V4C1 Part1

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*****

Without a doubt,

books were the reason behind my attachment to gaming. During elementary school,

I loved reading books and as a kid, I would often read them in the library.

My reading

preferences were quite wide, ranging from picture books to children’s books, and

even light novels. I think most of them were fantasy.

From then, I

started liking fantasy-themed games. I, who became immersed in settings

featuring unknown worlds, took interest in watching game streams. Then, once I

discovered the world of FPS, I was hooked on games with war elements…

But well, let’s return

to the main subject.

That time, Minaguchi-san

was the one who got along best with me.

Since I had no

schoolmates with the same interests, I could talk about my hobby to my heart’s

content with her.

Things like our

favorite character or the particular scene we agreed on regarding its

awesomeness. Sometimes we also read manga

magazines together and after finishing, we often tried to predict the plotline

for the upcoming chapter.

Now that I

thought about it, I felt like she was the only friend who shared the same

interests as I did…

Well, we were both

boring people, so that might have been the reason why we hit it off so quickly.

At first, I’d planned

on going to cram school only over the summer, but somehow I ended up continuing

for half a year because I wanted to see her.

We got along well

after all.

If that was...if

that Minaguchi-san was Kaho-chan, then…? Was this kind of coincidence really

possible?!

“G-good morning…”

I entered the

classroom timidly, trying not to appear conspicuous.

Since the class

was crowded though, like it or not, I ended up being the center of attention. Hii! Everyone’s stares!

At that moment,

two girls walked towards me, obstructing their gazes like a shield. It was the

usual duo, Hasegawa-san and Hirano-san.

“Good morning,

Amaori-san!”

“We’ve been worried since you were absent. Are you okay now?”

“Ah, yeah.”

It made me so happy

when they talked to me like this, I almost let out a creepy laugh. I managed to

compose myself and compromised by lifting the corner of my lips.

“Thank you, both

of you. I’m alright now.”

“I see. Since the seasons are changing, it’s easy to get under the weather

after all!”

“But you see, when Amaori-san isn’t here, it feels like the class became half as

lovely. It’s great if you’re okay now!”

“Eh, you’re exaggerating, to say something like that, it’s one third as lovely at

most, right?”

The two responded

to my answer with laughter. Ah, how great.

Right, let’s act like

an elegant beauty perched at the top of the school’s social hierarchy. Since

both of them talked so highly of me like this, it no longer scared me when

others stared at me…thank you…

“Morning,

Rena-chin!”

Suddenly, someone

leaned their body on my back, hard. Guh.

I stumbled

forward to keep my balance, then turned around. My nose caught a refreshing

citrus scent from the girl who brought her face close to me and hugged me from

behind.

“Ka-Kaho-chan,

morning.”

“Yup!”

She let out a

bright smile that could energize anyone who saw it.

Seeing Kaho-chan’s

smile after a day of absence made it seem like a smile that came from a true

beauty. It was dazzling. I tried my best to not act weird. I really couldn’t

have an ordinary day if I kept getting flustered with Kaho-chan’s skinship…

Hawawa. Hasegawa-san placed her

hand on her mouth.

“Seeing two of the Quintet interacting like

this...closely...!”

“Eh?”

“I can’t bear to exist in the middle of the air that’s dense with beauties’

aura…! Well then, I hope you two stay healthy, Amaori-san, Koyanagi-san! If you

can, please have a long, happy, healthy life, okay?”

Hasegawa-san and

Hirano-san left us, waving their hands.

Kaho-chan

answered, “See you again!” while also waving her hand. My break time, end!

While Kaho-chan dangled

on my back like some sort of a backpack, I muttered, “...what was that, the Quintet…”

“Somehow we’ve

been called that recently.”

I searched it up

on my phone. After duo, trio, and quartet came quintet. It meant a group of five.

“That’s the first

time I heard that. Is it because there’s five of us?”

“That too, but you see, MaiMai’s company’s name is Queen Rose, right?”

“Um…ah, uh-huh? I see?”

Was it because the

word ‘Quintet’ read the same as ‘Queentet’? Whoa, that sounded hyper cool.

Kaho-chan released

me and flashed the peace sign next to her eyes.

“So from now on,

you should say ‘I’m Amaori Renako from Quintet♡Sparkle☆’ whenever you’re introducing

yourself, alright?”

“What kind of act would I be trying to pull there…”

Considering the

excess privilege I had with this status, I was placed in a rather alarming

position.

Kaho-chan

snickered.

“There’s no

guarantee that no one is planning to stab you in the back and take that empty

seat for themselves after all, right?”

“That would be a bunch of frightening people hiding disturbing schemes…”

I hugged myself

out of fear.

While we had a

conversation in the back, the classroom slowly filled with people.

“Ah, Rena-chan,

good morning~”

“Morning, Amaori.”

“Wa, Ajisai-san, Satsuki-san, also, Oozuka-san.”

“Heya, Renako, morning.”

The Quintet we’d talked about earlier was

present.

I felt like I

heard some “Oooh~...” sounds somewhere. After summer break, it seemed like the talk

about us had spread around on a larger scale, so much that people from other

grades sometimes came to our classroom to take a look. That kind of attention

intimidated me, so I naturally took a step back.

Smiling widely, Ajisai-san

clapped her hands.

“Somehow it feels

like it’s been a while since we gathered like this. How fun.” Ajisai-san

directed the question to me, “Right?” It was a kind of question that came out

of consideration to me since I’d found it hard to rejoin this circle after summer

break.

“Y-yeah.” I

nodded stiffly.

I had

coincidentally found out she was helping me this time, but most of the time, I

didn’t realize I was being showered by her grace. It wouldn’t be a stretch if I

said that the day where she became an angel, or a Goddess, wasn’t so far away.

