In a World of Reversed Chastity, I’m Surrounded by a Clingy Older Woman, a Walking Red Flag, and an Exhausted Office Lady - 23-24

Chapter 23: Know Your Enemy – Yua

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“Man, there’s absolutely nothing to do. I’m bored.”

The weekday had ended, and it was now the weekend. Today and tomorrow, there was nothing planned, so for the first time in a while, I could relax. Over the past month, I had spent time with Yua-san, as well as Kaoruko-san and Renka, so every day had been fulfilling. I had been with someone almost every day, so being alone like this didn’t happen often.

There were no urgent reports I needed to finish, so I truly had nothing to do. I could have spent the day lying around doing absolutely nothing, and that would have been fine, but having recently returned home and being used to spending time with others, being alone now felt a little lonely.

What should I do?

As I was pondering this, the intercom rang.

“This is your neighbor, Yua Shino­nome. Aoi-kun, do you have a little time?”

“Please wait a moment.”

I wondered what she could want. Opening the front door, I found Yua-san waiting, looking slightly nervous.

“Hello, Yua-san.”

“Hello, Aoi-kun. Sorry for dropping by suddenly.”

“No problem. I actually happened to be free too. So, did something happen?”

When I asked, Yua-san looked at me, her face turning even redder than before from nervousness.

“Uh… well, um…”

“Yes?”

She looked like she was struggling to speak. Did something terrible happen with her ex again? If Yua-san said she didn’t want to talk to her ex anymore, I’d handle him myself, I thought. But then Yua-san finally spoke.

“It’s nothing, but… I got bored, so I came over to hang out. Would you be mad?”

Her voice trailed off, making it a little hard to hear, but it seemed she was saying she came because she was bored.

“Ah, I see. I thought maybe something terrible happened again.”

“N-No, nothing like that. I’m fine. Nothing happened.”

She quickly denied it, flustered, so I was sure she wasn’t lying.

“So, will you talk with me or have a meal together?”

“Sure, that’s fine. I’m free today too.”

“Yay! Thank you, Aoi-kun!”

“No, thank you. I’m happy I can talk with you since I’m free as well.”

I let the happy-looking Yua-san into the room and guided her to our usual spot to sit.

“Cocoa okay?”

“Yeah. Thank you as always.”

“You’re welcome.”

I poured warm milk into the cocoa powder and stirred it. I could have used water, but cocoa made with milk tastes so much better, so I always use milk.

“Here you go.”

“Thanks, Aoi-kun.”

After handing her the cocoa, I sat down myself, took a sip, and then asked:

“So, what shall we do today?”

Yua-san spoke softly, almost in a whisper.

“I… just realized something.”

“W-What is it?”

Oh no, did her ex say something weird again…?

“I don’t know anything about you at all, Aoi-kun!!”

“…Huh?”

I didn’t understand what she meant, but Yua-san continued without hesitation.

“Yesterday, I was thinking at home and realized… I don’t even know your birthday, or what you like. You do so much for me, but I really don’t know anything about you.”

“Ah, I see.”

I understood. It was true that we had talked a lot, but I didn’t recall ever discussing basic things like what we liked or our birthday.

“Then, I’ll start asking you right away.”

“Go ahead.”

“Okay… when’s your birthday, Aoi-kun?”

“My birthday is December 24th.”

“Wait, so your birthday is on Christmas?”

That’s right. My birthday falls on Christmas Eve.

Even in this world, Christmas existed, and the tradition of spending it with a loved one remained. When I lived at home, I remembered celebrating both Christmas and my birthday at the same time almost every year.

“And December 24th is… coming up so soon!? I should have asked earlier!”

She seemed panicked as she thought aloud, so I teased her slightly while hiding a bit of hope.

“Are you going to celebrate it for me?”

Yua-san tilted her head.

“Of course I’ll celebrate. …Is it… is that a problem?”

“No, I’d be happy. I’ll look forward to it.”

So Yua-san would celebrate my birthday this year. I still remembered last year, my class celebrated my birthday separately from my family. My birthday this year seemed like it would be just as memorable.

“Then, next… Aoi-kun, what are your hobbies?”

“Well, my hobbies are… cleaning, I guess? I play games occasionally, but not seriously. So, I suppose my hobby is household chores.”

“Hehe, that makes sense, but maybe rather than chores, it feels like taking care of people is your hobby.”

Yua-san said this with a smile.

Taking care of people, huh. Considering everything that’s happened, it might be more accurate to say my hobby is caring for others rather than just doing chores.

“That’s right. I also take care of you, Yua-san, you know?”

“Ugh. W-Well, I’ve been cooking for myself lately—”

“Sorry, I was being a little mean.”

“…Aoi-kun, you sometimes play with me, don’t you?”

“That might also be my hobby… or maybe it was?”

“…That part of you… You’re kind of unfair,” Yua-san said, pouting and turning away. I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Your hobby is… music, right?”

“That’s right. I’ve been making a lot recently, so I’ll let you listen once it’s finished.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

I had never heard her compositions, so I genuinely felt excited. After talking about my favorite things and daily routines, Yua-san blushed slightly and asked hesitantly:

“Then… um… have you ever had a girlfriend before? And also, could you tell me if you have any female friends?”

She asked nervously, more so than ever.

A girlfriend, huh.

“I’ve never had a girlfriend before.”

“W-What!? N-No way! That’s impossible!”

Yua-san looked genuinely shocked, but I truly had never had one.

“I’m not lying. I really have never had one.”

“I-I see… I thought you were so popular that you probably had like thirty girlfriends.”

