My Mental Choices Are Completely Interfering with My School Romantic Comedy

Volume 3 Chapter 5.2: My Classmates and I Change Too Drastically

“It’s already this late…”

I watched Yuukiouji playing around in the flowing pool with Chocolat and Yuragi from the poolside, sighing.

About an hour ago:

“Wait, wait, Yuuouji! I’m sorry, I didn’t think you’d hate having your hand held that much!”

After searching all over the pool area, I finally found Yuuouji, who was blushing deeply and trying to run away again. I desperately tried to stop him.

“Huh? …Hand?”

Yuuouji looked at me with a confused expression.

“Huh? …Wasn’t it about the hand?”

I had the exact same confused look on my face.

“………………Ah, ahaha, yeah, yeah, it was about the hand, right? Haha… I don’t know why I was running away.”

“Well… that’s what I’d like to know.”

“Yeah, you don’t remember, huh… Okay, then, it’s fine!”

Yuuouji suddenly motivated herself in an inexplicable way, completely returning to her usual self… I had no idea what was going on.

Afterward, I took the recovered Yuuouji and headed over to the Soft Breeze area, where the president had gathered the rest of the members.

The sight of six beautiful girls from the academy, all in swimsuits, gathered together was quite a spectacle, but──

“Everyone, it’s a relief that we all made it here safely. Now, let’s return to our original groupings~.”

Kokubyakuin-kaichou, quickly took Yawakaze and Reikadou somewhere, so the four of us returned to the original group and headed to the flowing pool.

Now that we had settled down, I decided to leave the noisy trio to play and focus on thinking about how to clear the mission.

However, no matter how much I thought, I couldn’t come up with a way to make Yuuouji cry.

This brought my mind back to the idea of using the secret weapon. If I used that, it’d be simple, but… No, I should think a bit more before resorting to it.

“Sigh… Maybe I should swim a bit to clear my head.”

I walked toward the flowing pool, trying to shake off the heavy thoughts.

***

(Everyone… looks like they’re having fun.)

Furano, drifting in the flowing pool on a float, watched Chocolat, Ouka, and Yuragi with envy.

After losing track of everyone because of Agua-kun, she had searched the area and finally found Kanade and the others just a few minutes ago.

(Ugh… why am I doing something like a stalker?)

She couldn’t bring herself to call out to them or even leave with a clear conscience.

“Sigh…”

As she started to fall back into her negative thoughts, she saw Kanade, who had been resting by the poolside, making her way toward the middle of where Furano, Chocolat, and the others were.

(W-what should I do? If I don’t get farther away, I might be found… Wait, what?)

Just as she felt a presence behind her and turned around in a flash:

“Ah, I’m sorry!”

“…Huh?”

Someone bumped into her, and she was thrown off the float.

“Ah, ahh, ahh!”

If she had calmed down, the water wasn’t deep enough to be a problem, but Furano was in full panic mode.

Splish, splash, splish, splash.

As she floundered, water started to flood her nose and mouth, and her panic only worsened.

(Someone help──)

“Eh?”

As soon as I entered the flowing pool, I heard a splashing sound from behind.

When I turned to look, I saw someone who seemed to be drowning drifting towards me. Despite the water not being that deep, they were clearly panicking and thrashing around wildly, splashing water everywhere, so I couldn’t even tell if it was a man or a woman…

Splish, splash, splish, splash.

A girl, huh… Her voice seemed oddly familiar, like I’d heard it somewhere before. I caught the drifting figure and stopped them.

“Are you… alright?”

“Aaah… th-thank you…”

“Yuki… Hira?”

The moment our eyes met, Yukihira’s face froze.

“A-Ama… Amakusa-kun…”

It must have been my imagination, right? Did she just say “Auu,” and look super cute for a second…?

But when she blinked and the moment passed, Yukihira’s face returned to its usual, emotionless mask… Yeah, it must’ve just been me.

Still, what’s with this strange, unpleasant feeling? Is it… killing intent?

“Uooh!”

The next moment, a fist from Yukihira exploded into the spot where my face had been.

“Are you trying to kill me?!”

T-That was no joke!

“That assessment is… mostly correct.”

“You just admitted it!”

“It was just a joke. Humans don’t die from having their nose bones crushed.”

“You were actually going to do it?!”

“Well, the real plan was to stun you with that, then circle around and hit you in the back of the head…”

“How twisted are you?!”

Today, Yukihira is even more dangerous than usual. She’s probably ready to pull out scissors and go full ‘anyone who opposes me, I’ll kill even my parents’ mode.

“By the way, didn’t you say you couldn’t come for some reason?”

I had brought the tickets, but I remembered her saying something about feeding them to a goat, which was… weird.

“Yes, I wasn’t planning on coming. I fed the ticket to the goat, but it didn’t sit well with it, and it came out the other end undigested, so I had no choice but to use it.”

“That’s… unbelievable.”

“Well, I was joking about it not being digested. It melted and turned into recycled paper before coming out.”

“Now that’s even less believable!”

This is exhausting… No matter where we are, dealing with her is tiring.

“Well, I don’t really care about your reasons, but since you’re here, why not go talk to Yuouji and the others over there?”

