"Yuu! Can you explain what is going on here?"
The next morning at Grand Blue, Miyazawa Yuu guiltily turned his head away, completely unable to face Iori, who was already brimming with killing intent.
They had clearly agreed to give up the room, but he brazenly slept right next to the guy's sister all night, and was then caught in the act by the older brother, red-handed with the evidence…
Looking at it from another perspective, if it had been Iori who sneaked into Shiori-chan's room, he probably wouldn't even be able to be pieced back together now!
"Ugh… Life guidance for a young girl? That's what it was!"
"Hoh hoh, life guidance, huh?"
His fingers cracked loudly under the pressure, Kitahara Iori didn't believe a word of it!
What kind of life guidance has to be done secretly in the dead of night! This scumbag seems to have trouble distinguishing between H-anime and reality!
"Um, Onii-chan…"
"Don't say anything, Shiori-chan, your older brother will definitely get justice for you!"
"No, no, no… Yuu-onii-chan actually didn't do anything!"
She quickly stepped forward and grabbed her older brother's hand, which was attempting to light the Molotov Cocktail of the Water of Life, Kitahara Shiori shook her head frantically, her eyes terrified.
Although she was truly touched that her older brother was defending her like this!
But what was with this wide-area destruction weapon, even if it was an equipment fight, he should at least use a weapon without AOE splash damage!
"I don't believe it! Prepare to die, Yuu!"
"Onii-chan!"
"Sigh, Shiori-chan, this won't work…"
Letting out a deep sigh, Miyazawa Yuu could tell by the situation that Shiori-chan's words alone certainly wouldn't be enough to prove his innocence.
He stood up and pushed her and his own sister out the door to ensure their safety, then he looked at the murderous Iori with firm eyes and took a deep breath— "Yesterday's doujinshi... you don't have to return it!"
"Huh? What are you talking about, Yuu, I don't have any doujinshi, Greek-style nono!"
"Damn it! You greedy bastard… Then how about adding a classic volume of the Super Big Sister series?"
Yesterday's doujinshi was indeed a loss (meat bun fed to a dog), Miyazawa Yuu was heartbroken to the point of suffocating, it was a brand new product that he hadn't even read two pages of after unwrapping it!
But this was no time to haggle over details, to prevent someone from throwing pebbles at his room window while he slept, he could only painfully raise the stakes again!
"Big Sister… huh?"
His expression suddenly became scholarly, Kitahara Iori immediately pulled out the cloth stopper of the Water of Life, chugged down more than half a bottle, and said, "Deal!"
"Yosh!"
Sealing the deal with a fist bump, Miyazawa Yuu immediately retrieved the promised reward from under the bed and handed it to the unscrupulous Iori, and the two instantly reverted to their friendly, arm-over-shoulder brotherhood mode.
"Well, it was just a misunderstanding anyway! Nanaka-nee said she was going to cook a meal for us herself!"
"Is that so? I'm looking forward to it!"
Walking out together to wash up, Miyazawa Yuu gave Shiori-chan a look that said, See how awesome I am!, right before he left.
In response, Kitahara Shiori smiled politely on the surface, but in reality, the veins on her forehead were about to burst.
These two guys, actually trading classic works with each other, are they treating that kind of thing as a universal currency!
And Onii-chan sold her out a bit too cheaply, a cute imouto should at least be worth an equal volume of doujinshi!
"Hoo… Rin, let's go wash up too!"
"…"
The life guidance went on until the middle of the night, and in the past two days, she had quietly rushed to catch a train and stayed up late planning her runaway.
Having not slept well for three days, coupled with her heart knot being untied, Miyazawa Rin's small face showed no signs of being expressionless, but was instead adorably muddled.
Her steps were a bit unsteady, but her half-closed, half-open large eyes were still firmly glued to the back of her Onii-chan, and after a long while, she slowly uttered a reply: "So this is how he resolves things? Onii-chan is so amazing!"
"Huh?"
Suddenly spotting a blind spot, Kitahara Shiori looked at her little friend in horror—how did it happen that after the misunderstanding was cleared up, this girl's brother complex not only didn't disappear but seemed to have intensified!
If it were yesterday's Rin-chan, seeing her older brother trade with a doujinshi would surely lead to a collapse of her worldview and disbelief, but now she could praise even this?
"Good morning…"
"Oh! Morning, you guys look energetic!"
In the living room, Kotegawa Toshio was reading today's newspaper and looked up to see an unusually energetic Iori and Yuu.
If it were just the latter, getting up at this hour would already be considered late, but when the former was added, it made him want to check if the emergency relief supplies in the house were fully stocked.
