Volume Two, Interlude: Little Sister and the Fluffy, Melty Takoyaki
I pushed my way through the noisy, bustling crowd, my wooden geta clacking as I made straight for my destination. The sun had set long ago, and the approach to the shrine, usually shrouded in darkness and unbearably eerie, was beautifully illuminated by red lanterns and lights for today’s festival.
But this was no time to enjoy the view.
I had to run. The yukata I wasn’t used to wearing made it hard to move, and the obi my big sister had tied so tightly was suffocating. The straps of my geta were starting to hurt, and the heat of the crowd had already left me clammy with sweat. But my head was full of that round thing, and every cell in my body was urging me to give it everything I had to eat it.
As I ran along the stone-paved approach, panting for breath, the shop I was looking for finally came into view at the edge of my vision.
The popular stall was packed with people.
I forced my body into a gap between two people and squeezed to the front, not caring that it messed up my hair. Then I called out to the man running the stall:
“Mister!”
“Oh, Hiyori-chan! You made it! Here, one for you and one for Akane-chan!”
“Wow, thanks, Mister!”
The stall owner, his face sunburned, flashed a grin and handed me two packs of piping-hot takoyaki. I gave him the thousand-yen bill I’d been gripping and peeked into the pack I’d received.
The scent of sauce wafted up. I broke into a grin, and after only the briefest thanks, I tried to leave. But someone grabbed my free hand tightly, and I stumbled forward.
“Hey. Hiyori.”
“Oh, Katchan.”
The one who had grabbed my hand was Tanaka Katsuya, Katchan, who lived next door. I’d known him since I and my big sister moved to our grandparents’ house. We’d gone to the mountains and the river together, and he was one of my closest guy friends.
“Are you by yourself?”
“Nope. Big sister is waiting in the shrine grounds. We’re going to eat takoyaki together.”
The moment I said that, Katchan’s face clouded over.
“Still all ‘big sister, big sister,’ huh.”
“What? Is that a problem?”
His grip on my hand hurt. I tried to shake it off, but Katchan was strong, and I couldn’t get free.
“How long are you planning to cling to Akane?”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“It’s probably because you’re clinging to her that she’s never had a boyfriend.”
“Mind your own business! Why do I have to hear that from you?!”
Kacchan’s words made my blood boil.
—What my sister and I are to each other has nothing to do with Katchan!
The instant I thought that, my vision wavered.
The scene around me changed from the familiar festival crowd into a street where people in strange clothes I’d never seen before came and went. Filthy, exhausted people with a foreign look. The streets were broken and dingy, a gloomy view that had nothing in common with the sparkling festival I’d been in a moment ago.
Startled, I hurriedly looked around. The scenery had completely changed, but Kacchan was still the same. It felt strangely out of place.
Then, all at once, I remembered something I’d somehow forgotten. That realization calmed me down.
—Oh, right. I’d been transported to another world… and become the Saint.
I was working hard to fulfill my important mission of purifying the miasma, and this was the kind of townscape I’d often encountered during the purification journey.
—Oh, it’s just a dream. That was what I thought.
There was no way I could be at a festival in a yukata now. The moment I thought that, the feeling of reality thinned out, and the tension drained from me. But if it was a dream, shouldn’t it end as soon as I noticed? Katchan’s face stayed as stern as ever, and whenever he opened his mouth, he spat out words that blamed me. The words stabbed into me over and over, and tears welled up.
—What a weird dream. A horrible dream. Wake up already!
The moment I wished it with all my might, silence fell over everything.
“What!?”
I looked around timidly. And what leapt into my eyes made me catch my breath.
The festival and the streets of the other world were overlapping. Piles of rubble were superimposed on the food stalls. People in yukata were mercilessly trampling over injured people lying on the ground. Crowds were passing back and forth, yet an ear-piercing silence dominated everything. Ah, my eyes flickered. It was like being forced to watch some poorly made 3D movie. The whole world was so bizarre that I felt like I might get motion sickness.
“Hiyori, are you listening?”
Katchan started talking again, with a scary face.
I flinched, wondering what he would say this time.
In the real world, Kacchan had always been a fun and entertaining male friend. But even if this was only a dream, I hated this version of him who said nothing but awful things.
While I was thinking that, even Katchan’s outline began to blur.
Each time a low, grating vwoom sounded, someone else overlapped Katchan.
Sometimes it was a teacher from school.
