Kurasu no Daikirai na Joshi to Kekkon Suru Koto ni Natta Volume 2 Chapter 3

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IMPORTANT NOTE: I asked the previous translator for permission to take over series, and they kindly agreed, so this isn’t a snipe or anything of that sort. Links to their translations of the previous chapters can be found on the ToC or directly on their website. Additionally, they gave us the illustrations for this volume as well. Have fun reading.

Attack At Night

“Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!”

Akane’s shriek reverberated through the living district that should have been asleep by now.

“What happened!? Did someone from the Centaurus Star attack!?” Saito jolted up from the bed, his mind still in a haze.

Akane sat on the bed, grasping her knees and rolled up her back, as she covered her head to form a completely defensive position. She resembled an armadillo cowering in fear from a puma’s attack.

“A-A-A ghost! A ghost appeared!”

“A ghost…? Where?”

“Over there!” Akane pointed at the end of her bedside.

“…Nothing’s there though?”

“It was there a few seconds ago! A pale white face, muttering some nonsense that I couldn’t pick up! Was that a cursed doll? A revengeful ghost? Anyway, it was something dangerous!”

“Really now. Well, good night.” Saito gave up on listening, and slipped back under the blanket.

“Get uuuup! Get up! Don’t leave me alone!” Akane frantically shook Saito’s body.

Naturally, this wasn’t an environment guaranteeing sound sleep. So, Saito showed his hand from beneath the blanket, and gave Akane a thumbs-up.

“It’s fine, you’re not alone. Mother Nature and everybody in this world are giving you their strength.”

“Don’t just give me some random answer so that you can go back to sleep! If we don’t keep our eyes open at the same time, that ghost will come closer!”

“Like hell there’s rules like that! Get back to sleep already!”

“I definitely won’t! And I’m not letting you sleep either!” Akane screamed, and pulled the blanket off Saito.

It was a ‘we ride together, we die together’ type of self-abandonment. Saito planned on getting back to sleeping, but now he was wide awake. He had his own guesses back when they played the horror game, but this just confirmed it.

“You…You’re totally scared, right?”

Akane twitched in shock, and yet raised her chin in conceit.

“I-I’m not scared!”

“You’re shaking.”

“Because I’m cold.”

“I ain’t cold though?”

“Girls don’t have the same muscle mass to keep up their body temperature like boys do, that’s why I’m cold! Also, do you even have any sense of danger here!? What do you plan on doing if that ghost just takes your soul!?” Akane’s eyes were serious, backed into a corner.

“Even if you ask me that…”

Since Saito didn’t even believe in the existence of ghosts, there’s nothing here to do, really. Of course, science having proven everything is a different matter, but there was not enough proof to support such occult phenomena. That being said, if he didn’t calm down Akane any time soon, this would be a long night without much sleep. He took out a memo pad from the drawer of the desk next to his bedside, wrote ‘Evil Spirit, begone!’ on it, and handed it to Akane.

“Here you go, it’s an effective charm. Keep holding that, and go back to sleep. Night.”

“Don’t make fun of me!” Akane was fuming with anger, and mercilessly ripped the paper apart.

“The heck are you doing, I poured my heart into that.”

“You didn’t pour even one bit of your heart into that, and it’s painfully obvious!”

“So you figured me out.”

“Of course I would! Now that it’s come to this, we need to offer you to it a living sacrifice, in hopes that it’ll quell the ghost’s anger.” Akane bit the nail of her thumb, and started thinking.

“So basically, I’ll also turn into a revengeful ghost, right?”

“You’ll probably be a weak one, so it’s fine.”

“That’s harsh, alright.”

As the two were having this banter in the dark of night, a rattling sound could be heard from the room next to theirs.

“Kyaa!?” Akane didn’t hesitate to leap at Saito.

“Wah, hey…!”

As she clung to Saito’s chest, her usual thick-headed attitude seemed like a lie. Through her thin sleeping wear, he felt the softness of a young girl. Akane wrapped her arms around Saito’s back, tightly squeezing him. As not much time had passed since her bath, a thick, floral scent of shampoo drifted up to Saito’s nose.

Since Akane was quivering in fear, he could feel her panicked breathing. It was quite the stimulating situation and mash of sensations to taste during a chaotic night like this. Seeing such a weak and fragile side from the girl who always acted tough, Saito couldn’t help but see Akane as cute.

“I’ll go check what that was.”

“N-No. Don’t. Stay here!”

“But, if I don’t, then we’ll never know.”

“Please!”

So as to not give Saito any chance of escape, Akane clung to him even more aggressively. Realizing that he could not leave this girl alone, Saito sighed.

Skip forward to the night a day later. Saito was reading a book in his room, when Akane stormed inside, while carrying a reference book. She didn’t utter a word as she walked into the corner of the room, and sunk to the ground, embracing her knees.

“No…I can’t…Moving…Exorcism…” She muttered, like she was chanting something.

“Alright, what’s going on?”

As Saito just reached a bedroom scene in the novel, he hurriedly closed the book. Since he wasn’t reading an erotic novel, there wasn’t any particular reason to panic, but he still felt reluctant to have a female classmate of his see him while reading that.

“It appeared again…the ghost…When I was studying in my room, I heard footsteps in the living room…Tap tap tap, tap tap tap, you know…”

“Really now, then go take a picture as proof.”

“There’s no way I can do that!” Akane screamed, her face pale and devoid of any color. “I’ll get haunted, and the smartphone will explode!”

“Man, ghosts nowadays have a lot of firepower, huh.”

“It might just blow up the entire house…”

“Is that ghost using missiles or something?”

How could a ghost interfere with the material world in such an extreme and physical way? However, Akane didn’t bother much with Saito’s retort, and opened up her reference book to get back to studying. She even had her notebook and writing tools with her.

“Why are you doing this here now?”

“I-I’m on guard to make sure you don’t get attacked by the ghost!”

“I’m totally fine over here, so you can go back.” Saito approached Akane in an attempt to chase her out, but she started hissing like a stray cat.

“I’m definitely not leaving here! This is my room!”

“This is my room, though.”

“Starting today, I’m the landlord!”

“Landlord…”

Akane showed no signs of moving anytime soon. She held her reference book like a shield, and her pen like a sword. The sight of hers resembled a soldier about to head into battle. If Saito attempted to push her out like this, she would probably press sexual harassment charges. Seeing no chance of changing this situation, Saito returned to reading. Naturally, reading that bedroom scene was too much for him at that moment, so he skipped over it, and continued.

—This is nerve wracking…

Unlike the living room, which acted as their shared living space, this should be Saito’s one oasis. It felt like a female classmate of his came over to visit, and is now sitting in his own room. Since his personal study room was much more narrow than the living room, his distance to Akane felt shorter, and he grew more conscious of her.

Akane sat on one leg, as she glared down at her reference book. The hem of her skirt was lifted up ever so slightly, which revealed her dazzling thighs. When she pushed up her hair that hung down her face, a faint scent drifted up into the air.

“…Wanna use my desk?”

When Saito called out to Akane, she showed clear hostility and tension, as she tightly embraced her reference book.

“W-Why are you suddenly so kind to me? Do you want to lure me deeper in your room, and then assault me!?”

“You barged into my room, remember!?”

“You were desperate to have me around, so I stayed with you out of the kindness of my own heart.”

What an awful fabrication of memories, really.

“It must be uncomfortable to study on the floor like that, so I’m saying we can switch. I can read on the floor just fine.”

“You say that, but you want to look up my skirt, right!?” Akane pulled down her skirt, hiding her thighs.

“Like hell I would! I value my life, alright.”

“T-Then…” Akane reluctantly stood up, and sat down on Saito’s chair.

She carefully placed her reference book and own notes on the desk, and put down her pen next to it. Every single movement of hers felt awkward and uncertain.

“Are you nervous or something?”

“W-What about it!? T-This is my first time inside a boy’s room!”

“I-I see…”

“I-Is that bad…?”

Akane grasped the skirt on her knees, and started fidgeting with her legs. Seeing her reaction in such a lively fashion, Saito felt even more awkward. He placed the book down, and stepped out onto the hallway. Akane jolted up, following him.

“Where are you going? Overseas!?”

“To the toilet! Stay in my room, alright!”

“Then I’ll die! People who are alone will always be attacked first!”

