The Former Swordmaster Who Pretends to Be the Worst, and the School’s Top-Ranked Chairman’s Daughter Who’s Way Too Sweet in Public, It’s a Real Problem
“Do you want to talk to dad…?”
“Uh… there’s just something I want to check with him.”
On our way to school, I brought this up with Rika.
My childhood friend tilted her head in puzzlement, as if asking why. In response, I gave a vague, half-hearted explanation.
It wasn’t that I absolutely couldn’t tell her.
It was just that a vague premonition I was feeling made me do it.
“Hmm… but today might be a little… difficult, don’t you think…?”
Rika must have sensed something off about my attitude, but she didn’t press me for details. Instead, she replied like that, resting her right index finger on her chin as she pondered.
But what did she mean by “difficult”?
“Difficult, you say… Is Uncle busy?”
“Apparently, he has some business that takes him away from Tōto today. So he might not be back until tomorrow morning or so.”
“Hmm… I see.”
Ryotaro-san is a busy man to begin with.
On top of that, he’s probably running around dealing with matters concerning Rika. But that left me still unsure of what exactly I needed to confirm. Still, getting flustered wouldn’t change the situation.
I took a deep breath and decided to shift my mindset.
“Saito kun and dad have been getting along really well lately, haven’t they?
Getting along well… well… hehehe…”
Then, just at that moment.
My childhood friend said that with a cheerful smile. It’s not like they don’t get along, but I wonder if it’s really accurate to call their current relationship “getting along well.”
As I was thinking that, she nodded without a care and continued.
“I guess it’s because you’re Masataka-uncle’s kid, right?”
“Hm… My dad’s?”
“Yep, yep.”
When I tilted my head and asked her to clarify,
Rika nodded firmly and said this:
“Dad used to say it all the time. ‘Masataka is the person who saved my life, and my irreplaceable best friend!’”
“Whoa…”
Hearing such high praise for my own father, I couldn’t help but let out a dumbfounded sound.
As for my dad, he was rough around the edges, always dodging things with flippant banter—he was, if anything, a bit of a lightweight. Of course, I wouldn’t know what really happened between the two of them unless I asked.
But at the same time, what comes to mind is—
[—I thought there was absolutely no way we’d ever get along.]
It was the expression on my father’s face as he said that with a wry smile.
I suppose, or maybe it’s just me, but their chemistry probably wasn’t great to begin with. The thing that brought those two together was, after all—
“—Ibuki-san, I guess.”
“Huh…?”
When I said that name, Rika looked a little surprised.
I told her the information I’d learned just this morning.
“Did you know, Rika? Your mom, Ibuki-san, and my dad—”
Somehow, I found myself drawing parallels between that relationship and ours.
“—they were ‘childhood friends,’ apparently.”
◆
“Ah, this year… it might get cold a little earlier than usual.”
—Meanwhile, at that time.
Ryotaro was driving to a cemetery located on a hill. After getting out of the car, he walked with a bouquet in hand until he reached a single gravestone.
Engraved there was the name of the only woman he had ever loved in his life.
“I just felt like talking to you for a moment. ……Sorry, Ibuki.”
—Agatsuma Ibuki.
That, needless to say, was the name of his wife, who had passed away before him.
As he laid the flowers, Ryotaro exhaled quietly and smiled wryly. Then, as if she were actually there, he spoke to her.
“It’s been quite a while since I lost you, hasn’t it? ……It seems I might still be trapped over there. If Ibuki heard this, she’d probably laugh, wouldn’t she?”
He slowly crouched down, narrowing his eyes as if lost in nostalgia.
“Rika, the daughter Ibuki left behind, has grown into such a wonderful girl. I wonder if she takes after you rather than me? Even though we didn’t spend much time together. Sometimes, I sense Ibuki in the way Rika speaks.”
His tone was gentle, almost cheerful.
But his expression was filled with sorrow, on the verge of overflowing with grief. And then,
“Hey, Ibuki…? I—”
Just as Ryotaro was about to ask his late wife something,
“You already know the answer to that, don’t you?”
“—Eh?”
A voice he knew well sounded from behind him.
When Ryotaro turned around in surprise, there stood a man dressed in a tracksuit—a sight completely out of place.
“Seriously… Are you planning to bottle this up all by yourself again?”
“Masataka, what are you doing here…?”
“Don’t underestimate my instincts, okay? You’re using Saito for something, aren’t you?”
“…………”
That man—Masataka—spoke as he casually slung the bouquet over his shoulder.
Then he slowly walked over and laid his flowers down as well.
“Hey, Ibuki! I came today, too.”
Masataka spoke in a lighthearted tone.
Staring at his best friend, Ryotaro couldn’t say a word and simply remained silent.
“……So, is it working?”
“………………”
Masataka, on the other hand, asked in a matter-of-fact tone.
A long silence fell between them.
A slightly strong autumn breeze blew across the hilltop, and withered leaves swirled and danced into the sky.
Listening to the rustling sound, Ryotaro broke the heavy silence.
“……Yeah, I guess so.”
“Is that so?”
His best friend’s voice took on an uncharacteristically sharp tone, and he took a deep breath.
Then, after a moment’s thought, he spoke.
“In that case, there’s no time to hesitate……is there?”
Was that the turning point?
Slowly rising to his feet, Masataka faced the gravestone and declared:
“Alright! Rest easy, Ibuki!”
Pounding his chest, he told his late childhood friend:
“We’ll protect the treasure you left behind!”
There was no hesitation in those words.
Ryotaro couldn’t help but smile at the sight of him and said,
“You really haven’t changed a bit since back then. …You’re really just like that person.”
The other person who wasn’t there.
Thinking of Rika, he smiled gently.
Maiban