EPISODE 5

LET’S CHAT WITH REI FOR THE FIRST TIME IN FOREVER!

“Urghhh…… Ngh…… Ooh……”

They first carried Rei, Ryouta’s older sister, to the castle’s infirmary.

Her arms and legs were wrapped in bandages, and she was groaning.

There appeared to be another bandage on her head, but it was just a large ribbon.

That ribbon had acted as a cushion for her. It wasn’t for fashion; it was like a makeshift helmet to protect her head.

Either that or she was using it to feel taller because she was so short.

“Ooooh… Ryou, just…leave it…to me… I can take a couple hundred of these small fries by myself…”

“Crunch, crunch, she’s so delirious, it’s like she’s on the verge of death. Is she okay? Crunch, crunch,” Ouka said, munching on some crackers next to Ryouta.

It didn’t seem like she was in a good mood.

“She’s weirdly tenacious; don’t worry about it. Also, don’t snack in the sickroom.”

“It’s fine. I don’t think she’ll die. She just talks a lot.”

“You’re not wrong, but… Rei was always the type to get sick easily. She is tough, though.”

It sounded contradictory, but that described her pretty well.

“She would always get really sick or severely injured, and she always ends up in coughing fits because of a weird chronic illness, but she recovers unusually quickly.”

“Huh, there sure are weird people in the world.”

“From what I know, she’s fallen from the deck at Kiyomizu Temple twice (as in, she went to Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto twice and fell from it each time), fell from Tokyo Tower once (it is unknown how she managed to reach a place she could fall from), and she’s also fallen from Inuyama Castle, Hikone Castle, Matsumoto Castle, and the Himeji Castle tower. When she fell from Inuyama Castle, she even fell into the Kiso River at its base and got picked up by a cormorant fishing.”

“So she’s fallen from all the castles designated as national treasures, I see. She has the makings of a ruler.”

Her experiences in fact did nothing to qualify her as a ruler, but either way, a normal person would be dead by now.

“But this is a mystery.”

“What is? How she’s still alive?”

“Well, I guess that is a mystery, and that is the biggest question in the grand scheme of things, but—why is she here?”

To state the obvious, Rei Asagiri was Japanese.

To state the obvious again, this was Sacred Blood Empire territory.

Why was she here?

Rei’s eyes then went wide. “Gasp! Here!”

“Rei, you came to! What on Earth happened?”

“Oh, Ryou, it’s such a long story, ahem, ahem!” Rei began to talk feebly. “Well, cough, cough, I was so worried—ahem!—when I noticed that you weren’t coming home. And then—cough!—I heard a rumor that—ohom, ohom, ohom!—you were here in this—ahom, ahom!—country. And so I came in through that mountain—ahem!—and reached the back of the castle—cough, cough!—and then saw that there wasn’t any place for me to get down. But then my chronic cough—koff, koff, koff! Koff, koff!—started up and the momentum carried me—ehem, ehem!—off my feet and down the cliff.”

“Your cough kept interrupting you, but I got the gist of what happened.”

Her real coughs and her story coughs were all jumbled together in her story, so it was hard to tell which was which. It was like a test question—A or B?

“And when my feet slipped, I rumbled and tumbled all the way down the hill…”

“Don’t make it sound like a cute nursery rhyme.”

The sound of her falling was probably more like nyoooom, SPLAT!

“But still, you recover way too quickly. It’s a miracle that you’re alive at all.”

“Well, I dreamed that there was a river at the far end of a flower garden. Everyone was so happy, waving at me from the other side. Everyone was wearing black robes and held large scythes in their hands. It looked like so much fun, I decided to go, but I realized, Oh, I can’t swim, so I pulled back. And then I woke up.”

“And if you could swim, then you’d be dead…”

Those friendly people with the scythes were probably grim reapers.

“But I’m so happy I found you safe and sound, Ryou!”

Rei hugged him as he sat next to the bed. She just reached out and wrapped her arms around him.

He was glad she could move around, but he was a little embarrassed.

“Rei, stop!”

“But I’m so happy I finally managed to see my little brother! Now let’s get back to Japa— Eek!”

Rei had hugged him with a big smile on her face, but it was suddenly painted over with fear, as if she had come across a bear in the mountains. In case you were wondering, Rei had encountered bears on five separate occasions in the mountains and had been bitten four of those times.

“Wh-wh…? Y-y-you’re…”

Before her was Ouka, an intense glare directed her way.

If there had been a poster of her in front of the police station, it would definitely have been the kind of expression that would make others think she was a criminal.

“Greetings. I am the emperor of the Sacred Blood Empire, Ouka Sarano. We welcome you to our country, elder sister of Ryouta. To think you would fall from the cliff into the back garden; I was so certain there was no one else around, ha. Ha. Ha.”

Her speech was polite, but even Ryouta could feel the negative aura around her.

“However, our country has no diplomatic relations with Japan, so we may have to punish you for illegal entry… What do you have to say for yourself?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I won’t do it again!”

Rei immediately started bowing to Ouka.

That was a sudden establishment of a hierarchical relationship.

