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Baka to Tesuto to Syokanju:Volume5 The Third Question

2013-03-06T01:00:16Z

128.54.67.240: /* The Third Question */

==The Third Question==

'''Under the 76th line of the Japanese Constitution ‘The Independence of the Judge’[http://www.baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Baka_to_Tesuto_to_Syokanju:Volume5_Translation_Notes_and_References#], please fill in the following blanks.'''

‘All judges shall exercise (________) to (________) execute their (________) and shall be bound only by (________) and the (________) to apprehend criminals.’

'''Himeji Mizuki’s answer:'''

‘All judges shall exercise (conscience) to (independently) execute their (authority) and shall be bound only by (Constitution) and the (laws) to apprehend criminals.’

'''Teacher’s comment:'''

Well answered. This is one of the rather important articles in the Japanese Constitution. As the judge’s exercise the privileges, the constitution can ensure that the judge won’t be instigated by political powers and high-levels of the court and perform the duties independently. The content itself also includes ensuring the personal safety of the judge. I hope you can remember this little knowledge.

'''Yoshii Akihisa’s answer:'''

‘All judges shall exercise <span style="font-family: Impact;">(BLEEP)</span> to <span style="font-family: Impact;">(BLEEP)</span> execute their <span style="font-family: Impact;">(BLEEP)</span> and shall be bound only by <span style="font-family: Impact;">(BLEEP)</span> and the <span style="font-family: Impact;">(BLEEP)</span> to apprehend criminals.’

'''Teacher’s comment:'''

In that case, wouldn’t the 76th article be a bad thing?

'''Tsuchiya Kouta’s answer:'''

‘All judges shall exercise (instincts) to (take off their clothes and) execute (a strip exercise) and shall be bound only by (the policeman’s hand holding onto the culprit) and the (handcuffs) to apprehend criminals.’

'''Teacher’s comment:'''

I DEMAND YOU SEND A LETTER OF APOLOGY TO ALL THE JUDGES WITH FULL SINCERITY!!

[[Image:BTS5-Minami.jpg|thumb]]

The familiar sound of the dismissal bell rang, and it’s finally time for school dismissal.

“Yuuji, can I discuss with you something?”

I asked my bad friend who was ready to pack his bag and go home.

“Hm? Akihisa, what’s the matter?”

“For today, can I stay over at your house tonight? There are a lot of things about homework and the types of questions that are to be tested at the end-of-term tests I want to ask you about.”

—ZAWAASH

The moment I said this, buzzing could be heard in the classroom.

“Oi…did you hear that…?”

“I heard that. To think that such an unbelievable thing was said…”

“How could those two possibly…”

“Yeah, how could that Yoshii and Sakamoto…”

““Actually know of end-of-term tests…””

I really want to argue back at them, but I’ll let them off for today. Humph, you guys managed to keep your own lives there.

“You want me to teach you?”

“Un.”

“Really there…haven’t you memorized the multiplication table for 7?”

“Hold on a sec! I don’t remember saying that I’m uneasy over being unable to recite the division table! Even I know how to multiply fractions there!”

“I see. Then tell me what’s the area of a triangle.”

“(Base) X (Height) = <Area>! Are you thinking that I’m an idiot on that level!?”

“Okay okay, you got it, Akihisa. Just remember to divide by two to get the correct area of the triangle.”

…

“Fuu, really there…you’re really a genius at being picky in such things, Yuuji.”

“Amazing! This answer is far more than what I even expected!”

Tha, that’s not it! I just answered too quickly and forgot about it. I will definitely be able to answer if there are questions related to the area of a triangle!

“Well, Akihisa-kun….”

Just when Yuuji and I were yapping away, Himeji-san with her hands carrying her bag arrived in front of us. She’s probably intending to go home directly today.

“What is it, Himeji-san?”

“I have to tell you that there’s a trick to memorizing the multiplication table quickly.”

“I can memorize it! Even I can remember that nine times nine equals eighty one!”

Himeji-san really looked worried. Am I really an incorrigible idiot in Himeji-san’s mind? This really shocked me.

“But why did you become so hardworking? If there’s no special reason, I don’t think you would study obediently.”

On hearing Hideyoshi, who’s sitting nearby, say the words special reasons, Himeji-san stared at me in a gloomier fashion.

“No, that’s not it. Didn’t Yuuji announce it to everyone? The ‘summoning system’s data is being reset’ and that ‘we have to attend summer remedial if we don’t do well for the end-of-term tests’. I don’t want to keep carrying a wooden sword and wearing a school uniform until graduation, and I want to enjoy summer vacation as well, so I thought I should work hard.”

“…This isn’t like Akihisa at all.”

“Yeah, I don’t think Aki will start working hard because of such a trivial reason.”

Muttsurini and Minami came over. Why did so many people gather when I said that I want to study?

“Well, Akihisa-kun, if you don’t mind…can I study with you?”

Himeji-san timidly raised her hand to request. Really, Himeji-san’s really a kind-hearted person.

Under normal circumstances, I would accept this offer gratefully. But today’s situation is different. It’s possible if it’s Yuuji’s house, but—

“I can’t possibly stay overnight at Himeji-san’s house…”

“Eh? Akihisa-kun, you want to stay over at my house?”

“Ah, no, that’s not what I meant…”

“In, in that case, I have to call back home first and tell otou-san not to drink tonight…erm…I’m saying that if Akihisa-kun’s willing to talk about ‘important things’ with him, it will be troublesome when he’s drunk…”

Himeji-san fidgeted and said some things I couldn’t even understand. What important things do I want to say to Himeji-san’s dad—

“Is it about the transfer? I’ll go convince him then!”

Are tatami mats still not enough? If we can have someone get some normal tables and chairs…

“Are you talking about changing of faith? Isn’t Akihisa-kun a Buddhist?”[http://www.baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Baka_to_Tesuto_to_Syokanju:Volume5_Translation_Notes_and_References#]

“Hoh? What is that about?”

“No, well, it’s about how our families have different religions…”

“???”

What the heck? It sounds like both of us aren’t on the same page here.

“Himeji’s thinking pattern is really similar to Akihisa.”

“Yeah, this is what it means by taking the color of one’s company.”

“…Way too similar.”

My three bad friends stared at me, seemingly exchanging looks and whispering.

On a side note, there are some terms Minami doesn’t understand, so she has a pile of question marks above her head now.

“Speaking of which, I’ve been wondering about it since this morning. Why do you want to come over to my house, Akihisa? Did something happen at your house?”

“Ah…well, actually…”

“Don’t try and lie to me.”

“I suddenly thought that I need to study—ack, that’s too fast! I didn’t even say anything yet!”

It’s true that that was a lie though.

“Oh well. This will implicate the next summoning battle, so it’s not like I can’t teach you.”

“Eh? Really?”

“But we’re going to your house. It’ll be easier to deal with things there.”

After saying that, Yuuji even looked aside and muttered “because of such a mother around in my house…”

That kind of mother? I’ve never met Yuuji’s mother before. What kind of mother is she?

“Eh? My house’s not convenient! It’s a little, well, inconvenient today!”

“Your house is inconvenient today? What’s wrong?”

“A, ah, well, actually, some workers are going to come over to decorate my house.”

“Stop lying. We were supposed to go to your house to play that boxing game. How is it possible that any workers will be here!”

“No, I accidentally lost my key.”

“Your house is an apartment. Just call the caretaker to open it for you.”

“No, actually, my house caught fire!”

“A fire happened and you have the heart to prepare a bento and even iron your clothes thoroughly? How stupid can you get?”

“Ah—erm, actually, what other…!”

“Time to buck up. Your lies are really so bad that I can read through them.”

“Gu…”

I really thought a lot about this, but I just couldn’t think of a reason not to go home. This is bad.

Can’t be helped. In that case, I’ll just go back home and try to fight against my sister…

“I got it. I’ll just go home then…”

I carried my back and got up from my seat. But just when I was about to turn around and leave, Hideyoshi grabbed my shoulder.

“Wait a sec, Akihisa. Is there something you’re hiding from this gang here?”

“Uehh!? No, there’s nothing!”

“I don’t know what’s going on, but if there’s a secret this idiot wants to hide no matter what…looks like it’ll be interesting.”

Yuuji smirked as his eyes narrowed.

“Alright, let’s go check it out!”

“Wa, wait a sec, Yuuji! What are you saying?”

“Yeah. Maybe we can see a completely different side to Aki.”

“I’m interested too.”

“…Time to search the house.”

“Since club activities are suspended during the exams, I guess I’ll come along too.”

THIS IS BAD! WHY IS THE SITUATION BECOMING MORE AND MORE DISADVANTAGEOUS TO ME!!?

“No! You can’t go to my house today! Erm, my house is messy now!”

“Erm, if it’s messy, I can help you clean it up. You can’t concentrate if it’s messy.”

As, as expected of Himeji-san…! Her kindness is just like an angel…!

But if this keeps up, Himeji-san will come over to my house and meet that ridiculously weird sister of mine. What should I do? What should I—that’s right! I’ll just mention something that girls won’t want to touch!

“But the mess I’m talking about is the 2000+ ero books I have at home!”

“…Leave it to me (thumbs up)”

“Damn it! It ended up piquing Muttsurini’s interest!? This is way different from my initial prediction!”

“Alright. Since everyone has a common understanding, let’s go over to Akihisa’ house!”

“““Ossu!!”””

“NO~!!!!”

I tried my best to resist, but in the end, I was twisted on the neck and dragged back home with everyone. Wha, what should I do now…

<span style="font-size: 200%; border: "><center>☆</center></span>

“What can it be?”

“Akihisa’s different from Muttsurini in that there’s nothing he would normally hide. Even I would be looking forward to seeing what he has at home.”

“…I don’t hide anything.”

“Muttsurini, are you interested in girls’ underwear?”

“…How could I.”

“I’d say, Muttsurini, you’re so used to lying that you could do it without blinking.”

“…(Shakes head furiously)!”

On the way home, everyone except me seemed to be chatting away happily as they walked.

“But what could it be? Something that Akihisa-kun wants to hide no matter what…”

“That’s right. There’s the huge commotion he caused during the study camp. I don’t think he will be hiding ero-books.”

“Yeah…Akihisa would actually bring his own bento and even iron his clothes properly. I’d guess…”

“Maybe he got a girlfriend?”

“““…!?”””

But Yuuji’s careless words caused everyone present to widen their eyes.

“A, Aki! What’s going on!? Explain clearly!”

“M, muu…so Akihisa found his partner in life…as a friend, I’d be giving my blessings, but I don’t know whether I should be relieved or jealous here…”

“…Traitor!”

“I, I didn’t even say anything!”

Isn’t everyone’s imagination way too creative?

“Everyone, don’t worry. How could Akihisa-kun be dating a girl and hiding it from us? I believe Akihisa-kun.”

Amongst the voices of the 4 people, Himeji-san was the only one who kept her calm. As expected of Himeji-san, she’s really different from the rest.

“Right, Akihisa-kun? You aren’t ‘hiding someone’ and keeping it a secret from us, right?”

Really, she’s different from the rest—Himeji-san’s smile looks really creepy here.

As we continued to argue, our gang arrived in front of the building where I lived in.

“Oh well, the truth will be out once we enter the house. Oi, Akihisa, take out the key.”

“I don’t want to.”

I still tried to resist.

“Akihisa, do you want to try the pain of wearing just a Y-shirt?”

“Eh? Wait a sec! Didn’t you leave out lots of parts in the middle!?”

“…I want to see Akihisa looking up with tears in his eyes.”

“Muttsurini! You’re even designating what the action will be!? Are you trying to sell it!? Make a cushion out of it!? The twin-sided cushion has Hideyoshi on the other side, right!?”

“Why do you even got me involved?”

“Tsuchiya-kun, if possible, I hope that the top two buttons of the shirt are opened…”

“EVEN HIMEJI-SAN’S BEEN WEIRD RECENTLY! I GOT IT! I’LL OPEN! I’LL OPEN IT!”

“…Buttons?”

“THE DOOR!!”