Sometimes my best friend from high school. Then a friend I rarely saw after moving, Katchan’s mother, my dead father, my mother, my grandpa, my grandma.
People from the other world began to mix in.
Dazil, Luvan, Jade, Cain… and finally.
“…Hiyori. Hey. Hiyori.”
It took on the form of my big sister and spoke to me.
My big sister wasn’t wearing her usual gentle face. She looked very scary.
She also had cold eyes, as though she were looking at a stranger.
Ah, no. No… No! I don’t know this big sister!
“Listen, I’ve been meaning to say this for a while now. You…”
My big sister spoke to me in an awfully cold voice.
“You need to stop depending on me and become independent already.”
I shot upright in bed.
It was quite bright outside the window.
I was drenched in sweat, and my pajamas clung to my skin unpleasantly.
Yesterday I’d come back from the journey to purify tainted land in the neighboring country. Since the start of summer, when I began purifying places everywhere, I’d been rushing around with no rest, so I’d been given two days off. Taking advantage of that, I had been lounging around, doing absolutely nothing.
Today too, deciding I could sleep in, I’d gone back to sleep—and had that nightmare.
“Mmm…”
It was hardly a refreshing way to wake up.
Surely this was the bill for my lazy lifestyle coming due.
Still…
I suddenly recalled the dream and frowned.
Then I jumped out of bed, threw on some random clothes, and ran down the stairs.
“Hiyori! Go down the stairs slowly.”
It was my big sister’s usual voice.
Inwardly relieved, I threw myself at my big sister, who was preparing breakfast in the kitchen, and hugged her from behind as hard as I could.
“Gah!? Hiyori, that hurts…”
“Big sister…”
“What? What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
—It’s the big sister I know.
I was thoroughly reassured, and as I enjoyed the feel of my big sister’s slightly squishy belly, I poured out everything I felt:
“Big sister, I had a weird dream!”
“A dream? And?”
“At a festival… well, that part doesn’t matter. More importantly, ugh, I’m so mad! I missed out on eating it in the dream!”
“Pardon?”
“Big sister! I want to eat takoyaki!”
My big sister looked down at me, exasperated.
But I couldn’t be daunted by a look like that. I’d imagined the taste of the takoyaki I never got to eat, and I couldn’t stand it anymore. Takoyaki! I wanted melty, round takoyaki!
—Stupid dream! You could at least have waited until I’d finished eating before starting the lecture!
“Anyway, I feel like I’ll die if I don’t eat takoyaki!”
“Ehhh…”
As if venting the frustration the dream had built up, I demanded takoyaki from my big sister.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇
She gave in to my selfishness and decided to make takoyaki for lunch.
She’d been fussing that there was no octopus, but that was solved right away.
Jade, who came to the house, had brought a huge octopus-like tentacle, big enough to take both arms to carry.
“This is a tentacle of a Kraken that the knight order subdued this morning. It had been rampaging in nearby waters, and we finally took it down. Kraken is famous as a delicacy too. I brought some to share.”
“Thank you, Mr. Jade… But aren’t Krakens squid monsters? I always thought they were squid…”
“I don’t know how it is in your world, but here, any giant sea monster with lots of tentacles is simply called a Kraken. Some of them might look like squid, though.”
Listening to them, I poked the Kraken’s tentacle with my finger. The plump tentacle had a pleasant springiness and a feel that could get addictive.
“Hiyori, don’t play with food.”
Just as I was about to touch the suckers, my big sister scolded me. I answered with a careless "Sorry" and slipped away. If I stayed in the kitchen, I’d be dragged into helping, so I decided to go out to the veranda.
A hot wind heated by the blazing sun brushed my cheeks. Beneath the roof’s edge, a hanging wind chime rang with a delicate chiri-chiri, making the whole place feel like summer.
I put on sandals and stepped out into the garden. The sunlight was fierce, but perhaps because the humidity was low, unlike in Japan, it became cool the moment I stepped into the shade. Summer in another world was like heaven.
I wandered about the garden, idly kicking stones. When I’d gone around the house and reached the spot below the kitchen window, I could see Jade and my big sister preparing lunch.
She must have done something embarrassing again. Her face was bright red, and she looked terribly flustered. Jade was watching her with a gentle smile.
—As usual, they’d make even newlyweds turn green with envy!
I really thought so.