“Well, no matter. Ryouta also came in illegally, so I will pardon you. Think of it as a small consolation.”

“For what?” asked Ryouta.

“Well, if it was another girl like Kiyomizu Jouryuuji who said she loved you, then chaos would descend over your entire life, including at school. But your sister would never do anything like that, so you’re safe.” Ouka nodded deeply before continuing. “There’s no way an elder sister would find her blood-related younger brother romantically attractive or anything perverted like that. There is no way people so twisted could ever exist.”

Rei offered a strained smile.

“Y-yes, indeed. I could never love my younger brother as a man. Much less desire anything else immoral like sleeping together with him in the same bed; taking a bath with him would just be like snow in midsummer, and wanting to kiss him is just as unscientific as walking naked on the surface of the sun, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem!”

Rei abruptly started choking.

“Oh yeah, don’t you have this thing where you start coughing when you lie—? Ow!”

She suddenly smacked him across the face.

“Don’t say that; she might misunderstand! That makes it sound like I’m so in love with you that I would start lying! Like I came to this country because I could scarcely stand being away from you for another second! Like my head is so full of thoughts of you during work that I lose documents, and then I have to write a formal letter of apology! You are the least interesting person to me in the entire world!”

Oh no. She was serious.

Rei always had the tendency to blurt out everything she was thinking.

She thought she hadn’t been found out yet, but…

Well, she was apparently planning on controlling herself, so she probably wouldn’t do anything extreme…probably.

“But I’m glad I somehow got in. What a happy ending.”

Rei’s expression immediately brightened.

She had a natural baby face that often caused others to mistake her for a high school student, and she was rather attractive. A boy would tell her he was crushing on her almost once a month in middle and high school.

At present, she was twenty-three and (probably) single.

“What are you glad about?”

“See, you don’t have any relatives in this country, and I’m sure you were sad all by yourself, Ryou. And so I’ll take care of you until we can get back to Japan. Oh, what a happy ending! And I know you aren’t a shameless, wanton boy who would be living with another girl in her house or anything. Ehem. ”

Why was that cough so cute?

Ryouta’s nerves tensed. He had to handle this well; otherwise, there would be a bloodbath.

Now that he thought about it, Rei had always detested anything that was warped.

To put in perspective how much she hated it, even though she could wholly understand questions about the area of polygons, she had no idea when it came to circles; she was typically in first place when it came to short-distance runs in a straight line, but with a curve in the route, she would be unable to turn completely and that would be game over for her.

She was working as a civil servant, and she had been hired because her workplace appreciated how straightforward she was.

He could force his mouth open, but he could never say that he was living together with a high school girl.

And if he said he had become the servant of said high school girl, he would soon be covered in blood.

“Rei, just calm down and listen. Let me explain, and you’ll understand. I think all of humanity can achieve common understanding.”

“What’s that collar, by the way?”

He had a bad feeling in his gut. She knew everything, didn’t she?

“I put this on to help me understand how cats and dogs and other pets feel. Our brothers are not just humanity. All of animal-kind are our brothers and sisters. That’s why I wear the collar. This should be a given for humans of the global age in the twenty-first century.”

“Wooow! That’s lovely, Ryou! How noble-minded you are! I am so proud of you!” Rei Asagiri was the pure type. “Yes, I think you’re doing just what people should obviously be doing. But if you said good morning to all the plants you saw on your way to school, you would be late. Perhaps that’s too much?”

When she said it herself, Ryouta was starting to hate it more and more. People like that were gross.

“Oh, what a relief. I honestly thought you were wearing it in order to display your submission to a girl, Ryou. I’m glad I didn’t jump to any conclusions. Phew!” Ouka patted Rei on the shoulder. “What is it? Are we restructuring? I’m a public official, though… Oh, Your Majesty, you’re not my boss.”

“Er, Miss, actually…” Ouka whispered into Rei’s ear. “Spspspspsps, spspspsps, spspspsppss, ssppsps.”

A minute later, Rei’s eyes began to water—and she burst out into tears.

“Waaaaah! You’re a delinquent now, Ryou! You’re a Ryongdoer! You’re living with a girl! Cough, cough!”

“Well, I’m impressed. She might be crying, but she’s right.”

“Now’s not the time to be impressed! What should we do? Rei’s sobbing like a crybaby!”

“But I just told her the truth, that you were living with someone else. No embellishment at all.” Ouka was acting suspiciously triumphant over this.

He thought he heard a voice whispering, “Make use of everything and everyone,” but he was probably imagining it. Ouka was definitely the kind of person to say something like that.

“Miss, please don’t get the wrong impression. It’s all right; the two aren’t romantically involved.”

For some reason, Ouka offered her support.

But Ryouta had known her long enough to know that wouldn’t be enough to give him peace of mind.

“R-really? I…suppose that’s all right…”

“Yes, Ryouta is only serving a girl of the same age. As proof, see, there’s even a bell here. It’s almost like a strange fetish, isn’t it?”

She had honestly betrayed his expectations with that unnecessary addition.

“Ehem, ehem, ehem! No! You must be severely kinky to serve someone else and wear a collar! Those are for the more advanced! I cannot recommend it for beginners!”

