He now had the Teaching Aura, so there was no longer a need for every person to undergo direct "service enhancement training." Still, considering the Teaching Aura's condition for educational contribution, perhaps a bit of close contact was still necessary.
But if Kitamura Chika hadn't talked to them beforehand, wouldn't it be harassment for him to make intimate moves on them on his own?
If not for his steadily improving skill, he'd probably be lying in bed all day, unable to get up for three meals, why would he need to harass anyone?
"Uh… I didn't say anything… but if you give them some close personal guidance, I'll help you from the sidelines. They're all pure-hearted girls, easy for you to win over," When Hachiman pressed her on the key point, Kitamura Chika nervously averted her eyes, tightly hugging his arm. Then she leaned close to his ear and quietly whispered details about the club members, offering him strategic advice.
"My partner's a first-year, Sairenji Haruna. She's a calm and composed beauty, and she seems a little interested in you. After hearing that I was inviting you to be our coach, she asked me several times about it."
"Sugiyama Mio is really competitive, Saeki Ai's a bit of an airhead, Date Reiko likes fun things, and Takamine Aika's more introverted, she just looks cold."
"The hardest one to handle is my cousin Kaori. She's the team's absolute ace. She's competed in national tournaments before, and this year her strength has improved a lot. She'll likely place very well."
"But she's the type who doesn't stop once she gets serious. If you can help her improve drastically, and let her experience that incredible post-training recovery, then once you 'flip her switch,' she'll obey your every word. Getting her partner, the club president Hayakawa Nishi, involved afterward won't be a problem either."
"With the president and vice president on your side, the rest of the tennis club's girls will fall in line one by one."
She had wanted to explain the situation outright, but it was already hard enough to get anyone to believe Hachiman would come help the tennis club. If she told them that doing intimate things with him was the key to improving their training results, none of them would ever have agreed to invite him as a temporary coach.
Still, though her cousin Kaori was the hardest to handle, Chika most wanted Hikigaya to target Kaori.
Because if they got Kaori, and then Hayakawa Nishi, the tennis club's girls could gradually be won over. That way, their tennis club could finally compete with the girls' swim team.
She had no intention of settling for Hikigaya helping them once or twice.
'Hmph! The girls' swim club thought they could hog the Service Club's president all to themselves? One club monopolizing him? Impossible."
'This time, we are going to rely on Hachiman to win first place in the national tournament!'
"They don't know anything, so don't say stuff like that. Not everyone's willing to sacrifice themselves, and I don't want to deceive them. But… Haruna asked about me several times, huh…", Hikigaya gave a blank, exasperated look at the shameless Chika, who was selling out her own teammates, then turned his head toward the short-haired purple-haired beauty practicing with her blonde gyaru friend, Momioka Risa.
At noon, when they were in the Service Club, Haruna had been the last to leave after locking up. Her gaze had lingered on him for a moment.
He'd thought she might have spotted the hidden hints under the tablecloth because he hadn't used invisibility magic, but apparently that wasn't it.
He opened his "Romance List," added Sairenji Haruna, and checked her profile.
[Sairenji Haruna: Friend, Tennis Club (Location: Sobu High Tennis Court, teleport permission locked).]
'Friend? Sairenji Haruna actually sees me as a friend?'
'Since high school started, I have hardly spoken a word to her. What kind of friendship is that?'
'Could it be from middle school?'
'But in middle school, my desk mate wasn't Haruna, not even once.'
'We have only ever been classmates, exchanging polite greetings at most, nothing remotely ambiguous.'
'Which is why I never approached her.'
Besides Kaede and the Suzu sisters, the only person he'd talked much with in middle school was that nerdy double ponytail girl with thick glasses, and she'd gone off to a private girls' school, nowhere near Sobu High.
He never imagined… that Sairenji Haruna, someone he'd never paid attention to, had quietly regarded him as a friend all along.
In the original story, Haruna had been secretly in love since middle school.
