Is A Girlfriend Who Can't Say "I Love You" No Good? Houkage-san Reads Light Novels Too Much - Chapter 1 I Saw Br**sts Appear On The Horizon
The following day.
As Class 2-A’s homeroom, which had been prolonged by the homeroom teacher’s small talk, just finished up, I dropped down with a sighing lump on the side of my cheekbones.
I then let out a sigh from my puffed cheeks.
I’ve been waiting nervously ever since last night, and now the time has finally come.
I had to go and meet up with Hayu in the special classroom building. There was a designated place for us to meet over there.
…But for some reason, I was feeling slightly nervous to go there. Every time I tried to sit up from my chair, my vitality just suddenly disappeared.
I knew that if I kept her waiting longer, she would be in a bad mood again, but I needed time to prepare myself for this.
Fortunately, none of my classmates were suspicious of me sticking to my desk after school. I didn’t have many people to talk to on a daily basis in this year’s class, and the few that I did have either gone home or gone to attend their club activities.
I thought I’d relax a bit more and use my phone for a bit, but…
“Um… Aramaki Tenta-kun?”
A voice that I shouldn’t have heard suddenly approached me.
When I looked up, I was surprised to see that it was the girl who was seated next to me, but although we were seated next to each other, we never actually talked to each other before. I’m pretty sure her name was… Akana-san. I could vaguely recall from my memory as I replied.
“Yes, um… What is it?”
I was a bit awkward in my response. It’s because I usually only talk to a limited number of people at school. Sometimes when I make new friends, I don’t really know what I should say to them.
Akana-san, too, is not much of a dexterous person. She wavered her… words and just pointed her half-extended index finger towards the corridor.
I followed her fingertip with my eyes, and — oh no!
There was Hayu, who was supposed to be waiting for me in the special classroom building.
She was not entering the classroom, it was as if she was being reserved at the moment, but she was still peeking into the second year’s classroom, looking at it really curiously. In this school, the color of your tie or jacket indicates the grade level you’re in, so the glances from the passing students were either because it was a rare sight or they’re just curious about it — in any case, she was standing out pretty badly.
Even from someone like me, speaking as her brother, Hayu was quite a beautiful girl. Moreover, it had only been about a month since she took the position as the representative of the new students. It was only natural that she would attract attention if she was wandering around in front of the classrooms of the other grades.
“I’m calling… you?”
When I had a general idea of what was going on, Akana-san’s words finally caught up with me.
—She…!
I reflexively grabbed my bag and kicked my chair away to stand up. Akana-san seemed surprised by my hasty action. Her droopy eyes widened at the sight.
I felt bad that I had startled her. We stared at each other for a few seconds, and then,
“Ah, I’m sorry… No, I meant to say, thanks.”
I was very slow to express my gratitude. Then I left the classroom in a hurry.
“—I told you to wait for me.”
As soon as I left the classroom, I whispered to my sister, but she easily dodged and gave a small bow to Akana-san who remained in the classroom. Her ponytail bounced up and down as she bowed quickly.
When she looked up, Hayu had a wry smile on her face. It was a smile like a gentle spring breeze that made Akana-san, who had been caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, smile back.
It was hard to believe that she was the same person who was walking around in such light clothing like a casual schoolboy back home.
“…Come on, let’s go.”
I was inwardly amused by her cat-face but urged her to leave before attracting any more attention from the others. My sister turned around with a smile on her face.
“Wait. It’s crooked.”
What is? I didn’t have any time to think. Hayu suddenly closed the distance between us. It was so close that the scent of antiperspirant or some kind of citrus fruit scent hit my nose.
She put her hand on my tie, adjusted its position, and tightened it up again. I don’t think I’ve ever had the chance to mess with someone else’s tie before, but she did it with such ease.
I could feel the stares intensifying around me. I could feel the inaudible buzz on my skin.
One of the most unassuming, quiet, and inconspicuous boys in the class was having his tie fixed by a first-year girl who had suddenly asked for him. It must be a scene far removed from their everyday life.
But it wasn’t as sweet as it seemed from the outside. My neck was actually being strangled by the tie.
“What are you doing scaring such a kind senior…!”
I wondered how Hayu could make such a low whisper with a bright smile on her face. She may have a different appearance and face currently, but her nagging ensured me that she was definitely my sister.
“You’re the one who came out of nowhere!”
I whispered back and grabbed her wrist to get her to let go of my tie.
Hayu silently resisted with all of her strength in her arms, but as expected, she was defeated by the strength of my arm. I grabbed her arm and pulled her along, and this time she started moving with me quietly.
No one was chasing me, but I could feel their sights follow me to the corner.
The sunlight streaming into the corridor after school had not yet turned vermillion, but it had a warm, spring-weary like mountain-blue color. The voices in the corridor were of a similar color. The boys and girls who had been released from their boring classes were generally happy and relaxed.
In the midst of all this, I was the only one with a gloomy look on my face. Needless to say, I’m worried that I’ll be looked at strangely tomorrow because of my sister’s behavior.
“What do you think you’re doing? Barging into my classroom like that.”
I asked with as much sarcasm as I could muster in my voice, but my sister, who was walking right next to me, seemed very unconcerned. She was so nonchalant, that she looked like someone who was just simply walking in the same direction as me, not as someone with me.
A second-year boy with his shoulders slumped in a gloomy light and a beautiful first-year girl who looked like a flower blooming in the background. Walking side by side, they presented such a stark contrast to everything around them.
She turned her eyes around and looked at me while I looked towards the direction of the day after tomorrow.
[TLN: the direction of the day after tomorrow metaphorically indicates ironically that something goes in a completely wrong and unpredictable direction.]
“Nothing. If it’s anything, it’s a sister visit.”
“What on Earth is that…?”
I’m not sure where in the world my sister gets her joy from watching her brother’s school life.
But she shrugged her shoulders as if to say that it was my fault.
“Because, you know. You can’t help but worry about what kind of lonely life your brother is leading at school when he’s at home holed up in his room watching weird anime and playing video games.”
Sure enough, I was alone in the classroom, stuck to my desk with nothing to do.
“It’s just… a coincidence that there’s no one to talk to.”
“I wonder……?”
Hayu narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Because her face is so cheery, whenever she makes a frosty expression, it appears as if she were pricked by a thorn.
“I’m not sure why you’re so upset that your sister came to your class. And before that, you were freaking out when a girl talked to you. That’s why you’re an otaku.”
It was an obvious discriminatory remark, it was frustrating that I couldn’t strongly deny it as it was pretty shameful. Still, I protested against her.
“It has nothing to do with otakus… You’d be surprised how many cheerful otakus there are.”
“What’s that? I’ve never seen an otaku like that.”
“You just don’t know about it.”
I sigh to my sister, who was still trying to hide her disdain for otakus. I’m not sure what to make of it anymore.
It was this kind of personality that had caused her such problems in the first place.
“That’s why you’re fighting with your best friend now.”
“……”
When I pointed this out to her, Hayu didn’t answer me, but instead she just turned away, stifling a gasp.
