Baby Princess - Volume 3
Prologue Behind the Closed…
“Biyoyoyoyon!” Along with a shout that you would ever expect an almost fully of-age girl to make, a body flew towards Youtarou, like a stiff, bouncy ball. Uwah… The exclamation materialized in his mind, and in the next instant, Youtarou fell over backwards.
Before he knew it, on top of the two that had fallen into a heap… …was a blanket, covering them, apparently having been drawn up by Rikka. On top of the bed, it had become a small enclosed space. As he gingerly opened his eyes, the Krypton class[1], soft milk-colored light was seeping in like mist from a gap in the blanket covering their heads, and it was the only thing faintly lighting up Rikka’s face. She had ivory skin and big eyes, and her unexpectedly sharp features were slightly shining. Her small fang seemed to be peeking out of her corner of her mouth. It was almost rainy season. The inside of the room was filled with a slight refreshing humidity. And at the same time, even though it was only slight inside the room, on top of the bed, the air surrounding Rikka and Youtarou who were completely covered with the blanket immediately began to become and warm and damp… Rikka’s smell began faintly permeating inside that space. A little sweet, and rich, like vanilla found on some southern island.
Rikka was top of him. Youtarou, who was being pushed down by Rikka covered by the blanket, was lying on his back, all words escaping him. Just desperately… To the best of his ability, trying to ignore the elastic lumps he could feel down by the pit of his stomach. This is something else, it’s nothing, it’s just Rikka’s…chest. Chest!? A momentary silence ruled over the small space the two shared. Youtarou was looking directly into Rikka’s eyes. And then Rikka, “Ehehehe…I went and did ittt ♡” Still sprawled on top of him, a smile seemed to slip onto Rikka’s lips, and then she suddenly rubbed that smile onto Youtarou’s chest, almost like cat. Uwah. Above Youtarou, the bright colored hair that was split into two was waving about in a lively manner as usual. He could feel her warm breaths reaching all the way under his chin. I went and did it…she says. Youtarou recalled Rikka’s state from a while ago. Rikka had been excited, saying that she would show off her swimsuit to Youtarou earlier than others. She did not listen at all as Youtarou tried to stop her, and almost dancing led him to her room, and had started changing. That was fine, but then, he didn’t know what happened, but she suddenly let out “biyoyon”, a meaningless shout and had jumped towards Youtarou with the force of her whole body…
As he came to his senses, he realized that something warm was touching his belly. As he glanced down at himself, he found that his belly was exposed. The force from falling backwards had flipped up the bottom of his T-shirt. Rikka’s hand was resting somewhere near his belly button. As she tried to lift her upper body and put some force on that hand… Uwaaaa. At that light touch, his body reacted before his brain could, and his belly trembled. At the same time, Rikka giggled. “Aha, Onii-chan, are you ticklish around here?” Her expression immediately turned into a mischievous one, and as she slowly reached out her hand towards Youtarou’s exposed flank… Uwaaaahhhhh! For the umpteenth time today, Youtarou thought of exclaiming out loud, but in the end, could not. Gulp. It was the sound of him gulping down the saliva that had gathered in his mouth, which was all he could do. This is bad. Rikka was leaning forward more and more, a strange expression on her face, and brought her face closer to his, as if peeking closely at his face. He suddenly started to feel like they were something weirdly inappropriate, and trying to block Rikka’s movements, he half-raised his upper body, and covered his belly with his hands. “L-Listen…” Somehow, I gotta remove this blanket and get off the bed… And then, as if to completely pulverize Youtarou’s efforts in an instant, “Dokannnn!” With a cheery shout, Rikka moved up and properly straddled Youtarou, like a rodeo. Ah...On top of my stomach… Rendering Youtarou’s desperate efforts useless, Rikka happily bounced up and down. Right on top of Youtarou’s stomach. Two, three times, with great force. Each time, a great shock ran through Youtarou’s body. “Eeei! Mount position! ♡ With this, Onii-chan is count out! It’s Rikka’s win~!!” Ahh. This unexpected development… A feeling of helplessness attacked Youtarou, telling him that there was nothing he could do about this. In this world wrapped with a thin blanket of a gentle color made with organic cotton, Rikka’s face on an ivory fabric background had an expression that was just filled with joy. Hikaru and Tsurara, Haruka and Hotaru, Miharu and Mizore, also the clean-freak Urara, and the crybaby Kosame…While the faces of all these different people were swimming in his mind– ‘Okay, whatever happens, happens’…Right now, all I can do is hold myself back from thinking like that, Youtarou thought.
Chapter 1 Queen of My Heart
1 Youtarou was standing in the corridor. The second period had just ended, and the school was filled with lively noises. Unusually, he had found in the morning that there had been no bento prepared from him today, so he was on his way to submit an application to buy bread for lunch. It was now a little over 2 months since he transferred in. The leaves and the tress had grown a quite a bit, and only now was he finally getting used to being a student at this Private Konohana Academy. This school, which in the past had been a girls-only school with a high bar of entry, and which offered a complete elementary to university education, did not have a school cafeteria. Even though I had been looking forward to it so much… I was sure that when I became a high school student, I would be able to eat stuff like hot soba and curry udon, and other things as I liked…Youtarou thought a little sadly, holding his first bread-buying-application form in his hand. The middle school that Youtarou had gone to was limited to lunch brought from home, and the ‘bento’ his late grandmother used to make for him contained huge, round, fist sized, rice balls with apricot, and preserved fired egg and kelp simmered in soy, and they were just wrapped in aluminum foil, without a box. As far as gratitude went, Youtarou was always very thankful, but at the same time, it was something like proof that he had no parents and filled him with conflicting emotions. That’s why, he had always looked forward to it. To be free from all the gazes that always unconsciously judged his family circumstances during lunch time; to be able to freely act as a high school student in the school cafeteria. Yep. I mean, if it’s just lunch money, as a high schooler I can get a part time job, and no matter how good it is, you get tired of eating rice balls every day…With a wry smile on his face, he made such excuses in his heart toward his absent grandmother. Even though he had such thoughts, Youtarou was not expecting a fancy cafeteria like the ones found in today’s modern high schools, but the fact that the school did not even have an old-fashioned school cafeteria was also out of his expectations. Apparently, in this ancient and honorable Konohana Academy, there had originally been an idea that on the school premises, something as dirty as ‘money’ should be freely fiddled around with. As such, it was forbidden to give or receive cash money. When submitting money to the school such as tuition fees of course, but even when using the school store to buy ordinary school supplies, whether it was coins or bills, money had to always be put in an envelope first. Money is dirty? As if. Money makes this world go around. Youtarou, who had memories of suffering in poverty, thought aggravatedly. And then, almost at the same time, he simmered down a little as he thought about his circumstances right now. He recalled the faces of everyone in the Amatsuka family. The faces of the miraculous 19 sisters who gently surrounded him now, as siblings…as family. And the fact that he now lived in the Amatsuka house which –with a huge distance between its electricity operated main gate and the front entrance– just screamed rich. Before he had realized it, the type of happiness that can be bought with money, and the type that cannot be bought with money; for some reason, he had ended up in a place where both were right by his side. Why had this happened? From a life of eternal loneliness in poverty, he had instantly moved to a paradise-like environment which everyone would envy– Wait, can I actually go ahead and think that? Hm? Somehow, I think it’s also a little different. The small, thin, white envelope that he was holding in his hand made a jingling, rustling sound. It was an envelope handed to him by his only male classmate, Junpei. When Youtarou had mentioned that he was going to buy bread today, Junpei had took it out while giving him a look of pity. “But ya know, it’s all sweet bread that girls like, and they don’t have any special ones, so you get sick of ‘em real quick. Yocchan, going forward, you should make sure that no matter what else, you don’t forget your lunch, yep, yep.” Junpei nodded to himself. The from that he handed to Youtarou had 12 types of bread written on it. After mulling it over for a bit, Youtarou put a circle on the yakisoba bread, the shrimp cutlet sandwich and chocolate danish. Another one, the cinnamon donut also tempted him, But eating 4 too much, isn’t it? The total is 400 yen. But hold on, what happens when you need change? I guess the kind of guy that worries about stuff like that is ‘not needed’ at this school, huh? Looking at the thin, white, small envelope for buying bread, Youtarou arrived at the bread shop near the entrance hall, and inserted the jingling, rustling envelope into the post box there. It was at that moment. “Ara, Onii-chan, did you eat your lunch early today?” From behind, a lively voice reached his ears. “Hotaru…” As he turned to look back, standing there was the 10th daughter of Amatsuka house, her bob hair softly spread out, looking very feminine. Right now, she was in the position of the 1 year younger ‘little sister’ of Youtarou, and had a white[2], gentle smile on her face. “Eh, early lunch? But wasn’t today’s lunch–” missing…As Youtarou was about to complete his sentence, his gaze was drawn to the bulletin board, and he froze. Hotaru followed his gaze. He was looking at a huge poster pinned up on the bulletin board used by the student council. It showed the tennis court of the Konohana Academy, surrounded by fresh greenery. In the middle was Hikaru, clad in tennis wear, photographed just as she was about to swing the racquet, her form exuding great impact. Sweat shining on her forehead. Her serious face. Looking straight at ahead at the ball, that all too familiar serious and straightforward eyes. The Hikaru in the poster was beautiful and shining, like an idol that he was unfamiliar with. The catchphrase on the green tennis court was a lemon yellow: ‘The Queen of the Sports Fest is you!’ If he was being honest, Youtarou was captivated. “Ah, it’s that time of the year again, isn’t it? Hota completely forgot about it. I didn’t know that Hikaru Onee-chan was going to be on the poster again this year.” Hotaru said and looked up at the poster, fascinated. “Tennis wear is pretty cute after all, isn’t it? Yep, maybe, it would’ve been best if Hota also entered the tennis club…But, I am pretty weak at sports after all. Hota only wants to try on the tennis wear, so I think it would be best if I could just try on the one Hikaru Onee-chan has at home. Ah, but in that case, since Hikaru Onee-chan is taller than Hotaru, and also quite slim, I’m worried whether I’ll fit…Ahn, what should we do about this? Onii-chan, should Hota go on a diet, after all? Recently, the size of my bra has gone up again…Ah, but that skirt has to have frills on it, right? Nn? Onii-chan, what’s wrong? Can you hear me? Ooi, Onii-chan~!” It seemed like Hotaru’s words were passing over Youtarou’s head. “Oooi, ooooi, Onii-chan, are you listening?” Hotaru waved her hand in front Youtarou’s face. “Ah…yeah.” Hotaru peeked into Youtarou’s face. The flowery smell of Hotaru wafted over him, and her face was so close to his that he could see his own reflection in her big eyes. And of course, her lips as well– “Uwah! You’re too close…!” He hurriedly held Hotaru by her shoulders and pulled her away. I swear, I can never let my guard down around these sisters… “I’m glad, you were awake.” Hotaru smiled innocently. “Ano, Onii-chan, do you really like tennis wear that much?” “No, not really, that’s not what I…” Since it was so sudden, he felt his face grow hot, and he hurriedly continued. “But listen, what is this about? Are we having a sports festival soon?” As he spoke such words to cover up his embarrassment, he realized listening to his own words. That’s right, I didn’t hear anything about this at all… “Ah, that’s right. Onii-chan still did not know! Well yes, that’s because the yearly Sports Fest isn’t very lively in Konohana…” A sport festival that isn’t lively? Hearing these kinds of words from Hotaru’s mouth, who was generally very positive about things, made Youtarou even more confused. “Ah, no, I mean, I guess it might not be like that always.” This time Hotaru was the one who continued in a hurry “Um, in Konohana, there are two different sports-centric events throughout the year, the Sports Fest in spring and the athletic meet in fall. The activities of the spring Sports Fest are limited to ball games, an so it just becomes a ball game competition. It’s held in June every year, and see, June is still the period where everyone has not yet settled into their classes, right? So, even if it is called a class effort, it in the end it just takes the form of everyone fighting on their own, and so it’s not too much fun. On top of that, since the events are all ball games, they require teamwork, but since it’s the start new year, which is quite busy, not everybody can take out much time to practice…And so, because of this and that, every year, everyone is just kinda uninterested, or should I say it’s not that lively…” I see. That’s understandable. Normally, the athletic meet happens in fall after all. By that time, the class settled in quite a bit…While thinking so, the image of that class filled with girls swam up into Youtarou’s mind, making him smile wryly. Ah, will I really be able to settle down in that class? But for now, hearing Hotaru’s explanation, Youtarou’s head cooled down. “Ah, but, that’s why, apparently, in order to make the Sports Fest more fun and to get people excited, we have the Student Council sponsored event to choose the ‘Queen of the Sport Fest’ every year.” “Let me guess. That person is…Hikaru?” Indeed, she is the perfect person to be given the title of ‘Queen of Sports Festival’. Feeling as if he had learned of another legend pertaining to idol of the school: Hikaru-sama, Youtarou started to feel a little depressed. “Yes, the Queen selected last year was Hikaru Onee-chan…in fact –Hota is not sure about the details, but– ever since she entered middle school 3 years ago, it seems like she has been selected as the one every year since then. Hikaru Onee-chan is pretty popular, and more importantly, is an all-rounder athlete and very cool. That’s why it seems like there are a lot of people who think that Hikaru Onee-chan will be selected again this year, and so that’s probably why this poster came into existence…” His melancholy increased. “Ah, but, from last year–” And so, Youtarou lost any interested in the conversation, and almost stopped listening to what Hotaru was saying, as so did not realize that her eyes were becoming more and more ecstatic as she talked. “Since Konohana finally got some male students, there were apparently talks about also selecting a Prince of the Sports Fest together with the Queen! But looking at this poster, I guess that did not come to fruition…” Hotaru lightly put a finger on her lips, and read though the notices posted besides the poster. “If, this year, they really did select a Prince, I had thought that it would be great if Onii-chan also ran for it….Are they really not doing it? Fufufu. If Onii-chan announced his candidacy, it would cause an uproar! I’m sure you would definitely get very popular and get selected, and in that case Hikaru Onee-chan and Onii-chan would together become the Queen and Prince of the Sport Fest…Kyaa its too good!” Hotaru jumped a little in joy. “And then it would be really, really amazing! You are in the same year, so I’m sure if you stood together you would look great ♡ Hota is a little jelly, but if that ends up happening I will be really, really happy, and proud, and you would be the pride of the Amatsuka family…Now I really want to make a splendid pair of costumes and have the two of you wear it…” Her hands were clasped in front of her face; the dreaming Hotaru’s face was flushed pink. I’m not someone that amazing…even as Youtarou smiled bitterly, he got affected by the sheer power of Hotaru’s happiness and his feelings calmed down a little. He took a small step back and looked back the poster. There she was, Hikaru with a serious expression on her face. Always, no matter when, always serious…living a straightforward life. He knew very well that the fact that Hikaru was popular was not her fault. And also, the fact that she did not want any of it. In fact, the bodyguards called ‘fans’ that seemed to be surrounding her all the time did not suit her at all. What suited Hikaru was something much more straightforward, something clearer, something more pure… Thinking that far, Youtarou had another thought. But being the ‘Queen of the Sports Fest’ like this also suits her very much, after all. Hikaru’s face in the poster from one year ago was not aware of Youtarou’s existence. And at the same time, it was a face that Youtarou had never gotten to see.
