NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 66
“Shall I be honest?”
I actually had a lot of fun.
Of course, I still felt like a thirty-something uncle, standing awkwardly among these teenagers.
Moreover, all the kids had distinct personalities, more than just your average kids. Each one reminded me of the ‘characters’ I’d known.
I don’t know if this is still the case, but back then, we assigned ‘attributes’ to each character. Not the kind where they have powers like water or fire, but those quirky traits derived from personality types like ‘tsundere’ and ‘kuudere’.
And the characters had to be distinct, or, if they overlapped, they had to have some unique differences to help ‘sell’ them well.
This novel was no different.
Yuuki was the quintessential tsundere, Hagiwara played the role of a laid-back sister, Shii was the younger sister, and Nakahara was the childhood friend.
As for Nakahara, she didn’t play a huge role as a childhood friend; she wasn’t one of the powerful characters or linked heavily to the protagonist’s life, and her character subtly overlapped with Yuuki’s.
Of course, a tsundere childhood friend is often a given.
However, if we consider 20 years into the future, the more popular trope might be this one. The concept of a violent girl tsundere had already gone out of style ages ago.
Anyway.
It’s just lucky that these teens are 20 years behind me. If they were 20 years ahead, I wouldn’t have been able to adapt properly. Fortunately, this era gives me a sense of ‘returning to the past.’
The country might be different, but at least in the 20s, these kids would be around the same age as me.
“Ah, uh, Kurosawa-san?”
Hearing that awkward title, I turned my gaze to see Shii holding a handkerchief.
While she called my name, she wasn’t addressing me directly. She always referred to me as ‘senpai’.
Shii was looking at Koko.
“Kurosawa?”
Koko looked at me.
“Koko doesn’t fully understand the concept of surnames yet.”
I told Shii. And it was true. Koko understood that her name was Koko and that I was called Kurosawa as well as Koto Ne, but she didn’t grasp ‘why’ that was. Knowing that Yuuki called me by that surname probably helped her understand it a little.
Seeing the handkerchief, it seemed she wanted to wipe the cream from her mouth after devouring a cream puff just before.
But referring to her by her name would be strange, after all.
In Korea, it’s pretty simple—if you’re not close, you use full names, and if you are close, you just use the first name. Occasionally, someone might have a nickname that’s more famous than their actual name. In contrast, Japan has various titles, and it seems a little rude to address someone by their first name when you first meet them.
Isn’t it odd that despite the similarities in our cultures, the long-nosed folks have such different views about it?
I’ve heard it referred to as yobisute (呼び捨て), but honestly, I still don’t quite understand that line.
Fukuda usually calls everyone, including me, by their first names. Kaneko uses the nickname format of ‘first letter of the last name + chan’ for all her juniors.
Both Yuuki and Miura use my surname ‘Kurosawa’ when they call me because we’ve known each other for quite some time; I just thought that everyone changes their titles at different ages. I don’t even have a concept of what the average is.
Cultural barriers, I guess.
“Oh, um, excuse me.”
Seeing Shii suddenly flustered at being caught up in calling me ‘Kurosawa-san,’ she began to fidget.
“You can just call her Koko. She clearly understands that name.”
Now, thinking back, I was lucky to have given her an easy name to call me by.
Then again, it’s not like she couldn’t comprehend more complex names. I still had many questions about Koko’s intelligence.
“Koko, right?”
As Shii spoke, Koko looked back at her.
It seemed Koko felt a bit uneasy with Shii’s intense gaze on her. After all, she did resemble her ‘senpai’ quite a bit.
“Here, you’ve got cream on your face.”
Shii offered the handkerchief and carefully wiped away the cream smeared on Koko’s mouth.
Once Shii’s hand left, Koko immediately picked up her bread and started munching again.
“…….”
The room fell silent.
But for some reason, I understood why it became quiet this time. If she couldn’t even properly recognize her own name, it implied a significant drop in intelligence.
Everyone cautiously alternated their gazes between me and Koko.
…What to do?
I pondered for a moment, then,
“Y-you two seem quite close, huh?”
Sasaki, trying to break the awkward atmosphere, spoke lightly.
“Yeah.”
I nodded eagerly.
