The following day after school, the sunlight remained bright and beautiful, but the moods of the three Service Club members were rather out of step with the fine weather.
After meeting up at the school gate, they set off toward the elementary school that Aikawa Ren attended.
Along the way, the atmosphere was somewhat strained.
Yuigahama Yui still seemed troubled by the events of the previous day—or perhaps she was simply nervous about participating in her first official club request.
She spoke less than usual, only occasionally sneaking glances at Hikigaya and Yukinoshita from the corner of her eye.
Yukinoshita Yukino was as composed as ever, her stride unhurried, as if she were merely heading to an utterly ordinary extracurricular activity.
Only the occasional, faintly probing glance she cast toward Hikigaya—carrying a trace of something elusive—betrayed that she was not entirely indifferent.
Hikigaya Hachiman, sandwiched between the two, felt thoroughly ill at ease.
To his left, a bun-haired girl radiating inexplicably low pressure.
To his right, a childhood friend with an aura of cool detachment.
This combination was even more headache-inducing than facing the system’s options.
He tried to find a topic to break the silence, only to discover that his meager social skills were entirely useless at this moment.
“Um…
the elementary school shouldn’t be far, right?” In the end, he squeezed out a dry, stiff remark.
“According to the map, it’s about a fifteen-minute walk,” Yukinoshita answered calmly, her gaze scanning her phone screen.
“Oh…” Hikigaya grunted.
The topic died once again.
Watching this exchange—which barely qualified as an exchange at all—that stifled, heavy feeling surfaced in Yuigahama’s heart once more.
She drew a deep breath, made an effort to rally herself, and put on a smile.
“Um…
that Aikawa kid, I wonder what kind of child he is.
I hope he’s okay.”
“We’ll find out soon enough.” Yukinoshita’s tone held little inflection, but her eyes sharpened with seriousness.
After a walk that wasn’t particularly long, they arrived at the elementary school, which looked as though it had seen quite a few years.
After explaining their purpose to the gatekeeper, they were permitted to enter the campus.
Through Aikawa Ren’s classmates, they pieced together some information.
Aikawa was introverted and didn’t fit in well with others.
Recently, he had often seemed deeply preoccupied and sometimes bore strange bruises on his body.
Some classmates had vaguely heard that his father “didn’t really work” and that the family seemed to “owe a lot of money.”
These scattered fragments of information weighed heavily on all three of them.
Afterward, they found Aikawa’s homeroom teacher, a young woman with a worried expression.
Under Yukinoshita’s methodical questioning, the teacher revealed even more unsettling details.
“Aikawa-kun’s father…
ah,” the teacher sighed, lowering her voice.
“From what we know, he has no steady job, and…
his reputation isn’t good.
We’ve heard he has a gambling problem.
We tried making home visits before, but were turned away very rudely.
Recently, whenever we contact them, they always brush us off by saying the child is unwell.”
She paused, the worry on her face deepening.
“Also, a teacher in charge of the after-school walking group reported that around the days just before Aikawa-kun started his leave, there seemed to be some men—they looked like thugs or gangsters—loitering near the school.
It seemed like…
they were paying particular attention to Aikawa-kun’s route home.”
“Thugs or gangsters”?
“Paying particular attention to his route home”?
These words struck Hikigaya like a bolt of lightning!
Combined with what they’d already learned—”debts,” “gambling problem”—an extremely terrible possibility exploded in his mind.
Those thugs were very likely debt collectors!
And Aikawa Ren’s father, that degenerate gambler, could he possibly…
Just then, the icy mechanical voice rang out right on cue.
[Critical Decision Node Detected: Judgment in a Moment of Crisis.]
[Option 1: Plan carefully.
Gather more evidence first.
Contact Hiratsuka Shizuka and social services.
Proceed steadily and cautiously.
(Reward: Skill “Plan Before Acting (Basic)” — Slightly increases the success rate of plans)]
[Option 2: Act immediately!
Your intuition tells you tragedy could occur at any moment.
You must rush to Aikawa Ren’s home at once to prevent the danger that may be unfolding!
(Reward: Special Item “Emergency Rescue Signal” (Single-use) & High Risk, High Return)]
[Option 3: Give up.
