My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

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"It was just a coincidence."

"Then I'll retaliate with a question. Mizuto-kun, what's your favorite mystery novel?"

"COSMIC".

"...Haha! So it's an 'absolutely unsolvable mystery'—"

I still think that I might be somewhat similar to this person.

Uncle Keikwang sighed softly, his gaze drifting into the distance.

"...If only I had found the same answer as you sooner—no, I shouldn't think that way. As you get older, you start to really enjoy regretting things."

Then he extended his hand to me.

"Keep it up. That's about all the boring, dull adult I can say to you."

"Yes. Don't worry, I will."

We shook hands.

To put an end to the nightmares of the past and the dreams to come.

Irito Yume ◆ The Last Day, Part 1

The last morning of the year began in a sobering, unremarkable way.

I opened my eyes in bed and stared blankly for a moment. The busy life that had become the norm since joining the student council suddenly came to an end, leaving me feeling completely drained.

But nothing much will happen, it'll only be today.

With this thought in mind, I curled up in bed, but surprisingly, my mind gradually cleared. Unable to sleep, yet bored in bed, I slipped out of bed. Instantly, the cold winter air bit into me, making me want to crawl back under the covers. I tried to resist this urge and turned on the air conditioner.

I'd better wash my face before the room gets warm. I stood in front of the full-length mirror, tidied my messy hair a bit, and then left the room in my pajamas, going downstairs to the bathroom.

I turned on the hot water tap in the bathroom and waited a moment. Once the water was hot, I washed my face with it running. Then I soaked a cotton pad with toner and wiped my face. I also checked the shape of my eyebrows. They looked fine.

I brushed my teeth while feeling my skin absorbing the toner. I brushed carefully, making sure to brush even the back of my molars.

Halfway through brushing my teeth, the bathroom door opened.

It's a water bucket with messy hair from sleeping.

I turned to look at him, toothbrush in my mouth, and said:

"Early bend".

"Good morning."

I poured myself a glass of water, held it in my mouth, and rinsed it with a gurgling sound. Then I spat out the toothpaste water with a "pfft," wiped my mouth, and made room for the sink.

Then nothing happened, and I went back to my room.

I was in the room, which was warmed by the air conditioner, picking out my clothes for the day from the closet. No need to overthink it. In the end, I chose a versatile women's blouse and a comfortable long skirt. I spread them out on the bed first, then took off my pajamas.

Oh, right, I need to change my bra too. I was only wearing a night bra on my upper body, and I was picking out a bra from the drawer.

At present... there are no plans to show it to anyone.

—But…

"After all, it's... the last day."

The last day of the year.

This is the final deadline I made for myself.

If we don't settle this today, when will we?

I took out the cute bra with intricate embroidered patterns on the edges, which I had secretly bought without telling my mother, along with a matching set of underwear.

After taking off my night bra, I carefully slipped my breasts into the cups of my new bra and adjusted their position.

Just doing this action made me feel refreshed and invigorated.

And so, daily life began.

For me, this is everyday life about winning and losing.

Irito Mizuto ◆ The Last Day, Part Two

I spent the morning lazily reading.

I reread *The Tragedy of Y*. It's the second installment in the hugely popular Doruri Raine series in Japan. The deaf retired actor Doruri Raine sometimes displays a sharp and precise reasoning mind, and sometimes not.

Every time I finish reading the book and the astonishing truth revealed at the end, I have the same feeling:

You must clearly explain any thoughts or ideas you have to yourself to others...

When I talked to Isana about a similar topic, this is what she said:

"Like the OVA version of 'Mechanical Giant'?"

"what?"

"It's a story about how not leaving a proper will caused chaos in the world."

I later found out it was an anime from a really long time ago, one that only hardcore viewers would know. How could that guy watch something like that?

In conclusion, it seems that regardless of the era or world, poor communication always leads to tragedy. If we say that half of the motives for murder in mystery novels are the killing of lovers, then we could say that the other half is poor communication—well, that's a bit of an exaggeration.

