235 I Want to Go Buy Some Groceries (1/2)

Genhana High School’s festival ended on an upbeat note.

After school, Seiji and Mika walked back home in casual silence.

”How is it… cohabitation with Kagura-san?” Mika asked abruptly.

”It’s not cohabitation—we’re just living together!” Seiji was acutely worried about the correct wording.

This was no joke to him—he didn’t want to be thrown in jail for a minimum of three years for a certain crime.

”…Is it really only living together?” Mika gave him a sidelong glance. ”You… didn’t do anything strange to her?” Her face flushed slightly after she asked this.

”I didn’t! Just how do you view me?”

‘All that happened was that I couldn’t have myself from having a few perverted… no, gentlemanly thoughts! I didn’t do anything to Shika at all; she’s perfectly fine.’

”You've previously admitted to being a sis-con.”

”Ack!” Seiji had taken an arrow to his knee. ”Precisely! Because I’m a sis-con and I dote on my adopted sister, I would never do anything to harm her!” He tried to justify his situation.

Mika didn’t know how to respond to this.

After a period of silence, she spoke up again. ”I’d like to visit you guys; is that alright?”

”Eh? You’d like to come over? Sure,” Seiji replied.

”Thank you. I’ll bring some desserts over.”

”You don’t need to be so polite; we live right next door after all. Come over any time you want… Er, but…”

He suddenly remembered that Shika possessed the ”Reaper’s Curse.” This curse was indiscriminate and would bring calamities upon anyone that grew too close to her. Seiji was the only person who was immune to this thanks to the power from his system.

Of course, he was more than happy to have Mika come over, but if she had a calamity befall her due to this…

”But what?” Mika looked at him curiously.

”Shika-chan… she’s afraid of strangers… or, I should say that she doesn’t like coming into contact with other people… there’s a reason that’s difficult to explain,” Seiji said slowly, considering each word carefully.

He couldn’t come up with a suitable explanation on the spot.

Mika watched him and thought to herself that this must be due to mystical reasons just like Sakura had told her.

”It’s because of ‘mystical’ reasons, isn’t it?”

”...Eh?”

Seiji's eyes widened in surprise. 'What did I just hear?'

”Kagura-san doesn’t want to come into contact with others… or she can’t come into contact with others... There are ‘mystical’ reasons for it, right?” Mika calmly asked again.

Seiji was rather shocked to hear this. After he regained his senses, his expression was complex.

”You… know?”

Mika nodded in response.

”The incident troubling you was related to something ‘mystical?’”

Mika nodded once again.

Seiji raised his eyebrows. This was… rather unexpected.

”The road isn’t the best place to talk; I’ll give you a good explanation after we reach your apartment,” Mika said in a soft voice. ”After that, could you also tell me about… the things you’ve concealed from me before. Is that alright?”

Her heart pounded nervously in her chest.

Seiji looked at her for a while and smiled.

”Sure.”

He didn’t expect such a development to occur… just what could Mika have met with?

...

Not long after Seiji returned home, Mika knocked on the door.

Seiji opened the door for her.

”Please excuse my intrusion,” she said as she entered.

”No need to be polite.”

Mika stayed true to her words—she'd brought over some desserts: packaged small cakes.

Seiji had her sit down in the living room.

After sitting down, Mika's eyes fixed on Shika Kagura.

The two of them simply stared at each other and continued to do so until Seiji finished pouring tea and setting the desserts down for everyone.

”Allow me formally introduce you two—this is Mika Uehara, my classmate and good friend, as well as the landlord’s daughter.

”And this—” he gestured at Shika—”is Shika Kagura, my adopted younger sister that I’m now living together with. She was previously a student at Genhana Middle School, but now she’s left school for a certain reason.”

Mika had met Shika twice before already. Once was at the drama club, and the other time was when Shika had amnesia.

At the drama club, the two of them never had an opportunity to exchange words, and when Shika had amnesia…

”Shika-chan, do you still remember meeting Mika when you had amnesia?” Seiji asked.

”Yes, but not very clearly. I vaguely recall that there was one other person with her…” Shika tilted her head slightly.