Volume 7 Chapter 3

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Missionary activities to build friendship

Part 1:

It was an emergency, in a lot of ways.

“Uuu… I can’t keep living likethis…”

I was in the back storage room of theMaruneko bookstore, along with a clearly depressed Nikaido-san. Incase you’re wondering exactly why she was feeling depressed, then Ishould mention that it was due to the incident earlier.

Encountering Nikaido-san at myworkplace—was not the problem here. Our school Nanamisaka is prettyclose to here after all, and I’ve seen countless other studentshere from time to time.

…The problem was the book that shewas about to buy. Namely, it was a light novel. That was preciselywhat had surprised me so much. Judging by her reaction and hercurrent mood, it appears that it was an even bigger shock for her tohave met me here. Not to mention that she had just ranted to me abouthow much she hated otaku culture, and now she had found the personwho she had ranted to behind the register.

Shortly after, her face turned from abright red to a pale white, and her face showed an expression ofdespair as she kept mumbling to herself. She then politely sat down.Glaring at me with tears in her eyes, she demanded, “Forget aboutthis!”.

Esaka-san started teasing us, saying”Ahh, is this a love triangle that I smell, Nagamin~?” In orderto escape from her, I pulled Nikaido-san out here.

“………Uuu.” Nikaido-san heldher head in her hands, wailing in despair.

“U-Um, so…”

But, we couldn’t stay like thisforever. I softly called out to her, trying not to shock her toomuch.

“………!!!”

However, her body twitched in responseand she lifted her head with a scared expression on her face.

“I-I know… Having that side of meexposed, I cannot keep on living…! Instead, I will cut my bellyopen in shame! Can I ask Nagami-senpai to help with my beheading…?”

With some strange sort of lightglinting in her eyes, she looked at me and blurted out those words.

“C-Calm down, will you?! I don’tknow what kind of misunderstanding you’re having here, but I justwant to talk to you for now—”

“…Hah?! S-Senpai, you’re planningon embarrassing me even further?!”

“Ehhhh?!”

“N-No, I’m sure…! You’re theperson who even sank his poisonous fangs into Suzuka…! Before I’mfinally allowed to die, I’m sure that Senpai will sully me…!”

“No, uhm, can we—?”

“Uuuuu… I don’t have anyexperience… So, what are you going to do to me…?! You’redefinitely going to use my body however you want until you’resatisfied…!”

“Again, what the hell are you talkingabout?!”

“Every single part of my body will bemade into a toy for Senpai to use…! My pride and dignity will bestolen, and I will be kept as a pet for him to use whenever hewants…! Ahhh, what humiliation…!”

“I’m begging you, please listen tome…!?”

“H-However, I won’t give you mysoul, even if you ravish my body…!”

“Uwaaaa?! Don’t start crying?!”

“…Kuu, but for how long can I keepup this resistance…?! No, maybe I am nothing more than an appetizerfor Senpai…?! And eventually, my soul will be broken, and I willhave been conquered as a slave completely…!”

“…Aren’t you getting a bit tooexcited by this? And that look you were having just now was just myimagination, right?! You groaning with a red face and having drooldripping off your lips was just my imagination, right?!”

“D-Don’t try to cover it up! I amnothing but a swordsman! I have the resolve I need! So, I willresist, as long as there’s the smallest spark of strength remainingwithin me!”

“Resist against what?! I really don’tunderstand what you think is going to happen to you, you know?!”

“Y-You’re trying to avoid thetopic?! You pulled me here to this place for that , didn’tyou?!”

“Uwaaa~, is that so, Nagamin~? Don’tuse our shop for any crimes like that, will you? Really~”

“And I thought I told you to watchthe register, Esaka-san?!”

When Esaka-san suddenly pushed her headthrough the open door, I forcefully pushed her back in and once morefocused my attention on Nikaido-san.

…W-Why am I always treated like thebad guy… And what is even going on with her? She looked like adignified girl when she had confronted me, but now she seems like atotal super-masochist, you know?!

“…W-Well, whatever. Anyway…!”

“So you’re finally going to start…!My training…!”

“No! ….Ahhh, I can’t get throughto her at all… I’m talking about this!” Completely fed up withher inability to listen, I thrust a certain book into her face.

Of course, it was the sixth volume ofSukaMaga that she had wanted to buy. The moment she saw it, herstrangely expectant attitude (again, I have no idea what she could beexpecting here) changed into a more serious expression.

“Ah, t-that’s…”

Now, she almost looked to be in pain asshe averted her eyes.

…It seems like we can finally have anormal conversation.

“This is indeed the book you broughtto the register, right?”

“…………”

Though Nikaido-san didn’t answer, Icontinued.

“Just a heads-up, I’m in noposition to judge you for the books you buy… But given what yousaid earlier about otaku culture, I would really like anexplanation.”

“Uuu…”

“This is a light novel. And I thinkthat you can safely say that this series is one of many such novelsto be found in otaku culture. So my question is: Why did someone likeyou, who spoke so poorly of otaku culture, want to buy something likethis? Could you tell me the reason?”

I finished my question, awaitingNikaido-san’s response.

“………”

Nikaido-san just continued towordlessly gaze at the light novel in my hand.

“……Understood.”

She finally slumped in defeat, andlooked at me with an expression as if she had given up on life.

“The reason is simple. It’s becauseI wanted to read this no matter what. After finishing the fifthvolume, I just had to see how it continued…”

“Eh? The fifth volume, you say…”

“Yes. I’ve been reading that seriessince the first volume… And this is the only one of these so-called’light novel’ series that I’ve been reading.”

“S-So basically, you’re saying thatyou’re a fan of this novel?”

When I asked that, Nikaido-san glaredat me with a red face as she nodded.

“B-But wait. You said that youweren’t any good with this stuff, right?”

“Yes, that wasn’t a lie. Those weremy true feelings… And that’s exactly why I feel so conflicted…”

“…Are there any circumstancesbehind that…?”

After a short silence, Nikaido-sanstarted talking about it.

Her family had always focused on theway of the sword. I’d heard about it from someone else before, butthey seemed to have a dojo and several disciples. As the oldestdaughter born into that family, she was likely to inherit everything.And because of this, she had been raised with traditional ideals inmind.

“My grandfather educated me verystrictly. I accepted what he taught me, and listened to what he saidwithout any complaints. I’m not dissatisfied with my upbringing atall. On the contrary, it felt like it actually suited me quite well.”Nikaido-san’s expression was filled with confidence.

It seems she really had no complaintsabout her upbringing.

“Since we are this kind of household,the values they taught me were also rather strict. Principles such asfortitude and vigor, and not being shallow—basically, to stay awayfrom anything that could evoke any kind of weakness.”

“…Was it just my imagination, orwere you sneaking glances at me when you said the word ‘weakness?'”

“T-That must have been yourimagination.” Nikaido-san hurriedly averted her gaze.

…Yeah, yeah, I get it…

“Anyways, along with all of that,otakus especially were made out to be the most dangerous ones.”

“Ahhh, well… that makes sense, Iguess…” I could only nod in response to her statement.

After hearing her out, I couldunderstand her reservations with otaku culture. After all, societyoften does look at otaku things that way. Even more so for strictfamilies like Nikaido-san’s.

…But even if that’s one way oflooking at things, it’s not the only way.

“I’ve stayed true to thoseprinciples that I was raised up with.”

“…Even so, you started readingSukaMaga, right?”

“Uuu… That’s right…”

As her face blushed red once more, shecontinued.

“I-I was raised in that kind ofenvironment, and I always kept true to those virtues… But for somereason, I was really interested in otaku culture…!” Nikaido-sanspoke those words like she was in a chapel confessing her sins.

Apparently, she herself didn’t knowwhy it had come to that. It was just that, even though she had grownup in that kind of household, she couldn’t help but be interestedin anime, manga and games, and she had to try it out at least once.

“My classmates were constantlytalking about the newest trends, and even though I tried to ignorethem, my interest grew and grew… Still, I had no other choice butto live with those feelings, because of my family… until Iencountered that one book,” Nikaido-san pointed at the book in myhands, her fingers shaking.

When she went to the bookstore inmiddle school, she spotted the first volume of SukaMaga in thenewcomer’s corner. And, never having seen it before, she was soentranced by it that she picked it up.

“The moment I saw the cover, it feltlike a shock ran through my body, even though I didn’t know why atthat point. It’s true that I had been interested in those kinds ofbooks before, but it only went as far as me taking furtive glances atthem. But I couldn’t tear my gaze away from that book.”

She picked up that book merely fromseeing the cover. And before she had realized it, she had alreadybought it and was standing outside the store, panicking. But, unableto throw it away, she had no choice but to take it home with her.

