My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

Page 59

"what?"

"You just said it's easier not to be treated like a girl, right? In my opinion, that's because you lack confidence in yourself as a girl, isn't it? I wouldn't say that's the only reason, but it probably accounts for a significant portion of it."

"Waaah!...N-nothing like that happened..."

"Now imagine it. If you were a super beautiful girl like a manga heroine, wouldn't you want to flirt with Irito-san? Wouldn't you want to see Irito-san blush and notice your charm?"

"Waaah...yes, indeed..."

...indeed...

"Once you build up a little confidence as a girl, I think Irito-san's way of looking at you will definitely change! So—"

With a bright, deliberately amused smile, Xiaoyue said:

"Next, I'd like to ask Dongtou to transform."

Xiaoyue grabbed Dongtou and half-forced her to take her to her apartment.

As soon as we got off the elevator, Xiaoyue said, "Wait for me." She asked Dongtou and me to stay where we were and wait for her. Then she slowly put her ear to the door of the house next door—the Chuanbo family's house.

"...Okay, it seems he's not home right now. Here's your chance. You two come in."

"You really don't want to see Kawanami-kun...?"

"Is that even a question?"

What exactly happened between the two of them...? I must admit I'm very curious, but right now I should prioritize dealing with Dongtou's situation.

I visited Nan's house with my classmate Dongtou. It had been since I last stayed overnight there, and her parents still didn't seem to be home.

Xiaoyue took Dongtou's arm and led her into her room, then had her sit in front of the dressing table.

"Um, um... excuse me, what's next?"

"Your transformation scene will be there, Dongtou-kun♪"

"Sunday morning program? I... I don't really want to do cosplay..."

"All girls do their face cosplay every morning before leaving the house. Nobody goes out with a bare face like you! You have absolutely no sense of safety and are so emotionally fragile!"

"Love, love is weak..."

This remark clearly hurt Dongtou's feelings. It seems this word has a powerful impact on otaku.

While she was still in a daze, Xiaoyue had already skillfully combed her hair.

"Ah...! Is it... am I going to get my makeup done?! Am I going to get my makeup done next?!"

"So you finally get it? To build confidence as a girl, you have to look cute. The more effort you put into makeup, the more confidence you gain—that's how it works."

"I...I don't want to! I...I can't wear makeup! It doesn't suit me!"

"There's no such thing as 'suitable' or 'unsuitable' when it comes to makeup. I told you it's fine. Dongtou is naturally beautiful; with just a little touch-up, she'll look like a Taiwanese idol."

"Wouldn't that mean they've almost completely lost their original form?!"

That's why I told you it was a transformation scene.

"Even the transformation scenes in Sunday morning anime don't change the face completely! Waaaaaah—!"

Xiaoyue happily helped Dongtou, who had screamed, with her makeup. She gently patted, patted, smacked, and drew lines. It seemed she had the finished image in her mind from the very beginning; her movements were without the slightest hesitation. So amazing…

"How do you usually do your makeup, Yui? You don't seem to be wearing heavy makeup?"

Xiaoyue continued working on her tasks while asking me, who had become a complete observer, a question.

"I don't do complicated makeup... so I'll just do my eyebrows and skincare. Doing my hair might take a bit more time."

"Oh, right~ because your hair is so long and beautiful. It seems like a lot of trouble to manage~ why do you keep it so long?"

"because……"

I need to choose my words carefully. To explain clearly, I need to mention my junior high school days.

"...Maybe I want to change my look. Or should I say I want to become a different version of myself..."

"Oh. So, did you succeed? In becoming another version of yourself?"

"That's hard to say..."

It seems like a success, but it also seems like a complete failure.

Chatting with Xiaoyue like this would have been impossible for me during middle school. But, about that man…

"Since you're hesitant, it means it's working to some extent. Pretty great, right, Dongtou? There are successful precedents, aren't there?"

"...I...I'm just putting some bottles and jars on my face, how much can that really change..."

"How dare you describe someone else's cosmetics as 'bottles and jars'? That's so disrespectful... Wait until you see this, then let's see if you can still be so stubborn!"

Xiaoyue grabbed Dongtou's slightly lowered face and forced her to raise her head.

The student in the east corner saw the mirror in front of him.

I saw my own face in the mirror.

"...Huh..."

Her long bangs were clipped back, revealing her face, which was blinking rapidly. Her eyes were round and large, her nose was small and cute, and her lips were moist and glossy. Her cheeks were round like a baby's, creating an innocent yet charmingly feminine aura.

"...Wait...why is there a beautiful girl...?"

Dongtou's finger trembled as he pointed at the mirror and turned to look at us.

She could only see her reflection in the mirror. But we could see the real person—the person who looked exactly like the girl in the mirror.

Xiaoyue said with a sly smile:

"Let me formally introduce you—! This beautiful girl is named Higashito Izana—! Please get along well with her—?"

"No, no, no, no! You've completely changed! It's like special effects makeup! Makeup is so scary...!"

