I Reincarnated as the Counselor NPC in a Dating Sim, and Now Every Heroine I Treat Becomes Obsessed with Me - Chapter 38: “Return Deadline—The Door to November Opens”

Chapter 38: “Return Deadline—The Door to November Opens”

Second week of November.

Akane left food in her lunch two days in a row.

Monday—she left the edge of her omelet.
Tuesday—three bites of rice.

It was a small thing.

But Akane had never left food before.

Even when the nikujaga turned out too sweet, she complained but still finished it.

“Akane. Not feeling hungry?”

“…I’m fine.”

When Akane says “I’m fine,” she usually isn’t.

But if I push, she shuts down.

“Want me to change the seasoning?”

“No need. —It’s not like your cooking tastes bad, Sensei.”

She went out of her way to deny it.

Which meant something else was on her mind.

After lunch on Tuesday, Akane was rummaging through her bag.

I caught a glimpse of a paperback.

“That—Night on the Galactic Railroad?”

Akane’s hand froze.

“…Don’t look.”

“Sorry.”

“I read it, but I haven’t returned it. The deadline—”

Akane made a displeased face.

“Next week.”

“Can’t you just return it to the library?”

“…I know I can just leave it at the counter. But that girl—Yukimura—she added a note to the checkout slip.”

“A note?”

Akane pulled out Shizuku’s note from her pocket.

It was different from the formal loan note she showed before.

It must have been tucked inside the book.

—『To Hinomiya-san. If there’s a scene you liked in this book, please tell me. I like the part where Campanella disappears. —Shizuku Yukimura.』

Shizuku was asking Akane for her thoughts.

And she shared her own favorite scene first.

Not asking only the other person to open up, but offering her own side first.

It wasn’t something I had taught her.

Shizuku thought of it herself and chose an approach that suited Akane.

Akane stared at the paperback.

“…I’ve never written something like that.”

“You don’t have to write it. You can just return it as it is.”

“But she wrote her favorite scene, right? Ignoring it—”

Akane cut herself off.

“…It’d feel wrong, wouldn’t it. If I ignored it.”

Akane felt it was “wrong.”

She felt guilty about ignoring someone else’s kindness.

Six months ago, she would have thrown the note away with the book.

“You want to write it, but don’t know how?”

“…………”

A silent yes.

“You don’t have to overthink it. Just one line—‘I liked this part’ is enough.”

“One line…”

“Shizuku-chan started the same way. Just one line—‘Can I come again?’”

Akane looked at me.

“…She also started with one line.”

“Yeah.”

Akane stayed quiet for a moment, then closed her lunchbox.

“…I’ll write it by tomorrow.”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll write it, but I’m not showing you what I wrote.”

“Of course.”

—

Wednesday. Lunch break. 

I happened to pass by the library during my rounds.

Akane was standing at the counter.

The one on duty wasn’t Shizuku.

It was another girl.

Akane placed the paperback on the counter and tried to leave without saying anything.

“Um, are you returning this? The checkout slip—”

“It’s inside.”

That was all she said before quickly leaving the library.

As we passed each other, our eyes met.

“Don’t stare,” she muttered, and walked off.

I didn’t go into the library.

Shizuku would probably confirm the return the next time she had duty.

Whether Akane left a note, what she wrote—

I didn’t need to know.

It was between the two of them.

—

Thursday. After school.

Shizuku came to the counseling room.

Her usual seat. Her usual tea.

But today—as soon as she arrived, she held out a note.

『Ren-sensei. Hinomiya-san returned the book.』

“I see.”

『There was a note inside.』

Shizuku gently took out a piece of paper from between her notebook pages.

She didn’t show it to me.

She held it carefully, making sure I couldn’t see.

“You don’t have to show me. It’s between the two of you.”

Shizuku nodded.

She looked relieved.

Then she wrote another note.

『Hinomiya-san’s thoughts were short. But— I was happy. It’s the first time someone other than me has written their thoughts about this book.』

“The first time?”

『I talk with Ren-sensei, and I’ve exchanged notes with Hanasaki-san. But receiving thoughts in a form like a letter—this is the first time.』

To Shizuku, Akane’s note was a “letter.”

Outside the counseling room, without me in between,

Shizuku and Akane exchanged words.

They didn’t need voices.

They connected through writing.

『Ren-sensei. May I lend Hinomiya-san another book?』

“Of course. You can decide that, Shizuku-chan.”

Shizuku nodded.

We drank tea, read books, and the usual quiet time passed.

As she was about to leave, she wrote one more note.

『Ren-sensei. Hinomiya-san’s handwriting is a bit rough, but strong—I like it』

—

Friday.

Mio came to the counseling room after school.

No knock.

She sat in her usual chair, silent until I served the tea.

After taking a sip, she spoke.

“Tickets for the December performance.”

Mio held out an envelope.

Inside were three tickets.

“I included ones for Hinomiya and the book girl.”

“Thanks. I’ll give them to them.”

“…Whether they come or not is up to them. I won’t force it.”

Mio took another sip.

Silence.

