At a public park near the ramen shop, Masachika timidly called out to Alisa who was sitting on a bench listlessly.
But there was no response.
It seemed like she had used up all of her energy to put up a bold front, and now had been reduced to a corpse.
Masachika scratched his head wondering what to do as Alisa rested her elbows on top of her knees and pressed her forehead against her linked hands in silence, looking completely like a scholar lost in thought.
But before long, she slowly raised her head and looked around with empty eyes.
ââŠ.Whereâs Yuki-san?â
âYeah, she said she wanted to buy something and went somewhere, remember? And sheâd meet up with us later, she saidâ
ââŠ.I seeâ
In some respectsâŠ. Or rather, she took advantage of Alisa being in a daze and went to Animate to splurge. Even though they were friends from the sme student council, she still didnât want to reveal her otaku-ness at this stage, it seemed.
ââŠ.Are you okay?â
âOkay what?â
âNo, I meanâŠ.â
Apparently, even after being exhausted to this extent, she still didnât want to admit she had been defeated by extreme spiciness. Actually, she surely did finish that ramen with willpower, so I canât say that she lostâŠ. No, Iâm not sure what sheâs fighting for in the first place.
âAh, umm⊠you wanna eat some ice cream?â
ââŠ.I wantâ
When Masachika looked around the park he spotted an ice cream wagon and asked Alisa about it, then Alisa nodded with an unusual frankness. The two then bought some ice cream and came back to the bench. ButâŠ.
ââŠ.â
Masachika licked the chocolate ice cream he had bought, while staring fixedly at Alisaâs ice cream next to him.
Unlike Masachika who got one in a cone, hers was in a cup one. And on top of that, itâs vanilla, choco, and cookies & cream.
Make eeeverything~ splendidly sweet. Powdered green tea? Chocomint? Ice cream doesnât need to be bitter or refreshing! No, it doesnât even need a cone!, she said, as if to say itâs a very aggressive choice.
Even the clerk was a little surprised.
âThis⊠is because I ate spicy food, okayâ
ââŠ.Alrightâ
Noticing Masachikaâs surprised and astonished eyes, Alisa spoke up as she everted her eyes, looking slightly embarrassed. Masachika nodded while thinking, âWell, but even so, you knowâ, to himself.
Although the reason was unknown, there were occasions where Alisa tried to hide the fact that she had a sweet tooth.
Perhaps she thought it didnât fit her character.
(When there was time saying something like, sugar for the brain and energy for the body while chugging down sweet red-bean soup, whatâs the point of trying to hide it now)
Even so, he wouldnât go out of his way to expose what the person in question wanted to hide. Even if itâs obvious, if the person in question was trying to make it stay that way, he believed it needed to be respected.
(Geez, what a difficult personality)
Obstinate and ostentatious to the bitter end.
To Masachika, the figure of her continuing to work hard alone, earnestly trying to make herself be her ideal-self she wanted to be, was extremely dazzling and at the same time, somehow charming.
When he saw Alisa trying to work hard alone, it made him unconsciously want to help her. It made him want to help make her hard work worthwhile.
Was it due to self-conceit of desiring to protect, or was it no more than just a form of consolation to comfort his erstwhile father and himself.1Â Even Masaschika wasnât sure of it himself.
(either way, itâs all worthless motives)
While mocking himself this way, Masachika suddenly became curious about something.
âSay, Alyaâ
âWhat?â
âAlya, why do you want to be the student council president?â
âI want to because I want to be one. If thereâs a higher place, Iâll aim for it. Do I need a reason for it?â
The answer returned for Masachikaâs question was so simple that it was hard to judge whether it was an answer or not.
However, Masachika clearly understood that it was Alisaâs true feelings.
The person in question perhaps didnât know the exact reason either. But, she couldnât help but run.
If thereâs a higher place, she couldnât help but aim for it. That was the kind of human being Alisa Mikhailovna Kujou was.
(Yeah, sheâs really amazing. Iâm really envious of her)
He thought so from the bottom of his heart. How beautiful was a person who persisted to work hard, pursuing to be her ideal self.
How noble and precious was the figure of her, who kept on running on her own, without relying on others.
Masachika saw it clearly in Alisa, the radiance of her soul that only those who lived their lives to the fullest with pride were able to emit.
