I'm in a real religion, why are all the people who confess to me girls?

"I noticed that Horikita-san and Amane weren't planning on going back and were just standing here, so I came over out of curiosity to check on them and say hello... Huh? Is Amane asleep?"

"I'm rid of Shiina-kun!"

"Huh?! What?! Get out of here... Ahhhh, Horikita-kun, how... how could you..."

Shiina awkwardly clung to Amane, while Horikita Suzune turned and fled as if avoiding some monstrous flood.

"It's so heavy..."

Shiina's physical strength is quite good for a girl, but it is still quite difficult for her to support Amane. Although it is hard to tell that Amane is different from others when she is dressed, once you take her naked, you can see her terrifying muscles that are far beyond the average person. Therefore, Amane is not actually light, but she looks rather thin. No wonder Shiina finds it very difficult to support Amane.

"Your name is Shiina-kun, right?"

Upon hearing a male voice, Shiina peeked out from Amane's shoulder and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was Horikita Manabu. It would have been troublesome if someone had tried to pick her up at this moment.

“That’s right, I’m Hiyori Shiina from Class C, first year. I didn’t expect President Horikita to still remember me.”

Horikita Manabu truly remembered Shiina Hiyori, and shortly after the start of the first year, the second-year librarian pointed out the first-year students' rampant vandalism and even fighting in the library.

At the time, Horikita Manabu, who was the student council president, went to the site to investigate the damage to the library in order to submit an application for repair funds to the school. It was then that he met Shiina Hiyori.

A group of student council members were arguing fiercely about a fight, and the librarian demanded that the student council ensure the safety of the library and the students studying there, therefore the vandals must be severely punished.

The noise annoyed Horikita Gakuto, who reprimanded them for losing the proper demeanor expected of members of the High School Education Student Council.

It was at this moment that he noticed Shiina Hiyori, who had been sitting there completely unmoved by their argument, holding a book and reading it with great interest... The book seemed to be...

“I remember you were reading Ellery Queen’s ‘The Mystery of the Roman Hat’ at the time, right?”

Horikita Manabu finally recalled the scene from that day, and a slight smile appeared on his face.

"Eh? I didn't expect you to remember, President Horikita. Speaking of which, I read that book a long time ago, but after examining the mystery of the Roman hat in the library, as a professional mystery novel fan, I can confirm that it's definitely the Stokes edition!!!"

When Shiina talks about things she's interested in, she becomes very happy and shows a cheerful girl image that is completely different from her usual quiet style.

Unfortunately, Horikita Manabu is not a fan of mystery novels, so he naturally doesn't understand what this means.

Is there a problem?

"That was published by Stokes Publishing!!"

Hiyori Shiina emphasized it again.

Horikita Manabu understands that this matter is very important to Shiina Hiyori, but he cannot understand exactly what makes it so important. If they want to continue the conversation, the content of their dialogue must be something that both of them can understand.

For example, when Shiina Hiyori mentioned a publishing house he had never heard of, Horikita Manabu, unfamiliar with the specifics, naturally couldn't give Shiina Hiyori the feedback she wanted, and thus the conversation naturally ended.

Shiina Hiyori seemed to notice that Horikita Manabu's reaction was somewhat indifferent, and her initial enthusiasm quickly turned to calm.

Yes, not everyone shares the same interests as her. Horikita Manabu probably focuses more on studying. It's okay if she doesn't know what she's saying.

Anyway... it's not an important thing for other people.

"I'm really sorry, but when I talk about topics I like, I can't help but say things that are hard for others to understand."

"It's okay, I'm like that sometimes too..."

"I really can't stand it anymore, Horikita Manabu-senpai, you really have no sense of conversation."

Amane, who had been lying in Shiina's arms, sensed that something was wrong and stood up from Shiina's embrace, looking at Horikita Manabu with a helpless expression.

She originally wanted to stay a little longer, but Horikita's skills in talking to girls were so bad that he killed the conversation after only a few sentences. Unable to bear it any longer, Amane had no choice but to give up and pretend to be asleep.

"Tianyin, are you awake already? What happened just now..."

Hiyori Shiina subconsciously glanced at her chest.

In order to learn how to chat with Horikita, she hugged Amane to her chest. Because they had just talked about a topic that aroused her, Shiina couldn't help but press Amane's head into her own...