“…No, I’ll pass.”

“Why… wait, are you shaking? Are you okay?”

“Ama… Amakusa-kun, if you defeat the enemy leader, even I can’t help but get excited.”

“Why are you getting all pumped up like a warrior here?!”

“To latch on like that in a place like this… it’s the lowest of deeds.”

“Are your ears rotting or something?!”

“…Correct.”

“Why are you dragging it out like a millionaire?!”

“By the way, my ears aren’t actually rotting.”

“I know that! Are you making fun of me?!”

“…Correct.”

“Ughhh!”

Yukihira calmly responded to my frustrated shout.

“By the way, Amakusa-kun… would you mind grabbing that float over there?”

She pointed at a float that had gotten caught in a plant on the inner side of the pool.

“…You can’t swim, can you?”

Earlier, when she was almost drowning, it didn’t seem like her legs were cramping or anything.

“…Of course I can swim.”

“Then why do you need a float?”

“When I’m in that… indecently shaped thing, it just feels oddly calming.”

“Apologize to the float with all your heart!”

It’s practically confirmed now that Yukihira can’t swim, but I couldn’t help wanting to tease her a little.

“Well, if you could really swim, you wouldn’t need it, right~?”

I’ve always been the one who gets verbally beaten down, so I thought this little payback would be forgiven.

“…”

“Hey, come on, say something! At this rate, I’m gonna look like the bad guy!”

“…●●”

“At least respond! There’s a limit to how much you can stay silent!”

Yukihira gave me a sharp glare. Ugh… This isn’t just her usual teasing—it’s like she’s genuinely upset.

“Okay, okay, I get it. My bad. Here.”

I grabbed the float and handed it to her.

“I don’t need it. I can swim.”

Ugh… She’s completely sulking now.

“No, no, stop being stubborn and just take it.”

“I don’t need it.”

“…”

“If you’re gonna insist that much, I’ll take it—”

“Then I really don’t need it—”

Ah, the timing was perfect, we spoke at the exact same time… This is so awkward.

“…I’m going home.”

“Wait, no, you really shouldn’t push yourself—”

Ignoring my attempt to stop her, Yukihira walked slowly towards the edge of the pool.

But after walking a little ways…

“Whap!”

Once again, she started splashing around.

“Ugh… If I offer to help, she’ll just get even angrier…”

I could do nothing but watch Yukihira’s struggling form from behind as she floundered in the water.

“Phew… I’m exhausted.”

After getting out of the flowing pool (Yukihira, who had to be rescued by a lifeguard, wandered off somewhere), we were taking a short break at the food court.

While sipping juice, I desperately racked my brain… but it was no use. Nothing came to mind.

“Amacchi, why’re you making such a serious face?”

“Onii-chan, you’ve got wrinkles between your brows!”

“Is your stomach hurting, desu ka?”

“Nah, it’s nothing.”

I halfheartedly responded to Yuuouji and the others’ questions, my mind elsewhere, when a cheerful voice caught my ear.

“Haha, Grandpa, let’s play over there next!”

“Alright, alright, then I’ll carry you there, little one!”

“Yay!”

An old grandpa playing with his grandkid, huh… Suddenly, the vision the president forced me to see earlier flashed back into my mind.

“Yo! Check out my pecs, YO! —Check ‘em out, YO! —Check ‘em out, YO!” …The old man’s rap echoed over and over in my head.

If I fail this mission, that’s what I’ll become—or maybe something even worse. Just imagining it sent a chill down my spine.

“…Sorry, give me about ten minutes.”

With a certain resolve, I stood up.

If it’s come to this… If it’s come to this, I have no choice but to use that secret weapon.

Considering the time it’ll take to get home, we probably only have an hour or two left here. Sitting around worrying isn’t going to get me anywhere.

Making excuses to myself, I hurriedly headed to the changing room. I opened my locker, reached into my bag, and pulled out the thing stored in a bottle.

“I didn’t want to use this guy…”

An insanely cringeworthy line slipped out, but it was my honest truth.

…Yuuouji, I’m sorry.

“Sorry for making you wait.”

“Huh, Amacchi, what’s that you’re holding behind you?”

“Uh, n-nothing, don’t worry about it…”

What I was hiding was a small water gun I’d bought at the shop on my way back. Inside it was a special tear gland destruction extract.

In that book Chocolat bought, Ten Ways to Make a Girl Cry, there was a disgusting method about splashing habanero extract in someone’s face. But that seemed to be a setup, because in the fine print, there was a recipe for this tear gland destruction extract.

It’s based on onion juice, but according to the notes, it only causes a ton of tears and has no harmful effects on the body. Just to be safe, I tested it on myself to confirm it wasn’t dangerous.

…But it makes your nose run. Like, a lot. Tears and snot just pour out, leaving your face a complete mess.

That’s why I hesitated to use it. Even if it’s Yuuouji, making a girl’s face a snotty disaster is just unthinkable.

But… but.

“…Yuuouji, can we talk for a sec?”

I… I’ll become a demon!

“Hm? What’s up, desu yo~?”