Anyone watching could tell how my big sister felt about Jade. And the way Jade treated her was… well, for someone guarding a person under his protection, it was about as sweet as dumping a mountain of sugar into a jar of honey.
—Why aren’t these two dating already?
I tilted my head and thought hard, but no satisfying answer came.
Well, there must be man-and-woman circumstances I couldn’t understand, having never had a boyfriend myself. Oh well, I thought, and hopped up and down on the spot to announce my presence to my big sister. Jade noticed and opened the window.
“Hiyori, what is it?”
“Big sister, is the takoyaki ready?”
“Not yet! If you’re so impatient, come help!”
“I hate to interrupt your private world, so I’ll pass!”
I gave my big sister a sharp salute and ran off.
Her voice calling after me followed, but I didn’t mind. It was true that I didn’t want to interrupt them.
By the time I got back to the veranda, the heat was really getting to me. If I went back into the living room carelessly, my big sister would probably catch me, so I decided to cool off under the cherry tree. I leaned against the trunk and looked up at a cloudless, clear sky. The sound of the cherry leaves rubbing together in the wind was pleasant to my ears. Thanks to the wind and the shade, the faint sweat I’d worked up dried. Lunch prep would take a while yet, and I wondered what to do in the meantime. The TV just showed static when I turned it on, and reading would make the pages stick to my sweaty hands.
Every summer we went to the pool or the sea, but there were no pools here…
The sea was supposedly close, but I couldn’t go on my own. Lost, unable to find anything I wanted to do, I heard voices coming from the other side of the tree.
Curious, I went around the trunk and peeked over, and there were two identical faces, one gold and one silver.
The two of them, whose eyes met mine head-on, slowly put their small hands to their cheeks.
And then.
““Kyaaaaaah!””
They let out a perfectly synchronized, adorable scream.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇
A big bowl was filled to the brim with cream-colored takoyaki batter. Next to it sat a heap of green onions, tempura scraps, and diced octopus. …There was no red pickled ginger, which was a shame.
I waited impatiently for the hot plate on the low dining table to warm up.
On either side of me sat the adorable twin princesses. Both of them were gazing at the hot plate with great curiosity.
“Lady Saint, what is this?”
“Lady Saint, is this something wonderful?”
“This is a hot plate!”
““Hot… plate…””
“Right now, it’s been customized with a special takoyaki-only attachment!”
“A special attachment…!”
“Customized…!”
““We don’t quite understand, but it sounds wonderful!””
—Ah, so cute!
The twin princesses listened to me with sparkling eyes.
I was grinning to myself, thinking that this was what it must be like to have a much younger sister, when my big sister called out to me:
“Come on, Hiyori. Why don’t you teach the twin princesses how to make takoyaki?”
“Huh? Me?”
“Yes. I’m, well… going to go sort out a little something over there for a bit.”
My big sister was gazing off toward the veranda with distant eyes.
When I listened closely, I could hear a man’s voice shouting, "Your Highnessessss!”
“So that’s the situation.”
“Eh, big sister, wait!”
“I’m counting on you. Big Sister Hiyori.”
With that, my big sister left the living room with Jade.
I glanced at the twin princesses.
…Ahh! The twin princesses were looking at me with huge, expectant eyes!
What should I do…?
The truth was, I wasn’t very good at dealing with children.
Remembering the New Year’s holidays, when I’d been pushed around by my fickle, easily bored little cousins, I felt weary.
But my big sister had entrusted this to me.
…Well, I suppose I had no choice.
I would use that trick. The one my big sister used to use on me when I was little.
—Secret technique: “Playing Master and Apprentice"!
I cleared my throat with an ahem and put on an air of dignity: puffing out my chest to look bigger and lowering my voice to sound the part.
“Apprentices…”
“…Are we apprentices now!? Sylphy?”
“…Since when are we apprentices!? Selphie?”
The twin princesses, startled by my sudden change in tone, exchanged looks.
I pressed my advantage:
“Do not talk back!”
““!?””
“I am the Flour-Food Sage… a professional in this path! And I am telling you amateurs that I shall impart to you the secrets of takoyaki!”
““…Gulp…””
“Can you keep up… novices like you…?”
I deliberately put on a stern face.
I was picturing one of those masters from movies who passed down a secret technique through a single line of succession. You know, the sort who would conveniently leave the battlefield just before an important fight…!
Then the elder sister, Princess Selphie, looked straight at me.
