I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

Chapter 115 All I Seek Is an Echo

She sighed helplessly, seemingly trying to appear calm and composed, but her gaze couldn't help but wander away. Her hands awkwardly pulled her skirt down, trying to cover the area above her knees.

Her thighs rubbed together gently, the fabric making a soft rustling sound, and her usually stern posture seemed to soften slightly.

Unfortunately, Miss Yuki-onna's shyness only lasted a few seconds before she quickly turned into wariness.

"However, I never expected that you would have such lewd thoughts about me while you were doing club activities... I can understand that men sometimes can't control their eyes, but if you dare to put your hand on me, I will immediately activate the anti-pervert alert on my phone!"

Tenkuji Yu rolled his eyes at her and said bluntly, "Don't worry about that. Your charm isn't so great that it would make me commit a crime. I won't even touch you."

"I hope you remember what you said today." Yukino Yukinoshita gave a cold snort, feeling both relieved and inexplicably displeased.

Yui Yuigahama glanced back and forth between the two, seemingly sensing something and puzzled but unable to find evidence. She quickly turned her gaze to Masuzu Natsukawa beside her and tentatively spoke:

"Natsukawa-kun, Yu has already said that... do you want to switch seats back?"

"..."

Words are like stones sinking into the sea.

It was as if everything that had just happened was a nightmare, or as if everything I saw and heard was an illusion I didn't want to accept.

Her long hair pressed against the cold glass, concealing her expression. Natsukawa Masuzu pinched her nose under her mask, closed her eyes, and let the world sink into boundless darkness.

"I slept."

"Then let's not disturb her, let's take a seat quickly."

Without changing her expression, Yuu Tenkuji continued, "Minister, would you like a seat by the window or the corridor? I'm fine with either."

Which position is the easiest to fight back after being attacked?

Yukino Yukinoshita had this thought in her mind, and then stepped aside: "Let's use the corridor."

Under Yui Yuigahama's hesitant gaze, Yuu Tenkuji sat down in the seat in front of Masuzu Natsukawa.

Yukino Yukinoshita then gathered up her skirt, sat down properly beside him, and took off her coat.

The two did not touch each other, just like classmates who happen to sit next to each other on a bus, tacitly maintaining an appropriate distance.

The girl was aloof and elegant, tucking her long black hair behind her ear with her slender hands, her gaze always lowered, never glancing at the boy beside her.

Out of the corner of his eye, Yuu Tenkuji could see the blush on her fair ears and the careful way she draped her coat over her legs.

"It's a shame she's usually so narcissistic, but she gets shy after just a few compliments..."

Tenkuji Yu pursed her lips and turned her gaze back to the window.

The bus carrying everyone moved slowly forward, the streets it passed by like a receding landscape painting, soon fading from memory.

……

Praising another girl's legs in front of your girlfriend, saying she's your type, is tantamount to suicide. Any normal kid should never imitate this. If you don't have a girlfriend, then disregard what I said.

It's just that in extraordinary times, Yuu Tenkuji chose to use extraordinary methods.

He still remembered what Natsukawa Masaki had said that night:

"You're so gentle that, having nothing to offer, I'm starting to want to run away."

In other words, the gentler you are, the further away she will be from you.

However, Tenkuji Yu was unwilling to deliberately hurt Natsukawa Masuri, because he would be the first person to be hurt.

Therefore, it's important to maintain a proper distance now.

You can't be too gentle with her, nor can you be too fierce—so just go along with her wishes, maintain the same ruthless attitude you had when you first met her, and at the right moment, conquer her in one fell swoop.

This is what Yuu Tenkuji is planning right now.

Getting his awkward girlfriend to be honest about her feelings was a significant challenge for him—Yukinoshita Haruno was different and couldn't be compared to him.

"This is only the first day..."

With a sigh, Yuu Tenkuji prepared to launch "I anticipated your move" again.

This is the third time this ability has been used on Natsukawa Masuzu.

He used that skill once when assigning seats, and successfully learned that Natsukawa Masui, who said she didn't want to sit with him, was actually crying out in sorrow inside:

"I want to sit with Ayu and go out to play. I want to lean on his shoulder and sleep. I want to inhale his scent and feel excited. I want to secretly play with his ○○ where no one can see me. I want to sit on his lap..."

This thing really does drop the SAN value every time you check it.

Moreover, whether it was his imagination or not, Natsukawa Masuzu was now like a lioness forced to the edge of a cliff, and her thoughts were several times more perverse, sensitive and extreme than usual.

Prepared for the SAN rating to drop, Tenkuji Yu activated his ability, imagining Natsukawa Masuzu's face in his mind, waiting for the system to pop up a notification.

"..."

Unexpectedly, it was as if the test subject had given up thinking, and all he was given was an empty and meaningless blank sheet of paper.

△

The man and woman have each other in their eyes, or perhaps they only have each other left.

"If you're going to sleep, then sleep properly. Don't lean your head against me."

"Ha, let's dream about that when we get to the guesthouse. What I really wanted to say is this: please don't touch my legs while I'm sleeping."

"Ha, who would want to touch your legs that have hardly any flesh on them?"

"Lies. You're getting better and better at lying through your teeth."

"Then I'll lie too. Don't think I didn't see the way your body swayed. If I hadn't warned you, I don't need to tell you what would have happened next, do I?"

"...That was an accident, and it hasn't happened yet!"

The car was quiet during the drive, with only the sound of regular breathing and the air conditioning, creating a peaceful and warm atmosphere inside.

