CHAPTER 6 â IT WAS MY FIRST TIME SEEING A SHADOW OF DEATH
A public park near grandpaâs house. On my way home from elementary school, I ran there as usual.
As I looked around from the entrance of the park, I saw her sitting quietly on top of a dome-shaped playground equipment with holes on it.
When I called out her name while running over to her, she suddenly turned around and waved her hand in the air with a broad happy-looking smile.
ăLike I said, my name is Masachikaă
I corrected her with a wry smile as usual, but she didnât seem to care and laughed happily. When I was looking at that smile, I couldnât help but feel âOh well, fineâ.
ăMasaaachika come up here too!ă
The dome-shaped playground equipment had ladders attached to its side. I placed my schoolbag there and climbed up with my tiny arms and legs as fast as I could.
As I reached the top of the dome, she greeted me with a laugh. Long golden hair1 that shone under the setting sun. Even now, I still remembered the blue eyes that were squinting happily at me.
ăLook look! The sunset is really pretty!ă
ăOh, youâre right. Itâs really prettyă
While we were watching the sunset side by side, we continued our idle chatter. Although I said that, I felt it was me talking one-sidedly.
ăSo, this seirei school is my mom and dadâs alma mater, they said. Itâs a really difficult school but my grades are fine~ they saidă
ăWow. Masaaachika can really do anything!ă
She didnât even face my boyish bragging with a disapproving look, just a genuine praise.
I was so happy and proud when she praised me, that no amount of effort was too much for me.
Studying; sport; music; I could do my best at whatever was thrown at me because of her.
ăAh, gotta go home soonâŚă
When the sun went down, thatâs when we said our goodbyes. That was our rule.
ăOkay then, see you tomorrow. Masaaachikaă
ăYeah, see you tomorrow. ââ-ă
When we said our goodbyes, she hugged me tightly and gave me a light kiss in the cheek.
I was too embarrassed to do the same to her, but the truth was, I was really happy. She separated her body, and laughed happily whileââ
Suddenly, there was a tremendous impact running from my abdomen over to my chest, forcing me to wake up.
âGood morning~ my brotherâ1
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âUugh⌠Just now, because of you it became not good anymore!â
I managed to catch my breath, and glared at Yuki smirking at me from above. Then Yuki raised one of her eyebrows and looked puzzled.
âOh come on, what are you mad about? Isnât this a little sisterâs wake up body press longed by all high school boys in the world. Be happyâ
âYou talk like itâs some kind of a wake up prank. Isnât this just a DVâ
âJust a DearVenus2? Geez~ onii-chan is so, Si . S . ConâĄ
âItâs DOMESTIC VIOLENCE! What kind of skewed interpretation was thatâ
âMuuâŚ. What is it you donât like that much?â
When I said that, Yuki wrinkled her eyebrows huffily, and seemed to be thinking about something. Suddenly, she made a face as if she had a revelation and snapped her finger.
âYouâre that kind. Instead of a wake-up body press, youâre in a camp that wants to wake up in the morning with your little sister already under the cover next to youâ
âIf.. that happens in real life wonât it be somewhat scary?â
âEh? Then, donât tell me youâre a person that wants your little sister to crawl under the bed? What a maniac~â
âThatâs just plain scary!â
âI guess Iâve no choice~ So next time Iâll crawl under the bed and the moment you get off the bed Iâll grab your leg, okay?â
âWhat is even your goal by doing thatâŚ.â
âSomething like, woken up by little sister horror scenarios. Real new, right?â
âItâs too new for me to keep upâŚ. Rather, get off alreadyâ
When I said this to Yuki who was still on top of me flapping her legs, she grinned and tilted her head.
âWhy? Because thereâs a reaction?â
I pierced the little sister who was giving me a dumb dirty joke very early in the morning to me with absolute zero eyes. Yuki then laughed while moving away from on top of me and left the room.
âHaah, good griefâŚ.â
I raised my body and sat on the bed.
I saw⌠a nostalgic dream. Memories of my first love. Memories of the most brightest time Iâd ever had in my life. Iâd meet with her at the park and played a lot with her. I wanted to talk with her, so I seriously learned Russian3.
Even though my parents didnât get along and I was left alone at grandpaâs house, I didnât feel lonely because she was there.
Thatâs right, I certainly fell in love with that girl. And yet⌠I couldnât even remember her face nor her name.
