For Some Reason, My Little Sister’s Friend, Who Is Totally Devoted To Me

　When I returned to the living room, I smelled a delicious smell that tickled my nostrils. I looked over to see Shiori-chan standing in the kitchen, cooking.

“Oh, Onii-san, you must be hungry. Please wait for me. It’s almost ready.”

“Eh….. I’ll do it myself, it’s fine.”

“Don’t overdo it, you’re tired from work. Please leave it to me.”

　What is this girl, a good wife?

　My little sister makes me cook dinner no matter how tired I am at work. Even when I come home late, she’s always waiting for me to make dinner.

“Sorry about that. Thanks.”

　I accepted Shiori-chan’s kindness and sat down at the dining table. Not long after that, the dishes were lined up on the table.

　She must have prepared it before I left. There were so many dishes.

“I don’t know if it’s to your taste, but here you go.”

“Thank you… Itadakimasu.”

　I took a bite of the hamburger steak I had on hand.

“It’s delicious.”

“Oh really? I’m glad~.”

　Unfortunately, I don’t have the taste for food reporting, nor the vocabulary to capture my imagination, so I can’t tell you what the hamburger steak tasted like. But it was so exquisite that I could not help but reflexively let out my impressions.

　The other dishes were also delicious beyond the framework of your average home cooking.

　Shiori-chan breathed a sigh of relief when she saw me skillfully moving my chopsticks.

　I get nervous when I cook for people. I can understand why she would be nervous if it didn’t suit my palate.

“Hey, Shiori-chan.”

“Yes, what is it, Onii-san?”

　We’re having a nice dinner. I know it’s not the right time to say it, but I decided to bring it up.

　If I put it off too long, I might miss the right moment to say it.

“Aren’t you scared of being home alone with me? Ah, of course, I’m not going to do anything weird to you. But you know, Shiori-chan, I’m just Yuzu’s brother that’s currently in high school. I’m sure you’re worried about that to a certain extent, right?”

“…You won’t do anything weird to me?”

“Ha?”

　Huh, what’s she talking about?

“No, I’m sorry. It’s nothing.”

“Well, you know, maybe you should stop running away and go home. Besides, it’s been more than a day and I think both of you must have cooled down by now, right?”

　It was hard to say, but I suggested that she should stop running away from home.

　Even if she couldn’t go home right now, she should go home tomorrow.

　After all, having Shiori-chan stay at our house now would be a problem. Just because nothing is going to happen to her doesn’t mean that she should live with us.

“Well, yes, you’re right. I’m a hindrance if I’m here, aren’t I?”

“No, I didn’t say that. If it wasn’t for Shiori-chan, I would have been late for work today, and even later for dinner. You’re not a hindrance, you’re a big help.”

“Then…..”

“But even if Shiori-chan thinks it’s okay, her parents don’t, right? So I think you should stop running away and go home.”

　I’ve never run away from home before, and I’ve never been a parent, but I’m sure my parents would be worried if their child ran away from home.

　On top of that, if she was living alone with her friend’s older brother, they would be more than worried.

　If I were a parent, I would never allow such a thing to happen.

　So, I concluded that I should let Shiori-chan go home.

“…I understand.”

　Shiori-chan remained silent for a while, but then she nodded her head in understanding.

　I’m glad. She seemed to have understood.

　But just when I was relieved….

“Then, I’ll ask mom for permission.”

“…Ha!? Why would you do that!?”

　No, that’s not correct. You’re supposed to be going home!

　Contrary to my expectations, Shiori-chan took out her phone and tapped the LCD with a familiar hand.

　While I was confused, Shiori-chan put her phone on speaker mode and placed it on the table. The person on the other end of the line is Shiori-chan’s mother. Her voice is a little low, but with a strong core.

“─What do you want? Did you want to go home after all?

　Shiori-chan shook her head at her mother, who was looking at her through her phone.

“No, not at all.”

“Oh, is that so? Then what do you want?”

“I’m with Yuzu-chan’s Onii-san.”

“Yeah.”

“But Yuzu-chan isn’t here, and neither are their parents, so it’s just me and Yuzu-chan’s Onii-san. It’s not a problem, is it?”

“Suit yourself. But I don’t want you to cause any trouble.”

“That means you gave me permission, right?”

“You’re free to do as you please.”

　She got permission, is this mother thinking properly…

　Shiori-chan hung up the phone and glanced at me. Shiori-chan hung up the phone and glanced at me, a look of satisfaction on her face as if to say, “What do you think?”

“Onii-san, this is all right, isn’t it?”

“No, well, yes, but…”

　No, there is a big problem. I haven’t solved any of them. But now that she had gotten permission, there was nothing I could say to her.

　It seems that they were having a bigger fight than I thought. Normally, she should be sent home immediately, but…

　If we force her to go home, she might start looking for a place to run away from home on social media. Even though the city is relatively safe, it’s still a dangerous world.

　If that’s the case, it’s safer for her to stay at our home.

“I’m glad to hear that. Now I can still be with Onii-san.”

“Don’t say things like that too much. Men misunderstand easily.”

“You can misunderstand me, okay?”

“Don’t make fun of me.”

　Shiori-chan is dangerous in many ways.

　If I were a normal person, I would have misunderstood her words.

“…..”

“What’s wrong?”

　I felt her eyes on me and looked up to see Shiori-chan looking at me with a disgruntled expression.

“What does Onii-san think of me?”

“What do you mean… Yuzu’s friend, the polite one?”

　I was a little puzzled by this unexpected question.

　When I answered, Shiori-chan’s lips twitched.

“So you’re saying you don’t see me as the opposite sex?”

“No, I know you’re a girl, but…”

“That’s not the point― well, it’s okay.”

　Shiori-chan turned away unhappily and returned to her meal.

　I couldn’t follow what she meant, so I went back to eating too.

　After that, I finished the meal without any conversation, and I was filled with a sense of incomprehension.

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Translator’s Afterword: Man, it hasn’t been a day and only one chapter released earlier, and this series already got a 1* review in NU. I’m rather annoyed by that and it puts me off my mood. Like imagine, the author’s hard work is already deemed as the worst rating you could ever get just from the 1st chapter only where basically nothing has been set in stone yet and is just building up the premise. Sometimes I don’t get how other people think like this. I’m only the TL yet I’m already this bothered, what’s more if it’s the author themselves? How do you think they would feel if they got such a rating right off the bat? Please don’t be like that kind of person. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this new series that we’re working on! (Sorry for this little rant of mine)