manga artist Kirito

"Hey, hey, hey, stop it. You're such a grown man, why are you complaining to your son? It wouldn't be good if your mom and Yezi heard you." Kirito interrupted him, then took out a pack of tissues from his pocket and wiped his chapped forehead. "Besides, shouldn't I be the one complaining?"

"What do you have to say? We just throw everything at you, Yezi, and you live life to the fullest!"

"Dad, do you think Mom's been too nice to you lately?"

"why would you say so?"

"Ask Mom when you get back," Kirito said, waving to Midori Kirigaya. "Dad, you must have something else you want to tell me, right?"

"I...tsk, you little brat betrayed me!" Kirigaya Nagato raised his hand to slap Kirito on the back of the head, but as soon as he reached out, he touched his waist and his face turned pale with pain.

"...Ahem. Well, it's nothing really, just treat it as a heart-to-heart talk between father and son."

"I'm listening." Kirito covered his forehead to indicate that he was listening.

Although they aren't blood relatives, Kirito is truly happy to have such a father and mother... This is what life is all about, isn't it?

"I said..."

P.S.: When the day comes that all the Black Tong Jian San players are old, sitting in a run-down tavern chatting and joking around, watching the new generation of cool guys—sigh, times have changed!

PSP: The bounty has ended. A total of 37 chapters are owed, of which 4 have been paid, leaving 33 chapters. Well, that's not too many.

Please vote for me next month!

111

[NO.109 This is a sibling theater (bonus chapter)]

After a half-hour heart-to-heart talk between father and son, Kirito, who had a cut on his forehead, was led away by Suguha, while Kirigaya Nagaka, who had twisted her waist, was naturally led away by Kirigaya Midori... It was a little awkward.

Tearing away the congealed scab, Suguha carefully cleaned the small cut on Kirito's forehead with disinfectant. It wasn't really a big deal, since there wasn't much blood, although cleaning it with disinfectant was definitely a bit unpleasant.

Setting down the cotton swab stained with a few drops of crimson blood, Suguha pursed her lips and applied a bandage to Kirito's mouth. While casually tidying the first-aid kit, she asked softly, "Hey, brother, what did you and Father talk about for so long?"

"Ah, you mean Dad..." Kirito pointed to the spot where the band-aid had just been applied and immediately grinned. "Actually, it's nothing much. I just wanted to talk about what happened at the dojo while I was away, and Yoko, you won the National Youth Kendo Championship... Hmm, I didn't watch it. Dad seems even angrier than you are."

"I'm angry too." Suguha puffed out her cheeks, wanting her brother to see how happy she was to win the championship, and wanting him to praise her in front of everyone and in the most prominent position.

But you didn't come, brother...

"I'm so sorry!" Looking at Suguha's current state, Kirito might have poked her chubby cheeks with his hand under normal circumstances, but now Kirito really didn't know what to say...

The National Youth Kendo Tournament was held in Kyoto, and Suguha went with her parents. However, after the tournament, Suguha didn't go home with her parents but went to the apartment building alone...

When they received the trophy, they didn't see me, their older brother... so they went straight to me.

Just think about how I ran away as soon as I saw her at the apartment; it must have made her feel even worse... right?

No wonder, Ye Zi isn't usually that violent. A blow like an elbow strike coming down from mid-air would be almost impossible for someone with her gentle nature, unless she was in a bad mood...

Dad, I thought when I came back I would be telling me that reading comics is a waste of time and that otaku have no future... But how did it turn into something about Suguha?

But I still have to thank you for letting me know, Dad!

"Well, I've already won the championship. Even though my brother didn't give me flowers, I still won!" Suguha showed a very innocent smile. "I even worked hard for my brother's sake!"

"Yeah, Leaf is the best!" Kirito ruffled Leaf's head, making a mess of her shoulder-length hair, and put his arm around Leaf's shoulder. "Isn't this... tiring?"

"No, I think it's great..." Resting her head on Kirito's shoulder, Suguha was in an unusually cheerful mood. It would be even better as long as her brother was there.

"However, I still believe that if my brother were to do it, he would definitely be able to do it better than me."

“Your brother is just an incompetent good-for-nothing. He even makes his sister take the blame for things like this.”

"But I like it!"

"If that's the case, then we need to work even harder."

Perhaps, giving the top spot to Mikasa would be the best option. With Mikasa's tenacious personality, exceptional strength, and unwavering determination, the Tiger Dojo would never face any crisis of decline if she were in charge...

But Suguha has tried so hard, what right do I have to make her give up?

Are there any other competitions afterwards?

