"Gay people don't exist IRL haha."
You can recover from that, Watanabe! The gays are real and they all support you!! Go get your girl!!!

This really turned from "Haha silly/annoying girl and her obsession with a perfect Yuri world" to someone who projected heavily because of believing that her feelings were "wrong to be had" outside of some kind of fantasy she herself could enjoy.
I'd never suspect this to go in such a "real" direction. Getting talked "by society" into believing one truth, no matter how against your own feelings it might be. Later ending up feeling unfulfilled or outright frustrated by it.

I'm just happy to see that she received some support and it pushed her over the edge to try and confront Yoshioka

T H E G R A N D R E T U R N

The darkness that was consuming her has now been embraced,absorbed,lifting the weight off of her mind.

Take that which you most desire,fault no more,and seize your future!

BECOME THE FORBIDDEN ONE!

YES, become the yuri

What a plot twist!

She was always yuri!

WHY DID THE CHAPTER END LIKE THAT NOOO

THAT SAID I'M SO HAPPY FOR WATANABE, YOU GO GIRL

As we all expected, her oblivious ace friend who she loved tried to tell her that lesbians are fake. No wonder she's so messed up.

MC (Watanabe) deserves happiness....her friend is either:
Option A: clueless straight moron that misunderstand MC's subtle signals or attempts at trying to know if she[Mika] is (gay/lesbian)...it just a misunderstanding, claiming yuri-like antics exist in real life [which case she is still wrong since Yuri-manga sometimes copy real life situations]--> who is then finally maybe (1% chance) of realizing she accidentally hurt MC's feelings
Option B: Mika actually truly believes gay/Lesbians do not exist [The idea of girls or boys liking each other romantically]....
Option C: She Ace and is very dumb and believes romance/Yuri does not exist in IRL...meaning she is both Ace and stupid/clueless...this option I doubt exists but still possible she Ace like the comment above claims...still means she is clueless and not open minded...
Option D: other possible situations...

MC [Watanabe] got both her feelings rejected/crushed and got told Yuri/Lesbians are not real [A.K.A-Basically almost like saying they are 'wrong']....getting rejected by her friend [Mika] or being told by her friend [Mika] that she is straight would have hurt much less for MC and would be something she could have recover from slowly....

MC basically living her desire/feelings or Yuri/Lesbians in other people due to being hurt/thinking it wrong, thinking it won't exist for her/not believing anyone is willing to love her...

FK MIKA...unless Mika was texting MC to apologize for realizing she cluelessly rejected MC then she can go away forever and never appear again in the story...

Now we can focus on the important plot of romance with best gal XD

"Gay people don't exist IRL haha."

That blondie wasn't very well informed about the things in life.

Now go reach out to Mika

I wonder if this is gonna be like that one senpai in Hana ni arashi, where shes just closeted and later finds out that being gay is actually fine.

"Gay people don't exist IRL haha."

That blondie wasn't very well informed about the things in life.

I am fairly certain that was a deliberate attempt to wave Watanabe off from confessing to her, rather than a thing she actually earnestly believes.

Watanabe randomly asks out of nowhere how she'd react if a girl confessed to her. There are really only two reasons somebody would ask you that question. A) It happened to them, or someone they know, and they're trying to sus out how they should react, looking for advice, or B) they want to confess, and are trying to test the waters.

She asked if it was A) and Watanabe said that wasn't it. She did the math, and because she's not interested, she moved to head her off with "I'm not into this in real life."

Oh, her past is so difficult to see for a yuri girl, temember me old times

I am fairly certain that was a deliberate attempt to wave Watanabe off from confessing to her, rather than a thing she actually earnestly believes.

Possible chance but it also possible Mika actually believe it...we can never be certain and only theorize....

She asked if it was A) and Watanabe said that wasn't it. She did the math, and because she's not interested, she moved to head her off with "I'm not into this in real life."

Lol if that is the case then she is just a coward that didn't want to deal with anything difficult....

Honestly if that was Mika's intention then that was way too subtle and hurtful....she could have gone:

"Wow...I can't imagine a girl confessing to me, even though I like reading about Yuri I rather date a guy to be honest~~ Though no offense to anyone like that but I can't see myself actually dating a girl"--> basically subtle enough to cut off Watanabe feelings instead of saying [Yuri doesn't exist IRL XD]...it would still be a coward way out of dealing with MC's feeling but at least it wasn't as damaging as what she said {+hinting the suggestion to avoid a awkward confession situation} -_-"

Your idea basically means Mika is a selfish coward with no remorse for hurting MC/avoiding MC's feeling...there is no sign of pity, apologetic expression on Mika face [either she is the best actor ever...or she doesn't care that she just rejected MC's feelings without actually confronting them in the most subtle and yet damaging way possible XD]

She asked if it was A) and Watanabe said that wasn't it. She did the math, and because she's not interested, she moved to head her off with "I'm not into this in real life."

