I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

It's a message from Natsukawa Masaki.

"What could be going on so early..." With chopsticks in her mouth, Tenkuji Yu took out her phone, scrolled through it, and then took a closer look.

"Rubbing, rubbing. Rubbing, rubbing, rubbing, rubbing! Rubbing, rubbing, rubbing! Rubbing, rubbing, rubbing, rubbing, rubbing!"

What met her eyes were characters even more terrifying and inexplicable than the gibberish of the "Funeral Love Family" (a fictional group of people who wrote slang for funerals), making it impossible to understand what she was trying to express.

Tenkuji Yu squinted, staring blankly at his phone.

...Has Natsukawa Masato finally broken down?

Is it so serious that she can't even type? Shouldn't we take her to the hospital as soon as possible?

However, she quickly deleted the message and replaced it with a few sentences in normal Japanese.

I sincerely apologize for the numerous typos and omissions in the message I just sent. The original text should be as follows:

Can we go to school together? I'd like to hitch a ride with you.

I look forward to a satisfactory reply.

With a slightly helpless expression, Yuu Tenkuji quickly pressed a button on his phone, while simultaneously glancing up at Kasugano Sora, who was peeking in their direction.

"What's wrong?"

"...Focus on your meal and stop playing on your phone."

"I wasn't playing; a friend just needed to talk to me."

"Friends? Hmph, yeah..."

The brief but subtly intimate conversation ended there. Kasugano Sora continued eating, while Tenkuji Yu pressed the send button.

"Sure, but are you really okay mentally? If you're feeling unwell, you should take some time off and rest."

"I just didn't sleep well, thank you for your concern, darling. Your warmth filled my body first thing this morning."

The message exchange has ended for now; it seems she's packing her things and getting ready to leave.

Yuuya put away his phone, quickened his pace, and finished his meal quickly, then placed the dishes in the sink for Sora to wash.

"Then I'm heading out. Remember to exercise after you wake up from your nap."

"No need for you to tell me, old lady." Her lazy, unpleasant, and sweet voice rang out from the living room.

Yuu Tenkuji put his schoolbag next to the shoe cabinet and sat in the entryway to put on his shoes when his phone suddenly rang.

It was a call from Natsukawa Masaki.

"Hello?" He answered, turning the volume down so the silver-haired girl peeking out of the living room wouldn't hear. "Why are you calling all of a sudden?"

She didn't reply immediately, but first chuckled softly twice, then slowly spoke in a soft and enigmatic voice:

"Hello, I'm Zhenliang, and I'm crossing the street now."

Yuu Tenkuji paused for a moment, then quickly realized, "...Miss Mary?"

"Miss Mary" is an urban legend, referring to a habitual phone harasser.

They like to put pressure on others by reporting their whereabouts, and eventually they will appear behind their target, waiting for the target to turn around before stabbing them to death.

Relevant information came to mind. Tenkuji Yu held the phone between her shoulder and shoulder, sighing helplessly as she put on her shoes.

"You're really into imitating urban legends first thing in the morning, aren't you?"

"I'm really cold now, at the alley entrance."

As if she hadn't heard him, Natsukawa Masuzu continued speaking in a sinister tone, adding a sentence every now and then:

"I'm really cold, and I'm crossing the street now."

"I'm really cold now, and I'm just around the corner."

"I'm really cold, and I'm in a convenience store right now."

"I'm Ayou, and I'm still in the entryway."

“I…” Miss Zhenliang paused for a moment, almost unable to finish her sentence because of his interruption, “…I am Zhenliang, and I’m at your door right now!”

"Really?" After putting on her shoes, Yuu Tenkuji stood up and peered through the peephole. "No. By the way, wouldn't it be scarier if you hung up and called back? Although, if you did that, I probably wouldn't even answer the call."

Natsukawa Masaki seemed determined to finish the act, completely ignoring his complaints and continuing her charade:

"I'm Zhenliang, and I'm right behind you now..."

Before she could finish speaking, Tenkuji Yu called out without turning her head, "Sora, is someone behind me?"

"No, who are you talking to? A girl?"

Instead of answering her immediately, Yuu Tenkuji deliberately asked the person on the other end of the phone with a puzzled look, "My sister said she didn't see anyone. Where did you go?"

"..."

"Okay, stop playing around. Where are you now?"

"...It's very close to your house, you'll probably see me as soon as you walk out." Natsukawa Masaki said with a sullen hum.

