I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

Yui Yuigahama didn't resist, she just kept smiling foolishly.

Even though she was mentally prepared, she couldn't help feeling shy after her friend revealed her feelings to her—at the same time, she also felt a little ashamed of herself for worrying on her own.

"Alright, let's stop with the lighthearted stuff, Yui."

Miura Yumiko's tone suddenly turned serious, and her furrowed brows made her expression look unusually solemn.

"What's wrong?" Yui Yuigahama looked at her, puzzled.

"That guy is dating the transfer student from Class J, right? Even so, you're still getting so close to him, and even openly having a crush on him... Do you really think this is okay?"

"..."

Faced with her friend's equally blunt question, Yui Yuigahama fell into a brief silence.

Chapter 46 Ordinary Female Students Are Going on a Killing Spree

If we just tell Yumiko that Natsukawa Masuzu is a fake girlfriend, she should be able to put her mind at ease.

But Yui Yuigahama couldn't do that; even telling Yumiko alone risked exposing the secret.

Emotionally, this matter is related to Yuuki Tenkuji; logically, as a member of the Service Club, she and Yuki had both said they wouldn't reveal the request, so they naturally couldn't go back on their word.

Meanwhile, Yui Yuigahama was also thinking – if Yuu Tenkuji really had a girlfriend, should she obediently give up this relationship?

Will she still act like this, even though she says they're good friends, she always unconsciously moves closer to him and wants to monopolize his gaze?

"...That's obviously not good."

After a brief silence, Yui Yuigahama answered softly.

She tilted her head back, blinked, and smiled with a lonely and helpless expression: "But what can I do! The longer I like someone, the less I want to give up. Leaving him is much more painful than being criticized by others."

No one knows better than her.

Those rumors and gossip were nothing compared to the year he had been a stranger.

Because Yui Yuigahama knew that as long as she was still his "friend," as long as she asked for help...

No matter when or where, Yuu Tenkuji was always willing to stand behind him and protect him—he was always so gentle, yet it seemed so natural.

"So Yumiko, you don't need to worry, I know what I'm doing!"

That youthful and adorable face rarely showed such maturity, and was tinged with a silly air by her overly casual smile: "Hehehe~ But it's such a surprise, I didn't expect Yumiko to care about me to this extent. At first, I thought you just didn't like Yumiko."

"There are so many scumbags in the world, why should I focus on him?" Miura Yumiko rolled her eyes and tugged at Yuigahama Yui's cheek. "Most importantly, I don't want to see my friend get foolishly deceived by a scumbag like this!"

"Ugh..." Yui Yuigahama made a muffled sound, struggling to protest, "Yu isn't a jerk! He's rejected me so many times..."

"What?!" With her eyebrows furrowed and fists clenched, Yumiko Miura's eyes flashed with murderous intent. "That guy actually dared to refuse you, and several times at that—that blind fool, he needs to be taught a lesson!"

Yui Yuigahama quickly grabbed her as she was about to rush out of the restroom: "Yumiko, you're so unreasonable! You can't accept it and you can't refuse it, what are you going to do, Yuuko!"

"Well..." Miura Yumiko, caught off guard, hadn't thought things through. She blinked her big eyes, opened her mouth, and couldn't quite speak. "...In short, before he breaks up with other people and officially starts dating you, don't let him touch any part of your body! Even a crush should be a dignified crush. Don't be foolish enough to let someone trick you into giving yourself away!"

"Okay, okay." Yui Yuigahama sighed and said softly, "Don't even mention Yuuko, you also sound like a mother worried about her daughter dating a bad man..."

With a twitch of her ears, the Flame Queen swept her fierce gaze over.

"Yui, what did you say?"

"It's nothing, it's nothing..."

The conversation came to a temporary end, and with a deeper sense of friendship, Yui Yuigahama and Yumiko Miura walked outside together.

△

Time seemed to stand still, freezing the scene into a painting.

Against the sunlight, even though he was wearing a dowdy tracksuit, Tenkuji Yu sat on the bench with a carefree and unrestrained air, attracting a lot of attention and whispers from passersby.

He remained motionless, basking in the warm sunlight with his eyes closed. His aura of not wanting to be disturbed deterred many girls who wanted to ask for his LINE.

"...Xiao You, what are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're waiting for someone." Yuu Tenkuji opened her eyes, lazily glancing at the two girls who had stepped into the air around her, and put her legs back in place. "Alright, let's go. We're going to climb a mountain next, so remember to stay hydrated."

Yumiko Miura walked over, taking her bag as she said bluntly, "If you're waiting for someone, do you have to attract so much attention? You're not here to put on a show."

"Sorry, it's just how I am." Tenkuji Yu shrugged, causing the blond double-helix drill head to grin in disgust, snort, and not bother to say anything more.

Even so, Yui Yuigahama still sensed a change in the air—a change for the better.

Her smile widened, and she moved closer to Yuu Tenkuji and Yumiko Miura, raising her hand and shouting, "Let's go! Let's head up the mountain!"

"Everyone, come together! Hey! Hey!"

She was only halfway through her sentence when the two of them pushed her away, preventing her from saying the rest of the "Oh—".

"It's embarrassing enough to do something like this once, don't expect me to do it a second time!"

"Yui, sometimes I think your skin might be even thicker than mine."

"An overrated rating?! ...Wait, weren't we supposed to be going on the pirate ship? Why are we going hiking instead?"

"Because I didn't want to play. I thought you wouldn't find out, tsk, what a pity."

"...Ugh, this guy is awful."

