Taiwan Release Special
Intermission: A Woman’s Lifeline Is Her Hair
*This story contains spoilers. Please read it after the main story.
The washroom in Nukumizu’s house.
Kaju exclaimed excitedly after watching Komari’s reflection in the mirror.
“It really suits you, Komari-senpai!”
It was natural for Kaju to be this excited.
Komari was now dressed in a black Gothic Lolita-style dress.
She shivered timidly, and Kaju, holding her shoulders, turned her towards the mirror.
"The bow at the chest is the perfect finishing touch! If you don't mind, please allow Kaju to include this photo in the <Record of Onii-sama's Sixteenth Year>-"
“T-That’s…”
Komari frantically grabbed her smartphone and rapidly tapped the screen.
<Wouldn't something like a tracksuit be better? Don't you have any regular clothes?>
Kaju was stunned for a moment upon seeing the screen held up before her. She then nodded with a sincerely apologetic expression.
"Sorry, this is the only set I can lend to Senpai right now."
“Fueh…? T-That’s…”
That is impossible. Komari reached for her smartphone to argue, yet Kaju firmly grasped her hand.
"Alright, Komari-senpai. Since we have this chance, how about we try changing your hairstyle too? I have practiced especially for moments like this."
Kaju quietly moved Komari's smartphone away before taking out a comb and a hairdryer.
"Alright, let’s polish Komari-senpai's cuteness. Onii-sama will surely be mesmerized!"
“M-Mesmer…!?”
Komari froze. Kaju took this opportunity to start combing her hair.
After carefully combing the freshly washed hair, she began braiding a part of the bangs.
"...And finally, put on this headband. There, the adorable Komari-senpai is all set!"
“Fueh!?”
Komari hadn't moved until now, as if she was in a dream, but she was stunned again upon seeing herself in the mirror.
In the mirror was not the usual disheveled hair but a girl with braids and a lace headband.
Kaju whispered to Komari softly from behind.
"Hair is a woman's life. Komari-senpai is so cute that you can turn into a princess at any time, okay?"
“T-This is m-me-”
Kaju nodded and handed Komari’s smartphone back to her.
"Komari-senpai, Kaju will keep up to date with onii-sama's anime preferences, so you can always ask Kaju. By the way, his current trend is cat-eared maids."
The feel of the smartphone seemed to bring Komari back to her senses.
She hurriedly looked at the screen, which displayed a message.
<Please take care of onii-sama from now on, senpai.>
The message is from- Kaju Nukumizu.
“Fueh!?”
It was inevitable for Komari to be surprised, as she didn't remember exchanging contact information with Kaju.
“W-When did w-we…?”
Kaju remained silent with a beaming smile.
Then, she firmly took Komari's arm and forcefully pushed open the door of the washroom.
"Come on, let's make some delicious chocolate with Kaju!"
Intermission: No Plant Called a Weed, Says the Girl
After school one day.
As I walked into the club room, I saw Yanami with her arms crossed, reclining in a chair as if she had been waiting for a long time.
“You’re finally here, Nukumizu-kun. Wait a minute! Why are you turning around to leave!?”
"Because it feels like trouble."
...I missed my chance to escape. Suppressing a sigh, I sat down opposite to Yanami.
Bang! Yanami slammed an empty milk bottle onto the table.
A flower was inserted in the bottle.
“...Uh, did someone die?”
"No one died. I just picked this weed from the courtyard flower bed because it looked pretty, as part of beautifying the school."
Oh, Yanami has such a delicate sensibility too?
"Someone seems to doubt my girl power lately, right? I wanted to show that I'm also a capable woman."
I see. But just putting a wildflower in a milk bottle isn't enough to make up for the accumulated deficits, you know?
I observed the flower Yanami referred to as a weed.
The white flower was nearly the size of a 500-yen coin, shaped like an upside-down rice bowl.
Indeed, it's hard to just throw it away after seeing such a beautiful flower bloom from a weed. Although it's hard-
"...Is this really naturally grown?"
"Of course. Normally, you wouldn't plant flowers in winter, right? It's definitely a weed."
Is that how you’re telling what’s and what’s not a weed?
I stared at the stem and leaves. They seemed familiar…
“This should be a Christmas Rose, right?”
“Eh? What’s that?”
"It's a flower that blooms in winter. I thought the leaves looked familiar. I have a variety with eight petals at home."
"But there was only this one flower in the flower bed, so it must have grown there on its own."
…Hmm? If this is the only flower in there-
"There shouldn't be just one plant growing on its own in an unattended flower bed, okay? This rather proves someone has been taking care of it, right?"
Yanami finally accepted it. Her eyes widened.
“Wait, if what you say is true…”
"That means- Yanami-san, you randomly picked someone else's flower."
Yanami remained silent. I looked at her and started digging into my past memories.
Come to think of it- I pulled out a small notebook from the inner pocket of my suit jacket.
"Yep. Shikiya-senpai planted something there around October."
"So, the flower we just plucked...was the one planted by that senpai?"
Hold up. You were the only one who did it.
“Uh, I just remembered something urgent. I should head home.”
Yanami immediately grabbed my arm and stopped me from escaping.
