TL: AJ, PascalsWager, Dead

Editor: PascalsWager

Extra help: Unu, Dead

Pascal: Looks like we made it just in time for the start of the anime. Oh wait. Email me at pascalswagerofficial@gmail.com w/ comments. Also join the Neophyte TL Discord if you want. Enjoy!

“Ooooohh~!”

The moment when you step out of the airport, the heat!

Yes! The sun feels different! And the heat feels different!

“This is summeeeeer!”

I screamed with joy.

It is already autumn in Tokyo, but the scent of summer still lingers in Okinawa.

The blue sky and shining sea seemed to hint at the fun times that will come.

As planned, Eri-san rented a car where we all boarded in.

On the way, we had a chance to try Okinawa Soba (buckwheat noodles), and then we went shopping for groceries.

We stopped at a shopping center, and while pushing the cart, we discussed what we would eat for our future meals.

“You can’t go wrong with curry, can you?”

I quickly joined in the conversation.

“If that’s the case, can we have it tomorrow afternoon?”

“Why?”

“Well, Kuro's tongue is out of this world, so I’d like you to turn it into something that she could eat by tomorrow.”

“What the hell does that even mean, out of this world?”

“I can’t think of any better phrase than that…”

It seemed Eri-san sensed something bad and pulled out easily.

“Ah, yeah, ok. Given the circumstances, I’ll prioritize that thought. That makes tomorrow’s lunch curry. What should we do for our dinner today and tomorrow?”

“Onee-chan, we have a big group for tomorrow night, so I think something simple would be good enough. I’m sure we’ll be pressured by the time rehearsals came along.”

I didn’t have any objections to that opinion because it was perfectly legitimate.

“How about a barbecue then?”

“Agree!”

The decision was made, but dinner was still a problem.

“We’ll just have the leftovers and bread for tomorrow morning, but what about for tonight?”

“Shall Momo show her skills now? If it’s pasta or something like that, the right amount should be plenty for six people right?”

Hmmm, looking at this group of people, it seems like Maria is the best cook.. The last time she snuck herself and cooked for me, the food was delicious. I can guarantee that she has excellent skill.

However, it wasn’t decided smoothly.

“You have to study and do the PV at the same time, don’t you? I think it’s too much of a burden.”

Well, yeah, it’s true that Maria has to do both the PV and studying at the same time. She may have the ability to do so, but it’s not a good idea to rely only on one person.

That’s what I thought, but when I was about to agree with Shirokusa—

“Shirokusa-san, are you afraid of Momo’s cooking skills?

“...Huh!?”

Maria had a deadly look.

“I’m sure you’re jealous of Momo, who can do things that you can’t. Shirokusa-san must be feeling devastated by her cooking skills and is just jealous of Momo. Am I wrong?”

“Not at all! That’s not true! Not even in the slightest!”

Hey there, you two... we don’t have Kuro right now, that’s why... let’s reduce the number of fights...

“Since it came to this—”

“Eiii—”

“It’s a cooking contest!”

“It’s a cooking competition!”

I sighed and spoke to Tetsuhiko.

“What are we going to do about this?”

“You should do something about it, Sueharu.”

“Do you think I can handle it?”

“It’s easy. All you have to is eat whatever comes out of it.”

“Oi, you think Shiro’s gonna make something weird, don’t you?”

“... I’ll pick up your bones when you’re dead.”

“... I’ll make sure you eat it too. If I’m going to die, I’m taking you along with me.”

“I— re—fuse.”

“You’re— noi—sy.”

“I’m gonna kill you! “That’s supposed to be my line!” “Shut the f*ck up and die!” “You’re gonna die too!”

Reina, who was looking at our ugly battle with dismay, looked sideways and shook her body with a loud voice.

“U-umm… both of you…are scaring me…”

We stopped fighting and turned around to the words of Reina.

“...”

Shirokusa was standing there with a terrifying aura around her.

