The rumors about Hikigaya and Ryuuen didn't attract much attention—mainly because their content was far too trivial to be worth discussing.
Something like Ryuuen using violence against his classmates? That was already common knowledge.
As for the claim that Hikigaya had used improper means to gather points… Well, if you wanted to call it improper, it wasn't exactly ethical. But those who knew about it couldn't do anything about it.
Among the first-years, the only ones completely unaware were some students from Class A and Class D. But since Hikigaya had no real connections with them from the start, their opinions were irrelevant.
…At least, that's what he had thought. In reality, trouble still came knocking.
After finally shaking off the curious onlookers near the entrance, he found that the classroom wasn't much better.
The moment he stepped through the door, multiple pairs of eyes turned toward him, making his whole body feel uncomfortable.
…Ugh. I want to go home.
Fortunately, no one seemed as tactless as Yamauchi—at least, no one immediately bombarded him with questions.
Still, those stares… Whatever. It was inevitable.
Hikigaya went to his seat as usual, and as soon as he sat down, Matsushita leaned over.
"Hachiman-kun, this is bad. A really shocking rumor started spreading this morning."
"…I'd say it's pretty average."
"Even if you think it's average—huh?" Matsushita blinked, then quickly caught on. "Wait, so you already know?"
"Yeah. Some idiot confronted me about it first thing in the morning."
"I see… That sounds exhausting."
Matsushita let out a wry chuckle, then frowned. "But who would do something like this? I have a few suspects in mind… Do you want to discuss it with me?"
"No need. It doesn't really matter who did it. If they want to spread rumors, let them." Hikigaya wasn't interested in the topic.
"Ugh, I knew you'd say that… But if you ever feel troubled by it, make sure to tell me right away."
She wasn't particularly surprised, but she made sure to give a firm warning.
"After all, I'm your partner, Hachiman-kun. Don't forget that."
"…Thanks."
He hadn't wanted to make Matsushita worry. But unfortunately, this wasn't something that could be resolved quickly—it had to be handled over time.
During the lunch break, Hikigaya went to his usual spot in the best dining area, preparing to enjoy his yakisoba bread and coffee.
This was one of the rare perks of ANHS—there was no need to compete with others for yakisoba bread since the supply was plentiful.
Back in Sobu, he had to run to the cafeteria every day to get one.
As he eagerly opened the bag, a familiar voice called out.
"Good afternoon, Hikigaya-kun."
"…Huh? Horikita?"
The person standing before him was none other than Horikita Suzune. She gave him a polite nod, holding an elegantly crafted bento box in her hand.
Wait… Am I seeing things?
In Hikigaya's memory, Horikita always ate lunch alone in the classroom. Occasionally, she would go to the cafeteria.
So why was she here?!
And more importantly—don't just step into someone else's territory like this!
Not that she would listen. This was a public area, after all.
"I always wondered why you were never in the classroom during lunch. So this is where you've been."
Horikita glanced around, then focused her gaze on him.
"Why don't you eat in the classroom?"
"…Uh."
If it were anyone else asking, especially one of those extroverts, Hikigaya would have rolled his eyes at them.
But this was Horikita—the same Horikita who always ate alone in the classroom. Even Yukinoshita hid in the clubroom.
That left him speechless.
Also, why was she staring at his yakisoba bread so intently?
Was she one of those legendary predators who targeted lonely guys' food? …No, that was just a joke.
Anyway, he needed to find a way to politely send her off.
But before he could say anything, Horikita sat down on the steps beside him without hesitation.
You're kidding me… Is she staying?
Go back to the classroom!
"Hikigaya-kun, could you stop staring at me like that?" Horikita said seriously. "I don't mind since I know what kind of person you are, but if it were another girl, she might have already called the police."
"…Yeah. Thanks for the warning."
"…Just to clarify, you do realize that was a joke, right?"
"Probably… Uh, maybe?"
Sadly, even he thought there was a high chance a girl would call the police on him.
But Hikigaya had long since built up resistance to such things. It was fine.
"Ahem. Anyway, let's set that aside."
Horikita cleared her throat as if trying to mask her slight awkwardness. Then, she turned serious.
"That aside… I think you should pay more attention to your appearance. If you dressed a bit sharper, people wouldn't be so quick to suspect you."
"…Are you talking about people thinking I'm a stalker or something else?"
"I mean the rumors from this morning."
Horikita sighed at his attempt to feign ignorance.
She wasn't about to let the topic drop. "Even if you weren't paying attention, a lot of people in class have been whispering about it. It might lead to problems."
"I heard them."
