Chapter 144Boys' Conflict
(TL Note: There's one extra chapter before this one, but because it's an LN-only chapter, we're not going to translate it, if you want to read it you have to purchase the official English of the LN Volume 6, when it comes out.)
In addition to the preparations from the Cultural Festival Executive Committee, preparations for each class' performance have also begun in earnest. Natsukawa and Sasaki are doing their usual work, but they also have to handle any changes that may occur to our class performance materials. They also serve as liaisons to the Cultural Festival Executive Committee in each class. This is all a challenge... ...I'll do whatever I can, but I can't just go out from here and interfere as I please since the class is led by our homeroom teacher, Ootsuki-sensei, and our Class President, Iihoshi-san.
"Are you... ...coming today?"
Natsukawa asked me as everyone around us started to move, probably because our seats were at the front and the back. It was the third day since the new organizational structure of the Cultural Festival Executive Committee had been implemented. Thanks to the team of adult workers led by Hanawa-senpai, everything was running very smoothly, but it seemed that Natsukawa and the other first-year students hadn't finished it yet, but they still felt awkward to shift their feelings elsewhere and talk to me.
"I'm sorry, I'm just helping you guys out. I'm not a member of the Cultural Festival Executive Committee, so if I go there again, people around me might wonder "Why are you here?". Since there's already Gou-senpai — Ishiguro-senpai is there, I don't think there will be a problem. That's what I think, I think that person started using his footwork more lightly for various reasons."
"I see..."
"Natsukawa, you don't have to worry about it, you'll be fine. Just think about it calmly, okay? Unlike us, the people in this new team will help us throughout the day, not just during lunch breaks and after school. In terms of progress, this is still nothing compared to the previous one. You don't have to worry too much about it."
"Eh? Y-Yeah..."
The same thing happened to me when I was still working part-time, but even though we worked in a team, sometimes we didn't get any information about the current situation. I often heard my senpai-s talking to each other and thought, "Huh? Did you go that far this time?". It's not that I'm in a higher position than Natsukawa, but it's only natural that they wouldn't know about it unless we told them.
"I don't think you need to worry about it right now, though... ...but if there's anything you want to ask, feel free to ask me anything, okay...?"
"Oh... ...Um."
When I told her that Sajocchi's counter was always wide open for her, Natsukawa looked up, as if to say, "Okay, then.". I waited for her, thinking that she wanted to ask a question, but she seemed confused as if she was having trouble putting it into words.
"Well, even though it has nothing to do with your work—"
"Natsukawa, let's go."
"..."
As I just now tried to listen to her question, despite her difficulty in expressing it in words, I heard a voice that made me mad from beside me. It was Sasaki's voice.
"Hey, d*mn you, when you could have called her, you do it with a bit more precise timing, right?"
"Oh, no, well... ...I'm sorry."
"O-Oh... ...No, I don't mind, though."
As I looked at Sasaki like he was trying to be annoying, to his surprise, he apologized sincerely, and I wondered if he did it on purpose or not. Since it happened, I had no choice but to retreat quietly. Although he is still a very handsome boy, I think he still feels less confident than before. D*mn... ...Even so, I think he's getting more handsome because of his increasing humility and understanding... ...I think he's like a protagonist who was developed through battle. Is he the first character in this series to adopt a new mode...?
"—See you soon, okay...?"
"Oh, yeah."
As if it wasn't important, Natsukawa didn't ask me anything and just followed Sasaki while carrying the things they needed. Although I was inspired by the idea of drying trees in the early season with the wind blowing in my mind, I couldn't take my break, so I just looked at Sasaki, who looked at me with a puzzled look and told him to "Go ahead!". Then Sasaki thought about that while leaving the classroom with Natsukawa.
"'Sajocchi! It's not bread, but guess what kind of bread isn't good to eat!?"
"Raisin bread."
"That's just because Sajocchi doesn't want to eat that bread... ...The correct answer is uguisu* bread!"
(TL Note: Uguisu bread / Uguisu-pan: Japanese bread in the shape of a warbler and has a mung bean flavor inside.)
"What the heck are you talking about?"
I'm more of a pea snack person. For that matter, I don't like beans that are too sweet either. I was expecting it to be a type of legume like zunda-mochi (green soy mochi), but when it turned out to be a type of mung bean, I felt betrayed. First of all, why do they have complicated names like "uguisu" and "zunda"?
Ashida suddenly came over, pouted, and said "Hey-!" and sat listlessly on the seat where Natsukawa was sitting, bowing her head.
"No—, when I was little, I used to mistake it for a "real warbler". I didn't like it."
"So did you think that kikurage* (wood ear jellyfish) was a real jellyfish?"
(TL Note: This is a type of mushroom)
"Eh? So it's not, huh?"
"No, of course it is."
"I don't like it either. Jellyfish washed up on the beach is disgusting."
...Did I just lie to someone...? ...Oh, okay. It was a cute little misunderstanding. I used to think that Uguisu had more colors and more deep karma. I'm also sure other children besides Ashida are mistaken for it. Cuckoo cuckoo.
"I think having a quiz competition as our class performance is boring, you know? The third-year senpai-s always have coffee shops, haunted houses, bands, etc."
