Kaiwa mo shinai tsurekko no imouto ga, naganen issho ni baka yatte-kita Netoge no friend datta

Sorry for the consequetive same post. I have changed the contents, you can read it if you see this meesage. Please inform if this happens again in zetro descord server. I will get it rectified asap.

Really sorry.

Even though I didn’t intend to stay that long, the area was already starting to get dark when I went outside.

 

The screen-light of the smartphone that was visible through my fingers felt quite bright.

《Tonight at around 20:00, at the square of the beginning》

Such characters flashed animated on the screen.

The sender is Nanjo Rin. She forced me into exchanging contact information with her.

 

“I have to make sure no one learns about this…”

 

…I walked my path home, thinking and frowning about the number of boys who would want to know her ID.

If Koutora ever finds out about this, he will definitely make a big fuss about it. 

 

Also, Hiyori… Nope, Hiyori is my stepsister. A part of my family with whom I live together. No more, no less. It should remain that way. Even if Hiyori were to find out, she should not have any reason to say something.

And yet, for some reason, I felt guilty, as if I was betraying Hiyori. My chest ached similarly to when I did something improper. Confused and perplexed by my own feelings, I shook my head frivolously to drive them away.

 

Leaving that aside, let’s concentrate on the topic of Nanjo Rin for now. Well, there is no other choice but not to play alongside Hiyori in-game. While on the other hand, I can’t just go back on the promise I just made to Nanjo Rin. Someday or another, the two will definitely confront each other face-to-face.

Now, what should I do? … Despite continuously racking my brains, I still eventually arrived home without any proper answer.

 

“I’m home.”

 

The light near the front door was already on and of course, the pair of loafers belonging to Hiyori were kept well near the entrance floor. Looking up, I could also see the light and hear the sound coming from the TV, leaking its way out through the living room door. 

 

When I slowly opened the door, I found Hiyori sitting on the ground in a strange pose.

 

“Hiyori?”

 

“!?”

While sitting on the floor, she had her spine stretched, and her hands put together in a namaste posture.

In front of her was a magazine spread out.

Could she be doing some sort of stretch? 

 

Every second that passed with our eyes locked, her face grew progressively redder.

The way she fluttered her mouth in panic made me feel like I’ve seen something that I shouldn’t see in the first place.

 

“!”

 

“Whoa!”

Hiyori, after returning to her senses, grabbed a cushion from the nearby sofa and pressed it against my face as if telling me not to look at her.

―Just what in the world was going one? 

 

I couldn’t understand what was so embarrassing about that stretch all in all. I stood there, staring at Hiyori’s back as she raced her way back to her room.

I’m not sure just what was so embarrassing about the stretch she was doing. 

 

I simply stood there, staring at Hiyori’s back as she returned to her room like she had at last escaped.

 

At dinner time, Hiyori just straight up refused to make any eye contact with me.

In such an awkward atmosphere, we merely kept moving our hands and mouths without any words. 

 

Hiyori’s face was still red. She was giving off a somewhat resentful air around her. Even if she wanted to talk, she remained at a complete loss for words.

 

I felt that Yaeko would have something to say to me about this blatant attitude, but she didn’t mention anything in particular. Well, if you think about it, she probably never saw Hiyori and me talking on friendly terms at home before. So, surely, she must have thought this was instead a regular occurrence all in all.

“…Thanks for the food.”

 

After finishing her meal, Hiyori quickly went back to her room. Till the end, she didn’t utter a single word.

 

Whether it was regarding what happened this morning or the case with Nanjo Rin, I felt like I was about to get cursed because of all this.

 

I swallowed all those feelings alongside my dinner and left my seat.

 

Looking at the clock, it was just past 7:30 pm. The promised 20:00 was soon approaching.

Anyway, I have to talk to Hiyori about that by then― Thinking that, I started up the PC.

 

“Kreis-kun didn’t see anything, right!?”

 

“Ah, A~ah.”

 

Right after logging in, I was immediately cornered by Philia-san, who was waiting for me, without any greeting or even a welcome note.

 

I don’t quite understand why, but it seems that it was something that shouldn’t be seen based on Hiyori’s reaction.

Seeing her emphasize that repeatedly made me think it was probably quite embarrassing for her.

―Girls are pretty tricky.

I really think that from time to time. Looking back, I was constantly run around by Hiyori in various ways. But strangely enough, it didn’t really feel that bad about it. As I was thinking that, somehow, a smile escaped my lips.

 

This minor exchange helped ease the tension and created the perfect opportunity to talk about Nanjo Rin.

 

“By the way, Hiyori― no, Phi-san, I have something to talk to you about…”

 

“What happened? Getting serious all of a sudden.”

 

“It seems that an acquaintance of mine will be starting this game, and I have an appointment with him today.”

 

“…I see”

 

“Actually, I was wondering whether I could introduce that person to you too, Phi-san. So Phi-san, will that be okay?”

 

It seemed like she somehow understood what was going on when I dared to call her the way I used to when I didn’t know yet that she was Hiyori.

For starters, we were keeping it a secret that we were actually stepsiblings from the people around us. 

 

To emphasize that we were just regular siblings, we went to the same school, entered the same grade, and had birthdays that were only three months apart.

Since if a boy and a girl who were not even blood-related live under the same roof— It could always make people around us have strange suspicions or misconceptions. 

We simply didn’t want any trouble.

 

“Eh, what kind of person are they?” 

 

“…Right…”

 

It was a difficult question to answer. I can’t just be stupidly honest and say it’s Nanjo Rin.

Moreover, I didn’t even get to ask her about the kind of character she had created. Maybe she made a character with a different atmosphere than her in real life, similar to Hiyori.

 

“Perhaps someone pushy and troublesome?”