Volume 14 Otonashi Kaguya’s Family Planning
「I think that recently Otouto-kun is only resting on the laurels of your sex technique-!」
After finishing dazzling Kaguya-senpai with carnality to the extreme many times over that she half-fainted, Kazuki was watching in fascination the face of that Kaguya-senpai who was currently using his arm as a pillow while her face was still faintly blushing from the lingering aftertaste of their deed. But suddenly Kaguya-senpai came back to life and she sat up in a flash and said that.
「Se, senpai……?」
Kazuki was watching Kaguya-senpai who was being indignant while both her hands were hitting the blanket covering them with *pofun pofun* sound.
「Recently I’m feeling haughtiness from thee, thou art entranced with thine own technique of the darkness!」
「O, old master?」
「Onee-san once more insists about the importance of things like romantic mood or creating a special atmosphere with a bit more effort-」
After saying that with a loud voice, Kaguya-senpai further spoke mumblingly with a small voice.
「……Well, right now it feels good and I’m terribly satisfied but, it’s embarrassing how I feel too good that I get too out of control. Right now there is no more influence from Asmodeus so I cannot use that as an excuse anymore……even though I’m the older one it feels like I’m the one that got led around. I’m feeling complicated……I cannot clear away this indignation gowasu!!」
That Kaguya-senpai was attaching a strange word at the end of her sentence in jest was surely because she was really embarrassed.
Kaguya-senpai covered her face with both her hands saying 「Geeeez-!」 while writhing.
Nevertheless she properly spoke out her feeling so Kazuki was thankful for that.
「Certainly, I might be careless in that kind of aspect……」
What Kaguya-senpai was saying was half for hiding her shame, but doing something like a date and then flirting with each other……only doing just those would cause them to get stuck in a rut sooner or later.
The days in the past that were filled with many upheavals was stimulating on the whole, to the extent that it also felt special that they could just be together in this peaceful time.
If they spent this peaceful daily life with the same feelings as that time, then it was only natural to get stuck in a rut.
Previously Mio explained to him that as a boyfriend it was really important to be romantic, but it was exactly this current time that such factor was even more important than before.
「But it’s difficult to discover the chance for something romantic when it is a too peaceful daily life……」
「……For example on anniversary day or something, we will find something special or something」
Kaguya-senpai created gap between the fingers covering her face and glanced at Kazuki.
Kazuki suddenly came to a realization.
「Kaguya’s birthday? Come to think of it I feel like it will be soon. Feels like it’s in Winter. But I don’t pay attention to birthdays and the like so I don’t know. Should I try asking the other girl in the class?」
Hikaru-senpai smiled cheerfully when she heard Kazuki’s question and she started playing with her mobile phone.
It was the next morning. Kaguya-senpai who was weak in the morning was still sleeping, but everyone else was all present in the living room.
Hikaru-senpai laughed 「Ahahah」 with her phone in one hand.
「It’s next week they say.」
「Next week huuh. I see, as I thought.」
Kazuki understood. Kaguya-senpai’s attitude last night was more of an appeal rather than dissatisfaction.
Mio who was listening from the side was sending him a reproachful gaze.
「That’s, for a couple it’s only natural to celebrate birthdays. When is the date of the birthday is something that should be asked casually beforehand while going out together.」
「Mio’s birthday is……in Spring, if I remember it correctly, isn’t it?」
「Kazu-nii only guessed it from my name right!? You absolutely don’t remember it right!? Geeez!」 (TN: The kanji of Mio’s name is made up from the kanji of beauty and sakura)
「For a couple, birthdays are something special isn’t it……」
Kazuki received a shock from the fact of his blind spot and he held his head in his wits’ end.
As a swordsman, Kazuki passed through his youth with stoicness that didn’t hold interest in other things. His contact with girls was only a recent matter that drastically increased in these few months.
In the first place, Kazuki was a person that was really considerate to other people. He also obtained the ability to sense the fluctuation of positivity level, and he unexpectedly didn’t do anything that was lacking in delicacy.
But his thinking didn’t reach until the importance of birthdays at all.
In the first place Kazuki didn’t know about his own birthday. His birthday was always celebrated along with Kanae’s birthday. In Kazuki’s life, 『birthday』 was a concept with endlessly low importance.