“Amaori, don’t

forget to let Sena or someone else show you their notes.”

“Ah, that’s right. Oh, but since we don’t have Classical Literature class today,

I didn’t bring my notebook with me.”

“Then I’ll let you see mine! Since I left my notes at school after all!”

“That’s not something you should be proud of, Kaho.”

“Ahaha...Ajisai-san, Kaho-chan, thank you. You too, Satsuki-san.”

I pressed my palms

together as I thanked the members who were kind enough to take pity on me.

Everyone really

treated me well. No one was avoiding me or acting like I was some weed after my

break from school. In the end, my anxiety came from me being overly conscious

of myself.

“...”

Except the fact

that I felt like Mai was behaving unlike her usual self...it was possible that

she was worried for me.

Of course I

wasn’t capable enough to say something like, “It was nothing! I’m perfectly

alright!” to appease her worry, but I felt a sting somewhere inside my chest.

“I’ll show you my

notes before class starts then.”

“Ah, okay. Thank you.”

After that,

everyone returned to their own seats.

Right, since I

skipped school, my MP (Mental Point) had recovered a bit, but in the end, the

root of my problems hadn't been solved yet.

I understood

perfectly that I should hurry and do something about this, but… I also realized

that the deep griefs would also quickly decrease my MP.

Honestly, the

problem I had right now was something I couldn’t solve by myself, considering

my current level as a human. If I kept insisting on pushing it, I had to

increase my status, whether it was by challenging a last boss out of desperation,

or choosing another path and having new life experiences to level up.

It seemed like I

had no spare time for the second option though…

I should at least

stabilize my mental condition. If not, I was sure that I would fall back into the

state from yesterday… Thanks to my sister, I had managed to control my urge to

slack off after a single day. But I couldn’t be sure that I wouldn’t turn into

a shut-in once again when the time came. Since the only thing I believed in

myself was my small-fry level of mentality!

Alright, if so—

“Listen,

Kaho-chan,” I said, as she brought me her Classical Literature notes.

“Hanya~?”

“Err…”

“?”

Kaho-chan tilted

her head.

If Kaho-chan was

really the Minaguchi-san that I once knew… What if she listened to my worries

and then we became friends again…? It was also possible that with her, I could

defeat the enemies I couldn’t face by myself.

Gathering the

team members was a basic activity in RPG after all… Well, this sounded too

convenient for a solution though!

Nah, it wasn’t

like we should discuss my problems. We could do other things like chat about

our memories, which I would be perfectly satisfied with. On top of that, I

would be delighted if I could get along better with Kaho-chan anyway…

Since Kaho-chan had

no clue about my middle-school experience after all! This was a pretty

convenient situation for me!

But, well.

I stared at

Kaho-chan.

Right, the shape

of her face had a minor resemblance to the face of the girl in my memory… But,

that girl was supposed to be more quiet than the girl in front of me. At least,

she wasn’t someone who perfectly understood her own cuteness and presented it

with a calculated angle while saying, “Hanya~?”

Kaho-chan, the

symbol of cheerfulness, was positioned between the ‘resemble’ and ‘doesn’t

resemble her’ line.

What should I do?

Should I bet on this chance…..? If I was wrong and she wasn't the girl from my

past, I would only need to apologize anyway…

Yeah, let's do

it. I had nothing to lose after all. (Worst case, I would just cringe in my bed

tonight.)

“Err, listen,

ummm...right here might be, a bit, uhh, how about during lunch break…?” I

earnestly asked Kaho-chan, who looked puzzled.

“I’m cool with that.”

She asked me teasingly with a laugh, “What is it, what is it? A surprise

confession?”

In front of me, Ajisan-san

whirled around quickly. “Huh?!”

As if I would

confess to Kaho-chan! Considering Mai and Ajisai-san’s feelings, I would

basically be a totally vile woman if I did that! Of course that wasn’t it!

At lunch break, I

told Kaho-chan to come to the deserted spot behind the school building.

“Eh, what is it?

For you to call me to this kind of place—are you really going to confess?”

“I already said that’s not it!” I shouted at Kaho-chan at the top of my lungs.

She had both palms on her cheeks, looking excited.

Aah, geez. This

mood made it hard to start the real conversation!

Kaho-chan was the

only one in our circle who didn’t make me nervous, and I could talk to her

normally.

She often asserted

the clownish role, and since she let herself be the subject of jokes, she

easily allowed people to go along with her pace.

In short, it was

easy to know how to respond to her properly. It was like everything was already

planned, similar to some sort of a skit, manzai,

or even scenario. Like whenever I spoke with her, I felt some kind of

consistency, something like that.

That was why, how

should I put this...when I spoke to her outside the standard settings, above

the ‘consistency’, I ended up feeling nervous. Right now, I was totally

experiencing that feeling.

Uu, but I already

took up some of her precious time…

I didn’t have any

other choice except to say this…!

“Ah, umm,

Kaho-chan, this—”

I took a photo

from my pocket and showed it to Kaho-chan.

“This is you,

right?”

“.........”

She was smiling.

But her smile somehow

felt different...it was like...a smile from a Noh mask.

Eh, eh eh eh?

As I became

flustered, Kaho-chan plucked a stone off the ground in front of me.

“Rena-chin, do

you know what humanity's oldest weapon is?”

Why...why?!

“You see, the

answer is a rock from the ground. Since then, humans have used rocks as their

weapon many times, even while fighting animals far larger than them.”

“Ka-Kaho-chan…?”

Step by step,

Kaho-chan slowly came closer. Was it because she carried the stories of human history

on her back that her small body appeared twice or three times larger than usual?