Of course, Iâm that motherâs son after all. She was a heartless human being who could easily forget the person she once really liked.
Inside my chest, something cold was slowly piling up. The feelings of love and motivation that had been burning brightly in those days were now buried underneath, no longer visible.
There were excuses for losing my motivation. I could always blame someone else. But, no matter what kind of excuses I made or whomever I blamed, in the end, Iâd come to the conclusion that I was just a lazy scum who found most things troublesome.
A scum who admired hard work, and loathed working hard, a scum who thought he was better than other scum because he was self-aware of it, a scum who comforted himself with low-level self-gratification. Thatâs me.
âThereâs no way⌠that kind of guy would fit to be in the student council, right?â
Not to mention, even becoming a student council vice president. I knew this precisely because I was unable to refuse Yukiâs request, becoming her partner and the middle school student council vice-president thoughtlessly. That was not a position you could take without any passion or resolution.
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At the time when Yukiâs election was decided, I saw the figure of the other candidate crying behind the auditorium.
âI betrayed my parentsâ expectationsâ; âIâm not sure what kind of face I should show when I get homeâ;
The girl who was weeping uncontrollably to her friends was.. a comrade who was active as the same member of the student council for the next one year.
The figure of her acting tough in front of Yuki, praising each otherâs good fight, left me with a horrible sense of shock and guilt.
Yuki was also the same, carrying the expectations of her blood-relatives. But what about me? Me, who became the vice-president just because of familial love and sense of guilt towards Yuki? Did I really have the right to defeat her?
And then for the next one year, I did everything I could at student councilâs work to get rid of that feeling.
Even so, that didnât clear up the sense of guilt in me in the slightest.
I donât ever want to⌠feel thatâ-
âBaaam! Hey you, donât go back to sleeâŚ. Huh? Youâre awake?â
âListen hereâŚ. stop trying to kick the door open, okay. You keep kicking the same spot it got a little dented there, you know?â
I knew it was useless, but I said it nevertheless with an exasperated feeling to Yuki, who came into the room breaking the serious atmosphere.
In fact, the door to my room had a slight dent below the doorknob and only there was the texture smoother than the rest. Sending a glance there, Yuki for some reason smiled satisfyingly.
âI think in a few years weâll have it beautifully piercedâ
âStop the slow but steady wins the race style discipline. What kind of martial artist are youâ
âThere have been many heroines whoâve kicked down doors in history, but Iâm probably going to become the first heroine who spent years piercing into a doorâ
âIn the first place, how can there be so many women kicking down doors in real lifeâ
In fact, even Yuki didnât really just kick the door open.
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She turned the doorknob at the top with her hand and then intentionally kicked it open with her foot. Why would she do that was a real mystery to me, though.
âOkay come on, get up quickly~ Your cute little sister made you breakfast, you know~?â
âI hear you, alrightâ
When urged, I went to the living room, and sure enough, the breakfast was there. ButâŚ.
â? Whatâs wrong older brother?â
When I pointed at the semi-solid-all-over-the-places egg dish on the middle of the plate and asked, Yuki blinked her eyes and replied with an innocent look on her face.
âYou should just call it the shadow of rolled eggsâ past gloryâ
ââŚ.I donât know what onii-chan is talking aboutâ
I stabbed the back of the head of the easy to understand Yuki with glaring eyes, who turned her face away.
By the way, the taste itself was not bad. When I put ketchup on it, it became an indescribable taste of jumbled up Japanese and Europeâs flavors, though.
After watching the movie as they had planned, Masachika and Yuki left the movie theater in the wave of people heading for the exit. Once they left the movie theater on top of the floor of a large commercial complex, they took the escalator leading directly downstairs.
Yuki then stretched out her body, and said while relaxing the tension in her.
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âYeaaah⌠It exploded grandly!â
âYouâre really being frank there, ehâ
âThe land mine was bigger than I expected~ As I thought, itâs impossible for a sparkly idol to play in a fantasy with dark world view~ It gave off a very cosplay-like feeling till the end. The content itself too spent a lot of time with spectacular battle scenes and the parts leading up to them were super messy. Itâs like theyâre leaving behind the audiences who havenât read the original work~â
âGuess so. But the action itself was pretty elaborate, and that part was worth seeing, thoughâ
Masachika gave Yuki a response with a wry smile, who talked down the movie with a harsh evaluation while smiling brightly. It was still a little early for lunch, so they lazily roamed around inside the commercial building while discussing their impressions of the movie.
