April. Cherry blossoms falling. On a bus bound for Advanced Nurturing High School.
Hachiman Hikigaya sat in a single seat in the middle, staring out the window with "dead-fish eyes" that were faintly welling up with tears. This was because, starting today, he wouldn't be able to see his cute little sister, Komachi, for the next three years.
Advanced Nurturing High School. It is Sakura Island's leading prestigious high school with a national background. The school features a liberal atmosphere and is completely tuition-free. After graduation, students have the opportunity to freely choose their career path—whether they want to be a celebrity, a national athlete, or enter politics, they can choose freely.
The only drawback is that it is a fully enclosed school. Unless there is a special reason, students cannot even contact their families. In exchange, the school is equipped with various entertainment facilities such as movie theaters, karaoke, and gyms.
But for Hachiman Hikigaya, who loves his sister intensely, this one drawback was absolutely intolerable. Unfortunately, he had received the admission notice. As a man whose status in the family was lower than that of the cat, he had no power to choose. Under the threat of his parents refusing to pay for any other high school expenses, and in order to coast until university graduation to fulfill his dream of becoming a "full-time house husband," he had no choice but to accept the fact of enrolling at Advanced Nurturing.
'I clearly left my entrance exam paper blank, there's something fishy about this school,' Hachiman thought, feeling like he wanted to cry. Even during the interview, he said a lot of things... if he had succeeded in failing, his parents might have changed their minds... right? Such a perfect "zero-point strategy" had somehow failed.
Just then, the bus stopped. An old lady walked onto the bus unsteadily and stood near him, her withered hands gripping the handrail as if she couldn't stand firmly. The people on the bus acted as if they didn't see her, looking completely indifferent. Hachiman waited for a long time while his mind wandered. Thinking about not seeing his sister for three years gave him the urge to cry, but if he cried now, people would look at him like an idiot. It was deathly embarrassing.
Absolutely not. Thinking of this, Hachiman stood up and walked toward an empty seat in the back row, intending to have a good cry for his sister.
"Than—" The old lady was about to speak, but she watched the young man walk to the back of the bus and sit down without saying a word, showing no intention of having a conversation.
"The world is so dangerous. What if Komachi is tricked by some scumbag? Komachi..." Hachiman let out a weak sob, inadvertently "killing the competition" (finishing the social interaction).
Advanced Nurturing High School is located on an artificial island. The entire school area is equivalent to a small town. The surrounding streets are filled with flowers, the environment is beautiful, and modern shops line both sides. As a place to live for three years, it is impeccable.
Unfortunately, it cannot compare to Chiba Prefecture. If they were going to build a closed school, they should have learned more from Chiba—ideally, they should have just copied it. Furthermore, he only saw one ramen shop: Jiro Ramen. Ramen is the soul of a Sakura Island man; a school without ramen has no soul!
More importantly: the unnaturally large number of surveillance cameras. As a professional loner, Hachiman was extremely sensitive to being watched. Within a short time, he felt dozens of gazes. 'Probably even Twilight couldn't infiltrate this school. If I run into Anya, I better be careful. It would be terrible if she saw my dark history,' Hachiman complained internally, not taking it too seriously. Since he was always alone anyway, and likely would remain so, the purpose of these cameras had nothing to do with him.
Rather than the cameras, he was more concerned if this place called "Keyaki Mall" had any hidden ramen shops. However, time was limited. He couldn't find a deliberately hidden shop just by looking. Following the admission guide, Hachiman arrived at the school building.
The school is divided into three grades. Each grade has four classes: A, B, C, and D. According to instructions, freshmen must first go to their classroom to drop off their bags, wait for the homeroom teacher to explain the rules, and then head to the gym for the entrance ceremony. Although he was curious about the word "rules," Hachiman didn't take it to heart. Regardless of the rules, as long as a person doesn't pick fights, it shouldn't affect him.
With a mix of anxiety and expectation about entering a new environment, Hachiman arrived at the door of the classroom with the sign [1-B]. Despite missing Komachi, he was actually quite looking forward to living alone in high school. Perhaps he could enjoy a wonderful youth like a manga protagonist.
Class 1-B. Just as he stepped into the classroom, Hachiman felt an unusual atmosphere. Most people were gathered around a girl with long pink hair. Her hair reached her waist, and her pretty face wore a bright smile. She constantly initiated topics for the people around her, never leaving anyone out. Her chest was prominent, as if her burgundy school uniform might burst at any moment, and beneath her slender waist were a pair of shapely legs.
She instantly stole Hachiman's gaze. From time to time, he could hear praises of "Ichinose is amazing." What was more surprising was that despite school just starting, she had already become the central figure of the class.
Although he wanted to join in, memories of middle school flooded back. Whenever he talked about anime with his otaku friends, everyone else would fall into an awkward silence. 'Better wait until there are fewer people,' he thought.
After much hesitation, Hachiman decided to find his seat first. His spot was in the first row near the corridor, right in the middle—a perfect "background character" position. However, just as he turned, he locked eyes with a girl. She had twin-tails, a pretty face, and a slender figure. Her upturned "peach blossom eyes" seemed to be constantly emitting electricity. Truly, the "visual level" of this school was high; everyone was prettier than his middle school classmates.
It seemed she was his neighbor; the nameplate on the desk read "Himeno Yuki." However, her expression seemed hesitant. Hachiman recognized that look. "Human Observation" was one of his 108 skills. At the start of middle school, a girl had used that same look to exchange contact info with him. Afterward, he had messaged her every day with great anticipation. Later, he found out she only exchanged info to avoid the awkwardness of making eye contact, and there were rumors like "Hachiman messages me every day, it's gross, I'm so annoyed." Although he appreciated the kindness, he didn't need that kind of pity.
Thinking this, Hachiman slightly clenched his fist, nodded inconspicuously, and walked past her. She blinked in surprise, nodded back, and stopped paying attention. 'As expected. A professional loner won't fall into the same pit twice.' Hachiman gloated to himself while leaning on his desk, his dead-fish eyes noticing the working red light on the corner surveillance camera.
Even in a crowd, he wouldn't feel awkward. When it comes to the ability to waste time, he is number one in the world, hahaha! 'What a useless skill,' Hachiman thought, turning his head away from the noisy laughter to face the wall. 'What was I even expecting? Gross