The True Nature of Takapi Woman.

“Phew… honestly. Kusuhara-san really is a handful, isn’t she?”

“Nishikawa-san… do you know something about Takapi—that person?”

From the way things had played out earlier, it was immediately obvious the two of them weren’t on friendly terms. But between her attitude toward Sara-san and everything else, there were still far too many pieces that didn’t fit.

If I could just ignore her completely, I’d write her off as someone who genuinely didn’t matter. The problem was that she kept coming after us—after Sara-san in particular—so pretending she didn’t exist wasn’t really an option.

“‘Know’ might be putting it strongly. She’s been like that ever since I attended this school. We never really interacted directly, so I don’t know the reason behind it, but for some reason she seemed to harbor a kind of hostility toward Sara. Of course, Sara herself never paid her the slightest attention, so she ended up spinning her wheels all alone.”

“I see…”

I could vaguely picture the scene, but honestly, this didn’t add much beyond what I’d already sensed from the previous incident. In the end, what exactly was it that made that woman so fixated on picking fights with Sara-san?

Her clear dislike of Nishikawa-san, the rudeness she’d shown Hanako-san on their first meeting, her strange obsession with the Miss Contest… Putting it all together…

Maybe she just hates anyone who seems prettier or cuter than she is?

“Did something occur to you?”

“Huh?”

Nishikawa-san had been quietly watching my face for a while—and suddenly asked that.

Wait—don’t tell me even Nishikawa-san can read my mind now?!

“Fufu… don’t make that face. I’m not Sara-san; I can’t read your thoughts or anything. I simply noticed because your expression changed in a very particular way.”

“Ah… r-right… of course…”

Yeah, that would’ve been way too self-conscious of me.

Here I was, constantly mocking Takapi Woman for being overly full of herself—and yet the moment someone else seemed to guess what I was thinking, I immediately jumped to “she can read minds?!”

In other words… wasn’t I just as bad?

Ugh. This is mortifying.

If there were a hole in the ground right now, I’d crawl right in.

“…Honestly, that part of you must be what makes you so endearing. To Sara-san and to Hanako-san both.”

“…Nishikawa-san?”

“Nothing, nothing at all. More importantly—you did notice something, didn’t you?”

She stared straight into my eyes, almost like she was trying to peer into my thoughts.

Well… yes, I had come to a conclusion. Whether it was accurate or not was another question entirely.

Now then… how to handle this.

It was pure speculation on my part. There was a very real chance I was completely off-base.

Still… sharing it as one possible interpretation probably wouldn’t hurt.

“This is just something I personally thought of, okay?”

“Yes. That’s perfectly fine. I’m curious about her behavior too.”

“All right then.”

If she’s okay with it, I suppose there’s no harm.

I’m reasonably confident I’m not too far off the mark anyway.

“First, as a premise: from everything I’ve seen, her attitude only changes toward three people—Sara-san, you, and Hanako-san. And without question, the strongest hostility is directed at Sara-san.”

“I see… Yes, that much tracks with what I’ve observed too.”

“Right. And then there’s her unusual fixation on the Miss Contest—almost like an obsession. Which suggests she has quite a lot of confidence in herself… especially when it comes to her appearance.”

“An obsession with the Miss Contest… I see. Given her looks, that does make sense.”

“So putting it all together… I couldn’t help but wonder if she simply doesn’t like anyone who seems prettier or cuter than she is.”

“…Huh?”

All of a sudden Nishikawa-san let out a strangely blank sound, her expression going utterly vacant.

I know my theory has holes, but I didn’t think it was that bizarre…?

“I mean, anyone who seems prettier or cuter than her—”

“W-Wait, wait, wait! Okay, I get it, I get it!!”

For some reason she suddenly looked flustered, waving her hands in a panic.

What in the world is going on with her…?

“I-It’s… um… is that how you see it, Takanashi-san? In your personal judgment?”

“My… judgment?”

“Compared to Kusuhara-san… I mean…”

“Eh… ah, yeah. Anyway, I’m pretty sure she’s extremely confident in her own appearance. So it wouldn’t be strange at all for her to view Sara-san—or you—as rivals she needs to oppose. And with Hanako-san, it’s more in the ‘cute’ sense… Nishikawa-san?”

Her stunned expression hadn’t changed, but now her cheeks were visibly flushing.

Hmm… something’s definitely been off with her ever since a minute ago.

“Um… Nishikawa-san?”

“Fweh?! N-Nothing! It’s nothing!! …B-But when you say it so naturally like that… it almost sounds like you’re saying it’s not flattery…!”

“Huh?”

“Fufu, it’s really nothing. Please don’t worry about it. I’m fine. Just… one thing.”

“One thing?”

