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

I thought to move to another place—

To be honest, I was a bit curious too.

I wasn’t someone who read [Tokyo Slayers] all the way through, but I had enjoyed the beginning a lot. I really got immersed in the protagonist.

And naturally, I liked the situations between the protagonist and the heroines. It’s a harem, after all!

It’s a bit hard to pick just one favorite heroine, but back when my teenage hormones were raging, I definitely liked the big sister-type heroines.

For reference, out of the three heroines, the one you could call “normal” was just the childhood friend, while the other two were the types that would turn your daily life upside down the more you spent time with them.

First, Yuuki was a kid who caught yokai while working at a shrine,

And the other big sister heroine wasn’t a yokai… well, she was more of an exorcist.

That’s right. She’s a nun.

If you ask me why a nun is not in a church or a convent wearing a veil, I wouldn’t really know what to say. I’m not the author, after all.

Back in those days, it was popular for maids to wield guns or knives, or for nuns or priests to wield blades and slay vampires. Maybe the author just really wanted to put a nun in this attire.

Despite mentioning Catholicism and the Vatican, it was a far cry from the real thing as I knew it. The author openly admitted in the afterword that they had just taken the names and structures and made it all up. They even said something like, “As long as it looks cool, who cares? Hahahaha!” in that overconfident tone often found in afterwords back then, which I quite liked.

So, if you ask who Yuuki’s real rival is, it would be that senior character—

—But right now, that’s not really true.

Hmm.

“I get what you’re worried about, little sister.”

We sat side by side on a nearby park bench with Shii in between Yuuki and me. Yuuki surprisingly seemed quite interested in romance.

Well, he was portrayed that way in the original story too. He pretended to be uninterested in lewd stuff while actually wanting to know quite a bit… he was that kind of character.

“It would be a little awkward if you have two girls wrapped around you, right?”

However, honestly, the expression on his face was filled with curiosity rather than worry.

“Yeah… That’s right. I thought there were hardly any girls around you until now, and suddenly two show up.”

Hmmm.

I knew all too well how suddenly he had gotten involved with two girls, but I kept my mouth shut.

If I accidentally let slip that I already knew about that relationship, it would be a disaster. It’d look like I was stalking him or something!

After all, Shii was aware that I was quite close to her big brother, and there was a possibility I could be a girlfriend candidate. I had just cleared up that misunderstanding; it would be troublesome if it evolved into something weirder.

In the original story, Sasaki’s childhood friend was someone he hadn’t had a decent conversation with for quite some time.

There was a time when the Sasaki siblings lived in a different area due to their parents’ issues. They fought hard during the divorce process, and the father took Sota while the mother took Shii. Naturally, the siblings’ last names changed for a while.

During that time, Sasaki Sota’s family went overseas for about two years following his father’s business trip.

For reference, the reason for the divorce was infidelity; Shii’s mother fell for another younger man.

The father’s side said, “We won’t be raising both kids. We’ll just take the boy to carry on the family name,” and the mother responded, “Then so be it,” which ultimately led to that outcome.

Naturally, once Shii’s mother took her away after the divorce, the father was furious about it.

Shii was often neglected at home, and her mother spent all the money she had brought, including child support, on another man.

When Sasaki Sota returned to Japan, he learned the truth and brought Shii along, and the father was outraged but—

Well, he eventually gave his “approval,” but on the condition that they wouldn’t expect any financial support from him while living together.

Sasaki Sota chose to take care of his sister directly while working part-time.

The reason Shii called him “older brother” also stemmed from her admiration. Moreover, since she had already been abandoned by her mother, she wanted to act like the “perfect little sister” in front of her brother to avoid being abandoned again.

So, the existence of “big brother’s girlfriend” was a threat to her life and daily routine. If brother Sasaki Sota were to fall for his girlfriend, Shii would be abandoned—this was the biggest reason in the story for why Shii kept an eye on any potential girlfriends.

Furthermore, the decisive reason for their parents’ divorce was infidelity. There’s no way she would accept a “harem.”

The reason I know all this so well is that this part was very memorable.

“……”

Now that I’ve sorted this out, it feels even more dangerous.

But how do I reassure Shii?

Ah!

Shii suddenly clapped her hands.

Then, with sparkling eyes, she looked at me.

“You two are acquaintances, right?”

“……”

I hesitated for a moment before pointing at Yuuki with my finger.

“He’s in the same class.”

“Eh!?”

As I shifted the target, Yuuki looked extremely flustered.

Shii’s sparkling eyes turned toward Yuuki.

“Are you perhaps close to my older brother?”

“Uh, I… um…”

He probably wouldn’t say they were close.

Yuuki wasn’t that sociable of a person. He wasn’t isolated in class, but he didn’t have too many friends. He seemed to prefer close-knit relationships over wide and shallow connections.

He was a really nice guy, but it was too bad.

And if we stepped beyond the realm of same-gender friendships into romantic ones, as far as the main story is concerned, there was only Sasaki among the opposite gender at school.

“Wh-what do you mean by this?”

However, Yuuki had a fatal weakness; he was weak against smaller, cuter kids.

