This is Part 13, Chapter 5.
Seiya, who was about to head home after his lectures at the academy had finished, found his sister walking ahead of him.
Judging by the time and direction, he realized she was also heading home, so he decided to call out to her.
“Miku, heading home now?”
He called out from behind, and though he shouldn’t not have been seen, Miku turned around without surprise and nodded.
“Yes. I am… But…”
“?”
“What about big sister Shia?”
Seiya involuntarily gave a wry smile when Miku asked him that.
From the moment he enrolled in the academy, Seiya had always been with Shia, so even the slightest deviation from that meant he’d receive questioning gazes from those around him.
He was fully aware of this, and since he did, in fact, mostly act with Shia, he had no complaints.
However, he hadn’t expected to hear the same thing from Miku.
“Didn’t I tell you before that Shia started doing hobby activities with her friends?”
“Ah, that’s right, I remember now.”
Miku clapped her hands together at Seiya’s words.
He did recall Shia mentioning something like that at dinner.
The reason Miku had completely forgotten about it was that Seiya and Shia spent too much time together.
In fact, Miku, as family, had a stronger image of them together than the other students at the academy.
This led to her earlier question.
Seiya’s wry smile deepened at Miku’s gesture, but he decided not to push further.
He knew from experience that continuing the conversation would only stir up trouble.
“So, getting back to it, shall we walk home together?”
“Yes. I have no problem with that, of course… but…”
Seiya tilted his head at Miku, who hesitated slightly and looked at him.
Seeing this, Miku shook her head left and right.
She kept the words that immediately came to mind hidden in her heart.
(If I walk home with big brother Seiya, I might get caught up in all sorts of trouble, but well, it’s fine once in a while.)
She thought this with a slightly condescending attitude, but she didn’t voice it.
She had no intention of making enemies by saying such things unnecessarily, and more importantly, it was the truth.
While contemplating this, Miku subtly checked her surroundings.
(…There are at least four or five people, I guess. As expected of big brother Seiya.)
As Seiya and Miku walked together, about that many people were following them, watching their movements.
These were not the dangerous types they had encountered before; they were undoubtedly female students from the academy.
The reason they were following was, of course, to follow Seiya.
Miku, walking beside Seiya, stole a glance at her brother’s face.
Seiya, who had inherited the blood of Colette, a beautiful elf, was undeniably handsome, even within an academy said to be frequented by those from high society.
If he maintained the unapproachable demeanor he had when he first enrolled, it would be one thing, but Seiya, who had learned to socialize, was now popular with the opposite sex.
The female students trailing Seiya now were maidens harboring a desire (or maybe a lust?) to get closer to him.
Seiya noticed Miku’s slightly troubled expression and asked in a lowered voice, “—Did something happen?”
“Ah, no. Nothing’s wrong.”
To Miku’s answer, Seiya stared back intently.
His face clearly communicated that lying was unacceptable.
Realizing this, Miku gave a small wry smile and shook her head left and right again.
“It really is nothing. I was just thinking a little about those people.”
As she said this, Miku’s gaze shifted to one of the female students trailing them.
Seiya, understanding the meaning behind her gaze, nodded ‘I see’ while making sure not to look in that direction.
“It’s not so much when I’m with Shia, but when I’m alone, it just happens, doesn’t it?”
Hearing Seiya’s answer, Miku felt a sense of understanding, realizing he had noticed, and at the same time, she realized something else.
Like Seiya, Miku had inherited her mother’s striking looks.
This was incredibly useful in situations like this.
“Big brother. You were planning to use me as a repellant, weren’t you?”
Seiya offered an ambiguous smile without denying it when Miku gave him a pointed look.
His expression said it all.
Miku sighed looking at Seiya’s face, then nodded once and said, “It can’t be helped. I’ll settle for the cookies from Hao-tei.”
“Wha—!? Hao-tei? Isn’t that completely impossible to get no matter how you think about it!?”
Seiya responded in a flustered manner to the condition Miku presented.
Hao-tei was an extremely popular shop, and their cookies were famous for selling out instantly.
It wasn’t something Seiya, as a student, could easily obtain.
Miku, knowing this and deliberately naming it, then added another condition with a feigned sigh, “You’re being selfish, big brother. In that case, how about Mitsuki’s cookies?”
“…Don’t you think the hurdle just got even higher?”
“It’s probably just your imagination.”
Seiya let out a huge sigh at Miku, who said this with an composed expression.
“I understand. I’ll try asking through Father next time.”
“As expected of you, big brother Seiya.”
Watching Miku smile and nod as she said this, Seiya thought she had become quite shrewd, but he immediately dismissed it in his mind.
He supposed she had always been like this, thinking back.
It’s a slightly shorter chapter, but we’ll end it here as it feels like a good stopping point.
The next chapter will be, “Shia’s Situation,” perhaps?
