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Now then, the salad is done and the curry should be well heated now. The siblings are curiously touring my room, but please don’t enter my bedroom. Not that there’s anything wrong in there.

「There’s surprisingly not much stuff.」
「My allowance is surprisingly low, you see. Without my part time job, it’d be really really tough to scrape by.」

It’s important, so I said it twice. The allowance I get hasn’t changed, after all. The reason why I have some leeway is because of my job. My wage has slightly increased compared to when I started.

「I only know the current Kotone, so I’m really curious about the past Kotone.」
「「You’d be better off not knowing.」」

It’s a bit nice to have a junior be curious about me, but when it comes to the original Kotone; Aya and I have shared a consensus. Just as knowing the true Aya disillusions you, it’s highly likely that she’ll be disillusioned with me.

「I’ve heard the rumours, but was it that bad?」
「It was even worse.」

Aya has information from outside the academy. Rumors get a few things added to them, but it’s mostly the truth and worse has been done as well. We’re not going to talk about it, though.

「Enough about the old me. And stop scouring for stuff.」
「Ehh, but I was excited about finding something interesting…」
「Don’t.」

I don’t have much weird stuff, but it’s not zero, so it’ll be annoying if she finds something. The worst one is that. The animal pajama. I said I didn’t need it, but before I noticed, it was packed with my stuff. With it being so bulky, how the heck did I miss it?

「Oh my, from that reaction, there is something, is there?」
「I’ll kick you out.」
「I’ll behave~!」

I’m glad she gave up. I guess the serious tone worked. She’s really the type who’ll do it unless you threaten her, after all. Hadzuki probably won’t dare. Since if he does, it’s a scolding from the girls.

「Still, the others are pretty late.」
「No, you two sisters are just too early. Who the heck just buys snacks and comes to the venue directly.」

It’s understandable if she’s from a typical family. Since just texting “I’m coming by to play” works for that. But we’re not from typical families. We don’t just visit each other’s house that lightly.

「I expected Hadzuki to do the same, though.」
「In his case, he has a lot of preparations, so it should take him a while. I have no idea what he’ll be bringing, though.」
「Even I have no clue. Since unlike me who acts on sudden impulse, he’s the type to scheme before taking action.」

That, I agree with. Unlike me and Aya who just goes with the flow, he’s someone who plans out his crimes. Which is exactly why neither of us can read him. But we’re able to match his rhythm, though.

「Anyways, I’ll be setting the table, so could you put the snacks away?」
「Aye sir. Rin, you heard her.」
「Big sis, you work too.」
「I’m busy watching the TV.」

She really is a hopeless older sister. Of course the little sister would grow to be reliable. Still, it’s not my place to say anything. After all, it doesn’t appear to me that they’re opposed to their current relationship.

「Is there any interesting show right now?」
「Hmm, not particularly. It’s still a bit early for the music programmes too.」
「I hear about it here and there, but do you like music?」
「I’ve had some experience with music from childhood. I like both listening and singing. My dream is to be a singer in the future!」

That’s a grand dream. Only a small handful of those who want to be one can achieve it. Considering that, I’m really impressed that they managed to debut. Did someone have their eyes on them from the start?

「Come to think of it, I heard from Mr. Shizuo that there’s a singer in your family, is that true?」
「Mama is. She’s known as Sherry Jane.」
「Well, that’s a big hitter.」

She’s a superstar that traveled all over the world for some time. Even someone like me who doesn’t watch TV much knows her. Who would have thought that she’s a member of the Shimotsuki family. Incidentally, she’s the person Isami admires the most.

「I’ll say this in advance, but mama married into the family. Papa was head over heels for her.」
「To go for such a big artist, as expected of a Shimotsuki, I guess.」

I heard that she’s still active. Though she has stopped doing overseas tours. Still, being her daughter and a member of the 12 families really ups her chances of debuting by a lot. She’ll be beyond hot topics.

「Seems like someone’s arrived.」

I know because of the doorbell. This time it only rang once, so there’s nothing characteristic about it. I’d be pissed if it was pressed multiple times again, though. Now, who is it?

「It’s me.」
「Thank you for your hard work, Akira, Kyousuke.」

There’s more escorts now. I can easily imagine that it’s because of Hadzuki’s luggage. I get the box of drinks, but what the heck is inside that box from the famous web shopping site?

「Kotone, let them in. The luggage is heavy.」
「I don’t mind, come inside.」

Who would have guessed that the escorts would have to come in? And as they saw the Shimotsuki sisters in jerseys, they froze for a moment before staring at me and getting relieved for some reason. Is it because they find me familiar or something?