“They’re twins.”
My comment seemed to alleviate the tension, and everyone sighed in relief. It wasn’t a direct action, but to me, it looked that way.
“Do you have anything you like?”
Sasaki inquired.
“Koko likes all kinds of food.”
The problem is she seems to enjoy non-human food as well. I guess it’s a good thing she doesn’t eat inanimate objects. Considering her structure, it wouldn’t be surprising if she could indulge safely.
“And she loves to watch TV too.”
Koko enjoyed children’s cartoons. Just like how kids become docile when they’re given tablets to watch cartoons, Koko followed suit.
…And thankfully, she didn’t mimic cartoon characters.
A rustling sound caught my attention as Koko stuffed a snack into her mouth.
Everyone watched her for a moment.
How should I put it? When she had that oversized nose, her very existence was horrendous, but now that she resembled me, even her eating looked kind of cute. Do I dare say she resembled an adorable animal?
…Could it be I exhibit the same when eating?
“Woo?”
Koko tilted her head, puzzled as she noticed our staring.
Hmm.
Looking at those puffed cheeks, I could understand why Yuuki couldn’t hold back.
*
The next day.
I woke up leisurely to a late breakfast.
Koko and Yuuki were nowhere to be found.
At first, a chill ran down my spine, but seeing the note on the table that said, ‘We’re playing at the beach,’ eased my mind a little.
I calmly changed my clothes and stepped outside.
The beach wasn’t that wide, but finding the kids wasn’t difficult.
How should I put it? Everyone’s looks were absolutely stunning. I guess that’s what happens when you’re a heroine.
Today, I also had a late start while Yuuki was playing with Koko, and Nakahara was hanging around there, successfully having Hagiwara ask Sasaki to apply some oil to her.
Shii, slightly late, wore a pouty face next to Sasaki, who blushed crimson as she tried to comfort her.
“Did you come?”
Hagiwara asked, her expression relaxed as she lay down, seeming satisfied with her task.
“…….”
Seeing the bikini she had loosened in the back, I frowned.
I thought it’d look appealing in an illustration, but seeing a high school girl in that situation made me feel morally uneasy.
No, more than that, she’s a nun. Isn’t that a bit too reckless? Even if I’m a mere year older, I’m still just a second-year high school student.
…Well, I suppose it’s typically expected that by that age, everyone has some experience, but Hagiwara was a character that didn’t fit that bill.
When alone with Sasaki, she’d turn crimson and act reserved. If not, she’d lose her brakes entirely.
Yet, noticed by my frown, Hagiwara smiled confidently.
I suspected she was misinterpreting me greatly.
“Senpai!”
Shii suddenly stood up from her spot when she saw me.
Dressed in a white one-piece swimsuit with a lightweight, sheer white cardigan, she dashed over.
“Senpai, shall we go buy ice cream?”
Ice cream? Sounds great.
I nodded.
“Uh, wait!”
“Oh, but aren’t you enjoying some quality time with Hagiwara-san alone?”
“No…….”
Shii beamed a bright smile on her face.
To me, she just looked adorable, but it seemed that Sasaki didn’t see it that way.
“Okay.”
Sasaki finally seemed to relent and responded as she plopped down.
“See you later~”
Well, it doesn’t seem like you’ll be making any sales, Hagiwara.
I thought as I waved to Hagiwara and Sasaki, heading off with Shii.
*
“I’m sorry, senpai. I shouldn’t have shown you such an embarrassing sight…”
“No, it’s fine.”
Jealousy is to be expected. Honestly, I found it easier to understand Shii’s feelings than Hagiwara or Nakahara’s.
At the very least, Shii’s feelings leaned more towards family issues than romantic ones.
In the end, Shii bought ice cream for Hagiwara as well.
It was somewhat amusing to see her deliberating over whether to exclude one at the very end. But she did manage to hold back.
Walking while sharing an ice cream bag with Shii, I spoke to her.
“We are family, after all.”
“……Family.”
“If Koko ever meets a guy, I’d worry.”
“Isn’t that a bit more of a moral issue? It seems more fundamental than just being family…”
Is that so?
Well, I might not know, but for Koko, it was borderline criminal. I could probably take her to a hospital right now, and she’d be diagnosed as having a disability.