“You sure as hell won’t! It’ll be five minutes, just put up with it!” Saito ran down the stairs to get away from Akane, stormed into the bathroom, and locked the door behind him.

Akane didn’t like that very much, and hammered on the door.

“Open up! Leave it open until you’re done!”

“As if I’d do that!”

“Dogs finish their business in front of humans, right!”

“I’m not a dog, damn it!”

A scared Akane was cute alright, but there had to be a limit to this. Right now, Saito had no safe space in this home anymore, but for a different reason than before. When he stepped out of the toilet, he was greeted by Akane, teary-eyed, pouting furiously as she stood in front of the door. Even as he washed his hands, even as he walked up the stairs and returned to his room, she would not leave his side.

—What am I supposed to do about this…

Saito let out a sigh, and focussed on reading his book. Akane seemed to be worried about Saito leaving her, because she kept glancing over at him, thus not focussing on her studies at all. The night continued on like this, and it soon reached the time to prepare for bed.

“…I’m going to take a bath.”

“Yup.”

Akane gathered her reference book and notes, and left the room. Saito sighed in relief, assuming he could finally get some peace. He wanted to read that previous bedroom scene, so he flipped back the pages—

“Um…”

“What!?”

Akane suddenly returned, to which Saito slammed the book shut. Akane carried her sleeping wear, peeking inside the room from the door. Her face was beet red, as she reluctantly spoke up.

“It’ll be too dangerous for me to take a bath alone, so…C-Can you…come with me…?”

“Huuuuh!?” Saito was baffled.

He never would have guessed that the girl who threatened to break his fingers at a single touch now begged him for such a thing.

“Come with you…inside the bath?”

“Y-Yeah…When I wash my hair, I need to close my eyes, so I’m defenseless…”

“Nothing’s going to happen…”

At the very least, Saito would be safe from her attacks for a while.

“Is that…no good?” She looked up at Saito, asking him.

If only she stayed quiet, she’d be a model-class beauty, so being met with this uncertain expression had overwhelming destructive power.

“…Alright, just for tonight.” Saitou declared with a shaking voice.

Five minutes later, Saito was standing guard inside the changing room. Only a door stood between him and the showering Akane.

—Well…I knew. Okay, I knew this would happen!

Saito nodded to himself, and frantically denied all the regrettable feelings inside of him. Even if the person in question was his archenemy, no boy his age could resist the temptation of joining a beauty like Akane during her shower. Across the door, he heard the sounds of Akane washing her hair, as well as the water from the shower hitting the ground. Through the frosted glass, he could see the silhouette of Akane’s naked body. Since he had actually seen her naked before, he couldn’t help imagining the scene beyond the door.

“Hey, are you there? You’re there, right? You’re fine, yeah?” Akane asked from the shower room.

Everything about this situation was far too stimulating for a healthy adolescent boy. Saito was trying his hardest to not feel any lustful desires towards his archnemesis. He started counting important historical figures inside his head from memory, and lined them up according to the year they belonged to. By doing so, he was freeing himself from his primitive thoughts.

—I am the World. The World is Me.

Right as Saito reached a mindset like he was doing yoga to relax his body…

“Why aren’t you answering me!? I’ll get angry, okay!” Akane showed her face from behind the door, already half-crying.

Her white skin still had bubbles of foam on it. Her shoulder was poking at Kaito, as well as her glamorous collarbone. Her two flushed mountains were shaking right in front of his gaze.

“Hide your body, will you!?”

All his worldly desires exploded to create a big bang.

“Heeey, Saito-kun! Saito-kun! Earth to Saito-kun!”

Being called out several times, Saito finally returned to the world of the living. Himari was resting her face on her hands on Saito’s desk, staring at him. The last memory Saito had was the math teacher standing in front of the blackboard. It was utterly boring to watch, but the rhythmical sound of tapping led Saito to fall asleep. Amidst his awakening consciousness, Saito muttered.

“Did the…world end?”

“Nope, still going strong. Classes ended though. We have to move to the extra classrooms now, remember?”

Barely any students were left in the classroom of class 3-A.

“Thanks for waking me up. I’m just lacking a bit of sleep lately.”

“You’re probably watching porn until late at night, right?” Himari put her hand over her mouth, giggling.

“Am not.”

“Ehhh, you’re lying~ I know, okay? A boy your age is always about lewd stuff, right?”

“…Not true.”

However, since the reason for his lack of sleep was Akane after yesterday’s events, he couldn’t exactly disagree with her. No matter how long Saito kept on chanting classical literature excerpts, Akane’s naked, wet body would not leave his mind.

“So? What kind of stuff do you usually watch?”

“Just said that I’m not, right?”

“Then, what kind of girl do you like? Someone told me that you’re not a big fan of the sexy type at least.”

“Who?”

“Ahh, well…that’s a secret~! It’d be troublesome if I lost my source of information if I snitched now~!” Himari put her index finger on her lips, and winked.

That gesture was annoyingly cute, but she wouldn’t be popular in this class if not for that.

“I don’t really get it, but is love really something you categorize with types?”

“So like the person you have feelings for is your type?”

“Not at all. I mean, a type is just a limited pattern, right? But, people aren’t that simple, you need to learn more about them, and come to like them for who they are. Outer appearance, talents, just falling in love with someone’s looks is childish.”

Saito was speaking from experience, because even though the girl looked perfect, she acted like an alien, such as Shisei, or an aggressive dragon like Akane. The man who will fall in love with Akane solely based on her looks will surely go through hell. Even Saito was exhausted to the point he feared going bald.

“Haaaa…I knew it…So nice…” Himari muttered with a drowsy tone, as her eyes seemed above the clouds.

“What do you mean?”

“Ah, never mind! I was just thinking about how wonderful your viewpoint is, Saito-kun! All the guys who confess to me don’t even know me in the slightest. It just makes me go ‘What do you even like about me? My breasts, huh!?’, you know.”

“Must be rough being a beauty like you.” Saito shrugged innocently, but Himari blushed.

“G-Geez, calling me a beauty! You’re so bold, Saito-kun!”

“Just my impression. Are you not?”

“You ask me that!? If I said yes, then I’d be outed as a narcissist, right!?”

Saito listened to this, and broadly declared.

“I think of myself as a genius, what about it?”

“He’s a narcissist?!”

In the eyes of the general public, that would have been the overwhelming consensus indeed. However, being able to objectively evaluate one’s abilities and limits was just as important, or that’s what Saito judged at least. In Japan, modesty is seen as a virtue, but that was nothing but mere hypocrisy. Himari cleared her throat, and looked at Saito.

“You seem pretty well-informed regarding love and all that, but…Saito-kun, you’re a virgin, right?”

“W-What about it!?”

“Ahh, so you’re not denying it then, I knew it~”

“Is there a problem with that, huh?”

“Nope, I’m happy.”

“You’re having fun looking down on me, huh…” Saito grew suspicious about her every word.

Himari just shrugged her shoulders, and grinned.

“You’re wrong~ I’m happy that we’re the same!”

“The same…?”

Saito started thinking about the meaning behind her words, only to feel awkward after reaching the answer. At the same time, he felt confused as to why he was talking about something like this with a classmate before noon.

“Let’s stop with that, we gotta move or we’ll be late.”

“Ah, one last question! You don’t fall in love because of your type, but if it’s someone you got to know and learned a lot about, you know at least your preferences, right?”

“Well…I guess.” Saito nodded.

Himari put one hand on the desk, and approached Saito’s ear with her lips. Her long blonde hair tickled his neck, as the sweet scent of perfume reached up to his nose. With a voice about to disappear any second, Himari whispered.

“What about…me then?”

“Eh…?” Saito’s body twitched. “What do you…” He was baffled as to what just happened, when Himari already moved her body away from him.

“Just kidding! I was joking~ Come on, you’re blushing so much, how adorable~”

“You…”

“Sorry, sorry! Anyway, see you later!” Himari walked away, but her earlobes were red as well.

—What are you getting embarrassed for…?

Saito didn’t have the foggiest as to what she was thinking, or what her plans had been for this. If this was just a means of teasing Saito, then she at least should keep her composure more than that. Saito began to fan air at his reddened face, when he heard a voice below him.

“Getting horny at school, hm.”

Shisei had snuck up to him from beneath the desk, placing her head between his knees.

“Nobody is horny.”

