Life As Hikigaya Hachiman

Chapter 566: The Silly Dumpling Is Ready to Eat

After the celebration banquet ended, everyone went their separate ways.

Naturally, Hachiman, Yui, and Yukino headed home together.

As they walked along the road home, Yui suddenly broke into a joyful laugh.

"Yukinon, Hikki, today was really such a happy day," she said cheerfully.

Seeing her like this, both Hachiman and Yukino couldn't help but smile dotingly.

Especially Hachiman—every time he saw Yui so happy, his own mood would brighten significantly.

It felt almost like raising a daughter.

Perhaps this was the same kind of mindset that made some guys want their girlfriends to call them "Daddy."

Ahem...

However, seeing Yui in such high spirits, Hachiman couldn't resist offering a reminder.

"Don't celebrate too soon, Yui."

"Once the third-year graduation ball is over, it'll soon be time for us second-years to face final exams."

At these words, Yui's smile froze, and she couldn't help but complain to Hachiman.

"Seriously, Hikki, can't you just let me enjoy the moment? You always have to say things that ruin the mood."

Faced with her complaint, Hachiman simply shrugged.

"It wouldn't make a difference whether I said it or not. Finals are coming regardless. I just wanted to remind you not to get too carried away."

Even Yukino, walking beside them, nodded in agreement.

"That's true. There's only half a month left until finals, so we really do need to focus on studying during this time. We can't let the success of the ball make us complacent."

"No matter how successful the ball was, it's already in the past. We need to look toward the future and keep striving forward."

Seeing Yukino's serious expression, Yui couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Yukinon, you're always the same, so serious every single time."

Unexpectedly, the silly dumpling dared to tease her. Yukino raised an eyebrow, reached out, and pinched Yui's cheek.

"Yui, do you have any objections?"

With her best friend's hand firmly pinching her face, Yui immediately started mumbling in a slurred voice, begging for mercy.

"No, no complaints, Yukinon! I'm wrong, I'm wrong!"

Seeing her pitiful state, Yukino sighed and let go.

"Yui, you really need to work harder. Didn't we agree to get into the same university?"

"Don't worry, Yukinon! I'll definitely do my best," Yui responded cheerfully, rubbing her cheeks where Yukino had pinched her. Her smile quickly returned to her face.

Seeing her beaming once again, Hachiman grew curious and asked,

"Yui, how's your studying going recently?"

"Oh, that! Thanks to you and Yukinon tutoring me, plus my own hard work, I've cleared up a lot of things I didn't understand before!"

Talking about her studies, Yui's face lit up with pride.

After all, she'd made significant progress recently and felt quite proud of herself.

But Yukino, seeing her smug expression, couldn't help but pour a bucket of cold water on her enthusiasm.

"Just those basics? That's not nearly enough. What I've been teaching you so far is just the foundation."

"Eh?! How could you say that!"

Yui's confident smile immediately collapsed, leaving her looking dejected.

"Honestly, it seems we can't let our guard down when it comes to you, Yui," Hachiman commented with a wry smile.

Seeing Yui's utterly dejected expression, as if the sky had fallen, Yukino sighed.

"Tomorrow is a rest day, so I'll continue tutoring you," she said.

"Mm-hmm, Yukinon, you're the best!" Yui nodded enthusiastically, then turned toward Hachiman.

"Hikki, how about you join us too?"

Hearing her call his name, Hachiman snapped out of his thoughts.

"Ah, a study session? Sure, I don't mind."

In truth, he had been mulling over a question just moments ago: Should he use his newly discovered ability to upload a learning module into Yui's mind?

The more he thought about it, the more tempting the idea became.

And besides, this silly dumpling was already ripe for the taking.

As this thought crossed his mind, Hachiman couldn't help but size up the girl standing in front of him.

She was the first girl he'd ever gotten to know, yet he had been holding back all this time.

Wasn't that a bit unreasonable?

Girls were surprisingly sensitive to these things, even silly ones like Yui.

Noticing Hachiman's odd gaze, Yui tilted her head curiously.

"Hikki, what are you looking at? Is there something weird about me?"

She glanced down at her clothes and turned around to check if something had gotten stuck on her.

Hearing her question, Hachiman quickly changed the topic with a smile.

"Ah, it's nothing. I was just wondering where we should have tomorrow's study session."

Hearing this, Yui's eyes lit up. "How about coming to my house? Mom mentioned before that you guys should visit more often."

Hachiman immediately rejected the suggestion.

"Always going to your house would be too much trouble, and your mom has to work, right?"

Hachiman remembered that Mrs. Yuigahama worked at a cake shop. If their visit made her take time off to entertain them, it would be too awkward.

Besides, having the study session at Yui's house would make it inconvenient for him to carry out his plan.

Yukino also nodded in agreement. "That's right. It wouldn't be good to disrupt Mrs. Yuigahama's work."

Although that was her stated reason, in truth, Yukino was unsure how to face Yui's mom.

Deep down, Yukino knew that Mrs. Yuigahama had likely already noticed that both she and Yui liked Hachiman.

However, Yukino was certain that Hachiman would eventually choose her.

This made her feel like the villain who would ultimately break Yui's heart.

Meeting Yui's mom under such circumstances would undoubtedly be awkward.

Thus, Yukino had decided it would be best to avoid Mrs. Yuigahama as much as possible.

Hachiman, of course, couldn't guess what was going on in Yukino's mind. But seeing that she also declined the idea, he took the opportunity to share his own suggestion.

"In that case, why not come to my place? It's just me and Komachi at home, so we won't be disturbed. Plus, Komachi has been wanting to see you two."

"Hikki's house? Sure!"

"Your place? I'm fine with that."

Neither Yui nor Yukino had any objections to Hachiman's suggestion.

To them, his home was indeed the best option. Plus, they both wanted to spend more time with Komachi.

In fact, it wasn't just the two of them—this sentiment was shared by the other girls as well.

After all, Komachi was their future sister-in-law, and they knew very well just how much Hachiman doted on her.

In a way, Komachi could even influence Hachiman's decisions.

Because of this, both Yui and Yukino treated Komachi as if she were already their own little sister.

As for Hachiman, seeing that neither of them had any objections, he smiled.

"Then it's settled. Tomorrow at 9 a.m., meet at my house."

"Got it, no problem," they both replied in unison.

With the time agreed upon, the three of them continued walking toward their homes.

Under the faint starlight and the soft glow of the moon, three long shadows stretched out across the ground.

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