It was over.

“I cannot allow this! You will be going home to Japan right now! I will transfer you to an all-boys boarding school deep in the mountains so you may never again talk to girls! I’ll do it—you hear me? I will!”

Now came the talks of forced repatriation…

But—

“I’m sorry; that won’t be possible, Miss,” Ouka interjected again. “Our country has no diplomatic relations with Japan. Because of that, I cannot allow Ryouta—nor you, of course—to return. I would happily receive you as a guest, but please do understand.”

“Whaaat?! I can’t take off from work without permission—I’ll be fired! Ahem, ahem, ahem, ahem!”

“You’re an adult who’s more worried about her work now, Rei?!”

But it seemed like his forced repatriation was over now. Nice one, Ouka.

That didn’t mean this whole situation had been settled, though.

“Then I will live with you! I will re-temper your weak spirit! Ehem, ehem!”

“Indeed. It is natural for an elder sister to live with her younger brother. :)” Ouka grinned with satisfaction.

Ryouta knew that he had no right to deny this arrangement.

Meanwhile, elsewhere…

Work, necklace, work…

Shiren sat through her makeup lesson while feverishly clutching the necklace.

The teacher was surprised to see this, too. Had anyone ever seen Shiren Fuyukura look so serious before? Well, probably not. She was always sleeping during class anyway, so no one could see her face.

“Fuyukura, you sure are serious today. If you kept that up during cla—”

“Silence! I cannot have my concentration (on this curse) interrupted!”

“You’re right, Fuyukura. I’m sorry. I’m sure you’ll have no problems improving your grades!”

The teacher was impressed, albeit for the wrong reasons, but Shiren was barely paying any attention to the review.

This is Big Sis we’re talking about, so she’s definitely taking full advantage of her power with her alone time with him… This’ll get really bad if the curse doesn’t work… I mean, I don’t really care who Ryouta becomes good friends with, but if he forgets that he’s my minion, that would be a problem… My duty as a master is to manage my minion… Right, that’s my duty as a master.

Now that she thought about it, she didn’t know when the tour of the castle was supposed to end.

What if he says it’s going to take until nighttime and he doesn’t come back…? Obviously, he can be friends with whoever he wants, but minions have to be faithful and pure. If he’s wandering around outside, blatantly ignoring curfew, then that would be a flagrant corruption of public morals, and I would need to discipline him.

She then realized something important.

Crap, I didn’t give him a curfew.

Since she had not considered the possibility that her minion might go off somewhere on his own, she had never gone out of her way to sit him down and talk to him about being home by six or seven on the dot.

I need to pick one fast, or else he’ll think he can be out until ten or midnight. That’s not okay! Not okay at all! But is it a little too tyrannical if I decide a curfew on my own without talking to him? That’s not very democratic, is it? I couldn’t suddenly ask him to come home because it’s dinnertime…

She definitely had to make some sort of decision. But decisions took a lot of physical strength and courage.

Shiren didn’t have quite enough courage for it.

If I suddenly set up a curfew, wouldn’t he just get all grumpy? Wouldn’t he hate me…? He is my minion, so I should just have him serve me. But I don’t want to be served by someone who hates me.

She secretly opened up My First Minion under her desk.

She read the chapter about minions being good partners.

Minions are completely different than slaves. The bonds between a master and their minion’s hearts form the foundation of the job. One could say that love between master and minion is required. If a master never thinks of their minion, then it would be the same as operating a machine, and they should be ashamed. Heck, even people who are attached to their machines show them care.

Not thinking about one’s minion was a disqualifier for being a master.

Let’s worry about the curfew later. I’ll trust Ryouta’s free will…

“If only I could be in makeup lessons forever! If only time would never pass!” Shiren found herself screaming in the middle of class.

“Wow! Fuyukura! Your eyes have been opened! I’m so happy! Let’s have another special class again next week!”

This misunderstanding had led to an odd sense of trust between Shiren and the teacher.

But time wouldn’t stop, and the makeup lesson ended right on time in the evening.

Around this time, Ryouta would be in the middle of preparing dinner. That meant he would probably be home now.

I wonder if he’s actually home…

This was probably the first time in her life she was scared to check her texts. That fear wouldn’t change anything, but she still felt it all the same.

She grasped the necklace one more time before looking at her phone.

It was a cursed necklace designed to ruin the romance of others.

We’re in the twenty-first century. This is just a superstition. It has to be; otherwise, people who get Your partner is coming soon in their fortunes would all end up happily ever after. So I’m not really doing anything wrong.

And she had been told that, for how much misfortune she brought to the romance of others, her romance would be equally plagued with misfortune.

That’s just because this whole necklace business is a superstition, so it doesn’t matter… No need to worry.

And then, after she silently thought to herself, she looked at her messages.

TITLE: Home

MESSAGE: I’m home. For various reasons, the castle tour ended just before noon. Come home as soon as you can. I need to talk to you ASAP.

“Ohhh! Gracious necklace!”

She unconsciously struck a pose of renewed conviction, and her pigtails bobbed up and down.