Making sure Yura and Chocolat wouldn’t see, I led her to a spot by the water’s edge, a little ways off. Alright, if I take a quick picture of Yuuouji’s crying face here and drop it in the pool, no one else will see her snotty face.

Of course, that doesn’t mean what I’m doing is forgivable… I’ll grovel and apologize later.

“…”

Silently, I pulled out the water gun.

“Oooh, what’s that? It’s so cool! Did you just buy it?”

“Yeah…”

Feeling guilt weigh on me as I looked at Yuuouji’s innocent smile, I took a step closer. If I shoot from too far, her freakishly athletic reflexes might dodge it.

…Alright, this distance is a sure hit.

I aimed the barrel at Yuuouji’s face.

“Sorry—”

But my finger wouldn’t move.

Damn it… what am I doing? If I don’t do this, I’ll end up with that naked rap fate—

[Choose: ① Shoot it into your own butt hole 10x irritation / ② Shoot it into your own nostril 2x irritation]

…What the hell?

“What’s wrong, Amacchi?”

Yuuouji stared at me, puzzled, as I froze with the gun still pointed at her.

“Ugh…”

My hand trembling, I lowered the gun from Yuuouji and pressed it to my own face.

Then, I shoved it into my nostril—

“GYAAAAAHHH!”

“Ugh… sniff… sniff…”

“There, there, desu yo.”

Chocolat patted my head as I bawled my eyes out.

“It’s okay, it’s okay! A crying Onii-chan is totally hot too!”

Yura, breathing heavily, was clearly excited.

“Hahahahaha! Amacchi, your face is all snotty and hilarious!”

Yuuouji was laughing her head off.

“Ugh, hic!”

“But why were you gonna shoot that at me?”

“I-I wad… j-jusd… tryig do ged a bidday surbrise…”

“Hahahaha! I can’t understand a word you’re saying!”

…规律, huh? Yeah, I get it.

“…Phew.”

Ten minutes later, my tears and snot finally calmed down, but the situation was the worst.

My one and only trump card was gone, and now I had no plans left.

Damn… this is bad. This is really bad.

“Where should we go next, desu ka~?”

Ignoring my despair, Chocolat chirped cheerfully.

“We don’t have much time left, so we should pick carefully… Oh, Chocolat-neechan, this looks fun!”

Yura pointed to a section of the pamphlet.

“‘Water × Ghost’… Oh, so it’s basically a haunted house with water effects.”

“A haunted house, desu ka? Sounds fun!”

It did seem like a pretty interesting attraction, but I had no time to mess around with that. I needed to figure out a way to make Yuuouji cry, and fast.

“Sorry, but I’m gonna—”

“Th-that’s probably not a good idea!”

Just as I was about to excuse myself, an unexpected voice interrupted.

“Yuuouji?”

What’s up with her? I thought she’d be all over something like this.

“Mouka-san, are you against it, desu ka?”

Chocolat, looking surprised, asked her.

“N-no, it’s not like I’m against it or anything! It’s just, um… haunted houses and stuff? I’m kinda over them. That kiddie stuff doesn’t really interest me anymore, y’know?”

“Kiddie…”

I never thought I’d hear that word come out of Yuuouji’s mouth.

But wait, this feeling… didn’t I just go through this? Oh, right—it’s like when I lied about the roller coaster earlier.

She’s scared but made up an excuse on the spot… Wait, hold on, does that mean…

“Yuuouji, are you… scared?”

“N-no way, that’s not it at all!”

“Hmmm…”

I could feel my face twisting into a sly grin.

“Then you can handle it, right~?”

“Ugh…”

Our positions had completely reversed from earlier.

“I mean, we’re high schoolers, right? Shouldn’t we, like… do something a bit more… y’know, mature? Or maybe not, I dunno…”

Yuuouji was fumbling hard. This wasn’t just me getting back at her for earlier—this was a chance to clear the mission.

“It’s fine if we go in, I guess, but it’s probably just some lame kid’s stuff…”

“Oh, don’t worry about that, Mouka-neechan! The pamphlet says this place is super legit—scary enough to make grown adults run away barefoot!”

“Oh… r-really…?”

Yuuouji’s face was visibly twitching. With a reaction this obvious, there’s no doubt she’s terrified of horror stuff.

I don’t know if it’ll make her cry so easily, but with my secret weapon a bust and no other ideas, banking on the primal emotion of fear is definitely worth a shot.

“Alright, then it’s settled!”

“Uweeeeh?!”

Yuuouji let out a ridiculous squeal.

“C’mon, it’s not that big a deal.”

She looked like she was about to beg to back out, so I patted her shoulder to calm her down.

“Ahyabesh?!”

She yelped like a lowlife thug from a post-apocalyptic movie and jumped. Her fear was way beyond what I’d expected… This might actually work.

Before long, we arrived at Water × Ghost. The exterior was creepy and impressively detailed.

At the entrance, a smiling staff lady greeted us.

“You’re a couple, right? Please go in together.”

“Uh, no, we’re not really a cou—”

“Y-yeah, together! Me and Amacchi, together!”

Yuuouji, clearly only hearing the “together” part, shouted over me. Geez, how scared is she?