2 “Like I said, how can you be so unguarded!?” Tsurara was angry. “Eh, but if you met Onii-chan on the school campus, all by himself, wouldn’t you also think to go up and ask him if something was wrong? And sure enough, he didn’t know about the Sports Fest and was even shocked after having a look at the poster. That’s why I thought I should go ahead and tell him…” Hotaru mumbled, confused, not knowing what the problem was. You couldn’t tell which one was the older one. “Like. I. Said! Mou! What would you do if you were seen by someone doing that!? You know the fact that Servant is part of our family must not be found out by others…” “Tsu-Tsurara-chan, you’re being too loud.” Hotaru hurriedly pulled down Tsurara’s arms, which had seemed to rise by themselves as she had gotten too frenzied. This was a classroom in the middle school. It was the classroom reserved for the advanced[3] class that Tsurara was enrolled in. “If you exclaim ‘family’ in such a loud voice, that by itself is pretty bad…” “A-Ah…” Tsurara’s face flushed red. They looked around carefully. But fortunately, the students of this class –which were quite few even though they were chosen from among the entire year– were preparing for the upcoming last period of the morning classes and were absorbed in checking their homework, and there were none among them who were paying any attention to the two. “So-sorry, but…” The expression on her face with her mouth flapping open and shut was the same as when she was a kid. And just as adorable, Hotaru thought with a smile. Tsurara-chan is very smart and strong in spirit, but she never has been good at speaking. She remembered when they were both tiny kids in kindergarten, Tsurara would lose in verbal arguments and come to hide and cry behind Hotaru. In kindergarten, there was this kind of selfish girl in Tsurara’s class born in April, and she would often butt heads with Tsurara, who had strong sense of justice, didn’t she? Even among her classmates, Tsurara was the youngest, having been born in March on White Day. Different from now in middle school, back then, having a difference of one year in age made a huge difference in your physical and mental capabilities. Tsurara had been smart and of strong spirit even back then, but whenever she would receive a machine-gun like verbal attack from that smart mouthed girl born in April, she would always be at a loss for words and would become red in the face, her mouth flapping open and shut, just like she was doing now. And then she would go quiet for a moment…and turn on her heel and come straight towards Hotaru. And then she would hide behind her back, without being able to hold back her tears, and would rub her face all over Hotaru’s kindergarten clothes. And so, the back of Hotaru’s clothes, which would have been freshly ironed in the morning would become full of wrinkles. To Hotaru, the Tsurara back then was a cute younger sister that she had to take care of. Ahh. The cute Tsurara-chan from back then… “Hey! are you listening!? Mou, it’s Hotaru-chan’s fault for making me say something like that! Hotaru-chan, you are too relaxed about this!!” …where did she go off to? Hotaru sighed slightly, and then made a troubled smile. “Because, even if you say that, I already went ahead and said it.” “Ha? Said…what?” Tsurara turned pale. “Hota, did you, did you perhaps–” “Ah, no, you got it wrong. That’s not what I’m saying. Look, don’t you remember, Tsurara-chan? Weren’t you together with me, back when Onii-chan had just transferred in? Hota bumped into Onii-chan in the corridor and became so happy that I called out ‘Onii-chan’ to him in a loud voice…I didn’t realize that Oohashi-senpai from Onii-chan’s class was also together with him.” Tsurara frowned. “Ah, I remember! That unpleasant, droopy eyed, charlatan of a woman!” “Come on, charlatan? That’s such a bad way to refer to someone. Didn’t she seem like a perfectly kind senior? Ah, but yes, anyways, we only passed by them, and it was the first day…So we hurriedly covered it up by saying that he was an ‘Onii-chan’ that used to live in the same neighborhood when we were little…” “Ah, now that you mention it…” Tsurara also recalled. “That’s why I think it’s fine if we are a little friendly with him.” Hotaru smiled an extraordinarily smile. Perhaps she was relieved that Tsurara’s tension had reduced a bit, as her voice became a little louder. “Because, the fact that we are living together is not going to change in the future, so if we leave that misunderstanding as is, it will make us less suspicious if we are seen going to and from school together.” Hotaru’s smile now spread from ear to ear, and it was as bright as a sun that shined blessings on everything in the world. “Because you know, Hota will definitely feel like talking to Onii-chan if she meets him in school again, and if we do it like this…” Her smile was becoming wider and gentler, her eyes squinting so much that they disappeared into thin lines. “…I’m sure even that person, Oohashi Senpai…” Tsurara had a good idea about what Hotaru was going to say next. “…I think that even she would not approach Onii-chan carelessly then!” (TL Note: This girl just got a lot more terrifying!) This– This sly fox! Tsurara cursed in her head. But still…Tsurara suddenly realized. That’s right…In that case, maybe…That picture. She recalled that despicable, secretly taken picture.
It had happened on Monday last week. Suddenly, a single photograph had been delivered to the post box of the Amatsuka house. It was a photograph that had been seemingly taken from some distance away, capturing the moment when the subjects of the photograph had just left the house for their morning commute. There was a total of 7 people reflected in the picture. In the front was the 7th daughter, Rikka, who, perhaps because she was excited at having recently becoming a middle schooler, had her bright, twin tailed hair along with the hem of her white sailor uniform flying all over the place. Behind her was the 5th daughter Hotaru, who, even though it was early morning, was wearing a terribly calm and warm smile on her face, while carrying a bundle with a large lunch box inside. And then, breaking the line was the 6th daughter Tsurara, who was looking back at the person behind her, seemingly angry at them and hitting them from the side with her bag. Since she had passed the selection test and was now in the advanced class in which only students who boasted high grades were present, she was wearing sailor uniform with a different color from the rest; a dark blue uniform. Getting hit by Tsurara’s bag and shielding his head, a pitiable look on his face, was Youtarou. For better or worse, he had lost his parents at an early age, and the only relative that he had been living with, his grandmother also died, and he had become all alone in this world. But then, suddenly, like a little mischief from God, he had started living in the Amatsuka household as the ‘eldest son’. He was a little weak to pressure, and his bar of happiness was pretty low…a first-year high school student that seemed a little dingy. Right beside him was Hikaru, the 4th daughter, also a first year. Her long, straight hair extended down, and her long, awe-inspiring legs extended from her miniskirt. Behind her was the 3rd daughter Haruka, apparently adjusting the cute ribbons tied in her hair around her temples, and the 2nd daughter Mizore, with her black, shiny hair in a short bob, which was rarely seen nowadays, wearing a long skirt which made her look a little cool and a bit androgynous. Since the moment she had laid her eyes on this picture, Tsurara’s brain had been on full throttle. Who, and for what purpose sent this picture to our house? In the first place, why would they send this particular secretly taken picture? Among the 19 siblings, aiming for and pressuring only the 6, no, 7 that went to Konohana requires quite a bit of technique, doesn’t it? Maybe it was a pro? Even if there was some malicious motive, it’s hard to think that all of us were the target. In that case, who is it among us that is being targeted? Maybe it was just a pervert? Or a maybe just a nasty stalker? And Rikka said “This envelope belongs to the student council” but I still don’t know how that is connected…Various different thoughts and ideas were swirling around inside her head. On top of it, the one person who had discovered the picture together with Tsurara, who, by Tsurara’s standard, should have kicked up a fuss about it…That Rikka, “Isn’t it a picture taken by accident, and because it came out so well they decided to send it to us?” was much too relaxed about it all, doubling the strange feeling Tsurara was feeling. That’s why, Tsurara had been researching in her own way. The first thing she found was that as Rikka had said, the envelope had been one that the student council used. That’s why she tried offhandedly asking a member from the middle school branch whether they had a chance to use it recently, but it was in vain. The Konohana Academy student council’s activities were focused mainly on the Sports Festival in fall, and the setup of the activities in the beginning of Spring was a little late, and so there had been no particular activities recently, and just as Rikka had said, the member didn’t recall using it for anything other than distributing a guide to the freshmen. Also, she decisively started to keep a lookout in the mornings. Since last year, in order to diligently report to the quiet classroom earlier than others, Tsurara had been making an early commute, and so was used to waking up early. For about a week, she had tried to keep a lookout since 6 o’clock, early in the morning…but no prey had taken the bait, and the only things she had learned was that before Tsurara and others left the house, the area around was devoid of any life, and also the fact that Tsurara was bad with dogs, even if it was just a small Chihuahua taking a walk in the morning. And then, she was almost found out by Mizore Ane-sama, and so the lookout period came to an end. And so, I guess the next step is… Just as Tsurara was thinking that.
“Ooooiii! There you are! Tsurara-chan– ah, Hota Onee-chan is also here. That’s great, it saves me the trouble.” Rikka was hanging in from the window facing the corridor, widely waving her hand. Hanging from both of her hands were some kind of flashy, rugged, orange colored bags. What are those? Sitting in the seat in front of Tsurara, Hotaru went red in the face and stood up in a panic. “Ah, wa-wait, wait, Rikka-chan, doing that is definitely going over the line. Bringing snacks to school is technically against the rules, so if we were found out by the teachers…” Hotaru rushed towards Rikka with pattering steps, waving her hands widely in a troubled manner, and desperately tried to hide the ‘Super Big! Huge Bag of Potato chips with whole-sale prices!’ package. “Ehehehe~! ♡ Ain’t it something else? I found it yesterday in the plaza and ended up buying it. I thought we could all eat it together. In this one bag here, you won’t believe it, we have 3 bags worth of potato chips! With lots of different flavors that Rikka spent lots of time selecting, the best flavors, including: BBQ, sour cream, salt and vinegar, and hot chili~! With this, if we had some cold cola, it would have been the best, but hey, since we are in school, bear with me here. How about a strawberry au lait in a juice pack from the vending machine! Shishishishi ☆” Tsurara was suddenly exhausted. “Mou, what in world are you thinking. What are you coming to school for!? Where in the world can you find an idiot that brings such a huge bag of chips to school! It’s different from elementary school, you know?” “Eeeeh~, but it was worse in elementary. They immediately found out that I had brough snacks to school and it was a lot of trouble. On top of it, there is no way you can fit a potato chips bag in a randoseru…” “You idiot! In the first place, how are you gonna finish so many potato chips!?” Tsurara retorted without missing a beat. Hearing that, Rikka raised both of her hands and exaggeratedly shook her head, as if to say You just don’t get it. “That– is– why– I’m saying that let’s eat it all together! Even the potato chips, when I saw them yesterday, I thought Wow, these are great, and then I was able to narrow down 4 from the total of 8 different flavors, but then I thought that the rest of them were too good to be let go, and then I agonized over it, and then I thought That’s right! Since Hotaru Onee-chan said that we should gather together to have a picnic lunch in the courtyard, we could all eat it together then ♡ Amazing, Rikka is so smart, I thought–” “Ha? Picnic lunch?” I didn’t hear anything about…Tsurara wonderingly turned towards Hotaru. “Ah, sorry about that. I was late in telling you. Actually, that’s what I came to tell you just now…” Hotaru laughed with a troubled expression, one hand on her cheek. “Come oooon, did you seriously not realize that the lunch box was missing this morning, Tsurara-chan!? Thinking what you’re going to eat for lunch is the most important thing in the world!” Rikka stuck out a fist. Hotaru continued with a wry laugh, “I apologize for not telling you in advance. Since yesterday, Rikka-chan had been requesting to hold a sandwich party with everyone, and since it is the right season, and the Flowering Dogwoods in the courtyard look the prettiest at this time of the year…I thought that might be good sometimes. I consulted with Haruka Onee-chan, and we decided to put together everyone’s share and the two of us brought it all in 2 large, party-sized boxes.” Now that I think about it…Tsurara realized. “Now that you mention it, the lunch box was missing today, wasn’t it? I realized I didn’t have it after I reached school, but I had thought it was there and I had simply forgotten to pick it up. I was planning to go to the school store later to get something…” “Mou! Tsurara-chan, you have way too little interest in eating. No matter how smart you are, Rikka thinks that that is not a good thing! We’re finally living the exciting middle school life, so we have to enjoy the girl’s life more and more! If you take away sweet things and snacks from middle school girls, what do you think is left behind? I’m sure it would just be a dull, gray every day and a tasteless…Ouch!” Tsurara lightly dropped her fist onto the top of Rikka’s head. “I’m sure all that will be left behind is the empty shell of Rikka, all alone. I don’t particularly mind even if snacks disappear from this world. And can all these customs of Valentine Day and White Day go ahead die out as well? I swear, just because my birthday is on White Day, do you have any idea how many annoying things I had to deal with. I would be completely refreshed. A quiet, everyday life with no distractions in which I can study every day. Since I will eventually be flying out into the real world, that suits me just fine.” Since Tsurara said it all in a very matter-of-fact way, Rikka got mad. “Hmph, is that so? Beeee~!!” “W-What’s with you.” Tsurara flinched a little. Even though she was now in first year of middle school, Rikka did not hesitate to earnestly stuck her tongue out at Tsurara. “Then it’s fine, Tsurara-chan does not have to join us, I say~. I won’t share with a girl who says such un-cute things! You can stay in the classroom and eat your store-bought bread all alone. I’m sure that Mizore Onee-chan and Onii-chan will happily eat Tsurara-chan’s share!” “Wait, what is that all about–” “Ah! Was Onii-chan also buying bread because of–” Tsurara and Hotaru shouted at almost the same time. “If you invite servant also, won’t it become even easier to notice that he’s part of our family!!” “Maybe Onii-chan also did not know that Hotaru brought today’s lunch…This is terrible! I see, so that is why he was holding a bread-buying form…What should I do. Hota needs to go tell Onii-chan.” Suddenly becoming very fidgety, Hotaru left the class in a panic, and at the same time, the bell signaling the start of the 4th period rang throughout the classroom. Hearing that, Rikka spread her lips wide and stuck her tongue out one final time as a bonus, and retreated to her classroom carrying the huge bags, almost unable to see in front of her. Since the classroom for the advanced program is located at the very end of the corridor, she’s definitely gonna be late in reaching the first-year classroom…Tsurara thought. And then, at the same time, she thought thus. Since the 4th period has started already, I won’t make it even if I tried to submit an application to buy bread. In the first place, the bread served at the school store are breads like cheery pies, and cream rolls, and fried red bean paste donuts. They are all sweet breads. Can you believe it? It has red bean paste stuffed into it, and then you fry it, and on top of it you smother sugar on it until it becomes completely white, you know? I can’t eat such a thing that seems like it’d be hit among ants. It feels like I’ll become dumb just by eating it. That’s why, I have no choice but to go, don’t I? So that my careless sisters… don’t do anything careless and give away the fact that that worthless servant is a sibling of ours…
3 “Here you go, say ‘Ahn’, Onii-chan ♡♡♡” While saying that and joyfully saying ‘Ahn’ towards Youtarou’s mouth, Rikka’s own mouth seemed like it would start drooling any second. “Look, come on, you don’t have to be that shy, do it one big bite!! Wide, wider! This is the time when you can gobble it all in one bit like a man, you know? Wahhh, amazing, you can still fit more…As expected of Onii-chan!” Rikka vigorously pushed the sandwich that seemed to be made a little bigger than usual into Youtarou’s mouth. “N-nnnn…” While letting out a voice as if he were character from ‘Sazae-san’ –which he had been able to watch again after coming to the Amatsuka house– Youtarou was tasting a mysterious feeling.
They were in the courtyard during lunch break. They had spread and were sitting on a checkered blanket used for picnics on the wide, bright lawn in the courtyard. In front of Youtarou was Rikka, pushing sandwiches, and beyond her was a small hill with sparse flowers and trees. The thickets that were growing all around it were lush green and slightly clumped together, as if trying to hide the boundary between the school and the outside world. Around Youtarou and Rikka were the 4 sisters, Hotaru, Haruka, Hikaru and Mizore. All of them were smiling happily, sitting in a peaceful circle, sandwiches in their hands, looking at the two. It was a good scene. From his mouth, he heard a nice, crisp sound, and the taste of fresh vegetables and the savory smell of well-baked bread spread in his mouth. The sandwich Rikka had presented to him was the one Haruka had said to be today’s recommended sandwich, the BLT. Bi El Tii? Youtarou had carelessly made a stupid expression, and Rikka had taken it upon herself to fulfil the ‘Ahn’ role. “Waaai~ As expected Onii-chan also likes the BLT sandwich! Rikka also likes BLT the best!! Cause, Haruka Onee-chan’s BLT has lettuce, and tomatoes, and such wonderful smelling bacon, and of course, the so, so tasty Haruka Onee-chan special, the mellow mustard chicken! Mou, this is bad[4], it’s too good! And since today is so special, the Zao cheese I ordered is also in there…” It was definitely a thick sandwich, and no matter how you looked at it, it was gorgeous. In the first place, it was Youtarou’s first time seeing a sandwich made from baked bread. “But it’s thick and a little hard to eat, that is one downside to it, isn’t it? That’s why, Rikka will help you eat it. Well then, say ‘Ahn’, here we go, do it one bite!”
