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

Koko followed me everywhere, just like a little shadow.

If a kid in middle school, not even elementary school, did that, it wouldn’t be surprising if people started to look at them weirdly.

Furthermore, Koko’s way of speaking was, depending on how you looked at it, quite childish, wasn’t it?

A person’s speech is heavily influenced by how they’ve lived their life. Someone who doesn’t speak well might come up with strange combinations of words even if their thought process works logically.

In Koko’s case, she seemed to think logically… at least when it came to grades, she was on par with me or even slightly higher. It made me feel a bit embarrassed as I worried about whether I could get into the same high school.

However, the reason I said “seemed” cautiously was that her logical thinking was often overshadowed by her peculiar catchphrases like “Wow!” and “Huh?”

She had the knowledge and could adapt, but her speech was still short and childish like when I first met her. Well, maybe it had gotten a bit longer since then? Still, it was similar to a kid’s way of talking.

Here she was, following closely behind me, expressing childlike exclamations, yet somehow, she was my age.

Strangely enough, that atmosphere seemed to be perceived by people as “cute.”

You shouldn’t judge people solely by their appearance, but no matter how you think about it, there’s not much else to assess other than first impressions besides looks. Two cute girls, especially if they looked completely identical, were bound to be perceived as double the cuteness by others.

But let’s be real.

It’s a bit much to want to follow me into the bathroom too.

“… Koko. It’s a bit weird for you to come in here.”

“Uh-huh?”

“No, even if you look at me with that pitiful expression, some things just aren’t acceptable.”

That’s right.

Koko still maintained her unique way of speaking, but at the same time, she was capable of logical thought.

Her innocent character remained, but she also knew how to use her looks to her advantage. So at times, Koko could appear a little cunning.

I didn’t think that was bad. She didn’t show that expression unless it was with people she was close to, and it didn’t seem like she had any ulterior motives.

In fact, every time Kagami wore a slightly gloomy expression, she’d cling to Koko and help cheer her up, so I welcomed this kind of “intuition.”

I could see through Koko’s little acts, so it wasn’t a big deal.

However, recently, there were moments when Koko showed that expression which made things a bit troublesome.

Every time I needed to separate from Koko, she wore that kind of expression.

That “separating” didn’t mean being far away. Most prominently, it started from going to the bathroom, to running small errands, or when I had teacher duties. Koko trailed behind me every time.

To others, we probably looked like a pair of twins with a good bond, but knowing that Koko had some level of independence, I couldn’t help but think something was amiss.

“But….”

When I said this in front of the bathroom, Koko tilted her head and replied.

“What if Koto Ne disappears?”

“….”

I had nothing to say to Koko’s words. After all, I had actually experienced disappearing.

Kagami told me that Koko was on the beach looking for me. I knew my presence was somewhere nearby, but Koko didn’t know how to enter the nest.

Then there was me, bursting out into the open covered in blood.

There was no way she wouldn’t have developed a trauma.

If it were me, I wouldn’t be able to contain my feelings if I saw Kagami in that state. For Koko, I was the one who had saved her. Just like a baby bird seeing a bigger presence for the first time and thinking it’s its mother, Koko viewed me that way.

“I’m not going to disappear.”

I told Koko that.

“Even if I’m apart for just a moment, I’ll come back right away.”

Of course, no matter how much Koko pressed, she didn’t try to come into the same stall. She already knew that was “a troublesome thing to do.”

Still, forcing her to wait outside was a bit much.

Koko had been following my requests well until now.

Whether she liked her current form or not, it seemed Koko didn’t want to change from that state. Even though she could probably enter anywhere just by wanting to.

I appreciated that…but it also meant additional trouble.

“Uh-huh.”

Koko made that sound while grabbing my sleeve.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

“… Alright.”

With her acting this way, how could I say she shouldn’t?

*

At home, when we slept, we did go to Kagami’s room to sleep in the same bed, but usually, I shared a room with Koko.

Well, I generally preferred when the entire family gathered in the living room rather than being alone with her in a room.

As time went by, I felt a strange unease. The more I went through various accidents, the more I feared I might end up alone like I did in my previous life.

Even though I would plan to avoid that, it wasn’t until I became a high school student that I could really understand the future.

That’s why, when the family was home, I wanted to keep them all within my sights.

But today was a bit different.

Koko seemed to feel unease much greater than mine. In addition, that clinginess was directed towards me.

While Kagami and Dad also liked Koko, it seemed she trusted me the most, the person she met first.

When we were in our room, we’d typically watch manga together or play games, but today we lay side by side in bed. It was technically a bed designed for one person, but it was big enough for an adult man, so perhaps that’s why we both had a bit of space left between us.

I wasn’t exactly sure why we were acting differently either. I just… wanted to do that. Sometimes you just want to lie there and do nothing.

“Hey, Koko.”

With that opportunity, I tried to talk to Koko.

“Koto Ne?”

Koko’s answer was always like that. Even though she was responding in my voice, it still sounded slightly different. Especially her way of speaking.

After starting the conversation, I pondered long and hard about what to ask.
Why do you follow me so closely? Isn’t that a bit aggressive?

After a long struggle, the only thing I could come up with was, “Do you like me?”

Saying it out loud felt a bit off too. Do siblings typically ask that sort of thing?

So far, my sister has never said she liked me. She once said she wanted to kill me. …Though, if we’re talking about positive feelings, there was worry and gratitude.

But still, because we were family, of course, I loved her as family. I only truly realized this after losing everyone.

“Yeah!”

Koko sprang up from her place, looking down at me.

“I like Koto Ne!”

“Really? Why?”

“Why, huh?”

“Yeah. Why do you like me so much?”

Koko thought for a moment. From the way her fingers twitched, she seemed to be counting the reasons she liked me rather than just saying them.

“Because Koto Ne gave me something delicious.”

“…?”

Was she talking about the candy I first gave her?

“Mom gives delicious things too.”

“Yeah.”

Koko frowned slightly and tilted her head.

“But Koto Ne gave it to me first.”

“…Really?”

Is that it? Because I was the first one to give her something?

Though, it seemed there had to be more reasons than that.

“Koto Ne doesn’t hate Koko. That’s why I like you.”

“I see.”

That’s true. I hadn’t done anything violent since we first met.

I was the one who released Koko’s seal. If you think of it that way, it’s not so strange for her to like me.

“…”

In the far future, pondering how we should live when we grow up didn’t yield any answers.

For now, everything was fine as it was. We were still young. For the next few years, isn’t it okay to be somewhat carefree in this aspect?

The one to be wary of would be Kosuzu, and beyond that, it would be better to gather together.

I thought about saying something like we’d need some time apart, but it seemed better to let things gradually become natural rather than forcing it.

Even Koko, as she appears, probably finds the world scary. After all, she hadn’t been out for very long.

It was similar to when Kagami first brought me outside.

But having undergone such things myself, it can’t be helped that she would react that way for a while.

As I lay there blankly staring at the ceiling, I heard Kagami’s voice calling us from outside the door. It seemed she was calling from downstairs.

Did she prepare some fruit or something?

“Should we go down?”

“Yeah!”

Koko replied energetically.

As if everything in the world was simply good and enjoyable.

Having witnessed that smile made everything else feel like it didn’t matter, and I found myself smiling as well.

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