The sight of my classmate Dongtou trembling all over brought back memories, and I said to her:

"I saw it all from the side. Xiaoyue only helped you with your eyebrows and eyelashes. If it were the kind of makeup that makes you look completely different, how could it be finished so quickly?"

"That's right. Although I did apply a light layer of foundation, basically I didn't do much to your original face, Dongtou?"

Dongtou stared at herself in the mirror with an incredulous expression... Well, that's a normal reaction. She'd probably never even properly looked in a mirror in her entire life.

"I told you you're naturally beautiful, right? So all you have to do is trim your eyebrows and eyelashes, and pull back your bangs to show your face, and that's enough! ... In other words, Dongtou-kun, all I have to do is—"

Xiaoyue put her hand on the shoulder of the girl at the east end and said in an encouraging tone:

"—It just highlights your natural cuteness. You're just naturally this cute, aren't you?"

"Ah..." Dongtou let out a choked groan.

"...Am I...cute...?"

I think she probably never thought about it. She never considered the possibility of herself becoming cute.

Because I was like that during my junior high school years...

"Alright, once you can do your own makeup, you'll gradually get a feel for it. You can learn this light makeup style quickly, I'll teach you. And I'll give you the extra makeup tools I have on hand! So, starting tomorrow, you can use this face to see Irito-san."

"What! We have to show him? Show him to Mizuto-kun? No way! No way! No way! No way!"

Dongtou huddled up, covering her face. Xiaoyue grinned wickedly and brought her mouth close to Dongtou's ear—

"—You want him to see it too, right?"

It was like the whispers of a demon.

However, the results were indeed remarkable.

Dongtou slightly raised her head, peeking into the mirror through her fingers. She examined her reflection—a version of herself that was undeniably much cuter than before—and let out a soft moan, pursing her lips.

Then, timidly, she placed her hands, which were covering her face, on her knees.

Xiaoyue saw this and smiled broadly, then hugged Dongtou.

"Wow, a beautiful girl! Even the heroines in light novels can't compare!"

"No, I think the female protagonists in light novels are cuter."

"That was a quick answer..."

Just as Xiaoyue had guessed, from that day on, Dongtou's views changed.

She only grooms herself when she's meeting with Mizuto, and it's clear that her feminine charm level has been steadily increasing from 1 to 2, 3, and 4 over the years. Incidentally, the average person's feminine charm level is around 30.

Of course, even though Dongtou's eyes had brightened a bit, it still couldn't move that clueless, unromantic guy—

"What happened to your eyes? Did you stay up late last night?"

—Like this. What nonsense is this guy spouting? How much time does he think she spent applying mascara like that?

"Hey, I think we should just let that kind of person go."

"You've broken through the blind spot."

"No, don't say that... He was just concerned about whether I was feeling unwell..."

Ah, how can she be so selfless... How come that guy can't even realize how much this girl feels? Would it kill him to blush? He could at least be a little amazed, why is he being so serious?

As I gradually developed empathy for my classmate from Dongtou, my hostility towards my slow-witted stepson grew day by day.

"...Hey, why are you looking at me like that?"

"No, I just hope you'll suffer a bit someday. Like getting stabbed by a girl with a knife or something."

"........."

Mizuto kept his distance from me, his face pale.

What's the big deal? I slashed the carrot I was going to cook for dinner with a cleaver.

And so, a week passed.

June is already in its middle, and as the rainy season approaches, our efforts with Dongtou's classmates are finally beginning to show noticeable results.

"Hello, Mizuto-kun."

"Oh, the east end..."

Higashi-san now grooms herself before going to the library, so now it's Mizuto's turn to wait for her. "Why do you only get ready after school? Get ready in the morning before coming to school," Akatsuki-san says, but Higashi-san replies, "No, I want to sleep~" and refuses to give in. Higashi-san probably thinks there's no point in dressing up for anyone other than Mizuto.

As usual, Dongtou took off his shoes and socks and sat down next to Shuidou. The physical contact was still ongoing, so the two were so close their shoulders were touching—

"........."

Shuidou moved his buttocks aside and stepped aside to keep his distance from her.

"…………?"

Dongtou looked up at his profile, puzzled, and shortened the distance between them.

One move.

Mizuto left her side.

One move.

The students at the east end shortened the distance.

You move, I move, and then we move again.

The two played a game of cat and mouse, constantly moving from the air conditioner by the window to the side, until finally the sink was forced against the wall.

"Mizuto-kun, why did you dodge?"

"I like to have plenty of personal space. If you step into my territory again, I'll show you what hell is like."

"Oh, oh—then let me see the hell you've been talking about—ahhh!"

We, who were peeking from the side, were startled because the water bucket had unexpectedly ruffled the east-headed student's hair into a complete mess. It looked like it was giving a dog a bath.

My hair, which I had finally managed to fix, has sadly turned into a frizzy mess, like I just woke up.

"Why...why are you doing this?!"

"Let me show you what hell is like. Congratulations, you can take this opportunity to practice your hairstyling skills."

"what?"

"(Huh?)"