“In the end, I hurried home and triedmy best to hide the book from my family. I don’t want to thinkabout what would have happened if they had found me out.”

“…For some reason, I can totallyunderstand that feeling.”

“…? Is Senpai’s family similar inthat regard?”

…Well, it’s not that I feel anyneed to hide manga or light novels, but rather the fact that I haveto hide every new eroge that I bring home with me. But there’s usetelling her that. Still, I think that most boys my age must haveexperienced something similar. At least, I’d like to think so.

“…And, even though I felt extremelyguilty, I lost against my curiosity, and I started reading that book.Under constant fear of my family finding out, I continued to read…!”

“And how was it?”

“It was unbelievably interesting…!”

Her eyes were sparkling, like shecouldn’t hold back her excitement.

“I agree! SukaMaga really is amasterpiece!”

“Indeed it is! It was the best! Ifinished reading it in one sitting, and I couldn’t stop thinkingabout it even after finishing it!”

This girl isn’t half bad! She saw thebeauty of SukaMaga after only the first novel.

“Does Nagami-senpai also read it?”

“Of course I do. As someone who loveslight novels, I cannot ignore one of the greatest recent hits!Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to call myself a true light novelfan!”

“I-Is that so?! It makes sense, sincethe novel was so unbelievably interesting!” Nikaido-san lookedhappy, as I was praising her own novel.

It was the personification of an otakuwho was in love with a novel.

“To think that there was a novel asinteresting as this… I was really surprised. But that feeling ofhappiness didn’t continue for long.”

“Eh? Did someone from your familyfind out?”

“N-No, that wasn’t it. Luckily, noone found out, and I continued to buy them… Of course I couldn’tjust leave them in the open, so I had to hide them below the floormats, or up in the ceiling while I was reading them.”

…I-It’s like she’s reading pornmagazines or something…

“But that wasn’t the problem… Itwas more of a problem on an emotional level.”

“Emotional?”

“Yes… to be frank, the opinion Ihad of otaku culture inside me was greatly altered after reading thatnovel,” Nikaido-san narrowed her eyes, a painful expression showingon her face.

“The people called otaku were alwaysfrivolous weaklings inside my mind. Now that I had laid my hands onthis novel and started reading it, I thought that I had becomesomeone as foolish as them. While I was absorbed in reading, Irealised that, and I was assaulted by a grave feeling of guilt forbetraying my family’s teachings…”

“But shouldn’t you have understoodby that point that everything you had heard was just prejudice?”

“In my heart, I realise that too…However, those prejudices are still engraved in the depths of mymind!”

Suddenly, Nikaido-san raised her headand looked straight at me.

“I-I beg you, Nagami-senpai! Pleasekeep this conversation a secret!”

“Eh, o-of course I will—”

“I’m begging you! You can dowhatever you want with my body, so please keep this vulgar side of mea secret!”

With teary eyes, she suddenly startedunbuttoning the top part of her uniform. As she did, her breasts,hidden only by a sports bra, started attracting my attention.

“Wait! What are you doing?! Don’tstrip! Keep your clothes on!”

“B-But, this is the only thing I canoffer you in exchange for your confidentiality…! I have preparedmyself! Even if you use my body so much that I can’t get married,this is the only method I can use to keep it a secret…!”

“Nagamin really is a deviant~ Am Ialso going to be assaulted like that sometime~? Kya~”

“If you’re not going to help, thendon’t butt in!”

After slamming the door again whenEsaka-san peeked in, I turned around to face Nikaido-san once more.

“A-Anyway! I won’t do anything likethat! I’ve never once thought about using you like that, okay?!”

“Eh…?”

“Why do you look so disappointed?!”

“Wha—?! I-I’m not! D-Don’t makeme out to be such a perverted woman! I’ll cut you!” Nikaido-sanstarted panicking while her face turned beet red.

…T-This girl, has she really notnoticed it yet? Wait, who cares about that!

“Anyways! Don’t get the wrong idea.I don’t plan on telling your family about your secret!”

“N-No, it’s not just my family! Imostly care about Suzuka…!”

“Suzuka?”

“T-That’s right. For me, Suzuka isan indispensable existence. Just thinking of her finding out about mysecret hobby is…!”

Her words seemed to be true, since herbody was quivering in fear. Even then, tears were streaming down hercheeks, and I immediately understood how much she feared thatpossibility.

“Of course I won’t tell anyone. NotSuzuka, and not your family.”

“Thank you… very much…!”

“But there isn’t any need for youto be afraid about it, you know? Suzuka isn’t the kind of personwho would judge you, as her friend, for your tastes.”

That I can say with completeconfidence. My margin of error is at 0.000000001% here. My littlesister, who I am very proud of, wouldn’t do something like that toher close friend.

“Suzuka doesn’t have any prejudiceslike that, so she would definitely accept you if you told her thatyou read light novels.”

I mean, Suzuka is in fact the lightnovel author Towano Chikai. Though she isn’t quite on my level whenit comes to liking them, she surely wouldn’t have a negativeopinion of them. After all, she’s right in the midst of that world.

“I promise you that I will keep it asecret, but I recommend talking to Suzuka about it. Suzuka willdefinitely be on your side.” With every ounce of persuasiveness Icould muster, I tried to convince her.

However…

“N-No, I cannot do that…”

“…So you’re worried? About thatone-in-a-million chance…?”

“T-That’s not the reason. Just asSenpai says, Suzuka is a wonderful girl, and she would surely listento my worries and accept me.”

“Then—”

“However, I still can’t…”

With a difficult expression,Nikaido-san shook her head.

“I also trust Suzuka…! However, theproblem lies with me… It’s exactly because I hold prejudices thatI can’t muster up the courage…! Yes, I’m afraid…!”

Afraid. That’s exactly howNikaido-san’s voice sounded. Even her brain understood that nothingwould happen if she told Suzuka, but her heart was rebelling againsther… Those prejudices she holds are still weighing her down. Theychange that chance of Suzuka rejecting her from ‘Impossible’ to’It might be possible.’ That’s how her fear works.

…This isn’t something I can reasonwith her about, it seems. It’s a problem of feelings. And now thatI understand that, I don’t have to waste my time reasoning withher, since I won’t be able to get rid of her worries.

“…………Hmmm.”

Lost in my thoughts, I nodded deeply.

…I wonder? This gives me a reallyweird feeling.

There’s Nikaido-san, who’s close tofeeling depressed because of it. Even so, she treasures theirfriendship so much to the point that she’s suffering like this. AsSuzuka’s older brother, I can’t just ignore this.

…But that’s not all.

It won’t sit right with me to knowthat someone has these feelings about something that I love and holddear. I want her to understand from the bottom of her heart thatotaku culture isn’t like that.

That’s why I want to do something forher. Though there are many reasons for it, those were my honestfeelings. After all, I think that currently I am the only one who canhold out a helping hand towards her, and it feels like I really haveto. As her Senpai, as Suzuka’s older brother, and as a fellowotaku.

…That being said, what can I do aboutthis…?

“………Yeah there’s no otherchoice but this.”

I said aloud the only idea that came tomy mind.

“Hey, Nikaido-san? What exactly madeyou think that SukaMaga was interesting?”

“…Eh? What’s with that suddenquestion?”

Though she looked a bit perplexedbecause of my question, I continued without waiting.

“Just tell me. I’ve been a fan ofthe series for a long time, and I’ve always wanted to talk withsomebody else about why it’s so great.”

“B-But, even if you ask me that…”

“I personally like the intense battlescenes! It’s crazy how they roar through the sky while stillcasting magic like that!”

“T-That’s what I also feel! Eventhough it was only words on a page, it felt like I was watching itlive with my eyes, and I could feel how intense it was!”

“I feel ya. The magic really is socool. Especially the chants. I always find myself repeating them.”

“Ahh, I know what you mean. But, thething I like the most are the charming characters in the story!”

“Ahh, yeah, that’s also true.There’s a lot of interesting and appealing characters. I reallylike the protagonist. How about you?”

“For me, it’s Yayoi! She has blackhair because she came from the land to the east, and she’s also asword fighter who flies around the battlefield, shooting magic leftand right! She’s just so cool!”

“I know right? Yayoi is really cool!”

“The scene when you find out thatshe’s a descendant of the dragon god was so moving! I startedcrying mid-way through the third volume…!”

“Ahh, that amazing scene. Normally,she would hate her existence, but she used her newfound strength toprotect everyone in the next battle…”

“And she used up all her power andfell from the skies, only to be saved by her comrades…!”