“Before noon? That’s pretty early. Early enough to make me think there must have been some kind of trouble. And what does this mean?”

The text said, “Come home as soon as you can. I need to talk to you ASAP.”

Of course she was coming back; why did he write it like that?

Or maybe he just wants to see me that badly?

There were probably minions out there in the world who could barely stand to be away from their masters. Maybe that was it. It had to be. Ryouta must have finally realized her benevolence.

“Well, next time I’ll just have to put a five-hundred-sacred-yen coin into the donation box at Alfoncina’s cathedral.”

Shiren walked the long road home from school with a big smile on her face. It was the worst kind of Saturday, full of review, but at least it ended on a high note.

She was in such a good mood that she bought extra-concentrated tomato juice from a vending machine on the way home. It was thick, like potage soup, and it went down great.

She rarely ever used the vending machines on the way home. If she bought something every day, then the costs would add up. She typically waited until she got home, summer aside, but she could probably make an exception just for today.

Maybe she should take her review seriously next time. It was embarrassing to have such bad grades, and she didn’t want her weekends to be taken up by makeup classes.

She arrived at the back entrance of the castle grounds. She bowed her head and greeted the guard at the gate, then hoofed it home. After a five-minute walk across the spacious grounds, the antiquated house entered her line of sight.

Ryouta was waiting for her there. She flung open the door.

“I’m home! Ryouta, how was your tour of the castle toda— Ah?”

A pair of women’s shoes that she had never seen before sat at the entrance.

Had someone come over to visit? Maybe once Ouka was done with the tour, she’d come here. Maybe she’d come to check on her and make sure the study books were actually being used.

But they weren’t Ouka’s shoes. They weren’t Tamaki’s or Alfoncina’s, either. They didn’t seem like they would belong to Kiyomizu. They were grown-up shoes with heels.

And beside them were smaller sneakers. They were covered in dirt, like they’d been through the mountains. What was going on?

“Oh, Shiren, you’re back. I need to talk to you.”

Ryouta appeared in the entrance hall with a meek look.

“What is going on?”

She hadn’t seen him this serious since their fight with Sasara and Kiyomizu. It made her completely forget about the shoes at the door.

Now that she thought back on it, he had written in his message that he wanted to see her (loose interpretation), so maybe it was related.

Maybe this is some momentous confession? No, wait, it’s wrong to let those feelings bud between master and minion…

“Why are you smiling, Shiren?”

“Huh? I-it’s nothing! Class just went really well!”

“Really? That’s great.” There was no heart in his response at all. “Okay, come in.”

She followed Ryouta into the living room.

I mean, it’s never going to happen, but maybe there will be a marriage registration form on the table or maybe a ring… Wait, no, that can’t be it. Oh, maybe those shoes are a present for me? That could be possible…

Standing there in the living room was a woman she’d never seen before.

There was a massive ribbon on her head. Maybe that was her true form, and the female body was just being controlled.

“Who’s this…?”

The woman politely bowed her head. “It’s nice to meet you—ehem, ehem!”

She suddenly choked. Maybe she was prone to illness.

“I am Ryouta’s elder sister, Rei Asagiri. I would like to foster a happy home environment among all of us. To be direct, I will be living with you in this house starting today!”

“Whaaat?! Your big sister? Living with us? This is weird!”

“You two are the weird ones! I cannot allow two high schoolers to live together in such an inappropriate fashion!”

Rei took both her index fingers and pointed them at Shiren and Ryouta.

Because of the angle, it looked like she was making some questionable transformation pose.

“It’s not inappropriate at all! Ryouta and I are living a very healthy lifestyle! Say that to Alfoncina or Sasara instead!”

She’s not going to know who they are, but yeah, you’re exactly right, Ryouta thought.

“Healthy? It cannot possibly be healthy when he’s wearing this collar!” Rei shook her finger at Ryouta, emphasizing her point.

“Th-that’s to show that he’s a minion… Either way, he is my minion, so it’s not a problem! Silence!” Things were getting worse for her, so Shiren yelled. “You may be his older sister, but Ryouta and I are bound by our deep ties as master and minion. You do not fulfill the conditions of authorized personnel in this authorized personnel only zone! And why are you here in the Empire anyway?! I’ll call the police on suspicion of illegal entry!”

This isn’t gonna end well, Ryouta thought.

Then—

“Waaah! She’s being mean!” Rei started crying and hitting Shiren. “I’m right! I’m just! I’m logical!”

“Ow! Don’t hit me! Ryouta, is your sister a baby?!”

“I’m not a baby! I’m a public servant of the city of Oshiro!”

“Then go publicly serve the city of Oshiro! You can’t go to work while you’re here!”

“When I contacted them saying I was in the Empire and couldn’t go back, they said I could take off!”

Guess they just didn’t care that much.

“A-anyway! I’m watching over Ryou to make sure he doesn’t do any bad things! I’ll keep an eye on him from the top of his head to the inside of his boxers!”

“Don’t look there, Rei!”

She almost successfully took advantage of the confusion to intrude on his privacy.