As I watched my sister’s awkward profile, I remembered the story she told me last night in my room—
“I had a fight with Kaho……”
This was the reason why Hayu decided to ask me about light novels.
Murase Kaho is Hayu’s best friend and a pretty quiet girl. She is an intelligent girl and very reserved as opposed to the extremely active Hayu, but we have been close ever since we entered elementary school. It was probably because our personalities are uneven and convex. She often came to my house and stayed there several times, so I was well acquainted with her.
When she was in elementary school, she used to wear wild black-rimmed glasses, but when she entered junior high school, she switched to contact lenses, which made her look much more innocent and relaxed. I remember feeling kind of impressed and sad when I found out about it, because I thought she was a girl who didn’t care much about fashion.
Outside of the house, Hayu is an unbelievable cat, she doesn’t show any harshness or coldness like she does to me on a daily basis, but instead she acts as a cheerful and active honor student to everyone she sees. I don’t think she’s acting out of any kind of calculation in her head. I think that’s just another aspect of her personality.
In fact, her ambition and sense of justice is much stronger than most people’s, which is probably why she feels sorry for her older brother, who’s always holed up in his room with his indoor hobbies.
However, whenever I was with Kaho, there was no such ‘good girl’ quality present in her, and so we naturally relaxed, laughing and complaining to each other. I don’t know why, but I remember feeling relieved whenever I saw them together.
Since they went to different high schools, I haven’t heard much about them, but—
“What the hell happened?”
“Last Sunday, I was playing with Kaho for the first time in a while, and on the way home, I stopped by a coffee shop.”
After only a few minutes of sitting on the floor, her legs went numb, and she laid down on my bed on her back, alternately flapping her slender, toned legs.
“We talked about our schools and other things, and finally Kaho said,
—what do you think of light novels?”
“How did you answer?”
“I spoke very poorly of it.”
Her voice was as honest and unreserved as that of a child. I’m sure she spoke in a similar voice in front of Kaho.
“I don’t really remember what I said, but I said something like… that is something that makes nerds think they read printed words. You know, the kind that people who can’t draw manga write instead.”
I twisted my mouth in disgust.
“No, no, no… that’s too violent, you know.”
“But a friend in my class told me that too. They said that it was written on the Internet.”
“You and your friends, don’t take those things on the Internet for granted.”
At home and at school, people think of Hayu as a very strong person, but in fact, she’s a person who’s easily influenced by others. She takes what she sees on TV, reads in books, and more recently, on the Internet to heart and talks about it as if it were her own ideals.
In short, they are easily swayed by what is “generally true,” such as adultishness, authority in various fields, best-selling books, and majorities.
It’s okay to be proud of your trivia or to follow the latest drama or music, but if you get caught up in such negative prejudice, as is the case now, you’ll be blinded by the truth.
“Also, when I was in the fifth grade, the guy in front of me, Sato-san, got mad because he bought a light novel, mistaking it for a manga.”
“…Well, if you’re in elementary school, you might mistake the style of the cover for a manga.”
“Sato-san didn’t have much pocket money because he had to pay for the hamster’s food himself. I felt sorry for him, so I think it’s the light novel’s fault…”
“No… that’s pitiful, but it’s something else. It’s not the light novel that’s at fault there.”
“…Kaho said the same thing.”
“Is that why you got into the fight?”
“No, it’s not that… I think it’s…”
Suddenly, I heard her voice get muffled. I looked at her and saw that she was lying on the bed with her face buried in her arms.
“At that time, she seemed frustrated and annoyed rather than angry. But afterward, Kaho said,
–I’m sorry.
A few years ago, when I was in junior high school, she started writing on a website called… What was it again? She’s been writing on a site where you can write and post light novels and stuff like that, and I heard that Kaho is pretty popular there…”
…………….Wow.
I had no words to say to that.
It would be embarrassing to be told that the other person was the author of a light novel right after you had bad mouthed it so much in front of them.
Kaho may have wanted to get a reaction as a precaution before revealing her little secret. However, she was criticized so severely that she couldn’t hide it anymore.
“I’m sorry. The sandbag you were comfortably attacking just now… I’m actually a part of it.”
…The person who was attacking you would be traumatized at that revelation.
I’m not sure if Hayu took the lack of response as a sign of dismay, but she leaned forward and said,
“I thought that was bad too! I had to follow up with something! But you know… Kaho was a little angry and said,
‘You should fix your childish tendency to say bad things about things you don’t know much about. You don’t know anything about light novels at all!’
something like that, and lectured me.”
Hayu put her hand on the back of her head as if she was remembering something embarrassing.
“I’m sorry, I was just trying to say something back to her…”
“What did you say then?”
There was no answer for a moment.
She slouched into a gymnastic position to buy some time, then lowered her voice within her kneecaps.
“………Light novels are nothing but children’s essays. If you have a fever on the day of the exam and fail out of our high school because you were writing such crappy stuff, then you’re an idiot…….”
As she said that to herself, Hayu’s face grew pale.
“And then Kaho got mad and left….”
“Go to Kaho’s place right now and apologize on your knees!” [EDN: He’s essentially telling her to do a Dogeza which is a form of seriously apologizing for their actions by kneeling on the ground and placing one’s head to the floor.]
I couldn’t help but get up and yell at her for that. It was the first time in a long time that I had shouted so loudly, and I could see her hugging her knees and slumped in a sad position.
The last time I saw Kaho was after their junior high school graduation ceremony, that was when Hayu brought Kaho to this house. At that time, Kaho’s shoulders were hunched in a somewhat uncomfortable manner as my mother took a photo of her.
On the way home, I had a chance to be alone with Kaho, and so I asked her why she was like that.
“I said I was going to go to the same high school as Hayu, but I got sick and underperformed… I broke my promise to her.”
Such an answer came back to me with a tremble at the end of the sentence. I don’t remember what I said to comfort her, it was probably because I was so confused at the time.
Remembering Kaho’s weak appearance at that time, it was obvious that Hayu had said something she shouldn’t have.
However,
“That’s no good.”
Hayu raised her head and looked up, her face full of determined rejection at my words.
“Why not? This is no time to be stubborn now.”
“If you apologize just for the sake of it, without understanding anything about the subject itself, it isn’t a real apology. As Kaho said, I don’t know anything about light novels. Even if you apologize just saying you’re sorry, it’d be a lie.”
Even though she must have been quite depressed, there was no hesitation in her voice. You can’t lie to your precious friend. That’s natural, of course.
My sister’s stubbornness has never changed ever since she was a little girl, but I don’t dislike this part of her.
“So I shamelessly came here to ask my otaku brother. What’s so interesting about light novels? So tell me.”
She thrust out her palm as if she were begging for some pocket money from her parents.
It was easy to shake off the outstretched hand with her being so pushy and demanding things without considering my convenience.
I could have done that if I hadn’t noticed the faint shivering of her hand.
But if I wanted to respond to her properly, the responsibility would be great. I wonder if I, who only read light novels to pass time, can take on this responsibility for her.
She watched me hesitate for a while in silence, and then quickly became impatient. Her eyelids trembled and she made accusations in a muffled voice.
“To begin with… it was my brother’s fault.”
