…Alright, that wasn't exactly a nice thing to say either.
But no matter what, this guy was seriously going too far.
With the stitched-together voice still replaying in her ears, Horikita Suzune slowly came back to her senses.
It didn't matter how her brother evaluated her.
But she absolutely couldn't allow him to smear her brother's image with this kind of fabricated recording!
Thinking that, she clenched her teeth, leaned forward, braced herself with her left hand, and suddenly reached toward the recorder with her right.
"—"
He reacted.
Asakusa Tetsu raised the recorder high into the air.
Horikita's hand grabbed nothing but air.
Because she was too rushed, even her supporting left hand slipped.
Her upper body lost balance.
Following her upward-reaching right hand, she toppled forward—
And her entire head slammed straight into the bench.
"Ugh—!"
The girl let out a pitiful cry.
"..."
Looking at her sorry state, Asakusa showed a look of disbelief.
"Are you an idiot?"
He repeated the question.
Honestly, he was starting to find it unbelievable.
Before, he hadn't really seen her in action.
Most of what he knew came from text descriptions, other people's retellings, or recordings.
If she was just a little dumb and innocent, he could laugh it off.
But now…
He was genuinely curious.
"I treated you to an ice pop. Why are you trying to steal my recorder?" Asakusa frowned.
"You can't even eat properly. Fine, you grab the recorder—but you even smash your own head."
"No wonder your brother thinks you're useless."
"Seriously, are you still a kid?"
"Only little kids look cute when they do stupid things. When adults mess up, it's just embarrassing."
Of course, kids being dumb was also blood-pressure-raising, but there was no need to mention that now.
He casually turned off the looping audio and put the recorder away.
Frowning, he looked at Horikita, who was holding her head with watery eyes.
A weak, pitiful aura was practically leaking out of her.
Annoying.
She was really annoying right now.
Also, why was she holding her head when she hit her chin?
Was she trying to cover her face?
"…So troublesome."
Muttering under his breath, Asakusa reached into his pocket and pulled out another ice pop.
[Name: Calming Ice Pop]
[Type: Consumable]
[Effect: Family-size pack of 40 sweet ice pops. Excellent for soothing the mind. No added drugs.]
[Note: "Want one?"]
Thanks to his barely-useful E-rank item, "Insulated Pocket," he could always keep three to five ice pops in his pocket.
He tore open the wrapper, crumpled it, stuffed it back into his pocket, then grabbed Horikita's chin with one hand, pried her mouth open, and roughly shoved the ice-cold ice pop inside.
"Mmm—!"
The foreign object going straight to her throat triggered an instinctive gag reflex.
But she didn't throw up.
She could only let him keep pushing the stick into her throat.
"Mm?!"
With teary eyes, Horikita glared fiercely at him.
Again?!
But… strangely enough, once the ice pop began to melt in her mouth, her emotions slowly calmed down.
"Finish eating. Then shut up," Asakusa ordered flatly, releasing her.
So, very obediently, Horikita held onto the wooden stick and didn't do anything extra.
"I don't want to be a therapist, and I have no intention of being anyone's emotional trash can," Asakusa said.
He took out a pack of tissues and slowly wiped his hands, which were covered in condensation, tears, or maybe even saliva.
He shook his head.
"But today, I'll make an exception."
"Consider it after-sales service for the recorder."
"Come. Look me in the eyes."
He cupped her face with both hands and forced her gaze straight.
"Look in my eyes!"
"Tell me what you're thinking. What you've done. How you should repent. And where you're going."
"Answer!"
"—"
The sudden shout made Horikita bite down on the ice pop with a crack.
She instinctively tried to shrink back, but his hands held her firmly.
She had no choice but to pull out the ice pop and say pitifully,
"I-Ice… ice pop…"
"Chew it and swallow. Two or three bites," he replied calmly.
It was hard to believe this was the same person who had just shouted.
Obediently crunching and swallowing, Horikita soon held another empty stick.
"I… I want to become a little sister who won't disappoint my brother…"
Someone worthy of being called Horikita Manabu's sister.
Someone he could proudly introduce as "my sister."
"I… I've been studying really, really hard…"
She didn't waste time on useless things.
Didn't participate in pointless socializing.
She buried herself in books and studied desperately.
"I… I should've noticed the trap in Chabashira-sensei's words. I should've stopped Yamauchi from dragging everyone into slackness. I should've…"
For some reason, with her face held in his hands, the fog in her head began to clear.
But…
There was still no road ahead.
Even with the fog gone, she had never known which direction to walk in.
So her words stalled.
"—You should find a mirror. Or find some flat ground, pee on it, and take a good look at yourself."
Asakusa sighed softly, helplessly.
"You need to recognize your abilities. Understand your nature. Know your position. And measure your limits."
"Now, tell me your abilities. Tell me your strengths. Tell me what you think you're better at than others."
Show me your self-awareness.
"I… I'm good at studying?" Horikita hesitated before giving the only answer she truly believed in.
"..."
Asakusa shook his head and asked another question.
"How long do you study every day? And how are your grades now?"
"T-Ten… twelve… thirteen hours a day… And my grades—I think I'm better than anyone."
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