NOVEL NEXT chapter 92
92
48, Miyamura Eien retorts instinctively,
“I’m sorry… Emi is not ready yet…”
“Sigh…”
The next day, worried about Emi who hadn’t shown up, I visited the Sasaki residence only to be greeted by a remorseful-looking Emi’s mom.
“I’m so sorryyyyyy, I couldn’t sleep last night because I was looking forward to it so muchhh.”
“Can’t you do something about the way you talk?”
“Ha ha… It’s just so Emi, isn’t it?”
I give a wry smile, used to Emi’s shouted speech.
I wonder if Emi’s mom wants me to stop her.
“You don’t have to wait for my daughter, go ahead without her, it’s okay.”
“I’ll be heading there right awayyyyyyyyyy.”
“That’s what I’m telling you to stop!”
I slip away from the Sasaki family’s quarrel, making myself scarce and leaving through the front door.
There’s plenty of time before our meeting.
Taking her word for it, I head towards the station.
“Before I knew it, it had become summer…”
It feels like I just entered middle school a little while ago, but now it’s suddenly summer.
And once again, the summer when I died has begun.
Crossing the pedestrian lane, I think about how scary it is to have trucks running red lights.
“Caught up in the world of ‘Breaking the Chains of Sorrow’ for about ten years now…”
Who would have thought it would come to this…
Playing the game was fun, but I curse Sky Blue, the game maker that created a character like Akechi Hidetada.
Sakuramatsuri, the mysterious man who served as the producer and scenario writer, is an absolute demon…
One day, I’ll start a real Honnoji Incident, Sakuramatsuri, you producer.
But I’m grateful to you, Sakuramatsuri, for creating a character like Eien-chan!
Lost in these trivial sentiments, I head to the station where we’re supposed to meet and there’s a lone figure.
“Good morning, Eien-chan.”
“O-oh, good morning, Mr. Hidetada!”
“Ah, don’t bow your head like that…”
Eien-chan bows her head repeatedly.
There’s no need for someone like her to bow to trash like me…
If anything, I should be the one bowing…
The meeting place is still deserted.
Eien-chan and I were alone, wrapped in a slightly awkward silence, when she opened her mouth, perhaps trying to break the tension.
“Do you have someone you’re dating, Hideyori-san?”
“Me? No, I don’t have anyone… And neither does Takeru!”
“I’m asking about you, Hideyori-san.”
“Ahaha…”
I jumped the gun to say Takeru was available, but maybe it was too soon…
The protagonist is free right now, you know.
“Do you have someone you’re interested in…?”
“Someone I’m interested in…”
Interested in someone?
There shouldn’t be such a person for Akechi Hideyori.
…But as Toyotomi Mitsuhide, perhaps.
“There was someone I was interested in…”
“Eh? Is that so…?”
“It’s just an unrequited love. Besides, it’s an old, rusted feeling that I can’t revisit…”
“I see… So there’s no one like that for you now…?”
“Now… Well, I guess I don’t have the luxury to think about romance…”
“Is that so!”
Eien-chan smiles shyly, a bit of happiness in her expression.
Ah, that happy face I’ve always loved in the game.
She’s probably laughing at me, thinking I’m trash who can’t love, but her smile is wonderful.
It’s creepy to still be hung up on a past life’s romance…
I wonder if Kurisu-san found happiness in a world without me…
I want to know the sequel to the world I used to live in more than the sequel to my favorite game.
“Why the gloomy face, you?”
“Tsugaru…?”
“En! Good morning!”
“Hey there.”
With Tsugaru’s arrival, the moment of just Eien-chan and me came to an end.
“Ahh… Did I interrupt something, Akechi-kun?”
“Ugh…”
I’m being looked at with teasing eyes by Tsugaru, who knows I’m a fan of Eien-chan.
I’m envious of him; he seems to have no worries.
Isn’t it too unfair for someone who’s also lived a past life?
“If you have something to consult about, leave it to me, the master of love!”
“Wow, that’s reassuring.”
“Right?!”
Tsugaru is giving a peace sign to Eien-chan.
This guy, even if I assume his past life was in the same era as mine, he’s around 30, right?
Is this really how a woman in her 30s behaves…?
“You’re making such an annoying face at me…”
“I respect you, you know. As much as Thomas Alva Edison.”
“I’m gonna beat him up later. Also, it was surprising to suddenly hear the word ‘Thomas Alva Edison’ out of nowhere.”
“So, no foreign words then.”
I swear to myself to be careful around Tsugaru when we’re alone.
I really wish she had a bit more gracefulness.
Like Kuru-san, for instance.
“But it’s true that Madoka seems to have a wealth of romantic experience!”
“Hehe, leave it to me!”
“Eh, do you have a boyfriend?”
“I don’t, but…”
“You don’t?”
Eien-chan’s genuine retort comes in.
Seeing the usually demure Eien-chan make such a candid retort was quite refreshing and almost made me laugh.
This is a rare scene I’ve never seen even in games.
Oh no, I want to record this and save it on my PC.
“I’m just a little hung up on a past love.”
“Is that so…?”
“I had someone I loved! …But it’s an old, rusted feeling that I can’t meet anymore…”
“Huh… Ah? This feels like déjà vu… But you’re not looking for a new love?”
“Right now… well, I guess I don’t have the luxury to think about romance or anything…”
“You’re saying the same thing as Hidetoyo-san.”
“What!? With this guy!? No way! I’m totally doing it with my boyfriend every day.”
“That’s not true, is it?”
Tsugaru, denying being in the same boat as me, even if it means breaking the serious mood.
I realize that she must really dislike me.
It must still be about that first encounter… she’s probably still mad about it…
“Ah, look, big brother! We found Akechi-kun and the others!”
“Good job, Risa!”
One by one, the members gather.
Emi joins soon after.
Finally, the Tanigawa family arrives.
“Alright, let’s go to the pool!”
Emi suggests, and the pool rendezvous that Eien-chan was looking forward to is set with everyone present.
I can only hope it cools down this hot day.