Carried along by Rikka’s lively lead, Youtarou had opened his mouth, and the taste of all the ingredients spread and began to mix in his mouth. The crisp, aromatic lettuce, the sourness of fresh tomatoes. Just as Rikka had said, the salty bacon which gave off the aroma of a terribly high-grade oil, and the soft, mellow chicken chest-meat which had been sliced into small pieces and smeared with mustard, and the garnish which was fresh Zao cheese. The bread that was sandwiching all these gave off the scent of wheat, a slightly chewy bread that had been toasted golden brown… Delish… It was a taste that he had never experienced before, a taste far removed from what Youtarou had thought of as the best sandwich in the whole world, the corn beef sandwich they sold at the station. This is bad…Huh? Before he knew it, he was copying Rikka’s pet phrase. But, wanting nothing but another bite, without letting go of the sandwich Rikka was holding, he bit into the sandwich in quick succession. “Ah, I got him, I got him ♡” Rikka, still holding onto the sandwich, cheered on Youtarou, who was like a fish that had bit on a line. “As expected, the BLT sandwich made by Haruka Onee-chan packs quite the punch.” As Rikka swelled out her chest with pride, Haruka’s cheeks flushed pink. Un, it really is delicious…is what Youtarou wanted to say to Haruka, but since he had taken two successive bites of the thick BLT sandwich, the contents were packed into his mouth, and he was only able to somehow chew on them. Seeing that, Rikka cheered again. “Look, look, Onii-chan looks so happy! Uwaaa~ That looks delicious.” She raised her arms up in a funny pose, and then suddenly, “Alright, Rikka is going to participate as well!!” Saying that, “Pakuuun” she bit onto the sandwich stuck in Youtarou’s mouth from the other side. Rikka’s merry lips approached with momentum from the other side of the sandwich, which Youtarou had already taken two big bites out from. “Uwaaaa!” Just as they were about to touch Youtarou’s, Youtarou couldn’t help but yelp, and his mouth opened. Pieces of the thick sandwich fell from his mouth, littering the blanket. Rikka was still holding the other half of the sandwich in her mouth, her happiness so obvious that she seemed like a dog furiously waving its tail, and it seemed like she would bark any second. Mizore, who had been eating an Ogura whipped sandwich right next to them laughed out loud. “Ahh, in end she took it from you. Hahahaha! It’s a world of survival of the fittest. It would help you a lot to get used to living with a huge family.” Looking at the dazed Youtarou, Hotaru suddenly spurted, as if she couldn’t contain herself anymore. “Even though we properly have Rikka-chan’s portion, such bad manners…Sorry about that, Onii-chan.” “I swear, Rikka’s gluttony never changes. I thought she would become a little more lady like since she entered middle school, but I guess not. If you’re gonna worry about dieting all year long, how about doing some exercise? Ah, if you want, I could introduce you to some programs–” As Hikaru was talking, “Eeeeeeeh! Rikka didn’t mean to steal Onii-chan’s share or anything you know!? It’s just that Onii-chan was eating it so happily and like it was so delicious, that even Rikka got happy, and thought That looks good…and my mouth moved on its own…” Finally swallowing the piece of sandwich in her mouth, Rikka started frantically making excuses. “Here now, Rikka-chan, and also, Haruka’s precious Ouji-sama, it’s alright! I made lots of them so that we wouldn’t run out even by mistake, so please help yourselves as much you want, you two. Haruka…Haruka is just happy that you are enjoying the sandwiches I made so much…kyun!” Haruka clasped her hands in front of her chest and started to go kyun kyun. While casually fixing the hem of her one-piece, she changed her sitting position with her legs to one side, sliding up to Youtarou. She was avoiding meeting Youtarou’s gaze, and her downcast face was flushed pink again. “Listen, Ouji-sama…Does this mean that Haruka has the qualifications to become Ouji-sama’s bride? If that happened, Haruka wouldn’t mind making them for you every day, every meal…” Ah, what should I do, it’s not like I want to eat them all the time…As Youtarou thought that, Hotaru made a recommendation, as if she was knew what was going through his mind. “Onii-chan, this shrimp and avocado sandwich is pretty amazing too! And this cream cheese and blue berry one…” “Ah, yeah, thanks.” If someone offered him a way out, taking it obediently was how Youtarou operated these days. “I’m glad, these are the ones that Hota made!” A happy smile spread on Hotaru’s face. “Well then, I guess I’ll have the Yakisoba bread hat you bought. You won’t be able to fit it anymore, right?” Mizore said, and Hotaru went red in the face. “Um, I’m really sorry, Onii-chan. Hota is so clumsy, she forgot to tell you about today’s plans…” Before Youtarou could think of something to say to Hotaru in that state, Mizore interjected, having taken off the covering off the thin, long Yaskisoba bread roll and holding it in her mouth. “It’s my first time eating bread from the school store…” She closed one of her eyes, in a meaningful way “…Well, it’s pretty normal!” Even if you say that to me, I dunno what to say…Youtarou thought, as it was also his first time buying bread from the school store. “Hn? Maybe you want to eat it too? Well then, like Rikka from before, you can bite into it from the other–” With a face that was hard to tell if she was joking or serious, Mizore roughly stuck out her face, with the bread still in her mouth. Uu…As Youtarou stiffened, hesitating, Rikka shouted. “Ah…Rikka also wants to eat this jam sandwich next~!” “Here you go, there’s enough to go around, so help yourself without panicking.” “Yes! After we’re done, have some of the chips I brought, everyone! The desert for a picnic is set as unpeeled apples and vinegar chips, after all!!” Rikka raised a war cry towards the sky. That sky looked up to was cloudless, spread out blue and high…the powerful sunlight reminiscent of the arrival of early summer was spilling down on the sisters and Youtarou, making everything shine.
Ahh…It’s so peaceful. Youtarou breathed out from the bottom of his stomach. He realized that right now he was very relaxed. Is this maybe…He was almost afraid of thinking those words in his mind. Is this maybe what they call happiness? But that time of happiness was ephemeral and short. A displeased voice reached Youtarou’s ears. “Mou…what are you guys doing, aren’t you guys the focus of attention! If you sit out here it’ll just be a matter time before you’re found out, you know? Well? Are you okay with that? Our childhood friend, Youtarou Onii-chan!!”
4
This happened a little before that. As Tsurara hurried through the lane next to the tennis court, headed towards the courtyard, she saw a small gathering of people. Hn? The courtyard near the high school building was always deserted, and at best, you would find a couple of senior students wandering around while skipping classes. And yet why? Did something unusual happen? Leaving the alley which was in shade and walking out into the bright courtyard, the reason immediately became clear to her. The crowd of people was nosily whispering to each other. You could even see some middle schoolers among them, which was rare for this place. What are they all looking at– Following their gazes, you found the scene of her family happily having a picnic. “Look, Hikaru-sama is there!” “Yaaan! She’s just so cool~!” “But yeah, looking at her from here, Mizore-sama is also pretty spectacular.” “Ah, you two-timer! But I get where you’re coming from. That cool look is great, isn’t it? But if we go there, then Haruka Onee-sama is super beautiful, and Hotaru-sama is also quite cute…Ah, my goodness, it’s just a family of beautiful girls isn’t it. Just the fact that all 6 of them have a difference of 1 year of age between hem is hard to believe, but on top of it, they are all super beautiful. What’s up with that? Really, God is so unfair.” “Waah, it’s such a beautiful scene. My sighs won’t stop.” “Ah, but…Isn’t there like a boy mingling with them?” “Ah, so you noticed. That has been on my mind since I saw them. Isn’t it quite strange? Was a guy like him always with them?” “Since he’s wearing the high school uniform, I do believe that he is a student of Konohana…perhaps an acquaintance of the Amatsuka family? Eh? Isn’t that like a scoop? He looks quite normal, but…who in the world is he…?” Such irresponsible rumors reached Tsurara’s ears. She hated these kinds of things. That’s why, “He is just a servant– I mean a childhood friend of ours, so don’t you worry about him.” Whispering that to herself in a low voice, Tsurara continued forward, passing the gallery of onlookers from the side.
“Mou, that’s why I said! Having a picnic out in the open here is obviously going to start some rumors.” Tsurara said while biting down on a Tuna sandwich that she liked, pointing to the crowd to make her point clearer. Haruka tried to smooth things over. “Well, isn’t it fine? We found out that eating together with everyone like this sometimes is very fun, and it’s also kind of too late to say that.” She gazed at the gallery of onlookers with a slightly troubled smile. More than half of the time allotted for the lunch break had passed, and the gallery of people were slowly increasing. “He’s supposed to be a ‘childhood friend we call Onii-chan’, so this much should be fine.” Saying that, Hotaru held out the peanut butter and jelly sandwich she had saved for Tsurara. “Ahhh!” Tsurara’s face instantly softened “You had this too…” Even though usually she never makes it for me, saying that it is bad for the body…Tsurara thought. It was a sandwich that could be counted among the few thing Tsurara counted as her favorite food. Maybe it was because of the fact that even though Hotaru and Haruka’s sandwiches were usually stuffed with fillings and hard to eat, this one was thin and very easy to eat. Sincerely saying her thanks, she took a bite of the sandwich and closed her eyes in happiness. The right things had entered Tsurara’s mouth, and so the peace came back for a little while. Haruka, Hotaru and Rikka started talking about trifling things again. Having already gulped down every type of sandwich and having munched through all the chips with much speed, Rikka, who was now playing with the marshmallow bag spoke as if suddenly realizing. “Tsurara-chan, even though you don’t like sweet things and such, you realllly love you peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches, don’t you? Even though they are super sweet!” Even though a sullen expression flashed on her face, Tsurara immediately fired back “It’s fine, isn’t it? Sugar is good for a tired brain. On the other hand, Rikka, if you keep eating sweet stuff all the time and don’t use your brain at all, you’ll become fatter and fatter, you know?” “Geh…! I guess that is true, isn’t it? Hey, Tsurara-chan, has Rikka gotten chubby recently? Maybe I should start exercising soon.” Taking hold of the hem of her shirt, Rikka lifted it up and pinched her belly. On her white belly, a small, nicely shaped belly button became visible. “Onii-chan, you also dislike chubby girls, after all?” “No, that’s not what I…” “Isn’t it obvious? Recently, if you go over BMI 20, you’re considered a fatty, you know?” “Bi Emu Ai?” Hearing Tsurara’s retort, Rikka stared blankly. Ah, she’s like me from just before, Youtarou thought. “You don’t know? Body Mass Index. Using your weight and height, you do a simple calculation, and can find out if you’re overweight or not. Rikka, did your height increase recently? Should I do it for you right now?” To clean her palate, Tsurara bit down on a cucumber pickle. It made a nice, crunchy sound in her mouth. “No, it’s okay.” Rikka replied sullenly, nosily balling up the now empty chips packet in her hands. “Huh? But didn’t we have our measurements taken back in April? Did you forget already? See, it seems like not enough sugar has been reaching your brain–” Tsurara looked at Rikka, a bit disappointed, as she has been all ready to teach the ever curious Rikka the formula and calculate the result right there. While silently looking down, Rikka stole a glance at Youtarou. Huh? Did…Did I do something bad? Catching on to the awkward atmosphere, Hotaru suddenly stood up. “Th-That’s right, speaking of, Hi-Hikaru Onee-chan!” You’re passing it to me in this situation!? Hikaru, with a troubled face as if she had been taken by surprise…looked at Youtarou. Eh, m-me!? It was like a silent relay race. Looking at that, Mizore laughed out loud. “Kukukukuku~ You guys…are kind of similar.” Similar? I don’t think so…Youtarou shivered at Mizore’s wild statement. Hotaru laughed. “Well, they are siblings, so of course they are similar.” Siblings. Youtarou and Hikaru looked at each other again. “See, they are in perfect sync!” Hotaru said, rejoicing. “That’s why, look, Onii-chan, do you remember? The poster you were also looking at before, about the Queen of Sports Fest!” Hikaru’s face immediately became red, and Youtarou also became a little embarrassed. “So you saw that…” “Ah, yeah.” They exchanged a curt conversation in a low voice, avoiding each other’s eyes. “I was thinking that if they really had a ‘Prince’ to go along with the Queen of Sports Fest this year, Onii-chan would have been the perfect fit.” Hotaru balled her hand into a fist. “The…Prince of the Sports Fest?” Hikaru made a dubious face. “Huh, do you not know? I thought that since the Student Council has gone as far as asking you to participate in the event, you would know all about it…” “I don’t know anything about this. All they asked me was if they could use my photo from last year on the poster again, and that since there were so many recommendations coming in, they asked me to make sure to at least participate again this year…” “Ah, in that case, I wonder. If I’m wrong, then I apologize. Hota just heard rumors about it, but, since the Sports Fest in Konohana happens pretty early, and compared to the Athletic Meet, it doesn’t get that lively, does it? So, since the school has become co-ed after all, there was some talk of having a ‘Prince’ elected along with the ‘Queen’…” “A prince? But what does he do in the Sports Fest, this prince?” Hikaru was recalling the previous year’s Queen election. It was true– Konohana’s Sport Fest wasn’t very lively. It was called a Queen election, but all that happened was that after the main event ended at noon, a few candidates that were selected using recommendations went on to this special stage and did a little demonstration –cheerleading, dance, rhythmic gymnastics and such, mostly things that showed off personal skills, such as the sword dance that Hikaru had done last year– and then everyone would cast a vote, and a Queen would be selected. That was all. And regarding the duties of the Queen, it was just to be a presenter and hand over the trophy to the winning class after the final results of the Sports Fest were announced. From Hikaru’s point of view, it was a slightly out of place event that had been tacked onto the Sports Fest, which had a poor turnout every year. That’s why, she didn’t mind. Even though Hikaru hated to stand out, if it was just that much, she felt like she was okay with it. Since Konohana is a little old fashioned, it has a strong presence of cultural clubs, and so we want you to become a role model for the sports clubs. When the freshmen see Hikaru’s cool figure, the application to sports clubs should increase too. And so, giving in to the student council’s smooth talk, she had taken on the role every year, but… “Hota also does not know that…but, look, isn’t a Prince kind of wonderful?” “Ha?” As Hikaru made a confused expression, Haruka interjected. “Of course, it’s wonderful! Beyond wonderful! After all, we already have a ‘Prince’ in our home…kyun ♡” She sent a spellbound look towards Youtarou. “Yes! Hota thinks so too. Unfortunately, it seems like things went in the direction that the ‘Prince’ election did not come to fruition, but if it had been, I’m absolutely sure that Onii-chan would have been a perfect fit. Because, I think that Hikaru Onee-chan becoming the Queen is pretty much 100% at this point, and if Onii-chan stood on her side as the ‘Prince’, it would suit them so well, and it would so wonderful, and I think for our family it would such a proud moment…” Overlapping with the end of Hotaru’s sentence, both Haruka and Hotaru held hands and raised a shout Kyaaa, so wonderful! Mizore was silently drinking her tea, and Rikka was listening with round eyes. And then Tsurara spoke “Ah, I know what you’re talking about. But it seems like they’re going to be doing this year too, as a test, you know?” She said in matter-of-fact tone, without even raising her head, finishing of the last of the remaining chips. “Eh?” “Before I came here, I stopped by the Student Council Room to take care of something.” Tsurara stole a glance towards Rikka. “It seemed like they were in the middle of making the script for the Queen election, so I ended up seeing it. Or rather, I heard it.” She looked towards Hotaru as she said the rest. “That Oohashi-Senpai was there, and she was happy to tell me all about it. Isn’t she a nice person? It seems like the Acting Club is writing the script for the Queen election again this year–” She suddenly pointed directly at Youtarou. “This year, as a test case, without running any sort of election, a prince selected by the Student Council themselves for the purposes of a demonstration is going to be making an appearance. And it seems like the person who is mostly likely to be nominated is ‘Our childhood friend Youtarou Onii-chan’…”. Saying that, Tsurara moved her gaze to Hikaru sitting next to Youtarou. Eh…So surprised that he couldn’t even make a sound, Youtarou had no composure to see Tsurara’s gaze colliding with Hikaru’s. “I wonder why that is?” Silence. No way, I haven’t even heard anything like that. It’s impossible– As she was about to say that, “Oiiiiii, Yocchaaaaaannnn!! What’re you doing over thereeee.” A loud voice rang out. It was Youtarou’s only male classmate, Junpei. As Youtarou looked back, from the other side of the lawn, Junpei was waving his hand at him from inside the crowd of onlookers. He was trying to get through the crowd and trying to come toward them. Ah. He was blocked by the captain of Hikaru’s guards, who was taller than Junpei. But he didn’t give up. “Oooooooi! Let me in too~!!” Under the bright, midday sky of early summer, Junpei’s voice echoed. The sisters started to pack up the picnic set.
5 Giiichan… giiichan… giiichan… The copier in the student council room was spitting out a lot of paper. That one was who was silently staring at it do so…was Oohashi Maria. Belonging to Konohana Academy, class 1-C. A classmate of Youtarou and Hikaru. The pleated miniskirt she was wearing suited her somewhat petite figure very well. From her mouth spilled some words in monologue. “Onii-chan…the words have such a wonderful ring to them. As I thought, I wanted one too…O- ni- i- cha- n.” No one was present in the room anymore. Pi~n-ponnn. The sound of a chime was heard. “Oh no, it’s pre-bell is already– The afternoon classes are going to start! I need to hurry.” The papers that had finished being spat out by the machine had the words “The __th Konohana Academy Sports Festival. ‘The Queen of the Sports Fest’ script. Confidential to anyone except the concerned persons” written on them.