“You don’t need to do that! Ryouta’s entirely wholesome! I know everything about him, from the backs of his heels to the tips of his toes, so I know I’m right!”

“I’m telling you, your scales are always too small! Do you have a foot fetish or something?!”

With both of them saying such ridiculous things, he could hardly keep up.

Rei then gave the final, finishing word.

“Oh, I also have permission to stay here.”

“From who? I’m not going to let you even if Ryouta said it’s okay. This is my—”

“From the emperor.”

Fwip.

Rei unfolded a piece of A4 paper with both her hands.

It was like she was presenting a paper that said CASE WON before a courthouse.

PERMIT OF LIVELIHOOD

Miss Rei Asagiri

We hereby allow the person named above to have a livelihood within the territory of the Sacred Blood Empire. Additionally, we grant permission for the person named above to live in the same house of any relatives he or she may have. Additionally, any person whose name starts with S, followed by H, followed by I, followed by R, followed by E, and ending in N must not oppose this decree. In the case of opposition, this individual must participate in a five-hour review of Japanese, English, math, science, and social studies every day.

Penned by

Emperor of the Sacred Blood Empire

Imperial Year 1

“I—I cannot allow this! I cannot allow such an unreasonable rule! If she thinks she can do anything she wants, she’s sorely mistaken! I’m going to call the court!”

Shiren flipped through the phone book, found the Court Help Line, and called it.

With such a small population, the country’s services were set up in a flexible way and were quite convenient.

“Hello, this is the Court Help Line.”

“I am Shiren, the younger sister of the emperor. Actually, after this and that—”

“Our apologies, but it is the law that the emperor resolves any conflict among the Imperial family, since it is a highly sensitive political matter. We cannot intervene.”

And they hung up. Shiren fell flat on the couch.

“Big Sis, you idiot!”

Shiren’s eyes dropped to the necklace around her neck.

Now that she thought about it, Alfoncina had said:

“But there is a side effect. As they say, curses, like chickens, come home to roost—your own romantic prospects will be negatively affected, as well. I suppose you’ll have to choose…”

The side effect of the curse had come.

It wasn’t a rival in romance, but it wasn’t good news.

“Ryouta, I’m tired, so I’m going to rest a bit in my room. Call me when food’s ready.”

With a tired look on her face, Shiren started on the way back to her room. People sometimes found themselves wanting alone time, and that’s the sort of mental state she was in. Her shoulders also felt rather stiff.

Just as she was about to go up the stairs, someone pulled on her arm.

“Wh-wh-whoa! I’m gonna fall!” She managed to steady herself and turned around to find Rei. “What are you doing…? Are you planning on killing me and making it look like an accident…?”

“I would never. As my grandpa used to say, ‘Even the worst people—’”

“Have some good in them?”

“‘— ’s murderers are still criminals.’”

“Your gramps was a realist!”

“And that’s why we should always make sure to leave no evidence. No one can scientifically prove anyone prayed to a cursed item, so it’s okay.”

“What kind of person was this guy? Oh, some kind of otherworldly…?”

Rumor had it that less than half the people who interacted with Grandpa Asagiri recognized him as human on first meeting.

Because of that, he had absolutely no luck in the romance department, stayed unmarried for a very long time, and cast a curse on his future lineage so that at least his grandchildren would be attractive.

It was thanks to that curse that Ryouta was extremely attractive to human women and often found himself in trouble, so he’d escaped to the Empire.

“Then does that mean you had lots of guys after you in Japan, too, Rei?”

“Not as much as Ryou. I guess I had someone tell me they liked me at least once a month. I’d say I was more attractive to ghosts.”

“That’s just a regular curse!”

“Oh, we’re getting off topic. More importantly, here.” Rei handed her a ladle and long cooking chopsticks. “We’re starting on dinner now, and you’re helping, too. The emperor asked me to train you.”

“I leave all that stuff to my minion, Ryouta! If anyone is doing any serving, it has to be him—”

“Going against me is going against Her Majesty. Your minion will be confiscated.” Rei was ready and willing to use her authority.

“You’re a coward for abusing state authority like that…”

“I am a public servant, so I’m used to relying on authority. Tee-hee.”

“Why are you acting proud of that?!”

“But see, you can also think of it this way. Ehem.” Rei whispered into Shiren’s ear as she coughed. “Ehem, ehem.”

“I can only hear you coughing.”

“Don’t you want to show off your cooking ability to Ryouta?”

For just a second, Shiren’s mind moved at light speed to make a decision.

Was it finally time to show her minion what she could do…? Was it?

It wasn’t as if she didn’t feel bad about making him cook every day, and in this day and age, it was best if both men and women could cook.

Ouka was the emperor, so she probably never made any food on her own. Maybe learning how to do something Ouka couldn’t would give her an edge.

“Fine. I’ll do it. But I can only cook traditional Sacred Blooded dishes, okay?”

“Such as?”

“I’ll make meat and potato stew, an omelet, and salt-fried mackerel today!”

“Wow, it’s almost like typical Japanese home cooking!”

“Ryouta doesn’t hate anything except when it comes to putting blood in things, so there’s no problem.”