But, a girl was a living thing that wanted to have their birthdays celebrated grandly by their boyfriend.
Or rather, this kind of anniversary day was the ideal event to discover something special between the ordinary days. There was no option to not make use of this. It was like an alchemy that produced a romantic element.
「The scale has fallen from my eyes……」
「It’s not something to feel that moved for. Geez, this is because Kazu-nii is ignorant to the ways of the world in strange places.」
「By the way Hikaru-senpai’s birthday is……?」
Kazuki timidly asked. Hikaru-senpai answered with her wide smile unchanging.
「Me? It already passed a long time ago you know? It was on May 5th, Children’s Day.」
There was no other girl who suited Children’s Day more than this person.
Kazuki joined both his hands in supplication and apologized 「I’m sorry for ignoring it completely」.
「At that time we still weren’t that close. It’s not something to be concerned about you know?」
Thinking back about that day, it was around the time he went together with Mio on a quest and encountered Beatrix. Certainly at that time they weren’t so close that he would ask her when her birthday was and celebrated it together.
Hikaru-senpai raised her voice 「Aah」 and she clapped her hands.
「Looking back I got an expensive looking cookie from Kaguya on my birthday. I would have completely forget about it around this time if Kazuki didn’t ask about it.」
Mio turned an exasperated gaze at her.
「As a girl senpai should remember that kind of thing properly you know? A really deep grudge can arise even from friendship between fellow woman.」
「Because─, at that time I was still jeered 『prince』『prince』 by the surroundings and got a lot of presents. I couldn’t think about returning gifts or anything with that number.」
「Now that you mention it Hikaru-senpai was a prince huh. ……I completely forgot.」
Without doubt she was just a crazy high-tensioned girl who called herself using “boku”.
「Right now senpai isn’t treated like that anymore by the people around you?」
「Because the surroundings already recognize me as belonging to Kazuki.」
「By any chance, am I secretly resented by the girls who were Hikaru-senpai’s fans……」
「Ahaha, there is no one who chased after me until that seriously. I’m also feeling refreshed with this situation.」
Hikaru-senpai laughed with a refreshed expression.
「And the birthdays of Koyuki and Lotte and Kamimura-san is……?」
Kazuki also asked the three who were only watching without cutting in.
「Of course I was born in winter. At the end of February……it’s just a little bit ahead.」
Kazuki sighed in relief hearing Koyuki’s answer.
「My birthday is in November, but I myself aren’t that conscious of my birthday. Because there was no such custom in Seinmundo that was a religious country. But certainly there are a lot of scenes of birthday celebrations in manga and anime. Please remember it this year desu!」
Kazuki undertook Lotte’s words with 「Leave it to me」, then next he turned his gaze to Kamimura-san.
「My birthday is on April 1st……I am truly the late born among the late born (TN: April 1 is the school entrance date in Japan, so I guess if a baby is born on that day, when he entered school he will be a year older than the surrounding). If only there was no handicap from this birthday, there is no doubt that I won’t become something like a shut-in otaku!!」
In practice whether one was born early (TN: between January 1 until April 1) or born late, they would be gathered together with other kids who were born in the time frame of ten months ahead at the latest, so the 『handicap』 that Kamimura-san mentioned wasn’t really applicable to be the shut-in girl’s excuse. In any case,
「Kamimura-san’s birthday is also still ahead huh……thank god.」
Kazuki patted his chest in relief while stroking Kamimura-san’s head.
He was safe with the members in this place. But he wondered just how many birthdays of girls that supposedly had to be celebrated no matter what and yet he ignored it completely within these several months.
Seeing Kazuki’s grave face, Hikaru-senpai burst into laughter 「Pupuh, kukuh」.
「My bad for laughing, but it’s really hard for Kazuki isn’t it? With this many lovers, surely every month there will be someone’s birthday!」
「My notepad will be packed full like this. ……But it’s looking fun that there will be a lot of events every year. I see, so anniversary days are something like this.」
「Kazu-nii, you are smiling optimistically but, are you properly thinking about the birthday present?」
Mio brandished words that were like blades of ice.
