Chapter 10 | April 11th (7:00 AM)

Well then.

The consecutive days of home visits will finally come to an end today.

Naturally, the place I’ll be visiting today is that person, and for various reasons, this is something I’m not exactly looking forward to. That said, it would be obviously unnatural to skip her home visit at this point.

Therefore, I’ll have to convince my little sister again today to create some time for myself.

Hmm.

What should I do?

On the first day, I used excessive praise, and on the second day, I used praise plus bait to coax her. I somehow managed to convince her, but I’m not sure if the same tactic will work again.

Akiko’s thought process is incredibly simple, and she happily listens to whatever I say. But if my suspicious behavior continues for three days, even she’ll start to get suspicious.

If Akiko finds out about my home visits, it’s certain to cause trouble. What should I do…? Not that I have any brilliant ideas…

I’ve thought about it from every angle, but I’m at a dead end.

I guess I’ll just have to brace myself and push through, even if it means upsetting my sister—just as I was about to steel myself for that…

A small miracle occurred.

Well, calling it a “miracle” might be a bit too positive, but it’s true that the timing was perfect. It definitely gave me a glimmer of hope in this otherwise hopeless situation.

But in the grand scheme of things, this is probably a net zero… no, it’s definitely going to cause more headaches, right? No doubt about it.

Oh well.

For now, I’ll make the most of this opportunity and focus all my energy on getting through this pinch.

◆

In the usual student dormitory, in the familiar manager’s room.

I called out to my sister’s back as she hummed a tune while making breakfast.

“Hey, Akiko. I need to talk—”

“As soon as Onii-chan called out to me, Akiko quickly took the initiative.”

“Huh?”

This was an unexpected reaction.

“What? What do you mean?”

“You’re underestimating me. I can pretty much guess what you’re about to say.”

“Oh? And what would that be?”

“You’re going to say that after school today, you can’t come home with me again, right? You’re planning to commit such an outrageous act of neglect toward your adorable little sister, aren’t you?”

“By the way, neglect refers to child abandonment. Are you admitting that you’re a social weakling who can’t survive without someone taking care of you, like a baby with no social skills?”

“Trying to shut me down with that kind of logic won’t work. For the past two days, I’ve shown the mercy of a kind little sister and turned a blind eye to your outrageous behavior. But today is different. Today, no matter what, you’re coming home with me.”

“No matter what?”

“Of course.”

“You won’t change your mind?”

“Absolutely not. I have a righteous cause. Even if the world turned upside down right now, I wouldn’t budge.”

“I see. I understand how you feel.”

I nodded solemnly.

“By the way, while I was organizing some moving boxes, I happened to find this.”

“What is it? I can see right through your attempt to change the subject, but I’m not falling for—”

Click.

My sister froze mid-reach as I held out the item.

Several seconds passed.

With a stiff expression, she looked at me and shook her head and hands simultaneously.

Then she spoke.

“That ain’t it.”

“…Why did you suddenly switch to Kansai dialect? I’d love to hear the reason in detail.”

“It’s not mine! Really, it’s not!”

“This book is yours, right?”

“No, it’s not! It just happened to end up in my possession, but it’s not like I bought it with my own allowance or anything—”

“Your name is written on the inside cover, though?”

“Ah, crap!? My habit of writing my name on all my belongings backfired!?”

Well then.

What could it be that I happened to find, something that made my sister so flustered she slipped into Kansai dialect?

“It’s not what you think! Really, it’s not! Please consider that I’m at an age where I’m going through puberty and make a fair judgment!”

It was a book.

A paperback, priced around 1,000 yen, the kind that’s fairly popular in this country, second only to pocket books.

Of course, there’s nothing inherently wrong with that, but…

“Published by Min’anshobou. Forbidden Love Story.”

“Huh!?”

“‘Sixteen-year-old high school student Akio harbors secret feelings for his younger sister, Akina.’”

“W-Wait, Onii-chan!? Don’t read the synopsis out loud!”

“‘Having kept his feelings hidden since childhood, Akio can no longer suppress his forbidden desires after a minor incident.’”

“Eek!?”

“‘Meanwhile, Akina gradually becomes aware of her brother’s feelings. Eventually, the two find themselves irresistibly drawn to each other—’”

“Eeek!?”

“The cover illustration shows Akio and Akina in a passionate embrace.”

“P-Please stop, Onii-chan… I give up…”

Looking down at my sister, who was crouched on the tatami mat, writhing and gasping for breath,

“Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

“P-Please pretend you didn’t see it…”

“That’s going to be tough.”

“It’s not what you think! It’s a misunderstanding!”

Summoning all her strength, my sister stood up and began to explain.

“Don’t be fooled by the title and cover! This book is amazing! It’s provocative, but it’s ultimately a pure love story!”

“The theme is incest, though?”

“No! It’s not something vulgar like that! This is literature! I’m not reading it with any impure thoughts!”

“The main characters are named Akio and Akina.”

“I admit I was drawn in by the characters’ names! But that was just the starting point! If you read other works by Shindou Kouichirou—the author—you’ll understand!”

“…Akiko, are you a fan of this author?”

“A huge fan!”

“…Seriously…?”

“Onii-chan!? Don’t look so disgusted! That really hurts!”

“Well, I mean…”

While I was feeling gloomy, my sister seemed to regain her energy.

“Please, give it a try! You’ll definitely see how good it is!”

“I’ll pass.”

“At least read the beginning!”

“No, thanks. Really, spare me.”

So that’s her plan, huh?

She’s trying to turn this misfortune into an opportunity and rope me into her side, isn’t she? Absolutely not.

“Akiko.”

“Will you read it?”

“I won’t. That said, everyone has their own tastes. I have a lot I want to say to you about this book, but I also want to respect your interests as much as possible.”

“S-So…?”

“This time, I’ll pretend I never saw this book. Just like you wanted.”

“Really!?”

“But you have to promise me something. From now on, keep this kind of book somewhere I’ll never see it.”

“Understood.”

“And never bring up this book again.”

“Got it.”

“One last thing. You have to let me make a detour after school today.”

“Ugh… T-That’s a separate issue…”

“You’ll allow it, right?”

“Ughhh…”

Even as she tried to resist, my sister seemed to realize her weak position.

Eventually, with a resigned look, she slumped and said,

“…Fine. Akiko will behave and stay home today.”

“Good. Do that.”

“But please come back as soon as you can, okay? I’ll make something delicious for dinner. It’s a promise, okay?”

“Okay. I’ll try my best.”

◆

And so, I somehow managed to convince my sister on the third day as well.

…Good grief.

Still, she’s picked quite the unusual hobby. Did it have to be something so specific?

Or maybe using this as leverage was a bad idea? Would it have been better to just pretend I never saw it?

No, but once I’ve seen it, I can’t just ignore it. It’s better to use it as a bargaining chip.

I have a feeling this will come back to haunt me later… but for now, I’ll focus on the immediate problem.