EPILOGUE & PROLOGUE 2 â IS THIS A HAPPY ENDING?
PART 01
ââ
âSo, what are you going to do?â R asked.
ââŠI donât know,â I huffed in annoyance as I laid my head on the desk.
After that crazy day, I should have returned to my life as an ordinary high school student⊠But now, another problem had presented itself.
It happened right after Iris sent everyone back to Earth on her spaceshipâŠ
~~~~~
âAaaahh! Oh no, how do I return to Abraham!?â Harissa screamed.
âCanât you use the spell that allowed you to travel here in the first placeâŠ?â
âI only know how to open a unidirectional portal from Abraham to Earth, but not the other way around.â
âW-Whaaat!?â
I didnât really understand why, but it seemed like travelling in different directions between worlds required different spells.
Now that was a real problem.
âIâve already used up the Red String⊠Do you happen to have any more?â
âI do, but it canât be used if it has not been tagged to a specific personâŠâ
âI seeâŠâ
What should we do? At this rate, Harissa wouldnât be able to return home.
âPoor Harissa-san. She doesnât have any place to stay in this world, nor does she have any money. Sheâll probably die homeless at this rate.â
R whispered these ominous words quietly in my ear.
We needed to find a way to solve this problem, but R was right⊠Guess I didnât have a choice.
âHarissa, if you donât mind, you can stay at my place while you search for a way to return to Abraham?â
Harissa, who had looked utterly despondent, suddenly glanced up at me.
âHuh? I-Is zat really alright?â She asked, reverting to her hometown accent.
âHey!â
âRekkaâŠ!â
For some reason, both Iris and Satsuki were glaring at me as they protested, yet Harissa paid them no heed. Grabbing the front of my shirt and shaking me back and forth, she asked again,
âIt wonât be too much trouble!?â
The material of my shirt was stretchingâŠ
âWell, I was the one who asked you to come to Earth, so I guess I have to take responsibility for my actions.â
âR-responsibilityâŠ!â
Harissaâs face instantly turned beet-red. I had no idea why she was blushing so hard like a tomato, even her ears were red, but it didnât seem like she was against the idea.
But why were the other two girls behind me so agitated?
âWhat is this!? I wonât accept it!â Iris shouted.
âMe neither. I wonât let my childhood friend sink into lolicon,â Satsuki added.
âWhoâs a lolicon!?â I protested.
âHarissa-chan is so young.â
âIâm already thirteen! I can get married if I want to!â Harissa announced with a smile.
I guessed thirteen was considered an appropriate age for someone to get married in Abraham. Hey, thatâs not the point!
ââŠI know! Harissa-chan can stay at my place instead,â Satsuki offered.
âSounds good!â I agreed excitedly.
However,
âNo! I want to live together with Rekka-sama!â Harissa protested vehemently.
Things were starting to look bad.
âThen I will live with Rekka as well!â
âWhat are you saying!?â
I couldnât understand the reason behind Irisâ unexpected decision.
ââŠBut thereâs no other option. Harissa has nowhere to go. Satsuki, youâre still living with your parents, and since I live alone, itâs best for her to stay with me instead.â
âYes!â
ââŠâŠâ
Harissa was the only one who accepted my reasoning, while the other two glared at me like I was a pile of dirt.
ââŠPromise that you wonât do anything funny,â Satsuki demanded.
âWhy must I make such a strange promise?â
The whole situation was really pushing me to tears.
âBe warned that I know you well enough to tell when youâve done something you shouldnât have,â Satsuki added, further wounding my pride.
âAlrightâŠâ I agreed, no longer possessing the energy to argue.
With that, Harissaâs problem was resolved, and we said goodbye to Iris.
ââŠYep. See you soon!â
With that cheery greeting, she returned to her spaceship and soon disappeared up into the sky.
â?â
Now that I thought about it, Iris had suddenly gone quiet during our discussion just now. It was as if she had something on her mindâŠ
However, I was just too tired to think much about it.
ââŠWell, Iâll see you tomorrow then, Satsuki⊠I mean, later today at school.â
âYes. Please get some rest.â
Satsuki and I said our goodbyes and parted ways.
I was exhausted, but I tidied up my parentsâ bedroom for Harissa to sleep in, before returning to my room and diving onto the bed.
Ahh, this is it! Iâll be asleep immediately. Within the next five seconds.
âRekka-san, Rekka-san.â
âPlease, just⊠let⊠me⊠sleep.â
I heard R calling out to me, but I waved her away and closed my eyes.
EPILOGUE & PROLOGUE 2 â IS THIS A HAPPY ENDING?
PART 02
ââ
After going through such a crazy day, I couldnât help but feel slightly sleepy the next day. When I first woke up, I couldnât stop myself from falling back asleep again, which meant I would be late for school⊠Whatever, good night.
