Chapter 23: Chapter 18
"Why did you skip school yesterday?" she interrogated as she approached him.
"I didn't, I was there," he defended himself. He had indeed been at school yesterday, just not for the entire day.
"I know you bribed your teacher to report that you were there. I asked one of your classmates, and he said you weren't present in the latter half of the day. So, I waited by the gate and never saw you leave. Confess." She had caught onto his ruse. He had indeed skipped school, but how did she find out? She mentioned that one of his classmates informed her, but his classmates were completely unaware of him until today. Then a name popped into his mind – Wataru Sajou. When they conversed, his Classmate A facade broke down since he now knew what Eden looked like. Consequently, when Shizuka inquired with his classmates, he recognized Sajou and his name, leading Shizuka to discover that he hadn't been in class.
"I only skipped the latter half of the day. Isn't that okay?" Eden admitted, not wanting to lie to his aunt, aware that she had concrete evidence and wasn't merely bluffing. However, he did want to discuss snitching with Sajou.
"I didn't want to resort to this, but I need to be sure you'll stay once you're here. Follow me." Upon hearing these words, he trailed behind his aunt toward the expansive special-use building where various clubs convened. According to Erina, this place was a known hook up spot for students, as less than half of the club rooms were genuinely utilized. Upon reaching the end of a corridor, she gestured for him to enter a room.
Inside, he encountered three individuals. Closest to the door was a boy who reminded him of Tomozaki in his loner demeanor. The next, with a significant gap between them, was a cute, slightly undersized girl with light orange hair, her uniform a tad out of code. Lastly, there stood a traditionally Japanese beauty, her long black hair adorned with ribbons intertwined within.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, I thought I instructed you to knock before entering."
"Even when I do knock, you never respond." His aunt and the black-haired girl appeared to have had this exchange multiple times, evident from how monotonously they went through the motions. As the rest of the room's occupants noticed him, the black-haired girl adeptly masked her surprise at his presence, while the orange-haired girl displayed a blush on her face. Meanwhile, the boy's expression screamed his inner thoughts about the perceived unfairness of the world.
"This is my nephew, Eden Tsubakihara. He's a first-year here. He'll be joining this club so I can keep a better eye on him and ensure he doesn't skip school as much. If he ever doesn't show up for the club, tell me immediately," his aunt explained. The black-haired girl nodded, somewhat confused about how he could be her nephew, but she complied nonetheless. "This is the second time you've foisted a troubled child onto me, but I have no choice but to agree," she said with an irritated look, addressing Eden's aunt. Once she had moved farther away, Eden took the opportunity to introduce himself.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Eden Tsubakihara, though you can call me Eden. I'm Hiratsuka-sensei's genetic nephew. However, when both of my parents passed away, my mother, Mira Tsubakihara, was granted custody of me." After his introduction, he retrieved a chair from the back of the room and placed it between the girls and the solitary boy. "So, what are your names?" This time, the orange-haired girl spoke up first, forcing a cheerful tone.
"I'm Yui Yuigahama, a second-year here," she said and extended her hand for a handshake. "Nice to meet you, Yui-chan," he replied with a smile.
"Nice to meet you too," she responded, slightly blushing. Before they could continue their conversation, the black-haired girl interjected. "I'm Yukino Yukinoshita, also a second-year. And I see you have the opposite problem compared to Hikigaya-kun over there," she said, giving Yui a reproachful glance.
"Like she said, I'm Hikigaya, Hachiman Hikigaya," the lone boy introduced himself.
"Nice to meet you both, Yukinoshita-sempai and Hikigaya."
"Wait, why do you call her Yukinoshita-sempai and just call me Hikigaya?"
"Well, doesn't Yukinoshita-sempai give off those senpai vibes, while you remind me more of my male friends, so I just called you that."
"Do you have friends like Hikigaya?" Yui asked, feigning surprise.
"Yeah, I mean a lot of my friends from before coming here were gaming nerds who were loners. Hikigaya, are you into gaming?" Eden asked Hikigaya, looking at him.
"I do, but not much. I mainly read," Hikigaya responded.
"What do you read?" Eden inquired.
"Mainly fiction, mostly mystery or more classical literature. If it's non-fiction, then historical."
Hikigaya seemed somewhat taken aback by Eden's interest in him. It was clear that not many people had asked him questions like this before. After chatting a bit more with Hikigaya about reading, a question finally came to Eden's mind.
"So, Yukinoshita-sempai, what is this club about? My aunt didn't really tell me."
"This is the Service Club. We assist students who come to us for advice or need our help. The Service Club is like community volunteering. We help people less fortunate than ourselves," Yukino explained.
"Like 'Noblesse Oblige'," he mentioned, catching everyone's attention with his sudden switch to French, a language no one else understood. "It's a French term popularized by the poem 'Le Lys dans la Vallée,' written in the 1830s, but its origins date back even further. It signifies that nobles or those of us in the upper classes have a divine duty to help those born less fortunate than us."
"Yes, that's exactly what I meant. Is there a Japanese translation of that poem?" Yukino inquired.
"I might have a copy in the library at my manor. I'll have to check," he responded, though he knew he had it since his library contained all sorts of mundane books, including that particular copy which also existed in the outside world.
"Thank you," Yukino said as she picked up the book he had referenced.
"Do you guys have a LINE group or something for the club?" Eden asked.
"Why didn't I think of that," Yui exclaimed, pulling out her phone to start the group chat.
"I don't have LINE," Hikigaya said and then Yukino nodded in agrement
"I can show you guys how to make one. It's never too late to join in on a trend. I just created my Instalife account today."
"Really?" Yui asked with excitement. The club spent the rest of their time setting up the group chat and helping Yukino and Hikigaya get onto LINE.
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