“I’m ready to follow your teachings!”
“…S-Selphie!?”
“We will follow you…!”
Watching Princess Selphie declare it in a ringing voice, Princess Sylphy hesitated for a moment, then gave a small nod. It seemed she had made up her mind.
“Heh. Then do what I tell you!”
““Yes, Lady Saint!””
“Call me Master!”
““Yes, Master!””
The twin princesses were fully into it, brimming with motivation.
Good, good, I thought with a secret smirk.
If I kept flattering the twin princesses and building up the excitement like a stage play, even easily bored children could concentrate on cooking. When I was little, my big sister had talked me into things the same way, getting me to help with all sorts of chores.
Besides, she would be back before long, so I just had to hold out until then.
I rolled up my sleeves and began planning in my head how to teach the twin princesses.
[Meanwhile]
—In the shadow of the cherry tree in the garden.
“What is that little act, I wonder?”
“…(Isn’t that the same setup I used on Hiyori back then!? How embarrassing! Couldn’t she change it up a little! Hiyoriiiii)”
“Stop it! Don’t hold me back! I’m going to the Princesses right now! I’m going, I tell you!”
“Now, now, Senior Crux, the Saint and the Princesses are all fired up. It would be tactless for adults to interfere.”
“Grr, you rascal! I’m a guard knight! My job is to guard the Princesses by sticking to them thick and close all day long! Don’t get in my way! Besides, the Princesses’ first Master☆ was supposed to be me, and the Saint stole it from me! I can’t keep quiet!”
“Senior… How about you finally shut up? I’m starting to feel a little violent.”
“Huh, Jade? What’s with that face? Where did your usual kind face go? Did something happen? Hm? Hmmm? Don’t casually rest your hand on my carotid artery. Ha ha ha. Jade, you’re so good at jokes. Right, Lady Akane?! …Huh? Why that cold look? Why are you looking at me like that!? It’s cold! Why is it suddenly so cold?! Winter? When did winter come!?”
“…I’ve reported you.”
“To wheeeere?!”
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇
When I held my hand over the hot plate, I could tell it had gotten quite hot.
—Good. It’s warmed up enough.
I soaked a brush in oil and began greasing the plate.
“Apprentices… everything begins with applying the oil.”
I moved the brush in bigger strokes than usual, to make it look like I was doing something impressive.
The twin princesses watched with bated breath. Seeing them so engrossed, I hesitated for a moment over how to explain.
…How should I explain this so that children could understand?
The twin princesses were five years old. I needed phrasing that even a kindergartener could follow.
…I decided to leave it to inspiration.
“If you forget this step, later you won’t be able to turn them with a nice little flip. They’ll go squish and crumble into a big mess, so be careful.”
“I see. Flip and squish.”
“I see. They’ll crumble!”
“Got it, you two?!”
““Master! We understand!””
It seemed my explanation had gotten through to the twin princesses just fine.
Perhaps I was cut out for teaching.
For some reason, a clattering noise came from somewhere far away, but it must have been a chicken in the coop flapping around.
I picked up the plate of octopus and dropped the pieces into the holes of the takoyaki pan one by one.
As the octopus touched the heated pan, it let out a sizzle and shrank a little. Once every hole had octopus in it, I poured in the batter.
The illustration’s description: the twin princesses watch with bated breath.
My big sister’s takoyaki batter was made with rich dashi and plenty of eggs. When it’s cooked, it turns truly fluffy and delicious. After pouring in enough batter to overflow the holes, I scattered on plenty of green onions and tenkasu, crunchy bits of fried batter left after cooking tempura. The secret to deliciousness is not being stingy with the fillings.
After that, I just had to wait for the batter to set. Judging the timing was crucial.
Too early, and it won’t flip properly and turns into a mess. Too late, and it sets too hard and won’t be fluffy and melty.
—I have to show the twin princesses something cool. I’m the master, so failure is out of the question.
I’d definitely nail it!
Gradually, the batter began to bubble. …But not yet!
We watched the batter in silence. The living room was hushed, and only a chicken’s cry could be heard in the distance.
—Now!
I slowly picked up a skewer and, with a sharp swish! motion, gripped it in reverse, just like an assassin in an anime drawing a weapon. I was about to start working on the takoyaki that way—but in the end, I switched back to holding it normally.
“Master, what is the meaning of that motion?”
“Master, what deep meaning does that motion have?”
