Uneasy daily life

In other words, there's no definitive conclusion? I'm just unlucky; life is so unreasonable, there are just too many things that people don't know or can't do.

Mai Sakurajima became somewhat lost in thought, recalling the short play she had performed yesterday... Love and debt, it wouldn't be a problem to apply them to herself and her mother.

Every practical request and condition from a mother may stem from her love. When one feels frustrated, tired, and bored, yet has to continue, one feels as if in debt—there is no passion or fighting spirit, only a cooling down, a sense of oppression as if one has failed something. This oppression may occasionally give rise to hatred and pain.

That does sound a lot like a bank loan.

In a relationship, the dominant or proactive party will inevitably project their own demands and conditions onto the other party in exchange for promises and consent.

Just like a bank lending money, this debt and commitment may initially provide motivation to move forward, but it is destined to begin to lead to numbness, pain and indifference at some point.

If the loan is eventually repaid, both parties will be happy, and a beautiful relationship will be formed, which will be a wonderful story.

If the debt is not fully repaid, the party who made the promise will be credited and rendered untrustworthy, leaving them vulnerable to the other party's accusations and demands. The person unable to repay might use excuses such as bad luck, lack of ability, excessively high interest rates, or the significant amount they have already paid. They might simply remain silent and become a defaulter, regret their past overconfidence and recklessness, or feel anger and resentment at the unfairness of the contract, ultimately severing ties with both parties.

Relationships between people... at least my relationship with my mother is more like the latter.

Banks will keep lending, again and again. Many unspoken common sense rules force you to sign contracts until the day you can't repay. You may become numb, indifferent, give up, or just muddle through life, or question the fairness and terms of the contract. Broken feelings ignite the fire of hatred.

Love can become debt, and debt can become hatred. This is how relationships between people and in life often go from good to bad.

Mai Sakurajima pondered absently. Perhaps after resolving her family's financial difficulties, she should have refused her mother's conditions, her mother's love, and her mother's loan. Otherwise, she would have gone too far and become too burdened. Fortunately, in the end, they signed a contract to waive the debt, preventing it from turning into hatred.

Has Mother moved on from her past life?

The most urgent task is to resolve the adolescent syndrome. If it cannot be resolved in the end, I would rather my mother forget about me.

So... is this the philosophy of life of the hater?

Ideally, a relationship should remain just that—a relationship. If too many demands, promises, and constraints are mixed in, it will turn into a debt.

"Hate fan, what should I do if I'm really grateful to you?"

Bai Ying had arranged to meet Azusagawa Sakuta at his house that afternoon. Just as she turned off her phone, she heard Sakurajima Mai's abrupt, smiling inquiry.

"Simple, just kowtow to me." Bai Ying put away her phone and said casually, "I like your grateful nature and your generous attitude. Come on, kowtow..."

thump.

Mai Sakurajima lowered her head slightly and tapped it on the table. She remained lying on the table and said with ease, "Then I don't need to thank you, right? Black Fan."

"I have a feeling that you are quite ill."

Bai Ying scratched his head, leaned on the table, twisted his neck and tilted his head to peek at the other person's expression through the gap in the other person's long hair, and speculated: "Hmm... I'm saying you wouldn't have been thinking about a bunch of things on your own, suddenly got emotional and wanted to do something unusual and meaningful, and then cooled down instantly after doing it, and now you're frozen in place to calm down, right?"

"Shut your mouth."

Mai Sakurajima remained motionless, feeling that figuring out this guy's thoughts might be even more difficult than becoming a movie queen.

"Black Fan, from now on we owe each other nothing." Bai Ying spoke softly in a clear female voice, "I don't want to thank you, I don't want to feel the pressure of having to repay some favor, I don't want to carry the burden of owing you anything in our relationship, I don't want to feel at some point that I've given too much, or endured too much, and should ask for something in return, letting this feeling become unbearably murky... Oh~"

Mai Sakurajima stood up, a hint of embarrassment and awkwardness lingering on her face. She took a deep breath and, relying on her years of excellent emotional management skills, instantly controlled her expression: "Hate-fan, you can choose to shut up passively!"

Bai Ying laughed: "Even the bravest plus can be naive and passionate, but people can't escape life."

"Oh?" Mai Sakurajima thought for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Black Fan, that strange thing that occasionally pops up on you keeps you far removed from a normal life, doesn't it?"

