manga artist Kirito

Incidentally, Kiritani-kun only barely reaches the top-tier level in Akane Kosaka's eyes. If he could freely change his art style, he could be given the same evaluation as her.

Furthermore, Eriri is only a second-rate illustrator in her eyes, not even as good as Ichigo. Similarly, Kasumigaoka Utaha is only a second-rate writer here... So, this is why, in response to Kiritani-kun's recommendation last time, Kousaka Akane said that she needed to observe more.

These two haven't made enough progress. Even if they're recommended to the club, they'll only be a hindrance, and in the end, it will only end in a bitter falling out.

Besides, Kiritani-kun, caught in the middle of this situation, will only find himself in an even more awkward position.

However, Shiina Mashiro...

If possible, Akane Kosaka would really like to watch her paint up close—yes, not manga, but the realm of her genius as a painter.

"Hey Akane, why are you so accommodating to this guy... Please consider your rest status a little, okay?" Looking at Akane's tired appearance, Ms. Shizuka couldn't help but show a helpless expression.

"Ah, I'm used to it... Hmm, before, when I finished work and rushed home on the train, this little guy would always sleep hugging my arm." Yawning slightly, Akane Kosaka scratched her even messier hair. "It's already a good thing that he's not drooling over me now."

Even though that's what she said, Kiritani-kun had a feeling that this woman had inadvertently brought up his embarrassing past again...

However, drooling...is something that happens while sleeping, so it's not a dark history!

"I'm really curious about what you guys went through in the early days of the club's establishment... Wait, don't give me that look of remorse, Kazuto-kun, tell me about it now!" The more Kiritani-kun and Kousaka Akane acted as if they didn't want to recall the past, the more curious Haruno became.

Ultimately, it's because we met a little too late. If it had happened in the morning, we might have been able to figure things out... That period might have been a dark chapter in our history.

Aside from Haruno, who had no idea what an image was, everyone else cast curious glances their way.

Of course, Yukino Yukinoshita was more curious about why her sister was so familiar with them than about Kirigaya-kun and Akane Kousaka's dark history. In fact, she hadn't even realized they knew each other before... No, that's not right. When Kirigaya Suguha came to the apartment last time, Kirigaya-kun seemed to have said something related to her sister...

However, I've forgotten what exactly was said.

With her cool and aloof eyes, Yukino Yukinoshita turned her gaze to her older sister Haruno, which immediately made Haruno excited and her mood soared. This is what a sister complex is like, especially this kind of regrettable sister complex.

Of course, Haruno concealed it very well and Yukino didn't notice.

Seeing their curious gazes, Akane Kosaka pulled Kiritani aside, and the two turned around with their arms around each other to discuss something. In the eyes of Shizuka Hiratsuka and the others, their actions were almost as if they were discussing whether or not to tell anyone, and the result... was probably similar.

"Since you've asked so earnestly!" Akane Kousaka handed the coffee to Kiritani-kun, a bright smile spreading across her face. "Then I'll mercifully tell you..."

Kiritani calmly took a sip of coffee. "What I, Kiritani Kazuto, love to do most is say NO to self-righteous people!"

"We are... wait a minute!" Akane Kosaka suddenly turned her head. "This script isn't right. You didn't say that just now. You wanted me to play dumb with you, and now you want me to do it all by myself?"

"I never said I was going to talk about it... Don't you feel ashamed of those things?" Kiritani was exasperated by this woman's shamelessness. It was clearly nothing worth talking about.

"Ahem, please wait a moment... no, please take your things to the rooms that have been arranged for you. I need to chat with someone."

"No, let's all go together..."

"Come here!"

"Let go... I'm going to scream, I'm really going to scream! Asuna, Miyabi, Yoko, save me!"

However, there is no use for eggs.

No one was watching the two of them fool around. After learning that they had no intention of saying anything, Ms. Shizuka took Mikasa and Suguha to get their luggage.

"Let's put the drawing aside for now. The angle here isn't great. We'll find a better spot later... Besides, we have plenty of time." Asuna ruffled Shiina Mashiro's hair, as if coaxing a child.

