"Onii-chan, did you really recruit two girls? What are their names?"
After a round of typical sibling interaction, Komachi asked seriously.
As a qualified little sister, she was still very concerned about her brother's future, often trying to find him a lifelong partner so he wouldn't end up lonely in the future.
"Yukinoshita and Hayase. Yukinoshita was forced to join by the teacher, while Hayase was forced to join by Yukinoshita."
Hikigaya couldn't help but laugh as he spoke, 'Why does it feel like the Service Club's tradition is to force people into joining?'
If others found out, they might actually think the Service Club is some kind of shady organization that bullied and exploited students.
"Forced? Onii-chan, what kind of club activities do you have that you need to force people to join the club?"
Komachi froze for a moment, her eyes scanning Hachiman up and down, full of suspicion.
Although she really wanted her dead-eyed brother, whose dream job was to be a househusband, to interact with more people and talk to some girls, she certainly didn't want him to resort to illegal methods to attract them.
"Nothing much. The club activities are just drinking tea and chatting in the clubroom, passing the time together."
Hachiman quickly explained, seeing that Komachi was about to start doubting him again.
"I didn't mean 'forced' in that sense. Actually, both of them have their own reasons for joining the Service Club. Let me explain it slowly to you."
The siblings were quite close and shared everything. He could talk about Yukinoshita and Hayase without worrying about her spilling the beans.
Of course, he didn't mention his plans to hunt down minotaurs to Komachi.
With their deep sibling bond, even if he committed a crime, Komachi would still stand firmly by his side.
However, knowing her, she'd definitely worry about him if she found out. So, he only told her about Yukinoshita being forced by Hiratsuka to join the club and Hayase almost being successfully blackmailed by... that blond-haired delinquent.
"The high-and-mighty Yukinoshita forced into a club by the teacher... the timid, delicate school beauty being threatened..."
After hearing Hachiman's story, Komachi stared into his eyes and blinked her large ones.
'Why does this sound more and more like the plot of a rom-com light novel?'
'A rich, headstrong, justice-driven heiress; a quiet, reserved club ace; and a lazy, dead-fish-eyed Onii-chan caught in the middle.'
'Um... does the Kaede and Suzu sisters next door know about this?'
Komachi glanced at her brother, hesitating to speak. But after a moment's thought, she swallowed her words.
She personally believed that Kaede next door liked her brother. But every time she teased Kaede about it, the girl would deny it. Over time, her brother also seemed to believe Kaede only saw him as a childhood friend.
Actually, Komachi thought both Kaede and her twin sister Suzu had feelings for her brother. Suzune, however, rarely expressed herself and usually kept a straight face.
But even if they both liked her brother... could he really date both sisters?
Their family was just an ordinary one and couldn't provide for two such excellent girls to settle down with her brother.
To be realistic, it was more likely that they'd both leave her brother someday.
Thinking about this, Komachi felt it was better for her brother to meet more girls now, so that when Kaede and Suzu were no longer around, he wouldn't be left with just his immediate family.
Although it wasn't fair to Kaede and Suzu, as his biological sister, she naturally sided with her brother.
Hachiman saw Komachi hesitate to speak and thought she was worried about that disgusting blond-haired guy. He immediately reassured her, "Don't worry, Kaede is the student council president now. I'll help her clean up the school environment. When you get into Sobu High, you won't encounter people like that."
He was attending Sobu High now, and Komachi would be preparing for the entrance exam next year. Then, the two siblings could attend the same school together.
If nothing else, just for Komachi's sake, he had to clean up all the minotaurs at Sobu High.
Thinking this gave Hachiman a renewed sense of motivation.
"...Alright, scumbag onii-chan, go make dinner already."
Watching Hachiman, who had no clue about her thoughts, Komachi propped his head up and pushed him off her lap.
"...I haven't made any moves on Yukinoshita or anyone else. How does recruiting a few members make me a scumbag?"
