[Mass Release: 5/7]
"Tch~~ just as I thought, you're a sis-con. You went completely silent."
Seeing Takumi's flustered expression, Yuki giggled mischievously.
Takumi glared at her, exasperated. "Are you done yet? I'm not recognizing a sister who doesn't even respect her brother!"
Pinching her soft cheeks, he quickly stepped into the train.
When he noticed she'd followed him aboard, his expression went blank.
"You're not going home? Planning to follow me around now?"
Hearing that, Yuki straightened up, hands on her hips, putting on a dramatic air.
"I'm just a weak, helpless girl, you know! After everything that happened today, I'm traumatized! It's only fair that I stay close to you for a while. Besides… I kinda want to see where you live."
Takumi ignored most of that speech and honed in on the last part.
"You want to know where I live? Fine. Here."
He opened a map of Kuoh Town on his phone and pointed at his home location.
Yuki peeked over and immediately perked up, straightening her back and puffing out her chest.
"My house is only four stations away from yours! Next time, I'm coming over to play, Onii-chan~~"
With a teasing smile, she stepped off at the next stop, leaving Takumi slightly stunned.
"Huh… she actually lives that close? Just ten minutes by train."
He rubbed his chin, frowning in thought.
"Wait a sec… I feel like I've seen Yuki somewhere before. But when?"
As he searched his memory, flashes from over a decade ago surfaced.
He was only three months old at the time.
Though he retained memories from his past life, his brain hadn't fully developed yet, so his behavior was still very childlike—just a bit more aware than most babies.
"Hmm~~ maybe I really did meet her back then… though it's too fuzzy to recall clearly."
He sighed, letting the thought go.
Meanwhile, back at home, Yuki skipped her way through the front door, beaming with joy.
Her cheerful energy immediately drew her mother's attention.
"You're smiling awfully bright today, Yuki. Did something good happen?"
"Mommy~~ I met this amazing guy! His name's Takumi, and he totally saved my life today!"
"He saved… your life?!"
Hearing that, the beautiful woman—Yumi Suou—grew serious. As the current head of the Suou family, she deeply cherished her only daughter.
Yuki quickly recounted the events of the day, skipping over the details involving Rias.
When Yumi saw the photo of Takumi on her daughter's phone, her eyes widened in shock.
"An outcast devil… I see. So that's what happened to you. Looks like it's time I told you a bit more about the hidden world."
She paused, her expression softening with realization.
"Takumi… I remember now. His parents were distant relatives of ours. Technically, he's your cousin."
Yuki blinked in confusion.
"When you two were babies, you actually met once. I even remember him trying to confess to you back then. Of course, you were both only three months old. Thinking back, it's kind of adorable~"
Yuki stared at her mother, completely dumbfounded.
After a few seconds, her brain finally caught up—
"Eh!!!!???"
"He—He's my cousin!? And he confessed to me when we were three months old!?"
Her scream nearly made Yumi drop her tea.
"Uh… yes? What's wrong with that?"
Realizing her daughter's shock, Yumi chuckled softly.
"Anyway, he's done well for himself. Since he saved your life, I'll reach out personally. It's only proper we maintain good relations."
But before Yumi could finish, Yuki jumped in, waving her hands frantically.
"Mom! No, let me thank him personally! I'll go visit him myself!"
Yumi blinked in surprise—her daughter had never been this assertive.
But after a moment of thought, she smiled faintly.
"Well… considering he saved you, I suppose it's reasonable. Go ahead then."
The moment Yumi agreed, Yuki lowered her head with a mischievous grin.
"Yesss~!" she whispered.
"Achoo!"
Back at home, Takumi suddenly sneezed.
He rubbed his nose, a chill running down his spine.
"Someone's definitely talking about me. I've got a bad feeling… Yuki, is this your doing?"
Curious, he used his [Thousand-Mile Ear] to listen in remotely.
"Hehehe~~ Onii-chan, you can't escape me~"
"Ah~ a forbidden sibling romance! Perfect!"
"Kyahehe~ now the relationship has evolved… no—transcended!"
"…What the hell am I hearing?"
Takumi listened for ten full minutes and still couldn't make sense of it.
Words like "romance," "transcendence," and "forbidden" floated by meaninglessly.
All he knew was that his back felt even colder now.
"She's not… a yandere, right? Just… overly enthusiastic."
He muttered to himself, shaking his head as he stepped inside his home—
"Welcome back, Takumi-nii!"
"O-…Onii-sama, welcome home."
He froze.
Maria, wearing a frilly white apron, greeted him with a bright smile, spatula in hand. Her petite frame looked dangerously cute in that outfit.
Beside her stood Mio Naruse—also in an apron—but her voluptuous figure couldn't possibly be hidden by the frills.
The sight was… overwhelming.
"D-Don't look, Onii-san…" Mio stammered, blushing furiously as she ducked into a shy squat.
Feeling the blood rush to his head, Takumi squeezed his eyes shut and groaned, "Why the hell are you two dressed like that!?"
"T-That was Maria's idea…" Mio mumbled, voice barely above a whisper.
Maria puffed up her cheeks, playfully pushing Mio forward.
"Come on, Mio-sama! Just admit it worked, didn't it?"
The moment Mio stumbled into Takumi's arms, she felt exactly what Maria meant by "worked."
Yeah… it definitely worked.
...
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