Chapter: 54. Memories of the Past
As Kanade followed behind Manaka to the nearby convenience store, she unexpectedly ran into Yukino, who had just arrived.
“Eh~ Is this Yukino’s brother~”
“Oh no, Yukino’s brother is so handsome~”
“Ahahaha… yes, yes, my little sister is very grateful to everyone.”
Kanade seemed a bit flustered by the compliments from the two first-year junior girls standing next to Yukino.
“Eh~ Brother is so pure-hearted~”
“Really, really, just like what Yukino said~”
Kanade’s shy reaction made the two first-year girls approach her excitedly, as if they had discovered a new continent.
“Onii-chan, are you actually happy right now?”
“Ah, huh? What are you talking about, Yukino—”
“Eh~ Does Onii-chan dislike us?”
“(Crying) So sad~”
“Ah, no, that’s not what I meant…” Faced with the two girls who suddenly started fake-crying, Kanade shot a pleading look at Yukino.
Seeing this, Yukino smirked and made a gesture signaling to pay for them.
“You little brat, trying to take advantage of the situation, aren’t you—” Kanade’s eyes were filled with this sentiment as she glared at Yukino.
The latter responded with, “I don’t mind~ But if Nagi-nee sees Onii-chan surrounded by cute junior girls after just walking into the convenience store~”
“Damn—”
Faced with the enthusiastic approach of the two first-year girls, Kanade could only yield.
“Yes, yes~ My Onii-chan is very shy~ Please don’t bully him too much~” Yukino clapped her hands and was about to step in to rescue Kanade.
At that moment, the automatic door of the convenience store opened.
Manaka walked out from inside.
“Tsukimi-kun, why are you so slow… Hello everyone.”
Manaka first wondered why Kanade hadn’t caught up yet, and then noticed the few girls around him.
And upon seeing Kanade’s “help me” expression, Manaka immediately realized what had happened and displayed a knowing, helpless expression.
From the colors of the ribbons on the girls’ chests, Manaka quickly identified that they were all first-year freshmen.
And the cute girl with twin tails standing the farthest from Kanade, Manaka remembered, was Kanade’s younger sister.
So she immediately straightened her posture and greeted them.
But before Manaka could continue speaking, the reactions of the two freshmen surprised everyone except her.
“C-Could it be—” one junior girl appeared very excited, stuttering as she spoke.
And another girl covered her face with her hands, almost screaming, “Is that really the Pure White Fairy, Lady Manaka~”
“Eh?” Both Kanade and Yukino were momentarily stunned.
On the other hand, Manaka looked unfazed: “Hello, I’m Hinata Manaka—”
“——Wow~ It’s really the Fairy Lady~ I-I’m your biggest fan~”
“——Me, me too! I can’t believe I’m seeing you in person! Can I have your autograph?”
Before Manaka could finish introducing herself, the two girls excitedly interrupted her.
“W-What’s happening?” Yukino blinked in confusion.
The two girls turned in surprise to Yukino: “Yukino-san doesn’t know Lady Pure White Fairy? She’s a very, very famous star~”
“Yes, yes! The fairy who retired three years ago! I can’t believe she’s a senior at the same school~ Ah~ I’m so happy~”
Their explanation made Kanade and Yukino finally realize.
Manaka was a former brilliant child star who was famous on screen.
Even though she announced her retirement in middle school, her previous experiences garnered her quite a fan base.
“Calling her a fairy is too exaggerated—” Manaka was about to speak when she was interrupted again.
“——It’s not exaggerating at all! We will always support Lady Fairy!”
“——Hmm, can you give us your autograph and take a picture with us?”
It seemed that Manaka had undergone similar situations before, as she flashed a professional smile while accepting the pen handed to her by the junior girls.
“Speaking of which, Hinata-senpai is a big star…”
“Yes, sometimes I really forget that.” Kanade and Yukino stood side by side, echoing her statement.
“What’s going on, what’s going on?” A figure sneaked between Kanade and Yukino, peeking in and whispering.
“Uah!? L-Little Nagi?!”
“Nagi-nee~”
Kanade was startled, while Yukino, seeing that it was Nagi, happily hugged her.
“It’s been a while~ Yukino-chan~” Nagi smiled and gently patted Yukino’s head.
The scene surprised Kanade a bit.
Although Yukino and Nagi’s relationship was not bad before he left Kawano City, their current interaction made it seem like Yukino was more like Nagi’s little sister.
“Hmm, if my idiot Onii-chan bullies Nagi-nee, you must tell me! I will give him a good lesson for Nagi-nee!”
“No worries, Tsukimi-kun would never bully me~ Right?” Nagi smiled and looked at Kanade.
The latter, upon hearing this, shyly averted his gaze.
“Umm… so suspicious~ After all, Nagi-nee is so innocent… Has my family made Nagi-nee do anything strange recently?” The keen instincts of siblings prompted Yukino to ask again.
But before Nagi could reply, Kanade rushed forward and covered Nagi’s mouth.
“Of course not! Don’t make me sound like a bad person with ulterior motives!”
