Iroha fell into silence.
"Senpai, you really don't know how to comfort people."
After a long pause, she finally spoke.
"Or rather, senpai, you actually do understand what I'm thinking, but you just don't care, so you can't even be bothered to give any kind of response."
She turned her face toward him, her eyes saying, "Am I right?" as she sought the answer she wanted.
Seeing her expression shift from bright and cheerful to dark and somber, Chisato could more or less guess what she was feeling at the moment.
He had subtly conveyed his stance, and someone as perceptive as Iroha had clearly caught on.
At this point, the situation should have reached its conclusion, but she clearly wasn't ready to give up. She looked unwilling to accept it.
Her attitude implied that if anyone was supposed to back down, it shouldn't be her.
In simulations, he had already been cruel enough to her, so at the very least, in reality, he should treat Iroha a bit more gently.
With that in mind, Chisato found himself unable to utter anything too cold or direct.
And even now, that hesitation remained.
He shook his head slightly and let out a helpless, bitter smile.
Iroha, seeing this, suddenly asked a question.
"In senpai's eyes, what kind of person am I?"
"Uh… well, you call me senpai, so obviously, you're a sharp and clever kouhai."
"That's too vague. Can you be more specific?"
"If I had to say… I guess you're like a little sister to me."
"A little sister…?"
"Yeah."
Chisato nodded casually and continued.
"You know how they say people tend to want what they lack?
I'm an only child, I don't have any siblings, so whenever I see protagonists in movies or anime with siblings close in age, I sometimes think, 'It'd be nice if I had a brother or sister too.' And you, Iroha, you fit perfectly into my ideal image of a little sister."
"…"
That answer did not please Iroha.
No girl wants to be seen as a little sister by a guy she cares about. That would undoubtedly close off all other possibilities.
Unless…
"Senpai, do you like girls who are younger than you?"
Faced with her question, Chisato showed a troubled expression.
Given the context of their conversation and the atmosphere between them, that question was practically a direct confession.
So he answered carefully.
"Not necessarily. It depends on personality and compatibility."
"Personality, huh…"
"Yeah. And then there's appearance."
"…"
Iroha's mouth opened slightly, showing a somewhat disgusted expression.
And no wonder—openly admitting to being a looks-oriented person was pretty rude when talking to a girl.
But from his completely indifferent attitude, it was obvious he didn't see her as a potential romantic interest at all.
Because he didn't care, he could say whatever he wanted.
He could be himself around her without worrying about how she felt, because it wouldn't matter even if she ended up disliking him.
Damn it, the more she thought about it, the more frustrated she felt.
Wait, hold on. If she followed that logic, didn't this mean she had actually achieved something none of the other girls around him had?
Being a confidante with whom he could be completely open… plus the "little sister" label he had just given her…
If she combined those two things, maybe this was actually a pretty solid way to close the distance between them.
Iroha was momentarily stunned. Under Chisato's slightly puzzled gaze, her eyes gradually widened, a bright and almost dazzling light flickering within them.
She suddenly closed her eyes, placed her left hand over her small chest, and took a deep breath—like someone mentally preparing to go on stage for a speech.
After that little ritual, she opened her eyes, smiled at him with excessive enthusiasm, and said,
"Even though senpai just said something really rude to women, it's fine. I don't mind."
"Uh… oh."
Chisato mumbled a vague response.
Honestly, he thought it would be perfectly fine if she did mind, but since she claimed not to, saying otherwise would just seem like he was picking a fight, so he let it slide.
"You know, after spending all this time with senpai, I've realized something."
"And that is?"
"That our relationship has actually become quite good without me even noticing!"
"Is that so?"
"It's not 'is that so'—it's a fact!"
Iroha pouted and corrected him, her serious tone making it hard to argue back. All he could do was nod and accept it.
Seeing his reaction, she finally felt like she had gained the upper hand, giving her a bit of leverage. With renewed confidence, she spoke even more excitedly.
"So, after realizing this, I suddenly had a thought."
"What thought?"
"Ah, well, how do I put this… Before I say it, I want to ask senpai something."
"Go ahead."
Chisato had been cooperative the entire time, and things had gone more smoothly than Iroha had expected, which made her both surprised and pleased.
Fidgeting slightly, she finally asked,
"Ah, well… what do you think of me, senpai?"
Chisato frowned.
"Didn't you just ask me that?"
"It's different. Earlier, I asked about how you feel about me. Now, I'm asking about your opinion of me."
"…"
Huh?
Chisato wracked his brain but still couldn't grasp the difference between the two.
But looking at Iroha's expectant gaze, he decided to give it some thought.
In the end, he figured he just needed to say something harmless—something that would sound like praise but wouldn't give her any ideas.
So he nodded, gave a thumbs-up, and said succinctly,
"You're great."
"Great…"
Iroha momentarily lost her words, let out a slow sigh, lowered her eyes, and wore an expression that was utterly beyond comprehension.
She extended her soft fist and lightly punched him.
"What kind of answer is that? Be more specific, senpai."
"Wasn't that specific enough? I gave you quite a high compliment."
"Do you have some kind of fundamental misunderstanding of the word 'specific'?"
"If I had to say, there are so many things you're good at, Isshiki, that I can't list them all."
"Just a few would be fine. I want to know exactly how senpai sees me."