Hachiman shook his head, exasperated, and went to make dinner.
Not to mention the seemingly timid Hayase, he did have a certain fondness for Yukinoshita.
Cool on the outside but warm on the inside, showing only you her cute, shy side—who wouldn't like a tall, cool black-haired beauty like her?
But in this world, the Yukinoshita family's car hadn't hit him. There was no unspoken past between him and Yukinoshita, and he wasn't the original Hikigaya Hachiman.
If he wanted to develop a romantic relationship with Yukino, he had no idea how to go about it. This world wasn't just the single, slice-of-life one he originally knew. He couldn't rely on prior knowledge to skip ahead.
Admittedly, establishing the Service Club was partly to catch Yukino's attention. But now that she had joined, he found himself unsure of what to do next.
Fortunately, the club wasn't just him and Yukino. If he couldn't face her, he could still interact with Hayase.
Hachiman exhaled lightly, letting go of his unrealistic fantasies about Yukino, and started preparing dinner.
Since the heads of the Hikigaya household were either on night shifts or on business trips, he was the one who usually prepared dinner at home. His cooking skills were quite decent. Perhaps for this reason, before regaining his memories, his ideal was the same as the original "Hachiman's"—to become a househusband, a man behind a successful woman.
After finishing cooking, Komachi helped him set the tableware. The two ate dinner face-to-face, and afterward, Komachi went to wash the dishes. Hachiman got up to stretch his body while pondering whether to go out and "get a job" tonight.
Through his "Hawkeye Vision," he had surveyed the school and found that there weren't many "minotaurs." In two days, only one had appeared, or perhaps there were many, but the school's particularly strict discipline made it difficult for the minotaurs to act.
If they didn't act, he couldn't directly determine who was a minotaur.
Compared to the rule-bound school, the outside world would undoubtedly have far more minotaurs.
However, his mission to hunt minotaurs specified "school minotaurs." It didn't mention random minotaurs, so he figured he would need to trigger another mission to get rewards.
Tomorrow, the elf princess would transfer to his school…
He wasn't sure whether this was an inner-two-dimensional or surface-two-dimensional elf princess. If it was the former, it felt like he'd undoubtedly face very powerful enemies. He had to complete tasks and earn rewards to strengthen himself.
"Ding-dong~"
While Hachiman was thinking, he suddenly heard the doorbell ring.
"Could it be Dad returning?" [T/N: Did he go out to buy milk?]
Komachi, who was washing dishes, immediately poked her head out.
"But isn't it still too early for him to be back from work? Could it be Mom returning from her trip?"
"Maybe it's Kaede and Suzu; I'll go check the door."
Hachiman walked to open the door. Although the sisters from next door rarely visited in the evening, it wasn't impossible.
However, when he opened the door and stepped outside, he saw a purple-haired girl standing there. She was unfamiliar, and he couldn't help but be momentarily stunned.
"Hello, Mr. Hikigaya. I just moved into the neighboring apartment. My name is Vignette April Tsukinose. This is a small gift as a token of respect. Please accept it."
The unfamiliar girl outside saw Hachiman come out and quickly held out a box of beautifully packaged wagashi with both hands.
The Hikigaya family lived in a single-family house. On one side was the home of the Kaede and Suzu sisters, while on the other was an old apartment building usually rented by students with limited financial means.
Judging by appearances, this girl was a newly moved-in student.
However, at this moment, Hachiman's thoughts were far from such mundane observations, as the system in his mind had already confirmed the girl's identity. She was indeed the demon he had in mind.
[Ding~]
[Character card detected— Vignette April Tsukinose]
'Vignette?'
'How did she also appear in this world?'
'Though Vignette herself isn't particularly dangerous, she is still a demon.'
'Does that mean this world also have things like the demon realm and celestial realm?'
"Is there something wrong? Is there something strange about my face?"
Vignette blinked, seeing her neighbor staring straight at her. She instinctively touched her face.
