Playing House

Frustrated as I am, all I can do now is take it one step at a time. If all else fails, I can just run another simulation.

However, this was the first time I had ever seen Horikita Suzune eating while wiping away tears.

He occasionally chokes due to sobbing.

She won't let you eat.

Even so, when she saw Kitagawa Ryo bring out the third dish, Horikita Suzune couldn't help but speak up.

"We were hoping Arisu would lead us in."

Whether we go in or not is irrelevant now.

Horikita Suzune's fighting spirit seemed to have plummeted; she sounded like a completely different person.

"Real?"

"Um."

"Sure?"

"Um."

"Absolutely certain?"

"Ugh, so annoying, it's cold."

Horikita Suzune pouted.

"I'm afraid you'll regret it later. After all, if you miss this opportunity, you'll really have to wait two years to go to Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School."

"Didn't my brother say he didn't want to see me, and he also didn't want me to study there?"

Horikita Suzune lowered her eyes; if you ignored her chubby cheeks, the atmosphere of sadness might have been even stronger.

"You should think about it from a different perspective; maybe this is also a lie."

"After all, he dared to lie to his younger sister when he was little; he's the kind of guy who deceives little girls."

Kitagawa Ryo really felt like he was coaxing a child; he could even see Sakayanagi Arisu covering her mouth and chuckling to herself.

In fact, he himself did feel that Horikita Manabu had some problems, after all, it was not very kind of him to lie to the little sister who admired him.

But thinking about it carefully, it seems he lied to Hotaru quite a few times too.

Cough cough.

But Horikita Suzune didn't answer again; she suddenly broke down again after finishing her meal.

He seemed to have fallen apart, his gaze was unfocused, and he shattered into pieces on the ground.

"Get up, time to practice the piano."

Kitagawa Ryo nudged Horikita Suzune's shoulder.

"Don't want."

Horikita Suzune buried her head in her knees, curling up into a small ball on the sofa.

Now she actually looks a size smaller than Sakayanagi Arisu, who is sitting there properly.

Kitagawa Ryo sighed, went into the room where he practiced the piano, and tore the photo off the piano.

"Look up."

Horikita Suzune subconsciously raised her head slightly.

"Pia--"

The photo was pasted on Horikita Suzune's forehead.

If it were the old Horikita Suzune, doing something so humiliating to her might have resulted in her being kicked out of the house.

However, Horikita Suzune doesn't face this risk at all now, since she's already limp and lifeless.

Sakayanagi Arisu's words robbed Horikita Suzune of all her beliefs from the past few years, almost taking her bones with them.

"What is it?"

So Horikita Suzune was just shaking her head in confusion, as if trying to shake off the unidentified object stuck to her head.

Surprisingly, she's kind of cute.

"A photo of Horikita Manabu."

Kitagawa Ryo put his hands in his pockets, looked Horikita Suzune over with amusement, and then a smile appeared on his lips:

"Didn't you just half-force him on yourself back then, like I did?"

"Even though you can't see or touch him, you always feel like he's there all the time, which is really boring."

"There's no way to defeat him like this."

"If you get scammed, you're just back to square one."

"Grow up again, Suzune."

"She was merely weaving a phantom with her most fervent memories and fervent desires; in that phantom, Horikita Manabu would always be ahead of her, and she could never catch up."

Sakayanagi Arisu leaned against the door of the car that had come to pick her up and spoke to Kitagawa Ryo, who had brought her out. The night was already deep, and the early autumn night was a bit chilly. The Sakayanagi Family's driver handed a coat to Sakayanagi Arisu.

He did not end their conversation, but simply stood respectfully to the side.

"They barely see each other for a few hours a year in total."

"It's precisely because we can't see them that our fantasies grow ever stronger."

Kitagawa Ryo stood in the stairwell, the streetlight shining directly in front of him, the boy only half-hidden in the shadows.

"When something leaves a deep impression in childhood, and then you're separated for a long time, it often allows the thoughts and feelings from that time to mature like fine wine, but occasionally they can also change."

"Actually, even without our interference, Horikita Suzune would have woken up someday, but that would have to wait until she saw Horikita Manabu in person."

"After all, the one who truly deceived her wasn't Horikita Manabu, but herself."

A bright moon hung close above Sakayanagi Arisu's head; from Kitagawa Ryo's perspective, it seemed as if the other could reach out and touch it.