"Ah, Isshiki, you wouldn't happen to just want to hear me praise you in detail, would you?"
"…Senpai, please be serious."
Though Iroha's warm smile remained unchanged, the voice that came from her mouth was cold, completely at odds with her expression. She made no attempt to conceal her dissatisfaction.
Chisato averted his gaze and cleared his throat.
"In terms of looks, there's no doubt—you're both cute and beautiful. Your figure is great too.
There's nothing overly prominent, but when everything comes together, it's just right—perfect, even.
That's the obvious advantage at first glance. Then there's your decisiveness—once you set a goal, you go all in.
You're quite mature when dealing with people, and your sense of fashion is top-notch as well. Overall, there's no doubt that you're very exceptional, Isshiki."
"Mm… Thank you…"
Iroha lowered her head in embarrassment.
She had originally only intended for him to casually mention one or two good points so she could smoothly move the conversation forward.
Who would have thought he'd describe so many things in such detail?
But… it made her a little happy…
Although her progress in this area had been far from smooth up until now, if her image in his eyes was this positive, then that in itself could be considered a kind of success.
"And now, returning to what I was saying earlier—since I am seen this way in senpai's eyes, then my next request shouldn't trouble you or embarrass you, right?"
Seeing Iroha clenching her fists, looking as though she was about to say something she'd held in for a long time—something extremely important—Chisato felt nervous.
No way… Could this really be…?
Is she about to say it? Now? Here?!
"…So, just as senpai had hoped before, I don't mind being your little sister."
"I… huh?"
Before he could even say "I refuse," Chisato froze on the spot, completely caught off guard by the unexpected development.
"Consider it fulfilling your fantasy. It's also a way to repay you for all the help you've given me lately.
I don't mind filling the gap left by your regrets… With that in mind, senpai, you should understand now, right?"
Iroha gazed intently at Chisato's face, suppressing her embarrassment as she leaned forward slightly.
The citrus scent of her shampoo was clear and distinct.
Chisato pulled himself together, but his attention was inevitably drawn into the glimmering depths of her eyes.
The Iroha he usually saw had every smile and movement calculated perfectly. But now, her shy and bashful expression was a rare glimpse of genuine emotion.
Like this, she was… quite adorable.
Being held by the collar and stared at from such close range—there probably weren't many people who could remain completely unaffected in this situation.
Chisato considered his own reaction and came to a conclusion.
If it was just this—if it was just fulfilling this one request—perhaps it wouldn't be a big deal.
"This really came out of nowhere."
"Senpai… you don't want to?"
Iroha pursed her lips, looking a little anxious.
Chisato had no doubt that if he were to shake his head and refuse right now, the Iroha who had mustered all her courage to say this would, without hesitation, burst into tears in the next moment.
"No, I was just thinking about how to convince our parents to have one of us added to the other's family registry."
"What are you thinking? Of course, I meant just in private. My only goal is to fulfill senpai's regret, after all."
All of the worry vanished from Iroha's face, replaced by a radiant, genuine smile that came from the depths of her heart.
"I'll take that as senpai's response. From now on, please take care of me, senpai… No, that's not right."
She stood up, clasped her hands behind her back, and leaned in close to Chisato's ear, whispering softly.
"Starting today, I have to change the way I address you… Please take care of me from now on, Chisato-nii~"
Her slender neck carried a voice so sweet it could make one melt.
Having achieved her goal, Iroha didn't linger for long before leaving.
Of course, before she left, she insisted that Chisato accompany her to the train station.
Although she already knew the way to the station, which meant the request could have been refused, she insisted that modern-day Japan was far from safe.
If something like last time—where some thugs tried to hit on her—happened again, she wouldn't know what to do.
With safety as an excuse, Chisato had no way of turning her down.
Reluctantly, he followed her out of the shop, only to find himself half-dragged, half-pleaded into a MUJI store along the way.
The store was crowded, and to prevent getting separated, Iroha tightly held onto Chisato's index finger the entire time.
Noticing his slightly uncomfortable expression, she leaned in again and whispered reassuringly.
"This is a completely normal way for siblings to interact, isn't it?"
Technically, she wasn't wrong, but given their situation, it felt a little out of place.
Chisato had a sinking feeling that his momentary lapse of judgment might lead to irreversible consequences in the future.
But reality wasn't a simulation—there was no room for regret or undoing decisions.
In the end, it was a full hour later before Chisato finally sent the still-not-entirely-satisfied Iroha to the station.
At this point, there was no denying it—it had basically been a date.
Seeing the shopping bags in Iroha's hands, Chisato couldn't help but think so.
"Alright, I'll be heading home now."
"Mm, take care on your way back."
"And about this—it's a thank-you gift for the ice cream Chisato-nii treated me to today."
Iroha pulled a baseball cap from her shopping bag. It matched the one she was currently wearing, except hers was light gray while his was solid black.
"I'm not really used to wearing hats."
"Then just keep it at home. It's already bought, after all."
"The tag is still on; I can return it."
Iroha pouted, then decisively tore off the tag before placing the hat on his head without giving him a chance to refuse.
She stepped back, looked at him for a moment, and only when he didn't immediately take it off did she smile in satisfaction.
Then, waving her hand, she hummed a tune as she turned and walked into the station.
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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