Extra chapter for reaching 500 Power Stones.
...
The front door closed with a soft click, and the sound of a car engine faded into the quiet night.
Haruya stood by the window for a moment, watching his aunt and her niece leave in a sleek black car.
A small smile appeared on his lips.
The afternoon had been an unexpected surprise, a genuine, easy kind of fun he hadn't had in a long time. It was the kind of day that reminded him why he loved staying home sometimes.
Haruya walked back to the big sofa and sank into the cushions, pulling out his phone. He scrolled through his contacts and found the new name, saved just minutes ago: "Ai Hayasaka."
He hadn't expected to get her number, but it felt right. He had a feeling their friendship was just beginning. Haruya just smiled a little, his thoughts lingering on her laugh and the way her eyes lit up when she tasted his cream puffs. It was a good feeling, the warmth of a new friendship.
The quiet of the house settled around him once more, but this time, it felt different. It wasn't the lonely quiet he sometimes experienced. It was a comfortable, peaceful quiet, full of the memory of laughter and the promise of future fun.
Haruya leaned back, his mind replaying the afternoon, when a sudden sound broke the silence.
He heard the crunch of several tires on the gravel driveway outside.
It was too loud for his mom's car.
Sitting up, a bit curious, when suddenly, the front door swung open.
It wasn't just his mom. Akari Sumeragi walked in with a few people behind her.
The first was a tall, well-built man with sleek, dark hair that swept upwards in a sharp, refined style. His dark eyes were intelligent, and his thick, defined eyebrows gave him a serious look.
Beside him was an elderly man, but he carried himself with an almost regal air.
He had long, spiky gray hair with a thick mustache and a neat beard that flowed into a point.
A long, thin scar ran diagonally from the middle of his forehead, passing over his right eye and ending just above his cheekbone. He wore an olive-colored yukata with a matching haori over it, and his feet were in traditional geta sandals.
His whole look was so old-school Japanese that Haruya had to do a double-take.
Then there were two girls behind them.
The first was a stunningly beautiful, pale-skinned foreigner with long silver hair that stretched all the way to her lower back. It was styled with long bangs that split on both sides, framing her face, and a medium-length braid ran down the back, with the rest of her hair flowing freely.
Her eyes were a striking red, and she had small, perfect pink lips. She looked like something out of a fairy tale, or maybe one of those fantasy anime he watched.
There was an elegance to her, a kind of ethereal beauty that made her look like she wasn't even real.
The second girl was a lot younger, probably the same age as Haruya. She had a lot of the same features as the older woman.
The same pale skin, the same silver hair and red eyes, but her hair was short, styled in a sleek bob with a longer strand on the left side that reached the bottom of her chin. She was also dressed in a cute but elegant white dress.
She looked like a mini version of the woman beside her, but with a vibrant, energetic aura.
Akari noticed him on the couch, and her face lit up. "Oh, Haruya!" she called out, her voice cheerful.
She walked over to him and, without a second thought, she grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the sofa and over to stand in front of her guests.
The silver-haired woman came up and patted his head, her red eyes sparkling with warmth. "Oh my, is this Haruya? You've grown so much since we last saw you!" she said, although her Japanese was a bit rough, her voice sounded like a gentle, melodic sound.
The elderly man with the scar came closer too, a gruff but kind smile on his face. "Indeed! You were still this small back then!" He put his hand over Haruya's waist, showing him his apparent height when they had supposedly met.
Haruya blinked, completely confused. He had no memory of meeting any of these people.
Who were these people, and why did they know him so well? He couldn't shake the feeling that he was an actor who had forgotten his lines.
He looked at his mom, his face a mixture of bewilderment and question marks. "???"
Akari just laughed, a soft, knowing sound. "You were still too young to remember back then, sweetie, but in the past, we used to visit their home, and you would play with their family's children. Look, there she is right now," she said, pointing towards the silver-haired girl around his age.
"Alice, come closer and meet Haruya," the older woman called out, her voice gentle.
The little girl came closer, a friendly smile on her face. "Hello, Haruya! It's me, Alice!"
Haruya tried to place her. A little bit of her face, her eyes, her smile… it all seemed to ring a distant bell, but the rest was just a blank.
He felt a little embarrassed that he couldn't remember. "Hello..." he said, his voice trailing off.
Hearing his confusion, the little girl, Alice, pouted and started to beat him lightly in the chest in that classic "poka-poka" style, her hands making a soft thumping sound against his shirt. "Mouu~ You've already forgotten me!" she whined, her face scrunched up in an adorable way.
Haruya just stood there, letting himself get hit. "Ah, ah, ah," he said, and dived deeper into his memories, trying to pull out a single, solid piece of information.
-1 HP, -1 HP, -1 HP
Akari laughed, seeing their interactions. She put a hand on both of their heads and patted them softly. "It has been a pretty long time since you two last met. I wouldn't blame him."
And then, with a flourish, she finally introduced the guests.
"Haruya, this is your godmother, Leonora Nakiri." She pointed towards the beautiful silver-haired woman, who gave him a warm smile.
"This is her husband, your godfather, Soe Nakiri," she said, gesturing to the man with the slick hair, who gave a quick, polite nod. "And that old geezer beside him is his father, Senzaemon Nakiri."
A red tick mark suddenly appeared on top of Senzaemon's forehead, but he just grunted and said nothing in the end, as if he was used to Akari's playful insults.
The stern look on his face softened a little, and he even managed a slight chuckle.
"And this little girl," Akari said, pulling Alice closer to him. "Is one of your childhood friends in the Nakiri household, the daughter of your godparents, Alice Nakiri."
Haruya's eyes shone as he seemingly finally remembered. "Ah... Alice Nakiri!" he exclaimed, a smile spreading across his face.
Alice's eyes similarly shone as she put her hands together and looked at Haruya with a pleased expression. "Haruya... do you finally remember?!" she asked, her voice full of hope.
Haruya's expression dropped. He scratched his head, a sheepish look on his face. "...Nope."
Alice gasped. She suddenly grabbed Haruya's shirt on both sides as she started pulling him back and forth. "Haruya, you baka!!" she yelled, shaking him playfully.
Haruya just let himself be "abused" by the girl once again. "Ah, ah, ah," he said.
-1 HP, -1 HP, -1 HP
The little slaps and tugs felt like a funny sort of punishment.
It was a weird feeling, being so comfortable with someone he didn't even remember. It was like his body and brain were on two different pages.
His body was acting on muscle memory, while his brain was just processing a huge information dump.
Seeing the two kids' funny interaction, the rest of the adults started to laugh out loud.
The tension of the formal introductions was gone, replaced by a light, easy feeling that reminded Haruya of his own family's gatherings.
It was clear that these weren't just business acquaintances; they were friends, and they had a history that went a lot further back than he could remember.
...
A/N: Say hello to the Nakiri Family. I dropped a very early hint of them at the beginning of the story, and now they are finally here. The chosen harem for this series is Alice and Erina. There will be an extra one, but I haven't decided who yet. I do have my eyes on Rindo Kobayashi, though, but I'll leave this one to a community vote. Pick your poison, lads. Also, woke up to us reaching over 500 power stones, which I didn't expect at all. Thank you all.
...
POWER STONE GOAL - 1 EXTRA CHAPTER WHEN REACHED:
50 POWER STONES (✔)
100 POWER STONES (✔)
150 POWER STONES (✔)
200 POWER STONES (✔)
250 POWER STONES (✔)
300 POWER STONES (✔)
350 POWER STONES (✔)
400 POWER STONES (✔)
450 POWER STONES (✔)
500 POWER STONES (✔)