Bai Ying's face instantly lost its expression. He slowly sat up straight, crossed his hands and rested them on his chin, and said in a gloomy voice with a sense of authority, "You saw it?"

Mai Sakurajima rolled her eyes and put on a serious expression: "I saw it."

"very good!"

Bai Ying nodded: "Congratulations, you've become half a lunatic. Keep it up!"

"?" Sakurajima Mai asked, then immediately asked, "Black Fan, Azusagawa-senpai knows about puberty syndrome because he's experienced it. What about the one you have? It shouldn't be puberty syndrome, right?"

"Hmm..." the white figure pondered, "Perhaps it should be called Resurrection Armor?"

Mai Sakurajima asked curiously, "So, what exactly is this extraordinary phenomenon of Haku-kun?"

"Actually, this is a difficult question to answer. To put it simply..." Bai Ying tried to give a very vivid example, "Brave Plus, your current situation is perfect for being a criminal—no one knows, others can't see, but I can. It's an extraordinary event, so I'm trying very hard to suppress my impulses to avoid turning you into a finger-licking chicken."

Mai Sakurajima: "?"

……

……

"Haku-kun, it's Hikigaya-kun's birthday the day after tomorrow. What gift are you planning to give him?"

"Hachiman likes Komachi the most, so I'll give Komachi to him."

"Komachi is not Haku's private property."

"What's so difficult about that? First, I'll trick Komachi into becoming mine, then I'll give her to Hachiman. Perfect plan! Isn't that a brilliant plan?"

"For Hachiman, it was hell."

"It's alright, one hug from Komachi will send him flying to heaven. The difference between highs and lows is happiness, so Hachiman must be super happy."

Ding dong.

Good afternoon, all three of you.

"Good afternoon, Azusagawa-kun—the three of you?"

"You're worth two people."

"?! White Fungus! If you keep making such lewd jokes, I'll have no choice but to resort to force!"

"Alright, alright, calm down. It's Mai Sakurajima's vengeful spirit that won't rest..."

Step on.

"Hate fan, next time I'll consider high heels."

"Bai Zhen is broad-minded and fearless of life and death."

"I am a reincarnated Great Emperor, how could anyone in the world be stronger than me... Damn it! You tricked an elementary school student into coming to your home? You're stronger than me! Someone, call the FBI immediately!"

Chapter Seventy-Nine: I Can Be a Witness

Lately, my brother has been acting strangely.

Azusagawa Kaede rested her chin on her hand in contemplation, pouting as she held a ballpoint pen under her nose, seemingly studying absentmindedly while staring at the pen with cross-eyed eyes. In reality, she was sounding a constant alarm bell in her mind.

The previous intruder, a white shadow, had just moved out, supposedly to cause trouble for someone else. She thought the bad guy trying to take her brother away was gone, but since then, her brother has become noticeably strange and suspicious!

For example, my brother adopted a little white cat named Gale... This isn't unusual; having a big cat and then a kitten makes the house feel more lively when you're looking after the animals. But after that...

"Meow~"

"Meow-!"

Near the entrance of the living room, Makinohara Shoko was crouching down, reaching out to pet the little white cat that had made a nest out of a cardboard box. She was wearing a light-colored dress, and her gentle movements as she touched the cat were very quiet.

After the villainous white figure who tried to steal his brother, a sixth-grade elementary school student is now visiting again.

For a long time, life didn't change much. It was just my brother and I coming and going at home. During the day, I would send my brother off to school, while Nasuno and I would look after the house, occasionally watch TV dramas, study the junior high school textbooks, and then wait for my brother to come home from work in the evening.

Occasionally, she would try to crawl into her brother's bed to wake him up, and sometimes she would practice her cooking skills, gradually managing to solve her own lunch problem. Time slipped away so ordinary and gently... but her brother's life seemed to have changed without her realizing it.

If we try to explain it using those unusual common sense ideas in our minds...

Azusagawa Kaede pouted and moved her lips around, causing the ballpoint pen she was holding to swing back and forth. After muttering something, she picked up the pen and began to write in her diary.

[Brother, have you become a social butterfly?]

[Hmm... Inviting friends over to your home, that's definitely a very fulfilling social life, isn't it?]

Wait, what does "real-life" mean?

Hmm—what does "real-life person" mean? It seems to refer to someone who is very outgoing? Wouldn't Bai Ying be a very "real-life person"? But I instinctively feel that Bai Ying isn't, which means that a "real-life person" isn't an outgoing person?