“That’s impossible. At my age, thirty girlfriends would be cheating too much.”

She seemed to pity me, assuming I was popular, but I really wasn’t.

I guess I’m just someone best kept as a friend.

“I do have female friends.”

“Ah, okay, at least that makes sense.”

“Yes.”

“What kind of friends? How many of them?”

Yua-san asked actively, curious about my social circle.

“Well, two friends from high school, one from university, and a few people I got close to at my part-time job.”

“I see… Can you tell me about them? What did you do together?”

“Yes, of course. Let’s start with my high school friends.”

A few moments later…

“…Hehe… oh, I see. You’re quite close with them, huh?”

“Y-Yes. They’re very important friends.”

At first, Yua-san had listened eagerly, but her expression gradually turned serious. I suggested changing the topic halfway, but she insisted: “It’s fine. Continue. I want to hear more.”

So I continued talking, even including stories about Shizuku, Renka, and Kaoruko-san. Yua-san stood up, determined.

“I’ve got something to do now, so that’s it for today.”

“Oh… okay.”

“And, I’d be happy if you could keep your birthday date free for me.”

“Um… I’ll celebrate with my family, so a nearby day should be fine.”

Because of my mother’s mysterious threat that she’d scream and cry if we didn’t celebrate my birthday, I planned to be home that day.

“Yeah, no problem. I’ll follow your schedule, Aoi-kun. Just let me know later.”

“U-Understood.”

I watched Yua-san leave, her steps unsteady.

I wonder if she’ll be okay…

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Chapter 24: Know Your Enemy – Renka

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“In the end, the cafeteria’s best choice is curry, isn’t it?”

“It’s cheap, and the taste isn’t bad. Way better than ramen or something.”

After the morning classes ended, Renka and I went to the cafeteria together. Our afternoon class had been canceled at the last minute because the professor had to go on a business trip, so we had some free time. We were lazily eating curry while chatting.

“Hey, hey, Aoi.”

“Hm? What’s up?”

“By the way, your birthday is coming up soon, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

I nodded at Renka’s comment. I had actually talked about this just the other day with Yua-san.

“Um… you know?”

“Yeah?”

“If it’s okay… I was thinking I’d be happy if you spent your birthday with me. But is that not possible?”

Hearing Renka say that directly made me feel happy.

It’s the same thrill, whether you’re in high school, college, or an adult—having a friend genuinely want to celebrate you. But…

“Sorry. I’ll probably be celebrating my birthday at home with my family.”

“Oh, right. That makes sense. If I had a boy like you in my family, I’d definitely celebrate him. Honestly, if it were me, I might not even let you go to university or school.”

Renka joked, but I had a feeling her eyes were somewhat serious. My mom and Hina had actually said it’d be fine if I stayed home and didn’t work at all. Of course, I didn’t want to become that kind of dependent, so I ended up living alone as a university student.

“So… would a date close to that be okay?”

A date close to my birthday, huh…

Yua-san had also offered to celebrate with me, and since we hadn’t set a date yet, I felt a bit hesitant to confirm Renka’s plans first. Yua-san had spoken up first after all.

“…Wait, do you already have plans with someone else?”

“Actually, yes. We talked about it the day before yesterday.”

“Oh, I see.”

Renka put down her spoon and looked down, eating her curry quietly. I felt a little guilty. She had been trying so hard to celebrate with me, after all.

“Hey, Aoi.”

“What is it?”

“By the way… you only have me as a friend at university, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

I didn’t have any other friends at university, and I wasn’t trying to force myself to make more.

“So… Outside of school, how many close friends do you have? Not counting acquaintances.”

This feels familiar somehow…

It was the exact same path as my conversation with Yua-san the day before yesterday.

“Uh… recently I made friends with the person living next door, someone at my part-time job, and two friends from high school.”

Including acquaintances, the number would be higher, but for truly close friends, these were the people.

“Huh…All of them are girls, right?”

“Y-yeah… that’s right.”

“You’re not dating any of them, right?”

“No. They’re all great people. It’d be a waste for them to date someone like me.”

Yua-san, Kaoruko-san, Shizuku, and others… They’re all stunning, and just being friends with them already feels like a miracle. This is all thanks to the chastity reversed world.

“I see… and among those you think would be a waste to date… am I included?”

“Of course. Renka, you’re cute and beautiful, after all.”

“…I see.”

Renka nodded with a somewhat complicated expression.

“So, tell me about these people, what kind of people they are.”

“Alright. Let’s start with Yua-san.”

A few moments later…

“Huh… so Yua-san is your next-door neighbor, and you’ve been helping her out recently.”

“Y-yeah.”

“And Kaoruko-san… she’s a customer at your part-time job, and lately, you’ve been cooking for her too.”

“…Y-yes.”

“Lastly, your high school friends. You’ve spent three whole years with them, even more than you’ve spent with me, right?”

“……………”

I looked away because Renka’s eyes were gradually losing their sparkle. It was awkward to watch.

“…It’s fine. I kind of understood already,” she muttered, staring at me.

“Hey, Aoi.”

“Y-yes?”

“Even on another day, could you give me time to celebrate your birthday? I don’t mind if you prioritize Yua-san since she asked first.”

“Uh… okay.”

“Promise me, alright? It’s a promise.”

Renka had already finished her curry perfectly and stood up, carrying her tray. Her posture was strikingly similar to Yua-san’s the other day.

“I’ve got things to do now.”

“Y-yeah.”

“Aoi, look forward to it. I’ll contact you later, okay?”

“Got it. I’m looking forward to it.”

I watched her go, her expression set with quiet determination.

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