“Huh? Why are you—”
Before I could even finish my groaning voice, I saw the face of Hayu who jumped off the bed in front of me. She buried her head in my chest and then slowly looked up.
Her eyes were moist with desperation.
“I don’t like otakus anymore because my brother spends all his time alone in his room watching anime and playing video games.
The day he came home with a bag from the bookstore, he ate his dinner with a restless look on his face and never came out of his room at all! If you start talking about plastic models with your father, you’ll end up having a conversation full of words that I’ve never even heard of before! Every time I walked past your room, I would hear a loud male voice or some strange girl’s voice instead.
I could hear the sound of guns and some kind of fanfare coming from your room. It’s so creepy! I always wonder what you’re doing! But if I go ahead and ask you, you’ll just say something as an excuse.
If my brother wasn’t an otaku and was instead a much cooler older brother, maybe I wouldn’t have had to fight with Kaho at all!”
She rambled on and on, trying to catch her breath, but she couldn’t, and let out a wet, stifled sob instead.
“So… take responsibility for it.”
Her argument was still very messed up, though.
As an older brother, it was hard for me to refuse when she looked up at me with a flushed face.
This sister of mine is quite cute and adorable in appearance.
—That’s why I had to tell Hayu what was interesting about ‘light novels’ for her reflection towards the subject.
However, I’m not that familiar with light novels, let alone manga and anime. If I was going to ask for advice, it would be better to ask someone with more knowledge.
I had one person in mind. I decided to introduce this person to Hayu.
At first, she was reluctant to have someone else intervene, but when I convinced her that this was not the time to be concerned about appearances, she reluctantly agreed.
I also don’t like the idea of bringing my sister, who is the apple of my eye, to my friends, but I’m serious because it pains me that Kaho was so hurt.
[TLN: The apple of my eye means someone who is very important to me.]
That’s how we arrived at the special classroom building today. There are music rooms, audio-visual rooms, science labs, etc., and on the top floor are the rooms of the cultural club.
One of the rooms in the corner is the literature club room.
I stood alongside Hayu, looking up at the masterful nameplate that had been written by the department head many years ago.
“It’s in such a corner. I’ve never been here before.”
“This floor itself is useless unless you’re in the club.”
Keeping the angle of her head looking up, Hayu turned only her gaze toward me.
“But my brother is in the literature club…… it’s fitting in the gloomy aspect, but not fitting in the intellectual aspect.
“Shut up…….”
I don’t know if she can’t have a conversation without sarcasm in it. Well, I don’t mind if she’s talking to me.
“Don’t talk like that to anyone else.”
“I know what I’m doing, Aramaki-senpai. I’m not like my senpai who’s all alone in the classroom.”
She smiled a soft, elegant, yet coquettish smile that she usually never showed, and assured me. I reflexively got annoyed and poked her in the side, and she whispered, “What …… are you sexually harassing me?” I’m not sure what to make of that.
I exhaled gloomily, then with a look in my eyes, I signaled, “We’re coming in.” I knocked on the sliding door of the entrance. Without waiting for an answer, I opened it.
The literature club room was small.
The room was less than half the size of a normal classroom, but there were bookshelves set up in front of each wall with books piled up on the floor because they couldn’t fit on the shelves, and the personal belongings of past club members which established an atmosphere in the room.
In the middle of the room, a folding table made of plywood was set up, with old pipe chairs lined up around it.
The only other person in the room had stopped to turn the pages of a book in her hand as if she were a natural part of the scenery.
Feeling her gaze on me, I opened my mouth, stiff with tension.
“……thank you for your hard work.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
‘Thank you for your hard work’ is a local greeting in the literature club, and we inherited it from the seniors who graduated this year.
So the girl who returned my greeting was also a member of the club.
Her eyes peeked out from beneath her soft hair, her pupils flickering sleepily. Her voice is flat and emotionless. It’s not as if she’s a beautiful girl who appeals to everyone like Hayu does, but she has a flawless face that makes her look like a well-made doll when she’s not talking.
She put down the book she was reading and looked at me with a quiet expression. The face, framed by the pale shadows of the old club room, had an atmosphere that made me feel irresistibly lonely when I looked at it.
I — I couldn’t help but look away. So I couldn’t see how she reacted.
When I looked away, I saw Hayu shrinking away from me. I coughed and pointed my hand at my sister.
“Houkage Ayumi, this is my sister that I texted you about.”
“Hello, I’m Aramaki Hayu. Thank you for your time today.”
Just as she said, her sales smile was unassailable. She smiled with a vivaciousness that was on the edge of not being seen as cocky and bowed her head at the right angle as if she were measuring it with a protractor. It’s a far cry from her brother, who tends to keep quiet or tangle his tongues when I first meet someone.
She doesn’t look like the woman who emotionally ranted and raved at me last night, forcing me to do such difficult things for her.
I was chilled by the duality of my sister’s character, but now I introduced the club member to Hayu.
“So, that girl over there is Houkage Ayumi, a member of our club. She’s a sophomore.”
The girl who I introduced — Houkage-san — stood up in a relaxed motion and bowed to Hayu. The gesture was as if the strings of a Marionette had been cut.
“Houkage is from……. the class next to mine ”
“………………”
Looking up, Houkage’s hazy eyes slowly slid toward me, then back towards Hayu at the same speed.
“It’s nice to meet you. Imouto-san.”
“Sa—same here…… thank you for taking care of my incompetent brother.”
At Houkage’s unexpectedly polite greeting, Hayu bowed awkwardly in return. Houkage, whose emotions are vague and hard to read, seemed to be a difficult person for Hayu to understand.
She whispered to me with an ambiguous smile.
“Is she the person for the consultation…?”
It sounded suspicious, to say the least. Certainly, Houkage didn’t sound like the kind of person who read light novels. In fact, what she was reading right now was a translated science fiction novel, not a light novel.
“Oh, no, no. It’s not the club members who know about light novels here……”
Just as when I was about to say it.
The door to the adjoining room in the corner of the room was opened and a person came in through it.
She had fluffy black hair that hung down from both sides of her head — the so-called “twin-tails” — and wore glasses. Her large, round, restless eyes, like those of a cat chasing a toy, were so full of vitality that they seemed to force energy into the viewer themself.
“Oh! It looks like we’re all here!”
She appeared with a deliberate intonation, carrying a paperback book in a shoe case from a 100-yen store.
As you can see from the colorful spines of the books, they are all light novels. Judging from the unevenness of the cover designs, it seemed that they had packed books that they had personally recommended, regardless of the label on them.
“Well, I’m a little late because I had to choose carefully between the ones I brought from home and the ones that I have in the club room.”
She smiled happily and placed the shoe case on the table. She looked up and seemed to notice with black and white eyes as she looked at the high-spirited intruder.
[TLN: Black and white eyes mean that they are surprised.]
Their eyes met, and my sister instinctively stepped aside. But it was too late.
“Oh! You must be the little sister!”
Zwoosh! The girl, who had attached herself to Hayu with a fierce force, took both of Hayu’s hands in hers, and her eyes sparkled.
