https://ncode.syosetu.com/n9531ga/83/
Episode 83: Individual Routes
“Then see you at school~”
“Yeah, bye bye.”
On our way home, well after the whiskey bonbons had completely worn off, we said our goodbyes. Right up until the last moment when she turned her back to me, Saki was as gentle and lovely as ever. But it’s that naturalness from her that felt so unnatural, and I couldn’t get over this sense of discomfort about it.
Just like immediately after the whiskey bonbons, she’s behaving like it’s business as usual….but then, when exactly did “business as usual” become business as usual? I suppose it would have begun with that after-school kiss behind the curtain. That was when my bittersweet days of youth kicked in, and we started getting closer during our rides home alone together on the train.
Our current relationship really has been just, “business as usual” ever since then huh?
Once I got to my room, I immediately sat down cross-legged in my computer chair. I rested my chin on top of my crossed hands and started slowly swaying from one side to the other–lost in thought. It’s the pose I always hit whenever I want to do some thinking. I do it for comfort, not because I think it looks a little cool.
Just when I was starting to think my yuri harem was almost complete, a crack has formed in our relationship. Ranko has started acting suspicious of Saki, and Saki has stopped showing Ranko all the affection she used to give her. Their relationship has been strange from the start, but this was certainly not an improvement.
During our trip home together, it was only really ‘business as usual’ between me and Saki while Ranko quietly sat on the other side of me. And when Ranko sat down, Saki started fawning over me without minding Ranko at all. It had the same awkwardness that was there after the kiss, like we had a friendship that was taken a step too far…..like I was being shown off.
However, shown that bittersweet moment, Ranko didn’t say anything. More like she couldn’t say anything. She simply sat there and kept her beautiful lips pursed….
I guess my next challenge is going to be improving the relationship between the two of them. Do that, and the yuri harem of my dreams will be within reach…..
But as I was thinking that, a question bubbled up to the surface of my mind……
Have I done anything special for my harem? I did put in a little work to gather up the members and get the clubroom where we could spend time together…..
I can’t even say I did anything special for Saki, the person who is arguably the most aware of me and has tried the hardest to get my attention. It’s conceited of me to even think this, but perhaps she just fell in love with me on her own? That actually makes a little sense.
I’ve got this vague feeling that Saki has liked me since the day we met, so maybe it was love at first sight? Well, I guess I’m not bad looking…..okay, now that was conceited.
But there is certainly the possibility that it’s also a bit of a fantasy for Saki. What if she was just caught up in being in an all-girls school, and there I was, a convenient substitute for a high school boyfriend.
Nope, let’s stop thinking like that right now. I’m pretty sure there was some great guy out there sometime who said you’ll never achieve your dreams if you only ever think about failure. You need to have confidence even in the face of failure…. Right now, worrying is just a waste of time. I should be just trying my best to create my yuri harem and consider the failure when it happens.
If things are going better than I expected, great. That doesn’t mean I can drop my guard though. I need to prep the stage and get the actors as ready as they can be. Everything aferwards will be up to how I decide to act and how I choose to craft the scenario.
The weather is getting warmer, so people are starting to go out more often. We will soon be able to start using the roof and schoolyard for our photography club activities. As the number of event spots for yuri growth go up, I’m going to need to start thinking about when I want to be with the group and when I want to be with just one of them.
But…..”the group”…..might end up being a problem. In a strange sense, Honoka and Yuzuriha are my biggest concern here. They’re so close it wouldn’t be weird if people started seeing them as a couple, and that’s before you think about the fact that they live together…. That’s probably why I’ve barely spent any time with one of them when the other wasn’t there too.
Having a lovey-dovey yuri love triangle between the three of us does sound like a lot of fun in its own way…..but I think I’d before the development where they care deeply about each other while also loving me. So I need to come up with a love strategy for each one of them…..
So in conclusion…..
I rise out of my thinking pose and clench my fist. I know what I have to do. We’re going to plan around creating situations where I can have some alone time with someone while having little chance for one of the other girls can interrupt us. I love working on my friendship with everyone, but I can’t slack on securing their hearts as well.
I am absolutely going to make my yuri harem dreams a reality!
I reaffirmed my resolve to see my plans through. Then my stomach started growling. I spent so much time thinking that it was already time for dinner. I’ll have to think about the extra details as I cook something up for myself.
Starting tomorrow, I’m going to aim for my yuri harem with a renewed sense of enthusiasm.
Experimental Translations 