Chapter 3: CH 3

9-11 minutes 18.04.2023

A few days ago, I made the decision to take the girls in. As I sat at home sipping coffee and waiting for them to arrive, I couldn’t help but wonder what I was getting myself into. After all, it’s just me living in this house right now.

My parents had long since passed away, leaving me with the house and some savings. I remember crying a lot when they passed away, even though I had no memories of my past life at that time. But that was in the past, so I pushed those thoughts aside for now.

The issue at hand was whether I, a 21-year-old working adult, could effectively care for these fourth-graders. To be honest, I had no experience taking care of children, even in my past life.

However, now that I had taken them in, I realized that I had a responsibility to properly care of them. If that was the case, then I needed to confront the situation head-on and take care of all four of them to the best of my ability!

For a 21-year-old working adult who would be finding himself facing four young girls, all around 10 years old, I couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy. Wasn’t this situation a bit precarious?

As I was pondering what to do, the intercom in my house rang. Before I could make a clear decision, it seemed that the four girls had already arrived at my house.

With an uneasy gait, I made my way to the front door and opened it.

“Welcome. Um, all four of you…”

“Hello, onii-san.. Hey, the three of you need to greet him too.”Chiharu said.

“…Nice to meet you.”

“I-I’m Chiaki, the third sister… N-Nice to meet you…”

“Ah, um, I’m Chifuyu. The youngest sister…”

They seemed incredibly nervous. I was feeling nervous too, but I needed to show a calm and composed demeanor while acting with confidence.

“Don’t hesitate; come on in. Please come in and make yourselves comfortable.”

“Thank you very much. Everyone, after the greeting, make sure to align your shoes properly before you come in.”

The eldest sister, Chiharu, was overprotective, just like in the game, always taking care of her younger siblings and sometimes spoiling them too much. She was supposed to have a more casual way of speaking, but she seemed to switch to a more formal tone when expressing gratitude for the help she received.

Well, as expected, she’s amazing. Even though she’s so young.

Hiding behind their older sister, Chinatsu and Chiaki aligned their shoes and stepped onto the hardwood floor without making eye contact with me. They looked around nervously, unsure of what to do next.

“This is the living room. You can come in.”

“……”The three younger siblings remained silent.

“Thank you, Onii-san.”Chiharu said.

The three of them nodded silently, with the eldest sister bowing politely, and they led the way into the living room. I followed them, and the second and third sisters kept glancing at me fearfully from behind. They quickly entered the living room, walking briskly.

They seemed to be afraid of me. Even though I tried to smile…

By the time I entered, they were all sitting in seiza (on their knees). I felt both impressed and uncomfortable that even as children, they were able to do things like this.

Just like before, the oldest and fourth sisters sat in the front, with the second and third sisters hiding behind them.

“We’ll be in your care from now on, Onii-san.”

“It’s okay to be more casual, you know? Treat it like your own home and make yourself comfortable.”

“We can’t do that…”

“Oh, I see… What about your luggage?”

“We only brought the essentials. The rest will be delivered separately later.”

“I see… How did you come here?”

“We took taxis and the train to arrive.”

“Just you children alone?”

“Yes,” Chiharu responded.

No matter how i think about it, isn’t that a bit too much? However, upon further reflection, it’s precisely because I was aware of the type of treatment they would receive that I decided to take them in.

“I see, you’re quite composed,” I said.

“Thank you,” Chiharu, who was the oldest sister, answered all of the questions.

She always responded in a formal manner, which I find a bit too stiff. I prefer the casual, carefree attitude she had in the game… but I couldn’t force her to act in a way she didn’t like. Before anything else, I want her to feel more at ease.

I had taken them in with the intention of changing their miserable lives amidst their terrible circumstances, but it didn’t seem like much had changed. I had hoped that they would be able to have a comfortable and enjoyable life before the game started.

