Morning.
Full of energy, Shiori pushed open the door to her brother's room.
Carefully stepping over three oddly twisted humanoid creatures lying on the floor, she opened the window.
The bright sunlight instantly brought the dark room to life.
"Dear brothers, it's already morning~ Time to get up~"
Shiori gently called to the three people on the floor.
That's right—three people!
Both Kamishiro and Kouhei stayed over last night.
As for the reason…
Naturally, it was because the two of them ended up dragging each other down in mutual destruction~
Let's rewind to when Kouhei woke up yesterday.
When he found out that Kamishiro suddenly had a super cute little sister, his brain simply shut down.
Why…
Why do idiots and scumbags get little sisters, while I, the only normal one, get nothing at all?!
Out of his mind with envy, he grabbed a rope and challenged Shiro to a duel. After all, a two-year-old sister could grow into a middle schooler… then a high schooler!
Just thinking about this guy eventually having both a middle school and a high school little sister was enough to drive Kouhei mad with jealousy!
But…
Kouhei seriously underestimated Shiro's combat strength—especially when Shiro was still in a state of confused frustration.
Forget Kouhei, Shiro himself hadn't even seen his little sister in real life yet! He ended up mistaking Kouhei for his bastard old man and counterattacked in rage~
Hmph!
Just a otaku, that's all!
(｀^´)/╯︵ ┻━┻
In the end, Shiro collapsed into Nanaka-nee's arms and fell asleep from emotional exhaustion.
( Shiori suspected he just wanted to take advantage of her.)
Since it was too troublesome to move them, everyone decided to let them crash here for the night.
After all, just tossing them into the room wasn't that big a deal.
"Ugh… so bright…"
"Rize… my sweet little Rize~"
"(*꒪⌓꒪) I want a little sister too…"
Bathed in sunlight, the three slowly opened their eyes, though none were fully awake yet.
Yawn~
…
"Good morning…"
"Morning!"
"Good morning… Father-in-law."
Despite still being groggy, their well-trained university-student instincts had them greet Uncle Kotegawa who had risen early.
"Oh wow, morning boys. You're up early today."
Uncle Kotegawa was surprised—after all, these guys usually slept past 10 a.m. if they didn't have class.
"Haah~ all because of Shiori."
"The sun only just rose…"
"Being woken up by Shiori-chan's love is the best way to start the day!"
(ಠ_ಠ)
Shiro and Iori silently stared at Kouhei.
It felt like a traitor had slipped into their trio.
Being a creep first thing in the morning?!
"What are you saying, big brother? At the inn, I get up way earlier than this."
Shiori smiled gently. For her, waking up at this time was practically sleeping in!
Why didn't she mention the tea farm?
Because the Kamishiro family's tea shop opens much later…
Hmm… the whole family's just lazy!
"What nonsense are you saying, Shiori? I don't even work at the inn."
(?_? )
Shiori's expression stiffened slightly, but keeping up her gentle persona, she said softly:
"I've always believed big brother will come back to help out one day~"
But inside, she was already cursing—
'This guy really thinks he can get another job? With a brain like that? In this economy?! What kind of job could he possibly get other than inheriting the family inn?!'
Clearly, Shiori didn't believe her brother could hold any real job. Not even a manual labor one!
Hearing Shiori's words, Iori—still face down on the desk—darkened visibly.
He would never inherit that inn!
Just imagine—waking up before dawn every day to prepare for the guests…
Aaaaaaaaahhh why couldn't Dad just hire someone already?!
Compared to that, Shiro's family tea farm seemed so much more fun!
(-ω-)
Shiro, reading Iori's expression, rolled his eyes.
It wasn't that simple, okay?
Sure, his lazy old man hired some staff, but whenever a big client came, he still had to show up in person.
Not to mention all kinds of trivial matters—he couldn't just run off whenever he wanted.
Even this trip to China for tea shopping was mainly just an excuse. In reality, it was probably all about accommodating Grandpa, who'd now been turned into free labor.
"Ara~ good morning everyone~"
At that moment, Nanaka-neesan came out and looked at the trio at the table with surprise.
"Wow, everyone's up so early~"
Seeing Nanaka made Shiro finally shake off the last bit of sleep—and also lose all longing for his sister.
After all, no matter how much he missed her, there was no way he could just fly to China right now.
The best he could do was wait for their return.
Clearly, his current mission was to bring Nanaka-neesan back home!
He was sure little Rize would want a lovely sister-in-law too!
…or maybe even a few?
" Nanaka-neesan, your hairstyle looks really nice today."
Shiro complimented her. With her high ponytail, she looked a little less gentle, a little more youthful.