"There's nothing we can do, after all, with Yuu gone, it feels empty around me, and I can't sleep soundly!"
"I know, right!"
"What kind of awful lines are those…"
Has Iori been conditioned to the point where he can't live without a man by his side?
Looking at his completely unaware and innocent expression, Kotegawa Toshio frowned—wait, Iori was sent to the club room for observation, is it too late to bring him back now?
"Good morning, Toshio-ojisan, and Onii-chan shouldn't say things like that!"
Having regained her composure and setting off again, Kitahara Shiori spoke with a pointed implication, trying to test the waters: "After all, the work at the inn requires getting up much earlier than today!"
"I don't do work at the inn."
Without a moment's thought, Kitahara Iori chugged down the remaining half bottle of the Water of Life, and then slammed the empty bottle onto the table like an old man.
"Guhah! That's some great water!"
"…"
The smile on Kitahara Shiori's face instantly froze, she never expected that even subconsciously, her Onii-chan was so resistant to inheriting the inn.
And she already knew the bottle contained alcohol, so for big brother to pretend it was water again, wasn't he underestimating her intelligence a bit too much!
"Onii-chan!"
"Hmm, what is it, Rin-chan?"
On the other side, feeling a tug on his sleeve twice, Miyazawa Yuu looked down in confusion, only to see his imouto, who had been ranting about killing him yesterday, was now exceptionally shy after waking up.
"Can I, hug your arm? Like before!"
"Er…"
He felt like something was wrong, but being stared at by Rin-chan's large eyes, filled with anticipation and longing, Miyazawa Yuu had no room to refuse!
"You can."
"That's great! I love Onii-chan the most~"
With a little jump of joy, Miyazawa Rin immediately clung tightly to her older brother, her face full of happiness.
Anyway, she wasn't a brother complex, and physical contact was just normal emotional interaction between siblings, no need to worry!
"Oh my, are you all already up? Good morning, Dad."
"Morning!"
Pulling aside the curtain, Kotegawa Nanaka came out of the kitchen wearing an apron, hearing the commotion, and immediately saw Yuu, who was completely bewildered from being clung to by his sister.
"Ara~ Rin-chan and Yuu's relationship is truly wonderful!"
"Good morning, Nanaka-nee!"
Nimbly jumping down from her brother and bowing, Miyazawa Rin smiled and tilted her head, apologizing, "I'm sorry for causing trouble for big brother and Nanaka-nee yesterday!"
"Ah, you mean the part about planning to kill Yuu yesterday…"
"Exactly, but Rin no longer has that thought at all now."
From a rampaging loli shrouded in a death aura to a well-behaved girl next door, Kotegawa Nanaka was intensely struck by an overwhelming wave of cuteness, and a huge question mark involuntarily rose above her head.
Casting a look seeking an explanation towards the culprit, Miyazawa Yuu was also utterly bewildered at this point.
Shouldn't clearing up the misunderstanding make Rin return to normal? Why does the girl now seem even stranger than when she was shouting about killing him!
"Um, Rin-chan, Shiori-chan~ What would you like for breakfast? Your big sister will make it for you~"
Thinking that Rin rekindling her relationship with Yuu was certainly not a bad thing, and seeing that Yuu was also looking purely dumbfounded, Kotegawa Nanaka quickly put the question out of her mind.
Turning and walking towards the kitchen, she prepared to fulfill her duty as the hostess and make a delicious breakfast for the two newcomers.
"Ah, Nanaka-nee~"
Quickly turning her head, Kitahara Shiori was disappointed in her own older brother, who showed no care for her, but the plan for the foolish older brother to return home had to continue!
"May I please help with making breakfast?"
"But Shiori-chan is a guest, please just sit and relax, don't trouble yourself."
"No."
Feigning shyness and slightly tilting her head, Kitahara Shiori awkwardly explained: "Actually, I wanted my older brother to taste food made with my own hands…"
"Oh my, oh my, then let's cook together!"
There was no way Nanaka could refuse such an obedient and sensible child.
If Chisa was willing to cook for her, she would probably faint with joy! Iori is truly lucky!
"Then I'll help too…"
"Okay! Thank you, Yuu Onii-chan~"
Bowing sweetly in thanks, Kitahara Shiori took out a knife and quickly glanced sideways at the sluggish Miyazawa Yuu.
Although yesterday's fried pork cutlet truly amazed her, a mere university student, even one with all A's in home economics, couldn't possibly surpass her, someone who frequently helped in the kitchen back home!
Heh heh! The Great Campaign for the Foolish Older Brother's Homecoming begins!