Chapter 132: Yukinoshita Wants to Have Even More
"Now for the next one, Kaguya-san."
Fujiwara Chika's words snapped Shinomiya Kaguya back to reality.
"Two, I suppose."
Shinomiya Kaguya had already rehearsed every single question in this book with Hayasaka Ai beforehand. Thus, no matter the question, she knew the answers by heart. For Shinomiya Kaguya, two children were enough.
However, if Hikigaya-kun truly wanted eighteen, she felt it might be quite a challenge for her.
"Two, huh? That's pretty standard," Fujiwara Chika said with a smile.
The answers from Shirogane Miyuki and Ishigami Yu were soon revealed as well.
Shirogane Miyuki's number was exactly half of Hikigaya Hachiman's—reaching a total of nine puppies. Since Hachiman's eighteen had already shocked everyone, Shirogane's nine didn't seem as surprising.
Ishigami Yu, however, gave a count of zero.
"How can there be no dogs?" Fujiwara Chika asked in astonishment.
"Fujiwara-senpai, since this is a hypothetical, isn't it normal for me to hypothesize that there are no dogs inside?" Ishigami Yu simply offered his explanation.
Fujiwara Chika thought about it and conceded; after all, these were all subjective thoughts.
"Then, I shall reveal the answer."
Fujiwara Chika cleared her throat.
"The number of animals in the cage actually represents how many children you want to have in the future."
Hikigaya Hachiman instantly understood why those two girls were looking at him with such strange expressions. He simply felt that dogs were one of the few animals in this world that could give him a sense of security and serve as guardians.
That was why he thought eighteen—naturally, the more the better.
After all, in the vast territories of the Empire, there were originally twenty Primarchs; minus the two, that left eighteen. Hachiman's logic was very simple. He just didn't expect this trashy book to translate his thoughts into wanting eighteen children.
'Am I the Emperor?'
Hachiman felt that the person who wrote this book was talking absolute nonsense. Yet, he actually heard Shirogane Miyuki mutter, "That's scary accurate."
'Wait, Miyuki actually wants to have nine?!'
Meanwhile, Ishigami Yu had completely broken down, his face full of disbelief.
How did he suddenly become a DINK (Double Income, No Kids)?
"Not raising a single child?"
Could it be that he was so afraid of Shinomiya-senpai that he was now terrified of girls in general, to the point of not even daring to date?
Fujiwara Chika continued, "Then, on to the next question."
"Imagine you are walking down a path, and someone suddenly taps you on the shoulder."
"You turn around—who is the first person you think of?"
"This question..."
Shinomiya Kaguya knew this one too, but she didn't really want Fujiwara Chika to ask it yet because the timing wasn't right. The answer to this question is that the person tapping your shoulder is the one you like.
In Kaguya's eyes, it was too early for this. On the contrary, if he named a real person and the answer came out, she might be the one feeling miserable in the end.
"Then, let's have Hikigaya-kun answer first again," Fujiwara Chika said with a smile, her smug expression quite noticeable.
To be honest, when he heard the question, the first person Hikigaya Hachiman thought of was his Gene-Father, Sanguinius. His compassionate father had cared for him so much that even after living here for so long, Hachiman couldn't forget the details of their life together.
However, even if he said that name now, people would just recall it as a character from his book. Ultimately, Hachiman chose to answer with Komachi. Komachi often tapped him on the shoulder, after all.
"Komachi, I guess," Hachiman said directly.
His words caused shocked expressions to appear on the faces of both Fujiwara Chika and Shinomiya Kaguya.
"What a coincidence, I was thinking of Kei too," Shirogane Miyuki immediately agreed. Like Hachiman, he had thought of his own younger sister.
Shinomiya Kaguya said helplessly, "If it were me, it would probably be Fujiwara-san..."
True to her rehearsal, Kaguya gave her prepared answer.
"Oh?" Fujiwara Chika's face turned bright red instantly. She clearly hadn't expected that answer from Kaguya-san.
Since Ishigami Yu still hadn't recovered from the previous question, Fujiwara Chika skipped him and announced the answer.
