Tokyo: Oreimo

"Let's go in. We've probably kept them waiting long enough."

......

Inside the private room, Ryosuke and Saori Phoenix were already seated.

When Ryosuke saw Ling Nai being pushed in by Gokou Mao, he raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, you're still alive."

The provocative tone made Takashiro Ryouno perk up a little, and she glared at him.

"You're so annoying."

The blonde girl plopped down opposite him and turned her face away.

Phoenix Inu Saori poured her a cup of tea and said softly, "Have some tea first."

"Thank you."

Ling Nai took the teacup, and holding the warm tea, her mood calmed down a little.

Seeing her dejected appearance, Ryosuke stopped teasing her and asked directly.

What are your plans next?

"...I don't know, let's leave it for now."

Takashiro Ryouko suddenly gulped down the water in her glass.

"is it?"

"What? You guys don't actually think I'd be upset about something like this, do you?"

"Although I upset Liuli, I can apologize after school starts."

The blonde girl forced a smile, seemingly unconcerned. She picked up the kettle, refilled her cup, and held it up.

"Now that everyone's here, can we start the celebration banquet? I'm starving!"

"To celebrate the game's huge success, I should get a cut, right? I'm rich this time!"

This was the first time Ryosuke had ever seen his younger sister act so strangely.

It seems he was deeply affected.

However, he didn't say anything more.

The victory celebration was held in this strange atmosphere.

......

Two hours later, the four of them left.

After exchanging greetings, Ryosuke and Takashiro Ryono boarded the train home.

The blonde girl didn't say a word the whole way; she just walked silently.

Upon arriving home, the first thing I did was lock myself in my room.

"Let her adjust on her own."

Knowing that she needed to process what had happened that day on her own, Ryosuke didn't disturb her and went back to his room.

Girls of this age often think that losing a friend is a huge deal, and they might even cry under the covers because of it.

Compared to Ayano, Ruri Aragaki would probably cry even harder, right?

After all, the girl's feelings for Ling Nai were not just pure friendship.

Chapter 90 Tragedy Heals the Heart

Two days have passed since the incident at the CM exhibition.

On Wednesday, Ryosuke stayed up late because he was rushing to finish his manuscript, and he didn't wake up until 10 o'clock.

After a quick wash, I went to the restaurant for breakfast.

To his surprise, Takashiro Ryouno was sitting on the sofa in the living room. Just the past two days, she hadn't left her room except to eat.

Noticing Ryosuke's appearance, the girl glared at him.

"Did you get up too late? Weren't you supposed to be going out today?"

Speaking of which, I did plan to go to Tokyo again today. It was a time I had arranged with Phoenix Institute to go to the Legal Affairs Bureau to register the company.

"I forgot to tell you, this matter has been postponed to Friday."

Considering her sister's condition, which might prevent her from attending on time, she specifically asked Phoenix Inoin to postpone it for two days.

"What? I got up really early this morning."

Takashiro Ryouno's face showed dissatisfaction.

"I thought you'd be completely down before school started, but it seems you've regained some energy now?"

"Who are you underestimating? I'm just playing games in my room."

Ling Nai gave a soft snort.

If stubbornness had a ranking system, she could probably get an S rank.

Ryosuke remembered that when he got up to go to the bathroom last night, he could vaguely hear soft crying coming from Ryouno's room.

Sometimes, having too much pride isn't a good thing.

He was about to pass by the sofa to enjoy the breakfast his mother, Mieko, had left for him when she suddenly called out to him as he passed by Ling Nai.

"Seriously, you've gone too far!"

"?"

Ryosuke believed that he and his sister had barely interacted in the past two days and that he hadn't done anything to offend her.

But why does the other party look like it might pounce on me at any moment and try to bite me to death?

"Don't play dumb! I got a different ending in the Heaven's Feel route... Heaven's Feel!"

No sooner had she finished speaking than, while Mieko was tending to the flowers and plants in the yard, Takashiro Ryono darted forward, grabbed Ryosuke by the collar without a word, and forced him down onto the sofa.

"Give me a proper explanation of what you mean by 'there is indeed a better ending, and Shirou and Sakura will be happy together'?"

Ling Nai still remembers that after experiencing the tragic ending of 'Sakura Dream', she specifically asked Ryosuke to confirm the existence of the true ending of the HF route, and she remembered those words perfectly.

"Huh?"

Ryosuke exclaimed in surprise. Wasn't he arguing with his friends and feeling sad? How could he possibly be in the mood to play games in this situation?

Although he had guessed that he would face 'retaliation' from the player's sister because of that rather offensive remark, he did not expect it to happen so quickly.

...

"Shirou won't die..."

"You want to live, don't you?"

"I'll show you a miracle. This time it'll be amazing! After all, this is real magic!"

"The older brother should protect his younger sister, right?"

"I'm Shirou's older sister, so I have to protect my little brother."

.....

Recalling the ending she saw last night, Takashiro Ryouno immediately flew into a rage when she saw Illya enter the painting.

She drew that CG herself and never imagined it would appear here.

She thought Ryosuke had arranged a hidden storyline specifically for Illya, waiting for players to discover it.

Who can understand the devastating blow she suffered when she saw Ilya's parting conversation? Even now, she is still unable to find peace of mind.

"What a joke! To save Shirou's life, Illya has to die!"

"Couldn't they have made a happy ending like the Fate route?"

"Do you find it amusing to toy with my feelings?"

"Thanks to you, you made me cry for over an hour last night while hugging the monitor, and I completely forgot about all the unpleasantness of Sunday!"

"You old scoundrel! Give me back my Ilya!"

Ling Nai straddled Ryosuke's back, baring her teeth and claws, her fists raining down on his chest.

What? Oh, I see. No wonder he recovered so quickly!

Great tragedies can heal the soul. When you're feeling down, seeing even more heartbreaking stories raises your threshold for emotional release.

What kind of special resurrection mechanism is this?

......

A few minutes later, Mieko returned to the living room with the scissors.

Looking at Ryosuke on the sofa in surprise, he was lying there slumped over, while Ling Nai was sitting at the dining table leisurely drinking tea, seemingly indifferent to everything.

"What's wrong, Ryosuke?"

Faced with his mother's concerned inquiries, Ryosuke could only respond with an awkward smile.

I can't exactly say I got a beating from my sister, can I?

Therefore, game developers cannot get too close to real players; it's simply too dangerous.

Fortunately, Ling Nai didn't really go all out, otherwise, with her monstrous strength, I probably would have been beaten so badly I wouldn't be able to get out of bed.

He gestured to his mother that everything was alright and sat up straight.

Mieko then confidently continued tending to the garden with her tools.

Ling Nai snorted, "You rascal, once the company is established, be careful you don't actually get razor blades sent to you. There might even be someone waiting for you at the door!"

Ryosuke shrugged, completely ignoring the girl's words.

In his view, otaku's ability to withstand pressure is not that bad.

Fate/Zero hasn't even been released yet, let alone the first project he plans to undertake after the company was established.