Yuki and Touya too were carrying the same radiance. But, Alisaâs looked stronger than those twoâs, and yet, more fragile.
âIf youâre going to run for the student council presidential candidacyâŠ. Is there a candidate for the vice-president?â
In response to Masachikaâs question, Alisaâs eyes shook for an instantâŠ. she turned to the front as if ashamed of herself and answered with a firm expression.
âThereâs none. But, itâs not particularly a problem. Things like vice-president, itâs unnecessaryâ
âNo, saying itâs unnecessary isâŠ. As long as thereâs a rule to run the candidacy in pair, itâs not unnecessaryâ
âItâs fine as long as the vice-presidentâs name is on the paper, right? Iâll find someone to bear that role for me at randomâ
Those words made Masachika feel terribly lonely. This was it. This was why Alisa looked helplessly fragile.
Not relying on others. Not expecting anything from others. Not seeking recognition nor praises from others, only trying her best to pursue the results she envisioned.
No, perhaps it was precisely because she was thinking everything was for her own self-satisfaction that she believed she shouldnât be relying on others.
Masachika just couldnât leave such Alisa alone.
It was because he knew the limit of what one person could do. And because he knew the sadness, the pain, and emptiness one felt when their efforts were not rewarded.
(EffortsâŠ. Should be rewarded. Human beings who truly exerting efforts with their all should seize the results they want)
Precisely because of this belief that Masaschika had been able to considerably help Alisa until now.
He even tried to ease up Alisaâs unapproachability by involving the people around her, getting her to cooperate with the people around her, and taking the initiative to call her by her nickname.
Looking at this girl, it didnât seem to have much effect, though.
ââŠ.I seeâ
ââŠ.â
Alisa didnât say anything. Without showing any emotion, she silently carried the ice cream to her mouth.
Was it.. Masachikaâs conceit that he felt the silence as some kind of silent appeal. Yesterday when they parted, the words Alisa was about to say wasâŠ.
At that moment, as if to affirm Masachikaâs guess, Alisa who had finished her ice cream muttered.
ăTogether with youâŠ.ă
Alisa stopped her mouth there, as if she was afraid to say anything anymore, even in Russian. However, for Masachika it was more than enough.
âBut IâŠ.â
He didnât have the radiance of soul that Alisa, Yuki and Touya had.
Neither the initiative to set his own goals, nor the passion to continue exerting efforts, facing forward.
Always leaving his goals to others . Always relying on the passions of others.
Even in the past, when Masachika was at his brightest, nothing had changed.
âBecome a worthy heir to the Suou Houseâ, such a goal was given to him by his mother and grandfather.2
The passion to reach that goal was given by his mother to her child. He didnât make that decision on his own.
Just doing it to get his motherâs recognition, to get that girlâs praise.
Just running on the rails given to him by others, with fuels given by others.
And now that he had lost both of it, not moving anywhere, just standing still.
(I.. am not worthy)3
Masachika was.. grateful that Alisaâs words had been leaked out in Russian. If.. even if it had been said in Japanese⊠Masachika still.. would have had no choice but to choose cowardly remaining in silence.
And there, as if to change the mood, Alisa raised her voice.
âKuze-kun, do you have an errand to do later?â
âHmm? No, Nothing in particularâ
âHow about Yuki-san?â
âNn~~⊠Well, we can just meet up laterâ
âI see, then come with me on my errandâ
âErrand you said⊠Didnât you say you were buying clothes?â
âThatâs right?â
âNo, what do you mean with âthatâs rightâ⊠Things like a guy accompanying a girl choosing clothes, I think itâs an event that wouldnât happen without a fair amount of intimacy, donât you think?â
âIs that so?â
When he saw Alisa tilting her head, Masachika suddenly realized something.
(I seeâŠ. Alya doesnât have any friends sheâs close enough with that she can go clothes shopping together, so she doesnât understand the subtleties of the situation, huhâŠâŠ!!)
Masachika, whose eyes involuntarily became hot due to a surplus of pity for her, suddenly bit down his molars and showed an expression somewhat full with affection.
âNoâŠ. I suppose not. Iâll go with youâ
Alisa frowned at Masachika, who suddenly became more kind.