The situation is complex and dangerous, far beyond the capacity of high school students.
Forcing your way in could bring disaster upon yourself.
(Reward: Skill “Avoiding Harm (Basic)” — Slightly reduces the probability of being dragged into altercation)]
In the description of Option 2, phrases like “tragedy could occur at any moment” and “High Risk, High Return” stabbed at Hikigaya’s nerves.
He thought of the fear and helplessness that little boy might be facing right now.
With barely a shred of hesitation, Hikigaya abruptly raised his head.
His eyes turned sharp.
He chose Option 2!
“There’s no time to take this slowly!” He spoke rapidly to Yukinoshita and Yuigahama, his voice carrying an unprecedented decisiveness.
“Yukinoshita, Yuigahama, call the police immediately!
Tell them everything we know—especially about those thugs and Aikawa Tsuyoshi’s gambling debts!
Tell them this may involve unlawful confinement or a serious threat against a minor!”
“Hikigaya-kun, what are you going to do?” Yukinoshita immediately detected his intent.
A flash of shock and…
concern shot through her ice-blue eyes.
“I’m going to the Aikawa residence to check!
I have to confirm whether that kid is safe right now!” As he spoke, Hikigaya’s gaze rapidly swept across the school grounds and locked onto an old bicycle leaning against the wall—unlocked.
“I’m borrowing this!”
“Wait!
Hikki!
It’s too dangerous!” Yuigahama had caught on too.
Her face instantly went pale, and she instinctively reached out as if to grab him.
Going alone to face those possible thugs and that violent father?
It was unthinkable!
But Hikigaya had already mounted the bicycle.
He glanced back at them, his gaze lingering on Yukinoshita’s face for just an instant.
His voice was urgent yet exceptionally clear.
“Call the police!
Hurry!”
He said no more.
He pushed down hard on the pedal, and the bicycle shot out of the school gate like an arrow loosed from its bow, merging into the flow of traffic and speeding toward the Aikawa residence.
His resolute, retreating figure carried a reckless courage that brooked no hesitation.
“Hikki!” Yuigahama cried out helplessly toward the direction where he had vanished.
Her eyes instantly reddened, her heart flooding with fear and worry.
Frantically, she pulled out her phone.
Her fingers trembled as she began dialing the emergency number.
In a tearful voice, she said to Yukinoshita, “Yukinon, what do we do…
Hikki, he’s all alone…”
Yukinoshita stood rooted to the spot, watching the direction in which Hikigaya had disappeared.
Her hands had unconsciously clenched into tight fists at her sides, her knuckles whitening from the force.
Her heart pounded violently, uncontrollably, inside her chest.
A surge of emotion swept over her—a mixture of shock, worry, and an indescribable, wrenching feeling.
The figure before her eyes now—charging toward danger without the slightest hesitation—and the small, clumsy yet brave figure in her memories overlapped heavily in this moment.
‘He hasn’t changed one bit.
Still that same idiot…
who, when someone is in need, throws himself forward without regard for his own safety…’
But right now, blame was useless.
Yukinoshita forcibly suppressed the waves surging within her and the complex feelings churned up by those memories.
She drew a deep breath and regained her composure, though her voice was just slightly more urgent than usual.
“Yuigahama-san, calm down!
Do as Hikigaya-kun said.
Relay the information to the police accurately.
I will contact Hiratsuka-sensei!”
Her voice seemed to carry a kind of magic, steadying the panicked Yuigahama somewhat.
Yuigahama nodded through her tears and began describing the situation to the operator on the other end of the line.
Yukinoshita swiftly took out her own phone and dialed Hiratsuka’s number.
Her movements remained methodical, but the faint tremor in her fingertips and the worried gaze that kept drifting toward the direction Hikigaya had taken clearly revealed the turmoil within her.
That Hikigaya Hachiman—always talking about running away, pursuing a life of solitude, the boy who had once stood up to protect her when they were children—at this very moment, he had once again thrown himself forward to save a helpless child.
Charging so unhesitatingly toward obvious danger…
That special feeling deep in her heart now transformed into thick, heavy worry, pressing down upon her chest.
Please…
don’t let anything happen to him.
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