Ahhhhh! !! !!

"I don't think there's anything wrong with my way of chatting. Shiina's hobbies are indeed niche, how could I possibly know them so thoroughly? It's not entirely my fault if I can't keep up with the conversation."

Horikita Manabu shrugged. For a normal person, it's perfectly normal not to know certain things the other person is talking about.

"So shouldn't we learn more about this kind of knowledge in our daily lives?"

"That day, did you know what Shiina was trying to say?"

"There are only 8,000 copies of Stokes Publishers' The Mystery of the Roman Hat in the world, making it an extremely rare item among rare editions! Right, Hiyori-chan?"

"Hiyori-chan?"

Shiina Hiyori was stunned for a moment. After confirming that Amane was calling her by such an affectionate nickname, Shiina felt a burning sting on her cheek.

"Wait a minute, Tianyin, isn't this way of addressing me a bit too... too cunning!"

Chapter 225: Is your arrogance inherited from your ancestors?

"Wait a minute, Tianyin, isn't this way of addressing me a bit too... too cunning!"

Shiina blushed and protested quietly to Amane.

"Hmm... if Hiyori-chan isn't suitable, how about Shiina or Hiyori-chan?"

Amane, with a serious expression, uttered two more nicknames that made Shiina blush even more.

Koshiina, Kohiyori?

Isn't this even more shameful?

"It seems... still a little embarrassing."

Although some classmates call her "Little Sunny," those people are different from Amane. Some classmates call her that just to show that the two have a good relationship.

However, the way some names are spoken can change the meaning. For example, when Amane called Hiyori in that ambiguous tone, Shiina felt as if an electric current had run through her body. She didn't even dare to think about what kind of misunderstanding would occur if Horikita and the others heard Amane calling her that.

"Damn it... if even that's not okay, then I guess I'll just have to... darling~"

"Ehhhhh!!! This is absolutely unacceptable! I'll be killed, I'll definitely be killed!!"

Shiina covered her ears as if she had heard something terrifying.

In Shiina's mind, this extremely illegal term of address is something only lovers can use to call each other "darling." If Horikita knew that Amane was calling Shiina this way, it wouldn't just be a misunderstanding; Shiina might be so scared that she wouldn't dare to walk at night.

"What about the baby?"

"Amane, the names you use for me are all horrifying. Maybe you should just call me Shiina or Hiyori..."

"How can this be!"

Shiina was interrupted angrily by Amane before she could finish speaking.

Amane walked quickly to Shiina, placed her hands on Shiina's shoulders, and looked at Shiina with a serious expression.

"You and I are good friends, right?"

Shiina pondered for a moment. Although she didn't interact with Amane as much as she did with her classmates, there was no doubt that Shiina had long regarded Amane as her best friend.

"Of course! Tianyin, you're definitely my good friend... ya."

Even though they are just good friends, Shiina blushed deeply when the topic of their relationship came up, and it's unclear whether she was thinking of something strange.

"Since we're good friends, calling you 'baby' or something like that is really inappropriate. How about this, I'll compromise and call you Hiyori-chan, okay?"

Hiyori-chan? This is more in line with their current relationship than "Baby," huh?! Isn't something a little off?

"I always feel there's something strange about Tianyin..."

"Don't worry, Hiyori-chan~ How could I bear to lie to my lovely Hiyori-chan?"

Cute.

Although Tianyin always gives off a somewhat unreliable vibe, she's never short of cute girls around her, which proves that her taste is sound. In other words...

"Am I really... cute? I don't think I'm very cute. The day before yesterday, Mio said I wasn't cute at all."

When it comes to cuteness, Shiina can't help but recall the scene from the day before yesterday when she went shopping with Ibuki. Since Ibuki rarely invited her to go shopping for clothes, Shiina agreed to go even though she planned to stay in her dorm and read books.

While passing by a clothing store, Shiina immediately spotted a classic detective jacket, along with a pair of glasses and a small pipe accessory. To avoid looking too strange, Shiina even tried it on in front of the mirror. Once she felt everything was okay, Shiina appeared in front of Ibuki wearing this dazzling outfit.

Then Ibuki made a surprised sound.