âWhatâs wrong? So suddenly like thatâ
âWell, weâre friends after all. Yeahâ
âI still somehow donât get it though?â
âDonât worry about itâ
After coaxing a dubious Alisa, Masachika returned to the commercial building.
They moved to the floor where the clothing & accessory stores were clustered, and randomly strolled around.
On the other hand, Alisa had a misunderstanding regarding Masachika, who suddenly became so kind.
(Donât tell meâŠ. He thinks I canât become the student council president? And thatâs why he suddenly became kind? Tsk, Donât make fun of me!)
She gritted her teeth inwardly as Masachika completely acted as if he was a parent comforting a child or something.
For a long time, Alisa couldnât stand this attitude of Masachika as if he was watching over her from one level up. However, opposing it head on now was what a child would do.
(Something⊠just something.. I want to get back at him. I wanna rip apart that leeway!)
Grrrrr, she groaned inwardly while racking her brainâŠ. Alisa just now.. recalled the incident that happened the other morning.
(Now itâs come to this, I will show you my full power fashion show that will make you flustered!)
Under an incomprehensible determination born out of misunderstanding going completely in a different direction, Alisa entered a store that piqued her interest, and grabbed various clothes in the store then got into the fitting room.
âThen, I will change now. Let me know your opinion, okayâ
âSureâ
She let Masachika wait in front of the fitting room, pulled the curtain and closely examined the clothes.
(First will be⊠this one)
The first thing she picked up from the clothes she brought inside was a summery pure white one piece dress.
(If itâs this one it shouldnât be a miss. And Masha said boys absolutely love something like this!)
In contrast to her challenging determination, she was unaware that sheâs playing it safe and chose a clothing according to her older sisterâs information, who was shoujo-manga-for-brains had told her, which she wasnât sure of if itâs accurate.
And then, as she reached for the button on her blouse to changeâŠ. suddenly she stopped her hands.
(âŠ.Wait a moment? Wonât.. the sound of me changing be heard outside?)
Currently, the only thing separating herself and Masachika outside was a single curtain. Moreover, there was a little gap at the bottom. Once she became aware of it, a sense of shame immediately welling up inside Alisa.
âKuze-kun! Move away a little!â
Unable to endure it, she called out from the other side of the curtain and, âYeee~â, an unmotivated voice returned together with audible sounds of footsteps walking away.
Feeling a little relieved after hearing thatâŠ. Alisa grew impatient as the sound of footsteps walking away was clearer than she had expected.
(Eh? If I can hear the sound of footsteps in the distance⊠the sound of rustling clothes can also be heard too, then?)
Somehow she felt like she was doing something unbelievably embarrassing, and she couldnât calm down. She felt like she understood what Masachika had said earlier, âThings like a guy accompanying a girl choosing clothes, should be a fairly intimate~~â, but itâs too late now.
(No, itâs okay. Thereâs music playing inside the storeâŠ. The sound coming from here should immediately be drowned⊠in)
Alisa was so embarrassed she wanted to run away, but her own pride wouldnât allow that.
She firmly suppressed her shame and began to undress with determination.
Trying not to think of the boy outside, she quickly changed her clothes and, knowing itâs meaningless, she listened carefully to get a glimpse of what was going on outside.
(It seems⊠okay)
Convinced that there was no particular reaction, once again she turned to the mirror.
On the other hand, as for the person who was being listened to, the older ladies from the surrounding turned to him, saying, âOh my, a student couple? I wonder if heâs waiting for the girlfriend. So cute~â, and the lukewarm gaze of the older ladies were met with a blank expression, âthis, is the thing common in love-comedyâŠ.â, and he tried to escape from reality.
He wasnât conscious of such things like the sound of rustling clothes, so Alisaâs worry was unnecessary.
Although it mightâve been disappointing for Alisa, he was more concerned about the stares from the people around him than the sound of Alisa changing clothes.
(Yeah, it looks good on me if I say so myself. Good job, me)
Posing in front of the mirror, she praised herself. Then, as she was about to pull open the curtain certain of her victory (Not sure when it became a contest though), suddenly she felt uneasy.
What if.. heâs completely not responding? What if he said âOoh~ isnât that fine?â such an indifferent line while fiddling with his phone? âŠ..if that really happens I may cry. Just thinking about it makes my heart tightened.
