TL: learning2tl

TLC: Kagefij

ED: N/A

「Well then, this will be the first meeting we’ve had here in a while.」

「Please don’t be too hard on me.」

It was after school in the second Sewing Room. This would be our first meeting here ever since the incident that day.

In this dusty old room that I had by now become all too familiar with, I noticed that I felt a strange sense of calm.

「Well then, to start off, let’s review the current goals. Do you still remember what the small goal is?」

Hinami promptly moved on to the matter at hand.

「Of course I do.『Going out somewhere with a girl other than Hinami』should be about right, correct?」

「That’s right.」

Hinami nods.

「Still, the more I think about it, the scarier it seems.」

「Please, I’ve just about had enough of your stupid whining.」

While touching the ends of her black, silky hair, Hinami nonchalantly spewed out those venomous words. Each time she switched the positions of her crossed legs, in a dazzling flash of white, those thighs would fleetingly reflect the sunlight s.h.i.+ning through the window. As I thought, everything about her looks is just too good, right down to her figure.

「But what should I do? Is it like, if you invite someone with the right words, they’d agree?」

Hinami shook her head at my words.

「Rather than that, it would be best if you could achieve it naturally through the flow of a conversation. Though it is true

that it’s the kind of goal that can be easily cleared if you do something like invite people over and over again with only the goal in mind.」

I don’t think it’s easy, though.

「Hm, ‘naturally’, you say.」

「Yes. Also, even if you do manage to get someone to go out with you that way, since the skill of the current you is too low, it’s highly possible that you won’t handle conversation well and the date ends in failure. That’s why improving your skill in that area first takes priority.」

「I, I see. Still, conversation skill, huh……」

「It’s not the kind of thing you’ll be able to resolve overnight, but that’s what the whole memorization thing is for, right? Are you properly doing it?」

Memorization. In other words, the memorization of topics to use when conversing with people.

Even during these past few days during which I hadn’t been able to hold a meeting with Hinami, I had still been carrying out my routine memorization of conversation topics.

「Yes, I’m doing it.」

「I see. Well, as far as I can tell, it does seem like you’ve been doing it.」

「As far as you can tell?」

That part had taken me by surprise, so I asked her for an explanation.

「Don’t you use them at times? The topics, I mean. Even when you’re talking with myself, Mimimi and Hanabi.」

「──Ahh.」

So it was the memorized topics, huh. Currently, when talking with Izumi, or when talking with Mimimi, Tamchan or Hinami, I would try my best to see if there were any memorized topics suitable for the

the conversation at hand. If there were, I would take the opportunity and try bring them up. I suppose it’s only natural that Hinami would be able to tell from seeing that.

「You should keep up with that. Memorization is one thing, but actually being able to bring up those topics in a conversation is a completely different matter. The fact that you’re currently able to do so means you’ve grown a lot.」

Her tone of voice was blunt, but for whatever reason, her mouth formed a happy smile as she spoke.

「Is, is that so.」

Having been praised, I kind of unconsciously became fl.u.s.tered.

「Though there is something you really need to reflect on. Because you’re always on edge trying to bring up those topics, your tone of voice becomes unnatural, and you tend to say something like『Um, you know!』like you’re about to begin talking about something important, but then follow up with something inconsequential like 『The other day, on television……』.

While squandering that acting talent on a recreation of my unpleasant tone of voice, she stabbed those words into my heart.

「I will keep that in mind……」

I was made to feel despondent so easily. Seeing that expression of mine, Hinami smiled in satisfaction. Hasn’t this person’s sadism been on the rise?

「Be that as it may, the points needing improvement are easily identified, so it’s still much preferable compared to before. Well, as for how to proceed from here……before I move onto that, have there been any changes in your situation?」

「Let me see…… Ah.」I suddenly remembered something.「It only

something.「It only just happened today, but I spoke with Mizusawa about a number of things.」

「With Mizusawa? Come to think of it, you did speak with him a few times, didn’t you.」

「That’s right. Though as a result, today I didn’t manage to visit the library before the cla.s.sroom move.」

「I see. ……Hmm, well I suppose there’s not much you could do about that.」

The『Medium-sized goal』that Hinami had set, in other words, the unthinkable task『To get a girlfriend before advancing to the third year』, is something that I had been instructed to continue to work towards. As part of that, I had also been reminded to speak with the『Target Heroine』Kikuchi-san as much as possible.

「We have cla.s.sroom moves on Mondays and Wednesdays, so I intend to visit the day after tomorrow, though……」

「That’s true. If that’s the case, it should be fine. Rather, it might be better this way. So? What happened with Mizusawa?」

I was curious about what she meant by ‘rather, it might be better this way’, but since she had asked me another question, I decided to answer it.

「Well, there kind of was that incident with Konno, right? He said something about sharing the same view with what I had said at that time, and suggested we go out for a meal with a few people sometime. As a group of four, boys and girls, Hinami included, that is.」

「……Hmm. Mizusawa said that, huh.」

Hinami frowned. Well that’s kind of unusual.

No, the frowning itself wasn’t at all that unusual. However, showing a frown when talking about someone else, especially despite not

especially despite not seeming to have any ill-intentions towards that person. That was what I found strange.

「What? Is there a problem?」

「What might you mean by that?」

「Uh, well……」

「It’s nothing too important. However, going out for a meal with a few people, huh. It might be just right.」

Hinami placed a finger to her lips, as if deep in thought. It felt like she had said that to change the subject, but her facial expression didn’t waver.

「’Just right’?」

「Isn’t it obvious that I’m talking about that thing we discussed earlier? Conversation skill. Or rather, dating skill. It seems like you’d be able to carry out some good practice in that situation.」

Apparently, the subject had now changed completely.

「Practice, huh……certainly, it does seem like it would be easy for me to get some practice done in a situation like that where it’s me and you with Mizusawa and someone else」

「Don’t you think so?」

I imagined what that scene would look like.

Even as I pictured the riajuu-like scenery, I was frustrated by how I was currently such that the fact that Hinami would be nearby gave me a sense of security. Just as I was thinking this, Hinami opened her mouth once again.

「In addition, you’ll be able to work on not just your date practice, but also on your invitation practice.」

「Eh? Invitation practice?」

Which meant……that, perhaps?

「That’s right. That other girl? You’re going to be the one inviting her. It’s only natural, don’t you think?」

「……I knew it.」

Of course that’s what it meant.

Thus, one after the other, my training tasks in this game called Life proceeded to get established.