CH 39

The Jinx



The bus departed. Leaving the residential area, we headed towards the mountains where there was more and more nature. On the bus, Suzuki-sensei was trying her best to keep the students occupied by imitating a guide.



“In fact, Sensei had a blind date the other day! I’m thirty-two years old, and my parents are insisting that I get married soon. But since I want to marry a nice guy who looks like a prince on a white horse, I don’t want to get into trouble with an arranged marriage.~”



However, Suzuki-sensei’s talk was not interesting, so the boredom was not overcome. My classmates were chatting among themselves. No one was listening to what Suzuki-sensei was saying.



Suddenly, I looked at the front of the bus and saw Shimotsuki sitting at the very front. There was only one seat, and it was for one person. She was leaning against the window, not moving a muscle. She was probably asleep.



Then again, no one sat next to Ryuzaki after all. Unlike Azusa, the other members of the Ryuzaki harem were still keeping each other in check, which is why they seemed to have fallen into a state of rigidity. If someone sits down, it will be a problem for them, so they decided not to sit.



“Hey, hey, it’s sad that I’m all alone. ……. But I don’t need friends, because being alone proves how strong a person is.”



Even when he is alone, he is always noisy. As usual, the heroines around us giggled when they heard this comment.



Although he says he’s a loner, he still has harem members, so he’s in a luxurious situation. Well, I guess he’s just a little fashionable.



–And so the bus ride continued.



In the middle of it, Azusa next to me started talking to me in a quiet voice.



“Ryoma Onii-chan seems to be having fun. Maybe it’s because Shimotsuki-san is joining us…. Ryoma Onii-chan said that Shimotsuki-san was sickly, so she generally didn’t participate in these events, right?”



…… That seems to be the way it is in Ryuzaki’s mind.



In fact, I heard that she was only skipping it because she didn’t want to be around Ryuzaki, who she didn’t like, but I’ll keep that to myself.



“This is a secret. …… The truth is, Shimotsuki-san wasn’t even planning on going to this one. When I asked her to join a group, she refused at first. She said, “I’m not really good at this kind of thing.””



I remember that Azusa and others persuaded Shimotsuki to join the group.



“But when I told her that she could be in a group with you, she said yes. I’ve never told Ryoma Onii-chan about this, so it’s a secret.”



…… Oh, so that’s how it was.



I was surprised that she accepted the invitation so easily, but I finally understood why.



It seems that Azusa knew that we were on good terms, and that’s why she used my presence as an excuse to persuade Shimotsuki.



“I was surprised that I was able to convince her more easily than I thought. …… And Ryoma Onii-chan was happy, so it was kind of complicated.”



Azusa smiled dryly.



I was impressed by her friendly smile, but since she became involved with Ryuzaki, that smile has become cloudy more often. I’m sorry to report that.



“So, Azusa also thought that she could not be defeated. …… If things continue as they are, I will always be defeated by Shimotsuki-san, so I decided to confess during this overnight learning program.”



Finally, she got right to the point.



The reason why she suddenly decided to confess was because of …… Shimotsuki’s presence.



“And there is a jinx that says if you confess your love to someone at a campfire, you will definitely succeed. So I’m going to try my best to believe in the jinx, even though it’s only a …… comforting thought.”



…… A jinx, huh.



They are excellent stage sets for moving the story along.



Jinxes are persuasive and often used as a rationale to change a stagnant relationship.



In Ryuzaki’s story, too, the jinx seems to be a major turning point.



I wonder what will happen ……. I am very anxious about the future.