“Please… save comments like that for Sara-san only, all right?”

“H-Huh…?”

She said it with a mischievous little lilt, but I had no idea what she was getting at.

I was only analyzing Takapi Woman’s behavior. How did the conversation end up veering off in this direction…?

“Ahem! L-Let’s get back on topic, shall we? After listening to you, I did some thinking of my own. Rather than her simply comparing appearances… it might be that she harbors extreme hostility toward any girl who possesses something she envies—whether that’s looks, reputation, or something else. In Sara-san’s case especially, it’s everything at once: beauty, academics, status, popularity…”

“I see… That would explain why she’s so fixated on Sara-san in particular. Makes perfect sense.”

Yeah—this interpretation actually felt a lot more solid.

Sara-san was undeniably the one who had the most of everything in this school. For someone as self-assured as Takapi Woman, that would only make the envy burn hotter.

And Hanako-san—even if she was usually paired with Toudou-san—was called an “angel” by some people. If that rubbed her the wrong way, it would explain why she’d gone after Hanako-san that one time too.

…Yeah. This feels right.

“One more thing—though this is just a rumor, so I can’t say for certain whether it’s true—but I’ve heard she’s the type who pulls strings behind the scenes.”

“Pulls strings?”

“Yes. This school is effectively operated with funding from Sanami, after all. So she might be using that connection…”

“Wait—hold on. You’re saying she’s actually connected to Sanami?!”

That wasn’t just news—that was a bombshell!

If she really was tied to Sanami, then the guy she called the sales division manager earlier… he’d also be someone with real standing in the group. Wait…

But earlier, didn’t Takapi say “our company”?

“Ah, sorry—I should have explained that part first. In simple terms, over the last few years her father’s company was acquired by Sanami. So technically, both she and her father’s company are part of the Sanami Group now.”

“Oh… so that’s why she acts like that…”

“Ahaha. Yes, she definitely has a tendency to throw her status around. That overconfidence of hers probably stems from the same place… but let’s set that aside for now. The point is, she’s the daughter of a company president within one of the group’s affiliates—and one of the school’s largest backers. Which means…”

“The school might bend over backwards to accommodate her…?”

“Precisely. Back when I was a student, there were all sorts of rumors about her. People said it was better not to get on her bad side or pick fights with her… Whether she actually used those connections or not isn’t clear, but her personality made the rumors feel all the more believable.”

I see.

Given how brazenly arrogant she acts, it’s not hard to imagine people believing she had that kind of pull… But in our case, we have Masaomi-san and Mayumi-san on our side. A president of an affiliate company is… well, putting it bluntly…

…Speaking of which, how does the actual power balance work here?

“Nishikawa-san, if her father really is the president of that company… how does he compare to someone like Masaomi-san, who’s an executive at the main headquarters?”

“Well… it’s not really about titles. In terms of pure standing, Masaomi-san is on an entirely different level. So if anything were to happen at school, the advantage would unquestionably lie with you and Sara-san.”

Good. Hearing that put my mind at ease, at least a little.

If the school itself were backing her up and letting her do whatever she wanted, that would be a real problem… Wait—!

Could it be that our homeroom teacher is so cooperative with us… because of that exact power dynamic?

“…So the reason she’s so openly hostile toward Sara-san might include that angle too… But if that’s the case, she should realize that picking a fight at all is dangerous for her…”

“Nishikawa-san?”

“Ah, sorry. Anyway… that’s about as much as I know. The truth of her intentions is still unclear, but during the time I was at this school, she never once tried anything with me directly.”

“Yeah… that makes sense. To someone who cares that much about status and influence, you’d probably be more terrifying than anyone else.”

“…Normally, yes. Which only makes it stranger—why Sara-san specifically…?”

Once again Nishikawa-san trailed off, muttering to herself as though lost in thought.

Was there something bothering her? Something she’d just realized?

“Well… we’re not going to figure it out just by standing here talking. The important thing is that there’s a very real chance she’ll keep targeting Sara-san going forward. So please be careful, Takanashi-san. I did give her a little warning earlier, but I doubt she’ll listen.”

“…Understood.”

I see. So that cryptic remark earlier really had been said with us in mind…

Between that and what happened the other day, lately I’ve been relying on her nonstop. I’ll have to thank her properly later.

“Now then—shall we get to the real reason I came? If we take too long, we might end up inconveniencing Uesaka-san.”

“Right. But the ‘real reason’… it’s about that, isn’t it?”

She wasn’t trying to be coy or anything, but at this point there was only one thing the two of us would need to discuss alone.

“Yes. Please give it a final check—including the case. The ring itself is exactly as you saw last time, so no issues there. The case, though… that might come down to personal taste. I’ve already confirmed there are no discrepancies on my end.”

