Konbini Ossan Volume 3 Chapter 15 — Matsuriya Yuuki’s Confession

“Ah, Otsugi-san. You really are remarkable!”

As the discussion wound down, Matsuriya Yuuki spoke with obvious excitement.

“As expected of the person I placed my trust in. You analyze the situation, you think calmly.

…

In such abnormal circumstances, rushing to a conclusion could easily lead to mistakes.

…

Yet you remain cautious, always observing, always thinking. I truly think that’s wonderful!”

He’d been showering me with praise for a while now. It was a little embarrassing.

“If you praise me too much, I might get carried away.”

“Please do, by all means! I’ll lift you up as much as you like!”

“What the hell are you two idiots talking about?”

While Yuuki and I were joking around, Arisa muttered complaints in exasperation. For now, I brought the conversation back on track.

“Well then — I think we’ve reached a shared understanding. Do either of you have any questions?”

“I’m good. I already decided to stop overthinking everything. I’ll just trust you for now, old man.”

“I have no issues either. As for your thinking, Otsugi-san, I’ll support it fully.”

With both of them on board, I judged that we could call our understanding aligned.

“Then let’s talk a bit about what comes next.”

I shifted the discussion back to the original topic.

“As I’ve already asked of you, Yuuki, I want you to pass along information from the hero and the royal palace. I’ll use that as a basis for judging how I should act going forward.”

“Leave it to me. Honestly, it works better for me if you know the circumstances. Having someone with an outside perspective looking at my situation is invaluable.”

He pointed out the same advantage I had in mind. Both of us could check each other’s situations from different angles. That was extremely useful.

A single perspective has limits. It raises the risk of making a wrong choice. That’s why allies in different positions are vital.

“And Arisa-san. As I’ve asked before, it remains the same going forward. Your skill, «Calculator», holds enormous potential.

…

Please keep solving math problems to foster its growth.”

“Okay! Leave it to me!”

She answered with her usual energy. Dependable as ever.

“And — one more thing. To test its potential, I’d also like you to gain practical experience in the future.

…

So I’ll start teaching you the basics of adventurer work little by little.”

The hypothesis is that «Calculator» can handle far more than just numerical calculations.

If that’s the case, then even during adventuring, it should be able to answer diverse problems and analyze information.

To explore functions beyond calculation, adventurer work is the best environment. Math won’t come into play much.

On top of that, I already have experience as an adventurer, so I can ensure experiments that are safer, more accurate, and more reliable.

“Well, I don’t really get it, but fine. If it’s for you, old man, and for me too, then I’ve got no complaints.”

“Thank you.”

Arisa agreed to cooperate with a shared understanding this time. That was deeper than the circumstantial partnership we’d had so far.

A bond of mutual fate, so to speak. For Arisa to accept that, I truly couldn’t be more grateful.

Once talk of our partnership was done, we shifted into casual chatter.

Even so, Yuuki slipped in tidbits here and there about the palace and the hero.

Thanks to that, my grasp of the situation deepened.

Just as I expected, the palace was propping the hero up on the surface, while intending to use him as a tool of war.

Meanwhile, the students of Matsugaya High hadn’t realized it at all.

As for the summoned teachers — the adults — they were essentially under house arrest and not allowed visitors.

Cutting off information so blatantly and stripping them of judgment made it impossible not to be suspicious.

That said, it’s too cruel to expect the children to stay level-headed. Being deceived and used as weapons in the name of justice is also a terrible fate.

My desire to help them only grew stronger.

The conversation flowed, and before long it was late into the night, past midnight.

Normally this was when Yuuki would head home. But then, Arisa threw out a topic.

“By the way, Yuuki. Why’re you sucking up to the old man so much?”

At that, Yuuki frowned.

“Sucking up? That’s insulting, delinquent girl. I show respect where respect is due. That’s all.”

“Yeah, but come on. Respecting this old guy’s kind of a high hurdle, isn’t it? Visually speaking.”

Harsh words from Arisa.

True enough, my appearance was nothing more than that of a creepy middle-aged man. Of course people would get a bad impression.

Creepy meant instant negative marks. No matter how capable I proved myself, the balance sheet stayed neutral — or even slid negative.

For Yuuki to openly express respect regardless meant he was a genuinely good kid.

“Hmph. You’ve still got a lot to learn, delinquent girl.”

Yuuki smiled fearlessly. Surely he would correct her, tell her not to judge people on appearances.

“Otsugi-san is all the better because of how he looks. A worn-out, unimpressive older man who secretly has high ability — that’s wonderful, isn’t it?”

Oh? This conversation seemed to be taking a different turn than I imagined.

“No, see, a worn-out unimpressive old guy is just… bad.”

“Bad? Nonsense. That’s exactly what makes it good. It’s because he looks worn out and unimpressive that he’s endearing. Don’t you see? The bumbling old man type — it’s cute.”

“No, a bumbling old man is just a bumbling old man. That’s bad. Not cute.”

“Good grief, amateurs.”

Yuuki sighed. Instead of anger, Arisa just looked baffled at being dismissed. To be honest, even I had trouble understanding him.

“Listen, delinquent girl. There’s a whole genre called ossan-moe — old-man appeal. And it runs deep.

…

The object of affection doesn’t have to be handsome. Some even find joy in greasy, smelly, overweight middle-aged men.

…

The world is vast. Don’t think someone like you could ever grasp Otsugi-san’s charm.”

“Uh… what? I don’t get it, but. So basically, Yuuki, you like old men?”

Arisa, clearly fed up, tried to summarize crudely. That had to backfire.

After all, I was a creepy old man. There’s no way he’d phrase it like that. Surely he would correct her.

“Yes, that’s right. I like Otsugi-san. His personality’s good, his intellect is fine, and even his looks fit perfectly with my tastes. Of course I’d like him.”

Oh. He didn’t correct her. That was… unexpected.

“Hey. You probably shouldn’t use the word ‘fetish’ when you’re talking about two guys. It sounds weird.”

Arisa cautioned him. I completely agreed, and nodded along.

“That’s no problem at all.”

Yuuki, however, shot back with absolute confidence.

“After all, I’m gay. And yes, I meant it exactly that way.”

——————

E/N:

………Yeah……… Poor Arisa-chan 😬. At least Yuuki-kun is homosexual, Ossan is a Bi-freak!

But, Yuuki-kun really meant it that way 😆! Stay tuned!

——————

Previous       Table of Contents       Next