It Seems That the Word Cute Was a Deadly Poison to the Girls Who Were Despised as Ugly Women in a World Where Beauty and Ugliness Are Inverted
After parting with Momoka, Yuma headed straight home.
On the way, he took out his smartphone from his pocket and sent a short message to Reo.
“I was able to talk to her properly. Thank you for pushing me back.”
hethought it was only natural that he should tell the result to his best friend who had pushed him to go.
“I wonder how Reo is doing now. ……”
The voice that he unintentionally muttered was drowned out by the hustle and bustle of the city.
He can’t help but think about it. It was him who took Momoka’s hand.
And the one who chose to distance himself from them was also himself.
“I’m home!”
When he opened the front door, he was greeted by the faint smell of home.
That alone relaxed some part of ihis heart.
He took off his shoes, washed his hands, and walked quietly down the hallway.
It is still early for dinner.
He feels half-hearted about starting something, but at the same time he feels uneasy about doing nothing.
It was such a time of limbo.
“Huh. Onii chan you came home?”
Yuuma raised his head at the sound of a voice coming from the living room.
“We had to dismiss early. What were you doing, Hiyori?”
“I was just lounging around. …Hey, do you want to come and lounge around with me, onii chan?”
Hiyori came running up to him and naturally clung to Yuuma’s right arm.
He could feel the soft sensation through his sleeve, but Yuuma no longer seemed surprised.
Lately, this level of skinship had become a common sight.
“Hmm, that’s nice, but since we’re here, why don’t we play something? Like, cards?”
“You’re going to play with me? Yay!”
Hiyori was so happy that she jumped up and down.
The reaction on her arms was so funny that it made Yuma’s mouth drop open.
“Then, I’d like to invite Rio nee to join us. The three of us seem to be having more fun than the two of us.”
“…Are you calling onee chan too?”
“Yes. I’ll be right back, so get ready.”
Hiyori bit her lip ever so slightly, but Yuuma didn’t notice.
He went straight upstairs and knocked on Rio’s door.
“Rio-nee, are you there? We’re going to play cards, do you want to come?”
“Hmm, I’m in. I. Wait patiently, otouto kun”
“Got it. I’ll get ready in my room.”
A few minutes later, a stack of cards that had just been shuffled was thrown in the center of the low table in Yuma’s room.
Rio and Hiyori are sitting on the left and right side of the table.
The idea of sitting opposite each other had not been in their dictionaries from the beginning.
“…I knew it. There’s no way we’d just sit across from each other. But still — how does that work in a game of Old Maid?”
Rio just shrugs in response to Yuuma’s retort.
“Because I want to sit next to you.”
“I want to be next to onii chan”
They say this with an innocent smile as they lean in
“I’m in a position where I can see all the …… cards, how can I compete with that?!”
“Onii chan, are you unhappy with something?”
“If you don’t have any, just hand them out.”
“Show some fairness! This isn’t even a game!”
The screams of Yuma’s voice echoed in the air, softening the atmosphere in the room.
The role of dealing the cards and the role of enlivening the atmosphere all fell on his shoulders.
After a few games, when they had time to catch their breath, Yuuma, whose cards had naturally been looked at from all sides, was drooping his head in disgrace at his shameful record of coming in last place for two consecutive games.
“That’s weird… you two are looking at my cards too much! Try to hide it a bit more!”
“Because, you know?~”
“Right, onee chan. onii chan has really good reactions.”
“That’s right. Your reactions are so funny every single time.”
“….Is that a compliment?”
As the sisters laughed out loud, Yuuma couldn’t help but let out a groan.
Though he was trying to play seriously, there was nothing he could do against two people who were only determined to win.
Far from making them back down, he was completely dominated by them.
(This can’t end like this. ……)
As he was drooping his head in shame after the humiliating defeats, a move suddenly came to his mind.
At the very least, he might be able to catch them off guard.
“…Hey. It’s no fun if we play normally, so how about we start with a penalty game from the next game onwards?”
Yuma made the suggestion in a casual manner.
But he had intended to put a secret plan to win the game in his words.
The reaction of the sisters was yet to be seen, but his next words would change the atmosphere.
“For example, the first-place winner would make a request to the second-place winner.”
“Hee~. Yuuma is the one who suggested something like that. … It’s going to be interesting.”
“Onii chan, you’re actually quite aggressive.”
Yuma had expected them to show even the slightest sign of agitation, so this reaction was completely unexpected.
Though they were laughing, the sisters’ eyes were clearly shining with determination to win, and it was no joke.
Wiping the bead of sweat from his forehead, Yuma finally began to realize that he might have made a thoughtless provocation.
“Since the punishment is on the line,……, I hope the terms will indeed be equal, right? Go to …… the other side, and I’ll win this time.”
By deliberately going the distance, he intended to bring the terms to more or less even.
“Okay~”
“Yeah, let’s go”
“…… Huh?”
The difference from the expectation is so big that Yuma’s head goes blank for a moment.
–Something is wrong. But I still don’t know where it is.
