Hikigaya's Inner World of Spring

The room was silent save for the clattering of keys.

"You're planning to join in too?" Hachiman raised an eyebrow, glancing curiously at Yukinoshita, seated beside him.

Currently, the three of them were gathered in Kasumigaoka's bedroom.

Hachiman sat at the computer desk, flanked by Yukinoshita on his left and Kasumigaoka on his right. The latter had already changed back into normal clothes, though Yukinoshita still looked intrigued as she stared at the game screen.

"Hehe, this open-world game seems interesting. Look at how the characters can jump and climb all over the place," Yukinoshita commented.

"Uh…" Hachiman hesitated.

"This game might've been okay to recommend a while ago, but now? It's a total disaster. The developers keep screwing up, and the player base has dropped significantly. Honestly, it's on the verge of dying. I'd advise against getting into it."

He himself only played it occasionally and didn't think much of it.

"That's fine. I just want to try it for fun."

"Well…"

"In that case, let me teach you." Kasumigaoka suddenly spoke up, breaking her usual silence.

"Huh? You?" Hachiman's mouth twitched.

What do you even know about this game, seriously?

"Sure, I'll leave it to you, Kasumigaoka-senpai," Yukinoshita replied with a smile, not the least bit concerned.

"No trouble at all."

The two girls moved to the bed, where Kasumigaoka guided Yukinoshita on how to download the game. Their conversation flowed naturally, filled with light laughter.

Meanwhile, Hachiman sighed in defeat as he found himself grinding through one of the game's challenging missions.

"Finish this dungeon, and then take care of a few more tasks," Kasumigaoka had instructed earlier.

There was no question about it—Hachiman had been relegated to full-on labor status.

"Why is it this quest, though?" he muttered bitterly as he faced the infamously tedious Forest Book mission.

Still, there was nothing for it. Hachiman, used to such roles, resigned himself to the drudgery.

While working on the quest, his eyes wandered to Kasumigaoka's bookshelf. It was packed with manga and light novels, but the Love Metronome series stood out prominently. Not only did she own the complete set, but she also had the manga adaptation.

"She really is a die-hard fan of her own work," Hachiman mused.

As he scanned the rest of the room, he noticed there wasn't a shortage of otaku essentials either—figurines, posters, and other paraphernalia were all present.

"Figures…" he thought, recalling Kasumigaoka's earlier cosplay outfit. Ultimate otaku vibes.

But then, his thoughts were interrupted as he felt Kasumigaoka's gaze flicker toward him.

Wait a second… Can you read minds too?

Panicked, Hachiman quickly refocused on the game.

Kasumigaoka, meanwhile, retracted her gaze. Her expression showed a hint of frustration but soon returned to calm as she continued discussing gameplay strategies with Yukinoshita.

Unbeknownst to either of them, Yukinoshita's hand occasionally strayed toward her handbag as if she were checking something inside.

---

Time flew by, and evening came.

After dinner, the trio returned to Kasumigaoka's bedroom. The atmosphere remained harmonious, with no notable incidents.

Hachiman kept grinding through game quests.

Kasumigaoka maintained her easygoing chat with Yukinoshita about gameplay, who listened while subtly toying with her bag, her calm demeanor betraying an underlying impatience.

It's already evening… and still, nothing has happened!

Frustration built within Yukinoshita.

Kasumigaoka's presence by her side had thwarted any chance for her plans to progress.

If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have come!

Yukinoshita was growing desperate. With no progress on her point-earning objectives for the day, her exasperation mounted.

---

As night deepened, Hachiman finally finished the Forest Book quest. He glanced at the clock and was startled.

"Wait a second… It's almost 10 PM! How are we supposed to get home now?"

He turned to Yukinoshita and Kasumigaoka in concern.

"Hmm, is it that late already?" Yukinoshita feigned surprise.

"The trains in Chiba are probably done for the day," Hachiman sighed.

"Ah, really? What do we do now…?" Yukinoshita said, sounding genuinely troubled.

Kasumigaoka suddenly interjected, "How about staying over at my place tonight? I have a guest room you can use."

Her apartment, a two-bedroom unit, was spacious for a single person.

"Huh? That's probably not a good idea," Hachiman protested. "There are two of us, and only one guest room. It'd be better if we…"

"No problem!" Yukinoshita interrupted, agreeing immediately.

Hachiman blinked in disbelief. "??"

Ignoring his puzzled look, Yukinoshita smiled graciously. "We'd be intruding, but thank you for the offer, Kasumigaoka-senpai."

She had been racking her brain for a way to stay the night, but Kasumigaoka's offer was an unexpected gift.

"Don't worry about it. You're both welcome." Kasumigaoka returned her smile.

Hachiman, however, wasn't convinced. "Wait, wait, wait! There are only two bedrooms!"

"And?" Yukinoshita grinned mischievously at him.

"I'll take one, Senpai can take the other, and as for you… The sofa in the living room is plenty big. I'll set it up for you."

"Wait, what?!?" Hachiman was stunned.

He had expected Yukinoshita to say something sweet like "Hachiman-kun, let's share the bed"—not this!

How could his girlfriend treat him like this?

Yukinoshita chuckled and turned to Kasumigaoka. "What do you think, Senpai?"

"No objections," Kasumigaoka said, stifling her laughter.

Hachiman sighed in resignation. "Fine, fine. I'll take the sofa. Happy?"

The two girls burst out laughing at his expense.

Yukinoshita, especially, couldn't hide her satisfaction.

Excellent! she thought. Now that we're staying the night, the next stage of the plan can finally begin.

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