And so the two went to the kitchen to start cooking.

Ryouta was already in the kitchen making broth for the miso soup.

“Ryouta, we’re cooking today. Move.”

“Wait, why, all of a sudden?”

“Because. We’ll be working here. Master’s orders!”

“I am extremely nervous, but okay.”

Ryouta went back to his room on the second floor with a distressed look.

“Now let me show you the best kind of Sacred Blooded food. First, the meat and potato stew.”

“I wonder if it’s any different from what we have in Japan. Ehem.”

“Watch closely. Make the meat and potato stew.”

Shiren finished that part of the dish rather quickly. She was pretty good at it.

“My, you’re much better at cooking than I thought.”

“ Add tomatoes and tomato juice on top of the freshly made meat and potatoes. Done!”

A frightening-looking meat and potato stew sat finished before them.

“Next, the Sacred Blooded omelet. Make the omelet. Place the omelet in a pot full of tomato juice. Done!”

There was an eerie hue to this dish, too.

“And the trick to making it especially delicious is to add as much tomato juice as possible. It will bring out the original flavors of the juice.”

“Ooh. This is quite ethnic.”

“Next, Sacred Blooded salt-fried mackerel. Make the salt-fried mackerel. Drizzle plenty of tomato juice on top, and done!”

As Shiren cooked, Rei spent most of the time coughing next to her.

She was, without a doubt, someone who should not have been in the kitchen.

“Mm. You certainly are somewhat skilled.” Rei patted Shiren on the shoulder. “But you still have a ways to go.”

“What? You’re not going to tell me not to use tomato juice, are you?”

When she had made lunch for Ryouta before, she’d used less tomatoes (with much heartbreak), but she wasn’t going to compromise this time.

“Not enough tomato.”

“Oh, i-is that so…?”

Rei produced a plastic bottle of tomato juice. “We must fill it to the brim. So that it hides the omelet.”

Rei Asagiri was sickly.

That was why her sense of taste was broken.

And soon, it was dinnertime.

Ryouta covered his eyes.

“I knew this would happen.”

Rei had given Shiren some advice, too.

Rei herself had no sense of taste. She was constantly sick in some way or another, so she only ever ate rice porridge or other things without any flavor.

“Come now—your master has so kindly made this for you, so you should eat it.”

Ryouta first tried the omelet. “Everything only tastes like tomato. Well, I mean, the omelet is fine, but this mackerel is not okay.”

Ryouta picked at his food and reluctantly took tiny bites into his mouth.

This was a whole waste of tomato. Someone who could happily eat whatever without any regard for flavors would always do something like this. Like putting anything they wanted in their curry or putting mayonnaise on everything. How dare they treat cooking so lightly.

“You don’t seem very happy at all…”

“I appreciate the effort, but you really need to be more sensitive to delicate flavors.”

Oh, I was way off the mark…, Shiren thought.

She had thought he would be a little more thankful, but it looked like he just hated it all. And since he was treating it like a collaboration between Rei and herself, the pride she should have felt in making something herself was dwindling.

This was all because Ouka had dragged in this Rei girl, and the whole situation was just getting worse. Was this one of the effects of the curse, too?

“Okay, Ryou, say ahhh…”

Rei brought her chopsticks closer to Ryouta—putting it that way made it sound like she was going to poke his eyes out, but she was just trying to get him to eat the mackerel.

“Rei, this is embarrassing.”

“Well, it would be if I did this during class, but she’s the only one here. As long as she doesn’t take a video and post it anywhere, we’ll be fine. Remember? I fed you every day.”

“She fed you every day?!” Shiren recoiled slightly. For a brother and sister, that was more than just getting along.

“Yeah… Since I was the one who cooked everything, she said she’d be the one to feed me…”

“Come now. Open your mouth…”

“Fine. Ah.” Ryouta opened his mouth in defeat.

“Ehem, ehem.”

“Don’t cough when I have my mouth open, Rei.”

“Sorry, sorry. Let me try again. Say ahhh…”

Her chopsticks went in his mouth. Shiren wanted this nightmare to end as soon as possible.

“Okay, another bite now, ahhh…”

“Come on! No more! You won’t finish all your food at this pace!”

“I think this is totally fine. It’s intimacy between brother and sister. Now have an omelet. Ahhh…”

Shiren was about to say that she was the one who had made the omelet as the main dish, but she decided not to. She had a feeling they would just think she was narrow-minded.

Rei ended up chopstick-feeding Ryouta a total of thirty times.

I really need to do something about this, and soon…

The thought cemented in Shiren’s mind.

Ryouta wanted the exact same thing.

“Oh, Ryou, I’m finished with the bath. It’s your turn now.”

Rei, steam still rising from her head, came into the living room.

“Okay, I’ll go now, then.” Ryouta headed to the bath after her.

He had to do something about this.

As he removed his clothes, Ryouta imagined his future. He couldn’t have Rei stay here like this. It was clear that Shiren was going to snap very soon.

I’m still impressed you found your way here, Rei.

Since Ryouta was innately attractive to humans, he often went to the mountains, away from people, and he knew a thing or two about climbing.