“I got an email from Shake Sensei! He said that you’re interested in light novels!”
The “Shake-sensei” she was referring to was me. Aramaki is also a type of salmon, and where the origin of “shake” came from. Though the origin of the “sensei” part is a long story, so I’ll skip it for now.
[TLN: Shake mean salmon]
Even Hayu couldn’t feign affection and asked for help with a troubled face. I let out a small breath and pulled them apart first.
I grabbed her from behind by both shoulders and yanked, the twin-tailed girl — Iisaka easily peeled off and leaned against me.
Then, finally, she seemed to realize that Hayu was confused at that reaction.
“Oh, I’m sorry… I got carried away for a bit there.”
She apologized honestly and held up her hand blade in front of her glasses. The way she closed one eye and expressed her gratitude seemed to look charming, and it seemed that Hayu had let her guard down somewhat after that.
Then Iisaka put her hand on her chest with her back towards me. Her hair tickled my chin as she moved.
“I didn’t introduce myself yet. I’m Iisaka Rin. A Second-year.”
She pointed to the ribbon on her chest as she said it, probably to show her school year color.
“However, I’m a member of the manga club next door. Nice to meet you.”
“The manga club……”
Hayu muttered in return and frowned slightly. The blood of the otaku hater might have kicked in for a bit there. The gaze of Iisaka, who was leaning against me and smiling, became increasingly stern as time went on.
I moved Iisaka out of the way and stepped forward before Hayu could make a scene.
“As you can see… Iisaka has also read a lot of light novels. I’m sure she’ll be able to answer whatever you want to ask her about the subject.”
Iisaka was a classmate of mine in the first year, an open otaku who hadn’t hesitated to profess her love for manga and anime from the moment she introduced herself to the class. (I was not as bold as she was, so I weakly said, “My hobby is reading”).
She was so intense that even the otaku group in our class avoided her, and for a while, we didn’t ever have a single conversation either, as I had decided to remain as a secret otaku.
Even though we were in the same club, we hardly interacted with each other, but one thing led to another and we became friends, and now we often come to the club room together. At that time, we often talked about the light novels we had recently read.
I immediately thought of Iisaka’s face when I received Hayu’s request, so I emailed her last night to ask about her availability. When it comes to light novels, she’s probably a much more reliable advisor than I am.
“My sister is interested in light novels and I want you to help her with her research.”—Iisaka, who was just told this, was in a great mood.
“Well, I’m really happy though!”
She used her hands as a pillow to put her cheeks on, and her face melted as she said this. Sniffling at the too-close proximity of the upperclassmen she had never met before, Hayu asked back, panting.
“Wha… what are you happy about?”
“You see, nowadays, people say things like “it’s only a novella” or “it’s just a novella”. It’s often stirred up as a synonym for inferior products. I’m glad to meet a newcomer like you who’s genuinely interested in these works!”
“Ah, haha…”
When Iizaka said this, Hayu couldn’t help but give a dry laugh at those words. Hayu can’t say that she’s in the middle of lashing out at her friend due to her disdain for light novels.
Instead, Hayu said something that she had always wondered about.
“When I was searching the Internet, I saw some articles that seemed to look down on light novels. Saying things like ‘The latest novels are awful!’ Or something like that. But there’s something wrong with that, isn’t there?”
“? What?”
“’Novella’ is short for ‘light novel’, right? I’m making fun of it. Does it not feel weird?”
Iizaka tilted her head, not getting the point, Hayu continued with her point, perplexed by the reaction.
“Isn’t it strange for someone to mock something they don’t think well or familiar of?”
Iizaka smiled, kept silent, and turned her eyes towards me. Her eyes were telling me—
(She’s a serious girl!)
(She’s honest to a fault……)
We were able to make eye contact with each other to such an extent that we were essentially able to communicate with each other. This may be a result of our occasional partying in online games.
Anyway… I coughed. If I let my sister and Iisaka, who is pure, or rather doesn’t know about any otaku common sense, talk to each other, they will sooner or later stop talking to each other. I have to take the lead here.
“Well then, Iisaka. Can we get started right away?”
“Sure. Ask me anything!”
Iisaka walked around the table to the pipe chair she always used, and I sat down next to Houkage.
I glanced at Houkage and she looked back at me, our eyes met for a moment. In the backlight from the window, a pearl-colored sheen trickled down the surface of her quiet eyes.
I gulped for a breath, but Houkage was unconcerned and reopened the book that she was reading.
I thought about saying something, but no words came out. Before long, Hayu settled down in the seat next to Rin, and…
And so, my sister and I began our exploration of light novels.
“So, what do you want to know, Hayuyun? Ask the manga lady anything!”
“First of all, please stop calling me that……”
Hayu protested sluggishly to Iisaka, who slapped herself on the chest and told Hayu to leave it to her, and then fell silent for a moment. Hayu stared at the covers of the light novels laid out on the table.
In the meantime, Iisaka was standing by with her shoulders fidgeting a little. I can usually talk about manga and anime with the guys from the manga club, but light novels are different because there are not a lot of people that I know who read them. Iisaka looked at Hayu with a smile on her face, as if she were a child before going to an amusement park.
Hayu herself strangely put her question on hold. Just as I was thinking that she would never get anywhere by just looking at the cover, she opened her mouth.
Her voice, unusually hesitant, sounded exaggeratedly nervous.
“Um… how are your br**sts so big?”
The air in the clubroom became still. Even Iisaka, who had been shaking her body excitedly, was frozen.
I couldn’t help but notice the particles drifting around the room, which I usually didn’t pay attention to. In such silence—
I heard the sound of Houkage turning a page, and the time finally began to move again.
What…? With her mouth half-open, Iisaka looked down at her own chest, which she had just slapped, and let out a confident sound.
“I’m only a B-cup though…”
After saying this in a disciplined manner, her cheeks tinted and lips quivered.
—I patted my sister on the head, trying to avoid looking at Iisaka’s face as much as possible.
“What the hell are you asking her?”
“No, no! I’m not talking about that!”
In a panic, she leaned forward and waved her hand. In doing so, she stomped on my foot under the table. It may have been a counterattack for being patted on the head, but it may also have been a way of taking it out on me. From the occasional conversation between my mother and Hayu, it seems that Hayu has smaller br**sts than Iisaka.
Not caring about my frowning face, Hayu pointed towards a light novel on the table. A beautiful girl in a highly revealing maid’s uniform was on the cover, her br**sts sticking out in a vivid pose.
There are a lot of these covers, aren’t there? There are many covers like this where the female characters are lascivious… no… it’s more of them wearing very thin clothes, or emphasizing their br**sts to the viewer.
I almost said that she was dressed like a pervert… I thought about it for a bit, but I knew I would get kicked again if I pointed it out, so I decided to keep my mouth shut.
Then she took out a paperback book from her bag. It was one of the few light novels I had in my room.
“Moreover, in the book that I had read, the Japanese heroine, whose body is not specifically mentioned in the text, is drawn with a bust size that makes me think, ‘no way!’
Are light novels something that people who like girls with big br**sts read?”