“I see, so you’re

finally decided to come out and threaten me, eh, Rena-chin? If so, right now,

I’ll use humanity's oldest weapon to fight you...I won’t let you leave here

alive…”

“Th-that’s not—!”

“There’s no use! Prepare for destruction!”

Kaho-chan was

really going to attack me! I had said that I wanted to level up by defeating

the last boss, but this wasn't what I had in mind!

I caught her

right arm, the one with the stone in it, desperately resisting her. Pushed by

Kaho-chan’s force, I ended up falling onto the ground. With my back pressed to

the ground, Kaho-chan, sitting on top of me, came in for a second strike.

Hiiiiiiii! I’ll be hunted!

“I already said

that’s not it!” I yelled at the top of my lungs.

Another piece of

old-age wisdom from humanity: right, language!

“My only

intention is—! Purely! I want to talk to that girl again!”

Kaho-chan stopped

moving at that moment.

“I've been

feeling cornered lately! And then, I found a photo inside an old album...and

that’s why, um, I thought it’d be great if I could talk to her…that was my only

intention…”

Kaho-chan stared

at me intently from above.

“...really?”

“R-really!” I didn’t know how much she believed, but for now I shouted my

answer desperately. “But still, I’m sorry! Even though I understand that talking

about something from the past like this isn’t nice for some people… I ended up bringing

it up for my own convenience. I’m really sorry for that…”

Well now if I thought

about it, if someone talked about my social outcast days I would also quickly

come up with a perfect crime scheme.

I had been careless

this time since I wasn’t aware of other people’s triggers.

“Sorry...about

today, I won’t bring it up anymore...of course, I also won’t tell a

soul...that’s why, you should also forget about this, Kaho-chan.”

Kaho-chan sighed

quietly.

She tossed the

stone away and moved away from me.

...I, I

survived…?

Pan, pan. Kaho-chan brushed the

dirt from her hands.

And then, she

stretched her hand out to me, who was still on the ground.

“You had a lot to

say, right?”

“Ka-Kaho-chan……?”

Kaho-chan lifted

the corners of her lips, and then let out a sophisticated smile.

“What about after

school today?”

“Kaho-chan…!”

I gripped her

hands.

“Yeah, yeah!”

Somehow,

humanity’s oldest piece of wisdom had defeated humanity’s oldest weapon.

Today, I’d

experienced a historical event, the cycle of humanity’s war and peace… Nah, I

really didn’t understand it, but I think this was it...probably.

And then—to make

up for our three years' separation, we headed to the nearby family restaurant

after school.

***

At the family

restaurant after school, we sat at our table, Kaho-chan facing me. I ended up

staring at her face.

Now when I

thought about it, I was the type who couldn't speak properly while seeing the

other person’s face. That was probably why I couldn’t really remember

Kaho-chan’s face well. Somehow I suddenly felt bad.

“Nah, to think

that you really forgot about me, it really was shockingly shocking, y’see.”

“S-sorry.” I apologized earnestly. Since the blame was on me for forgetting

her, I had no choice other than to apologize genuinely.

“It’s because

Kaho-chan, you really have a different air around you...and also, you wore

glasses back then...I didn’t realize you switched to contact lenses…”

“Eeh, this isn’t your everyday manga

though,” she retorted while eating her french fries.

“The

Minaguchi-san in my memories was, she was more, like…”

“The plain glasses, socially awkward girl?”

“Err! She was a docile girl! A girl of few words!”

Ahaha. Kaho-chan laughed.

It was just,

whenever Minaguchi-san talked about the stuff she liked, her eyes would glimmer

behind her glasses, and I loved seeing that.

“Well, my last

name changed after all.”

“Ah, that’s—yup, that’s right.” I nodded awkwardly.

Kaho-chan waved

her hand. “That’s not really a big deal.”

It was just, my parents divorced, and Papa married

another woman. It was nothing, was what she said.

When I responded

to her with “I see!”, out of formality, she snickered at my pathetic attempt.

“But even so, the

first time I saw you I thought immediately, ‘Ah, it’s Amaori-san!’, you know?”

“Uuu...I-I’m really sorry. B-but you should’ve said something if you’d figured

it out!”

“Nah, well, if by any chance you completely forgot about me and I talked about

that to you, it would make things awkward, right?”

That’s…well, that

was true.

“Well, I honestly

thought that it would be alright if you forgot about me. Since we ended up in

the same group, we could become friends once again after all. In fact, when you

reached out to me after half a year, my only reaction was only, ‘After this

long?!’”

“I’m ashamed…”

Since, since…

While staring

down, I squeezed the words out from my mouth.

“Since Kaho-chan,

somehow, you become very...um, much cuter than before…”

“Nn...nn...we-well? If that’s really the case, it can’t be helped.”

Kaho-chan cleared

her throat a few times. I felt anxious thinking she wouldn’t believe me.

Right, complimenting

her out of nowhere like this might only leave a bad impression, so I decided to

convey my thoughts with proper words.

“Since

Kaho-chan’s appearance is really adorable, like, you have gorgeous facial

features, like, you’re really sparkling, someone like an idol...well, your skin

and hair are also glimmering. Anyway,

you look really stylish, and you have a great fashion sense. Ah, you are also

really good at communicating with people, you also have a very cute voice…”

“W-w-wait, time out!” Kaho-chan stopped me sharply. Her cheeks were painted

red.

“Ah...I’m sorry,

I ended up talking by myself!”

“No! Well, that was also it, but…”

Kaho-chan cleared

her throat again.

She looked away,

and while she acted like she was hiding her embarrassment, she muttered under

her breath, “Since this is a normie cosplay after all…”

“Eh?”

