This Japanese Monogatari Isn't Lame-Chapter 586 - 369. I want to listen, I want to listen! (8000-word goal achieved!)

It had to be said, Beichuan Huili was as carefree as ever, a sight that made Beichuan Si’s heart fill with worry.

Although she was cute and talented at drawing, and her academic performance was even more impressive... but still... why did Beichuan Si feel that Beichuan Huili’s path ahead seemed especially difficult?

Seizing the rare opportunity for a casual school-time chat, Beichuan Si opened with a question, "Huili, what do you want to do in the future?"

The question made Beichuan Huili pause in surprise, "Why are we suddenly talking about such a serious topic, Brother Temple?"

So you do know the topic is serious.

His sister did have some idea about the gravity of the matter, which eased Beichuan Si’s expression substantially, "I’m just wondering, I’ll have to prepare for exams and university interviews in a year or two, although I haven’t decided on a location yet..."

At this point, Beichuan Si paused, a rarity for him.

He didn’t plan on leaving Tokyo to study elsewhere, after all, leaving Beichuan Huili alone in Tokyo didn’t feel quite right. But then—

What if he told Beichuan Huili this now and, upon learning about it, she stopped making any effort at all?

That’s why he paused.

At this moment, Beichuan Huili hadn’t yet grasped the severity of the issue. After pondering for a while, she mumbled to herself,

"Hmm, Brother Temple does need to prepare for university, at that time leaving me alone at home to li... wait a minute?!"

Beichuan Huili came to an abrupt halt, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked at Beichuan Si, "Brother Temple, aren’t you going to choose a university in Tokyo?"

"..." Beichuan Si.

"It depends on the situation, I might not end up going to university," said Beichuan Si in an even tone.

"That makes me feel better!" Beichuan Huili patted her chest in relief and then continued thoughtfully,

"Though... if Brother Temple goes to university, I guess I shouldn’t have any problems. After all, I have Ai and Saki here. If things get too tough... Hmm... it shouldn’t be a problem to call Brother Temple once in a while, right?"

"...No problem with that," Beichuan Si replied, his expression remaining unaltered.

Anyway, he had no intention of leaving Tokyo. For now, he might as well let Beichuan Huili feel a slight sense of crisis.

Beichuan Si continued walking forward with her, and then they heard a voice catching up from behind, "Huili!"

They looked in the direction of the voice to see Sakurai Saki, wearing a short-sleeved summer uniform, hurrying after them.

"Good morning, Brother Temple!" She stopped, gave a deep bow to Beichuan Si.

Beichuan Si responded in kind, "Yeah, good morning."

Then he looked over to Beichuan Huili, "You two chat, I’m heading to the classroom."

After finishing his words, he nodded to Sakurai Saki and turned to head toward Kyubei High School.

Seeing Beichuan Si had walked away, Sakurai Saki shared a laugh with Beichuan Huili and they talked as they walked, "Huili, what were you and Brother Temple talking about just now? You two seemed really engrossed."

Beichuan Huili tilted her head, "Um... nothing that important. Brother Temple just suddenly asked about my future goals."

Saying this, her lips puckered, "Actually, I don’t really have any big goals..."

"Is that so? Future goals, huh..." Sakurai Saki rested her chin in her hand and contemplated for a while before proactively saying, "For girls our age, talking about current goals... it should be about getting boyfriends, right?"

She gestured with her hands and giggled, "How about it? Do you have a target in mind, Huili?"

This kind of question, if asked to Sakura Miori or Otomoto Ai, Takigawa Nanako, they definitely wouldn’t give a straightforward answer.

But as for Beichuan Huili...

She was always the group’s source of joy, plus she was sincere to a fault and couldn’t keep anything hidden, asking her was definitely not a problem.

Right, how could kids their age not be touched by spring?

If you didn’t date in high school, could it even be called high school?

After all, with the serious issue of Japan’s declining birthrate, the government’s policies encouraged childbirth, so it was quite common for students in Japanese high schools to date.

And because of societal norms, parents tended to not be surprised by this kind of thing either.

Considering Sakurai Saki’s question, Beichuan Huili thought for a long time before shaking her head, "A boyfriend... I don’t really have that on my mind for now."

"Eh?"

This response took Sakurai Saki by surprise.

In her view, Beichuan Huili should have been very interested in ’romantic feelings,’ but instead, Beichuan Huili’s answer didn’t lean in that direction at all.

"Huili, is there no boy you’re interested in?"

Sakurai Saki couldn’t contain the curiosity in her voice and kept probing.

Faced with such questioning from her close friend, Beichuan Huili couldn’t help but ponder for a moment before nodding with an exceptionally innocent expression, "Yes, there is."

"There you go, if there’s a boy you’re interested in, don’t you want to get to know him? This ’attention,’ this ’fluttering’ feeling, is actually the sprout of love."

Sakurai Saki spoke as if it were the most natural thing.

"Uh... I don’t quite feel that way," Beichuan Huili shook her head again, and with bright, twinkling eyes, said, "I’ve always been focused on Brother Temple."

With that, she puffed out her chest proudly, "I’ve always taken pride in having Brother Temple! Of course, I care about Brother Temple a lot! But the kind of heart-fluttering feeling you’re talking about, Saki, I honestly don’t have it! I’m just his little sister!"

"...Why are you so oddly confident about this matter?"

Sakurai Saki’s mouth twitched.

It seemed she had figured it out.