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I stuck close to Kishita and remained cautious of Shimotsuki. Meanwhile, I also kept close attention to Hadzuki’s words, constantly examining if there’s hidden meaning behind them. Strange, this should have been a private event, yet I can’t enjoy the comfort of privacy.

“How do I say this? A feminine Kotone just feels out of place to me.”
“We do have a stronger impression of Kotone. His personality was pretty intense.”
“He is quite careless on the feminine side of things, too.”
“I made sure not to speak up at first, you see.”

Had I carelessly intervened, Mister would have wanted me to take his place. Rather than living life on my behalf, I’m sure he would have preferred to play the supporting role for me. Still, if I act on Mister’s advice, it would probably end up disastrous.

“In other words, Kotone didn’t know of your existence back then?”
“Yes. I have already given up on life. That’s why I wanted him to think I was gone and live a new life on his own.”
“Don’t you think he was enjoying life a bit too much, though?”
“It didn’t look like he thought about you at all.”
“Kotone was the very embodiment of going one’s own way.”
‘Just because I’m not out, they’re really speaking as they like, huh.’

Mister, that’s your own fault, so please give it up. This is the consequence of Mister’s decision to act true to himself, so there’s no helping it. You never go back on your decisions.

“Maybe that’s why Kotone was very much characteristic of the twelve families while also being slightly off in some ways.”
“It is true that Kotone acts differently from the other twelve family members. No one would think of imitating what he does.”
“He seemed to have common sense while simultaneously being hardly sensible at times.”
“None of those sound like a compliment.”

I suppose, from an outsider’s perspective, Mister seemed like an oddball. It’s probably due to his actions in the past. Since he was reverted to the age when he was active with the rogue’s den, perhaps that influenced his actions.

“If it were me, I would have been a meek and inconspicuous person.”
“You might be right about that. You seem to be the type to cause no trouble and do most things by yourself.”
“Even if your change caught my interest, I don’t think we would have developed the same relationship.”
“However, since I would have been a promising asset for the student council, Hadzuki might have tried inviting me regardless.”
“Either way, I would probably consider recruiting you after you clash with Udzuki.”
“And I think that would have resulted in a very stressful lifestyle.”

I don’t want to imagine the daily life of cooperating with Kishita to deal with a wild Hadzuki. Besides, these possibilities wouldn’t match the present. My current relationships are all thanks to Mister’s actions. I would have never gotten this close with them.

“Still, we’re going to have to deal with both Kisaragi and Kotone from now on, huh. That seems quite fun, actually.”
“No, he and I will disappear soon.”

As I casually mentioned this, the three fell silent and turned their eyes to me. And even Misaki, who was busy cleaning up, was looking at me with complete shock. I’m just telling them the truth, though.

“That’s not a funny joke.”
“That’s right, aren’t we going to have fun from here on out?”
“Kotone, please reconsider.”
“Lady Kotone, are you serious?”

It seems like they can’t believe it, but we’re already in the final phase of the plan; we can no longer change course now. This is the best answer we reached after discussing with Mister.

“This is a necessary measure to secure the existence of Kisaragi Kotone. Both he and I are prepared for it.”
“To begin with, why do you two have to disappear?”
“This was triggered by a crumbling of the balance between us. At this rate, if neither of us vanishes, Kisaragi Kotone won’t be able to maintain an ego.”
“If both of you are going to disappear, what’ll be left behind?”
“Our little sister will remain. A new me with both his and my memories.”

It was either I disappear and Mister remains, or Mister disappears and I remain. There wouldn’t have been any issue either way. However, if we don’t choose either, both of us must inevitably disappear.

“It is an internal issue, so I cannot explain it verbally. It is an intuitive issue, so I cannot put it into words.”

We know the problem. Internal cohesion cannot be maintained while integrating the memories of someone else. After all, we had our own completely different lives. They can’t be combined. For example, if you’re thinking back on your childhood, what will happen if two different memories come to mind? It’ll obviously result in an error.

“He and I cannot fuse into one. That’s why we will disappear. That is the only proper way.”
“That’s an extreme leap in logic, if you ask me.”
“However, it doesn’t change the fact that we have no other options.”

Then, what can we do to leave a record of our lives? We just have to create someone completely different from us. With this, our thoughts and memories in life can be properly compartmentalized. The older sister’s life, the bother’s life, and our new little sister’s upcoming life.

“I’ve said it before. I’ve already given up on life. And he has already resolved to give away his life as well.”