“Nay, nay, nothing.”

Kaho-chan changed

the topic in a single moment. “Anyway, Rena-chin really hasn't changed at all,

eh?”

“Eh?! F-for real?”

I naturally placed

a hand to my chest. Even though Kaho-chan looked like a beautiful butterfly

with her charismatic aura, I was the only one who stayed the same…? That was a

bit...no, that was really a huge shock…

Kaho-chan spoke

again with a smile.

“Because like

what you said since the old times, you were a popular person and would always

be the center of class.”

I felt like dying

instantly.

“Ah, ahahahaha!

Did I say that?!”

“Yup. You said that you always came up with new games everyday and dragged

either boys or girls with you. Back then I felt envious of your school since it

sounded so fun and lively.”

Which one was

real?! Could it be she knew the truth and was teasing me?! Nah, but this

sounded like she was being honest though! It really sounded like she believed

that I was a total normie from back then! Inside my head, it was a constant switch

between delight and despair!

“Well, something

like that really happened, huh!”

It was obvious that

the things I told Kaho-chan had been complete lies. The me from the past, chased

by the death god and his scythe, had been cornered and spouted lies like that.

I could no longer return from this path...

But, so, that was

it. Kaho-chan recognized me as one of the normies then… it wasn’t like she had bad

eyesight, I think!

With this, once

again, I swore to myself that I would never tell her the truth for the rest of

my life. It was nothing but for my own sake.

Somehow Kaho-chan

seemed lonely when she asked me, “Hey, are you also done with anime and manga,

Rena-chin?”

“Of course not!”

I told her a few

of the manga titles I was still reading.

I also honestly said that most of my allowance was running out from buying

games and manga reading apps. Even

though I’d stopped watching anime, it wasn’t like I had completely

erased them from my life.

“Rather, aren’t

you the one who’s no longer interested in that stuff?”

“Eh? Why?”

“Because…”

Because you got along with everyone as a normie like that

anyway…

I didn’t say it.

I shut my mouth. As expected, I couldn’t say something biased like that. Even

Ajisai-san took a liking to the Magical Girl’s show after all.

Kaho-chan

laughed.

“I love them, I

really love them! In fact, I might like them more than before!”

Kaho-chan’s eyes sparkled

with the same light as it had in the past.

“Then, what series

are you hooked on right now?”

“Errr, this season, there’s—”

From then on,

leaving the stories about our pasts, we quickly jumped into talking about our

favourite works. We had a conversation that we normally wouldn’t have had: “I

really like that series”, “I really love that character”, “those lines are

really passionate after all”. We took turns sharing these things, and we could

relate with each other’s words.

We had so much

fun we forgot about the time. Deep down, I felt like my soul had healed quite a

lot.

For the first

time since summer break ended, I felt like I purely had a great time like this…

Oh no, my

feelings were in such chaos that I felt like crying…

“Thank you,

Kaho-chan...”

“Eh?! For what?!”

Sob. I sniveled.

“Lately, I've had

a lot on my plate, that I feel like I already had enough...meeting with you

like this really makes me happy…”

“Aah, yeah, you said it...err, did something happen?”

“That’s…”

Pon, pon. Kaho-chan thumped her

chest with her hand. “Just tell me. It’s alright. We’re friends, right?”

Like some sort of

detective character, she raised her index finger.

“This is a pretty

common thing to say but, sometimes talking to someone can ease your burden, you

see? I know that I’m not the type to have a serious discussion with you, but

since we’re friends from the past, I’ll hear you out. Just treat it as some

sort of our reunion celebration.”

“Kaho-chan...but—”

The reason I was

so doubtful was that, well, it was obvious, since Kaho-chan harbored special feelings

toward Mai.

Imagine what

would happen if I told her that Mai confessed to me. I bet she would only become

hurt by that. Kaho-chan kept staring at me as I felt uncertain.

“Haha~n, well, that’s alright. We’re in

high school now after all. It’s a given if things had changed compared to back

then. Haa, it’s lonely but that’s

life, huh.”

“Th-that’s not it!”

I waved my hands,

flustered. Kaho-chan rested her cheek on one palm. She had a sulky expression. Th-this

was a problem…!

“You might regret

it after hearing it though?!”

“Nah, that’s something I will decide.”

She had a point!

By the time I was

able to control my thoughts, I said it honestly.

“Err...you see,

umm, Ajisai-san confessed to me over summer break!”

“...he?”

“And that’s not all, actually. Mai confessed to me before that…”

“..........ha?”

I covered my face

with my hands.

“It’s plainly

impossible, you know, for me to choose between the two of them… Since both Mai

and Ajisai-san are far too good for someone like me… Someone ordinary like me,

the plain and mediocre me, a girl with no strong presence, of course I don’t

deserve them…”

For a while,

Kaho-chan didn’t say anything. Her body trembled.

She must have been

fed up with my indecisiveness.

“Wha...wha…….”

Kaho-chan groaned.

Hearing her like that reminded me of a volcano right before erupting.

“Yes?” I asked

her.

Right after that—

“THE HECK IS THAT!”

Whoosh! I fell onto the ground.

“Ka-Kaho-chan?!

Why so sudden?! Have you gone crazy?!”

She dragged me

forcefully from the family restaurant to the nearby riverbed.

Was it a thing to

get thrown onto the ground twice in a day?!

Kaho-chan, illuminated

by the light glowing from the sunset behind her, picked up a stone the size of

a human fist.

“Rena-chin, do

you know what humanity's—”

“I’ve had enough of that!”

Around us, people

walking their dogs stopped to look at us two eccentric high school girls. I

hurriedly stood up from the ground and confronted Kaho-chan directly.