The paths going up the mountain behind the castle must have been pretty steep. A route for higher-level hikers, one could say. Even though it was ultimately for illegal entry, was it really something an amateur could try?

Something just wasn’t sitting right with him.

I could ask her directly, but I can already imagine what would happen…

“Rei, are you hiding something?”

“Wha—! I would never do something so terrible. Let me just be honest with you. Actually, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, you see. Do you understand?

…Or something like that.

As long as she had that cough, he would never hear the truth.

He could mull over everything, including that stuff, once he got into the bath.

Ryouta had the habit of getting lost in thought while he was in the bath. The bath, brushing his teeth, and sitting on the toilet were his three greatest modes of inspiration.

“But I can’t go in defenseless…”

He checked to see if there were any discarded clothes around. Both Shiren and Rei were done for the day, so there should be no risk of intrusion. But it was entirely possible that a guest he wasn’t expecting was inside, so he had to stay on guard.

He still had to be doubly sure, however. He made a call with his phone.

It was to Tamaki. Calling Kiyomizu with his own phone would bring about all sorts of other risks, so he couldn’t do that.

“Oh, hello. This is Tamaki. May I help you?”

“What are you up to now, Shijou?”

“My uncle came to borrow money again, so he and my dad are fighting. I’m watching quietly from the sidelines. Oh no! They threw a beer bottle my way!”

“Oh, if you’re at home, then that’s fine. Sorry.”

He was a little concerned about her home environment, but he decided not to pry.

Now that he was insured, he opened the bath door with a clatter.

“Oh, Ryouta dearest, would you please rinse off my back?!”

And there was Kiyomizu in the bathroom, a towel wrapped around her.

“…Where the hell did you come in from?”

“I snuck in through the window!”

“Why?”

“I was hoping to slip into your bed as you slept.”

He threw her right back out the window.

“How can you accomplish anything at this rate?! I will not let you sleep the whole night!”

It sounded a little indecent out of context, but Rei had decided it was study time.

“Dammit! I go through one study book, but then there’s just another waiting for me!”

Shiren was on the verge of tears in the living room.

She hadn’t decided to start studying or anything commendable like that; Rei was forcing her to study.

There was a bandanna around Rei’s head that read VICTORY. Anyone could find those at a hundred-yen store, which was probably where she had found hers.

“Her Majesty told me to give you a Spartan study session. We’re taking things rough!”

“Big Sis… You’re awful… Why are you bullying me…?”

“Oh? Her Majesty said this was to keep the promise she made with you long ago.” Rei suddenly stared off into the distance.

“What promise?”

Shiren would have met Ouka when they were both young, but had they made some kind of promise?

“Yes. You might have forgotten already but…it was to study and get into Tokyo University together.”

“That’s definitely fake! She read that in a manga somewhere!”

“I was so touched when I heard how Her Majesty felt. I will send you to Todai, and that’s a promise! Even though you don’t have diplomatic relations with Japan yet.”

“Hey! That’s kind of a huge problem at the end!”

“Her Majesty said, ‘I know it’s tough for my younger sister. But I want her to go to Tokyo University, even if she hates me. I believe this is how I can show my love to her as her older sister. Despite the nonexistent relationship between our nations, I still believe that anything can be accomplished with love.’”

“Love isn’t going to get me into that school! No way that’s possible, even if she’s just saying what she thinks sounds cool!”

“She said ‘Todai or Die.’”

“She thinks she’s being clever!” Shiren honestly thought this was hell.

Maybe she was getting all this extra nagging because she was now officially recognized as Ouka’s younger sister.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

She wished their positions were different and they could get along as siblings.

But maybe that wasn’t possible. On top of everything else, they were both fighting over a shared goal. Ouka was probably aiming to use all this review as an excuse to pull her apart from Ryouta.

In that case, she didn’t need her big sis anymore. She took the necklace off and squeezed it tight.

If you’re going to cheat to get in my way, then you should just go away, Big Sis.

She didn’t actually hate her, but her big sister was driving her a little nuts at the moment.

Just a little.

“Hmm? Does the pendant on that necklace light up?”

“Huh? I don’t know…” She looked at the necklace, but it was normal.

“I see, I see. I must have imagined it. It seemed like it glowed for a moment.” That was odd. “Oh, it’s almost time for me to report your state of progress to Her Majesty.” Rei looked at her watch.

“Can’t you just do that over the phone?”

“No, of course not. I must retrieve the new study materials, of course.”

“Whaaaat! There’s more?! She’s a demon! A devil!”

“And since you’ll get three new books every day, you’ll have to up your pace; otherwise, you’ll never finish. Ehem, ehem.”

Shiren could feel herself crumbling to ash. She collapsed face-first onto the table.

“I’m starting to understand how people feel when they’re in debt to a loan shark…”

“Well, I’ll be back. Keep studying while I’m gone. And don’t do anything weird to Ryou. Even in the worst case, no ehem, ehem, ehem! Nothing more erotic than that!”

“You’re covering up all the embarrassing parts with your cough!”

