My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

Page 221

You don't need to take anything to heart. Our decision to remain friends is entirely based on my personal needs.

"...Sigh..."

Izana suddenly sighed and buried her face in her knees.

"I really want to do something lewd~~~! I really want to be ravaged by Mizuto-kun~~~!"

"Hey! You're being too loud!"

"Isn't it said that I'm free to think whatever I want?"

"Speaking out loud isn't a matter of personal freedom anymore, logically speaking!"

"Hehehe."

Isana raised her face and smiled shyly, then moved her hips closer to me to shorten the distance.

"I feel a little relieved."

"...What can I rest assured about?"

"You're shifting the responsibility off my shoulders and letting Mizuto-kun take it, right? In that case, I don't need to worry about anything... Mizuto-kun will absolutely uphold the inviolable boundary, is that what you mean?"

"Ah...that's right..."

There is an ominous feeling.

"Hehe." Izana grinned lewdly and moved closer to me.

"So... it doesn't matter how lewd things I do, right...?"

"How could it have turned into—"

"Watch me!"

Izana's arm quickly reached out and wrapped around my neck.

She hugged me tightly like a rag doll. Needless to say, the two mounds of flesh pressed against my chest, ignoring the irresistible softness and warmth of my skin, enveloped my entire body in one go.

"Come on, come on~♪ You'd better hold on~! Otherwise, we won't be just friends anymore~?"

"What's with this 'not-so-ordinary friend' tactic?! Stay away from me!"

"What? You want to force the girl to say it? Of course—"

"Enough, enough, enough! It's okay if you don't say it, just stay away from me...!"

"I won't do it! I don't care about your feelings!"

He's always pushing his luck! It has nothing to do with responsibility for dumping him; I need to teach this guy a lesson—

"—Dongtou classmate."

The sound that came from elsewhere made Isana and me freeze as if our bodies were encased in ice.

Unable to even separate our tightly pressed bodies, we were like rusty machines, clumsily turning toward the source of the sound.

The woman...

The panting woman walked step by step toward the bench where we were.

His expression was very serious, and he looked a bit angry...

After she stopped in front of us, Isana slowly moved away from me, as if keeping her distance from a wild beast.

"Jie, jie, jie, jie female classmate... this, this is just, just friends teasing each other—"

"Dongtou, classmate."

When she called her name again, Isana trembled and froze, then shut her mouth.

"Hoo—..." Yui took a deep breath. Upon closer inspection, she noticed beads of sweat on the side of her head.

Then the woman spoke again:

"Right now... it's a race to borrow something."

"what?"

Ignoring the confused Isana, Yume extended her hand.

Grab my wrist.

"So—"

She gripped me tightly, staring intently into Izana's eyes, and said:

"—Could you please return the water basin to me for a moment?"

The woman said it.

Izana blinked several times, clearly struck by the abruptness of that word.

(Illustration 011)

"Huh? Shouldn't we say 'borrow' in a race where you borrow something—"

Give it back to me.

The woman repeated herself, this time with a smile.

"……May I?"

"Please, please take it, please take it—!"

Sadly, Isana, with her pathetic, low-class demeanor, distanced herself from me.

The girl nodded as if to say "okay," and pulled my wrist to help me stand up.

Then, she turned to face me and said:

"That's how it is. I'm sorry to trouble you."

"...Shouldn't you generally ask for my permission?"

"Since you definitely won't want to go anyway, I'll just take you with me anyway."

So domineering!

Ignoring me as I was being taken away, Isana, defeated like a little bastard, stared blankly at the sky.

"I... got warned... hehehe..."

"...What is she moved by?"

"……have no idea."

I can't take on that much responsibility.

Mizuto Irito ◆ Me in Your Eyes

With Jie holding my hand, I headed towards the playground.

--What question did you draw?

After I asked her this, Jie Nu thought for a moment and then said:

—This is a topic I can't think of anyone else to choose besides you.

I can't think of anyone other than myself. No one else fits the bill.

Family members? Because no guardians will be allowed to visit the sports festival.

Brothers and sisters? I've searched the whole world and I'm the only one there.

Or perhaps—

I had a selfish thought. I imagined a reality where I could have my wishes fulfilled without having to do anything.

Is that a good idea?

I don't think it's impossible. There are plenty of signs. If I wanted to misunderstand, there would be plenty of opportunities for me to think the wrong way.

Even so, my thinking still hit the brakes.

Is it really good?

So easily—it was solved.

Sigh, only now do I truly realize how troublesome our relationship is.

—Maybe it's someone I like.

This simple sentence is not enough to express our relationship.

I ask you, Knot Girl.

How are you looking at me right now?

"—She's here! Class 7, Grade 1, Irito is back! A boy! She's with a boy!"

With all eyes and cheers focused on me, I felt like I had nowhere to go.

However, the girl's strength was so great that it seemed she could break free from all of this, and she grabbed my hand and rushed across the playground.

"Alright, we've reached the finish line! If the verdict is passed, we're number one! What question did Irito draw?"

A familiar figure was waiting for us at the finish line.

She is none other than the petite yet uniquely charismatic student council president – ​​Akane Suzuri.

A leisurely smile graced her face as she first glanced at the girl who was running up breathlessly, and then at me, whom she had brought with her.

Please present the question.

Jie Nu didn't say a word, but handed the note in her hand to the outstretched hand.

Hong opened the paper, glanced at it, and then let out a meaningful snicker.

"Are you planning to honestly express your feelings?"

Jie Nu smiled as if embarrassed.

"Yes. In short, that's the plan for today."

Upon hearing this answer, Senior Sister Hong turned to the broadcasting booth and made a large circle with her hands.

"Passed! The verdict seems to have passed!"

After Hong returned the question slip, Jie turned to me and said:

"let's go."

As a result, I still didn't know what kind of candidate I was brought here for, and I was taken to the broadcasting booth. Perhaps that was the original plan, as Yui handed the question slip to the broadcasting club's announcer. The broadcasting club member, holding a microphone in one hand, opened the slip of paper and immediately exclaimed in surprise, "Oh! I see..." He smiled at my face.

"Now, the question! The question drawn by Irito from Class 7, Grade 1 is—"

A slight sense of tension enveloped me, and then, my true identity was revealed to the world clearly and loudly through a microphone:

"—Those who want to reach the finish line together!"

"Oh my god...!" came a commotion from the crowd of students watching the game.

Want to reach the destination together?

And that person is me? ...Why?

"Irito! May I ask why you chose this student? The one you brought is... I'm guessing it's your classmate, Irito Mizuto! I think you two are siblings!"

How does this member of the broadcasting company know so much?

Hearing the club members speak as if they were media reporters interviewing celebrities, I could sense that the students' interest had all shifted to Yuzuriha. "Wanting to reach the destination together"—that's a topic with too much room for interpretation. If it's someone of the same sex, everyone would naturally explain it as "because they're very close friends." But if it's someone of the opposite sex, some speculation is inevitable. This guy knowingly did it—

Well…

Facing the microphone pointed at her, Jie Nu answered confidently and without flinching.

"Because I have a crush on my younger brother."

The answer is that simple.

Without concealment or hesitation—such an honest answer elicited a cacophony of laughter from all sides.

The broadcasting club member who had handed her the microphone to speak couldn't help but burst out laughing, saying:

"I see! That makes sense then! Congratulations to Yui Irito for winning first place!"

After being greeted with enthusiastic applause, Jie led me back to the players' rest area.