I couldn’t

clearly see her expression since the light behind her was so bright.

“If right here

right now you say, ‘Everything I told you earlier was a lie!’, I would

genuinely forgive you.”

Kaho-chan dragged

her feet closer. She was being really frightening!

“It’s not about

your forgiveness! Since everything I said was real! In the first place, I was

being honest since you were the one who said I could tell you anything…”

“What the hell is wrong with you?!”

She trudged

towards me with an intimidating aura, and then she grabbed my collar tightly. Hiii!

“So everything,

the nostalgic stuff, everything was because you wanted to brag, huh?! You just

wanted to say it, right?! Y’see, I’m

rweally troubwled since I’m so popwular~ kind of thing, right?! What are

you?! Normie?!”

“Th-that’s not—”

“You wanted to tell me that we lived in different worlds after all, right?!

This is why popular girls are so—!! This is the first time in my life I feel

like I’ve been extremely underestimated like this!”

Seeing my friend

who totally snapped got me in jitters. I’d never seen her like this. I realized

that I had just stepped on a very huge landmine and couldn’t move.

“A-as if...as if

I was bragging around!”

Bam. I shoved Kaho-chan away.

“That’s the type

I hate the most after all! I’m being really serious when I said that I was

troubled by it!”

“Alright, of course, those kinds of trouble, I see! The kind of trouble when

you’re wondering which one to choose between shortcake or chocolate cake for

your dessert, how troubling~♪ right?!

So are you saying that someone like me only deserves sugared water, huuuh?!”

“I had no choice after all! Since they are the ones who ended up liking me!”

My yell was loud

enough to beat the cicadas' cries that were still around us from the sign of

summer.

“Whether it’s Mai

or Ajisai-san, both of them said that they liked me! I don’t get it at all! Why

would they choose me? I really don’t understand! I’m the one who doesn't get

it!”

I spouted out the

worst words possible, words that I could never say genuinely to anyone.

“Even me, I would

never think to date someone like me after all! The one who said it was them!

That’s why I’m troubled! Since I don’t...want to, hurt them…”

I looked at the

ground, balling my hands into fists.

I bit my

trembling lips.

Drip. The tears started falling

down and I couldn’t hold it in.

“...Rena-chin.”

Somehow,

Kaho-chan’s voice sounded gentle.

Through my eyes filled

with tears, I looked back at Kaho-chan.

“Kaho-cha—”

Fireworks

exploded right before my eyes.

“It hurts~~~~?!”

Without holding

back, Kaho-chan had whacked my forehead with her own.

I crouched down,

clutching my forehead. My tears were really streaming nonstop for a completely

different reason!

Kaho-chan also

crouched down right in front of me.

“Who the heck

cares?!”

Seeing Kaho-chan,

I couldn’t do anything other than move my mouth like a lost goldfish.

“Wh-what do you

mean...even though I, my situation is…”

“I listened to everything! Everything! Like, eeeeveerythiiing! Besides listening to everything, I also envied it!

The heck is that! Just choose one of them as you like! The one you want!”

“B-but, if I choose, the other one would be hurt”

“Just pick Ajisai-chan then! With that, I’ll wholeheartedly comfort the

tattered MaiMai! See, closure!”

“That’s—that’s not really the right way to do things, I think!”

“Of course, huh! In the end, you just want to show off your popularity, right!

This, this, this little!!!”

“Uwaa, wai, no, stop.”

During our

struggle, I ended up falling backwards, my butt hitting the ground.

My butt that fell

first was in pain.

“You always

behaved like this since back then, looking like you’re some sort of an exceptional

person! Getting spoiled by everyone in the end! It must be great, eh! Having an

easy mode in life where everything goes smoothly like you want! How envious!”

“That’s not—you’re wrong!”

This time, it was

my turn to push her down. I stared at her from above.

Doing something

like this was like we’re arguing. This was probably the first time in life I

had a wrestling fight.

“I’d never say

that everything in my life goes smoothly! But even so, I did my best in

everything! That’s why, that’s why the current me exists! Even though you know

nothing!”

“As if I would know! You’re always smiling thoughtlessly! Showing everyone only

your good side! In the end, you just desperately do it so you won’t be hated by

others anyway. Lame!!”

“...!”

Without thinking,

I lifted my hand.

“Is that bad?!

Trying my best to not be hated by others?! After all, it’s not like I ever said

that I wanted a lover anyway! Even so, they did as they pleased and confessed

to me! Even though, even though, the only thing I want is our current

relationship, the one where we spend fun times together!”

Kaho-chan squeezed

her eyes shut.

But in the end, I

couldn’t move my hand.

From below,

Kaho-chan stared at me sharply.

“......lame.”

“.................”

I couldn’t do

anything other than cast my eyes down.

Looking like an

old rag, Kaho-chan pushed me away. She stood up and snorted at me.

“I’m going home.”

After saying

that, Kaho-chan grabbed her bag and left.

For a while, I

stayed at that spot and crouched down. The wind was refreshing since my body

temperature had risen quite a bit. It felt like summer was nearing its end.

When I arrived

home and my mother found me covered in mud, she was really surprised.

Ignoring my clear

trace of tears, I answered her shortly with confidence, “I tripped.”

***

The next day, I

felt like dying instead of going to school… This wasn’t on the level where I felt

awkward… It was something farther than that, beyond the farthest boundary…

But if I chose to

skip today, it would mean that I had admitted to everything Kaho-chan had said.

Or rather, it was like I’d succumbed to Kaho-chan’s words and lost. Of course

it would make me extremely frustrated.

Honestly I felt

like crawling to school…

With dread, I got

ready for the upcoming class. That was when Kaho-chan came to class a bit late.