6 “Wait up wait up wait up~!” Tsurara’s back as Rikka caught up to her from behind was thin and delicate. I guess it really is true that eating pickles and other sour things makes you slim, a thought suddenly rose inside Rikka’s mind. Ah but, Urara-chan is pretty slim as well, but she hates sour stuff, doesn’t she? Yep, I guess this is by birth? But we are sisters after all, so her body type or gene’s or whatever shouldn’t be that different? While carrying such swirling thoughts inside her, Rikka caught up to Tsurara. Tsurara was, for some reason, in a bad mood. She turned around to face Rikka in annoyance at the corridor that led to the middle school part of the campus. “What? If we don’t hurry, we’ll be late for class, you know? Ah, did you finally remember your height and weight? Listen up, even if you can’t recall something, trying to recall it again and again makes more and more nerve connections in your brain. We even heard it on TV the other–” “Come on Tsurara-chan, let go of that already!!” “Yeah?” Tsurara made a show of closing one of her eyes. “Then what is it?” “Listen…Since I know I can count on Tsurara Onee-chan, I came to earnestly ask for some advice.” This time, it was Tsurara’s turn to be shocked. Rikka wants advice? And “earnestly”!? She carefully looked at Rikka’s face…Rikka made an embarrassed face and went tehehe…is what Rikka would usually do. But right now, she had a somewhat brooding look on her face and her lips were tightly pressed together. Now this is rare…no, I think this is the first time I’ve seen such an expression on Rikka’s face, Tsurara thought. The one who could never keep something locked in her chest, and wherever she went, it was like her slightly strange but unique, slightly airheaded way of thinking infected others, such was the girl called Rikka. Since forever, she had been nothing but energetic, energetic, and then some. She had always been as bright as the sun. She was born in April, so she could not be called a summer child by any stretch of the imagination, but the moment she had been born, looking at her dazzling smile…her name, Rikka[5], had been decided without anyone saying anything. Ever since she was a child, Rikka had been smart and sensitive to other people’s feelings. She had always been good at sports, always bright and cheerful, and yet, honest to a fault. Tsurara suddenly recalled back to their kindergarten days. Hotaru had always been playing house inside the classroom, and always stuck to her side, reading a book, was Tsurara. In contrast, Rikka was always running around in the outside world, soaking up the sun. Energetically spreading her smile to her many friends. No matter how Tsurara looked at it, she had felt like this one-year younger sister of hers was much more blessed by the world than she was. From Tsurara’s point of view, who sometimes doubted herself, and often ended up secretly fighting with all kinds of twisted emotions, Rikka was an existence that was to be envied. That’s why Tsurara had always dwelled on it. Ever since she had reached school age and found her place in the world of studies, and finally, finally was able to be confident in herself. Rikka’s dexterity, that had seemed so bright to her, and the at same time, the harmful effects it brought with it. It seems Rikka is…squandering something. She is so cute, and has such an amazing presence, so she should be able to do more…if she really puts her mind to it and tries hard, she could actually achieve much, much more…she has that capability. She doesn’t have to go out of her way and behave like a fool like that all the time. From Tsurara’s perspective, with her rather elitist thoughts, Rikka was in an undeservingly low place– and not only that, Rikka herself wanted to be in this place that was lower than what she was fit for. On the other hand, if Rikka, with that cheerful and honest personality, also suddenly became a very capable child, what would happen to my position…There was that unconscious thought, an un-shaped worry that Tsurara was carrying.
“Listen, Onii-chan becoming the Prince, was that thing true? That truth is that, you know, Rikka also…Uh, no, I mean, I also…” Rikka opened her mouth with seemingly some difficulty “…I was thinking of running for the Queen of the Sports Fest…” Stunned, Tsurara’s mouth dropped open, wide, like a large cave full of nasty bats. (TL Note: Lol, what.) “If I did that, would Hikaru Onee-chan be mad, after all? Or maybe…” In contrast to Tsurara, whose face had frozen, Rikka made a complicated face. “Actually, the real thing Rikka is worried about is if that really ends up happening, maybe Hikaru Onee-chan will do something like lose on purpose for Rikka’s sake or something. But running for the Queen is something I selfishly decided myself, and I’m just a first-year pipsqueak, so I have no idea if I will be able to win at all. Putting all that aside, I was thinking that I want Hikaru Onee-chan to properly…properly compete. But then, now the talk of Onii-chan has come up, and Rikka has become all sorts of tangled up again…” Ahh, Rikka really is a woman of full of surprises. Thinking that, Tsurara started to think about a certain matter in the corner of her mind.
7 “Well then, we two have some things we want to buy, so we’ll split up here.” “Onii-chan, see you later~! Ciao~” The same day, on the way home. On the way from the school gate to the train station, Tsurara and Rikka said that they were going to take a detour and so would return separately today. Haruka, Hotaru and Youtarou sent them off with slightly complicated feelings. Rikka bouncing along, and Tsurara speedily leading the way. Waving her half-raised hand bye-bye at the two, who were quite a distance away already, her eyes still following them, Hotaru said, “Did something happen to those two?” “Yeah…” Youtarou had also felt something out of place. However, Haruka firmly grabbed on to Youtarou’s arm and started walking again, seemingly unfazed. “Well, look, last year, Tsurara-chan and Rikka-chan split up because they were in middle school and elementary respectively, but now they are together again, so it might be that they are rebuilding their friendship or something similar, you know? Hotaru-chan, I think you went through a similar period, no?” “Ah, yep, if you say that, that is true but…” Seemingly unconvinced, Hotaru was still looking at the backs of the two, who had moved even further away “They were bickering quite a bit around noon time too…Will they be okay?” Hotaru, remembering what had happened before the 4th period, said worriedly. But Haruka, who had been together with them only during the lunch break, “Really? Haruka thinks that since the two of them are always like that, there is no problem. Tsurara chan is, to Rikka-chan and Hotaru-chan, and of course, my precious and so, so kind Ouji-sama–” Saying that, Haruka, who had grabbed onto Youtarou’s arm, as if she saying I’m not letting you go anymore! hung onto it even more tightly and pressed her soft chest onto him, which he felt somewhere around his elbow. “She becomes a bit spoiled towards people who are kind and big-hearted and ends up saying this and that. Rikka-chan also realizes that much!” Walking completely arm in arm now, Haruka looked up at Youtarou from below, peeking at his face. “Ouji-sama also…you also know Tsurara-chan’s true feelings, don’t you?” Tsurara’s…real feelings? In that instant, it seemed like something deep inside Youtarou’s heart reverberated…but what that was, he had no idea. Haruka continued “In reality…yes. Tsurara-chan, just how much she treasures her family, treasures us. She’s always going around calling you Servant, and saying all kinds of hateful things, but that is just Tsurara-chan’s best attempt to…ah.” Saying that much, Haruka suddenly put a finger to her lips and stopped “But, the words after this are a secret from Ouji-sama. Fufufu. Oh, that’s right, listen, since the three of us are going back at our leisure anyways…” She thought for a moment with her head tilted, then smiled mischievously, and stretched herself up a little. Youtarou felt Haruka’s warm breath beneath his ears, as she whispered to him. “Ouji-sama, a favor please. Since you praised the lunch as being so delicious, as a reward for that, will you not come eat some anmitsu with us before heading back?” She then looked towards Hotaru and said loudly “How about it, Hotaru-chan, don’t you want eat anmitsu? It’s been a while. You’ll eat, right?” Hotaru replied, her whole face beaming with joy “Of course I do! I’m so happy, getting to eat anmitsu with Onii-chan.” Saying that she took hold of Youtarou’s free arm, hugging him from the side. The soft sensation of Haruka’s chest advanced on him again. “A flower in each hand, isn’t it, Ouji-sama?” Haruka said to him from his right, and this time, the soft sensation came from the other side. “Right now, more than flowers, it’s anmitsu, isn’t it, Onii-chan!” Hotaru said from his left. Speaking of Youtarou, it took all he had to keep himself composed under the sensations of the swelling of the chests on either side, and he helplessly walked towards the direction the two led him in. Somehow, I do feel like asking if this is okay but…I guess it’s fine. I’m in bliss for now. “If Ouji-sama really did become the Prince of the Sports Fest, it would be so lovely. But, even if that happens, you will always, always be our prince, so I won’t like it if you forget that, okay? Ufufu!” The shadow of the three lined up together was short and dark under the sunshine of June. It was saying that there was still much fun time ahead. 8 “So, in the end, what is it that you’re thinking, Rikka?” Tsurara said, carrying a spoonful of lemon sherbet to her mouth. “What do you mean? Like I said, I love Onii-chan!!” Buhuu– Tsurara spat out the sherbet in her mouth. “Ah, that’s dirty. Come one Tsurara-chan, you have to mind your manners.” Rikka hurriedly grabbed the paper napkin near her and wiped the table. The two were talking in an ice-cream shop near the station. “Like I said, that is not what I am asking.” Tsurara hurriedly wiped her mouth, her face red, and pushed the cup with lemon sherbet in it towards Rikka, as if she didn’t want it anymore. “You don’t want it? It’s going to melt you know?” Seeing Tsurara nod silently, Rikka, who had already finished her triple scoop consisting of cookies & cream, double chocolate chunk and strawberry cheesecake, happily started to eat the remaining lemon sherbet from Tsurara’s small cup. “What I’m saying is, like you said, let’s say you ran for the position of the Queen of the Sports Fest. What do you want to happen after that?” “Isn’t it obvious. I want to become the Queen!” Rikka inadvertently lifted up her spoon. She looks like Mari…Tsurara thought, remembering her kindergarten age sister that claimed to be the reincarnation of Mary Antoinette. “…I see. That’s right, isn’t it? If you’re going to enter, you want to win it.” Tsurara was a bit taken back by the exceedingly simple conclusion, but also convinced. I see. Makes sense. Tsurara was also the type who always wanted to win at any type of competition. No matter how irrelevant that competition was, if it was something other a competition with her little sisters…Even though she had jumped into this matter with different intentions, if this was the case, then she felt like seriously supporting Rikka. For an instant, Hikaru’s face crossed her mind. Hikaru…when she found out of about what Rikka and Tsurara were up to, what would she think? I love Hikaru Ane-sama. She’s frank, dependable, and an overall very good elder sister. But this and that was a different matter, that fact, would Hikaru be able to understand that? Hn? This and that? What does that… Yes. Thinking back later, Tsurara at this time still hadn’t realized what she had become aware of. And of course, neither did she know the true form of these feelings of hers towards Hikaru. Rikka continued. “Yeah, well, at first it was just because the girls in my class were complaining that it even though there was event and everything, it was kind of boring since no one from the first years’ was going to be participating. So, they said that they would definitely root for me, if I try and participate.” She scratched her head, embarrassed. “If someone from the new first year class is going to participate, it has to be Rikka-chan. She’s beautiful and cute and popular, and on top of that she belongs to that Amatsuka family…is what they told me, so I went and said Okay, leave it to me!” Slump. Tsurara’s elbow slipped of the table. “What, so it was not your own decision?” She unintentionally let out an exasperated voice. But, just as Tsurara was thinking, Damn, without thinking I… Rikka’s expression transitioned into a serious one. “But Rika wants to seriously aim for the win too if I’m going to be participating. That’s why I thought I would first consult with Tsurara-chan. Like everyone said, Rikka really is a member of the Amatsuka family after all.” The sherbet cup had become empty at some point. “Rika actually didn’t know until after the entrance ceremony, that our elder sisters were this famous in Konohana. But yeah, if you lay it out, they are all pretty amazing, aren’t they? Miharu Onee-chan is a weather lady, Hikaru Onee-chan is a star, Mizore Onee-chan, and Haruka Onee-chan, and Hotaru Onee-chan, they are all a cut above the rest in their respective years. Even Tsurara-chan is in a special class, isn’t she? And yet, Rika followed after the elders and entered the school, but I have nothing. And even though I have nothing, before I knew it, everyone was calling me great.” Rikka looked directly into Tsurara’s eyes. “Look, Mama is in that line of work, so she always goes and says that Rikka can become an Idol in no time, doesn’t she? So that’s why I was always ready to do that, and that Rikka is special girl– I still believe that myself to this day. But still…Rika at this stage really had nothing to call her own. That’s why, Rika thought to test it out. Hikaru Onee-chan’s popularity is amazing, and I know probably I have no hope of beating her. But Rika can also– if I start putting in the effort from now, by the time I’m a 4th year, I should become someone more capable, a Rika that is much, much more capable than me right now, someone that is like our elder sisters…I should be able to become someone like that, right?” Her eyes became a little moist. “I don’t know how to put it…but anyways! I want to challenge myself, now. When I was looking at everyone during today’s picnic lunch– Looking at Hikaru Onee-chan and Onii-chan, I felt it even more deeply.” And then, as if to get rid of someone kind of emotions, she rubbed her face. “Am I…being weird?” “No, I don’t think you’re being weird at all.” Tsurara replied quietly “You seem a bit cool, I think?” “Eh– Really!? Tsurara-chan also thinks so? Yaaay, Rika really went and became an adult, right? Right, right, right?” Rikka did huge peace signs with both of her hands. In an instant, the usual Rikka smile popped out. Looking at that, while laughing, Tsurara felt like they had grown a little older. Yeah. Rikka has Rikka’s way of doing things, and she will find her way herself, little by little. “But really…do you think Hikaru-chan will be angry?” “I don’t think she’ll be angry or anything. She has never been interested in being the Queen at all.” “Ah…so you think it’s like that after all?” “Fufun. Wouldn’t she be overjoyed that Rikka is taking part in it and drop out?” “Ah– right, right, right!? Rika also has a feeling that that’s how it going to turn out. But. Then there will be no point. I do love that kind side of her, and I’ll be happy, and Rika also does not want to do anything that will cause Onee-chan any problems. But it’s just…it’s just that I want to start from the same start line as the elder sisters– I want to stand on the same stage and challenge them. Because I’m going to be cheered on as a representative of the first-year students, and Rika wants to have a fair fight if I’m going to enter. I don’t want her to hold back, and there is no way I want her to drop out.” Yep, yep, I understand those feelings completely, Rikka. Tsurara nodded along in her heart. People like us…Who have such exemplary elder sisters, it’s hard for us, isn’t it? Till now, she had thought of Rikka as the complete opposite to her, but now she felt a feeling of closeness. “I understand. In that case…I will do something about that!” “Wow! Really~!? But– how?” “That’s…Rikka doesn’t have to worry about that anymore.” Tsurara patted her own chest, as if to say Leave it me. “Rikka, how about you do your best and think about how to beat Hikaru Ane-sama? Your opponent is pretty strong, you know?” “Hn. I know that. But what’s the harm in trying. And also, if I do my best at the Queen selection, everyone said that they would treat to me McDonalds!” That’s what you’re looking forward to!? Even while feeling a bit foolish, Tsurara felt it mysterious how she was able to feel a little closeness to Rikka’s feelings, who could not stop herself from ending the conversation on a joke. “Ah, but…in return, I want your cooperation in a certain matter.” “What? What, what, what!?” Rikka leaned forward. “Rikka, you remember about that puzzling picture, of course?” And the, Tsurara dropped her voice to small whisper, careful of her surroundings, so that only Rikka could hear her voice. Whisper whisper whisper…the whispering continued for a while.
