ăHad you two married, Hatsune and I would feel at peace.ă
ăIn which sense?ă
ăI genuinely just want Sou to be happy. For Hatsune, sheâll probably be at ease knowing that she has someone push her child to.ă
Right? Sheâs been through a lot, after all. Mainly in apologizing and dealing with the aftermath of Isamiâs antics. Iâve also joined her, though.
ăEven so, donât push everything to me.ă
ăWell, itâs too late though. After all, Sou is dead.ă
This woman, sheâs saying it so calmly right in front of me. The reason she doesnât feel grief or anything anymore is probably because Iâm here. Itâs hard to imagine sheâs the same person who cried while yelling at me.
ăWell, and Iâve become a woman.ă
ăSo, are you going to tell Isami the truth? She was closed herself off when Sou died, you know.ă
ăI donât need to tell her. After all, it seems like she managed to move on.ă
ăI heard that Hatsune exploded on her.ă
Ah, I feel for Isami regarding that. Iâm sure that Master exploding caused a big ruckus. Isamiâs antics arenât even comparable. Even I fear her.
ăStill, are you really not telling her?ă
ăI wonât tell her until she asks. Besides, Isami likely has a hunch that itâs me.ă
Sheâs not the person Iâve been with for the longest (excluding step-mom) for nothing. Itâs because she accepted my death that she doesnât think of the current me as Kotone and the past me as Souji as the same person. Though the similar treatment is probably unconscious action.
ăIf thatâs what you say, then I wonât talk about it anymore.ă
ăBesides, if I tell Isami, itâll inevitably lead to information about me being spread.ă
ăI canât deny that.ă
I canât risk having her cheerfully expose me to all of our acquaintances. No matter the reason, itâll really trouble me.
ăOur current relationship doesnât feel too different too.ă
ăI can tell from looking. Still, I suppose youâll have the little sister position age-wise?ă
ăThat, I firmly refuse.ă
Age doesnât matter. I firmly refuse being her little brother or sister. Itâs frankly a position of suffering. And since I have to squash the problems before it happens, big sister would fit me better.
ăAll this talking made me thirsty. Sou, please get me a drink.ă
ăOi, home owner.ă
I havenât been in this house for the past three years, you know. Like Iâd know where the things are placed now. Besides, since itâs only you living,I can already imagine the contents of the fridge.
ăLike I thought, thereâs only water.ă
ăI want to drink iced coffee.ă
ăDonât be unreasonable. No choice then, Iâll boil some water.ă
I donât know when these instant coffee packets here were bought, but these should do. Just to make sure, Iâve confirmed that the insides arenât clumped solid, so it should be alright. If not, it shouldnât melt anyways.
ăThis really brings me back.ă
ăI feel like Iâve been taking care of you since the past.ă
I am part of the problem for not refusing, though. Step-mom should be at least capable of making coffee by herself, but she relaxes too much when at home. On the other hand, she gives her all at work, which is why I cooperate with her.
ăSo you mainly eat outside?ă
ăTypically, yes. During my days off, Hatsune picks me up.ă
ăWhile you said Isami and I are like siblings, you and Master are like sisters too.ă
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I have no idea why both parents and children are like this. You could say that weâre birds of the same feather, but seriously why though?
ăThereâs ice. I donât know how long itâs been there, though. Here, done.ă
ăI use it when I drink alcohol, so itâs fine. Also, thank you.ă
The two of us are drinking black, the taste seems to be fine. At worst, the two of us might start spitting out our drinks, for quality reasons.
ăNonetheless, thatâs a really nice watch you have. I suppose itâs because youâre from the Kisaragi family?ă
ăI was forced to live alone early on, so I donât have that kind of money. This was given to me by the ownerâs wife at the place I work at.ă
Itâs such an expensive watch, but nowadays I feel uneasy whenever I donât have it on. Itâs already become natural for me to have it. Iâm scared of it breaking. And it already broke once too.
ăStill, it looks so familiar to me.ă
ăDo you know Saori?ă
ăâŠâŠ You mean Tachibana Saori?ă
ăThatâs right. I guess you are acquaintances.ă
ăReally not by much, I just know her a bit from work. As expected, it breach her privacy, so I canât talk in detail.ă
Step-mom works as a lawyer, so I wonder what itâs about. Even with a bit of thinking, I have no clue. Besides, if she remembers seeing the watch itself, then I really have no idea.
ăTry directly asking her about it. She doesnât seem to mind it that much, anyways. Rather, it even looks like she wants to just let it go.ă
ăWait, even if you try being vague about it, I donât understand it at all. Well, I guess I try asking her later.ă
ăCome to think of it, she did tell me to come by her cafe when it opens if I have free time. I completely forgot.ă
ăWell, maybe she was trying to be polite too.ă
Still, if itâs before that shop opened, I have no clue at all. After all, this happened while I was still alive. Step-mom has her duty of confidentiality, so she canât talk about it either.
ăYou work there, Sou?ă
ăPart time, yeah. I also have school, so I work when I have the time.ă
ăâŠâŠ Sou, how old are you?ă
ăSeventeen years old.ă
ăIâm sorry. I couldnât see you being that age at all. I honestly thought that youâre already of adult age.ă
ăSo I really do look old, huh.ă
Itâs actually sad to hear even my step-mom say so. Well, yeah, Iâm already well into adulthood on the inside and all, but the fact that my current age doesnât match how Iâm seen bothers me. Itâs better than being seen as younger than my actual age like Kotori though.
ăHey, Sou. Can you tell me about the life youâve been living?ă
ăI donât particularly mind, but I only woke up in March this year.ă
ăWhy?ă
ăDunno.ă
I want to know why myself. During the three years in between, what was happening with me? I got a glimpse of the altar for me when I entered the house, so they must have confirmed my body. Still, itâs not like Iâm particularly curious about it.
ăI donât mind if itâs just that. Can you tell me about it?ă
ăThen I guess Iâll start from right after I wake up. I first woke up in a hospital bed.ă
ăItâs already looking grim from the start.ă
From there, while waiting for Isami to call us, I began recalling and talking about what happened up until now. Here and there, step-mom looked greatly perplexed, but itâs already in the past, you see. Still, as expected, I didnât have enough time to talk about everything.
ăLetâs pla~y!ă
Canât do something as simple as calling us properly? Also, she definitely isnât planning on helping Master. In the first place, she already passed through the front door. Thereâs no end to things to comment about.
ăIs my slapping fan still here?ă
ăI left your room untouched.ă
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Then it should be here. Three years have passed, so there might be issues with its structural integrity, but Iâll give her a big old smack.