“Morning!” Kaho-chan

greeted the class cheerfully with a band-aid plastered on her forehead. Everyone

ended up questioning it.

Even so, she

answered every question jokingly. No matter how I looked at her, she was really

different from the Minaguchi-san I had known from back then.

I think that

Kaho-chan had also done her best in her own way. She’d changed her appearance, and

even the way she spoke. Even now, her way of communicating with others was far

above mine.

If I thought

about it, considering her efforts, of course she would be pissed if I, who had come

out of nowhere, suddenly said something like that.

….even though I thought

that I finally had a friend I could share everything with…

….no, but!

This time, I

wouldn’t apologize!

...well, I admit

that I could’ve done better by choosing the right words though...but.

Uuuhh…

I spent the whole

day feeling gloomy. Even during lunch break, our eyes didn’t meet, not even

once.

And when we

accidentally said something at the same time.

“Fun.”

“Fun.”

Like that, we

turned our faces away from each other.

Right. I had a

will of steel, so I wouldn’t try to make up with her...until she’s the one to

initiate it. Definitely…!

Even if something

like this happened after our lunch.

“Re-Rena-chan...did

something happen with Kaho-chan?”

Right. Ajisai-san

appeared before me, tugging on my sleeve weakly, her face worried.

Even so, my heart

wouldn’t budge! As if I would care about that person!

As I thought

that, I opened my mouth and answered Ajisai-san, “Err, yup, well, stuff

happened! Hahaha!” I only able to did it around that degree, though!

But still, this

time, I was really angry, Kaho-chan!

***

Several days passed

like that. Then after school—

Even though I had

reached out to Kaho-chan to recover my MP, I ended up having a sense of

uneasiness and it worsened my mental state. I felt like someone desperate to

pay back the interest while carrying a mountain of debts. Considering my

current condition, regardless of which luxurious inn I stayed at for

self-recovering purposes, I bet it wouldn’t do much to retrieve the MP I had lost....

I dragged my feet

toward the shoe locker.

It was there I

encountered a sudden scene.

It was—

“—whatever!

Stupid Saa-chan!”

The one shouting

angrily was Kaho-chan.

Kaho-chan was

someone who expressed her emotions quite intensely, but up until now, her anger

was only for joking purposes. For Kaho-chan to express her anger seriously like

this rarely ever happened. Of course, the battle with me last time was also an

exception.

On top of that,

to think that her opponent was Satsuki-san. Feeling like I was witnessing a

scandalous event, I naturally hid myself in the corner of the hallway.

“Well then, I’m

going home now.”

“Penny pincher!”

“That’s not something an employer should say.”

I peeked out from

the side. Satsuki-san and Kaho-chan stood facing each other. While Kaho-chan

looked cranky, Satsuki-san appeared calm, like she was thinking about today’s

weather—

Eh, crap, our

eyes met.

“Amaori.”

“Ah, err, ehehe...hello.”

Getting between

your friends’ fight without understanding the circumstances was one thing most

people definitely didn’t want to be involved in. I came out from my hiding

spot, wishing I was invisible right now.

And then,

Satsuki-san spoke nonchalantly.

“Right, how about

asking Amaori?”

“Eeeh―――?!”

Kaho-chan yelped

in agony. I also wanted to do the same.

In the first

place, Satsuki-san must have realized the cold war that was currently happening

between the two of us, but she still chose to say that! I would definitely not

do it this time, okay?

“I don’t know

what you two are talking about, but replacing Satsuki-san would definitely be

impossible for me, right?!”

“Well, I also think so.”

“You knew and still said that?!”

Koto Satsuki was

someone who could stand as Oozuka Mai’s equal in terms of beauty. Not only

that, she was also a talented woman who always put in the effort day and night.

Even so, unlike Mai, she really didn’t spare any effort for her human

relationships, so much that she often spent her time alone.

She was a very

high-spec person, and everything she done was for her own sake. With her

unwavering principles, I had no word other than ‘cool’ to describe her.

“Well then, I’ll

leave the rest to you, Amaori.”

“Huh? No, wait a minute! This can’t be—don’t leave us alone!”

I changed my

shoes in a fluster. Kaho-chan moved and stood in my way.

“...Rena-chin.”

“No, wait, umm...Kaho-chan, I prefer if you don’t stand there though…”

Since I had zero

experience fighting with friends, I couldn’t grasp what kind of attitude I

should be displaying during this situation. The only thing I could do was speak

in a hushed voice.

Of course I

couldn’t say something like “Move,” or “Go away,” right now… It sounded so rude

after all...Wait, being rude with someone you have beef with wasn’t really

rude, right?!

Placing her hand

on her chin, Kaho-chan kept muttering.

“Rena-chin,

eh...but, no...I have no other choice...if it’s now...but, if it’s

Rena-chin...it could, I wonder if it's possible, no, it’s quite…”

“Umm…”

And then the next

thing Kaho-chan did was—

She prostrated on

the ground, groveling.

“My deepest

apologies!”

“Eeh?!”

“Everything was my fault! I’m sorry please forgive me I swear I won’t ever do

something rude like that to you ever again really sorry truly sorry my bad I

admit that everything was my wrongdoing!”

She rattled on at

high speed. My emotions couldn’t keep up with her.

“Nah,”

“—I’m sorry!”

“Umm…”

“—Forgive me!”

Whenever I wanted

to say something, Kaho-chan, in a dogeza, would fire back an apology forcefully.

Was this the

infamous ‘apology is the best violence’?

Rather, since she

did something like this in the shoe locker area, other students would be able

to see this scene. This could start a huge rumour! Wait a minute!

“Kaho-chan, it's

alright, just raise your face, please!”

“You forgive me? Glance.”

