After a long time away, Yukinoshita Yukino returned home. After the family had dinner together, she went back to her room.
Though she hadn't lived there in a while, the room was still tidy, clearly maintained by someone.
Only then did she have the chance to check her phone messages.
Opening Line, she saw that the chat app she had been urged to download by Yuigahama Yui only had one friend—Yuigahama herself.
Since Yukinoshita Yukino hadn't gone to the serving club for lunch that day, Yuigahama Yui learned from Hiratsuka-sensei that Yukino had taken a day off.
Yuigahama: Yukinon, did you miss school today because you were sick?
Yuigahama: Or is it because you had something to deal with?
Yuigahama: I'm a bit worried, so please message me back when you see this, Yuki-chan!
Yukinoshita Yukino felt warmth in her heart, her lips unconsciously curling into a smile. She typed a quick reply: I'm fine. Everything is sorted out, and I'll be back at school next week.
As soon as the message was sent, it showed as read, and right after that, a reply from Yuigahama Yui came in:
"That's great!"
Yuigahama: "Let's have lunch together in the Service Club next week!"
Yuigahama: "Oh, Hikki asked me for your Line number, so he should have added you as a friend already."
Three messages came in one after the other, almost faster than Yukinoshita Yukino could type a single message, making her feel a bit embarrassed.
After checking the friend request from Hikigaya, she accepted it, and he quickly sent her a message.
Hikigaya: "A curse appeared at school yesterday."
The girl's pupils shrank, and she hurriedly typed to ask what happened.
Hikigaya: "I was attacked in the corridor outside the Service Club. It seemed to be targeting me, five of them in total. They were very weak, probably level four curses, and I've already dealt with them. Yuigahama is fine. Also, I think I've awakened a technique."
[Targeting him? I see, it must be that dead fish-eyed guy leaving cursed energy behind while playing tennis with Yahama Kou at the tennis court that attracted the curses.]
Looking at the message from Hikigaya Hachiman, Hayashizaki quickly figured out why this guy had been attacked by curses.
Yukinoshita Yukino edited her message a bit before sending it back to Hikigaya Hachiman, but she didn't expect that his attention seemed to be elsewhere.
[Ask him what technique he awakened.]
Following Hayashizaki's instructions, Yukinoshita Yukino did just that. As she became more familiar with typing, her speed increased.
Hikigaya: "I'm not really sure either, but it seems like I can trap targets in a mirror?"
[Sounds like it might be related to space? But without seeing it for myself, I can't make a judgment. I'll wait until next Monday to check it out.]
After finishing her chat with Hikigaya Hachiman, Yukinoshita Yukino deleted all the chat logs at Hayashizaki's reminder.
[Why delete them?]
This time she was smart and avoided having her sister or anyone else barging into her room. Yukinoshita Yukino directly communicated with Hayashizaki through their mental channel.
[Because I feel your sister might sneak a peek at your phone.] Hayashizaki said frankly, remembering that both he and Yukinoshita Yukino were still being watched by her troublesome sister.
Since Yukinoshita Haruno was already suspicious, Hayashizaki had to be careful. After learning from the last lesson, he became much more cautious when dealing with her.
That woman was really troublesome—quick-thinking, proactive, and thick-skinned. It didn't surprise Hayashizaki at all that she might sneak a peek at her sister's phone.
[So that's how it is.]
After thinking it over, Yukinoshita Yukino nodded in agreement, realizing her sister could very well do something like that.
[Speak of the devil, and she shall appear.]
Just as Hayashizaki's words faded in her mind, the door to Yukinoshita Yukino's room swung open.
Looking over, she saw Yukinoshita Haruno entering, wearing a thin nightgown and holding a pillow and a hairdryer, smiling brightly.
"I'm here to sleep with you, Yuki-chan~"
It seemed she had just taken a shower. The scent of shower gel mixed with warm steam filled the air, and her damp hair hung down to her shoulders. Water droplets trickled down her clear collarbone, sliding over her smooth skin and playfully diving into her cleavage.