Well, I need us to be paired up anyway, so this works out.

I’m a bit worried about leaving Chocolat and Yura behind, but for now, I’ll focus on the mission.

“…Alright, let’s go, Yuuouji.”

“Y-yes, desu! P-please take care of me, desu!”

“…You sure you’re okay?”

“I-I’m fine, desu!”

Says who? She’s completely out of character.

Yuuouji grabbed my arm and followed me with tiny, shuffling steps, walking like an old grandma.

It was dimly lit, and the atmosphere was pretty eerie, but aside from water trickling along the floor, it didn’t seem much different from a regular haunted house so far.

“One person, two people…”

In her panic, Yuuouji was muttering some nonsense count while writing the kanji for “sheep” on her palm and pretending to swallow it. I don’t know if she’s trying to sleep or calm her nerves, but that’s not gonna help with her fear.

“Hm?”

Water started dripping onto my shoulder from the ceiling. This kind of water-based effect is unique to a pool attraction, I guess.

Every time a droplet hit Yuuouji, she flinched with a “Hii!” and trembled… From a scarer’s perspective, she’s the perfect target.

“…Yuuouji, you okay?”

For the sake of the mission, it’s better if she’s scared out of her wits, but her extreme freaking out was starting to make me feel a little bad, so I checked on her.

“I-I’m fine, I wasn’t even scared to begin wi—”

“GUGYORURAAAA!”

Cutting off Yuuouji’s words, something burst out of a water tank beside us.

“UHYAAAAA?!”

It was a grotesque, green-scaled fish-man.

Yuuouji, nearly collapsing from fright at its hideous appearance, grabbed my swim trunks and shook uncontrollably.

“Ah… au… au…”

“Yuuouji, it’s just a prop, you’re fine.”

“B-but it’s so realistic—huh?”

“GUGYORURAAAAA!”

Another one popped out from the opposite side.

“UHYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA?!”

“Hey, Yuuouji!”

Screaming at the top of her lungs, Yuuouji bolted off before I could stop her.

“Hey, Yuuouji!”

Calling her name, I followed the path for a few minutes.

There she was. Sitting in the middle of the path in a fetal position, Yuuouji was trembling slightly.

“Sniff… sniff…”

…She was full-on crying.

“You… over a haunted house like this?”

“B-but… it was so scary…”

For the first time, she admitted she was scared and tightly gripped my outstretched hand.

“H-hey, hold on a sec…”

Despite her attitude being even more childish than usual, her tear-soaked expression was oddly seductive, and I couldn’t help but look away.

Wait… hold on… tear-soaked?

“U-UWOOOOOH!”

Tch, this situation is basically mission accomplished, isn’t it?!

I felt bad for taking advantage of her genuine fear, but I readied the waterproof camera hanging from my neck.

“Ugh… hic…”

I’d snap the picture quick and get her out of here. That’s what I thought as I raised the camera—but at that very moment,

“Hm?”

Someone’s finger tapped Yuuouji’s shoulder, tap tap.

Yuuouji turned around. And at the end of her gaze was—

“GUGYORURAAAAA!”

“KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

At the third fish-man’s appearance, Yuuouji, now in a complete frenzy, threw herself onto me.

“H-Hey… wait, huh?!”

Then, snatching the camera from my hand, she hurled it with all her might at the fish-man.

“Get AWAAAAY!”

The camera struck the fish-man’s tough mask dead-on, making an unpleasant crack as it fell to the floor.

“N-No way?!”

I hurriedly picked it up, but even though it was waterproof, the camera wasn’t exactly durable—it was completely broken.

M-My once-in-a-lifetime chance…

“UWAAAAAAAH!”

Before I could even mourn, Yuuouji, sobbing and screaming, took off running again.

“Y-Yuuouji!”

I hurriedly chased after her.

“There you are!”

This time, instead of curling up, Yuuouji was standing stock-still in the middle of the path.

As I approached, I noticed something off. Her tears had stopped, but her expression was… vacant.

“Y-Yuuouji, you okay?”

“…”

No response. Her eyes didn’t seem to be focusing, either. This… this might be bad, right?

“Kanade.”

“…Huh?”

What did she just say?

“Kanade.”

She said it again, clearly this time, and tightly gripped my swim trunks.

“Y-Yuuouji?”

What’s going on? What the hell is happening here?

“Not Kanade?”

“No, I’m definitely Kanade, but that’s not what I mean…”

Another unexpected word popped out of Yuuouji’s mouth.

“Piggyback.”

“…What?”

“Scary, so give piggyback.”

“Piggyback? You…”

Her way of speaking wasn’t just childish—it was straight-up like a toddler’s.

Could it be… the fear was so intense she regressed to a childlike state?

“Hey… piggyback…”

No way something so manga-like could… But the Yuuouji in front of me, with her expression and mannerisms, was undeniably at a kindergarten level.

“F-Fine…”

With no other choice, I turned and offered my back. She must’ve been really scared, because she immediately clung to me with all her strength.

Naturally, when someone clings like that, certain things press against your back…

“Y-Yuuouji, don’t cling so tight—”

“Ouka.”

“Huh?”

“Not Yuuouji, Ouka.”

