Vol. 5 Chapter 3.2

Translated by SoundDestiny Edited by SoundDestiny

While eating watermelon, I spent a delightful time with Saori-chan and Claudia. Enjoying watermelon with a cute little sister figure and a beautiful foreign lady. It’s truly a luxurious way to start the summer vacation.

‘I have a feeling this summer vacation might bring some good things!’

With such thoughts in mind, I returned home humming a tune and the clock’s hands had just passed eight in the morning.

Feeling sticky from watermelon juice and sweat, I decided to take a shower first.

As I washed my hair, I pondered.

‘But seriously, Claudia was cute…’

Just the fact that I got to meet a foreign girl made me somewhat happy. Yeah, it’s the concept of a global society. And on top of that, if that girl happens to be beautiful, there’s nothing more to say.

For a moment, the words [captive] flashed through my mind like a caption and I shook my head vigorously.

I definitely couldn’t just impulsively resort to something like captivity.

If I were to kidnap someone just because I found them cute, I wouldn’t just be a bad person, but more like a devil incarnate.

‘Well, but… it would be nice if we could become friends, at least.’

I thought to myself.

Saori-chan was also a bit nervous, but there was an air of enjoyment in her communication with the foreign girl. When Saori mentioned that she was a member of the track and field team coached by her sister, Claudia seemed quite surprised too. That’s only natural. Such coincidences don’t happen often.

“C-claudia, what kind of person is your sister?”

Saori-chan’s curiosity about the new coach was clear. However, Claudia’s response to her question, [She’s kind to me] was not really helpful at all.

As Claudia left, she waved and said, [See you later, Fumio, Saori!] with a cheerful smile.

‘I hope we can become good friends…’

With the shower water pouring over me, I fell into my usual daydream.

In the new school term, she becomes a transfer student and enters the classroom. When she spots me, she excitedly exclaims, [Fumio’s here! Yay!] and rushes over, causing everyone to focus their attention on me.

Such fantasies. Yeah, I have to admit, even I find them cringe-worthy.

×××

As I wiped my wet hair with a towel and returned to my room, Lili appeared almost as if she had timed it.

“FumiFumi, Oppai-chan and Vertical Rolls seem to be here, Devi!”

“Masaki-chan is here? At this hour?”

“She’s in the dining hall, Devi.”

We hadn’t made any particular plans, and it was still early morning, to say the least.

“Well, I guess I’ll find out if I go…”

After drying my hair to a certain extent, I tilted my head and conjured a door into existence.

Stepping into the dining hall, I was met with the sight of the first-year maids who used to be in the track and field team, standing at attention and loudly reciting in unison.

“「「「「Good morning, Great King of Confinement! Thanks to the Confinement King, we are living happily every day!」」」」”

I offered a wry smile and waved my hand in response.

‘As always… I still can’t get used to this…’

I had asked Lili to stop being so exaggerated about it; it’s really over the top. But she didn’t seem to take it to heart, saying it’s one of her training methods.

Looking around the dining hall, besides the maids, there was Kyoko in a sweet Lolita dress, engaged in conversation at a table facing the courtyard. Another woman was with her.

One of the women we rescued along with Kurosawa-san when we saved her. She’s Kanaya Chihiro, who chose to stay here because she had nowhere else to go.

‘She’s probably around the same age as Kyoko..’

And at the table closer to me were Masaki-chan and Kayama-san.

“Good morning, Fumio-kun.”

“Co-Confinement King! Good morning!”

Masaki-chan smiled cheerfully, while Kayama-san hurriedly stood up with a nervous expression.

Masaki-chan was dressed in a casual outfit, a T-shirt paired with culottes. On the other hand, Kayama-san was wearing the school’s gym uniform.

“Why the gym uniform?”

“I don’t have many clothes with me…”

She bit her lip and murmured in a sort of groan.

It seemed like I had unintentionally asked something I shouldn’t have.

“Well then, on the way back, you can take any clothes you like from the [wardrobe room].”

