We moved to the mountain cabin and decided to eat lunch.
“Ta-da! It’s Akari’s special homemade pizza!” “Whoa!” “Awesome!”
The cabin was equipped with a pizza oven, which Akari used to prepare the pies.
Setting out a folding table and chairs, we had our lunch under the clear summer sky.
“Holy crap! It’s… Akari, it’s freshly baked pizza!”
The white-haired beauty and light novel author Lusia’s red eyes shone like rubies as she stared at the food.
“Heh heh, how ‘bout that? I made the dough and the sauce from scratch, you know?” ”…Akari, this is amazing!” “Heh, aren’t I something else?”
The two of them cheered, showering Akari with praise.
“Truly impressive work, Akari-chan. Must be because you have experience working at a restaurant.”
Ichika also nodded in admiration, gazing at Akari’s special pizza.
“It’s not really about having work experience or anything like that, though. Basically, the most important thing is just wanting to see people happy when they eat it. It’s all about that sentiment…” “Sentiment…”
“Exactly. If you have a strong desire to feed someone you love, your cooking skills will naturally improve, even without any formal training.”
“Well, I see… That’s quite helpful.” “Shall I teach you how to make it sometime? ♡” “Eh, I’ll pass on that…”
Izuka flinches at his words, but Akari maintains her smile as she replies.
“Don’t be so shy~. Isn’t it better for someone like Izuka-chan to know how to cook? Let’s share the secrets behind Akari-chan’s flavors~.”
“That’s… true enough… Then maybe I’ll have to ask you next time, shall I?” Akari nods with a satisfied expression.
“Alright, everyone… please start eating! Here, Karin, cut that up for us.” “Yeah!”
When the others are present, Akari never pushes her physical affection too far.
Feeling somewhat relieved, I used a wheel-like cutter to slice the pizza. “Okaa-san.”
Lucia came over to stand beside me. “What’s wrong, Lucia?”
“Is there anything else I can help with? I’m good at whatever you need!”
She asked me earnestly, her face serious.
She likely felt guilty about being the only one doing nothing.
“I’ve got it handled on my end. Thanks.” ”…I see.”
Lushia dropped her shoulders, a hint of disappointment crossing her face.
She had gone out of her way to offer to help, and it made me hesitate to turn her down.
“Then Lushia. Could you go grab some paper plates? They should be in the kitchen somewhere.”
Pop…! Lushia’s expression instantly brightened.
A flush of red rose across her skin, pale white as fresh snowfall.
“Ah! Leave it to me! This mission from Okaya… I shall accomplish it with my very life on the line!”
Running off toward the mountain hut, Lushia took the log house stairs three at a time… “Pu-gyahh!”
Losing her balance, she stumbled and fell.
“A-Are you alright?!” / “Miss!”
Ichi was the first to rush to her side, scooping her up into his arms. “Please tell me you’re not hurt!”
“I’m fine. Don’t be so dramatic,” Lushia said, shaking her head.
“It’s my time off right now; I am not your bodyguard.”
るしあ shoved Ika aside with a forceful push and sprang to her feet.
“I’m sorry. Let me just go grab it.” “Sure, count on it.”
るしあ nodded, the thud-thud of her sandals echoing as she walked into the shack. “Do you think she’s okay…?”
Ika paced restlessly, glancing repeatedly at the hut with a worried expression. “She’s probably fine.” “But…”
“That girl is… already eighteen. She’s not… a child anymore.”
…It was a statement laden with self-reproach. He glanced at Akari and Nanako.
“I tried making some ahiyaji, too!”
”…Wow, you really can make anything, Akari.”
“Right? You can call me Cooking Master-chan Akari from now on, okay?”
Akari. Despite acting so innocently and playfully, just the other day and this morning, she had been radiating a seductive allure that sent shivers down his spine. And it wasn’t just her; Nanako was the same.
Their bodies were now ready to accept men.
“High schoolers are… not children in the way we tend to think.”
Treating them with excessive protection, using the excuse that “they’re children,” can actually inflict unconscious wounds on those kids.
Kids hate being told things like “just because you’re a child” far more than one might think.
I was made painfully aware of how much their actions had hurt them.
Now that I have a clear head, I realize Akari resorted to such strong measures only because my consideration for her wasn’t sufficient…
”…Okaya-kun. Is something wrong?”
