Saijo no Osewa ~ Takane no Hana [LN] - V1 Chp 2 part 5

Today, the last class was over and…

 

[Ah, Tomonari. Good work]

 

[How about it? Do you want to have a welcome party after school?]

 

Taisho and Asahi approached me. But I apologized with a wry smile on my face.

 

[I’m sorry. I was told to leave as soon as possible]

 

[Well, it is your first day]

 

Taisho said regretfully.

 

I was starting to feel guilty. They’ve been kind to me since the morning, but I’ve been refusing their invitations to lunch and to hang out after school. It was natural to prioritize my work as a caretaker, but I was wavering about turning down their invitations just because.

 

[If there’s a chance, can I ask for your help again? I’d like to know more about the academy as well]

 

[Yeah! We’re always free!]

 

Taisho and Asahi-san smiled at me.

 

At that moment, Asahi-san took out her phone from her skirt pocket and looked at the screen.

 

[It looks like my ride’s here, I’ll be going first then]

 

[I think I’ll go home today. See you tomorrow, Tomonari]

 

I said goodbye to both of them and we parted ways.

 

I picked up my bag, which was hanging on my desk, and decided to leave school. …But first, as a caretaker, I had to make sure that Hinako returned home properly.

 

[Now then, Hinako is…]

 

At that time, Hinako was leaving her seat.

 

Since Hinako and I are supposed to be in contact with each other, there was no problem in having a normal conversation, but if possible, I’d like to keep a certain distance to prevent any trouble.

 

Hinako then left the classroom andI followed after her, trying not to let anyone around see me.

 

Hinako left the academy, just as I thought… but for some reason, she stopped to buy something.

 

[Can I have one of those loaves, please?]

 

Hinako bought a loaf of bread at the counter, and with it in her hand, headed for the footboard.

 

After putting on a new pair of shoes, she left not towards the gate, but to the garden.

 

There were a number of gardens within Kiou Academy. This time, she went to the one near the old building. There was a small pond and a few tables, but no one was around. It was far from the main building, where the classrooms were, and the old one was no longer in use, so it was less crowded.

 

Standing at the edge of the pond, Hinako sliced a small piece of bread and dropped it.

 

The swimming Koi swarmed over the torn bread. 

(TN: If you don’t know, Koi are colorful fish that are normally put in small ponds, usually to attract the attention of people around)

 

As an “Ojou-sama”, Hinako may have a taste for art and compassion for animals.

 

However, there was no sign of her moving afterwards. Shizune-san told me not to make a detour after school, so I checked around to make sure no one was looking before I approached Hinako.　

 

[What are you doing?]

 

[…Feeding]

 

I could see that. Shedding the mask of a perfect “Ojou-sama”, Hinako was in her natural lazy state, crouched down and gazing at the Koi swarming around the bread.

 

[That is nice~]

 

Hinako muttered in a daze.

 

[In this way, you only have to open your mouth to be fed… I wonder if we can switch places…]

 

[…I’m sure even Koi fishes has difficulties humans don’t know]

 

[I wonder about that~]

 

It looks like she doesn’t have compassion for animals, but envies them instead.

 

Harboring complicated feelings, I let out a sigh.

 

[It’s time to go home. Shizune-san will be waiting for us]

 

[…No]

 

Hinako replied in a sulky tone. I rolled my eyes, not expecting to be rejected.　

 

[You don’t like it? If we go back, you can relax, you know?]

 

[I can’t… I have lessons and stuff]

 

So that’s how it was. It wasn’t easy being the daughter of the Konohana family.

 

[But that doesn’t mean you have to stay here, it might be uncomfortable for Hinako]

 

[It’s after school, so it’s less crowded and uncomfortable]

 

That might certainly be the case.

 

There are no after school club activities at Kiou Academy. That’s because most students are busy with their studies and work after school. In addition, the families of the students are all rich, so they can provide their own swimming pools and grounds for club activities if needed.

 

[But you can’t stay in the academy forever. Cmon, let’s get out of here]

 

[Nooo~~]

 

[If you keep on going like this, won’t this just make things more complicated?]

 

[Ugh…]

For a moment, Hinako had a very uncomfortable look, but eventually, she nodded her head.

 

[B-but still…]

 

Hinako, who escaped reality, resumed feeding the Koi in silence.

 

She’s a strong hearted Ojou-sama. Now then, what to do…

 

[…By the way, Shizune-san gave me some things]

 

　

 

I remembered the black sack that Shizune-san had given me this morning and took it out of my bag.

 

She said that if Hinako wasn’t listening, I could use it. Speaking of which, what was in this bag? I opened the mouth of the bag and took out what’s inside–　

 

[Potato Chips!!]