âAh, this clothing is cute. Iâve been wanting a new one-piece dress for summer, you see~. But Iâm planning to splurge on Animate laterâŚ.â
âUhuh, 15,000 yen isâŚ. Expensive!â
âOnii-chan too should dress up a bit more~ you have the money, right?â
âI donât get as much pocket money as you, okayâ
âYou donât use it that much anyway. Unlike me, you donât spend your money on otaku activities after allâ
Itâs just like what Yuki said. In fact, unlike Yuki, Masachika didnât collect any goods, and he also rarely purchased mangas or light novels on his own.
That was because, Yuki, who hid the fact that she was a super otaku from the Suou house, brought all of her purchased otaku goods to Kuzeâs home.
Masachika borrowed and read mangas and light novels that interested him from there, so he didnât have to buy them himself.
In the first place, Masachika converted into an otaku itself was due to Yukiâs fervent missionary work.
âDidnât you wear that clothing last year too. You should get a new one soonâ
âUhuh, if you put it that way isnât the clothing you wear now a hand-me-down from meâ
Today Yuki wore a largish shirt with a long-sleeved inner and jeans. It was a rather boyish look.
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And in fact, that shirt and jeans were hand-me-downs from Masachika.
âThis is fine because itâs stylish. The more you wear jeans, the better they lookâ
âRiiight⌠by the way little sisterâ
âWhat is it, onii-chan-samaâ
ââŚ.Since some time ago I saw something silver flickering at the corner of my vision, is it just my imagination?â
âI donât think itâs just your imagination yeah my brotherâ
âThought so. Since who knows when youâre not in a ponytail anymore. Youâre also doing the young-lady-conducts mode tooâ
Like what Masachika had said, Yuki had been in a ponytail and now her hair was untied. Her way of talking was unchanged but her conducts had become the elegant one shown at school.
âFuhâŚ. I noticed it long before older brother noticed it, yeah?â
âSeriously. Since when?â
âRelatively quickly after we came down to this floorâ
âIsnât that quite a while alreadyâŚ. You did well noticing it, huh?â
âFuhâŚ. I have this hyper-sense allowing me to sense the eyes of people I know immediatelyâŚ.â
âAre you seriousâŚ. Are you not embarrassed by what you just said yourself?â
âFuhâŚ. really embarrassedâ
âDonât say that with a stiff face, just donâtâ
While doing a siblings-skit like this, he could feel an immense gaze diagonally from behind. He closely looked at the glass on a storefront, and there he saw a very distinct and familiar silver-haired girl with half of her body concealed behind a pillar.
Moreover, and only if he wasnât imagining it, there was a âmenacingly menacinglyââŚ. Sound effect plastered in the background.
Should we call out to her from here, or wait for her to call out to us. Or shoul we give her a slip somewhere. Then, from Masachikaâs side who was contemplating whatâs the right thing to do.
Yuki suddenly turned her head around, and spoke as if she had just noticed her.
(Little sisteeeeeeerââ!!)
Masachika screamed inside at the sudden frontal breakthrough. But, the die had already been cast. He turned around in resignation and donned a surprised expression.
âHuh? Isnât it Alya. What a coincidenceâ
Masachika himself wasnât confident if he was able to do his acting that skillfully but Alisa didnât pay attention to that extent.
She was fiddling with the phone in her hand without any reason, her eyes were wandering all over the place while approaching them. Then she opened her mouth, still looking agitated.
âYes, what a coincidence. UmmâŚ. since a little earlier Iâve noticed you but, I couldnât really find the timing to call outâŚ.â
The two siblingsâ hearts were harmonized with, âno way itâs just a âlittleââŚâ, such a thought but they didnât show it on the surface.
Even so, Masachika couldnât stop his eyes from becoming lukewarm, but Yuki, who was completely in her young lady mode nodded with an unsuspecting face and, âIs that soâ
âDoes Alya-san have something to do here?â
âYesâŚ. to buy some clothesâ
âIs that so. Have you eaten lunch yet?â
âNo, I still havenâtâ
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âThen, since youâre here, would you like to join us? We alsoââ
Unable to leave it at that, Masachika cut off Yukiâs words. He then frowned and asked towards Yuki, who donned a composed face.
