Leaving the teacher's office, the smile had already vanished from Hachiman Hikigaya's face. He looked like a brown bear with its fur standing on end. "Katsuragi!"
He had thought Katsuragi Ren was an angel coming to save him from fire and water, but instead, the guy had pushed him into the pit with his own hands.
"Hikigaya, do you really think you could have turned down Shizuka's request?"
The lighter in his hand didn't stop spinning. Ren glanced at the bristling Hachiman behind him and spoke indifferently.
Ren could refuse Shizuka, but that didn't mean Hachiman could. After Ren left, no matter how Hachiman struggled, he would eventually be coerced into agreeing by Shizuka's physical threats. In that case, it was better for Ren to agree on his behalf.
"But..."
Hachiman was still indignant. He felt he could have struggled a bit more. At the very least, he could have dumped the commission onto the "tomorrow version" of himself, allowing the "today version" to enjoy a free and easy day.
"There are no 'buts.' If you hadn't agreed today, Shizuka wouldn't have let you leave."
"Actually, you know this yourself. You just don't want to admit it, Hikigaya."
"Am I right?"
Turning around, Ren stared straight at Hachiman, his eyes seemingly trying to pierce through the other's heart.
Hachiman stopped walking and chose to meet Ren's gaze, trying to keep himself from showing cowardice. Ren wasn't in a hurry anyway; he hadn't joined any clubs, so he wouldn't be the one late.
Hachiman, who already had experience being late, heard the ringtone of the phone in his pocket—a reminder that club time was almost up. The momentum he had finally built up to confront Ren leaked away instantly.
"Exactly..."
Hachiman sighed, admitting the cruel reality.
"Then that's that."
The lighter he had swiped from Shizuka stopped spinning, and Ren tossed it to Hachiman.
"What's this?"
Catching the lighter thrown at him, Hachiman didn't understand what Ren meant.
"Hikigaya, you were staring at this lighter the whole time in the office. You liked it, right?"
"This is your reward."
"As the reward for agreeing to Shizuka's conditions."
Turning his back to Hachiman, Ren stretched his body and let out a comfortable yawn.
Shizuka's free exploitation of Hachiman was indeed a bit much. After walking into the office, Ren had noticed that Hachiman was quite focused on the silver lighter on the desk. So, he "swiped" it from Shizuka to serve as payment for Hachiman's work.
Hachiman should learn too—if he knew he couldn't refuse Shizuka, he should at least ask for benefits. Did he want nothing but Shizuka's fist?
"Reward?"
Staring at the silver lighter lying quietly in his palm, Hachiman didn't quite know what to say. He wanted to thank Ren, but he felt he already owed him too much. A verbal thanks felt impossible to say.
"Don't get sentimental. You're about to be late again."
Noticing that Hachiman hadn't followed, Ren gave him a reminder.
...
At the entrance of the Service Club.
Standing side-by-side with Ren, Hachiman couldn't help but whisper as he watched Ren head toward the clubroom.
"Katsuragi, what are you doing following me here? You want to fleece us again?"
In Hachiman's eyes, Ren was the type of person who wouldn't visit a temple without a reason. He certainly wasn't here to join the Service Club. If he was coming to a club without joining, what else could he be doing?
What was the purpose of the Service Club? To accept commissions and "teach a man to fish." For Ren, it was undoubtedly a place to ruthlessly fleece for benefits.
"Hikigaya, you're overthinking it."
Ren, who wasn't hungry for the moment, had no intention of fleecing the Service Club. He was simply here to collect his own "reward."
He pulled open the door to the clubroom.
Ren walked straight toward Yukino Yukinoshita, who had already arrived and was sitting quietly in her seat reading a book. Hachiman clearly didn't want to provoke Yukino and crept toward his own designated spot.
As long as Ren wasn't here to fleece them, Hachiman didn't care what he did. Having already received his "reward" in advance, Hachiman began to think about how to intervene and solve the issue of Saki Kawasaki sleeping in class.
With the silver lighter in his pocket, Hachiman was much more proactive than usual. Was "working for free" the same as "getting paid"? Even if the payment was swiped for him by Ren.
"Scum, you've come?"
The sound of the door opening had already attracted Yukino Yukinoshita's attention. She only refrained from asking when she caught a glimpse of Hachiman and Ren entering.
As Hachiman was a member of the Service Club, Yukino had already tacitly accepted his presence and didn't feel the need to greet him. As for Ren... Yukino was currently very conflicted about what attitude she should use when facing him.
"Scum?"
The way Yukino addressed Ren stunned Hachiman. The girl was sharp-tongued,
"Did something happen between these two?"
With the precedents of Nino and Mahiru, Hachiman decided to watch the show silently and offer no opinions.
"Poison-tongue, you're quite the handful."
Pulling over the chair belonging to Yui Yuigahama, Ren sat in front of Yukino, propping one hand on the girl's desk as he looked at her with interest.
Rather than calling Yukino Yukinoshita sharp-tongued, it was more accurate to say she was too "blunt." In Ren's view, the reason Yukino had become "poison-tongued" was because of her bad experiences as a child.
Mahiru Shiina protected herself with an equal "gentleness" that kept people at a distance; Hachiman Hikigaya chose to protect himself with "isolation"; and Yukino Yukinoshita used her "poisonous tongue."
Yukino craved friends, yet she feared "fake" ones. To distinguish between "real" and "fake" friends, she chose to use her sharp tongue to test the "authenticity" of classmates who tried to get close to her.
This clumsy girl thought this was how she could find a "genuine" friend.
However, in the eyes of others, this self-protective behavior appeared as "arrogance." They believed her sharp tongue was a result of looking down on them. Yukino's personality wouldn't allow her to explain anything; she would only continue her "friend" screening in her own way.
Those who truly wanted to be friends with her would conclude that she had no intention of befriending them, and thus they would turn and leave.
Ultimately, it became a vicious circle.