While I Was Shutting in My Room for One Year, My Parent Remarried and Now I’m Living Together With Super Beautiful Stepsisters - Chapter 16-17

Chapter 16: The Shocking Secret of the Three Stepsisters

“The truth is, Aoto-kun… when we got remarried, we didn’t legally adopt those girls.”

“What…?”

A shocking revelation came from Nanoka-san’s mouth.

Those three weren’t legally adopted…?

“So, so you’re saying that even though we’re living together, we’re not officially siblings on paper?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

No way… seriously?

They call me Big Brother or Brother, so I naturally assumed we were legally stepsiblings.

“When I first introduced the girls to Kazuki-san, he suggested adopting them… but when we asked the three of them about it, they weren’t too keen on the idea. So, for now, we decided to live together without going through with the adoption.”

“I see.”

From Dad’s perspective, suggesting adoption probably showed how serious he was about becoming a family.

But those three chose to hold off on it.

That’s understandable, I suppose.

With their parents’ sudden remarriage, having a legal father who’s not their real father would feel like a big deal. It makes sense they’d be cautious.

“By their wishes, do you mean their relationship with their real father or something like that?”

“Of course, that’s part of it. Also, they didn’t want to change their ‘Itohara’ surname.”

“Oh…”

So that’s why all three introduced themselves as Itohara.

I didn’t think much of it during their introductions, but now that I think about it, that’s what it meant.

“Well, putting that aside, what do you think of those three, Aoto-kun?”

“Wh-what do you mean…?”

“I mean, even as their mother, I think they’re quite the charming trio, don’t you? Momiji is more domestic than anyone, Yuzuna is a tsundere, and Anzu is kind-hearted.”

“Why are you suddenly praising them like that?”

I’m not even sure if calling Yuzuna a tsundere is a compliment.

“Because I’m just so curious which one of those three you’ll end up liking, Aoto-kun! ♡”

“Huh? Liking them? That’s not gonna happen! I’m their brother…”

Wait a second.

Now that I think about it, the fact that Nanoka-san brought up the adoption thing… no, it can’t be.

“You figured it out? Yes, you’re living together as stepsiblings because of your parents’ remarriage… but if you wanted, you could even get married.”

The sudden word “married” from Nanoka-san’s mouth made my face burn.

M-me, getting married to one of them!?

“N-no way, I’m not doing that!”

“Are you sure? I don’t think there’s a guy out there who wouldn’t fall for my proud daughters with their… impressive figures.”

“Wh-what are you saying?! I-I’m heading back to my room!”

“Oh my, Aoto-kun, are you in your rebellious phase?”

“Shut up!!”

My face was bright red as I stormed back to my room, flustered.

Me… with one of those three…

The turmoil in my mind lasted well into the night.

—

Chapter 17: Online Games Are the Start of Passion

I returned to my room, but Yuzuna’s guitar was as loud as ever, so I put on headphones to block it out and started an online game.

But right now, playing an online game was the least of my concerns.

(Me, getting married to one of those three sisters?!)

Nanoka-san’s revelation about the adoption issue was still stuck in my head.

Don’t underestimate me, a guy who spent a whole year holed up with a lovesick brain.

It’s almost unbelievable luck for someone who was just recently a shut-in gamer.

Wait, is this even something to be happy about?

I thought I’d gained three adorable and, well, impressively endowed stepsisters, only to find out they’re marriage material.

Even though I’m their brother in terms of our relationship, I’m not their brother on paper…

(Ugh, this is so frustrating! For now, I’ll just focus on the game.)

I launched Lunares Online, shifting my thoughts to the game.

With the anniversary event coming up, a new raid monster should be added, so I need to take it down as fast as possible and share a strategy guide with the clan.

After all, I’m a hardcore player in one of Lunares’ top ten clans.

Since I’m back at school, my login time’s taken a hit, but if I’m short on time, I just have to make up for it with quality.

“…Hm? There’s a new person in the clan.”

My clan, “Gunyu Gekkyo,” is one of Japan’s top-tier clans, with a select group of thirty members.

Under my game name “Akaharu” (a name I came up with during my heartbroken phase, meaning I’d paint my youthful “Aoharu” red), I’m one of those thirty.

This clan is invite-only, approved by the clan master, so it’s full of skilled players. But when I logged in today, there were thirty-one members.

“A new member, huh? What’s their name?”

The game name is “KY0K0.”

Their avatar seems to be a muscular, shirtless berserker-type character.

I’ve seen this person pop up in the rankings for tough quest completions. KY0K0… Kyoko? Sounds like a girl’s name, maybe?

A girl… n-no way, that’s unlikely.

Thanks to that marriage talk earlier, my brain’s completely stuck in romance mode today.

“Ha… maybe I should just sleep.”

[KY0K0: Nice to meet you, Akaharu-san. I’m KY0K0. We happened to log in at the same time, so I thought I’d say hi in chat.]

They went out of their way to greet me…

Surprisingly, a lot of people in this community don’t bother with greetings, even new members, so this is kind of reassuring.

They seem like a polite person.

“Alright, I’ll write a reply.”

[Akaharu: Nice to meet you too. Looking forward to working with you. If you can put together a speedrun guide for the new monster, it’d be great to post it on the clan board.]

[KY0K0: Thanks for the heads-up! I’ll do my best! ٩(^‿^)۶]

An emoji… that’s cute.

Could KY0K0 actually be a girl?

N-no, plenty of guys use emojis, and Lunares’ hardcore players, including me, are all a bit crazy!

Why am I getting worked up over some random person in a game whose identity I don’t even know?

Ever since I heard I could marry those three sisters, my thoughts have been all messed up!

“Ugh, I’m just gonna take a bath and sleep.”

It’s my first day out of being a shut-in, and I’m already exhausted from everything.

When I took off my headphones, the ear-piercing sound of an electric guitar (more like noise) blasted from next door.

Ha… what’s my new life gonna turn into?