Let's do it again, Yukino.

Hikigaya, who was sitting next to Kasuga, then let out a lazy, sullen voice.

"Yuigahama-kun, I feel like Yukinoshita-kun has been acting a bit strange these past few days, with that Gian-kun... well, it's none of my business anyway."

He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, leaning back on the sofa and letting out a sigh of contentment.

"Xiao Qi, it's not right to talk badly about Xiao Xue behind her back."

"I'm not gossiping, I'm just a little curious. How could the usually brilliant and intelligent second young lady of the Yukinoshita family make such a mistake? Or is it true that even the wisest can make a mistake?"

"What do you mean?"

Yuihama was still somewhat puzzled, while Hikigaya stared at the ceiling, pointing to the vending machine not far away.

"Actually, there are vending machines in the corner of the lobby, and Yukinoshita also said that the weather is not suitable for a night walk, so why did she go outside the hotel and even let Gian go with her in such a natural way?"

"Could it be... that they didn't actually go to buy drinks, and that buying drinks was just an excuse?"

At that moment, reminded by Hikigaya, Yui seemed to understand something, and her expression became very solemn.

Hikigaya's eyes lit up. Yui, who had always been considered quite foolish by him, had finally seen the light. Just as he was expecting Yui to reveal her thoughts, Yui clapped her hands, her eyes becoming bright and alert.

"Or did Xiaoxue and Qingjun go out to eat because they were hungry?"

"How outrageous! They didn't even take Xiaoqi with them. Are they just eating alone...?"

Yui clicked her tongue in anger, seemingly wanting to rush out of the hotel and find the two who had abandoned her.

Hikigaya: "..."

If I'm not mistaken, in a sense, I can empathize with Minister Yukinoshita.

"What's wrong, Xiao Qi? You look like you're holding it in."

"It's nothing, I just suddenly felt like going back to my dorm."

Hachiman went straight to a corner of the hotel and bought himself a can of coffee.

He had a feeling that Minister Yukinoshita might come back very late with Gian.

Of course, that's just his feeling.

……

…………

night,

The stars twinkled.

"What exactly happened?"

Finally, we arrived at a park some distance from the hotel where Zongwugao was resting.

Sitting on a bench under a pavilion, Yukinoshita crossed her arms and repeated the question she had asked Haruhi in the hotel lobby.

"Where's the coffee? Weren't you supposed to bring drinks for Yuigahama and Hikigaya?"

Chunri looked around and, not finding a single vending machine, still confused, looked innocently at Xiaoxue.

"Do you think I'm the kind of person who would take you out late at night just to buy a can of soda? Or did you really only come out with me for a can of Max?"

Sure enough, this guy is acting a bit strange; he was in good condition before he came.

"I understand now, you lied to me, Xiaoxue."

Spring finally realized what was happening, her eyes widened in disbelief.

"What's wrong? You look like you've been through something traumatic?"

Yukino finally began to understand what was wrong.

It seems that when the word "deception" came up, Haruhi's emotions became quite agitated.

"I'm not lying, am I? I can't very well ask you in front of Hachiman and the others. I'm just worried that your state will affect my mood during the school trip these few days, so I wanted to ask you to clarify things."

"..."

Spring silently turned her face to the side.

"It's nothing. I guess he's the kind of person who gets angry over small things. Men, you know, there are always a few unpleasant days every month."

"Let me guess, is it related to a woman?"

Seeing that Haruhi still wouldn't tell him the truth, he casually uttered a word.

Anyway, she has plenty of time tonight, so she can stay here with this idiot a little longer.

As for Hachiman and the others...

Anyway, the current department head, Yukinoshita, has already kindly put those two behind her.

"……Well……"

It should indeed be related to women.

Springtime was momentarily speechless, unable to refute Snow's words, so her somewhat unfocused gaze swept towards the dark corner.

"!!"

Seeing the guilty expression on Haruhi's face, an expression she knew all too well, Yukinoshita, who had been able to maintain her composure, couldn't help but frown and walked straight to...

In front of spring, one hand grabbed spring's sleeve.

"You wouldn't actually be two-timing me behind my back, would you? Tell me, which one? Yumiko, or that twin-tailed girl I met not long ago, or maybe your class monitor and the girl in front of you?"

The girl in front of him was a little unsettled. Ever since their relationship deepened on the night of the cultural festival, Koyuki had been keeping an unusually vigilant watch over Haruhi.

