"Where did Asama go?"
Kiryuuin finally poked his head out of the room and looked around the store. On the LCD screen in the store, the Spring Koshien qualifiers were playing: Hayami High School VS Aonogaoka High School.
He looked around but didn't see Kazuo.
Aoi had just seen off a group of customers and turned around to answer, "Oh, Kazuo? He should be at the Fuchu Racecourse by now, right?"
Kiryuuin paused, then frowned and asked, "Fuchu? Why would he go so far there?"
"Well, what else is there to do in that place? He must be going to watch a race."
Aoi gave him an unceremonious glare and continued, "There's a race today, isn't there? Besides, he's a Trainer, isn't he? Isn't it perfectly normal for him to go to a Racecourse?"
"That's only if he's an employed staff member and has a labor contract. Besides, isn't he an intern?"
Kiryuuin retorted. Aoi countered, "Internship is only temporary. I have high hopes for him. If I can pass the exam, how could Kazuo, with his abilities, not pass? Besides, he got injured while working at our store; it's good that he didn't sue you for worker's compensation. And the store isn't so busy that it can't manage."
Kiryuuin was so vexed. He had only been here for a few days, and this silly sister was already siding with others.
It wasn't that he didn't want to argue with her, he just wanted to avoid trouble.
Repeating this in his mind, Kiryuuin cleared his throat and said, "Alright, alright, you're right... But I have something I need his help with. He's not here now, so what do you say?"
"Find someone else, and can't you do it yourself?"
"...I have to operate it. How can I manage both? Do you have time over here? Come and lend a hand."
Kiryuuin huffed, feeling a bit speechless about his sister, who always contradicted him.
"I'm clearly busy too. Are you going to leave the store to Miko alone? What do you need to do over there?"
"...Be an assistant, help me handle some things. I used to have Kazuo do it, so what do we do now?"
"Hmm... Indeed, I can't leave here either... Ah!"
Aoi suddenly had a flash of inspiration and instantly looked at Rice Shower, who was sitting at the front desk, diligently helping Kazuo sort out the remaining few documents and reconcile accounts.
"Miko!!"
"Ah!"
The girl was clearly startled by Aoi, who had pounced on her, letting out a soft cry and shrinking into a ball.
"Oh, I'm sorry, did I scare you?"
Seeing her like that, Aoi instantly realized that her enthusiasm might have scared her.
"No... it's okay... just a tiny bit..."
Rice Shower shook her head and asked hesitantly, "Is... something wrong?"
"Miko, there's something I want to ask you to do!"
"Uh... let this little one do it? Can she handle it?"
Kiryuuin had also followed over at this point, and seeing that Aoi actually thought of having Rice Shower be the assistant... his brows instantly furrowed again, and his deadpan eyes looked like they were glaring.
"Eek!"
Rice Shower, seeing the fierce gaze, instantly trembled with fear again. Aoi turned around angrily and, without a word, directly aimed for Kiryuuin's eyes.
"Hey! What are you trying to do, blind me?!"
Kiryuuin's expression changed, and he tilted his head back, barely avoiding being poked by Aoi.
"Anyway, they're just dead fish eyes that only scare people, so they're better off gone!"
She truly was his own sister, always getting serious at the slightest provocation.
"Alright, alright! I won't look, I won't look at her... So, is there still a way for her to be my assistant?"
Kiryuuin was a little speechless, covering his eyes with his hand to prevent his sister from playing "Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl" again.
"Assistant...?"
Rice Shower cautiously raised her head, clearly confused by the term.
"I'm sorry, Rice Shower... Seeing you like this, there really is no way. I was inconsiderate and scared you."
Aoi said with some guilt. Earlier, seeing that Rice Shower could now communicate normally with Kazuo, she thought Rice Shower would be much more cheerful by now, at least not as shy as before.
Who would have thought her reaction would still be so strong (though, it also had something to do with her idiotic older brother).
Aoi was about to go find Miko when Rice Shower slowly raised her small hand and, mustering her courage, said:
"Um... is there anything Rice Shower can help with?"
"Eh?"
Aoi had already given up hope, but what surprised her was that Rice Shower was now actively asking about it. It was clear that she herself wanted to try to make a change.
Facing their gazes (one peeking through fingers), Rice Shower blushed slightly, lowered her head, and softly said, "Um... I promised... Asama-sensei, that I would help... Um... the manager... wants to find Asama-sensei, right... Then I hope I can help Asama-sensei... Is that not allowed...?"
The girl's pitiful look at the end of her sentence, especially her upward gaze, like a puppy begging not to be abandoned, instantly shattered Aoi's pink maiden heart.
"Kya!!! So good, so good, so good!!!"
Aoi excitedly hugged Rice Shower, rubbing her face against Rice Shower's cheek, and enthusiastically looked at Kiryuuin, saying:
"This child is too good, big brother, I want to adopt her as my sister!!"
"No, no! What are you thinking? She has parents, and besides, you need to get their permission for something like this..."
Kiryuuin shook his head like a rattle. His impulsive sister was clearly letting herself go again.
He couldn't help but feel a headache, but Aoi clearly hadn't heard him.
"So cute... Mmm~ ~ Little Rice Shower~ ~ Ow!"
Such overly intimate actions left Rice Shower to endure it like a little lamb.
And Miko, who had arrived at some unknown point, gave Aoi a chop to the back of her head without a word.
"Ow, ow, ow... Miko, are you angry? Or are you jealous?! It hurts!!"
Without explanation, Miko dragged Aoi away from the front desk, leaving behind the "soft" Rice Shower and... Kiryuuin, who was still peeking at her through his fingers... After a moment of silence, Kiryuuin asked, "Um... are you afraid of my face?"
Rice Shower hesitated, nodded, and then shook her head. It was clear she was conflicted inside.
Kiryuuin sighed and said, "Then if I wear a mask, you shouldn't be scared, right?"
Rice Shower hesitantly nodded.
Kiryuuin directly took out the Hannya mask used to impersonate a yaksha during the Setsubun festival from the cabinet and put it on.
"How about this?"
When he turned around,
Rice Shower completely froze, as if her soul had flown out of her mouth.
"Ah... I took the joke too far—"
Before Kiryuuin could finish speaking, a baseball flying straight from behind him hit the back of his head.
"Strike!"
As the sound of the baseball game on TV rang out, Kiryuuin crouched on the ground, covering his head in a sorry state.
And Aoi, being dragged by Miko, stared intently at him. This super high-level pitch was thrown by her:
"Bullying girls, divine retribution!!"
PS:
The final chapter of this arc's first part proceeds along multiple storylines, and as mentioned in the first volume, volumes two and three actually interweave Rice Shower's story.
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