"I wasn't talking about the rumors about you." Horikita shook her head, looking concerned.
"I meant the fact that you lent Student Council President Nagumo 5 million private points at the training camp. A lot of students are wondering how you had so many points and where they came from."
Hikigaya smirked. "Where else? I used improper means to collect them."
"This isn't the time for jokes."
Horikita shot him a slight glare before pressing a hand to her temple as if dealing with a headache.
"I don't know who spread this, but it's causing trouble."
"I doubt anyone spread it. There were plenty of witnesses at the time." Hikigaya shrugged.
When he lent the money to Nagumo, he hadn't bothered hiding it. It wasn't surprising that the whole grade knew.
"Regardless, at first, people were just curious about where your points came from. But now, it's turning into suspicion… Hikigaya-kun, what do you plan to do?"
"Isn't it obvious? Nothing."
"…I figured."
Horikita let out a sigh as if she had expected this response.
"Anyway, if anyone in class starts making unreasonable demands, just ignore them. If it gets out of hand, come find me—I'll put a stop to it."
"…Wait. You came all the way here just to tell me that?"
That was unexpected. He had assumed she wanted to interrogate him for details.
"W-What, is that a problem?" Horikita suddenly stammered, looking oddly flustered.
"It's not that strange, is it? This is a big deal, and it's my responsibility to keep the class united. Rather than letting you get into arguments with them, it's better if I handle it."
"…You make it sound like I'd only escalate the conflict."
"Wouldn't you?"
"Uh, not exactly… right?"
Faced with Horikita's retort, Hikigaya found himself momentarily at a loss for words.
Thinking about it carefully, she wasn't wrong. He either ignored things completely or went all in with merciless mockery… which, in hindsight, wasn't exactly the best approach.
Perhaps he really needed to refine his character a little.
"By the way, who do you think is behind this?" Horikita returned to the previous topic. "When I arrived in class this morning, the rumors had already spread. It seems they were first discovered on the school's forum… Do you have any leads?"
"Leads? None at all."
"Hikigaya-kun… Could you think a little more seriously?"
It was obvious that Horikita was doing her best to be patient, which made Hikigaya feel a little bad.
"I know you don't like prying into others' business, but at the very least, you should take precautions." Horikita sighed, looking exasperated. "Just a few days ago, you had a conflict with Sakayanagi, and now this happens. And it's not just you—Ryuuen-kun is also a victim. If I remember correctly, you mentioned his name at the time, didn't you?"
"So you think it's Sakayanagi's doing?" Hikigaya asked.
"I can't think of anyone else. The only other possibility is that Ichinose wasn't satisfied and used the same methods against you and Ryuuen-kun… But if it's that Sakayanagi girl, it wouldn't be surprising if she did this to respond to your provocation."
If even Horikita thought so, then that was reassuring.
But more than that, something else was bothering Hikigaya, and he couldn't help but ask: "Hey, Horikita, aren't you at all curious about how I got my points?"
I mean, she even went out of her way to track me down during lunch break. If she was only here to warn me, that would be a bit over the top.
"Of course, I'm curious," Horikita admitted readily. "But if you don't want to tell me, I have no right to force you. Besides, no matter what methods you used, the result is that you extracted points from other classes, which means weakening our enemies. So I won't interfere."
"Oh, so that's how you see it."
Hikigaya couldn't help but be impressed.
Because, honestly, that was exactly how he saw it too. Even if Class D didn't directly benefit, as long as other classes suffered losses, it was still a win for them.
For Horikita to understand that was remarkable… If this had been during the early days of school, she definitely would've self-righteously insisted on sharing everything with the class.
"Also, there's one more thing…"
"What is it?"
"…Just that…"
For some reason, Horikita hesitated for a long time.
Then, she stiffly turned her head to the side and said in a quiet voice: "If, one day, you feel like telling me… I wouldn't mind listening… That's all. I'll wait patiently."
"…Why does that sound like a confession of a crime?"
Hikigaya let out a bitter chuckle and mumbled under his breath.
"Not that you'll have to wait long. Soon, everyone will know anyway."
"Huh? What did you say?"
"No… Nothing."
It wasn't time to reveal anything yet, so Hikigaya brushed it off.
"Anyway, we've been talking for so long, and we haven't even eaten yet. If we don't hurry, we won't have time."
"Mm… What's that?"
Horikita pointed at the bag in Hikigaya's hand, looking curious.
…Wait, was this a question?
"It's yakisoba bread." Hikigaya was a little dumbfounded. "Don't tell me… You've never had it before?"
"I haven't."
