V3 â Episode 2 â New Yearâs Eve of the Takasegawa Family
New Yearâs Eve.
Yuzuru was sipping New Yearâs Eve soba with his family.
By the way, the soba noodles are not the ones that Yuzuruâs mother cookedâŠ
It was a delivery order from a neighborhood soba noodle shop that he frequented.
It was a familiar taste, which made him feel at ease.
ButâŠ
(Iâve never eaten Arisaâs handmade soba noodles, come to think of it.)
Despite how good Arisaâs cooking is, soba noodles are probably store-bought for her as well.
She might be able to make soba noodles by hand, but it would be difficult to beat the store-bought ones.
However, when it comes to soba soup, Arisa must be able to make the soup stock from scratch.
If she can make such a delicious miso soup, her soba soup must also be delicious.
âNiisan, are you thinking that you want to eat Soba noodles made by Arisa-san?â
It was Yuzuruâs younger sister, Ayumi Takasegawa, who asked with a grin.
âIâve never eaten Arisaâs soba.â
âYou canât deny that you want to try it.â
âWell⊠Iâd like to try it, thatâs for sure.â
How could it not be delicious?
Yuzuru thought to himself that he would ask for it next time.
âWhat? ⊠Is this Amagi girlâs cooking that good?â
The person who asked Yuzuru this was an old man with blue eyes and a deeply chiseled face.
He had sharp eyes and a hooked nose.
Sogen Takasegawa.
He was the grandfather of Yuzuru, the previous head of the Takasegawa family.
His father is a Scandinavian-American, so his facial features are quite different from Japanese.
âŠAlthough he was born and raised in Japan
At present, most of the business matters are left to his son, Yuzuruâs father, and he is technically retired.
What â technically â means is that he is actually in charge of the âdiplomacyâ of the Takasegawa family.
Using the connections he has cultivated, he is involved in a variety of activities at home and abroad⊠It may seem a bit too cool to say it like that, though.
Of course, he wanted his great-grandchildren, but he also thought it would be beneficial to the Takasegawa family.
âŠ. At least thatâs what Yuzuru wanted to believe.
âIâd love to try the food made by her, by all means⊠I canât believe Yuzuru said that much.â
This is Yuzuruâs grandmother, Chiwako Takasegawa.
She is a Japanese woman with a calm atmosphere and appearance compared to Sogen, who at first glance looks scary.
⊠Most importantly, she is scarier than Sogen when she is angry.
âArisa-sanâs cooking is really good, Mother-in-law!ăI canât wait for her to marry into the family. Oh, but will it be the two of you living together at first?ăHey, Yuzuru. What are you planning to do?â
The one who asked Yuzuru in high tension was Sayori Takasegawa, Yuzuruâs mother.
She may not look like it, but she is a researcher of American literature.
âWell, Sayori. Surely Yuzuru doesnât think about the future like that yet, and he wouldnât want to be asked⊠Besides, it hasnât been officially decided yet.â
Kazuya Takasegawa, Yuzuruâs father, narrowed his eyes.
He is the current head of the Takasegawa family.
Basically, the policy seems to be to leave it up to Yuzuru when it comes to the final decision on whether or not to get married.
âŠItâs not a surprise, since itâs Yuzuruâs life.
âSo, howâs everything going so far Yuzuru?â
âItâs going well.â
âThatâs not what I meant. I was just wondering if you have any intention of getting married⊠Of course, you can answer that you have not thought about it yet as well.â
Kazuya said this as he stared at Yuzuru.
Somehow, Yuzuru felt as if all his feelings and plans were being seen through.
ââŠâŠ Letâs seeâ
If it was the Yuzuru of a while ago, he would have either lied or tried to cover it up with a vague answer.
But right now, he was not in the mood for that.
When it came to his own feelings for Arisa, he didnât want to lie.
âI know I want to spend my life with her.â
Yuzuru said clearly.
He felt his ears heat up a little.
Yuzuruâs strong words were a little unexpected for Kazuya, and his eyes widened in surprise.
However, he quickly returned to his calm expression poker face.
âThenâŠâ
Kazuya was about to say something.
Perhaps he was trying to say something like, âIf youâre so keen on it, we might as well proceed a little more positivelyâ.
But his words were cut short by Yuzuruâs words.
âBut itâs also important to know what Arisaâs will isâ
It goes without saying.
Yuzuru added at the end.
âI donât want to force Arisa to get marriedâŠeven if itâs indirectly⊠This is about my romance. I will settle it all with my own hands. There is no need for any unnecessary meddling.â
Clearly, Yuzuru conveyed his own thoughts to his father and grandfather.
Strictly speaking, he told them not to do anything that would put pressure on the Amagi family.
It was as if he had nailed it down.
Neither Yuzuruâs grandfather nor his father is evil, so basically they would never do such a thing⊠is something thatâs hard to say.
After all, they are working for the benefit of the Takasegawa family and the companies under their umbrella, and in some cases, they may use any means at their disposal.
If there is a good reason, such as to support the love of his son, even more so.
In the past, the Takasegawas were known as the âpolitical Takasegawaâ in contrast to the âeconomic Tachibana,â and the Takasegawas are a family with a strong tendency to make such political moves â in other words, to put pressure and lay the groundwork.
Thatâs why it was necessary to inform them about it properly.
ââŠâŠ hmm.â
âHo~âŠâŠ
Kazuya and Sogen raised their eyebrows at the unexpected defiance of their son and grandson.
They didnât seem to be in⊠a bad mood.
If anything, it was more of a curiosity and admiration.
From the looks of the two of them, Yuzuru judged that they would probably not try to force the marriage to proceed.
âŠThey should not think of creating a conflict between the next head of the family, the current head of the family, and the previous head of the family for the sake of Arisa alone.
It is also true that the atmosphere has become slightly worse.
As if sensing thisâŠ
âOh, Niisan!ăYouâre really into her!ăIâm a little jealous.â
âI feel like Iâm losing my son. Iâm so lonely.â
âYuzuru has become a grown man huhâŠâ
Ayumi teased him, while Sayori made fun of him, and Chiwako said sincerely to him.
With the intercession of the three of them, the atmosphere that had momentarily turned sour cleared.
After that, the Takasegawa family spent New Yearâs Eve happily.