“You are. The scent of your hormones running wild is so thick.” Shisei pushed her nose towards Saito, audibly sniffing his scent.

Saito however didn’t give her free roam, and stopped her with a harsh iron claw to the forehead.

“We’ll continue this conversation after you come out of there…”

“Firmly denied. Shise will forever live inside Brother’s crotch.”

“That is not a suitable place of habitation for a human being!” Saito forcefully pulled Shisei up from between his knees.

Ever since the whole ghost ruckus, Saito and Akane ended up fighting less, but it was exhausting in a different sense. Whenever Akane ended up in a panic caused by the ghost, she completely forgot all sense of distance they previously kept. In order to heal his exhausted soul, Saito evacuated up to the rooftop during lunch break.

It was only Saito and Shisei up on the rooftop, creating an atmosphere far more peaceful than what could be possible at his home. Saito had a pack of milk in his hand, and started grumbling like a regular at a bar.

“Recently, she’s just…”

“Grumbling about your wife?” Shisei complained, as she gulped down some milk through the straw in Saito’s pack.

“I’m not grumbling. How did you know I was talking about Akane anyway?”

“From the tone of your voice. When you’re exhausted because of your wife, you take refuge in Shise’s chest. Shise is a seductive and devilish woman who heals you that way.”

“Don’t make me sound like some deviant.”

“Am not. Every single person needs their own place of escape, a safespace. You need Shise, Brother, and Shise needs you.”

“You’re not wrong, but…”

To Saito, who had been cast aside by his parents, Shisei was an existence closer to him than anybody else, a family above family. Even before this whole marriage with Akane, she had already been there, supporting Saito.

“Don’t hold back, just rely on Shise. With Shise’s overflowing softness, she’ll embrace your everything.” Shisei gently opened her arms.

Her expression was as gentle as a wax model’s, giving off a devilish and almost eerie radiance. She resembled an adorable fairy, but if you gave in to temptation, you’d sink deeper into the fountain of water.

“It’s dangerous on the handrail, so get down.”

“Fuwah.”

Saito grabbed Shisei, who stood on the handrail, and gently put her down. No matter how charming she may be, she was still young, so the world can’t fall into her arms just yet.

“So, what about your wife?” Shisei asked.

“Akane is talking about some ghost that supposedly appears in our home. She’s saying that someone occasionally standing next to her, or she can hear footsteps, which leaves her terrified. She’s not even taking a bath alone anymore.”

“Lewd Brother.” Shisei gave Saito a sharp gaze.

“There’s nothing lewd about this! We’re not actually taking a bath together!”

“But you wanted to, right?”

“H-Hell no!” Saito panicked.

It was hard to admit it, but it’s not like he didn’t have any wicked thoughts during these times.

“Closet pervert Brother.”

“I’m not a closet pervert either!”

“Shise knows…Brother is the kind of man who’s willing to throw his life away just to see a girl naked…That you’re the type of man who would peek into a high-rise building window only for that…”

“That guy is way too desperate, alright.” Saito preferred to live with his legs on the ground.

“Did you see that ghost, Brother?”

“No, not at all. I’m sure it’s just a rat, but no matter what I say, Akane isn’t listening to me. She’s full of suspicions, saying stuff like ‘Are you an ally of that ghost!?’, I have no idea what to do anymore.”

Shisei rolled up her hand, and started thinking.

“…It might be an actual ghost.”

“Please…”

“It’s not entirely impossible. Gramps was hated by a lot of people, so it might be the ghost of someone who killed themselves after the restructuring, or someone who lived on those grounds before. They won’t allow Gramps’ grandchild to live happily, and are now trying to curse and kill you.”

“Then they can just move on directly to Gramps himself, alright.”

What an awful way of venting out anger. Also, Saito and Akane weren’t even living together as happy as it may seem. Rather, they only ended up closer as a result of those attacks.

“There’s no way ghosts even exist.”

“They do. Shise has seen one before.” She said without batting an eye.

“Seriously!?”

“Seriously. Gave Shise melon bread.”

“I don’t think that was a ghost.”

“Said they didn’t need any thanks and told me to accept this, and one even pushed money on Shise while crying.”

“Once again, those weren’t ghosts at all, but your fans.”

Of course, receiving presents of money from random people was quite likely more terrifying than a normal ghost, but having strangers act out of order like that is Shisei’s devilish quirk.

“You better have given that money to the police, right?” Saito confirmed, but Shisei shook her head.

“Nope, used that to play with Brother.”

“Urk…to think I was a partner in crime…!” Saito held his head in despair.

He realized that he needed to keep Shisei’s income and expenses of money in check in the future. He wanted to avoid using dirty…or rather, scary money.

“Either way, it’s a fact that ‘Something’ is at your place, Brother. Even if it’s not a ghost, you probably shouldn’t just leave it alone for too long.”

“Well…you’re not wrong, I guess.”

Saito thought about it again, and for a rat, these sounds he heard were far too loud. If it was some burglar or criminal of any other sort, both Saito and Akane were in grave danger.

“Shise will look into what exactly is plaguing you. Since Shise isn’t as dense as Brother, she should see through the identity of that ghost.”

“But, that would mean that Akane finds out about you knowing everything.”

Akane constantly warned Saito about not leaking anything regarding their marriage.

“It’s fine, just leave that to Shise, she’ll do something about it.”

“And what do you have in mind?”

“Something is something. You don’t worry about anything, Brother. Shise will protect her important Big Brother from any dangerous invader.” Shisei showed a dependable expression.

Upon returning to the 3-A classroom with Saito, Shisei immediately walked towards Akane’s seat.

“Akane, Akane, do you have a minute?”

“Eh…Me? What is it?” Akane showed a dubious reaction.

Although they had been in the same class since they enrolled at this school, they barely had much to do with each other, and Saito rarely saw them talk with each other. Now, Shisei put her hands on Akane’s desk, and spoke up.

“Akane, you’re married to Brother, right?”

“!?” Akane froze up.

—Why is she saying that here!?

Saito was baffled. Shisei’s approach was too much of a straight ball. Akane’s gaze immediately shot over towards Saito, looking at him like she had him on a hit list.

—You told her, right!?

—I’m innocent!

Saito frantically waved his hands in denial. Normally, they were rivals and enemies, but at times like these, eye contact was enough to convey their thoughts. Shisei however didn’t even register their reactions, and continued.

“Shise knows everything. You and Brother are living toge—”

“Alright! How about we go take a walk, hmmmmmm!?”

“That’s right, a walk together sounds nice!”

Saito covered Shisei’s mouth, carrying her head, whereas Akane grabbed her legs, and they both worked together to evidently abduct her. The students in the hallway even sent them off with warm gazes, going ‘Same as usual, huh…’. Saito and Akane stormed into an empty classroom, locked the door, and confined Shisei.

“Flawless teamwork…So this is the power of a married couple…” Shisei sighed in admiration.

“If you’re going to talk about that, at least consider time and place!”

“Did that. Nobody was close to us, so Shisei wasn’t worried that someone might hear us.”

“You’ll never know when someone walks by, right!?”

“That is part of the thrill. Life is a gamble.”

“Nobody needs a thrill here!” Saito protested, to which Akane slammed her fist into the blackboard.

“Saito, you…” She pushed up her bangs in clear irritation, as you could see a vein pop on her forehead.

She was greatly enraged, no doubt.

“Didn’t I tell you not to leak our relationship to other people!? What are you thinking!? Do you want to be crushed!?”

“Crushed where!?” Saito jumped backwards to create some distance between him and Akane.

Shisei raised her fist.

“Shise recommends his crotch.”

“Don’t recommend anything!” Saito hid his lower body in the shadow of a desk. “You seem to have the wrong idea about this, but I did not tell Shise! She looked into it herself! Right, Shise!?” Saito looked over at Shisei to ask for her agreement, but she stopped him with the palm of her hand.

“Wait, Shise is busy right now. She’s having trouble remembering the punch line of that comedy act she watched yesterday.”

“Who cares about that right now!? My life depends on this!” Saito begged.

Shisei however put one hand on her forehead, groaning as she thought about this.

“Brother’s life or the punch line…which one…”

“Don’t hesitate!? Are you with me, or against me!?”

Saito felt the arrival of a bad end which concluded by him getting stabbed in the back. Akane readied blackboard erasers in both her hands, slowly but steadily closing in on him. He wasn’t fully clear on what kind of attack she could pull off with those, but he instinctively knew that this was a dangerous situation.

