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Some time later, when Hijiri recovered a bit, she practiced alongside Julia on a shorter slope, going down and back up at a leisurely pace…until it was slightly past noon, when everyone else also began gathering at the bottom of the ski slope.

“Reiji, and everyone else, would you like to have lunch?”

A silver haired woman, wearing a rather casual outfit different from something one would wear to ski, went to check on them in the rest lodge. It was Iris, and Reiji was the first one to react when he heard her.
She was accompanied by a young blonde girl, who guided her by the hand, and what looked like a married couple behind them.

“Oh, Iris. You came here in the end?”
“Yes, I thought you wouldn’t mind if Hayato came with me. And I had a hunch that July might be getting sleepy by now.”
“Hahah…you really know your daughter, dear aunt.”

Just as she expected, Julia was already looking drowsy and unsteady on her feet, supported by Reiji and Reo who held her hands.

“I see… Thank you for protecting her, Hayato.”
“Oh don’t mention it, I’m more than glad to do it.”

Reiji and the muscular young man he called Hayato exchanged a handshake, and then…

“Heyaa, Master!”

The blonde girl let go of Iris’ hand, jumping forward to hug Kou while saying that.

“Are you…Setsuna?”
“Yes, that’s me! I’m Tobita Yukina, or Setsuna if you choose the other spelling of my name! Tell me, are you surprised I’m this cute in real life too?”
“Ahahah… Yes, I guess I’m a bit surprised.”

She grinned smugly, still talking to Kou.
But surely enough, her bright blonde hair, an uncommon sight in this country, was cutely arranged into pigtails, so even she could recognize her cute traits.

“Well, I have to admit that all of you have some pretty striking features.”
“Ahahah…you say that, but it’s also stirring your creative mind, right Papa?”
“Yes, I guess so. But also, we really stand out like a sore thumb.”

After overhearing the comments between Miyuki and Ryunosuke, the rest of the group realized how many people were staring at them, so they decided to leave.

“By the way, where did Hinagiku go?”
“She went back home with her mother, apparently they’re pretty busy getting ready for New Years Eve and all that.”
“Aww, that’s too bad.”
“I’m sure they’ll be back for dinner, so you’ll get to meet her soon. You’ll stay with us now too, right Yukina?”

Yukina seemed disappointed to hear that, and Kou tried to comfort her.

*And now I guess we’ll have the full lineup of Lua Cheia escorting Julia tonight.*

Kou grimaced a bit, realizing that.

***

“…You’re transferring?”

As Kou slurped some udon noodles in a crowded restaurant near the ski slope, she tilted her head, trying to understand what Yukina had just told her.

“Yes, I’ll also be attending Morinomiya’s middle school once winter break is over. So I’ll be seeing you around, Senpai.”

Her voice became sultry, like a pink heart popped out with that word as she winked too.

“So we’ll be going to the same school starting next term?”
“Isn’t that a bit of a weird timeframe to transfer?”
“It involves my father’s job, so we made it work!”

Hijiri and Subaru had a few more questions, which Yukina answered without much care, even appearing proud of it. Kou threw a doubtful glance at Hayato, who was sitting next to her.

“There’s nothing much more to say so, could you please look out for her there?”

He just bowed with a bit of a forced smile.
Meanwhile, the blonde lady who looked like she was in her early twenties, quite a lot younger than Hayato…and who was Yukina’s mother, Aini, spoke next.

“And also…Julia will be starting her fifth elementary school year next term too, right?”

She said while looking at Julia…who had eaten a grilled onigiri and instantly passed out, leaning against her mother…who glanced lovingly at her daughter and replied for her.

“Yes, she’ll be attending school here too, since we’ll be staying here for around half a year more after I give birth… I guess until around the time she graduates from elementary school.”
“I mean, we could keep tutoring her at home, but I think it’s time she stops relying on us for everything…though I wouldn’t mind that either.”

Reiji’s true feelings on the matter became evident in the end, making Iris grimace a bit.

“Thankfully we’ll be moving pretty close to Reiji’s home too, so I’d appreciate it if you could accompany your new neighbors when coming back from school.”

Hayato added that, bowing again, summarizing what all the parents there wished. But Kou and the rest were still processing exactly what all of that meant.

“Oh and before I forget, I’ll also move to the same neighborhood, so we’ll also be seeing each other more.”
“What, you too Reo?!”

Kou could not stop herself from raising her voice the moment Reo chimed in, and then Iris decided to explain things in a bit more detail.

“There’s a big mall near your house, right? And there’s a house that has been empty for a long time next to it?”
“Ah, that house some renovation company was checking out recently?”

That description made Subaru perk up, recalling a building that had been visited by various construction workers recently.
But as far as Kou could remember, that house had always been empty, but never put on sale. It was a pretty well-known mystery around her neighborhood.

“Yes, that one. It’s actually a holiday home of the Uber family, so basically my father owns it. There was a time when I lived there too, you know?”
“”You did?!””

That was a big revelation for Kou and Subaru, who shouted at the same time.

“I’ll be living there with my parents for as long as my aunt stays in the city. So let’s all get along like good neighbors.”

Reo seemed almost smug as he announced that.
Somehow the number of neighbors they were friends with exploded all of a sudden…

“I guess we’ll have a very lively start to next term, huh?”

Hijiri muttered absentmindedly, mostly enjoying her wild herb soba, and Kou just stared down in despair.