Chapter 74. Are You Serious?
Under Xander's mediation, Seele and Bronya finally stopped arguing.
Watching the two of them make up and sit close together, whispering, Xander finally let out a breath.
Come to think of it, this seemed to be the first time he had ever seen Seele and Bronya at odds.
Usually, even if their opinions differed, they would smile and understand each other.
Who would have thought that even the ever-gentle Seele would get stubborn today.
"Are we really going to make the game and anime according to this plot?"
Kaguya was brewing tea in the kitchen.
As soon as Xander sat on the sofa opposite, Bronya asked.
"Otherwise?"
"But… isn't this kind of story a bit…"
Seele also looked at her brother and spoke timidly.
The beginning was fine.
Everyone adjusted to each other and worked hard together, full of youthful feeling.
But why did the tone later become so, so strange?
Rubbing her still-aching stomach, Seele's face turned sour.
Xander was being mean.
In the script he gave them, he had drawn the scene at the end where Touma is sent off at the airport and Haruki and Touma kiss, and he used the anime's framing.
Through the gap between the two kissing with tears in their eyes, you could see Setsuna lowering her head in silence.
Whoever came up with that composition was truly something else.
You did not even need the plot.
Just that one picture was enough to make your stomach hurt.
"All the conflicts serve the brilliance of the story.
Seele, Bronya, just say it—judging only the story, how is this game?"
"..."
Seele bit her lip and fell silent.
Would this story be bad?
Otherwise, would she have argued like that with her most-beloved Bronya?
Although part of it was because she saw shadows of herself, her brother, and her sister in those three characters, it did not stop her from finding the story very compelling.
Ever since the love triangle began to surface, her heart had been clenched the whole time.
"This is indeed a very excellent work."
Bronya sighed.
Looking at Xander, her expression was complicated.
They all lived together—how did he come up with a plot like this?
There was no way he referenced her and Seele, right?
That would be way too weird.
"Then there's no problem.
Aside from the CGs, a galgame is music and story, right?"
Just then, Kaguya returned with the tea, placing a steaming cup of black tea on the table in front of each of them.
"Speaking of music."
Waving Kaguya over and watching his adorable fiancée obediently walk to him, Xander smiled.
"Can you help bring over the Bluetooth speaker by the TV?"
Kaguya nodded and went to get the little speaker.
"Is the music already done?"
"That fast?"
Bronya and Seele on the sofa both voiced their doubts, but Xander waved his hand.
"How could it be that fast?
It's just the first draft of a theme song.
Since we're all here, let's listen."
As soon as he finished, Kaguya brought the small speaker over.
After placing it on the table, she was gently pulled down by Xander to sit beside him, leaning into him.
He stroked her head as a reward.
Kaguya narrowed her eyes happily and nuzzled into his palm.
Then Xander took out his phone, connected to the speaker, and opened the preview file the production company had sent.
"As for the theme song, does this one have a name?"
With bright, eager eyes, Kaguya tugged on Xander's arm and asked curiously.
"It does."
Sweeping his gaze over three pairs of curious eyes, Xander suddenly smiled.
"'Unreachable Love.'
That's the song's name."
"..."
All right, all right.
Even the song title was twisting the knife now.
Seeing their faces turn a little off as the lyrics brought the story back to mind, Xander grinned again.
It looked like the production company had done a good job.
But this was just the beginning.
The high-school arc was merely an appetizer for the whole game.
The adult-life arc was the real stomachache, making players agonize over every single choice.
Although the university arc basically had no Kazusa plot, when Youko Touma returned to the Far East to hold a concert, Kazusa Touma did come back briefly.
The game clearly offered an option to go find Touma, yet it was an option that could never be selected.
That was the greatest malice from the designers, the kind that made you grit your teeth.
After one listen, Xander wanted to play it again, but the three of them stopped him.
Helpless, he gave up.
"I'll try to finish the rest of the script as soon as possible.
How's your system optimization going?"
He took a sip of hot tea and, while enjoying Kaguya's gentle kneading, asked casually.
"Haven't really started."
Bronya shook her head, looking a bit troubled.
"The functions of your system are already quite good, so we're currently collecting suggestions from players online."
Better not to 'optimize' it into something harder to use.
"Okay, no rush on that.
I haven't drawn many of the game CGs with Eromanga-sensei yet.
Take it slow."
"Mm.
I will do my best," Kaguya said.
There was still some time before bed, so the family started their usual teatime chatter.
"Right."
Seele's sudden voice drew everyone's attention.
"What is it?"
"Mama Cocolia said she wants us to go back to the orphanage for the New Year this time.
She said everyone misses us."
"That's fine.
We were planning to go back after New Year's Day anyway, right?"
Hearing this, a hint of apology appeared on Seele's face.
"Um… Mama Cocolia asked if we could go a bit sooner and stay home a few more days, so…"
She glanced at her brother and said worriedly, "We might have to fly again."
"..."
...
As usual, he washed up last.
After drying off, Xander walked out of the bathroom in simple pajamas.
The underfloor heating kept the cold outside from seeping in.
Humming "Unreachable Love," Xander pushed open the bedroom door.
Time to hold Seele to sleep.
So he thought, but the sight in the room made him freeze.
On the spacious bed, Seele and Bronya lay embraced together. Their thin sleepwear did little to conceal their well-proportioned figures—pale, full thighs intertwined, peaks pressed and overlapping.
Seele's face was flushed so deeply it seemed capable of dripping tenderness. Nestled against Bronya's shoulder, her gaze toward her brother was glistening with moisture. Bronya, as if she had been waiting for him for a long time, bit her lip lightly the moment he entered, her eyes exuding charm. One hand lightly tugged at the hem of her clothes, while the other stretched out, crooking a finger beckoning him closer.
"You haven't forgotten what you said tonight, have you?"
...
Elsewhere, Kaguya stared at the room that had only her in it and fell silent.
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