Chapter 75: A Text from Utaha!
Much like Saku, Hikigaya was going through a trial of his own.
Fundamentally, neither Ebina nor Hayama wanted their social circle to fall apart. Both wanted things to remain exactly as they were.
In that case, all Hikigaya theoretically had to do was persuade Tobe not to confess.
Why couldn't Ebina or Hayama simply say that themselves?
Because if either of them said it directly, their relationships with Tobe could fracture.
So having Hikigaya, a neutral third party, step in seemed like the most appropriate solution.
It sounded perfectly reasonable.
If Saku were in Hikigaya's position, however, his answer would've been simple:
'What the hell does that have to do with me?'
Just because they were too uncomfortable to say it themselves, did that mean someone else had to be comfortable doing it?
Wouldn't that third party also have to bear the risk of being blamed for interfering with their relationships?
Yet for some reason, Hikigaya either failed to notice that problem or simply didn't care.
He genuinely believed the logic made sense.
He also believed he was the most suitable person to intervene.
At that point, the only thing Saku could say was that Hikigaya had a talent for choosing suffering when none was necessary.
The worst part was that before Hikigaya could even act, Tobe beat him to it.
Tobe announced that he'd made up his mind to confess.
And this time, he was completely serious.
No one was going to talk him out of it.
With that declaration, Hikigaya's escape route was effectively sealed.
He couldn't stop Tobe because Tobe had already decided he wouldn't listen.
But if he didn't stop him, Ebina and Hayama's requests would inevitably fail, and their friend group would almost certainly fracture.
Hikigaya was trapped squarely in the middle.
And even at this point, Hayama still refused to step forward himself.
All the pressure remained on Hikigaya.
Unsurprisingly, Hikigaya slept terribly that night.
...
The next morning, Tobe immediately dragged Hayama out to explore.
Hikigaya wasn't spared either.
After spending the entire night thinking without finding a reliable solution, Hikigaya finally had no choice but to ask Yukino and Yui for help.
At the entrance to the inn, he briefly explained what had happened the night before.
"I honestly can't think of a safe solution."
He lowered his head slightly.
"So I'm asking you two. Please help me."
A solution did exist.
At least, Yukino and Yui already knew one from Saku's inner voice.
Unfortunately, they also knew how that solution ended.
Neither of them accepted that outcome anymore.
"I don't have a solution."
Yukino answered without the slightest attempt to soften her words.
"Tobe's confession won't succeed, and I can't force someone else to change how they feel."
She had no intention of mentioning the method where Hikigaya sacrificed himself.
In Yukino's eyes, that wasn't a win-win solution at all.
It simply hurt all three sides while pretending the problem had been solved.
"Hikki..."
Yui spoke much more gently.
"I think Yukino-chan is right."
She hesitated before continuing.
"Can't we just give up on this request?"
"We aren't gods. We can't solve everything, and there's nothing wrong with admitting there are things we simply can't do."
Her words were softer, but the meaning was clear.
Rather than letting all three sides get hurt, it would be better to reduce the damage by one person.
Hikigaya never should've been dragged into this mess in the first place.
Hikigaya stared at them in disbelief, especially Yukino.
The Yukinoshita he knew would've never said something like this before.
No matter how difficult a request was, she wouldn't simply say there was nothing she could do.
She would've tried everything within her ability to fulfill it.
But now...
Yukino had learned to refuse.
She had learned to say no.
Hikigaya could clearly feel that she'd changed.
Whether she'd changed for the better or worse, however, he couldn't tell.
"If I abandon the request, their relationship is going to fall apart. Then..."
Before Hikigaya could finish, Yukino raised a hand and cut him off.
"I only have one question."
Her gaze was calm.
"What does that have to do with you?"
Saku's influence had changed Yukino to some degree.
In the past, she'd only known how to add responsibilities to herself.
Now, she'd learned how to subtract them.
More importantly, she'd learned not to accept pressure that wasn't hers to carry.
If something couldn't be done, then it couldn't be done.
If even the people directly involved didn't care enough to face the problem themselves, why should an outsider carry it for them?
This request was a perfect example.
It was an extremely complicated emotional problem.
The people involved should've been the ones to face it.
An outsider could offer advice.
But completely inserting yourself into their relationships and believing you could resolve everything for them?
That was merely arrogance.
Hikigaya had never imagined those words would come from Yukino.
Even Yui looked surprised.
For a second, she'd almost thought Saku had possessed Yukino.
With Saku's personality, there was absolutely no chance he'd accept such a thankless burden.
"Yukinoshita..."
Hikigaya stared at her.
"Are you serious?"
"I don't see anything wrong with what I said."
Yukino met his gaze without hesitation.
"Hikigaya, some things can't be stopped. What is coming will eventually come."
"If you can't control Tobe's feelings, then don't make decisions for him without permission."
Her voice remained calm but sharp.
"You're only a student."
"You're not a wish-granting machine."
Yukino believed she'd already made herself perfectly clear.
From her perspective, Hikigaya had brought most of this situation on himself.
These requests never should've been accepted in the first place.
Yet for some inexplicable reason, Hikigaya insisted on taking responsibility for everything.
He even believed he had to solve it personally.
Could he actually solve something this complicated?
If he were truly that good at handling relationships, would he still have reached this point without even a normal friend at his side?
Yukino's words were harsh enough to leave Hikigaya temporarily speechless.
After a moment, he finally opened his mouth.
"...I'll think about it carefully."
He didn't continue arguing.
Instead, Hikigaya turned away with a lonely expression and prepared to regroup with Tobe and the others before heading toward Ninna-ji.
"Yukino-chan!"
Yui anxiously tugged at Yukino's sleeve.
"I'm still worried."
She looked pleadingly at her.
"Can we go with them and keep an eye on things?"
Yukino rubbed her temple helplessly.
"Yui, you should've seen it clearly by now."
"Hikigaya refuses to listen. He isn't going to change."
The more Yukino thought about it, the more weight she felt behind that earlier phrase:
A person's character determines their fate.
She could tell Hikigaya hadn't given up.
If anything, her words seemed to have triggered a rebellious streak in him.
He wanted to prove he could solve the problem after all.
Yukino recognized that feeling because she'd experienced something similar herself.
What she'd just said had been intended to stop him.
Instead, it might have pushed him even harder toward doing things his own way.
At this point, Yukino couldn't even tell which was the cause and which was the effect anymore.
"Maybe..."
Yui lowered her eyes.
"But... but I..."
"Fine."
Yukino sighed.
"I understand."
She knew exactly how softhearted Yui was.
There was no convincing her otherwise, so Yukino could only give in.
The two girls left soon afterward.
Saku arrived looking for Yukino only moments later.
And discovered she was gone.
"Man..."
He sighed.
"Walking around alone is so boring. I might as well go back to the room and sleep."
Saku was just considering calling Yukino to ask where she'd gone when his phone rang first.
A text message.
From Kasumigaoka Utaha.
[Hey! Miss me?]
[If you do, come to this location.]
[Oh, and make sure you come alone. Otherwise, I'll be angry.]
A location pin was attached beneath the messages.
Saku tapped it without hesitation.
The map opened, and he quickly identified Utaha's location.
"Kiyomizu-dera?"
Saku blinked.
"Wait..."
"Why is Utaha-senpai in Kyoto?"
Filled with questions, Saku headed toward the marked location.
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