Chapter 350: Refutation
"How is your friend doing?"
"Ah, the nurse has already treated her. It shouldn't be anything serious."
Yotsuya Miko never expected Yukinoshita Yukino to take the initiative to come find her. She hurriedly stood up, but was stopped by Yukinoshita.
"Calm down. I just came down for a stroll and happened to pass by here."
"I-Is that so?"
Hearing Yukinoshita's reason, the corner of Miko's mouth twitched. Who goes for a "stroll" in a hospital and ends up right where she is! However, Miko naturally wouldn't say that out loud; she sat back down and waited quietly.
Sure enough, after a short silence, Yukinoshita spoke.
"Yotsuya-san, you're on very good terms with Hikigaya, aren't you?"
Although it was a question, Miko clearly heard a sense of certainty in Yukinoshita's tone. Rather than Yukinoshita asking her a question, it was more like she was stating an established fact...
'Hikigaya-kun, you're in trouble now...'
Lamenting in her heart, Miko puffed out her chest and nodded. Although Yukinoshita's presence was a bit overwhelming, she hadn't officially established a relationship with Hikigaya Hachiman yet, so there was absolutely no need for her to feel guilty!
"As I thought."
Seeing Miko admit it, Yukinoshita's face darkened instantly. To be honest, she had already spotted some clues regarding Miko's situation. After all, Yuigahama Yui often complained during lunch that Hikigaya Hachiman would disappear the moment noon hit.
"Um, Yukinoshita-san?"
Looking at Yukinoshita, who had fallen into contemplation again, Miko tentatively called out to her.
"Just call me Yukinoshita. We've known each other for a while, after all."
Snapping out of her thoughts, Yukinoshita looked up and spoke.
"So, Yukinoshita, right now you..."
"What are my thoughts on that guy? That's what you want to ask, right, Yotsuya?"
With her arms folded in front of her, Yukinoshita voiced the thought in Miko's mind.
"Yes..."
Miko smiled awkwardly, then her right hand quietly reached into her pocket...
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After the Inari God left, Irisviel chatted for a bit longer before heading upstairs. In the living room, Hikigaya Hachiman was leaning back on the sofa with his eyes closed to rest, but suddenly received a call from Yotsuya Miko.
"Hello, Yotsuya?"
Thinking Miko might be looking for him for something, Hachiman pressed the answer button. However, the voice coming from the phone was not Miko's...
"To be honest, if that guy were in front of me right now, I'd want to give him a punch."
Yukinoshita Yukino's cool voice came from the phone. Even though he knew Yukinoshita couldn't hear him, Hachiman couldn't help but hold his breath.
"But after calming down, I realized I don't seem to have the standing to do such a thing," Yukinoshita continued.
Undeniably, she harbored feelings for Hachiman that even she couldn't clearly define, but that couldn't be a reason to stop him from interacting with other girls. Moreover, Hachiman hadn't officially committed to any girl. Aside from saying he was a bit of a playboy, Yukinoshita thought about it and found that she couldn't really do anything else.
"Then, Yukinoshita, what is your perception of Hikigaya-kun?"
After confirming the phone was still recording normally, Miko immediately asked the question. Hearing this, Hachiman's heart on the other end of the line skipped a beat.
"I suppose it's love?"
Perhaps because only the two of them were present, both being girls, or perhaps because she needed to vent the words she had been holding in her heart—after a moment of uncertainty, Yukinoshita spoke her true feelings.
"!"
Hearing Yukinoshita's words, Hachiman's eyes widened instantly. What did he just hear? That girl Yukinoshita actually admitted she loved him?!
"But to be honest, I'm not very sure about this..." Yukinoshita shook her head and added.
"Because the Service Club members have always been the three of us together, I'm a bit unsure if my feelings for him are more like friendship or romantic affection. Furthermore, regarding Yui..."
At the mention of Yuigahama Yui, Yukinoshita paused.
"Yui... that would be Yuigahama-san, right?" Miko recalled.
It seemed that in every school setting, the Service Club always appeared as a trio. And it seemed that Yuigahama-san also liked Hachiman...
"Things have become complicated."
Thinking of the friendship between Yukinoshita and Yuigahama, Miko seemed to understand why Yukinoshita couldn't confirm her feelings.
"Um, you should know how Yuigahama-san feels about Hikigaya-kun, right, Yukinoshita?" To be safe, Miko decided to confirm the basic situation first.
"That idiot's feelings for him? Of course I know." At the mention of Yuigahama Yui, Yukinoshita's tone clearly relaxed a lot. "Perhaps that's precisely why I don't know how to face Hikigaya."
After all, on one side was her closest friend, and on the other was the first man she had ever felt an attraction to, who was also her partner. Choosing a side was a monumental dilemma for her.
"Well... I mean, maybe... Yukinoshita, have you considered the two of you being together with him..."
"Bigamy is a punishable offense, Yotsuya," Yukinoshita reminded her helpfully. But after saying that, she thought carefully and realized Hachiman didn't seem to fear such things.
After all, he was a member of the supernatural side—someone her own mother was desperate to build a connection with.
"Yotsuya-san, you like him too, don't you? Can you really tolerate someone sharing him with you?"
"Of course I can."
Looking at Yukinoshita's stunned expression, Miko answered quite easily.
"Eh?"
Yukinoshita, who had expected Miko to feel the same as her, widened her eyes in shock.