The two of them were smiling with a smile that even contained some leeway, and quickly started shuffling the cards.
It was as if they were anxiously waiting for the curtain to rise.
“Well then, I’ll start dealing out the cards.”
Rio’s listless voice made Yuma raise his eyebrows.
“…. Why did you suddenly get motivated after looking like a bother just now?”
“You’re probably just imagining things. Come on, you’re in the way. Get your hands out of the way.”
“Don’t get in onee chan’s way, okay?”
When Hiyori naturally joins in as well, Yuuma finally realizes.
“Was it my fault…?”
With a forced smile on his face, the cards were dealt one after the other in front of Yuuma.
“…Well then, let’s get started. The rules are simple, if you lose – prepare yourself, okay?”
“Hehe, I’m looking forward to it. Will you take your punishment properly, Onii chan?”
“…Can you two stop looking at me like that? I’m going to get serious about it too.”
Taking the cards they were dealt, the three began to silently pull out their pairs.
The first to stop moving was Yuma. He had only one card left in his hand.
“……I can win.”
He was able to get around the sisters’ blatant interference and reached the end of the hand.
Rio, on the other hand, holds two cards in his hand and looks at both of them as if he is observing them.
Hiyori had two cards in her hand, just like her sister.
It was clear that Rio was going to win the hand. This certainty made Yuma feel better.
“I’m sorry, both of you.. …… It looks like all the luck of the day has come my way.”
“Okay, okay, then start with Yuuma. The order is Yuuma, then me, Hiyori, right?”
“Yeah. Onii chan, hurry up?”
“……No, at least be a little disappointed ……”
Seeing the two of them completely unfazed, Yuuma reluctantly dropped his gaze to the two cards Rio had handed him.
With just one card left, he was in an overwhelming advantage and intended to end it here, so he chose the left card.
He felt a hard sensation on his fingertips, and there was a brief moment of silence.
And then, his face tightened.
“No way, right ……? Ah……?”
He quickly covers his mouth, but it’s too late.
Across from him, Rio can’t contain herself and bursts out laughing.
“Yuuma, isn’t that what you mean?”
“Oniichan, I can’t believe you can’t follow up on that…”
Even Hiyori shrugs in exasperation.
“…… damn it,…….”
Victory should have been within reach, but now it had all gone to waste.
Yuma, biting back his frustration, nonchalantly slid Baba to the far right.
Then he quietly watched the exchange between the two.
“All right, this makes it my win.”
“……, that’s not fair, Onee chan”
“Well, I guess that can’t be helped. I guess I’ll have to give the reward to One. chan”
“I wanted to make him do the punishment game too~”
The conversation was somewhat disturbing, but it barely registered in Yuma’s ears.
The shock of being so easily elevated had blown his thoughts out of his head.
He doesn’t know himself where his confidence from earlier had gone.
“I’m next, onii chan …… quickly, get your card out?”
Yuuma gasped as Hiyori looked straight at him.
Her innocent smile from a moment ago now looked somehow tense.
“…I absolutely won’t lose.”
With a little bit of determination, Yuma silently held out the card to her.
“Nn, then …… this way.”
Her finger tips, without hesitation, pulled out the card on the right.
“I did it. The …… pair is complete.”
“……, no kidding, right ……?”
Yuma looked down at her cards and couldn’t move.
He knew he could win. He believed luck was on his side.
The only thing left in the hand is the baba
“I’m sorry, onii chan….. But I wanted to see it. Onii chan’s punishment game …….”
Hiyori tilted her head slightly and smiled mischievously.
Then Rio clapped her hands and stood up.
“Hehe, then I’ll take responsibility and carry it out. Are you ready?”
Rio stood in front of Yuma and looked down at him with her arms deliberately crossed.
“Hey, Rio-nee? It’s like… the atmosphere is scary…”
“Why are you so scared? You were the one who said it was a punishment game.”
“That’s… more like the vibe, well…”
Rio takes a step closer to Yuuma, who is hesitant to speak.
“Well, what if I said, ‘I’ll kiss you on the lips.’ What would you say?”
“Y-yes?! No no no no! We’re brother and sister, right?!”
“Nee chan, that’s a bit… too much.”
“I’m just kidding. All I really want is a back hug.”
Rio relaxed her shoulders and slowly turned her back.
“…I thought I’d never be hugged by a man in my life. Look, I’m like this.”
“Eh…that’s not true…”
“It’s fine, I know. So, just for now…let me spoil you?”
After a few seconds of silence, Yuuma let out a small sigh.
He didn’t seem to think about anything or hesitate, he simply stood up naturally and slowly reached out to Rio’s back, putting his arm over her shoulders.
His slender body trembled slightly.
But instead of trying to run away, he gently leaned his back against Rio.
The soft weight of her body and the slight heat of her breath.
Rio quietly bit down on the warmth that she was finally touched as an older sister and as a girl.
There were no words.
But, just by that silent embrace, everything was now being conveyed to her.
Maybe he wanted to think so.
Maiasa