“That’s—”

“Glance glance.”

“Aah, geez! I forgive you, I forgive you temporarily! Just stand up for now!”

Kaho-chan jumped

up, reminding me of Super Mario, and then she grabbed me into a bear hug. She

brought her face close with a huge smile—yup, she was really cute!!

“Thank you,

Rena-chin! Let’s get along like the old times! Let bygones be bygones! ‘kay?”

“This jerk…”

I grinded my

teeth in frustration. Seeing that, she stared at me with wide eyes. The beauty

with glistening eyes launched her attack by looking at me from the corner of

her eyes. Kuh, how strong…

“...could it be

that, you’re still mad?”

“That’s, well…”

With a determined

face like a warrior, Kaho-chan once again prepared to do the dogeza. Seeing that, I quickly pulled on

her arms, stopping her.

“Stop, please

stop that! I’m not mad at all! Totally not mad!”

“Rena-chin is very kind. Meow, purr purr meow.”

“This sleazy cat…”

I groaned at

Kaho-chan who was rubbing her face on my body. That was the first time in my

life to use that kind of vocabulary. Whoever thought that I would direct it to

Kaho chan, Ashi-High’s little sister mascot.

To think that we

would make up with something like this… No wait, the whole thing really felt

fishy though.

I was already

tired from the whole fiasco. Could it be that I was extremely weak toward

beauties…?

“Hey, Rena-chin.”

“What is it…”

Kaho-chan

embraced my arm. Like we were in the middle of a secret trade, she covered her

mouth and whispered to me.

“—for the proof

of our reconciliation, I want you to help me with something, meow.”

“...huh?”

Ajisai-san, Mai,

and myself.

Everything that

burdened my head heavily, her proposal—something that would wreck the mess

inside my head—was something that resembled a spider web.

Whether it was

the thread that would lead me to heaven, or would bind me even tighter, the

current me had no idea.

With that,

without expecting anything, I walked home together with Kaho-chan…

“And y’see, that

means Greece from ancient times normalized the relationship between men right!

Which is why, it’s okay to think that someday those things would once again

become the norm, right!”

“U-uh-huh.”

Kaho-chan

appeared so lively as she kept spewing fun facts that I hadn’t been able to

understand since earlier. Judging from her behavior, I could sense that she was

desperately doing this so we wouldn’t talk about our recent fight.

Since it was

going like this, it seemed like I was the only one who still felt awkward. I had

completely no idea how to behave after having a kind of huge fight like

that...I ended up feeling so lost.

But anyway, I

didn’t really want to hear about humanity’s oldest weapon or something along

those lines again if we kept wandering around like this, so I cut to the chase.

“Umm, Kaho-chan,

what do you want from me…?”

“Eeh, so you’re finally asking me about that?”

Kaho-chan looked

at me from below, calculating her angle so she could show her cutest side.

Um, no, well, I

perfectly understand that both her gesture and appearance scored a perfect

score, but y’know…

“Well...I prefer

to ask about that rather than being forced to bring some fishy suitcase to some

station and get tangled into some troublesome stuff…”

Kaho-chan flashed

a peace sign under her chin, and of course accompanied it with her full-fledged

adorable smile. This girl, how many types of smiles could she prepare anyway…!

“Don’t worry!

It’s not fishy at all! It is completely, totally, not strange at all since the

reaction you would have at most will be something like, Eh? This ain’t sketchy at all~ how shocking! Kind of a reaction!”

“Uh, if it’s not something suspicious but you keep repeating those ‘not sketchy

not sketchy’ stuff, it would result in the opposite outcome, you know…”

“It’s just a biiiit of exposing your

skin, a bit, alright? Around 1 mm? So it’s so minor, just a little bit.”

“I see. Well then, I have a sudden errand to do, so I’m going home now!”

“Eh?!”

Kaho-chan caught

my hand.

“Hey, I’m begging

you~!”

Hearing her voice

that sounded desperate and earnest, I stopped in my tracks.

“Since Saa-chan

turned me down, I really have no one to rely on right now!”

Kaho-chan stared

at me like some sort of an abandoned dog.

Uuh...so this was

Ashi-High’s little sister’s pleading beam…?!

It was different

from Satsuki-san, who ruled others through fear. Rather, Kaho-chan skillfully

used people’s conscience and guilt to land her attacks. Even though it was already

hard for me to reject people’s favour without something like that…

Now I knew that

Kaho-chan launched her attack by behaving spoiledly!

“Especially since

we finally reunited in high school, even though I was so thrilled by that…”

“Guh…”

Kaho-chan twined

around her fingers bashfully like an elementary school girl in front of her

crush, looking straight at me.

“Since I also

don’t want our relationship to stay like that and turn sour over time…”

“The one who pulled the trigger was you though…”

But still, if by

her third dogeza (even though I knew

that her apology wasn’t really sincere!) and I still didn’t forgive her, then

the last option would be shaving her head. When I imagined that one day

Kaho-chan would come to school with her head shaved, I felt extremely sorry for

her. The last thing I could do was to throw myself off the third floor.

Of course, since

I had no experience in navigating arguments before, I also didn’t know how to

reconcile. It was practically a fierce battle between my ego that didn’t want

to back down, and the desire to erase this discomfort and hurriedly make peace.

Aaah, it seemed

like I had no other choice but to unleash my bravery…

Kaho-chan and I were

different people. Of course we would have disagreements with each other. But

still, interacting with others showed how far you were willing to bend your

ideal to tolerate those differences.

Kaho-chan was

angry, I was angry, and right now, Kaho-chan had apologized. That was why we

were even. Even though the whole thing was just a charade, something like human

interactions, they were full of acknowledgement and contractual obligations

anyway.