âHey! Rekka!â
âUwaaah!?â
Suddenly, someone yanked my blanket off my body, and I tumbled out of bed.
Wait, R is unable to touch any physical object, and Harissa doesnât know my reporting time for school⊠So who had woken me up? The answer stood before me as I opened my eyes.
âS-Satsuki?â
âPlease get up. Youâll be late, you know?â
There was Satsuki, looking as if she had every right to be in my bedroom. She was already dressed in her high school uniform, for the first time since she missed yesterdayâs ceremony. It made her look mature and adult-like.
âHuh? Erm, anyway, why are you in my room, SatsukiâŠ? Did I forget to lock the door?â
âI received the keys from uncle Jigen. He told me to make sure that his son wonât fall into his lazy habits now that he is living alone.â
âThat shitty old manâŠ!â
Why didnât he inform me earlier! What if Iâd gotten used to the idea of living alone, then she barges into my room and sees those types of secret books scattered all over the place!?
Fortunately, she had come in before that had a chance to happen⊠But I needed to be much more careful from now on. It would be devastating if my family and childhood friend found out that I owned those books.
ââŠI see that Harissa-chan is sleeping in a different room.â
âOf course.â
âThatâs good. I was ready to use magic to tackle that problem.â
I wondered what kind of magic Satsuki would have used against me if Harissa and I had indeed slept in the same roomâŠ
This whole situation might prove even more tricky than when I lived with my parents.
*sighâŠ*
âDonât sigh so early in the morning.â
âNow whose fault would that beâŠ? Anyway, have your parents returned safely?â
âYes, they are alright now, and happier than I expected to find them.â
âI see. Thatâs great.â
âYes. Oh, thatâs right. Iâve made breakfast, so get Harissa up and weâll eat together.â
âOh, thanks.â
I quickly got dressed, then met Harissa along the corridor before we both proceeded downstairs. Since Harissaâs robes were still in the wash, she was dressed in my mumâs pajamas which she had borrowed last night. The clothes were really too big for her, though.
âWeâll need to bring you shopping for clothes, Harissa.â
âAlri- *yawn*âŠâ
Harissaâs reply was cut off by a massive yawn.
We washed up together at the bathroom sink, standing side-by-side, before heading to take our seats at the dining table. Bowls of rice accompanied by grilled fish and miso soup were laid out on the table. It was the example of a perfect Japanese breakfast.
âItadakimasu,â we chimed, putting our hands together, before picking up the chopsticks and digging in.
âWow! As expected of Satsuki, even the rice is delicious.â
âThis is really tasty! Iâm so glad Iâve come to this world!â
âThank you,â Satsuki replied with a smile. âIâll be coming every day to make breakfast, so just let me know if you have any requests.â
âHuh? Every dayâŠ?â Harissa and I asked at the same time.
Satsukiâs eyes narrowed.
âIs there a problem?â
âNo,â we answered obediently.
But why was she doing this� And I somehow had a feeling that this was only the start of a day full of surprises.
And the next one came after Satsuki and I reached school and started our first period of homeroom.
âWell, this is sudden, but a transfer student has just joined our class.â
âHi! I am Iris-chan!â
The girl who appeared right behind our homeroom teacher was none other than Iris, with a brilliant smile on her face.
âSo, Iris-san will sit-â
âTeacher, Iâd like to sit beside Rekka!â
ââŠOh, alright then.â
Hey, teacher! Donât let that happen!
Iris was humming happily as she took a seat to my left. By the way, the seat to my right was occupied by Satsuki⊠Her expression was even scarier than what Iâd seen this morning, and it made me want to run away.
âDo look after me, Rekka.â
âO-OKâŠâ
âSatsuki, please look after me too.â
ââŠOf course.â
Oi oi, donât get into a fight with me trapped in the middle. Anyway, why are the two of you on such bad terms? Sparks are even flying between your eyes.
âOi, Iris. Why are you back here on Earth? Didnât you return to Phenerita?â
âI went back to beg Papa to arrange some things for me~ Since you did us such a big favor by defeating the Satamonian king, it was easy for me to convince him to let me come to Earth as a transfer student.â
The frightening, stoic face of Irisâ father surfaced in my mindâŠ
âBut why did you decide to come to Earth?â
Irisâ cheeks reddened.
âWell~ Isnât it obvious? Iâm here to train to become a bride. B-R-I-D-E.â
âOf course Iâm your bride, Rekka! You said it was love at first sight when you first laid eyes on me, right~?â
âThat was just to provoke the Satamonian kingâŠand your chest is pressing against me, please let go!â
âNo~ I wonât let go~â
âPlease!â
Everyone in class is staring at me! I hate being the centre of attention!