“In the end, they all become realcomrades after opening their hearts to each other! Because of that,her popularity got a massive boost!”

“Right? That’s why she’s myfavorite character!”

“Oh? You know that the protagonist’sclassmate Archel is still the most popular, right? She really has aninteresting background.”

“W-What are you saying!? Yayoi ishands-down the best character in the series! Okay? There arecountless reasons why I believe that’s the case—”

And she started explaining every singleaspect she liked about her favorite character. She looked like shewas having the time of her life, and she seemed to be enjoyingherself to the fullest. Seeing that, I also felt happy.

In the end, we got so into it and kepttalking for so long that we forgot all about the time. I really had ablast.

…And it looks like Nikaido-san feltthe same way.

“Nagami-senpai? Why are you grinninglike that?”

“Ahhh, well, I just was thinking howgreat it was to talk with someone else about something you love.”

“…That’s right. Though this wasthe first time I was able to hold a conversation like this, I had alot of fun. I could finally let out all the feelings that I had pentup inside of me…”

“You were really enthusiastic.”

“R-Really, don’t tease me likethat. I’ll cut you, you know?”

Though she said that, it didn’t holdmuch power because she looked so flustered. It was very clear thatshe wasn’t mad in the slightest.

“I’m glad that Nikaido-san hadfun.”

“I-It’s not like that…”

“If you didn’t have any fun, Icouldn’t help you understand about the good points of otakuculture.”

“…Eh?” A surprised expressionappeared on her face.

The reason for her suffering wasbecause of those prejudices that were so deeply entrenched inside hermind. There was really only one way to get rid of her fears; namely,to eradicate those doubts. That being said, logic clearly wouldn’twork on her. So, I had to eradicate this fear with another feeling.That’s why I tried to overwrite her fear with the fun feeling ofhaving someone else to talk with about your favorite novel.

“You know, otaku, when they havesomething they like, they want to talk about it with other people.And they even have ideas of their own that they want to share. That’show countless works are born, and they get changed up byserialisations and adaptations and whatnot. Isn’t that feelingsomething that every human shares?” I asked Nikaido-san. “Justnow, we were talking about SukaMaga, enthusiastically voicing ourimpressions and thoughts to each other, right? That is one of thegood points of otaku culture, at least in my mind. Showing empathyfor another person’s feelings, and honestly exchanging your own.”

“Empathy…”

“You should still remember thisfeeling, right? This fun, this enthusiasm about the novel, thisenergy that comes from the bottom of your heart, the energy you can’treally explain. This definitely isn’t something to be embarrassedabout. Or did you feel weak during our conversation?”

“T-That’s not…!”

Hearing that response, I was relieved.If she really thinks this way, then we should be fine.

“Then do you think that you can talkto Suzuka about it now?”

“B-But, even so… I still don’thave the courage…!”

Her fear ran deep, and she seemed to bemissing that last push.

“I know that Nagami-senpai iscompletely right… Ahhh, just how weak can I be…?! Being sulliedby Nagami-senpai might be my punishment for being so weak…!”

“No no no! Can you stop suddenlymaking me the bad person again?!”

This girl… Is she actually hoping forthat kind of situation…? Well, that doesn’t really matter rightnow. It seems like there’s no use but to try my least-favouritemeasure that I have…

“Ahhh, I get it already! If you’regoing this far, then you have to listen to what I have to say too!”

“Eh?! S-So you really plan on rapingme?!”

“No, I’m not! Are you sure you’renot actually hoping for that?!”

“H-How rude! Of course I don’t!I-I-I’ll cut you, you know!”

“It’s not that…! I want you tocome with me tomorrow. I want to take you to Akihabara.”

“Akihabara…? W-Why?”

“It is the epicentre of otakuculture. If we go and have fun there, your biases will surelydisappear. Of course, I’m going to take Suzuka along, but I won’tleave you two alone, so don’t worry.”

“Eh?! S-Suzuka?! Y-You can’t dothat!”

“You have no veto power here. Youknow that you can’t keep going like this, right?”

When I asked Nikaido-san with a seriousface, she wordlessly nodded.

“I-I understand…”

Seeing that she had finally made up herresolve, I let out a sigh. With that, our conversation ended, and weexchanged contact information for tomorrow. Just when she was aboutto leave, though…

“U-Uhm, Nagami-senpai?”

Nikaido-san’s voice stopped me as Iwas about to open the door.

“Why are you going this far, just forme…?”

I thought about what answer I shouldgive her.

Because you’re my kouhai. Becauseyou’re my little sister’s friend—

I had a lot of options for what I couldsay, but the most obvious one stood out from the rest.

“That’s totally obvious. I’m anotaku, just like Nikaido-san, right?”

When I returned from my part-time job,Suzuka was already home and greeted me.

“Welcome back, Onii-chan. Checkingout the theater club was rather interesting. Even Kotomi’stransformation skills with clothes is really something that can’tbe underestimated. It seems like we now have an option to do ourhidden lovey-dovey research by wearing a disguise.”

Though Suzuka had her usual schemingsmile on her face, I decided to let her words slip by me, and I toldher about the plans for tomorrow.

“Eh…? A-Akihabara… I-I-I-I-Isthis an invitation for a date…?!”

“It’s not, okay?! It’s not that,but…!”

“I-I know!! T-That date that I wastalking about was only in the context of research, okay?! D-D-Don’tmisunderstand!” She said, but she still had a bright grin on herface.

I was acting dubious just for the sakeof it, but she got mad at me and said “I-I-I-I also wanted to doresearch at Akihabara!”

“Ah?! That’s right, I have to pickout clothes for tomorrow!”

With that, she rushed up the stairs andentered her room.

“……I wasn’t done talking,though.”

I really wanted to tell her aboutNikaido-san beforehand… Well, whatever. Since I had toldNikaido-san that I wouldn’t tell Suzuka about her circumstances, Iwouldn’t be able to explain why Nikaido-san was coming with usanyway.

“…It might be faster to explain itwhen we meet up with Nikaido-san tomorrow.” I muttered as Ireturned to my own room.

All the while, I thought about howconvenient it was that Suzuka wanted to do research at Akiba…

Part 2:

“What exactly is the meaning ofthis………?!”

It was the following day, and we wereat the train station in Akihabara.

“Why is Kaede also here?! Onii-chan,you’d better explain this!”

…S-She’s crazy mad…

Until now, Suzuka had been in a greatmood, but as soon as we met up with Nikaido-san, a dark aura startedbuilding up behind her, and she furiously started questioning me.

…You know, I do feel bad for keepingquiet about this, but is there really any need for you to be thisangry…?

“N-Now now, Suzuka, just calm downfor a second…”

Nikaido-san tried to help calm Suzukadown. Even so, Suzuka didn’t stop glaring at me with tears in hereyes.

“…J-Just when I thought that Iwould finally be able to go on a date with Onii-chan after becoming ahighschool student…!”

“A-Anyway, would it be alright for meto explain the situation now?”

“Yes! I would really like to hearyour reason for this!” Suzuka said, crossing her arms as she staredat me.

It seems like my little sister-sama isenough of a human being to let me finally speak… But beingsatisfied with it is still a different story.

“Um…”

Now then, I had said that I wouldexplain the situation, but I can’t tell Suzuka about Nikaido-san’scircumstances. Since I had no other choice, I made up a story aboutmeeting her during my work, and we suddenly started talking aboutAkihabara, and since Suzuka and I were going anyway, I just invitedher—something like that.

“E-Even though you already had planswith me, you just invited her along…”

I totally thought that she wouldn’tbelieve me, but she just averted her gaze with a displeasedexpression on her face. This was pretty rare for her… and it meantthat I was in luck today.

“Y-Yeah, exactly. There’s no harmsince she’s your friend, right?”

“R-Right. I’d heard aboutAkihabara, and I was really excited to go here with Suzuka. I decidedto accept Senpai’s invitation,” Nikaido-san said, playing along.

Though Suzuka looked satisfied for asecond…

“Even so, aren’t you twounexpectedly close…? Just yesterday, it looked completelydifferent…”

As always, Suzuka’s intuition was onpoint. And, when Nikaido-san tried to deny it, saying “T-That’snot true…!”

“……Ah?!”

Suddenly, as if she had realizedsomething very important, she started glancing back and forth betweenboth of us… What is it?

“D-Don’t tell me…?! T-The personwho Onii-chan likes is…?!”

“Eh? What about me?”

Her voice was so small that I couldbarely catch anything, and when I raised my voice, she turned herback to us, still lost in thought.

…I don’t really get it, but she’stalking so fast that I can’t hear what she’s saying at all…Suzuka, what’s wrong with you?

