Even with chuunibyou, let's learn together!

Page 287

The wavering in her heart grew stronger, but Yotsuba quickly pushed it back down.

"No...no."

Yotsuba stammered, "Your plan... is not feasible."

"Hey, why?"

Ichika puffed out her pink cheeks and pouted, "What flaws are there in my plan?"

"Because Hayakawa..."

Yotsuba turned her head to the side, her face flushed, and bit her finger lightly, her gaze wandering as she whispered a sentence in a voice barely above a whisper.

"He can recognize me..."

As soon as she finished speaking, Ichika's pupils suddenly shrank.

"It means..."

Yihua was momentarily lost in thought, her voice sounding like a murmur.

In that instant, a pang of pain welled up in her heart, like tiny cracks appearing on the surface of ice. That feeling of despondency once again filled her body, leaving her feeling powerless.

The five Nakano sisters know all too well what it means and what value it holds in the world of "being able to recognize me".

"Um…"

Yotsuba responded softly, her voice slowly fading away in the wind.

Her face was turned toward the convenience store, her gaze fixed on it, her expression gentle and affectionate, as if light were gently falling on an endless golden wheat field, the ears of wheat swaying slowly in the wind, all things coming back to life, a peaceful and serene scene.

Inside, a boy carrying a plastic bag was about to come out.

……

In a nearby restaurant, Hayakawa and two others sat side by side, while Hayakawa turned his head to the side and looked coldly at Yotsuba next to him.

You said you'd treat me to dinner.

Hayakawa said expressionlessly, "I mean, eat this."

Looking deeper into the shop, you can see the menu, which prominently displays all sorts of ramen names.

"Original standard ramen..."

"Soy sauce tonkotsu ramen..."

"Beef back fat ramen..." (The rest of the text appears to be unrelated and likely a separate message.)

"Rich Kobe beef tsukemen..."

"Is...is there a problem?"

Yotsuba stared somewhat guiltily at the condiment jar on the table, and said without looking up, "Ramen is a good choice for dinner. It's still cold today, so it'll warm us up."

Hayakawa looked at Yotsuba and said, "Normally, we shouldn't eat such greasy food at night."

As he spoke, he glanced at the ramen on a nearby customer's table. The thick grease floating on the soup looked very fragrant and appetizing, but it had nothing to do with health and contradicted Yotsuba's previous excuse.

Yotsuba explained with a pitiful look, "I can't help it... I rarely eat out, and this is the only restaurant near the school I've ever been to. What if other restaurants aren't good? So I come here, at least the taste is guaranteed."

"..."

Hayakawa was speechless, but Ichika, who was next to her, suddenly spoke up.

"Really, Yotsuba,"

Ichika's tone was reproachful, but her face was full of joy. She stretched and said, "How could you bring a beautiful girl to eat at a ramen shop like this? You have no common sense."

In Japan, it's generally considered impolite to take a girl out to a ramen restaurant. Firstly, it seems cheap and shabby, and secondly, ramen is usually quite oily, which girls who care about their figure tend to dislike.

"Ichika is so annoying. I wasn't planning on inviting you in the first place."

Yotsuba muttered to herself, "I already told you to go home first, but you insisted on coming anyway."

"..."

Ichika sneered upon hearing this, but did not reply.

How could I possibly let the two of you be alone again? Last night was enough. If we did it again, someone might die. I don't want to suddenly have a nephew. My heart can't take it.

Chapter 450 The Interesting Things Hayakawa Encounters

As Ichika imagined a nephew suddenly appearing beside her, jumping and skipping around, her vision went black.

Don't do things like that.

"One flower, one flower!"

Just then, Yotsuba's voice suddenly came from beside her, bringing her back to her senses.

"what happened?"

Ichika turned her head and met Yotsuba's displeased expression. She frowned slightly and said, "What are you thinking about, Ichika? I've called you several times since earlier."

"Ah, I was thinking..."