Ouka? …Oh, she means Mouka… She’s telling me to call her by her first name?

“…That’s what Daddy calls me.”

“Daddy? You…”

“Ouka!”

As if protesting, Yuuouji squeezed even tighter.

“Ugh… whoa…”

The sensation of soft, squishy mounds pressing against my back was… overwhelming. N-No way… This is bad. This is really bad!

“O-Ouka…”

“Mm, okay~”

She responded with a satisfied tone, loosening her grip slightly.

W-What the heck is this situation…?

Well, whining about it won’t help, so I continued down the path with Yuuouji on my back.

Perhaps being carried eased her fear a bit, because she was quiet at first, but…

“Hii!” “Uhyaa!” “Scaryyy!”

Every time something startled her, she squeezed me tightly, and each time, her chest pressed against my back. For reasons entirely unrelated to fear, I was barely holding it together.

And then—

“GUGYORURAAAAA!”

The fourth one attacked.

“UHYAAAAAAAAH!”

How obsessed is this haunted house with fish-men?! Normally, you’d think getting jump-scared this many times in a row would dull the fear, but Yuuouji screamed with the same intensity as before.

“F… Fue… FUEEEEEH!”

Since she was on my back, she didn’t run off this time, but she started crying again.

“H-Hey, it’s okay, so don’t cry, Ouka!”

Flustered, I tried to soothe her. I’d made Manami-chan cry earlier, but this was a completely different situation.

After all, the one crying on my back was a sixteen-year-old girl.

“Uuu… hic… hic…”

I tried my best as we walked, but Yuuouji’s tears wouldn’t stop. From a mission perspective, this could be considered a juicy opportunity, but with the camera broken, it didn’t matter how much she cried—it was meaningless. Ideally, she’d stay just a little teary until we got outside, but…

“UWEEEEH!”

Yuuouji’s sobs only got worse.

“Hm?”

As I trudged along, at my wit’s end, a fork in the path appeared. The two routes were perfectly symmetrical, making it hard to tell which led closer to the exit.

Now, what should I do—?

[Choose: ① Take the left path Leads straight outside, but Yuuouji Ouka stops crying / ② Take the right path Longer route to the exit, filled with relentless, bizarre terrors. Yuuouji Ouka continues sobbing even after reaching the goal]

…If I pick ② and borrow someone’s camera to take a picture after we reach the goal, I could definitely complete the mission…

I glanced at Yuuouji on my back.

“Hic… hic…”

She looked like a genuine child. Crying because she was scared—that’s all there was to it. Right now, Yuuouji truly hated this situation from the bottom of her heart.

…Seeing her like that, I couldn’t bring myself to choose ②.

“Ouka… We’re almost out.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah, I’ll get you to the exit in no time, so don’t cry anymore, okay?”

“Mm… sniff… If Kanade says so, I’ll try.”

She was still a bit sniffly, but she seemed much calmer than before.

I stepped onto the left path and kept going. As the choice indicated, after just a dozen meters or so, the exit appeared.

“Whoa…”

The sunlight was blinding, and I couldn’t help but squint.

The staff lady at the exit approached with a cheerful smile.

“All done! Thanks for—uh…”

Her words faltered as she saw me with Yuuouji on my back.

…Yeah, I guess this situation looks weird from an outside perspective.

“N-No, it’s not what you think! Get down, Ouka.”

“Nope.”

As the choice predicted, Yuuouji had stopped crying at some point, but she stayed glued to my back, refusing to let go.

“This feels nice, so I’m staying here forever~”

…Looks like her toddler mode didn’t wear off even after we got outside. Seriously… what am I supposed to do with this?

“C’mon, stop being stubborn and get down already!”

I half-forced her off.

“Muu!”

Yuuouji puffed out her cheeks and glared at me. Since she almost never gets mad, seeing her make this face was kind of refreshing.

“U-Um…”

The staff lady hesitantly spoke up. Ugh… She probably thinks we’re total weirdos.

“…Everyone’s got their own tastes, you know? I’m not thinking, ‘Wow, these guys are into toddler play in public? I’d die of embarrassment and commit seppuku!’ or anything like that!”

“That’s way worse than I expected!”

Feeling utterly mortified, I grabbed Yuuouji’s hand and hurriedly dragged her away from the scene.

“Phew…”

I stopped to catch my breath and let out a sigh, when Yuuouji tugged at my swim trunks, tug tug.

“Hm? What’s up?”

“Potty.”

“Potty? …Oh, the toilet. It’s over there, so go ahead.”

“…Can’t go alone. Come with me.”

“H-Hey…”

Yuuouji grabbed my hand and forcibly dragged me to the restroom.

“…Geez. I’ll wait here, okay?”

“Come inside with me.”

“PFFT!”

I couldn’t help but choke.

“W-What are you saying?!”

“But I’m scared to go alone!”

Is she still hung up on that haunted house? How much of a scaredy-cat is she?!

“I get that you’re scared, but there’s no way a guy like me can go into the girls’ restroom!”

“Then I’ll go into the boys’ one!”

“No, that’s not okay either!”

“Why not?”