As Yuu Tenkuji hung up the phone and opened the door, he turned to Kasugano Sora and called out, "Remember to eat lunch!"

"I know! You still haven't answered my question. Who was that you just spoke to on the phone...?"

Before she could finish speaking, Yuu Tenkuji closed the door, welcoming the clear autumn morning.

Chapter 91 As long as there is love, even...

He left without looking back.

"Yu..."

Kasugano Sora, who was originally going to the kitchen to wash the dishes, stood at the living room door, stared blankly at the closed door for a moment, and then forgot to hug her rabbit plushie. She swung her slender legs and ran upstairs.

She ran up to the second floor, opened the door as fast as she could, and rushed onto the balcony. Looking down at the street outside, she squinted uncomfortably.

"Very suspicious...and it's related to girls!"

Kasugano Sora murmured to herself, her gaze sweeping outwards from the front door of her house.

The reason for this suspicion is very simple—if the person on the phone was male, Yu would not have been vague about her questions or even pretended not to hear them.

Therefore, there is only one explanation for his reaction.

The person he was talking to on the phone just now wasn't just a woman; their relationship was so close that he couldn't openly tell his own sister.

...Is she my girlfriend?

With uncertain guesses, Kasugano Sora quickly spotted a familiar figure walking down the street, and sure enough, at an intersection some distance from her home, she saw him meet a silver-haired girl and walk intimately together.

They were holding hands, practically hugging each other right there in the street. From any angle, she was definitely his girlfriend.

"..."

On the balcony, the silent air seemed to freeze.

No matter how warm and bright the morning sun overhead was, no light could penetrate his pale eyes; he simply gazed silently at the backs of the two people.

unexpected.

After witnessing the scene with her own eyes, Kasugano Sora was calmer than she had imagined, and didn't even feel much sadness.

Just like she had been hurt many times before and the wounds had now scabbed over, she could even secretly complain in her heart—did her brother have some kind of special fetish for finding a girl with hair color similar to hers as his girlfriend? That's really perverted.

To be honest, even Kasugano Sora herself found it very strange.

She thought she would be even more shocked and incredulous, and then she would start to fear that he might abandon her.

But now, as she watches him and that girl walk further and further away, she has no intention of making a scene or asserting her dominance, except for waiting for him to come back and ask him to confess properly.

She just felt a little tightness in her chest, a little resentful, and a sense of unease that he was hiding something from her. Compared to her past reactions of getting extremely jealous over the slightest clue, she was now completely calm.

Did I really mature so much without even realizing it?

"After all, Yu is mine, and no one can take her away... No matter if you are my girlfriend, lover, or wife, you can't take Yu away from me."

Muttering to herself as if in a state of self-hypnosis, Kasugano Sora took a few deep breaths of the cool morning air before stepping off the balcony.

With her bare feet, she skillfully unlocked the door and went into the next room.

No matter how mature she becomes, her longing for him will never cool down.

No matter how many women he meets outside, in this home, Yuu Tenkuji will always be Kasugano Sora's older brother, and she will always be his younger sister.

They belonged to each other, and no matter how the world changed, death could not separate them.

Kasugano Sora firmly believed this, and from that day until now, she has never doubted it.

"Ah... Yu... I love you... I will always love you..."

In a spacious and quiet room.

Breathe in his scent, be surrounded by the traces he left behind.

The silver-haired girl lay on the bed biting her finger, her fair face flushed, and her soft breathing gradually became more intense.

When will I finally be able to express my feelings to him?

Kasugano Sora, I can't wait any longer.

……

"Seriously, how did you know my address?"

"Isn't that simple? As long as there's love, even becoming an omniscient and omnipotent god is no problem, ki☆ra~"

"Stop trying to act cute with me."

Tenkuji Yu tapped her forehead, and Natsukawa Masuzu just stuck out her tongue cutely, showing no intention of letting go of him, still clinging to his arm like a koala.

"Really..." He took a few steps toward the station with some difficulty. He did a quick calculation and found that this guy was about five times more clingy than usual.

Her beautiful figure pressed against him without warning, her fair and soft cheeks occasionally brushing against his arm. His usually indifferent and cold expression completely melted away, and his face was filled with a sweet and happy look of immersion.

"Swish, swish..."

It also makes strange, ambiguous sounds, and is more affectionate than a house cat that has been separated from its owner for a long time.

Is this still the same Natsukawa Masaki?