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

Chapter 18: Morning With Yuzuna

For a whole year, I holed up in my room playing online games, but my parents’ remarriage forced me to live with my new stepsisters, automatically ending my shut-in days. On top of that, my stepmother gave me the green light to marry them.

(This is all kinds of crazy!!)

“Huh!”

My internal monologue jolted me awake on my bed.

“…Oh, it’s already morning.”

Yesterday, my lovesick brain kept me from focusing on my online game, and the noise from beyond the curtains, loud enough to churn my stomach, stopped me from sleeping well.

Another depressing day as a loner at high school.

A year ago, I became a shut-in just a few days after the entrance ceremony, and it feels like I’m heading down that same path again.

I’m the kind of guy who can’t move forward without some kind of goal…

I only got smart enough to get into a prefectural high school because I wanted to impress a girl like Haruka.

“See, I’m still stuck in romance mode!”

If I could find even one person like that in my new high school life, it’d give me some motivation… but yeah, that’s not happening.

My stepsisters’ faces briefly crossed my mind, but I quickly shook them off.

I can’t go there with those three.

Even if we’re strangers on paper, they’re my stepsisters living under the same roof, right?

Nanoka-san was all excited about it yesterday, but I need to keep things wholesome with those three—

“Hey, Big Brother. I’ve got a favor to ask.”

“Whoa!”

I was in the middle of changing when Yuzuna, in her school uniform, lifted the curtain and barged in.

“Why are you coming in while I’m changing?! I’m in my underwear here!”

“It’s no big deal. We’re siblings, aren’t we?”

“S-siblings?”

She knows we’re not siblings on paper and still says that, doesn’t she?

W-well, I guess seeing a guy’s underwear isn’t exactly a thrill, so whatever.

“So, what’s up, Yuzuna?”

“I told you, I’ve got a favor.”

“A favor?”

With Yuzuna and Momiji, the word “favor” always gives me a bad feeling.

“The thing is… my guitar strings are shot.”

Well, with the kind of noise she’s been making, of course they are!

It was so obvious I almost said it out loud, but I held back, not wanting to upset her.

“I want to take it to a music shop, but I’m not familiar with this area. Could you come with me?”

“Hm… well, I guess that’s fine.”

“Really? Thanks, Big Brother!”

Big Brother, huh.

Momiji seems to want me as her little brother, so she doesn’t call me that, but Anzu and Yuzuna call me Big Brother even though they know I’m not their brother on paper.

I really need to ditch this romance brain.

My stepsisters call me Big Brother because they want a sibling relationship with me.

As their brother, I need to step up.

“Alright, let’s go to the shop by the station after school. Do you have a gig bag?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Then bring your guitar to school in that. We can head straight to the station after school. I’m pretty sure the music club kids bring their instruments too, so it should be fine.”

“O-okay… got it.”

Yuzuna started to head back to her room but suddenly stopped.

“You’re pretty reliable, huh, Big Brother?”

She complimented me out of nowhere and then left.

Did she… just praise me? Yuzuna did?

I couldn’t help but feel a little happy.

No, wait, I’m her brother! Why am I getting excited over this? Get it together!

Scolding myself, I continued getting ready for another day at high school.

—

Chapter 19: Yamada Is a Bratty Girl

When I got to school, I avoided eye contact with everyone and headed straight to my seat. I pulled a book from my bag and started reading alone.

Well, being a loner, what else could I do?

Back in middle school, I had my childhood friend Haruka and a group of buddies, so I never noticed, but being a loner in high school is way tougher than I thought.

“Hey, Aoto-senpai! You’re reading all by yourself, looking kinda lonely, huh?”

While I was savoring my solitude with my book, Yamada strolled up to my desk, grinning smugly and shaking her donut-shaped ringlet hair.

As usual, she’s got the body of a kid but the attitude of a sumo grand champion.

“Mind your own business, Yamada. Get lost.”

“G-Get lost?! Hmph, you say that, but deep down, don’t you actually want to be friends with me?”