"Oh..." Still looking somewhat unwilling, Shiina Mashiro responded listlessly.

"If you still want to eat the Baumkuchen, then you'd better behave, since it's with Kazuto." Asuna gave a signature gentle smile, but to Shiina Mashiro it was like a stepmother—a somewhat subtle analogy, but not really.

"The sun... will never be seen again." It should have been a very sad line, but when Shiina Mashiro read it in a monotone tone, it unexpectedly became a funny line.

"The moon will always shine on you~!" Holding Shiina Mashiro's hand, Asuna smiled helplessly. Mashiro had clearly been led astray.

"Hey, Yukino-chan, let's go!" Haruno looked at Yukinoshita Yukino, whose backpack wasn't fully zipped up and half of her cat book was sticking out—it was obvious she was afraid of being discovered, so she quickly stuffed the cat book into her backpack, but Yukino arrived unexpectedly fast, so it wasn't completely stuffed in...

—By the way, why did I think of my sister-in-law's story while writing this?

In short, what follows is the grand operation of "Continue to Pretend You Don't Know Yukino-chan Cat Party"~ Dear!

"Sister, what exactly is your purpose?" Looking into the person she had longed to become since childhood, Yukino Yukinoshita found it hard to understand why she would call her out on a trip for such a reason.

Although Yukino made a request to Haruno when she agreed to come, there was only one request, and then came the part where no one ever believed her when she told the truth.

"My purpose..." Her gaze instantly deepened, and the smile on Yukino's pretty face vanished in an instant. "I just wanted to travel with Yukino..."

By the way, let me make it clear to you that Kirito is not a good person. Don't have too much contact with him. And don't give any of your feelings for him that belong to your older sister to this guy who already has a younger sister. Please, please hate him... uh, in short, don't give away any of your feelings that belong to your older sister!

Yes, this is a cry from a sister-complex!

Yukino Yukinoshita remained expressionless. "Is that so..."

Rather than saying that Yukinoko already knew the answer would be like this, she didn't press further because this was her older sister, and she naturally knew her better than anyone... What the hell? How come you didn't know that Haruno was actually a siscon?

"Hey, your malice is practically overflowing, tone it down a bit." Kirigaya-kun chuckled as he looked over, seemingly in a good mood. Sushi, standing next to him, was also in a very good mood. Presumably, the two of them had just reached some unspeakable agreement.

"Yukino, let me tell you, this guy is a pervert, remember to stay away from him..." Yukino became wary, she hadn't forgotten what Kiritani-kun had told her that night.

"Kiritani-kun's reputation for being a pervert is well-known, isn't it?" Yukino-chan said matter-of-factly, as if it were a given.

"Pervert?" Kiritani pushed up his black-rimmed glasses. "Biologically speaking, it's not just me, you guys are all perverts too!"

"Isn't it abnormal for a tadpole to transform into a toad?"

"And the process by which a person transforms from a fertilized egg into a baby is also abnormal, isn't it!"

P.S.: Well... on Qixi Festival, if I have extra time, I'll write a Valentine's Day bonus chapter.

Please send me a razor blade~ Please give me a tip~

Gently tap~

212

【NO.210 Qixi Festival? What's that?】

Hokkaido is undoubtedly a great tourist destination. If you had come a month or two earlier, you might have been able to see a few cherry blossoms falling, but now only bare tree trunks remain, which is a bit of a shame...

However, this area is located in a mountainous forest area near the sea, and because it had rained last night, there was still a thin layer of mist around it, and the nearby green plants looked quite vibrant with life.

Although it's a good time for travel now, it's still a weekday, so there aren't too many tourists here. Even the students here mostly won tour tickets in a raffle... Speaking of which, Yang said she has tickets... she probably bought them with her own money. If she won them in a raffle, she'll probably have to go with a tour group.

But it's not really that important. Instead of thinking about it here, I'd rather look at the scenery around me.

This trip wasn't planned in detail, since everyone has different preferences. For example, Kiritani-kun wants to go for a walk in the mountains, while Shizuka-sensei wants to sunbathe on the beach, and Haruno wants to buy a tent and have a picnic in the mountains...

