vrcanaries Ch. 115.3 - And Thus, Shihou Chouko Takes a Step Forward Pt3
Ch. 115.3 - And Thus, Shihou Chouko Takes a Step Forward Pt3
…After climbing out of the courtyard, Chouko didn’t immediately leave with Harutaki. Instead, the two of them circled around and reentered Shihou Suishōen through the main gate, walking straight to the reception room without encountering any resistance along the way.
“So? You run away from home in rebellion, and yet you still have the nerve to come back and face me?”
Her great-grandmother sat behind the tea table, idly turning an empty teacup in her hands.
“I know I’ve made many mistakes before,” Chouko said. “But I want to try one more time. If you don’t fight, you won’t get hurt. If you don’t compete, you won’t fail… As long as you stay quietly at home like a bird in a cage, life will pass by peacefully. If you never do anything, then you’ll never make any mistakes—”
Chouko pressed both hands onto the tatami and lowered her head.
“—But I don’t want to become that kind of person. I don’t want to become that kind of boring adult! Everyone says that even if you try your hardest, you might still fail. But if you don’t try your hardest, you’ll never know whether you could have succeeded. I want to go to Tokyo. And I won’t abandon the responsibilities and duties that belong to me!”
“And when you fail again,” her great-grandmother asked coldly, “will you still be able to take responsibility?”
Her mother sat nearby, watching anxiously, as if she wanted to speak but couldn’t.
“What if the family cuts off your financial support?” the old woman continued. “No tuition. No rent. None of your living expenses. Would you still be able to bear the weight of pursuing the future you desire?”
“I can—”
“Wait!”
For the first time, Chouko raised her voice sharply to stop Harutaki. The confused look in his eyes and the troubled expression on his face made her chest ache.
But still—
“At a time like this, I refuse to keep relying on Harutaki’s sacrifices! If Harutaki wants to take responsibility for me, then he can find a better moment—prepare a proper confession and proposal ceremony! Even on my own, I can keep moving forward!”
She turned back to her great-grandmother.
“If I have no money, I’ll rent a smaller apartment. I’m ranked in the top ten of my grade at Nichiya High, so plenty of people would hire me as a tutor…”
As she spoke, she couldn’t help smiling mischievously.
“…And I should thank you and Mom for raising me so well. The education I received at home was the best there is. If I teach tea ceremony, flower arrangement, or calligraphy, I can make plenty of money too.”
“I could make sure no one dares hire you.”
How tyrannical…
But—
Chouko glanced at the silent Harutaki beside her and smiled meaningfully.
“Then I’ll just move into Harutaki’s place and sleep with him every night as payment for room and board.”
“Pff—cough—cough, cough!”
Harutaki immediately choked on his water, covering his mouth as he coughed violently.
So Harutaki can make that kind of cute reaction too, she thought.
Maybe I should tease him more often from now on.
“Chouko, honestly…”
Her mother finally sighed, unable to hold back anymore.
“I’m Chouko,” the girl replied with a grin. “Isn’t that the name Mom gave me? Like a butterfly—beautiful and free. I have to live up to the name you gave me.”
“Pfft—”
Her great-grandmother suddenly burst into laughter.
“Ha! Silly child. I just picked your name at random from a dictionary.”
“Eh?! EH!?!?”
You’ve got to be kidding.
She had just delivered such a cool speech… made such a cool resolution… and now she’s saying her name was—
“Alright, alright,” the old woman waved her hand. “You young people can go do whatever nonsense you want. Preferably hurry up and have a child while you’re at it. Once it’s born, you don’t even need to raise it—just send it back to Kyoto and I’ll take care of it.”
“A-a child…?”
As Chouko’s mind immediately began wandering into thoughts like how many children they should have and absolutely not naming them with a dictionary, her great-grandmother turned toward Harutaki with a smile.
“This time, this old woman admits defeat. Take Chouko back to your Tokyo. Don’t flaunt yourselves in front of the loser—I might get annoyed and lock the two of you in a room together.”
“Thank you for your understanding and generosity.”
Harutaki bowed, pressing his hands to the floor just as Chouko had done earlier.
“No,” said the old woman. “It is I who should thank you, Hoshikawa-kun.”
She and Chouko’s mother both leaned forward and bowed toward him.
“Thank you for saving Chouko. Thank you for supporting her until she found the path she truly wants to walk.”
“Haha, no need to be so polite. After all…”
Seeing Harutaki’s relaxed grin, Chouko instantly knew he was about to crack one of his jokes again.
“…I’ve been working this hard because I’ve always dreamed of someday getting to knead Shihou’s F-cup breasts.”
“…Idiot.”
She muttered under her breath. This guy was making dirty jokes in front of elders again.
“Well, then you should thank the good genetics between me and Shouko.”
“Grandma!”
“Great-Grandmother!”