……

Moyan Peak, hiking trail.

Golden light filtered through the trees, sprinkling onto the slender shoulders of the two girls, and then spreading out in strands of golden hair.

The ordinary female student walked at the front, while the two girls followed slowly behind like dolls on strings. Fine beads of sweat dampened their foreheads, but their faces remained beautiful and calm, and their appearance was not affected by fatigue at all.

If it were two people who looked average, this appearance would probably be called "the walking dead," right?

"Yuki, Yukinoshita-kun... If you're tired, just say so. We can stop and wait for you to rest before we set off again."

“No, there’s no need for that… Although physical strength is my weakness, I’m not… that weak.”

"Please don't force yourself... You're the head of the Service Department, my boyfriend's respected boss. Whew..."

"Heh, Natsukawa-kun, you're even more pathetic than I imagined... As the 'girlfriend' of one of my subordinates, even if you sit down and rest now, I won't laugh at you, okay? Ha..."

The ordinary female student turned around and looked helplessly at the two who were still arguing even though they were almost out of breath.

"Natsukawa-san, Yukinoshita-san, if you need to rest, just let me know, and I can stop and wait for you."

"unnecessary!"

The two spoke in unison, their slender, straight legs stepping onto the steps, almost neck and neck, stubbornly refusing to give way to each other.

"Then don't talk, just climb quietly!" the ordinary female student said confidently. "Climbing mountains requires careful attention to breathing. Talking will disrupt your breathing. You two top students should understand that!"

"..." Yukino Yukinoshita fell silent, her slightly pale lips parted as she quietly regulated her disordered breathing.

Natsukawa Masuzu was still grumbling in dissatisfaction: "She's just a ○○ classmate, yet..."

The ordinary female student looked down at her, her gaze as bright and dazzling as the sun, carrying an assertiveness that was inconsistent with her usual demeanor.

Do you have any comments?

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Chapter 47 The sound is quite nice.

When they reached the halfway point of the mountain and saw the entrance to the amusement park and the shape of the Ferris wheel, Natsukawa Masaki became excited again.

"How about we go in and take a look?"

“We’ll talk about it when we get down the mountain,” the ordinary female student retorted without hesitation. “You have to keep going when you’re climbing a mountain, otherwise it’s easy to give up halfway through.”

Natsukawa Masuzu wanted to retort, but then she saw Yukino Yukinoshita's 'kind' smile and gaze, so she could only click her tongue, pinch her aching thigh, and continue walking upwards.

As noon approached, the sun grew stronger, and while the cool mountain breeze offered some relief, it also took away some of the body heat, making the combination of cold and heat quite uncomfortable.

Neither of the two strong-willed young women spoke. Even though they were panting and walking slowly, they followed the back of the ordinary female student, getting closer and closer to the mountaintop.

"If you don't show up soon, I won't forgive you... If you don't save me, I'll cut you up... If you don't let me reach the top, I'll cut you into seventeen or eighteen pieces... Come save me, I'll massage your breasts..."

Yukino Yukinoshita's cheek twitched slightly, and she couldn't help but retort, "What are you muttering about? Don't you know how to regulate your breathing? I can teach you."

Natsukawa Masaki pursed her lips, not bothering to maintain a childlike demeanor, and rolled her eyes as she replied, "You should worry about yourself. You look so pale, you might faint at any moment."

"Don't worry, I can still hold on..."

Before he could finish speaking, the ordinary-looking female student in front of him suddenly exclaimed, "Who is that person...?"

The two of them looked up at the path at the same time.

The boy, who was neither tall nor broad, gave off a sense of inexplicable peace of mind from behind. He chatted casually with the pink-clad girl beside him as he leisurely walked up the dappled sunlight and shadows on the steps. The faint smile on his face seemed to blend into the entire mountain forest with his relaxed and peaceful demeanor.

Natsukawa Masaki's eyes lit up involuntarily, and she perked up as if a tire had been inflated. Just as she was about to take out her phone, she glanced to her side and squinted, saying:

"...What's with that relieved look on your face, Minister?"

Is it strange to feel at ease when you unexpectedly run into other members of our group at an unfamiliar hiking location?

Yukino Yukinoshita smoothed her hair, her expression unchanged, and glanced at me with a slightly cold look: "Also, let me give you a piece of advice: don't be too sensitive. This kind of unrestrained jealousy is very unpleasant... Miss 'Girlfriend'."

"...Indeed, the acting was a bit too intense."

Close her eyes, Natsukawa Masaki took a few deep breaths to calm her somewhat unstable mindset caused by fatigue, and then made a phone call.

The group of three ahead stopped. After saying a few words on her phone, Yuu Tenkuji turned around and looked at them, raising an eyebrow in surprise.

He put down his phone and walked down the stairs side by side with the pink dumpling, while the blonde double helix waited on top to rest for a bit.

"Why didn't they just call out directly? Why did they have to call for backup..."

Do I look like I have the energy to shout?

Unconsciously, Natsukawa Masaki gave up her stubbornness and gave a helpless, bitter smile.

As Tenkuji Yu walked over, he also cast a surprised glance at the ordinary female student: "○○ is in the same group as them? What a coincidence."

"Yes, I didn't expect to run into you here." The ordinary female student looked happy, but not overly enthusiastic; she simply acted as if she had just met an acquaintance.

Yuu Tenkuji glanced at the two zombie-like beautiful girls behind him and couldn't help but show a look of sympathy.

"Thank you for your hard work, going on the autumn outing with these two troublesome guys."