If Rei refused to say it in front of others, Shiren could somewhat imagine what it might be, but she really wanted to know for sure.

“Th-that’s…ehem, ehem, ehem!…obvious! Don’t make me say it again!”

“That’s what I’m saying: What is that ehem, ehem, ehem! part?! You don’t want to say it, do you?!”

“I know we’re both girls here, but it’s still much too inappropriate. First, you ehem, ehem, ehem, then you gently touch ehem, ehem, ehem… And then slowly ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem, ehem! Oh, I’m so embarrassed! How will I ever get married now?!”

“You’re just doing this on purpose! That little cough of yours is omnipotent! There must be some kind of invisible force at play here!”

For a brief second, Rei’s expression darkened.

“An invisible force… Don’t tell me—can you see it?”

“How can I see an invisible force?”

“Oh, well, hee-hee. I’ll be going, then.” Rei opened the window and stepped straight outside.

“Use the door! Are you a ninja?!”

“Oh, it’s just a habit from work…ehem.”

“What kind of work?!”

Rei gave a final cough and then left.

“Phew, I guess I can rest now… Buuut you’re still here, aren’t you?”

Kiyomizu had stolen Shiren’s spot on the couch, reading some kind of book—probably a manga from Shiren’s room.

“You’re a nuisance, Kiyomizu.”

There were some days when Kiyomizu would just appear out of nowhere, and today was one of them. She was like a mosquito that somehow flew into the house, so it was only after she was inside that they noticed her. Even if they locked the doors, she would still find her way in.

“I am waiting for Ryouta. I have no choice but to be a nuisance.”

If she was doing this even when she knew she was bothering them, there was no chance for her to change her ways.

She was a pain, but she fit in so naturally there, it seemed kind of silly to just chase her out. There were no signs she was suddenly going to try and take Shiren’s life, either.

“You’re at least better than Ryouta’s big sister. You’re not getting in the way.”

“I think that’s rather obvious. Please do not liken me to dangerous individuals such as Rei Asagiri.”

“‘Dangerous individuals’? But she’s his big sister; she’s not going to try and surprise him while he’s in bed or anything (probably), right?”

“What are you talking about? When I say ‘dangerous,’ I mean it more in a life-threatening sense,” Kiyomizu breezily clarified.

Shiren couldn’t ignore that. “Why would she threaten his life? Isn’t she just a public servant? She’s Ryouta’s older sister.”

“Yes, she is a public servant. She is being sustained by the tax money from the people of Oshiro.”

“Then she can’t be dangerous. She’s annoying, though.”

“While she might be a public servant, she is a part of Oshiro’s Special Measures Division.”

That wasn’t a phrase Shiren had heard before. “What’s the Special Measures Division?”

“They are an entity that secretly deals with problems when the government doesn’t want to handle them publicly. I know them well, since they are birds of the same feather as we are. They are like living ninjas.”

Shiren’s hand curled into a fist around the necklace. A small, faint crack ran through the pendant.

“And Rei Asagiri is the division chief. That means she is the leader of the shadows of Oshiro. I cannot imagine what sort of dangerous life she’s lived to become the leader at such a young age. She’s like a real-life Steven Seagal.”

“No, no, no. Rei’s sickly, and she’s always coughing…”

Anyone could fake something like that.

Would someone doing secret work come out and say that they could accomplish superhuman feats, though?

Why was someone from the “dark side” of society here, then? She had just been in this room.

Was she after Shiren? That couldn’t be.

She’d had several opportunities when they were alone, like when they were cooking. Even though Kiyomizu had been there when Rei was tutoring her, she still had a million chances.

So if not her, then who?

“Wh-why does someone so dangerous have to come here to the Empire?” she asked. The answer was already inside her, but Shiren was too scared to acknowledge it.

“I thought I already told you. Rei Asagiri is from Oshiro, a city directly on the border with the Empire. If people attacking humans lived right next door, you know what due course would be.”

She had fallen from the cliff when Ryouta and Ouka were walking through the garden.

It was like she was trying to attack Ouka.

“I’m…a huge idiot!”

She clenched her fist, much harder than she had before.

The pendant in her hand shattered to bits.

It wasn’t an accident—Shiren had done it intentionally, as punishment to herself for being such a fool.

“Oh goodness, what are you doing? Please don’t hurt yourself! You’re bleeding from some of the shards! I will lend you a special remedy!”

“Sorry, but I don’t have time for that. I’m going out for a bit.” Shiren dashed out of the house.

She was going to the castle.

To Ouka—to her big sister.

She didn’t know if the curse actually existed.

But the thought had crossed her mind.

You should just go away, Big Sis.

She should have been happy to finally be acknowledged as Ouka’s little sister.

Of course she didn’t want her to go away.

But this wasn’t the end. She would put a stop to this. She had to.

“Wait for me, Big Sis.”

She exited the house and circled around to the back, then searched for the perfect weapon in their storage area.

All she could find was a plastic bat.

She at least wanted a wooden sword, but this was an emergency. She would have to make do.

“I’ll beat that assassin’s face to a pulp.”

Shiren dashed through the castle grounds, her single plastic bat in hand.