Yihua blushed and changed the subject, saying, "Let's not talk about that for now. What did you call me for?"

"What else could they be ordering, food?"

Yotsuba took her phone and said, "I ordered via phone. Let's order together as a group of three."

"Oh I got it."

Ichika nodded in realization, then leaned closer and asked curiously, "Have you finished ordering, Liu Ba Wu?"

"No, we didn't order anything."

Hayakawa, who was next to Ichika, said, "Everyone is waiting for you."

“抱栮究陵V起依(san宭歉).

Ichika felt a little embarrassed and quickly went to Hayakawa's side to look at the ordering interface on their phones together and started studying it.

"This looks pretty good."

"It feels a bit greasy... Is it really okay to eat this at night?"

"Yes, but..."

"What do you think of this light seafood style...?"

The two girls huddled together, discussing something quite animatedly, while Hayakawa stood by, completely unmoved and showing no intention of joining in.

Before long, the two girls finished ordering their main dishes, both of which were light and sweet ramen. In addition to the main dishes, they also ordered a lot of different side dishes, making the ordinary ramen feel like a fine cuisine.

"We've finished ordering."

Ichika turned to look at Hayakawa, her fox-like eyes flickering slightly. She held up her phone to Hayakawa and pouted, saying, "It's your turn, Hayakawa-kun."

The girl's slender, delicate hand was held out in front of her, and Hayakawa could smell the faint, sweet fragrance emanating from her, like a bouquet of roses blooming in a dimly lit corner of the balcony, languid and dreamy.

Hayakawa silently took the phone, glanced at it, and said, "Soba somen."

Ichika and Yotsuba were stunned: "That's it?"

The noodles sound completely unremarkable; I bet the only toppings are seaweed and sesame seeds.

"that's it."

Hayakawa nodded; this kind of simple cooking, which was devoid of any desire and did not burden the body, was most suitable for him.

"And what about drinks?"

Ichika hesitated for a moment, then asked.

Restaurants near schools, even ordinary ramen shops, often offer dishes that students like, which are usually gimmicky, and the more exaggerated and eye-catching the name, the better.

The main dishes were like this, the side dishes were like this, and naturally the drinks were the same, so Ichika and Yotsuba each ordered a drink with particularly exciting names.

Ichika's is a youthful, girly peach juice from the Osaka area... If you didn't know the name, you'd think it was a new kind of lewd product developed by the sex industry in Osaka.

Yotsuba's was slightly better: Sparkling Taro Matcha Milk, with the keywords "sparkling" and "matcha," reminded Yotsuba of Miku, so she couldn't help but feel curious about this drink and ordered one.

However, Hayakawa didn't even glance at all those fancy drinks and simply said, "Water is fine with me."

Yes, that's it. Only a life devoid of desire can cultivate a steadfast character. Alcohol, sugar, oil, and carbonation only bring inferior pleasure, numbing the senses and corrupting the soul; that is not true happiness. Only the sense of accomplishment brought by a strong will can bring true joy to the soul. Hayakawa has always lived this way, disciplining himself, becoming stronger and stronger, defeating enemies to gain a sense of accomplishment, and ultimately defeating one enemy after another until now.

"All you need is noodles and water."

Hayakawa said expressionlessly, his eyes gleaming with a cold, hard light.

"..."

"..."

An ascetic monk? A stone Buddha statue?

Are you a tourist who has come from out of town to visit the local temple in Ichinose while eating vegetarian noodles and drinking purified water at a ramen shop on a city street?

And insisting on drinking water rather than beverages is going too far. Shouldn't this be the age when everyone loves carbonated drinks and sweet milk? People online are saying that high school students have carbonated drinks and saccharin flowing through their veins, so what's going on with you?

Ichika and Yotsuba exchanged a glance but didn't say anything more. After all, it was Hayakawa's own request, so they placed the order and submitted it.