“Heh. It is a teaching: live honestly, without showiness!”
““Ohhhh.””
…I was just trying to make it look cool, but it made the job harder!
The twin princesses looked at me with such sparkling eyes that I couldn’t help grinning.
Every reaction of theirs was so fun that I couldn’t stop overplaying it. Unlike my brat cousins, the twin princesses listened to me earnestly. That was probably one reason I was getting carried away.
—Ah, they’re so cute.
The golden and silver twin princesses were beautiful and adorable, like dolls. And those girls were looking at me, lively and happy, with complete trust.
…Besides, I’d always longed to have a younger sister.
I’d secretly dreamed of becoming a warm and kind older sister, just like my big sister. I’d always wondered what it would be like if I could be that sort of person… And even if it was only for this brief moment, I was genuinely happy that my dream was coming true.
I managed to tighten my relentlessly loosening cheeks and slid the skewer into the batter.
I gently gathered up the batter that had spilled over the edges, then flipped each piece just ninety degrees with a quick turn. The outside had begun to set, so that part now stood upright against the side of the well, while the still-liquid batter remained pooled inside.
“What a strange shape, Sylphy. Only halfway?”
“How curious, Selphie. Only halfway?”
To the twin princesses, whose looks said “Wouldn’t it be better to flip it all the way?” I just lifted one finger and slowly waved it left and right. “No, no, no.”
“Heh heh heh. This creates an empty space inside, apprentices. The batter in that hollow gets steamed, making the center wonderfully melty when you eat it! This is the secret to making takoyaki that’s both soft and fluffy… Remember it well!”
“Melty…”
“Fluffy…”
““Wonderful!””
While the twin princesses marveled at my explanation, I quickly began to turn the remaining pieces. Once I’d finished about half of them, I handed the skewers to the princesses.
They hadn’t expected to do it themselves, perhaps, and looked at each other with reddening cheeks.
“Now, try it!”
““Yes, Master!””
The twin princesses put their hands on the low table and stretched their bodies out, clumsily gathering the batter with the skewers and flipping it, struggling all the while.
My mouth and hands almost moved on their own, but I forced myself to just watch.
…It’s really annoying when someone steps in while you’re working hard.
Each time they finished one, the twin princesses exchanged comments like “I did that one really well!” and “Mine is better!” They happily competed as they continued flipping the batter. By the time they’d finished their share, the pieces I’d turned earlier had firmed up nicely, so I gave them another turn.
“It’s round! Sylphy!”
“It’s round! Selphie!”
The surface of the batter began to turn golden brown, sizzling as it browned. The oil-glossy round shapes had finally started to look like proper takoyaki.
Once I’d finished turning all the pieces, I kept rotating them with the skewers to make sure they didn’t burn. Every now and then, one would have too little batter and expose the octopus inside, but that was just part of the charm.
—My big sister is taking a while.
The takoyaki were almost done, but she was still nowhere to be seen. After thinking for a moment, I went to the kitchen and brought back the sauce, aonori seaweed, bonito flakes, and mayonnaise.
“Let’s taste-test before my big sister and the others come back!”
““Taste-test?””
“That’s right! We get to eat before everyone else. Taste-testing is a special privilege for the people who made the food!”
““Privilege…””
When they tilted their heads, I explained that a privilege means something special, and their faces lit up, and they looked at each other happily.
I sprinkled sauce and aonori on the tasting takoyaki and topped them with bonito flakes. At once, the flakes started dancing in the heat. The twin princesses saw it and let out a cheer: “Whoa!”
“It’s moving! Sylphy!”
“It’s like it’s alive! Selphie!”
Honestly, I was so hungry I couldn’t stand it, so I more or less forced the amazed twins into silence. Then I clapped my hands together, pan!—Itadakimasu!
Fuu, fuu. I carefully blew on the takoyaki lifted on my skewer.
I knew the inside was hot like magma. I knew that careless eating would burn me. But waiting for it to cool was out of the question. The deliciousness of this thing lies beyond that heat. I steeled myself and popped one whole piece into my mouth in a single bite.
“Hot…!”
As I bit into the crispy batter, molten batter flooded my mouth. My tongue and my whole mouth tingled from the heat. I frantically huffed out the heat, hafu, hafu, barely enduring it, and once I’d gotten used to the heat, the flavor finally came through.
—The best part of takoyaki is the batter.