Since it came to this, it’s useless to resist no matter what. In that case, I can only pray silently and hope nee-san’s out…

I secretly prayed to all the gods in the world and opened the door leading to my house.

“Don’t tell me he really has a girlfriend…”

“I feel really nervous…”

“Don’t worry, it’s definitely not something like that…”

Just when everyone swallowed their saliva and watched me, I opened the door to the corridor.

Nee-san would normally put her shoes in the corridor—they’re gone! Great! She went out!

If nee-san’s not around, I have nothing to worry about. I’ll just let them look around the house and immediately send them out.

“Alright, everyone, come into the house then.”

I called everyone in and opened the door leading to the living room.

The moment I opened the door, what entered my eyes was—

“““…”””

The thing hanging inside the room—was a type of woman’s underwear called a brassiere.

“WHY IS THERE EVIDENCE I CAN’T HIDE NO MATTER WHAT!!”

THAT THING SHOULD BE HUNG INSIDE THE BATHROOM! THAT IDIOT SISTER OF MINE!!

I frantically ran over and threw the washed bra into another room. Did they see it? Did they all see it?

I slowly turned around to check everyone’s response,

“…Well, there’s no evidence that’s more decisive than that.”

“I, I feel the same here…”

“…I’m so jealous that I want to kill you!”

Minami and the rest said their response.

“Eh, ermm, that’s…”

Damn it…! I can’t even try to mislead them here…!!!

In the midst of despair, I still thought of some method to try and give an excuse.

In the meantime, Himeji-san was the only one who remained calm and she smiled and walked over to me.

“Akihisa-kun, how could you do this?”

“Eh? What?”

“That bra isn’t Akihisa-kun’s size, right?”

“““ISN’T SHE IN SELF-DENIAL HERE!?”””

Eh! Himeji-san, do you think that I’ll wear a girl’s bra? In a certain sense, this is something that disturbs me more than having my sister’s existence discovered!

“Himeji-san, that’s not mine!”

“Arre? That’s—”

Even with such a huge misunderstanding, I tried my best to explain, but Himeji-san’s gaze had already moved to the table in the living room. What is it this time? Ah, that’s the cotton pad nee-san uses for cosmetics—

“That’s fishcake, right?”

“““Fishcake!?”””

As, as expected of Himeji-san! She actually saw the cotton pad as fishcake; she’s living in a completely different dimension from an ordinary person…I’m really wondering what Himeji-san’s dining table will have.

Just when I saw these random things, Himeji-san looked afar. What she saw on the table—wasn’t that a healthy bento women like most!?”

“Hi, Himeji-san…? What…? What’s weird about that bento?”

“Sob sob…”

“UEEHH!? Why are you crying out of a sudden?”

“I can’t deny it further…”

“HOLD ON A SEC! WHY IS IT THAT A BRA AND COSMETICS CAN BE PASSED OFF BUT A BENTO IS IMMEDIATELY OUT!?”

Don’t tell me a healthy bento women like is a more serious evidence than bra and cosmetics?

“Haa…since it came to this, it can’t be helped…I’ll be honest here. My sister just came back home…”

Since so much was found it, it’s pointless for me to hide anything, so I have to say the truth. It’ll be extremely bad if I continue to try and hide things and cause them to mistake me for having a crossdressing fetish.

After hearing my confession, everyone finally showed a relieved look.

“Tha, that’s right. How could Aki have a girlfriend.”

“…We’re thinking too much.”

“Even I’d feel relieved.”

Everyone put their hand on their chests and heaved a sigh of relief.

Even though it’s a little late, I’m really wondering why they wouldn’t think that it was nee-san instead of a girlfriend I would have? Did they already have some sort of idea?

“I see. So Akihisa-kun’s nee-san came back. That’s great…”

That’s not good to me at all.

“Well, since things are like that, I made my own bento and ironed my clothes nearly. Do you understand now?”

Alright, now that I explained things here, please leave. I have to make these troublesome people leave before there’s any doubts.

“Wait, Akihisa.”

Ack! The most troublesome idiot seemed to notice something.

“Is, is there something wrong, Yuuji?”

“We knew that you have a sister. But why aren’t you willing to stay at home with your sister here?”

“Ah, that’s right.”

“Even I feel that it’s weird here.”

“…(Nods head).”

“Does Akihisa-kun still have something else he wants to hide from us?”

Yuuji’s doubt caused everyone present to feel suspicious.

Gu…! If I had known that things will end up like this, I shouldn’t have told Yuuji about staying overnight and should have just went home…

“Akihisa, it will be easier for you if you just say the truth, right?”

Yuuji reached his hand out and patted me on the shoulder. Yes, actually, I’m already prepared…

“Actually…my sister here, well…she’s really a weird person… or rather, lacks common sense…anyway, if I’m with her, a lot of terrible things will happen, and I’ll be deducted a lot of points for whatever strange reason, so I don’t want to go home…”

“To, to think that even Aki would say that she lacks common sense. How serious can that be?”

“Muu…even, if it’s scary, even I’d be wondering here.”

“…Have to meet her no matter what.”

“Yeah, I want to meet Akihisa-kun’s sister for once.”

So it became like this…this is almost like the worst situation I could imagine.

Just when I was thinking that everyone here was interested in seeing nee-san,

“Ah~ what the heck, I say, your interest in other people’s family affairs is way too weak. Even other people have sisters or ‘mothers’ that they don’t want others to meet.”

That’s rare! It’s rare that Yuuji would actually say something for me. What kind of wind is blowing here?

“Yu, Yuuji…! Thanks—”

GACHANK!

At this moment, the sound of the door at the corridor being opened could be heard.

“Arre…? You came back when nee-san’s out shopping, Aki-kun?”

……Eh? What’s with this timing? Are we having a comedy here!?”

“UWAAAAHHH!! SH, SHE’S BACK! EVERYONE, FIND A PLACE TO HIDE—”

“Is it Akihisa-kun’s sister…? I’m really nervous here…”

“Ca, can I actually say hello to Aki’s sister…”

“NOT GOOD! YOU PEOPLE JUST WANT TO SEE HER!!”

Just everyone focused on the living room door to see nee-san appear, I could only continue to look up to the heavens and pray.

Since things ended up like this, I have only one last hope left. Nee-san! I won’t demand for you to greet everyone properly…! So at least, just for once, be in normal clothes…!

The tense moment went by immediately, and the door finally opened.

“Oh my, do we have guest? Welcome. Our house is a little small, but I hope that you can treat it as your own house. Please don’t feel restrained.”

Nee-san, who said such a normal thing, was dressed in ¾ pants and a collared short-sleeved shirt with a vest on. That’s a normal kind of get-up if there was one.

“““So, sorry to bother you…”””

The appearance of the ever-normal looking nee-san with a normal attire, demeanor and common sense caused Yuuji and the rest to look completely stumped.

“Sorry for not introducing myself. I’m Yoshii Akira. Everyone, thank you for willing to be friends with this stupid and useless brother of mine.”

She even bowed after saying that. Tha, that’s too perfect! She looks just like a normal sister no matter how I see it! In that case..I should be able to fool them, right?

“Ahh, hello. I’m Sakamoto Yuuji, Akihisa’s classmate.”

Having recovered, Yuuji hurriedly lowered his head and greeted nee-san.

“…I’m Tsuchiya Kouta.”

Muttsurini spoke up next.

“Hello, Yuuji-kun, Kouta-kun.”

Nee-san smiled back at them.

Ahh…such a wonderful scene here…

Just when I was touched by this rare peaceful moment, Yuuji looked over slightly and whispered,

“Oi, Akihisa, your sister looks rather normal here. Calling her weird, how well off can you get? Instead of me, instead of me…”

“Ahaha…she, she’s normal, isn’t it? So if you have seen enough, hurry up and leave!”

Just when I whispered to Yuuji, the other classmates continued to chat with nee-san. Right now, it seems like it’s Hideyoshi’s turn.

“I’m called Kinoshita Hideyoshi. Please take care of me. A lot of people will be mistaken when seeing me, but I’m not a girl—”

“Ehh. You’re a boy, aren’t you? Hideyoshi-kun. Welcome to my house.”

“!”

On hearing those words, Hideyoshi couldn’t help but look completely shocked as he looked up at nee-san.

“You, you’re the first one to actually be able to tell that I’m a guy….!”

I don’t know what’s going on, but Hideyoshi just looked really moved.

“Of course I can tell. That’s because,”

Nee-san smiled as she said,

“That’s because it’s impossible for that stupid and ugly and useless brother of mine to have female friends.”

What’s with that firm belief that really sickens me!

Just when I was wondering how to snark back at her, nee-san’s stare moved to Himeji-san and Minami,

“So these two are guys, right?”

She made such a conclusion.

“WA, WAIT A SEC, NEE-SAN! HOW CAN YOU SAY SUCH A RUDE THING YOU’RE MEETING FOR THE FIRST TIME! THE THREE OF THEM ARE GIRLS!”

“Akihisa! I’m an authentic guy here, right?”

How little common sense does she have to view the three of them as guys…

After shouting that out, nee-san seemed to have a reaction to my words and slowly turned around to look at me.

“…‘Girls’, you say? Has Aki-kun been bringing girls back home?”

GUAAHH!! Da, damn it! Nee-san seems to be unhappy that I brought girls back home!

Nee-san already thinks that holding hands is illicit sexual relationships. She’s definitely fuming now! Got to find a good reason!

“We, well, nee-san, listen to me! There’s a lot of reasons—”

“…Really? Girls? Sorry for saying such insensitive things”

“In fact..eh? That’s weird?”

While ignoring me as I tried to explain, nee-san honestly lowered her head at Himeji-san and Minami and didn’t give off any killing intent at all. Is nee-san really not angry here?”

“What’s wrong, Aki-kun?’

“Ah, no…it’s just that I’m wondering whether you’re angry, nee-san…”

“? What are you saying? Why would nee-san be angry at you?”

Nee-san looked really calm and answered as if she had no reason to be angry at all.

Wha, what, am I thinking too much? But this is great…that’s right. It’s just that some friends came over to visit my house. This kind of thing is normal, nee-san has no need to be angry.

Just when I put my hang at my chest and thought that I could heave a sigh of relief, nee-san suddenly smiled and said to me,

“Oh yes, Aki-kun.”

“Nn? What is it?”

“There’re a lot of guests here today, so the doctor game Aki-kun likes to play will have to be delayed till tomorrow, right?”

Ahhh I see…this person’s really trying to drive me to my grave…

“NE, NEE-SAN, WHAT NONSENSE ARE YOU SAYING! YOU’RE SAYING IT AS IF MY HABIT IS TO PLAY DOCTOR WITH YOU EVERY DAY…CAN YOU STOP SAYING SUCH MISLEADING THINGS! I HAVE NO INTENTION OF PLAYING THAT KIND OF GAMES WITH NEE-SAN!”

DAMN IT! SHE’S DEFINITELY ANGRY NOW! COULDN’T SHE JUST EXERT VIOLENCE ON ME!? WHY MUST SHE TORTURE ME IN SUCH A CRUEL MANNER!? THIS PERSON HERE IS REALLY TOO MUCH!

“A, Akihisa-kun…playing doctor with your own sister…”

“Aki…it’s against the law to do this with your blood-related sister…”

FUUOOOHHH!! SEE, THEY’RE MISTAKEN HERE!!

“NEE-SAN! SCOLD ME LATER WHATEVER YOU WANT, JUST CORRECT THOSE WORDS!”

“Aki-kun, what are you panicking about? Oh yes. Do you know where’s the nurse uniform nee-san gave you yesterday?”

“DON’T ASK ME SUCH A THING AT THIS MOMENT!”

DAMN IRRITATING! THIS PERSON’S DAMN IRRITATING! IF I HAD KNOWN THAT THINGS WOULD END UP LIKE THIS, I MIGHT AS WELL CAMP OUTSIDE!

“Also, I’m going to deduct you another 150 points under the crime of illicit sexual relationships.”

“150? 150’S TOO MUCH! I DIDN’T EVEN DO ANYTHING YET!”