Beside me, Satsuki wore a terrifying expression on her face. Wait, all the other boys in class looked really angry too.
ââŠIris-san. Please let go of Rekka.â
âNo,â Iris rejected Satsukiâs request bluntly as she pushed her squishies against me againâŠ
Erm, everyone, please understand that I canât just shove a girl away, which means that Iâll be defeated by these soft objects of desire.
But of course nobody would understand.
ââŠJust forgive me already.â
A girl whom Iâm obliged to let stay in my house indefinitely, a childhood friend who insists on being a part of my life from morning till night every single day, and a beauty whom Iâd just met yesterday becoming a new transfer student in class⊠Just how did I end up in such a severe situation?
Someone, please save meâŠ
EPILOGUE & PROLOGUE 2 â IS THIS A HAPPY ENDING?
PART 03
ââ
âŠIn the end, I learned that this whole fiasco was not only my own fault, but Râs as well.
âErm, remember how I told you at the start that the âAll of Warâ was started by all the âheroinesâ you saved? Well, actually, not all the âheroinesâ are involved in that scenario. Some of them were alright with parting ways with you after you saved them, while others decided to leave you of their own accord. So only about eighty percent of all the âheroinesâ you saved are involved in the âAll of Warâ⊠However, since Iâve arrived from the future and met up with you, youâve actually been dragged into my âstoryâ, which will be resolved by you choosing one of the âheroinesâ youâll save and preventing the war. In short, you are the protagonist of my âstoryâ as well, the âheroinesâ you meet are all âcharactersâ, and all their stories are just events which you are going through in order to resolve my story. Thatâs the reason why the âheroinesâ wonât leave you, and will slowly accumulate by your side.â
ââŠWhat!?â
âHmm? You donât get it? *sigh* Oh dear, guess I have no choice then. Iâll repeat all of that in simpler terms, so Rekka-sanâs poor brain can understand me,â R sighed as she shook her head, before stabbing a finger in my face.
âRekka-san, say goodbye to your miserable, insignificant, unpopular, grey youth, and hello to a debaunched harem world of love, desire, and bittersweet fragrances⊠Does that make sense?â
âNot reallyâŠâ
I clutched at my head as I laid back down onto my desk.
âI donât really get all the details, but as long as I donât pick a âheroineâ, the girls will just keep coming?â
âYou got it, Rekka-san. Having a harem sure is every manâs dream, huh?â
âYouâre so annoying!â
âŠAnd everyone in class stared at me, their gazes boring painfully onto my skin. Nobody could see R, which meant I must have looked like I was shouting at noone. ShitâŠ!
The exhaustion from yesterday caught up with me again.
Satsuki, Iris, Harissa⊠and R. A harem? Thereâs only four of them, and Iâm already so tired. Any more, and my stomach would burst from all the stress!
âIf only I can have one ordinary person to fall in love with!â
âYes, so hurry up and decide on that one person.â
âYou make it sound so easyâŠâ
We were having a short break time. Having just finished physical education, I still had some time to spare before the next lesson, as the girls were still in the changing room. For a short while, I could finally be alone. Now would be the time to restâŠ
Just as I was closing my eyes, the classroom door swung open with a bang.
âRekka-sama! I got a little lost, but a kind person pointed me in the right direction, and I managed to find my way here to deliver your lunchbox!â
There was Harissa, speaking energetically and waving a lunchbox in her hand, when she should have been at home.
While I was glad that she hadnât got truly lost⊠I was less enthusiastic about the fact that sheâd turned up in school still wearing pajamas. Stop looking all innocent like thatâŠ
Then, Satsuki and Iris appeared.
âHarissa-chan, what are you doing here?â
Satsuki asked calmly, yet her eyes narrowed at the lunchbox in Harissaâs hands. By the way, if I remembered correctly, Iâd seen Satsuki preparing two lunchboxes this morning in the kitchen.
âRekka, Iâm hungry after all that exercise. Letâs go for lunch!â
That was Iris, totally unaware of this situation. Anyway, this was only fourth period.
The otherworldly girl and the alien started arguing about who I should eat lunch with, while Satsuki stepped in as well, refusing to let either of them have their way. I just wanted to eat lunch aloneâŠ
Soon, I would be forced to make a decision on who I should eat withâŠ
Unable to make such a choice, I made my escape from the classroom.
âWait!â
I heard all three girls shout as they started giving chase.
âWow, youâre like a real-life romantic comedy protagonist,â R commented.
âAnd whose fault is that!?â
This was not the ordinary day I had pictured for myself!
But this would probably be my life from now on.
âSomeone, anyone, please save me!â
Dashing down the corridor, I sent an SOS to a super hunky prince hero who must surely exist somewhere out there.