“There don’t seem to be any competitions lately, and even if there were, it wouldn’t be necessary for the head of the dojo to participate unless it’s a national or provincial competition. So being the head does have its advantages.” Naoya nuzzled Kirito’s shoulder and said softly, “While many of the students you saw today were from our class, most were new students. And many of the students who have been instilled with so much martial spirit by you have gone to visit the more famous dojos all over the country.”

You call it a visit, but it's actually a challenge, right? This isn't a world where martial arts reign supreme, so why are you going around challenging other schools? You must have a lot of free time on your hands!

“If everyone comes back, we can easily win the national competition by simply picking a group from among them,” Suguha said matter-of-factly, as if she thought such an outcome was inevitable.

Don't make it sound so easy. If it were that simple, you wouldn't have been wielding a sword for so many years, Yoko. Besides, Mikasa, a freak born from a warrior race, can't be compared to humans at all.

Besides, if anyone could easily win the national championship, why would anyone bother opening a dojo? They might as well pack up their stuff and go sell salted duck eggs in Azeroth.

Finally, I was so happy to have not realized that there were more and more masters in the dojo, that I chose to come back at this time!

“My mother said we don’t look like siblings.”

"Yeah, not at all. After all, we are." Kirito said with a sigh. I may not be the best brother in the world, but without a doubt, Yoko is the best sister in the world.

Yes, Yezi is the best little sister!

"Speaking of which, at the train station, what was that Maggi... what was he trying to do?"

You probably wouldn't have guessed this if I hadn't told you. Although the location was conspicuous, it didn't generate enough buzz to become the most eye-catching spot.

"Chiba... um, do you remember that fallen Chiba Dojo? My brother used to rush into that dojo with a brick, grab their headmaster, and whack him four or five times before scaling the wall and escaping." Suguha's eyes narrowed as she tried to laugh, and a faint blush crept onto her earlobes. "The cause of that incident was me."

"I saw that chief at the station today... He's changed a lot. I heard he just came back from South Korea. He probably got plastic surgery... Hahaha, his brother beat him up so badly that he had to get plastic surgery. He looked so funny."

"Huh? Plastic surgery?" Kirito was immediately shocked. "I remember I did this to give him plastic surgery. I even specifically targeted his face. How could I possibly need to go abroad for plastic surgery?"

Oh right, it seems that Akane Akasaka and Haruno Yukinoshita were the ones who stood up for this matter, otherwise resolving the aftermath wouldn't have been so simple.

"Hey, brother, can I sleep with you tonight?"

The girl fidgeted, her usually calm face showing slight tension, and her eyes darting around...

112

[NO.110 Despair-themed Illustrator (Bonus Chapter)]

Life is full of surprises, whether they are shocks or joys...

Every morning when I get out of bed, it's a great blessing to see my gentle girlfriend Asuna or the world's cutest little sister. But what if I wake up to an old face?

—I was startled!

If someone interprets it as insemination, I naturally have nothing to say.

Why is it that the person waking me up has changed from Yezi to my dad?

"Ah, I suddenly don't want to get out of bed." Watching his father walk out of the room, Kirito rolled around in bed, clutching the sheets—it smelled like his sister.

Yes, Suguha did sleep in this room last night, but she doesn't consider herself a beast. To even lay a hand on her unsuspecting sister—wouldn't it be better to just drag her out and beat her to death?—that would be worse than a beast.

However, Suguha was a bit restless while sleeping. Kirito knew he had been used as a body pillow last night, but it was still quite hot to be hugged so tightly without air conditioning.

Note that she was wearing pajamas properly while sleeping.

"It's only 6:30! Getting up this early is killing me... But I've been ordered to go for a run, so even if it's just to pretend, I have to go out, right?" Kirito struggled free from the bedsheets, rubbing his eyes and saying lazily. "Yeah, I'll wash up when I get back. Anyway, I'll sweat after walking a few steps in this weather, so I can take a shower then."

Getting up early every morning for a run was a plan I made to improve my physical fitness. Although I had given it up a long time ago, I recently wanted to pick it up again. However, as you all know, I have a procrastination problem that's used to take the blame. So even though I noticed my physical fitness was declining, Kirito still didn't exercise at all.

Good morning, brother!

"Good morning, Yezi. Want to go for a morning run together?"

"Okay."

……

Kirito felt utterly hopeless about going for a morning run with his adorable little sister—"My dear sister, don't you get tired? We've already run almost three kilometers around the road!"

To be honest, acting like a dead dog in front of a cute girl really doesn't feel good, even if she's my younger sister...