In fact, this story hadn’t appeared in the main narrative at all. Sasaki Sota’s childhood friend was a cute animal-spirited heroine, but in the main story, Yuuki was her rival.

He’d spend all his pocket money trying to win stuffed animals in claw machines, or he would cherish the cute bear plush Sasaki Sota had given him. To put it simply, he had a very cute side that reoccurred. In those days, you’d call it “gap moe.”

I only realized that this applied to people when I personally entered this novel.

“Could you perhaps help me out a bit?”

“Ah…”

“Please sneakily ask my big brother about his relationship with the two of them!”

“That… um…”

Yuuki’s confidence, which was oozing out a moment ago, suddenly waned.

“If the opportunity arises…?”

“Thank you!”

Looking at Shii’s sparkling eyes, it seemed like Yuuki felt he had done something terribly wrong, but—

Looking at Shii’s big smile, it seemed like it was already too late.

*

But why did Shii make such a request to Yuuki?

Yuuki was a girl too. Furthermore, she was pretty and had a good figure. She was literally a “heroine.”

Did she not consider that she could potentially be the third girl for Sasaki?

“Kurosawa, what should I do?”

The next day, during lunch.

Yuuki asked for my help.

“I’ve hardly ever talked to Sasaki.”

Scratch that, maybe he hadn’t really talked to any guys at all?

In a sense, he had indeed been in indirect conversation with boys, but I was outwardly a girl and legally a girl, so we can overlook that detail.

“Just because you’re sitting behind him doesn’t mean you can just casually chat!”

I understood.

I had been in a co-ed middle school, and the girl who sat behind me never spoke to me until the end of the school year.

…Oh, wait, is it different? Whatever.

“Besides, if you’re asking stuff like that, you should be a bit more familiar first, right? And the moment you ask, people could start thinking you’re weird. I don’t want him to think that I like him just because I asked!”

As I listened to his concerns, I took a bite of my pastry. Crunch crunch, the thin, flaky pastry stacked neatly, coated with sweetness, it was incredibly delicious. The portion was small, but it was enough for me to get through the day.

“…Excuse me? Kurosawa? Are you listening? But that’s because you said you were sitting next to him!”

Yuuki grabbed my shoulder and shook it, causing my vision to sway.

“I understand.”

Indeed, if you weren’t really close to someone, asking about who they were dating could feel a little awkward. Especially if you were asking, “Are you dating two girls at the same time?”

The truth was, he wasn’t dating either girl.

I thought for a moment and looked out the window.

Hmm.

It was still kind of drab outside, but it didn’t look like it would rain.

So… maybe this would work.

“I do have a method.”

“A method?”

To Yuuki’s follow-up, I explained my plan.

“…Isn’t that a bit too easy to misinterpret?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

I asserted confidently.

Because, after all, Sasaki Sota was the “harem protagonist.”

He would never misinterpret it, so relax.

I took another bite of my pastry.

*

My plan was simple.

I always arrived at school early in the morning. There were hardly anyone around while changing my shoes, so it was quite easy to leave a note in Sasaki Sota’s shoe locker without getting caught.

What Yuuki had called “a potential misinterpretation” was precisely because of this.

“Meet me on the rooftop after school.”

That note would absolutely look suspicious to anyone who saw it. I had purposely torn off a random sheet of paper and hastily scribbled it down, folding it to fit in, but any guy would feel their heart race upon receiving such a note.

Wondering if it was left by a girl wanting to confess to him.

But to repeat, Sasaki Sota was the “harem protagonist.”

“W-w-what’s going on?”

When Sasaki Sota met me on the rooftop, he stammered out the words.

The sky was slightly clearer than yesterday. It was still overcast enough to look like it might rain, but it wasn’t pouring down.

“I just wanted to ask something for a second.”

“What do you want to ask?”

“I saw you walking with two girls yesterday.”

“Ah.”

“And I wanted to ask if you were dating both at the same time.”

“Uh… is that all you wanted to say?”

I nodded my head.

A hint of disappointment appeared on Sasaki Sota’s face.

He probably was expecting something like, “What should I do? She confessed to me!” It’s only natural, given he had no reason to date me or even think of wanting to date me that he would be rattling his brain trying to think of how to refuse.

And this was why I hadn’t worried about anything.

Sasaki Sota was the “harem protagonist” of those days.

That meant he was painfully oblivious when it came to matters of love.

Trying to enjoy summer festivals with a childhood friend wearing a yukata, while she’d confess at the perfect moment but the fireworks would explode instead, and though he may have seen her lips say “I love you” he’d still be there asking, “Huh? What was that?” in confusion.

So if I did not blatantly confess, Sota would just think, “Ah, that was a misunderstanding.”

“So… um…”

“What about you? Are you dating them?”

“Uh, no.”

As I asked bluntly, Sasaki shook his head side to side as he immediately replied.

“Right.”

I nodded my head.

“……”

“……”

“So, was that all you wanted to say?”

“Yup.”

At my words, Sasaki’s shoulders slumped slightly.

“So… can I ask why you asked?”

