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
Rio, her cheeks bright red, gently released her hand and stepped back, leaving only a slightly trembling gaze on Yuma.
Her lips moved as if she was about to say something, but no sound came out.
She turns on her heel and heads for the door without making a sound.
The door opens with a quiet click, and her back disappears into the hallway.
The sound of the door closing echoes inside the room with a very dry sound.
After Rio’s departure, there was only silence in the room.
Yuma was left there, just staring blankly at the door.
He did not understand the reason why Rio left, nor the expression on her face.
He let out a chuckle.
“…… kissing was a bad idea, wasn’t it? We’re …… family.”
No one complied.
The air is not calming down, but rather becoming tenser and tighter.
Neither Emi nor Hiyori said a word, just stood frozen in front of the dishes.
Yuma let out a small, puzzled breath and sat back in his chair.
Leaning against the back of the chair, he put his hand on his forehead and stared blankly up at the ceiling.
He was just responding to his sister’s feelings.
She was in trouble, so he leaned in close to her. That was all he intended to do.
Why was she so shaken? Why did one word make her fall apart? He still didn’t have the answer.
“….Itadakimasu.”
A voice dropped into the quiet space.
No one answered, no one wanted to touch the food, but only Yuma picked up his chopsticks.
Rice, miso soup, grilled fish, and salad.
His stomach honestly reacted to this breakfast that even made him feel nostalgic.
He felt as if the air shook as he chewed, and a slight feeling of awkwardness rose in his chest.
At that moment, a high-pitched announcer’s voice burst out from the TV.
“──Popular idol Komatsu Yurina has performed a new song on this morning’s program!”
I turned my head involuntarily.
What I see on the screen is a round face with greasy skin and pimples on her cheeks.
The woman in the screen was dressed in a revealing idol costume, flaunting her fat figure and shapely arms and legs.
(…… Eh? This is popular ……?)
At the bottom of the screen, fans’ rave comments flowed.
“Too cute, I can’t get over it!”
“Her face is too perfect.”
“I can seriously recommend her!”
Yuma’s hand stopped.
“Are you …… serious? This is …… idol?”
He understood it as knowledge.
But when it was shown to him as a reality, he couldn’t hide his confusion.
The discomfort had turned into certainty.
As Yuma stared in amazement, news was being shown one after another on the TV screen.
“The next news! It’s about the hottest beauty contest of the moment!”
The women shown on the screen had overly fleshy faces and thick, stubble-like hair.
The women are not well-dressed, but the voices of the audience are heard over them.
“The grand prize winner was Koyanagi Asuka! The judges praised her as having a perfect asymmetrical face!”
(No, no, no, no, what’s so perfect about it? ……?)
Yuma couldn’t help but tsk tsk in his mind.
“─ ─ Next, the popular actress Niibe Kaoru’s passionate love was scooped. Her partner is a businessman who is said by her fans to be willing to give his life for hers.”
The actress on screen was smiling with a face covered in countless acne scars.
In contrast, the man next to her has a slender model’s figure and a soft smile from his well-defined face.
“When I first saw her face, I felt like I was doomed.”
The boyfriend’s comment was met with a round of applause from the studio.
(No way! He was loaded with money?! Hey!)
The news continues to flow.
“─ ─ In the ranking of the most beautiful anime characters of all time, the heroine of this season’s new Madame Grotesque is number one!”
The character introduced has distorted eyes and irregular parts placement that can only be thought of as drawing disarray.
The color of her hair, which looked like a messy mixture of paints, gave off a dull glow that added to the eeriness.
The comments, however, were full of praise.
“This dissonance is art.”
“It’s amazing how beautiful it is even though it’s asymmetrical.”
“The way the nose is broken is divine.”
As the news continued to stream, Yuma’s thoughts almost came to a halt.
Just as he was about to stop thinking about the news, a voice dropped out over the sound of the TV.
“This girl’s skin is really beautiful. I want to learn from her.”
Yuma completely froze at his mother’s words.
“… If it’s a dream, wake up, please… ……”
“Onii chan, are you okay?”
Yuma turned his head to the small voice that came down from next door.
Hiyori is looking up at him with concern.
“Thanks, Hiyori. I’m fine.”
Saying this, Yuma’s hand naturally moved.
He gently touched Hiyori’s head and stroked it softly.
It was a very normal gesture that he had repeated many times in the past.
—but
“…Oni chan! You can’t touch it! You’ll get it dirty!”
Hiyori gasped for breath and the chair made a creaking sound.
Pulling herself up, she put her hand on her stroked hair and shivered as if to ward off something.
“Don’t …… touch the hair of an ugly little girl like …… me. It will stain …… my cool brother.”
The words that leaked out were thinner than air, yet heavier than anyone else’s.
Tears could no longer be held back and began to spill from her eyes.
“Even you, Onii chan, actually… think that I’m dirty, don’t you? You did kiss onee chan, but… you just gave in to impulse, right…?”
“Hiyori, stop there.”
Emi’s voice enters to stop hrt
Her expression remained clouded, her eyelashes swayed slightly.
The averted gaze tells of an emotion as if biting down on something.
Still, Hiyori’s words did not stop.
“I didn’t want to be born with a face like this,……. I just want to be friends with Onii chan,……. But I’ve been told all my life …… not to be dirty or get close to him ……. That’s why I’m scared,…… and when he’s nice to me, it’s even more,…….”
The words eventually turn into broken sobs.
The air in the living room was filled with pain with each echo of her voice.
Yuma could not move.
Words, hands, everything seemed helpless.
He could not comfort her lightly.
But he didn’t think it was right not to say anything.
(I don’t care what the reason is. She cried right in front of me, and there was no way I would not move.)
Yuma quietly got up from his chair.
He reached out his hand slightly and gently touched Hiyori’s back.
At that moment, her body shook a little.
“…… stop it,…… I don’t want to feel bad anymore,…….”
Yuuma gently but firmly embraced her body as she cried and tried to escape.
Her hot forehead was pressed against his chest
The shivering does not stop.
“Hiyori chan is really cute. That’s what I thought, that’s why I stroked her.”
He mumbled quietly.
Hiyori did not move. She was just clearly frightened in his arms.
“…..It’s a lie. I’m a dirty girl. Even at school, boys tell me not to touch them,…… and that I’m unclean,…….”
The words spoken in tones that were like curses, dyed the place.
“Isn’t that the case with you too, Onii chan? In truth, you think I’m disgusting…”
An unspoken sound grazed his chest.
The small body that clung to him, trembling, felt awfully weak.
Yuma simply wrapped his arms around her, as if to embrace the trembling body.
Gently, but not allowing her to escape.
Her forehead touched his shirt, and the warmth spread like a stain.
There were no words.
Just a slight shaking of Hiyori’s shoulders and a sobbing breath that sent shivers down Yuma’s chest.
The air at the dining table remained frozen, and Emi’s chopsticks did not move.
Only the TV continued to play a cheerful sound, unaware of the atmosphere.
The only thing that was there was a question.
There was no clear denial or affirmation of what was said.
Yuma just quietly, without saying a word, continued to stroke her hair.
That was the only answer he could give.
Maiasa