The Villainous Uncle in the Adult Game Gets Unusually High Praise from the Heroines - Chapter 25

[By the way, Tendo-san. Are you free this afternoon?]

[I guess I am.]

[Then, would it be alright if I came over today?]

[Huh?]

…That exchange happened over email, and then came the afternoon.

“Hello.”

“Oh, hey.”

Today, Yozuki Kongo appeared with an almost expressionless face. We had exchanged emails a few times since last time, but this was only the second time she visited my house. It was quite a sudden visit for that. Did something happen?

“So, what brings you here today?”

“Speaking of which, it’s pretty quiet today. Last time, there were the senpai here besides you, Tendo-san.”

“Ah, yeah. Both of them aren’t here today.”

Sakurako-chan was at cram school. As for Tomoe-chan, who knew? It was unusual for her not to come. Well, she was a high school student too, so it wasn’t surprising that she was busy. I hoped she was enjoying her high school life to the fullest.

“Wait, were you perhaps here to see those two?”

“No, it’s just that it would have been convenient if they were here.”

“?”

“Anyway, may I come inside?”

“Oh, sure.”

Being told this by Yozuki-chan, I hastily stepped aside to let her in. Even though it was her second time here, she marched into the house with familiarity, heading straight for the living room. 

I must say, she had some guts. Considering it was just an older guy at home, a little bit of caution would have been appreciated.

“Right.”

Sitting on the living room sofa, Yozuki-chan opened her bag and started fiddling with its contents. What was she doing? As I wondered, she pulled out a stack of printed papers and handed them to me with a “Here”.

“Hmm?”

“Um, this is a novel I wrote.”

“Ah, I see. So you want me to read it and give my thoughts?”

“That’s correct.”

I understood. At the same time, I thought maybe she should have sent me an email. That way, she wouldn’t have needed to come all the way over like this. Not that I minded; it was great to see Yozuki-chan in person.

“Alright, I’ll read it then. What will you do in the meantime, Yozuki-chan? Want some snacks?”

“No, thank you. I have my smartphone, so I’ll pass the time with that.”

“Got it. I’ll try to read it quickly.”

“No need to rush. Please read it thoroughly,” she said firmly. Pretty strict, but I liked it. I grabbed a round stool from the corner of the room, sat down, and started reading.

“Um, well, the sofa is spacious, and I don’t mind, so you can sit here if you like.”

“Is that so? Then I will.”

Indeed, the sofa was large enough for two people, with about 70 centimeters of space left even when we sat at opposite ends.

“Alright, I’ll read it.”

“…Sure.”

I started reading and found myself tilting my head in confusion just a few pages in. Yozuki-chan had mentioned writing something set in the modern world, yet this novel seemed purely fantasy.

The protagonist was oppressed by their parents and eventually snapped, leaving home to start a journey. Their goal was to find a blue bird that granted wishes, allowing them to achieve a happy everyday life. 

To do this, the protagonist overcame various hardships, crossing mountains and oceans. However, no matter how far they traveled, they couldn’t find the blue bird. Then it dawned on them—perhaps the blue bird was in their home all along. However, they stubbornly denied this thought.

After all, how could such a joyful creature exist in a place filled with bitter memories? The world was vast. Surely, there were places left unexplored. With this in mind, the protagonist continued their journey—

“…Hmm?”

And that was as far as the story went. This novel was incomplete. Wondering why, I looked at Yozuki-chan.

“This is—”

“Um, I haven’t decided on the ending yet.”

That was what Yozuki-chan said.

“So, does the protagonist find the blue bird or not? If they do, where was it? I’ve been thinking about various possibilities.”

“Hmm. The story of the blue bird I know ends with them finding it at home, right?”

“Let’s not consider that for now.”

“Then, wouldn’t it be better if they found it outside the home? The protagonist was oppressed by their parents, right? I can’t imagine a wish-granting blue bird being in such a place.”

“That’s true.”

“Hmm. The issue is, where was it? The world is vast, as they say, and it would probably be found at the end of the journey.”

“Well, there’s also the idea that the world was actually small.”

“Hmm?”

“…Ah, no. Please forget what I just said,” she said, slightly flustered. Then, she cleared her throat and looked at me intently, with an uncommon anxious expression.

“So, how was it?”

“You mean the quality of the content, right?”

“Yes. Was it interesting?”

“That is—”

I thought for a moment and decided to answer honestly.

“I can’t say yet. The ending can determine whether it’s a masterpiece or a flop.”

“That’s true.”

“But so far, I found the story interesting. You handled the pacing well, and the protagonist’s dialogue was quite witty and fun to read.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

She seemed to relax a little, her shoulders losing some tension. Despite her seemingly unchanging expression, Yozuki-chan was actually quite expressive.

“Um.”

Then, Yozuki-chan hesitantly continued.

“If possible, when this story is finished, could I come to you again for your thoughts?”

“That’s fine.”

Now that I thought about it, there was something I was curious about.

“Is this going to be published in a club magazine or something?”

“Ah, this…” Yozuki-chan said with a slightly embarrassed look.

“It’s a novel I wrote purely for fun.”

“For fun, huh.”

“Yes. It’s my first time doing something like this, but I really enjoyed it.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“Yes.”

She then returned to her usual expressionless self.

“Well then, Tendo-san.”

“Hmm?”

“I’ll be leaving now.”

“You could stay a bit longer, you know?”

“No, I have other things to do.”

It seemed like nothing I said could make her stay, so she left as she had declared.

After that, I received an email saying, “You’ll read my novel again when I bring it, right?”

There was no need to think about my response.