“…Counselor.”

“Yeah.”

“Rehearsals are progressing. An ensemble piece—acting with others is different from a monologue.”

“How is it different?”

“In a monologue, everything is completed within myself. The timing, the pauses—I decide all of it. In an ensemble—unless I receive the other person’s lines, my own lines don’t come out.”

Mio slowly turned her cup.

“Receiving—that part is difficult. Listening to someone else’s words, taking them in, and responding. On paper, it’s simple, but my body can’t keep up.”

“Because you’re not used to it?”

“I’m not used to it. —Maybe I’ve never really ‘received’ other people’s words before.”

Mio looked at me.

“I can receive your words. When you speak, they enter me. But—the club members’ words, I still end up deflecting.”

“Deflecting.”

“I can hear them. But they don’t enter me. I just return lines as dialogue— I’m not truly receiving them.”

Her self-analysis was accurate.

She could take in my words, but not others’.

That was the flip side of how “special” our relationship had become.

“Mio-san. That’s something that takes time.”

“I know.”

“Can I ask one thing?”

“What?”

“When you deflect their words—what do you feel?”

Mio stayed silent for a while.

“…Nothing. I don’t feel anything. The lines come, so I return them. That’s all.”

“And when you receive my words?”

“…………It’s scary.”

“Scary?”

“Because your words enter me. And when they do, I start to shake. And shaking— is scary.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

“Deflecting others is easy. I don’t get shaken. But then it’s not acting. An ensemble doesn’t work unless you allow yourself to be shaken.”

“Then—it’s practice. Practicing being shaken.”

“…………Don’t say it like it’s simple.”

“I know it’s not simple.”

Mio finished her tea.

She didn’t ask for a second cup.

“The performance is in a month. —I don’t know if I’ll make it in time.”

“It’s fine if you don’t.”

“…As an actor, that’s hard to accept.”

“If you don’t make it in time, there’s always next time.”

Mio stood up.

“…………Next time, huh.”

She walked toward the door, then stopped.

“The book girl—Shizuku Yukimura. I wonder what she thought of my stage.”

“Why not ask her?”

“If I ask directly, she’ll get scared. —Tell her to give her thoughts in a note.”

“Got it.”

Mio left.

Three tickets remained on the desk.

—

Weekend. Sunday afternoon.

The counseling room was closed, but I was in my dorm room, writing records.

I opened my notebook.

Progress records for the five of them.

『Shizuku- Her relationship with the library committee girl has stabilized. She has started lending and borrowing books with Akane. Her note exchanges with Haruto are ongoing. Her expression is stable, and she no longer leaves even if unfamiliar visitors are present.

Akane- Increased contact with a classmate (Sasaki). Exchanging book impressions with Shizuku. Shows embarrassment when asked about studies. No major change in visit pattern. However, need to monitor her leaving food uneaten.

Midori- Her report style has changed. More visits without excuses. After speaking with Rin, her self-disclosure has expanded. Reported her “78 points” to her father.

Rin- More flexible role within the team. Her junior, Satou, came to the counseling room. Her changes are spreading through the team. Able to see through my “I’m fine.”

Mio- Challenging herself with an ensemble play. Delegating direction. Struggling with “receiving.” Preparing for the December performance.』

I stopped my pen.

Looking at all five of them—each of them was expanding their world outside the counseling room.

Akane—to her classmate and Shizuku.
Shizuku—to the library, Haruto, and Akane.
Midori—to her juniors and Rin.
Rin—to her team.
Mio—to her club members.

They were expanding.

And yet—

They still came here several times a week.

If their outside world was growing, their visits should decrease.

If they gained more places to belong, the need for this place should lessen.

That would be the normal course of recovery.

But their visit frequency hadn’t changed.

Shizuku came every day.
Akane came at lunch and after school.
Midori came twice a week.
Rin came two to three times.
Mio came once a week.

Almost the same as April.

Their worlds were expanding—yet they still came here just as often.

That was because this place had settled as their “safe base.”

They tried their best outside, then came back here.

Rested, then went out again.

A healthy cycle.

For now.

But the counseling textbooks say this— “If returning to the safe base becomes habitual, there is a risk of dependency. If the counselor’s presence occupies too much of the client’s life, the frequency should be gradually reduced.”

Gradually reduce the frequency.

That option lingered in my mind.

It was still too early—or so I thought.

It was only the beginning of November.

Their outside worlds were still fragile.

If I reduced visits now, I’d be taking away their safe base before those sprouts could grow.

A little longer.

Just a little longer.

Until their outside worlds stabilized.

That was my conclusion.

I closed the notebook and looked out the window.

The November night sky.

A few stars were visible.

The poster for the 42nd Autumn Festival was still on the school wall.

It had already been over a month.

Tomorrow was Monday.

I’d make lunch, brew tea, and another usual week would begin.

Akane’s food list.
Shizuku’s notes.
Midori’s reports.
Rin’s stuffed toy. 

Mio’s tickets.

The traces they left in this room.

(…It’s still fine. Probably.)

Even I noticed the “probably.”