If it were as innocuous and sane as just saying that she is not interested this would not have left such a long lasting scar. She in no uncertain terms denied that lesbian relationships or love are real and only has a vague concept of fictionality of yuri as a genre to fall back on to dodge that bigotry stigma now.

The least damning possbility would be that she is indeed a lesbian or bi herself and just got burned in a similar scenario, so she coped by putting it entirely into the world of fiction for herself. "Yuri is just fiction" could well be a reflection of her thinking that fantastical scenarios where two girls could find each other and be happy are just not possible, because she made a bad experience.

It is not good, but her own cynicsm affecting her response would be more relatable. The fact that Watanabe clearly broke their promise to go to the same school and broke off all contact implies that maybe some things were left unspoken. I will give the author the benefit of the doubt there, because this feels like a loose thread for now.

Good. Accept your feelings. ^_^

I wonder if what Mika said will come back later, e.g., in a way of saying that her "fiction yuri" was the idealized version, which Watanabe was actually looking for at first with her obsession, while "real yuri" can take many unexpected shapes, which may seem imperfect, like her relationship with Yoshioka.

But regardless, the way she put it sure hit Watanabe hard and badly. I'm glad the poor girl recovered. And in the end, she already knew the answer.

I am fairly certain that was a deliberate attempt to wave Watanabe off from confessing to her, rather than a thing she actually earnestly believes.

Possible chance but it also possible Mika actually believe it...we can never be certain and only theorize....

It's possible, but honestly it seems like she's definitely picking up on Fuyu's vibe and is panicking for a way to shut it down. I'll point out why I feel this way below in my reply to Licentious Lantern's comments.

She asked if it was A) and Watanabe said that wasn't it. She did the math, and because she's not interested, she moved to head her off with "I'm not into this in real life."

Lol if that is the case then she is just a coward that didn't want to deal with anything difficult....

Yes, this is specifically what I am getting at. It was a selfish act, and at least at the time she doesn't seem to have realized how hurtful it was.

Honestly if that was Mika's intention then that was way too subtle and hurtful....she could have gone:

"Wow...I can't imagine a girl confessing to me, even though I like reading about Yuri I rather date a guy to be honest~~ Though no offense to anyone like that but I can't see myself actually dating a girl"--> basically subtle enough to cut off Watanabe feelings instead of saying [Yuri doesn't exist IRL XD]...it would still be a coward way out of dealing with MC's feeling but at least it wasn't as damaging as what she said {+hinting the suggestion to avoid a awkward confession situation} -_-"

Your idea basically means Mika is a selfish coward with no remorse for hurting MC/avoiding MC's feeling...there is no sign of pity, apologetic expression on Mika face [either she is the best actor ever...or she doesn't care that she just rejected MC's feelings without actually confronting them in the most subtle and yet damaging way possible XD]

Well, I think it's presumptuous to say "no remorse". We haven't really seen anything from her at this point. We know she's tried to reconnect through Lime, but we don't know if that's driven by regret or just obliviousness.

There's still a lot we don't know. It's very possible that she was voicing her actual (wrongheaded) understanding of the world, or it could be that she thought she was communicating that her interest in yuri was strictly fictional, and she didn't think how it would hit somebody who is actually gay. Or it could be that she thought she was being subtle and sparing Watanabe the heartbreak of an actual rejection.

I mean, they're kids. Kids do stupid things and hurt each other sometimes. WE know the damage it's caused, because we've seen it. But just because something is damaging doesn't mean it was intentionally or knowingly so. I'm pretty sure if she shows up again, it'll become pretty clear pretty quick which of all these possibilities is an actuality.

(and in response to Lantern:)

If it were as innocuous and sane as just saying that she is not interested this would not have left such a long lasting scar. She in no uncertain terms denied that lesbian relationships or love are real and only has a vague concept of fictionality of yuri as a genre to fall back on to dodge that bigotry stigma now.

I'm not saying she said she wasn't interested. She clearly said lesbians aren't real, or at least that she implies they should only exist in fiction. My point is that this may not be a thing she actually believes is true, but rather something she said explicitly to scare Watanabe off so she won't confess. At that age, many kids don't really know how to deal with uncomfortable emotional situations.

The least damning possbility would be that she is indeed a lesbian or bi herself and just got burned in a similar scenario, so she coped by putting it entirely into the world of fiction for herself. "Yuri is just fiction" could well be a reflection of her thinking that fantastical scenarios where two girls could find each other and be happy are just not possible, because she made a bad experience.

Maybe, but I tend to doubt it.

https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/yuri_is_taboo_to_a_yuri_otaku_ch18#4

Panel 3 is a clear "Wait, crap, why is she asking?" pause, and I feel like the stammer in panel 5 is somebody stepping into full no-wait-I'm-straight panic mode.

It's not the only explanation, but the vibe I get is definitely that this is somebody who ships yuri couples in fiction but isn't actually into it for herself, who is then realizing that "Oh shit, this girl is about to ask me out and I don't want her to."