In addition, the well-behaved Shiina Mashiro, carrying her art supplies, pulled Asuna to the rooftop, saying she wanted to paint the scenery there. Kiritani-kun didn't have much to say—really, for him, since they were on vacation, shouldn't they put their work aside?

Well, how should I put it? Akane Kosaka perfectly demonstrated the above statement. After putting away her luggage, this woman, who had been working late into the night, fell asleep instantly.

By the way, most people's rooms are double rooms, only Kiritani-kun and Kosaka Akane have single rooms... Putting everything else aside, just considering Haruno's situation—ah, she's never been in such a good mood!

Yang Nai believes this trip was the best decision she ever made.

With cool, clear eyes, the girl brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and slowly walked up to Kirigaya-kun. "Kirigaya-kun, I have something I want to say to you."

This was a bit unexpected, because Kiritani couldn't think of anything she could say to him, since they didn't interact much usually, and in fact, Yukino was much less familiar with Haruno than she was with him.

Kirigaya glanced at the women who were still arguing about the next activity, nodded slightly, and then walked to a chair at the edge and sat down. Yukino sat down opposite Kirigaya, keeping her eyes fixed on him and never letting him out of her sight.

"What's matter?"

"May I ask, what is your relationship with... my sister?" Yukinoshita looked at the lazy-looking boy in front of her. She was genuinely curious because, in some ways, this guy seemed to know her sister better than she did, and it seemed like they had known each other for quite some time.

However, Yukino had not noticed this at all before, and this guy had even mentioned it a long time ago, but Yukino hadn't paid attention to it at the time.

“A close friend, the kind that’s really close.” After a moment’s thought, Kiritani gave a definition that was relatively easy to understand.

Incidentally, in Kiritani's social circle, Yukino Yukinoshita is currently the one he has the least close relationship with.

"...Hmm, do you need me to define what kind of close friend you are?"

"No...no need." Although she didn't have any friends, Yukinoshita could roughly understand what constituted a truly close friend. Even if she hadn't eaten pork, she'd surely seen a pig run... well, it seemed she really hadn't...

In short, based on Yuihama's situation... it should be fine, right?

Of course, Yukino didn't know if she and Yui Hama could be considered close friends, or rather, she didn't know if she and Yui Hama could be considered friends yet, but from Yui Hama's perspective, there was no doubt that they were.

Kiritani raised an eyebrow slightly. "You want to know about your sister from me?"

"For the time being... you could say that, if it's permissible." Yukino hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded.

She knew that the kind of verbal suppression used against Hachiman Hikigaya or Ryunosuke Akasaka to gain a superficial advantage would be useless here, because this guy was abnormal. Compared to the other two members of the Service Club, this guy had obviously experienced a lot of ups and downs, and those kinds of petty tricks... might only make him a laughing stock.

Well, it's important for people to know their own limitations...

However, we should be happy for Yukino now, as it's rare that Yukinoshita Yukinoshita has become interested in her little-known deeds.

So, what should I tell her?

A rather embarrassing moment in my past... um, the time I almost slept on the street?

Or was it that time when she had a mental breakdown and compared me to Yukinoko in front of her and Akane Kousaka?

Or... that time when Haruno cried to me about how her sister hated her?

Wow, this guy has so much going on... What should I talk about?

“Well then… let me tell you about what happened recently.” Kiritani-san gave a subtle smile. “Next, I’ll play your older sister, and you’ll play me… Of course, you don’t need to say anything, because I’m just a listener in this story.”

"Oh... um." Yukinoshita's expression changed slightly, and she nodded somewhat subtly.

Is this... a way to complain?

Seeing Kiritani-san begin to adjust his expression, Yukino Yukinoshita made this guess.

"Yukino...it seems like something's wrong lately." Kirigaya Kazuto's Yukinoshita Haruno put on a worried expression, and even used a fake voice to make the performance more realistic.

"...!!" Yukinoshita's expression changed again, seemingly not expecting that this guy could change his voice.

"You know, even a college student like me isn't exactly free, you know. I have to learn this and that every day, plus I'm the eldest daughter of the Yukinoshita family..." At this point, Kiritani-san took a deep breath, calming her agitated mind, "Do you think I want to wear that mask every day..."