“…N-No, the two of them have barelymet. Something like that shouldn’t be possible…! That’s right,it should have been their first meeting when they came over, sothere’s no way…!”

“U-Uhm, Suzuka…?”

“…H-However, I cannot deny thisweird atmosphere…?! D-Don’t tell me, is this the so-called ‘Loveat first sight’…?! Did Onii-chan… with Kaede…?!”

“Senpai, what’s wrong with Suzuka?This is the first time I’ve seen her like this.”

“…T-That’s certainly apossibility…! And also, he told Kaede that he had a crush…! D-Didhe possibly mean it in that way?!”

“How do I say it…? There are timeswhen she just gets lost in thought like that…” I tried toexplain.

“…S-So Onii-chan only said thatsince he couldn’t muster up the courage to confess immediately…?!Kaede has to be his crush, right…?!”

“Is that so? But I still prefer itwhen Suzuka is serious!” Nikaido-san said.

“…I-It makes sense…! This wouldexplain why Onii-chan would suddenly invite Kaede like this…! Andit fits my theory that Onii-chan’s crush is going to our school…!That means that I cannot let this go on any longer…! B-But, whatexactly should I do…??”

While both of us were having ourconversation, Suzuka still didn’t show any signs of returning.Since we couldn’t exactly stand like this forever, I was about tocall out to her, but she suddenly said “T-This can’t go anylonger!” and turned around.

“Uwa?! D-Don’t scare me like that…Are you finally back to normal now?”

“Y-Yes. L-Let us go—!”

After saying that, she suddenly clungto my arm, which caused me to panic.

…H-Hey, Nikaido-san is right in frontof us, you know…!

“S-Suzuka?! Nagami-senpai, what isthe meaning of this!”

And she’s already doubting me again!But, this wasn’t school, and we came here for research, so tellingher to stop was also a bit…!

“W-Well, Suzuka is really bad withcrowds of people! When we come to Akihabara, we always do it likethis so she won’t get lost! It’s totally not weird at all!”

I had no other choice but to try totalk my way out of it.

“…Is that so?”

“Yes, that’s it! R-Right, Suzuka?”

Nikaido-san’s face showed completedisbelief, but that was the only thing I could think of on the spot.I was hoping that Suzuka would help me out, but…

“…I-I really have to be lovey-doveywith Onii-chan as much as I can, and make him only look at me becauseof my charm…! And Kaede has to understand that so she doesn’thave any chance of getting between us…!”

Hey, she’s lost in her own thoughtsagain! You brought this upon us, so help me out, will you?!

“Eh? Ahhh, that’s right! Onii-chanand I are always like this!”

Though Nikaido-san still didn’t seemsatisfied, she had to believe Suzuka, her friend’s words… I-Iguess we’ve gotta start moving now while I have the chance.

We left the train station and set footinto Akihabara. Though Nikaido-san continued to sneak dubious gazesat us, her attention was soon drawn towards the city.

…Well, she did say that she wasinterested in otaku culture, so it makes sense for her to get excitedhere.

“I-I’d heard rumours about it, butthere really is a city like this…”

“I’ll show you around a lot ofplaces, so enjoy yourself to the fullest.”

“I-It’s not like I’m…!”

“So, Onii-chan, where are we goingtoday?”

While Nikaido-san and I were talking,Suzuka looked at us with a displeased expression and tightened hergrip on my arm.

“I don’t have anywhere special inmind. Just the normal path I always take. I do want Nikaido-san tosee a lot of places, after all.”

“…Though that does indeed soundreasonable… it is for Kaede, huh?”

“Hm? Was there somewhere you wantedto see?”

“N-Not necessarily. If it’s withOnii-chan, I won’t mind anyplace we go…! Just for the research,of course…!” Suzuka said. She looked at Nikaido-san with atroubled expression.

Nikaido-san was already so engrossed inthe city that she didn’t even notice Suzuka glaring at her.

“Then let’s go, Nikaido-san.”

“Y-Yes, I’m looking forward to it.”

“Y-Yes, let us go. Just like wealways do… as close siblings…!” Suzuka gripped my arm eventighter.

Maybe this was for her research, too.Whatever the reason, we started walking around Akihabara.

…Now then, I’ll make you enjoytoday so much that you’ll totally forget about your prejudices,Nikaido-san!

“Are those all light novels?! …Wow,there’s so many…”

“The lineup here is completelydifferent from that of some small-town bookstore, right? Looking atthe covers and reading the summary pages is one of the fun parts ofshopping for light novels. How about you buy something that piquesyour interest?”

“N-No, I don’t have a place to hidethem, so I can’t buy very many…!”

“Kaede is interested in light novels?Then how about something like this?”

“…Wait, why are you onlyrecommending little sister light novels…?”

Nikaido-san’s eyes sparkled as shelooked around the light novel shop. She looked like a small kid whohad entered a toy store for the first time.

“…Doujin…? What exactly is that?”

“Something like a secondary workbased off of a light novel. The authors fantasized about charactersthey loved, or scenarios they wanted to see, and made them.”

“So there’s a world like that…Ah?! That’s!”

“Yeah, it’s a doujinshi ofSukaMaga. Do you want to buy it?”

“N-No, I can’t! Ahh, but the coverhas Yayoi…”

“K-Kaede, they even have doujinshilike this, you know?!”

“It better not be another littlesister one—Wait! This is R-18 stuff?!”

“Eh? Hyaaa?!”

“A-Are those all games…? And whatshould I do with them…?”

“If you see one you like, you can tryit out. How about it?”

“U-Uhm… Ahh, how about that onewith the two swordsmen fighting?”

In the game center, she was a bithesitant at first, but…

“Ahhh?! O-One more time! Let me tryone more time!”

“…Y-You know, wouldn’t it bebetter to stop for now…?”

“I cannot sleep until I have cut downeveryone who stands in my way!”

Somehow, she got so engrossed in asamurai fighting game that she even ended up arriving at the lastboss. She tried to fight him countless times, but always got cut downat the last second. Still, I could clearly see how much fun she had.

“O-Onii-chan, aren’t there anylovey-dovey sibling games?!”

“As if there’d be such a specificgame like that! And don’t you have the wrong idea about games ingeneral…?!”

Talking amongst one another, we walkedaround Akiba, checking out various locations. Nikaido-san hadcompletely given up on hiding her interests, and just had funwherever we went. Her enthusiasm reached its peak when we arrived ata certain hobby shop.

“T-This is a figurine of Yayoi?!”

In that shop, she spotted a figurine ofher favorite SukaMaga character.

“Ohh, you’re right! And they evenhave all the other heroines as well…!”

Since this was the first time I’dseen them, I was just as excited as Nikaido-san. Though Suzuka gave acalm and collected statement of “They are really well done”,Nikaido-san and I were in a trance, staring at the figurines.

“Look at this… This is from thebattle with the angels in volume four…”

“T-That’s right… That scene isone of my favourites…!”

“She has the coat of arms on her, andher clothes are a mess from the battle.”

“It is quite indecent… But thiskind of Yayoi is also cool…!”

Like that, both of us kept fangirlingover the figurines, but I finally noticed Suzuka’s cold stare.

“…Why are you two suddenly soexcited like that? Kaede also seems like a completely differentperson…”

Hearing these words, both of us frozein place.

“T-That’s not really the case, youknow? I always act this intensely.”

“E-Exactly. I was just a bit curious,that’s all…!”

Since we couldn’t tell her aboutNikaido-san’s secret, we tried our best to cover it up.

“Uuu… You two are as in-sync as youcan get…!” For some reason, Suzuka was glaring at me with tearsin her eyes.

Part 3:

Since we had walked around Akihabarafor quite a while, we decided to take a break at a nearby maid cafe.When I asked Nikaido-san how she much had enjoyed the tour, sheresponded with “Haah… that was enjoyable.” Hearing that, Inodded in satisfaction.

“Uuuu~”

However, Suzuka’s bad mood continuedon, and it felt like she was getting more displeased the longer thiswent on.

…That reminds me, it makes sense thatshe would think something’s off after seeing NIkaido-san actinglike this. But I have to hold back a little longer. Once we tellSuzuka our goal for today, she will surely be satisfied. It lookslike Nikaido-san is having her fair share of fun, so with a slightpush, her prejudices will surely disappear.

“Uhm… it should be about time…Oh, there she is.”

While I was thinking that, I spottedthe person I was waiting for coming through the entrance.

“W-What’s up with you suddenlycalling me here, Yuu?! Well, since I’m your number one fan, I’mwilling to go along your selfishness, okay?!”

“Thanks for coming, Mai.”