"Two-timing? What are you talking about? When did I ever two-timing?"

Completely bewildered by Yukinoshita's question, Haruhi quickly raised her hands in a gesture of surrender.

Although she was curious as to why Xiaoxue had become so nervous lately, Chunri, guided by reason, took the safest course of action.

"...Calm down, Xiaoxue. Your persona as the pure, aloof, and elegant head of the Service Department has been completely shattered by your harsh words."

"I don't care about you. I've given you my time, my body, and everything else. Why would I care about my public image? You, Haruhi, you'd better explain to me clearly tonight which woman you did something to betray me. If you don't explain clearly, I can't live like this anymore."

Why does it feel like Xiaoxue's fluent lines are something I've heard somewhere before, like I've already memorized them?

Springtime vaguely felt that such lines had appeared in more than one TV series.

Fortunately, the surrounding area was a quiet park with few people, and you could hardly hear the chirping of crickets. So even though Xiaoxue's voice was a little too excited, it didn't attract anyone else.

"I've already said that although it does involve women, it's definitely not what you're imagining, Xiaoxue. How should I put it, those women are very special."

Frowning, as she recalled what had happened that day, Haruhi was momentarily at a loss for words to describe the swindler priestess.

"Then which woman are you talking about?"

"Well, she was wearing a shrine maiden's outfit, and her smile had a strange kind of convincing quality. Unfortunately, there were too many tourists around that day, and I didn't dare to look at her closely..."

Therefore, when Hiratsuka Shizuka asked him what the woman who had deceived him looked like, Haruhi couldn't answer for a moment.

Thinking of this, Chunri sighed and took out the amulet from her bosom, handing it to Xiaoxue.

"Look, this is the only evidence left behind by the woman, and it's quite important evidence."

"Order, order, order... a love gift?"

moment,

A shrine maiden, amulets, and a chance encounter at Kiyomizu-dera Temple.

Sparks that brushed past each other

And then there are those ambiguous pieces of evidence.

Then came the sense of loss that followed these past two days.

In an instant, numerous clues came together, all pointing to one fact.

Xiaoxue, who had misunderstood something once again, was now holding the amulet, which still retained the warmth of spring, and her hand was trembling slightly.

"As expected, even you, Ah Qing, have become this kind of fickle man..."

Tears welled up in the girl's eyes.

"Huh? What do you mean by being fickle? Does that mean I'm going to be blamed for this much just because I was fooled by a woman once?"

"I'm afraid what's been deceived is your sinful heart, Ah Qing, and perhaps something else as well?"

Yukinoshita sneered. Having understood everything, she looked at Haruhi as if she were looking at a prisoner who wanted to die with her.

"They tricked me out of my heart. Are all these scammers selling that stuff these days? If my heart is sold, doesn't that make me a murderer? Well, even though I was tricked out of the money to go to a hotel with Xiaoxue on Christmas Eve, it's not enough to charge that female scammer with murder, even though she's pretty despicable."

Chunri held his chin, still unable to grasp the true meaning behind Xiaoxue's words.

Xiaoxue: "??"

Kasuga: "??"

The two boys stared at each other, bewildered.

"...It seems like we're asking each other different questions."

As the cold wind blew, Yukinoshita, whose mind was gradually calming down, seemed to realize that something was not quite right.

Moreover, Haruhi didn't act like someone caught cheating by their girlfriend with a guilty and ashamed expression at all; on the contrary,

This idiot even looked quite self-righteous, as if he wasn't the only one at fault.

"Hmm, I also feel like I'm not on the same wavelength as Xiaoxue just now, but it was quite interesting."

"Stop joking with me and tell me honestly what happened a couple of days ago."

"You've been saying this since just now, haven't you? My wallet was completely swindled by a pretty woman?"

"Who would bother to lie to an idiot like you? Besides a blind girl like me, who else do you think would do that—"

"...Although I feel like you're making fun of yourself, lol...you haven't lied to me, have you? I've been feeling down these past few days because of that fake witch who lied to me."

"Don't laugh!! I just misspoke for a moment."

Xiaoxue, her face flushed, pounded Chunri's chest, though not with much force.

"Alright, I'll tell you everything. It was because of that amulet you had, Xiaoxue, that I was swindled out of all my savings by a strange witch."

Spring sighed.