9 “Panpakapaan! Well then, today, we have a very important announcement from Rikka-chan!!” At dinner time, Rikka suddenly stood up from her seat, her arms spread wide. Everyone was surprised, thinking about what was going to happen. “What’s wrong? Rikka-chan, did you find a new candy or something?” Said the one who called herself the reincarnation of the Great Mages, always full of energy, in 3rd year elementary, the 11th daughter Yuuna. While doing so, she vigorously gulped down the remaining rice in her rice bowl. The fried rice was really tasty. “Mufufufufufu~” Rikka’s eerie smile become even wider. Youtarou’s seat was prepared in the middle of the big able, and he felt a slightly ominous premonition. This life that he led with these 19 sisters was quite rare in this world. Even when there was no incident occurring, a very colorful daily life unfolded in this house. In such a house, this kind of sudden declaration was very dangerous– “Jajaaaaannn! Hear ye, I, Rikka, in the upcoming Konohana Sports Festival, am going to be running for the position of the ‘Queen of the Sports Fest’!!” Starting from Haruka and Hotaru, a dumbfounded silence spread among the middle and high school members. Eh what did she just…? However, that question was immediately drowned out by the voices of the younger ones. “Waii waiii, queen of the sport fest! What is that? What what what?” The 1-year-old, 18th daughter Sora stood up on her seat and bounced up and down. “Amazing, Rikka-chan, did you become a good girl?” The crybaby, the 16th daughter Sakura’s eyes went round. “But isn’t it a little strange to have two Queens in the same house? Yes, that is right. If that’s the case, all that needs to be done is me, Mari, has to announce her candidacy, right? Since Mari is a real Queen and was born as such! It’s okay Rikka-chan, I’ll take over from here…” Mari, with a small tiara on her head, stuck out her chest and looked pleased with herself. “Umu. In that case, if you make myself Queen…It is just about that time of year when my power is at its peak. I will be able to protect everyone as the guardian deity of the school, you know?” Wearing a Japanese style outfit even at home, the 15th daughter who possessed a talent for being a Miko closed one of her eyes mischievously. “Ah– then, Niji will also become one! She will, will, will! She will become the prinshess!!” Lastly, with small curly, stylish hair, a little cheeky, the 2-year-old 17th daughter Nijiko started making a ruckus, making the table sway a little. I swear, the creatures know as girls instinctively respond to things like this, it seems… Sitting silently at the very end of the table, poking at some naradzuke[6], suddenly spoke up. “Hey, everyone quiet down now! The table is going to tip over. You won’t become Queen just by making a lot of noise. In the first place…you guys are not even students of Konohana Academy.” It was a little too complex of a reason for the younger ones to understand. |
10 That night, a very, very thin first quarter moon hung in a clear, cloudless sky. It was 10 o’clock. Following the “promises” of the Amatsuka family, all of the kids in elementary and under were already in their beds, breathing slowly as they slept, and the inside of the house had returned to silence. Youtarou had come to the kitchen to get something to drink. The spacious stand-alone kitchen with huge windows facing the backyard. The 18 square-meter space had a counter going all along one of its walls, and in the middle had an island counter big enough that all sisters could comfortably stand around it. Behind the huge, single pane of glass, the dark sky was visible, spread out. Using white as a base, the Scandinavian-style construction of glass and stainless-steel, and pale maple-wood reminded him a little bit of the interior design of the entertainment agency that Mama ran in the city. Of course, this one had a much more homely warmth and fragrance–Hn? He could actually smell something good. Youtarou looked towards the counter in front of the window and saw that the power switch of the coffee maker was glowing orange. The pot set into it had about 2 cups worth of coffee in it. And there was a small memo right next to it. Please take care not to drink too much at night! -Hotaru Youtarou felt his eyes instantly become hot, and he hurriedly forced himself to smile. Not good, for a man to cry over something like this…As that thought passed through his head, Hn? I think I’ve started copying Hikaru’s way of thinking… He smiled wryly. He slid open the door of a cupboard, and there were lots of cups lined up. Seemingly high-class cups with gold accents for visitors. Posh teacups with saucers that Haruka and Hotaru liked to serve afternoon-tea in. Tall cups that you could also serve green tea in. And 20 mugs that were completely different in their shapes and sizes. In this huge house, with a lot of matching tableware everywhere, apparently mugs were the one thing that everyone could choose on their own and for their exclusive use. The sisters, with their various different personalities, had mugs to match them, such as Mizore’s exclusive, black themed porcelain cup, and the cup that Haruka used, the handle of which was modeled like an angel; a pigeon themed cup, or Rikka’s insane huge café au lait cup, which could easily fit 700 ml of liquid, with a Moomin pattern. Among those, the one left on the very front was Youtarou’s cup with a train figure on it. The sickly and slightly ephemeral 13th daughter in elementary first year, Watayuki had selected it for him, saying “Since Onii-chan is a boy and very cool, I think this is the best for him!” With a white pottery base and a small, light blue train face embossed into it, a simple yet stylish cup. However, afterwards, the train loving, man hating, 9th daughter in 5th year of elementary Urara passed some very confusingly negative remarks such as “That Sweden railway cup looks nice and cute, but if it’s pattern of blue trains, a cup with the Tokyo metro 5000 print wins by a huge margin”. But again, as he saw all the cups lined up like this, even though his cup had just a train design it was still of high quality, and he thought that it fit in quite well among the other cups, as expected of something chosen by a member of the family, Watayuki. It’s almost like… me. Youtarou thought, lifting up the coffee pot with familiar movements. No wait, this cup is still much more high-quality than me. If I had selected my cup myself, since I am not familiar with anything except 100-yen shops, I would’ve proabblly selected some completely shoddy, cheap thing that would have never found its place on this shelf. Warm steam rose from the coffee as he poured it into the cup. There will be leftover coffee, what should I do with it? As he unconsciously looked outside the window, he saw the figure of Hikaru. Is she doing some kind of night training? She was wearing a sporty pile-cloth no-sleeves top and shorts, holding a towel in her hand. As Youtarou returned his gaze towards the shelf, right next to the empty space left by his cup was Hikaru’s mug. On it was drawn a small boy wearing a baseball cap and glove, holding a bat resting on his shoulders, laughing proudly while rubbing his nose.
“How about talking a little break?” As Youtarou called out to her from behind, Hikaru jumped a little, and turned around. “Oh what… it’s you.” Hikaru laughed a little, embarrassed, as if to cover up the fact that she had become wary for a moment. At night, in the middle of the small trees, Hikaru’s skin was white and…almost seemed to shine. Even though it had been slightly hot in the afternoon, at night it had become a little cooler, and Hikaru in her no-sleeves form looked refreshing. “It seemed like Hotaru made this before she retired to bed.” Hikaru took the cup that Youtarou held out with both hands. “What, she’s as considerate as ever. Well then, I’ll gratefully accept. If we’re going to sit…how about we go over there?” On Hikaru’s invitation, the two moved to the lawn in front of the living room, which had benches. “Who knew that Rikka would…I couldn’t imagine that Rikka was thinking about that.” Sipping her coffee, Hikaru blew out a short breath. About what…? For a second, Youtarou didn’t realize what Hikaru was referring to. Sitting side by side, looking straight ahead, Hikaru’s face in profile had a very serious expression. Now that I think about it, Hikaru was very quiet during today’s dinner. Maybe it was because the little ones had been making such a ruckus…and that had been because Rikka had dropped such an outrageous statement…Ah. “Yeah, I know. That that Rikka wants to be the Queen of the Sports Fest…” Youtarou agreed with her. He recalled the poster with Hikaru on it that he had seen in the school. The Queen of the Sports Fest is you! It had been really…fitting for Hikaru. Now let’s imagine that that was Rikka…Ah. It might just…work? “But I wonder since when has she been thinking about it? She didn’t say anything about it during the lunch break either. In the first place, Rikka has just entered the school, I’m surprised that she…” has such guts…As Youtarou was about to complete his sentence, Hikaru interrupted him. “Her age or grade, that kind of thing doesn’t matter.” She said, a little strongly. “Ah, that’s not what I meant. I was just simply trying to say that she is very brave, or is very motivated…” As Youtarou hurriedly tried to explain himself, Hikaru realized. “Ah, sorry. Yeah, you’re right. I think I’m just a little irritated is all.” Saying that, she looked down, staring inside her cup, and started to swirl the coffee inside it by slowly rocking the cup. Looking at that swirl– “Could it be…that you don’t want to take part in the Sports Fest?” Those words just naturally popped out of Youtarou’s mouth. Hikaru immediately turned to face him. “Why would you…” Then she smiled wryly. Her face lit up. “Now that I think about it, you were also, er, what was it again? ‘Prince of the Sports Fest’, wasn’t it? They did say that you are going to get roped into that. I guess our feelings are the same…” Ah. I had forgot about that. Youtarou also let out a lively laugh. “Ah, but that was only something Tsurara was saying. I haven’t been told anything. Probably, it’s just a rumor that’s going around. Unlike Hikaru, I can’t imagine that I would ever be chosen to do any sort of prominent role at that school.” It does seem like a school that loves its rumors. Youtarou muttered to himself, not believing in that talk at all. “Is that really so? Since Tsurara said it like that I think there has to be something more to it, but…” Hikaru lightly put her index finger on her lips. “Well, if you’re not worried about it, that’s fine then. You really have a…” Hikaru straightened her back, and looked at Youtarou with a gentle expression on her face “…a very good personality, don’t you?” She said it in a way that made it hard for him to know whether he was being praised or disparaged. Youtarou became a little nervous for some reason. But Hikaru, as if she suddenly found something very funny, chuckled all by herself. “It would be best…if I could think like that too. I’m like an idiot. Even though I don’t have much brains, there are times when I just start thinking about something, all by myself, going in circles. Even though me thinking about something is just gonna end with me coming up with all sorts of idiotic and out of place ideas, unlike Tsurara or Haruka or the other smart ones. Yeah. I’d rather be like you...instead of thinking too much about things that cannot be solved by thinking, I should just let them lightly pass me by.” Yeah, no matter how you think about it, this is… “Look here, I’m not sure, but do you think I’m an idiot?” Youtarou tried asking. “Puuuu~ Ahahahahahahaha~ No, not particularly– actually, not at all. So-sorry. That was not my intention…” Exploding with laughter, Hikaru had slight tears in the corner of her eyes. It seemed like her irritation from before had completely flown away. It’s not like I don’t want to participate in the Sports Fest. For now, I love all kinds of sports, and I can skip classes.” She made eye contact with Youtarou and grinned. “It’s just that Rikka…” Hikaru paused for instant, hesitating, pursing her lips together, and then rapidly said, “I was just thinking that if Rikka was going to be running for the Queen of the Sports Fest, maybe it would be best for me to not participate.” And then, as if she were relieved to have gotten those words out of mouth, Hikaru’s shoulders relaxed. “Fufufu.” She smiled from the corners her mouth. “They’ve grown up. All of them. That Rikka…to think a day would come when that Rikka would be able to challenge me…I hadn’t even imagined it.” At the same time, her eyes became gentler. “Last year, Miharu-Nee had finally reached the Konohana’s highest grade. She had become a 6th year, and at the same time, Tsurara entered the school as a 1st year. Right after entering, Tsurara was way more tensed than Rikka right now, and was thinner and even more delicate compared to her peers then she is now, and it was painful to look at her. That’s why everyone around her had been worried. How do I put it…unlike me, Tsurara is a girl who is very aware of what’s going on around her, or that she is very sensitive…” Saying that, Hikaru narrowed her eyes as if staring at something far away “Just one look at her, and you could tell that she was extremely harsh to her surroundings, and kinda like that hedgehog that appears in the English textbook, she seemed as if she was covered in spikes. Back then, everything in the world was trying to attack her…I wonder if that is how it seemed to her.” Hikaru, still not looking at Youtarou, lifted up her mug, as if to take a sip of the coffee, but then immediately lowered it without taking one, and continued. “However, fortunately, since she is so smart and excels at studying, she became used to the school very quickly. No, more than getting used to it…it was much more than just that. It was like she had finally found her own place…that’s how it seemed to me. And then, around the time before summer break, she told us that she would be in the advance class starting next year and started putting in insane amounts of hard work again. Now, she is properly Rikka’s ‘senpai’.” She laughed in low voice while looking into the darkness. “After Tsurara entered the school, we finally had a sister in every single year of Konohana, without any gap. Of course, all the people around us made a ruckus about it, but somehow, even us sisters felt a mysterious feeling of happiness. It felt like we had crossed some kind of small goal. When everyone lined up, it felt kinda magnificent, kinda powerful…It was a fun feeling. But now that I think about it, that was not the goal at all, but rather the start line. This year started, and this time Miharu-Nee graduated and moved on to University, and Rikka moved up, and on top of it, even you joined in and entered. Fufufu. Because of that, you entering Konohana became the bigger news for our family, and Rikka’s entrance to the school became a little pushed to the side. But still, I was worried about her. Normally, all she can talk about is stuff about love and her first encounter, but in reality, even when she reached the highest grade in elementary, it felt like all she cared about was eating, like a small child.” As she spoke, Hikaru’s facial expressions had a rich variety as they switched back and forth, and Youtarou was silently looking at them from the side. In the dim moonlight, Hikaru’s white, beautiful face in profile stood out. Hikaru’s face as she talked about the sisters’ past had an expression of joy, of happiness. But there was something there…it was an expression that made you feel like something was off. It was different from the usual Hikaru, an expression that bothered Youtarou. What could it be…Youtarou thought to himself. Then he realized that Hikaru was much more talkative than usual. Hikaru was still talking. She was narrating the gentle memoires of the Amatsuka family. Continuing without pause, long, fast, and fluently, almost as if she did not want to give Youtarou the chance to interject. It was completely different from Hikaru’s normal halting way of speech. What is it…Maybe…she is running away? In that case, what in the world from? Youtarou thought about the nature of the discomfort he was feeling. Why was Hikaru going on chattering like this without pause? And about the past that Youtarou had no idea about. Suddenly, she was putting on airs and acting like an older sister, speaking about her younger sisters’ past. He felt that it was terribly unlike Hikaru. This is almost like she’s trying to cover up something. Yeah, like a super long excuse… Hikaru’s speech was still ongoing. “That’s why, I think it’d be best if I were to drop out this time. In the first place, I did not want to take part in the Queen selection anyways. I did it three times in middle school. After three times, I think I’ve done enough, right? I’m sure that Rikka would also feel better if she did not have to fight against me. There’s no need for sisters to fight against each other. Ah, ahahahaha!” Her loud laughter trailed off…it seemed really forced to Youtarou. So this is what all this is about. Youtarou interjected in between Hikaru’s words. “That…is a little wrong isn’t it?” After the words had left his mouth, he realized that his way of talking might have become a little smoother. Still staring straight forward, without looking at Youtarou, Hikaru’s body trembled for a moment at his words, as if she had actually been waiting for them. Before he had realized it, the air had gotten cold. Hikaru’s sleeve-less figure, which had been looking referring before, now looked a little cold. Even if it was still technically early summer, the rainy season was right around the corner. The night air was beginning to become cooler each passing day, and the overall day-to-day temperature might also be dropping. “…” Hikaru was silent. Left with no other choice, Youtarou continued, “Rikka…probably does not want you to drop out, does she?” As he talked, he remembered the figure of Rikka today. Just like usual, no, more than usual, Rikka had been in high spirits in front of the sweet and the lunch boxes. When the talk about the Sports Fest had come up… Oh yeah, it did seem like she had been thinking about something. But…Youtarou thought about the thing he had learned about her in the few months they had spent together. And that was that Rikka’s positiveness came naturally to her, and she was so forward thinking that the one looking at her would become exasperated. Even if some unlucky happening or accident occurred, she was not one to get down, and in fact, it would be very hard to get her hurt over small things. She had such a wholesome and bright personality. Well, at the same time, she also has times when she does completely unexpected stuff… He recalled today’s lunch when she had suddenly bitten onto the other side of the sandwich Youtarou had been holding in his mouth, almost making their lips touch. And then, he also recalled the time when Youtarou had still just came to this house. Youtarou’s huge mistake. The ruckus over the family’s vase. The almost crying Rikka, the unrelenting Rikka, the kind Rikka, and also, the fair Rikka… “It’s hard for me to guess, but… probably it’s because you are the queen that Rikka wanted to become the queen.” The words fell from his mouth, almost as if he were talking to himself “To someone like me, it really is kind of hard to guess, but…” Buy some stroke of luck, and because of you, I was able to participate in this family…to someone like me, who is a complete stranger, it’s hard to guess…is what he had really wanted to say, but he just repeated the same thing twice. “Rikka…isn’t it just that she admires her Hikaru Onee-sama?” For the first time, Hikaru lifted her face, and looked at Youtarou with a dubious look on her face, as if to say That’s certainly not possible. In the latter half of dinner. Rikka seemed to be merrily eating her chips. But at the same time, she was also being very aware of the eyes of everyone on her, and was also listening to what Tsurara was saying, and was unusually listening to the talk about the Queen selection intently without saying much. Now that he properly thought about it, he realized these things. “Isn’t that why she thought of trying to challenge you in the first place?” Youtarou was desperately trying to put his thoughts in order; thoughts that his mouth was not able to keep up with. “Somehow, that’s really nice. Like, it’s really cool, or should say a little envious…” Ah, somehow… I can’t say it very well. “Anyways, what I mean is, she probably really acknowledges Hikaru, and that is why she thought of trying to challenge you, isn’t it?” While worrying terribly about whether his thoughts were reaching her with his shoddy way of putting things, suddenly, the memory of the day they had met for the first-time surfaced in his mind. Youtarou, whose parents had died when he was still young. Losing the only support he had, his Grandmother, with no one to rely on, no money to speak of, in a situation where he would be chased out of the home he was living in and would also have to drop out of school, with nothing but expired milk in the fridge…In that time of misfortune. He was not shrewd enough to join up with someone and go into delinquency, nor did he have the courage to complete abandon himself and rampage. He thought about himself who had been able to do nothing but cowardly feel down about his situation. All by himself. In that kind of state, by pure chance, what had been dangled in front of him had been a match with the famous beautiful swordswoman from the young lady’s school, in the form of a practice match for the Kendo Club, which he had continued with almost out of force of habit. And her name, was Amatsuka Hikaru. He had felt sick. What a freaking glorious name. Cynicism had covered his heart. And at that moment, that match became inevitable for him. Comparing to his dire situation at the time, it seemed to him like she symbolized each and every absurd unfairness in society. She, who was much too glorious of an existence, and himself, who was much too gray and had nothing. It was not his fault that he was in such a situation, but at the same time, he could do nothing but lay down and give up. He had hated that blessed, beautiful swordswoman. He had wanted to defeat her. Even though he had known that he would be no match for her, he had wanted to try. Squeezing out and wielding what little desperation Youtarou could use, he had wanted to meet her head on. He had not wanted to lose in the least. It had most likely because he had thought that fighting with someone meant that you made a connection with them. It was because he had thought of her as an existence so far away from himself, that by fighting in the same place, he had wanted to feel like he could also become someone that was equal to her. Just now, he had realized this for the first time, and Youtarou felt a lump in his throat. The past him, that had faced Hikaru with such misdirected feelings…that him was now sitting here. He was overcome with the mysteriousness of that fact, and the feelings of gratitude towards Hikaru. “Won’t you come to our place?” He had thought that those were not words that you spoke to a guy you had just met on the same day. He had thought that she was an outrageous girl. But, after all was said and done, it was because Hikaru had made such a crazy proposal, that he was happy –Youtarou thought, who had finally lost his wariness towards the happiness he had obtained– that he had this happiness. Yes, if you asked Youtarou, Hikaru herself was, just like Rikka, a woman “full of surprises”. But all he was able to put into words, a very small and insufficient amount, was this: “You know, I…the day I met you Hikaru, mostly I was just desperate, but I seriously faced off against you, and that…how should I say it, was very refreshing.” And also, Hikaru realized his “serious”-ness, and had greatly praised him for it. I was very happy. Since she had said it to me, who felt like he had been rejected by the whole world…Thinking that he continued. “I think that…it would be good if you could accept her challenge as her elder sister.” Since he been so busy trying to get his thoughts in order, Youtarou realized that he had hung his head low before he knew it. A little embarrassed, he lifted his face while scratching his head. “Um, ah, ahahahaha…it’s kinda embarrassing, ahaha, ha…” The things he actually been able to put into words were not much. From the side, Hikaru was staring intently at Youtarou. “And also– this is just my impression but, I think that Rikka would not consider it fair if you decided to drop out.” Hikaru’s lips warped a little. “Yeah, you might be right.” Still looking straight at Youtarou, only her mouth moved as those words spilled out. Hikaru’s large eyes shining in the darkness of the night. They were lightly moist…and Youtarou’s face was reflected in them. The power of those eyes was so great that Youtarou found himself unable to look away. He was drawn into them, as if by a strong magnetic force. A serious expression. “Youtarou…” Hikaru whispered in small voice. He felt that moment in slow motion. Hikaru’s face, coming closer and closer…as if being pulled ever closer towards his under the influence of some attractive force that could not be resisted. He could feel heat from Hikaru’s face on his checks. And then, something soft brushed against Youtarou’s lips…
!?