“…’Didn’t even do anything yet’? …I’ll deduct another 200 points.”

“FUWAAAAHHHH!!!! NEE-SAN’S ONE HUGE IDIOT!”

200 POINTS! WHY DID IT JUST END UP IN A STATE WHERE I CAN’T RECOVER NO MATTER WHETHER I WANT TO!

“…Sorry Akihisa, I’m willing to take back those words I just said.”

“Un…thanks Yuuji…this, this is the first time I actually feel healed by Yuuji ever since I was born…”

I wasn’t able to prepare myself mentally in time because of my sister’s attire and demeanor. I’M BASICALLY GAMBLING WITH MY LIFE FOR ACTUALLY DARING TO BE CARELESS IN FRONT OF THIS PERSON!

“Sorry for being off-topic. Can I ask you for your names?”

“Ah, yes, sorry for not introducing myself. I’m Himeji Mizuki, Akihisa-kun’s classmate.”

“I’m Shimada Minami, and—”

Minami suddenly glanced at me as she spoke halfway,

“—I’m friends with Aki.”

Mu. Minami just looked like she wanted to say that we aren’t friends. Was she planning to use the introduction she made at class and say that I was her wrestling training sandbag?

“So it’s Mizuki-san and Minami-san. Nice to meet you for the first time.”

Nee-san kept her smile and answered them throughout. It’s because she showed herself to be so normal in such situations that people will wonder how real were those weird things she said. Really, she’s a sister that really worries me…

“Oh yeah. Where did you go just now, nee-san?”

“I went to buy ingredients for dinner.”

Nee-san opened the bags she was holding, and there were ingredients like clams and bacon. I see, so nee-san went to buy ingredients for dinner.

“Eh? Didn’t you buy too much here?”

Each ingredient was way too much if it’s for two people. Even a family can’t finish that much.

“Nope, that’s definitely just enough.”

Nee-san seemed to be unhappy with my words and even puffed her cheeks unhappily. It’s rather refreshing when nee-san herself doesn’t really show her real emotions on her face.

Nee-san’s not good at cooking, and actually ran off to buy dinner ingredients, so the amount was mistaken, right? But it isn’t like nee-san to be unhappy over being pointed out.

“It’s rare for everyone to come over to our house. Why don’t you stay behind for dinner? There’s not many dishes we can offer though.”

It seemed that everyone was ready to do so. Nee-san spoke and invited everyone to stay behind for dinner. Looks like she just wouldn’t admit that she bought the wrong amount no matter what.

“In that case, I’ll stay behind too.”

“…I’ll stay for dinner too.”

“It’ll be troublesome for you, but I’d stay for dinner too.”

“Me too.”

“I, in that case, I’ll…”

Everyone nodded their heads. Looks like dinner tonight will be noisy.

“So everyone’s willing to stay behind. That’s great. Aki-kun, I’ll leave the ingredients to you.”

“Yup, got it.”

I took the bag of ingredients over from nee-san. Looks like I can enjoy a luxurious meal I haven’t had for a long time.

“Eh? Aki’s cooking dinner?”

“Yup, that's right.”

“Akihisa-kun knows how to cook?”

Minami and Himeji-san both looked shocked. That’s weird; is it really strange that I can cook?

“Didn’t I say it before at lunch? I prepared my own bento.”

“No, now that you mentioned it, that’s true…”

“Akihisa-kun did mention it before…”

But both of them just gave inexplicable looks.

“This isn’t anything worth being shocked about, right? Even I can cook a few simple dishes here.”

“…That’s a gentleman’s habit.”

“I’d.., I don’t know…how to cook at all here…”

Yuuji and Muttsurini did show off to everyone before, so they didn’t have much reaction that I can cook.

“Forget about Muttsurini. As expected, you’re forced to learn how to cook at home, right, Yuuji?”

“Oh, that’s right…but what do you mean by saying as expected?”

“Ahaha. Because you look like you have the lowest position at home, Yuuji.”

“? What are you talking about now?”

“Eh? What do you mean—isn’t the one at the lowest position in the family in charge of cooking?”

“““……”””

For some reason, everyone showed me stares of compassion.

“It’s because of my mom’s education policy that I was forced to cook.”

“Is, is that so…”

“Aki’s mother sounds really strong…”

“I’d feel that the position isn’t the problem, but rather who can cook…”

“Eh!? Don’t tell me everyone else’s different!? Damned mom! Lying to me since young!”

I see…so my family’s different from other families…when watching TV when I was young, I would think “Isn’t it weird for mothers to cook? Aren’t mothers supposed to be the strongest people in the families?” I felt that it was weird back then, so that’s how it is…

“Alright alright. It’s still early, but let’s prepare dinner. I’ll help you, Akihisa.”

“…I’ll help too.”

“Ah, yeah, thanks, you two.”

“Then, in that case, I’ll…”

“““NO NEED, THE GIRLS JUST NEED TO SIT QUIETLY AND WAIT!”””

“Ah, haa…I see…”

Thus, we decided to deal with dinner first, and everyone will then study to prepare for the exams.

<span style="font-size: 200%; border: "><center>☆</center></span>

“Oi, Akihisa, is there a wok that’s of better size?”

“Hehe~, actually, that rack has a paellera on it.”

“When you say paellera, are you talking about the wok used to cook paella? I didn’t think that your house would have something so special. Even my house doesn’t have it.”

“…Mine neither.”

“That’s something my mom gave in the house. What I’m saying is that since our house had such a thing, I used it to cook paella, and it was rather nice. Since then, paella became one of my favorite dishes.”

“So that’s how it is.”

In the kitchen where I was most proud of at home, Yuuji, Muttsurini and me were ready to prepare dinner for tonight.

My house was one that was bought for a family of 4 to live in, so it is rather spacious. It’s so spacious that I would feel somewhat lonely when living alone, and it’s difficult to clean up. There’s not really much benefit to say…but with three guys in a kitchen, I do feel relieved that the house’s spacious enough. However, I do still feel restrained having 3 big boys packed in a kitchen.

“But are you really going to cook paella? I thought your sister would prefer Japanese cuisine…”

“…Nee-san said that she’s fine with anything.”

“…These ingredients are obviously meant to cook paella.”

“Yeah. If it’s just prawns and clams, we can still think that it’s spaghetti, but with saffron.”

“Yeah. I can’t think of any dishes that uses saffron other than paella…arre? What’s this bottle of tomato sauce used for?”

Amongst the ingredients nee-san bought, she actually added a bottle of tomato sauce. Is this really an ingredient for cooking paella? I never heard of it before.

“…There’s also paella that’s made from mixed celery, onions, garlic and tomato sauce.”

“Eh? Tomato sauce?”

“(Nods head)… it’s a tomato sauce called soffritto in Italy.”

“Heh~so that’s how it is. I never used tomato sauce when I made it before.”

Muttsurini actually knows about such things. Is there something related to sex in Spanish restaurants for Muttsurini to be this interested?

“Akihisa, don’t tell me you actually did such a troublesome dish like paella so many times.”

“Yup, I like it very much, so I do make it often.”

However, the last time I actually made paella on my own was more than a year ago. I didn’t have enough money to cook something good ever since I started living alone.

“Since you did it so many times, why did she buy some unrelated ingredients? Isn’t this weird?”

“Really? I think it’s my sister who bought the wrong thing. Normally, I would be the one in charge of buying ingredients and cooking.”

“Really? Oh well, maybe she did buy the wrong thing.”

Yuuji was still puzzled about the ingredients, but still agreed with what I said. Does he feel that something’s wrong? There shouldn’t be any problems if it’s just the ingredients, right?

“Oh yeah, Akihisa, I just thought of something.”

“Hm?”

“You didn’t let your sister know what kind of life you lived, right?”

“…You’re rather sharp about it.”

“Anyone sharp enough can tell whether you’ve been well off or not, you idiot.”

Yuuji removed the intestines of the prawns and said to me.

“…Will you be scolded if she knew?”

Muttsurini, who was using the scrub to wash the clams, asked.

“It would be alright if it was just a tantrum.”

I’ll leave those horrifying punishments of being kissed on the lips aside.

“Is there anything else other than throwing a tantrum?”

“Yeah, if I don’t live properly or that I can’t get enough marks during this end-of-term exams, my sister will continue to stay over at home.”

I said that as I sliced up the onion, red peppers, asparagus and stuff and put them into the big bowl.

“Enough marks?”

“It’s just like what my sister said, about deducting 150 or 200 points or so.”

“She did seem to mention it, but I didn’t hear it clearly. What’s about that marks?”

“Besides the marks, I have to get more marks than the previous streaming exam during this end-of-term exams…”

“I see, so that’s why you thought of studying hard. So that’s how it is.”

“…Understood.”

I was only deducted 20 points yesterday, and in a short moment, it became 220. If the situation is better, my recent scores will be about 1000 points…but it will be bad if this keeps up. So no matter what, I have to prevent further loss of points.

“So I just want to say, please don’t say anything in front of my sister, like grades at school, my real living habits…and also, that incident with Minami…”

“That one you’re referring to is the kiss with Shimada—Mm!”

I frantically covered Yuuji’s mouth.

Yuuji’s really a loudmouth. The voice can even reach nee-san in the kitchen!

“That’s really bad too, so you can't say it! Nee-san’s very insistent on forbidding me from having any illicit sexual relationships!”

I kept my volume down, explained it to Yuuji, and slowly took back the hand covering his mouth.

“I see. Since you’re living alone, it’ll be easier for me to disturb you at home, so I’ll just shut up this time.”

“…I’ll help too.”

“Thanks guys.”

After explaining things, they were willing to help me out. Now, we’ll continue our preparations. Let me think, the next step is…

“Yuuji, can you help me get the consommé? It’s about time to boil the soup.”

“Hm? Don’t you intend to cook that soffritto?”

“Nope….I can try it if I’m living alone, but since everyone’s waiting for dinner, I guess we should follow the recipe I’m familiar with.”

“Is that so? Since you say so, let’s do this.”

Yuuji stopped slicing the octopus into slices and took a can of consommé. That Yuuji can really do anything, talking and working at the same time.

“Un, thanks.”

I received the can and opened it, pouring the consommé into the wok Yuuji just heated up by turning on the fire. The saffron will need some time to show more of its color, so it was added in the beginning, and the soup base that’s used to increase the flavor was soon completed. Did we prepare it well beforehand, or is it that they’re skilled with their hands…? I really have to take my hats off of those two.

Let alone Muttsurini, I didn’t expect Yuuji to be good at cooking. Does this guy cook normally? My curiosity started to surge.

“I say, Yuuji, do you cook at home every day?”

“Ahh, no, not everyday. My mother does know how to cook…”

“That’s great, having such a mother.”

“…But if I leave her alone, I really can’t tell what kind of horrible thing she’ll cook…”

Yuuji looked far away. A slight indescribable melancholy surrounded him as if there was a dish served with a mix-up between crayfish and lobster.

“Oh yeah, isn’t it time to put the rice in?”

“Ahh, put it in. Muttsurini and I will prepare the salad and the dessert.”

“…Leave it to me.”

I put the vegetables and rice in, and turned on the fire. I’ll add in the soup once it’s fried somewhat.

“Akihisa, watch the wok when you pour the soup in, or else it will get burned.”

“Don’t worry. I know what to do.”

After a while, it seemed that the color of the food in the wok was almost there, and I poured the soup in. I just need to shake it occasionally and wait for the paella to be done.

Finally, we have nothing to do and can only wait silently. Just when I was staring at the wok and spacing out, I suddenly heard Himeji-san and the rest talking. What are those people talking about?

''“Do you want to see the photo album? These are all photos of Aki-kun when he was young.”''

''“Eh? Can we?”''

''“Sounds interesting.”''

''“Aki’s photos when he was little. How does he look like?”''

''“I’ll go get it. Please wait for me.”''

Uu…my photos when I was young…feels embarrassing…if possible, I really want to stop nee-san, but my eyes can’t leave the wok, and Himeji-san said that she wanted to see it…

''“Sorry to keep you waiting.”''