According to Hayu, the light novel that Kaho is writing for a submission site is an isekai story, with many beautiful girls and beautiful characters, and is intended for a male audience. She says that she did a lot of research in order to raise her ranking.
[TLN: Isekai : Another world.]
Knowing the trends of light novel readers also shows the style that Kaho-chan had taken. It may seem silly to start with the cover of the book, which is the entrance to the story, but it may be the right way to go when plotting your story.
Iisaka, who had been questioned once again, was calmer this time. “Oh, I see, I see,” she said, folding her arms.
“It’s true that there is a tendency for such covers. Even if they don’t have big br**sts, they are usually wearing tight body suits or even half-naked sometimes. There are also those who wear uniforms that show off the outlines of their br**sts.”
You know what they say… she shrugged, but Iisaka’s words that followed were sympathetic.
“But light novels are mostly published for men, and nowadays, there are so many labels that it’s hard to keep track of them all. It’s a tearful effort to appeal to eroticism in order to get people to pick it up first.
You know, have you ever heard of the urban legend that when there was a battle of standards for VCRs a long time ago, the one with the most adult videos won? I don’t know how it really happened, but it’s strangely persuasive.
The pen is mightier than the sword, and erotica is mightier than the pen… that’s an exaggeration, though.”
The last part seemed to have been rephrased when she noticed that Hayu’s expression had become grim.
“Is that what these works are about? It’s kind of filthy then…”
Hayu was not happy about that. It seemed that she was not satisfied with the commercial reasons for the cover. It may be because she is a fastidious person, but her goal is to understand the fun and significance of light novels, and she is not interested in any other factors at all.
She wants to be convinced that light novels are worthy of her best friend’s devotion.
However, the current answer only added to the evasiveness of Hayu, who has a negative view of all otaku things.
For my part, I should probably urge them to get this matter out of the way.
——In the first place, is there any reason to like women’s br**sts? There is no reason for anyone to dislike a round, soft, harmless mass of fat. As proof of this, the heads of the ampane-faced hero and the hippo-like fairy look just like br**sts, depending on how you look at them. The br**st is a mysterious, simple, and therefore timeless shape that has been loved by children of all ages. As long as br**sts appear on the face of a character they love in their innocent years, they will continue to like them, this is definitely not some kind of vulgar obsession arising from the worries of any high school boys. Rather, it is the innocence of a child, a fairy who cozies up to Peter Pan, who will always live in the depths of people’s hearts. Isn’t that what it means to love a woman’s br**sts? All boys should have the confidence to ask themselves that question and stand up for themselves—
Such an obvious statement came to my mind instantly. If you’re a Japanese boy living in a culture of shame, you’re constantly thinking about how you can make your love and impulses fit together.
However, the topic of the conversation made it difficult for the boys to intervene. If I were to defend it in any way, I might end up in an unreasonable position, as if I were the one who was being unreasonable right now. There was no way I could do that with Houkage sitting next to me.
Iisaka, too, seemed to be choosing her next words carefully in response to Hayu’s unexpected seriousness.
This is not good… if this continues, Hayu will have a false perception from the start that light novels are for aroused men to read. In fact, even now, she picked one up with her hands in a way that seemed like she was holding something dirty.
“Oh, and by the way, isn’t the cover kind of shiny too… is this so that the greasy oil on the reader’s hands won’t show up?”
“What do you mean…? That’s called PP processing, which is a great technology used in many books, not just light novels, to protect the cover from scratches and stains.”
I corrected her prejudiced misunderstanding immediately, but it didn’t seem to clear up her disbelief. But how can I make sense of the fact that many light novels have overexposed or overly inflammatory covers? No matter how many times I threw myself into thought, neither I nor Iisaka could come up with a good idea.
—It was in this void that she dropped her words.
“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with emphasizing a woman’s br**sts on the cover of a book or on a poster.”
It was Houkage Ayumi, who until then had not said a word and seemed to be reading her book without a care in the world.
Her voice sounded young and mellow, like melting powdered sugar, but it was strangely calm, and naturally attracted the attention of everyone.
“Houkage-san……”
I mumbled her name reflexively, and Houkage made eye contact with me for a moment and tucked a bookmark into the book. She turns to face Hayu, who was puzzled by her outlandish remark.
She looked at Hayu with her calm eyes, and Hayu seemed to gasp. I asked Houkage instead.
“What does that mean?”
“It’s easy,” Houkage said very simply.
“We humans are mammals. We can’t live if we don’t like b**bs.”
“Oh, if you put it that way then…”
I was about to agree with her, but then Hayu stepped on my foot again. My sister’s eyes moved from Houkage’s chest to my profile. Her eyes were moist and half-lidded.
…No, it’s true that Houkage’s chest is so ample that you can see the volume even through her uniform.
Because of her slim figure and good posture, the concave and convex sides of her body are clearly visible to the naked eye even when she sits down. It is especially deadly to my eyes as I sit right next to her. Moreover, hearing the infantile word for br**st come out from Houkage’s mouth had shaken my rationality to the core. If her tone of voice hadn’t been so clerical, my judgment would have been completely destroyed.
But it wasn’t that I found the presence of Houkage’s br**sts persuasive in any way. It was because Houkage’s argument was extremely simple and clear. Simple opinions are often right at times.
However, Hayu still objected simply.
“You can just use a bottle or something like that. You just need to be able to drink milk.”
“That’s true.”
Houkage also nodded easily. Then proceeded with her theory.
“However, humans are still mammals. As a fundamental matter, there is no other creature for whom br**sts are as important as for humans.
No, it’s not an exaggeration to say that br**sts are the essence of humanity.”
The reticence that she had just shown me was a lie. Her tone was calm, but her fists that were clenched on the table were filled with strength.
Hayu covered my ears and appealed to Houkage in a reluctant manner.
“You know… you shouldn’t say… too much about your… b**bs…”
Hayu, who is not good at this kind of topic, looked down, her face hot.
The shame was pointed out, but Houkage gave a small tilt of her head.
“In this case, however, I chose the word “b**bs” because I thought it would be confusing in terms of phonetics if I used the word br**sts for both female br**st and mother’s milk, which would be equivalent. Other paraphrases would be much more difficult.”
Houkage’s tone of voice was polite even to her younger colleagues. Of course, it was the same with me, who was in the same grade. I once asked her if she could speak more casually to me, but she replied, “It’s too much trouble to change the way I speak depending on the person I’m talking to.”
When Hayu was told why Houkage was calling out “b**bs” in such a polite way, Hayu seemed at a loss as to how to respond. I understand how you feel. I also remember that I was very confused for a while after I met Houkage for the first time.
“After all, we are talking about the essence of humanity, so we want to use plain and precise language to do so.”
“Is the essence of humanity…? …is …um …b**bs?”
In response to Hayu’s doubts, Houkage nodded her head without hesitation.
“Yes. There are several words that define us, humans today.
The first and most common one is probably Homo sapiens, which is also the scientific name of the species. It means ‘wise man.’ Smart, as in, we have large brains relative to our volume.”
“What does that have to do with… liking b**bs?”
Houkage brushed aside Hayu’s question with a mixture of confusion and disbelief.