"Wait, Nukumizu-kun, you're an accomplice too, right!?"
Absolutely not. As we pushed and pulled while entering a deadlock, suddenly, the lights in the club room began to flicker.
Finally, the fluorescent light went completely dark after flickering for a while and a crackling sound was heard.
...Strange, has this room always been this cold?
The door of the club room opened slowly as I shivered from the cold.
“There’s no such plant…called a…weed, you know…?”
“Kya!” (x2)
Her white iris glowed eerily in the shadows.
Yanami and I couldn’t help but hug each other. Shikiya-san staggered as she took a step toward us-
Intermission: Just Kidding
*This story contains spoilers. Please read it after the main story.
A weekend morning. In the Nukumizu family's garden, Kaju and Gon-chan stood side by side. Their gazes are fixed on the same spot.
At the focus of their attention was a bonsai on a wooden stand.
"Nuku-chan chose a maple instead of a pine."
Kaju nodded after seeing Gon-chan happily poking the branches.
"I thought I would choose something different from Gon-chan for a change. It's a bit lonely without any leaves at this time of the year."
Kaju started cultivating bonsai under her friend’s influence.
Holding a book in one hand, she tried to imitate the instructions, but it was harder to get the hang of it than she thought.
"Kaju wants to wire it while the weather is still cold. Gon-chan, can you teach me how?"
"Leave it to me! First, you need to decide on the shape, then tie the wire around the trunk-"
Gon-chan seemed to shift into teaching mode instantly.
She hovered a head taller than Kaju anxiously, occasionally interjecting and lending a hand.
"Let’s tie two wires here. Ah, the angle needs to be more slanted."
"Sheesh, Gon-chan gets so fussy when it comes to bonsai."
Kaju said with a smile. Gon-chan put her hands on her hips and pouted.
"Can't help it. Wiring is tricky, you know?"
"Hehe, true. And it might leave a mark if it goes wrong."
First, they wrapped the wire around the trunk and then carefully bent the branches.
"Ugh. This is kind of scary. Feels like it'll break if I'm not careful."
"Maple branches are harder, so be careful. Yeah, just like that."
Kaju slowly bent the branches as she mumbled softly.
"-If only I could tie onii-sama down like this."
Gon-chan's smile froze upon hearing Kaju's calm whisper.
“...Nuku-chan?”
"Kaju keeps thinking about this lately. Perhaps onii-sama and I can be together forever if I make him incapable of living without me.”
Kaju bent the branches even more after saying that.
"Being younger is an advantage. Once onii-sama decides on his path, I can join the same university or company. Or maybe make onii-sama re-take exams? That way, we’ll have more time together, and in the end, if Kaju works to support him-"
“W-Wait, Nuku-chan…?”
Kaju shrugged her shoulders before cutely sticking out her tongue.
“Hehe, just kidding."
"O-Of course- just kidding. A-Ahaha."
"Hehehe, so strange. It was just a joke."
They laughed at each other for a while, and then Kaju stepped back to look at the bonsai.
"Hmm, looks pretty good. What do you think, Gon-chan?"
“Eh? Y-Yeah. Looks good."
“It must be true if you say so.”
They exchanged glances, somehow finding the situation amusing, and laughed together.
After their hearty laughter, Kaju's brother opened the living room window and poked his face out.
“You’re here, Gondou-san. Welcome.”
"Ah, onii-san. Sorry for disturbing you at noon."
"No worries. I'm about to make lunch. Stay and eat with Kaju before you go, hmm?"
Nukumizu left those words and headed to the kitchen.
Gon-chan suddenly mumbled while watching his slender figure.
“...He does look good being all tied up.”
“Right? You get it too.”
They looked at each other again with their laughter ringing like silver bells.
Intermission: Buying Without Meeting Anyone
Just after the New Year, on a winter holiday afternoon.
A few minutes walk from Atsuta Shrine in Nagoya, I found myself at the Meitetsu Jingumae branch of the Smart Bookstore.
My family and I had just returned from a New Year visit to Atsuta Shrine, and there was a reason for splitting up and going our separate ways.
This store allows you to order books online, pick them up yourself, and check out on your own. It's truly a bookstore of the modern era.
After experiencing self-checkout for the first time, I left the store and opened the package of the book I ordered.
Inside was a new light novel titled <I Decided to Keep My Virginity in a School Where You Can’t Level Up Without Sex>.
There was no particular reason for choosing this book. It was simply because its release date was recent. That’s all.
I felt someone's gaze while looking at the cover with satisfaction.
…Shit, even though I'm some distance from my hometown, now is not the time to be grinning like an idiot in public.
Just when I tried to put up a serious look-
“Oh, it’s really you, Nukumizu-san.”
I heard a familiar voice.
"...Eh? Teiara-san, what are you doing here?"
Indeed, the person speaking to me was Teiara Basori, a classmate at Tsuwabuki High School and a member of the student council.
It wasn’t my fault. I didn’t notice her before she spoke up.
She was dressed in a kimono, her usually tied-back hair adorned with a beautiful hair accessory.
"My mother's ancestral home is nearby. Also, please don't address me by my first name."