âYou, youâre not going to take Alya to that shop4, are you?â
âIs it.. Not good? Wasnât Masachika-kun also looking forward to it?â
âOf course you canât. If Alya is going to come, we should go to another placeâ
âWhat? Whatâs the problem?â
Alisa interrupted the two, who were ignoring her and having a conversation she couldnât understand.
âAlya-san, do you dislike spicy food?â
âSpicy food? No, itâs not like I dislike itâŚ.â
âThe shop we are going to go to after this is one that serves spicy ramen. If Alya-san is fine with spicy food thenâ-â
âDonât put it so lightly like that. Alya, Iâll be frank. Itâs not just spicy, itâs a place serving extremely spicy ramen. Iâve never been there either but, itâs probably a place you wonât enjoy if you donât like extremely spicy food. Thatâs whyâ-â
Alisa clearly said that, cutting off Masachikaâs words trying to somehow persuade her.
Towards that unbent expression Masachika thought to himself, âI guess itâs no use anymoreâ, while he continued to persuade her.
âHonestly, I think itâs better if you donât, okay? Thereâs another place we can go to insteadâŚ.â
âYou were looking forward to it, right? Then Iâll go. Iâd also feel sorry to have you change your planâ
âNo, even if you donât have to force yourself to comeâŚ.â
âOh? Am I in your way?â
âI didnât mean it like that⌠were eating spicy food ever your forte, I wonder?â
âItâs not like Iâm bad with itâ
He thought to himself, âReaaalllly~~?â, but Masachika wasnât able to speak out that she was lying.
According to what Masachikaâd seen, Alisa was quite a considerable sweet tooth. He never heard it directly from the person in question, but he got a glimpse of it from her every word and action sheâd done until now.
So, if one were to ask him whether sheâs bad with spicy food, he didnât know. In the first place he didnât have any recollection of seeing Alisa eating spicy food.
(Well, the person herself said sheâs fine with it, and there could also be something less spicy in the menuâŚ.)
After reminding himself of this, Masachika headed for the shop with a hint of anxiety.
Alisaâs face twitched as she looked up at a single ramen shop along a narrow street, a short walk away outside the large commercial building.
Masachika thought to himself, âI can see whyâ and nodded his head. On the other hand, Yuki had a really nice smile.
âThe shopâs name is âThe Cauldron of HellââŚ. This.. is really a ramen shop, right?â
âThereâs âhellâ in the name thoughâŚ.?â
âPlease be at ease. Itâs even in the name in the menuâ
No matter how you sliced it, itâs not a component that could ease your mind but, perhaps the shock was too strong or she was a little overwhelmed, it made Alisaâs lips twitch while she nodded her head.
ââŚ.Maybe you want to stop after all?â
However, when Masachika showed his concern, Alisaâs expression turned into a determined one and glared at Masachika sharply.
âThereâs no way Iâll stop. I was just surprised itâs such a unique shopâ
With Alisa completely showing her hating-to-lose part, Masachika resigned and thought to himself, âNo matter whatâs said she wonât listen anymoreâ and followed Yuki into the shop.
Immediately, a strong smell hit his nose and eyes along with the employeeâs high-spirited voice. Behind Masachika, a faint, âUuh!?â, voice came out.
âYeees~ Please come to this counter~â
The employee guided them and theyâre seated in the same order as theyâd come.
Masachika glanced down at Alisa to his right and saw Alisa holding her nose with subtle tears in her eyes.
Masachika and Yuki who liked to visit shops serving extremely spicy food were used to it but, for Alisa who was most likely a newcomer, this irritating smell mightâve been hard to take.
Said Alisa with a voice as if crushed to death, who was obviously pretending to be tough. She closed her eyes at once and retracted her tears. She then reached for the menu with her hand, pretending to be calmâŚ. and froze when she opened it.
âEven when I looked at the menu, I donât know whatâs what though?â
Masachika subtly nodded to the frozen Alisa. But itâs understandable.
Itâs because, âBlood Pond of Hellâ, or âPincushion of Hellâ, and such dangerous names that one couldnât think generally as a dish name were lined up.
Yuki, whose hair tied up at the bottom of the neck with a rubber band, then made an explanation with know-it-all airs.
ââBlood Pond of Hellâ, like its name suggests it is a ramen characterized by its soup that is as red as blood, and then its spiciness is the most reserved. And then there is the âPincushion of Hellâ. Like its names suggest too, its spiciness will make your tongue feel like it is pricked by countless needlesâ
While twitching her face at Yukiâs explanation, Alisa looked towards the name of a dish at the bottom of the menu written in an eerie handwriting.