Just when I was thinking randomly, it seemed that nee-san got the photo album and came back.

Haa…can’t be helped. I can only grit my teeth and endure so that everyone can pass the time, no matter how shameful it can be…

''“This is Aki-kun’s bathing photo at two-years-old.”''

''“H, how cute!”''

''“Muu, I find this expression cute too.”''

''“Looks so honest, so cute~”''

''“Next, it’s Aki-kun’s bathing photo when he was four.”''

''“Ahaha, really, Aki, falling asleep in the middle of a bath.”''

''“Probably feels nice bathing in warm water.”''

''“That sleeping face looks so pure.”''

''“And this is Aki-kun’s bathing photo when he was 7.”''

''“Should be in elementary school at this point. How memorable.”''

''“He grew quite a bit.”''

''“He really grew a lot.”''

''“And this one’s Aki-kun’s bathing photo when he was 10.”''

“WAIT A SEC, NEE-SAN! WHY ARE THESE ALL BATHING PHOTOS OF ME!? WHAT EXACTLY DOES THAT PHOTO ALBUM HAVE!?”

I had to watch the wok, so I could only stand in the kitchen and shout at the living room, but didn’t get any response at all. Really, even if these are photos when I was young, why are these all bathing photos—

''“—And this is Aki-kun’s bathing photo from yesterday.”''

''“““…(Gulp)”””''

[[Image:1212_119a-1-.jpg|thumb]]

“THAT IDIOT SISTER! WHEN DID YOU TAKE THAT PHOTO!? WHEN I WAS CHANGING!? WAS IT WHEN YOU TOOK MY CHANGE OF CLOTHES FOR ME!?”

“Akihisa, didn’t I tell you not to look away from the wok? The rice will burn.”

“IT DOESN’T MATTER WHETHER THE RICE GET BURNED OR NOT! THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO GET A FRYING PAN AND WHACK THAT IDIOT SISTER OF MINE ON THE HEAD!”

“I won’t let you look down on the importance of cooking! Watch the pot!”

“LET GO OF ME! YUUJI! YOU BIG IDIOT!”

No, it’ll definitely be alright. Himeji-san and Minami are different. They’re girls with common sense, wisdom and good decision making ability. They definitely won’t look at those kinds of photos!

—Time passed just like that—

“Everyone, sorry to keep you waiting. Dinner’s ready.”

“Thank you. Sorry to make you cook with Aki-kun even though you’re guests.”

“No, please don’t worry about that. I don’t hate cooking.”

We lined another table with the table in the living room, and the dinner that was finally finished was served. Un, it looks really good.

“Than, thank you…(blushes).”

“It, it looks good…(blushes).”

“Himeji-san, Minami, why are you blushing the moment you saw me?

You two didn’t see it right? You two definitely didn’t see the photo nee-san talked about, right?

“Oh yes, Aki-kun, why do you look extremely anxious? You were yelling and shouting, and I could hear you from the living room.”

“THAT’S BECAUSE I HAD TO YELL BECAUSE OF YOU!!”

And she even dared to tell me off when she didn’t mention what she did!

“See, you’ve been shouting again…do you like calcium?”

As she said that, nee-san moved away my plate of paella and put a plate with a deeper base. Hm? What’s with this plate?

“Everyone, put your leftover shells in this plate.”

“WHAT’S WITH THIS!? DOES MY DINNER ONLY CONSIST OF SHELLS? YOU SAY THAT I LACK CALCIUM, BUT THAT’S JUST SIMPLY ABUSE, RIGHT!?”

Such a beautiful relationship called family caused my tears to continue flowing no matter what.

At the same time, I vaguely realized something…

“Nee-san…do you actually, actually hate me, nee-san…?”

Beating me hard the moment she got back home, and showing embarrassing photos of me in front of the girls in class. If I combine these facts, I can’t think of anything other than being hated by her.

As she faced my doubts, nee-san gave a ‘you surprised me’ reply, and casually answered.

“Aki-kun, what are you saying, child? How can nee-san hate you?”

If you don’t hate me, the way you treat me is way too much.

“Or rather, on the contrary.”

“Eh? Isn’t the opposite of hate…”

“Nee-san loves you.”

“Is, is that so…”

“Yes, nee-san really loves you.”

I couldn’t help but shy off. I’m happy that nee-san said that, but I’m still somewhat awkward. Saying ‘love you’ in front of everyone is really—

“—As someone of the opposite gender.”

THIS IS THE WORST!!

“WAS THOSE LAST WORDS A JOKE? I’LL BE HAPPIER IF YOU SAID THAT YOU HATED ME!”

THIS PERSON’S DEFINITELY TRYING TO FORCE ME TO MY GRAVE! THAT’S RIGHT! SHE MUST BE THINKING ABOUT THIS! SHE DEFINITELY HATES ME!

“Doesn’t a Japanese saying say it?”

“What? What are you trying to say?”

“The dumber the child, the more adorable he is.”

“Akihisa, you better give up. There’s no one else who loves you more in the world than your sister.”

“WAIT A SEC! ARE YOU SAYING THAT I’M THE DUMBEST PERSON IN THE WORLD!?”

“I, I think that Aki’s the dumbest person in the world too!”

“Me, me too! I definitely believe that there’s nobody else dumber than Akihisa-kun in this world!”

“DON’T SAY IT! PLEASE STOP HURTING ME!!”

Why is it that everyone wants to trample on my heart mercilessly…

“Oh well, we’ll just leave this alone.”

“It, it doesn’t matter now…such a conversation is only a part and parcel of my life…”

Oh yeah, did Yuuji mean that it doesn’t matter what happens to my life?

“Anyway, let’s tuck in before it gets cold.”

I turned my eyes to the food that was giving off hot air. It’s not that everyone can’t eat whenever they want to, but it’ll be a waste if the food we spent so much effort to cook goes cold. Nee-san’s right. It’s better to tuck in.

“““Itaidakimasu!!”””

Everyone clapped their hands together and attacked the food in front of them.

“Muu, this is really good.”

“Really? It’s great that it fits your taste.”

“Now that you say that, it seemed that our efforts in making this dish is somewhat worth it.”

“…(Nods head).”

Hideyoshi smiled as he ate the paella, and the way he looked was so cute that I really want to take a photo and archive it. On the other hand, Himeji-san and Minami looked lost like they didn’t know what they were tasting.

“Arre? Do you two not like paella?”

“Uu…no, it’s not that we hate it. it’s really good…”

“It’s more like it’s depressing because it’s so good…”

I really couldn’t understand what they were saying. Girls’ feelings are really complicated.

<small>“…As expected, I have to cook more to practice more! I have to make more unique and personal flavors to win this battle!”</small>

I’ll just pretend that I didn’t hear Himeji-san’s muttering.

“It’s really good, but I deliberately bought ingredients different from the menu Aki-kun knew of, yet the flavor’s no different from before. Nee-san’s rather disappointed in that here.”

Nee-san said that as she put the prawn and clam shells on my plate. She’s probably still angry that I brought girls back if she’s using such an immature manner to bully me.

“Stop yapping over there. You don’t know how to cook at all, nee-san, and you dare to tell me off!”

In fact, before Himeji-san appeared, this person’s number two in the ranking of those who don’t know how to cook. On a side note, my mom’s ranked first.

“Aki-kun, what are you saying? Nee-san’s growing in ways Aki-kun doesn’t know of.”

“Hmph, growth…in what aspect have you grown?”

“My bust size is now E.”

“DO YOU EVEN KNOW THE MEANING OF THE WORD SHAME!? THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH COOKING AT ALL!”

I couldn’t help but retort back at my sister who showed her chest proudly.

What should I see? When hearing my sister say this, I would be happy for her but worried about her.

“Of course I worked hard in terms of cooking.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“Yes, I can finally understand the difference between a sea urchin and a scrub.”

“To me, it’s more amazing that you couldn’t understand the difference between a sea urchin and a scrub…”

For some reason, Yuuji, who was beside me, actually muttered ‘I’m so jealous’ or something like that.

“But speaking of which, it’s amazing that you manage to buy ingredients like red peppers when you’re like that.”

No matter how much I think about this, I just feel that nee-san will mistake red peppers for green peppers.

“I won’t make that mistake. That’s because I handed the list directly to the shopkeeper and asked him to put it into the bag.”

“AND YOU NEED SOMEONE’S HELP IN THE END!”

She didn’t grow at all. No, she wouldn’t even do anything before, and now that she would prepare a list, I suppose it’s some form of improvement…

“Oh yes, I have something I want to ask everyone.”

It seemed that we finally entered the main point as nee-san suddenly said cheerily. What does she want?

“I want to know how’s my stupid brother doing at school, like school grades or ‘illicit sexual relationships’.”

Why must she deliberately emphasize on those last words!?

Ku…! Damned despicable…! So she’s been planning this when she invited everyone to stay behind for dinner!

But it doesn’t matter. After that explanation in the kitchen, and the supposedly biggest threats, Yuuji and Muttsurini are standing on my side.

“Well, I find that Akihisa-kun’s very hardworking. It seemed that his grades improved.”

“Tha, that’s right. He would sometimes be so serious that it’s scary.”

As expected of Himeji-san and Minami, they’re different from Yuuji in that they won’t say anything bad in front of the person involved or the family members. They’re really good girls who know how to back off.

“Really? Then, what about illicit sexual relationships?”

“Eh, erm, well, I’m not, too certain about this…regarding Akihisa-kun’s ‘relationships with the opposite gender’.”

“That, that’s right. I’m not too certain about this…regarding Aki’s ‘relationships with the opposite gender’.”

For some reason, both of them seemed to emphasize on the ‘illicit sexual relationships’.

Luckily, Himeji-san and Minami didn’t say anything. in that case, the only one left is—

“Akihisa’s relationships with the opposite gender, huh…”

Only Hideyoshi was left as he used his hand to support his chin.

Hideyoshi probably won’t mention about what happened between Minami and me, right? But…he may say something explosive with a half-joking tone. I have to find some way to prevent Hideyoshi from talking rubbish.

I took my fork and picked up the mushroom on the plate,

“Does Hideyoshi-kun know something?”

“Well…if there’s something.”

“Hideyoshi, ahh-n”

“Nnu? Ahh-n”

I passed the fork in my hand to Hideyoshi before he said something ridiculous. On seeing my action, Hideyoshi didn’t show any suspicion and immediately ate the food I fed him. Naturally, he can’t talk when he’s chewing.

If he’s chewing, he shouldn’t open his mouth. That’s why nee-san waited for Hideyoshi to swallow the mushroom and ask,

“Hideyoshi-kun. About that—”

“Hideyoshi, ahh-n”

“Ahh-n”

Chew Chew.

“Hideyoshi-kun. About just now—.”

“Hideyoshi, ahh-n”

“Ahh-n”

Chew chew.

“Hi—”

“Hideyoshi, ahh-n”

“Ahh-n”

Crack.

What is it? It seemed I heard something unnerving.

“UWAHH!! MY JOINT! MY JOINT! MY ELBOW’S TWISTED IN THE OPPOSITE MANNER! IS THIS THE NEXT GENERATION OF HUMANS!?”

“Aki-kun, please don’t bother me. Or else nee-san will do something terrible to you, you know?”

“YOU’VE DONE IT! YOU’RE DOING SOMETHING REALLY CRUEL TO ME!”

“Alright, what’s the situation like, Hideyoshi-kun?”

“Well, about that…”

Ignoring me while I was struggling on the ground in pain, nee-san continued her conversation with Hideyoshi.

“Akihisa himself didn’t mention it, so I don’t think I can say anything.”

Hideyoshi still smiled as nee-san asked him and said an answer to end things. Such an answer doesn’t state what exactly happened, but it does prove that something happened. Besides, Hideyoshi doesn’t know my situation and felt that saying this would be alright. Uu…it’s a grave mistake on my part not to inform Hideyoshi first…

“Arre, so that’s a secret? In that case…I’ll have Aki-kun explain things thoroughly next time.”

“That’s the plan.”

