A Case in Which My House Is a Gathering Place for Girls - Chapter 24: I’m the Landlord!?

“Why are Kanna and Asakura here!? What about work!? What happened to the club activities!?”

“It feels like there’s a tense atmosphere drifting this way. That definitely seems like a battlefield.”

“Is this really the time to stay calm!? Sasazuki, get out of here right now! Hurry up before they notice you!”

Even though she’s invisible, there’s still a chance she might be noticed. If it somehow gets out that I came home with Sasazuki… Kanna might be okay, but Asakura—there’s no doubt it would cause a lot of trouble. If I could, I’d turn around and leave, but…

“Ah, Jinpei-kun!”

“Are you with Sasazuki Mika? Why are you with Itsuki?”

They immediately noticed my flustered state. Kanna leaned over the wall and waved at us. Her expression quickly changed from a smile to a more serious one. By the way, Asakura was standing next to her as she shrugged with a wry smile. As I pondered what to do, my phone in my chest pocket buzzed.

“H-hello…”

“How long are you going to just stand there, Jinpei-kun? Why don’t you come over here?”

“T-that’s…”

Her tone was calm, but I could not read any of the emotions contained in her. It’s unsettling, and I can feel a cold sweat running down my spine.

“Or is there a reason why you can’t come here? Like, for example… because you’re with Sasazuki-san holding a shopping bag?”

Scary, scary, scary! Where did she make such a chilling voice? No, more importantly, the fact that Sasazuki’s presence is known is the real issue. I didn’t sign up to be a professional flag builder.

“I think it’s probably because the two of them were upset. Or Hanazono Kanna’s wild intuition. Asakura Nao probably noticed it, but I think that was just her intuition as well.”

Sasazuki murmured while resting her hand on her chin. I’m grateful for her detective mode, but right now I wish she’d suggest a solution instead of continuing to theorize. If this goes on, a tragic blood rain might fall during what was supposed to be a peaceful dinner.

“Let’s give up and surrender, Itsuki. Don’t worry, I’ll try my best to defend you so that you can avoid prison time.”

“Is the verdict already guilty at this point!?”

“Hehe. Now, Jinpei-kun. Hurry up and come here. You’ll tell me a lot of stories about Asakura-san, right?”

“…Yes, I understand.”

I was overcome by the pressure from my childhood friend as I weakly responded and hung up the phone. I guess this is the skill she picked up from being a president.

While I slumped in defeat, Sasazuki placed her hand on my shoulder and said, “Let’s go,” in the tone of a seasoned detective consoling a criminal ready to surrender. She looks as if it’s not her problem, but I hope she doesn’t forget that she’s also on the receiving end of Kanna’s questioning.

“Just think of it as riding a big ship. I’ll firmly say, ‘Okay, that’s settled,’ and resolve it for you.”

“…I feel nothing but anxiety.”

I don’t know where she’s getting all that confidence from, but as Sasazuki puffed out her chest, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy. Still, we headed toward the fourth floor where Kanna and Asakura were waiting. Why should I feel so tense just going home?

“Welcome back, Jinpei-kun, and good evening, Sasazuki-san. It’s a strange coincidence to meet you here.”

“H-hello, I’m….”

Sasazuki’s earlier confidence seemed to vanish in an instant when she was faced with Kanna’s smile. She weakly returned the greeting and hid behind me as if trying to escape from a predator.

“Hey, Itsuki. It’s been a while.”

Asakura spoke casually to me with an archaic smile on her face. Being here is the strangest and most eerie thing, so I shrugged my shoulders and asked.

“Well, that’s not it. Why is Asakura here?”

I think it’s a little early for club activities to end. If she had taken a rest in consideration of the condition of her legs, she would not have skipped it.

“Of course, it’s because I asked Misuta-sensei for your address. She’s also a track and field coach, so I told her ‘I would like to persuade Itsuki Jinpei to become my exclusive manager, so please let me know his address’ and she told me briefly.”

“What’s going on with the privacy at that school?”

The privacy there is practically non-existent. Well, that might be a bit of an exaggeration but compared to rural schools, Amahashiritsu Academy is located in a big city. Even though we’re classmates, it’s not okay to easily hand out personal information like that.

“I wouldn’t have been here then if Itsuki had shook his head honestly.”

“It’s strange that you came to this place on the same day I rejected you.”

“Haha. You seem to be having such a fun conversation, Jinpei-kun and Asakura-san.”

Kanna smoothly intervened as I was getting fed up with the conversation with Asakura. If it were any other time, this would be a welcome lifeline, but unfortunately, we’re in the middle of an emergency. Kanna’s smiling face hides the lack of warmth in her eyes, and I have to figure out how to deal with my childhood friend.

“I have heard of it, Jinpei-kun. To think that the world’s top sports trainers are all vying for the position of Asakura-san’s exclusive manager, and she personally approached you. This is truly unparalleled, isn’t it?”

“…Umm, Kanna-san?”

The girl speaking with a smile on her lips could easily be mistaken for Kanna’s doppelganger, someone entirely different. The feeling is terrifying.

“I heard a little from Sasazuki-san, too. She said you can sense her presence thanks to the abilities you honed in the mountains? Hehe, you really are amazing, Jinpei-kun. As expected of my prideful childhood friend.”

I can’t believe the day will come when I feel more scared of Kanna than the bear I encountered while wandering alone in the mountains after being separated from my grandfather. If I am against a bear, I can shake it off with a full dash, but even if I run away from here, there is no other place to come back. It’s just the end.

“Well, Jinpei-kun. Can you hand over the key here?”

“…Yes.”

I no longer have the power to resist the impossible pressure, so I take the key of the house out of my bag and hand it to Kanna as I am told.

“Thank you. Now, I’m sorry, Jinpei-kun, but you’ll need to wait outside for a little while.”

“What are you planning to do?”

“Don’t worry. I won’t do anything strange. The three of us will talk a little bit.”

Kanna’s words made Asakura’s eyes gleam with a sharp light, and Sasazuki trembled slightly and grabbed my sleeve tightly.

“Asakura-san and Sasazuki-san. Please come this way. Let’s talk about the future over a cup of tea.”

“I-I see… Alight, let’s have a thorough discussion of what we’re going to do.”

“I-I understand. If that’s the case, I’ll join too.”

I have no idea what my childhood friend was thinking, but apparently, they understood what Kanna was trying to do.

“Hehe. As expected, you’re quick to understand. This helps a lot.”

As she spoke, Kanna unlocked the door as if it were her own house and entered with Asakura and Sasazuki. The final sound that echoed was the door locking shut with a click.

“They completely locked it out. This kind of treatment is too much even though it’s my place…”

I sighed and muttered to myself while dented in front of the door.

“Will I catch a cold first, or will the door open first? This is the start of a race to see which happens.”

The sky turned crimson as I gazed at the sunset and I silently prayed for the girls’ meeting to end soon.