"No," Hikigaya said helplessly.
Since the other party had already sat down, there was nothing he could do.
Furthermore, if others saw the two of them sitting together, it would probably be hard for anyone else to come over and share the table.
It was then.
Hikigaya noticed.
Horikita's lunch was also the free mountain vegetable set.
Class D's current class points were 109.
In October.
Horikita Suzune kept her promise and transferred half of her private points to him, though it was done via online transfer.
She only had a bit over five thousand private points left.
With that little money.
It wasn't even enough to prepare her own bento.
It was probably unavoidable for Horikita to rely on free food to get by.
How tragic.
Hikigaya couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy.
After all, Horikita was living so miserably mainly because of him; otherwise, ten thousand-plus points could have sufficed.
Having earned so many points from Horikita Manabu as well...
Hikigaya wondered.
Should he support her a little?
But on second thought.
Giving half of her points every month was a fair and normal transaction!
Horikita wasn't like Sakura Airi, who triggered a protective instinct. Why should he support this arrogant girl?
Hikigaya peacefully picked up a piece of tonkatsu and put it in his mouth.
Right then.
Horikita took out several jars from her handbag and placed them on the table, opening them one by one.
Pickled radish, pickled cucumbers...
Various types of pickled side dishes appeared before Hikigaya.
As expected of Horikita, she is unexpectedly excellent.
Just by observing, Hikigaya could tell her cooking skills were definitely not bad.
Even with limited living conditions, this girl found a way to improve her quality of life. Truly a refined girl from an elite family.
Horikita's slender fingers picked up her chopsticks, lifting a small clump of rice to her cherry-colored lips.
Even the mountain vegetable set seemed like a gourmet meal in her hands. Her eating movements were exceptionally elegant, clearly the result of a good upbringing since childhood.
Damn it...
Hikigaya felt his tonkatsu didn't taste as good anymore.
Only now did he realize.
Horikita wasn't someone he needed to worry about.
This girl was definitely here to intentionally "act poor" to make him give up those private points.
Yes, that must be it.
What a sinister woman!
Must not be fooled by this woman's beautiful appearance.
Hikigaya ate his food silently.
He refused to believe those few jars of pickles could really taste better than tonkatsu.
"I'm sorry."
Just then, after taking a bite of her mountain vegetables, Horikita spoke calmly.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
Hikigaya instantly became alert.
What was this woman saying all of a sudden? This was completely unlike Horikita's style.
"I can understand now."
"In the past period, my attitude hasn't been very good."
"Regardless, despite receiving help from you all this time, I kept being wary about whether Class B had other motives."
"So, I came here this time to apologize to you."
Horikita's tone was calm, as if she were merely stating her stance; whether the other party accepted her apology didn't seem to matter.
Hikigaya was slightly stunned.
He didn't think her attitude was a problem.
Since they were in different classes, it was normal for Horikita to be wary of Class B. Even if she apologized, she didn't need his forgiveness.
Compared to Ichinose.
Horikita's attitude was actually perfectly normal.
She was just a bit too self-righteous.
But.
This girl was actually starting to apologize for her past attitude.
"You... you seem to have changed a little," Hikigaya said, somewhat confused.
Though they had only met a few times and he didn't know Horikita well, she clearly wasn't the type to apologize actively.
Even if she was wrong, as long as it wasn't a personal failure, Horikita would usually blame the error on the other party.
But now, she was actually apologizing.
To be honest.
Hikigaya was shocked to the extreme.
What on earth had happened to this girl lately?
"Is that so? Perhaps..."
A slight smile appeared on Horikita's lips as she couldn't help but think of the Sports Festival.
The past her was indeed too self-righteous.
She thought she could solve everything with just her own strength, without needing to rely on any companions.
Now.
She realized that wasn't the case. It would never be like that again.
"I see..."
Seeing that Horikita didn't want to elaborate, Hikigaya didn't ask further.
After all, those were Class D matters. Something probably happened to cause Horikita's change, and it was normal for her not to tell him.
"Want to try some?"
"Huh?"
Hikigaya looked up at her in confusion. He saw Horikita pushing the jar of pickled radishes toward the middle and saying:
"I saw you looking at these side dishes. You can have a taste."
"No thanks, there's no reason for me to eat your food," Hikigaya said dismissively.
The things you can't have always seem the tastiest.
Seeing Horikita eating so heartily had indeed whetted his appetite.
But if he really wanted to eat, it's not like he didn't have money to buy it. He wouldn't just eat her food. Yeah, he'd go buy some after school.
"Don't be polite."
Horikita said with a plain face: "It's just some pickles, it's insignificant. And, Hikigaya, refusing a girl's kindness is not a praiseworthy thing."
Hikigaya looked at her suspiciously.
There shouldn't be any traps, right?
Although he didn't know Horikita well.
But just as Ryuen said, this girl was a serious person and probably wouldn't use any despicable means.
"Better not."
Hikigaya's stance softened a bit, but he still chose to refuse.
His "shitty old man" once said that the more beautiful a woman is, the more she lies. Anyway, he wasn't starving for this bit of food, so better not take the risk.
Furthermore.
Horikita had probably already tasted those side dishes. It would be a bit embarrassing for him to eat them now.
