My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

Page 168

Well, after all that, it's truly a cause for celebration that our relationship has been restored to normal. Mizuto no longer needs to be so polite with Isana—

--Hmm?

Isana?

"........."

With trembling hands, I took out my phone and called Xiaoyue.

"Xiao, Xiaoyue! Xiaoyue! Let's fight him with water! Let's fight him with water...!"

"Huh! What's wrong, Yui? What happened?!"

"Water, water fight him! I'm telling you, water fight him... water fight him—...!"

"Stop calling his name so often! It's a waste of my time pretending not to hear! If you keep doing that, I'm going to complain about calling him by his name!"

"That's it! They've started calling each other by first names!"

"Huh? But I noticed that a long time ago...?"

"Huh? A long time ago? Mizuto was already calling Higashi-kun by his name...?"

"...Huh? Huh? What did you say?"

"I mean, Mizuto is calling Higashi-kun by his first name..."

"No, no, no, I don't know this. This is the first time I've heard of it!"

"He just called her 'Izana'..."

"What?! Really?! Irito-kun actually calls a girl by her first name..."

Even I didn't! During the time we were dating, he never called me by my name!

"First it was the family's approval, then the school's approval, and now they've changed how they address you, right...?"

"I don't know what to do...! Xiaoyue, you must have something going on—"

"The Maiden."

"yes!"

"It's just that the opponent was too strong."

"Don't abandon me!"

◆ Irito Mizuto ◆

After I entered my room, I took out my phone without even taking off my uniform and entered the voice channel of the group chat app that someone had told me about beforehand.

"Hello? I'm home."

"—Ugh! How do you manage to hold the cliff like that?! (Note: In Super Smash Bros., this refers to holding the cliff position after an opponent enters the game, preventing them from returning) This is online!!"

"If it's come to this point, then delays don't matter anymore~ Okay, let's jump now!"

"Ughhhhhh!"

"...What game are you guys playing?"

On the other end of the phone, Isana Higashi repeatedly shouted low-level trash talk like "So lame, so lame!" Meanwhile, Kogure Kawanami was angrily growling.

After a brief discussion at school, I thought I'd be heading straight home and would be quick, but it turned out these two were much faster than me. They probably ran out of things to talk about, or one of them was picking a fight with the other, so they decided to settle things with video games.

There's only one reason why the three of us, such a rare group, would chat together.

"Hey, Irito! Why did you ask this utterly incompetent woman for help?! I can handle all your relationship problems!"

"I don't recall consulting anyone. It was Isana who brought it up herself."

"What? She's up to something again. A woman who's been dumped giving advice on relationship problems—it seems suspicious."

"I don't have a brain that smart! Only girls with really sharp minds could do that!"

"Don't you think you're sad?"

"So what are you planning? What's in it for you to help Irito with her love life?"

"Rather than talking about benefits... just imagine it. For example, when you're playing together, if he suddenly looks away with a melancholy expression, wouldn't he be very concerned?"

"Ah—that makes sense."

"........."

Did I ever make that kind of expression?

"So, please get back together with her quickly, or just let it go! Otherwise, I'll have to worry about how you feel!"

Have you had any concerns yet...?

"She says that, but isn't she just using listening to her relationship troubles as an excuse to ask for a second chance? Wow—she's putting on such a goody-two-shoes act, this girl..."

"That's why I invited you, you scoundrel, too! That way, the female classmates definitely won't misunderstand!"

"I think it's hard to say. There are plenty of tricks we could use, for example—"

"Mizuto-kun... how about practicing being my boyfriend?"

"Just you wait, you'll see!"

"I thought you were deliberately waiting for me to speak."

Kawanami was making a racket like a thug, but Isana put on airs and ignored him. He was so timid when we were face-to-face, but he became arrogant as soon as we switched to a voice call.

Isana brought the discussion back to the main topic by saying, "My affairs are not important."

"What is Yui really thinking? Is she also struggling to move on like Mizuto?"

"I'm not unable to get over it."

"Yes, yes, that's for the best."

"Why is it only at times like this that we have perfect teamwork...?"

I sighed... but since things have come to this, I might as well just say what's on my mind.

"...I'm not sure. It seems like she meant it, but it also seems like she was just teasing me. Or maybe I'm just overthinking it. The guy I know now is so different from the guy I knew...I don't understand anything."

"I think there's a good chance. But maybe it's only because I'm an outsider that I can say that."

"Hmm... I was the one who brought this up, so it might sound a bit awkward to say it like this, but does it matter whether there's hope or not?"

"Huh?"

