A Lonely S-Rank Explorer, Returning to His Student Days to Redo His Youth—It Seems the Strongest Loner Is Being Genuinely Loved by the Most Beautiful Girls in the School - Chapter 23: Admiration and Jealousy Are Two Sides of the Same Coin

After the tough men were subdued by Yuito.

Hakari was protected by the police, and the men were taken into custody by the police.

The men will be charged with kidnapping, and Yukki will face an additional charge of attempted sexual assault without consent. If there are no issues, they will likely receive prison sentences.

A female police officer was muttering such things.

The high school girl who was the cause of the incident had woken up by the time the police arrived.

While repeatedly thanking Hakari, she was protected by the police.

And after finishing a brief interrogation, Hakari stares blankly at the ceiling in the police station’s waiting room.

The time was just past six o’clock.

Right now, it’s just a matter of waiting for Yuito. It seems the questioning is dragging on because he directly hit Yukki.

Hakari’s clothes have been changed into the new ones purchased together with Yuito.

The figure of Hakari looking up at the ceiling as if in twilight, combined with her cool, beautiful girl appearance, strangely made for a picturesque scene.

However, inside her brain, a chaotic and tumultuous battle was unfolding.

“Kyaaaaa!? Yuito-san was super cool!! He casually put his jacket over me… and he called me ‘precious person’!?”

Hakari in her mind was nuzzling against Yuito’s black jacket with heart marks in her eyes.

Replaying Yuito’s scent from her mind, she takes a deep breath.

For some reason, cat ears were growing out of her head, and a black tail was extending from her waist. She looked just like a female cat in heat.

“Ah… I’m going crazy… I wasn’t supposed to be this love-struck and out of my mind…”

There was also Hakari who stared blankly at the cat in heat.

This is close to the usual Hakari. It’s a regular Hakari.

A normal Hakari that vaguely observes the spirit of the cat Hakari, which is excited by the presence of a person.

When the cat Hakari notices that it is being seen by the usual Hakari, she approaches with a grin.

“Hehe… Even though I say such things, I’m still happy to be helped by Yuito-san in my usual state…”

“W-well, um, if a boy I like is kind to me, I would be happy.”

“Isn’t that right? You really want to hug Yuito-kun right now and snuggle up to him, don’t you? You want to sniff Yuito-kun’s scent, don’t you?”

“I-I didn’t say that!! Don’t say weird things about my face!!”

“You’re just pretending to be tough.”

The cat Hakari grinned mischievously at Hakari, whose face had turned bright red.

It’s a smile as if it can see right through her heart.

No, actually, it’s because it’s Hakari herself that she can see through it.

“Isn’t that ridiculous?”

Bang!! Bang!! Bang!!

To silence Hakari who was getting excited about Yuito, an explosion sound echoed.

She looks over there and a short-haired Hakari is aiming with a gun and pulling the hammer.

She wears neatly fitted glasses around her eyes. She probably doesn’t need them, so they’re just for show.

“What are you trying to look cool for? You love Yuito-san just as much as I do!”

The cat Hakari puts its arm around the glasses Hakari and says, “Come here, come here.”

However, the glasses Hakari pushed the cat Hakari away in frustration.

The cat Hakari, having fallen on its rear, looks up at the glasses Hakari in a daze.

“W-What are you doing?!”

“Don’t you feel embarrassed?”

“W-what?”

“You were once again completely helped by Yuito-san this time, and you couldn’t do anything!!”

The cry of the balance Hakari echoed hollowly in the heart of Hakari.

“You came to Exploration City to become a great police officer like your father! You didn’t come just to be helped and scream ‘yay yay’!”

“Th-that’s…”

The cat Hakari lowers its gaze. She can’t say anything back.

The glasses Hakari made a clattering sound with its footsteps and approached Hakari.

She grabs her collar and glares intently at the balance Hakari.

“Right now, you’re a pathetic burden. Wielding a sense of justice you can’t fulfill, almost dying on your own, and just making a fuss while pushing the responsibility onto the man you like. You’re just a foolish woman.”

What the glasses Hakari says is the truth.

Hakari only brandishes her sense of justice, but she hasn’t achieved any results.