"Shut up, you male dog!"

A terrifying scream accompanied by a fragrant breeze wafted over. Kiritani-san raised her hand to block in front of her. Yukinoshita, who had been crouching beside her and spying for a long time, rushed in front of Kiritani-san, but was stopped. Even so, she still reached out and covered Kiritani-san's mouth to stop her from continuing, glaring angrily at the bootleg Yukinoshita.

"Don't say it!"

Kiritani paused for a moment, not expecting that this siscon was actually eavesdropping from the side. "...Alright, stop looking at me like that. You don't need to say anything. I know what you want to say. You're wasting precious oxygen on Earth."

"Eh—Eh eh eh?" Ms. Yang looked completely bewildered. Normally, shouldn't she be pressing me down on the table and continuing the conversation? Why... is this not what I expected?

"If someone like you wants to continue existing, why don't you practice inhaling carbon dioxide and exhaling oxygen?"

"Eh...ah, you, Kazuto..."

Seeing the look in Kirigaya's eyes, which resembled a large, non-combustible piece of trash, pained Haruno—of course, Haruno was probably feeling ashamed, but she didn't understand that Kirigaya was actually helping her, helping her evolve from an inadequate siscon to a qualified one, but unfortunately…

"I was just repeating what you said; I didn't embellish it. Why are you shouting so loudly? I really don't understand. Are you going through menopause?"

"N-no, that's not true!" Yang Nai felt inexplicably guilty, and her rebuttal became somewhat weak.

"So, sister... is this something you're hiding?" Yukino Yukinoshita sighed, as if she had given up on something. But it has to be said that the topic that was interrupted had indeed reached its most crucial moment. If they had been given a little more time, they might have been able to learn a lot of useful information.

"No, I didn't, I didn't!" Ms. Yang took two steps back, bypassing Kiritani-kun's hand, then sat down next to him and whispered in his ear, "Shut up, do you want to ruin our relationship? —Or do you want to disrupt my plans?"

"Seriously... you've given yourself away. I was too hasty to even have a hunch about your intelligence." Kiritani-kun chuckled lightly. "Old Pigeon, I'm just trying to help you, so you won't come to me complaining next time. I'm not a dumping ground!"

"Just shut up and let me calm down. Helping me will be considered an act of hostility, you know~ Kazuhito~!"

"It's a miracle that a creature like you has a brain inside its skull, and now you can talk so fluently, it's truly astonishing!"

With an expression that made it impossible to tell whether she was truly angry or not, Yukinoshita Haruno moved closer to Kiritani-kun, constantly nudging him with her elbows, and her soft, full breasts would occasionally brush against his arm...

As the two statements began to align with her own attributes, Yukino Yukinoshita remained expressionless. However, she knew that this conversation was over. With her older sister present, she probably wouldn't get the information she wanted. But... next time... no, she should be able to make some inferences based on the previous stage...

Their whispering seemed to have reached a point where neither of them was satisfied. Ms. Yang stopped poking at Kiritani-kun's ribs, instead reaching out to pinch his cheek, and then…

"My deep affection for you is beyond words, except for one thing—get lost!" Unconsciously, Kiritani pressed Yukino's head down on the table, then picked up a napkin from the table and stuffed it into her mouth before looking up at Yukino with satisfaction.

Yukinoko glared at him with displeasure—but this guy seems pretty skilled at it?

"Kiritani-kun, that's enough!"

P.S.: Hmm... Well, it seems I still have some time. I'll write a Qixi Festival extra chapter later. Don't get your hopes up too high; it's just some sweet romance.

By the way, do you guys have girlfriends?

By the way, please feed them, and yes, please pat them gently!

213

Qixi Festival Special Episode

[This was originally going to be placed at the end, but I felt it wasn't appropriate to add anything at the end of this chapter, so I put it here instead—anyway, Happy Qixi Festival everyone… If you don't have a girlfriend, don't bother looking, you won't find one anyway (laughs)]

"It's almost time. I have other things to do, so I'll leave the rest of the arrangements to you. Is that alright?"