“Nee-san, what do you actually mean by ‘explain things thoroughly’? Normally put, it should be like ‘thoroughly’ or ‘slowly’ explain things!”

I can clearly feel her malice and killing intent from her tone. I think it’s best that I replenish my calcium for the sake of the crisis that was about to occur.

“I’ll just cook fish tomorrow…”

“You’re already thinking of tomorrow’s dishes when we haven’t finished dinner today? You’re really gluttonous, Aki-kun.”

“No, I don’t mean that.”

That’s to prevent my bones from being snapped.

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot to tell you. From tomorrow on, you don’t have to prepare dinner for nee-san.”

“Eh? I don’t have to prepare your share?’

“Yeah, I have some work to deal with. From tomorrow until the weekend, I think I would be going home late.”

The work nee-san’s talking about should be related to helping out at dad’s company. As the head office’s shifted back to Japan, it seems that there’re still some processes to deal with or some deals. I don’t know what kind of company my dad’s running, so I don’t know of the specifics.

Anyway, it’s great that nee-san’s coming home late. In that case, I can get some breathing room from nee-san’s wanton desposition…

“Aki-kun, you look happy.”

“Eh! No, not really, that’s not true. Nee-san came back home and yet has to go home late. I’m really finding it a pity.”

“Say it in English then.”

“Happy.”

“…”

“AH! OUCH! NEE-SAN! DON’T SLAP ME WHEN WE’RE EATING!”

My mouth’s already bleeding inside, and the dessert I ate inadvertently had a slight tinge of blood.

<span style="font-size: 200%; border: "><center>☆</center></span>

After dinner, we quickly cleared the plates. Everyone was gathered in the living room, and Himeji-san spoke up to say the biggest reason why we’re gathered here.

“Then, isn’t it about time we should study?”

“Yeah. It’s not good to go home too late.”

Maybe it’s because we ate dinner early that it’s now only 7pm. Right now, there’s a lot of time we can use to study. I don’t want to work hard, but this is for my own freedom. I have to force myself to work hard!

“In that case, please teach me about some lesson related questions.”

“…Me too.”

It’s really hard to imagine us as F-class members with such serious attitudes. I really want to show Ironman this.

“Yeah. Studying’s not about preparing for exams. Let’s start reading ‘like usual’!”

I held off nee-san’s response to prevent her from guessing.

“Is everyone going to study together? In that case, I have something good here, you know?”

“Something good?”

“Yes. I found it when I was cleaning the house. I’ll bring it over.”

Nee-san walked out of the living room, and the sound of rummaging could be heard. Soon after, nee-san came back to the living room.

“These aren’t really considered reference books, but it’ll be great if it can benefit everyone.”

Nee-san put the book in her hands onto the table. That’s weird, I seemed to have seen them before…

<<Female high school student: Lustful bold collection.>>

“I found them in Aki-kun’s room.”

“Isn’t that my top secret—!!”

What in the world did this person take out!? Does she feel happy to force her brother to the edge?

“Please take it as health education reference.”

“NOT! HOW CAN SUCH A THING BE USED AS REFERENCE! AND DIDN’T YOU ENTER MY ROOM ON YOUR OWN!? DIDN’T I TELL YOU MANY TIMES NOT TO ENTER MY ROOM!?”

“I didn’t enter on my own will, Aki-kun, you did say that I can enter your room.”

“ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THE TIME WHEN YOU WENT TO MY ROOM TO GET CLOTHES!? IS THAT YOUR METHOD TO ACHIEVE SUCH AN AIM!? THIS UNDERHANDED TACTIC IS WAY TOO DESPICABLE!”

“I, in that case, I’ll use it as reference material…”

“Tha, that’s right, I’ll just take a peek then…”

“HIMEJI-SAN, MINAMI, WHAT’S WITH YOU!? YOU DON’T HAVE TO PLAY ALONG WITH NEE-SAN’S SEXUAL HARASSMENT! OR RATHER, I BEG OF YOU, DON’T LOOK!?”

Wouldn’t you know of my fetishes in that case?

“Aki-kun, nee-san has checked through all the ‘reference books’ under your bed. Looks like your focus in studying are more towards big breasts and ponytails.”

“DON’T SAY SUCH THINGS SO CALMLY!? DIDN’T YOU JUST REVEAL MY FETISHES NO MATTER HOW YOU TRY TO TWIST THINGS!?”

“Ponytail…”

“Big breasts…”

Himeji-san and Minami stared at a certain part of each other’s body, and then both of them showed a pondering look.

“I’d say, aren’t you people going to study?”

“Tha, that’s right, Hideyoshi’s right! Alright, we should be studying!”

I snatched the book from Himeji-san’s hands and stuffed a textbook into her hands. Alright, time to study hard, we should be studying seriously.

“Tha, that’s right. We should start studying. Nn…”

“Mi, Mizuki? Why are you tying your hair out of a sudden?”

“No, nothing? I’m tying my hair so that it won’t affect my mood.”

“I’ll help you tie then! I’ll tie it into buns!”

“No, that’s not it. I want to tie it into a ponytail.”

“No! You must tie it into buns!”

“Minami-chan, you’re so evil…”

Minami said that and immediately went behind Himeji-san to tie her hair into buns. They look youthful and eye-catching…

“What’s with you, Muttsurini? I’d say, you look rather quiet.”

“ah, yeah.”

Even with such a book put on the table, Muttsurini didn’t show any interest at all. This really isn’t like Muttsurini. Has he already died from too much nosebleeding?”

“…(Looks around).”

“? What’s wrong, Muttsurini?”

I look at him in a rather worried manner, but Muttsurini still looked calm and continued to look around as if he was searching for something.

“…Akihisa.”

“Nn?”

“…Where’s the remaining 1,999 books?”

“Ehh!? You actually thought that I really had 2,000 ero-books!?”

Amazing! As for what’s amazing, it’s that Muttsurini actually believed that there’s 2,000 ero-books here!

“…I have no interest in ero-books.”

In stark contrast to what he said, Muttsurini obviously looked disappointed as he lowered his shoulders. He looked like a puppy who was begging its owner to bring it out for a walk, only to be rejected. Though pitiful, Muttsurini may be rather cute like this.

“Let’s just leave Akihisa’s ero-books aside for now. If we want to study, we better do so fast!”

Yuuji spoke in a reluctant manner. One can tell how scary these guys are when an idiot like Yuuji looks like one with common sense.

“If you want to study, I can teach you.”

“Eh? Onee-san, you will?”

Nee-san’s suggestion caused Himeji-san and the rest to widen their eyes.

Having seen nee-san’s weird actions, it’s obvious that they would show a shocked look.

“Yes. I finished my degree in a certain school in Boston, America, so I should more or less be able to help you out.”

“Bo, Boston university…don’t tell me it’s that world famous Harvard University!?”

“You really do know it. Yes, it’s that school.”

“““EHHH!!!???”””

The strange thing is, nee-san’s abnormally good at studying, but is overwhelmingly lacking in common sense.

“I see, so the good ones were taken…”

“Yuuji, may I know what do you mean by that?”

The sad expression he showed me was really frustrating.

“In that case, please don’t hold back in your questions, like traditional English or things that the Japanese teachers can’t teach us. Nee-san seem to know a lot.”

“…Very reliable.”

“I understand. We’ll start from English then.”

“““We’re in your care!”””

After that, we continued to listen to nee-san’s lessons until 10pm before we disbanded and ended the study group today.

'''Current score [-220 points]'''

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Fate/Apocrypha:Act 1 Unbirth

2012-08-23T03:00:58Z

128.54.67.240: changed "cime" to "crime"

<em>The sage cries out. "Open, Gate of Heaven. Bless us and bestow miracles upon us!"</em>

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-- It was a place endlessly surrounded by cravings.

Gluttony and lust bring forth avariciousness and a hunger for fame, in turn bringing forth violence and cajolery. Everyone gladly threw themselves into this endless hell.

The women sell their bodies, the men sell their violence.

The men sell their bodies, the women sell their honor.

Laughing, and being laughed at; devouring, and being devoured; jeering, and being jeered at; harming, and being harmed; violating, and being violated.

This is Shinjuku.

A place that only truly shone in the darkness of night.

A never-before-seen, and never-again-shall-be, battle royale between magi who had attained the qualifications of 'Master' and heroes summoned as 'Servant' -- that is the Holy Grail War.

A magus who had qualified and was now preparing to join the battle was here in Shinjuku as well.

However, he still had a dilemma.

...He could not summon his Servant.

On the roof of a multi-tenant building, a magic circle was drawn <em>in human blood</em>.

The etched circle glittered crimson -- and abruptly, as though something had been cut off, the light was lost.

"...It's not working."

The man dropped his shoulders in disappointment.

Before his eyes were four strangely-shaped knives and two butcher's knives.

It was a symbol to summon the Servant.

Using the six blades favored by that 'serial killer', the magus attempted to summon the Servant -- and failed.

"This isn't enough. Yeah, it's totally not enough."

Generally, having an item with an affinity to the Heroic Spirit will suffice in summoning a specific Servant.

For example, <em>the sheath of the holy sword once wielded by the King of Knights</em>.

Or perhaps <em>the fossil of cast skin from the first snake in the world to shed its skin</em>.

If you could prepare something like that, drawing a specific Servant is comparatively easier.

However, there existed two points which led to the failure of the summoning this time.

One was the caliber of the man as a magus. In this Holy Grail War, entirely unlike the Fourth, there are <em>fourteen</em> magi who become Masters. By necessity, there are also fourteen Servants. It is double the norm.

Following this, the Grail that originally would support the summoning can only exert half its strength, and the rest must be made up for by the magus.

And regrettably, the man was nothing more than a second-rate magus.

Another point was how weak the Heroic Spirit the man had been trying to summon was.

He was weak, though merely in terms of belief.

The Servant the man had been trying to summon was an existence from <em>merely</em> one hundred twenty years ago.

Despite his fame, he was not one who could match those who were worshiped as gods and heroes.

In short, what was needed -- was a push, by any means necessary.

"Now what should I do...?"

As he lamented, the man scratched his head.

After a moment, he thought of a good idea. These six weapons were specialized blades used practically for one 'deed'.

In that case -- when would these weapons exercise their most proper function?

The answer was, obviously, when they were being practically used.

He will create a situation where these lethal weapons can be practically used -- if he can do this, the connection with the Servant should become strong enough for a summoning.

"So basically, I need a woman."

The man picked someone suitable for the role immediately.

There was a woman who sold her body to make a living. That was exactly what the woman currently by his side did, wasn't it? She was originally just a woman on whom he had cast a suggestion when he infiltrated this city. He had no hesitations in treating her as something disposable.

"...All right, let's do it."

As he incinerated the magic circle and left the building, the man's eyes switched from cold ones belonging to a magus to ones reminding you of a warm and innocent young man.

A host was his profession, his working name "Hikaru". The magus, true name Sagara Hyouma, melted away into the city of cravings -- practically perfectly.

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To Rikudou Reika, the sounds of the heart were strange.

As her heart thumped, she lived. Without this sound, her brain, organs and limbs would be dead.

This fist-sized organ, sounding as though this small sound was all that it could manage, allowed one to live.

Reika could not help but feel it strange.

One does not live, but is allowed to live by the heart.

Hazily thinking such things -- that was how she spent her life, simply being swept along.

She still did not know what the purpose of her life was.

Perhaps it was because she did not have a family.

Perhaps it was because she had been abused before she was adopted.

Perhaps it was because she could not do anything when she was a child.

......Reika knew nothing.

However, even if she did not know, a human being cannot survive without making money.

Even Reika knew this, so for the present, she decided to live on by selling her body.

Fortunately, she had never had trouble with a client.

Why did someone like her, passed by and suddenly hit on by a host on the streets, so easily agreed to live together with him -- knowing that she would be exploited?

Reika did not know why she did that, but it hurt her head to think, so she stopped.

Sagara Hyouma was kind.

At least, he did not use violence against her. The most he had ever done was ask for small sums of money.

Even when he did this, he did not threaten violence. He simply requested.

For some reason, she could not defy his requests -- she could never even have the intent to.