After Kawanami and I protested in unison against this perfunctory statement, Isana made a declaration with righteous indignation, as if we could already see her proudly puffing out her chest.

Whether there's hope or not, if you win her over with sweet words, there's only one choice: "I like her"! No room for hesitation!

Then there was a brief silence.

This opinion... was so unexpected to me... that I couldn't even process or understand it for a while.

At last……

"Ha! Hahahaha! Pfft, hahahahahaha!"

Kawaba burst out laughing.

"I see! That makes sense! It really doesn't matter! Irito, you can't argue with her! Hahahaha!"

"No...no, no, no, things aren't that simple..."

"Don't worry! When it comes to being smitten with Mizuto-kun, I, Higashito Isana, am the expert among experts! I'll definitely create the strongest Mizuto-kun in my mind, and he'll be completely captivated by Yui-chan in no time! Then you can play with me without any worries!"

"He's already back with his girlfriend, he doesn't have time to play with an idiot like you."

"Mizuto-kun isn't that narrow-minded; you're the idiot."

"What did you say!"

What do you want?!

Hearing the two of them start arguing on the phone again, I sighed and muttered to myself:

"You guys are the most difficult to deal with than dating..."

Volume 5: The One and Only You in the World - Epilogue

The afterword is a reference book for the main story—to use a video game analogy, it's a strategy guide. I've always considered it a guidebook for general literary paperbacks; but this time, the writing process was so difficult that I even wanted a reference book myself. It's all because of that troublesome girl, Higashito Isana.

When writing the second volume, I actually had an idea to add monologues from Isana's perspective between each story. The reason I abandoned that idea was that I wanted her to remain an enigma for the time being—I wanted her to remain a character embodying both ideals and the unknown. The known cannot be turned back into the unknown. Just as a purely accidental or pitifully calculated scheme can become a captivating locked-room murder mystery, the more mysterious something is, the more dazzling its brilliance. Especially things that make people think they understand—Mizuto's eyes were probably blinded by this, so I wanted the reader to share his mindset. That's why I haven't written any stories from Isana's perspective until now.

After all that, I realized I didn't really know her either.

Perhaps I've said this more than once: I myself am not sure how this series will develop—I won't know the characters' inner thoughts and specific theories of action until I actually start writing. This episode's Izana embodies this point; she actually objected to my already completed draft, saying, "No, this isn't quite right."

Readers who have finished the main story should know that Isana's "nightmare" scene was actually the climax of the original manuscript before the revision. I barely managed to finish the manuscript before the tight deadline for the special edition, and I had already told the editor how many pages it was this time, but Isana objected at this point, saying, "Something doesn't seem right."

Tell me what's wrong with it?

I don't understand. You just told me it seems a bit off, but please specify exactly what's wrong and how? Please be more specific with the revision requirements. What day do you think it is today? The deadline is in three days!

I almost threw up from rethinking the plot at home before I finally got past her. It seems that resolving problems with heroic acts involving water doesn't align with her views. Otaku are just so hard to deal with.

Thank you to illustrator TakayaKi, manga author Kusakabe Rei, the editor at Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko, all the voice actors who participated in the drama CD performances, and everyone involved in the publication of this book. But pandemic, you can go to hell.

So, that concludes our presentation of "My Stepmother's Burden is My Ex-Girlfriend 5: The One and Only You in the World" by Kajiki Kōsuke. Why is my female classmate about to become a "loser" heroine herself?

Volume 5, The One and Only You (Illustrations)

The six sentences I couldn't say back then in Volume 6: "I think you're amazing."

The Taiwanese version is from the Kingdom of Light

Image source: Lafite

Input: Lafite

—Hey, Irito-san! I've made some friends in class!

I didn't know I had such an ugly side.

But this side of me truly exists within me; it is a part of my history.

—During lunch break, a classmate was reading a book, so I mustered up my courage and went to talk to that classmate…!

I nodded repeatedly.

They even smiled and wished her well as she grew up.

That's not a lie.

Really, I'm not lying.

Because—you were laughing so heartily.

But why?

The next day, when I passed by your classroom and saw you chatting and laughing with your friends, this thought flashed through my mind.

Sigh—you've become one of them too?

From that moment on, a rift formed between us.

From that moment on, I pushed her, the only one who had ever stood by my side, to the other side.

—I'm sorry, Irito-san…! I have plans with a friend today…

I understand. I should have said that.

I should accept the ugly sense of alienation, and that's why I should tell her that.

-- It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter.

--Huh?

Instead of speaking with barbs.

They shouldn't have turned and left without even saying goodbye.

One should not speak recklessly.

We should show her sincerity.

...It's not that simple to talk about idealism.