Shizuka led Hachiman and Ren to a relatively secluded corridor and stopped in front of a classroom.
After rapping her knuckles twice on the door, Hiratsuka didn't wait for a response from inside; she slid the door open and walked right in. Hachiman, afraid that lagging behind would earn him another taste of Hiratsuka's Iron Fist on his head, followed closely behind.
Just as the classroom door was pushed open, a gentle breeze blew in from the window, causing Yukino Yukinoshita's long black hair to dance in the wind as she sat by the window.
Letting the breeze lift her hair, and hearing the sound of the door opening, Yukino Yukinoshita spoke with a somewhat resigned tone.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, I believe I've said before that you should knock before entering."
"I already knocked. You just didn't answer me, Yukinoshita."
"It's clearly that you didn't wait for my response at all, Hiratsuka-sensei."
Placing a bookmark in her book, Yukino finally looked toward the door. "Is there something you need from me today, Hiratsuka-sensei?"
"The school has a rule that a club must have at least three members to be officially established."
"Seeing that you're all alone here, Yukinoshita, as a kind-hearted teacher, I found two people for you."
As she spoke, Hiratsuka patted Hachiman, who was standing beside her, indicating that this was the student she had found for Yukino.
"Is it this person standing next to you who looks a bit dull-witted?"
"Also, Sensei mentioned two people."
Glancing at Hachiman standing beside Hiratsuka, Yukino corrected Hiratsuka's statement.
Hiratsuka looked back in surprise, only to see that Hachiman was the only one who had entered the classroom. Ren was still standing outside the door, looking at her with a smile.
Knock, knock—
The sound of knocking rang out again, but no one entered, as if waiting for the room owner's permission.
"Please come in."
Yukino gave a meaningful look at Hiratsuka, who was frozen in place.
Damn brat!
Hiratsuka's fist hardened.
She had entered directly after knocking earlier, and now Ren was pulling this stunt. He really didn't put his homeroom teacher in his eyes at all.
Ren, who was just looking for some amusement, entered the room. Upon seeing Yukino standing there, he froze, the smile on his face instantly solidifying.
Wait, what a coincidence?
"What a coincidence, Yukinoshita."
"Indeed, what a coincidence, Koenji."
"Hai, Just call me Ren."
Ren's expression recovered quickly. A sunny smile returned to his face as he greeted Yukino with familiarity.
Seeing that Yukino was the only one sitting on a chair in the classroom, Ren skillfully pulled three chairs from the stack of desks at the back of the room and handed them to Hiratsuka and Hachiman respectively.
"Th... thanks?"
Hachiman took the chair Ren handed him stiffly, unsure whether to stand or sit.
"Hachiman, you're surprisingly polite. Unlike someone."
Waving his hand to indicate it was nothing, Ren sat down directly, not forgetting to take a jab at a certain teacher.
"Brat, taking a dig at me, are you?"
Hiratsuka didn't have any image to maintain. She took the chair Ren offered, sat down, and spoke grumpily.
Seeing that all three people present were seated, Hachiman didn't hesitate anymore. He moved his chair next to Ren and sat down.
"Um... I want to ask, what does 'joining' mean?"
Having been dragged here by Hiratsuka in a daze and sitting down in a daze, Hachiman finally asked the question bothering him.
Hiratsuka-sensei was supposed to just be asking about club issues earlier; she didn't say I had to join, right?
"Literal meaning. Because of that essay of yours which was stupid to the extreme, your punishment is to join this club."
Seeing Hachiman wanted to protest, Hiratsuka added, "I will not accept any rebuttals, protests, questions, or talking back."
After speaking, Hiratsuka raised her fist at Hachiman threateningly.
"Then what about him?"
Hachiman shifted the battlefield and pointed at Ren.
"..."
Hiratsuka didn't speak.
"Sensei, do you think this place is some kind of boot camp—bringing students here like recruits to be whipped into shape?"
Listening to the exchange between Hachiman and Hiratsuka, Yukino's brows furrowed slightly. She was clearly dissatisfied with Hiratsuka's arrangement.
As long as the topic wasn't about Ren, Hiratsuka's chatterbox opened up immediately.
"Yukinoshita, you should be able to tell. This guy Hachiman's nature is as rotten as his eyes."
"This has led to him being a lonely and pitiful person to this day."
"So I want him to join this club to correct his twisted personality."
"This is my request."
Hiratsuka spoke with a serious face about her purpose for bringing Hachiman here. She had originally only intended to drag the problem child Hachiman into this club; Ren coming here was purely an accident.
As a qualified teacher, after witnessing Ren's so-called "youth," Ren had also become a problem child in her heart.
If possible, she also planned to trick Ren into joining the Service Club.
Sitting next to Hachiman, Ren listened to the conversation between the two women with interest, deducing what kind of club this actually was.
First mentioning Hachiman's personality issues, then asking Yukino to correct his personality, and finally saying this is her request. Coupled with what Hiratsuka said at the beginning about joining a club...
Connecting these keywords, a club that advocated helping others appeared in Ren's mind.
Seems I was tricked by Hiratsuka-sensei. How can this kind of club have anything to do with the word "interesting"?
"Hiratsuka-sensei, what about him?"
Not immediately rejecting Hiratsuka's proposal, Yukino turned her gaze toward Ren.
If Ren was also here to seek help and would join the club together with Hachiman, Yukino wouldn't mind accepting Hiratsuka's request.
Ren had indeed helped her yesterday, and Yukino wasn't the type of person who didn't repay kindness.
"Katsuragi? Him... Brat, do you have any thoughts?"
Not understanding why Yukino mentioned Ren, Hiratsuka could only scratch her cheek and look at Ren, asking him.
"Is this a club that advocates helping others?"
Rubbing his smooth chin, Ren wanted to confirm the deduction in his heart.
"If you want to understand it that way, Katsuragi, you're not wrong." Hiratsuka confirmed Ren's conjecture.
Ren was shocked.
It's really this kind of club? That's fantastic!
At this moment, Ren suddenly looked at Yukino, his eyes shining.
"Katsuragi, please don't look at me with those eyes. Otherwise, even if you have helped me, I will choose to call the police."
Ren's undisguised gaze staring at her made Yukino very uncomfortable. She immediately turned her body sideways, crossed her arms in front of her chest to protect herself, and didn't forget to warn Ren.
"Call the police? Yukinoshita-san, calling the police is useless."
As if seeing some rare treasure, Ren stood up and walked straight toward Yukino.
Heh heh heh...
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