“Next is homo faber. This is a definition that focuses on the “tool-making” characteristics of humans. Crafting requires arms that can move freely, and it is precisely because we are bipedal that we have developed such dexterous hands.”
Naturally, Hayu was still not convinced. She seemed to be doing her best to keep up with what Houkage was saying.
Hayu asked me with a confused look in her eyes.
(Hey… what’s up with her?)
But I didn’t answer, because I was distracted by Houkage too.
The current story and the deep relationship between humans and b**bs. How does that connect? I was drawn to this curiosity, as well as to the calm, yet passionate gaze of Houkage as she shared her thoughts.
Even as Hayu’s cheeks tightened in disregard, Houkage’s story continued.
“In order to walk on two legs, the pelvis must be narrowed in order to support and balance the body. The narrowing of the pelvis is directly related to the narrowing of the birth canal through which the baby is born.
And humans are big-brained and balanced animals. And that’s especially true in their childhood.”
“It’s true that a newborn baby’s head and torso are sometimes as thick as each other.”
I nodded my head as I supported the logic.
Perhaps it was because Hayu had a question mark above her head, but Houkage also turned to me.
“Because of this, if we wait until our bodies have grown enough to move around on their own, our heads will be too big to pass through the pelvis. This is why we come out of our mothers’ bellies in a more immature state than other animals.
This is called physiological premature birth, and it is believed that humans are born at an early stage of maturity, about one year earlier than other higher mammals.
For example, horses and cows can stand up and walk, even if they are staggered, immediately after birth. Human babies, however, can do almost nothing. They can’t even crawl, let alone walk.”
“Oh, I’m starting to get it now.”
Iisaka, who had been listening in silence until then, clapped her hands together. The momentum of the clap caused her twin-tails to swoop up like wings. I was beginning to understand what Houkage was trying to say at this point.
Then, as if tracing our imaginations, Houkage’s lips moved.
“There is only one thing a human baby needs without the ability to support itself —”
“B**bs!”
It was only after the most powerful kick of the day exploded under the table that I realized I had shouted something inappropriate.
“So—sorry…”
I bowed my head to Houkage, feeling more like spitting out the heat rising to my face rather than the pain of being kicked by Hayu. I had interrupted her and shouted something very outrageous in front of the girls.
However, Houkage didn’t seem angry or offended. On the contrary, she moved her face even closer to mine.
It was at a distance where I could even feel the faint volume of her swaying bangs, her lips opened and took a breath.
“You are correct, Aramaki-kun.”
She then turned to Hayu, who looked as if she had seen something unbelievable in front of her eyes.
“The only thing a newborn can do is to live off their mother’s br**sts. Of course, as your sister said earlier, in modern times, there are many ways to get milk and nutrition, not limited to just br**sts anymore.
But what I’m saying here is that the structure of the human organism is designed to make us dependent on our br**sts longer and more strongly than any other animal.”
“Well, that’s…”
In a hushed voice, Hayu pulled me closer to her. I was ripped away from Houkage that was too close to me.
I didn’t dare to resist, and Houkage returned to her original posture and summarized her argument.
“Bipedalism has freed up our hands, and our brains and intellects have developed from the information we receive. They were born completely helpless and acquired through their habit of clinging to their br**sts.
It is no longer an exaggeration to say that “human beings are almost made up of b**bs.” The use of b**bs on posters and book covers for the purpose of attracting public attention is also justified if you think about it.”
Houkage broke off, and Hayu looked down at the light novel on the table. To be precise, she stared at the lush br**sts of the beautiful girl on the cover.
“So, is that the essence of humanity…?”
A large brain, dexterous hands and upright bipedal walking. The characteristics that make us human are obtained through our total dependence on br**sts—
It’s an idea I’ve never given a single shred of thought to in my entire life. It’s a bit complicated, but I think that it makes sense.
However, Houkage’s theory of human b**bs was not over yet.
“There are other definitions of the human being, such as homo ludens — which means ‘one who plays’.
Apart from hunting, farming, and working, humans do all sorts of ‘useless’ things to maintain their survival. The easiest way to understand this is through games and festivals. The idea is that the ability to do wasteful things, to go off the rails of life, is the driving force behind the development of various civilizations.”
“So, b**bs are involved in that too?”
She nodded back at Hayu, who asked in a nervous voice, and continued her story.
“Yes. Humans come out of the womb earlier than other animals, which allows us to begin inputting information about the outside world into our brains at an earlier age than other animals. Acquiring features… such as extending the period of time for learning a language.
Compared to many other animals, which are destined to grow up to be close copies of their parents at birth, humans are born incomplete and their upbringing is greatly influenced by their subsequent environment.
Therefore, we do not necessarily become individuals who can live efficiently on our own. Diverse aptitudes, diverse tastes, and diverse hobbies are born through the environment around us.
The swings of the results, the disorder of the possibilities, is what ‘play’ is all about.”
I see, it’s people who ‘play’. I was convinced and asked Houkage.
“And the one who nurtured the babies born in such an incomplete state…”
She nodded her head quietly.
“Yes… b**bs.”
“It’s the triple crown of humanity’s definition…”
Hayu was not sure what was even going on anymore. Everything that defines humanity is converging underneath b**bs as if it were measured on a scale. It’s a bit of a nightmare.
In that nightmare,
“Nobunaga Oda…”
Suddenly, Iisaka muttered. I checked to make sure.
“Nobunaga, that Nobunaga Oda?”
A time-traveling Self-Defense Force takes on the role of a time-traveling high school student, swaps places with a time-traveling high school student, takes on a time-traveling chef, and is defeated by a time-traveling masked ruffian, that Nobunaga!
“Oh, I’ve seen some of those dramas before.”
Perhaps because it was a topic that interested her, Hayu looked up.
“What’s wrong with that Nobunaga?”
“I’ve heard about this episode.
When Nobunaga was still a baby, he chewed off the n*pples of every nanny assigned to him, and it was very difficult to find a replacement.”
“…Uh, so you mean he was sucking on b**Bbs until his teeth fell off?”
Hayu frowned as she held her chest with her hand. Iizaka set her glasses back on… and strained her voice.
“If that’s true, then Oda Nobunaga, the uprising figure of the Warring States period — He was an elite who enjoyed the immaturity for b**bs that made humanity human far more than anyone else.
Remember what it was like to be Nobunaga.”
The tension in Iisaka’s throat was suffocating to me and Hayu.
“In the Warring States Period, when many famous heroes ruled the land, he showed a keen insight that made him stand out from the crowd, and a devilish genius that still fascinates Japanese people even after hundreds of years have passed!”
“Smart people, Homo sapiens…”
“Curious and fond of unusual things, and the industrial prowess to assemble the most powerful gun corps in the Warring States period, complete with flintlock rifles that were not yet commonplace in the area.”
“A craftsman, Homo fuerber…”
“When he was young, he was called “the great fool” because of his eccentric behavior, and he had a playful spirit, holding sumo tournaments and playing Go!”
[TLN: Go is an abstract strategy board game for two players in which the aim is to surround more territory than the opponent. ]
“Homo Ludens, the man who plays…!”