“Himuro-san? Onii-chan called youhere?”

Exactly. I called her here beforehand.

“Ah, Suzuka-san, hello… Ah? Who isthis girl?”

Arriving at our table, Mai looked overat Nikaido-san.

“Ah, my name is…”

Nikaido-san hesitated for a momentafter being suddenly greeted by Mai.

“This is Nikaido Kaede-san. She’s afirst year at our school, and Suzuka’s classmate… AndNikaido-san, this here is my classmate Himuro Mai.”

When I introduced them to each other…

“N-Nice to meet you…” Nikaido-sanslightly lowered her head towards Mai.

“…Onii-chan? What are you planningby having Kaede and Himuro-san meet here?”

Nikaido-san was probably thinking thesame thing, since she was wearing such an expression on her face…But this is my trump card to completely eradicate the prejudices shehas.

“Now then, let’s get to the mainpoint. You see, my acquaintance here is actually a fan of SukaMaga.So I thought that I could have her meet Enryuu-sensei.”

“A-A fan of mine?”

“…Eh? H-Himuro-senpai is…?”

Seeing Nikaido-san’s flusteredreaction, I grinned as I continued.

“Yeah. Enryuu Homura-sensei, who isthe author of SukaMaga, is actually this Himuro Mai right here.”

“Eh…? Ehhhhh?!”

When I revealed that, Nikaido-sancouldn’t hold back her surprise.

“U-Umm, so this Kaede girl here isactually a huge fan of mine?”

When I nodded, Mai said “W-Well, ofcourse I have a lot of fans after all, don’t I!?”, unable to hideher happiness… Just be honest when you’re happy. It’s as plainas day.

“…T-To think that Enryuu-senseiwould be a Senpai from my school…?! You’re not teasing me, areyou?!”

“Of course not. Mai truly is the oneand only Enryuu Homura, right Suzuka?”

“…Yes, that is indeed true…?”Suzuka answered, clearly not grasping what I was getting at here.

It’s no wonder. She’s never seenNikaido-san like this, and neither does she know her circumstances.But we’ll save that for later.

“S-So Himuro-senpai really isEnryuu-sensei…!”

“Exactly! I’m the super popularlight novel author Enryuu Homura!”

“U-Uhm! I was really moved when Iread Sensei’s novel! This was the first time in my life thatsomething left an impact on me at such a level!”

“H-Hm, I see?! A-And what exactlymade you think it was interesting?”

And with that, Nikaido-san startedexplaining every single detail of what she loved about SukaMaga. Ifyou took a single glance at her face, you could see how happy shefelt. As always, Mai tried not to show it, but she seemed to beequally moved to be able to hear a fan’s opinion so directly. Shelistened intently to Nikaido-san’s fangirling.

…Though this is only one stage of myplan, I’m still glad that she’s having this much fun.

“And what exactly is this about?What’s wrong with Kaede?” Suzuka asked me while Mai andNikaido-san were talking.

I couldn’t blame her for herconfusion, so I decided to lightly tap on Nikaido-san’s shoulder.

“Ah, Nagami-senpai?”

“Don’t you think that it’s finenow?”

“Eh? What do you mean…?”

“This fun you had strolling aroundAkiba, and those feelings you have right now, they certainly aren’t’something weak’, right? Then, you should be able to summon thecourage you need.”

Having grasped what I was hinting at,Nikaido-san swallowed her breath.

“Suzuka is also here now. It’sfine, I can guarantee it.”

Softly smiling at her with those words,her body twitched once and she took a step forward.

“I-I understand…!”

I looked on as she opened her mouth toexplain her circumstances.

Part 4:

…What exactly is going on here?

With a soft smile, Onii-chan is talkingto Kaede, using words like “Show her your courage” and “It’sgoing to be fine.”

A-And also, what is that kind smile ofhis, as if he is watching over her?! Smiling at her like that, isKaede really…?!

While I was thinking that, I realizedthat Kaede was looking at me with a serious expression. She took adeep breath, as if she wanted to confess something very important toher.

…Important… confess… D-Don’ttell me?! I-Is Kaede going to confess that she also likes Onii-chan?!Right here, right now?!

…N-No, that shouldn’t be possible.B-But, what if they already confessed, and that they want to tell methat they’re officially going out now?!

Just from imagining that, I was aboutto cry. If that was really the case, my heart would probably stopworking and break into pieces. I cannot allow myself to hear this…!

In that moment, I heard the sound ofKaede swallowing her breath. And, when I was about to cover my ears—

“S-Suzuka, please listen! A-Actually…I’m really interested in otaku culture!”

……………………Eh?

“………Eh? O-Otaku culture?”

Completely lost as to what washappening, I subconsciously repeated her words, and Kaede gentlynodded in response.

…Eh, uhm…? Where’s theconfession? About her and Onii-chan? And, she’s interested…?Ehhh…?

I was unable to grasp the meaningbehind her words. But she almost seemed desperate, and didn’t giveme much time to think because she immediately started talking to me.

The circumstances she grew up with. Howshe was taught that otakus were something bad. But, in the end, shecouldn’t hold back her curiosity, and that’s when she encounteredHimuro-san’s novel—

The heavy guilt of going against herfamily’s teachings. How she still wasn’t able to rid herself ofthe curiosity, and how Onii-chan came to know about it. She told meeverything, with tears welling up in her eyes. And about how thoseprejudices had kept her from telling me from the very start.

“That’s why I showed Nikaido-sanaround Akiba, and even invited Mai here. I wanted to help herunderstand that those prejudices are groundless.”

And, Onii-chan followed it up with”It’s because her friendship with you is so important to her.”

…S-So basically, everything was bothfor Kaede’s and my sake?

“W-What’s up with that…”

Hearing that, I felt all the mystrength leave my body.

…So, thinking that Kaede isOnii-chan’s crush… was just a misunderstanding on my part…?Onii-chan just happened to learn of her circumstances, and he decidedto help…?

“…Haaaah.”

Having grasped everything I needed toknow, I let out a long sigh. Of course, most of that was out ofrelief.

…I-I’m glad that nothing is goingon between Onii-chan and Kaede.

“Kaede…”

Now, I could focus on my friendstanding in front of me. When I called out to her, Kaede twitched.

“There is absolutely no problem withyou being curious about otaku culture and whatnot. There’s no way Iwould hate you just because of something like that? Okay?”

“Ah… S-Suzuka…!”

The moment I spoke those words, Kaede’sface lightened up in an instant.

Really, this girl. Normally she’s aprideful, determined swordsman, but she can be so weak-willed inside.She’s a helpless friend indeed.

…Well, I realized that after ourfirst meeting, and that’s why I came to like her.

“And have some more trust in me,please. If you have any worries, consult me or Kotomi first, okay?”

“Y-Yeah, I got it… I’m sorry,Suzuka.” Kaede smiled at me, wiping a tear away.

Still, to think that Kaede had aninterest in otaku culture, and even turned out to be a fan ofHimuro-san. No wonder she was acting so weird today. But I would belying if I said that I wasn’t envious that she shared the samehobby as Onii-chan…

As I thought about that, I looked overat him. When I did, our eyes met for a second. W-Well, this time itwas my fault for getting the wrong idea, so I’ll forgive him. Butif Kaede isn’t the person who Onii-chan likes, then I’m back tosquare one again. What should I do about this?

No, even if I don’t know the person’sidentity, I just have to show Onii-chan my charms, and make him lookonly at me. That part doesn’t change. I-I have to be even morelovey-dovey…!

And then it happened.

“I’m so moved, desu!”

“Kyaa?!”

Somebody stepped out from behind me,and I let out a shriek.

…D-Double Peace-san?! T-That reallysurprised me…!

“D-Double Peace-sensei?!”

“W-Why is that ero illustratorhere?!”

Both Onii-chan and Himuro-san seemed tobe as shocked as I was.

“Mai announced that she was going tomeet Sensei in our line group, right? When I saw that, I thought thatyou would probably be going to Akiba, desu! And my guess was onpoint! Really Sensei, if you’re coming to Akiba, then please tellme next time!”

“I-I’m sorry…? Still, what keenintuition you have…”

Though his feelings were written allover his face, it was the same for me. Being together with thisperson is really bad for my heart…

“Ah, the person I saw at Suzuka’shouse…?”

“A-Ahh, uhm… this person is DoublePeace-sensei, and, eeehm, she’s an acquaintance of ours, and anillustrator. Yeah…”

“Nice to meet you, desu! I’m AhegaoDouble Peace!”

Onii-chan reluctantly introduced her.And, just as her name suggested, she brought her face closer, andmade two peace signs with her hands as she smiled. Of course, Kaededidn’t know how to react to that, and just stared blankly at her. Ican’t really blame her for that.