He honestly did not know what had just occurred. And what had just brushed against his lips. And whatever it was, did they really touch, or did they not? In the next moment, Hikaru wildly stood up making a huge sound, and Youtarou, losing his balance, was thrown backwards onto the bench, his mind thrown into chaos. What was that!? Why? How? With what kind of intentions– did Hikaru– “So-sorry…I made a mistake, somehow.” Somehow!? Made a mistake!? What does that even mean!? Still on his back on the bench, his line of sight fixed high onto the moon, Youtarou was unable to even make a sound. His lips would not move and were frozen in place since that moment. “It’s…nothing. It nothing at all! Don’t mind it!” Hikaru turned her completely red face away and without looking at Youtarou at all, waved her hand repeatedly. “Thanks…I’ll do my best at the Queen selection.” Whispering in a fast manner, she spun around, turning her back on him and took off running. “Hah….” A sigh escaped from Youtarou’s lips. He lightly pressed his fingers against his own lips. “Are you serious…” They really were… a family “full of surprises”. From the shadows, there was a rustling sound. I hope…Sakura isn’t hiding another small kitten again.
11 “With a loud gooood moring! ♪” “With the shiningggg Mr. Sun ♪” You could hear the song of the little ones. It was morning time at the Amatsuka house. Youtarou, who somehow had trouble waking up, carried both his heavy head and body down to the dining room, a little unstable. Breakfast time was already halfway through. The morning time for the big family was very busy. It was not like everyone was in their seats, but only because some people had already finished eating and were helping with cleanup, and there were some who had become tired of eating and were instead playing. “Ah, good morning! My– prince.” The sharp sighted Haruka spotted Youtarou first as he entered, and she let out a loud voice. Right after, “Morning.” “Mornin’.” “Good morning!” “It’s a great morning, isn’t it?” Various different voices greeting him were heard, and Nijiko came running towards him. “Gogogogogogo, gooood morning’s Onii-chan!” Shouting, she ran up to him and hugged Youtarou’s lower legs. The small Nijiko’s head did not even reach his lower body, and feeling her cute little impact, Youtarou felt strangely happy and troubled at the same time. He bent down, putting his eyes on the same level as Nijiko and said good morning to her. The hair on her small, round head that unconsciously made you want to pat it had a shine to it and was once again arranged cutely into the shape of large rose. After the events of last night, he couldn’t bring himself to sleep, but then finally somehow…he was able to convince himself that since it was Hikaru, it was probably not an act that had a lot of deep thought behind it. After comforting himself with that thought, he was finally able to fall asleep, but still had trouble sleeping, and his sleep had been very light. In spite of himself, he was feeling very absentminded. While stroking Nijiko’s fluffy and pleasant feeling head, he tried to clear his mind of the fog filling it. Since that happened, I won’t even be able to look at Hikaru’s directly in the eyes…or so I thought. Ah, but since this is Hikaru we are talking about, she might just causally call out to me…that is also possible. She even said herself, that it was a “mistake”. Maybe it all really was just a “mistake”. Wait, what kinda mistake is that? Maybe a mistake like she was just staring at my face for a little bit and then she fell. Fell? Into what? Don’t tell me she fell in love!? At that thought, Youtarou wanted to laugh. As if that’s possible. Hikaru would fall into a pitfall made by Sora before she falls in love. Ah, but she had some super good reflexes, so she might just causally dodge it. Youtarou thought, having fallen into one himself in early spring. Very aware of his own incoherent thoughts, and nursing his sleepy head, Youtarou steeled himself and finally raised his head. He looked around the room, beginning from one side to the other. Good morning. What, you were quite late in getting up…he was all tensed up, expecting Hikaru’s voice to descend upon him. 1 lap. Huh? And then, his gaze took another lap, this time from the other direction. Hnnn? In the deeper part of the room, on the opposite side from the kitchen, there was Hikaru’s seat, which was…empty. Mizore in the seat next to it, was silently eating her breakfast. He looked at the food on her plate. Today’s breakfast menu was a regular at this house, English Breakfast. Fried potatoes and hash browns. Sausage and long strips of bacon. Sliced baked tomatoes and whole grilled mushrooms. The egg dish today was scrambled eggs with plenty of butter in them, and a bowl full of hot and steaming baked beans. All of this dished were place into huge plates gathered in the middle of the table, so you could take and eat as much as you wanted. “Onii-chan, I’ll bring your plate and toast right away!” Hotaru said, cleaning up a bowl of milk bread porridge, baby food that the 0-year-old, 19th daughter Asahi had been eating. The toast was crispy and toasted golden brown on both sides, with plenty of butter and marmalade on it. The drinks were orange juice and hot tea. “Okay…” Youtarou, who had recently become quite used to this voluminous breakfast, thought: Ah, the orange juice and hot tea will do wonders for my foggy brain today. And then, finally. While keeping his face straight, Huh, where’s Hikaru? As he tried to say that Mizore, who had just finished her food and got up from her seat, said without looking at this face. “If it’s Hikaru you’re wondering about, she went to school early today.” “Ah, ahhh…I see, so she…” He was kind of relived, and at the same time, kind of worried. “What, you got a problem with that? Maybe as classmates, you wanted to walk to school together?” With a strange yet swift movement, she suddenly peeked at Youtarou’s face. “No, I wasn’t particularly…” As Youtarou tried to answer, he did not realize that from the chair in exactly the opposite position from Mizore’s chair, in the seat closest to the entrance, Tsurara was staring at him while wiping her mouth with a napkin. “No, well, since yesterday the talk about the Sports Fest was just kinda dropped, so I thought if she were willing, we could go together to the student council room and confirm it, you know? You remember, that talk about the Prince of the Sports Fest or what not…It would be kinda bad if they are really planning to make me do it.” He blurted out an excuse that was a continuation of yesterday’s conversation. “Hmm. Is that so.” Mizore looked at Youtarou with a strange look. Among the busy breakfast table where the little ones were making quite a fuss, a strange silence descended upon the two. “If that’s the case, I can go along with you, you know?” Suddenly, Tsurara called out, as if she had been listening to their conversation. She silently stood up from her seat and came over to them. Her eyes even colder than usual. She was starting at Youtarou with eyes that seemed to be glowing with a freezing blue flame. Youtarou inadvertently shrank back. Ehhhhh, did, did I do something wrong!? As soon as he thought that the image of Hikaru’s face up and close flashed into his mind, causing him to break into a sweat. No, wrong, wrong, wrong! That was just an accident, or a slip up or something! And I didn’t even do anything…in the first place, there’s no way Tsurara even knows about that. He shook his delusions away. He forcibly made a stiff smile and tried to smile at Tsurara. Gah! Tsurara’s expression didn’t change. “What, are you doing? Creepy first thing in the morning. If you have the time to be grinning stupidly, how about you fix your hair?” Uwah. Her mood is close to rock bottom. Youtarou combed a hand through his hair and found that it really was standing up. “Ah, then…I’ll fix it and then head to school, so Tsurara–” can go ahead first. Even before he could complete his sentence, Tsurara said: “I’ll be waiting at the entrance. Come out in 10 minutes, okay?” She said it with a force that left no room for discussion. “…Yes.” Youtarou replied meekly. As he looked around, he saw that the breakfast table was almost empty. He was torn between whether he should hurry up and fix his hair first or take his breakfast first…he ended up choosing breakfast. Before he noticed it, Hotaru had come and left a plate of food from him. It was warm, and the nice smell of marmalade was coming from the toast.
12 Rikka’s skirt was flapping up and down as she skipped along in an irregular pattern. As she was leading in the front, you could see the school gate in front of her. Chasing after her was Youtarou, walking fast, and beside him Tsurara seemed to glide as she also walked with a quick pace without making any unnecessary movements. The crowd of students heading towards the school was sparse, and it seemed like the wave of students had already passed through. “I swear. Because you took your sweet time finishing up all the leftover baked beans, we arrived so late, you stupid servant!” Just as he thought that it was only complaints that she was going to mutter to herself, suddenly, something hit Youtarou’s butt. Today, again, Tsurara’s one hit with her bag came flying. Since Tsurara was quite serious about her studies, her bag was filled with all kinds of bulky books and notebooks, and it was quite heavy. And so naturally the impact had quite a bit of force behind it. Maybe because his lack of sleep was still affecting him, Youtarou stumbled a little. Seeing that, Tsurara immediately began badmouthing him. “Why are you so…delicate? If it’s like this, can’t even let you handle the groceries with peace of mind. Useless, seriously.” If this was her behavior, it seemed to Youtarou that the bad mood he had sensed at the breakfast table was real, and it was still in full swing. However, even as he was being badmouthed, Youtarou had a thought: Tsurara both called him and treated him like a “baggage carrier” all year around, but the number of times he had actually been made to carry anything was actually quite few. Perhaps, this is her way of showing goodwill? The fact that he was able to think like this was the result of this past half a year of “Tsurara Exposure”, however, Youtarou of course did not realize that yet. He still didn’t know how to deal with her, and so he fearfully tried proposing a plan which involved running away under enemy fire. “Hey…listen. If you’re in a hurry, you don’t have to come along with me or anything, you know? It’s not like I don’t know the location of the Student Council, and it is also in the High School building…” Speaking of, before he had realized it, from some reason, he was heading to the Student Council room together with Tsurara and Rikka…In the first place, he did not even have any reason to be going there. He had just hurriedly brought up the topic to make an excuse in front of Mizore. But there was no way he could tell that to Tsurara right now. “It’s fine, because we have some business there too!” Defeated in one swift blow. He thought he heard Tsurara snort. Youtarou learned. His plan was bound for failure. Ahhh, I thought that might have been the case…while thinking that Youtarou realized. We? “Tsurara-chan, we have 10 more minutes. What should we do?” Rikka said, turning around to face Youtarou and Tsurara while looking at the big Bambi watch on her wrist. “We’re going, of course! There’s less that 2 weeks till the Sports Fest, you know? There’s no telling when we will have a chance after this, and we cannot afford to waste any time.” “Roger that!” Rikka pressed her hand against her forehead, fingers straight, and took a neat pose, smiling widely. Huh? Rikka is going along to the Student Council room too? Youtarou felt a something a little out of place. Now that I think about it…Somehow, hasn’t Rikka been much less talkative today? As if laughing at Youtarou for realizing something so late, Tsurara said, “Idiot, Rikka is serious. That’s why she going to go enter right now, in that prestigious ‘Queen of the Sports Fest” election.’ She grinned. Yeah…of course. The fact that Rikka was serious was something that Youtarou had also realized quite a while ago, but…He recalled Hikaru’s face from last night. His heart skipped a bit, and at the same time, he thought of something that he wanted to convey to Rikka.
