I, Who Was Reincarnated as an Evil Character With Cheat-Level Stats in an Eroge, Will Live Freely in This Life
“Sorry, Seito-kun, they were both being so noisy… and then suddenly this happened…”
Saki said that with a slightly troubled look. Well, I could understand why she’d feel that way.
After finishing our meal at the restaurant, Harumi-san asked if I still had time. I said yes! Then she suggested I come over to her place since I was free, so here I am at the Hiiragi residence.
But right now, the only people in the Hiiragi house were Saki and me. Just the two of us alone in her house.
The reason was that after Harumi-san and Gaku-san talked with us for a bit, they said they had something to do and left the house.
So yeah, that’s why Saki looked a bit troubled.
“No, it’s fine.”
“They both suddenly had something to do? What could it be?”
What kind of business… Saki doesn’t seem to know why they left.
Normally, in this situation, I’d definitely think, “Leaving me and Saki alone together… and in their own house? What’s up with that!? We’re not even dating!” But this time, the situation was a bit special, so my thoughts were different.
And happily, I also think I clearly understand what Harumi-san and the others are thinking.
The reason was that as Harumi-san left the Hiiragi house, she turned to me and said in a voice low enough that Saki couldn’t hear, “Saki’s a bit shy, but please take good care of her, Seito-kun. Do your best,” smiling happily as she said it.
Honestly, in this situation, and with that tone, it couldn’t possibly be just as friends.
Plus, Harumi-san and Gaku-san left the house as if they’d suddenly coordinated it. I even wondered if they’d been planning this situation all along, and maybe they didn’t have any real business to attend to?
Because of that, I was pretty much certain about Harumi-san, and I figured Gaku-san must be thinking the same thing.
Honestly, I’d been wondering how things would go today, but Harumi-san and the others’ support—or rather, their assistance—was incredible. Things progressed so smoothly, it actually surprised me a bit.
Well, that’s one thing, but I kept thinking today… I’m also shocked that Saki’s parents trust me so much… Did I really have that much to earn their trust?
…But… now isn’t the time to think about that. I need to focus on Saki.
After all, Harumi and the others set this up, created this situation for us.
Thinking that, I pulled myself together and said to Saki.
“I wonder what’s really going on… Well, since we’re here, let’s talk about it, just the two of us.”
“Y-Yeah, okay…”
Just the two of us at Saki’s house. Maybe because of the situation, Saki seemed a little tense.
Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and she avoided my gaze.
Saki was a bit nervous right now, so I needed to ease that. Taking action would come later.
“I wonder what Kana and Miku are doing right about now?”
I casually said that.
I figured the best way to ease Saki’s tension was to talk about Kana and Miku.
It’s not just Saki, but whenever these three talk about each other, they look really happy. There’s a bond between them that I, having known them for less time, don’t quite grasp yet.
Then, in response to my question, Saki answered.
“Oh, about that… I saw in the group chat that they’re watching a movie at Miku-chan’s place.”
Hearing that, I checked my phone. Apparently, Kana said she wanted to watch something, so Miku is putting up with it.
Just the other day… well, actually, just recently, Miku was telling me and Saki not to spoil Kana. But looking at this, I can’t tell who’s spoiling who.
I thought that and found it kind of funny.
“Haha, you’re right. She told us not to spoil her, but in the end, Miku’s super lenient with Kana too, huh?”
“Hehehe, Miku-chan’s always been like that. It’s part of what makes her cute, but no matter what she says, she always ends up doing whatever Kana-chan wants to do together.”
When I laughed and said that, Saki also said it happily.
We hadn’t seen that much of their past in the game, and I’d only heard bits and pieces from the three of them, but honestly, it’s easy to imagine them like that.
“That part of them hasn’t changed, huh?”
“Yeah. The two of them are really close, you know.”
“If we’re talking about being close, Saki’s the same, right? Personally, I’ve thought more than once or twice that the three of you genuinely adore each other…”
“Hehe, that’s true. This is a bit embarrassing, but is it okay if I tell you? It’s about my past.”
