'Foolish' Little Sister

Morning, Fish Fresh House, Miyama Town shopping street.

The weather was exceptionally beautiful today. The deep blue sky was cloudless, and the gentle sunlight warmed everyone.

Everything seemed to have returned to normal. For Sasuke, today was another early morning.

Most residents had already bought their ingredients first thing in the morning, so after the hustle and bustle of dawn, the morning was usually a relatively quiet time.

Sasuke generally spent that time gutting fish.

Whether it was his already-exquisite knife skills or the experience he had gained from nearly three years of gutting fish at Fish Fresh House, Sasuke had reached an almost masterful level.

He expertly knocked the fish unconscious, scraped off the scales, slit open its belly, removed the entrails, and cut off the gills.

Finally, he rinsed the fish with clean water, sliced it, weighed the portions into disposable containers, and attached price labels. Then they were ready to go into the refrigerated display case packed with ice.

If nothing unexpected happened, Sasuke was in for another busy but uneventful day.

But things rarely went as planned.

For example, a familiar figure had just appeared on the shopping street.

She wore a purple dress with a purple coat over it, a white scarf, and a Cossack-style hat.

Illyasviel von Einzbern.

Illya strolled along, looking around, but her expression was calm, if a little sleepy.

At last, she stopped in front of Fish Fresh House.

Sasuke didn't seem particularly surprised by Illya's arrival. He simply continued gutting fish, his expression unchanged.

Illya stood silently for a while before entering Fish Fresh House.

"I'm not here to see you."

"Kaoru... wanted me to come see her..."

Even without Illya saying so, Sasuke could have guessed. He really wanted to tell his "foolish" little sister what kind of person Illya was.

But that wasn't possible.

Besides, it was daytime. According to the rules of their Holy Grail War, nothing unexpected should happen.

As long as Illya left before nightfall, everything would be fine.

Before Sasuke could say anything, Kaoru Sakura came "thump, thump, thumping" down from the second floor, as if she had some kind of radar installed.

She was even holding a textbook.

After all, even while recuperating at home, Kaoru Sakura made sure to study diligently.

Just like last time, Kaoru Sakura hugged Illya as soon as she saw her. But when she got a closer look, she noticed something was off.

Kaoru Sakura saw that Illya's eyes looked a little tired. She stopped fooling around and asked with sincere concern:

"Illya, did you not sleep well last night?"

Illya was slightly taken aback. Then she rubbed her eyes and smiled at Kaoru Sakura.

"Mm. I stayed up a little late reading yesterday."

"It's okay. What are we doing today?"

Kaoru Sakura thought for a moment, then excitedly told Illya:

"The amusement park!"

"It won't be as lively as on a day off, but with fewer people, it'll be much more enjoyable. We can ride all sorts of fun attractions without having to wait in line much."

Illya felt her heart stir. She had never been to a place like that before.

As far as Illya knew, amusement parks were places where adults took children.

A carefree life of playing and laughing wasn't something she could have.

But it was okay to relax once in a while, right?

Besides, she only had to leave before nightfall.

Thinking this, Illya glanced at Sasuke, who was still quietly gutting fish over there.

After all, Sasuke might try to stop Kaoru Sakura.

But Kaoru Sakura immediately misunderstood what Illya meant and giggled.

"Of course my big brother has to come too!"

"After the amusement park, I want to take you to the mall in Shinto to buy clothes!"

"If we buy a lot, it'll be a pain if there's no one to carry our bags, right?"

"Don't you think so, big brother?"

Sasuke kept cutting fish and didn't even bother to look up. He answered flatly:

"I have to watch the shop."

Kaoru Sakura seemed to have expected him to say that. She gave a disdainful snort.

"Last night, Grandpa called and said he was going fishing with Mr. Hirata for a few days."

"So I went ahead and got you the day off today."

"Well? Aren't you going to thank your wonderful little sister for getting you the day off?"

Sasuke sliced the fish without the slightest change in his expression.

"Compared to this so-called day off, I think work suits me better."

"Besides, we still have all these sliced fish to sell today."

"Don't just say whatever comes into your head. You need to make a plan..."

Before Sasuke could finish, Kaoru Sakura took Illya's hand and led her toward the second floor. In a displeased, low voice, she muttered:

"Here I am, trying to be nice, and you throw it back in my face."

"Come if you want. Don't if you don't."

"All you ever think about is selling fish. What's so interesting about that..."

Kaoru Sakura went upstairs with Illya, still angry. Sasuke continued preparing the fresh fish in the sink, but in the end, he sighed.

Even if Kaoru Sakura and Illya went out, Sasuke would definitely follow them in secret to protect her.

Sasuke could indeed close the shop and go out with Kaoru Sakura, but then he probably wouldn't sell any of the fish he had sliced today.

Sliced fish couldn't be kept to sell the next day.

If only Kaoru Sakura had told him before he started gutting fish that morning, he might not have refused.

Judging from Kaoru Sakura's behavior, she had probably come up with the idea on a whim.

But Kaoru Sakura was only sixteen. Was it really fair to expect her to make plans in an orderly fashion?

For a moment, Sasuke began to doubt himself.

Was he really being too hard on Kaoru Sakura?

He couldn't leave a Shadow Clone to watch the shop. If it slipped up, it would be hard to explain.

Still, it was normal for siblings to quarrel, and this wasn't the first time Kaoru Sakura had gotten mad at Sasuke.

In Kaoru Sakura's second-floor bedroom, she rummaged through her wardrobe and complained to Illya.

"Illya, my big brother's just like that. Don't take it personally."

"He didn't refuse because he doesn't want to go out with you."

But the more Kaoru Sakura spoke, the angrier she seemed to get.

"He's just so rigid!"

"Even Grandpa can't beat him when it comes to stubbornness!"

"I saw how tired he was every day and wanted him to take a day off!"

"Does he really think I'd make him carry a ton of stuff?"

"Am I that cruel?"

Listening to Kaoru Sakura's angry complaints, Illya sat in the room, sipping the warm tea Kaoru Sakura had poured for her. She wasn't sure what to say.

"Um..."

"Kaoru, I think your brother is actually really good to you."

Kaoru Sakura put on black tights, adjusted her black pleated skirt that fell below her knees, then pulled a light gray, low-neck sweater over her head.

Finally, she put on a fashionable white knitted cardigan and tidied herself up in front of the full-length mirror.

With her long black hair loose, Kaoru Sakura did look cute and pure. She still wasn't very happy, though she seemed much better than before. She gave another snort.

"That's true. He's just too stubborn."

"And... I'm at fault too..."

"Let's stop talking about my brother. Illya, let's go!"

"Today's definitely going to be fun!"

Just as Kaoru Sakura had said, the day ahead of her would indeed be full of surprises.