So saying, Nishikawa-san took something from her pouch.

Of course—it was Sara-san’s ring. The one I’d bought that day.

Why did she have it?

Simple: our house was under Sara-san’s complete and total management.

If I brought the ring home and tried to hide it somewhere, the odds of Sara-san finding it were astronomically high.

That’s why we’d had the shop hold onto it until the last possible moment—and right now, it was temporarily in Nishikawa-san’s custody.

“Thank you. Sorry for all the trouble.”

“Not at all—it’s no trouble whatsoever. Though… it must be hard, not being able to hide even one thing in your own house.”

“Haha… it’s pathetic, I know. But I’ve basically handed over complete control of the house to Sara-san. She doesn’t compromise at all when it comes to cleaning, so even if I tried to hide something…”

Sara-san knew our home far better than I did. She handled cleaning and maintenance down to the smallest detail. Anything out of place would catch her eye immediately—and since she could basically read me like an open book anyway, there was no way I’d be able to keep the ring hidden from her until the end.

“Sigh… Sara really is like a perfect housewife, isn’t she? The same person who used to instantly and mercilessly shut down any guy who even tried to approach her… it almost feels like a different lifetime.”

“Haha, Natsumi-senpai says the exact same thing all the time.”

“Of course she does. To those of us who knew Sara-san back then… the current Sara feels like a completely different person. Or maybe someone with a split personality.”

Split personality…? That’s harsh.

But it really did speak to just how intense she used to be.

The way she dealt with guys—especially flirty ones or idiots—was so harsh it was easy to imagine.

“Still… if you think of her extreme aversion to men as the flip side of how completely sweet she is on you, it suddenly makes perfect sense… Ah, we’ve gone off on a tangent again. Anyway—please confirm.”

“Got it.”

I took the case she offered and gave it a once-over.

The box itself was plain and unadorned—the standard sample ring case I’d chosen at the shop. I’d gone with red to make it stand out a little, but it was basically a complimentary item; the design was nothing special either way.

And the ring inside…

It was small and a little hard to read, but the inside was properly engraved with both our initials.

The orientation made it clear: from me, to Sara-san.

The date engraved beside it was tomorrow’s date—perfect.

Yes. All good.

This ring was now, in name and in truth, Sara-san’s and Sara-san’s alone.

The thought made me feel even more attached to it somehow… I couldn’t wait to give it to her and see her face light up!

“Fufu… looks like you’re satisfied.”

“Yeah. I really want to give it to Sara-san soon.”

Apparently my feelings were showing on my face again… but this time I couldn’t help it. I was happy.

“I can already picture how overjoyed Sara-san will be. To think she’s about to receive a proposal… a proposal… proposal…?”

…Uh-oh. This might be bad.

Nishikawa-san’s gaze had started drifting somewhere far away, as though she were seeing something that wasn’t there.

That was usually the signal that she was about to go full “dark mode” (?)… so maybe it was time to wrap up the ring discussion.

“Nishikawa-san, thank you for looking after the ring. Sorry, but could you hold onto it just one more day?”

“Ah—yes, of course. If Sara-san found it here it would ruin everything. I’ll keep it safe.”

This time she seemed to have snapped back before fully falling (?).

She quickly put on her usual smile, accepted the case, and slipped it back into her bag.

Now all that was left was to wait for “that moment” tomorrow.

“Please do. Shall we head back now?”

“Yes. I said ‘just a little while,’ but if we stay any longer we’ll be imposing on Uesaka-san.”

It already felt like way more than “a little while,” honestly.

At this rate she might get the wrong idea in an entirely different sense… No—rather than worrying about that, we should just hurry back already.

***

“W-Welcome back, both of you.”

When we returned to the tent, Uesaka-san greeted us looking faintly restless.

No one else had come back yet; she was sitting there all alone, and for some reason the sight carried a touch of melancholy…

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Uesaka-san, apologies for taking so long.”

“Eh?! N-No, no—I’m perfectly fine! Please don’t worry about it at all!”

Sure enough, just being around Nishikawa-san made her nervous; her fidgeting was almost painful to watch.

Nishikawa-san watched with a wry smile… but really, Uesaka-san wasn’t usually like this at all.

If Nishikawa-san ever realized how she truly felt… would she still be able to act the same way around her?

“A-Anyway… um… what you two were talking about…”

“Fufu, that’s a secret. Right, Takanashi-san?”

“Eh? Ah—y-yeah, that’s right.”

Even if the ring was supposed to stay secret, when Nishikawa-san said it so cheerfully and meaningfully like that… it was only going to stir up unnecessary suspicion toward me…

“Secret… secret…”

Too late.

Uesaka-san’s gaze had already shifted completely into full suspicion mode.