Why aren’t you saying anything? It’s just you’re scary already, but I’m getting scared even more okay? If you don’t give me an explanation, I’ll start to worry that your cooking skills are really atrocious, and the double whammy of intimidation and fear of the bad food that’s about to come is going to make it more painful.

“Hey, hey, hey, you highschool boys! Have some sense of decency!”

Eri-san gave me and Tetsuhiko a decapitating blow.

Tetsuhiko would have lost his temper if I did that, but as expected, he felt that he should show some courtesy to an older woman. He looked unhappy, but didn’t say anything.

“I’m talking about what food to make. Don’t say horrible things about the people who make it.”

I can’t even gulp when Eri-san said that.

“I’m sorry.”

I apologized earnestly.

Tetsuhiko didn’t say anything but he made a light bow.

“... Thank goodness there was a decent person and I got saved.”

“Hm? Reina, does that mean we’re not sane?”

“What? You don’t think you’re sane, do you?”

Reina began to think seriously.

“No, no, no, that’s not the case, isn’t it? If so, isn’t that alarming? Like, really, I’m just saying this out of kindness, but you should be aware that you’re not in the right mind to think that way.”

“Oh~? Doesn’t this mouth say unnecessary things?”

I pinched her cheeks and stretched them out, and Reina, who had a funny look on her face, tapped my waist to declare she gave up.

That’s right, kouhais should always stay honest.

“If we’re going to have a cooking competition, we should decide on the subject. It’s hard to compare different dishes.”

Eri-san seemed to be quite enthusiastic about the idea.

I wanted to secretly pretend that it didn’t happen, but I guess there’s no helping it. I think it would be better to choose a menu item that would cause the least damage.

“Tetsuhiko, give me a good idea.”

“Why don’t we do a comparison of local instant noodles?”

“You’re usually a scumbag, but sometimes you’re a genius.”

“That’s boring.”

Geez, I’m being judged by the absolute authority of the leader of the group.

“But I don’t want it to be too difficult to make…”

“Then, let’s do karaage—”

Shirokusa cuts in to make a suggestion, but her voice was quiet.

So before everyone could hear it, it suddenly got filled in by Eri-san’s voice.

“If that’s the case, how about a hotpot?”

We all nodded in agreement to Eri-san’s suggestion.

Indeed, a catastrophe can be avoided with hot pot. In the meantime, Eri-san seemed to be wary of Shirokusa’s fists.

“Isn’t it hot already?”

Tetsuhiko cursed, but Eri-san didn’t mind at all.

“What’s wrong with that? I eat ice cream during winter and oden during summer.”

“.....”

Tetsuhiko seemed to be unable to hide his uneasiness, but he already ran out of energy to argue back.

“Umm... I think we should do karaage after all—”

“Then, it’s decided!”

With Eri-san making the final decision, we ended up having a hot pot competition.

After that, we all scattered, and it was shopping time.

“Kachi-senpai, do you have all the cooking equipment you need?”

“Eh? Ah, yeah! When the chef came around, there was hardly any equipment needed to be brought in. It’s a villa that was designed for parties in the first place.”

“Heee— rich people are amazing.”

“Umm, well, I know that we already decided on hot pot—”

“Tetsuhiko, should we buy some ramen just in case?”

“That’s a safe bet. Well, we can use it for the worst case scenario.”

“Oh, they have ramen like this? I’ll buy some as a souvenir.”

“Onee-chan, ice cream is a must, right?”

“Uhn—, I’ll leave it to you, Maria.”

“Oi, Onee-chan! Just how much alcohol are you buying!?”

“It’s because I don’t have to drive when we get to the villa. It’s enough for two days, today and tomorrow.”

“Onee-chan, did you become a little bit wasted when you started going to college?”

"Sake is an adult taste～. I’m sure you’ll understand in a few years!"

"Ah, I knew I should’ve cooked something different than hot pot──" (Pascal: I suppose what’s meant here is that she would put alcohol in her hot pot)

 We were able to choose our items in a friendly atmosphere.

