74. An Unexpected Old Acquaintance from the Total Martial Arts Club
"Huh? So, Hikigaya-kun actually likes those energetic sporty girls?"
In front of them was a group of athletic girls dressed in short-sleeved tops and shorts. Judging by the way they bounced as they moved, their youthful bodies were full of elasticity. Especially a few of the tanned ones—even from Hikigaya's perspective, they were flawless examples of health.
But that's not the point!
"You've got it wrong, Jabami," Hikigaya said seriously, pointing at the baseball club not far away. "See over there?"
"That's... the baseball club?"
"Yeah. When I went to Aiura earlier this afternoon to exchange information, she told me that the two most outstanding girls there are officers of the Full-Bloom Association."
"I see."
Jabami nodded in understanding and looked toward the Ougatou sisters, who were acting as pitcher and catcher.
"Hmm… I don't really understand baseball rules, but they seem to have great coordination."
"Yeah, the key point is their coordination."
Hikigaya frowned—this was the situation he least wanted to encounter.
If it were a cheating method involving props, he could plan for it—like "triple dice" or "triple Memory"—finding weaknesses and using the opponent's tools to strike back.
But if the cheating method was based on mutual coordination, then the variables were far too many.
Of course, that didn't mean there was no countermeasure. The most direct and effective way was to find someone with whom he had equally good coordination and join the gamble together. That way, the match wouldn't just be about game comprehension or gambling technique but would become a contest of synergy.
Thinking of this, Hikigaya instinctively glanced at Jabami.
'If it's with Jabami, we could win a match like that easily.'
But the problem was, he was planning to go against the Full-Bloom Association. Would Mibuomi Aoi really sit by and do nothing? Or rather, how much did the Full-Bloom Association officers already know about him?
There was no hiding the fact that he had previously participated in gambles with Jabami. If the Ougatou sisters were even slightly cautious, they could very well refuse to accept a gamble involving them.
'I need to find a different assistant to participate.' Hikigaya Hachiman thought silently.
"Is something bothering you, Hikigaya-kun?" It was Jabami again—keenly sensing Hikigaya's unease.
Hikigaya didn't intend to hide it and laid out all his thoughts.
"In that case, it really is tricky," Jabami pondered for a moment, then suddenly puffed up her cheeks a bit and said, "But Hikigaya-kun and I really are not compatible, huh."
"To think you'd not want to enjoy the thrill of gambling against such a challenging opponent, Hikigaya-kun?"
"Boo~"
Indeed, in terms of their gambling philosophies, they were complete opposites. One pursued stable victories, while the other chased the thrill of walking the line between life and death.
Hikigaya chuckled and shook his head. On that point, if the two of them joined the gamble together, their supposed "synergy" might backfire instead. And he didn't want to try and correct Jabami's somewhat pathological obsession with gambling.
Keeping a sense of distance is the key to long-lasting friendship.
That was a truth Hikigaya Hachiman had come to realize in his sixteen years of life.
After Jabami's one-sided bout of playful whining, she returned to a serious expression and suggested, "How about trying Saotome-san? Or perhaps Aiura-san?"
"Yeah, Saotome already made a promise with me. As for Aiura, I'll go ask her myself."
This time, Hikigaya didn't feel any hesitation. After the student council check incident, Hikigaya was more willing to put his trust in others.
Saotome shared a common goal of revenge with him. Aiura Kokoro shared his ambition. They could both be considered allies in mutual interest.
Although Aiura Kokoro was slightly lacking in terms of ability, when it came to synergy, the demand for gambling skills wasn't as high. Besides that, bringing Aiura Kokoro along also added another layer of security.
The foot-in-the-door effect tells us that, before achieving one's goal, it's best to offer the other party some alternative options.
Refusing once makes it harder to refuse a second time. In Hikigaya's plan, there was still a possibility that the Ougatou sisters would refuse Saotome's participation.
'Then, let's go with the triple foot-in-the-door effect.'
'Bringing along Jabami, Saotome, and Aiura Kokoro—at least one of them will end up joining the gamble with me.'
Hikigaya Hachiman's strategy was flawless. He immediately shared this idea with Jabami Yumeko.
She looked back with a completely blank expression.
It was a while before she finally said, "Hikigaya-kun, you really are… so sneaky."
"In an adult's vocabulary, there's no such word as 'sneaky,'" Hikigaya shamelessly denied her remark. Even he hadn't realized it yet, but whenever he was with Jabami, the weight pressing on his heart seemed to ease a little.
"You're not even an adult yet… and already so…." Jabami Yumeko sneaked a glance at a certain part of Hikigaya's body and muttered quietly.
"?"
Hikigaya nearly choked on the spot—but out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a familiar silhouette in the corner of the field.
"Miura? What is she doing here?"
At first, Hikigaya thought he'd seen wrong, but after running through his memories, he realized the person looked at least 90% like Miura Yumiko.
And her expression… seemed conflicted? Or perhaps frightened.
Miura Yumiko—Hikigaya's middle school classmate. The two of them had a few run-ins during Yukinoshita Yukino's little "house play" (pretend family) scenario. But after graduation, they lost touch, and where the Flame Queen Miura Yumiko had gone, Hikigaya had no idea.
And now, she was here at Hyakkaou Private Academy.
'Now that I think of it, her family background should be pretty decent.'
"Hikigaya-kun, what's wrong?"
"Nothing… I just might have seen a classmate from middle school."
"Eh? A middle school classmate of Hikigaya-kun? Don't you want to say hi?"
"There's… not much connection between us."
"Hikigaya-kun, you should be a bit more outgoing sometimes."
Seeing that Hikigaya Hachiman seemed distracted, Jabami Yumeko took his hand without giving him a choice and started walking in the direction he had just been looking.
…
In a rarely visited grove, Hikigaya was reluctantly dragged along by Jabami Yumeko all the way here.
As for the reason behind his reluctance—he vaguely remembered accidentally catching a glimpse of Miura's pink panties once, which led to a huge misunderstanding. Meeting again now would be kind of… awkward.
"I mean, Jabami, isn't it kinda rude to just approach someone we don't really know like this?" Hikigaya Hachiman complained, feeling a bit of a headache. For some reason, though, he didn't actually feel repulsed by Jabami's behavior.
Half willingly, half unwillingly, he just went along with her.
Maybe, deep down, he still had a little nostalgia for his middle school days.
But the moment they walked deeper into the grove, Hikigaya's awkward expression instantly turned grave.
He heard Miura crying for help.