The nightgown had thin straps, exposing her fair, slightly flushed shoulders. The lightweight fabric didn't cling tightly due to her chest, and a cool summer breeze wafted in through the window, gently lifting the hem of her nightgown, making one worry about catching a cold.
The hem stopped above her knees, showing off her slender calves, and her small, fair feet were in pink slippers. She hadn't painted her nails in any bright colors, and her ten tiny toes wriggled playfully, damp from the water.
Yukinoshita Haruno tossed the pillow onto her sister's bed and then unceremoniously shoved the hairdryer into Yukino's arms. "Yuki-chan, help me dry my hair!"
After saying this, she pushed Yukinoshita Yukino aside and took her spot, waiting for her sister's service.
"Why do I have to share a room with you…"
Even as she grumbled, Yukinoshita Yukino obediently plugged in the hairdryer and started drying Haruno's hair.
The warm air blew through the strands, and with a delicate hand massaging her head, Yukinoshita Haruno couldn't help but hum a tune, feeling relaxed.
As she enjoyed the pampering from her adorable sister, Haruno naturally and subtly reached for the phone Yukinoshita had left on the desk.
The lock screen password should be her birthday, right? Yuki-chan is always so straightforward~
She easily guessed the password without much effort, but before she could unlock the phone, the heat on her head started to feel wrong.
"Ah, hot, hot, hot!"
Yukinoshita Yukino held the hairdryer in the same spot for a moment longer, causing Haruno to let out a pleading sound.
"As expected from Parasite-kun, my sister is really not being honest!"
After giving Yukinoshita Haruno a small reprimand, she casually grabbed her phone back from Haruno's hands.
"Are you hiding some little secret on your phone that you don't want your sister to see, Yuki-chan?"
Yukinoshita Haruno, unhappy with her failed attempt, huffed.
"No."
Yukinoshita Yukino replied calmly.
"Even if there were, it wouldn't be any of your business, right?"
"Woo, Yuki-chan, you're so cold-hearted. Do you dislike your sister now? When we were kids, Yukino-chan loved her sister the most!"
Haruno tried to act cute to get out of it.
"Yes."
Yukinoshita Yukino answered right away.
Feeling the body in front of her suddenly stiffen, a smile involuntarily appeared on the girl's face.
[See, I told you it would work. Your sister is totally a sister-con!]
…
…
Night fell.
The two sisters of the Yukinoshita family were curled up together in sleep, mostly because the younger one was being held in the arms of the older one.
Only a small lamp was left on in the room, and the warm yellow light from the Tachibana lamp blended with the moonlight that streamed in, while a gentle night breeze swayed the curtains, bringing a coolness to the summer night.
The Yukinoshita residence was closer to the suburbs, lacking the light pollution from the bright Japan lights of the bustling city. The night sky became clearer, with distant starlight twinkling in the dark expanse above.
There was no sleepiness; they wanted to talk through the night.
"Hey, Yuki-chan, tell your sister about the brave moment when you caught the killer."
Yukinoshita Haruno rubbed her cheek against her sister's fragrant hair, and the slightly warm breath brushed against her neck, making the girl in her arms shrink her neck a bit.
"That tickles..."
Yukinoshita Yukino, feeling awkward, squirmed a little but soon gave in to her sister's embrace. The soft sensation against her back felt wonderful, with their chests pressing against each other, almost like they were facing one another.
"Hurry up and tell me! I'm really curious!"
Haruno urged.
"Actually, there's not much to say."
Yukinoshita Yukino sighed softly, feeling helpless, and then recounted the story she had already prepared.
"I saw a shady guy following a man on the street. I happened to notice a fruit knife hidden in his pocket. Thinking something was off, I quietly followed him and called the police at the same time."
"When the killer followed the victim into the apartment, I waited downstairs. When the police arrived, we went up together and found that the victim had already been killed. The killer was caught on the spot."
"Yuki-chan, do you remember what the killer looked like?"