“Fu fu fu, setting that aside fornow, I allowed myself to listen to your friend’s story!”

“…Uhm, why did you just admit toeavesdropping…?”

Completely ignoring Himuro-san’sremark, Double Peace-san continued.

“This wonderful friendship betweenImouto-san and her friend…! It really moved me, desu! It felt likeI was playing a yuri game!”

“I know what you want to say, butwasn’t there any better example than that…?”

Though I didn’t understand what shewas trying to say, I only had to look at Onii-chan’s expression tosee that it was probably something weird again.

“For me, the fact that Imouto-san’sfriend wasn’t able to enjoy otaku culture until now is so much of ashame, desu! Please let me help out with that!”

“…Help out?”

Onii-chan’s and my voices overlapped.We both knew that something bad was probably going to happen.

“Exactly, desu! I know that you wereprobably walking around several places in Akiba. This is a goodopportunity, so let me come with you and show you around!”

“T-That certainly isn’t a bad idea,but why?”

When Onii-chan asked that, DoublePeace-san let out an ominous-sounding laugh.

“I will have you look forward to it,desu! That being said, please come to my home right now!” She said.

“…Suzuka, why do I have a badfeeling about this?”

“…It’s better not to think toomuch about it.”

In response to Kaede’s well-placeddoubts, I let out a sigh.

…That being said, she was doing thisout of goodwill, and we didn’t have any reason to decline, so weleft the maid cafe and walked towards Double Peace-san’s flat.

“…That reminds me, DoublePeace-sensei’s room was… quite hideous, wasn’t it?”

While we were walking, Onii-chanmuttered that as if he had remembered something.

…N-Now that he mentions it, her roomwas filled with all those indecent posters, games and whatnot!

“Ah, if you’re worried about that,our scenario writer got mad at me and I was forced to get rid ofthem, desu. We put everything into another room.”

Hearing that, both Onii-chan and I letout a relieved sigh.

“What are you talking about?”

“D-Don’t mind it.”

Ignoring Kaede’s question, we keptwalking until we arrived at Double Peace-san’s room. ThoughOnii-chan and I were a bit hesitant to enter, it turned out to be asDouble Peace-san had said.

…Fuu, I’m glad.

“Ah, might you be interested inseeing the room with all the games, desu?”

“No we’re not! …And, what exactlyare we doing here anyways? You said that you would be able toentertain Nikaido-san, right?”

In response to that question, DoublePeace-san once again started laughing ominously.

“Of course… I’m talking aboutcosplay, desu!” She stated, and puffed out her chest.

“Figures…” “I don’t know whatI was expecting…” “She totally deserves the name ‘eroillustrator…/”

Onii-chan, Himuro-san, and I let ourtrue feelings show at the same time.

“Tsk tsk tsk, how naive, desu. Itisn’t just normal cosplay. Let us have a look first!” DoublePeace-sensei said as she brought out some costumes I had never seenbefore.

“Ah, t-that’s!”

“Exactly, Mai! Those are all clothesfor characters of Mai’s novel—SukaMaga, desu!”

“Woah, she’s right…!”

Both Onii-chan and Himuro-san weresurprised to see those clothes.

…I don’t really understand, butthose clothes seem to belong to characters from Himuro-san’s novel.

“A-Amazing… But why exactly do youhave those!”

“Fu fu fu, there isn’t any cosplaythat I don’t own, desu!”

“I-It’s scary to think that I canactually believe that… No, it’s probably nothing more than a lie,but…”

“That doesn’t matter right now,Sensei! The most important thing is to have Imouto-san’s friendenjoy herself, desu!”

“Eh? M-Me?”

Suddenly having been brought to theforefront of the conversation, Kaede seemed to be confused.

“Exactly, desu! I heard that you werea fan of SukaMaga! That’s why I’m sure that you will have lots offun acting as those characters!”

…Her argument actually makes sense…!Even though it’s Double Peace-san!

“D-Double Peace-sensei has a normalopinion for once?!” “E-Even though she’s an ero illustrator…!”

Onii-chan and Himuro-san seemed equallysurprised.

“H-However… wearing cosplay is…!”

“That’s all the more reason toactually try it, desu! It’s fine! There’s no need to be scared!It will feel good soon enough, desu. Fufufufu…”

“S-Somehow this seems verysuspicious, doesn’t it?! …Uwaaa?! S-Suzuka, help me!”

In the midst of her complaints, Kaedewas pulled away into the back room by Double Peace-san.

“…Will she really be okay?”

“…Well, she has some good ideasthis time around, so let’s leave it to her for now.”

Though I was a bit worried, Onii-chanlooked rather relaxed. After waiting for a short while, Kaedereturned from the back room.

“Uuuu… This is reallyembarrassing…!”

When I saw her, I thought the costumereally suited her. Granted, I wasn’t sure what character she wasportraying.

“O-Ohhhh!!!” “Wha—?! It lookslike the real deal!”

But, unlike me, Onii-chan andHimuro-san both let out a scream, which made Kaede twitch.

“Onii-chan, what’s wrong?”

“W-Well, Nikaido-san looks exactlylike the original character Yayoi!”

“…P-Please don’t look at me likethis…! T-These clothes are…!”

“What are you saying, desu?! Even Iam shocked by how wonderful it looks, you know? Here, if you justtake a look at yourself, you will understand, desu.”

Double Peace-san, who had followedKaede out of the room, showed her a picture. Though Kaede asked herto stop, she swallowed her words when she saw herself.

“…! T-This is… me?!”

Her eyes opened wide in shock.

“It really is amazing, Nikaido-san!You’ve completely become Yayoi now!”

“…Really. Even I’m surprised, andI’m the author.”

After being told that by Onii-chan andHimuro-san, Kaede looked really happy.

“See see, try using this prop here,and it will be perfect, desu.”

“T-This is…!”

Kaede took a hold of the katana shereceived from Double Peace-san. She seemed overwhelmed.

“It really is perfect. I’m gonnatake a picture too while we’re at it!” Himuro-san said. She tookout her smartphone and started taking pictures as well.

O-Onii-chan too…?!

“Very nice, very nice, desu! Itreally looks perfect! Here, look at your gallant figure, desu!”

“U-Uwaa…! U-Uhm…can I try hersignature pose…?!”

Kaede was also starting to get morecomfortable…

“…’Claws of the Dragon God,Second style…Kagekuujin!'”

And so on, as she kept taking differentposes.

…I-I’m totally the outsider here…Not that I can help it, since I don’t know much about the originalwork.

“How is it, desu? Cosplaying as acharacter you love, desu?”

“U-Uhm, it really is fun! To thinkthat cosplaying would feel like this…!”

“Fu fu fu, right right? But I have alot more, you know? That being said, Sensei! You’re next, desu!”

“…Eh? Ehhh?! M-Me too?!”

“It would be much more fun if we alldid it, desu!”

“Ah, no ,wai—?!”

This time it was Onii-chan who waspulled into that dark chamber. Shortly after, Onii-chan stepped outof it, wearing what looked like a military uniform mixed with aschool uniform… Ahh, now this is what I like to see! So cool!

“Ahhhh! Isn’t that the protagonistSenan?!”

When she saw Onii-chan, Kaede let out ascream and her face turned red.

“…D-Does it look weird?”

“Absolutely not! It really suitsyou…!”

“Yeah. The face is totally different,but I get that atmosphere from you, Yuu.”

“I-Is that so? …’Divine Ray!’…just kidding…”

W-Why is Onii-chan also getting intoit?! No, I knew that Onii-chan liked Himuro-san’s novel, but still!

“Now now, since you’re cosplaying,we have to take a picture together, desu!”

A-A picture together with Onii-chan?!Ahhh… I’m so jealous…!

“I-I’m so happy! Being able to takea picture together with Senan…!”

“No no no, just standing next to eachother is not sufficient, desu! Let us try to react that one scene!”

“Eh? One scene…?”

“Now, Sensei! Please carry her like aprincess, desu!”

“Eh? Ah, wait?!”

Double Peace-san pushed them togetherand forced Onii-chan to pick up Kaede—wait, a princess carry?!

“Ah… you mean that scene…?”

“Exactly, Yuu. It’s the scene fromthe third novel, when they were fighting against the dragon, andSenan is giving Yayoi some of his magic power.”

“Ah, that scene, I really liked that!In order to reenact that…!”

Wha…! What kind of development isthis! Why are you so calm?! This is a princess carry with Onii-chan,you know?! And they’re taking pictures like that…! That’s whatI want to do!