“I thought it might cause a misunderstanding for others, so I wanted to let you know.”

“Ah, I see.”

Hearing my words, Sasaki nodded.

“The girls are both someone I’ve known since childhood, and one of them is a senior I happened to be connected with… They were probably just trying to mess with me. The senior is that kind of person.”

“I see.”

I nodded along.

“Got it. It’s still better to be careful.”

“Uh… understood. Thanks?”

Sasaki said that and scratched his head.

When I looked up at Sasaki, he began to slowly turn away and said,

“U-um, I’ll go now?”

“Okay. Thanks for answering.”

“Uh, thanks for… whatever.”

Only then did Sasaki muster a faint smile on his face, but it still held a look of “what was that?” as he turned to leave through the open door.

Creek, bang.

When the rooftop door closed, Yuuki emerged from behind a wall he had been hiding behind.

“This actually worked.”

“He’s the kind of person who wouldn’t misinterpret these things.”

“Is that so…? But how did you know?”

“I had met him once before.”

In Akihabara, of course.

I couldn’t say that I had a particularly lengthy conversation with him, but it wasn’t like I couldn’t make any judgments from the conversation we had. Just knew him well enough to fill in the gaps.

“Really?”

“Shii had learned about it that time too.”

“I see…”

Interestingly enough, my entanglement with Shii and Sasaki had begun prior to my interactions with Yuuki.

Both incidents had been random coincidences.

“Well then, let’s go tell Sasaki’s younger sister first!”

Yuuki said cheerfully.

*

“Hmm…”

“Hmm?”

But Shii seemed dissatisfied with our answer.

“Why? Is it a bit lacking?”

“Ah, I’m sorry, um…”

Shii averted her gaze, rolling her eyes.

“I’ve known for a while that my brother is kind of dense…”

…Well, that makes sense.

Shii lives right next to Sasaki.

“Even if they’re not dating right now, it’s very possible they might end up dating down the line.”

“No, the normal thing would be someone dating just one of them.”

“But what if your brother dates one of them, and the other one can’t accept that?!”

“……”

Yuuki was momentarily at a loss for words.

Then he looked toward me as if asking for help.

Hmm.

What should I say?

Even if I had some idea about Sasaki’s sister in front of Shii, it would be a little awkward to pretend I knew her well.

Moreover, since I honestly knew the ‘big sister’ character’s personality, I hesitated to speak.

It wasn’t exactly blatant yandere, but she wasn’t someone I could let my guard down around either.

It wouldn’t be out of character if she resorted to violent means to take Sasaki out of the picture.

After all, she was a nun.

While I was carefully weighing my responses, Shii suddenly clapped her hands!

“I just thought of something!”

Shii’s face turned toward me with commitment.

“You know we work at a cafe, right?”

“……”

Uh-oh, I had a feeling I knew where this was going.

“Then, what if we invite both girls along to the cafe?”

“…How?”

This time, I asked that.

“If I make up some sort of coupon or something, your brother will definitely show up! I can give him three coupons!”

“Our cafe doesn’t do that.”

I thought of the manager’s face for a moment.

Even though he generously gave things away in the storeroom, he absolutely didn’t offer anything for free on the menu.

“If I make the coupons, it’s fine. Then I’ll just pay the manager!”

“……”

I glanced over at Yuuki.

Yuuki was smirking towards me, as if he found this hilarious.

…What a situation.

I looked at Shii, who was shining with excitement, and contemplated how I should handle her.

*

In any case, the next day.

I thought there was no way he’d actually bring two girls when I was thinking about that coupon thing—my expectations were shattered completely.

Sasaki didn’t even have a boyfriend, so why on earth would he show up to the cafe with two girls? Was he out of his mind? No matter how blocked off he was, wouldn’t a guy typically notice it?

In the original work, there were instances of him getting beaten by jealous friends for having a harem. Though it was exaggerated for comedic effect and not real anger, it was somewhat reflective of boyish rivalry.

There was definitely some sort of “light novel event” happening behind the scenes that led to the three of them gathering like this.

“Oh wow, there really is a maid here! So cute. Is this Sasaki’s type? If you want, I could put one on too.”

“Hahaha…”

That came from the ‘big sister’ type. Judging from her looks, she seemed pure and charming. She had beautifully maintained black hair, neatly cut straight at the back, and the bangs were long enough to be swept over one ear.

But her figure… I thought it was even better than Yuuki, who I considered “charming.”

Sasaki appeared quite uncomfortable, awkwardly scratching his cheek.

“What, what? Sasaki, is this your style? You’re even dressing Shii up in these kinds of clothes…!”

“I-it’s not like I put her in this outfit!?”

Next to him stood a chubby-looking girl with a lively vibe, short hair, and spirited energy.

In terms of atmosphere, she felt like a mix of Miura and Kaneko. They didn’t overlap much since neither had directly appeared in the original story. If you married them too closely, they might end up having similar traits, but she probably had a bit more volume in her hair compared to Miura, who seemed more feisty.

“So… what do you want to order?”

I braced myself, thinking the shift in today’s work was going to be intense.

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