Having high expectations is enough; why does the amount of exercise need to be so great?

As an artist, I don't need to be physically strong at all; all I need is fast enough hand speed!

—At this moment, Kirito, drenched in sweat, thought in despair.

"Leaf, wait for me..." Kirito, hanging unsteadily behind Suguha, gasped for breath and called out to Suguha, who was running further and further away.

"Brother, keep going! We'll be at the finish line soon." Suguha waved to Kirito behind her without turning around. "Talking while running can cause you to get a side stitch."

"...This leaf is probably fake; it didn't even wait for its dearest brother."

Kirito almost died during the 800-meter sprint in PE class last time. Now, several kilometers have passed, and he hasn't collapsed because Suguha is right in front of him. But is the finish line near yet?

Wait a minute, this seems to be the opposite direction from the dojo.

Wait a minute, could it be... we'll have to run back later?

Oh my god, have mercy on me!

I'm not pretending anymore. Someone please come and save me! Even if it's that violent machine, Hiratsuka Shizuka, at least she can carry me back with one hand.

This is really tiring. How long have we been running?

Looking up at the sun, which was pressing the moon down and beginning its relentless movement, Kirito wiped his face. "Sun, couldn't you let the moon dry off a little longer? It's so hot..."

Lost in thought, Kirito's steps grew heavier and heavier. He felt his sportswear was soaked with sweat, and every breath felt like chili peppers had been thrown into his lungs, burning intensely.

As Suguha got further and further away, Kirito stumbled and fell to the ground. Fortunately, it was muddy, so he didn't end up rubbing his face on the ground.

I've been running for about half an hour now. How stamina do I have? I used to always have Yezi trailing behind me... Oh right, why isn't Yezi turning around?

Hurry, someone come and save me...

Azure clouds drifted across the sky, and slightly withered leaves fell in the wind. Kirito, who was enjoying the fresh scent of the earth up close, raised his head slightly, turned his face to the side, and lay down again—I won't leave until the leaves come back.

Yes, Kirito didn't have the strength to run any further.

Kirito didn't want to say much about the morning run, as it was a waste of energy. But he remembered something: the words he'd spoken when he defeated Gilgamesh yesterday. He worried that those guys might take advantage of his weakened state when they returned to the dojo.

—Oh dear, taking advantage of the situation?

Why does this word feel similar to "while it's hot"?

At the same time, Kirito, who was staring blankly at the ground, saw the shadow gradually approaching. Soon, the flying object that created the shadow slammed into Kirito's face.

"Ah, a soft cap?" A flat, emotionless voice rang out, and everything before Kirito's eyes went black. "Is it the young lady? No, the young lady's nightcap is pink, this soft cap is white..."

With the hat obscuring his vision, Kirito didn't want to move an inch. "I'll just use it as an eye mask. I can take a nap while waiting for Yoko to come back and pick me up... This is truly hopeless."

Just as Kirito was immersed in the fresh scent of the earth—

"Oh no! My hat, wait a minute!"

A very soft sound gradually grew stronger, though it was still very faint.

"...Please don't look for it, thank you!" Even though he hadn't seen the hat clearly yet, Kirito desperately needed a hat to shield him from the sun—yes, just to shield him from the sun.

"My hat~~~!" The voice was getting closer.

"Please don't find me—hat language!" Kirito provided the hat's voice with an adorable gaze. Hmm, this hat smells even better than the so-called earthy fragrance... It seems its owner is a girl.

"Eh? This... my hat?" The person seemed to have come to Kirito's vicinity, their calm voice carrying a slight undulation.

Ah, this voice that's always so bland... I think I only recognize two of them. One is Shiina Mashiro, and the other is... who was it again?

"Arno, are you alright, young man?"

Is this caring?

No! It's definitely because I just said that anyone could save me, so you knew that the God of doujinshi was sent to save me?

"...Please don't open me, thank you!"

If this girl were wearing a skirt, given my current prostrate position, I could easily see it by simply shifting my gaze upwards—the secret beyond the absolute territory!

113

【NO.111 Flash from Above】

"Please don't open me!" Yes, it was still that cute, fake voice.

"Huh?" Standing next to Kirito, the girl looked at the guy who was soaking wet and lying on the ground, getting close to Mother Earth, with a strange expression, especially when she heard the voice that didn't match his appearance.

This... is it a boy?

But the voice sounds like a girl's?

"I'm a little sorry, but I can't give you the hat~" A soft and pleasant voice said as the girl held her skirt with one hand, bent down slightly, and prepared to reach for the hat.

"This hat, the relative's child seems to really like it..."