"Really, Hayakawa-kun,"

As soon as the order was handed in, Ichika showed a displeased expression, looking at Hayakawa reproachfully and saying, "Yotsuba and I already ordered very vegetarian food! But you ordered this kind of thing. When it's served, won't it make Yotsuba and I look like we don't know how to control our weight? What if we get psychological suggestion from this and actually gain weight?"

Hayakawa remained silent, thinking to himself that neither of you knew how to control yourselves. I was just telling the truth, and you're blaming me for gaining weight?

"call…"

Hayakawa lowered his head and took a sip of the barley tea that the shopkeeper had placed on each table. The steaming tea went down his throat and stomach, and he immediately felt the chill in his body being dispelled.

Give me some.

Seeing this, Ichika pitifully pushed her teacup towards her.

Hayakawa wasn't there either, but he poured a cup of tea for Yotsuba and Ichika respectively.

"Phew, it's so warm. Thank you, Hayakawa-kun."

"Thanks…"

The two women took a sip of hot tea and felt the chill in their bodies dissipate considerably. The atmosphere also became more relaxed, and they decided to chat with each other while the food was not yet served.

Ichika and Yotsuba each shared the funny things that happened in class that day. Yotsuba mainly talked about who got injured during club activities, while Ichika talked about who in her class was having a fight.

Although Hayakawa had no interest in these topics, he still listened attentively, but after a while his thoughts began to wander.

Actually, he has some very interesting stories to tell...

A few days ago, a boy in my class went to Hayakawa for advice on dating issues... I have to say that asking Hayakawa for dating advice was definitely asking the wrong person in the world. However, the boy had his own reasons, namely that Hayakawa is very popular among students and must know a lot about dating.

This is the stereotype that popular people in the class have about "real people"—that they are popular because they know how to pursue girls. However, true popularity doesn't require pursuing others at all.

Hayakawa naturally wanted to refuse, but seeing the man's eagerness, he became slightly interested and listened to what he had to say.

It's a very simple thing: he's liked a girl in another class in his grade for a long time. They've added each other as friends on social media, chat occasionally, and have a good relationship. They're at the level where they can go out together, but not alone; there has to be someone else with them.

Chapter 451 It's not because of goblins, but because I like you...

Then, for some reason, he couldn't resist falling in love and confessed his feelings to that girl. The girl didn't respond in person, but just said she would think about it. A few days later, the girl got her own boyfriend, and the confession naturally came to nothing.

It's tragic that the girl you like gets a boyfriend right after you confess your feelings. But that's not the worst part. The worst part is that, according to this guy, this is the third time he's encountered something like this, and all of them ended up with the same tragic outcome: the girl immediately found a boyfriend after he confessed his feelings.

After saying this, the boy looked sorrowful and earnestly begged Hayakawa to tell him the reason for all of this and how to break free from this painful cycle.

Hayakawa remained silent for a long time after hearing this story, and then he also told a story, but this story was not true, but fictional.

Long, long ago in a village, a young man fell in love with a girl from the same village, but the girl was not interested in him. Despite the young man's persistent pursuit, the girl always responded with rejection and disgust. The young man was still unwilling to give up, but made no progress whatsoever.

One day, while the girl was out gathering herbs, she was suddenly attacked by a group of vicious and strangely shaped goblin bandits. They surrounded her and were about to commit their acts against her. Just when the girl was in despair, the boy suddenly appeared and bravely drove away the goblins, saving the girl. The girl was moved by the boy's desperate actions and finally responded to his advances.

And so, the two lived happily ever after.

……

The short and simple story ended, and Hayakawa shut her mouth and didn't say anything more. Instead, she looked at the boy with encouraging eyes, hoping that he would understand what she meant.

The boy didn't disappoint him. After thinking for a long time with his head down, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he exclaimed in a loud voice, "I understand... I understand, I get it!"

Hayakawa nodded: "Good, you understand..."

The boy exclaimed excitedly, "You mean I haven't tried hard enough? As long as I put in the same effort as the boy in the story, I'll win the favor of the person I like sooner or later!"

"...No, I mean..."