13 Knock knock knock. Pivoting her hand around her wrist, an irritated looking Tsurara knocked a fast and high-pitched knock. “Yesss, please come in!” A cheerful, slightly sweet voice reached them. Before Tsurara could put her hand on the doorknob, the door opened from inside the room. The room was filled with sunlight coming in from the windows, and that light instantly lit up the corridor as the door was opened. It’s bright…Youtarou squinted his eyes. “Ahh, Youtarou-kun!” Standing in the middle of light that filled the door frame, the one who had let out happy, springy voice was…Oohashi Maria. On his first day of school, he had found out that that Hikaru, who he had been expecting would support him, was a faraway existence, protected by her elite guards; a star of the school. It was hard to even approach her. The only one who had helped him out- No, perhaps the only one who had helped him out other than his only male classmate Junpei, is what should be said. In any case, Maria was the kind and friendly classmate that had helped him out a lot since the day he had transferred in. I’m on duty today, so…she had said that and led the disheartened Youtarou around the campus. And even since then, she had always kept an eye on Youtarou, helping him out occasionally. Seeing that, Youtarou couldn’t help but be impressed by her personality that loved to look after others. And so, from his perspective, she was a “girl with a very good personality”. Of course, it had already been disclosed to him that Tsurara had a very different opinion of her. “Kyaaaa~, meeting Youtarou-kun in a place like this first thing in the morning, I’m so lucky! My fortune forecast for today also said that Love Luck would be perfect! I’m so happy. But what happened? This is in the other direction from the class, and yet you came all this way…Ah, maybe you had something to ask of Maria specifically…? Or maybe not, right? Ehehehe. Maria got all fired up thinking that it was so. Ah, but if you are fine with Maria, you can ask me anything you know? I had been thinking this for quite a while but, Youtarou-kun is quite similar to Maria’s long separated older….” Maria welcomed Youtarou, getting a little too excited at suddenly meeting him in the morning, and all but jumped on him, taking hold of this arm, and trying to pull him into the room. “Uuu-Uhon!” Tsurara, who had basically become hidden from sight behind Youtarou, did a fake cough straight out of a manga, and Maria, surprised, yep, jumped just like a person straight out of manga; her shoulders jumping with both her hands in front of her chest. “She jumped…” Rikka raised her voice, dazed. “Ne, ne ne ne ne ne ne? She just visibly jumped, right? Tsurara-chan, you saw it too, didn’t you? That’s amazing…I think this the first time Rikka is seeing someone besides herself who jumps like this when they are surprised. Super amazing~! Ne, ne ne ne ne ne ne, if you could, one more time…” (TLNote: I give up. So far, I’ve been trying to translate the “Hn”s and the “Nn?”s and the “Ne”s and “Neeee?”s in a way that comes off as more natural in English, but Rikka just broke my spirit. I’m not even going to try and think what would sound more natural here. “Hey, hey hey hey hey hey” sounds atrocious after all…) The situation was already in chaos, right from the start. Youtarou held his head. How was he supposed to deal with this. As he was thinking about it, Maria’s face color changed as she saw Tsurara and Rikka’s faces. She immediately let go of Youtarou’s arm, and suddenly started to panic. “A-Ara, if it isn’t Hikaru-san’s younger sisters…it is, isn’t it? Ah, if I remember correctly, you’re Tsurara-chan from 2nd year, and the one who just entered into the 1st year recently, Rikka-chan. I think we’re meeting for the first time, right Rikka-chan? I’m Oohashi Maria, in class 1-C, High School, the same class as your elder sister. Let’s get along, okay? But I already know Rikka-chan because I’ve been hearing many rumors about you. As expected of Hikaru-chan’s younger sister, you are supper cute! If you’re this cute, I think you can become an idol right away!” She chattered away, fast, as if trying not to give the other person any chance to speak up. “Ehhh, no way. Do you really think so? Iyan~ Rikka is so happy to be praised like that from an Onee-san from High School~♡ It kinda makes me more confident.” Rikka said, wrigglingly her body in embarrassment. “Come on, of course I really think so! Starting from Miharu Onee-sama, all of you sisters from the Amatsuka family are fabulous, but I think that Rikka-chan has a shine to her that is unique even when compared to Hikaru-chan. Yep. You’re so cute, I’m a bit jealous. If Maria had a younger sister like it would have been so much fun…” Even as she talked, Maria was moving here and there inside the room, and then she picked up the thick stack of printed papers on top of the cabinet near the entrance of the room, holding them firmly in both arms so as to hide the printed content. Tsurara was very bad with this kind of war of backhanded compliments that occurred among girls and so had been standing there with an aloof look on her face, but when she saw this a look of suspicion crossed her face. And then, as she tried to peek at the papers– “Ahh, look at the time! I’ll be late if we don’t hurry.” Maria looked at the clock at the wall with an exaggerated gesture, so as to block Tsurara’s line of sight. “My apologies, since I’m in a bit of a hurry, I’ll be leaving first! Youtarou-kun, I’m so sorry. If it’s fine later, I will help you with whatever you want but…I’m really sorry! Well then, see you in class.” She said to him with seemingly genuine sadness in her voice, and then took off, with pattering steps. Ah… she really is such considerate person. Even though she was in such a hurry, she tried to seriously listen to my problem…is what Youtarou honestly thought, while Tsurara… Suspicious. Highly suspicious. …was grinding her teeth. And finally, Rikka… Rikka alone was sticking her head into the Student Council room flooded with sunlight. “What, there’s no one here. There’s no way we can apply to enter into the ‘Queen selection’ like this, is there?” Rikka made a face as if to say This is so boring! and crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue like a small child.
14 “Oiii, Rikka!” As Youtarou called out with a loud voice, Rikka, who was on the other side of the pond jumped in happiness with a bounce as she realized who it was. “Onii-chan!!” Seeing her like this, yeah, she definitely jumped. Youtarou remembered the comment Rikka had made about Maria in the morning, and somehow become a little emotional. It was true that in his trivial life so far, probably the only girl he had met that jumped like that when surprised by something was Rikka. Oh, other than Maria, I guess. Thinking that, he once again felt that the trivial fate he had been bestowed upon his birth, and the fate that would have remained trivial for his entire life, had started to creak and groan, changing its shape ever snice he had arrived at the Amatsuka house- yes, ever since the day he had met Hikaru. After all, he had ended up meeting not one, but two girls who visibly jumped when they were surprised. Youtarou recalled the show he had watched on late night TV when he was little, back when his Grandma had still been alive. It had been a bizarre English comedy. Now now, going so far as to compare it to that is just being rude. Ahahahahaha. While laughing without any guilt in his heart, he patiently waited for Rikka to go around the pond and come up to him. After they had left the student council room in the morning, something had been bothering Youtarou. Usually, Rikka was the one who stood out most, to an extent that she was seen as annoying by others, but ever since dinner last night, Rikka had been unusually quiet, lost in her own thoughts, so much so that she would sometimes forget where she was. Even during the morning commute, she had walked ahead of Tsurara and Youtarou by herself as if she were thinking about something, just like a dog with a leash talking a walk. There was something wrong. Youtarou had always thought that Rikka was not one to bottle up her feelings. Perhaps Rikka was trying to be considerate in her own way? After that thought popped into his head once, now it was Youtarou who couldn’t remain unbothered. That’s why he called out to Rikka like this after lunch break. Last night, Rikka had made the declaration to participate in the “Queen of the Sports Fest” election. The little ones were quite fired up about it, and it seemed that among the sisters younger than Yuuna, two factions had formed and started a “cheering” battle: the Rikka faction, with Mizuki and Yuuna as their center, and the Hikaru faction, with Mari and Watayuki leading this one. And on top of it, they had all asked to go see it in person on the day of the event, and then requested their elder bother to lead the command, which had come out of nowhere to him. And yet, morning time came and went, there had been no mention of the declaration either from Hikaru or Rikka, and Youtarou had been secretly feeling like he had been hoodwinked. No, he had not even been able to talk to Hikaru properly, as she had already left the house by the time he had woken up, and even after he had reached school, she had been surrounded by those fans of hers. From what he had seen of Rikka in the morning, it seemed like she at least stood by her declaration. But still, something was wrong. Form the outside- for strangers like Maria, it was probably a little too hard to tell, but to him, who lived in the same house, it was apparent. Rikka was probably stuck worrying about something. Most probably it was about Hikaru. Thinking that far, Youtarou smiled a little bitterly. Wait, I am a stranger too. But even so, he felt like he should tell her, especially after the events of last night which, in many ways, were unforgettable for Youtarou. Even if I am ultimately a stranger to them. But I do think I’ve come to understand the Amatsuka sisters a little bit. This rare group of 19 sisters, they’re all, all of them, every single one…terrifyingly pure and…people with great consideration for others. Of course, all of them had their own quirks and differences, and sometimes they ended up butting heads because of those quirks. They also ended up fighting sometimes. For example, Tsurara had a habit of spouting some truly poisonous words. But…but even so, somehow, they are all completely, sisters without any impurities. All that exists between them is kindness. No wait, that word is wrong, it’s something I can’t put into words. Even while being unsure, there was a word that Youtarou thought fit the bill, but it was one he was too embarrassed to say out loud which. It is probably, love? … Uuuuu. Just thinking about made his inside itch. Regardless, Youtarou thought to himself that he really liked those sisters that were filled with kindness. Although there were lots of troubling things to deal with, at the very least, he had never once felt sad after he started living with them. I am probably a very fortunate person. That’s why, even I want to be a little useful. Not to mention that to Rikka who doesn’t know of all the circumstances, for all intents and purposes, I really am her “real” “Onii-chan”. Youtarou at this time had fired himself up and was straining himself a little, and so perhaps he was not acting like the usual Youtarou.
“That’s why, you don’t have to worry about Hikaru at all.” “What…do you mean by that?” Even though she had just been happily frolicking around, the tone of Rikka’s voice suddenly dropped. On the back side of the school, the plants around this pond were not taken care of all that well, and the combination of the overgrown underbrush and the slight stagnant water of the pond made it so that not many people came here. In the morning, as Tsurara had been looking around the Student Council room with a sharp eye, he had secretly made a plan with Rikka. At that time, as Rikka had set off to her classroom -hurried along by the pre-bell- the location she had specified had been this place. Rikka, sitting next to Youtarou with her knees to her chest, picked up a rock near her hand and threw it into the pond. Splash. A flat sound rang out in the surroundings. “What do I mean…Like I said, Rikka, you’re probably concerned that Hikaru is angry, right?” Rikka was silent. Youtarou continued, trying to act like an older brother. “Well, of course, when you announced that you wanted to become the “Queen of the Sports Fest”, everyone was a bit surprised, but you see, since Hikaru is like that, she was not angry at all.” “I already know that.” Rikka couldn’t hold her voice down, as her mood plummeted. It was strange to her as well. Why am I so irritated? Even though I was so happy that Onii-chan called me out here. I wasn’t hoping to talk about anything specific. Or rather, I wasn’t even thinking about that. I was just happy about the fact that I could have a date with Onii-chan at school, just the two of us. That’s why…there should be no way that my mood would become so bad like this… “Hikaru was like, you know- seems a bit weird when I say it, I know- but Hikaru seemed like she had no interest in being the Queen of the Sports Fest.” Every time her Onii-chan talked about Hikaru Onee-chan, Rikka…the bright smile on Youtarou’s face grated her heartstrings. “I’m sure that around this point she is worrying more about Rikka then herself, you know? Maybe she’s thinking that it would be better if Rikka won. That’s why, you should do your best too, Rikka! I’m rooting for Rikka.” Youtarou, to the best of his ability, had intended to speak while being very careful about his words. Rikka probably seriously wants to become the “Queen”. There’s no doubt about that. That’s why, I want to respect her wishes, but I want to ensure that there is no hostility between the sisters. However, Rikka… “Uuu…” Rikka could do nothing to stop the drops of tears that formed in her eyes. Youtarou immediately panicked. Wh-why!? Did I just…did I just say something really bad!? It was his first time seeing Rikka in tears. In the middle of panicking…Youtarou remembered that he had secretly brought along a trump card for Rikka’s sake, although he wasn’t sure if this was the time to use it. No I’m sure, this is the time to use that! “So-sorry, Rikka, I didn’t mean to make you cry, but I think it’s because I’m so bad at phrasing things…” Without knowing the reason Rikka was crying, Youtarou apologized, all the while frantically searching for something. Rikka heard his words, and avoiding his eyes, looked at the surface of the water, trying her best to hold back her tears. This is no good… She thought, cooling down a little. That’s right, what are you doing, Rikka…Making Onii-chan worry like this? Using the ends of the ribbon tie that was a part of her sailor uniform, she pressed down on the ends of her eyes, so as to stop the tears from flowing down. Rikka hated tears. She also hated her crying self. And she absolutely hated the thought of Onii-chan thinking that she was crying in front of him to get his pity. That’s why, there’s no helping that my eyes became wet, but this much should be fine, right? Rikka tried desperately to make a smile. “Onii-chan, sorry about that. Rikka probably just started thinking about something completely stupid–” Rikka started to say, and at the same time, Youtarou was able to finally pull out whatever he had been struggling to get out of his pants pocket. “I got it! Jaaan~!! Look at this Rikka! What do you think…of this, Cream Soda flavored Chupa Chup!? Since it was in my pocket, the stick got bent a little, but…” The thing Youtarou was holding aloft was a huge lollipop with a slightly junk flavor that Rikka liked. Feeling happy and proud of his secret weapon that head finally been able to pull out, Youtarou was busy trying to straighten the stick of the lollipop, as if he had not heard Rikka’s words at all. “I’ll give you this, so cheer up, okay? Smiling like the sun is what suits Rikka the best after all.” As if trying to comfort a small child, Youtarou waved around the lollipop. Seeing that, Rikka…could not hold herself back anymore. “Uwaaaan! Onii-chan, you idiot! You don’t understand anything at all!!”
15 After somehow excusing herself and slipping away from Youtarou who was still very worried about her, Rikka didn’t feel like returning to class right after washing her face in the washroom, and so climbed up to the roof of the school. The rooftop of Konohana was an empty, wide open space that was surrounded by a green chain-link fence, with nothing of note present. Entry of students was technically supposed to be on a permission basis only, but that rule had long since gone unenforced.
Leaning on the fence, Rikka was looking at the sky. She figured that if the wind blew past her here, perhaps her face would cool soon. The rays of the early summer sun were quite strong but entering the shade of the entrance to the rooftop, the strong wind blowing on the high roof felt very good on her face, which was a little swollen from crying, and cooled it down. “Ah-ah~. I ended up crying.” Saying it in a loud voice made her feel a little refreshed. “I’m sorry, Onii-chan!!” This time, she shouted at the sky with all her might. She felt even more refreshed, and a chuckled escaped her lips. Yeah, thank goodness…I think I’ll be fine now. But I wonder why I suddenly started…crying like that. This is the first time this has happened to Rika since she was born, Rikka thought to herself. It really was a mystery, even to herself. Certainly, if it had been the Rikka from a little while ago, she felt that she would not have minded it at all. Even the lollipop that Onii-chan pulled out that was in quite sad shape, Rika would have gleefully accepted it. And yet…She was together with her beloved Onii-chan, and yet she started feeling more and more sad…and she couldn’t stop her irritation from growing. The more she had listened to him, the more her irritation had grown, and then tears had welled up in her eyes almost naturally. I’m sure Onii-chan must have been shocked…I gotta apologize again to him later, properly…yeah. Ah, but, thinking about it calmly like this, I can see a why I ended up crying. Can you blame me? He tried to pacify me with a lollipop! Speaking of, Onii-chan is treating Rikka way too much like a kid! Even though Rika is already in the first year of middle school, and even trying to become a candidate for the “Queen of the Sports Fest” … Even though no one was around, Rikka got a little upset and started to pout. I know, right? On top of that, he was only heaping praises on Hikaru Onee-chan! Hmph! Rikka already knows that Hikaru Onee-chan is not really interested in becoming the Queen! Rikka recalled her Onii-chan’s face. His gentle and kind face. His helpless and bewildered face. And also, his usual, slightly embarrassed smiling face. It was the face that Rikka liked the most.
Onii-chan, I’m sorry, Rika really caused you a lot of trouble. But, since Rika is now finally in middle school, I wanted Onii-chan to properly acknowledge me, more and more. Rika understands now. I don’t wanna be treated like a kid anymore. Maybe it is too early, maybe Rika is overreaching, but, because I like Onii-chan…that’s why I don’t wanna be treated like a child. Please understand. No, it’s fine. Rika will definitely make you understand! Since I now properly understand my own feelings. Fufufu. Onii-chan, you better ready yourself. Since my target is now clear, Rika will be going full speed ahead! Don’t come crying to me when I become a girl much more cooler than Hikaru Onee-chan someday! When that happens, will Onii-chan still do the same? Will he still only praise Hikaru Onee-chan? That’s no fair… Ne, Onii-chan. Rika’s chest, somehow… it hurts.
Softly placing a hand on her chest, Rikka suddenly started feeling a little sleepy, perhaps because she had been crying for a while before. Still sitting supported by the fence, she closed her eyes, intending to rest for a little bit only, but promptly fell asleep. A summerly wind that was slightly warmer than before blew and caressed Rikka’s cheeks.
As for Rikka herself…she had yet to realize. She had yet to realize that the feeling that she had apparently suddenly awoken to, the feeling of not wanting to be treated as a child…was completely separate from the feeling that made her loath the words of praise Youtarou had spoken about Hikaru.
Since she had been very young, she had a personality that did not care much about what others thought of her, bright and honest, with a tendency to say whatever came to her mind without holding back. And yet, no one could not bring themselves to hate her. Wearing miniskirts and glittering accessories, Rikka who loved fries and candy and marshmallows and chocolate, who would not hesitate to shout Girls should show off their bellies! The world in which she had lived, the world that was simply filled only with things she loved…was now shaking, about to shatter in front of Rikka. She had encountered something that she wanted but could do nothing to obtain…the heart of a person. Rikka had entered middle school first year, and this was the first time she had felt the taste of the feeling called jealousy…the impact of which was so strong that Rikka still could not understand the true meaning behind it.