“Calm down, Brother wasn’t lying. Shise found out about your marriage herself.”

“Really…? Saito didn’t leak anything…?” Akane’s expression was still half dubious.

“No matter who you are, you can’t fool Shise’s eyes. Shise is a seeker of truth, and the original embodiment of truth.”

“You’re talking like some religious cult…At least avoid creating any of those.”

With Shise’s charisma, it wouldn’t be weird to turn her existence into a religion for the people in this world.

“Gramps knows about your marriage, so there’s no way he can hide it from Shise. Even his subordinates listen to whatever Shise says.”

“Are you sure you’re not trying to overtake the Houjou Group?” Saito grew anxious.

“Shise is free of avarice. All she wants is Brother’s soul.”

“Are you a demon!?” Saito didn’t remember forming any contract with Shisei, which made him even more worried.

“I see…I guess it makes sense that Saito’s own family wouldn’t realize…I’m sorry about keeping quiet with all of this, Shisei-san.”

“No worries.” Shisei showed Akane a thumbs-up.

—This woman…She’s willing to apologize to anybody but me…?

Saito was filled with a dubious feeling, right as Akane glared at him.

“But, why did you hide the fact of Shisei-san knowing from me!?”

“Because I knew you’d get angry at me…”

“I wouldn’t get angry because of that!”

“You’re angry this very moment, don’t you even realize!?”

“Can you blame me!?” Akane looked like a demon reincarnated.

Shisei watched this, and shook her head in disbelief.

“Shise knows you’re married, but do you really need to flirt around at school?”

““We’re not flirting!””

Saito and Akane screamed at the same time. Shisei hopped onto a desk, flapping her legs wrapped in white tights up and down, and continued.

“I heard from Brother, there’s a ghost plaguing your place?”

“T-That’s right! Not to mention that this guy doesn’t even believe in ghosts! He doesn’t understand how grave the situation is!”

“Shise knows. That house…is haunted by an evil spirit after all.”

“I knew it!?” Akane pushed her body towards Shisei.

“Shise can feel unfathomable evil energy from you two. Because your will is so strong, Akane, you managed to withstand the evil spirit’s attempt at encroachment. You did well on your own.”

“Hicc…Shisei-san…” Akane began weeping as she rubbed Shisei’s head.

“H-Hey, you two…”

Saito felt like the situation just took a turn for the worse. This definitely is the pattern where someone is backed into a corner because of physical and mental stress, and then falls into some scheme, starting to blindly believe whatever the other person says. Because she’s lacking sleep, and with the stress on her shoulders, Akane is failing to do proper judgement of the situation.

“If we don’t get rid of this ghost soon, the catastrophe will come eventually. You might even start to lose 50 points in grades in every subject.”

“What a terrifying catastrophe!!” Akane’s shoulders shook in fear.

“It’s really not that big of a deal…”

However, as Akane was entranced by the skilled exorcist in front of her, Saito’s words didn’t reach her ears.

“What should we do, Shisei-san!?”

“Shise just has to ‘look’ at your home. By doing so, she ‘will know’ what you’re dealing with, and how to get rid of them, so believe in Shise.” Shisei gently placed her hand on Akane’s shoulder.

“I’ll believe you! How much do I have to pay!?” Akane’s eyes lit up.

“Stop offering money!” Saito broke between his wife and little sister to stop the exchange of monetary goods.

The way home, Saito, Akane, and Shisei all walked together. It was a long walkway with trees growing on the sides. Students on their bikes drove past the three, as their uniforms shook in the breeze. Shisei’s expression was devoid of any emotion as always, but since her steps seemed lighter than usual, Saito figured she must be in a good mood.

“It’s been a while since Shise got to go home together with Brother. And this might be the first time she goes home with Akane.”

“Y-Yes…” Akane awkwardly looked around her surroundings.

She must be worried about running into one of their classmates.

“Maybe you should have gone home separated from us, Akane?”

“No! Shisei-san stands out a lot, so somebody might be following us. I need to be around and stand guard in case someone we know is around us!”

“I seriously doubt anybody would follow us.” Saito shrugged his shoulders, but Shisei shook her head.

“Shise often is being followed. Before, a girl came with her to her house, and smiled with ‘Welcome back’ when they entered Shise’s room.”

“That’s way too terrifying! Were you okay after that!?”

“Totally fine. Gramps figured this would happen, so he told Shise to hold this.” Shisei smiled, and took out what looked like a magic wand.

However, at the tip of the electrodes, sparks kept flashing up.

“This is the Special Houjou Self-Defensive Invention—The sure-fire trial win stun gun, leaving behind no traces!”

“Despite having such a fantasy-esque look, it sure has a fiendish name alright…”

“Nobody ever managed to stand its ground against that. Even that girl came begging for more the next day.”

“Does this really help with self-defense, I wonder?” Saito retorted.

Rather, it sounded like it could become a habit for certain people. Despite that, Akane looked at it with great interest.

“A stun gun…It’s my first time seeing it with my own eyes. It looks cute.”

“Shise has two of those, so you can have one, Akane. You can use it when Brother is sexually harassing you.”

“Really!? Thanks a lot!”

“Hold on, don’t enforce any of this.” Saito picked up Shisei, and dragged her away from Akane right before she could hand over the stun gun.

His own home was already far too dangerous, so he’d rather not turn it into a living hell.

“Shise has exorcised many spirits with this stun gun already.”

“Stun guns work against spirits!?”

Shisei nodded confidently.

“It works. Ghosts are like a disturbance in the magnetic field, and the electrical signals in their brains start separating and act independently, so electricity works really well.”

“I see…Shisei-san is so well-informed…” Akane’s gaze was filled with respect, pointed at Shisei.

I guess this is what the saying ‘A drowning man will catch at a straw’ truly means. Usually, Akane is clever and wise, but she’s in disarray, unable to think properly. Saito whispered towards Shisei.

“Don’t delude Akane too much, will you? I’m worried she’ll completely fall into this pithole, and go out to buy some pot of luck or whatever.”

Shisei responded with a quiet voice.

“It’s fine, this is all just part of Shise’s operation. If Akane thinks of Shise as a professional exorcist, she should calm down once Shise declares that ‘There are no ghosts in this house!’, right.”

“Well…you might be right…”

Shisei tapped herself on the chest, brimming with confidence.

“Shise is always Brother’s ally. She won’t do you bad.”

“That’s exactly what someone who will backstab me would say…”

That being said, Saito knew that she wouldn’t try to hurt him, so he should be safe putting his faith in her. Shortly after this conversation, the three reached their home. Akane opened the front door, and Shisei set foot inside the place.

“This is…”

“What do you say, Sensei…” Akane’s respect towards Shisei grew to the point she called her ‘Sensei’ now.

—Now, tell her, Shise! Say that there aren’t any ghosts here!

Saito looked at Shisei with hope and aspiration, and Shisei continued to do her part.

“Several ghosts are resting in this house…Soon, it will fall into the hands of the Underworld.”

“Shiseeeeeeee!?” Saito doubted his ears.

Akane grew pale.

“U-Underworld!? So is it already too late!? Maybe we should just burn down the entire house!?”

“Now hold your horses, alright!” Saito frantically stopped Akane, who was off running towards the kitchen.

He couldn’t allow a classmate of his to commit a severe crime like arson.

“Don’t worry, this is why Shise came here. She’ll find the core of this problem, and scatter the spirits that caused this.”

“Please, Sensei…!” Akane looked at Shisei like she was the messiah.

At the same time, Shisei took off her shoes, and entered the house. Acting like this was her own house, she nonchalantly walked towards the kitchen.

“I feel the presence of a ghost here.” She opened the fridge, and stood on her toes.

Using both of her hands, she took out a plastic container.

“That’s…the kinpira gobo¹ I made…”

“It gives off a dangerous scent…if we don’t do something about this, we might all collapse at any moment…”

“No way! I just made this last night!” Akane looked at the plastic container in shock and disbelief.

“There is one method to resolve this problem. Since Shise has resistance against ghosts, if she eats all of this, then…”

“You can seal the ghost inside your stomach…!? But, what will happen to your body…!?”

“It might explode…”

“Explode!?” Akane’s eyes opened in shock.