(Fu, fuun! If you do Iâll slap you with my all!!)
However, Alisa mustered her fighting spirit, holding down her faintheartedness. She then pulled open the curtain strongly.
âWhat do you think?â
Hands on her hips, putting her weight on one leg, posing like a model Alisa looked at Masachika challengingly.
In fact, the combination of her exceptional build and beauty made her look stunningly good-looking.
For some reason, the older ladies inside the store leaked out a breath of admiration when they looked at her.
(This is the kind of thing boys definitely love!!)4
While shouting strongly in his heart, he swung down his fist on top of his imaginary desk. Apparently, Mashaâs information was correct this time.
However, being too obvious here would definitely be what Alisa had wanted. He would lose if he acted embarrassed at times like this; Masachika was well aware of that.
Thatâs why Iâm not going to defend, Iâll go on the offensive!
âYeah, that looks good on you. Alyaâs white skin perfectly matched the pure white dress. Your neatness and girlishness have been emphasized, and you feel like cuter than usualâ
âU..eh? I.. seeâŠ?â
Alisa was flustered by Masachikaâs counter. Being praised directly with a straight face made her feel somewhat restless.
âThen, Iâll try the next oneâŠ.â
After mumbling like that, Alisa pulled back the curtain as if to run away.
The curtain obstructed their eyesâŠ. immediately afterwards, Alisa and Masachika, both of them crouched down at the same time inside and outside the curtain.
(Eh? Eh? What? Eeeh? Somehow I was praised so much!)
(Embarrassing! Itâs too much! You did well saying all that without laughing, me! This is bad. Fawning5Â like that head-on was damn embarrassing! That girl, how can she do this all the time. Well, she can because she thinks they donât get the message in Russian though!)
Not even having the leeway to mind the pleasant gaze of the older ladies from the surrounding, heâs holding his head, enduring the shame. Right close to him, Alisa also was holding her cheeks with both hands, enduring the shame.
(Eh? Wait, eeh? N-no way, cute he said⊠cute, he said!! ~~~~! Aah! Geez!)
Still, unable to take it anymore, she repeatedly hit the floor of the fitting room and hurriedly stopped after hearing the sound that was louder than expected.
Clearing her throat for no reason, she turned around and saw the reflection of her broken smile in the mirror. She then unconsciously pressed her forehead against the mirror with a thud.
Pressing and grinding her forehead against the mirror, the pain and cold sensation forced herself to regain back her bearings.
(Fuu~~~âŠ. Itâs okay. Come to think of it, isnât it natural for him to be saying the obvious. Yes, Kuze-kun is surprisingly someone capable of praising girls, I see. Iâm impressed)
While mysteriously passing down evaluation with a condescending attitude, she swept her hair to the back with a fwoosh, and the impression of âused to itâ came to her mind.
(Heâs used to it? To what?)
Thinking was unnecessary. It was.. about Masachika praising girls. Then, whom did he get used to praising, she wondered. There was nothing but only one answer coming to her mind.
(With.. Yuki-sanâŠ.?)
All of sudden her head grew cold. Just a few hours ago, she saw it. The appearance of the two of them happily window shopping emerging in her mind, and a fuzzy feeling spread across Alisaâs chest.
ââŠ.â
Slowly pulling herself away from the mirror, Alisa shifted her attention to the clothes sheâd brought in. And then from among those, she slowly took out jeans and a shirt, and started to change again.
That combination, especially the male-style choice of a black shirt with something written in English on it, she had an inkling that it was something sheâs doing consciously, but itâs just her imagination.
If Alisa said she had no other intentions, then so it shall be.
âAs for this, what do you think?â
Alisa opened the curtain with an expression full of confidence seeming to say, thereâs nothing to be ashamed of, okay?
However, as expected Masachika wasnât so insensitive to the extent of not being able to guess anything by looking at this outfit. But he wasnât so tactless to purposefully point it out. It could be said that he was not fearless.
âThis time you looked a lot cooler. Alya is more of a beauty type rather than a cute type, so I think youâd look good on something like this too, you know? And when youâre wearing jeans instead of a skirt, it really highlights your style tooâ
âFu, Fuun~. You think so? Thanksâ
This time, Alisa accepted the second high praise without problem. Not even trying to hide her smile, she even showed an unusual smiling face and thanked him.