It is not good, but her own cynicsm affecting her response would be more relatable. The fact that Watanabe clearly broke their promise to go to the same school and broke off all contact implies that maybe some things were left unspoken. I will give the author the benefit of the doubt there, because this feels like a loose thread for now.

I mean, I'd be surprised if there isn't SOMETHING coming on this front. We know that Mika is trying to stay in contact, and it definitely seems like Watanabe is going to need some kind of closure there. There are a lot of shapes that could take. It could turn out that Mika just panicked and regretted it later, or it could be that she's awful and thinks she did Watanabe a favor.

She might come back as an honest to god love rival, having realized how much "Fuyu-chan" means to her in her absence, or maybe she'll be an obstacle who tries to convince Watanabe that going out with a girl is a bad idea, (or just continue to be casually obliviously hurtful,) essentially making her the face of bigotry to be overcome. Or it might just be that she realized after the fact that her words were more hurtful than she knew, bringing Watanabe closure through an apology.

At the very least, I'd be surprised if we don't see her show up in person at least once before the series ends.

last edited at Jun 11, 2023 8:50PM

There's still a lot we don't know. It's very possible that she was voicing her actual (wrongheaded) understanding of the world, or it could be that she thought she was communicating that her interest in yuri was strictly fictional, and she didn't think how it would hit somebody who is actually gay. Or it could be that she thought she was being subtle and sparing Watanabe the heartbreak of an actual rejection.

I mean, they're kids. Kids do stupid things and hurt each other sometimes. WE know the damage it's caused, because we've seen it. But just because something is damaging doesn't mean it was intentionally or knowingly so. I'm pretty sure if she shows up again, it'll become pretty clear pretty quick which of all these possibilities is an actuality.

Nice understanding open minded response.

Hmm Valid point and there is a decent possible chance that is what happened, Guess Mika didn't notice anything wrong and thoughts things were most okay from her POV.

(and in response to Lantern:)

I mean, I'd be surprised if there isn't SOMETHING coming on this front. We know that Mika is trying to stay in contact, and it definitely seems like Watanabe is going to need some kind of closure there. There are a lot of shapes that could take. It could turn out that Mika just panicked and regretted it later, or it could be that she's awful and thinks she did Watanabe a favor.

She might come back as an honest to god love rival, having realized how much "Fuyu-chan" means to her in her absence, or maybe she'll be an obstacle who tries to convince Watanabe that going out with a girl is a bad idea, (or just continue to be casually obliviously hurtful,) essentially making her the face of bigotry to be overcome. Or it might just be that she realized after the fact that her words were more hurtful than she knew, bringing Watanabe closure through an apology.

At the very least, I'd be surprised if we don't see her show up in person at least once before the series ends.

Yeah Mika probably figure something might be wrong when they didn't go to the same school [MC going to the higher level academy Yuri-school to drown herself in/witness yuri-fantasy] XD

On one hand I kind of want MC to get some closure and settle things with Mika...but on the other hand I would also be fine with never seeing Mika again [in the very low chance of the author choosing to go the drama or her coming back as a love Rival-->ME NO WANT TRIANGLE SHENANGIANS...I doubt the author would go that route...but that is always that 1% chance of it happening and I rather we focus on MCXGal being lovely lovely for at least a few chapters before this manga ends...]

There is a very very small part of me that desires to see the Scenario of Mika coming back and trying to win over MC [Watanabe] while our best gal tries to fight her off since it would be funny to see....but most of the rational side of me is going NO! NO! JUST APOLOGY AND FIX FRIENDSHIP! NO LOVE TRIANGLE! NOOO!

I do not think Mika will show up going forward, definitely nothing more than an afterthought. I think that it's rather clear that Watanabe has put that behind her and now looks forward, or more precisely, at Yoshioka. Get to it already, you bumbling mess of a girl.

I also think that specifically the discussion above, while great in and of itself, was reading too deeply into something that I believe is not supposed to be particularly deep. I believe there was no real glimpse into what Mika thinks and why, and definitely not what made her say what she said to Watanabe (though I do agree that some panels/moments seem to imply something, but even still), and that it was deliberate. Though I admit that, personally, if there was more room to develop that specific part of Watanabe's past and maybe even introduce and develop Mika's character, I'd like that quite a bit, especially now that there's some juicy catharsis in Watanabe's horizon. Not as a love rival, though I fully believe Yoshioka's power level far surpasses Mika's and it could've been an amusing sight.

I genuinely screamed when I saw this go up; I'm so happy to see it back! I made an account (the day the update posted, but couldn't post until today as a newbie lol) to say thank you so much for your work, translators!!
The way this story has gone is so wonderful. I love the humor of the early manga and the combination of tropes being parodied and played straight, but it coming head-to-head with Fuyu's own fantasies is a welcome turn imo. I'm guessing we're nearing the end, so I'm looking forward to seeing what's next :D

Wholesome yuri moment. Only thing is the tag isnt here

Finally running after the pretty girl who likes her back.

So sweet, running to her girl.