Should he say she was pure-hearted, or secretly passionate?
She'd been silently in love for years, and he hadn't even known.
———
"That boy next to Chika, is he the temporary coach the vice president invited?"
"Huh? No way, that's the Hikigaya who got disciplined by the Public Morals Committee, right?"
"But I heard that the Service Club president once worked as a temporary manager for the girls' swim team, so it's not impossible he'd come coach us too."
"The outside support should be Lady Yukinoshita from behind us, though I've never heard she was any good at tennis."
As Hikigaya and Chika walked and chatted, they scanned the tennis club members before joining Yukinoshita Yukino. The girls warming up on the court stole glances at the new arrivals, whispering among themselves about whether he was their new coach.
Kaori hadn't hidden the fact that she'd invited outside help for training, so everyone knew someone was coming, they just didn't know who.
After several seniors graduated and others quit, the club's overall level had dropped. Many were beginners, though Kaori, Date Reiko, and Takamine Aika were excellent athletes. Even the faculty advisor was more of a mascot now, unable to provide much practical guidance.
But Momioka Risa, Haruna's close friend, already knew the person coming to help was none other than Hachiman, the Service Club's president, currently the most talked-about boy on campus.
Rumor had it he'd "bewitched" several girls and had special connections across classes, but those were just fantasies from jealous boys, with no proof.
And with the student council president Kaede, the political heiress Yukinoshita Yukino, Ichinose Ayano, and even the elf princess Iris all close to him, no one dared report him anyway.
Only the Public Morals Committee occasionally showed up to hound him, but it did little good. With the student council president backing him, what could they really do?
Still, Risa wasn't interested in him because of his popularity or influence.
It was simply because her best friend Haruna liked him.
She remembered Haruna saying they'd gone to the same middle school, though back then he wasn't popular or bright like now, just that gloomy boy with no friends except the Suzu twins.
He'd quit all clubs to go straight home after school, just to keep his little sister company.
To Risa, that was clear proof Haruna had a crush.
After all, how else would she remember such specific details about a gloomy boy, like the fact that he had a younger sister at home to look after?
That was definitely love. Even if Risa didn't know why Haruna hadn't confessed back then, it was obvious enough.
But what made her sigh was how Haruna still hadn't made a move even now, more than a month into the new school year. At most, she'd sneak glances at his classroom when passing by.
Such an innocent, old-fashioned form of love… Risa could hardly bear to tell her friend that if she didn't act, others surely would.
Hikigaya had changed drastically, thanks to the three gyarus in his class.
Minami, Rin, and Yuina, the trio who once bragged in their gyaru chat group about "raising a hot guy."
At first, Risa hadn't connected that "raised hottie" with Haruna's middle school crush.
After all, the side profile of that guy they posted was too handsome, how could that gloomy boy Haruna liked ever look like that?
But later, when she and Haruna saw Hikigaya again, they realized it was him, the once-ignored loner who'd turned into a bright, handsome guy surrounded by pretty girls.
Now, it was probably too late for Haruna to chase him. That stunning side profile photo had clearly been taken while those gyarus were in his arms.
"Haruna, Haruna, I think that Hikigaya guy's looking at you."
Risa noticed his gaze lingering in their direction, immediately tugging on Haruna's sleeve and whispering.
"Eh? N-no way…", Haruna blinked, turning to look at Hikigaya joining Yukinoshita and the others at the back of the group, then shot her friend a doubtful look.
'Is Risa teasing me again?'
Ever since Risa found out she liked Hikigaya, she hadn't stopped teasing her about it. Haruna was beginning to think she'd have to endure this for the next three years.
"What's so weird about it? You two were classmates once, and now he's here to coach us, it's normal for him to look at you," Risa gave her a sly wink and smirked meaningfully.
"Or… are you thinking of something else? Is that why it feels strange when your Hikigaya-kun looks your way?"
