3. Hikigaya Hachiman Feels a Sense of Discomfort
Hikigaya Hachiman couldn't help but reassess Jabami Yumeko.
At her age, how exactly was she "earning her own money"? Could it be...
Hikigaya always liked to assume the worst, a habit rooted in his rather somber childhood experiences. Naturally, it wasn't strange for him to overthink it—after all, very few students at this age could earn money like he did.
From her appearance, Yumeko was top-tier. But she wore no expensive accessories—not even basic manicures, which were common among girls.
Could it mean she was just plain and simple? But she instantly recognized his laptop as the latest Apple model. Usually, girls didn't pay much attention to digital products, right?
She had an astonishingly high level of charm—just a few words from her, and he was already getting the "falling in love" feeling.
Could she be... a streamer? A VTuber, maybe? But if she were involved in such online jobs, she probably wouldn't forget to top up her transit card. And that whole handbag full of cash couldn't be fake.
And cash just so happened to be the safest method for certain... transactions.
Definition-like terms began to surface in Hikigaya Hachiman's mind one after another.
He arrived at the following deductions:
[First: She comes from a prominent family—this is a basic entry requirement; I'm the exception.]
[Second: Her family has fallen on hard times—she's almost too plain.]
[Third: She's well-educated, incredibly charming, and might be skilled at sensing emotional weaknesses.]
[Conclusion: There is a nonzero chance that Jabami Yumeko is involved in "compensated dating" or similar work.]
Hikigaya Hachiman sounded an urgent alarm in his mind. His emotional and rational sides clashed violently. No matter how he looked at it, he didn't want to believe that this girl, who was gentle, generous, and rich, could possibly be involved in that kind of profession.
"Hikigaya-kun's not thinking something rude, is he?" Jabami Yumeko covered her mouth, tilted her head, and looked at Hachiman gently.
"By the way, Jabami-san, what year are you in?"
"Take a guess."
"First year."
"Eh? Why so certain?"
"Because someone like Jabami-san, a total normie, would only be alone like this if she were a first-year."
Listening to Hikigaya Hachiman's deduction, a flicker of excitement flashed deep in Yumeko's snake-like pupils:
"So that means... Hikigaya-kun is also a first-year?"
"Well… even if I had advanced to second year, I'd probably still be alone, so that logic doesn't quite apply. But, your guess is correct—I'm a first-year student."
"What a coincidence, Hikigaya-kun. Could it be fate that brought us together like this?"
Yumeko's face lit up with joy. Her red pupils were bright and clear. That aura of innocence made Hikigaya's heart flutter.
He kept warning himself that his earlier deductions about Yumeko might very well be true.
'But her side profile is really beautiful… that princess cut hairstyle totally fits my aesthetic…'
.
.
.
The shuttle finally arrived at its destination, and the students began exiting in a stream.
Hikigaya Hachiman felt a bit parched—he'd recited who-knows-how-many prime numbers during the second half of the ride.
Now, standing side by side with Yumeko Jabami in front of the school gate, he couldn't help but marvel at the grandeur and elegance of Hyakkaou Private Academy.
Even someone like Hikigaya, who had already half-stepped into high society, couldn't help but click his tongue:
"I wonder how much it cost to build this school… it really lives up to being Japan's top aristocratic academy."
"Right?"
Yumeko nodded in agreement with Hikigaya.
She turned around and gave him a slight bow again.
"I have to go to the principal's office to complete my enrollment procedures, so I'll say goodbye to you here, Hikigaya-kun."
"Mm. That's fine."
On the shuttle, the two of them had already exchanged contact information. For Hikigaya's plan to befriend a wealthy girl, this was definitely the first step successfully taken.
What surprised him, though, was that Yumeko Jabami turned out to be a transfer student, just like him.
Still, clearly Hikigaya Hachiman had the advantage. He didn't even need to handle the enrollment paperwork himself—that woman, Yukinoshita Haruno, had already taken care of everything for him.
"I'll head to the bank right after I finish the paperwork. The fare was 1000 yen, right?"
"You can't really calculate it like that. Since it was a last-minute boarding, it comes out to about 777 yen."
Hikigaya Hachiman calculated with strict precision, showing no sign of going easy just because she was a beautiful girl.
"Alright then. I'll contact you later, Hikigaya-kun!"
"See you."
Watching Yumeko Jabami's figure disappear into the distance, Hikigaya Hachiman let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew… what a difficult woman."
Since there was still a bit of time before class started, Hikigaya wasn't in a hurry to go to the classroom.
Out of professional habit, he decided to take a solo stroll around this lavish school. Just in case a murder ever took place here in the future, this "scouting" trip would be useful—and contribute greatly to his rise to fame.
Where are the security cameras? Where are the blind spots?
"With security like this, a murder seems pretty much impossible."
After a short while, Hikigaya reached his conclusion.
But in the process, something new began to bother him.
Namely:
Several classrooms had their doors firmly shut, with no signs indicating which clubs they belonged to. At the doors, there were tags hanging—identical to the ones he had seen on the shuttle earlier. This time, Hikigaya got a clear look.
For males, the tags read: "Stupid Dog."
For females, they read: "Stray Cat."
What highly insulting words. Hikigaya had seen 37 such tags along the way.
Was it just the twisted taste of some club? Thinking back to middle school, even Yukinoshita Yukino once roped him into starting that bizarre "Service Club." So nothing seemed too strange to him.
It was probably something like a "Human Behavioral Arts Observation Club" or "SM Training Club"—types of clubs you'd never see in a regular school.
After all, this was an elite aristocratic school—a world Hikigaya Hachiman had never set foot in before. From what he'd read in books, the rich and powerful had strange tastes, and the same was true for their children.
With that in mind, it wasn't so odd that dog tags like that existed.
As he kept walking, Hikigaya arrived at his classroom.
"First Year, Class Hana…"
Slide—
Hikigaya pushed open the door. The classroom wasn't in total chaos or anything. But there were still a few students wearing those insulting dog tags, humbly scrubbing the floor as if serving someone.
"This is wrong—so wrong."
As a mystery novelist, Hikigaya Hachiman now felt an overwhelming sense of discomfort.
These were the children of powerful families, full of youthful pride and the desire to stand out in front of the opposite sex. Would they really go this far for some weird club?
'So… could it be that trash woman Yukinoshita Haruno has screwed me over again?'