Kazuki instantly froze, and then he wilted down on the spot crestfallenly.
「……So far, Turtle Oota-san brought me an offer for co-authorship of an autobiography so that might be a revenue source too……」
「That’s relying on money that you still don’t really know whether it will come to realization or not. ……Hm? But, if it’s an autobiography, it will be Kazuki’s autobiography from when he enrolled into the Magic Department, then became King until the battle in Atlantis? That’s, won’t it be able to normally aim to become best seller?」
Kazuki’s activity as King was reported to the public by the government PR even while Kazuki’s own name was hidden from the report. But that was a public archive to inform the people about his public business as King. Furthermore the reports’ content wasn’t formal at all with excessive heroic telling in order to earn the support from the public though……
However, the time before Kazuki became King was mostly untouched.
The fight since Kazuki enrolled into the Magic Department until he was recognized by the Knight Academy, the war between Japan and Yamato that divided the country into east and west, the battle of Fuji’s sea of trees around the three Sacred Treasures, the voyage to America, and then the last decisive battle on Atlantis……if all this chain of events were collected into one, it would become an entertainment work to the degree that it would sound like non-fiction that was full of lies.
There wasn’t even any need to imagine that the content would become the greatest matter of concern and interest for the public.
「Oota-san has also already thought about the title. 『Magika no Kenshi to Shoukan Maou』 he said. The Shoukan Maou(Summoning Devil King) will be written as Basilleus in romaji.」
Lotte’s eyes shined.
「The katakana’s ruby character above the kanji desu! So the katakana’s ruby character is different from the kanji! So cool! That can be turned into an anime desu!」
「That can sell……that can really sell! Kazu-nii, you should focus properly regarding the royalty beforehand! Even if the Turtle will be the one to write it, you’ve to insist for 5% at minimum!!」
Money that shouldn’t be relied on……Mio retracted those words of hers and she leaned forward eagerly.
「Royalty……the dream life from royalty!? The almost perfect unearned income just from lending your name!?」
Kamimura-san’s eyes were also shining from her thinking moving to a different direction.
「Ahaha! You’ve got to warn him so that it won’t become an erotic novel!」
Hikaru-senpai spoke while laughing. It was arranged so that his real name wouldn’t come out, however now that she said it, it would still be really embarrassing even then.
「Putting that aside, what will you do about Kaguya-senpai’s birthday? The day is going to be a weekday, so it will be a date after school……something like that?」
Mio corrected the course of the conversation that was going off the rail.
Kazuki crossed his arms and groaned.
「No……rather than that……」
The thing that Kaguya-senpai was desiring the most, he wondered what it was.
Of course she must also be wishing to spend a romantic time with just the two of them. However he couldn’t say with confidence that that would really be the thing she desired the most.
He wondered whether her birthday was hiding a trauma that should be wiped out first.
──Kazuki tried conveying the thought his mind had reached to Hikaru-senpai.
「……Hm, I guess. I think that Kaguya will surely like that.」
Hikaru-senpai made a smile that looked like it came from her heart and nodded to him.
「I think that’s the best for Kaguya.」
After that Kazuki turned his gaze to Mio.
「Mio! Let me consult with you about the present!」
「As expected, there is only me for that kind of consultation!」
Otouto-kun, who suddenly got hit with an idea when he heard about anniversary days, most likely would ask about her birthday from Hikaru, and then he would prepare a romantic birthday date for her……that was her calculation.
‘Strange’, Kaguya thought. The invitation for a date didn’t come.
Everyone ate breakfast and then scattered to their respective classes, then classes were over, and it became after school……at this rate she would go back to the Witch’s Mansion alone.
Like this it would end up as just a normal day. There was no unhappiness, but there was also nothing romantic. A normal day.
Well, something like an anniversary day was essentially just a normal day without anything special about it. What she did was nothing more than forcibly pushing some kind of excuse and made noise about a special day.
Even though Hikaru looked like that, but she was someone dry, so she looked like she wouldn’t pay attention at all to something like a birthday. Even if Otouto-kun asked her,
「Kaguya’s birthday? I dunno! Well, something like a birthday doesn’t matter, don’t you think? Everyday is eburidei (TN: Butchered English of everyday, also sound like birthday if you squint I guess)!」
She would say something like that, and Otouto-kun too would,
「There is truth in that, eburidei.」
「Eburideeei!!」
Perhaps it turned out like that. Otouto-kun’s strange easiness to get into the mood was scary.