Teiara-san looked displeased and glanced at the book in my hand.
“...I don’t think it’s very appropriate to stare at such a book in public.”
“No, no, you got it wrong. The content is alright- uh, it’s not like I know, but this is just a normal novel.”
Even though Teiara-san said this, she also had a book wrapped in a package from Smart Bookstore in her hand.
Heh, I knew she was the same-
Teiara-san uttered a “my, my” after noticing my glance, probably.
It was the first time I heard someone actually say that.
"Listen, the duty of a student is to study. It's time to strengthen our resolve at the beginning of the year.”
Teiara-san pulled a reference book out of her package after delivering her sermon.
The title is <Give Up If This Book Doesn't Work Either! Sure Win, Classical Japanese and Chinese Texts>.
It's just after New Year, and the title is already so melodramatic…
I haven't even opened my notebook this year. Teiara-san is admirable.
“You’re right, Basori-san. Let me take a look at that.”
I reached my hand out for the reference book.
“Eh? Please wait-”
Thud. A book fell to the ground. It seemed there was another book hidden behind the reference book.
The title was <I Want to Fall in Love Even in a Boys' School! School Romance Is the Best>.
Teiara-san quickly picked up the book. She plopped her head down as her face and neck turned red.
“D-Did you see it…?”
"I didn't see anything! My, my, we're high school students. That kind of thing is very common-”
“You clearly saw it!”
Teiara-san pressed me with teary eyes. I comforted her while recalling the fortune slip I had drawn earlier.
I remember it said-
"Disputes: Avoid. Certain Loss."
...Turns out fortune slips can be pretty accurate.
I thought to myself, letting the first trouble of the New Year run rampant.
*Today's bookstore: Smart Bookstore - Meitetsu Jingumae Branch
A new type of bookstore under Sanyodo Bookstore, where you can order books online and pick them up yourself. Apparently, many customers can't help but wish they had this while they were young…
Intermission: The Saying Goes, “Cold Hands, Warm Heart”, So What About Those With Warm Hands-
Seibunkan Bookstore, near Toyohashi Station.
I went to the fast-food restaurant next door after buying a newly released light novel.
This restaurant and the Seibunkan Bookstore on the first floor are connected, creating the perfect combo for eating fries and reading a book after shopping.
I took a spot in the indoor seating area on the second floor, savoring the feel of my usual book cover, and opened the book.
The book accompanying me today is the new release <I Have Five Divorce Records After the Heroine Contest Ended>.
A shadow fell across my book while I was reading the tumultuous beginning of the story and sipping on my cola.
Looking up, I saw Yumeko Shikiya, a member of the Student Council at Tsuwabuki High School, standing right in front of me.
Her body swayed slightly, and her white eyes looked down at me.
"Is this seat...taken...?"
“Eh!? Ah, it’s not taken-”
I freaked out and answered. Shikiya-san sat down across from me before inserting a straw into her paper cup.
"It's because...they started selling...peach milkshakes..."
As always, she likes doing things her way.
Many girls at Tsuwabuki are like this, but she is particularly extreme.
"Uh, senpai, do you like peach milkshakes?"
“Yes, I do…”
After nodding, Shikiya-senpai took a sip from the straw- and then she stopped moving.
...Is she still alive? It's unsettling. Please give me a blink, at least.
As I ate my fries and watched her, Shikiya-senpai eventually opened her mouth and released the straw.
“...Milkshake, …too thick, …can’t suck.”
“No way.”
I couldn't help but blurt out, but we’re talking about Shikiya-san, after all. It wouldn't be surprising if she had the lung capacity of a toddler.
At that moment, Shikiya-san tilted her head and stared straight at me.
“Suck it…for me…?”
“...What?”
Suck it for her? It's not like she's giving me the whole thing because she can't drink it, right?
Shikiya-san handed me the milkshake when I felt puzzled.
"Just...help me with the first sip...then I can...suck it too..."
I see. So, I just need to get the milkshake up the straw, and then she'll be able to drink it easily after that.
...Wait, isn't this what people call an indirect kiss?
Is it really okay? We're not even dating, and now this indirect kiss-
At this moment, I thought of a certain classmate who doesn't mind eating leftovers from others at all.
Compared to Yanami, an indirect kiss seems like a trivial matter. Yeah, it must be. It’s just a trivial thing.
I convinced myself while staring at the end of the straw stained with a hint of shiny lip gloss.
Alright, here I go. It's just an indirect first kiss. I won't back down-
I gripped the paper cup tightly without moving. Then, Shikiya-san gently wrapped her hands around mine.
“Hey, senpai!?”
She lifted the milkshake, lips on the straw, pausing for a long while.
...And she stopped moving again. What?
I saw Shikiya-senpai open her mouth as I waited anxiously. Her lips were then coated with a streak of creamy white.
“There we go…”
Ah, she managed to drink it. Could it be because I was holding the cup so tightly that the milkshake melted a bit...?
Just as I pondered whether I should feel happy or disappointed-
"Your hands... are so warm..."
Shikiya-san mumbled before putting the straw in her mouth again.
-I had a feeling that she was smiling warmly somehow.
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