“The very human of the human race NOBUNAGA! A hero who reigns through the ages! It’s no wonder the female-fronted novels have such big hits!
And if the secret was in the period of time when he depended on b**bs longer than others, then…
It is the b**bs that have supported the history and spirituality of Japan from the bottom up!”
Dizzy from the unexpected expanse, Hayu put a hand up to her forehead.
“The cover of the light novel, which at one time was thought to be a fish hook to attract dirty men, had such a deep meaning that it reflected the essence of the Japanese, or rather, the entire human race…”
“……………………”
I have no words to say to my shocked sister. To be honest, I’m not sure if it’s for such a grand purpose that they show br**sts on the covers of light novels. Isn’t it just a hobby of the illustrator or something?
But — if the result is that it has a deeper meaning, then it may indeed be so… It’s just that neither Hayu, nor I, nor perhaps even the person who drew it, could see it.
If it’s the world of Houkage that could see it…
I thought to myself, stealing a glance at Houkage whose cheeks were slightly red after talking for so long.
I want to know.
“…Wait”
After a while, Hayu, who had finally recovered from the shock, broke the silence.
“I understand that women’s br**sts are amazing in many ways, but that doesn’t mean you should emphasize them so much. I’m sure you’ll be happy to hear that. But can’t you be a bit more… modest about it?
I knew it, you were just very perverted….”
While Hayu was at the mercy of Houkage’s logic and Nobunaga’s impact, she still hadn’t lost her initial doubts.
Well, I guess she’s right… but then I thought of a certain point of view from Houkage’s story. I closed my eyes for a moment to gather my thoughts, then snapped them open.
There is a point to having b**bs on the cover of a light novel!
“That’s not true, Hayu.”
I slowly got up and took the pot from the coffee maker in the corner of the room. It was left by one of the graduates, and since I was the only one drinking it this year, more than half of it would be cold very often. I poured the lukewarm coffee into my cup and took a thin sip from my cup.
Hayu looked at me with some surprise. Maybe she didn’t expect her idiot brother to interrupt her at this point.
“What’s not true?”
“As Hayu said earlier, humans are now able to supplement the role of br**st milk with tools. It’s a kind of cyborgization.”
“What? A baby bottle is cyborgization?”
“In the sense of supplementing bodily functions with artificial ones, yes. Eyeglasses and contact lenses are some of them too.”
It was Houkage who complemented the puzzled Hayu who asked back. I reflexively looked at Houkage, and Hayu’s eyes met with Houkage’s — Houkage’s eyes wavered slightly.
Hayu seemed to feel that something was wrong, but she prioritized the continuation of the conversation.
“And what does that have to do with the bottle?”
I put my cup down on the table and looked out at the sky, which was now completely red.
“I think it’s a great thing that people who can’t afford to br**stfeed their babies for some reason can now do so without any problems. In time, technology will be developed in a way that will allow us to feed babies more safely and efficiently than br**st milk or bottles.
If this becomes the norm, and genes that do not produce milk or genes that cannot adapt to br**stfeeding continue to remain without natural selection, humans may eventually be reborn as a new species that do not need br**sts.”
“There is a theory that in the course of evolution, organs that are not needed are cost-cut and degenerated over time. For example, moles that live underground are almost completely blind, probably because they don’t use eyes anyway.”
This time, before Hayu could ask a counter-question, Houkage followed up at a good pace. Hayu looked as if she had swallowed something bitter, but she seemed to have understood what was being said.
Because I understood, I tilted my head at the contradiction.
“If that’s the case, it means that in the end, illustrations that sell b**bs… will also be meaningless, right?”
I nodded deeply. This is exactly the point where b**bs are given more value than just sex appeal.
“That’s why. A time when meaning was lost and no one could figure out the value of b**bs. How will the new mankind look back on history? How will the new humans know that there was a time when the old humans were nurtured by br**sts and loved them dearly?”
“No way…!”
It seemed to have finally occurred to Hayu. She looked at the covers of the light novels on the table.
“That’s right. With such a large number of books published, not all of them will be lost over time.
The next generation will look at all the attractive b**bs on the covers of the literature called light novels and learn that we were ‘b**b people‘ who were kept alive and worshipped b**bs!”
“The next era? … b**b people …?”
With my declaration and Hayu parroting, silence descended in the dim literature club room for the third time.
Yes. The definition of human that Houkage gave, and Hayu’s statement about the baby bottle. I took that as a hint and came up with an idea to give meaning to the light novel covers full of b**bs. The idea was to hypothesize a time when humanity had lost its meaning regarding b**bs.
From the point of view of “they” who have forgotten about b**bs, the countless remaining covers of light novels are not only entertainment books, but also valuable documents of human history. The fact that there are so many covers that emphasize b**bs becomes a historical document that scholars can rely on.
Perhaps the textbooks of the future will contain illustrations like this…
…It’s surreal to imagine, but even the folkloric materials in history textbooks would have been ridiculous to study from the point of view of the people of the time. However, they are extremely useful for learning about the everyday culture of our ancestors that cannot be found in official documents these days.
And so I told my lost sister the conclusion I had reached from various analogies.
“In other words, Hayu. This is the answer to your question.”
—This is a cultural project to leave a testimony that “people with b**bs” lived far, far away from the time they will be present in. That was the true nature of the phenomenon of ‘why light novel covers have girls with large b**bs’.”
“…”
When Hayu received the answer, she seemed to be in a state of shock, unable to accept it. However,
“I see. It is true that as time goes by, illustrations that reflect the subjectivity of the time will have a different material value than photographs. If a significant number of b**bs are drawn on the cover of a popular paperback book, it will be possible to show posterity on how the b**b people ……, or homo mamma, was obsessed with b**bs.”
Houkage seemed to be convinced and looked at the cover of the light novel Iisaka had brought with her, “Oh~ho”
“You’re the man, Shake-sensei! I never thought you’d be able to read that much just from the cover of a novel… That’s why you’re my rival!”
Iizaka also stood up, grabbed both my hands and shook them violently.
It’s obvious that she didn’t have any intentions from the roughness of her gestures, but I’m both amazed and impressed at her nerve to take the hand of the opposite sex so easily. As I’m still not used to this kind of flirting, my heart itched as she waved her arm in the air. Even though the distance between us is like the distance between males, the hands that are touching mine are very delicate and soft.
Hayu was trying to digest what had just been said, but when she realized it, she opened her mouth halfway. Then she furrowed her brow and started to say something.
But then the chime rang out, announcing the final dismissal time, and the day’s club activities came to an end without clearing Hayu’s unhappy face.
On the road to school at dusk. It had been a very long time since my sister and I had gone to school together. The last time this had happened was in the early grades of elementary school.
We are in different grades and have different club activities, so we go home at different times, and we are not supposed to hang out as siblings in high school. Today, the two of us broke through this natural estrangement and stood together on the way home.
For some reason, on the way back home, Hayu was in a daze, walking unsteadily, which was inconceivable given her usual sprightly gait.
“Hey, Hayu. Keep walking.”
“I know.”
When I spoke to her, she responded normally, but her mind was not in the right place.
