Reincarnated as the Sidekick in a Harem Game ～Chaos Unfolded When I Helped the Losing Heroines After the Protagonist Found His Happy Ending～ - Chapter 3: Younger Stepsister Heroine, “Mai Shibuya”

Chapter 3: Younger Stepsister Heroine, “Mai Shibuya”

On the first day of the new semester, as I left my house, my stepsister, Mai Shibuya, stood before me. She said she came to see me and immediately prostrated herself.

A few moments later, I decided to let her into my room. It was fortunate that it was early in the morning. I was truly relieved that nobody had seen her bowing down to me.

In my room, sitting formally on the floor was a beautiful young girl with silver hair. She was petite, with an appearance that suggested delicate beauty. Her silky hair was held back by a hairpin, and her straight, extended spine was exquisite.

This was my younger stepsister, Mai Shibuya.

“What brings you here, Mai? What do you need at my house?”

At that, Mai widened her eyes in surprise. Had I done something to shock her? Wait, I can think of one thing.

“Um, Onii-sama… the way you’re speaking… it’s different from before.”

“Is it?”

“Yes, before you were like…”

Now, let’s talk about “Compulsion*” (abruptly). Astute readers might have been surprised by the line I spoke earlier to my childhood friend, Najimi. I was surprised too (?).

That act was against my will. In this world, there’s a special law. It’s called “Compulsion”. One might describe it as a force that makes a character act in a manner befitting their character.

To put it simply, every word I use gets converted into ”Charao Shibuya Style”. For instance, “Good Morning” turns into “Hey there★,” and “Mai” turns into “My Pretty Little Sister Mai.” Hey, Mai is being duplicated here. It feels like a headache.

Charao had a slight negative modifier applied to his intelligence value when it came to Mai. Simply put, he was a dumb character. For the character known as “Charao Shibuya” to be consistent, he had to speak, look, and act foolishly.

Therefore, whenever I spoke or wrote something, it would all be transformed into something that fit Charao’s character. To go even further, some mysterious force from outside was making even my appearance more like Charao’s. This was the “Compulsion”.

Essentially, the reason my stepsister was surprised is likely because I used to speak in a Charao-like manner, but now I was speaking normally.

Incidentally, after the main story ended, I felt that this compulsion had considerably weakened. The fact that I could speak as I wanted was good evidence of this. However, the written words still end up being Charao-fied…

“Was it really that strange?”

“No! You’re wonderful now! You were wonderful before as well, but now you’re really the best, Onii-sama!”

She praised me effusively. Thank you, my sister. And I’m sorry for confusing you. From now on, I’ll live life more seriously.

“Thaaanks, love ya Mai-chin! Mwah♡” (Translation: Thank you, sister.)

…Darn it, Charao’s showing up. If I let my guard down, Charao’s personality peeks out. Curse this compulsion.

“Is it true… you love me…♡? I also love you from the bottom of my heart, Onii-sama…♡”

…This isn’t good. The Charao language (abbreviated from Charao words) is complicating the situation. Let’s move on with the conversation.

“So, my little sister, what brings you to my house?”

“Ah, yes. I was wondering if you could allow me to be by your side, Onii-sama.”

“So you want to live together, is that it?”

“More like assisting you, actually. From your meals, housework, laundry, to taking care of all your needs.”

…That sounds more like a maid than a sister. For someone like me, born and raised as an ordinary citizen, it’s an overwhelming proposal. To be honest, I would feel incredibly guilty making my stepsister do all of that. I need to decline.

“Thaaaank you so much★, my little sister!”

I wish the Charao language wouldn’t suddenly pop out. It’s even harder to handle now that I can’t control it.

“So… it’s okay then!”

“No, well… that’s not it.”

“You don’t… want me to?”

Tears formed in the eyes of the silver-haired maiden, and she began to sob softly. I didn’t mean to make her cry.

“Do you… do you hate me after all, Onii-sama?”

“Aan? What do ya mean I’m angry-cyan?” (Translation: What do you mean, I’m angry?)

Ignoring my sudden lapse into Charao language, Mai continued.

“You are angry about how I was cold to you last year, aren’t you?”

Last year refers to the events that took place in the main storyline. During the game, in the world where I exist, Mai, who is one of the love interests, was distancing herself from me, her stepbrother.

This wasn’t unique to Mai. All the heroines were, without exception, enamored with the main character, Minato. On the other hand, their attitude towards Charao was quite indifferent. This is what Mai must mean when she says she was “cold.”

“I’m sorry, Onii-sama, I wasn’t myself last year.”

Tears filled my sister’s eyes as she prostrated herself again. I wish she would stop; it’s painful to see her lower her head so many times. Nevertheless, she continued speaking while keeping her head bowed.

“I forgot the great favor I received from you, the Onii-sama I love, and loved another man… I sincerely apologize.”

In the world where I exist, Mai’s character backstory involves a past where she was saved by Charao, her stepbrother. She used to be very weak and frail. Charao took care of Mai every day, encouraging her. However, one day, when told by a doctor that she had no chance of recovery, she despaired and attempted to jump off the roof of the hospital. It was Charao who saved her then. Shielding his sister, he broke his leg. Since that day, Mai has had undying loyalty to Charao… Such was her backstory.

“I was not myself last year. It was as if I was in a dream, like I wasn’t really me…”

“You weren’t yourself?”

“Yes, as if someone was correcting me to love that person…”

…This is just my personal opinion. It might be possible that the compulsive force that affected only me might have been applied to other characters as well. In other words, Mai could have been compelled to love Minato, the protagonist, against her true feelings…

This is purely speculative, and there’s no way to confirm its accuracy. However, the fact that I was being manipulated by this force, the odd behavior of Minato, and Mai’s words and actions—all of it seemed to be influenced by the same rule. This is something that needs careful investigation going forward.

“I don’t understand difficult things, but you mustn’t get down. Let’s have some COLA. FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!” (Translation: Don’t worry too much.)

I encouraged my sister—in Charao-language. It ruined the moment, really. Uncontrollable Charao-language is more troublesome than a random attacker…

“Onii-sama…”

“I don’t hate you. That has never changed, and it never will.”

That’s the truth. Whether there’s a compelling force or not, whether she hates me or not, I love all the characters that appear in OreNaji. I’ve never once felt discomfort.

“Ugu…sniff…waaah…Onii-sama…”

Mai clung to me and sobbed. She must have been bothered by her aloof behavior all this time. I feel sorry for not realizing it sooner.

“From now on, I’ll stay close to Mai-chin, so it’ll be fine-ya★” (Translation: Let’s get along well from now on. Cheer up.)

★

For the time being, the decision to live together was put on hold. Because of school, we couldn’t move the belongings, so they were temporarily left in place.

“Then, my little sister, shall we go to school?”

“Yes♡”

Mai clung to my right arm and smiled. That smile would make nine out of ten men turn their heads. The remaining one was probably not interested in women. No man could resist turning his head when such a cute sister was smiling.

We left the apartment and took the elevator down.

“My little sister, could you step away?”

“Is it difficult for you to walk?”

The elevator arrived.

“No, it’s just that if other heroines—girls see us like this, it might cause problems…”

Ding.

“Ah, Charao! Long time no see!”

“N-Najimi…”

Beyond the open door was my childhood friend, Najimi Ota.

When our eyes met, she displayed a smile as radiant as a full-blown rose. However, upon seeing my stepsister next to me, her arm entwined with mine, that radiant rose seemed to wither in an instant.

“…Why are you here?”

“…And what about you?”

OH… SHURABA.

TLN:
1. Forced Restriction is changed to Compulsion.