Do I need to fill in her name?

"Of course, because Horikita Suzune will definitely go."

Even if she is like this now?

Even if she is like this now.

Sakayanagi Arisu found Kitagawa Ryo's response amusing and chuckled softly.

"I see."

"Next time I come, as a token of my appreciation, please play 'Moonlight Sonata' for me, Ryo."

Sakayanagi Arisu's shadow stretched long under the streetlights, her silvery-white hair almost transparent in the moonlight, making her appear ethereal, like a distant phantom.

"Or should I call you...?"

The elfin-like girl blinked, a sly glint in her purple pupils:

"Elder brother?"

Chapter Twenty-Three: Playing the Family Game

"Arisu, have you ever heard of [de-enchantment]?"

Kitagawa Ryo emerged from the shadows of the stairwell, but then immediately asked and answered himself:

In layman's terms, it refers to dispelling the mystery, sanctity, and allure of science and knowledge; it is often used in the fields of religious studies and sociology.

"But in fact, this term can also be used to describe the feelings between people at certain times."

"The reason why Suzune was deceived by Horikita Manabu's words for so many years is because she had a preconceived notion that her feelings for Horikita Manabu were admiration."

Kitagawa Ryo chuckled. He didn't even doubt that if someone used Horikita Manabu's name to threaten Horikita Suzune, Horikita Suzune would completely abandon her own interests and dignity.

"They practically worshipped him like a deity."

"Every word he says is a divine revelation; it should be treated as gospel, thoroughly digested and swallowed."

"If you first place yourself in the lowest position, and then set the other person as your goal and destination, how can you possibly surpass them?"

Sakayanagi Arisu shook her head:

"We're not talking about Horikita Suzune right now, we're talking about our own issues."

"That's the problem between us."

Kitagawa Ryo answered very seriously:

"In interpersonal interactions, the biggest taboo is always to prejudge or underestimate the other person."

"[Demystification] removes all the false, self-imagined aura surrounding the other person; everyone is just an ordinary person who eats, drinks, and relieves themselves."

Me too.

"So I'm sorry, I don't know the song 'Moonlight Sonata'."

After saying that, Kitagawa Ryo turned around and walked back into the stairwell; he was going home.

"Still unwilling to go back?"

Sakayanagi Arisu sighed, gazing at Kitagawa Ryo figure until he completely disappeared from her sight.

Horikita Suzune suddenly abandoned her packed schedule and, instead of practicing the piano, stood blankly alone in front of the mirror.

What you've held onto for many years can be let go in an instant; many things that seem eternal are merely a matter of a single thought.

Horikita Suzune felt as if she had been in a long dream; if she looked at it that way, she should even thank Sakayanagi Arisu for waking her up early.

She's just an incredibly foolish little sister who only knows how to chase after her brother.

Horikita Suzune felt as if the image in the mirror was overlapping with her past self.

Looking back, I've spent more than half of my life so far as a hypocritical copy.

She kept deceiving herself with the excuse that "this is the kind of sister her brother wanted."

Whether it's appearance, personality, or grades, everything she does is for her brother.

A fake replica created to gain his brother's approval.

"... Fool."

Horikita Suzune silently cursed herself.

She could still vaguely remember the scene when Horikita Manabu was about to leave her to study alone, but that period of time was suddenly cut off, just as Kitagawa Ryo said, Horikita Suzune was back to square one.

I like long hair.

Later, when I grew my hair long, I wanted nothing more than to rush up to Horikita Manabu and let him admire it.

Horikita Suzune played with the ends of her hair.

She found scissors in the sink cabinet and cut off a lock of her long hair.

For the past few years, Horikita Suzune has always treasured them the most.

But at that moment, a strange joy suddenly welled up inside me, as if I had successfully taken my revenge.

"What are you doing?"

Horikita Suzune suddenly heard Kitagawa Ryo's voice coming from behind her, and then Kitagawa's image appeared in the mirror.

"If you want a cleaner hairstyle, I suggest going to a professional hair salon, otherwise it will look like a dog chewed it, which won't look good."

Noticing the scissors and a strand of hair in Horikita Suzune's hand, Kitagawa Ryo shrugged and said.

"... I thought you would leave with her."

"Why leave? I still want to Suzune you teach Horikita Manabu."

"I was completely fooled by their lie."

"That's why we have even more reason and motivation, isn't it?"