Yukinoshita Haruno asked curiously.
"Bald, with a scar near his left eye."
Since she had seen the information about the death row inmate who was framed, Yukinoshita Yukino could describe it clearly, which was called being foolproof.
[What foolproof...?] Hayashizaki, who was eavesdropping on the sisters' conversation, complained helplessly. [Did you not notice you were being led on?]
[Isn't this the script we agreed on?] Yukinoshita Yukino asked, puzzled.
[No, buddy, you just acted like a patient who saw a bloody scene and was shocked, needing rest and a full check-up at the hospital, and only a few hours have passed since then? Now you can casually recount your experience to your sister like it's a story?]
This is what you call a flaw in a perfect plan.
[...]
Yukinoshita Yukino stiffened, and her expression gradually turned blank as Haruno couldn't see her face. She had just been thinking how she could face such a brutal scene and that she had grown, but this calmness ended up having a negative effect.
"Hey, Yuki-chan, you remember it so clearly... What's wrong?"
After a moment of shock, Yukinoshita Yukino suddenly turned around. Facing Haruno's mature, seductive face, she seriously reached out from under the covers and pinched her sister's cheeks, pulling them to the sides.
The girl bit her lip and didn't respond, instead silently venting her frustrations by playfully pinching her sister's cheeks.
Sisters share a bond, but you're trying to outsmart your sister?
"Wuwu..."
Yukinoshita Haruno mumbled, unable to speak, but her eyes curved into crescent moons, a smile radiating from her. She found her suddenly irritable little sister incredibly cute.
She quickly reached out her hands, rubbing Yukino's face with both palms.
After a moment, once she had vented her frustration, Yukinoshita Yukino swatted away her sister's hands and turned her back to her.
"I'm going to sleep now. Don't bother me anymore, sister!"
After saying this, she closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep.
However, even though she said that, Yukinoshita Haruno would probably ignore her and hug her again.
This person has always been like this since childhood, never caring about her feelings, just teasing her for her own amusement.
After waiting for a long time with her eyes closed, but the expected thing didn't happen, the girl couldn't help but feel a bit curious and quietly peeked over.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Yukinoshita Haruno lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.
"Recently, it feels like Yuki-chan has become a different person."
After a moment of silence, Yukinoshita Haruno gently spoke up.
Unlike her sister's pure, ethereal voice, her tone was laced with a bit of lazy afternoon warmth and a raspy texture, like the purple smoke drifting from the lips of a dancer, easily capturing attention with its indulgence and romance.
"Become... um, more brave."
After a brief hesitation, it was a definite statement.
Yukinoshita Haruno understood that her sister was actually a small girl who was both timid and stubborn.
She was so timid that after being hurt, she shut herself off, putting up sharp defenses, and curled up in her little world, waiting for someone to come save her. At the same time, she was so stubborn that she kept chasing after her own shadow, unwilling to give up, as if there were no other goals in life.
From what Shizuku said, Yuki-chan is planning to attend the same university as her.
Yukinoshita Haruno knew that her own path in life was already set. She would take on the Yukinoshita family's burden, allowing Yuki-chan to live more freely and happily, without having to follow in her footsteps.
So she didn't want Yukino to chase after her.
Recently, there was indeed a feeling that Yukino had stopped pursuing her.
This should have been something to be happy about, but for some reason, it brought a sense of annoyance that surged in her heart and gradually spread, slowly turning into an inexplicable fear.
The fear that Yuki-chan might be taken away from her life.
"Isn't this a good thing? Doesn't sister want me to be a better person?"
Yukinoshita Yukino turned around and asked in confusion.
"It is a good thing... for Yuki-chan, it certainly is."
Yukinoshita Haruno said with mixed feelings, then turned over, this time leaving her back to her sister.
"Time to sleep! Yuki-chan, don't sneak in and hug me in the middle of the night~"
"I wouldn't do that."
The orange light in the room gradually faded, and darkness spread throughout.
I hope you can live freely in my line of sight.
…
…
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