"Actually, the first person you think of is the person you like."
This caused Chika and Kaguya to wear very subtle expressions when they realized both Hikigaya Hachiman and Shirogane Miyuki had named their sisters. They clearly felt these two siscons were truly beyond saving.
"As expected."
Hikigaya Hachiman knew from the start that the only thing besides food that could interest Fujiwara Chika was romance. But what truly piqued his interest was why Shinomiya Kaguya seemed to know the answers in advance, judged by her reactions which were almost perfectly synchronized with Chika's.
It made sense for Chika to know, since she brought the book. But Kaguya should have been in the dark like the rest of them, yet she had reacted like this twice now. Every time Hachiman answered, Kaguya's response was so swift it was as if she were reading from a script.
In Hachiman's eyes, it was glaringly obvious. She wasn't hiding it well at all; she was completely exposed.
Since she didn't get the reaction she wanted, Fujiwara Chika puffed her cheeks out in a huff.
"I'm going to go swap this for another book!" she announced and rushed out, disappearing in a flash.
The members of the Student Council knew that despite her saying she was swapping the book, given Chika's playful nature, there was no telling where she'd end up. She might put the book down, change her mind entirely, and just vanish.
"Senpai, I'll take my leave for today as well."
Seeing Chika run out, the already depressed Ishigami Yu picked up his laptop and walked out.
"Good work," Hachiman and Shirogane said simultaneously.
Shirogane Miyuki felt they had made the right choice in hiring a treasurer; efficiency had skyrocketed since Ishigami arrived. It just seemed that Ishigami would need a long time to truly integrate. Then again, Shirogane had felt out of place in his first year too, taking a whole semester to mesh with the council.
"I'm heading out too."
Shirogane Miyuki had to return to his class, as it was almost time for the afternoon session. Furthermore, the three people left were all "quiet" types; with the only mood-maker, Secretary Fujiwara, gone, Shirogane figured he should leave too. He was good at reading the room.
The Student Council room returned to silence.
Shinomiya Kaguya immediately felt that her original plan had failed once again. She sighed inwardly; it seemed trying to understand Hikigaya Hachiman through these methods just wasn't going to work.
"Shinomiya.
Have you seen that book before?"
Hikigaya Hachiman took a sip of his slightly cooled tea and spoke slowly.
"Ah!"
Kaguya, who was just sighing to herself, felt as if she had been hit by an electric shock. Even her "Ice Queen" facade couldn't be maintained.
"Hikigaya-kun, what are you talking about?"
Her sudden panic only confirmed Hachiman's suspicion. If she hadn't panicked, he might have written it off as a coincidence. After all, the book had a library stamp; it wouldn't be strange for someone else to have borrowed it. Only this small surge of panic convinced him there was an ulterior motive—like indirectly manipulating Fujiwara Chika to do all this.
Chika's behavior was quite predictable in certain aspects; Hachiman himself could make her do what he wanted. If Kaguya had done this, her interest was clearly "not in the wine but in something else."
Seeing that Hachiman had deduced almost everything she had done, Kaguya's face turned bright red. How could the thin-skinned Kaguya explain this? Could she say that because she had a bit of a crush on him, she wanted to know more about him, and thus used Fujiwara Chika to fish for info?
Kaguya felt her image was in jeopardy. Using even her friends—didn't that make her a terrible woman? Realizing this, Kaguya felt immense regret. She regretted being so careless with her plan and leaving so many loopholes. Moreover, she hadn't controlled her emotions well in front of him just now.
Hachiman watched the expressions on Kaguya's face shift from panic to dejection, and finally to a look of utter despair. Kaguya always had a tendency to assume the worst-case scenario.
Hachiman didn't continue to tease her. He had only wanted to see her lose her composure for a moment because of her usually stiff, proper attitude. He stood up to grab the teapot. Kaguya's hand had been trembling so much while she was flustered that tea had spilled out of her cup.
"Just take it as me talking nonsense. I might be wrong about some things.
I'm a rather boring man. I don't have many hobbies, mostly just writing books to vent my emotions.