“However, that’s no problem. If Shise can protect you two, then no matter what may happen…”

“You just want to eat that, right.” Saito grabbed Shisei’s arm, who was about to open up the lid.

Shisei was unable to hide her desires, as drool ran down her cheek.

“Sensei, please take this seriously!” Even Akane threw in a complaint.

“Hmpf…” Shisei reluctantly returned the container inside the fridge.

Following that, the trained exorcist broadly and confidently looked around the open kitchen and the living room.

“Where did you see the ghost?”

“I couldn’t see it too clearly, but I heard footsteps from the living room. I think it was at around 8pm in the evening.”

“Oh…?” Shisei blinked.

“Did you realize something, Sensei…?” Akane looked at Shisei in hope.

“Hmmm…Hmm?” Shisei put her index finger on her cheek, and tilted her head together with her entire body.

“Is something there? There must be the ghost of a small child, right! I bet it’s looking at us right now!” Akane panicked as she hid her body behind the counter of the kitchen, taking out a knife from the drawer below the sink.

Or rather, she attempted to take one out, only to be frantically stopped by Saito, who used up all of his strength.

“Shise is lacking information to give proper judgement. Further investigation is needed.” Shisei left the living room, followed by Saito and Akane.

“You must have some kind of clue right? Any idea what’s going on?”

“Until Shise knows for certain, it’s best to not tell any amateur.”

“Amateur…”

Shisei wasn’t a professional exorcist either. However, Akane was too busy to embrace her own quivering body to realize.

“I’m sure that an endless amount of ghosts have been filling this house from the fridge…The door to the Underworld has opened…”

“Why did our house turn into a hotspot for ghosts? If so, that’d be pretty awesome.”

“Why!? Are you a servant of the Underworld!?” Akane screamed in disbelief, as she glared at Saito.

“Who the hell are you calling a servant of the Underworld? I don’t believe in any of this stuff, but encountering the unknown gets me excited.”

“No, it’s not exciting in the slightest! How can you feel that way!? Are you even human!?”

For some reason, Saito fell under doubt of even being the same race as them. At the same time, Shisei walked up the stairs with confident steps, and stopped in front of a door.

“What is this room?”

“My study room. Since I don’t use it for that though, it’s more like a place to read.”

“So you use it when reading lewd books?”

“Saito…?”

The two girls were staring at Saito in disbelief.

“No, I’m not reading any lewd books!”

Shisei pointed at Saito, sounding like a detective.

“Shise knows. The books you read have a lot of lewd and indecent scenes. When Shise wanted to have a look, you would always frantically close it.”

“H-How…”

“Shise can tell. She remembered the thickness of the book at the page you stopped at, and went back to reading that page later when you were gone.”

“Urk…” Saito grit his teeth.

At the same time, Akane was flabbergasted.

“Reading lewd books in my home, I won’t forgive you! Disgusting!”

“They’re normal novels! Even movies have bedroom scenes, right!”

“Shise needs to have a look at Brother’s lewd book room.”

“It’s not a lewd book room!”

“Any indecent books will get confiscated!”

Both Shisei and Akane were brimming with curiosity and the urge to find out more, as they stormed into Saito’s study room.

“Didn’t your goal change, oi!?” Saito protested, but the girls didn’t slow down at all.

Shisei first stuffed her small body into the narrow closet.

“Ohhh.”

Inside the closet, she let out a surprised voice.

“Did you find something!? Lewd book ghosts!?”

“You’re mixing up stuff now! Get your priorities straight!” Saito grabbed Shisei’s leg, pulling her out of the closet.

“Spotted Brother’s underwear.” However, she managed to grab hold of a pair of Saito’s underwear, waving it around.

“W-What are you showing to me!?” Akane blushed furiously, covering her eyes.

At the same time, Shisei buried her face in Saito’s underwear, sniffing it thoroughly.

“Doesn’t smell like Brother, but detergent. So you’re properly washing it.”

“Of course I am!?” Saito tried to steal back the underwear, but Shisei easily evaded that attack.

“First treasure of the day was found. Shise will take this home as hers.”

“Shisei-san, your hands will rot! Throw that away right now!”

“Do you want me to end up with no underwear!?”

“Brother wearing no underwear has enough strength to solve all problems of society.”

“Like hell I do!”

“Not wearing panties, you’re such a deviant!”

“You were planning to throw them away, right!?”

It took a lot of time to chase those two girls out of the room, and safely recover his underwear. As a result of that, Saito was gasping for air, and made up his mind to put his underwear in a drawer locked with a key. Having Akane see his underwear was awfully embarrassing.

“Next, Shise will investigate Akane’s study room.”

“Wait…Shisei-san…there’s no ghosts in my room…nothing there…so…” Akane showed an expression like she walked right into hell, as she grabbed Shisei’s shoulder.

Shisei tried to walk on ahead without responding, but she couldn’t move an inch.

“Don’t want your panties revealed to the world?”

“Of course not! Look for the ghosts!”

“Panties sound more interesting though.”

“It definitely doesn’t!”

Unable to make it past the iron guard, Shisei was dragged away by Akane. Saito and Akane stood to Shisei’s left and right, not allowing her to escape. There was no knowing what she would do or where she would wander off to next. The three walked down the hallway, and reached their bedroom. Akane drew back her body, clearly afraid.

“When I slept in here, I saw a shadow standing next to me.”

“What did it look like? Something like a chupacabra?” Shisei tried to gain as much information as possible.

“I have no clue what a chupacabra is supposed to be, but the shadow looked small, like a child’s.”

“Did it bite you?”

“No. When I screamed, it vanished.”

“I see…” Shisei crossed her arms, and started thinking.

“Did you figure something out?”

“…………”

“Shisei-san?” Akane tried to shake Shisei’s shoulder, but Saito stopped her.

“Wait a second. It might not look like it, but she’s clever. There’s a good chance her brain cells are working at mach speed to figure out what’s going on here…Knowing Shise, she’ll come up with the truth in a heartbeat.”

“R-Right…If it’s her…”

Saito and Akane decided to watch over Shisei. Finally, Shisei raised her head with an abrupt motion.

“Shise figured out the identity of the ghost.”

“Really!? What is it!?” Akane pushed her body forwards.

“A cat, right!? Maybe a rat!?” Saito also urged Shisei for an answer.

Silence filled the bedroom. Once the tension reached its height, Shisei raised her index finger, as she announced.

“The identity of the ghost is…Shise!!!”

““…What?””

Both Saito and Akane let out dumbfounded voices.

“U-Um…What do you mean by that?” Akane asked, confused.

“The location where the ghost appeared, the time it appeared, and the patterns it showed, it all points to the fact that Shise is that ghost. After all, Shise came here to play several times before.”

“Then tell us sooner!”

“Mnnn!”

Saito didn’t hesitate to grab Shisei’s cheeks, pulling them left and right.

“I see, so it was Shisei-san…Thank god. You should have just told us though!” Akane swayed between relief and anger, as she scolded Shisei.

Now they had figured the perpetrator, it was questioning time. Saito pulled on Shisei’s marshmallow-like cheeks, and asked without hesitation.

“I made sure to lock the door, how did you get in?”

“Mhwaa.”

“I’m glad it’s just you two kept entering our place, but why did you keep it a secret from us?”

“Fuwaaah.”

“You do not have any right to call for a lawyer, you know that right?”

“Mnnwaah.”

“Saito, let go of her cheeks, will you. She can’t even speak properly.” Akane broke between the two.

“Alright then, you have five minutes.” Saito freed the convicted criminal.

Despite that, Shisei showed no signs of this whole thing even hurting her cheeks, and instead smiled.

“Shise will answer you every question. First, the key she got from gramps.”

“That old man…” Saito’s expression was distorted in disgust.

Shisei was loved by every person in this entire world, so of course his grandfather Tenryuu was no exception. He clearly loved to spoil Shisei, unlike Saito, so it was no surprise that he would listen to a request like this. To continue, Shisei showed a peace sign.

“The second question. The reason Shisei kept it a secret from you two is because she thought that she couldn’t interrupt your lovey-dovey newlywed nights.”

“W-We’re not lovey-dovey!” Akane blushed furiously, and protested.

“You were lovey-dovey. Brother was about to fall from the bed while he was sleeping, and you desperately tried to keep him up by—”

“Gyaaa! Waaaaaah!” Akane screamed to drown out Shisei’s words.

“When I was about to fall from…what was that?”

