Note: Lin Xuezi > Yukiko Hayashi
After I looked it up, it turns out there's a character named Yukiko Hayashi, and I saw that they were the same in the manga, so I changed it to Yukiko Hayashi.
But I couldn't find a Japanese name for Lin Xuena because she's an OC, so I left her in Chinese.
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"In short, that's what happened this morning. Although it sounds strange, this brand-new 'mortal enemy' of mine is actually Xuena's older sister!"
"Eh?"
Standing at the front door with her arms crossed, Busujima Sakurako leaned forward, her expression so disgusted her eyelids were twitching. She looked exactly like a wife who had just discovered her philandering husband accidentally brought his mistress home!
And "new nemesis"? That sounded way more intimate than just "taking someone in." Could this be some high-level, calculating schemer?
However, aside from those sharp, aggressive eyes, this girl—dressed in a floor-length, rather dowdy skirt—looked like she had zero combat effectiveness.
"Yukiko Hayashi! You're the Busujima-san from Qinghai Women's University, right? Pleased to meet you!"
"Wait, Yu, this isn't right, is it?"
Stepping aside and leaning into Miyazawa Yuu's ear, Sakurako watched the perfectly polite, 90-degree-bowing Yukiko Hayashi, the question marks over her head multiplying.
She had zero information on this woman in her memory, yet the other party could accurately call out her name. Was this right? Was she a doxxer or a stalker?
"It should be right... I mean, she recognized me as a member of the PaB Club immediately back at the café!"
Regarding Sakurako's inquiry, Yu also had a hint of worry and doubt on his face. After all, being "doxxed" while out and about meant he couldn't act too abstract! That wouldn't be a pleasant thing at all!
However, combining that with his status as a notoriously infamous figure at school, he quickly reached a peaceful compromise with himself.
Ultimately, who in the entire Izu college circle didn't know that Izu University specialized in... "talents"? Not just him, but the infamy of Iori and the Scumbag Trio had long since spread to other schools.
Through word of mouth and public fermentation, they were one step away from being categorized as urban legends to be passed down through the ages!
"Heh, of course..."
Turning slightly toward the two whispering behind her, Yukiko Hayashi—having let herself go after losing her glasses—spoke with the tone of a total queen. "After all~ you're that woman's underground boyfriend. How could I not recognize you!"
"Eh?"
Yu tilted his head in confusion, massaging his forehead as he tried to figure out which woman Yukiko Hayashi was referring to.
Nanaka-san stayed away from school all year round, so she shouldn't have beef with someone this strange. So the suspect was likely Azusa-senpai, right?
"Um, Yukiko, is the woman you're talking about... short-haired?"
"Exactly!"
"On the surface she looks fine, but her personality is actually extremely black-bellied and malicious?"
"YES! Exactly!!!"
Whirling around, Yukiko Hayashi pointed a finger dramatically at Miyazawa Yuu, her eyes full of dissatisfaction and indignation!
Such an evil woman shouldn't exist in this world! To make her taste the bitterness of defeat, Yukiko would destroy her evil nest, the PaB Club, even if it meant betting everything!
"Ah... then it's correct."
"I can only say it's not surprising. I thought she had a good reputation outside, but turns out she has a nemesis too!"
Miyazawa Yuu and Busujima Sakurako exchanged "dot-eye" looks, their minds already picturing a scene of Hamaoka Azusa bullying people before Yu "conquered" her!
Considering the examples of "White Moonlight" Nanaka and old friend Natsuyo, the possibility that Hamaoka Azusa had bullied this seemingly unstable girl was indeed high!
"I-I'm sorry, Yukiko!"
Yu felt a sudden surge of guilt. Even though this must have happened before he met Azusa-senpai, he felt that if he had corrected Azusa sooner, this human tragedy wouldn't have occurred!
In short, by rounding it up, he was at least 80% responsible for whatever suffering Yukiko Hayashi had endured!
"Eh?"
Stunned as Yu clasped her hand, Yukiko's arrogant expression froze. Staring at the large, apologetic tear that actually landed on the back of her hand, her brain short-circuited. "Even if you apologize, it's useless! I will definitely take my revenge—"
"It's okay! We understand! It must have been hard for you!"
Gently shaking her head regarding Hamaoka Azusa's wicked heart, Sakurako closed her eyes and pulled Yukiko's head into a hug, her teeth biting her lower lip in shared experience.
The humiliating incident of her sleep-talking recording being publicly broadcasted last night was still fresh in her mind. She really couldn't bring herself to feel more hostility toward a girl suffering from the same affliction.
"Ah, this..."
