The Fate of the Protagonist Who Chose the Harem Ending - Episode 29

The Eccentric Scion’s Puzzle  

During the study period for the end-of-term tests  

“Alright, Ichijou-kun, time to brace yourself!”  

As I was passing by the classroom, I heard a voice that made me stop in my tracks.  

Curious, Shizuku and I peeked into Class 2-A, the source of the voice.  

“Here’s your question!”  

One of the harem members, Kanefune-senpai, turned toward Ichijou. She was holding up a large sheet of paper with a single kanji character written on it.  

I didn’t bother questioning where the paper had come from.  

Ichijo simply stared blankly at Kanefune-senpai as she presented the question.  

“‘鍬’ — how do you read this?” she asked.  

Isn’t that “kuwa”? Everyone in the classroom seemed to think the same thing.  

(Note: “kuwa/鍬” can mean “plow”.)

Ichijou was no exception.  

“…Kuwa.”  

“!?! …Coward. Idiot,” 

Kanefune-senpai shot back out of nowhere.  

“Huh… wha—?”  

Ichijou stood there, dumbfounded, as Kanefune-senpai berated him.  

Wait—kuwa isn’t the right answer?  

“Shizuku, doesn’t that read as *kuwa*?”  

“I just tried converting it on my phone. Yep, ‘kuwa’ comes up.”  

“Then why did Kanefune-senpai reject it, even though it’s correct…?”  

Shizuku looked equally puzzled as she double-checked the conversion on her device.  

Thinking about it, Kanefune-senpai didn’t seem to act out of jealousy like the other girls interested in Ichijou.  

She wasn’t trying to monopolize him or keep him away from other girls.  

Unlike those who claimed to have “secured the perimeter”, her actions didn’t feel possessive.  

The other students in the classroom also seemed to be googling the answer, just like we had.  

They were just as baffled as we were about why Kanefune-senpai dismissed the correct reading.  

—

On the way back to our classroom, someone suddenly ambushed me from behind.  

“Hey there, Higashitani-chan!”  

“Huh, Kanefune-senpai!?”  

“Kanefune-senpai, could you please let go of Haru?”  

Kanefune-senpai had hugged me from behind without warning.  

Shizuku was clearly unhappy. She couldn’t speak harshly to a senior. But she glared at her while asking her to step away from me.  

Kanefune-senpai, however, didn’t seem to care and kept talking.  

“Man, you two are so fun to mess with. Let me give you a little pat-pat.”  

“W-wait, stop!”  

What’s with this person?! She’s unpredictable, intimidating, but I had to say something.  

“Please stop. I don’t want anyone other than Shizuku doing that.”  

“Oh? So it’s okay if it’s Shizuku-chan,” 

Kanefune-senpai teased, flashing a sly crescent-moon smile.  

“In that case, if you want to return to Shizuku-chan’s side, you’ll have to answer something for me.”  

Kanefune-senpai finally released me and handed over the same paper she’d shown to Ichijou earlier, with the kanji “鍬” on it.  

“Let’s have Shizuku-chan answer this one, shall we?”  

Grinning mischievously, Kanefune-senpai seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself.  

I was at a loss—this was the same question that had been marked wrong for Ichijou even though his answer was correct.  

What’s the right answer supposed to be?!  

Shizuku was just as stuck, knowing she couldn’t simply say “kuwa”.  

“Hmm? Looks like you’re struggling. Shizuku-chan. Come here—I’ll give you a hint,” 

Kanefune-senpai said in an exaggeratedly smug tone.  

How did she know we were grappling with the answer?  

At what point did she notice us?  

Shizuku, with no other choice, leaned in to listen to Kanefune-senpai whisper something in her ear.  

Whatever she said made Shizuku’s face flush red.  

“Oh, I see… That’s what it is.” 

Wait—what did she just hear?!  

“Haru, I’ll answer. But it’s embarrassing to say it out loud here in the hallway. Lean in,” 

Shizuku said, mirroring Kanefune-senpai’s approach.  

Embarrassing? What kind of answer is this?  

I leaned in, and Shizuku whispered the answer into my ear.  

“It’s… *suki* (I like you).” 

(Note: kuwa/鍬 (plow), suki/鋤 (plow), and suki/好き(like/love). 

鍬 and 鋤 means “plow”.

鋤 and 好き are read as “suki”

So………

鍬 → plow → 鋤 → suki → 好き(like/love).

It’s a play of word and pronunciation between those three characters.)

My face turned bright red.  

Kanefune-senpai was clearly pleased with my reaction. She skipped away while saying, “Ah, youth! So sweet!”  

Did Kanefune-senpai want Ichijo to say “suki” to her?  

That thought lingered in my mind as the end-of-term tests finally began.  

Would Oumi-kun settle things with these tests?