you keep thinking about going home..." Yui looked at me with a speechless and indifferent expression.

Just as I was about to say that I had nothing else to do, Yukinoshita's voice rang out:

"Didn't we say we'd check out the stalls? How about it?"

Yui nods energetically, as if Yukinoshita and Yui had made a promise beforehand.

Since we were on our way back anyway, I didn't have any objections. However, the truth was probably that I had no right to speak. The two girls had already left me behind and strode out. One after another, open-air stalls slowly unfolded before us. Most of them sold takoyaki and pancakes. Seasonal items like sweet rice wine were also available. I even discovered that there were shooting range stalls—usually more common in the summer, but rarely seen in the winter…

"Why is there a shooting range booth even though it's my first visit..." Yukinoshita said, seemingly surprised.

She stared at the stall with an incredulous look on her face.

"It is indeed quite strange, but there are also a lot of children coming. From a business perspective, it's actually normal."

"Unbelievable... Why would it be in a place like this..."

However, Yukinoshita seemed not to hear what I said at all, and was staring intently at the stall. Ah, so there was something that looked like Panda-san there, which is why she kept staring at it...

"Try?"

"No, that's not what I meant."

Despite saying that, Yukinoshita looked eager to try, clearly indicating that she wanted it...

Yuihama also smiled as she looked at Yukinoshita.

"Xiaoxue, you really like Panda Sang, don't you?" she said softly with a smile.

However, Yukinoshita kept staring at the thing that looked like Panda-san, talking to herself, as if she wasn't listening to what we were saying.

It looks like I won't be able to leave until I get it...

"Should I lend a hand..." Yui suddenly whispered as she thought about how much money she had left.

"Oh, right," she tugged at my sleeve.

"What's wrong?"

"Um..." Yuihama tugged at her sleeve slightly, as if gesturing for me to crouch down and get closer.

Yuihama leaned closer, lowering her head slightly.

Wow...you're so close...don't laugh, you guys couldn't handle it either. The faint lemon scent of her perfume wafted over, and Yui's face was red from the cold. How am I supposed to look at you calmly like this...? Even so, I sighed softly and gestured for her to continue.

Yui breathed out and leaned close to my ear as if whispering:

"What about buying Xiaoxue a gift?"

"Ah, ah..."

My birthday is in the snow, I remembered. Let me clarify first, I haven't forgotten this promise at all. In fact, I've been thinking about it for the past few days, figuring out the best way to do it. I've been using the 5W1H approach—which day and where to buy the gift? Who to go with? How to buy it? What to buy? And how to start the conversation? Inviting someone is really difficult, and deciding on a date is a huge challenge. If I decide on a time, the other person might not be available; if I ask them to suggest a time when they're free, they might feel like I'm taking the invitation too seriously.

Yuihama's initiative in bringing it up was a great help. If I had kept putting it off, I might have started overthinking and eventually lost all motivation, saying things like, "Hachiman's going home." Therefore, I decided to get this over with quickly.

"...Are you free tomorrow?"

"Huh? Yes, I do have some free time."

Yuihama was a little taken aback and touched the bun on her head.

"Really? Then, tomorrow..."

"kindness……"

After Yui finished speaking, she fell silent, and so did I.

While looking around to hide her shame, she noticed Yukinoshita walking towards her with her shoulders drooping.

"What's wrong? Aren't you going to watch anymore?"

"Yeah, that's enough, that kind of thing..."

A sorrowful smile appeared on her face as she spoke decisively.

I quickly checked the stall, trying to figure out what had happened. Upon closer inspection, I realized that the doll Yukinoshita had been looking at for so long wasn't Panda-san at all, but Kumada-san... Ah, that's right. When visiting a traditional festival, you're bound to encounter these kinds of counterfeit items, like colored pencil Shin-chan or Action Kamen.

"Oh, so it's translated." I said, as if I understood.

Upon hearing this, Yukinoshita gently stroked her chin and asked in confusion, "Fan? I feel like I've heard that name before... isn't it... Hiki...?"

"Wait a minute, you're not talking about me, are you? And, forget about the first name, why can't you even remember the last name?"

She feigned surprise and brushed the hair off her shoulder.

"How rude of me. I remember it very clearly."