However, I was keeping the door open to more possibilities, so I was postponing that talk. When Yuuki brought up related topics, I shook my head but felt a pang of sadness because he would have been just a poor kid, desperately holding on to whatever little hope he had.
“…Maybe Hagiwara-senpai is also just playing around halfway.”
“Halfway playing around with my brother? Absolutely not.”
…….
What a complicated kid she is.
But I don’t dislike it, since she isn’t overly complicated with me.
As the two of us were walking side by side—
“Hey~.”
…Huh?
Some guys shouted at us.
They didn’t seem like college students—probably just high schoolers. That was my guess, but they seemed to be a few years older than us, possibly with a three-year difference.
“Hey, you two are cute, aren’t you?”
Ah, well, color me impressed.
Internally, I marveled.
Such scenes do appear in light novels. This is a classic trope, isn’t it? A moment revealing just how beautiful the heroines are and how much they appreciate the protagonist.
But I’m not one of the heroines.
“Is it just you two? Want to hang out?”
They seemed to have somewhat of a rebellious attitude. Both of them looked sun-kissed.
But I remembered that when I went to a meeting before, the guys ended up being super nice. These two might turn out the same. They could just be naive high schoolers trying to socialize with girls around their age.
“Oh, um, you see, we have our party…”
“Party? Boys? Girls?”
The two moved a little closer to us. Shii retreated, and I took a small step back.
No one else around was particularly interested in us. Given the number of people playing around, they probably thought we were just having a conversation among ourselves without much fuss.
“There’s a guy.”
I said firmly.
“Huh, really?”
I must have put too much emphasis on it, and for a moment, they looked blank.
“Boyfriend?”
They pressed on, not ready to give up.
I was about to answer affirmatively, but then I remembered Shii was beside me and decided against it.
If Yuuki or Hagiwara were next to me, I would’ve responded, and it would have just turned into playful banter. They would have understood that I was talking about ‘Sasaki’, not a fictional boyfriend.
But considering Shii, who is honest but slightly twisted, she might misconstrue that ‘boyfriend’ to mean ‘her brother’. No matter how much I tried to clarify, it’d be hard to shake off that suspicion.
“What the—”
“Hey, if it’s not a boyfriend, then what’s the problem? Why don’t you two come with us—”
Just cut it off without giving a reason.
Just as I resolved to open my mouth—
“…Huh?”
Shii’s eyes widened next to me.
She was looking at the boys, but for her, it wasn’t just that. More importantly, behind those boys, in the middle—
“Koko!”
I shouted in shock.
“Yes?”
“Koko?”
The boy echoed after me, but I ignored his words and rushed over to grab Koko.
“Koko, no.”
Yes. It was her.
Without a doubt, Koko had wandered away from where Yuuki and Nakahara were building sandcastles while they were out buying ice cream and ended up here with the boys.
Sweat started to trickle down my back.
“No?”
Koko tilted her head, puzzled, and I fervently nodded.
“Not allowed. That’s a no.”
I had no idea what she was trying to do, but it was definitely a no.
No, more than that, how did she even find her way here? No, wait.
How did she even get here in the first place?
To put it precisely, she appeared in one frame like a sudden scene change in a movie.
Had I not known Koko and if she weren’t wearing a swimsuit, I would’ve thought I was seeing a ghost for a moment.
I lowered my voice.
“Hurting people is not allowed.”
I think I had already mentioned this before.
“…Hurt?”
“….”
Sure enough.
I didn’t precisely know what Koko intended, but it was clear she was aware of my location and perceived that I had gotten involved in something troublesome.
Koko was incredibly responsive to people’s emotions.
When Yuuki seemed sad, she tilted her head as if unsure of what that meant, but whenever Yuuki happily played with her, she always beamed with joy.
And she enjoyed the scenes that featured kids laughing and playing on TV.
Maybe, just maybe.
Koko might view me as the center of her world.
And she reciprocated well to those who showed her good feelings and positive attitudes, but if someone tried to harm me in any way—
“Oh, what’s this? You two look alike! Are you twins?”
“Staring at each other feels like looking in a mirror. Want to join us?”