The batter, with its solid dashi of bonito and kelp, was a perfect match for the sweet sauce. The texture of the egg-rich, fluffy layer beneath the crispy outside was a joy to eat.
The melty center spread richly in my mouth, and I loved the faint saltiness of light soy sauce sneaking through. The flavor of plenty of green onions was a nice accent too.
As I savored the batter, I eventually reached the chewy octopus. I couldn’t forget that part. After all, this was takoyaki, and the octopus was one of its pleasures. At first, its flavor was overwhelmed by the sauce and batter, so I could barely taste it. That meant I could only enjoy its texture. But as I chewed and savored each mouthful, all the batter surrounding it gradually disappeared down my throat, leaving only the octopus behind. Only then did its natural sweetness finally come through.
The more I chewed, the more the octopus’s flavor came through. And whenever I unexpectedly found a particularly large piece, it was enough to make my heart leap.
Then I suddenly realized.
—I forgot the mayonnaise!
Oh no. Forgetting the golden combo of sauce and mayonnaise—that was not like me!
I hurriedly put another takoyaki on a plate. This time I poured on plenty of mayonnaise and sauce and ate it in one bite. By then the takoyaki had cooled nicely, so I didn’t have to writhe from the heat. The rich umami of the sauce and the tangy, mellow flavor of the mayonnaise blended into a melty mix that was irresistible! The duet of mayonnaise and sauce was the real pleasure of eating flour-based food.
—Yeah. Pretty good, if I do say so myself.
I swallowed and narrowed my eyes.
These were every bit as tasty as the takoyaki my big sister made. At least, that’s what I thought.
When I looked at the twin princesses, they were still battling the takoyaki in their mouths, struggling with the heat.
It was their first time tasting it. I’d been nervous about their reaction, but from what I could see, their plump cheeks were bright red, their eyes were narrowed dreamily, and their eyebrows drooped. From their faces alone, it was obvious they thought it was delicious.
Still, I didn’t know yet what they’d say. Heart pounding, I waited for them to finish.
The twin princesses swallowed almost simultaneously and looked at each other, as they always did.
Then they turned to me at the same moment.
““Master! It’s so delicious!””
And their faces broke into a bright, dazzling smile like the sun.
I was so happy that joy surged up from the bottom of my body.
I think it couldn’t be helped that my mouth went slack and my face turned goofy.
“Hiyori!”
Just then, my big sister returned with Jade and a knight I didn’t recognize.
The knight, with white-streaked hair, was probably the twins’ guard knight. He was delighted at being told things like "Gross" and "Stay away from us" by the twin princesses.
…A pervert? Maybe.
“Wow, that looks delicious! Nice work, Hiyori.”
My big sister peered into the hot plate and seemed rather pleased.
“Why don’t you try one before saying that? Though there’s no way they could taste bad!”
“Well, I was the one who prepared the batter and ingredients…”
“The cooking is what matters, the cooking!”
I patted my upper arm with my hand, puffing myself up. Then my big sister grinned and said, "Well then, let’s see the Master’s skill.”
—Y-You saw it all!?
Seeing me turn bright red, my big sister clutched her stomach and burst into laughter.
“Well then… Itadakimasu!”
The takoyaki was a hit with Jade and even the pervert, and it disappeared in no time.
During the next round, the twin princesses taught the pervert how to make it, and my big sister sneaked a beer, and it was quite rowdy, but that day’s lunch was without a doubt the most fun I’d had in a long while.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇
After seeing off the twin princesses and the pervert, whose name was apparently Crux but whom I didn’t think I’d remember, I sat on the veranda and drank cold barley tea.
I couldn’t think of anything more delicious than gulping down barley tea in the middle of summer, though I was sure my big sister would insist that beer was the best. I was idly mulling over such things when my big sister sat down next to me with a serious look.
I stole a glance at her. When she wore that expression, whatever she had to say was often heavy.
—What, what? What did I do? Did she find out I ate the precious snacks in the cupboard!? Or that I borrowed her clothes without asking and returned them dirty!?
I had too many guilty memories, and a bad sweat broke out.
But it was none of those. To me, pale with dread, my big sister said:
“Hiyori… I know it’s still a way off. But what are you going to do after the purification journey is over? You’ll go back to our original world and go to high school… right?”
Startled by the unexpected words, I stared at my big sister.
Her face was tense, as though she were nervous. It was as if she wanted to hear my answer but was afraid to.