“I-I tried to kick you off the bed since you were already about to fall off!”

“Why do you hate me so much!?”

“It’s your fault for letting your guard down! Die if you show your back, that’s the rule of this house!”

“I hate it here then! I want to live in a normal house!”

“Akane wouldn’t do something like that. In fact, she—” Shisei brought up something, but Akane covered her mouth before she could finish her sentence.

“Quiet, okay! Let’s stop talking about that for now, shall we!? And while we’re at it, forget about everything we just talked about!”

“Just what are you doing to me while I’m asleep…” Saito’s doubt and anxiety grew even worse.

He couldn’t come up with anything more cruel than being kicked off the bed. If he didn’t know any better, he would have assumed to have already died.

“Everything was resolved neatly, so Shise wants to eat dinner as a reward.”

“You were both the detective and criminal in this case, Shise!”

What kind of scam was this supposed to be?

“Shise ate Akane’s homemade food before, that was super delicious. Shise is jealous that Brother gets to eat Akane’s cooking every single day. It’s a luxury.”

“R-Really…?” Akane’s shoulders twitched.

“Shise felt like crying, that’s how delicious it was. Akane’s cooking is the best in the world.”

“W-Well, yeah! I’ve put more research and effort into it than anybody else! People who know just can tell. There’s nobody in the entire Milky Way…No, in every possible parallel world who is a better cook than me!” Akane raised her chin in confidence.

She’s clearly letting this go to her head.

“Shise wants to eat Akane’s cooking. She’s hungry…” Shisei pinched Akane’s clothes, and looked up at her with a gaze as sweet as chocolate.

It was a gesture that could kill so adorable it was. Only Saito would be able to survive this kind of attack. Naturally, Akane’s eyes were spinning.

“O-Okay! I’ll make as much of your favorite food as you want!”

It didn’t take a minute for Akane to fall.

“Delicious…Tastes like heaven…” Shisei carried the rice bowl, shaking furiously.

Lined up on the table were several dishes, still steaming. Yakisoba, grilled chicken, grilled fish, meat and mashed potatoes, pancakes, and so on. This lineup was needlessly extravagant for the three of them, but this all resulted from the fact that Akane prepared whatever Shisei asked for.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. If there’s anything else you want, just tell me!”

“Then…Stew and curry and hashed meat rice and ramen and cold Chinese noodles…”

“You hold back a bit, will you!” Saito landed a chop on Shisei’s head.

It was honestly terrifying that she probably would manage to eat all of that as well.

“Shise doesn’t need to, she can treat this like her own home.”

“You shouldn’t be the one to say that, Shise.”

“Don’t worry, Shisei-san, the happier you are, the more worthy all of my efforts have been. Unlike a certain someone who didn’t even say ‘It’s delicious’ in the beginning.” Akane gave Saito a reproachful gaze. “Look.” She pointed her chin at Shisei.

“Urk…” Saito formed a fist in regret.

However, eating dinner with more people than usual wasn’t half bad either. It gave the dinner a more comfortable and familial feeling.

“Brother, break the fish into pieces for me.”

“Yeah yeah.” Saito took out the bone from the fish.

Shisei put this on the mountain of rice, and shoved it into her mouth. Even so, because of the otherworldly beauty she possessed, it wasn’t an embarrassing sight by any means, and rather alluring and charming.

“Delish.” Shisei resembled a squirrel, stuffing its cheeks before hibernation, as she bit into the grilled fish and white rice.

As a result of that, she had rice grains all around her mouth, exactly where it doesn’t belong.

“You have some rice stuck to your cheeks.”

“Mm…”

Saito grabbed the rice with his fingers, and Shisei gave in to that. She looked like a small animal being washed with shampoo.

“Wha…” Akane let out a baffled voice.

“What’s wrong?”

“…No, it’s nothing.” She said, showing a reluctant expression.

—Maybe she’s angry because Shisei’s table manners are just that awful…?

As Saito pondered about a possible reason, Shisei grabbed some grilled chicken from his plate, using her bare hands.

“Hey, don’t eat other people’s stuff like that.”

“Mmmnn nom nom! Nom nom nom!”

Saito was too late in recovering his own food, as it had already disappeared down Shisei’s throat. In the face of that, Shisei seemed quite satisfied.

“Brother’s stuff is Shise’s stuff.”

“Like hell it is.”

“It is. It states in the constitution that the little sister has right on everything the big brother possesses. Shise looked it up.”

“Don’t make up nonsense just to prove your point.”

Saito sure as heck didn’t want to live in a country that allowed a younger sister to step on their older brother’s rights like that. He really liked Akane’s grilled chicken too.

“Can’t help it. Since Shise is so kind, she’ll give her selfish Brother some of her yakisoba.”

“Stop grabbing it with your hands!”

Shisei held some yakisoba in her hands, pushing it towards Saito. Naturally, there was nothing kind about the sight of yakisoba dangling down her hands. She however didn’t bother much with that, and stuffed the food directly into Saito’s mouth, as she tilted her head, asking.

“Is it delicious?”

“I mean, it is, but…I would have wished to eat it normally.” Saito chewed on the yakisoba with a complicated expression.

Looking over at this side, Akane’s own expression started to grow more and more disgruntled.

—This is bad alright…

Saito felt like the peace and tranquility of this family was in danger, so he quietly whispered into Shisei’s ear.

“Can’t you work on your manners a bit? Akane’s pretty diligent when it comes to that.”

“Shise has perfect manners. She hasn’t started dancing on the table yet.”

“I haven’t ever seen you do that, and if I did, I would be reconsidering our current relationship.”

“It’d be trouble if you cut off Shise. Don’t cast her aside.” Shisei clung to Saito.

Another wrinkle appeared on Akane’s brow as she saw that.

“See, Akane is angry now. At least stay calm during dinner, okay?”

“Okay. Shise will swallow her embarrassment, and act like a well-mannered young lady.”

“You are an actual lady, what are you talking about?”

Saito’s father may be an average salary man who was kicked out of the Houjou Group, but his little sister, namely Shisei’s mother, is now acting as the company president of a subsidiary business. Unlike Saito’s boring and mundane house, she lived in a flashy and luxurious residence.

Shisei fixed her seating position, and straightened her back. With dignified movement, she held the knife and fork, quietly cut the pancakes, and carried a piece into her mouth. She truly looked like a noble lady. Add her innate beauty to this, you’d think you were looking at a painting rather than reality.

“…See, you can do it.” Saito voiced his admiration, to which Shisei put one hand in front of her mouth.

“Naturally, ohoho.”

“Ohohoho…?”

With that one sentence, things started to look bad for Saito again.

“If you were to give me your order, dear big brother, I shall fulfill your request no matter how embarrassing it may be. Please, order me to relieve your wild desires tonight again.” Shisei showed a polite bow.

At the same time, Akane started quivering in rage.

“S-Saito…You always force Shisei-san to do such things…?”

“It’s a misunderstanding! Shise, don’t feed her this kind of nonsense!”

“Ohoho.”

Saito shook Shisei’s shoulders, but she just continued to let out a provocative laugh.

Dinner ended, and Saito worked on doing the dishes. Shisei sat on her knees on the same chair as before, watching Saito doing the work.

“It’s rare to see Brother do housework this earnestly.”

“I can’t have Akane do everything after all. She’s doing the cooking, I’m doing the clean-up.” Saito spoke with a loud voice to show his appeal towards Akane.

Since Akane evidently was in a bad mood, he had to attempt whatever method possible to cheer her up. However, she didn’t even catch on to this, and simply focussed on her studies in silence.

“Normally you’d keep the cups standing until they start rotting.”

“Cups can’t rot no matter how long you keep them dirt.”

“Shise can see Brother smiling innocently in a mansion that turned into a giant trash bag…”

“Can you not treat me like I’m a lost cause?” Saito turned off the faucet, wiped his wet hands dry with his shirt, and sat down on the sofa.

Shisei naturally followed him. She dove onto his knees, sprawling out.

“Since Shise is staying the night, she wants to play lots with Brother.”

“Fine by me. What do you have in mind?”

“A game. Guts Hazard 3, co-op.”

“Guts Hazard!?”

Hearing those words from Shisei, Akane’s gaze shot up from the reference book she was previously focussed on.

“Do you like guts, Akane?”

“I sure don’! Anything visceral is too much!”