Both me and Mister have already died before. And while we both have unresolved wishes, we’re prepared to pass it on without any hesitation. Our current life is nothing but a miraculous continuation. And this continuation will eventually end. That’s why, in order to keep our past from disappearing, we entrust it to our little sister.

“We’re already satisfied, both he and I. This past year genuinely felt lively and enjoyable. And we don’t want those memories to disappear.”

My memories and feelings, and Mister’s memories and feelings. We want to pass on both of them to our youngest sister. It’s just our selfish desire. It might end up being a burden to our little sister, but I’m sure “I” can handle it well.

“I don’t know what sort of me this will result in. But we do not regret this choice.”

Whether the next Kotone will be similar to me or to Mister, I genuinely don’t know. She might even end up being completely different from us. Even so, she is undoubtedly Kisaragi Kotone. And that’s fine. What’s important is for “me” to remain.

“You two really are similar. In the way you never concede once you’ve decided on something.”
“So, like, since you told us about this, you’re giving us permission to influence your little sister any way we like, right?”
“Aya. That’s just your misinterpretation. Listen seriously.”
“I’m dead serious, though.”

While I’m grateful that no one is objecting to our decision, I did not give permission to do that at all. Can you please fix that tendency to interpret words in a way that’s only convenient to you? I really hope our little sister doesn’t turn out weird.

“Lady Kotone, not to object to your decision, but is it really alright to not consult with the family first?”
“I don’t expect them to believe it even if I tell them about this. The only people who would believe my words are those who have strayed from common sense.”
“She just indirectly called us crazy, didn’t she?”
“How heartless.”
“It’s upsetting that I’m included with them as well.”

Hadzuki and Shimotsuki definitely have no common sense. And as Kishita associates with these two, her common sense differs from that of other people. That’s why she readily believed my story.

“Still, after all this serious talk, we can’t really stay over, can we now? With this mood and all.”
“So you can actually read the mood, Aya.”
“That was such a heavy conversation. There’s no way I can be unreasonable after hearing someone talk about the crossroads of their life, you know?”
“I thought you would’ve pushed through regardless.”
“What exactly do you guys think of me?”

Thank goodness Shimotsuki actually has a modicum of conscience. Because if I let them stay over after saying all of this, I genuinely don’t know what we could talk about. Still, I do feel like Shimotsuki will power through without minding that at all.

‘Would you mind relaying a proposal to them?’
‘Not at all, but what do you intend to ask?’

Breaking down what Mister just told me, I feel a smile on my cheeks. That certainly might be necessary. And most of all, these three are the best people for this idea.

“I see. There’s worth in trying to request their help.”
“A request from Kotone, is it? Can I ask what exactly you were told to ask help for, Kisaragi?”
“I have a proposal. Give our little sister a grand surprise. For the details, I’ll leave it all to Hadzuki and Aya. Kishita, please handle the needed corrections. He said. This is a favor from me as well.”

After hearing Mister’s proposal and my plea, the three had a slightly scary smile on their face. I absolutely didn’t expect Kishita to make such a face, too. Did something flick her switch?

“Entrusting the celebration for the start of a new life to us? You better not regret this.”
“I’m getting excited now. There’s not much to do until the university classes start anyway, so I can arrange for practically anything I want.”
“Please don’t expect much course correction from me. I’ve never seen them being this motivated before.”

Will this really be alright? Mister said they’ll manage somehow, but I personally can’t help but feel concerned. If these three put in serious effort, I can’t even begin to imagine what event will pan out.

“Well, we can’t really hold a proper strategy meeting in front of the target, so we should go somewhere else.”
“I’m going to have to take Mama with me, too. I should call for assistance.”
“Kotone. Thank you very much for preparing this celebration for us. I’ll make sure to return the favor to your little sister.”

Aren’t they moving too fast? Why are these people who were so adamant on staying here so quick to leave now? After saying that they’d contact us for the schedule later, they just left. But it seems like I’m the only one who was suddenly feeling anxious.

“Kotone~. Time to practice.”
“Shirose is carefree as always.”

There are still many things that need to be done for the new me. So first, I have to slowly finish all the tasks at hand. I’m awfully curious about the surprise, but by the time it happens, both Mister and I will no longer be here. Still, I’m certain that it’ll be absolute fun, which I suppose shows how much I trust them.

“I’m expecting a cherry surprise, alright?”

The first step should start with a good memory, after all.