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The promised day of parting. While they might be noisy to be around with, it might be a bit lonely when they’re gone. Without me feeling that sort of sentimentality, the day of graduation arrives. After all, they’re just going to come visit me in their private time anyway.

“The two troublemakers are going to be gone at last. I just hope that there’ll be peace now.”
“Since one troublemaker, you, still remain, that probably won’t happen. ”

Receiving a sharp retort from Kaori, we head to the auditorium, where the ceremony will be held. Hadzuki and Shimotsuki’s graduation. Only parents and guardians are allowed to participate, but they’ll probably hold a party at their own houses afterwards. Without the celebrants in question, that is.

“Why do we have to have the farewell party in my room of all places?”
“Isn’t it because they can relax there the most?”
“Try being in my shoes, having to prepare for it.”
“If it’s both the room and the food, that’d be a hassle. Wouldn’t it be tough if you had no one else to help?”
“I won’t be able to finish if I start preparing when I return home, so I will have Misaki in position. She’ll be as busy as a workhorse.”
“I can feel resentment in your tone.”

I still have a grudge about her betraying me during New Years. Though Misaki probably doesn’t care about my grudge as long as she gets a reward. Why do I have to give her a reward every time I give her something to do?

“Are you scheming something?”
“Why do you think so?”
“Haven’t you been busying yourself lately? During your off days, you always seem to be out doing something.”
“I’m simply settling some things.”

A troublesome thing, to be exact. This happened several days after Valentine’s Day. This all started when Rin came to the cafe and asked for my advice. Thanks to that, I had a really tough time.

I was working at the cafe as usual. As the customers were thinning out and we approached closing time, Rin came as if she were aiming for this chance.

“Welcome. Table for one?”
“I want to consult with Koto-nee.”
“I’ll lead you to a table inside. Come, follow me.”

I’ve already finished serving the remaining customers. As long as no one else comes, my hands are free. I guess it should be fine to humor Rin a bit. This cafe is lenient enough to allow me some freedom.

“What will be your order?”
“Milk tea and the recommended dessert.”
“Understood.”

Since she ordered, I have to treat her as a proper customer. If I had been off-the-job, I probably would’ve had a dissatisfied look. Grumbling, ‘Bringing me some damn trouble,’ and so on. Still, Rin seems pretty serious today.

“Kotone. After serving this, you can finish up for today.”
“Are you sure?”
“We’re already near closing time. Besides, she looks pretty stressed out. ”

I can see it, too. She doesn’t seem to be messing around, nor does it seem like she’s observing my reaction. What I feel from Rin is a sincere desire for an answer. I’m not really used to a Shimotsuki being serious.

“Here is your order. There, job finished. So, what do you want to consult with me?”
“Sister Aya will be graduating soon. I want her to be able to have some good memories on her graduation.”
“The graduation itself should be good enough, in my opinion.”
“That wouldn’t be enough. For Sister Aya, this academy hasn’t been a fun place at all.”
“Really?”

She has full command of her class, so she has acquired some freedom. Building that sort of place for herself, I can’t imagine that she’s not having fun. Besides, she also has Kishita, whom she can be completely honest with. It doesn’t seem like a bad environment.

“For us Shimotsukis, there are only a limited few places where we can be our true selves. I’m sure it was quite stressful for her during her first days.”
“That, I can somewhat understand…”

However, the Aya in my memories was always energetic and cheerful. I haven’t seen her in low spirits at all. Maybe she’s just good at hiding it.

“For Sister Aya, you’re a special individual. You seem to have a mask on, but you hide nothing at all. You always show your true self, yet that fascinates people.”
“That’s an overstatement. I just do things the way I want to. During my first days, I had to be pretty attentive, you know?”
“I don’t have any idea about your first days. I’ve only heard about you after you joined the student council.”

I was completely pushed to the forefront thanks to Hadzuki. The same happened in my past, but why are there always people pushing me to the forefront? I always wanted to leisurely scheme in the shadows, you know? Though I went buck wild more often.

“You two are similar but not the same. And that’s why I think Sister Aya took interest in you. I didn’t expect you two to pull on each other like a typhoon, though. Synergy is a scary thing.”
“It always ends terribly when I get dragged into her trouble.”

Like, who would have expected there to be a family that’d be out to ruin my life? Arbitrarily paving the path for me to be a singer, with some damn guardrails to prevent me from running away, too. The most I can do is just set the speed limit.

“Ever since she met you, Sister Aya has been lively and refreshed. That’s why I believe that you would be able to make good academy memories for her.”
“So, pull something stupid?”
“Please don’t. That’ll definitely get everyone in the student council involved.”

I’m not thinking of doing anything that large in scale. After all, there’s a limit to how much manpower I can use. To cause a disaster at a school event, there’s a need to lead and unite the idiots in solidarity. The rogues den was able to do it, so I have some experience. But I’ll never do it again. Absolutely not.

“There’s no need to prepare something special, is there? You just have to let Aya sing.”
“Why?”
“There’s no need to put on a mask when singing. Just have your mother sing with her on stage, and it’ll be a great memory for her.”

I’ve never seen Sherry and Aya sing a duet. Aya is by no means the reserved type, so Sherry probably has some plan in mind. It’s just a hunch, but maybe she’s testing whether or not Aya will take off her mask when singing in public.

“But I don’t think mama would ever come to the graduation. Despite everything, she is still a celebrity.”
“It’ll be chaotic if she comes as a parent, for both the students and the parents. That’s why you just need to invite her as a guest.”

If she comes to perform for work, she’ll only be in the public eye when singing, and that should minimize the chaos. The difficult part about this is convincing the principal and whether Sherry will accept the performance request or not. For that, we’ll have to push our luck.

“Koto-nee. I’ll help with everything I can, so please handle the negotiation.”
“Me?”
“For negotiations like this, you’re much better than I am. Even if I do it, there’s a high risk of failure.”

I suggested it because the odds are in our favor. In regards to the principal, since I have dirt on him and he owes me a favor for me speaking at the wedding in the future, he’s not an issue. The issue here is Sherry. I can’t anticipate what she’ll ask as a bargaining chip.

“Stop your mother from going wild.”
“That’s impossible.”
“Don’t shoot it down immediately.”
“Mama and I are just too different in pure power. In fact, unless Sister Aya, papa, and I join forces, there’s no stopping mama.”

Just how powerful is she? But true, when we first met, even I could feel it from her presence. Still, I didn’t expect her to be so strong that only the Shimotsuki family together could stop her. As expected from the singer who toured the world.

“She’s extremely difficult to negotiate with. Even with your help, the damage I’ll incur will be crazy.”
“I’ll help minimize the damage as much as possible.”
“Not prevent it, huh.”
“I don’t make promises I can’t keep.”

I’m seriously starting to think that the Shimotsuki family needs to keep their mask on for the sake of the world. Sherry being infected after marrying into the family is a problem, too. Why does this family just power their way through everything?

“It can’t be helped. I’ll flex some muscles for my dear underclassmen. However, you owe me a favor, alright?”
“I accept. But please spare me some consideration.”
“What are you talking about? You’re going to pay me back full with interest, okay?”
“Eh…”

Don’t make such a pathetic face. I’m prepared for the worst to happen, so you better steel your resolve as well. Now then, I suppose I’ll need to prepare the needed items and equipment. I might have to make some debts, but I’ll have Rin shoulder it all. I’m not telling her that, though.

And so, I’d eventually come to regret this decision. Do your best, future me!