âWell then, the next oneâ
âKaay~â
Thus, she had completely forgotten her original aim of making Masachika flustered and started to truly enjoy the fashion show.
She changed clothes one after another, and even posed in front of the mirror and showed it to Masachika. Masachika, on the other hand, made full use of girls-killing-praise sayings that he had studied in 2D world to praise her.
Gradually, Masachikaâs sense of shame was becoming numb, while Alisa was feeling better and better.
Like Masachika had guessed, Alisa didnât have any friends she could go clothes shopping with, and her sister, with whom she sometimes went clothes shopping with, would always say âAlya-chan so cute~â no matter what she wore. Thatâs why itâs the first time for Alisa to be praised in such a specific way.
(Next is~~nn~~ âȘ next, one, is~~âȘ)
Completely in a good mood, she was humming in her heart while choosing clothes.
If Yuki was here, sheâd definitely say something like, âso simpleâ, but the person in question wasnât aware of that.6
Then, in a light-hearted mood she thought to herself, âI donât think Iâll wear this but well, just in caseâ, while reaching her hand for the clothes sheâd brought with her.
(This is not a little too boldâŠ. Is it? But if itâs Kuze-kun, Iâm sure heâd praise it)
What she chose was a camisole with exposed shoulders and a mini skirt. The amount of exposure was rather high, especially the mini skirt. When Alisa, who had long legs to begin with, put it on, it became a state that made her want to say âHmm? Above the knee? Isnât this much more like below the groin?â.
The usual Alisa would never wear it and if she did, she would never show it to the opposite sex but, Alisa had completely been swept in by Masachikaâs killing praises. So she ignored the few remaining voices of reason and opened the curtain.
Yes, she didnât even realize that the presence on the other side of the curtain had increased to two unnoticed.
âWhat do you think.. ofâŠ.â
She leaned her upper body forward, and decided to make a wink while holding his right index finger to her cheekâŠ. At that moment, Alisa noticed Yuki standing next to Masachika.
Their gazes met head-on, and Alisa froze with one eye closed.
On the other hand, while holding paper bags packed with otaku goods in her hands, Yuki looked at such Alisa and blinked her eyes, andâŠ.
âUwaah, Alya-san so boooldâ
ââŠ.Rightâ
Yuki whistled with a simple expression and Masachika averted his eyes with an indescribable expression.
Looking at those two, Alisa cooled down at once.
The blood drained out of her, and immediately afterwards rose up to her face with a burst.
ââŠ.I guess soâ
With flushed-red and cramped cheeks, Alisa gently closed the curtain and she quietly crouched down on the spot.
ăâŠ.I want to disappeară
She then reconfirmed her current appearance in the mirror and muttered in a voice that sounded as it was about to disappear.
âAlya-san, what did she say?â
ââŠ.I want to disappear, she saidâ
âFuh, what an innocent babyyy yeeeâ
âWho the hell are youâ
However, even her murmurs were transmitted to the siblings.
â
Afterwards, Alisa, who had become completely quiet, bought two of the clothes she had tried inside, and left early together with Masachika and Yuki.
Her mood didnât recover even after getting on the train. Perhaps out of consideration for such Alisa, Masachika and Yuki were fiddling with their phones without talking.
âThen see you on Monday, Alyaâ
âToday was really fun. Letâs go out together again, okay?â
âYes, see youâ
Shortly, Masachika and Yuki got off the train first. After Alisa saw off those retreating figures, she sank limply into the train seat.
ăUnblieveableâŠ.ă
Remembering the foolishness of exposing (Alisaâs standard) herself earlier, she was assaulted with the urge to writhe in agony.
ăWith such a.. short skirt.. I definitely appeared like a vulgar womanâŠă
She buried her face on the paper bag on her lap, and for a while, Alisa was burned with shame and regret but then⊠she suddenly noticed something strange.
ââŠ.Huh?â
Yes, something strange. Why did those two, just now, get off on the train station together, she wondered.
Masachika and Yukiâs house shouldâve been three stations away from each other. Thinking about it normally, they shouldnât have got off at the same station.