Usually, I spend most of my time hunting Cursed Spirits."
Hachiman poured water into Kaguya's cup, sighing as he did.
"The Cursed Spirits over here are really increasing. It feels like there's no end to the killing."
Kaguya watched as Hachiman laid out his personal information for her.
"Just consider it me grumbling. You've worked hard, Shinomiya."
Hachiman felt quite helpless. After killing only one of the Four Gods, the "Post Office" had gone completely silent. He was still refining Faith Energy—the power of which was undeniable—but there were still three gods left to kill.
"My only entertainment now is writing the stories I want to write and listening to music."
Hachiman's playlist was now rich with live recordings. Sometimes Bocchi or Subaru would send videos of their band performances to the group chat, making him their first listener.
Just as he said, Hachiman was just venting. He was telling Kaguya things that were difficult to say to others. Since she had seen Cursed Spirits and knew a bit about Jujutsu, telling her didn't break any rules. Besides, keeping these things to himself was a heavy psychological burden.
"Also, I find that watching the balance in my bank account grow when I'm tired is a very relaxing thing."
It's just that money isn't easy to make. Hachiman thought of Nanami; to ensure Hachiman's money wasn't lost in the capital markets, Nanami worked from morning until night watching the charts. The 8-hour workday he had set for himself was completely insufficient. The global markets were too vast. Nanami said he didn't work overtime, but he was secretly doing it behind Hachiman's back.
"Sorry, I've talked too much."
Hachiman's alarm went off; it was about time.
"Thanks for today.
Shinomiya, I'm just an ordinary person. I get worried too."
Hachiman hoped Kaguya could treat him normally without being so cautious. Being so careful made them not seem like friends. On the contrary, if Kaguya could show her true self—the version without the mask—that would be even better.
"So, just treat me the way you treat Fujiwara-san."
Though Chika was sometimes subjected to Kaguya's fiercer glares, that was precisely because they were close.
"We are friends and we're close. There's no need for so many schemes."
"I'm sorry," Kaguya said apologetically.
"No need. If there's something you want to ask, just ask me directly."
Hachiman made a small promise to Kaguya.
"As long as I can answer, I will.
Also, your bracelet looks nice."
As Hikigaya Hachiman walked out of the Student Council room, he raised his right wrist, touched it, and spoke to Shinomiya Kaguya. That bracelet wasn't there yesterday; she must have put it on today.
Kaguya's face turned red. She touched the bracelet on her wrist. She hadn't really shown it off today, yet Hikigaya-kun had noticed. Kaguya's mood improved significantly, just as Hayasaka Ai always said.
'Hikigaya-kun is a very observant person, Milady. He silently notices any change in you. So, Milady, you can trust him with peace of mind; he won't fail your expectations.'
Kaguya took out a small mirror, looked at her long black hair draped over her shoulders, and whispered:
"Maybe I should tie it in a ponytail."
Kaguya wanted to seek change too. Her "icy" appearance truly needed a bit of a makeover.
After school, Hikigaya Hachiman was a bit late, so when he arrived at the Service Club, Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui were already there. When he saw the book in Yuigahama's hand, his eyelid twitched.
Wasn't that the psychology test book Fujiwara Chika had returned to the library?
"Ah, Hikki's here!"
Yuigahama Yui quickly called him over to sit down. Like she was presenting a treasure, she showed the book to Hachiman.
"This book is super popular! When I went at noon, it was still checked out."
"Yeah... Yuigahama worked hard."
Coincidentally, Yuigahama Yui was also asking Yukinoshita Yukino a question, but this time it had changed from a doghouse to a cat house.
"Guess how many cats are in the cat house?"
Yukinoshita Yukino thought for a moment under Hachiman's gaze and gave her answer.
"One hundred, I suppose."
"One hundred?!"
Yuigahama Yui couldn't help but gasp.
Yukinoshita Yukino nodded. She even felt that a hundred wasn't enough; there could be more.
Hearing this answer, Hachiman choked on his water. He looked at the girl with the slightly blushing face and thought to himself:
'Yukinoshita... do you really want to have that many children?'
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