“But, guts are so squishy and cute.”

“Cute…?”

It appeared as if an average person failed to understand Shisei’s values of beauty. Naturally, Saito had no idea either.

“Let’s not play GuZard today.” Saito whispered towards Shisei.

“Why? Don’t you love GuZard, Brother? That’s why Shise even…”

“Akane is bad with all this horror stuff.”

“Then she can just go to her own room to study.”

“That’s now how this works…”

If Saito did anything close to chasing her out of the room, he had reason to worry about their future married life together. Especially with someone like Akane, who could be dangerously ill-tempered, he wanted to not instigate anything.

“Then, you choose, Brother. Shise is fine as long as it’s with you.”

Shisei sat on Saito’s lap, looking up at him. She had no expression as always, but having been raised together with her, Saito felt like he saw a faint smile amidst that.

“I bought a new puzzle game about cats. Though rather than a puzzle, it’s more like an action game. Wanna play that?”

“If you thoroughly teach me the ropes, Brother.”

“Gotcha.”

Saito kept Shisei seated on his lap, as he booted up the game with the controller. On the screen appeared several hundreds of cats. Wearing clothes, wearing hats, they all had their own distinctive features.

“It’s a game where you have to catch cats who came from space to go around playing pranks. It’s basically a game of catch. I originally bought this so that Akane and I could play it together since she likes cats, but…” Saito directed his gaze over at Akane, who however shook her head.

“I’m fine, I need to prepare for tomorrow.”

“You can play this with up to four people, you know.”

“Don’t try to push me into some weird roleplay!”

“This isn’t some weird roleplay, it’s a videogame!”

“I’m saying that I don’t have time tagging along with your childish games!”

Even the sound of Akane’s pen hammering onto the paper was terrifying. It was evident that she was in an exceptionally bad mood, although Saito didn’t know for what reason.

“Brother, Brother, let’s hurry and play.” Shisei flapped her legs covered in white tights up and down.

“Y-Yeah…”

Saito selected the mode and stage, and handed the controller to Shisei. It was a wide open stage with cats running around freely and utterly uncaring, as Shisei chased after them with the playable character. However, she didn’t make much progress in catching the cat aliens.

“They’re quick to run. Do you have items like a flamethrower?”

“What do you plan on doing with a flamethrower!?” Akane complained from the table.

“By setting the player on fire, Shise was planning on catching any cats that were worried and approached her.”

“Alright, let’s maybe try to catch them with more peaceful measures. You just have to use the environment and terrain to your advantage.”

Saito put his own hands on Shisei’s to operate the controller with her. Following that, he swiftly caught the cats that got lost in the earthen pipe, or one that walked into a dead end street.

“Ohh, you’re good.”

“Right? Try it yourself.”

“Wait, help Shise out a bit longer.”

“You figured out how to do it, right?”

“Shise did, but having Brother hold her hands feels good.” Shisei rubbed her cheek against Saito’s hands.

Her snow white skin felt as smooth as silk. At the same time, Saito felt like he was caressing an adorable cat. Right there, Akane slammed her reference book shut, her hands on the table, and looked at Saito with a beet red face.

“L-Listen, you two…”

“W-What do you want…?” Saito felt tension fill the air, and readied his body.

“…………It’s nothing.” Akane opened up her reference book again.

“Like hell it’s nothing! Haven’t you been angry for a while now!?”

“I’m not angry!”

“You definitely are! Your face looks like a demon’s right now!”

“How dare you call a girl a demon like that! Should I pull out all your front teeth for you!?”

“Scary!”

Undoubtedly, she was a demon. Saito couldn’t afford to lose his pride as a man in front of his little sister, but he really wanted to run away and lock himself up in his room. Now that it has come to this, he decided to evacuate from this place, but keep his honor. For that, he stood up.

“It’s gotten late already, so I’ll be taking my bath now…”

“Shise will join you.” Shisei followed him like it was the most natural thing in the world.

“Hold on!? Shisei-san, you’re the same age as us, right!?” Akane jolted up from her chair.

“To be perfectly honest, we’re not the same age. Brother is 18, and Shise is 17.”

“That’s not the problem here! I’m saying that you are definitely not at an age where you should be taking baths together, right!?”

Shisei just clung to Saito’s waist.

“Shise always takes baths with Brother.”

“Always!?”

“But not that many times as of late, make sure you add that!”

“As of late!? Not that many!?” Akane’s eyes were spinning in confusion.

Shisei just tilted her head.

“If we two can’t, why don’t we all go in together?”

“Never!! You both take a bath each, separately! Get on with it!”

“Yessir!”

Saito ran out of the living room before the ticking bomb known as Akane would explode.

When Saito was reading a book on his bed, Akane entered the room right after she finished her shower. As always, despite being at home, she showed not a single opening in terms of her outfit. She put her smartphone and water bottle on the small desk, and sat down on the bed.

“Where’s Shisei-san?”

“Still playing a game. I prepared a guest futon for her, and put it down in the living room, so she’ll eventually slip into that once she’s tired.”

Not to mention that Saito found sleeping wear the size of Shisei, so his grandfather probably predicted that Shisei would come to stay over eventually. Akane let out a sigh.

“So we can finally talk as just the two of us.”

“Hm…? Did you want to talk to me?” Saito was surprised to hear that, but Akane quickly corrected herself.

“N-Not at all! I just have an endless amount of complaints to throw at you! Those are hard to say in front of Shisei-san after all!”

“You’re constantly picking fights with me at school, even if it’s in front of Shise, right?”

In Akane’s dictionary, the word restraint should not exist.

“S-S-Shut up! Stop talking back to me about every small thing, or I’ll get angry!”

“You’re already angry though?” Also, Saito wasn’t talking back at all, he was merely asking obvious questions. “Well, whatever. Just get in.” Saito lifted one side of the blanket.

“Wha…Stop with that nonsense!” Akane blushed furiously.

“Why?”

“Because it’s indecent!”

“How is this indecent?”

“It sure is! N-Nonchalantly inviting a girl…next to you in bed…” Akane seemed even more embarrassed now, and covered her cheeks with both her hands.

Getting this unexpected reaction, Saito grew flustered himself.

“I-I wasn’t inviting you! I just figured that you wouldn’t stop complaining once you started, so I was urging you to hop in bed before your body gets cold right after your bath!”

“W-What are you plotting, suddenly being so kind to me…?” Akane grew suspicious.

“I’m not plotting anything either! I just didn’t want to bother with nursing you back to health in case you caught a cold again!”

“I wonder…Maybe I should have bought some bombs for self-protection…”

“That’s not self-protection but overkill!”

“You wouldn’t die from an explosion like that.”

“I think you’re putting too much trust in me, okay.”

Despite complaining on and on, Akane still snuggled into the bed. Saito used the remote to turn off the lights, and the nightlight shone down on them with a comfortable orange color. Akane’s hair was still a bit wet, as it covered the pillow.

“I’ll hear out your complaints.”

“Yeah…Um…this morning, you forgot to bring out the trash, right?”

Saito heard this, and showed an invincible smile.

“Hehe…I haven’t forgotten. I just wanted to see what kind of phenomenon would occur if I kept the trash stored up for a week.”

“Stop that, you’ll just cause a tragedy.” Akane was horrified.

“You’ll never know if you don’t try. Did you ever confirm it with your own eyes?”

“I really don’t want to either!”

“I do. It’s the secret of life.”

“Then don’t try it! You’re just trying to come up with a believable excuse, right!”

“Found me out, huh.”

“Of course I would, geez…” Akane sighed in exhaustion.

“Sorry, I’ll do it next time.”

“Please do.

Normally, Akane would be much more agitated than this, but she was oddly docile that night. It’s almost like her main goal wasn’t to simply complain, but actually just talk with Saito.

—Nah, I’m thinking too deeply about this.

Saito felt embarrassed at how overly self-conscious his thought process had turned.

“Anything else?”

“Hmm…That cat game, if you really bought it for me, I wish you would have told me sooner.”

“You’re always busy studying, so I didn’t want to get in your way.”

“You wouldn’t have. Even I need a break from time to time. Not to mention…I wanted to play it first.”

“You wanted to get better than me, all to completely stomp me? So malicious.” Saito grumbled.

“No! That’s not what I meant. I wanted to play it before Shisei-san…” Akane played with the blanket while awkwardly muttering these words.