Kaguya’s shoulders dropped in dejection.
Birthday──when she thought about it, for some reason her chest felt painfully throbbing. She wondered why.
……In the past, every year she had a birthday party held for her. Papa and mama were still kind, and it was also before Onii-chan died from an accident. That was the symbol of a family’s warmth.
Nyarlathotep possessed papa, mama was also turned mad, and because of that the birthday party couldn’t happen for a second time. Never again would she have her birth celebrated…
She was only ordered to 『aim for becoming the strongest magician』, and she obeyed it……
However, right now in this world the title of strongest magician meant nothing.
The current her had no special meaning or anything. She was an extremely common girl who wasn’t even good in physical exercise. Her grades were so-so. She also had no hobby or special skill. She jokingly said about becoming a politician, but she couldn’t even find her dream of the future.
This throbbing chest──it might be her longing that wished to at least take back her warm family.
What she was looking for wasn’t a romantic situation or anything.
She was hungry for something warm all this time. She wanted to become a warm human. She worked hard to erase the dispute between the sword department and the magic department, but instead she was thought of unsympathetically from her surroundings.
That was why she also felt something lacking from her 『relationship of male and female』 with Otouto-kun. That she still couldn’t stop her attempt to act as an Onee-san was surely because of something like that.
She exited the school building and walked across the Knight Academy’s courtyard, heading toward the Witch’s Mansion. That the inside of the Academy after school was over feeling strangely quiet must be because there was no more students that trained. On the other hand there still wasn’t any club activities arranged for them.
She wanted her existence to be celebrated.
In that case she would be able to have a fresh start even in this world where something like the strongest magician wasn’t necessary.
She arrived back at the usual Witch’s Mansion.
This normally empty her like this finished her normal day.
She put her hand on the door, and opened──.
「「「「「「HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KAGUYA!!」」」」」」
Together with the many voices, *pan pan pan pan!* light bursting sound resounded──thinking that it was attack magic, Kaguya’s body instantly took a guard stance, but that wasn’t it. The smell of black powder wafted in the air, and fluttering scraggly things were floating down on her head. She knew what that was──this was that thing called a party cracker.
Her many comrades were lining up at the corridor from the entrance until the living room, at the ceiling were chains of paper tape and balloons fully decorating the place.
「Heh?」
Kaguya reflexively raised a stupid sounding voice.
Even though she was coaxing for an anniversary in that kind of shape on the bed, and yet beyond her imagination it resulted in a home party style. However, this was exactly the 『warmth』 that she was actually looking for. She was immediately made self-aware of that. Because she felt something warm was gathering at the corner of her eyes.
Otouto-kun walked out from between her friends and took the hand of Kaguya who was standing paralyzed.
He had seen through the matter that even she herself had only came to understood just now.
……That’s right, he was always fighting by 『seeing through』. That was his style.
Her whole head became hot, not just the corners of her eyes. Cold tears was crossing through her heated cheeks.
「There is nothing to cry about here, isn’t it?」
「Because……I’m so happy.」
Originally, for a person who wasn’t family to understand about others until this far was just unthinkable.
In the living room, handmade cooking and snacks, and in addition a huge whole cake were lined up on the table. Kaguya opened wide her damp eyes.
「……Otouto-kun, you took a day off from school?」
「Wrong, these few days I prepared it bit by bit. I also had a reliable helper.」
「Helper?」
From among her friends, there was someone who rushed out saying 「Kaguya-chaaaan! It’s me ze!」.
Mibu Akira──even though she aimed to open a cake shop since she was a child, because she obtained a Stigma she was forcefully enrolled into the Knight Academy and then became a peevish yankee.
Seeing Kaguya who persisted in becoming a model example of the Knight Academy, she felt embarrassed of herself who acted peevish because her dream was broken, and then she called Kaguya things like 『Hero of justice』 or 『someone respectable』.