Koko’s profound eyes moved and then fixed on my shoulder, where it seemed two people were trying to touch me—
“Help, help me!”
A blink.
And at Shii’s cry, her eyes blinked rapidly.
“Help me!”
“Hey, you!”
“What?”
As soon as Shii cried out, the faces of both boys turned pale.
Hearing the shout, people around turned their gaze toward us, causing the boys to panic.
They seemed moments from fleeing, quickly spinning around.
“What’s going on, you punks?!”
Sasaki came sprinting in, almost screaming, throwing a punch straight into one of the boys’ faces with a dreadful wail.
To my surprise, he went straight back but didn’t faint like in cartoons.
Clutching his nose, he stumbled back a few steps, blood trickling through his fingers.
Looks like he got a nosebleed.
Nice! Way to go.
Legally, we might end up on the losing side. Still, better that than two people dying.
“Onii-chan!?”
Shii screamed.
“Shii, are you okay!?”
Sasaki turned his head, shouting, but just then, another boy’s fist came flying towards him.
I quickly turned and shoved the guy.
He stumbled sideways, his posture faltering and looked at me with eyes brimming with malice.
And those eyes were directed towards Koko.
This won’t do.
“You punk…”
“What? What’s going on?”
It seemed the two boys had a crew, as another group of boys sauntered over.
This group appeared definitely older than the first. At least they looked like college students and radiated a vibrantly playful aura.
“Big brother!”
The boy with blood running from his nose called out to the big burly dude leading the group.
“What’s up? Why’s your face like that? Did you get punched?”
The attention shifted back to Sasaki, who was eyeing the group.
“And what’s this wimpy brat up to?”
Then they turned their gaze back at me and Koko.
“Oh, what’s this? Trying to protect your girlfriend, huh?”
They were pretty relaxed about it.
“What is it?”
Hagiwara strolled over in her noticeably revealing red bikini, looking relaxed while coming close to us.
“I came to see when the ice cream would arrive, and look what I stumbled upon—this mess!”
“S-Sota!?”
Nakahara seemed to be following Hagiwara, startled by the situation.
“Kurosawa, what’s going on here?”
“Um, well…”
Where do I even start the story from?
Initially, I thought they were just typical boys trying to hit on girls, but they turned out to be worse than I expected.
Recalling it, it seemed like the boys had been the ones who approached first in the story, and while they weren’t accurately described, it was implied that they were quite big.
And I had to back Sasaki earlier.
Sasaki jumped in to defend Yuuki and ended up having an intense fight, eventually coming out on top.
Of course, during that time, Yuuki had swiftly subdued those boys.
“Well, it seems I don’t need to explain. You tried to mess with girls since it was just a bunch of them, didn’t you?”
Seeing Yuuki, the guy who seemed to be the leader casually whistled.
“Hey, is there only one dude? Even if there are a lot of girls, can’t they mingle a bit? You can settle for just one, you know?”
“Right? Sota, you only need one girl, right?”
“You think it’s funny to say something like that now!?”
Sasaki freaked out at Hagiwara’s nonchalance.
“Well, I guess.”
Hagiwara clasped her hands together and thrust them forward, palms facing outward.
As a result, her cleavage gathered and created quite an alluring picture for just a moment.
As I tried to maintain a serious demeanor, Hagiwara, with that smile, redirected her gaze.
“From a religious perspective, I wouldn’t recommend unholy relationships.”
But you’re the most unholy one here!
I couldn’t help but interject.
Hagiwara threw a sidelong glance at Yuuki. He sighed deeply before nodding.
“Um, maybe it’s best to end it here? With all these witnesses around, a rumor about a guy getting beaten by girls can’t be good, right?”
“Hagihara, what are you talking about?”
Nakahara panicked at Hagiwara’s words.
“…Huh?”
The boy scratched his head.
“Guys, what’s she talking about?”
“Are you two cute? Let us give you some lessons!”
“Yeah, even if our guy got hit, we can’t let this slide.”
The apparent leader turned back towards us.
“Hitting girls isn’t my thing. But it’s self-defense, so don’t hold it against us too hard.”
I looked back at Koko.
…
First and foremost, I figured we needed to secure our lives first.