Too Many Losing Heroines! - Volume 6 - Chapter Pr1

Prologue

After the Valentine's Day rush, the supermarket near the school was already repacking unsold chocolates into the White Day section.

As I walked past, the sweet aroma of chocolate stirred fresh memories.

The familiar electronic sounds playing in the background evoked a sense of nostalgia.

My eyes were drawn to the hina-arare in the special section as I pushed the cart leisurely. [TL: Sweet, bite-sized rice crackers that are usually colored pink, green, white, and yellow to represent the four seasons. They are eaten during the Hinamatsuri.]

…Right, next week is the Hinamatsuri. [TL: Also called Girls’ Day and Doll’s Day. It’s celebrated on March 3rd. It is a day to pray for the health and happiness of young girls, marked by the display of ornamental dolls.]

We have hina dolls at home, but Kaju once insisted, "These represent onii-sama and me” when we were children. The adults had a rough time.

“Ah, this one.”

Instead of hina-arare, I picked up some traditional candy next to it. It was a nostalgic snack, small pink squares of mochi in a flat package.

"That's an old favorite, isn't it? You remember trying to skewer as many as possible on a toothpick?"

The girl dumping food haphazardly into the cart is Anna Yanami from the Literature Club.

"I never did that. I just got curious because Shikiya-senpai was eating them the other day."

“...Shikiya-senpai?”

Yanami didn’t answer. She just stared at me intently.

"Nukumizu-kun, you've been kind of off lately, don’t you think?”

“Not really. What do you mean by off?”

Yanami pushed the cart displeasedly and walked forward.

"What I mean is, the 'nu' in Nukumizu stands for the 'nu' in 'sneaking ahead', okay?" [TL: 抜け駆け (nukegake)] 

“Ha?”

I replied indifferently, and Yanami shot me a reproachful look.

"We're supposed to be part of the 'No Lovers Alliance’, right? But you've been kind of flirty lately, haven't you?"

This was news to me. There's a vast, deep canyon between choosing not to have a lover and not being able to have one.

And lately, I've started to feel like Yanami is on the same side of the canyon as me.

"It's not like that with Shikiya-senpai. Alright, let's finish shopping and head back to the club room."

Indeed, Yanami and I were out buying snacks at Tsukinoki-senpai’s request.

It’s been a while since we had heard from her, so I thought she wanted to greet us. But no, it was a shopping request.

Yanami leaned over, peering into the shopping cart.

"We've got all kinds of chips and chocolates, plus juice and tea. Are we missing anything?"

I also looked into the cart.

"Do we need this many cup noodles? She only asked us to buy snacks and juice.”

"Ah, Nukumizu-kun, have you never had a full-course Japanese meal or kaiseki cuisine?"

Hey, are you picking a fight with me?

...But wait, maybe cup noodles are considered formal Japanese cuisine in Yanami's house.

While I'm hesitating with a sad premonition, Yanami, oblivious to my thoughts, happily holds up the cup noodles.

"You know how the meal ends with rice and soup at those places, right? Cup noodles have both carbs and soup, so it's like having both in one."

I see. I nodded expressionlessly.

"Fine, but we don’t need that much. You can just put what you want to eat in here, Yanami-san.”

"Are you sure? Everyone else might get hungry."

"We won't be hungry. Let's use the extra budget to buy some taiyaki. There was a sweets shop here, too."

Yanami's eyes sparkled at the mention of taiyaki.

"They have dango, too, right? Okay, then I'll settle for this cup noodle!"

What Yanami held up with a smile was a pack of yakisoba.

"...But there's no soup component in that. Doesn't that go against what you said?"

“I just want to eat it, okay?”

Well, if she wants to eat it, that's that.

While I was lining up at the register, Yanami came back from putting the cup noodles back on the shelf and nudged me lightly with her elbow.

"Hey. Why do you think Tsukinoki-senpai sent us to do the shopping?"

"Eh? Maybe something good happened..."

-It's late February. The university entrance exam season is reaching its climax.

Tsukinoki-senpai has already failed to get into five universities. She only has one more chance.

According to what I heard from Komari, the last one's chances are slim too.

I remember that today should be the day of the announcement of the final results.

Seeing my clouded expression, Yanami nodded affirmatively.

"She would be the first to brag about it if she had passed, right? This isn’t a celebration, but comfort eating. Yeah, definitely."

I wanted to retort, but I pondered for a moment.

"...Ah, you're right. Definitely."

I nodded deeply.

Tomorrow marks the beginning of Tsukinoki-senpai's long journey as a ronin. [TL: A student who failed the entrance exam.]

Let’s at least be kind to her today…