"Sigh."
With a faint sigh, Horikita picked up a piece of pickled radish, placed it in his bowl, and said calmly:
"I told you, it's just some pickles, no need to be polite. If I tell you to eat, eat."
"Uh..."
Hikigaya looked at the radish on his plate, his expression uncomfortable.
Besides Komachi.
This was probably the first time he had the chance to taste a girl's "hand-cooked" dish.
The food was already on his plate; he couldn't just leave it there. If he did, he felt he would incur Horikita's wrath.
After hesitating for a moment.
Hikigaya picked up the radish and put it in his mouth.
The vinegar mixed with the natural sweetness of the radish, and the slight spiciness of the pickled peppers stimulated his taste buds.
Horikita's skill was indeed good.
Excluding the "sister buff," he felt Horikita's cooking level was several levels higher than Komachi's.
This girl should just become a chef after graduation.
Hikigaya's eyes lit up.
"Not bad. I didn't expect you to be so good at cooking."
"Thank you for the praise. That will be one thousand private points."
"Eh?"
Hikigaya's face instantly froze. He wondered if he had misheard.
"Um... what do you mean?"
"You ate it."
Horikita picked up a napkin and wiped the corner of her mouth, saying in a flat tone:
"My pickled radish—one I made by hand. How wonderful for you, being able to eat a hand-cooked meal from a beauty like me. By the way, this is the first time I've cooked for a boy other than my family."
"Wait a second!"
Hikigaya quickly raised his hand and said: "Don't you think you're being despicable? I only ate one piece!"
"So?"
Horikita pushed the three jars of pickles in front of him and said calmly:
"You've already eaten from these. Unfortunately, I'm not willing to eat things that have been touched by another man. For one thousand points, all of these are yours!"
"Uh..."
Hikigaya was dumbfounded.
Forget about food he had eaten; girls didn't even want to touch things he had touched. It was normal for Horikita to react this way.
Hikigaya had self-awareness, but he was still unconvinced.
"Even so, you've already eaten some too. One thousand points is too expensive."
"It's not expensive at all," Horikita explained seriously.
"Even at the store, these three jars of pickles are worth nearly a thousand points. And, I haven't touched these at all."
"Uh..."
Hikigaya froze for a moment, thinking back carefully.
He realized Horikita really hadn't touched them even once.
From the very beginning.
This girl had planned to make him buy these side dishes. She was deliberately calculating against him.
Little did he know.
Horikita Suzune had been staking him out here for several days.
Besides the fact that she was broke and could only eat the free mountain vegetable set, she was mostly waiting for him.
There was no special reason.
It was just that Horikita felt they were relatively familiar, and Hikigaya's personality made him an easier target.
"You..."
Hikigaya was somewhat speechless: "Letting someone use it first and then forcing them to buy it... don't you think that's despicable?"
"Is that so?"
Horikita said dismissively: "Didn't you just praise them as being delicious? Is there any dissatisfaction?"
"No..."
Hikigaya indignantly took out his phone and transferred one thousand private points to Horikita.
"Thank you for your patronage."
Horikita breathed a sigh of relief.
To be honest.
For a girl to try and survive a month on five thousand private points.
It was truly difficult.
Items like sanitary products alone would cost about two thousand points.
Although the school provided free products, for hygiene reasons, Horikita really didn't want to compromise in that area.
She really had no choice but to fleece a bit from Hikigaya.
"If you want to eat more."
"You can contact me anytime. Depending on the situation, I can give you a 10% discount!"
With that.
Horikita picked up her tray and turned to leave.
The so-called "depending on the situation" probably referred to Class D's class point status.
"What a despicable woman."
Hikigaya looked at the three jars of side dishes in front of him, feeling heartbroken.
His "shitty old man" had warned him long ago that the prettier the woman, the better she lies. He actually still fell for it.
Although the price was fair.
The method was truly despicable.
"Sigh."
Hikigaya looked up at Horikita's slender back as she walked away.
She had changed a bit, but seemingly not by much.
If anything.
Hikigaya felt.
Horikita Suzune had become even more annoying.
Actually.
If Horikita had just asked.
While Hikigaya wouldn't waive her debt, he felt he could agree to postpone the repayment for a few months.
It wasn't necessary to use such a method.
However.
Staring at Horikita's back, Hikigaya only felt it was more tragic.
Her behavior also reflected the current situation of Sakurajima.
Horikita's change was likely just a microcosm of this school.
For the sake of survival, private points, and rising to Class A, Horikita had to make some changes.
Becoming more self-interested, becoming more profit-driven.
Becoming more about "merit-based" and "results-oriented."
Becoming more like a shrewd professional in society.
Discarding her past naive self for her own benefit.
This...
Was likely the purpose for which the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School was established.
To let them adapt to everything in society in advance.
However.
Was this really correct?
Hikigaya couldn't help but feel a bit helpless. Would he also become like this? Ten years from now, would he still be able to face his current self calmly?
The kind Class B, the gentle Ichinose and the others.
Would they also become people like this because of life...?
Hikigaya didn't know, but whenever he thought of these things, he felt uncomfortable inside.
For the sake of money.
His pure self would be gone, as if replaced by another person.
He didn't know if it was truly worth it.