I needed to figure out how to make all four of them feel at ease and comfortable living here. As the head of this household, I didn’t want them to feel intimidated by me. It would have been great if we could talk casually.

If that’s the case, let’s start with introductions first.

“Since we’re going to be living together from now on, should we introduce ourselves again?”

“Yes, I’m Chiharu Hitsuji.. I’m the odest of the four sisters. Next is Chinatsu; say hello to this Onii-san.”

“…I’m Chinatsu Hitsuji….. Nice to meet you… Please take care of me…”

“I-I am Chiaki Hitsuji… I am pleased to make your acquaintance….”

“Chifuyu’s name is Chifuyu…”

Chinatsu was supposed to come off as more tsundere, but she didn’t have enough energy to pull it off. The third sister was supposed to have a chuunibyou-like speech pattern, but she wasn’t energetic enough to pull it off either. Chifuyu, the youngest sister, was just lacking energy overall.

I wanted to make a greeting that would capture their hearts like a cheerful Onii san, but I didn’t want to mess it up and create more distance between us, so I decided to just greet them normally.

“I’m Black kaito , nice to meet you.”

“……Black?” They all exclaimed at the same time.

“Yeah, I know it’s an unusual surname, but it’s pronounced ‘Black’ even though it’s written as ‘Kuro’.”

“……I might actually like that kind of thing.”Chiaki said.

“It’s a lovely surname, Onii san.”

“……”

I couldn’t quite figure it out, but it seems like the third sister has warmed up to me a little. However, Chinatsu, the second sister, and Chifuyu, the youngest sister, seem to be only mildly interested, if at all.

“Um, I’ll keep saying it multiple times, but feel free to think of this house as your own and use it as you like.”

“……”

I thought I said something good, but everyone fell into complete silence.

“Why did you take us in, Onii san? Was it because that person… Father took care of you? Is that the reason?”

Chiharu said so. At this moment, her eyes were filled with suspicion, fear, and negative emotions. At the time, I gave a plausible reason in front of their relatives, but for the children, both their father and mother were nothing but objects of hatred.

Their parents, who were supposed to protect them, actually called them monsters from the beginning and informed their relatives about it.

I couldn’t shake off the uneasiness of having a relationship with such people, even if it’s just a professional one.

I believe it’s best to be honest and explain without using adult reasons. Moreover….. I couldn’t simply attribute my choice to my past life’s favorite characters.

I have made the decision to live with these four girls and face them with honesty, so lying is not an option. I will express myself to the best of my ability within the realm of what is possible.

“I haven’t really been taken care of by your father, to be honest. Well, maybe a little, but truth be told, I didn’t like him.”

“!”

The four of them looked incredibly surprised, their faces reflecting the question of why I would have taken custody of them.

“So, why did you…?”

“Because I believed that I could make the four of you happier than your relatives could.”

“…I see.”

“That’s right. I don’t expect you to trust me easily, but please find some peace in your hearts and make use of this house.”

“Thank you.”

Ah, it seems like they’re not finding much peace at all. Their faces were all tense. It’s better to give them some space and let them calm down before trying to communicate further. Once they’ve settled down, I’ll change my approach and try to have a conversation with them.

“I have a room prepared upstairs, so let me show you.”

“You don’t have to go through the trouble…”

“Don’t worry about it. Shall we go?”

I left the living room and went upstairs. My house was a 2-story, 4LDK (four bedrooms, a living room, a dining room, and a kitchen) with 37 square meters. Furthermore, there were three rooms on the second floor. For now, it was best for all four of them to share one room, but I personally plan to allocate them into two rooms when they reach middle school age. If they express a desire to have separate rooms at this stage, I would be flexible and accommodate their wishes.

“You can use this room as you like.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Without saying much, I tried to exude a sense of maturity as I went back downstairs. I could feel the four of them watching me from behind. They seemed to be in deep thought…

I hope the four of them can get used to this house soon…

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TN: The manner of speaking is very difficult to translate accordingly, but I’ll do my best.