Nighttime
┭┮﹏┭┮
Dragging his suitcase, Shiro walked dejectedly toward the apartment he had rented.
His future felt bleak.
He had just found the home of the older sister he once thought he could entrust his life to when he was a child, yet he couldn't bring himself to be happy.
Just moments ago, he had been half-threatened and half-coerced into joining a diving club called Peek a Boo. While he did have some interest in diving, that group of muscle-bound guys was way too terrifying! Was the whole club filled with nothing but bros?!
As for his idiot friend Kitahara Iori, living in that kind of environment, Shiro couldn't imagine how he would manage to survive.
"Sigh, what a shame I didn't get to see Nanaka-nee. I used to take baths with her when I was little."
"Oh~ So you used to bathe with an older sister, huh? Nothing happened?"
"Well, even if I wanted something to happen, it wasn't possible. I was only ten years old back then."
"Heh, so you were already bathing with an older sister at ten? Pretty impressive."
"Hmph, back then, my looks were top-tier! Well, not that I've fallen off now..."
"!!!"
Cold sweat suddenly broke out all over Shiro's body.
Who was he talking to just now?!
Zzzzt! Zzzzt!
The streetlight overhead flickered on and off. Shiro's face was pale, his body stiff, unable to move.
He had seen this kind of situation in horror movies before!
Even though that female voice just now was incredibly pleasant to the ear, according to the typical storyline, if he turned around now, his head might not remain attached!
His apartment was right ahead!
Stay strong, Shiro! You're the best! Just walk normally like before, keep chatting casually, and everything will be fine. Ghosts can't enter buildings!
"Eh? Why did you stop talking~?"
"Aaaaahhh!!! Miss Ghost, please don't eat me! I'm not tasty with my squinty eyes! I heard that dumb people taste better, I can bring you a fool tomorrow! If that's not enough, I know some muscular guys too, they've got more meat and taste great! (???）"
Shiro wanted to run, but his legs refused to listen! This had to be the ghost's doing!
His only option was to beg for mercy at the fastest speed he had ever spoken in his life. As for selling out Iori and his two senior classmates? He felt absolutely no guilt about it!
Allow me to introduce Kamishiro Shiro again! He's super afraid of ghosts, so much so that he didn't even dare to join a test of courage event back in middle school!
The reason? He firmly believed that ghosts were real. After all, his own existence was already incredibly unscientific, so even if someone told him Hanako or any urban legend was real, he wouldn't be surprised!
"Pfft—hahaha! Hahaha!"
"You're so funny~ A little brother who likes bathing with big sisters~ So, how about taking a bath with me too?"
"No way!!!!!!"
"Hahahahaha!"
...
"Haha, sorry, sorry, I couldn't help but tease you a little since you're so fun~"
Standing downstairs from Shiro's rented apartment was a short-haired, purple-haired older sister, laughing as she apologized.
She was the one who had nearly scared Shiro to death just now!
"Haha... it's fine, I wasn't scared at all. I mean, who would get scared by a sudden voice appearing out of nowhere, haha... totally not scared..."
Absolutely terrified! (メ｀ロ′)/
Shiro awkwardly scratched the back of his head, repeating himself in an attempt to sound convincing. But his pale face had zero credibility…
Hamaoka Azusa gave him a meaningful look but didn't expose his fragile dignity~
"Hamaoka Azusa."
She stretched out her hand and introduced herself.
Shiro took a deep breath, shook her hand briefly, and even subconsciously scratched her palm a little.
Don't ask why, it was a natural instinct of a playboy!
However, Azusa didn't seem to notice. In fact, she went even further—she held onto Shiro's hand, leaned in close to his ear, and whispered,
"Hey~ Shiro-chan, what was it like bathing with Nanaka~?"
!!!
Were girls nowadays this direct?! Did she think he was some passive protagonist?! And what's with that nickname—Shiro-chan?!
"Nanaka-nee?"
Shiro's expression froze. No way, he wouldn't just randomly run into someone who knew Nanaka-nee, right?!
"Haha! I happened to hear Nanaka's name earlier, so I eavesdropped a little. And wow, I ended up hearing something juicy! Come on, spill it! What was it like?!"
Azusa's eyes sparkled with curiosity, her face practically screaming obsessed fangirl!
"Wait! Let me process this first..."
Shiro pulled his hand away and held his forehead.
"Nanaka, Kotegawa Nanaka?"
"Mm-hmm!"
"The one whose family runs the diving shop?"
"Mm-hmm!"
Pfft…
Shiro spat out blood. His entire body turned monochrome. Of course, it had to be someone familiar!
"Hey! Shiro! Don't die! At least tell me how it felt before you die!!!"
-------------
"Hey, Shiro, your room is... really clean, huh."
Azusa looked around the nearly empty room, unable to think of any other way to describe it.
Meanwhile, Shiro sat blankly on the floor, still not recovered from the earlier shock. He muttered absentmindedly in response, "Because it's a newly rented place."
"Eh?!"
Azusa looked at him in surprise. "If it's a new place, why are you only moving in now? Normal people would clean it up during the day, right? It's already nighttime."
Shiro stared ahead, mumbling, "Yeah... why, indeed..."
His mind replayed the events of the day; getting kidnapped by some unknown wild men into their den, being forced to join their wild tribe, then watching his suitcase embark on a solo adventure at sunset…
And just before getting home, he was nearly scared to death by a purple-haired older sister pretending to be a ghost.....
Tears silently streamed down Shiro's face.
Wasn't his first day in Izu a bit too eventful?! Dammit!
(′｀;)?
Azusa looked at him in confusion.
Why was he crying all of a sudden? Ah, it must be homesickness. If only Bukki and Toki were here, they'd know how to handle this kind of situation best!
Shiro slowly calmed down. Sure, today's events were… something, but at least the outcome wasn't bad.
Look, there was a beautiful purple-haired older sister sitting in his apartment right now!
…
Like hell that was normal! Why was someone he just met in his house?!