"Yeah, isn't the Cultural Festival for the first-year students like that? The Cultural Festival for our year is an introduction to the next school level for middle school students, right? I don't think having ours is too bad, though."
"I did have something like that in middle school, but if we had it during our high school years, it would be very serious."
"It might be more like an ant than a bunch of ants going around once."
Some people will be walking around with video cameras. In terms of activeness, the preparation period is probably the most enjoyable time to just get together with everyone and have fun together.
"Fuhehe... ...Aichi's body scent."
"Hey, stop being stupid. That is Natsukawa's shrine. It's not a place where Ashida can just sniff around. If you understand, I'll take over this place!"
"Sajocchi and the boys can't do it."
I don't know why those hands are there! Why didn't I think of that until now!? This is a desk that Natsukawa always uses, so it's no surprise that it smells like Natsukawa's body scent! Why am I not included in the category of boys!?
"Alright, everyone move your respective seats behind! Then, the boys will split up and go shopping, and the girls will make the decorations! Now, let's get to work!"
Ootsuki-sensei clapped her hands to bring everyone together. The members of the sports club, who were close to my seat position, stood lazily while saying something like, "Wow!". Iihoshi-san looked relieved. The students in our class couldn't organize such things, so it was probably a good thing that our homeroom teacher was the type of person who liked to mingle with her students.
"Alright, I'll go back to my seat."
"If you want to go to the trouble, you can just ask Natsukawa to take her seat behind."
"You'll replace her."
Bye bye! Ashida left. Why did you come here? You have good communication skills, so you shouldn't be moving around so much. Look, we've made a bit of a fuss around your original seat position.
If we don't move the seat quickly, the front will get blocked, so let's move it right away.
♦
"Look, I like relationships between girls."
"Why don't you say it more like a b*stard? I'll get in trouble if you say it with a straight face."
As we exited the elevator entrance, Yamazaki's conversation started. I didn't like the content and it was hard to understand, but it was good that we didn't have much to talk about. Yeah, whatever that is.
"Is that so? Is it because of Ichinose-san and Shirai-san's seat positions?"
"That's right! And Okamocchan too! Every time they are always nearby and playing around with each other! Is this heaven?"
"Has Yamazaki finally realized his charm?"
I looked at Ichinose-san from the point of view of her guardian, and I think I was more interested in the story of Natsukawa and Ashida's relationship which was much more poignant. What's more, Natsukawa is also happy even when she says "Stop it!" to Ashida, so I feel happy too. Lately, Natsukawa's seat position is too close to mine, so I can't keep an eye on them... ...Now that I'm there, it's just the three of us. Oh, that's good, though.
"You know what? Ichinose-san has been getting a bit carried away lately, you know."
"Seriously?"
Come to think of it, I don't think I've heard much from her complaining about Shirai-san or the like through messages lately. Until a while ago, she confided in me, like: "I can't concentrate on my book.". But lately, I feel that they've gotten to know each other better, with her sending me messages like "That Shirai-san likes these kinds of things" and "That Okamocchan is this kind of person". I think she and Sasaki-san also started sharing book recommendations.
"What should I do now?"
"If you want to fight seriously, the best position is to stay where you are. Look, don't try to involve yourself at all. It will only make you more visible. Once you get involved, you'll lose what's precious to you... ...Look, I did get involved with Ichinose-san during my part-time job, but the two of us aren't that close yet, are we?"
However, we exchange messages every night, though.
"Sajou...!"
"Eh? I'm a bit worried about Okamocchan, though!"
"Iwata! Hey!"
"Okamocchan, huh..."
Iwata, a member of the Baseball Club, joined the conversation normally. So his type is a girl like Okamocchan, huh... ...From what I've seen, Okamocchan is not happy with the way her two female friends are getting along with each other and it seems like she doesn't want to fall in love with a boy yet...
Shirai-san and the others seem to tell the other girls as soon as they find a boy they like, but Okamocchan seems to keep it to herself. I think she probably really thinks that she's eager to fall in love with someone. After all, Shirai-san and Okamocchan probably both like Sasaki... ...Although the way they look at Sasaki is the same as the way I look at Natsukawa right now.
"Look, Sajou, why can you talk to girls normally when you're not good-looking?"
"Yeah, I only opened up to Natsukawa, so I didn't care about the other girls. Girls also started talking about things to me with that in mind. There was no room for them to make me realize it. Besides, you're not that good-looking yourself."
"...Come to think of it, Sajou turned out to be a love expert, huh... ...even though he has been rejected several times."
"And you still talk to Natsukawa-san in a normal way. What kind of relationship do you guys have right now?"
"Well... ...Do we being in the same group chat count? We've known each other for almost two years..."
"The same group chat? Ashida is also in the same group chat as you guys, isn't she? What the heck are you doing, Sajou? Do something so that you don't have body contact with Ashida! You guys are making my heart skip a beat!"
"Even I can talk to Okamocchan and the others normally! What's wrong with you!?"
"Seriously, what's wrong with you?"
...If you compare it like this, Sasaki, who can easily attract girls, like normal guys, is quite extraordinary in real life. I think he really will be reincarnated in another world someday. I can even see his little sis, Yuki-chan, chasing after him.
Author's Note:
—I will go now.
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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