âHow about.. this âAvici of Hellâ?â
Alisa asked nervously and Yuki gave a truly pleasant I-am-glad-you-asked smile.
âThey said it has the kind of spiciness that comes full circle and you canât feel a thing!â
âWonât your nerves⌠die?â
Next to Alisa who was showing impatience on her face finally understanding that this shop was seriously bad, Masachika checked the menu once again and closed his eyes, realizing there was no such thing like a safe and less spicy dish on the menu.
ââŚ.Then, I guess Iâll go with âBlood Pond of Hellâ. When itâs your first time visiting a restaurant, itâs the standard to order something standard anywayâ
âI guess.. so. The basics are important, isnât itâ
âOh? Are the two of you going to order the same thing? Then, shall I get the same one tooâ
At the very least, Masachika sent a lifeboat and without a momentâs delay, Alisa climbed on it. Yuki too took advantage of this, and the three of them ended up ordering the same thing from the menu.
âBy the way, Yuki-sanâs attire today is looking very boyish. It surprised me a littleâ
âFufufu, it is a day-off after all5. I just wanted to change up the mood a bitâ
âI see. It certainly considerably changed the air around you, but I think it suits you very wellâ
âThank you very much. Alya-sanâs casual clothes also suit you very well. I thought you were a professional modelâ
While feeling both pleasant and uncomfortable at the same time towards the girls-talk taking place on both sides, Masachika was breaking into a cold sweat at the stares of the men in the surrounding.
Especially the awful stare of a male employee around the same age as him seemingly to be working part-time.
He looked at him as if he was completely an enemy. However, setting the actual circumstances aside, from the sides it certainly looked like he had flowers on both arms so he couldnât say anything about it.
Moreover itâs not just any flower. Those two were beautiful girls at the level where he would nod if they were labeled as âunrivaledâ
If an ordinary-looking guy were to accompany two people like them, even Masachika would take notice.
And, âEh? A love-comedy protagonist? Are you a protagonist of a harem love-comedy huh!?â, he would get excited like such. Such is the nature of an otaku.
(Well, actually, itâs not like the two of them were fighting over me, and Iâm sure theyâd guess from this scene that itâs two close female friends and their luggage carrier)
Just like Masachika had imagined, seeing two beautiful girls having a conversation without the guy in the middle, âThe guyâs just an extra, huhâ, they seemed to consent like such, and the inquisitive eyes from inside the shop faded.
Even the part-time employee glaring at Masachika with eyes loaded with envy and hatred, had his eyes softened and went back to workâŚ. At that moment, Yuki threw a bomb.
âActually, this shirt and jeans are hand-me-downs from Masachika-kunâ
Alisaâs smile hardened with a snap, and the air inside the shop too.
(Little siisssssteeeeerrrrrrrââ!!)
The inquisitive eyes inside the shop were, once again, refocusing. The part-time employee-kun looked alternatingly between Masachika and Yuki with eyes as if he just saw something unbelievable.
âYes, at home I have been told to dress in a manner appropriate for a ladyâŚ. But, I wanted to try this kind of boyish attire, so I requested Masachika-kun for itâ
The smile on Alisaâs lips turned into a thin ominous smile as her glaring gaze pierced through Masachika.
âChildhood friends are awfully close to each other, arenât they. I never thought Kuze-kun had a hobby of making a girl wear his clothesâ
âNo, itâs not my hobbyâ
âThat is right. It is not a hobby but a fetishâ
When Masachika said, donât say anything more than this, with his eyes, Yuki made a curious face.
âOh? However, when I wore boyfriend shirt 6 previously at that time.. I remember (you / I)7 looked very happy thoughâŚ.â
âThatâs not the truth!â
Yuki threw in an additional bomb with an innocent face.
The store became noisy. By the way, the âtruthâ Masachika referred to was the truth regarding the truth about Masachika looking happy, and she wore a boyfriend shirt .
Yuki sometimes came to Kuzeâs house without a change of clothes on a whim and in such cases, she would use Masachikaâs old shirts as her pajamas.
The first time she did that, it was Yuki who was excited saying âItâs boyfriend shirt , itâs boyfriend shirt â. Masachika looked at such Yuki with exasperated eyes but, such circumstances were not for others to know.