Because your body is sixteen years old. It’d cause a huge problem.

“Look, some things are just not allowed.”

Yuuouji puffed out her cheeks again with a “Muu!” before raising her voice.

“Why won’t you go to the potty with me?!”

“Whoa, hold on—!”

I hurriedly covered her mouth, but it was too late.

“What was that about…?” “Did she just say ‘go to the toilet together’?” “Kids these days…” “Why’s the girl talking like a toddler?” “Tch, if you’re into that kind of play, do it at home.” “I mean, if she wants, I’ll go with her…”

…Every time this happens, I wonder if there’s some rule that these crowd reactions have to end with a punchline. But this isn’t the time to be thinking about that—the judgmental stares are killing me.

“Mmph! I wanna go to da potty wif you!”

While I was wallowing in embarrassment, Yuuouji flailed and struggled.

“Tch, calm down! Be a good girl and go by yourse—”

[Choose: ① Go in together / ② Become (♀) and go in together The (♀) state will wear off within the day]

Hey, what’s with the (♀)?!

No way… The horrifying memory of that day when Chocolat first came to my house flashed through my mind.

Turning into a girl… You’re telling me to do that again?

“Ugh…”

A throbbing headache hit me already… Damn it.

“O-Ouka, just wait a sec.”

It’s pathetic, but there’s no room for hesitation. If I pick ①, I’m getting arrested on the spot.

Making sure no one saw, I ducked behind some nearby cover.

“Haa… Hoo…”

I took a deep breath and steeled myself.

“…Here goes nothing!”

The moment I chose ②, a dizzying sensation washed over me, and my vision went white.

“Ugh… Oh…”

When I opened my eyes… Well, uh… How do I put this…? My body had changed.

My hair had grown out to a semi-long length, and my flat chest was now… bouncy. My swimsuit had transformed into a terrifyingly revealing bikini.

I shuffled to the water’s edge and checked my reflection on the surface… It was undeniably a girl’s face.

“This is a nightmare…”

Covering my face with my hands, I trudged back to Yuuouji with heavy steps.

“Huh? Kanade, why’re you a girl now?”

She must’ve instinctively sensed that I’m still Amakusa Kanade. Even in her toddler-like state, her sharp intuition is as strong as ever, huh?

“W-Well, when you grow up, all sorts of things happen.”

“Hmm… Whatever. Let’s go to the potty!”

“Ugh… Of course it comes to this.”

To be honest, turning into a girl hasn’t solved the problem at all. Even if it’s objectively “safe” to go into the girls’ restroom with Yuuouji now, from my ethical standpoint, it’s completely out of the question.

“Guuuh…”

Mercilessly, another headache hit me—this one much stronger than before. I have no choice but to go in.

“A-Alright, let’s go, Ouka.”

I took Yuuouji’s hand and moved toward the girls’ restroom.

No, wait, I can’t do this—

“Uguuuuuh!”

The pain was so intense that I let out a groan like some cutesy anime character.

“You okay?”

Yuuouji peered at me worriedly. No good, I’m at my limit. I have to steel myself.

Here goes nothing—Namu San!

The moment I stepped into the restroom, the headache eased considerably.

It’s not completely gone… Does that mean I have to wait until Yuuouji finishes her business?

I squeezed my eyes shut tight and covered them with both hands for good measure.

“Why’re you closing your eyes?”

I’m already beyond redemption just for being here, but this was my last-ditch effort to cling to some shred of personal morality—the absolute final line I couldn’t cross.

“D-Don’t worry about me, just hurry up and go!”

“Mm…”

Yuuouji let out a slightly dissatisfied sound but seemed to head into a stall. Thank goodness—given her momentum, I was worried she’d insist I go into the stall with her.

“Phew…”

I leaned against the wall. Now I just had to wait for Yuuouji to come out, and then I could escape—

“Um… Is something wrong?”

“⁉”

A voice, clearly not Yuuouji’s, suddenly spoke to me.

“N-No, it’s, uh, it’s nothing! I-I’m sorry, p-please don’t call the police!”

My reaction was way too suspicious. Calm down—right now, I’m not Kanade, I’m Kanade-chan. If I handle this calmly, no one will suspect a thing.

The woman’s voice came back, sounding confused.

“Police? I’m not sure what you mean… Are you feeling okay? Your face is bright red, and you’re sweating a lot.”

“I-I’m fine, don’t worry about it!”

“Um… Why are you covering your eyes, anyway?”

Well… That’s a fair question.

“I… I mean, I just like doing this! G-Going into the restroom blindfolded gets me, like, super excited!”

…I wanted to cry just saying it.

“I… see…”

Maybe it was a small mercy, but the woman, clearly creeped out, backed away and faded out of the restroom (judging by her footsteps).

“I’m done!”

Yuuouji’s voice called out then, and at the same moment, the last of my headache vanished. I slid along the wall and bolted outside immediately.

“Haa… I thought I was gonna die…”

“Weird~”

I’m exhausted… Today’s been full of one disaster after another, but that was by far the most draining.

“But… when’s this gonna wear off?”

I stared down at my body. It was supposed to revert within the day, but—

“Hey, you two!”

