I really don't want to be reborn.

"An elementary school student or a junior high school student?"

"Yes, police? Soldiers? Or assassins?"

Daisuke Kosaka frowned: "Are you sure this person is after you? But why would they target you? Are you sure it's not Kirino?"

"It's still too early to be sure, so just to be safe, I'll stay behind Kirino and protect her..."

"Leave this to me."

Kyosuke waved his hand: "You're not suitable. It's obvious that I'm the person in this family who is closest to her."

"Kyosuke, I have to tell you the truth, I met Kirino fourteen hours earlier than you."

"..."

it has started!

The war between daughter-obsessed parents and sister-obsessed parents!

"Obviously, she and I are the same age in this family, but you are not."

"..."

"I spent the most time with her."

"..."

Kyosuke Kosaka shrugged: "My relationship with her is much closer, which is in line with the theory of natural selection in the theory of evolution."

Mr. Daisuke felt like vomiting blood: "...When did you start reading 'Evolution'?"

His son's face then displayed that classic mocking expression.

"Those who still cannot fully grasp the luminol reaction process cannot understand the world of geniuses."

"I'm not a forensic scientist or a medical examiner... but how do you know my level of expertise?"

Kyosuke Kousaka fell silent.

His father's gaze grew increasingly strange: "I always feel like you know a lot about my work, son."

"I only know a little bit about it."

They silently fell silent, because Kirino was walking downstairs, staring at the father and son in astonishment.

"Where's mom?"

"Going to buy groceries."

Kyosuke reached out to her: "Kirino, pour me a cup of coffee."

Kirino yawned as she walked towards the restroom: "Do you want some sugar?"

"Need not."

Daisuke quickly interjected, "I'll have one too!"

Kirino glanced back at the two men, muttering something like, "Why does Dad want coffee again?", and waved her hand impatiently: "I know."

"I want sugar in mine!"

"Ugh, so verbose..."

Kyosuke lowered his voice: "You see, this is the difference in how she treats her father and brother. I don't need to say who she's closer to."

Daisuke pushed up his glasses.

Kyosuke continued, "I don't know if you've noticed, but based on my experimental findings over the past few months, I suspect that Kirino has some kind of mild dependency disorder."

He actually used his own sister as an experiment?

That's terrifying...

Even Daisuke now finds his son a bit scary, but since it concerns his daughter, he can't help but ask: "Dependency syndrome?"

"Dependence on a person or thing, alcoholism, smoking, sugar addiction, religious addiction, television addiction, occupational disease, and also... gaming addiction."

"A game? Just a game?"

Kyosuke Kosaka hesitated: "Or, is it a dependency on me?"

If a person loves only one person and is indifferent to others, this kind of love is not love, but a kind of symbiotic dependence, or an amplified egoism.

Kirino is already showing some of that trend.

"Isn't this what you, you bastard, are proud of?"

Daisuke Kosaka lowered his voice and looked towards the bathroom. He saw that Kirino had already gone into the kitchen, taken out two cups, and was standing on tiptoe in front of the refrigerator, looking for sugar cubes on the top shelf.

"The game was postponed, and her dependence on me was dealt with along with the stalking incident."

Mr. Daisuke's face showed a hint of anticipation: "...What are you going to do?"

"The school trip next month."

Just then, the Kosaka family's beloved daughter walked over with two cups of coffee. She happened to overhear her brother's words and casually asked, "What kind of trip?"

"I was saying I'm probably going to Tokyo this weekend, do you want to come with me?"

She was about to agree.

Daisuke smiled slightly, unperturbed by praise or criticism: "It's just the right time to visit your Uncle Kogiso's house. Kirino, would you like to come?"

Kirino doesn't like visiting unfamiliar people's homes, so she decisively shook her head and refused to go.

The father and son exchanged a glance.

It seems... to be a draw?

Kyosuke Kosaka smiled and handed her the meager bouquet of roses: "Don't throw it away, take it back to your room."

The girl accepted it with a sweet smile.

Hmph, you think you can draw?

…………

Again!

That feeling of being watched is back!

I got off the train and strolled through the streets of Tokyo.

The weather was already a bit chilly at the end of October, so he wore an extra light-colored coat, which made him look quite energetic from a distance.

He was carrying a large bag.

It contains not only gifts needed for visiting the Kogiso family, but also a new volume to obtain from Dengeki Bunko, and a document for arguing with the XEBEC group.

However, ever since he boarded the train in Chiba, the feeling of being watched has lingered, but Kyosuke Kosaka pretends not to notice anything.

He was also thinking that even if the little girl he met with his sister in Shibuya that night had some special identity, she might not necessarily be the one who was following him.

Could they be special police officers keeping watch in Shibuya?

Of course, the best-case scenario is that the feeling of being followed and spied on is just one's own illusion.

His first stop was Dengeki Bunko.

If someone is really following you, they shouldn't be able to escape the security cameras at the entrance and in the hallway.

"Oh, Kousaka."

Ryunosuke Kumagai smiled and waved to him: "After such a long delay, you finally finished this volume? But let me make it clear beforehand, if the quality isn't up to standard, even if you're an acquaintance, it won't do."

He handed over the manuscript: "How are you doing? How's the editor-in-chief position for mobile novels going?"

"If I were a reader, I would feel like I'm eating shit every day."

He said those words bluntly.

"But as an editor, it's still pretty good."

Ryunosuke Kumagai pointed to a set of data on the computer: "This is the best-performing book so far."

Then, Kyosuke saw his sister's masterpiece.

Kumagai had no idea it was his sister's work, and Kyosuke didn't say anything either, only asking curiously, "What are you going to do about it?"

"If the data holds for another month... I think it will probably be published soon."

In other words, Kirino's novel is going to be published...

puff puff!

I really want to tell Chiba's Fallen Saint this good news.

------

No one is feeding me, I'm unhappy.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Smoke and Fire Have Cleared, Anywhere Is Possible

Setsuna Ogiso is playing games in the living room.

I was playing a game with my younger brother that was easy to play but difficult to play with a controller.

At home, Ogiso Setsuna is never particular about her appearance. Right now, she's barefoot, sitting cross-legged on the sofa, wearing a pink cotton pajama set, and her hair is all messy.

Her eyes were fixed on the TV screen, her hands gripped the handles as if they were kneading instant noodles, and she was shouting distracting noises like "Hit him! Hit him!"

The younger brother's name is Xiaohong. He is currently a junior high school student. Although his gaming skills are much better than his older sister's, he can only unleash half of his abilities under such auditory interference and threatening stares.

Similar to the Kousaka family, this family follows the primogeniture system, with the eldest daughter (or son) as the primary heir.

The parents cared for and had higher expectations for Setsuna than for their younger son, so the honest and kind-hearted Hidehiro was actually a little afraid of his older sister.

Even when playing games, I don't dare to win too much, and of course, I can't let them win too obviously, so playing games with my sister is actually a tricky skill.

Fortunately, someone helped him out of that predicament today.

The doorbell rang, signaling a visitor. The mother told her two children to stop playing games, then took off her apron and went to open the door.

"You are……"

"You must be Aunt Ogiso. My name is Kyosuke Kousaka, from Chiba."