LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 49
Chapter 49: The Battle-Hardened Warrior
“I-I bought… a digital camera, and… I don’t have any points…”
Sakura stammered as if she was about to collapse. After saying these words, it seemed like she had used up all her energy and almost collapsed onto the desk.
Sakura, with her heavy bangs and large, outdated glasses, always stammers and avoids eye contact with others. Every time Hikigaya sees her, she’s always looking down as though trying to shield herself from the outside world by hiding under her hair.
Timid, introverted, insecure—these were the first impressions Sakura gave. So, without a doubt, she was an outsider, an anomaly.
Of course, in the eyes of some, this kind of timid personality naturally made her an ideal target for “negotiation.”
“Hey, what are you saying? I still have to go… anyway, hurry up!”
Karuizawa, the leader of the girl group, looked impatient. With her position as the class leader’s girlfriend and her role as the head of the girl group, her status in the class was high. Even Kushida didn’t dare confront her directly, let alone a shy ostrich girl like Sakura.
“Borrow money.”
Suddenly, Hikigaya stood up and called out to the two nearby, “Hey, the one called Doctor, I’m also short on points right now. Can you lend me some? After all, you lent some to Yamauchi, so what’s one more?”
Yamauchi and the person nicknamed “Doctor” from the class were in the middle of a discussion about how much money to borrow. Hikigaya’s sudden interruption shocked both Karuizawa and Sakura.
“It’s my turn first! Doctor already promised to lend me some. Hikigaya, just leave!” Yamauchi shouted, worried that the points he’d traded for a newly bought game console and several manga volumes would be snatched away by Hikigaya.
“Wait, I haven’t agreed yet…” Doctor was also confused, and he started bargaining with Yamauchi again.
“What the hell are you doing? Don’t look at me with those disgusting eyes!”
Seeing his attempt to borrow money fail, Hikigaya turned his attention to Karuizawa. Immediately, she snapped at him. After all, as the “big sister” of the girls’ group, she wasn’t afraid to criticize him. Plus, anyone who could be mocked by idiots like Ike and Yamauchi was clearly at the bottom of the class, someone easy to trample on—just like this giant glasses-wearing girl.
In her expectations, Hikigaya, with his dead-fish eyes, would immediately apologize in a panic and then run off like a stray dog.
“I saw you borrowing from lots of people just now. You’ve probably gathered quite a bit by now, haven’t you?” Hikigaya’s eyes scrutinized Karuizawa.
“What… what are you trying to do! I’m not borrowing from you, so it’s none of your business. Just get out of here!”
Facing Hikigaya’s dead-fish eyes, Karuizawa suddenly felt a chilling sensation as if he could see right through her. She didn’t even realize that her voice had a slight tremble.
Was it necessary to be this scared?
Hikigaya himself was puzzled. Was it really that bad to be looked at? The current “hot girl” seemed to be all show and no substance.
“Tch, borrowing money? Yeah, I’d love to be like you and just find some fool in class to borrow from without ever paying back. Then, when they ask for it back, just say, ‘It’s only a little money. Why are you being so stingy?’ and get away with it. Must be nice,” Hikigaya clapped his hands mockingly as he looked at Karuizawa with admiration.
“Y-You… what are you talking about!” Karuizawa’s face stiffened, and her voice lost its previous bravado.
“Heh, wasn’t that the method you just used? Under the guise of borrowing money, what you’re really doing is robbing others’ points. You act like it’s ‘voluntary to lend,’ but in reality, it’s a threat: ‘Don’t lend me money? Let’s see how I’ll deal with you afterward.’”
At this point, Hikigaya suddenly burst into laughter. “Chabashira-sensei was right, this class is a defective product. There are people who contribute nothing but still have the gall to show their faces. Unbelievable.”
Karuizawa didn’t expect that someone from the bottom of the class like Hikigaya would dare to talk back to her. A flash of panic crossed her face, but she quickly suppressed it. At this point, her small group of followers, including Shinohara, also noticed the situation and came over to support her, all of them loudly criticizing Hikigaya.
“Defective product? You disgusting dead-fish-eyed freak, you’re the same!”
“Typical of boys. Always bullying girls!”
With the support of Shinohara and others, Karuizawa regained some of her confidence. But when she met Hikigaya’s cold, indifferent stare again, her fleeting courage was shattered.
The dead-fish-eyed boy remained expressionless, showing no sign of backing down. He sneered at the chattering women, giving off the feeling of a battle-hardened warrior who had seen it all.
Suddenly, Hikigaya took a step forward. His movement made Karuizawa and the other girls instinctively step back. The insults ceased immediately.
“Bullying girls? Heh, you probably don’t even know that Sudo has actually hit a woman!”
Hikigaya’s voice wasn’t loud, but for some reason, it gave everyone a chill. Especially Karuizawa, who was being stared down by him, felt the urge to just turn around and run.
“And you guys are right, we’re all defective products. Don’t really think you’re any better than me, right? We’re all just piles of dog shit, the only difference is who smells worse. If we weren’t garbage, we wouldn’t all be in the same class. So… don’t think you can escape. I’ll drag you down with me to hell!”
Not only Karuizawa, but even others in the class were shocked. Hikigaya, someone from the bottom of the class, actually dared to rebel?
And not only did he insult Karuizawa and her group, but he also dragged the rest of the class into it. Was he trying to get himself killed? Throwing a bomb like that?
As soon as he finished speaking, the girls exploded in anger, but Hikigaya remained expressionless, with no intention of backing down. Just as the tension was about to escalate again, Hirata finally noticed the situation and quickly came over to mediate, with Kushida following closely behind to help.
Hikigaya had already noticed that Kushida had been paying attention to the situation from the beginning. Even when the conflict escalated, he stayed indifferent until Hirata showed up. This little angel was a bit too shrewd!
Hikigaya had originally prepared himself to clash with Hirata, but in the end, nothing happened.
After comforting Karuizawa for a while, Hirata apologized to her and even to Sakura, who had almost been forgotten in the corner, and offered to help if they were short on points.
Hikigaya furrowed his brows, staring at this class leader. He had wanted to say something, but in the end, he sighed and said nothing.
Always playing the nice guy…
Hirata’s actions seemed to have beautifully solved the escalating conflict, but was it really resolved?
In Hikigaya’s view, Hirata didn’t truly resolve the issue. He only postponed it. This “don’t offend anyone” approach would eventually cause problems. Rather than solving it, it was a form of indulgence.
At this moment, the class’s PA system rang:
“Ayanokouji from Class 1-D, please come to the teacher’s office after hearing this broadcast. Chabashira-sensei has something to discuss with you.”
Seeing this, Hikigaya didn’t want to stay in class anymore. He grabbed his bag and turned to leave, not noticing the lingering, hesitant gaze from a certain girl behind him.