I was lost in thought when a voice suddenly called out.

Looking up, I saw a trio of ridiculously sleazy-looking guys.

“W-What do you want?”

I instinctively stepped back, asking warily.

All three had bleached blond hair, nose piercings, and tanned skin—perfectly matching stereotypes. They looked like the kind of cheesy playboys you’d see in an old drama. It was hard to tell them apart.

Why are guys like this talking to us?

No way… It can’t be…

Is this what they call a pickup attempt—?

“Wanna hang with us for a bit?”

…It was exactly that.

“Th-Thanks, but I’ll pass.”

A shiver ran down my spine. Yuuouji hid behind me, clearly intimidated.

“Don’t be like that~”

“Yeah, c’mon, we’re bored!”

“Or, like, in a Mahi-Mahi vibe, y’know?”

All three wore the same sleazy grins… What is this? They’re so gross it’s making me nauseous. Is this what girls mean when they talk about visceral disgust?

When I’d been turned into a girl before, it was the same—parts of my senses seem to shift to match a girl’s perspective.

“Ugh…”

The moment I realized that, I noticed the guys’ gazes fixed on my chest.

“S-Stop it! Where are you looking?!”

…I know it’s a cliché line, but I couldn’t help feeling embarrassed.

“C’mon, wearing a swimsuit like that and telling us not to look? That’s the real crime… Anyway, let’s not just stand here—let’s go sit over there and chat.”

One of them suddenly grabbed my wrist.

“?!”

A chill shot through me. I tried to shake him off, but my body froze, and I couldn’t move like I wanted.

All I could manage was a faint, trembling voice.

“P-Please… stop…”

However, my reaction only seemed to pique the guys’ interest further.

“Whoa, how innocent is she?” “So cute!” “I’m next, I’m touching her next!”

Words like piss off or get lost refused to come out of my mouth.

“Haha! Look, if you’re not gonna resist, I’ll touch somewhere even more sensitive—⁉”

The guy’s hand was suddenly slapped away.

“Stop it.”

Yuuouji, who had been hiding behind me until now, stepped between me and the guy.

“Don’t bully Kanade.”

Her voice trembled slightly as she glared at the guy gripping my wrist.

“Whoa, this girl’s super cute too!” “Why’s she talking like a kid?” “Isn’t that hot? I’m totally into this vibe.”

This is bad… Their attention’s shifted to Yuuouji now.

“Um, we’re really not interested, so please stop… If you keep pushing, I’ll call for help.”

My words didn’t do much to deter them.

“Okay, okay, sorry. But, like, we’re not trying to do anything to you guys. Just have some tea with us over there, and we’ll back off quietly.”

One of them placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Ugh… Au…”

It was such a small thing, but my body froze up again.

…What is this? Are girls really this sensitive?

This isn’t some crime-ridden slum, and there are plenty of people around. I know logically they can’t do anything by force, but the instinctive fear gripping me couldn’t be reasoned away.

“You too, kid, come over here.”

Another guy’s hand reached toward Yuuouji.

“—!”

In that instant, my blood boiled.

“STOP IT!”

Just before his hand touched Yuuouji’s skin, I swatted it away with all my strength.

“Ow…!”

The guy dropped his sleazy demeanor, his face twisting with anger.

If it had ended there, I might’ve been able to smooth things over, but—

“Take that!”

“Guh!”

Yuuouji stomped on the guy’s foot with full force.

“I hate you! Get lost, bleh!”

Her attitude only fueled the guy’s rage.

“…You little brat, don’t get cocky!”

Blinded by anger, the guy grabbed Yuuouji’s wrist tightly.

“I-It hurts…”

The moment Yuuouji let out a faint cry—

Something snapped inside me.

“DON’T TOUCH OUKA!!”

My body moved before I could think.

“Urk… Gah…”

My fist sank into the guy’s solar plexus.

It must’ve hit just right, because he collapsed to the ground, eyes rolling back as he passed out.

Crap, I didn’t mean to go that far…

“Y-You…!”

“Don’t mess with us!”

This is bad… The other two are pissed now. What do I do? As I positioned myself to shield Yuuouji—

“HELP! These guys are attacking us!”

Yuuouji’s ear-splitting shout echoed through the area.

“What’s going on?” “Is this more than just a pickup?” “Hey, shouldn’t we call a staff member?”

The people around us started noticing, turning their attention toward us.

“Tch…”

“Damn it…”

With resentful glares, the two guys didn’t even bother helping their unconscious friend and slunk away.

“Haa… Haa…”

The moment they were out of sight, all the strength left my body, and I collapsed on the spot.

That was terrifying… Truly terrifying. This is a feeling guys could never understand.

“Huh?”

Suddenly, I felt enveloped by a warm sensation.

“O-Ouka?”

Yuuouji was hugging me from behind.

“Thank you for saving me.”

“H-Hey…”

“I was so happy knowing Kanade was protecting me.”

“C-Come on…”

I started to tell her to let go because her chest was pressing against me, but I stopped myself.

Not a single impure thought crossed my mind.

It wasn’t because I was in a girl’s body or anything like that… It was because I could feel, through her touch, that this was Yuuouji’s pure, genuine gratitude.