"Uuh… Risa, you're doing it again! And don't you dare say stuff like that in front of him, what if he misunderstands?", Blushing furiously, Haruna stammered, unable to scold her friend despite wanting to. She just begged Risa not to say things that would cause misunderstandings.
"Fine, fine… don't worry. I'll help you!", Seeing that her teasing failed to spark any initiative, Risa sighed, but quickly perked up again.
If Haruna hadn't made a move when Hikigaya was unpopular, she'd never dare now that he was surrounded by admirers.
Without help, that secret crush of hers would end without ever starting.
But that was fine, because Risa would help her.
Those gyarus, Minami, Yuina, and the others, were nothing but trouble, the type who bullied weaker students and flaunted their "raised hottie" project just to make others jealous.
She was going to help Haruna rescue Hikigaya from their clutches.
"I didn't ask you to help! Risa, don't you dare mess around!"
Seeing Risa's mischievous expression, Haruna's heart sank with dread. She knew that look, it meant her friend was definitely going to do something reckless again.
And gentle, polite Haruna could never really stop her.
If she couldn't control her when she was just being playful, how could she stop her now that she believed she was "helping a friend"?
"Form up!"
"Mio, Ai, Haruna, and Chika stay. The rest follow the original training plan."
After warmups, the tennis club president, Hayakawa Nishi, called out, leaving two pairs behind to train under Hikigaya and Yukinoshita.
"Today, the Service Club's president Hikigaya and vice president Yukinoshita will serve as our temporary coaches. You'll train in pairs for one week and see whose approach suits you best."
"President! Haruna says she wants to train with Coach Hikigaya!", Risa seized the chance, raising Haruna's hand and shouting before anyone else could speak.
Everyone froze, Hayakawa, Yukinoshita, even Hikigaya turned their eyes toward the blushing girl beside Risa.
"Ah? N-no! That's not true! Risa's just joking!", Flustered, Haruna yanked her hand back and waved in panic, trying to explain.
"Then, Haruna, do you not want to train with President Hikigaya? Would you rather work with Vice President Yukinoshita?", Hayakawa tilted her head, genuinely curious.
"Uh… it's not that I don't want to…", Haruna faltered, glancing shyly at Hikigaya, unsure what to say.
If she said she didn't want to, wouldn't that sound like she hated him? He hadn't done anything wrong, she didn't want to hurt him.
"Then Haruna, you and Chika will train with President Hikigaya. Mio and Ai, you're with Vice President Yukinoshita. Get used to each other's styles today, we'll compare progress in a week."
Seeing Haruna hesitate but not refuse, Hayakawa decided on the spot.
"What about me? I wanna train with Coach Hikigaya too!", Risa, thrilled that her plan had worked, raised her hand again, determined to stick close and push Haruna toward him.
"If you're not going to train, then help collect the balls," Hayakawa said dryly, not even bothering to argue.
Risa and the vice president, Date Reiko, were both chaotic type, fun-loving troublemakers who could stir up anything for amusement.
Outside of official events, Hayakawa had long since given up trying to rein them in.
But assigning Chika and Haruna to Hikigaya wasn't just because of Risa's antics.
Sugiyama Mio and Saeki Ai, Sairenji Haruna and Kitamura Chika, both pairs had similar skill levels, each consisting of a second-year and a first-year.
However, since Hikigaya was a guy and Yukinoshita was a girl, and Hikigaya's reputation was… complicated, it was risky to pair him with just anyone.
Chika had been the one to invite him, and Haruna seemed familiar with him, so pairing them made sense. That way, no one would get the wrong idea.
"Vice President Yukino, we'll head to the next court. In a week, we'll see who's improved more, but make sure you've got that maid outfit ready."
With that teasing remark, Hikigaya led his group to the other side of the court.
"..."
Yukinoshita shot him a cold glare, annoyed he'd deliberately called her by name and title. Then she turned away with a frosty expression and joined Yui Yuigahama to discuss training strategies with Mio and Ai.
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