"Ha! What outdated taste do you have?"

Old, outdated?

When Shiina heard this comment, she froze on the spot, and even the smile on her face became stiff.

She never expected that the clothes she had carefully selected would be considered outdated and tasteless in Ibuki's eyes. Had her taste really gotten that bad?

Shiina felt as if her heart had been hit by a thousand blows, but at that moment she had no idea that this was just the beginning of a nightmare.

"It's amazing that you could find such a vintage piece of clothing among so many trendy brands. Even my grandfather would think it's incredibly tacky, right?"

Click.

It seems like someone's heart has broken.

"To be honest, Hiyori, your taste is terrible. Girls with such outdated tastes are not cute at all in the eyes of the opposite sex, and you might never get married!"

Not cute at all.

Ibuki's words were far more destructive than all the previous words combined, and Shiina immediately felt a sense of despair about her life.

This was followed by a strong sense of crisis, such as, "Everyone seems to know how to dress tastefully; am I getting a bit out of touch with reality by being so engrossed in books?" and "It seems like everyone around me knows so much about relationships; should I try dating too? But... Xiaoling said I'm not cute enough as a girl; is that why I didn't receive a Valentine's Day gift?"

Shiina is undoubtedly a girl who is trusted by everyone in Class C of the first year. She is also ranked seventh on the list of "girls you most want to date" in the first year.

A girl who is beautiful, intelligent, and trusted should be a winner in life.

But the result was...

Even Ishizaki received Valentine's Day chocolates from others, but Shiina Hiyori didn't receive any Valentine's Day chocolates from her classmates. This statement might be a bit cunning, because in reality, apart from Amane, no one gave Shiina Hiyori any chocolates or similar gifts.

When others ask, Shiina always smiles and says "It's okay," but how could it be okay?! All the girls received chocolates from the boys, so how could she possibly forget about her?

There must be some reason why people are unwilling to give her chocolates!

So, Shiina, who was holding this thought, suffered a severe blow to her self-confidence after hearing Ibuki's comment that she was "not cute at all".

Because she's not cute at all, people subconsciously forget about her when giving her chocolates.

This strange logic connects the whole thing, and everything seems to make sense.

Just when Shiina was about to accept this cruel reality, Amane praised her for being cute. Even though Shiina knew that Amane might just be being polite, she couldn't help but want to get an objective evaluation from this 'outsider'.

"Hiyori-chan is definitely cute~ But Ibuki is always so fierce, Hiyori-chan, don't become like her!"

"So, other people think I'm a cute girl too... Waaah!"

Shiina's face had just shown a smile when his expression suddenly changed, and he quickly covered his face and squatted down on the ground.

This sudden action startled Tianyin, who quickly squatted down as well.

"Hiyori-chan, are you feeling unwell?"

"I...I can't believe I asked such a cheesy question! I'm so embarrassed!"

Shiina is really easily embarrassed.

This adorable reaction reminded Amane of Karuizawa from before. In the past, Karuizawa would blush and run away if Amane teased her even slightly. Now, after learning bad habits from Amane, even if Amane told some dirty jokes in front of her, Karuizawa would at most blush and call Amane a pervert.

They have grown a lot.

But this made Tianyin feel like she had lost a lot of fun.

To her surprise, when she turned around, she found that Shiina was also the kind of girl who was easily embarrassed. So, does that mean she could…

"Alright, alright, it's okay. No one else heard us anyway, so don't be afraid."

“But what about President Horikita…”

Shiina peeked through her fingers at Horikita Manabu, who looked like he had a stomachache and didn't know what to say.

"Horikita-senpai, what are you still doing here? I almost forgot you existed because you haven't said a word for so long."

Amane was startled when she suddenly discovered that Horikita Manabu was behind her.

Horikita Manabu, who hasn't said a word for a long time, has truly minimized his presence.

"I would like to chime in, but your topic makes it impossible for me to get involved."

It's not Horikita Manabu's fault; both of them are rather oblivious to each other, and they subconsciously ignored Horikita Manabu as they chatted.

On the other hand, Horikita Manabu couldn't help but inwardly complain that the conversation between Amane and Shiina really made his stomach hurt.

As a result, Horikita Manabu developed the idea that chatting with girls was a pain.