Silently, I let her hold on as long as she wanted.

“…Now what?”

Still holding the hand of Yuuouji, who hadn’t snapped out of her toddler mode, I led her to a less crowded area.

“Ouka, the scary stuff is over. We’re outside now, and it’s not scary at all. It’s about time you went back to your usual self.”

“Usual? I don’t get it.”

Ugh…

“…And I’m still a little scared.”

Yuuouji’s expression darkened. She wasn’t just talking about the haunted house—probably the pickup incident, too.

“Okay, then what do you think would make you less scared?”

“A hug.”

“…What?”

“The piggyback felt nice, so this time, hug me.”

Oh, come on… I always thought she was childish, but was she this clingy as an actual kid?

“Hug me! The princess kind!”

“P-Princess hug? No way I can do that!”

“…You won’t?”

Ugh… What’s with that puppy-dog look?

“J-Just once, okay?”

“Yay!”

It’s insanely embarrassing, but if it’ll ease her fear, I have no choice.

Steeling myself, I lifted Yuuouji into my arms.

“Ugh…”

What the heck… When I carried her on my back, she felt super light, but with only a girl’s strength now, it’s all I can do to keep my balance and not fall.

“A-Are you satisfied now?”

“Nope, not yet.”

This is actually pretty tough… A few dozen seconds passed.

“…H-How about now?”

“Mm, it’s starting to feel less scary… A bit more.”

Crap, my arms are starting to shake… Another few dozen seconds passed.

“…A-Almost good?”

“Hmm… Okay, for the final touch, I’ll rub!”

“What? …Hey, wait—!”

Suddenly, Yuuouji’s face came closer, and she started nuzzling her cheek against mine.

“S-Stop it!”

“No way, I won’t stop. This makes me feel calm—huh?”

Already at my limit, the sudden cheek-rub threw me off, and I couldn’t maintain the princess carry.

“Whoa!” “Wah!”

Unable to do anything, I dropped Yuuouji’s body.

On top of that, I lost my balance, fell, and ended up collapsing on top of her on the ground.

“S-Sorry! You okay…? Wait, huh?”

The overwhelming difference in her expression hit me.

“Hm… Huh?”

And then, Yuuouji’s voice—clearly different from before.

“Huh? I…”

Could it be…?

“We went into the haunted house… and then what happened?”

She’s… back to normal?

At this moment…? Tch, too sudden! Don’t these things usually have some kind of buildup or warning?!

Our faces were so close they were almost touching, and our eyes locked in a bewildered stare.

This is bad. From Yuuouji’s perspective, she just regained consciousness to find some random girl pinning her down. Ugh… How the heck am I supposed to explain this?

But… the situation was far, far worse than I’d imagined.

“Amac…chi?”

“…Huh?”

I… I’m back to being a guy?

“What? …What? Why’s Amacchi on top of me?”

“U-UWOOOOOH!”

I scrambled off her in a panic, practically leaping away.

“…”

Yuuouji stood up after me, staring at my face in silence with a dazed expression.

This is bad, really bad… She probably thinks I was trying to force myself on her or something.

“Y-Yuuouji, there’s a reason for this—”

Just as I opened my mouth to explain—

“…Huh?”

A single tear rolled down Yuuouji’s cheek.

“What…?”

And with that, tears began streaming endlessly from her eyes.

“Huh… Huh?”

It didn’t seem like she meant to cry.

“That’s weird… W-What’s wrong with me? Me, crying…?”

In other words, she was so shocked that she couldn’t control her emotions, right?

“I’m sorry! I-I didn’t mean anything bad by it! There were, uh, unavoidable circumstances…”

This is bad, bad, BAD! What do I do? How do I fix this?!

I was completely panicking.

“Y-Yuuouji, I, uh… I mean—”

“No, it’s not that, Amacchi.”

Her tone was surprisingly steady, catching me off guard.

“Huh? Not that?”

“Yeah. When I came to, Amacchi was super close… Normally, I’d probably freak out from embarrassment and run away, but this time, it didn’t feel bad at all… I can’t explain it well, but…”

Her voice faltered, becoming hesitant.

“Um… All the times we talked and had fun, or when we got scolded by Sensei together, or… y’know, when you saw my p-panties and I was so embarrassed… All those memories with you, the good and the bad, they just… whoosh, flooded into my head in a single moment.”

Her words were jumbled, and I couldn’t quite grasp her meaning. But one thing was clear: Yuuouji was feeling something powerful in her heart.

“And earlier… when we, uh… touched… It was embarrassing, but… I don’t think I hated it.”

Is she talking about when we held hands on the roller coaster?

“And, um… I don’t have much memory of what happened in the haunted house, but… I do remember that you worked really hard for me, Amacchi…”

Yuuouji’s monologue continued.

“All those feelings got mixed up together, and then… my chest started feeling really warm…”

Even as she spoke, tears kept streaming down her face.

“Haha… But why am I crying? It’s so weird. It’s my own feelings, but I don’t even get it.”

Still shedding tears, Yuuouji looked straight at me and flashed a radiant smile.

“I’ve never felt like this before in my life!”