Editing CubexCursedxCurious:Volume7 Chapter6 (section)

===Part 2===

In any case, Konoha decided to ask about the details while having dinner in the living room. After handing this "souvenir" over to Haruaki, Honatsu had apparently gone off to travel to somewhere else&mdash;Hence, having prepared food for three people ended up being just right in a certain sense.

"I think I understand the basic situation now. Simply stated, I'll just treat it as having a new junior, right?"

"Speaking of which, that Pops always does things so suddenly, every single time..."

"..."

Past Haruaki's sighing face, Konoha took a secret glance at the girl who was sipping tea after dinner&mdash;Kuroe.

The first impression she gave off was a girl that was difficult to read. Expressionless, it was impossible to tell what she was thinking inside. Even when spoken to, she did not smile, to the point of seeming like she was keeping people at a distance... However, she did answer quietly. Konoha decided to treat her behavior as shyness for now.

Although Konoha still did not quite get Kuroe's personality, at least she was able to gain a full understanding of the situation through the current conversation. Kuroe was here due to being a cursed doll. Her goal was the same as Konoha's&mdash;to lift her curse. Namely, by doing things beneficial for humans to neutralize the negative thoughts and feelings branded on her being, even including getting used to the human world and becoming more human. Same, it was completely the same.

Calling her a junior was completely right. Hence, seeing as she was shy, Konoha hoped to break the ice between them sooner. However&mdash;

"Uh... Well then, let's get along together from now on, Kuroe-san. I'll show you to your room later. My room is just next door. If there's anything you're not sure of, please feel free to ask me any time."

Although Konoha smiled while speaking to her, Kuroe remained expressionless as always. Without even putting on a smile of courtesy, she simply fluttered her eyes once&mdash;

"...Thank you. Let's get along... Muramasa-san."

She had given quite a displeasing response, although one could hardly blame her for that.

"Cough cough&mdash;Could you please call me Konoha? I don't quite like my family name."

"Really? Then lemme call ya Konoha-san..."

Although Konoha still found Kuroe acting reserved, impatience would not help. Hence, she brought up a different topic for a change of mood.

"Oh, you speak using a dialect?"

"...Not allowed?"

"No, of course it's allowed. It's also very cute. But, uh&mdash;Rather, I'm just very interested in where you were staying before coming here."

"Before coming here..."

Kuroe placed her teacup on the table. Still sitting formally in seiza, she looked up slightly and stared blankly at the ceiling. After a short while, she narrowed her eyes as though recalling something&mdash;

"Before this, I was at the home of a certain old man who lived very very far away from this place. That man loved me like a granddaughter. Because I am a doll, he treated me by playing with me in that way."

"..."

Konoha regretted picking the wrong topic. However, Kuroe did not stop speaking calmly, leaving no chance for Konoha to interject.

"Every day went by for me completely the same. Time seemed to stand still. However, time did not actually stop. I cursed my owner and had no choice but to curse him. Every night, I absorbed life force from my owner's body, causing him to deteriorate in health&mdash;"

Wah! Ha! Ha! Ha!

Abrupt laughter suddenly filled the living room, causing Kuroe to stop talking. The television had switched on. Putting the remote on the table, Haruaki, who had been silent all this time, said impatiently:

"...Oh, sorry. I happen to have a TV show I wanted to watch."

"Yes&mdash;Anyway, that's pretty much it."

"I-I see, I basically understand now. Thank you for the explanation, Kuroe-san."

After listening to Kuroe, Konoha breathed a sigh of relief. Glancing at Haruaki's profile, she thought to herself again, "what a considerate child." This made her feel quite happy.

A few minutes later, the three of them were still silently watching a comedy show. But when the commercial break came, Haruaki suddenly stood up, looked over at Konoha and said:

"By the way, the corridor lightbulb looks like it's reaching the end of its life. I want it replaced before I forget&mdash;Kono-nee, could you help me out? I can't reach it."

"Eh? ...Oh okay. Kuroe-san, no need to get up, please sit here for as long as you like."

No response. She simply stared at the television without saying a word. Seeing her like this, Konoha really did not feel like leaving Kuroe alone, but still, she followed Haruaki to the corridor. At a spot some distance away from the living room&mdash;

"Okay, you wanted to tell me something, right? Because the corridor lightbulb was replaced not too long ago."

"Ah... I don't really know if I should say this or not..."

Haruaki stopped walking and turned to face Konoha again, scratching his head awkwardly. While searching for the right words, he continued:

"Actually, it's nothing major, really."

"Okay."