Since when could that old witch make jokes?
The gap between her old stern image and this version of her felt enormous.
Just as Chouko and Harutaki were about to go pack their luggage and catch the Shinkansen back to Tokyo, her great-grandmother called out again.
“Chouko—”
“Eh…?”
“You truly are growing. You are moving forward. Go and pursue the things you truly want. The family will always be your support.”
Of course…
Chouko felt her eyes growing wet. She didn’t want to cry again, but when her nose stung like this, the tears simply wouldn’t stop.
The strict great-grandmother. Her mother. The “scumbag” Harutaki. The “villainess” Izumi…
Everyone cared about her. Everyone loved her.
“I’ll work as hard as I possibly can.”
Before leaving, she knelt once more and bowed deeply to her great-grandmother and mother.
“Kid, bring Chouko back to Kyoto sometimes.”
“Will I need to climb walls or run marathons again?”
As soon as Harutaki said that, several nearby security guards awkwardly smiled.
“Please take care of yourselves,” Harutaki said seriously. “I’ll take good care of Chouko. We’ll visit Suishōen again during holidays.”
……
Later…
Click.
Creak.
Even though she had only been away a few days, the apartment somehow felt unfamiliar. Yet despite that, the small 1LDK room brought Chouko far more peace of mind than the luxurious mansion designed by a famous architect.
“You must be tired after everything today,” Harutaki said casually as he opened the windows and wiped away the dust. “Go take a bath and get some rest. You still have to report to school tomorrow.”
“Thanks to Asama-sensei too. He looks unreliable, but he’s surprisingly dependable when it matters. Your documents never made it to the principal—he intercepted them. Oh, and you should apologize properly to Nogami and the others for disappearing without a word—”
So annoying. He just keeps nagging.
“Harutaki…”
“Hm?”
Chouko grabbed the back of his collar and, before he could react, dragged him straight into the bedroom.
Bang.
The door slammed shut.
…
If I want to thank him…
If I want to convey everything in her heart…
Chouko bit her lower lip and stared intensely at Harutaki, who was backed up against the door.
Then there’s only one way to do it.
“D-do you want to take a bath fi—mmph—”
“Idiot virgin. I’m the older one here, you know. Just stay still and let your big sister deal with you.”
She wasn’t wrong. After asking his birthday before, she realized she was actually a few days older than him.
So technically… she counted as the “big sister.”
Just a mere Harutaki…
Borrowing the courage she’d built up all afternoon, she took control and decided to “teach him a lesson.”
All this time Harutaki had been the one giving everything.
Now he just had to “give” at the final moment!
“…I think you might want to take it easy,” Harutaki sighed calmly, not resisting at all, letting Chouko bravely take out the “game console.”
…
“Huh…? H-how did this happen…?”
“Heh. Big sister, huh?”
“T-that was just a mistake! Watch me this time!”
But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t manage it.
Reality was cruel.
The results were nothing like the fantasies.
Games of skill were ruthless contests of victory and defeat. For the weak to overcome the strong was little more than a fantasy.
“I think it’d be better if I controlled the main character…”
“Tch, you idiot Harutaki—”
One minute later—
“Ugh—!”
She… she lost already?!
“How are you so good at this?!”
She wanted to keep fighting, but her hands had no strength left, as if all the energy had flowed out with that last breath and dissolved into the warm air.
Normally it took her countless solo attempts to find the winning route in this “game.”
Yet Harutaki had discovered it in moments.
But it was fine.
She just had to endure.
Because the next stage of the game—that would be her Shihou Chouko’s home field.
“Hmph. What a pathetic virgin. You already used your finishing move.”
“Yep, I’m a pathetic virgin.”
“Third round… This time… let’s see what you can do…”
“Do whatever you want.”
“Scu—scumbag…”
“Virgin.”
“Stop… wait… stop… I’m going to lose all my points…”
“If I stopped whenever you asked, that’d be pretty embarrassing for me.”
“A-apologize? W-what are you talking about… Did your brain leak out along with your energy bar?”
“Seems like you still haven’t grasped reality, Shihou.”
“O-okay, I’m sorry! Please forgive me! Don’t keep winning!”
“If apologies worked, the world would already be at peace.”
“Ugh…”
When a cat feels comfortable, it kneads with its soft paws—stretching and curling them, sometimes turning the scenery into something like a patchwork of fields. Other times, like a wild stray cat, it can make an absolute mess of the house.
If the owner returned to the bedroom and saw such a scene, they might feel the urge to give the troublesome cat a proper scolding.
Just like the naughty little cat currently being “disciplined” for messing up the room.
Is the kitten being too noisy?
Then you’ll just have to keep teasing it until it can’t rest at all.
We will be giving out 5 bonus chapters after reaching 25 vote on NovelFire!
Feel free to leave a vote or review!!
20/25