ââŚ. Wither shirt?8 â
But fortunately, it seemed that Alisa, who was unfamiliar with subculture, didnât know what something called a â boyfriend shirt â was.
âIf you donât know then I will tell you about itâ, said Yuki, trying to do the devilâs whisper with an angelic smile. Masachika immediately tried to stop her, and before he could do that, the part-time employee-kun came carrying their ramens while glaring at Masachika with eyes as if he was looking at his parentsâ enemy.
âThank you for waiting~ Itâs three Blood Pond of Hell~â
Looking down at the ramen that had just arrived, Alisa leaked a, âUuh!â, and bent her body backward.
In addition to the impressive visual impact of the dark red soup that didnât betray its name, the rising steam seemed to also stimulate his mucous membrane.
The two siblings, who loved extremely spicy food, picked their chopsticks with smiles on their faces while Alisa was lightly choking at this point in time.
âThen, letâs eat before the noodles stretchâ
The three of them said âTime to eatâ in unison. Masachika and Yuki were without hesitation, while Alisa scooped the noodles nervously.
âNnn! Itâs delicious!â
âYeah, it really lives up to its nameâ
The siblings slurping and smiling in satisfaction. Now, Masachika sent a sidelong glance at Alisa to peek how Alisa was doing andâŚ.
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There, with her whole body stiff, eyes wide open, was Alisa who continued chewing without even blinking. Her left hand on the table was clenched with unusual strength, and her fist was trembling.
ââŚ.Alya, are you okay?â
ââŚ.n, yes, itâs⌠tastyâ
She swallowed what was inside her mouth, and then Alisa finally blinked again and showed a putting-on-airs look.
Masachika held out a paper napkin for now, while being astonished and impressed at her pretending to be tough at this point in time.
âYou better wipe your lips with the paper napkin after every bite, okay? Your lips could swell from the spiciness after allâ
After seeing that Alisa obediently wiped her lips, Masachika started eating his ramen again.
Everytime I slurp the noodles, the intense spiciness of the chili fills the inside of my mouth.
Itâs a spiciness that makes me break out in sweat. However, the spiciness brought out the good flavor of the ingredients and left me wanting for more and more.
More, it makes me want to peek into the abyss of this crimson sea (âťThis was just his personal opinion)
Masachika exhaled in satisfaction. And towards Masachikaâs earsâŚ.
âŚ.from his side, came a terribly pitiful complaint. He sent a glance and there, he saw Alisa, her chopsticks completely stopped.
She somehow managed to maintain her calm expression, but she couldnât seem to move her chopsticks any longer.
Then, Alisa noticed Masachikaâs gaze and, as if pushed by it, she moved her chopsticks into the bowl again.
âWell, Alya. You seriously donât have to force yourself, okay?â
âWhat is it? I did say itâs tasty, didnât Iâ
You said it hurt in Russian, didnât you.
âNo⌠I mean, yeah. I understandâ
He wondered if she would be okay, but he knew that it would be useless to tell Alisa to stop now so Masachika decided not to worry about it anymore.
After a short break to drink water, he was ready to face the abyss of the crimson sea again. With the chopsticksâ-
ăI canât anymoreâŚ.ă
The voice coming from the side was too feeble, evoking sorrow.
Still, he tried not to worry about it and continued with his meal. ButâŚ.
When she finally started to cling onto her phantom mother, unable to take it anymore, he looked at Alisa.
(Ah, this is no good. Her pupils look dilated)
To his surprise, Alisaâs facial expression remained unchanged this late in the game. ButâŚ. there was.. a faint shadow of death coming out.
This is hopeless. I was thinking of letting her do whatever she wanted until she gave up but, now thereâs no choice but to stop her. Itâs a doctor stop.
âAlââ
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It was just at the moment when Masachika was about to stop her. Beating him to the punch, Yuki called out from the other side.
âHow is it, Alya-san?â
Alisaâs eyes, which had been completely blown away by the voice of her rival she would compete with for the seat of the next student council president, came into focus.
The feeling of rivalry towards Yuki fired her up, and Alisa regained her life and she even had a smile on her face.
âYes, itâs deliciousâ
âIâm glad to hear it. I see that Alya-san liked extremely spicy food tooâ
Alisa showed a somewhat ghastly, fierce smile and Yuki showed an innocent smile. And then, with her innocent smile, she held out a small jar to Alisa.