“You’re just my junior. Back in track club and now.”

“W-Well, we’re classmates now, aren’t we?! Geez, Aoto-senpai, you really don’t get how girls think, do you?”

Just like I don’t understand whatever “girl feelings” are, you don’t get my loner feelings either, Yamada.

“Besides, if Anzu wasn’t in our class, you’d be a loner too.”

“W-What?! T-That’s… Anyway! Those three still haven’t shown up? Coming to school all alone, Aoto-senpai—don’t tell me you’re on bad terms with your sisters?”

“They’ll be here later. Momiji’s with her friends, Yuzuna’s with her gal pals, and Anzu overslept because she was gaming late.”

“Oh, I see… So that’s why Anzu-chan didn’t reply to my morning lime message.”

Anzu probably got caught up in the anniversary event for Lunares, grinding for the new monster. Normally, I’d be up all night too, but yesterday was so hectic I crashed. Seriously, way too much happened…

“Speaking of, you and Anzu got pretty close, huh? You were hanging out with her until evening yesterday, right?”

“Yup! We grabbed frappes at Snowtops and played Taiko no Tetsujin at the arcade!”

Living the high school girl life, huh? Not bad for a Yamada.

“Oh, listen, Aoto-senpai! Anzu-chan was so good at Taiko no Tetsujin! It’s like she used the bounce of her huge boobs to keep perfect rhythm. The crowd that gathered was totally hyped!”

“Crowd…? Look, don’t ever take Anzu to the arcade again. If some creep notices her for her boobs, it’ll be trouble.”

“Whaaat? Come on, Aoto-senpai, you should come watch Anzu-chan’s boob-drum performance next time!”

Ultra-tone-deaf guitar, boob drums—what’s with that family’s musical talent?

“—Oh, g-good morning, Momone-chan.”

While we were talking, Anzu arrived and plopped down at her desk to my right.

“Good morning, Anzu-chan! I heard you overslept a bit, but you’re here pretty early!”

“Yeah, I’m used to it…”

“Anzu, where’re the other two? They’re not here yet.”

“Um, they’re in the hallway chatting with friends from other classes.”

“Other classes?”

They’re already making friends in other classes? Those girls adapt way too fast.

“Oh, and Yuzuna-neechan had her guitar, so some people from the light music club were talking to her.”

“That’s… not good.”

If Yuzuna joins the light music club, the school festival’s gonna turn into a bloodbath.

“Huh, Yuzuna-san plays the guitar?”

“Well, kinda. It’s less ‘playing the guitar’ and more ‘slaughtering with the guitar,’ to be honest.”

“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Let’s just say I’ll invite Yamada to Yuzuna’s next recital and let her find out.

Oh, right, I’m supposed to go with Yuzuna after school to check out guitars at the shop. It’s just for repairs or something, so she probably won’t play. Should be fine.

“Anzu-chan, staying up late gaming isn’t good for your health!”

“Ehe, there was a new monster in the game, so I got carried away making a speedrun chart to help out my new clan.”

“S-Speedrun chart? What’s that?”

Yamada tilted her head. Figures she wouldn’t know—she doesn’t play online games.

“Look, Yamada, a speedrun chart is a plan to take down a monster as fast as possible. You figure out the best weapons, reset and tweak your custom stats, and share the optimal strategy with your clan. It makes farming more efficient and boosts your performance.”

“Uh, Big Brother? You sure know a lot about this…”

“Huh?”

I realized too late that my mouth ran off like usual.

Crap, I forgot I’m hiding from Anzu that I’m a Lunares addict.

“Oh, Anzu-chan, you didn’t know? Aoto-senpai was the biggest gamer in the track club back in middle school. Not sure about now, though.”

Ugh, Yamada! Why’d you have to say that?!

“Really…?”

Anzu muttered, staring at me intently.

What’s with those eyes…?

I hope she didn’t figure out I lied about not playing Lunares.

“N-No, I just happened to know the term, Anzu.”

“I see.”