I Became the Final Subjugation Target of That Era’s Light Novel

So, thinking back, have I ever slept over at someone else’s house?

For sure, I don’t think I’ve ever stayed up alone. Most of the time, I returned home late with Kagami, and whenever I had to sleep outside, Kagami always went with me.

It’s not like that was unnatural. I mean, wasn’t I just an elementary school student until last year? I hardly ever slept over at friends’ houses when I was younger.

So, the only times I slept outside were during moments of fun.

There was also the school trip, but… um, at that time…

For some reason, I kept catching glimpses of Kagami in my peripheral vision. Maybe realizing I couldn’t pretend not to notice, Kagami was also hiding away, but I still thought it was a bit too much that he followed me all the way to Kyoto.

But at least, he didn’t come in to sleep with me. Well, thinking about it, Kyoto isn’t really all that far.

…

No, but still, it was too much.

“Koto Ne?”

As I stared at my phone, lost in thought, Yuka spoke up.

“What’s up? Are you in trouble?”

“No, not at all.”

I forced a smile.

[I’ll be waiting for you to come early tomorrow morning.]
[I’m going to shrink away from loneliness, you know?]

Kagami had sent me such messages.

He allowed it for now, but he still wanted me to come as early as possible tomorrow.

That said, at one point, he used to tell me I should sleep separately, but eventually, all that disappeared. Well, I was the problem. It was me who had crawled into Kagami’s bed without permission.

Today, I guess I’ll be lonely too. After all, Kagami won’t be here, and maybe I’ll shrink away from loneliness as well.

“It’s because Mom is worried.”

“No, no matter what, guests at our house don’t get treated like that.”

“I know that.”

I answered with a smile.

We were in Yuka’s room now.

The one who brought us here was Dad. He drove us as far as Yuka’s neighborhood, then it was Yuka who took over as navigator in this area.

Back in the days when there weren’t any GPS systems.

If I think that has a bit of charm to it, does that mean I’m getting older?

It’s either a blessing or a disappointment, but thankfully, Yuka’s house wasn’t located within the shrine grounds. It was nicely placed among other houses outside the shrine area.

Of course, just because it was a priest’s house didn’t mean the interior was especially decorated or anything.

I thought if I kept looking at my phone, Yuka would start to worry, so I casually put it on the table and looked around the room again.

It wasn’t very big. It probably had around the same size as the room I stay in.

My room isn’t one where I put a lot of effort into decorating. Compared to Harumi’s sparkly room or Yuuki’s surprisingly neat place, or Mako’s room that has a warm atmosphere, it doesn’t stand out much.

How should I put it? It felt like a very plain room.

Yuka’s room had a similar vibe, but…

It carried a bit of Yuka’s unique atmosphere from spending such a long time in this room.

There were a few comic books on the shelf. A few manga magazines too. Plus some novels and textbooks.

The room had a small TV and a game console connected to it. It seemed to have aged a bit since the last time it was touched.

How should I put it? It had a slightly boyish feel to it too.

“Can I read a magazine?”

When I asked, Yuka smiled slightly.

“Well, sure. It’s not like reading would ruin them.”

I grabbed one of the most recent manga magazines. It seemed Yuka read often; the magazine was genuinely up-to-date.

The manga serialized in the magazine, I knew almost all of them. At least, I had heard of them when I was younger. Well, there were certainly some I didn’t know, but overall, it was fine.

“You really seem to like this.”

“Uh-huh.”

“So, you’re hiding it from your mom?”

“… Yeah, I guess.”

I laughed and put the magazine back on the shelf.

Yuka sat cross-legged on her bed, watching me intently. I pulled out a chair from her desk and sat down.

“……”

“……”

We fell into a brief silence.

“Hey, Yuka.”

“Yes?”

“Do you have someone you like?”

“Wh-what!?”

Yuka seemed startled by my question. Her face instantly turned red.

“What kind of sudden question is that?”