“Huh? Th-That’s too much…”

Ignoring Kayama-san’s confusion, I exchanged a glance with Masaki-chan, and she gave me a cheerful smile.

Lately, it felt like I could communicate with Masaki-chan through just our gazes.

Telepathy, perhaps. I knew she would choose clothes that suit Kayama-san and make sure she takes them home.

As I took my seat, a maid hurriedly brought coffee and a fruit platter to the table.

“So, what brings you here so early in the morning?”

As I reached for a cup, Masaki-chan smiled and answered.

“Oh, Un. It’s not that I came expecting Fumio-kun to be here. I actually came to ask the maids for guidance on a matter involving Yui-chan today.”

“Guidance?”

“Actually…Yui-chan has started working as a live-in maid. She’s going to work at Mai-chan’s mansion with her mother.”

“…sorry?”

I thought this was about asking for help with that job she mentioned earlier, but it seems the conversation has taken an unexpected turn.

“Well, you see, I was surprised during the interview. Mai-chan’s dad. He was someone who knew Yui-chan quite well.”

Kayama-san nodded along with a thoughtful expression.

“Yes, I was truly astonished to learn that Mai-chan’s father was Fujiwara Masataka… It turns out they had some kind of interaction before.”

“What do you mean?”

“They had connections through their fathers and had met several times at parties.”

“Although our family and the Fujiwara are from completely different social classes, we have fond memories of how kindly they treated us.”

‘I see, their fathers were friends…’

“And there’s another reason they’re being treated specially.”

“Another reason?”

“Un, Mai-chan’s Papa. He was a huge fan of Yui-chan’s mom!”

“Huh!? What’s that? What do you mean?”

“Well, my mom wasn’t that famous, but when she was single, she worked as an actress under the stage name Aoi Umidori. Fujiwara Masataka-sama was… a devoted follower of hers…”

“Wait, that conniving old man!?”

I couldn’t help but react with surprise. In response, Masaki-chan opened her mouth with a cheerful tone.

“It was like a highlight of her dad’s youth, Yui-chan’s mom. When she got married and retired, he even had her company release a 『Aoi Umidori Complete Video Box: 30-Volume Set』 that covered all of her appearances. The way he mixes personal and professional is on a whole different level.”

“Uwaa…”

“Even during the interview, when Yui-chan’s mom mentioned she was working a late-night part-time job at a canning factory, he started talking about buying the factory and making Yui-chan’s mom the director. Mai-chan and her mom had to quickly intervene to stop him.”

‘But having such a big fan hire his admired actress as a live-in maid…isn’t that a bit strange?’

“Um, so, the live-in arrangement…does that mean he’s trying to make her his mistress or something?”

“Un, well, that’s what most people would think.”

“It’s hard to think of anything else.”

“But apparently, it’s different. He can’t bring himself to meet her face-to-face out of embarrassment, but he doesn’t want his admired person, to whom he devoted his youth, to suffer. Mai-chan and her mom were both like 『Here we go again…』 with exasperated expressions, so I really think that’s the case.”

“So pure-hearted!!?”

With that, Kayama-san hesitated and spoke up.

“So… that’s why… my mother and I have been employed as Mai-san’s maid and home tutor, with very little direct interaction with Masataka-sama.”

“Home tutor?”

“Yes, to instruct her in how to behave and speak as an upper-class young lady.”

I see, since Fujiwara-san was just a commoner until recently, there’s still much for her to learn about that world. In that sense, although she may be financially struggling now, Kayama-san, as a genuine young lady, is indeed perfect for the role of a home tutor.

As I nodded in understanding, Masaki-chan gave a wry smile and continued.

“To be honest, I don’t think Mai’s Papa has any intentions of making her work. He’s wealthy enough to support one or two people without any issues, and the atmosphere was more like he wanted to offer protection. Well, I guess that makes sense. She devoted her youth to her career as an actress. It’s a bit sad to think of Kayama-san’s mother covered in crab stick paste in a canning factory…”

“But I have no intention of relying on him, so I’ve come to ask for guidance from Saito-san and Inui-san to ensure I can perform my duties properly. They may be our classmates, but I’ve heard that they’ve received thorough training as maids…”

And then, Kayama-san clenched her fist with determination.

