บท 29: Ch 29. Yukinoshita, Confidence Soars!
"Thank you, Hoshimi-kun."
Aoyama Nanami didn't want to disappoint Hoshimi's goodwill, so she smiled and accepted the bag of pastries.
"You're welcome," Hoshimi responded flatly, standing at the entrance.
"Goodbye, Hoshimi-kun." Aoyama Nanami bowed in farewell.
"Yes, see you next week."
After giving Hoshimi one last gentle smile, Aoyama Nanami turned and left, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.
"Click—"
As the front door closed, the unlit entranceway grew darker.
Standing in the dim light, Hoshimi sighed helplessly.
"Pride isn't always a good thing..."
"Sigh~" Hoshimi sighed softly, turning back to his room.
Watching Aoyama Nanami, he could always see a reflection of his past self.
In his previous life, his situation had been quite similar to Nanami's. His strong pride had brought him much hardship.
But in the end, under the temptation of others and the pressure of society, he had to let go of his pride.
From then on, he chose to change...
"Sigh~"
Thinking of the past, Hoshimi sighed deeply.
Fortunately, he no longer had to ponder those issues. Maintaining a happy mood was now his most important task.
"Tonight, I'll have fun with Yukinoshita..."
Muttering softly, Hoshimi tried to lift his spirits.
...
In the apartment elevator, Aoyama Nanami, still blushing, stared blankly.
"Ding—"
The elevator stopped at the 15th floor, and the doors slowly opened.
Instinctively, Aoyama Nanami looked outside and was slightly taken aback to see Yukinoshita.
The girl in front of her looked familiar, as if she had seen her somewhere before...
Searching her memory, she realized the girl in front of her was the same one who had stared at her that morning.
In an instant, Aoyama Nanami's eyes cleared up. She nervously clutched the bag in her hands, feeling a bit uneasy.
"..."
Yukinoshita looked at the girl in front of her and subtly furrowed her brows.
If she remembered correctly, this brown-haired girl had gone to Hoshimi's house at eight in the morning and was only leaving now, at eight in the evening.
Moreover, just as the elevator doors opened, she had clearly seen the brown-haired girl's flushed face and dazed eyes.
After noticing her, the brown-haired girl snapped back to reality and stood nervously in the corner of the elevator.
What on earth happened? Why had the enthusiastic girl from the morning turned into this?
What was she doing at Hoshimi's house? What was her relationship with Hoshimi?
A barrage of questions filled Yukinoshita's mind as she glanced at the brown-haired girl and walked into the elevator without a word.
"Click—"
The elevator doors closed, and neither of them had any desire to speak. The only sound in the quiet space was the hum of the elevator.
"Ding—"
The elevator reached the first floor, and they exited one after the other.
After leaving the elevator, Aoyama Nanami quickened her pace and swiftly left the apartment building.
Behind her, Yukinoshita maintained her usual pace, watching her leave with furrowed brows.
Once Aoyama Nanami was out of sight, Yukinoshita silently kept the incident in mind, planning to investigate it later.
For now, she had her own tasks to attend to, like going to the grocery store.
Why was she going to the store again after already going in the morning?
That story began a few minutes ago.
...
A few minutes earlier, while Hoshimi was enjoying the comfort of ear cleaning, Yukinoshita was delighting in the joy of watching cat videos.
"Meow~~ Meow~~"
"Meow~~~ Meow~"
Watching the cute kittens rolling around on her laptop screen, Yukinoshita's expression was softer than ever.
She stared intently at the screen, not wanting to miss a single moment of their cuteness.
But videos always end, and a few minutes later, the progress bar reached its end.
Yukinoshita casually clicked on the next video.
As the lengthy advertisement played, Yukinoshita's thoughts drifted back to Hoshimi Kiyokawa, that bastard.
How should she get back at Hoshimi?
She had been pondering this question for several days. Ever since realizing that acting rashly would only hurt herself, she had been calmly considering viable strategies for revenge.
But after several days, she hadn't come up with anything usable. Most of her ideas would be countered by Hoshimi.
Hoshimi was like a hedgehog, covered in spikes. Any attack would inevitably harm her as well.
"Tch~"
Yukinoshita clicked her tongue in frustration.
On Friday afternoon, Hoshimi had come to the Service Club and openly tried to sow discord right in front of her, just to provoke her into acting.
She knew Hoshimi wouldn't do that without having some trap laid out.
But she had no choice but to walk into that trap. If she stayed still, who knew what Hoshimi would do?
Especially regarding Yui, the naive girl was like a blank canvas in front of Hoshimi. He could paint her in any color he wished.
To prevent Yui from being influenced by Hoshimi, she had to take the initiative and draw Hoshimi's attention to herself.
But tomorrow was Monday, and she still hadn't come up with a workable plan.
"Tch~"
Increasingly frustrated, Yukinoshita crossed her arms, watching the ad impatiently.
She just wanted to watch more cat videos, relax, and then rethink her strategy against Hoshimi, but the ad just wouldn't end.
"In the chaos of battle, the victor will be king!"
"A good strategist seeks to use the situation to their advantage! Can you control the tides of this chaotic world?!"
"Join 'Chronicles of Chaos' and showcase your brilliance! Claim your throne! It all depends on your abilities!"
Listening to the game's ad, Yukinoshita's expression didn't change.
As the ad finally ended, the cat video started playing.
Watching the adorable kittens, Yukinoshita's irritation began to fade.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her. She paused the video and focused on that fleeting idea.
"Situation"?
That's it! The "situation"!
Hoshimi always creates and uses situations to his advantage. Now that Hoshimi has set the situation, trying to counter it head-on would be nearly impossible. So why not go along with it?
Her eyes lit up with excitement, her heart filled with anticipation.
Clenching her fists, her icy blue eyes sparkled, and a bright smile spread across her face.
Hoshimi! I'll show you what it means to hoist with your own petard!
This time, I'll come out on top!
But before that, she needed to make some preparations.
Smiling, Yukinoshita closed the cat video, got dressed, and left the apartment.
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