"You're kidding…"
A Japanese person who had never eaten yakisoba bread?
But judging from Horikita's expression, she wasn't lying—there was no reason to.
"So… do you want to try some? I haven't touched it yet."
"Can I? Then I won't hold back."
Hikigaya had just casually offered, but to his surprise, Horikita accepted.
And that was fine—after all, it was just a piece of bread.
The problem was…
Horikita tucked her hair behind her ear, then leaned forward and took a small bite from the front end of the bread.
…Huh?
Hikigaya stared at her in shock, taking a while to process what had just happened.
"Uh, Horikita-san?"
"Hmm, it doesn't look that special, but it tastes pretty good."
Horikita covered her mouth as she chewed, savoring the taste.
Noticing Hikigaya's stunned expression, she tilted her head. "What's wrong? And why the sudden formality?"
"It's just… You only took one bite?"
"What else was I supposed to do?"
"…Is it possible that I was offering you the whole thing?"
Hikigaya held out the yakisoba bread with both hands.
This time, Horikita was the one left shocked. Her face immediately flushed, and she spoke in a rushed tone.
"H-Hikigaya-kun! This is your fault for not being clear! And who even gives away their entire lunch to someone else?! Wouldn't you go hungry?!"
"Nah, I was planning to buy some rice balls or something after giving this to you."
Sure, maybe he hadn't made it clear, but this reaction was unnecessary.
Besides, where would he even get the courage for an indirect kiss with a girl? That was just common sense!
"Anyway, just take it. I'm heading off."
Hikigaya put the yakisoba bread down and turned to leave—
"Wait."
Horikita called him back.
She handed him her bento box, pretending to be calm. "If you don't mind, you can have mine."
"…Food exchange?"
"Y-Yeah, food exchange!" Horikita shoved the bento into his arms. "It's not a big deal. I see classmates doing this all the time. And besides… you helped my brother. Consider this my thanks."
"I see… Well, I won't hold back then."
At this point, refusing would be rude.
And also… he was a little curious about how Horikita's cooking compared to her brother's.
Would it be just as bad?—
"For the record, mine tastes way better than my brother's."
It was as if Horikita had read his mind. She looked at him seriously and warned, "Don't assume all Horikita's have the same cooking skills. You'd better finish everything. Not a single grain of rice left."
"…Oh."
Why was she so intense about this?
Hikigaya opened the bento box. Inside, everything was neatly arranged—fried chicken, tamagoyaki, okra-stuffed chikuwa, and rice. Just from appearance alone, it looked delicious.
…Who would've thought Horikita's lunch would be this fancy? He had assumed she just made sandwiches or something.
This exchange felt like a huge win for him.
"Hikigaya-kun, what's wrong? You can start eating."
Just as Hikigaya was starting to feel uneasy, Horikita urged him on.
She was waiting for his reaction—her eyes were locked on him.
To be honest, it was kind of scary.
"Well then… I'll start?"
"Mm, please do."
Under Horikita's watchful gaze, Hikigaya cautiously picked up a piece of fried chicken with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth.
"…It's good."
"Heh, I'm glad it suits your taste." Horikita smiled slightly. "Now then… would you be willing to listen to a request of mine?"
"What?!"
Hikigaya nearly dropped his chopsticks.
"Hey, you can't do that! I've never heard of this kind of trick before!"
"But you already ate my bento."
"T-That was an exchange for the yakisoba bread!"
Horikita chuckled as if she had won. "Exactly. I ate your yakisoba bread, so in return, I'll listen to one of your requests too. That way, it's fair."
"No, it's not! If we're talking fairness, we should just call it even!"
"Unfortunately, I prefer to keep things separate."
"…Then my request is for you to cancel your request."
"No can do. I don't accept every request."
Horikita was messing with him… She was impossible.
At this point, Hikigaya could only agree. "Alright, but let me make it clear—I won't be saying yes to every request, you know!"
Rather, he would try his best to refuse them all!
Hikigaya had already made up his mind to reject whatever came next. However, Horikita's following words caught him completely off guard.
"Um… tomorrow is Saturday, right? I wanted to ask if you're free tomorrow."
"…Huh?"
For a moment, Hikigaya almost thought he had misheard.
Fortunately, as an expert in rejection, he quickly gathered his thoughts and sidestepped the trap known as 'misunderstanding.'
"You're not talking about… Horikita-senpai, are you?"
"…Yeah."
Horikita hesitated before giving a small nod. Then, as she lifted her head, her face slightly flushed, she looked at Hikigaya.
"I made plans to meet my brother tomorrow… Hikigaya-kun, would you come with me?"