"Eh, really? Thanks, Shiro! You three look great too—actually wearing proper clothes today~"
"…"
Perfect. Just like that, Shiro lost all desire to flirt.
Nanaka-neesan, are you sure you're not insulting us right now?
She made it sound like they usually go around half-naked!
"After all, as humans, we should wear clothes at least once every two days, right?"
(ಠ_ಠ)
Shiro slowly turned his head toward Iori.
How could someone say something so dumb?! Was he even awake?!
Shiori was already covering her face in pain. She had once hoped that her brother's intelligence would improve after entering university…
Now it seemed like it had only gotten worse.
Once every two days?! What the hell kind of logic is that?! Are you even human?!
Shaking her head, Shiro gave up on Iori. Clearly, only someone with superhuman self-discipline like herself could stay sane in this chaotic household.
Click~
The fridge door opened.
Pssst!
The sound of carbon dioxide escaping. The smell of barley and malt.
"Hey, Kitahara, want one?"
"Oh, gimme a bottle!"
Shiro tossed Iori a bottle, then cracked open his own barley drink and began to gulp it down~
Gulp gulp gulp~
Hah!
(?ˉωˉ?)
This is the life~
"What are you doing?"
Shiori, who witnessed everything, asked the question that pierced the soul.
(;′｀)
"Drinking beer!"
"...You just woke up. Why the hell are you drinking beer in the morning?!"
"Ah, I don't know. My hand moved on its own. Hahaha, no big deal!"
Shiro scratched the back of his head with a smile. He didn't really know why it felt so natural—but hey, it was just a little beer, no problem~
(?_? )
"So not wearing clothes right now is also 'no big deal'?"
Shiori silently stepped back two steps, staring at Shiro with the expression one would use to look at trash.
Because just now—when he opened the beer, his clothes magically disappeared, leaving him in just his boxers.
The entire process was seamless!
Not just him—even her idiot brother too!
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
"WTF—when did that happen?!"
"WTF—where are my clothes?!"
Kamishiro Shiro and Iori finally realized that they were both only wearing shorts.
Terrifying!
Without realizing it, they had slipped straight into drinking mode...
Looks like saying "we can wear the same clothes for two days" was a bit premature.
But—wasn't something missing?
"Wait, where's Kohei?"
Looking at the unopened beer bottle in his hand, Kamishiro Shiro suddenly remembered that Kohei had disappeared at some point.
"Kohei-nii sama? Just a little while ago, he ran out while shouting 'little sister' over and over again."
Shiori's mouth twitched slightly. This whole morning had thrown her off. For the first time, she started to wonder if she really was too out of touch with the outside world.
And wasn't Kohei-nii sama supposed to be one of their best friends? Why did they only remember him when they saw a bottle of beer?!
"Ah, I see..."
Hearing Shiori's words, Kamishiro Shiro's expression turned serious.
"Call the police, Kitahara!"
"No problem! We absolutely can't let innocent little girls fall into that pervert's clutches!"
!!!
Shiori stared at the two in horror. Something wasn't right here!
So—do these two actually know what their friend went out to do?!
...
"Eh? In that case... should I still make lunch for Kohei-kun?"
Just about to start cooking, Nanaks froze. If he ended up at the police station... they probably provided breakfast, right?
"Forget it. That guy already has a delicious pork cutlet bowl waiting for him."
Kamishiro Shiro directly answered on Kohei's behalf. What university student even eats breakfast anymore these days? Some authors only get one meal a day, and it's usually afternoon tea!
{{(°△°; "}}!
Hearing that, Shiori wasn't sure anymore whether these two had really called the police.
"Um... is Brother Kohei going to be okay?"
"Ah, don't worry. We're not that kind of people, after all."
Kamishiro Shiro smiled, seeing Shiori's baffled expression. He had nearly forgotten that she wasn't used to how things worked here yet.
They were just joking. No matter how much of a pervert Kohei was, you couldn't report someone to the police without solid evidence!
"Obviously, we wait until he actually grabs a girl before calling the cops!"
Iori nodded in agreement. Evidence matters, after all.
"..."
Shiori opened her mouth, unsure what to say. Were their relationships always this complicated?
It felt even more twisted than the Uesugi granny's household next door.
Unable to make sense of it all, Shiori decided to head into the kitchen.
Gossip and drama could wait. Right now, the most important thing was to get her idiot brother to come back home!
"Nanaka-nee, I'll help you make breakfast~"
"Eh? Shiori, you're a guest, you don't need to bother yourself."
"No, I really want my brother to try food I made with my own hands~"
That's right!
Shiori's plan was to use the taste of home to awaken her brother's homesickness!
A child who had wandered away from home for too long—if he suddenly tasted a familiar breakfast...