Unexpectedly, things

like fighting and making up were...quite deep…

I let out a huge

sigh.

“I get it,

Kaho-chan...let the things from the past be something in the past…”

“Yay! Thanks, Rena-chin! Just tell me when you’re ready to reject MaiMai!”

“I still can’t really say something related to that!”

With this, did we

really reconcile with each other? Well, I couldn’t let my guard down around

Kaho-chan’s schemes though!

“Uh hey, how

about you...are you, um, not annoyed?”

“Mmm, I’m annoyed more or less, but I already said everything that I wanted to

say so I’m feeling refreshed. This one is real. And so, right now this thing is

far more important anyway! That’s why, I wuv you, really wuv you, Rena-chin!”

This

jerk...rather than say it nicely she chose to whisper her affection with that

emotionless tone, huh… Should I pay back the attack from our fight right now…?

Although I

thought of that inside my heart, of course I didn’t have the ability to make it

come true. In the end, I asked her in an exhausted tone.

“...so? What

should I do?”

“That is, if you say you’ll do it I’ll tell you!”

“Nah, but…”

“Hey, hey, I’m begging you, Rena-chin. Please, please I’m really asking you. It's

not something bad anyway, okay? Don’t cast me away, Rena-chin! Please please

please please.”

“Uuuuh… B-but...showing my skin is…”

Sensing the air

of doubt from me, right there, Kaho-chan threw her last trump card.

“I get it! Money!

I’ll pay you! If you help me out until the end, I’ll definitely pay you! Do you

know money?! It’s that thing that could buy you stuff you want even if it’s

something like a country!”

“Money…!”

“Moreover, if you really help me out until the end…”

Kaho-chan showed

me three fingers. Nah, but…

“Three thousand,

huh.”

I’d drained my

savings using it for the inn I stayed at over the summer. For me, getting money

like this was something I was grateful for, but…I could use it to buy the

latest game I wanted, but…

Kaho-chan changed

her expression. She was like a fox who had successfully baited me into her den.

“Thirty thousand.”

“Thirty thousand?!”

My eyes opened

wide. What was that?!

Suddenly changing

her way of speaking into a business-like tone, she whispered to me.

“I’ll definitely

put out the same-day payment. You’d be able to bring the cash home that day.”

Yeah, this was

definitely something dangerous!

“I’m going home!”

“Eh?! Wait!”

Too bad but I

wouldn’t take that bait! I was just a hyper peasant-level citizen after all!

I freed myself

from Kaho-chan's tight grip and then ran away.

“Money is very

important, you know?!”

I knew!

But more than

that, I treasured my mental condition far more greatly! I really didn’t need to

add more problems to my life right now!

After I parted

ways with Kaho-chan, for some reason I kept running until I arrived at my

house.

I stepped through

the front door and then walked furiously toward my room. Hurling my bag and

with a movement like sliding into my bed, I slumped into It, then hugged It

with my whole heart.

My lifelong

companion.

Its existence,

for me, was so important that without needing any reason, I could scream my

love for it, loud and clear.

My PS4.

“Aaaah, Four-kun,

I’m home!”

When I pulled it

into my embrace, I felt the sensation of the cold plastic-based material

touching my skin.

Humans were

scary. I couldn’t predict their actions. I couldn’t understand others’

feelings.

“But even after

everything that happened, only you, only Four-kun would never betray me… You

will...stay by my side forever, right?”

I rubbed my cheek

on it. Its body was really hard after all, but it was alright since it was

necessary to protect the delicate part inside, like the circuit board or the

drive. I really could rely on it.

If only I was

also a console, I wouldn’t need to doubt my value as a human being, and I could

totally have fun without a single worry.

I didn’t move for

a while.

“Big Sis, it’s

time for dinner—”

My little sister

who came to call for me stopped near my open door.

“........”

Like that, she

pretended that she saw nothing.

Most likely, it

was hard for her to admit that she shared the same blood with a woman who was desperately

hugging her console while covered in tears.

Whatever. In the

end, the only one who could understand my feelings was this guy. This guy was

the only one who’d stayed by my side during my sickness and health—only

Four-kun.

“Thank you so

much, Four-kun...aah, how warm...well of course since I turned it on…”

I decided that I

would embrace it in my sleep tonight.

It was something resembling

a little girl hugging her plushie in her sleep. Considering this guy had an

unrefined structure, it gave off a feeling of something foreign, and was

honestly a nuisance, since it pressed against the bed quite a bit.

Even so, this guy

already did a lot for me. It was the one who had strengthened my heart so much

that it was practically protecting me.

Once I woke up, I

wished to become a denizen of a game world…

Over there, I

wouldn't be tied down by any weird obligations toward fellow humans...I could

become the only legendary sword user over there, regaining an unparalleled

unique skill, being relied on by a lot of people and comrades. By the end,

without any need of support, I would slay the last boss on my own, and become a

living legend…

While thinking

about that meager dream, I slowly fell into a slumber.

The next morning,

when I opened my eyes, I found my PS4 lying on the floor as the victim of my

kicks thanks to my terrible sleeping posture.

“Four-kun?!?!?!?!”

It wouldn’t turn

on.

It was completely

broken…………

“Why?”

I slowly fell onto

my knees. Tears falling from my eyes, I gathered its dead body into my arms.

“Why?! Why did

things become like this?! Someone, someone help! Someone help this guy―――!”

My little sister

who passed by since she needed to go for her morning practice looked at me with

disdain. Watching me crying until my eyes became swollen, she groaned.

“Why have you

become like this, Big Sis…”

*****

For more detailed info about the novel, click

here

Credit:

TL and everything else: Meatbun

Proofread: Lyra