"Why are you surprised?" Looking at Yukinoshita's bewildered face, it was Miko's turn to be confused.
"Because..." Yukinoshita opened her mouth, wanting to say it was because the law dictates monogamy. But she immediately dismissed that reason, given her vast knowledge. Monogamy was just a product of modern times; in ancient times, it was perfectly normal for a man to have multiple women. Even now, there are many places in the world that practice polygamy...
"Yukinoshita-san, you should be someone who knows Hikigaya-kun's true identity, right? Then you should also be very clear that if he really wanted women, he would only need to beckon, and a crowd of women with better looks and figures than us would flock to him."
Seeing Yukinoshita fall into silence, Miko began her assault.
"I wouldn't do such a thing!" Hachiman, eavesdropping in the dark, had countless black lines on his forehead. While the situation Miko described might actually happen if he revealed his identity, he would never live such a debauched life!
"But sharing such a thing..."
Hearing Miko's words, Yukinoshita was clearly wavering. Indeed, Hachiman had no obligation to follow modern laws. If anything, the government should be grateful he hadn't caused any chaos yet. It wasn't that she couldn't accept it because of monogamy laws, but rather because she lacked the confidence to possess Hachiman solely for herself and thus couldn't make up her mind.
"To possess some things, you must give up others. If you're too greedy, you'll end up with nothing in the end." Miko saw that Yukinoshita was wavering and quickly added fuel to the fire.
"But..." Yukinoshita opened her mouth, wanting to say something to refute Miko.
"Actually, the reason you can't make up your mind is because of Yuigahama-san, right?" Miko dropped another bombshell.
"!"
"Because your personality doesn't seem indecisive. So the only thing that could make you unable to decide this time is Yuigahama-san, right?"
"........"
Yukinoshita lowered her head, unable to answer. At this moment, she only felt her mind was a mess from Miko's words.
"Ah..."
Suddenly, the necklace Hachiman had given her became scalding hot. The burning sensation made Yukinoshita cry out involuntarily.
"?"
Hearing Yukinoshita's cry, Hachiman on the other side of the phone was baffled. What on earth happened over there for Yukinoshita to make such a sound?
"Ah!"
Before he could figure it out, Miko's scream rang out as well.
"Something happened!"
Hachiman stood up abruptly from the sofa and headed for the door. Meanwhile, at the hospital, looking at the figure that had suddenly appeared, Miko decisively blurted out the hospital's specific location.
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Five minutes later.
Traveling at full speed, Hachiman arrived hurriedly at the location Miko mentioned. As expected, both Miko and Yukinoshita were gone.
"Were they taken?"
After inspecting the surroundings and sensing the familiar aura in the air, Hachiman frowned.
"Hikigaya?"
Just as Hachiman turned to search for the two girls, Haruno's surprised voice came from behind him.
"Haruno-san?" Hachiman was equally surprised. After all, unless someone was incredibly bored, no one would be wandering around a hospital late at night.
"What's with that outfit?"
After realizing it was Hachiman, Haruno—who had come out to find Yukino—was about to chat with him with a smile. But after seeing Hachiman's current state, the smile on her face froze instantly.
"My outfit?"
Hachiman looked down at himself. His right hand held the Demon-Slaying Blade, its phantom flames flickering occasionally. His left hand was tightly gripping a stack of talismans, ready to be thrown at any moment...
From the perspective of a rescuer, there was nothing wrong with his appearance. After all, he might have to fight the Nine-Tailed Fox the moment he arrived. However, from Haruno's perspective, Hachiman's current look was undoubtedly... very unique.
"Sorry, I have something to do. I'm leaving."
Considering that Yukinoshita and Miko had been taken, Hachiman didn't plan to spend much time chatting with Haruno. Since he had already exposed himself, he simply retracted the talismans into his system space in front of her and vanished from the hospital in a flash.
"I found it!"
Looking at the spot where Hachiman disappeared, Haruno gradually recovered from her shock. Suddenly, a bright smile appeared on her face, as if a weight had been lifted from her heart.
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"Is it up ahead?"
When crafting the magical artifacts, Hachiman had considered the possibility of the girls encountering evil spirits too strong for the artifacts to handle. Therefore, he had the system place marks on all of them in advance. Under the system's guidance, Hachiman flashed rapidly across the tops of high-rise buildings.
In just a short while, he spotted the Nine-Tailed Fox flying in the sky and the three unconscious people on its back.
"Did I forget about that girl?"
Looking at Yurikawa Hana lying next to Miko, Hachiman slapped his forehead. Because he hadn't heard Hana's voice on the phone earlier, he thought only Yukinoshita and Miko had been caught. But thinking about it now, how could Hana not be by Miko's side?
Having identified the target, Hachiman's speed increased further. The immense wind pressure whipped against his cheeks, leaving thin trails of blood, which healed instantly under the influence of the Sessho-seki and the scabbard.
"Hmm?"
High in the sky, the Nine-Tailed Fox, having easily captured its targets, suddenly sensed a faint scent of blood in the air. But it was certain it hadn't injured the three girls. So where was the blood coming from? The Fox's perception spread out in all directions below to investigate.
Suddenly, a piercing sound of breaking air came from above its head.
"What?!"
Worried about being attacked from the air, the Fox was intentionally flying at an altitude of nearly a hundred meters. Completely blindsided by the possibility of an ambush at such a height, it looked up in shock, only to see a massive sword qi spanning several meters!
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