COTE : There is Something Wrong With Hikigaya

"Looks like the princess was overthinking it. That guy's nothing special—aside from those dead fish eyes, he doesn't leave much of an impression." 

Inside the clubroom, only Sakayanagi, Hashimoto, and a few others remained. Hikigaya had already left after losing. 

Hashimoto propped his feet up on the table, rocking his chair back and forth as he looked at the silver-haired girl. 

"It's been over half a month since school started. It's not surprising that some students in other classes have started noticing the truth about this school. Honestly, I'm surprised it took them this long. Anyone with half a brain would realize something is off after being here for a while. I heard Class B has caught on, while Class C is still messing around with their 'Ultimate Martial Arts Tournament,' fighting every day. As for Class D, they don't seem to have noticed anything at all. 

"And this Hikigaya guy? Maybe he just stumbled upon some information by accident. Or maybe he's just trying to earn more private points. 

"I know guys like him. I've seen plenty. You can just tell by the way he carries himself—he reeks of loneliness. He probably doesn't have many friends or much influence in his class. Kamuro's investigation over the past few days already confirmed that he's an outsider. 

"So instead of wasting time on some nobody, we should be paying more attention to Katsuragi. He's the real threat to us." 

But the "response from the princess" Hashimoto had been expecting never came. Sakayanagi remained seated at the chessboard, deep in thought. Kito, as usual, stayed silent. 

And Kamuro—who always had a snarky comment ready—was strangely absent. 

It was only then that Hashimoto realized the purple-haired girl wasn't in the room. 

At that moment, Sakayanagi slowly lifted her gaze toward Hashimoto, who was still rambling on. He immediately shut his mouth. 

"Reading a chessboard is like reading a person. Sometimes, your eyes can deceive you, but the board never lies." 

Sakayanagi's face remained calm, showing no trace of satisfaction from her victory. "There aren't many people who earn Yukinoshita's recognition. The 'nobody' you just mentioned happens to be one of them." 

Hashimoto—and even the usually expressionless Kito—showed signs of surprise. 

 "H-Haha, you're joking, right? There's no way Yukinoshita thinks highly of that dead-eyed guy," Hashimoto scoffed. 

"If anything, she probably sees him as a plaything. Just like how Totsuka is nothing more than Katsuragi's loyal lapdog—getting played with without even realizing it."

Sakayanagi didn't explain. She just curved her lips into a subtle but meaningful smile, like she had found something amusing. 

… 

"Hey, you! Stop right there." 

Just as Hikigaya stepped out of the club building and hadn't gone far, a sharp voice called out from behind him. But instead of stopping, he quickened his pace. 

No way! He had finally managed to get away. Who in their right mind would stick around? 

Kamuro's eyes widened in surprise at his reaction. She hadn't expected him to just walk off like that. Frustrated, she stomped her foot and hurried after him. Within moments, she grabbed the back of his collar with ease—like picking up a stray kitten. 

Their eyes met. 

"…Hello?" 

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean? Are you pretending you didn't hear me?" 

Kamuro almost laughed from anger as she glared at him. "I have something to ask you!" 

That's not how you ask someone a question. 

Hikigaya thought to himself but still replied, "Yes, Kamuro-san. Please go ahead." 

Kamuro Masumi narrowed her sharp eyes and stared at him closely. After a moment of silence, she spoke. 

"Have we met before?" 

"…N-No, we haven't." 

"Then why did you pause just now?!" 

… 

Wait! Why is she getting closer?! 

Hikigaya instinctively took a step back, but Kamuro just leaned in even more, her gaze locked onto his. 

"I'll ask one more time. Have we met before?" 

"M-Maybe? I mean, we go to the same school. It's possible we've run into each other on the way to class or something, right?" 

Technically, it wasn't impossible. The school dorms were separated by grade, with boys on the lower floors and girls on the upper floors. Students of the same year also shared the same classroom building. Given that routine, the chances of bumping into each other weren't exactly zero. 

"No, you're lying." Kamuro said with confidence. 

"I swear I've never seen you before!" 

Seeing Hikigaya still denying it, Kamuro started to get frustrated. Could she really be mistaken? 

Lately, she had been carrying out a task assigned by Sakayanagi—following and gathering information on a certain student from Class D. That student was none other than the dead-eyed boy standing before her. 

She had thought it would be easy. In fact, she was sure he wouldn't even notice her at all. 

And for the most part, she had been right. She had been watching him for about a week, and he really was as clueless as she expected. He spent almost all his time in the library like an idiot. No friends, completely ignored by his classmates, and always hiding in the library like a coward. There was no way he could have noticed her. 

But then, earlier today… 

When she had "officially" met Hikigaya for the first time, the moment their eyes met, she had felt something. 

For just a split second, there was a flicker of recognition in his gaze—like he had already known about her. The moment was brief, but she had definitely caught it. 

It was her intuition as a woman. 

Does he know who I am? 

That's impossible. 

Unless… 

"Did you already know I was following you?" 

Kamuro narrowed her eyes, trying to read his thoughts. 

At her words, Hikigaya finally understood why she was so fixated on him. He then recalled the people in the clubroom earlier and their connection to Sakayanagi. 

After a brief moment of thought, he said, "I've never seen you before." 

Then, in a much quieter voice, he quickly added, "And I won't say anything about it." 

…Just as I thought.

That guy noticed I was following him this whole time?! 

Kamuro suddenly felt her blood pressure spike. It wasn't just that he had caught her—it was his attitude that really ticked her off. 

"Huh? Are you threatening me?" 

"..." 

Hikigaya opened his mouth, but it took him a moment to catch up with her train of thought. He quickly tried to explain, 

"No, no, you've got it all wrong." 

Kamuro impatiently cut him off. 

"How exactly did you figure out I was following and investigating you?" 

"Uh... well, there weren't many students in the library at the start of the semester, and I'm pretty sensitive to people watching me. Plus, when a cute girl like you is around, any normal guy would notice." 

"W-What are you even talking about?! Cute?!" Kamuro suddenly panicked, her face turning slightly red. She quickly took several deep breaths to calm herself down. 

---

一 一 一 一 一

You can read 30 advanced chapters on

pat reon.com/GMadman

一 一 一 一 一