“Of course. I’d love to hear all about Saki’s past.”
“Actually, back then, I was incredibly shy around people, so I didn’t have a single friend… Oh, this was back in kindergarten, in the middle of the year.”
“Actually”… well, the shy part wasn’t really a surprise, I knew that already… but no friends at all? How am I supposed to react to that? I’m a bit at a loss for words.
Just as I was thinking that, Saki spoke up.
“Ah, don’t worry, this isn’t a sad story.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
Saki said that and continued her story.
“So, you see, it was Miku-chan from the class next door who talked to me back then.”
“Miku?”
“Yeah. During recess, she saw me all alone, grabbed my hand, and played with me. That was how Miku-chan and I first met. From then on, she came to see me every day in the neighboring classroom and gradually helped me make more friends together.”
I didn’t know that… I guess that kind of thing is often how the protagonist, Nanashima, acts in stories, but it was different… Well, but even in the game, it wasn’t like he’d been crushing on me for ages; it started after the game began.
“So that’s what happened. Miku’s always been good at looking out for people.”
“Yeah, that’s right. That’s why I’m so grateful to Miku-chan. She’s the one who brought me and Kana-chan together too.”
“How did you meet Kana?”
“Well, it was when I was in kindergarten. One day on a holiday, I went to play at Miku-chan’s house, and apparently she’d invited Kana-chan over too, so she introduced us.”
“And then you became friends with Kana too?”
“Yeah. I thought I’d be more nervous, but Kana-chan was always so cute and super friendly, so even though we’d just met, I wasn’t nervous at all talking to her. So it didn’t take any time at all for us to become friends after meeting. Then we started hanging out together a lot more, and by elementary school, even our parents became close friends. There’s more to tell, but that’s the gist of it.”
So Miku was the one who brought the three of us together… I had no idea that was part of our history.
I felt a wave of nostalgia wash over me, but at the same time, something else started to bother me.
If I was hearing about the three of them, I naturally wanted to know a little about Nanashima too.
With that thought, I decided to ask casually.
“So, how did you meet Nanashima? I heard you’ve known each other since kindergarten too.”
“Well… about Tsubasa-kun, I think I first talked to him right after I became friends with Kana-chan. I’m pretty sure that was when I was in kindergarten too.”
“So it was through Kana?”
“Hmm, not exactly. To start with, Miku-chan, Kana-chan, and Tsubasa-kun already knew each other before I met them.”
“The three of them?”
“Yeah. I mentioned earlier that Miku-chan was in the class next door, but back then, Tsubasa-kun was in the same class as Miku-chan too. Because of that, the three of them had been friends for several months before I met them, and our parents were friends too. I was more like the one who joined later.”
“That’s news to me…”
“Yeah. So from then on, the three of us girls were always together… Oh, of course, during school hours we were in different grades, so we were separate. But even after starting elementary school, we were always together after school. Tsubasa also started hanging out with us when he wasn’t playing with his guy friends.”
“I see… But, I mean, I think it’s better now, but Saki was shy around people, right?”
“Um, yeah.”
“Did you warm up to Nanashima right away?”
This was a genuine question.
From what I’d heard, little Saki seemed incredibly shy around strangers.
“Well, about that… I wouldn’t say it was right away. At first, I was a bit confused. But he was Kana-chan’s family, and Tsubasa-kun was really wild when he was little, running all over the place and keeping us pretty busy. But from my perspective, it wasn’t like he was leading the way, but having someone interact with me like that made it easier to become friends. And above all, the biggest factor was that Kana-chan and Miku-chan were there.”
I see. It probably varies from person to person, but it’s easy to understand that if you’re shy, it’s easier to connect with someone energetic and innocent than with another quiet person.
As I was thinking that, Saki suddenly said, sounding a bit flustered.
“Ah, but, but you know? Even though I got close to Tsubasa-kun a bit early, that was just as friends, okay?”
After blurting that out, she added shyly.
“And, and… if we’re talking about how fast we got close, Seito-kun was actually faster…”
Maiban