âIn this shop, it seems like you can increase the spiciness with this âDemon Tearsâ. If itâs fine with Alya-san, would you like to try it?â
Yuki, commenced an unexpected attack on a wounded enemy. The edge of Alisaâs lips twitched.
By the way, this seasoning was called âDemon Tearsâ. Its official name was âEven a Demon Would Shed Tearsâ, and as the name implied itâs so spicy that a demon would burst into tears. It was this shopâs original seasoning.
(Please stop! Alya-sanâs life is already at zero!)
While shouting in his heart, Masachika realized.
(I see. Because itâs in Russian, Yuki doesnât realize Alyaâs leaking out her complaint, huh)
If thatâs the case, letâs whisper it to her sneakilyâŚ. And when Masachika turned towards Yuki, he realized.
With a seemingly innocent smile, the depth of Yukiâs eyes were harboring a sadistic light.
(This girl, she knows what sheâs doingâŚ.!?)
Masachika trembled in fear. From next to him, a white hand stretched out and seized the small jar that Yuki had presented.
âEven just a few drops will make it taste much better, you know?â
âWait, Alya!? I really think itâs better for you to stop now, okay!?â
Despite Masachikaâs warning, Alya opened the lid of the jar and with a small spoon, she scooped out the bright red liquid from the inside. She then scattered it on top of her ramen. AndâŚ.
Several seconds later, Alisaâs silent scream echoed through the shop.
^1. I did check on google that oneâs hair color can change as they grow older, not only the one when it turns to grey. But from Gloden/Blond to Silver? hahaha fiction magic.
^2. DearVenus = Beautiful Goddess
^3. TBH, this sentence made me doubt if he actually was being made to watch lots of russian films in ch1. Probably it went like this: the impetus was when he was being made to watch lots of russian films, then met this girl and he then seriously started wanting to learn Russian BY being made to watch lots of russian films by his grandpa. I guess itâs not wrong? but quite confusing. Dunno, I never learned JP officially. I could be wrong
^4. Calling it as restaurant is not appropriate imho. I mean, I call a kebab shop as kebab shop, not a kebab restaurant. Itâs the same case here
^5. In the last chapter(should be the previous day) Alisa did say âMata Ashitaâ to Yuki and itâs a day-off in this chapter(should be the next day). Iâm confused. And from what I can find the kanji for âashitaâ can also mean in the near future. So I changed the one from the previous chapter to âSee you in a few daysâ. Touya saying âsee you next weekâ proved it even more that on ch5 it should be a weekday(Friday?) and ch6 should be the next day, a day-off(Saturday?). Thereâs no way Alisa had planned to follow them all along to meet them on a day-off, right?
^6. Originally â彟ăˇăŁăâ read as âKare Shatsuâ could be mistaken as âBoyfriend Shirtâ or âHis/he Shirtâ. But in actuality it has other meaning:
âThe term(kare syatsu) is used to describe the way in which a woman of a man and a woman in a relationship wears a manâs shirt. The word is often used to describe the way a woman wears a large shirt with a little extra length and width, which is considered adorable. The word is also used to describe a man who wears a sweaterâ.
And the real meaning Yuki referred as âBoyfriend shirt/Kare Shatsuâ should be the âwomen wearing oversized shirtâ part. How their surrounding understood the word âKare shatsuâ is up for debate but, yeah⌠It can really raise oneâs eyebrows
^7. In Japanese itâs often to just kick out the subject. Itâs such a case here. So basically Yuki said âI remember ??? looked happyâ She didnât mention WHO was happy, so I put the (You / I) in a bracket. But of course since she was basically responding to Masachika, it could be mistaken that she meant MASACHIKA was happy and everyone who heard this mustâve assumed she meant Masachika was happy. Japanese is hard
^8. The original JP âćŻăăˇăŁăâ Also read as âkare shatsuâ just like how âBoyfriend Shirtâ is read as âkare shatsuâ. but different Kanji and an extra hiragana. in this case it means Wither Shirt/Mature shirt. The kanji âćŻâ itself means wither, die, dry up, be seasoned. Again, another kind of misunderstanding but from Alisaâs side
1. Chapter 5 lines towards the end. Changed âhardly related by bloodâ to âstrongly related by bloodâ. Considering the context(next line) using âstronglyâ should be the right one imho.
well, this is a fun chapter to read. And Iâll admit thatâs one long ass TL notes. I havenât checked how long the next chapter is in comparison to this and previous chapters, anyway thatâs all from me! o7