Before leaving, she had specifically checked her attire and appearance. There shouldn't be any issues, right?
Or is it that her understanding of human customs was flawed and she had unknowingly made a laughable mistake?
"There's nothing wrong. It's just that you're so cute, Vignette-san, that I was momentarily stunned. My apologies."
Seeing Vignette's confusion over his odd behavior, Hachiman regained his composure and smiled apologetically at her.
Given that this world had already introduced otherworldly elves and yokai, the appearance of demons and angels from the celestial or infernal realms shouldn't be too surprising.
However, since he had recently been preparing to hunt minotaurs, his instinctive reaction was to associate demons with them. This led him to worry about facing whispering demons or something similar.
Otherwise, encountering Vignette—a harmless, kind, and housewife-like demon from a slice-of-life anime—should have made him feel happy.
After all, Vignette was a demon with a personality so angelic that even angels couldn't compare.
"Hikigaya-san, you're joking. There's no way I'm that cute."
When Hachiman suddenly complimented her, Vignette's cheeks turned slightly red. She quickly waved her hands to deflect the praise.
'Isn't this area supposed to have reserved people? Why am I being complimented so directly right after meeting someone?'
It was the first time she'd been directly called cute by a stranger, and she felt a little overwhelmed.
"Vignette-san, judging by your age, you must also be a student, right? Now that you've moved here, which school will you be attending?"
Seeing that Vignette was flustered enough to forget his earlier strange behavior, Hachiman switched the topic.
"Sobu High. Hikigaya-san, are you also a Sobu High student?"
Vignette hesitated as she looked at Hachiman, 'Is it such a coincidence? I have heard that Sobu High us the top school in the area. How did I so easily meet a fellow student?'
"There's no need to be so formal. This year's Sobu High student council president, Kaede, also lives here. Her sister and she go to school with me. Vignette, do you want to join us tomorrow?"
Hachiman nodded and pointed toward the Kaede and Suzu sisters' house.
Sure enough, Vignette was one of the transfer students Kaede had mentioned.
However, they had probably not used the transfer quotas for otherworldly beings and instead fabricated human identities.
"If it's convenient and won't bother you, then I'd be honored."
Hearing that other students lived nearby, Vignette immediately nodded in delight.
She hadn't expected a simple visit to a neighbor to lead to meeting fellow students. Now she would have company on her way to and from school.
"Not a bother. Kaede loves making friends. With you being so cute, she'll definitely want to be friends with you."
Hachiman smiled and nodded. He also thought it was a good arrangement. Now Kaede and Suzu would have more company on their way to school.
With Kaede's outgoing personality, Vignette would likely get along with her just fine. If anything came up, Vignette could also help out.
"Then I should visit her first. Please accept this box of wagashi."
Vignette handed the wagashi to Hachiman, intending to visit Kaede next door.
"No problem. I'll head back in. By the way, Vignette, you'll need to leave early tomorrow; Kaede is the student council president and needs to be at school early."
Hachiman took the wagashi and reminded Vignette.
"Got it. Thank you for the reminder. I'll be sure to leave early."
Vignette nodded earnestly, bid Hachiman goodbye, and took another box of wagashi from her bag before heading next door.
Hachiman didn't linger at the door. He brought the wagashi inside, closed the door, and told Komachi about Vignette being a transfer student while sharing the wagashi with her.
Though Vignette herself wasn't a concern, her appearance indicated that the power ceiling of this world had just been significantly raised.
In her original story, the demon realm was straightforward and honest. However, now that it was intertwined with the inner-two-dimensional world, he couldn't ignore the possibility of truly cruel and tyrannical demons showing up.
Initially, he thought that in this crime-ridden city, he could cautiously roam and freely hunt minotaurs, even if he couldn't go on a rampage.
But now… he'd better lie low at school for the time being, hunt a few minotaurs to earn rewards, and only venture out once his strength was sufficient.
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