I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

Asuna Yuuki was lost in confusion.

……

Kyoto University Gymnasium, around noon.

A cold wind was blowing outside, but the atmosphere inside the venue was bustling with activity.

The morning's matches have concluded, bringing the four-day National College Students' Kendo and Fencing Competition to a close.

Finally, the contestants from Chiba Municipal Sobu High School and Kuroyuri Girls' Academy stood on the podium.

Amid cheers and applause, some even suggested that the two star players fight each other with bamboo swords and rapiers to see which side would become the strongest champion of the entire competition.

After all, whether it was the kendo boy who easily completed the feat of taking on five opponents in just over a minute in the finals, or the chestnut-haired girl with a graceful and light figure whose slender sword was as swift and beautiful as a shooting star, their strength made people doubt their eyes and find it hard to believe that a mere high school student could be so strong.

That's why, in this competition, they were unlucky enough to encounter two formidable opponents. All the defeated contestants, even if they were unwilling and even if they shed tears, had to admit that among everyone present, they were probably the only ones who could defeat each other.

He's really as strong as a monster!

Of course, the organizers couldn't possibly agree to such an absurd request. After awarding the prizes and saying their usual platitudes, they started preparing to leave, sending the high school students home to their own families.

Before returning to her guesthouse to pack her luggage, Asuna Yuuki left the Black Lily Academy group and secretly went to Soubu High to find Yuu Tenkuji.

"Tenkuji-kun, may I bother you for a moment?"

"Yes, yes... Is there something you need?"

The other members of the Kendo Club were chatting not far away, while he was accompanied only by two girls from the Service Club.

Tenkuji Yu's lips curved slightly, and he looked at himself with curiosity. He looked cheerful and handsome, easily bridging the distance between him and others.

For no apparent reason, Asuna Yuuki hated his expression and even wanted to put her hand on his face and rub it off forcefully.

She shook her head; of course, she couldn't actually do that.

"I want to ask you... have you ever played the game 'Swordsman Online'? My brother gave it to you."

He asked doubtfully, "Yes, I do. I remember answering that question last time, didn't I?"

"So, do you still have your account?" Seeing the puzzled looks on the other two girls' faces, Yuuki Asuna coughed awkwardly, her face slightly red, and said, "Y-my brother asked me to ask. It seems there's a problem with the tech department."

Yuu Tenkuji nodded: "Of course it's still there."

"Where's the ID?"

"..." He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but brushed it off with a thoughtful expression, "It's been too long since I've been online, I don't remember some of it... but it should be called 'Haru'."

“Haru? I see…” Yuuki Asuna muttered, ignoring the slightly wary expression on Yuu's face and not giving Tenkuji Yu a chance to ask further, before continuing with a serious expression:

"So, have you ever had an online relationship? Or rather, have you ever had a girlfriend?"

"..."

Yuuki Tenkuji, Yukino Yukinoshita, and Yui Yuigahama all looked at her with surprise as she casually asked the question.

Yui Yuigahama was the first to react, protectively grabbing Yuu Tenkuji's arm, her little cheeks puffed out as she stared intently at Asuna Yuuki's pretty face, and spoke cautiously:

"Asuna-chan, why are you asking this?"

Chapter Five: I Want to Transfer School!

"Well..."

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit off, and realizing that her question was too direct and she probably wouldn't get a real answer, Yuuki Asuna took a deep breath, suppressed the emotions that had been nagging at her since morning, and shrugged at the three of them with a wry smile.

"I'm just asking on behalf of our club members. If you don't want to answer, that's fine too~ I'll head back now, see you next time!"

"Mmm!" Yui nodded vigorously, a smile spreading across her face. "Let's play cards together again next time! This time, without Yuuki, let's have a girls' party!"

"Yuihama-san, did you even ask for my opinion...?"

Asuna Yuuki smiled and waved to them, "Okay, it's settled then. Keep in touch on LINE when you get back."

After saying goodbye to everyone at Zongwu High School, she returned to the school team, occasionally frowning as she pondered something, and sometimes taking out her phone to chat with her brother.

About three hours later, after leaving the culturally rich old town of Kyoto, the air of Tokyo, even more polluted than before, hit us as soon as we got off the Shinkansen.

After declining invitations to a celebration party, karaoke, and shopping, Yuuki Asuna hastily said goodbye to her classmates from Black Lily Academy and took a taxi straight home, returning to her room without stopping.

Then I took out my notebook and started writing down things that I hadn't thought much about in the past, but now, upon reflection, seem somewhat illogical.

"Why did Mom agree to let me play games so easily...?"

"Why did Mr. Sugo suddenly go abroad...?"

"Why am I able to talk back to my mom and reason with her now...?"

"Why is my skill proficiency increasing so quickly...?"

"Why was I able to complete Granny Ma's task...?"

"Why am I happy... why am I sad..."

"Why do I feel like I've seen Yuu Tenkuji before, but I can't remember where I've seen him before?"