Ichika asked me with a puzzled expression. “Ah… never mind.”
Before long, Lucia came back holding paper plates.
“Okaya! Ichika! How did it go? I found everything properly. Even the cups for our drinks!”
Lucia waved at us with a smile. “See, you can rely on me.” “Yeah… that’s probably true.”
Lucia came to where we were standing, and Akari said,
“Alright, let’s dig in!” “I’ll be eating! I’ll be eating! I’ll be eating!” ★
Having savored the specially crafted pizza from Akari, we were then given free time to do as we pleased.
Akari is inviting Nanaiko to help them explore the surroundings.
Ichika and I were clearing away the empty dishes. “Okaya.”
I turned around to find Lucia standing there with a serious expression. “Got a minute?” “Yeah. Ichika, I’ll leave you with it.”
If Lucia was calling me over, it was probably that thing she mentioned earlier—something she wanted to talk about.
I followed her up to the second floor.
There was a terrace on this level too; it looked like we could do a barbecue here as well.
“Okaya. Two things. I need to tell you something.” “Two? Go ahead.”
Lucia had a pochette slung over her shoulder.
She pulled out a single loose-leaf sheet and handed it to me. “What is this?” “It’s the title for the new work.” I unfolded the paper.
“【Let’s travel together just you and me, to the end of the dying world】… huh.”
“Yes. Based on the title proposals Okaya created, I made this one.”
Lucia shifted her weight from foot to foot, fidgeting nervously.
She must have been looking for my reaction.
“It’s the perfect title. It really fits the content.”
“R-Really?! That’s great…!”
Rushia trembled all over and did a little jump on the spot.
“Hah…! Nnnn. Thank you, Okaya-san. Knowing you think that gives me so much confidence.”
The childlike behavior vanished instantly, replaced by her usual stiff manner of speaking.
“But really, Okaya-san… I’m impressed. To have come up with so many candidates in just one night…”
Rushia pulled a bundle of papers out of her shoulder bag.
I had written out the tentative titles I’d brainstormed and handed them to her in advance.
“You could have decided on everything yourself, you know.”
“No, a work ultimately belongs to its author. An editor’s suggestions are just for reference.”
“I see… Thank you. I took the two titles from your list that I liked best, combined them, and polished it up.” Rushia let out a soft chuckle.
“In a sense, I’m the child of me and Okaya,” “Ah, so it is.”
”~~~~~~!!! N-no! That was nothing! I re-tract what I just said! Please forget it……”
Blushing furiously, Rushia crouched down on the spot.
She must have been embarrassed……
“With that, the title issue is resolved. Once the illustrations come through, the book will be out in autumn.”
“I see. I look forward to it. Hey, Okaya……the title, though, isn’t it a bit long?”
“It is. We might need to settle on an abbreviation or something.”
“Mmm……I can’t think of one. Okaya, do you have any ideas?”
Well, if it’s just deciding on an abbreviation, I suppose it’s fine for me to decide on my own.
“How about [‘Kimidabi’? It’s simply shortened.”
“‘Kimidabi,’ huh……That’s good! I like it! As expected of Okaya, you have great taste!”
……I have no taste whatsoever.
But that’s not something I should be saying here.
If she’s counting on me, then I’ll deliver for her. That alone is enough.
“So, about the title, and also… you said you had business with me? What was it?” Luzya freezes solid. “It’s…” She blushes crimson and looks down. …Ah, those eyes of hers.
Just the other day, I saw a girl with the same kind of gaze.
”…You’re not just a kid, are you? I knew it.” “Is something wrong?”
“No, never mind. Go on, tell me.”
With a resolute expression, Luzya closes the distance between us.
”…I’d actually decided long ago. As soon as this draft hit a pause point, I was going to convey my feelings.”
She pulls a sheet of letter paper from her pouch and hands it to me.
“Please read this letter later.”
After delivering that brief statement, she ran off into the distance. She had gone bright red all the way to the tips of her ears. ”…”
In my hand sits a sheet of pink stationery. A heart-shaped sticker is affixed to it.
On the back, written in elegant calligraphy, was her real name: Sachiko Hirasaki.
I opened the stationery pad to inspect its contents. ”…How old-fashioned of you, Miss.”
In essence, it read as follows:
“I like you. Please be my boyfriend.”