The size of this school is truly enormous, literally a miniature city: a cinema, a large mall, streets and alleys, shops everywhere. You could spend three years here without ever leaving the place.
All areas are equipped with signs to make finding locations easier, so we found the ceremony hall very easily.
After entering, each class stood in a group.
The difference between our class and the others was significant—not in appearance, organization, or even behavior. The class closest to ours in these aspects seems to be Class C, I think.
Yukinoshita decided to go to the front, as expected of a model student, and I decided to stay in the back, out of sight.
There's nothing useful in these speeches; they don't change regardless of your school. The faces are all that change.
I stood at the back behind my classmates.
It seems there are some loners here.
A boy with brown hair had a… strange hairstyle?
What is this? No matter how I looked at it, it seemed odd.
I prefer simple hair, well, random like this, but this is strange.
It was as if he sensed my gaze and looked at me.
Our eyes met in silence.
What is this?
I've seen eyes daily in the mirror, they were either decayed or dead, but his eyes were… dark or… empty? I don't know.
"What?" he said neutrally.
Oh, what is this? Why is his facial expression so rigid?
"What?" I answered with the same word; I didn't know what he was asking about.
"What do you mean by 'what'?" he replied, his expression still unchanged. What is this? Is he a robot?
"What? You're the one asking 'what'—what exactly are you asking about?"
That seems logical; if I just say "what," the other party won't know what I'm talking about precisely.
"What? Oh, I felt you staring at me, so I asked."
Oh, right, he sensed my gaze. Should I tell him the reason? Isn't this strange?
I don't know.
"You poor things!" a female voice said from beside us.
It was a girl with long black hair, holding a small book.
Is she a book lover?
"What?" we asked simultaneously.
We looked at each other again.
This is really strange.
"Oh, poor and synchronized. Seems like your loneliness will be saved, Ayanokoji-kun. What do you think about becoming friends?" she said sarcastically.
"No, we are not similar." The boy denied quickly; his name seems to be Ayanokoji.
"You're lonely, you don't even know how to have a conversation. Your eyes are somewhat similar, yes, though his eyes are more rotten."
"Who allowed you to talk about my eyes? I'm not lonely."
"Do you have friends?" she asked, finally turning to look at me. She gave the impression of an Ice Queen, but I felt that at her core, she was completely different from Yukinoshita.
"No, but…" Should I say I have a friend?
No, I'll keep this to myself.
"So, you are lonely. That proves my point."
I gave her a look of protest; I couldn't argue with her further.
What's with these girls? Do they have some sort of ability? I could win any debate.
I decided to remain silent.
"Alright, I'm Ayanokoji Kiyotaka."
"Hikigaya Hachiman."
I looked at the girl, hoping she would reveal her name.
Isn't it normal to say your name when the other person tells you theirs?
I'm not an expert, but I think that's what usually happens.
"She's sitting in a seat next to you, but refuses to reveal her name," said Ayanokoji, nodding his head.
"Seems like she doesn't know proper etiquette."
"Yes, and she's bad at making friends too."
"At least we know basic social manners. I wonder who's more miserable now?"
"Yes."
The girl gave us an annoyed look as if angry at our joke about her.
"Horikita… Suzune."
"Oh." I was surprised she said her name after hearing some of our jokes.
"That's really strange… you two look alike."
"No." I denied quickly. "This is just the result of the development of a loner. He and I are completely different."
Yes, from my first glance, I knew we were different. I don't know if this difference really exists.
All I know is that it exists.
Our short conversation was interrupted by the sound of the loudspeakers. It seems the ceremony is starting.
A boy wearing glasses and proper school uniform approached the podium.
I noticed a big change in Horikita.
From a strong, sharp-tongued girl to… just a small girl?
It seems Ayanokoji noticed this sudden change.
We exchanged glances, and I shrugged and shook my head to signal that I had no idea what happened to her.
Could she have been affected by our joke?
I turned my attention back to the podium as the student spoke.
"Hello, I am the student council president, Horikita Manabu…"
Wait, did he just say his name… Horikita?
×××
The opening ceremony was simple: a speech from the president, followed by encouragements from the faculty to the new students.
Horikita remained standing throughout the ceremony and left immediately afterward.
Ayanokoji left a little later.
This is normal; just because we are loners doesn't mean we'll become friends.
Not that easily.
I stood outside waiting for Yukinoshita. She seems to be taking a long time inside because she was at the front.
I started observing the students walking nearby.
Some walk in groups,
while others, loners by nature, walk quickly and glance at others.
I don't know if this is due to experience, but I can identify the loners at a glance.
Humans are truly strange.
Just as there are people who cannot even start a normal conversation, there are others who have already formed their groups on the very first day.
"Hikigaya-kun, you're looking at people strangely. They might call the police."
"Ah." I was lost in my thoughts and didn't notice Yukinoshita approaching.
"No, they won't call the police for such a small thing. At most, they'll mutter something like 'pervert.'"
"Shouldn't you avoid this altogether and look at people normally?" she said, massaging her temples as if… she was tired.
I decided to change the topic by asking her:
"So, what should we do now?"
"I was thinking we haven't eaten anything since morning… and I also feel a little tired."
