Rice Shower did not exactly like Shirayuki.
That was not Shirayuki's fault.
It was Rice Shower's.
Back when Shirayuki had first appeared as Trainer's little sister, something had lodged itself in Rice Shower's chest. Even after the two of them later said they were not siblings, that little knot never completely went away.
Sometimes, when Rice Shower saw Shirayuki running over to Onii-sama's side, she would feel very, very unhappy. She had even secretly gotten angry at Shirayuki before.
Why secretly?
Because when Rice Shower got angry, she was like a ferocious marshmallow.
An enraged fluffball.
A chaotic cream puff.
There was absolutely no intimidation factor whatsoever. Rather than looking mad, she looked like she was being adorable on purpose.
So whenever Shirayuki watched Rice Shower throw a little tantrum, she would end up looking completely enchanted instead, not realizing Rice Shower was trying to express dissatisfaction at all. That only made Rice Shower stomp her tiny feet, puff out her soft pink cheeks, and march away in a huff.
Even so, there had never been any serious distance between them.
There were plenty of people around Chiya. One Shirayuki alone seemed insignificant. And more importantly, Shirayuki had always been gentle with Rice Shower, so Rice Shower could never stay mad at her.
She did not especially like Shirayuki.
But that did not mean she hated her.
To Rice Shower, Shirayuki was more or less the same as the other students. She would cheer for Shirayuki during races, and she would celebrate with her after a victory.
Aside from that, Rice Shower would not go out of her way to seek Shirayuki out or deliberately close the distance between them.
The two of them had always maintained the relationship of teammates.
Not close.
Not distant.
Somewhere in the middle.
When Onii-sama asked her to get closer to Shirayuki, Rice Shower could understand it as him wanting her to be friendly with someone important to him. Perhaps he had noticed that Rice Shower remained lukewarm toward Shirayuki and wanted to deepen their relationship.
Rice Shower could accept that.
As long as it was Onii-sama's wish, she would do it.
Whether that meant making Shirayuki a bento, or going out with Shirayuki.
But everything she did was not because of her own feelings.
It was entirely because of Fujiwara Chiya.
Whether she liked it or hated it, if Onii-sama wanted it, Rice Shower would do it.
Today was the same.
When Shirayuki said she wanted to hold hands, Rice Shower hesitated for a moment, then took her hand.
It was the first time she had ever held hands with Shirayuki.
Unlike Onii-sama's hand, Shirayuki's was soft. Smooth and tender to the touch.
Rice Shower did not hate it.
But she still liked her Onii-sama better.
When Onii-sama held her hand, he would slide his thumb into her palm and let Rice Shower wrap her fingers around it. His big hand would cover her small one, and that gave Rice Shower a wonderful sense of security.
No one else could give her that feeling.
Just as Rice Shower was thinking that, she felt a small, delicate finger slip into her palm.
Rice Shower froze.
Then she realized it was Shirayuki's thumb.
The way she held hands was exactly the same as Onii-sama's.
Strange…
Does Shirayuki-san also like holding hands like this?
Rice Shower had never known Shirayuki was the same as Chiya in this way too. Slowly, she wrapped her fingers around Shirayuki's thumb. Shirayuki's soft palm covered hers. It was not as large as Chiya's hand, but that gentle warmth still brushed against Rice Shower's nerves.
There was one thing Rice Shower did not want to admit.
But she had no choice but to admit it.
As a girl, Shirayuki was more charming than she was.
Once, Rice Shower had counted out her advantages and disadvantages compared to Shirayuki.
In terms of beauty, Shirayuki was better.
In terms of cuteness, Rice Shower was better.
In household skills, Shirayuki was slightly better.
In cooking, Shirayuki was better.
In personality, Shirayuki was gentler and better at conversation, unlike Rice Shower, who struggled to speak properly in front of strangers.
As for their figures, Shirayuki was indeed more developed than her, and her proportions were better too. But considering how Onii-sama had treated Rice Shower in the past, Rice Shower did not think that counted as some unbeatable advantage. Her own body could make Onii-sama react too.
After calculating everything inside and out, Rice Shower reached one conclusion.
Shirayuki was better than her.
Rice Shower felt that she had already lost.
She could not compare to Shirayuki.
That was why Rice Shower chose another path.
If she could not surpass Shirayuki, then she would redirect Shirayuki's attention toward someone else.
She was not trying to make Onii-sama give up on Shirayuki.
She was trying to make Shirayuki give up on Onii-sama.
And the one she chose as the target of that redirection was Treve.
That was also why Rice Shower never took the initiative to seek Shirayuki out.
Whenever she stood beside Shirayuki, Rice Shower felt the inferiority of being unable to measure up to her.
After arriving at the park, Shirayuki bought Rice Shower a honey special drink. She noticed that Rice Shower did not seem particularly excited.
When Rice Shower went out with Chiya in the past, she would already be saying "Onii-sama" every other sentence and clinging to his side by now.
Seeing Rice Shower like this, Shirayuki could not help feeling a little lonely.
She did not want to become a stranger to Rice Shower just because she had changed bodies.
She still wanted to be affectionate with Rice Shower.
Of course, not in that way.
Honestly, even if she and Chiya had the same soul, their bodies were still different. She was still a girl. She could not force everyone to like her female body just because she was also Chiya.
If she put herself in the other person's shoes, and Rice Shower split into two people, one being a little sister and the other being a cute little boy, and both of them called out "Onii-sama" while asking to be affectionate with him, would Chiya be able to accept the little boy?
All right.
He probably could.
Still, Shirayuki felt there was no need to treat two different bodies exactly the same. Even if the soul was the same, gender was still right there. There was no reason to forcibly break through the wall of orientation.
And Shirayuki wanted to tell Rice Shower the truth not because she hoped Rice Shower would treat her the same way she treated Chiya.
She only wanted Rice Shower to be able to rely on her the same way she relied on Chiya.
She could not become Rice Shower's Onii-sama.
But she could become Rice Shower's Onee-sama.
Wait.
Technically, Rice Shower was older than this body of hers…
Forget it. None of that mattered.
In any case, Shirayuki wanted to take one more step closer to Rice Shower. It did not have to reach the level she had with Chiya. As long as Rice Shower could trust her and show her a happy smile, that would be enough.
"Thank you, Shirayuki-san. Um… the money…"
"There's something I want to tell you, Rice Shower."
Shirayuki refused the change Rice Shower offered her. Under Rice Shower's puzzled gaze, Shirayuki led her to a bench in the park.
"Actually, I should have told you a long time ago. But back then, I was panicking. I treated it like some secret that could never be revealed. Later, I finally understood that no matter which me it was, everyone could accept it. They didn't think I was a monster because I had two bodies. They didn't distance themselves from me, and they didn't spread it around."
"Everyone is kind. I'm truly grateful they were able to accept me. And I want to apologize to you too, Rice Shower. I should have told you about this long ago, but I kept dragging it out until now."
"Shirayuki-san, what are you talking about?"
Rice Shower blinked blankly.
Two bodies?
A monster?
Rice Shower could not understand any of it.
"Everything I'm about to say is true. If you don't believe me, you can ask the others to confirm it."
Shirayuki held Rice Shower's hand, staring at her with those big blue eyes.
Then she said,
"I'm Chiya."