My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

I hugged the pillow tightly and rolled onto the bed.

Mizuto, my friend.

Thinking of you makes my heart flutter. What should we talk about tomorrow? Have you read that book? Did you like that story?

I think this feeling is definitely that of being in love.

Strangely enough, compared to the period when my female classmates Jie and Nan helped me work hard together, I don't find the title of "girlfriend" particularly attractive now.

Don't you think there's not much difference between friends and lovers?

Friends can be together, play together, and have fun.

Unlike couples who break up, their only drawback is that they can't do anything lewd. Some people, however, do lewd things without hesitation.

I discovered something.

Although I feel bad for Yui and Minami... I think I'm happier now than during the time I was trying to become Mizuto's girlfriend.

To become his girlfriend, you have to be liked by him.

You have to put on a show, embellish yourself, and make yourself look like a better person.

That would be very tiring.

In that respect, I'm very relaxed now!

We won't feel nervous being together, and we don't have to worry about minor makeup mishaps!

I know that Mizuto didn't mean it that way, so there's no need to worry about gender differences!

Not only that—I can still continue to like him.

There's no pressure to confess one day, so you can continue to have unrequited love forever.

As long as I can love him unconditionally forever, I don't care even if we can't reciprocate his feelings.

Because it makes me really happy.

You can have all sorts of fantasies, stealing glances at his profile, or your heart racing when you suddenly get closer.

If you joke about his heartbreak, he'll feel a little embarrassed.

Like this, my dream guy will provide an endless supply of cute moments, right? I can imagine how happy he'll be!

I don't think I'm heartbroken.

I haven't lost my relationship.

This kind of unrequited love is probably the most suitable form of romance for me.

Ah—I am truly the happiest person in the world.

God, please.

If possible, please let me be friends with Mizuto for life.

Mizuto doesn't care at all about having a girlfriend.

When Mizuto has someone he likes, he will surely become so sacred that people want to worship him.

So—God.

Please let my unrequited love never end.

Volume 4: First Kiss - Afterword

This time, there's nothing to pretend to know or any personal anecdotes related to the main story (the most I'll mention is that Mizuto's great-grandfather was detained in Siberia as an interpreter, which comes from my own grandfather), so I'm going to seriously discuss the content of this episode. Those who haven't finished watching the main story should quickly look elsewhere.

Almost without exception, romantic comedies feature a plot where the female lead discovers she likes the male lead. This could be due to receiving help during a crisis, realizing his good qualities during alone time with him, or conversely, the inability to see him or a falling out makes her feelings for him even more apparent. The plots can vary endlessly, but the common thread is always "realizing the protagonist's good qualities."

anyway.

I think you've all noticed. Yes, Yui knew perfectly well from the beginning what was so great about Mizuto. No matter how hard I tried to describe Mizuto's coolness, it was all just commonplace to her. So what to do now? How can I get Yui to like Mizuto again while maintaining the budding family bond?

The answer is written in the main text.

The story is meant to convey that a person doesn't only fall in love with someone because of their good looks.

Among a person's personality traits, self-evaluation is most strongly influenced by social status, so the influence of a person's initial social environment—relatives—should not be underestimated.

A person is like snow; at first, footprints are easily left, but slowly they are compacted and eventually become flat and slippery. High school is probably the stage before becoming flat and slippery, a state where easily influenced aspects coexist with stubbornness. One is easily influenced by others, yet unable to easily change oneself. This tedious and troublesome period, some might call youth—but let's leave that aside for now.

Next is the promotional part.

On March 25, 2020, MF Bunko J released my new work:

"転生ごときでげられるとでも、Brother さん? 》

It should be successfully listed by now—probably. As long as it passes KADOKAWA's text review.

It's another twisted love story, and another story about siblings. The book features a younger sister whose love is a little too deep. Just a little bit, really. Probably a billion times more than Nan Xiaoyue's in middle school.

I recommend everyone watch *Tensheng Gotokide* first, then come back to *My Stepmother's Burden is My Ex-Girlfriend*. I think you'll feel more deeply how precious Mizuto and Yume's story is. Seriously, you'll feel incredibly happy. So just watch it once, okay? Watching it once won't hurt.

Oh, and also, this game now has an official Twitter account (@tsurekano).

I'm considering uploading very short stories, so please be sure to follow along.

I sincerely thank the illustrator TakayaKi, the manga author Kusakabe Rei, the editors, book designers, proofreaders, bookstore staff, and all the readers—as well as everyone else related to the series.

The first phase ends in this fourth episode. I told you there wouldn't be a competition for the lead actress, right? That was a lie. By the way, the rival seems to be your past self. You ask about Higashito Isana? That girl's lying by the racetrack reading a light novel.