I put "The Tragedy of Y" back on the bookshelf, walked over to my desk, and opened the top drawer.

Two palm-sized gift boxes were placed inside.

I carefully closed the drawer before leaving the room and going downstairs. Then, as if nothing had happened, I went to the living room and saw my daughter sitting at the kotatsu watching TV, my father reading in the dining room, and Aunt Yujin cooking in the kitchen.

"Ah, Mizuto. I'm making udon noodles, would you like some?"

She asked me from the kitchen. I tilted my head, puzzled.

"Does your aunt belong to the group that doesn't eat New Year's Eve buckwheat noodles?"

"What's the big deal? Eating noodles twice a day won't hurt. Everyone eats rice three times a day, right?"

Well, if we consider both as staple foods, perhaps we should use the same standard to measure them.

"I want to eat," I replied, and then went to sit at the kotatsu table in front of the TV.

The girl who arrived first looked at me and said, "Hey," as if trying to talk to me.

When do you usually go to shrines for the New Year?

"when?"

"Go right after midnight, or stay up until dawn, or go to sleep first and go around noon tomorrow."

"If you ask me that, I'm used to not going at all."

"That's incredibly disrespectful to God."

"You've started believing in God again?"

"...That's true."

There's nothing to believe; he's just a bastard who's ruined us.

I picked up the orange that was placed in the center of the kotatsu, but remembering that lunch was coming soon, I gently put it back.

"Where is your family?"

"I remember going with my mom on New Year's Day morning."

"Just listening to it, there are already a lot of people..."

"Since it's going to be crowded anyway, it might be more fun to go at midnight."

"Can you go with your friends this year?"

"Yeah. But it's Chinese New Year, so I'd like to go with my family."

"Family."

The year before last—no, it was last year—I think it was during my third year of junior high or some other day, I went there with Ayai. We were worried about arousing our family suspicion if we went out on New Year's Day when we didn't have any friends.

...What wish did I make to the gods at that time?

"Don't you have any plans? For example, Dongtou or Chuanbo."

"Izana and I are the same type. Kawanami knows me very well."

"Oh, right. But it seems like Kawanami-kun has a lot of other friends."

"Nan, right?"

"She told me we'd meet around 2 a.m., do you want to come along?"

"Are you happy to make me feel like I'm sitting on pins and needles there?"

"hehe."

"—You two! The udon noodles are ready—!"

"They're here!"

We happily and quickly stood up from the kotatsu (heated table).

Whether we go to the shrine for the New Year or not, we have things to take care of before that.

Clean up this year's dirt and grime this year.

The once-in-a-lifetime deep cleaning begins.

Irito Yume ◆ The Last Day, Part Three

Xiaoyue called right after I finished lunch.

"Yes, hello—"

"Yui-onna~ Is now a good time~?"

"Yes, that's convenient."

I put my phone to my ear as I left the table and shoved my legs back into the kotatsu.

I leaned back lazily on the sofa and listened to Xiaoyue talk.

What are you doing right now?

"I just finished lunch."

"Oh, what would you like to eat?"

Udon noodles.

New Year's Eve buckwheat noodles?

"An appetizer, I think."

"Huh? There are these kinds of things too?"

"Where is Xiaoyue?"

My family just eats fried rice normally.

"Did you do this?"

"Mom made it! She said it's New Year's Eve, so she should at least cook a meal for the family—"

Xiaoyue's parents, who are usually not home, will at least be home on New Year's Eve.

What should I watch for New Year's Eve?

"What are you looking at?"

"It's like television or live broadcasts."

"Hmm—no specific decision has been made."

"You're not interested in the Red and White Song Battle?"

"I don't recognize any of those singers."

"Because you don't listen to music very often."

"I don't even think I look like a high school girl..."

"When we go to karaoke, I'm always the one who chooses the songs!"