She tried to save the boy who was about to be hit by the truck. But without Yuito, Hakari would just be dead.

She tried to help the high school girl who was being harassed by the tough-looking men. But without Yuito, she would have just ended up getting caught up and attacked too.

The sense of justice she holds in her heart is great, but she lacks the power to fulfill it.

Courage without strength is recklessness.

Hakari is recklessly charging ahead and is only being helped by Yuito.

“…”

“…You finally noticed, didn’t you? You like Yuito-san. But at the same time, you’re just as jealous.”

Her heart ached as if it were being squeezed.

What the glasses Hakari said is an undeniable fact.

She can’t lie to herself.

“Right… You’re jealous of Yuito-san. He’s so strong and cool, exactly the kind of hero you admire and long for. But that’s exactly why you’re envious of him. When you see Yuito-san, you can’t help but hate your own weakness…”

It’s true that when she is helped by someone, her heart skips a beat, and she can’t help but want to make a fuss.

However, that excitement is mixed with excuses.

He is her favorite person, so it’s just as she wishes for him to be strong and cool.

She kept telling herself that to mask her ugly jealousy.

“Do you have the right to be by his side, carrying this ugly jealousy? Do you have the right to call yourself his friend?”

“That’s…”

“Wait, wait a minute! There’s no need to distance yourself from Yuito-kun, right?! Just because you’re jealous!!”

“When that jealousy explodes, you might end up hurting the person you love so much?”

“Ugh…”

The cat Hakari fell silent. Silence flowed through Hakari’s heart.

“Haa.”

In the police station waiting room, the heavy sigh of Hakari echoed.

Hakari’s emotions were a mess.

The feeling of liking Yuito. But then, the jealousy was directed towards Yuito. The guilt of occupying a place next to Yuito while harboring that ugly jealousy.

All her emotions are mixed together, and she feels like she has been trapped in a labyrinth with no way out.

“Ah, Hakari-san… did you wait for me?”

“Yuito-san…”

Yuito came out into the waiting room.

When he finds Hakari, he runs over happily.

Hakari thought he was cute, like a dog.

However, this isn’t the time to be thinking such carefree thoughts.

Hakari lets out a small sigh.

“I’m sorry for today. Because of me, you got caught up in this trouble too…”

“Eh, no way… It’s not something you should worry about, Hakari-san. If you hadn’t stepped in to help, the victimized woman would have been in danger…”

“…Thank you.”

Yuito shook his head as if to be mindful of Hakari.

She thought, ‘Yuito-san is so kind… I like him♡,’ but at the same time, she feels down, thinking, ‘But I don’t deserve to be by the side of such a kind person…’

Hakari slowly stood up from the chair and turned her back to Yuito.

“…I should be heading home soon.”

Staying with Yuito any longer was painful for her.

Hakari moves her feet as if to escape from Yuito.

However, Yuito calls out, “Ah, Hakari-san.”

“…What is it?”

“Are you… not hungry?”

“…Eh?”

As if responding on behalf of Hakari, Hakari’s belly made a cute gurgling sound.

Hakari’s face turns bright red.

Speaking of which, she hasn’t eaten anything since having cake at the Sweets Garden this morning.

It was only natural to be hungry.

“Hehe… I’m glad. Would you like to come with me?”

Hakari could only nod with a bright red face.

The night scene with the shimmering lights of the buildings was reflected in Hakari’s view.

It is a restaurant located on the top floor of a luxury hotel. It is a private room.

The private room illuminated by warm lights is super stylish.

Maybe it’s a place where she can invite someone she’s interested in out for a meal and, if all goes well, take them to a hotel bed.

“How does Hakari-san feel about it? Did you like it?”

“…”

As if asking for feedback on the surprise gift he gave to his friend, Yuito tilted his head anxiously.

Hakari doesn’t react at all.

She was completely frozen, staring at Yuito.

However, unlike the earlier confusion, Hakari’s mind was, in a sense, clear.

“””W-What do you mean by that!?”””

The ‘regular Hakari’, the ‘cat Hakari’, and the ‘glasses Hakari’ were all spinning at the same time.