“If Onii-chan isn’t a bad person, then why are you so anxious to cover Nagi-nee’s mouth!? Onii-chan, you must have taught her something bad, right!?”
“That’s my line! What weird things did you show to Little Nagi, Yukino!”
“Onii-chan, how could you turn it around—ah, wait! No violence! DV! Onii-chan is a domestic abuser!”
…
“Yukino-san and her brother have such a good relationship~”
“Yes~ With such a gentle, handsome, and shy brother, I’m really envious~”
The two girls behind turned their heads and smiled as they heard the commotion.
“Are your eyes just for show? I’m clearly being abused by this scumbag Onii-chan right now—ow! Pulling my cheek! What kind of violence is this, how is it gentle! Are you M’s for envying this?!” Yukino wailed while complaining.
“Hmm, you really have a good relationship… Huh? That senior… looks so cute…”
“…Re-Really~ Super beautiful~ She looks a bit familiar… but I suddenly can’t remember where I’ve seen her…”
“Could she be a model or something?… After all, her figure is really great~”
The two girls began to gossip about Nagi, who was standing behind Kanade and Yukino, unable to help themselves.
Their words also reached Kanade’s ears.
This made Kanade feel puzzled.
—Little Nagi should be a talent equal to Little Mana.
—Although she was young when she retired, according to what he heard later, she had created a new era.
—In theory, she shouldn’t be so obscure.
Yet when Kanade thought back to the past, he indeed rarely saw anyone claiming to be a fan of Nagi and asking for her autograph.
At most, they would only be amazed by her outstanding appearance like they were now.
—It’s really strange…
Others’ attitudes towards Nagi made it hard to link to her past experiences and encounters.
Back then, Nagi made a big commotion when she returned on stage during the school festival’s play.
But it was as if, overnight.
Everything returned to normal; even media reporters no longer camped around her.
“It’s just like that time.” Suddenly, a thought flashed through Kanade’s mind.
—That time?
—Speaking of which, how did the incident calm down after Little Nagi went through the accident back then?
Kanade tried to recall, but found no clue.
Instead, his expression invoked concern from Nagi.
“Tsukimi-kun? What’s wrong?” Nagi stepped forward and asked.
“Ah no, I just… think Little Mana is amazing or something…”
“Yes~ Mana-chan really is amazing~” Nagi responded while looking at Mana, who was busy signing for the two junior girls, with a gentle gaze.
“…” Kanade watched Nagi’s profile, remaining silent for a moment before speaking again: “But I think Little Nagi is also amazing~”
“Eh? Me?”
“Yeah, very, very amazing.”
“…Hehe, thank you! It makes me really happy to hear Tsukimi-kun say that~” Nagi said shyly with a smile.
“——Um, before you two start your mushy childhood friend moments, could you please let me go?” Yukino, whose cheek was still being pinched by Kanade, couldn’t help but complain after getting a mouthful of dog food up close.
“I-I’m not being mushy!” Kanade replied, blushing from his little sister’s teasing.
“Really? Why do I feel like the way Onii-chan looks at Nagi-nee can pull threads—Ugh?! S-Sorry! I didn’t say anything!”
—————–
This was a scene he had not dreamt of for so long.
The streets drenched in heavy rain.
Soaked to the bone, he stood outside a shop window, cold and shivering, quietly staring at the television behind the glass.
The light emitted from countless TV screens illuminated his small, fragile body and the pavement behind him.
At that moment, he seemed to have completely forgotten the biting cold and hunger, his eyes fixed intently on the television screen, gazing at the cute portrait displayed.
The echo of the news report that he had never forgotten resonated in his ears.
That was—
—The turning point of his life.
…
“President, are you in there?”
The knocking on the door awakened Seiryu from a shallow dream.
Outside, it had grown dark, and the sound of drizzling rain could be heard through the glass.
“Ah, come in.” Seiryu reached up to massage his temples, as if wanting to temporarily dispel the long-forgotten scene from his dream.
As the door to the student council room was pushed open, a few members entered with a stack of documents in their arms.
“Thank you for your hard work.” Seiryu could tell from their soaked pant legs that they had just returned from the rain.
“You were out there doing the statistical reporting, while I was here slacking off.”
“No, no, we should be the ones thanking the president for staying on campus from last night until now, giving us the chance to rest well.” The student council members said in unison.
“This is the report we just compiled; we have confirmed that all students have returned to their dorms.”
“Is that so? Thank you for your hard work.”
“Student council president, you should also go back and rest tonight. It would be bad if you overexert yourself.”
“I understand, thank you for your concern.” Seiryu politely accepted the documents from their hands and urged them to return to their dorms to get some rest.
Meanwhile, he began to review the materials in his hands alone in the student council room.
“Speaking of which… that day was just like today, a rainy day…” Seiryu suddenly sighed lightly, pulling out an old yet exquisitely crafted pocket watch from his pocket.
He opened the cover.
Reflected in Seiryu’s eyes was a movie ticket stub.
“…..This time, I will protect you just like I did back then—”
“—Absolutely.”