There was no point in speculating, so I told her my honest thoughts.
“Hmm. Honestly, I won’t know until it’s over. Going back and enjoying high school life is an option.”
“…Yeah.”
“Staying in this world and traveling from country to country to see scenery I could never see back there would be great too!”
My big sister’s expression clouded at my words.
“…But Hiyori, you’re still a high school student. I just assumed you’d go back once your role as the Saint was done.”
“Well, I’ll decide when the time comes. Part of me wants to continue studying, but I’ve also met so many wonderful people in this world. It feels like a waste to throw that away so easily.”
My big sister fell silent, apparently deep in thought. Was something troubling her?
…Was she anxious about the future?
My big sister had a habit of keeping everything to herself, crying alone, and trying to deal with everything on her own.
Considering everything my big sister had been through, perhaps it was only natural that she acted that way. Still, was it presumptuous of me, after causing her so much trouble over the years, to wish that she’d stop bottling things up and talk to me instead?
‘Become independent already.’
I remembered the words from the dream.
I didn’t need anyone to tell me. I knew I leaned on my big sister too much and depended on her.
After our parents died, she had looked after me as a stand-in parent all this time. Grandpa and Grandma were there too, of course, but whenever I was lonely, the one beside me was always my big sister.
She was precious to me, someone I loved more than anyone. She was the closest family I had. But she couldn’t be my mother. Just like me, she must have wanted someone she could lean on, too.
So I had to become independent soon. I wanted to grow strong enough to cheer her on, so I wouldn’t get in her way.
Suddenly, the twin princesses’ smiles from earlier came to mind.
When I finish my work as the Saint and stand at a crossroads in my life…
I want to choose a path where I can see lots of smiles like that.
I truly felt it from the bottom of my heart, so the words slipped out naturally:
“If I hadn’t come to another world, I’d probably be going to high school and then university, or getting a job. But, big sister, we’re in another world now. Don’t you think there’s no need to force ourselves to stay bound by the ties of the old one?”
At my words, my big sister went blank for a moment.
“That’s true. We’re in another world now…”
“Exactly! Big sister, we’re experiencing something completely extraordinary right now!”
I spread my arms wide and looked up at the deep blue sky.
Even though this was another world, the sky was just as vast as the one back in Japan. No, with the air being so much cleaner here, the blue almost seemed more vivid! And flying through that sky weren’t airplanes, but enormous dragons and all sorts of mysterious monsters! The air wasn’t filled with PM2.5 or exhaust fumes, either. Instead, it was infused with the mysterious power of magic.
“When the purification journey ends, I bet the choices we can make are way more than ordinary people get. I don’t know what they are yet… so worrying about it from now is a waste.”
“Hiyori…”
“Back in the old world, I was always protected by you, big sister. But in this world it’s different. I have power, and there’s a lot only I can do. I want to accomplish what only I can do! I want to do what I want to do!”
—That’s right. I want to choose my own path, not one laid out by someone else!
“I’m selfish, aren’t I? Always about myself! But I’ll take care of myself.”
…I’ll become independent from my big sister. When the purification journey is over, I’ll do it.
I decided just now! That settled it. Maybe I’d made the decision on impulse, and perhaps I’d regret it someday, but that was fine with me.
“So you don’t have to keep putting up with me, big sister. …And you can stop worrying about me and choose the path you want to take. I will absolutely support whatever you want to do!”
When I finished pouring out my feelings all at once, my big sister was biting her lower lip, looking like she might cry.
I’d never seen her like this before.
Had my selfish wish hurt her?
But I’m sorry, big sister. This is the one thing I can’t give up.
I laid my hand over my big sister’s, who stayed on the veranda.
My words might hurt her sometimes, but surely they could help her too.
If it meant helping my big sister, I’d say those words as many times as necessary.
I wanted to be a support for her, the way she’d always been for me.
“I’ll cheer on what you want to do, big sister. That’s what a little sister does!”
The instant I said it, my big sister’s face crumpled, and with a clumsy smile she said, "…Thank you.”
Ever since, my big sister had occasionally been lost in thought.
…I’d always thought she was a super-adult who always chose what was right and never hesitated.
But I was wrong. Even my big sister had things she struggled with and felt uncertain about.
Big sister… I wonder what will become of us. When the time comes for us to choose our own paths, what choices will we make?
Under the sky of this unexpected other world, our future still remained unclear.
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