NOVEL NEXT chapter 48
48
5, The Tapestry Incident
One day, I visit the café run by Master for some errands and personal matters.
“Welcome! Isn’t that you, Hideyori?”
“Hey, Master.”
“Middle schoolers grow up so fast. You’ll be taller than me soon.”
I’m definitely feeling the growth spurt.
Akechi Hideyori, at least in terms of face and physique, is quite the looker.
But in the game, his character is a mess, ruining everything.
“I saw the entrance ceremony too. Unfortunately, Sakuya was down because she’s not in the same class as you.”
“That’s something we can’t interfere with… But why would Sakuya be upset about being in a different class? She can see me if she comes to the shop, right?”
“Sigh… You’re as sly as your sister says.”
“Huh?”
The master sighed as he began to make coffee.
Lately, it’s understood that I don’t need to order; it’s always an espresso.
“Saying you’ll make your daughter say the coffee is delicious, even if it takes 10 or 20 years…”
“Haha, we’re relatives, after all. An inseparable bond.”
“You know, if you get stabbed to death, I won’t know anything about it…”
“What? No way! Am I going to die?”
The master, predicting the original story, uttered words that made me worry.
Is it really the role of a scumbag, villainous best friend to die…?
“If you stay as you are, you’ll die…”
He looked at me, sighed, and placed the coffee in front of me.
I thanked him and took a sip of the coffee.
“Hmm… Maybe I should work on my defense.”
“That’s not the problem!”
The master retorted, and I felt a bit abandoned with his “whatever” attitude.
“By the way, Master, my aunt and uncle went to Kyoto for their wedding anniversary recently.”
“Oh, right, you said you’d be house-sitting.”
“And as a souvenir from my aunt. She said it’s also a thank you for always treating me to coffee.”
I handed over the paper bag of souvenirs from Kyoto, and the master looked inside with curiosity, “What’s this?”
“……..What is this?”
“A weird tapestry.”
“This is the least exciting and most confusing souvenir ever!”
“It’s fine. She said it cost 30,000 yen. Just hang it somewhere.”
“That’s expensive… Is she crazy? It doesn’t fit the vibe of the shop at all.”
The tapestry was treated like bulky trash…
“Did you get a tapestry too, Hideyori-kun?”
“No? I got Yatsuhashi with various flavors like red bean and sesame.”
“I would have preferred that too!”
The master grumbled about the souvenir.
I wish he would say that to my aunt, not me.
“Poor aunt. A 30,000 yen luxury tapestry treated like bulky trash… She should give it to her daughter. She’ll definitely be happy.”
“My daughter isn’t at the age where she’s happy with just anything you give her. Why don’t you give it to Hideyori-kun?”
“I don’t want it, that bulky trash.”
“You’re treating it like bulky trash too!”
It turned into a shoving match over the tapestry.
In the midst of such a fruitless quarrel, the Master suggested, “Let’s have the loser of rock-paper-scissors take it.”
As a result, I lost.
“I don’t want it.”
“Tell that to your sister.”
As I was wondering what to do with the tapestry, a visitor arrived.
Actually, it was Sakiya.
Once she confirmed my presence, she sauntered over.
“Hm? You’re loitering around here again?”
“Always such a warm greeting. Can’t you at least say ‘welcome’?”
“Welcome.”
“She said it! Did this kid just say it!?”
I was astonished to hear her say something so clerk-like so casually.
Is she okay?
This Sakiya, she’s not some fake, is she?
“Hey, Master! I told my friend they should come to the shop next time! Can I bring them along!?”
“Eh? Sakiya has a friend? …A friend!?”
“Why are you the one who’s surprised!?”
The Master had a look as if it was the end of the world.
He started sweating profusely.
“I got flustered. Sakiya has always been like this. She was a loner all through elementary school.”
“I was a loner, yeah—had one friend.”
“Why do you sound so proud…? Now I’m curious about this first friend!”
Indeed, a kid who says ‘you’ and ‘kids’ so bluntly is likely to be disliked…
Not to mention she’s got a bad personality and is shy…
I think being Sakiya’s friend must have been tough.
“Right here…”
“What’s that?”
“The only friend I had was Hideyori. Hideyori was special.”
“…Huh.”
Am I a friend?
Did we do things friends do?
We just had normal conversations, but was I being treated as a friend…?
“I thought you were hated because you’re always so harsh…”
“That’s… just a personal opinion.”
“Don’t think everything can be excused as a ‘personal opinion.'”
I feel like I’m being treated like someone who’s just conveniently there…
“Alright, fine. Bring them along. Who did you become friends with, Nana-chan?”
“Risa, Madoka, Emi, and Takeru.”
“They’re all my acquaintances, aren’t they?”
“I made friends thanks to Hideyori. Thanks.”
“Ah, uh…”
This is throwing me off…
“You’re blushing, you’re blushing!”
“Shut up, get back to work.”
“I am working.”
The master grins at me, making me feel uncomfortable.
That’s why there aren’t many customers.
It must be.
“By the way, Hideyori? What’s that?”
“That? …Ah, bulky tra… a tapestry.”
“You don’t even recognize it as a tapestry anymore…”
It’s unnecessarily large, and the design is folksy and kind of tacky.
The intention behind the aunt’s souvenir was too unclear.
“Hey, Sakuya! Do you want this?”
“You’re pushing it off on me…”
“You b*stard, what is this!? A tapestry in poor taste.”
“This is a gift from me. I’ll give it to you, especially.”
“Thank you! Master, I’ve received a present from Hideyori! I’m going to decorate my room with it!”
Sakiya disappears upstairs to the café, bustling with excitement.
The Master and I are left dumbfounded, watching Sakiya’s back as she leaves.
“Auntie, did you really match this to Sakiya’s taste? That’s amazing, sis…”
“Why do you call me ‘sis’ too…? But maybe…”
“Maybe?”
“It’s a bit too much, isn’t it…”
“What’s wrong all of a sudden?”
“She’s saying she wants you to get along with her daughter forever!”
“?”
The Master has been kinder to me than when we first met.
I guess that means we’re getting along better.
Sakiya returned to the room, smiling unnaturally brightly.