Chapter 52: "You Two Have Such a Good Relationship"

"Why did I have to take that slap...?" Looking at Yukinoshita Yukino sulking on a nearby chair and Yuigahama Yui trying hard to cheer her up, Hikigaya Hachiman rubbed the red mark still lingering on his face and pondered. It was Yukinoshita who had him try the cookie as a test subject—and he nearly ended up crossing the Sanzu River. After barely managing to escape from that ordeal, he opened his eyes only to see her standing right in front of him. Speaking of which, this normally aloof and icy beauty was wearing pure white underwear... with little animal prints on it. "That doesn't match her outward image at all!" Although, the animal prints being cats... that actually kind of suits Yukinoshita. "What kind of dirty thoughts are running through your head now, Peeping-kun?" Just as Hachiman's thoughts were spiraling, Yukinoshita's cold voice echoed in his ears. "I wasn't thinking anything weird. And what's with this 'Peeping-kun' nonsense?" Hachiman snapped back to reality and quickly refuted her accusation. What happened before was purely accidental, okay? Sure, maybe he bears some responsibility for looking, but isn't the main issue that she was standing directly in front of him? If she hadn't been standing there, he wouldn't have seen that the moment he looked up... "I think Peeping-kun knows exactly what I mean." Yukinoshita shot back immediately. "You two seem really close~" Just as Hachiman was about to argue again, Yuigahama, who had been quietly observing, suddenly said something shocking. "Huh?!" "Huh?!" Both Hachiman and Yukinoshita had the same thought simultaneously: I'm close with this person?! "When you two talk, I can't even get a word in..." Completely unaware of the weight of her words, Yuigahama continued casually. "I mean, I'm not great at socializing either, but when I talk with Miura and Ebina, I can always find a way to join the conversation. But with you two, I can only stand by and watch..." As she finished, Yuigahama smiled sheepishly, but a faint shadow of sadness flickered across her face. —— Silence fell. Hachiman and Yukinoshita exchanged glances. To avoid giving off the impression that they were close, they both silently agreed to a temporary ceasefire. "Anyway, this time, follow my steps exactly and remake the cookies..." Treating Hachiman like he didn't exist, Yukinoshita pulled Yuigahama over to a workbench and, undeterred by failure, began instructing her in baking once again. Realizing that Yukinoshita was now using the "cold shoulder" technique on him, Hachiman just shrugged, found a seat, and waited for the second batch of cookies to be ready. However, the moment he sat down, an image of a girl with long purple hair suddenly flashed through his mind. "!" Startled, Hachiman jumped up and began gasping for breath, trying to recall the girl's face. He was sure—absolutely sure—that he had never seen this girl before. So why was her image stuck in his head? "Peeping-kun, are you okay?" Though still technically giving him the cold shoulder, Yukinoshita couldn't help but show concern seeing Hachiman's odd behavior. After all, while he was annoying, he was a member of the Service Club. As the president, she had a duty to ensure her members were in good health. "I-I'm fine..." Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, Hachiman shook his head and sat back down. But the girl's face returned to his mind. And not just her face—accompanied by a sudden burst of light, he found himself transported to a beautiful, flower-filled place filled with birdsong. "It's a nice place, isn't it?" A lively voice came from behind him. Hachiman turned around and saw the very same girl from his vision standing not far away. "Who are you?" Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, Hachiman asked hesitantly. "My game ID is Yuuki. As for my real name... it doesn't matter anymore." The girl named Yuuki smiled and stretched casually, then began walking toward him like it was nothing. "Game ID? What is this place?!" Seeing her approach, Hachiman instantly grew cautious. "No need to be so tense~" Yuuki laughed, covering her mouth as she looked at Hachiman's guarded posture. After laughing for a while, something seemed to amuse her even more, and she began rolling around on the grass, clutching her stomach. "Hey!" Hachiman couldn't help but call out as she continued to laugh, completely ignoring him. "Ah, sorry, sorry. I was just thinking... with your personality, you'd probably survive all the way to the end if you entered that world. You might even become a famous powerhouse..." Wiping away her laughter-induced tears, Yuuki stood up and dusted herself off. "'Clear the game'...? What does that even mean?" Another completely unfamiliar phrase. Hachiman frowned and looked warily at her. "Sorry, none of this stuff exists in your world yet. So I won't waste time explaining." Yuuki's tone shifted as she paused briefly, then her expression turned serious. "You came to learn the Mother's Rosario, didn't you?" . . . "Add sugar and butter into a bowl over hot water, let it melt and sit for ten minutes. Then, use a whisk to break up the butter into small chunks." "Then whisk it until it forms a breadcrumb-like texture. Add in raw egg liquid, stir quickly, add a mix of flour and milk powder, knead into crumbs, and split into two parts." "One part gets more flour and cocoa powder, the other just flour. Use molds to shape them, then bake in oil until the cookies harden, and flip them over..." Yukinoshita was teaching Yuigahama step-by-step how to bake cookies, watching closely to ensure no more culinary disasters occurred. Every now and then, she'd glance at Hachiman sitting silently on the bench, checking to see if he was still alive. At last, after nearly using up all the ingredients, Yuigahama completed her batch of cookies. Aside from being a bit charred in color, they smelled and looked about the same as Yukinoshita's. "These ones probably won't kill anyone... right?" Watching Yuigahama place the cookies onto a plate, Yukinoshita muttered to herself. Yes, they probably wouldn't. If Hachiman survived that obviously toxic batch from earlier, these should be fine—especially since Yukinoshita had supervised everything this time. Thinking this, Yukinoshita called over Yuigahama to rest, then headed toward Hachiman to ask him to try the new batch.