"That girl, umm... How should I put this...? Isn't she... quite gloomy? That's quite worrying since we have to live under the same roof from now on... No, uh&mdash;it's hard for me to get along with her. It'd be great if she could get used to this home sooner."

"Yes."

Konoha smiled spontaneously. She knew roughly what Haruaki was trying to express but she did not want to interrupt him. This was because she hoped to lengthen this gentle time of contact with him.

"So... Kono-nee, I'm relying on you regarding that girl. You're both girls, so it's definitely easier to talk compared to me. Umm... I hope you'll do your best to get along in harmony with her..."

"Very well, I understand."

Konoha answered immediately. This was only natural.

Because he was asking her for help, there was nothing more gratifying than that.

"It goes without saying, right? I will try everything I can to make friends with her. Leave it to me."

"R-Really? Then I'm relieved... No, don't get the wrong idea, Kono-nee! I don't feel anything special about that girl, it's just that if the mood at home gets bad, life will be difficult for me!"

"Yes yes yes, I get it. Ufufu."

"W-Why are you laughing?"

"Eh? I was born like this, because 'always facing others gently with a smile' is my personal motto. Very well, let's get back now that the conversation is over. The commercial break is about to end. You really wanted to watch that show, right? Ufufu."

"O-Okay. You're still laughing, what's the matter..."

"I was born this way."

With a displeased expression, he returned to the living room, trudging with slow and heavy steps.

Naturally, his attitude only served to make Konoha smile even more.



Back to the living room, Kuroe was still staring at the television in exactly the same posture as before. Konoha sat down together with Haruaki and spoke to Kuroe in a relaxed tone of voice. Getting along harmoniously had to start with dialogue after all.

"Sorry for leaving you alone, we're done now... By the way, Kuroe-san, I just noticed. You don't need to sit so formally in seiza. Because this is basically your home now, it's fine if you wanna sit in a more relaxed posture."

"...Really? Then I'll sit in a more relaxed posture."

Kuroe still spoke expressionlessly. Next, she stood up with agility and skipped forward. Resting her back against the pillar that was nearby, she sat down again with her knees drawn up to her chest.

"...Puh!?"

Instantly, Haruaki made a strange noise. Intrigued, Konoha looked at Haruaki to see him turning his head away with an unnatural look on his face. He was also deliberately avoiding Kuroe with his gaze. Tilting her head in puzzlement, Konoha wondered "How odd, what happened?" then she suddenly discovered the reason. From her position, she could not see from this angle, but since Kuroe was sitting in a skirt with her knees up, from Haruaki's perspective, there was nothing more&mdash;

&mdash;terrible than his angle.

This was absolutely a bad influence in his education!

"P-Please excuse my rudeness&mdash;!"

Konoha reached out as though performing a slide as a baserunner and rushed towards the tatami floor, pushing Kuroe's knees towards the side and forcing her to switch to sitting with her legs sideways. As Kuroe looked down with an expressionless "...?"&mdash;

"Although I said you could sit in a more relaxed posture, I would be happier if you paid a little more attention...!"

"...What?"

Kuroe cocked her head expressionlessly. Did she really not notice? Konoha glanced at Haruaki on the side who was still blushing and averting his gaze.

"Basically, if you sit like you were just now, how should I put this? Umm... Your p-p-pan..."

"Oh~ You mean panties?"

Without any feminine delicacy, Kuroe nodded in response while readily uttering that particular term. It looked like she finally understood what Konoha was trying to convey. However, she still said nonchalantly:

"...But it's fine. My panties won't be seen."

"H-How is that possible? Given the angle, from the front..."

As much as Konoha wanted to refute, she was interrupted by Kuroe's unbelievable words.


"''Because my underwear is... a fundoshi''."<ref>'''Fundoshi'''(褌): also known as the Japanese loincloth, a type of traditional Japanese undergarment made from a length of cotton. In particular, it resembles a thong in the way the buttocks are exposed.[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundoshi]</ref>


A term transcending Konoha's comprehension. Hence, Konoha asked in return:

"...Eh?"

Konoha looked up at Kuroe's face, staring intently as Kuroe's lips moved seriously.

"FU. N. DO. SHI."

Strangely enough, even as Konoha watched Kuroe mouth the syllables one by one, she still heard the same term. Hence, Konoha asked again:

"...Eh?"

This time, she turned to look at Haruaki. Although Haruaki was still looking away, his head seemed to be nodding slightly.

In any case, Konoha did not dare ask again. Hence, she smiled and said:

"...Please excuse my rudeness."

In order to confirm the contradiction between her common sense and reality, Konoha simply lifted Kuroe's skirt to have a look.

Frighteningly&mdash;

Kuroe was not lying.