Chapter 24

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Bookwalker

Author: Agitomi Akumi
Translation: rinrinu

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It was due to an unexpected coincidence that Minoru Tatsushi saw it.

Watching Kudou Kyouka was now like a daily routine.

Today, too, he had confined himself to his residence’s study – sharing the vision of the shiki he had released and observing every inch of the city to see if he could find any useful information that could help him obtain Miyo.

At first, he couldn’t believe his eyes, thinking there must be some kind of mistake.

Because it was a very different scene from his memories and what Kaya had told him.

Her expression, the clothes she was wearing, even her aura…… Miyo’s appearance had changed to a surprising degree.

It wasn’t developing at all the way he imagined it would. When he finally realised this possibility, he actually almost screamed. How could something like this have happened?

Just thinking about it made him scratch his head in a seething rage.

His opponent was of a higher rank than him, so no matter what, he couldn’t compete. He had lost his composure, and even such simple thoughts had already been pushed to the corner of his mind.

And so, without hesitation, he called Kaya. If it was her, she would act exactly the way he envisioned. He had no time to care about what others thought of his behaviour.

It wasn’t Kudou that had found that treasure first – he had.

He wanted the ability of the Usuba bloodline. For the sake of regaining the prestige of the Tatsuishi Clan again.

“Uncle, what’s the matter? Why did you call me suddenly?”

He sat down on the leather couch he was accustomed to and actually smiled at Kaya, who was tilting her head in confusion.

“The truth is, a short while ago I saw something unbelievable.”

“Huh?”

“Kaya, I thought perhaps you might like to know. ── About your sister right now”

She would always remember it.

“Kaya. You must never become the same as them!”

Long ago, her mother repeatedly told her over and over again.

Every time she saw her half-sister in the mansion, she would point her finger at her and say “Don’t ever become like her, she’s not a daughter of the Saimori household, she has no ability.”

True to her words, her mother wanted Kaya to always be “above” her.

She was sensitive to the slightest mistakes she made in her lessons and other activities, and when she occasionally failed, she would intentionally describe the way people spoke ill of her half-sister, warning her that if she carried on, she would end up just like her.

Because of this influence, Kaya always thought that she must be “above” and her half-sister must be “below”. What her half-sister had; she must have. It should always be more.

Therefore, she absolutely couldn’t accept what she was told when she was summoned by her father-in-law, Tatsuishi Minoru. 

(Lies, lies, lies……!)

That sister wearing a high-quality kimono, furthermore with a servant waiting on her, and walking around the streets?

It was hard to suddenly believe it just from hearing the story.

Kaya returned to the Saimori mansion, and in her room, used a technique her father had been training her to use since she had first manifested her Paranormal Vision ability. Thus, she hastily created a shiki with her poor-quality skills.

Having Paranormal Vision meant that, at the very least, she could use techniques as an ability user. However, because Kaya was a woman, she didn’t have anything to do with missions, and so she hadn’t studied very diligently.

Even so, she could still do enough to be able to release the shiki and share its vision.

She opened her room’s sliding doors, and released the small piece of paper she’d made.

(It’s impossible)

Kaya crushed the remaining paper in her hand with her white fingertips.

Just a few weeks ago, she had been relieved to see her wearing the same old ragged clothes.

Supposing, supposing her half-sister’s marriage proposal was going smoothly – what would happen?

She had been told the beautiful man she met at the mansion was Kudou Kyouka.

The high-quality clothes, the power to control a large number of servants, and the beautiful husband. How could all of that belong to her defective sister?!

(No, no way! Something like that!)

Kaya had slightly started to realise that to succeed the Saimori family might not be such a good thing after all.

If you’d gone to a girls’ school and had socialised a little, you’d quickly find out. Only the names of a few ability user households came up in conversations, the Kudou family being top of the list. Families of no importance like the Saimori and Tatsuishi families didn’t have anyone who had any expectations or relied on them.

They were able to barely get by because of the wealth and status they had built up in the past. That was their level.

In the eyes of the public, they were already on the decline. If she inherited the household it would probably be impossible for her to live her life in leisure and comfort. It was laughable to even compare it to the Kudou family that her sister was marrying into.

More importantly, the wife of the Kudou family should be someone worthy and not someone like her useless half-sister – it should be her.

(It’s laughable. That sister always steals what I should rightfully have.)

The shiki was just about to pass through the bustling town centre.

When she spotted someone amongst the crowd that looked a bit like Miyo, she thought her heart was going to stop.

“No way. There’s some kind of mistake, right? How can that be my older sister……?”

It was the figure of noblewoman, holding a lovely pure white parasol, wearing a fine-quality sky-blue kimono, and walking while talking to the servant from the other day.