Just the thought of it made her nostalgic!
"Morning... wait, is this the end of the world?"
The last to wake up, Chisa looked at her watch, baffled. Ever since Iori came, she never imagined she'd be the last to wake up in the house.
"Come on, we wake up early sometimes."
"If this really is the end of the world, then I'll go out dreaming."
Without the big sister around anymore, Kamishiro Shiro laid listlessly on the table. Ever since Shiori went into the kitchen, he had zero expectations for today's breakfast.
He didn't even have to think to know it'd be a traditional Japanese-style breakfast. But he really didn't like eating plain white rice in the morning. He preferred porridge...
Wait—if he poured miso soup over it, wouldn't that basically be porridge?
Breakfast Time~
Just as Kamishiro Shiro guessed—it was a classic Japanese-style meal.
White rice + grilled fish + miso soup + pickles + tamagoyaki (egg roll).
Aside from being a little bland, everything else was decent...
But to the Kotegawa household, this was quite the novelty. After all, not many people still had this kind of traditional breakfast. Most people just had milk and toast.
"This is rare."
"Shiori made most of this~"
"I hope it suits everyone's taste~"
Shiori gave a radiant smile. As a proper inn heiress, this kind of breakfast was child's play to her.
But today's breakfast wasn't as simple as it looked.
To stir her brother's homesickness, Shiori had pulled out all the stops!
The miso paste was brought from home, the pickles were homemade and high-quality, and even the egg roll was sweet—the way it was made in their hometown!
Oh, my foolish brother... surely now you're remembering that sakura tree outside our inn, right?!
"It's so good, you're definitely remembering your hometown now."
Uncle Kotegawa lived up to Shiori's expectations and delivered a perfect assist!
"Ah, it's what they call 'mom's cooking,' right?"
Iori nodded. He'd seen that phrase plenty of times in short videos—now it was finally his turn!
Nom!
He took a big bite—surprisingly tasty!
But...
"Wait, what exactly is the taste of home again?"
His innocent eyes showed pure stupidity. Iori genuinely couldn't remember what his hometown food tasted like. And to be honest, he thought the miso soup wasn't as good as yesterday's beer. Could he swap it out?
"You idiot..."
"Your memory is just the worst."
The Kotegawa father and daughter shook their heads.
Shiori, on the other hand, wanted to tear her dumb brother to pieces. How was he going to make it up to her?!
"Hmph, giving you delicious food is such a waste."
Kamishiro Shiro couldn't help but mock him. Forgetting the taste of your own hometown—he was hopeless!
(???)
Iori shot Kamishiro a side-eye and muttered, "You don't have any right to talk. Why are you soaking your rice in miso soup?"
"Have you never heard of ochazuke (tea over rice)?"
"You're ruining food even worse! Apologize to Shiori right now!"
"At least I can taste the flavor in food!"
"You even said paper tasted fine when you ate it."
"..."
Watching the two idiots start bickering, Shiori's eyelid twitched wildly. She felt like making breakfast for these two was an incredibly bad decision!!!
"Nom—anyway, that's not important. The important thing is Shiori—have you thought about what you want to do today?"
Kamishiro Shiro asked, slurping down his miso-soaked rice. He had no intention of going to class today.
"Yeah, Shiori—any plans this afternoon? Or anywhere you want to go? We can take you."
Nanaka finally remembered—no one had properly asked Shiori about her plans.
It had been so long—they definitely needed to treat her well.
"Eh? Me?"
Shiori froze. She hadn't thought about that at all. She came here purely because she was scared of her brother staying behind.
She didn't even make plans—she'd just left a letter at home.
"No, no plans. If I had to say... I want to do a big cleaning of my brother's room today!"
╭(°A°`)╮
"My room doesn't need cleaning!"
Iori was immediately against it. His room was really just a glorified club room—who knew what was even in there?!
And even if she cleaned it, it'd be a mess again in a few days—what was the point?
"Please don't say that. I just want to take good care of your daily life!"
Shiori's attitude was firm. Of course, she had a goal—she wanted to show that she was a hardworking, capable little sister.
With a sister like her waiting at home, who wouldn't want to go back?
She glanced at Iori, thinking her dumb brother must be moved to tears by now!
Chomp chomp
Iori continued eating—
He hadn't heard a word.
"Uuuu, it's too touching. Shiori, you really should take care of yourself too~"
Beside her, Kamishiro Shiro wiped nonexistent tears with a moved expression, full of sympathy for Shiori.
(?_? )
Shiori stared at him expressionlessly. What's the point of your fake emotions?!
Didn't this idiot realize her true intentions?
But—this did help Shiori realize one important thing:
Trying to get through to her dumb brother was a dead end.