Kaguya heard that right now she was boldly aiming to become a pastry chef and worked hard. For the current Kaguya, she was the one who was feeling respect towards Akira instead. It was noble how she was working hard for her dream even if it wasn’t something grand like being a hero.
Kaguya was happy that someone like that made a cake for her together with Otouto-kun, that her sight became even more blurred.
「Kazuki! It’s effective, it’s effective! Keep press on!!」
Hikaru was saying a strange thing like a boxing trainer.
Otouto-kun presented to her a bouquet of flowers and a box that was wrapped prettily.
「It’s a pair wristwatch. I think that it has good utility. I’ve never seen senpai wear a wristwatch, and I also don’t have one so……」
「Ca, can I ophen it to look?」
She spoke with a nasally voice. Laughter suddenly arose from the surroundings.
「Yes, please try putting it on.」
She opened the wrapping paper carefully, and from inside a box with a famous looking brand came out. When she opened it with a feeling like opening a treasure box, an adult-like wristwatch with simple dials came out.
「I thought that it’s like Kaguya-senpai.」
「……Fufuh, I’m, not as much an adult as Otouto-kun is thinking of me you know?」
She quickly put it around her left hand. Otouto-kun also slowly lifted his left hand and showed his watch to her. It was slightly modified to look manly with a design that suited him. The watch was shining on his wrist.
In the surroundings, the girls who similarly loved him like Kaguya raised their voices 「How nice─!」.
「……It’s like a ring. I’m happy.」
「Someday, I’ll absolutely buy a ring for you too.」
Saying that, Otouto-kun embraced her.
Eating delicious things, playing games with everyone, the trio of Kana-chan - Kohaku - Torazou-san was exhibiting funny gags……a fun time that wasn’t commonplace by any means was passing like a dream.
And then when night came, she was taken to Otouto-kun’s room, where he gently embraced her.
Even though she was the older one, she was one-sidedly pleasured……she didn’t think of such thing.
She also didn’t think that she was trying to get spoiled by his reliability as though she was chasing after the shadow of her big brother.
She entrusted her body to him to the degree that she had never done since she had lost the excuse that Asmodeus was making her aroused, where she was then thrown out of order.
「……Don’t」
He was reaching his hand to the condom. But Kaguya put that down decisively.
She wasn’t pregnant from that night on Atlantis, and since magic power vanished from the world, he was always taking contraception into consideration.
「Kazuki-kun……」
However, Kaguya appealed to him that she wanted to accept him directly, and she spread open her body.
She thought that she surely wouldn’t call him Otouto-kun anymore. That was why.
He also gave her a small nod. And then──.
A few days after her birthday, a notice came that her father who was in a vegetative state recovered his consciousness.
Kaguya took a day off from school and alone she visited the hospital room where her father was bedridden all this time.
He was emaciated because he was bedridden all this time, but all the life-support systems were taken off from him and he was able to sit down by his own strength. For Kaguya who had resolved herself that her father was near death, his appearance was unexpectedly firm. As though his bedridden state was only a dream.
On the other hand, for her father the change of the world must be like a dream for him.
Kaguya talked. About Nyarlathotep. About Kazuki-kun──how he became this country’s King. About the battle against Mythologies on the flying continent. And then──about the complete change of the world.
「……That’s something completely unbelievable but, certainly I cannot feel magic power at all, so what you are saying is true…… That boy he……」
Kaguya felt a question about how much her father remembered.
「……I did something bad, towards that boy.」
From that whisper, Kaguya understood that he also remembered the whole time he was controlled by Nyarlathotep.
「I’m planning on marrying him.」
Kaguya spoke with a nonchalant tone and firm resolve as though she was telling him an obvious matter that had been decided.
Her father looked up towards Kaguya, then he immediately looked down and his haggard shoulders wilted further.
「……I don’t have any qualifications to say anything. I was unable to do anything fatherly for you. And that boy……he is someone who is able to make you who was in that situation, to be happy.」
「I want to give birth to many children. I’m planning to build a family where everyday will be like a birthday.」
Tears spilled out while she talked.
「That I can think like that, is because I remember that Tou-san in the past was kind, before you were taken over by Nyarlathotep. Thank you, Tou-san.」