Right, I haven't eaten anything since breakfast. My little sister's meal was really delicious.
I thought of not eating anything so that the last food I ate would remain her meal, but I can't endure that for three years.
So I'll back down from my decision.
She seems tired.
True, the trip from Chiba to Tokyo isn't very long, but you'll feel tired from traveling anyway.
Also, there's mental fatigue.
Even the Ice Queen would be psychologically affected by leaving her family.
"It's already evening. What do you think if we go to a restaurant and then to the dorm?"
It would be an opportunity to try the food here, and I also need a chance to organize my thoughts.
"I was thinking of visiting a small store to buy what we need and grab something simple from there."
We'll need many things: toothpaste, soap, and so on. A cup of instant ramen will suffice too.
"That works for me. I saw a store on our way here. Let's go there."
We started walking together toward it. It seems small stores are spread throughout the place and varied.
Some seem expensive, while others are ordinary.
The store we visited was fairly normal, providing almost everything we needed.
I started browsing inside.
This store offers almost everything a student could need: food, cleaning products, drinks—everything, mostly from brands found abroad.
I stood in front of a vending machine looking for my favorite drink.
"Seems it's not here. I'll look in other stores. Not today, but I promise I'll find it."
"Hikigaya-kun." I heard Yukinoshita's voice from the other side. She seems to need me.
"Come and take a look at this."
"This…"
There was a basket with some products that seemed cheap.
A sign above it read: "Free, up to five products monthly."
"Monthly allowance and free products…"
This confirms my suspicion.
"Maybe it's for people who have run out of points… but well, that's generous."
"Seems there's something really suspicious."
"Yes…"
Money without work, products without money? This is paradise!
All I know is you don't enter paradise without a price… so what is it?
"Hmmm, I'll start investigating this more."
"What will you do…" said Yukinoshita, her fingers touching the products.
"I don't know, but I'm sure there's something behind all this… If I investigate more, I'll find an explanation."
Yukinoshita nodded.
"Alright…"
We decided to postpone thinking about all this.
We took everything we needed and some food that would suffice for tonight.
The checkout process was really smooth.
After paying, the counter on the screen moved; it was no longer 100,000.
So this counts as real money.
"The technology used here is truly unique."
Said Yukinoshita, checking her phone.
"Yes… it's like a miniature simulation of society."
We left the small store carrying grocery bags, searching for the dorm.
Finding it was easy thanks to signs everywhere.
It seems the building houses both boys and girls.
Boys are on the lower floors, girls on the upper floors.
After taking our room cards, we rode the elevator.
"Nyeh, Hikigaya-kun…"
"Hmm…"
Yukinoshita was looking down. Is she troubled?
"Have… have you tried if your phone works?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, can you make calls and send messages?"
"No, but…"
She blushed after understanding what I meant exactly.
Why are we so bad at this? Even a small request like sharing contact information is hard for us.
Or is it just because we complicate things?
"What if you give me your number so I can try?"
I said while looking the other way. Why is this so embarrassing?
"O-okay…"
After exchanging contact info, a small smile appeared on Yukinoshita's face.
She's… nice.
For the record, we didn't try if the connection works.
Exchanging the info was enough for us.
Meanwhile, the elevator reached the second floor, where my room is.
"I'll get off here… see you tomorrow."
After she exited the elevator, I heard Yukinoshita Yunadeni's voice:
"Hikigaya-kun… I'm counting on you."
These words left her beautiful lips, and a genuine smile appeared before disappearing behind the elevator door.
I wished time would stop and the elevator door wouldn't close.
This is really annoying.
I moved from in front of the elevator after freezing there for a while.
I started walking down the hallway searching for my room.
After finding it, I heard the elevator open again.
It was… Ayanokoji?
It seems we're on the same floor.
Our eyes met, but it seemed neither of us intended to start a conversation.
I decided to ignore him and searched for my card that I had put in my pocket.
It seems… he's in the neighboring room?
I felt like I should say something, but… I didn't know what.
Alright, I know how to deal with this feeling.
I entered my room and closed the door.
"Hikigaya…"
Ayanokoji's voice came in the same tone.
Do his voice and facial expression never change?
"What?"
"Seems we're neighbors."
"Alright?"
"Isn't this the situation where we say: let's get along?"
I let out a dry laugh.
"I don't know… goodbye."
I opened the door quickly and entered.
I didn't hear any reply from him.
This is really nerve-wracking.
The room is really perfect.
Its size is simple, and it has everything a student needs.
There's a kitchen, so I probably won't have to waste my points on restaurant meals.
I'm not a cooking expert, but I can cook some simple dishes.
I put the grocery bag in the kitchen, my bag on the desk, and lay down on the bed.
I took my phone out of my pocket and started looking at the page in front of me.
Points were given due to some vague school evaluation of our abilities or something.
This makes us equal.
If we forget all this and consider the school a society simulation:
Students are ordinary citizens.
They receive salaries from the school.
But in a society, not everyone gets the same amount due to different positions and promotions.
They compete with each other for promotions and higher wages.
Will we compete… for points?
Then, how will this competition work? Within the class only or the whole school?
It seems I need more evidence.
I'll investigate this matter further.
I really hate work.