/
“I know, but I’d still like to see you in person.” Yukari nervously tightened her grip on her cell phone. “You don’t want to?”
“It’s not that… it’s just…” After thinking it over, Seiji decided to be forthright with Yukari. “I mentioned before that I have someone I’m living with, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’m living with my adopted younger sister. She told me that she hoped that I wouldn’t get a girlfriend in the immediate future so that she could stay with me like this for a while longer,” Seiji confessed. “I promised this to her to temporarily maintain the status quo, until she feels more assured living together with me. That’s why… it’s not that I’m not willing, it’s that during this time, I don’t want to… um…”
He didn’t know how to express himself.
“Can I understand it as you not wishing for an overly intimate relationship with girls during this time period?” Yukari asked.
“…Yes, I suppose you could say that.”
“What about your date during the Winter Snow Festival?”
“That isn’t a date; I’m just helping her out. I don’t have that type of relationship with that girl…”
Yukari fell silent for a moment.
“The ‘adopted younger sister’ that you speak of… could she be that beautiful black-haired girl by your side when I ran into you at the bookstore before?” Yukari recalled this scene.
“Yep, that’s her.”
Yukari felt a mysterious sense of loss. She realized she had “miscalculated” things after hearing this.
If she had known back then that the black-haired beauty was the person living together with Seigo, she definitely wouldn’t have assumed the attitude she did.
She lacked information and had been overconfident. She actually made such a mistake! It was something she had felt was unimportant but was actually critical!
Could it be that… the time that she had invited Seigo but met with Wakaba-san and Uehara-san’s interference was also due to the secret meddling of this ‘adopted younger sister?’
This seemed highly likely to her. Yukari felt as if she was witnessing… the puppet-master behind the scenes.
This seemed like an exaggeration, but that was what she truly felt right now.
Yukari suppressed the urge to sigh as she recalled the way the black-haired girl had looked at her when they met at the bookstore.
“What’s her name?”
“Her name is Shika Kagura.”
‘Shika Kagura.’ Yukari committed this name to her memory.
“Can I ask something about Shika Kagura?”
“What would you like to know?”
“Of course it’s why she came to live together with you. How did she become your adopted younger sister?”
Seiji fell silent when he heard this.
‘Did I ask something that I shouldn’t have asked?’ As Yukari was wondering if she had unwittingly trod on a landmine, Seiji’s calm voice answered her.
“Because some things happened… it’s difficult for me to explain. Basically… she no longer has any family, and I want to accompany her, so she became my adopted younger sister.”
His tone of voice was calm, but the content of his answer alone revealed his deep feelings.
“I’m sorry; I shouldn’t have asked something like that.”
“It’s fine; it’s not a big deal. I’m the one who couldn’t give a detailed explanation. I apologize.”
A moment of silence fell between them.
“About the game… I’d still like to meet you face to face,” Yukari said softly. “No… not about the game, I’d simply like to see you and be able to talk to you, whether it’s about the game or anything else. I really want to see you. It’s quite… a lonely feeling to not see the person you like during the Winter Snow Festival…”
Seiji felt Yukari’s feelings clearly. He felt that it would be too cold of him to resolutely refuse. But if he went out to meet her, his promise to Shika…
‘Right, if it’s a meeting—’
“How about coming over to my place?” Seiji suddenly said.
“Eh?”
“It’s fine even if we don’t meet outside to talk, right? How about coming over to my place for a while?”
Yukari’s eyes widened in surprise.
Not only was it okay to her, it was basically what she wanted the most! She had never expected him to make such an offer.
After she regained her senses, the purple-haired girl immediately responded with: “Okay! I’d be more than happy to.”
Yep, this seemed fine to Seiji.
‘This way, we can meet each other, and it won’t count as a date. I’m simply having a friend over.’
Seiji inwardly praised himself for his wisdom.
“Then just come over tomorrow when you’re free; either the morning or the afternoon is fine. My address is…”
Yukari hurriedly scribbled down his address.
“Just give me a call before you come over. I’ll prepare some tea and desserts.”
“Okay… thank you, Seigo.”
“You don’t have to thank me for this… you’re an important friend of mine.” Seiji expressed what he truly felt.
Yukari felt warmness in her chest from this. After saying good night to each other, they finished their call.
In the middle of the night, in Reo’s soul realm.
Seiji learned yet another spell—[Mana Shield]—after having finished the prerequisites and paying the points.
This spell created a barrier around himself that would constantly be maintained as long as he still had Mana. It was able to block both physical and magical attacks.
If it was struck by a powerful attack that exceeded its limits, then the barrier would shatter.
But if he expected such an attack, he could temporarily double the barrier’s strength for a short period of time. Afterwards, the barrier would collapse on its own, and he would need to cast the spell again.
Seiji checked his system and found that nothing new had appeared this time, either.
‘System, you’re being a bit lazy these days, aren’t you?’
Now that he had learned an attack and a defense spell, learning healing magic was next up on his list. The first spell was called [Beginner-level Heal].
He didn’t know if he would be able to finish learning it before the scheduled Yin-Yang Master party.
‘Let’s try my best!’
Seiji decided to work his hardest at cultivating.
The next morning.
Yukari Asamiya was currently conflicted. What should she wear for the first time visiting the home of the person she liked?
It should be something different from what she would wear on a date. It needed to be plainer, but not too plain.
It was rather difficult and troublesome to find the right balance. Another problematic matter was preparing presents for the Winter Snow Festival.
She had long since prepared a Winter Snow Festival present for Seigo. Originally, she wanted to give it to him when they were alone together, but now it seemed that she could only give it to him normally.
What she was conflicted about was whether or not to prepare a present for his adopted younger sister—that Shika Kagura.
If she didn’t prepare one, she felt that it would be a little rude. But if she did prepare one… firstly, she didn’t know what to give her. And secondly, it could have the opposite effect intended.
In the end, it was because she didn’t know anything about Shika Kagura. She didn’t know what Shika liked or her personality, so there was no way for Yukari to deal with her.
She wanted to know more…
‘Should I ask Seigo?’
This didn’t seem like a good idea to her. Especially if she just directly told him it was for the sake of a present, he would definitely say something like, “Oh, you don’t have to.”
The purple-haired girl laid on her bed and sighed helplessly.
She now regretted not talking to the black-haired girl when they first saw each other at the bookstore… but there was no use crying over spilled milk.
Two people popped into her mind.
‘Uehara-san and Wakaba-san… they would surely know about Shika Kagura.
‘Should I ask them?’
It seemed a little humiliating to ask her opponents for information, but it was also a chance for her.
When they told her the information regarding Seigo meeting Natsuya for the Winter Snow Festival, it may have been in the name of an apology to her, but it also counted as showing their attitudes.
‘We should be able to establish somewhat of a tentative alliance.’ Yukari made that judgment.
Now that she came to that conclusion, she decided to make a phone call.
In that case, who should she call?
As for who would most likely be easier to talk to, it would obviously be Mika Uehara. But for some reason, Yukari felt more like calling Chiaki.
And so, she took out her cell phone and dialed Chiaki’s number.
“Good morning, Asamiya-san.” a lazy voice said from the other side of the cell phone. “What a surprise… I didn’t expect that you would call me; I almost choked on the juice I was drinking.”