“But you know…”

As I glanced at the maids’ faces, they stood rigidly upright, almost as if they were statues.

“The maids here are in a bit of a special situation, you see…”

Whether these girls, who have been moulded to worship me like a deity, will actually be helpful or not… I have my doubts.

×××

“Today, our new coach has arrived! First, let’s introduce ourselves! Coach Yolanda, please say a few words!”

A tall girl with a ponytail, who seemed to be the club president, turned and addressed my sister. We were gathered in front of the club building located in a corner of the schoolyard. I sat on a bench a little further away, casually observing their activities.

‘At least from here, I can vaguely hear what’s being said.’

From my perspective, the number of club members didn’t seem to be that large. I counted only twelve of them.

My sister stepped forward and scanned the members before speaking.

“I’m Yolanda Camellia. Starting today, I’ll be your coach. I’m aware of the unique circumstances you all went through, including the 『kidnapping』 incident. Some of you might have comments to make, but if we can achieve good results in the competition three weeks from now, we can prove our worth to those who doubt us. I’m expecting great effort from everyone!”

Then, a quiet round of applause echoed among the club members.

As my sister just mentioned, this track and field club had an unusual situation. The majority of its members were victims of a kidnapping incident. Furthermore, among the first-year students, four were still missing. I had heard that some had already quit the club.

At home, my sister was also frustrated. She had taken on the role of coach, but the club was no longer functioning as a [track and field team].

Of course, she couldn’t voice such concerns here.

The surprised expressions on the club members’ faces were likely because my sister had spoken in regular Japanese. For us, it was a familiar sight.

Although my sister was born in Rome, she had been in Japan since she was two years old. As a pseudo-foreigner, she wasn’t much different from me, a born-and-raised Onomichi local.

Lost in these unimportant thoughts, my sister’s gaze briefly turned toward me.

‘Alright, alright, I’m paying attention…’

“By the way, I’ve heard that none of you remember anything about the kidnapping incident. Is that true?”

Upon my sister’s question, the club president and the short-haired girl next to her exchanged glances.

“Umu, Coach, it’s true. Unfortunately, we don’t remember anything at all”

The moment the club president made that statement, her figure began to emit a reddish glow in my field of vision.

‘She’s lying.’

“I think I might have vaguely seen Teruya-chan’s sister, who got arrested, at the place where we were held captive,”

‘ That girl with short hair… also lying.’

Glancing around as if checking on our reactions, my sister continued to inquire.

“It seems that in society, there’s quite an interest in the idea that you might have experienced something indecent…”

“Ridiculous. There’s absolutely no way that happened,”

The club president exclaimed with a slightly irritated tone.

‘But this is also a lie…’

“Then, you have had no further contact with the perpetrator?”

“Of course not! There’s no way something like that would happen!”

‘And that’s a critical lie. They are still in contact with the perpetrator. In other words, if I follow their actions, I could trace it back to the perpetrator. Whether that’s Fumio or not, I don’t know…’

My sister surveyed the members while posing another question.

“Is there anyone who remembers even a little bit about what happened during your kidnapping?”

“…I don’t remember”

They all chorused while turning into bright red.

There were four who didn’t show any colours, including Saori. Among these three, the reason they didn’t show any colours was simply because they didn’t say anything.

One of them was standing there, leaning against Saori,sleeping while standing. This kid seemed incredibly carefree.

The other might be one of the children who weren’t involved in the kidnapping, from what I had heard.

Nevertheless, keeping such a large number of people completely silent about a secret was an incredibly difficult task. Moreover, neither the club president nor the girl beside her seemed to show any discomfort in telling lies.

Considering my past experiences, this was a bit hard to believe.

‘…There’s a high possibility that they might be under some form of mental manipulation.’

Turning my attention to one more person whose colour didn’t show, it was a girl who looked at me intently. She had a sullen expression, with a somewhat menacing look in her eyes.

Read only at Travis Translations