The Daily Life of the Cat-Like Sister and Her Foolish Elder Brother - Chapter 1: Victory Goes to the Victor. The World of Competition Is Ruthless!

That day, when I returned home after a meeting with my editor, I found my little sister playing a game while making strange noises.

It was a classic racing game by a well-known game manufacturer based in Kyoto, Japan.

(T/N: Referencing Mario Kart)

Yes, that one.

It was definitely fun, and now that it was online, I could understand why people got excited about it.

But still…

Despite having a beautiful appearance… It was all ruined by various things.

Maybe she just woke up, but her hair was a mess, and she was wearing a tracksuit.

Huh?

“Hey, what happened to your lecture?”

“Hmm? I skipped it. I skipped class this afternoon.”

“Hey… you’re a college student. Didn’t you say the same thing last week?”

“Did I? It’s fine, it’s fine. They don’t take attendance anyway. I’ll make sure to get the notes. Didn’t I show you my grades from last semester? I’m excellent.”

“Hmm…”

For now, I’ll just put my bag down— What’s with that look?

Don’t just silently hand me the controller.

It was about time to start making dinner… Well, I’ll take it anyway.

I sat on the sofa and started the game.

…And of course, my sister sat next to me as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Hey, don’t cling to me like that.

Speaking of which…

“Hey, when did you start playing this?”

“After I had a snack! Hey, stop it! Enough already!”

“You’re going overboard. Here, go ahead.”

“Ah! W-Wait, you’re not leaving your cute little sister behind, are you?”

“In the world of competition, there’s no need for mercy… I learned that from the 99-hour endurance match we did every year from New Year’s Eve to New Year’s Day for 99 years.”

Even thinking about it made me want to cry—When I came back from the toilet, I should have been in Hokkaido, but for some reason, I was in Kagoshima. Or maybe even in Hawaii…

…The culprit at that time was…

“Come to think of it, it was mostly you… Yeah, I can’t hold back after all. I’ll give you a head start… Now’s the time to settle the score!”

“W-Wait a minute! Why are you so fast!? This is a story from years ago—why are you so fast now!? You haven’t been playing games at all lately! You never do!!”

“Hahaha, your skill level is just as it was back then. I think we played the first generation together thousands—no, tens of thousands of times at my parents’ house.”

“How outdated! Way too outdated!! …Wait, is it still working?”

It worked. Still active. The red shell wouldn’t work on my little sister.

Well, if the basic principles were the same, there was nothing I couldn’t do.

The gameplay hadn’t changed that much, and I’ve played it a few times.

But… it wasn’t that good, huh, this thing.

Normally, after a few hours, it would become a bit more decent.

“Hey, wait! Come on, stop! Just three seconds, five seconds—fine, how about ten seconds for the win!”

“Who’s going to stop? Besides, normally you say that the other way around!”

“Then—how about this!”

“Oh no!”

Suddenly, my sister jumped onto my lap.

It was hard to see the screen.

“Hehe, how’s that? Trying to play the game properly while being pressed against my body—how are you even managing that? It’s so hot and stuffy.”

“Don’t suddenly turn around! I can’t see the screen—hey.”

“What’s up?”

“…You smell a bit sweaty.”

“Hmph!”

“Ow! Violence is against the rules!”

“Speaking rudely to a delicate maiden… I’ll give you a lecture later!”

It wasn’t like I could just ignore it.

After all, she really hit hard. It was quite troublesome whenever she got angry.

Well… for now, I should just win quickly.

“Hey, hey.”

“What?”

“…Am I really that sweaty?”

“Hmm? Well, it’s not that big of a deal—”

“Bath.”

“Huh?”

“I’m taking a bath! Right now! …Want to join me?”

“What are you saying—”

“Opening!”

For a moment, I was thrown off guard, and the item my sister used hit its mark.

I was taken out while in a state of confusion.

“Oh? What’s wrong? Could it be that you were actually hoping to take a bath with me?”

“Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be. Fine… Even if you ask me to join you later, I won’t.”

“What…?”

“Carelessness invites disaster.”

“Ugh! That’s… unfair! Cheater, monster, pervert!”

“I don’t care. The howling of a loser is unbearable.”

“Ugh… Fine… In that case, I’ll do this.”

Suddenly, she descended from my lap and moved behind me.

What?

Out of nowhere, she embraced me from behind, pressing her face against my shoulder.

Huh!?

“Oh my, are you feeling flustered? Are you happy to be hugged by me?” 

“No, it’s just… you’re warm.”

“Hmm… for someone saying that, here’s what you get!”

What!?

Suddenly, something soft was pressed against my head―how was I supposed to concentrate like this!

My psychological state was clearly affecting me, causing me to make mistakes in areas where I’d normally excel.

Meanwhile, my sister was closing in――this was bad. If I lost like this, she’d become insufferable.

After all, she still constantly brought up that incident from elementary school (I think it was Othello, the first time I lost) as if it happened yesterday.

…I guess I had no choice.

“Hey… Yayoi.”

“What? Don’t start complaining now—”

“―I love you.”

“!?”

The effect was immense! She was clearly shaken.

…I wouldn’t deny it was a double-edged sword, however. It’d probably eat away at my mind every time I remembered it for a while.

But for now, winning was what mattered the most.

After that, let come what may. I’d leave tomorrow’s worries to tomorrow’s me, yeah.

―Huh?

Yayoi seemed strange. Her face turned bright red, and after a moment of silence, the strength of the arms embracing me increased. Then, her words attacked my earlobes.

“―I… love you too.”

“!?”

The impact was profound!

My heartbeat was racing so fast I could feel it.

And then, she added another blow.

“―Let’s take a bath together later, okay?”

Gulp.

I couldn’t help but groan in defeat.

In that moment of vulnerability, I was taken down, defeated.

D-Dammit… What a disgraceful blunder…

I cautiously turned around, only to see my sister, with her bright red face, gloating in victory.

“Y-You dirty cheater! That’s unfair!!”

“D-Don’t lecture me, Tsukasa! W-What’s… with you!!? You’re the one who said you shouldn’t sell yourself short, right? Who was it that lectured me about that back in middle school!!”

“Gulp… W-Well, whatever. Come on, let go. It’s about time to prepare dinner—”

“Nope.”

“Seriously, come on…”

“Losers must obey winners. Might makes right. The world of competition is merciless!”

She said all that while still hugging me.

…Honestly, my little tyrant was always like this. Well, that was part of what made her so cute.

“Fine, fine, I get it. But don’t make unreasonable demands. Stick to what’s possible.”

“I can do it—uh, well…”

“What is it? Just say it already.”

For some reason, she was stuttering even at this point.

And then, as if she had made up her mind, she blurted out:

“――Let’s take a bath together later?”

As for what happened next, I’ll leave that to your imagination――this was just an ordinary story of me, Tsukasa Nishiki, and my little sister, Yayoi Nishiki.

Oh… just to clarify――even though we’re siblings, we’re not blood-related, so please keep that in mind.

(T/N: Just like before, I’ll just be posting this to get it out there before I actually start posting. It’ll prolly will be a while before I begin.)