Therefore, the above dialogue was conveyed through the eyes of Yuuto Tenkuji and Yukino Yukinoshita while they were glaring at each other.

"I can't be bothered with you, I'm going to rest."

After frowning at each other with disdain, they both turned their gazes away simultaneously.

Yukino Yukinoshita straightened her back, closed her eyes, and began to take a nap.

Meanwhile, Yuu Tenkuji looked out the window at the scenery, her expression slightly solemn as she pondered the itinerary for the past four days.

Not needing to be gentle doesn't mean you should deliberately flirt with other girls to annoy Natsukawa Masamichi; that's most likely to backfire.

If she chooses to return to Sweden in a fit of despair, Yuu Tenkuji will have to go to the airport to bring her back—he doesn't believe that the choice she made during this period was a well-considered decision, so he will naturally follow the agreement and bring her home before she leaves the country.

But what Natsukawa Masuzu cares about most and is most prone to emotional fluctuations is her relationship with other girls; if she is to break free from the idea of ​​escaping, jealousy is an absolutely indispensable element.

Now, at least there have been some results...

Tenkuji Yuu wasn't sure, because he suddenly couldn't detect Natsukawa Masuzu's "strong thoughts" anymore. He could only put "I predicted your actions" back on the sidelines and continue to rely on his keen observation skills to act according to circumstances.

But gradually, he suddenly had the feeling that he was a green tea bitch, stringing along a simp.

He feigned indifference to lure the enemy into a trap, his advances and retreats were calculated and well-planned, and he had exhausted all his cunning.

It's all about making others so eager that they eventually give in and abandon their principles and dignity.

Isn't this just normal practice for green tea sellers?

But who knew that all he wanted to hear was a response to his confession?

……

It was already 3 PM when we arrived in Kyoto from Chiba.

Chapter 116 Yukino Under the Snow. The Lie Detector.

To be fair, taking the bus to Kyoto is almost four times slower than taking the Shinkansen.

Even while driving, you can watch movies, sing karaoke, eat whenever you want, chat whenever you want, and occasionally stop at a rest area to enjoy the scenery or stroll through the shopping street.

But for many people, it's better to take the Shinkansen to Kyoto earlier, drop off their luggage, and then enjoy the sights there.

That's what Yukino Yukinoshita thought.

Throughout the journey, she kept muttering complaints about the Kendo Club's itinerary planning, regretting that she hadn't thought of this beforehand and reacted accordingly.

Then, in a place where she thought Tenkuji Yu couldn't see, she secretly rubbed her firm and perky little bottom, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, as if she was sitting for a while and her buttocks were a little numb.

While secretly chuckling, Yuu Tenkuji could also understand—after all, it wasn't just her. Unlike the trained kendo club members, Yui Yuigahama and Masuzu Natsukawa suffered from the torment of sitting for so long during the long bus journey. Towards the end, they basically just closed their eyes and let their consciousness completely separate from their bodies until they passed through the long tunnel at the prefectural border and arrived in Kyoto before they came back to their senses.

The atmosphere of this ancient cultural city can be felt from the scenery passing by outside the window.

From the old wooden houses scattered in the suburbs, to the red torii gates connecting the sky and the earth, to the modern steel buildings in the city center.

Everything in Kansai amazes many people from Kanto. Even those who have visited Kyoto before, whether for graduation trips or family vacations, are still impressed by the similar yet different scenery and landscapes, which rekindle their travel fatigue and bring them new expectations.

Fun and games had to be put aside for now. The bus's first stop in the Kansai region was Kyoto University, the venue for this year's National Kendo Tournament.

This prestigious university has a more modest and narrower entrance than most universities, reminiscent of the leisurely and tranquil atmosphere of Kyoto.

Looking around, it forms an ordinary yet indispensable scene with the tree in front of the school emblem.

Tenkuji Yu and the others got off the car, and while forming a group, their eyes kept darting around at the college students riding bicycles.

People dressed in casual clothes, carrying backpacks that looked like they were full of things, and riding bicycles through the campus were a common sight. Although they rode fiercely and fast, creating an atmosphere reminiscent of the chaotic traffic in the capital, it was also surprisingly quiet and harmonious. Everyone calmly overtook and was overtaken, and there was not a single noisy bell urging anyone to hurry up.

In addition, the school badges were displayed on the front of the sports uniforms, and the college students from all over the country formed a unique and new scene.

Including them, a crowd surged in front of the stadium, several youthful faces brimming with excitement. After encouraging each other, they shouted slogans with earth-shattering force:

"National champions! Unstoppable!"

The surge of passion seemed poised to break through the entire winter chill, tearing a patch of clear light from the rain-covered sky.

As the members of the Kendo Club were enthusiastically discussing whether they should shout a slogan to boost morale after completing the registration procedures, Yuu Tenkuji looked up at the red banner hanging outside the gymnasium.

"National College Fencing Competition..." Yui Yuigahama read it out for him, "So, it's not just kendo?"

"Japanese Kendo and Western fencing are combined in this national tournament, which has attracted a lot of controversy." Yukino explained, having done her homework beforehand. "Kendo is in the morning and fencing is in the afternoon. If you're interested, you can stay and watch tomorrow, but you probably won't understand it."

"It's okay if you don't understand, as long as it looks cool!" Yui Yuigahama quickly struck a fencing pose, then hesitated, "But if we watch the match, we won't have enough time to explore Kyoto, will we?"

"So you only came here to have fun after all..." Yukino Yukinoshita sighed helplessly. "This isn't a school trip, Yuihama-san."