Why? And what exactly is "normie"?

Kaede Azusagawa was having a bit of a headache, so she peeked out of her room and looked at Sakuta Azusagawa in the living room, who was holding a small white cat and talking on the phone. She asked loudly, "Brother! What does 'normie' mean?"

“A real-life person…” Sakuta Azusagawa thought for a moment and said, “Someone who makes you want to wish him an explosion.”

Should I wish him an explosion?

Kaede Azusagawa was a little confused. "Should I wish my brother would explode? No."

"Just kidding, 'real-life fulfillment' refers to someone whose real life is very fulfilling."

"Hmm? So my brother was a popular guy before?!" Azusagawa Kaede didn't think so.

“Before? I wouldn’t call myself a ‘real-life person’ now.” Sakuta Azusagawa explained carefully, “A fulfilling real life doesn’t mean studying, working, or living a serious life. It’s more about having many friends, participating in many group activities, and having a fulfilling social life. It can also simply mean having a girlfriend.”

"Oh……"

After thinking for a moment, Azusagawa Kaede retreated to her room to continue writing in her diary, where she could still faintly hear Azusagawa Sakuta making a phone call.

"Anyway, let's have Futaba come, let's do a comparative experiment with her own eyes..."

My brother has become a popular guy.

Kaede Azusagawa wrote with absolute certainty: "[My brother invited some friends to stay at our house, made some new friends, and they'll be visiting often. He's also inviting a lot of friends over for a party today; his social life is very fulfilling… Does my brother have a girlfriend?]"

I don't think so. If my brother has a girlfriend, will she move in with us? Couples are supposed to be together forever, so what about staying at home...?

Azusagawa Kaede snapped out of her reverie, and the tip of her pen unknowingly made a small dot in the corner of the page.

There's a feeling I can't quite describe, a feeling that's very unfamiliar.

[May my brother explode!]

Kaede Azusagawa pondered, puzzled. Was this a blessing or a curse?

Ding dong.

The doorbell rang outside, followed by my brother's footsteps.

somebody is coming!

Just as Azusagawa Kaede was about to step out, she quickly stopped, pulled the hood of her panda pajamas over her head, and cautiously peeked half her face out of the room.

"Sakuta, excuse me."

Wearing a light-colored dress, Makinohara Shoko, who could barely be called a girl, nodded politely and looked very quiet, but her lively eyes darted left and right: "Um... where's Hayate?"

"Humans are really inferior to cats."

Sakuta Azusagawa took the hand from behind his back, and the little white cat, who had been pinched under the armpit, naturally became long and thin.

"No way, didn't I greet Sakuta first?"

The girl reached out and took it with shining eyes, a serene smile blooming on her face as she rubbed the little white cat's forehead.

Azusagawa Kaede: Stare—!

My brother met a friend outside, a primary school student two years younger than him, Intruder Number Two!

Shoko Makinohara, danger level: ☆☆

She's just a primary school student after all. When it comes to my sister's strength, I won't lose to an outsider!

Azusagawa Kaede retreated into the room, picked up the tabby cat curled up on the bed like a giant chicken leg, and urged, "Nasuno! It's your turn to step out of the station. Let that little white cat know who the master of this house is!"

Nasuno: "Meow."

With Nasuno in his arms, Azusagawa stormed out and arrived at Makinohara Shoko, who was squatting by the door petting the little white cat. He opened his mouth but hesitated for a moment, as it seemed difficult to speak to anyone other than his brother. He decided to send Nasuno out after all... but he should declare war first!

"Hello."

"It's Kaede Azusagawa," she said softly.

"Um... hello."

Shoko Makinohara answered with a smile, and the little white cat suddenly scrambled to Azusagawa Kaede's feet, meowing and rolling around.

"Hayate really likes Maple," Makinohara Shoko said enviously.

"Of course, I take care of all the cats in the house!"

Azusagawa Kaede became smug; all that taking care of Hayate hadn't been for nothing!

Just as Azusagawa Kaede was enthusiastically showing off her knowledge of "how to prevent Nasuno from bullying Hayate," "what parts of Hayate would feel good to be touched," and "the story of the King of the Azusagawa Cat King," the doorbell rang again.

"excuse me."

Rio Futaba was holding a book and looked somewhat indifferent.

“This is my younger sister, Azusagawa Kaede, and this is Makinohara Shoko.”