Bewildered by these two overly reasonable enemies, a giant question mark rose over Yukiko Hayashi's head. Wait, is Chisa that disliked in the PaB Club?
It was one thing for the Busujima girl from Qinghai to comfort her, but why did even the woman's boyfriend look like he was firmly on her side!
"U-Um, do you guys also think Kotegawa Chisa is pretentious and out of line?"
"That's a bit harsh! Chisa might be black-bellied, but..."
Since she was his girlfriend, Yu felt the need to use proper phrasing, even though he sympathized with Yukiko's tragic experience.
However, halfway through his "correction," his eyes-closed lecture face and the second half of the sentence got stuck—was there something wrong with the subject of his narrative?
Chisa was usually cold and aloof, but she wasn't "black-bellied" to the point of bullying classmates, right? And the description just now was clearly pointing toward Azusa-senpai!
"Eh? Chisa?"
"Yes! Kotegawa Chisa is your underground girlfriend, isn't she?"
"HUH?!"
Yu squinted his eyes at Yukiko in disbelief, suspecting there was something wrong with her head!
The fact that he was dating two older sisters from other schools was already known by the whole school. How could someone still believe an outdated, ridiculous rumor that he and Chisa had a relationship beyond friendship?
Did she just get internet access in her village?
"Um... actually, I have no relationship with Chisa whatsoever. You really shouldn't believe such rumors!"
"Heh! Don't try to lie. As the Discipline Committee member of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, I know exactly who that woman's boyfriend is even with my eyes closed!"
As expected of a PaB scumbag, he changes faces faster than flipping a book. But it doesn't matter~
Thinking this, a glint flashed in Yukiko Hayashi's eyes. The corners of her mouth curled into a wild, arrogant, queen-like smirk. She covered her mouth with the back of her hand and mocked condescendingly: "Pretending to be cold, but actually using 'fake' and 'real' boyfriends to steal all the men's attention! Absolutely unforgivable!"
"Sigh~ so, what are you going to do?"
"Naturally, I'll destroy the evil club known as PaB! I'll liberate all the men bewitched by Chisa!"
"..."
Turning off his phone's video recording, Yu shook his head slowly with half-moon eyes. He silently noted how similar Yukiko Hayashi was to her sister—their personalities became extremely "cheerful" once they took off their glasses.
But come to think of it, she was actually the Discipline Committee member of the Faculty of Science and Engineering. He felt like he really had heard the name "Yukiko Hayashi" before.
"Wait... the Three Golden Flowers of the Faculty of Science and Engineering?"
"Exactly! We were tied at the start of the semester, so it's totally unfair that Chisa is the only one getting all the attention now!"
"I think there might be a reason for that..."
Being pressed so close their noses almost touched, Yu took a half-step back to create distance. He never expected her to take that nonsensical title so seriously.
In reality, the "Three Golden Flowers" title was just a joke about the extreme scarcity of girls in the engineering department. It didn't carry any positive or negative weight.
After all, they were college students; it was easy enough to cross majors to find a girlfriend. It was just that Chisa's appearance pulled the value of the "Golden Flowers" up significantly, which seemed to be the trigger for Yukiko's dissatisfaction.
"Huh? What do you mean by that? Are you getting cocky just because you have a pretty girlfriend? Hey!"
"Heave-ho!"
Seizing the opportunity to rush into the battlefield, Lin Xuena slid her spare glasses onto her sister's face before she could explode.
As if the seal had taken effect again, Yukiko Hayashi trembled, her momentum cut in half. Yet even so, she insisted on spitting out her resentment through gritted teeth.
"Anyway! No matter what, I will make Chisa and PaB pay. Wash your necks and wait for it, you guys..."
"..."
Staring at the now-timid glasses girl, Yu rubbed his chin and pondered for a moment with an analytical eye. Then, his eyes lit up as he summarized incisively: "In other words, Yukiko-san wants to be noticed, so you're blaming everything on Chisa, right?"
"Eeeeeeek—!"
Startled into a pitiful cry, Yukiko Hayashi took a half-step back, her eyes terrified. Is this man a monster? How could he see through the truth she refused to admit so easily!
Not only that, he could say it so nonchalantly, disregarding others' feelings entirely! Even Satan would have to tattoo this guy on his back!
"No! That's not it! What are you talking about! Xuena, let's go!"
"What are you saying, Sister..."
As her biological sister, Lin Xuena looked at her with "dead-fish eyes." Unsurprisingly, the "triple denial" was her sister's instinctive reaction whenever her heart was seen through!
"I already promised Rin we'd form a band! We can't give up halfway!"
"A band?"
"A band!"