“Well, it feels like that’s a typical conversation kids have.”

Thinking back, I realized it might not have been true. The kids I knew didn’t really have such conversations.

… Maybe it was because we knew each other too well that we didn’t feel the need to have those talks, like Harumi, Yuuki, and Mako.

Shii and Sota were a different case, so let’s skip them.

“Is that so? Is it normal?”

“Hmm, now that I think about it, maybe it’s not…”

Yuka rolled her eyes in disbelief, then glared at me.

“Well then, what about you?”

“Me?”

“Yeah. Do you have someone you like? Since the last time I saw you, you seemed pretty close to that Sota guy.”

At that, I fell into thought for a moment.

“No, not at all.”

“… Aren’t you being a bit too straightforward?”

Yuka asked, perhaps feeling shocked at my answer.

“If you asked Sota, he’d probably be even more firm about it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah.”

“I thought he’d be popular.”

“That’s true.”

“You’re kind of annoying.”

But Yuka smiled as she said that. So, it seemed that even if she was flustered at first, she ended up finding the conversation enjoyable.

We continued our aimless chatting, talking about what we usually do during breaks and our hobbies. Unfortunately, there were a few questions we awkwardly struggled to answer for each other, but I could feel the walls between Yuka and me were getting lower.

Soon, we heard someone calling for us from downstairs, and we hurried down.

“…”

I momentarily locked eyes with Yuka’s grandfather, but he just smiled at me without saying a word.

I figured he was probably wary of me, but since I was just a friend brought by his granddaughter, he had no reason to show that feeling.

Sukiyaki was delicious. I had eaten it outside before, but there was another taste to homemade food.

The atmosphere also felt nice.

It felt so warm and loving, just like the meals I shared with my dad, Kagami, and sometimes Shii and Sota.

To be honest, I had doubted Yuka’s grandfather and father at one point.

I mean, it felt a little odd for them to let their daughter be in such a situation openly.

But thinking back, it was just that they had no choice in the matter.

Just like Kagami, who reluctantly allowed me to hunt Yōkai.

Quietly, I had my meal and listened to the three’s conversation. Their tales of everyday life, unrelated to work, tickled my ears like pleasant music.

Someday, will I have a day where I can sit and share those conversations with Kagami?

…

I should make it happen.

Once again, I earnestly resolved to myself.

—

Yuka spread a blanket under her bed and lay down.

Even when I offered to sleep below, Yuka stubbornly rejected and pulled me onto the bed.

This felt like a scene I’d seen often in comics.

But because of that, it wasn’t like we could lie together like at a typical pajama party and look at each other.

“… This is the first time I’ve invited a friend over.”

Yuka said.

“Is that so?”

“When I think about it, it’s a little strange. I did have friends as close as you before. Even if it was shorter in terms of time, I probably had more conversations with some of them?”

Well, they would have had to be kids from the same school they attended.

“Maybe it’s because we share secrets like this.”

“Secrets?”

Yuka questioned my mutterings.

“Is there a secret we share that friends would talk about?”

“Hmm… well, that’s a tricky question, but it’s true it’s a bit of an ambiguous secret to discuss with others.”

And another reason might be that I was a friend from another school in the first place. Kids from the same school naturally drift apart and stop contacting each other, but I made an effort to stay in touch with Yuka.

I consistently sent her casual emails, not just when we worked together.

“Actually, when I asked earlier if you had someone you liked, it would’ve been another secret.”

“What’s that?”

Yuka laughed.

“No, I said I don’t!”

“Hmm, then what about your favorite characters?”

“I do have some… wait, why are you asking that?”

“Oh, it’s just a natural question to ask.”

We laughed again.

Maybe that was too much of an otaku-like question.

Well, Sota had always seemed to understand otaku tendencies quite well, and Yuka also seemed like someone who casually brushes over such things, but now I was even more sure.

I think I could get closer to Yuka.

---