There is a rather steep hill between the school and the station. It’s hard to walk up in the morning when you’re going to school, but it’s even harder when you’re going home, and on snowy days, many people fall down the slope.
I hope Iizaka didn’t fall down when she rushed home because it was the day her newly anticipated book went on sale… and my sister’s unsteady gait reminded me of my friend’s excited face.
Houkage, on the other hand, put the book she was about to read away in her satchel, nodded lightly at me and Hayu, and went away.
Was that bad…?
The blank expression on Houkage’s face as she left, as if she would accept any request, made me uneasy. Maybe I should have asked her if she wanted to walk home together.
I was almost lost in thought — I shook my head. I decided that today I would act for the sake of Hayu. I feel like I’ve been kicked in the foot a lot today, but well, she’s my sister. I have to follow her at such times.
I spoke to her as I prepared words to say to her profile, which was only half a step ahead of mine.
“Ah… Hayu.”
“…hmm. What?”
“Don’t take what I said in the club room today too seriously and get confused. That was just…”
I was about to say something, but my words were cut short by the fact that Hayu had stopped dead in her tracks. I passed her with my remaining momentum. Hmm? When I turned around, I was met with a sullen glare.
“Do you think I’m stupid, Nii-san?”
“No, I don’t…”
I don’t. Though she is a little too susceptible to what people say. She must have read the expression on my face. Hayu’s mouth pouted.
“I know that what Houkage-senpai and Nii-san were saying was too far-fetched. Just, you know…”
As I was to say something, Hayu resumed her walk. I rushed to follow the words of my sister.
“Just?”
“I was sure that my… vision was too narrow. The scope I could see was too small. I’d been looking at it negatively, thinking it was just something that only otakus read. I thought if I could see things from different perspectives like my brother does, I’d be able to notice a lot more things… I was kind of muddled.”
“I see…”
I felt a sense of relief spreading in my chest. The message was clear to Hayu. What I wanted to say at that moment was, there’s nothing to be gained from an entrenched view… no, well, there was a part of me that was hit by Houkage and my mind went wild for a bit.
Then, without turning around to look at me, Hayu spilled a few words at my feet.
“…That’s why I’m glad I went today. Thank you, Nii-san.”
…I felt something rush into my throat.
This is a word of thanks from my sister, who has been making fun of otakus and me for our otaku hobbies ever since we were both in junior high school. The same sister who has treated us with a lot of cruelty just for that. It just resonated with me in a very straightforward way.
It almost made me cry a little.
“I’ve always thought that br**sts are a bunch of fat, and the more you have, the more they get in the way, and the less you need them. It’s Nobunaga, isn’t it?”
She was talking to herself, completely oblivious to my excitement, when she suddenly remembered something and lowered her voice.
“… Even so, Houkage-senpai is really strange…”
In just a moment, my face froze. I was still unaware of it, and Hayu continued.
“My older brother was a bit of a jerk, but then again, she’s Houkage-senpai. That way of thinking, that way of saying things. She shuns humans as if they were another animal, and observes them. It’s not that I don’t like her, but… she’s a bit of a pain. She’s more like a lizard…”
“Don’t talk that way about her.”
My voice came out lower than I thought it would. She shrugged and looked back at me.
“What? What’s wrong?”
I turned my head away from her confused gaze and took a deep breath of the air below me. I tried to catch my breath, but my face was burning hot and my heart was beating fast.
Still, I couldn’t let this opportunity pass me by. I had to say something that I couldn’t say in the club room.
When I looked up and made eye contact with her, I think she could sense my nervousness, as she asked, “What?” She was always so cocky with me, but sometimes she sounded like this, and it was really bad for my health.”
I remembered my younger sister when she was still cute and adorable (inside and out), which made it difficult for me to say anything. However, I couldn’t let this matter drag on any longer.
I squeezed out my voice, my words.
“…We’re dating.”
A few seconds passed.
Hayu just blinked quietly.
Then she asks.
“Yeah…….. wi-with who?”
I took another breath and let it out.
“Uh… Houkage-san and I, are dating. She is my girlfriend. So, please don’t speak too bad about us.”
……………………
After that – for a whole minute or so – Hayu was just frozen in place.
I was afraid of what kind of response I would get – I was afraid that I would be nagged by her again – but I did not expect this at all.
It didn’t look like an active attitude of ignoring. Her mouth was open, and her eyes were fixed in the middle of her widened eyeballs, not wavering. I wonder if this is what is meant by the phrase “stupefaction” often seen in novels.
It was already dimly lit, so there were very few pedestrians, and even if Hayu had been standing there, she wouldn’t have been in the way of traffic. Even so, I was getting strange looks from a few students passing us by on the street.
I couldn’t stand it any longer, so I put my hand on her shoulder to break her frozen state.
“Hayu… what’s wrong? Get a grip on yourself.”
She slowly raised her head and looked at me with a strangely childish expression on her face, and then said in a sort of delirious whisper.
“Why Houkage-senpai…?”
Even if you ask me why… I can’t give you a reply. I’ve been in high school for a little over a year now, and I’ve been through a lot with Houkage, and I’ve been attracted to her little by little over time. It is very difficult to explain in a few words but… well.
Hayu and Houkage had never met before, but I’m sure they got the message just after school today. I put it into words in a more straightforward manner.
“Uh… if I had to say, I’d say it’s because she tells me stories like today’s.”
Houkage’s thoughts and ideas were very unique and fun to listen to, and I liked seeing her hard work and vivacity whenever she was speaking.
That’s what I wanted to tell her.
“A story like today’s…”
But as she repeated this, Hayu remembered the discussion in the club room – and put her hand on her chest. His chest was like a barren plain.
“Talk about… br**sts, or…”
Then she let out a dry, low voice.
…Huh? I don’t know if I’m getting this across very well.
I panicked. It’s true that Houkage’s br**sts are large, but I’m not the kind of guy who would fall in love with a girl just because of that… I want to say that, but it’s hard to say that because of the content. I’m jealous that I’m not good with words over here.
While I was choosing my words and letting the time pass in vain, the frozen Hayu moved.
Poof… and Hayu dropped down to sink into the shadows – and let every spring in her body blink out.
The next moment, my sister’s fist, swung with a terribly compact swing, pierced my body.
“Guffaw………!”
It was a powerful blow that I couldn’t believe was delivered by a slightly smaller girl. If it hadn’t been for me training my muscles while playing a movie in an RPG or waiting for an enemy turn in a simulation game, I might not have been able to do more than just cower.
What are you……? I looked down and she looked at me with tears in her eyes and voice torned—
“Don’t judge!
Humans!
By their br**sts!”
The powerful cry of the new student leader echoed through the shadowy streets on the road to school.
This is the first time I’ve ever heard such a powerful cry from a new student, and it ruined everything that we were talking about earlier.
And this gently closes the pages of the light novel for today……
The Houkage’s L/RightNovel
Episode #1
They will call us Homo mamma
Fin.
[TLN: Fin of this chapter, there’s more.]
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
Ahaap357
…what did I just read?
anyways, thanks for the chapter.