This concludes the article "My Stepmother's Burden is My Ex-Girlfriend 4: First Kiss Declares War," presented to you by Kajiki Kyousuke. Why isn't summer vacation over yet?

Volume 4 First Kiss Declaration of War Illustrations

Volume 5: You Are One of a Kind in the World - My Ex-Girlfriend, Facing Embarrassment, Asks, "What's wrong?! Ugh──────!"

Taiwanese version from Angel Anime Forum

Light Bookshelf × Angel Anime Entry Team

Image source: Hai

Input: kid

◆ Irito Mizuto ◆

In front of a large white tombstone, Jie Nu quietly clasped her hands together.

I don't really like the atmosphere of cemeteries. The forced silence there accentuates my emptiness.

The one who lies buried in this grave is indeed my biological mother.

However, I never met her—I only saw her face in her portrait; I had no idea what kind of voice she had or what topics she liked to talk about.

As the most pitiful character who has lost his mother, he is the one who has the least feeling for what he has lost.

That's why I really dislike tomb sweeping, because it forces me to remember this fact.

The woman who knelt quietly in front of the tombstone and closed her eyes should be just like me in this respect.

If it were Aunt Yu-ren, she would probably have some feelings about her husband's ex-wife. But she's just Aunt Yu-ren's daughter; she couldn't possibly have any feelings for my mother.

But her profile seemed to be telling my mother something...

Naturally, I couldn't help but think of that incident.

A summer festival in the countryside. At that secluded little shrine, fireworks brilliantly illuminated the face of the maiden, and then—

...What exactly was the meaning behind her defiant gaze?

Want to get back together with me? In this kind of environment? That's insane. This isn't a problem that can be solved simply by saying it's legal, is it?

What if we break up again...

And if Dad and the others find out about this—

...Even if she really had that plan, why didn't she just say it outright?

If she's willing to be frank, then I'll—I'll do what?

...How did I plan to deal with this problem back then?

My mind was filled with unresolved thoughts, swirling around in my chest. Damn it, it's making me incredibly unhappy...

"Then let's go and say hello to the abbot."

"Yume, wait for us here~"

After the tomb sweeping was over, they asked me and Jie Nu to wait at the temple entrance.

I stood about a meter away from Yui and deliberately looked up at the summer sky after the rain.

"........."

"........."

...So embarrassing...

It doesn't feel like the beginning of a relationship, nor like the middle of a relationship, nor like the beginning of living under the same roof. The atmosphere is incredibly awkward—or am I just overthinking things, and she's not even paying attention? Maybe she's just casually scrolling through her phone right now...?

I slowly turned my gaze to the side, as if I were about to touch something scalding hot.

As a result, our eyes met.

The girl kept staring into my eyes.

Her face, illuminated by the fireworks, reappeared in my mind. At such close range, her eyes, which seemed to hold hidden determination, formed an overlay before my eyes.

He seemed to want to say something but hesitated.

I felt like she was telling me through her eyes that she really wanted to tell me something.

Is it okay?

Can I really listen to what you have to say?

And then—may I give a reply?

My whole body tensed up, I stopped blinking, and I felt intensely thirsty—

My mind is blocked, but I'm still determined—

Suddenly, Jie turned her face away.

...Huh?

The woman ignored me and calmly started scrolling through her phone.

It seems like they've completely lost interest in me.

"........."

"........."

--What exactly happened?!

◆ Irito Yume ◆

"What's going on?! Ugh—!"

After returning home from tomb sweeping, I threw myself onto my bed in my room, buried my face in the pillow, and started kicking and punching wildly.

Why is this body so sluggish? It's completely useless.

I finally had some time alone with Mizuto, and our eyes even met, but I suddenly didn't know what to say. My mind was a complete mess, as if I had become mute, so I couldn't help but turn my face away to avoid the question.

I've been like this ever since we came back from the countryside.

Not only did I not dare to talk to him, I couldn't even look him in the eye. Just being in the same space made me incredibly restless. Because I couldn't let my mother and the others see my suspicious reaction, I could only tense my facial muscles and pretend to be calm.

He must have thought I was being cold to him...

No, that's not it. I just don't know what to do! I've definitely made up my mind to confess my feelings and win him back! But thinking about it carefully, I didn't actually confess back in middle school! I just got a sudden burst of excitement and impulsively wrote a love letter, and somehow I succeeded!

Now that it's time to officially go on stage, I don't know what to do... Besides, we were just bickering not long ago, so there's no point in acting cute now...

Ughhhhh! What have I been doing for the past four and a half months?!

...First of all, I should let him know that I have changed my mind.

Yeah, I should have confessed right after that kiss. We've already broken up once, so being rejected wouldn't hurt too much. And as long as I don't give up, I just keep going. I'm not a detective in a mystery novel; waiting for everything to be perfect before making a move is just a coward's excuse.

It's not too late to start now.