 I wonder why shopping when traveling is so much fun.

 It wasn’t like I was doing anything special, but I couldn’t stop feeling excited.

（I wish Kuroha could come from the first day too──）

 I almost thought that in my heart, but I managed to endure it.

 ……This time, I have decided.

"Unless Kuroha makes a firm apology for lying to me, I won’t forgive her"──*smash* (Pascal: だ is the sound effect for something here but I’m not quite sure what, smash seems to make the most sense here. I guess Haru’s hitting the wall or something in frustration or resolve)

 I asked Aoi for advice and thought a lot about it.

 From Aoi’s perspective, Kuroha was lying for an understandable reason. So she asked me to forgive her.

 I received the feeling, but can I forgive you？There’s a part of me that thinks so.

 But this is a decision. It’s about whether it makes sense or not.

 If I forgive Kuroha, wouldn’t I have to forgive her for everything she’s done to me？Even not going to that extreme, there are more logical patterns of reasoning like "You forgave me then, so you can forgive me this time, too."

 Maybe I’m being too prescriptive. (Pascal: basically going too hard into making rules)

 But if one lies, the one who lies apologizes. If she apologizes, I forgive her.

 I want to do such a natural thing.

 But if I forgive someone trying to cheat me, it will leave a hole in my heart.

 So I made up my mind to be cautious about Kuroha.

"What’s wrong, Sueharu?"

 Tetsuhiko called out to me from behind.

 He held a drink in his hand called Ryukyu Coke.

 You idiot. I’m really worried.

"You’re thinking about Shida-chan, right?"

"No──"

 I reacted when he hit the nail on the head.

 I immediately understood that I failed. Tetsuhiko was waiting for my reaction.

"I can read that quickly enough. Shida-chan and you have had your fights, but you’ve typically made up quickly."

"It’s no different this time."

"Don’t act so tough. If the situation is so muddy, even if the cause of the fight is the same, the way things end up will be much more messy."

 As expected of a man who had been through so many rough times. His persuasive power is different. (Pascal: I wanted to put “hits different” so badly)

 I looked around.

 ……There are no company members near us.

 Now──can you hear me?

"Hey, Tetsuhiko."

"What?"

"What would you do if you were in my position?" (Pascal: Marry Shirokusa obviously)

 It might have been a little too abstract.

 But I’m not even sure if the people around me like me.

 Anyway, I’m sure Tetsuhiko would know a lot more about my situation and other things than I do.

 So I just threw it out there.

"If it were me──"

 After thinking a while, Tetsuhiko said.

"I’d make a harem by seducing all the girls around me."

"You’re such a scumbag that I’m actually relieved."

That’s right.

That's what I've been told! That's the kind of answer he'd give, I'm sure!

“Is it okay to divide the scraps……?” (Pascal: you know, like splitting the girls between the two of them. T_T)

Tetsuhiko Kai grinned with a devilish smile.

“Be honest, there are many cute girls around you. Even if you don’t know how much they like you, you still know that they hold a certain degree of goodwill against you.”

“We-Well..”

“If so what’s wrong with returning the favor? Common sense? Laws? That kind of thing wasn’t there when humanity was born! I’m not telling you to hurt her, am I? In fact, what I'm saying is that you should make them happy, make EVERYONE happy. What does it matter if something is a little out of the ordinary? Isn’t it more important that our precious children are happy? In other words, This is ‘Human love’ and ‘Kindness.’ ”

“You’re amazing, What kind of demon are you? I'm pretty sure your cause of death in your previous life is definitely from a stab from a woman.”

“Isn’t this what all men want?”

“I’m afraid I understand a little of what you’re saying.”

Having said that, I suddenly felt a presence.

"......! Who's there?”

I looked around involuntarily.

...... Thank God, no one is here.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

Because, you know you can't let the girls hear this stupid conversation, can you?

＊