She did not quite understand, but perhaps this was the thing called "love".

Reika would think of this in that way. She would think of this, and be happy.

One day, the man may wake up by himself.

Or perhaps he may continue their love.

Marriage? Childbirth? A family? Or perhaps, divorce?

Both being far off into the future, they were a bother for Reika to think about.

She did not know what will happen in her life during the coming days, but at least, she will be allowed to live to the next day -- so Reika thought.

And she knew that this was wrong.

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"Heeeey. Reika. Are you listening to me?"

Feeling the tap on her face, Reika turned her lightly-colored eyes to the man.

When she tried to stand up, she found that something was preventing her from doing so.

Her ankles were tied with a cord.

"...What, is this?"

Reika posed a question to Hyouma, the man she had been living with.

Hyouma looked down on her with cold eyes, ones that she had never seen him wear before.

-- Yes, these eyes,

Reika knew them. These were the eyes of one who would use violence. <em>They were eyes that regarded the one before them as being a worthless existence.</em>

But, why this, all of a sudden...?

Even though she loved him. Even though she still loved him.

"It won't work unless I re-enact it."

His soft voice, unexpectedly, made Reika felt as though her entire body froze.

"Re, enact?"

"Yes. Re-enacting the scene of the crime. I'm afraid that's what is needed to summon <em>him</em>. I need to <em>cut a woman like you to pieces using his knives</em>."

"What......?"

In order to withstand violence, you simply need to force your heart into a state of temporal death.

That was what she had always done, and what she had planned to do this time as well.

However, Hyouma just said that he would cut her to pieces.

-- What was that supposed to mean?

-- What was the meaning in cutting her to pieces?

"All right. Magic circle complete."

The stench of blood, which any resident of Shinjuku would be used to smelling, made Reika's heart pound as she faced death.

Not noticing the change in Reika, Hyouma raised his right hand, which had a strange tattoo, and began to chant strange words.

"Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Let each be turned over five times, simply breaking asunder the fulfilled time."

It's like an spell, thought Reika.

In spite of the lack of any particularly disturbing content, a scream began to rise inside Reika.

"Let silver and steel be the essence. Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation. Let my great master ¦¦¦¦¦¦¦¦ be the ancestor. Raise a wall, against the wind that shall fall. Close the four cardinal gates. Come out from the crown. Rotate the three-branched road reaching the Kingdom."

Hyouma took up a knife in his hand.

"Please don't..."

Her sense of foreboding turning into a conviction, Reika spoke with a shaking voice as she shook her head.

Hyouma did not reply.

The tip of the knife traced Reika's body, as though lost.

However, he was not hesitating, but deciding <em>where to strike</em>.

It would be meaningless to finish her off with a single blow.

He had to re-enact those brutal killings, so he needed to slaughter her in the most painful way possible.

Finally, Hyouma decided where to stab.

"-- I shall declare here.

Your body shall serve under me. My fate shall be with your sword.

Submit to the beckoning of the Holy Grail. If you will submit to this will and this reason...... then answer!"

Hyouma shouted, and raised the knife up high.

Reika's right arm sent her a shock.

"......Huh?"

A second late, the pain assaulted her, and Reika screamed.

An enormous heat scorched her body, centered on the knife that had stabbed into her.

"It... hurts... it hurts...!"

All the times when she had been beaten before were nothing compared to this intense pain.

"-- An oath shall be sworn here!"

Another knife stabbed her in the abdomen this time.

"...ah......!"

There was no shock, unlike the first.

But the pain multiplied.

Reika, feeling her life flowing away from her, screamed.

Words, ones that she had never thought of in her entire life, overwhelmed her.

"I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven. I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell!"

He aimed for and stabbed her upper left shoulder.

At last, the voice that had screamed for him to stop could no longer make a sound.

"-- From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power, come forth from the ring of restraint, Protector of the Balance!"

A knife hovered above her head.

In an instant, she understood that she will die. Fear exploded in her, coursing through her entire body.

No. I don't want this.

She never wanted to die like this, in such wanton cruelty, and such despair.

How many seconds of reprieve did she have until that knife was swung down?

Must she now accept her death, within a span of less than ten seconds?

No.

I'll never want that.

I don't want to, I don't, no, no no no no no no no no no no no no no -- !

"No...!"

As such, Reika went beyond her own limit.

A knife had been driven through her right palm and into the concrete floor. She grasped the blade with her pierced hand.

Gathering all the strength in her body, she pulled it out and thrust it at Hyouma's face.

Having been enduring the pain of the spell, he stopped the incantation and screamed as pain suddenly assaulted him from the outside.

"Bitch...!"

Spewing out sounds that no longer formed into words, Reika brandished the knife again.

Hyouma glared at her with hate and let off a strong kick at the pit of her stomach.

Unlike the pain of having a knife sticking into her, this was a shock that suspended her vital activities. Reika tumbled to the edge of the magic circle. She was, if anything, vividly conscious, perhaps due to her intense pain.

There was no change in the magic circle. It did not even glow.

"Does it have to be five people, then...? Or do I have to go and kill thirteen? Shit. This is such a pain."

Hyouma stamped his feet as he tore at his hair.

Blood spilled from Reika's mouth as she watched.

"Ka, ah..."

Her heart continued to operate, accelerating in order to allow the existence called Rikudou Reika to live on.

However, the pain had long ago breached the limit permissable by humans.

Little by little, she knew that her bodily senses were being lost.

However, she could not feel any relief from the fact that she will no longer suffer.

Reika's life was flowing out of her with every second.

She didn't know why she had lived.

She didn't know why she was allowed to live.

Crushing down the doubts she had had for many years, she gave forth a single answer.

-- I want to live.

She simply wanted to live on. She did not want to die. She did not want to die in such pain.

Having despaired at life, she embraced the first craving she had ever had as she faced death.

She wanted to live because she wanted to.

She didn't want to die because she didn't want to.

That was simply it, and nothing else.

Yes -- what a simple, clear truth it was.

"I don't... want to... die."

A single drop dripped onto the magic circle.

In the next instant, an incredible tempest swept out from the center of the circle.

Hyouma could sense it. It was an outrageous swirl of prana -- journeying through all obstacles, <em>an uncommon monster will make its advent</em> into this reality!

"...Is this... did I do it?!"

The voice of the magus shook with joy.

-- You want to live, right?

It was the lovely, and very clear, voice of a young girl.

The voice spoke, not to Hyouma, but to Reika alone.

Without the slightest hesitation, Reika replied to the voice.

-- I want to live.

Reika made her wish. She clung on to it desperately.

The girl whispered with a sweetly ringing voice.

-- Okay. We understand. Let us make our contract, <em>Mother</em>.

The magic circle activated, and prana accompanied by fierce crimson light was released.

Reika was captivated by the fantastical scene before her and Hyouma, unlike before, expressed his delight with an assured response.

"...Did it work? It did! All right, I did it!"

The clear voice of the girl reached Hyouma as he danced around.

"Question -- are you the one who called for us?"

Hyouma was dumbfounded by the voice which was so far beyond his expectations.

After all, he had been extremely sure that the most famous killer of all <em>couldn't possibly be a young girl</em>.

"Wha? Huh? Did I do something wrong...?"

Hyouma was bewildered by the girl that came out from the circle. Her silver hair was dense and rather short and her pale, ice-blue eyes gazed at the magus disinterestedly.

[[Image:Fate Apocrypha1 art1.jpg|thumb]]

The girl shook her head and declared.

"No, there is no mistake.

You summoned us. We are what you have sought."

"So that means, you're..."

"Yes. What you had attempted to summon was the Servant Assassin. Our true name -- is 'Jack the Ripper'."

Hyouma's face shone with joy.

"I got it... I drew the right one!"

Hyouma, as a magus, understood that he was not a type suited to combat.

The magecraft his house had passed on generation after generation was specialized in unspectacular powers such as suggestion and concealment, and they ended up being ridiculed as "rats".

However, a rat can kill in ratlike ways, and Hyouma was proud of his tactics.

Of the way he fought, fierce like a sewer rat, cunning, and tenacious.

In order for him to win the Holy Grail War, Servants which fought with great fanfare -- like the so-called primary classes such as Saber or Lancer, or the powerful but uncontrollable Berserker must be avoided.

Even considering his own rank as a magus, he did not believe that he could put them to any work, nor could he allow them to fully exercise their strengths.

Assassin was the most fitting Servant for him. There was no mistaking it.

However, the Heroic Spirit which must be summoned as Assassin was fixed. This would also mean that, as soon as one's own Servant is known to be Assassin, countermeasures can be worked out.

Following on this, Hyouma sought a completely unknown Servant -- or at least one that had never participated in the Grail War before.

A serial killer with little history while possessing the 'monstrosity' befitting a Heroic Spirit.

In other words, Jack the Ripper.

Hyouma jumped for joy and tried to rush over to Jack. However, she spun around, turned her back to Hyouma, and knelt beside the pitiful living sacrifice, Reika.

"Are you all right, <em>Mother</em>?"

When the girl addressed her, two sounds seemed to somehow overlap. It was a strange sound, as though she pronounced both "Master" and "Mother" at the same time.

"Huh? W-Whoa, wait. Hold on. Hey."

The girl took no notice of Hyouma's call to stop.

"Please wait. We'll help you now. It's okay. It's going to be all right."

"It hurts..."

"We're sorry, <em>Mother</em>. Please hold on for a bit longer."

Jack gently stroke Reika's hair with affection, and turned to face Hyouma once again.

"...You are Servant Assassin. Your true name is 'Jack the Ripper'... that's right, isn't it?"

Jack nodded shortly at Hyouma's words, without any of her endearing gestures.

So far so good, but to Hyouma, the problems were just beginning.

"You are <em>my</em> Servant, aren't you?"

The ice-blue eyes flashed like jewels.

Peered at by those lovely, pure and inhuman eyes, Hyouma could not help but become afraid.

The three command spells were carved into the back of his hand.

He felt as though if he hadn't had those, he would have lost sight of himself as a magus.

The one who summoned her was the magus called Sagara Hyouma.

That was how it should be, but somehow -- he could not help but feel as though he was standing in enemy territory.

Jack, without answering Hyouma's question, picked up her symbol -- the strangely-shaped knife that was lying on the floor.

This simple act accelerated Hyouma's heartbeat.

"Answer me, Assassin. Whose -- Servant are you?"

"It's inconvenient being a magus, isn't it?"

Jack suddenly murmured.

"Perhaps not small spells, but when it comes to big spells, you have to put it into words, don't you?"

"What, about it?"

"Even worse, if you have to execute a command spell, you can't just wish for it. After all, <em>the wish won't be granted unless you put it into proper words</em>."

In an instant, his survival instinct gave him a strong alert.

This Servant was dangerous.

This Servant regarded him as an adverse enemy which needed to be eliminated.

"I call upon you with the command spell --"

He felt as though something blazing hot was stuffed into his mouth.

When he ignored it and tried to order her to "commit suicide", he noticed,

-- his jaw, was gone.

" ------ !!"

The words he wanted to cry did not come out. The only speech he could manage was a ridiculous breathing sound.

"And you don't need this, either."

His wrist received a shock.

In violent pain, with his blood discharging as though from a bottomless bucket, Hyouma fell into a panic at once.

" ------ !! -- ! -- ! --- !!"

Even so, he could not speak.

At this moment Sagara Hyouma, having lost his capability of speech, was less than a rat, simply reduced to a piece of meat.

Having confirmed this, Jack walked over to Reika once again.

"We'll fix you now. It... might be a bit uncomfortable. We're sorry."

The girl informed her, deeply apologetic.

Perhaps it was because of how sorry she looked.

Perhaps it was because of how her expression was filled with so much concern for her.

"...It's all right."

Reika murmured and lost consciousness.

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-- When she awoke again, the nauseous agony had disappeared from her.

But there was a wrongness to her entire body that she could not shake off.

The bindings at her feet had been undone. Reika stood up, looked at her right hand, and frowned.