“So you wanted to crush Shise as well…Pure evil.”

“Again, that’s not…Um, well…Ahh, I don’t get it! Why did I want to play it first!?”

“How am I supposed to know!?”

What kind of outburst was that supposed to be? Saito had no idea.

“Then understand it! Are all those good grades for nothing!?”

“What’s that supposed to mean!”

“I’m saying that nothing would change even if you attached a brand new computer to kamaboko²!”

“I don’t remember being that!?”

“Ahh, how regrettable, your memories have been played with…You undoubtedly are a fine portion of kamaboko.”

“Nonsense!”

Despite it being late at night, those two were fighting as always. Even amidst this heated atmosphere, there was something intimacy and familiarity to be found. Akane stretched her arms in satisfaction.

“Phew, I feel refreshed now…”

“Because we fought? You crazy.”

“I need to at least throw one complaint at you per day, it seems.”

“Can you stop making it sound like I was some punching bag you needed to hit at least once a day?”

However, Saito equally felt a lot more relaxed. Letting out your pent-up tension and displeasure in a banter like this might be the best. It made him feel like they had gotten closer as well.

“Was that all?”

“Ah…One more thing.”

“What is it?” Saito asked, to which Akane awkwardly averted her gaze.

“U-Um…Well…about Shisei-san.”

“Sorry that I let her stay over out of the blue like that.”

“That’s fine! I wanted her to eat my dinner anyway. She’s very cute as well. But…how do I say this…aren’t you looking after her a bit too much?”

“She’s the type of person to start eating stones from the side of the road if I don’t pay attention. Is that a problem?”

“Not…really…But…Hm…? Why was I complaining…Urk…” Akane grit her teeth.

“Hey now, don’t leave me hanging like this.”

“You don’t need to know! Enough about that!” Akane rolled around on the bed, turning her back towards Saito.

“That won’t do. I want to know more about you.”

“M-More about me!? W-W-W-Why!?” Akane’s shoulders jolted up.

“Now that we’re living together like this, it would be best for us to know more about the other, right? Would make things go more smoothly.”

“Ah, t-that’s what you meant! I see!”

“Why are you panicking like that?”

“I’m not panicking at all! Don’t act all arrogant now!”

“How am I acting arrogant…” Saito was bewildered.

“But…I don’t really get it myself…Why am I feeling so conflicted…”

“Conflicted? Got a heavy stomach?”

“Not that…It’s just…Eeek!?” Akane raised a shriek, turned over towards Saito, and scowled. “Y-You…you just touched my butt, right…”

“Huuuuh? There’s no way I would…Whaa!?” Feeling something tickle his thighs, Saito screamed as well. “You just touched my thighs as well, right!?”

“What would I gain from doing something so sinister!?”

“You’re the sinister one! I’m not so stupid to lay my hands on a dragon!”

“How am I a dragon!? I’ll burn your hair to a crisp so that not a single strain will be left over, you hear me!?”

“That’s exactly what I mean!”

They sent sparks at each other, when…

“Be quiet, Shisei can’t sleep like this.” Shisei pushed out her face from beneath the blanket.

She apparently had snuggled into their bed without them knowing.

“Shisei-san!?”

“Since when!?”

“Before human civilization began.”

“Hell no you didn’t!”

“Right around the time Brother started talking to himself with ‘He he he…once Akane comes back from her bath, I’ll get a good taste of her butt!’, Shise thinks.”

“Saito…I knew it…”

“That’s a lie as well!”

Being met with a gaze full of killing intent, Saito frantically denied Shisei’s nonsense. Betting his life on the line for a girl’s behind, the imbalance was too great for him to risk anything like that.

“Shise will also sleep with Brother. That’s how we always do it when she stays over at his place.”

“Always…Not only taking a bath, you also sleep together…?” Akane’s brow furrowed in suspicion.

“Not always! Just when Shise doesn’t let up, like today…”

“Shise’s always been with Brother ever since she was a child, so being with him is the most relaxing.” Shisei’s slender legs clung to Saito’s.

He felt the sensation of skin directly on his. Burying her face in Saito’s chest, Shisei let out a satisfied sigh.

“B-But, he prepared a futon for you in the living room, right?”

“Being alone is too lonely. Not fair that Akane gets to stay with Brother all the time.”

“I-It’s not unfair at all! I’m not doing this because I want to or enjoy it!”

“Really?” Shisei looked directly at Akane’s face.

“Really! This marriage was just decided because of my grandparents! That’s why…yeah! If there was another person added now, they would get angry!”

“That should be fine then. Shise called Grandpa and got permission. He told Shise to ‘Do whatever you want’.”

“He really is spoiling you rotten…”

Knowing that he probably would give Shisei an entire company if she asked for it, Saito shuddered in fear. So that she wouldn’t attempt anything foul, he once again made up his mind to properly feed her whenever she asked for it. The moment she realizes that she can get as many steamed buns as she wants simply by taking over the Houjou Group, it’ll be over for Saito.

“If you want to keep Brother for yourself that badly, then it can’t be helped.”

“I-I’m not desperate for that or anything!”

“So that Shise isn’t in the way during your lovemaking, Shise will sleep on the floor.”

“We never did anything like that!”

“So you had plans tonight? Shise is sorry for interrupting you.” Shisei got off the bed.

“There were no plans either! Don’t make up your own story like that! Let’s just all sleep together, okay!?” Akane frantically pulled Shisei back into the bed.

Saito eventually fell asleep, leaving Akane awake with conflicted feelings. Since Shisei slept between the two of them, she was safe and sound from any potential sexual harassment, but even so…Having two girls, two classmates of yours, sleeping next to you, and fall asleep even faster than Akane herself, she wondered what kind of mental resistance and strength this man had. Hearing his faint snoring only agitated Akane even further.

“Akane, your breasts are surprisingly big.”

“Kyaaaaaa!?”

Feeling small hands energetically fondle her chest, Akane let out a shriek. She pulled herself up on the bed after rolling off, and covered her chest.

“You were awake!? Also, why are you just assaulting me like that!? Are you into that sort of thing!?”

“It’s not sexual assault, Shise is just touching the breasts that fate put in front of her.”

“If that logic worked in court, then molestation would be forgiven by the law!”

“Other girls desperately beg for Shisei to touch their boobs.”

“I think you should maybe talk to your teachers about that.”

Akane started to feel concerned for Shisei’s safety. She understood that Shisei was very mature, and that everybody was fawning over here, but some things just went too far.

“So you’re jealous, Akane.”

“Eh, what are you talking about?”

“About Brother. When Shise and Brother were flirting around, you got angry, right?”

“H-Huuuh!? I wasn’t angry at all!”

Shisei pressed the tip of her finger against Akane’s chin.

“Lies. You tried to stop Shise from taking a bath together with Brother. Same with sleeping together.”

“T-That’s…It would be weird for a boy and girl your age to take baths together! Of course I would stop you if you tried to do something so indecent in my home!” Akane rattled on and on, as she felt her blood boil.

—I definitely wasn’t…feeling jealous.

She had no feelings or affection whatsoever for Saito. She just felt embarrassed to be misunderstood, which is why the blood rushed to her head.

“You can’t deceive Shise’s eyes.” Shisei gently put her cool palm on Akane’s burning cheeks.

As if to confirm Akane’s warmth, she gently ran her hand along her face, neck, and earlobe. With her eyes that shone brighter than a starry night sky, but with an expression devoid of any emotion, she looked at Akane. She felt like her soul was being sucked deeper into Shisei’s being, unable to let her escape.

“Akane, are you flustered?”

“Not in the slightest!”

“Since Brother is as dense as a brick, he won’t get it unless you tell him.”

“Tell him what!?”

Shisei let out a faint breath.

“Shise is a bit relieved now. She was worried if Brother could live happily here.”

“…What do you mean?” Akane asked, but received no answer.

Shisei simply snuggled up into Saito’s arms, and rubbed her face against his chest.

“Night.”

“Hey, don’t leave me hanging like this! Also, you’re way too close! Do you not have any shame!?”

Akane tried to pull Shisei off Saito, but Shisei fell asleep soon after.

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1 Chopped burdock root (and sometimes carrot) cooked in sugar and soy sauce

2 Steamed seasoned fish paste, usu. in a semi cylindrical shape on a strip of wood and sliced to go in soup, etc.