Chapter 35

“…Akira, I don’t intend to interfere with your choice of friends. However, haven’t you been a bit too indiscriminate lately? This makes three women you’ve let into this house.”

The correct answer was: “Reprimanded in cool, competent maid mode.”

Of course…! You can’t just show your usual energy to strangers!

Besides, I didn’t even know this Nishizaki person to begin with. It makes sense for her to go into alert mode—or rather, “formal visitor mode.”

“Apologies. She’s a student in the same high school’s special-advanced class. Apparently, she sees Kasumi as a rival, and so she approached me—someone who’s recently been standing out at school—to try to gather information.”

“I see. I’ll be preparing lunch in the living room, so please stay in your room. Make sure to act with restraint.”

Completely in competent-maid mode… I even got nervous.

Looking beside me, Nishizaki was completely frozen. That’s how quiet and imposing she was.

…Seriously, a beautiful woman with a deadpan face in full tone mode is terrifying.

Heading to my room with Nishizaki, my phone rang almost immediately. The message read:

“Ha! That’s why men are shameless! Bringing home another girl! I’ll tell Kasumi-girl and Misaki! If a stranger comes over, I’ll treat them coldly!”

…My apologies.

Still, I wanted to hear what she had to say about Kasumi, given her opinions.

“Wow… this is intense. Having a beautiful maid at your house… no wonder I’m nervous. Wait—is she actually a maid you hire?”

“Hmm, something like that. More like a distant relative or acquaintance.”

“Interesting. And not just Kasumi, but Misaki-senpai also comes over? I saw you two seem pretty close after summer break.”

“Misaki-senpai comes more for the maid than me. She’s also my combat instructor, so she comes to spar.”

“Really? That beautiful maid is also that skilled? That’s… a lot to take in.”

“I thought so too. See now why I don’t get flustered easily?”

“Got it. And the fact you’re not Kasumi’s boyfriend already wrecked my plan anyway.”

“Well, I guess there’s no choice but to go the straightforward route. Academics would be tough to compete in, so maybe outdo her in practicals.”

“That girl… she hasn’t even been to cram school, yet her grades are insane. Totally unfair.”

“I agree. And in practicals? Kasumi’s an archer, right?”

Honestly, someone like Kasumi, who effortlessly stays at the top without showing struggle, is basically a genius. It’s probably more efficient to focus efforts elsewhere to win overall.

“I actually tried the ‘Dungeon Gacha’ back in spring. I got the ability called [Four Seasons Magic]. It’s mostly support and ranged attacks, so same field as Kasumi.”

“Whoa! That’s rare for a magic-type blessing. What can it do?”

“It changes with the seasons, but basically shooting magic. Spring is flower-blizzard attacks, summer is water blasts, autumn is dry leaf flurries, and now I can use ice or snow. Damage is about the same as an arrow, but area is wider and lethality slightly lower.”

“I see. Could be useful for blinding enemies, so in a team battle it could shine depending on partners…”

“You think so too? Hmm… with this, we’re on different paths, so competing directly seems impossible now. Midterms and advancement exams are probably the last chance for a head-to-head.”

Honestly, I’ve never had a goal like “I want to beat someone,” so I kind of envy having a clear target like that.

“…Life is long, and we’ve chosen the path of explorers, endlessly challenging dungeons. There’s no rush.”

“Whoa, suddenly sounding so enlightened… well, yeah, that’s true. Hah… I guess I’ll just need to make impressive achievements as an explorer. Hey, having strong party members would help, right? At school, licensed students form parties for practicals, and after graduation, they often keep the same party. What about you, Akira? How about with me?”

“Rejected. Minimum requirement is someone who can match my level.”

“…Impossible.”

“By the way, forming a student party is new to me. …Maybe I’ll ask the school to let me go solo. Much more efficient.”

“Wow… arrogant and presumptuous. But after seeing that time… hard to argue.”

“Honestly, I’ll probably go solo from now on. Aside from that, maybe just with our maid.”

“You two are really close… even with all that intimidating presence…”

Even so, there will probably be times when I’ll have to team up with someone. Might as well think about that now.

As I pondered, Nishizaki seemed lost in thought as well, and flopped on her back on the floor, stretching.

“Ahh! Winning in high school is impossible! If Akira were Kasumi’s boyfriend… I could totally shake things up!”

“Don’t say that out loud, Nishizaki. That’s improper.”

“See, see? I lie down on the bed and tease like this!”

She then lay on my bed, provocatively crossing her legs and smirking at me.

“Don’t lie on other people’s beds.”

“Eh… hey, this is Akira’s room, right?”

“Yeah, it is.”

Then Nishizaki, still lying down, frowned and started lying face-down on the bed.

“…Wow, there’s a strong womanly scent… perfume, shampoo… seriously?! Akira, are you… with that maid? Ahh… there’s no way to shake me up… an adult woman, and that class of beauty…”

“Wait! No, it’s not like that!”

“Ah, it’s fine. I thought I could unsettle Kasumi a little even if you weren’t her boyfriend, but no chance! Was I a bother? I should go?”

“No, really, it’s not like that…”

“It’s fine, I get it. That bed is well-used, huh?”

Well, yes, it is used… I sleep there… but I’m just sleeping! But that doesn’t sound like a good excuse to say out loud!

“I get why the maid is grumpy. Sorry about that… thanks for having me!”

Nishizaki scurried out as if she were “an intruder in the love nest of two people.”

…At the very least, I had to see her off.

“Ah… we talked about a lot, but see you tomorrow? Practical exam probably pairs top performers together. Good luck.”

“Ah, right. Yeah, thanks again for having me!”

Just as Nishizaki, looking slightly awkward, prepared to leave, my sister came from the living room.

“Oh? I thought I’d have you stay for lunch, but you’re leaving already?”

“Ah… sorry, I had something urgent. Sorry for the trouble… thank you for having me…”

“I see. Then please take care on your way home.”

“Yes, thanks again!”

The door closed, and Nishizaki’s footsteps faded into the distance.

…I don’t know, even though we don’t interact much, leaving her with that misunderstanding… it feels like it could cause trouble later…

“Whew…! Man, you suddenly brought home a completely new girl. I was surprised. I almost greeted her like, ‘Akira! Welcome back! Lunch is my special yakisoba!’ You know, I learned that pretending to be polite and reserved around strangers is the best way to avoid unnecessary trouble.”

“Yeah… I thought it seemed kind of fun, so I brought her along. But everyone’s got their own thoughts, huh?”

“She sees Kasumi-girl as a rival, right? I never imagined Kasumi would be the one in the position of being chased.”

“Same here. Anyway, sorry for making you prepare lunch too.”

“Hmm, it’s fine. Adding one more person just means splitting it between two, which makes extra-large yakisoba anyway! By the way, I always put a soft-fried egg on top of yakisoba. The egg that would have gone to that girl, I’ll take instead!”

“Haha, sure, no problem. Actually, yakisoba sounds great—I was wondering why it smelled so good just now.”

“Yakisoba’s usually a summer food, but I decided I wanted it now, with winter approaching.”

That’s just the way she is—living with me as family.

…But I guess in Nishizaki’s mind now, she probably thinks my sister and I are in some kind of improper relationship already…