The wound on her right hand had been stitched up, but by methods which were somewhat too crude. A black thread creeped about haphazardly like an earthworm, and it was dubious whether the wound had really been closed.

But the blood had stopped... and she was no longer in pain.

"Well, I guess it's fine as long as it doesn't hurt."

"Yes. Not hurting is good."

The voice came from right beside her. Turning around, she found the girl from before watching her steadily with an expression of childish innocence. Reika faced the girl again, and talked to her.

"Um, you were the one who saved me, right?"

"Yes, that's right. We did."

"'We'?"

"Yes. We are one, and one is all."

"I'm sorry, I don't really understand. Um, what was your name again?"

"Jack the Ripper. Jack is fine, or Assassin."

"Hmm... those don't sound like girl's names."

"Mm..."

Seeing the crestfallen Jack, Reika hurriedly continued.

"But Jack has a pretty ring to it. Can I call you Jack?"

"Yep."

" -- Now. I'd like to know exactly what happened. Can you explain it to me, Jack?"

"We can. But it's dangerous here, so let's move somewhere else."

"Yes, I understand. Oh, but -- what should we do about Hyouma?"

Reika tilted her head to one side, looking at the thing that used to be a person which was taking ghastly, wheezing breathes. There was no blood flowing from his lost jaw or his wrist. Like Reika's right hand, they had been sewn up with a chaotic surgical method.

"Let's bring him with us. He might become necessary later."

Jack lifted Hyouma up without much effort.

"Please bring us to your house, <em>Mother</em>. We will follow."

"Oh, um, but..."

Reika glanced at Hyouma as Jack carried him. For a start, anyone who saw a person with their right hand and lower jaw cut off would report it.

Perhaps detecting her unease, Jack shook her head quickly from side to side.

"It's okay, it's okay."

"It's okay?"

"Yep. No one will know, no one will know."

In the end, as Jack said, no fault could be found with the appearance of the girl.

Reika, walking ahead by herself, would sometimes turn around to look, but she could not locate Jack.

And yet when she called out "Jack", she was answered by "What is it?"

It was mysterious, but with so many incomprehensible things happening recently, she could not be bothered to point this out, and walked back to her own apartment at leisure.

She led Jack to the kitchen and made some tea.

"Thank you, <em>Mother</em>."

As always, it was a strange method of address, as though overlapping the words "Master" and "Mother".

"Where should we start?"

"Hmm... how about from the beginning?"

"Okay. We will explain as much as we can."

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-- Jack the Ripper talked of the 'Holy Grail War' in a simplified manner to Reika, who had no magical knowledge.

The Holy Grail, able to realize any and all miracles, had been re-enacted by a group of great magi. However, the Grail would grant the wish of only one.

A Master chosen by the Holy Grail is granted a Vessel for the Grail and Command Spells. After that, one had to summon a Heroic Spirit, the Servant, and use it to win and survive.

All Servants have their own special characteristics... Jack the Ripper is in the class of Assassin.

And, most likely, Reika was chosen by Hyouma as a living sacrifice in order to summon her.

The Grail, magi, Servants... she took in all the preposterous-sounding things that Jack spoke of.

"I see. So Jack, are you really Hyouma's Servant?"

"That was the original plan, we think. But just as we were about to be summoned as a Servant, we were drawn by words more powerful than his."

-- I want to live. I don't want to die. I'll never accept a death like this.

Reika wished strongly for the thing necessary to overturn the pursuing death that had been close at hand.

That prayer was granted by Jack -- as a result, she arrived, summoned not as a Servant of Hyouma but of Reika.

This was quite likely an event without any precedent.

As long as the Command Spells exist, the summoning of the Servant is a comparatively simple ritual in and of itself. One simply needed to draw the magic circle and chant the spell -- and sometimes, the situation may be that even the spell is unnecessary. If one wishes to draw a specific Servant, one should simply prepare a symbol with an affinity to the Heroic Spirit.

The summoning also takes an exceedingly short time. While the summoning of a Heroic Spirit is a great ritual, with the backing of the Holy Grail, little time is needed.

Thus -- it was doubtful whether a third party had ever managed to interfere in a situation like this before.

To say nothing of how said third party, for the sake of avoiding an impending death, had made a prayer with greater resolution than the summoner. Everything about the contract between Jack and Reika was an utter anomaly.

As Jack briefly explained about topics such as the Servant classes and special characteristics, she took out the thing she had crammed into her bag and put it on the table.

"So, <em>Mother</em>. We wanted to talk to you about this."

"Oh, my."

Reika reflexively covered her mouth with a hand.

It was Hyouma's right hand. What appeared to be a tattoo imitating three knives was carved on its back.

"These are the Command Spells. They normally appear on the arm of the magus who would become the Master... um, they're like tickets for giving orders."

"Oh..."

Reika touched the back of the stiffened hand in a nervous manner.

"He's still alive, so it's still functioning... is he here?"

"Mmm..."

In all honesty, Reika could think of nothing that she would need to order Jack for. However, the power of the Command Spells was immense, yet something that could be manipulated even by Reika. It could be used as a trump card to reverse an overwhelmingly disadvantageous situation.

"If he dies, the Command Spells will disappear as well. That would be a waste, so we should keep it around, we think."

"That's true. I don't want to be hurt... but I don't to waste anything, either.

Well, would you please?"

"Yep, okay. We're not too good at transplant operations, but we'll do our best."

For whatever reason, Reika felt like stroking the head of the bashful Jack. The girl accepted it happily.

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The transfer took an hour.

Despite the fact that it had been cut off, Hyouma wept in anguish when the Command Spells were forcibly torn off. Was his sense of pain still connected? Or was it from his despair that his qualification as a Master in the Grail War -- that his aspiration had been lost to him?

In either case, Hyouma had just lost his last chance to survive.

During the transfer, Reika's hand hurt as though it was burnt, but the pain soon disappeared. It still felt hot and ached a little, but that gradually lessened as well.

"Now, the Vessel of the Grail."

"Is this Grail something like a wine-glass?"

"No, anything can work as the Vessel. Any object close at hand will automatically be acknowledged as a Vessel of the Grail."

As though these words caused her to suddenly remember something, Reika asked.

"Hyouma. When you lived here, wasn't there something you had with you that was really important?"

Hyouma stiffened.

"Hmm, I'm sure... yes, it's this."

Reika was holding a ruby larger than her hand.

"Is this it?"

"Wow, that's amazing... <em>this is the first time we've seen a mineralized heart</em>."

"A, A heart?"

Hearing this, Reika nearly dropped it without thinking.

Jack's eyes were wide with curiosity and surprise.

"Yep, it's a human heart. That's brilliant. Was it a curse? Or some kind of sickness?"

"So is this the Holy Grail?"

Jack sniffed the jewel and nodded.

"Yes, this is it. No doubt about it."

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She had made a contract with a Servant, had Command Spells transferred to her, and obtained a Vessel.

Rikudou Reika had become a Master in name as well as reality, and was in a position to use Servant Assassin.

"So <em>Mother</em>, what will you do? In the Grail War?"

"Hm, right. My wish has already been granted, after all."

To live -- that was what she had first wished for, and it had been granted.

That would mean she had returned to her original self.

The one who lived vaguely, simply being swept along.

"Ah... is there a wish you want granted, Jack?"

"...Yes, there is."

Jack's expression darkened. The way she held the cup of tea with both hands and sipped from it was rather cute, thought Reika absentmindedly.

"We want to go back to our mother."

"Back to your mother?"

"Yes. We want to <em>go back inside</em> our mother. It's so very comfortable there."

"I see."

Regardless of its contents, it seemed Jack had a wish.

It was an important wish that she wanted to have granted, no matter who she had to bring down to do so.

Reika, having not wished for anything, could not deny her -- nor did she think she was qualified to.

"So we'll have to join the War, then."

"...Can we?"

"Oh, yes. You saved me, after all."

It was a wish that couldn't have possibly been granted.

It was a situation where being killed would have been a matter of course.

The only thing she could use to repay this girl who had completely overturned all of this would be herself.

"I don't want to get hurt, though."

"Don't worry, it won't hurt... we think."

"All right. Well then, let us wage war."

Jack nodded, her eyes twinkling.

"Yep, let's wage a war!"

"So... what should I do? I can't fight."

"Well, <em>Mother</em>, we require prana to fight."

The existence of a Servant in itself consumes an enormous amount of prana, though Jack, as an Assassin, is less draining compared to a Saber or Berserker.

Even so, as Rikudou Reika was an amateur, not even being a magus, there was little likelihood of her becoming the main prana supply.

In that case, prana will need to be replenished from other sources...

"Eating human souls would do for us."

"Human souls? Um, would that kill them?"

"...Yes, we suppose."

"Hmm... I guess it can't be helped."

"Oh, um, but, having only bad people would be best. It might be just us, but a bad person's soul is more polluted and delicious."

The nature of Jack the Ripper is chaotic evil.

She is an existence that preaches chaos in the face of order, carrying out evil deeds. Thus, it would seem that souls of the same nature are <em>more easily digested</em>.

"I see. So... would Hyouma taste good?"

When Reika pointed at Hyouma, Jack bobbed her head up and down.

"Yep. He's a magus too, so he would be delicious."

Telling her to wait a moment, Reika walked over to Hyouma with the cut right hand.

She crouched down, their eyes meeting as he cowered.

"Did you love me, Hyouma?"

" -- ¦ ¦¦¦! ¦ ¦¦¦!"

Reika smiled when Hyouma nodded and cried out.

"I'm not sure what you mean, but it sounds like you did. Thank you. You probably cast some sort of magecraft on me, didn't you? I don't hold that against you. After all, it's thanks to you that I got to know the wonderful feeling of loving someone."

Reika gently pressed the right hand to her cheek.

"Yes, that's right. I did love you after all. But you betrayed me, so it can't be helped. It really can't. I'm sorry. You'll live on <em>as a precious memory</em>."

" -- ¦¦! ¦ ¦¦¦¦ ¦¦¦ ¦¦ ¦¦¦ ¦¦¦¦¦¦ ¦¦¦¦!"

With a bitter smile saying that she did not understand, Reika announced to Jack.

"You can eat him. Oh, but I'd prefer it if you didn't dirty the place... eat him in the bathroom."

Reika had no profound emotions as to the fact that she had been allowed to live.

......Similarly, she <em>felt no hesitation in erasing someone she couldn't care less about</em>.

A mother would grieve for the death of her child.

A lover would grieve for the death of her beloved.

If no one would be faulted for not grieving for her -- <em>then she couldn't care less either</em>.

Watching over Hyouma as his entire body jerked about, desperately struggling to survive, Reika calmly poured herself another cup of tea.

Disposing of the withered corpse was easier than she had thought it would be.

Having been crushed down, the thing she stuffed into the garbage bag did not look like a living being at all, and resembled nothing but a large amount of dead leaves.

There wasn't even the stench of blood. Only the right hand, with its Command Spells ripped off, preserved its freshness. The only thing she had to remember him by was this hand. I will treasure it, Reika thought.

"You don't like the smell of blood, do you, <em>Mother</em>?"

"No, not really."

"So we sucked all his blood, too. Slurp. It tasted bad, though."

"Oh, I'm sorry. You didn't have to do that for me."

Jack shook her head from side to side.

"Oh, no, if <em>Mother</em> is happy, we are happy."

"I see."

"Well... we will be happy if you would pat our head, too."

Following Jack's modest request, Reika stroked her head.

"Is this okay?"

"Yes. Thank you, <em>Mother</em>."

The bashful girl was so very childish -- so much so that it was almost unthinkable that she had just murdered a man a short time ago.

"I'd like to rest for a bit now. Is that all right?"

"Yep. Good night. Don't worry. We will protect you, <em>Mother</em>."

"Yes, thank you, Jack."

As would be expected, fatigue was setting in on her.

As soon as she laid down on her bed and closed her eyes, Reika fell unconscious at once.

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And, she dreamed.

The first thing she felt was a rending, gouging cold.

A thick mist covered her surroundings, and every time she took a breath it felt as though poison was seeping into her body.

