CH 271

“Why did Grandfather…”

“He expressed his gratitude for me and invited me over for dinner at his home tomorrow night.”

“Oh…”

“I was wondering whether or not to bring them some presents. What do your grandfather and grandmother like?”

“I… I don’t really know,” Hoshi replied.

“I see.” Seiji rubbed his chin in contemplation. “Although I could still call the confectionery store owner and ask… forget it, I’ll just bring over some desserts.”

“I think that it’s not necessary for Senpai to bring anything.”

“That’s fine as well, but I still think it’s better to bring something rather than arrive empty-handed.” Seiji sighed. “I never expected your grandfather to express his gratitude to me in such a formal fashion.”

“Yeah… I’m surprised as well, but it does seem like something my grandfather would do,” Hoshi chuckled. “Senpai, just accept my grandfather’s gratitude.”

“I will.” Seiji paused for a moment. “Actually, what I’m really wondering is what I should say to your twin sisters when I see them at your grandfather’s home.”

Hoshi didn’t know how to respond to this.

“During this period of time… how was the relationship between you and your sisters?” Seiji decided to ask a sensitive question.

“We see each other from time to time and also chat occasionally on the phone,” Hoshi answered. “I think… it counts as doing fairly good.”

It seemed that they weren’t able to recover and form a normal brother-sister relationship yet.

This was quite normal, as mental injuries wouldn’t heal so easily—or perhaps it should be said that the distance between them wouldn’t shrink so quickly.

“That’s fine, then,” Seiji could only say this.

It was fine to take it slow.

They were all still young, and as long as both sides made a sincere effort to repair the relationship, then one day they would finally become a family again.

…

Saturday morning.

Seiji sent the completed version of Brother Monogatari to Editor Yoshizawa, as well as Mika and Chiaki.

Then, he considered what he should begin cultivating next. He still needed to write the game’s storyline, but he wasn’t in a hurry. He felt that he should also cultivate… no, focus on cultivation as the priority!

After all, making a game was just a personal interest; becoming a Yin-Yang Master was related to his family.

Should he focus on cultivating Spiritual Power and Mana with the aim of directly becoming a Yin-Yang Master, or should he first master the basic spells?

After thinking for a while, Seiji decided to focus on mastering the basic spells.

After all, only by mastering the spells would he finally feel a tangible increase in strength. Furthermore, the requirements for becoming a Yin-Yang Master might include learning those spells.

Another way of putting it was this: just what use would a Yin-Yang Master that hadn’t mastered the basic spells be? He’d be useless.

Seiji believed that he should first become a passable Spiritual Ability user before cultivating and becoming a Yin-Yang Master.

Then, what spell should he focus on?

[Beginner-level Telekinesis]! This one seemed good, as it was the basic spell for using Mana.

And so, Seiji took out his black cell phone, looked up the secret technique manual on [Telekinesis], and studied it carefully.

After he finished reading it, he asked for Shika’s guidance. Finally, after gaining a basic understanding of the spell, he began to practice [Telekinesis].

The most difficult aspect of [Telekinesis] was gathering the Mana and manipulating it outside of his body.

First, he would need to gather Mana to the point where it was dense enough to affect physical reality. He then had to release it from his body, wrapping it around the object he wished to move and setting a direction and path for the moving object. Finally, he had to activate the [Telekinesis] with an incantation, and the object would move.

Seiji felt that it was akin to creating a mental rope, placing the rope on the object, tossing it out, then dragging the rope—it was both annoying and bothersome.

He tried his best to comprehend and utilize [Telekinesis].

He progressed much quicker than he expected!

Although he struggled on his first attempt, after trying it many times, it didn’t take him long to get the hang of it.

When he checked his system, he noticed that his progress bar was increasing rapidly, much faster than when he was learning [Astral Vision]!

‘Do I have a talent for learning this particular spell?’

Regardless of whether it was merely a mistaken perception, Seiji was filled with excitement and redoubled his efforts at practicing the spell.

And so, time passed just like this. When Seiji returned to his senses, he found that it was already evening.

For Seiji, cultivation was just like writing—a mysterious action that made time fly by.

Seiji was quite satisfied with his progress.

With this speed, he’d be able to master [Beginner-level Telekinesis] completely by tomorrow!

Compared to learning [Astral Vision], the time passed by in a flash. It was similar to how he was able to master the [Body-Strengthening Spell] quickly.

It seemed that cultivation also required talent.

Seiji rested for a while after he finished cultivating, and then he told Shika that he was going out for a bit.

…

Seiji purchased a box of desserts on the way before arriving at Grandfather Amami’s residence.

It was a rather large house that seemed somewhat archaic and dated. Its grounds were expansive, with numerous trees and plants abound.

He pressed the doorbell, and someone quickly walked out of the residence. It was an elderly man wearing plain, traditional Sakura Island clothing.

He had neatly combed white hair, and although his gaunt face was creased with wrinkles, he didn’t seem particularly ancient. His eyes were lively and he was smiling widely; Seiji reckoned that he was probably quite the handsome man in his younger days.

“Welcome, Harano-san,” he greeted Seiji with a smile and opened the gate to the residence. “I am Shouzou Amami.”

“Hello, Amami-san,” Seiji greeted politely. “You don’t need to address me as -san ; feel free to be more casual.”

“I’ll call you Harano-kun then.” Shouzou immediately switched to a more familiar way of addressing him.

He led Seiji into the residence.

As expected, the living room was decorated in the traditional style of Sakura Island. The decorations were far more elaborate than Seiji’s apartment, and the place was wide and well-lit as it was clean and organized.

Shouzou politely received the desserts that Seiji gave him as a present.

“The food won’t be ready for a while yet, so let’s have a chat first.” The old man poured some tea before squinting and looking up at Seiji’s face. “Harano-kun, what club are you in at school?” he asked.

“I’m not currently in any clubs.”

“Oh… then what do you like to do after school?”

“I like to…” Seiji began conversing with Shouzou, and he answered Shouzou’s questions honestly.

Shouzou’s eyes were fixed on Seiji’s face the entire time; he seemed to be in deep thought.

“Harano-kun,” he said abruptly, “I’d like to ask a question: do you know Yui Haruta-san?”

Seiji’s heart skipped a beat at this question.

“Yui Haruta… I know her.” While surprised, he admitted to knowing her. Then, he asked a question of his own to Shouzou: “Why do you suddenly ask, Amami-san? Do you know her?”

“Indeed… I felt that the two of you resembled each other,” Shouzou muttered. “Harano-kun, what your relationship with her?”

Seiji blinked upon hearing this question. “She’s my older sister.”

Just as the elderly Shouzou showed surprise, Seiji added another sentence on top of that: “My real name is Seiji Haruta.”

“Seiji Haruta…” Shouzou’s brows shot upwards from receiving yet another, even greater surprise.

“I apologize for using a false name, but there’s a good reason for it,” Seiji explained. “As for my real name… Rika Amami-san and Mayuzumi Amami-sensei are already aware of it.”

“Reason… it must be that your former reputation was rather bad.” Shouzou had an understanding expression in his eyes, and then his expression turned rather complex. “Yui Haruta-san’s younger brother… I never expected him to be you.” His words sounded deep and profound.

‘Not only does this elder know Yui Haruta, he even knows the previous me!’

This was beyond Seiji’s expectations.

Seiji tried combing through his inherited memories, but couldn’t find anything about this old man.

“Amami-san… who exactly are you?” he decided to ask about Shouzou’s identity.

Shouzou didn’t answer immediately; instead he kept his gaze trained on Seiji for a long moment, before slowly opening his mouth: “I’m…”