“Ahhh, now I’ve also gotten in themood! I’m also gonna try on some cosplay!”

And now Himuro-san is also getting onboard?!

“You have more cosplay, right?”

“Of course, desu! Now that the authorherself is participating, this will get interesting for sure!”

With that, Himuro-san and DoublePeace-san disappeared. In the meantime, Onii-chan and Kaede weresaying things like “N-Next, I would like to try that one scene…!”and “That’s good too, but what about the one from volume 4…”They were clearly enjoying this.

Uuuu… There’s nowhere for me to fitin at all…

“T-Thanks for waiting! How is it?Does it look good on me?”

Just like Onii-chan, Himuro-san waswearing a military school uniform; a girl version. I once morerealized that anything she wears looks good on her.

“You, that’s!” “Isn’t thatAchel!”

Both Onii-chan and Kaede voiced theirsurprise… What is it this time?

“A-Amazing. Enryuu-sensei, you’rejust like the real deal, both in terms of looks and atmosphere!”

“H-Heeh? Well, I’m the originalcreator, after all. For me to be able to cosplay the main heroineperfectly is a given.”

“…It almost seems like you wroteher with yourself as the model.”

“T-That’s not the case, okay!? Acharacter being similar to the author is totally normal in a certainsense. R-Rather than that, how about we also reenact a scene?!”

While saying “Please take somepictures”, Himuro-san handed Kaede the smartphone and walkedtowards Onii-chan’s side with a red face.

…I’m getting a really bad feelingfrom this…

“C-Come on, we’re going to reenactthat united magic scene, so come a bit closer!”

“Ahh, that scene, huh… Wait, aren’tyou a bit too close?!”

W-What are you two doing?! Why are youclinging to each other like that and putting your hands on eachothers’ shoulders?! What kind of united magic scene is thissupposed to be?! …Himuro-san is clearly using this to push herunreasonably large breasts onto Onii-chan! I-I won’t be deceived! Ihave to give my opinion to Onii-chan right now!

“Oh, this time it’s my turn, desu!”

Or so I thought, but Double Peace-saninterrupted my train of thought and stepped out of the dark room.When I directed my glare over there with tears in my eyes—

“Wha—?!”

I swallowed my words when I saw DoublePeace-san’s clothes. After all, the only part of that costume thatcould be called ‘clothing’ were the small bat-like wings on herback. Her underwear was totally visible.

…W-What kind of lingerie is this…!Her unreasonably large chest is totally visible…! That’s totallyunacceptable, isn’t it?!

“D-Double Peace-sensei?! T-Thiscosplay is…!” “Isn’t it that devil succubus from volumetwo?!” “I-It’s so perfect…!”

Why is everyone just admiring it socasually?! Especially Kaede! You would be the first person to screamout “Indecent!”, right?! There isn’t any attire that’s morefitting for you to say that about!

However, while I was busy with my mymental anguish, the scene in front of me was moving forward like itwas completely normal.

“Now now, let me reenact a scene withSensei, too, desu! Sensei, will you lie down face-up for me, please?”

“Eh? W-What are you planning ondoing?”

“Fu fu fu, that is of course… thisright here, desu!”

Double Peace-san suddenly pushed himdown and made him forcefully lie down?!

In response, Onii-chan let out asurprised “Uwaa?!” With him lying on the ground face-up, DoublePeace-san sat down on his belly. Wearing a bewitching smile, sheextended her tongue towards him—Wait, w-w-w-w-w-what are youdoing?!

“Ahh, that scene, don’t tell me!”

“Exactly, desu! The scene where thesuccubus robs the magic from the protagonist and pushes him down! Fufu fu, what a wonderful scene you wrote, Mai!”

“T-That scene, huh…! It got myheart pumping when I first read it, but seeing it live like this iseven more…!”

Kaede! Normally, you shouldn’t be sorelaxed! …And also…

“H-Himuro-san, why did you write ascene like that…!” I asked.

“Eh? It’s a light novel, after all.Fanservice scenes are necessary.”

And she responded like it was the mostnatural thing in the world.

Is that answer really fine?!

“D-Double Peace-sensei…? Isn’tthat scene a bit too embarrassing…?”

“We’ve only started, desu. It willbecome even more erotic from here on out, desu~”

“No, anything more than this would bepretty bad!” I shouted.

When I saw Double Peace-san leaning herupper body forward to push herself against Onii-chan, I couldn’tkeep quiet anymore.

“A-Any more than that is no good! Andwhat exactly are you doing?! Why are you just letting that happen toyou, Onii-chan!”

“N-No, it’s not like I…!”

“Now now, Imouto-san, this is just ascene reenacted with cosplay, so please tell that to the originalcreator Mai, desu!”

“W-Why?! Don’t make me the bad guyhere!”

Kuh… using cosplay as an excuse…!

But, in that moment, I remembered.There was absolutely no reason for me to hold back here. All I had todo was show Onii-chan my charm…!

“T-Then, I also want to be part ofthis cosplay reenacting!”

I made up my mind and resolutelydeclared that.

“S-Suzuka?! But, you don’t knowanything about the contents of SukaMaga…”

D-Don’t suddenly bring logic intothis! I won’t back down from this, no matter what!

“Ohhh! So Imouto-san is also going toparticipate, desu! Please, don’t hold back! I have a lot of cosplayin the room over there. Choose whatever you like!”

After saying “Please wait for abit!”, I left them behind and made my way towards said room. Uponentering, I found countless costumes scattered about.

“W-Which one should I use…? I haveno clue what’s what here…”

If I had known that it would come tothis, I would have read Himuro-san’s novel, but I can’t changethat right now. I just need something that will grab Onii-chan’sattention…!

“T-This is…?”

In that moment, a certain article ofclothing entered my field of view. It was a leotard with pure-whitewings on its back.

…T-There’s no other choice but todo that! It should work well enough to get Onii-chan’s attention!

“Uuuu…!”

Feeling the blood rush to my head, Ichanged my clothes.

…I-It really is revealing…! But,this isn’t the time to be hesitating…!

Making up my mind, I hesitantly made myway back to the room with the others.

“H-How is it?”

T-This is so embarrassing…! ButOnii-chan is staring at me! It really was the right choice! His gazeis solely focused on me!

“Y-You… Suzuka… that costumeis…!”

“To think that Suzuka-san wouldchoose that…! I-I didn’t expect that…!”

“S-Suzuka… Just what I wouldexpect…! A bold choice I would never be able to make…!”

…H-Huh? What’s happened toeveryone? They all seem to be acting a bit weird?

“Ohhh, Imouto-san! I didn’t expectthat you would be the one to wear that costume, desu!”

“D-Double Peace-san? What’s wrong?What exactly is this costume?”

“Fu fu fu, you will understand assoon as you reenact that scene, desu!”

“W-Wait a second, DoublePeace-sensei! You don’t mean that scene, do you…?”

When Onii-chan said this with aconflicted tone of voice, Double Peace-san whispered something intohis ear which made his face blush.

“…N-No, that scene is a bit…! Andwith her…?!”

…W-What is going on? I-Is itsomething that he can only do with me?!

“What’s wrong, Onii-chan? H-Hurryup and tell me!”

“N-No, you may be curious, but youdon’t know…”

“I-I don’t mind. I will accept anychallenge!”

That’s right. In order to belovey-dovey with Onii-chan, I will do anything…!

“What wonderful conviction, desu! Nownow, since Imouto-san has agreed to it, shouldn’t Sensei make uphis mind as well?!”

After being told that, Onii-chan seemedconflicted once more.

…I will be lovey-dovey with Onii-channo matter what!

“Now then, in order to reenact thescene, please come over here, Imouto-san.”

Instructed by Double Peace-san, I stoodand put my back against the wall. Onii-chan looked like he had givenup, and he looked towards me with a red face.

“Alright then, please put up yourarms above your head. As high as you can, desu.”

I did as I was told.

…What kind of scene is this?

But suddenly, Onii-chan grabbed both ofmy arms at my wrists.

“Eh? …Eh?”

“Y-You were the one that told me todo this, so you’d better not complain about it later…!” Hesaid, pushing even harder against the wall.

Feeling like Onii-chan was restrictingall of my movements, I felt the blood rushing to my head.

“T-This position is…! I-I’m sojeal—N-No! So indecent!”

K-Kaede?! Did I just hear you saysomething very weird?! And why are you suddenly back to normal…!

“What… is this…?!”

“Of course, this is the scene whereSensei will be doing perverted things to you, desu?”

…Eh? P-Perverted… Perverted…Ehhhhhhh?!

“W-What kind of scene is that?!”