Looking at her own hand, she was shocked to discover that she was awfully thin, and understood that she had somehow <em>become Jack</em>.

Jack was peeking through the window of a house.

Inside the dreary room, a woman was laughing.

The woman laughed, and indulged herself in alcohol. Her heart and body worn down, she had become an existence that simply struggled to live day by day.

She had no dreams.

The only thing that existed to her was reality.

However, it was clear that her reality had been crushed by her inescapable fate. She suffered from poverty and it was matter of whether she would die from starvation or disease.

Reika looked on from outside the window, together with Jack.

...No, perhaps not.

What Reika saw in the middle-aged woman through the window was her inescapable despair.

She despaired at how she had no way to escape it except by drinking, she despaired at how she did not even know if she would have food tomorrow, and she despaired at her own lack of dreams.

However, Jack -- saw in her only "Mother".

"Mother."

The girl whispered in a small voice.

As though she were a parrot, she whispered it again and again.

"Mother, mother, mother, mother, mother."

She knocked on the window, softly, incessantly.

The woman, apparently noticing at last, scowled as she opened the window.

"Quiet!"

Flinging this out with a witch-like expression, she shut the window with a bang.

Perhaps the girl was aware that she would be rejected. She hanged her head and kept back the tears.

And so, with nothing to do -- she wandered the night street.

There were laughing voices, charming voices, shouts and screams.

Voices, voices, voices, voices. All of them, voices that would never mourn <em>them</em>.

How far had she walked? The girl suddenly stopped her feet.

"Mother."

The woman from before was standing by herself, waiting for a client. A man walked up to her, but it seemed they could not agree to a price, as the man spat and went off.

"Mother."

..Abruptly, the mist thickened.

Reika knew this was something like magecraft -- but the woman, of course, did not. She simply seemed perplexed by the sudden thickening of the mist.

In the girl's hand was a single knife.

"Mother."

The woman, waving her hands about in the mist, did not notice the girl approaching her at all.

She stood before the woman.

"Mother."

The woman cried out, twitching with fear, at her call. However, she seemed to have noticed that the one before her was the girl from before. The woman, her expression mixed with relief and anger, said.

"Don't scare me!"

"I'm sorry."

Who would know -- what this apology was meant for.

The girl briskly cut open the throat of the woman from side to side.

Who would understand, who would believe,

that the true form of Jack the Ripper, the legendary serial killer who knew of dissection and slipped into the darkness of night to perform his quiet dissections, was such a pitiful girl?

"I'm sorry, <em>Mother</em>. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. But I want to go back. I want to go back. I want to go back, I want to go back --"

With miserable tears, the girl dissected the anguishing Mother.

Finally obtaining a part of the woman, the girl pressed the thing that smelt of blood against her face, and cried.

-- Go back, go back, we want to go back.

-- After all, it is so warm. It is so very warm here.

The lamentations of the girl reached no one.

She despaired, and faded away without achieving her dream. Was she killed? Did she choose death? Did she simply pass away? -- no one knew.

It is likely that she will perpetually reign as an eternal mystery, an eternal darkness carved into the history of England.

She was no longer a simple killer.

She was one had obtained from others the belief known as fear -- a "Reverse Heroic Spirit".

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She woke from her dream.

For a moment, Reika was confused by the fact that she was sleeping on her own bed.

After clearing her consciousness, she grasped that what had happened before was a dream --

"But it felt so real."

She did not believe that she can recreate 19th-century London to that degree with her mind alone, it being a place she had never been to, much less know about.

It likely had something to do with the fact that she had made a contract with a Servant.

Thinking this, Reika searched for her Servant, Jack the Ripper.

"Jack...?"

When she looked carefully, she noticed a big bulge in the sheets. She turned over the sheets gently, so as not to disturb it, and found Jack curled up there, hugging her knees and quietly sleeping.

[[Image:Fate Apocrypha1 art2.jpg|thumb]]

"Oh my."

Feeling she ought not to wake her up, Reika stroked Jack's head softly. She had no regular work in the first place, so she could use her time freely.

There was no need for her to worry.

Even if she was awake, there was nothing she had to do in the morning.

"...Just a bit longer."

Murmuring this, Reika put her arms around Jack's head and closed her eyes again.

<div class="center" style="width:auto; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto;"><nowiki>* * * * *</nowiki></div>

When it became night, Reika went out into the streets with Jack.

Jack explained to Reika about a technique called 'spirit form' that completely erases her from view.

"Is it different from what you used last night?"

Jack answered, "That's right.

"What we used yesterday was the 'presence concealment' skill of the Assassin class. We didn't disappear, we just erased our presence. We can't carry anything while in Spirit Form."

"I couldn't see you at all. Did you really just erase your presence?"

"That's just the sort of creature we killers are. We're confident that not even a Servant can ever detect us as long as it's nighttime."

Despite the fact that she could not see Jack, Reika felt that the girl was puffing up slightly in pride.

"But <em>Mother</em>, are there really lots of bad people?"

"Oh, yes. Um, it should be in this building... was it this floor?"

Reika got a confirmation from the name-plates that showed each floor.

"Akagami Finance Co. -- right, it's here. It's the fourth floor."

"Everyone on the fourth floor?"

"Yes. It's all right, the entire floor is filled with people from this company."

"Well, let's go in unseen then, <em>Mother</em>."

When she reached the fourth floor by elevator, Reika did as Jack instructed and moved to the women's washroom first.

"What are you going to do?"

"Use our Noble Phantasm."

"'Noble Phantasm'...?"

"The secret skills of Servants -- us."

Jack materialized her body. She was gripping an antique lantern in her hand.

"What is that?"

"This is our Bounded Field Noble Phantasm: '<em>The Mist</em>'."

Servants are heroes from ancient times, and their tales revolve around certain weapons and tools, big and small.

-- A holy sword of light, forged in the planet.

-- A demonic spear which pierces the heart without exception through the reversal of causality.

-- Reins which control beasts from the Age of Gods.

The lantern Jack holds is one of these.

"Have you ever heard of 'the Smoke', <em>Mother</em>?"

"I have. That means London, doesn't it?"

"Yes. When we were there, the smog in London was horrible. It was pitch black -- so bad that we couldn't breathe, so bad we couldn't open our eyes."

The mixture of smoke and fog released during the burning of coal is called smog.

From the 19th to the 20th century, London had been harassed by smog countless times.

The worst of all was the Great Smog of 1952. It was said that the thick mist of sulfur covering London caused over 10,000 deaths.

Jack opened the shutter of the lantern, and gently touched the candle inside.

A flame was lit and at the same time, something like smoke began to leak out from the bottom of the lantern.

"This Noble Phantasm can recreate that mist.

No one can ever escape it. They'll die in agony, all of them."

A troubled expression appeared on Reika's face.

"Um... Jack?

Wouldn't I die too, then? I'd prefer it if that didn't happen."

A flustered Jack shook her head from side to side.

"I-It's all right, it's all right! You'll be fine, <em>Mother</em>!

This mist can be 'directed'. So it won't get close to you."

As Jack said, the enveloping mist, which had already gained a deep color, left a blank space in the area around Reika.

"Now -- it's just up to us to finish them off one by one.

We're off, <em>Mother</em>."

Jack said in a leisurely tone as she ran off with a knife in one hand.

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Akagami Finance was, simply put, a black-market lender.

They lend people money with a smile, and then take away all that they own with wicked faces.

Even in this line of work, they were well-known for their tough collection methods, making use of their advantanges as a still-active crime syndicate.

"Hey, Mr Murano? Hate to tell you this, but you keep this up, and you're gonna have to sell off a few organs. You get what I'm saying? And I'll make it clear so even a moron can understand. What I'm saying here is, you're gonna have to off yourself, sell your organs and use your insurance money just to pay off the damn interest!

Hey, you listening to me? I'm asking you -- huh?"

Alas.

Rikudou Reika just happened to have read about a news report on illegal loans posted in a magazine --

"What the hell? Is there a fire...?"

And Reika just happening to know their address was what brought them to this tragedy.

Upon breathing in the dense cloud of enveloping smoke, they fainted from the pain.

"Gaah...!"

"Ugh... I, I can't... breathe..."

"S-Someone! The window! Get a window open -- !"

A strongly acidic smog surrounded them.

It was such a thing that simply breathing in it would burn the throat, and simply opening the eyes would cause them to fester.

"This hurts... shit, this hurts, help! Help!

Help me! Someone help me! Anyone -- !"

The frenzied man quickly ran into the leg of a desk and fell clumsily to the floor.

"I... have to get out of here...!"

Get out? But to where? Where could he run?

They themselves had not realized it, but those who tried to escape were deceived by the mist, and simply ran circles around the same place.

"Ha!"

The voice of a young girl, ill-suited to this company, suddenly rang out.

"Gheh -- "

And, leaving behind this ridiculous squeal -- a colleague collapsed before him.

"Wha-- who...?!"

The words of the man, whose throat had been hideously burnt, could not be heard as anything but rasping noises.

"A killer."

Even so, the light voice of the girl answered.

-- A killer?

The hell does that mean, the man thought. Anyway, his eyes and throat were in pain, unbearably so.

He was suffocating as he could not breathe.

His eyes hurt and he could not see a thing.

He wanted someone to hurry and come to ease his pain.

Please, stop this pain for me.

Let me be at peace, let me be at peace, let me be at peace -- guoh.

Jack, wielding the knife skillfully, dissected his body.

"Prana -- replenished. Heart -- gulp."

She swallowed the heart that had had terror etched into its bloodstream.

Looking around her, she located a new target.

"Hmmmm... found you!'

"Hiiih -- !!"

As Jack's stomach still complained of considerable hunger, she drew the hearts out of every single one of them, and finally managed to fill herself comfortably.

[[Image:Fate Apocrypha1 art3.jpg|thumb]]

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"Thank you for the meal."

"You're welcome."

By the time Jack returned, the mist had cleared.

"Well then, let's go home."

At Reika's words, Jack abruptly stopped.

Staring blankly, the girl posed a question to Reika.

"...We're, going home?"

"That's right. Was there something else you wanted to do?"

"No, nothing else. We just... thought it was strange, going home."

"Why is that?"

"-- We, had no home."

The girl remembered the alleyways, shrouded in mist and stench.

The nests, covered in waste and feces, where filthy rats ran about, were most certainly not a place of rest.

When you sleep at night, someone may attack you. When you wake up in the morning, someone may have died -- that's the kind of world it was.

That was why she could not help but feel that 'going home' was an occasion that had nothing to do with her.

The girl explained this clumsily.

"I see... so that's why."

Reika looked fixedly at the crestfallen girl.

...Her own self, for whom the feeling of being alive was as sparse as mist.

...The girl, for whom the word "alive" may not even be applicable.

According to the girl, it was often that Servants and Masters have the same disposition.

In that case, this meeting was, in a way -- fate, perhaps.

"<em>Mother</em>...?"

"...It's nothing. Now, let's go back. But before that, do you mind if we stop at a supermarket?"

"We'll be spirit form, so we don't really mind... why, though?"

"I thought we'd buy some ingredients for dinner."

"Dinner...?"

"Yes. I'm thinking of making hamburger steaks."

"What's that?"

Jack tilted her head innocently. It would seem that the problem for her was not whether she liked or disliked it, but what this dish called 'hamburger steaks' even was.

"They're very delicious. Why not eat with me, since you're here?"

"Um, meals aren't necessary for Servants. We'll be fine even if... we don't eat."

Though Jack had said that it was all right, she looked glum in some way.

"Oh, can you not eat?"

"We can, but..."

Meals aren't necessary for Servants. However, this did not mean that they had no sense of taste.

In that case, what was needed -- was a good taste, and curiosity, perhaps.

"It tastes great. What if I said it's a reward for your good work?"

"....Okay!"

At Reika's words, a big smile appeared on Jack the Ripper's face, and she danced around in an expression of joy.

As she watched that smile, she thought of one wish for when she reached the Holy Grail.

'I wish to be happy.'

It was a wish so very pure, so very sincere, and so very guileless -- and as such, it was a small wish that could never be granted to the killer and her mother.

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