Her countenance was completely different. Her unsightly, emaciated body had regained its healthiness, but still looked delicate and fragile. Her hair, that was damaged and stiff, was now so lustrous that it reflected the light.

Her half-sister, who had been plain, subdued, and gloomy, was nowhere to be found.

“There’s no way that sister could become like that……”

Dumbfounded, Kaya let her shiki follow the lovely noblewoman. However, en route to their destination, she realised they were heading to the Anti-Supernatural Special Duty military station, so she kept the shiki at a distance.

The noblewoman that looked like her sister exchanged some words with the doorkeeper and then stayed by the gate for a while, waiting for someone.  

After a while, someone came from inside, and there was no mistaking it. It was the beautiful man Kaya had passed by at the Saimori mansion before. But what had happened? His expression was very different from that time.

The gaze that seemed enough to shoot a human to death and the cold atmosphere from the other day had completely changed – he was gently smiling. His affection towards the noblewoman was easy to see, even through the eyes of the shiki.

She also had a slight tint in her pale cheeks, and her facial expression was relaxing.

The way they talked so harmoniously with one another ── no matter how you looked at it, they were intimate lovers.

“……Why? Why?!”

The moment she lost her composure the unstable shiki lost its power, and the scene that it had been projecting into Kaya’s mind also disappeared.

This is strange. Everything about this is wrong.

She remembered the way her sister had looked a short while ago.

Someone like her only looked good superficially. No matter how much her sister patched up her outer appearance, she was empty inside. Since that was the case, it didn’t mean anything, she told herself.

She had spent a long time living the same as a servant, had no ability or Paranormal Vision, and could do nothing. Because of this, it was impossible that she would be a fitting wife for the obviously perfect man from the Kudou family. 

She was more beautiful than her. She was superior to anyone else! She would never be satisfied with ending up being the proprietress of the failing Saimori family.

“Kaya. You must never become the same as them!”

That’s right. That’s why she could never become “below”.

(I’m the one who deserves to be the wife of the Kudou family!)

Kaya ran out of her room and rushed to her father’s study.

Her parents were very soft on her. If she begged him to replace her fiancé now, he would listen to her.

But Kaya’s expectations were quickly betrayed.

“No. You should go and obediently do some training in homemaking or something.”

“Why?!”

Her father frowned, showing an unpleasant expression on his face. Kaya couldn’t comprehend what her father was saying, and she grew increasingly annoyed.

“There’s nothing to be done about it. Forget about Miyo.”

“I’m not listening to that! Father, aren’t I the one who is more worthy of being the wife of the Kudou family?”

“……Kaya. If you have too much time on your hands, why don’t you go and see Kouji.”

“Father!”

After that, her father didn’t listen to anything she said.

It could be said that this was almost the first time he’d done this. Whenever Kaya was selfish, he would always be reluctant at first but end up giving in. And yet.

“Kaya?”

When Kaya left her father’s study, she was greeted in the corridor by Kouji, who seemed to have just come for a visit.

“Kouji.”

For a moment, she hesitated. Her fiancé was basically on her half-sister’s side. If she said she couldn’t stomach the idea of her half-sister becoming happy and wanted to do something about it, he was bound to absolutely oppose it.

Thinking about it that far, she realised that if it was possible to replace her fiancé, wouldn’t Kouji, who liked Miyo, also gain some benefits?

“Hey, Kouji──”

Don’t you want to get engaged to my older sister?

As if he didn’t understand Kaya’s question, Kouji knit his brows and asked back “What?”.

“That is, if you married my older sister, you’d be really happy, right?”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

“It’s obvious I’m more suitable to be Kudou’s wife than my sister is, so why don’t we switch positions? It’s definitely better this way. You’ll work with me, right?”

“Can you stop saying ridiculous things?”

Kouji said in a strict tone, and in the next moment, resignation appeared in his eyes.

Kaya was impatient about the matter.

“Why? You like my older sister more than me, don’t you?”

“That’s not the point! Did father-in-law give you permission?”

“…………”

“If the family head doesn’t permit it then it’s not going to happen.”

“……tch, Kouji, even you are being cold-hearted to me like that, huh!”

Getting cold response from even her fiancé, following one from her father, made Kaya feel despair and sadness all at once.  

(But, that’s right. If I asked Uncle Tatsuishi.)

He had always listened properly to what Kaya said, and he even told her about her half-sister. He would definitely cooperate with her. Kaya’s heart felt a little lighter.

It was impossible there would be no one on her side. As long as Kaya was superior. Of course, no one would want Miyo more than her.

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