kscans

Chapter 563 - Reactions: Hiyori

"Ah!"

"Oops?"

In the entrance hall of the Yotsuya dormitory. I had just returned from the on-site convenience store—which was more of a 'please take freely' warehouse—having procured a cup of instant noodles that my body had suddenly craved.

I bumped into a rare face, and we both let out a small cry of surprise.

"Well, well, it's been a while."

Not to say it was a repeat of our last encounter, but she was the first to greet me. As ever, she was enveloped in an aura different from that of a normal person—a healing wave, you might say.

"—Hello, Mitsueda-san. Here to inspect your best friend?"

"Yes, indeed. A surprise inspection to see if she's cleaning properly."

She smiled mischievously, her friendly atmosphere as present as ever.

"Oh, right, right. I saw the video."

"Ah, you saw it, huh..."

"Ehehe, I sure did—I watched it right alongside a certain embarrassing person who was all fired up, saying something like, 'I've finally caught up one step!!!'"

"Ah... Hayagake-san?"

"He's a decade too early to be competing with someone who holds a rank. As his relative, I'm quite ashamed."

"No, no, clearing the tower is definitely a huge achievement—wait, that sounds condescending. No, I fundamentally think that rabbit hell is insane, so as a fellow clearer, I have a lot of respect for him. I think it's genuinely amazing."

"Oh my, my... if Hayato-kun heard that, he'd cry with joy. He's a complete fan of yours now."

"Haya... okay, I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

"Yes, let's. My worthless cousin doesn't matter. More importantly, I find it much more interesting and significant that my best friend's crush has turned into a super beautiful girl."

"You were about to say 'interesting' and pretty much did. You're fully intending to treat this as your new toy, aren't you?"

"It must be your imagination. Oh, that one is delicious, you know."

"Huh? Oh, no, I haven't had it yet... A beautiful illustrator-voice-actress-idol-artist-sensei... but you eat cup noodles, too?"

"Of course I do, I'm only human. Girls like junk food too, you know. I do wish I had the mental fortitude to walk into a ramen shop by myself, though."

"I feel like you'd be the type to walk in without a care in the world, Mitsueda-san."

"Oh my, what kind of image have I acquired in your mind, Haru-san?"

"A rational Nia."

"Could you please not talk as if my best friend is irrational? She's still just barely normal enough to function as a regular person in society, you know."

"'Barely,' huh..."

"Well, her looks. She's just too, too cute."

"Ah, so that's part of it... You two really are fond of each other."

"Of course, it's mutual. Are you jealous?"

"In the sense of having a same-sex best friend you trust that much, yeah, I'm honestly jealous to death—... By the way, Mitsueda Hiyori-san."

We continued our idle chat as we walked down the hallway, arriving in front of my room. I unlocked the door, turned the knob, and stepped halfway inside before looking back... at her, who was smiling so softly that any man would fall for her in an instant, saying something like, "Ehehe, you're making me blush."

"What are you trying to do, just casually inviting yourself in?"

I asked.

"Oh, you noticed?"

She smiled.

"Of course I did???"

I blocked her way.

Okay, not one step further. Trying to follow me in as if it were the most natural thing in the world, what is your objective? Speak!

"Well, as for my objective, I simply wanted to conduct a live interview about the video."

"Can you stop reading my mind and carrying on the conversation as if it's normal???"

As ever, she was a formidable strategist.

"Um, look, you know... Don't just casually try to enter a guy's room. We have a delicate relationship as it is, so we should both be more considerate about these things—"

"That's precisely where trust comes in, you know? And that includes Nia-chan, not just me."

"That's... what, what do you mean?"

As I tilted my head at her confusing statement, she replied with an especially amused grin—ah, this is one of those traps where I lose the moment I react.

"That girl, she was bragging soooooooooo much. I told her, one hundred percent as a joke, 'Don't get jealous if Haru-san and I start exchanging information and contacting each other,' and you know what she said?"

"I think I'll pass on hearing it. Now, hurry along, go to your best friend—"

"'He might complain, but lately he's crazy about us, so there's no way he'd fall for a newcomer like Hiyo-chan now!' or so I'm told. Fufufu."

"Ngh, guh..., ..."

That girl... that girl...!!!!!

"'Us,' she said. Well, I mean, watching the video, I could tell that Haru-san is also quite close with the 'Princess'... but still, I'm relieved that everyone seems to be getting along for now. It's nice, isn't it? A lively romance."

—From a spectator's point of view, Mitsueda-san giggled. Through her words, her tone, her expression, I could tell that everything she said was from the heart.

"Relieved... are you sure you should be? From the perspective of supporting your best friend, isn't 'everyone getting along' a point of concern? ...Sorry, I know I'm not one to talk."

"Eh? It's much better than things being tense, absolutely. Nia-chan talks about not just Haru-san, but also the 'Princess' and her 'Partner' all the time, you know?"

"O-oh..."

"Honestly, I feel like asking her, 'Are you sure you're okay with that?' She goes on about how the Princess is too cute and it's painful, or how Sora-chan is too cute and it's insane, and to top it all off, how she used her as a body pillow."

"A body pillow?????"

A word that suggests a certain incident has just been dropped.

"It's really like, who is she even in love with, you know? —I'm glad to see she's in a wonderful romance. My best friend is a lucky girl."

And so, I was left behind, completely at her mercy from start to finish.

Mitsueda-san, with a gentle smile on her face... looked at me with eyes that seemed to have a sense of complete reassurance, or in a way, complete trust.

In many ways, I think she's getting way ahead of herself.

"...You two really do get along well."

"Yes, we certainly do—You must be jealous to death, right?"

I often think this.

There are just too many people around me that I feel I could never hope to match.

—And so, afterwards.

"Well then, that's that."

"Aww."

Her best friend, who had relentlessly tried to invade a man's room, was, of course, politely asked to leave.

---

Not a romance target, but the type to cause riots.

By the way, she wasn't there for an inspection, but to pick out clothes for her date.