16 It was time to head home. “Ah, Youtarou-kun, wait, wait, wait–” Oohashi Maria ran up to him, out of breath. Having received a huge shock from witnessing Rikka’s breakdown during the lunch break, Youtarou had decided to head home early today. For that Rikka to suddenly start crying…She had told him that she had eaten too much, and her stomach hurt, hard as that was to imagine. But Youtarou had had no choice but to believe in her, pushing away thoughts like She was always eating so much and was always just fine afterwards, and yet today she had a stomachache; just what- and how much of it did she consume? for now. Since her stomach hurt that much, he considered accompanying her back home. “Ano, I wanted to give you this…” Maria apologetically presented a printed booklet bound with staples to Youtarou, who had completely gotten cold feet and instead decided to go home early. N? What’s that? Homework or something? Ah, since I was late because of the matter with Rikka for 5th period, she must have saved it for me. In the moment, Youtarou thought that that was the case and replied, “Thanks! This’ll be helpful.” and made a big smile. Seeing that, Oohashi Maria, who so far had an apologetic expression on her face, also immediately began to beam. “Oh what, so you were already aware? I’m relived in that case. I was requested to do it from my seniors in the Student Council. I was having trouble thinking of how I would ask you about it, but it really saved me that you are that willing.” She clasped her hands in front of her hands, as if she were really moved. Haruka often does that pose…while thinking that, Hn? Aree? Youtarou felt like something was off. “For now, I’ll leave just the script with you, so do have a good look at it later. You don’t have that many appearances, so if you could just understand how it will progress overall, I think you’ll be just fine performing on the day itself without rehearsal.” Script? Progress? …Performing without rehearsal!? Youtarou’s smile was breaking down and becoming more and more strained. But before it had a chance to completely fall apart, “If there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask me anything, okay? I’m sure that Konohana’s very first Prince…I’m sure Youtarou-kun will become a more charming prince that anyone else in this school! Ah, if this is how it was going to turn out, maybe I should have run for the Queen position too? Just kidding…Since Hikaru-chan is going to be there it’s impossible for me. Fufufufu. Ah, but, on the day itself I will be helping direct the stage during “The Queen of the Sports Fest” as part of the acting club, so would it be fine if I were to at least take a picture with you? Wait, ah, sorry, you were in a hurry today, right? I’m sorry for holding you back like this, chattering on and on about useless stuff. Well then, I will take my leave for today. Goodbye, I’m looking forward to meeting to again tomorrow!” Saying what she wanted without even leaving a chance for Youtarou to get a word in edgewise, Maria took off, jogging. I think that way is to the student council… Youtarou, who had been left dumbfounded, suddenly came to his senses, and looked at the printed text on the booklet he had been handed. On it was written the following: Konohana Academy’s “The Queen of the Sports Fest Selection” High school and Middle school joint event organized by the Student Council (First Prince appearance Ver.) Panning cooperation: Acting Club. And then, as he flipped open the page of the booklet, he saw that next to the blank line that was reserved for the name of the selected Queen was a blank line for a one “Special Presenter (The Prince of the Sports Fest)”. Printed in the blank line, plain as day, was Youtarou’s name.
17 There were 3 days left until the Sports Fest. “Oiii, Yocchan, here, pass!” The voice of an unenthusiastic Junpei reached his ears, and as he turned around, a white leather ball came flying at him, dirtied so that it was mostly beige colored now. Bam. It stopped in Youtarou’s hand with a loud noise. “Nice catch!” Junpei called out to him while grinning, but Youtarou could not bring himself to fire himself up enough to even throw it back. It was just such a dull practice session. Youtarou stared at the ball in his hand, a ball that was too small to be a volleyball, and too big to be a softball, a ball that was lacking either way. As I thought, it doesn’t really fit in the hand, does it? Handball is a pretty plain sport, isn’t it? Youtarou felt it once more. He raised his face and looked around the court he was in. Everyone present inside the court was a guy. Guys, guys and more guys. That said, there were only 5 teams with 7 members each, so it wasn’t even enough people to fill up a classroom. It was scene that made him doubt his eyes for a second- a scene he was seeing for first time since coming to Konohana- such a…plain and boring scene. I guess guys really are super plain as compared to girls, aren’t they? Youtarou had thought that he would never be able to get used to a Girls School type environment and had wanted to go a to more normal school. He was supposed to be resenting that ultra-pushy Mama of the Amatsuka household right about now, and yet, in just 3 months, he had completely gotten used to the sights of this school. “Man, I didn’t think that a scenery without any girls would be this overcast and sad…” The words unconsciously slipped through his mouth…is what Youtarou thought, but it was actually Junpei who had spoken those words, having leisurely sidled up to him. “Yeah, you’re right.” Youtarou agreed with him, being honest. Junpei laughed. “Oh what, so Yocchan was also thinking the same. You always have a composed face, with an expression like you don’t have any interest in girls, so I was thinking, surely-” Junpei grinned in a meaningful manner. “Surely…what?” “Well, I thought surely, Yocchan must be in love with me.” (Junpei saysボクチン here. I think this is what he means, but not sure.) Youtarou immediately took a stance, and silently threw that ball in his hand with all his might at Junpei. “Uwaaaa, chi, chi, chi.” However, Junpei dodged it at the last moment. Being a shorty, he had pretty quick movements. “Mou, Yocchan, you’re too rough…” Junpei messed around, twisting his body with fake embarrassment. Becoming fed up with him, Youtarou said “I’m out…break time!”.
This place, called the multipurpose court, could be reached by taking a small path that started in the lawn garden in front of the school building. Two volleyball courts could fit into the lowered ground, and it was surrounded by a slope with grass on it with a width of several meters, and around that was tall fence surrounding everything. Youtarou walked with heavy steps to that grass covered slope that would become seating for onlookers whenever they held matches in the court, and after searching for a place without anyone, he plopped himself down on the grass. As he looked, in the scenery that supposed to be filled with just boys, he saw a smattering of some uniformed girls sitting here and there on the slope. There were some among them who were earnestly cheering on the boys in the court and waving at them. Youtarou was surprised. I see. This kind of healthy interactions between boys and girls is properly allowed in this Konohana Academy. He felt that it was somehow very new to him. The afterschool hours were reserved for practice for the Sports Fest today, and the fact that the multipurpose court had been assigned to the handball players today would be clear to anyone who looked at the notice with the practice list on it. And all the handball players were boys. As the sisters had told him, the Spring Sports Fest of Konohana Academy focused on ball sports, and everyone had to take part in at least one competition other than the club they belonged to. You could choose which competition you were going to participate in, and if too many people choose one, then adjustments would be made. However, it was a little different for the boys. All the boys were lumped together to make a “Boys League.” After all, when the number of boys is this overwhelmingly disproportionate to the number of girls, they can’t ask each one which sport they want to do and make mixed teams with one or two boys in them. But, if it’s sports like Table Tennis or Tennis, they could make it work, with doubles and stuff. Youtarou thought. Ah well, this is fine too. If we were playing against girls, we would end up holding back and stuff. I guess this is fine too sometimes. Because of that, I got some time to think alone like this. The practice session that had begun quite languidly was picking up speed, and maybe it was because they were boys, they naturally became absorbed in moving their bodies, and an unexpectedly fierce game of handball was taking place in the court. Looking at it in a daze, Youtarou was thinking. About Hikaru and Rikka. And about Tsurara, who was in a much fouler mood lately. And about the Price of the Sports Fest. If only the matter of the “Queen of the Sports Fest” had not happened, I might have been able to enjoy this event quite a bit. The Sports Festival. He was feeling like an elementary schooler who was bad at sports right now. Ahhh, won’t it rain on the day of the event, cancelling it? While watching the game in a daze, there was no indication that the figure of the girl standing outside the fence and staring directly at Youtarou -a girl that was wearing a special dark blue uniform, different from everyone else- would enter Youtarou’s line of sight.
18 Swing~. Ping~. Nice, satisfying sounds were flying through the air. “You have to step closer!” “Keep going! Don’t worry about it!” “Just one more point! Just one more!” “Kyaaaa~ Hikaru-sama, you’re too wonderful! The best!” The cheerful screams and cheers of the female students was echoing around the court. This was the tennis court the was besides the front grounds of the middle school building. The wide court with three fields was packed with a gallery of excited people. One of the reasons…was because the all-powerful sports star, the one with the number one popularity in the school, the one who was guaranteed to take the Queen of the Sports Fest position again this year, Amatsuka Hikaru was having a match. A practice match that is. Because the gallery had become so crowded, it had suddenly become like a real match, and practice time was soon coming to an end. Heading in the direction of the screams, Haruka was hurrying towards the court. Kyaaaaaa~. A chorus of screams louder than the rest went up. Fufufu. They’re really going at it! Haruka embraced the drink bottle she was carrying in her hands. Haruka really liked looking at Hikaru when she was getting a lot of attention. And, entering onto that scene as Hikaru’s older sister…she liked that even more. How can I not, Hikaru-chan is just too cool! Is what Haruka usually thought. Although Mizore said that while getting closer to Hikaru during her match and presenting her with refreshments, it was as if her face was broadcasting “Hikaru-chan is mine”. When told that, Haruka would pout and say But she really is mine. However, lately, sometimes she also has the thought It seems like Hikaru-chan probably belongs to me less and less now. Only sometimes though. Well then, who does she belong to now? Haruka asked herself. That is…she did not know the answer. Hikaru-chan belongs to Hikaru-chan…sometimes it feels like that, but it also feels a bit different. When she tried to think about it, it turned out to be quite annoying, so Haruka immediately stopped thinking. Because come on, it is way more fun and important to think about what the menu for tonight’s dinner will have, isn’t it? Haruka thought. Ah, that’s right, I’m sure that today everyone will be tired from practicing for the Sports Fest, so how about a menu that recovers their stamina? A meal fit for someone how has sweat a lot, filled with vitamins and minerals. That has to be ginger grilled pork and wheat toro, right? Ufufufu, it would be great if everyone likes it. She had reached the point where she could see the outline of the tennis court, when suddenly, a louder cheer than any of the ones before reverberated, signaling the end of the match. “Oh no, I gotta hurry.” She somehow got through the crowd of onlookers and reached the court bench where Hikaru was supposed to be. There she found Hikaru, drenched in sweat, with a profoundly refreshed expression on her face. “Ahh, that was so refreshing! I’m looking forward to the main event.” It is said that sweat and tears have an effect of purifying your emotions. Therefore, it seemed like the god of depression found it hard to stay in Hikaru’s heart, who loved exercise. And then Haruka decided to go shopping, with Hikaru coming along as her baggage carrier. Gotta hurry. Hurry. If I don’t hurry, Haruka’s precious Ouji-sama is going to reach home with his belly empty…Kyun~!
19 “Oh, I got it! In that case, how about making Rikka-chan’s in Hawaii style? I’m sure if it’s in a tropical style it’ll really suit Rikka-chan.” After nodding along while listening to Rikka’s detailed request, this was the idea that Hotaru had come up with. However, Rikka looked like she was not entirely convinced. “If you think Hawaii style, flower Leis and Muumuus come to mind, right? Rika would prefer something with a miniskirt after all. What do you think?” Hotaru thought deeply again. “Hmm, a miniskirt, huh? It might be a bit hard to bring out a Hawaii feel with a miniskirt. I feel like it’s a little too causal…ends up feeling a bit too American…” She picked up a few miniskirts from among the pile of costumes on the floor. “Ah, this one looks quite cool, doesn’t it? It’s like black leather, and gives a feeling like a grown-up woman…” As Rikka tried putting one of them against her body, Hotaru smiled wryly and said, “But isn’t that a costume of Fujiko-chan? That size will also fit Hikaru-chan better.” “Ah, then it’s a bit too early for Rika to wear it. What about this then?” “That is from “Precure”. It might be a little too childish.” “Then…how about this!” “That is…Shizuka-chan.” “Come on, Hota Onee-chan, all your costumes are stuff we can’t use!” Saying that, Rikka fell over backwards on her back, with a loud sound. Looking at her, even as she was laughing embarrassedly, Haruka immediately tried to help her up. “Sorry, sorry, but that’s why I was saying that we should try to be a little inventive and make a new one…” “Ah, I see-” Rikka immediately jumped back onto her feet with vigor, like a self-righting doll. Their conversation went back to square one. The two were trying to come up with what Rikka was going to be wearing on the stage for “Queen of the Sports Fest”. Hotaru had a hobby of cosplaying. After hearing that you were free to choose the costume you were going to wear as the “Queen”, Rikka called upon Hotaru for help. “Clothes are the life-blood of a girl!” was the slogan of the two right now. They regrouped and were once again brainstorming different ideas, when suddenly, Rikka let slip “How about…a swimsuit?” “A swimsuit!?” Hotaru replied, startled. “Yeah…I mean, the Miss Universe and similar contests that you see on TV, most of the time they wear swimsuits in them, don’t they? That has the most amount of impact, and they look pretty and cool…” “But, Rikka-chan, don’t you feel hesitant…wearing a swimsuit? You won’t feel embarrassed?” Hotaru said, who had gone red in the face just by hearing such an idea. “Nope, not at all! That’s cause Rika’s motto is that ‘A miniskirt for a girl, and a bellybutton for summer!’ I can’t do it in school cause of our uniforms, but my bellybutton is always out in my normal clothes.” “Now that you mention it, that’s right…” Hotaru looked a little taken aback. “Ah, but if that’s the case, why don’t you try to appear in your normal clothes?” She tried suggesting, a little fearfully. Hearing that, Rikka cried out. “Wow! You’re so smart, Hota Onee-chan, that’s it! Rika is always wearing clothes that I like anyways, so I can just select from those.” She said, but then paused. “Ah but, if I wear clothes that I’m always wearing, again, I won’t have an impact…I won’t be able to stand out.” “But, in Rikka-chan’s case, even your normal clothes have lots of impact, so they will be good enough, don’t you think?” Hotaru said gently so as not to rock the boat too much. “But…but but but-” It seemed like Rikka still thought that there was something missing. However, it did not take long for the ultimate positive girl to recover. Although that ultimate positiveness was experiencing some difficulties lately due to adolescence. “Hikooon~! Got it! I got it! I should just go with the swimsuit after all. Just go allll out with a real swimsuit!! That’s cause Rika thinks that there’s not much difference between a swimsuit and wearing a mini skirt with your belly button showing.” Yeah, she does have a point. Hearing that weirdly convinced Hotaru. “Yosh! Rika is definitely going out there in a swimsuit…and I’m going to steal the gaze of everyone in the audience! Oooo!” Rikka raised her hand and made a declaration as if she were making a team chant. “I’m sure that in the future when Rikka has become an idol, the photos will become a coveted treasure! Ah, but, just a normal swimsuit just ain’t gonna cut it so…Hota Onee-chan, please put some cute frills on Rikka’s swimsuit~” Saying that, she immediately rushed out of Hotaru’s room, and went to back to her room to fetch her favorite white swimsuit from her room. As it was decided that it was what they were going with, even Hotaru was unexpectedly on board, and decided that the theme was going to be the ocean; a mermaid. They talked together about things that would look good, such as seashells and bubbles and rope-like decorative strings and got to work immediately. Well, Rikka was mostly just standing around in a swimsuit. “It’s done!” Hotaru exclaimed in a low voice, and just as she put down her needle and broke of the string with her teeth, the front doorbell rang. Hn, it seems like someone is here…saying that, Hotaru took a step back and had a good look at Rikka from the front, and then sighed contentedly. “Rikka-chan, this is super cool. It’s like wholesome and sparkling…It’s become a swimsuit that nobody other than Rikka-chan can wear. Hota is thinking that at this rate, you might just win against Hikaru Onee-chan!” The kind Hotaru’s words reverberated in Rikka’s heart. “Really!? Wowww, that’s an amazing compliment ♡ Rika doesn’t think that she can really win against Hikaru Onee-chan, but…” She put the end of a single finger in her mouth and thought hard about something. Hnnn. Just then, they heard someone passing by in front of Hotaru’s room. Rikka suddenly grinned, and spun around on her heel, turning around. “Sorry, Hota Onee-chan…I think I’m going to go show it off a little after all!!”
20 And then. “Biyoyoyoyon!” Along with a shout that you would never expect an almost fully of-age girl to make, a body flew towards Youtarou, like a stiff, bouncy ball. Uwah… The exclamation materialized in his mind, and in the next instant, Youtarou fell over backwards. Before he knew it, on top of the two that had fallen into a heap… …was a blanket, covering them, apparently having been drawn up by Rikka. On top of the bed, it had become a small, enclosed space.
And then Rikka, “Ehehehe…I went and did ittt ♡” Still sprawled on top of him, a smile seemed to slip onto Rikka’s lips, and then she suddenly rubbed that smile onto Youtarou’s chest, almost like cat.
[1] Some kind of categorization for lighting? Not sure. [2] How can a smile be white, you say? I dunno either, ask the author. [3] Changing Special Class to Advanced Class, as it closer to the meaning. [4] Kore wa maji de yabai! [5] Rikka means “first day of summer” [6] Vegetables pickled in sake lees |