Even if Nishikawa-san had only meant it playfully… for a guy who had feelings for her… Wait—right, she still hadn’t noticed, had she?

“Nishikawa-san, what are your plans after this?”

“Hmm… it looks like everyone else is still out. Would it be all right if I waited here for a little while longer?”

“Underst—”

“Very welcome!!”

“…She says.”

Uesaka-san was practically bursting with joy… maybe a little too obviously.

Still—if this gave her a chance to talk with Nishikawa-san, I could understand why she’d jump at it.

“Thank you.”

While watching Uesaka-san’s reaction, Nishikawa-san gave another small wry smile… then picked up an empty chair and placed it right beside me.

Seeing that, Uesaka-san looked over at me with a complicated expression…

…Yeah…

“By the way—what happened to those two after we left?”

I knew full well they weren’t here anymore, but I was mildly curious what had become of them.

Also… it was partly just an attempt to change the subject.

“Ah—them? They left almost immediately afterward. Especially the guy; he looked like he’d bitten into something sour. A-Ah, right—Nishikawa-san, about that man earlier…”

“Oh, it seems we were introduced once. I don’t remember him, though.”

“I-I see… Well… actually, being able to act that confident after just one greeting is kind of impressive in its own way.”

The same went for Takapi Woman.

Maybe excessive self-confidence really did run in the family. I didn’t know about the parents, but if they showed up to Sanami parties too, we might end up crossing paths at the year-end event or something.

“Yes… unfortunately, people like that aren’t exactly rare in my circle either. So it’s neither surprising nor particularly unusual.”

Nishikawa-san gave a faintly self-deprecating smile.

When you’re the daughter of a major company president, you inevitably end up dealing with people like that whether you like it or not, huh…

“Fufu, sorry—I didn’t mean to bring the mood down. Let’s drop that topic.”

“Y-Yeah…”

Even so… after seeing that expression on her face, it wasn’t easy to just flip the switch and say “okay, moving on!”

I was curious too. If Uesaka-san hadn’t been here, I might’ve asked a little more directly… but now wasn’t the time.

“Well then—since earlier was so brief, let me say it properly this time. Uesaka-san, it’s been a while. Thank you again for everything back then.”

“Ah—y-yes! The pleasure was mine. Especially with the flower bed… I wasn’t able to help much at all…”

“No, no—Sara took over that responsibility. And besides…”

“Besides?”

Nishikawa-san glanced briefly at me and gave a small smile.

What exactly was she planning to say now…?

“Because Sara took it on personally… in the end, that flower bed became the cupid that brought me and my best friend together.”

“…Yeah. If I think about how taking care of that flower bed I started on a whim ended up being theきっかけ for me and Sara-san getting closer… then once again, I owe you my thanks, Nishikawa-san.”

I hadn’t intended to butt in, but when she said something that touching, I couldn’t just stay quiet.

She was right. If not for that flower bed, Sara-san and I might never have grown as close as we did.

In other words… couldn’t you say Nishikawa-san was one of our cupids too?

“No, no. It may have been the trigger, but becoming close with Sara of all people just from that? Impossible. Normally she would have shot it down with a flat ‘no thank you’ and ended things right there.”

“Yeah… with Satsukawa-san, that’s exactly how it would’ve gone. Even I got turned down cold countless times when I tried to help with student council work… so—”

“Exactly. Back then especially, Sara-san had a lot of things weighing on her heart. She had this stubborn tendency to try to handle everything by herself. That’s why people called her ‘aloof’ or ‘solitary’… but that wasn’t some admirable trait. It was just painful. But… with Takanashi-san, she accepted help willingly, didn’t she?”

“…Yeah. Sara-san let me help her normally from the very beginning.”

In my case, she was the one who proactively suggested splitting up the work. She even prepared tea for me. From the start, it felt like she welcomed me.

“R-Really? Satsukawa-san… right from the beginning?”

“In other words… even at that moment, Takanashi-san was already someone special to Sara-san. So the flower bed was only ever the motive.”

“I-I see…”

Hearing it laid out like that, everything Nishikawa-san said clicked perfectly into place.

From the very first moment… I’d been special to her.

…That made me really happy.

“Hmm… somehow, hearing all this makes Satsukawa-san’s fixation on Takanashi-kun feel completely understandable. To her, he’s just… overwhelmingly special. Far too precious.”

“‘Overwhelmingly special and far too precious’… That’s a wonderful way to put it. As expected of you, Uesaka-san.”

“No, no—it’s because your story was so lovely.”

…Wait.

What is this atmosphere?

They’re using our story as an excuse… and somehow they’re getting along perfectly.

Before I knew it, Uesaka-san seemed to have regained her usual composure too.

…Well. I’m not complaining.