 

Hinako, who had been answering lazily till now, is responding with a glow in her eyes.

 

She was right, inside the bag was consomme flavored potato chips. 

(TN: consomme is a type of clear soup made from richly flavoured stock or broth that has been clarified, a process that uses egg whites to remove fat and sediment. According to google) 

 

[How underhanded… I can’t resist the temptation…]

 

Hinako said in a quivering voice.

 

I’ve never seen anyone’s will be broken so much by potato chips.

 

[Then if you want this, we’re gonna head home for today]

 

[…Ngghh]

 

After a frustrated growl, Hinako reluctantly stood up and took the potato chips from my hand.

 

From here on, Hinako and I would go our separate ways, as we were supposed to. As soon as Hinako passed the school gate, a car in black stopped nearby. Shizune-san came out of the car and greeted Hinako. I watched the scene, pretending to be a stranger, and continued walking the streets alone.

 

I reached a less populated spot where we could meet and waited for a while.

 

Then, the car carrying Hinako and Shizune-san stopped nearby.

 

[Sorry to keep you waiting]

 

[No, thank you for your hard work]

 

I sat down in the back seat, answering Shizune-san. Hinako also sat in the passenger seat.

 

To those around us, it would look as if Hinako and I had gone home separately.

 

[First of all, thank you for the hard work over at the academy]

 

[Thank you very much]

 

Shizune-san, who has the impression of being strict, made me a little surprised and I nodded my head unconsciously. 

 

Hinako, who’s sitting next to me, is mindlessly eating the potato chips I gave her.

 

[I see what I gave you this morning came in handy]

 

[It came in handy at the last minute. I didn’t expect potato chips to work so well]

 

[It’s her favorite food. She can’t eat it most of the time, and it’s just as good as any other food]

 

[…It’s just a potato chip, yet she can’t eat it all the time?]

 

[Of course. That kind of unhealthy food isn’t suitable for a lady of the Konohana family]

 

Even though they’re from a wealthy family, they’re not free to do whatever they want. In fact, it seems that they’re sometimes more constrained than ordinary people. However…

 

[…I thought it’d be fine if it was only a potato chip]

 

[No. This is also an instruction from Keigon-sama. …She’s allowed to eat the potato chips cooked by the chefs, but it seems like she prefer the ones from minimarkets]

 

I guess she likes the taste of being unhealthy. (TN: Some unhealthy foods are great, ngl) (EDN: Tell that to my stomach) 

 

When I looked next to her, I saw some potato chips spilling onto her knees.

 

[There’s food debris on the floor]

 

When I warned her, Hinako looked proud for a moment.

 

[…It’s the same as eating soba noodles by slurping them up]

 

[Ha?]

 

[Spilling crumbs… That’s the correct way to eat potato chips] (TN: I’ve rarely eaten potato chips, believe it or not. So is that true?) (EDN: Well it’s natural for some to fall I guess?)

 

[No, of course not]

 

What’s with that smug look?

 

[…I’ll pick it up, so raise your hand a little]

 

[Nn]

 

Hinako slowly raised her hand. Meanwhile, I picked up the remains of the chips on Hinako’s lap. Shizune-san handed me a plastic bag, and I threw it in there.

 

[Itsuki, here]

 

Hinako called out to me, and held a bag of potato chips.

 

[…You’re giving me this?]

 

[No. I’m imitating a Koi fish. …Feed me]

 

Like a Koi fish waiting for a piece of bread, Hinako opened her mouth wide.

 

She wanted me to feed her.

 

[Yes yes]

 

[Aaa~…]

 

I picked up a potato chip and put it in Hinako’s mouth, and she looked happy. She can’t be a Koi fish, but it seems she feels like one.

 

[Just as a warning, be careful not to let Keigon-sama see you like that]

 

[…Yes]

 

It’s something that can be misunderstood in many ways. It’s probably best not to show it to anyone.

 

[Shizune-san, you’re going to keep it to yourself, right?]

 

[I’d report as soon as I can but… unfortunately, even if we were to dismiss your position as a caretaker now, we don’t have a replacement right away. …Before you hold any feelings of lust towards Ojou-sama, I suggest you cut them off]

 

[Please don’t do that to me]

 

I bowed my head deeply to Shizune-san.

 

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Halfway through chapter 2, and we should be moving on after editor gets his backlog done. Shoutout to RobertOldland for the donation, I have no idea which series you read, but I’ll put this here anyway. I’m doing a 10 chapter binge for my other series, and I hope editor gets it done soon enough. Thanks for reading and have a nice day.

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TL: Ezu
ED: Animu
PR: Mateo