"Why is it that, even though I've barely spoken to him, I reflexively assume that the matter is related to him?"

Why was there not a single reason that could put her mind at ease, even though the paper was filled with writing?

Asuna Yuuki slumped down, put down her pen, and lay back on the bed, letting her chestnut hair spread messily across the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"This world is so strange..."

The real world is even more unreal than virtual stealth games—where exactly did things go wrong?

Her chaotic thoughts made her head feel like an overheated machine, forcing her to temporarily stop thinking and let herself cool down.

I lay in bed as if asleep, and before I knew it, it was dinner time.

Upon hearing her mother's instructions outside the door, Asuna Yuuki suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze firm and serious, like a drawn sword.

"Thinking wildly here won't solve anything! If we want to uncover the truth, we have to get closer to the place with the most suspicious points."

The game world is one thing; I need to go online later and have a good talk with Grandma Ma. I also need to ask my brother to check the "data is corrupted" record.

Then comes reality...

When I went downstairs, Aunt Sada had already cooked dinner. My mother was sitting at the dimly lit table with only candles lit. She started eating dinner before I even got there, while fiddling with her tablet.

"Mom, we won the national championship!"

The mother stared at the tablet without looking up, her expression indifferent as she said, "Yes, it's good that the club is doing well, but you must remember that as a student, academic performance should always come first. If you've already won the national championship, then you should quit the club and focus on your studies. Stop practicing those useless things."

“Okay, I’ll leave the club.” Asuna Yuuki nodded and pulled out a chair to sit down.

Instead, her mother stopped eating and raised an eyebrow at her with surprise: "What, not talking back anymore? You argued with me for so long about joining the club, but now you're so obedient..."

Asuna Yuuki picked up her knife and fork and said calmly as she ate, "Because the next thing we're going to argue about is more important, I can agree to either quit the club or get first place in my grade."

"...What mischief are you planning to pull this time?"

The mother's face was pale. She put her work tablet aside, the candlelight reflecting in her deep, cold pupils, trying to make herself feel cold all over.

However, she no longer feared that kind of mother or that kind of indifference.

Asuna Yuuki also put down the cutlery she had just picked up, and like a soldier charging into battle, she spoke to her mother, word by word, in an unquestionable and resolute tone:

"The sooner the better, I want to transfer to Soubu High School!"

"..."

△

Time seems to have reversed slightly.

At noon, after seeing off Asuna Yuuki, who had asked strange questions, Yuu Tenkuji and the others boarded the bus together.

Their luggage had already been placed in the train carriage, and they had checked out of their guesthouse. Now they could head directly to the Shinkansen and return to Tokyo.

Because Natsukawa Masuzu wasn't there, the person sitting next to Tenkuji Yu was replaced.

"Tenkuji-kun, you showed me something good in today's match."

With a gentle smile on his face, Minister Himura approached him, who was sitting by the window, and suddenly grabbed his wrist. His voice was as warm as a spring breeze: "Is this the same hand that imitated my Flying Sword Style and single-handedly crushed the opposing team, with so few calluses? It's really hard to believe."

As he spoke, he touched the area slightly to the right of the ring finger of Tenkuji Yu's left hand, and the fleshy part under his thumb, with unusually careful and gentle movements.

As if a muscular man had groped his crotch, Yuu Tenkuji instantly got goosebumps all over his body, quickly pulled his hand back, and glared at him with disgust.

"Speak properly, or I'll beat you up!"

Department Head Himura innocently raised his hands, but smiled broadly and said, "Don't worry, I'll just use my hands. It's like a traditional Chinese medicine palpation, there's nothing to be afraid of."

"Who cares if you're doing a physical examination? Anyway, if you want to be gay, don't come to me. I'm not interested in men."

"What a coincidence, me too. I don't like those who are too weak."

"Who's talking about strength? We're discussing gender, aren't we?"

"Sigh, can't I even touch it out of curiosity?"

"If you say another word to me, I'll switch places with Yukinoshita."

Yukino Yukinoshita in the back seat: "..."

After refusing the other party's requests without any politeness, and seeing that the overly enthusiastic minister finally quieted down, Yuu Tenkuji sighed softly and looked out the window.

The girl in the back seat could be seen reflected in the windowpane; her cold gaze seemed capable of freezing even the frogs in the lake.

Tenkuji Yu smiled at her, but she frowned and looked away in disgust.

"What's going on? My smile looked so beautiful..."

He glanced at the mirror on the glass, but because he couldn't see himself very clearly, he quickly became too lazy to look at himself anymore. He rested his head against the glass, closed his eyes, and began to doze off, using the cool window as a pillow.

The third mission is over.

As is customary, Tenkuji Yuu let the system withdraw its emotions—he believed this was the last time.

After waking up this morning, he made a decision to change and confront the things he had been afraid to face in the past.

He would stop indulging himself until he could face the next task without having to withdraw his emotions...

This is probably what growth is all about, right?

Although there are only two missions left, it seems a bit late to talk about this now, but it doesn't matter.