ââŠ.Eh? Eh?â
Then, thereâs only one thing to be considered. Those two have no intention of going home yet. No, what if, perhaps theyâre planning to go to either of their housesâŠ..?
âEehââ?â
In fact, her conjecture was correct. Yuki couldnât bring the otaku goods back to the Suou house, so she planned to enjoy the spoils of war at the Kuze house.
However, such circumstances were not known to Alisa.
âAs expected, those two areâŠ.?â
A doubt rose inside her chest, but she somehow managed to suppress it from above.
(No. Perhaps, they just have other shops they want to go to)
After convincing herself of thisâŠ. suddenly she remembered something, and Alisa took out her phone.
(What did she say again, I wonder⊠I think it was, wither shirt (kare shatsu/boyfriend shirt)?)7
Doing a search relying on her memory, Alisa opened her eyes wide at the image shown.
âWhaâ!?â
Her sudden strange voice drew the attention from the surrounding but Alisa didnât have the leeway to mind that.
It was an image seemingly to be a cut out of a scene from a shoujo manga.
A man and a woman were sitting on a single bed, facing each other. The woman was wearing an oversized shirt and smiling shyly, and the man wasâŠ. naked on top.
(wha-wha-wha-wha-whatâs the meaning of this!?)
The doubt she had forcibly suppressed from above brushed aside her hand, and broke through the ceiling.
(Eh? Eeeh? Eeeeeehâ-!?)
Alisa was gazing at the image wafting a really obscene atmosphere in wonderment. The man and woman in the image was converted into Masachika and Yuki inside her brain, and she hurriedly denied it.
(Whatâs really going on~~~~~~!?!)
Alone in the train, Alisa agonized over the unanswered doubt.
Chapter 6
ToC
Chapter 8
TL notes:
^1. The original JP was âăăăšăăă€ăŠăźç¶èŠȘăèȘćăæ °ăăăăăźä»ŁćèĄçșă«éăăȘăăźăâ Iâm not sure of it myself, it probably means the act of comforting himself growing up having a father, who was ONCE acted like an actual father. So TLDR: the act of comforting himself for not having a father figure when growing up, I guess? Iâm reeeeeaaaaallly not sure with this one. But I couldnât really think of anything else either.
^2. Aight hear me out. With this line here Iâm 100% sure their mom didnât remarry into money but rather originally from the Suou house. Their father is a diplomat while Suou house has been taking a diplomat role for generations and their parents attended the same Seirei, both met and married because of that, and now everything makes fucking sense!! That also means he was under the care of his grandpa home after their parents divorced confirmed. I seriously had this enlightenment few hours after I passed this line and in the middle of shower at that. All hail shower!!
^3. Luckily, you aint having any hammer you must use yea? No biggie then
^4. Ye, suddenly went back to Masachika
^5. Actually the word in japanese is âDereruâ. And for some reason the word fawning for Dereru never popped up in my mind until this point. Itâs the same word âDereruâ in the title but, I really think I wouldnât describe the âDereruâ in Alisaâs case as âfawningâ. I mean, so far itâs more like the icy/harsh personality of hers had melted instead of fawning(this is after I looked up the meaning of the word on google), right? So the current title stays. And I could be wrong on this and âdereâ is such a mysterious word to me, yee. I got the gist of it, but nyeeeeehh
^6. Alisa isnât aware of her being a simple one
^7. She used this kanji âæŻăă·ăŁăâ when saying âKare Shatsuâ but the kanjiâs meaning isnât boyfriend, rather withering, maturing, and stuff like that. and âBoyfriend Shirtâ was read the same that âkare shatsuâ.
Other changes/opinion:
1. Chapter 5 at the end:
âStupid bastard!! Itâs fine because theyâre blood-related siblings isnât it!!â to âStupid bastard!! Itâs good because theyâre blood-related siblings isnât it!!â.
In my head âFineâ and âGoodâ have different meaning here in the context. Similar to how yuri fans in 2D world would react to yuri stuffs happening before their eyes with âoooh good!!, this is really good!!â, I suppose Yukiâs leaning more towards this. If itâs before the change itâs heavily implied of her being brocon imho (I guess sheâs still one? Or theyâre just a really close siblings)