“Even if you ask that, the cosplaythat Imouto-san is wearing is what’s responsible, desu! Come onSensei, get a little bit closer!”

“H-Hey, don’t push me—?!”

Saying ridiculous things as always,Double Peace-san pushed Onii-chan’s back. Because of that, his facetouched my collarbone, and I could feel his hot breath.

“Hyaaaan?! W-What are you doing…!”I happened to let out a weird voice.

“That character is of the angel race,but when she was trying to seduce Senan with magic, it worked againsther… A character responsible for the erotic scene. Something likethat, desu!”

Even if you calmly explain thecircumstances…!

“W-Why is there a character likethis?!”

“Because it’s a light novel.”

Do you think that I’m going to besatisfied with that lack of explanation?!

“…O-Onii-chan… your breath… ittickles…!”

When I felt his direct body temperatureand breath, my head was unable to process the situation.

“Now Sensei, just like in theoriginal novel, you have to start licking Imouto-san, desu!”

“As if I could!”

“Ehhh? Then instead, how abouttickling her, desu? Softly, very softly. Imouto-san should be finewith that, right?”

“Fua…? Y-Yes… pweashe goahead…!”

“Hey Suuzuka?!” Onii-chan let out ashocked scream, but I couldn’t think straight anymore.

I want Onii-chan to have eyes for onlyme. This was the only thing I knew for certain.

“Hya…?! Ahh… Fuah…!”

Finally, Onii-chan brought his fingersup to my body and started tickling me.

My neck, armpit, belly… I could feelOnii-chan’s fingers softly moving all over my body. Because of myembarrassment and the tickling, I couldn’t stop myself from lettingout weird sounds.

Ahh…? Somehow, it feels my mind wentblank… Is Onii-chan looking at me?

When I searched for Onii-chan, I foundhim, staring at me with a bright red face.

Ehe, ehehehehe…! He’s looking atme…! His attention is directed at me…! Is everyone seeing this…?Onii-chan is lost, and is looking only at me…! Auuu…!

While drowning in this feeling ofhappiness, I didn’t care what was happening to me, and I blankedout.

Part 5:

“T-Thank you very much for today.”

After everyone changed back into theirnormal clothes, Nikaido-san deeply bowed down to us.

“Going this far just for me…! I-Iam really moved…!”

“I’m happy enough that you feelthat way, desu. Right, Sensei?”

“Y-Yes, that’s right…” Ianswered, devoid of any energy.

…Well, as a fan, I had my fair shareof fun too, but being forced to do something like that is just…

And if you were wondering what hadhappened to the person in question, she was currently standing nextto me, going “Ehehehe…!”, so I decided to leave her alone for awhile. Still, I’m glad that Nikaido-san enjoyed herself like that.Hopefully that helped her to get rid of her biases.

“And just like that, you’ve becomea proper member of the otaku culture. Aren’t you glad?”

“…Enryuu-sensei, thank you somuch…! I have finally accepted that otaku culture isn’t as bad asI thought it was. Of course, I will continue to keep reading Sensei’snovels too.”

“W-Well, being a fan of mine is goodand all, but how about reading other novels? It’ll help broadenyour horizons.”

“Is that so…? But I wouldn’t knowwhat other novel to read.”

“Eh? Then how about Yuu’s novel?”

Twitch! O-Oh no…!

“Nagami-senpai’s… novel…?”

“I’m talking about Yuu—TowanoChikai’s novel… Eh? What? You don’t know that? Yuu, you didn’ttell her?”

T-This girl…! I tried so hard to hideit!

“Ehhh?! N-Nagami-senpai is anauthor?!”

“That’s right, desu. Look, this ishis novel.”

And Double Peace-sensei made it evenworse by showing Nikaido-san a copy.

“W-Who loves her big brother way toomuch to cope…?!”

As expected, Nikaido-san’s facialcolour turned a deep red, and she turned around to glare at me.

…Ah.

After that, I tried my best to reassureNikaido-san that I wasn’t actually putting my hands on Suzuka, andI somehow got Suzuka to help me out. Though at first she said thingslike “Y-Yes! Onii-chan and I are always lovey-dovey!”, which onlyadded oil to the fire, after understanding the situation, she helpedcalm Nikaido-san’s anger.

…It was probably just my imaginationthat she had done so very unwillingly.

“…Really, Senpai…”

After reading the main content of thebook, the impact was apparently too much for her, and her nosestarted bleeding. Soon after, she seemed to have calmed down, though.

…It looks like her biases are gonenow… but so is most of her goodwill towards me, huh…

Well, whatever. If we keep our researchdown at school, this rumour will disappear sooner or later.

“Then I will be going home now, Yuu.”

After returning to the train station inAkiba, we separated from Mai, who had to work on her novel since herdeadline was close. Suzuka, Nikaido-san, and I went home as a group.

“Ahhh… Today was really tiring.”

“T-That’s right. I’m also verytired.”

“I’m really thankful for today.Suzuka too, thank you very much…”

“It’s nothing at all. And, as Isaid before, please keep the fact that I’m a light novel author asecret at school, okay?”

“I understand. I will not tell asoul. A swordsman doesn’t go back on his word, after all.”

…Well, she seems like an earnestperson, so I guess I can trust her.

“Ah, before we go home, can we take abreak here?”

As we were walking home, Suzuka saidthat and pointed to a small park. Since we weren’t in a hurry oranything, we all sat down on a bench. But soon after, I got back upin order for a quick bathroom break.

“Fuuu… Maybe I should get somethingto drink.”

After finishing up my business, I wentto buy some drinks at a nearby vending machine for the three of us.And when I was just about to get back…

“Nagami-senpai really is a goodperson. I’m so envious of Suzuka…”

Hearing that voice, I hid behind anearby tree out of instinct.

…They’re talking about me? And whatam I hiding for, anyway…?

“W-Why are you saying that sosuddenly, Kaede?”

“Well, today, I got Suzuka tounderstand my interests, and that’s all thanks to Nagami-senpai. Ifhe hadn’t saved me, I couldn’t have been as honest with you as Iam now.”

“K-Kaede…”

Uuu… this is getting a bitembarrassing. To me, a lot of it was just for selfish reasons, afterall.

“T-That’s not the case, you know?It’s true that Onii-chan is a kind person, but he’s too lax forhis own good, and he isn’t reliable at all! I-I have to tell himeveryday to pull himself together!”

…Uuu… Though we had managed to makeup, she still thinks this badly of me, huh…? No, I knew it already,but hearing it directly from her is still a bit depressing…

“Haha, that’s not true, you know?Even if that was the case, you shouldn’t ignore that he helpeddeepen our friendship.”

“T-That might be the case, butstill…! Don’t ever think that he’s soothing, cool, and alwayskind, basically the best man there could ever be, okay?! Because thatis certainly not the case!”

Do you want me to start crying righthere, right now?! So this is really what she thinks of me…!

“T-That’s why—!”

Just when I thought that Suzuka woulddemoralize me even more, she said the following words.

“Kaede, make sure to never fall inlove with Onii-chan, okay?!”

E-Ehhhh?! S-Suzuka, what is wrong withyou?!

“Wha—?! A-As if something like thatwould happen?! S-Senpai is nothing more than a benefactor to me!S-Something as weak as falling in love, I would never…!” AndNikaido-san seemed equally shocked. She panicked and tried to denyit.

Though that’s exactly what Iexpected, I still feel kind of sad.

“…A-Also, I’ve never experiencedsomething like that, so I don’t know anything about it. How exactlyone would fall in love with boys…” Nikaido-san replied in anearnest manner.

And after that was a perfectly timedsilence. It was my time to step in and pretend I hadn’t heard athing.

—It happened when I took one stepforward.

“A-Also, Suzuka, do you have someoneyou like?”

Hearing that question, I froze up rightthen and there.

…W-What did she just say?

For some reason, the words “Someoneyou like” and “Suzuka” didn’t match up in my mind, and I wasthrown into deep confusion. My throat felt dry, and my palms startedsweating.

…W-What is this feeling?

“N-No, that’s not possible… It’sSuzuka we’re talking about, after all.”

And Nikaido-san followed herself upwith these words, answering her own question. Suzuka for her partjust kept quiet, as if she was pondering something.

…Nikaido-san is right… Suzukashouldn’t have someone like that…! But why am I so desperatelytrying to convince myself…?

“T-T-T-That is…!”

Finally, I heard Suzuka’s shakyvoice. Followed by the sound of her taking a deep breath. Before Ihad even realized it, I held my breath, waiting for her next words.And—

“I-I…! I have someone that Ilike!!!”

Those words were the most shockingwords I had heard in my entire life.