14 A Homemade Meal for Onii-chan
“Sigh…”
I couldn’t help but let out a weak sigh.
Even though Riri-chan’s encouragement temporarily lifted my spirits, morning still came.
As long as Kokona-chan’s bento problem remained unsolved, my future as a mob character was uncertain.
I needed to take swift action.
I stood in the kitchen, holding a knife, for the first time in what felt like forever.
◇◇◇
Lunch break.
A time for everyone to relax and unwind.
But my tension mounted.
Because she was coming.
“Onii-chan! I brought your lunch!”
“O-Oh…”
Shindo-kun’s face stiffened at Kokona-chan’s appearance.
I couldn’t let this tragedy continue.
I stood up from my seat.
Before Kokona-chan could approach Shindo-kun, I walked towards her.
“Kokona-chan.”
“…What do you want, Amatsuki Suzuna?”
She made no attempt to hide her “Why are you talking to me?” attitude.
I wanted to run from her sharp gaze, but I stood my ground.
I held up the lunch bag I had made this morning.
“Let’s eat lunch together.”
“…Huh?”
This time, her voice was filled with genuine surprise.
She probably never imagined I’d invite her.
“Let’s go to the courtyard.”
“No, wait, I have to give Onii-chan his lunch…”
“No, we’re eating that lunch together.”
“Huh? Why all of a sudden—”
This conversation was going nowhere.
I took Kokona-chan’s arm and started walking.
“H-Hey, let go of me. Amatsuki Suzuna…!”
“I won’t. We’re eating lunch together.”
“I-I don’t understand…!”
“Yeah, Suzuna, what about my lunch?”
Shindo-kun, who had been watching from the sidelines, chimed in.
Seriously, why are you still trying to eat Kokona-chan’s lunch at this point…?
Can’t you tell I’m trying to help you?
“See! Onii-chan’s saying it too!”
“Fine, here, Shindo-kun.”
I placed a sandwich on Shindo-kun’s desk.
I had forgotten that I made my own lunch and bought a sandwich out of habit.
It was a coincidence, but the timing was perfect.
“…Is this all?”
I couldn’t believe Shindo-kun’s look, as if to say, “This isn’t enough.”
What more does he want?
The perpetually pampered protagonist is so demanding.
“If it’s not enough, go buy something at the school store. …Come on, Kokona-chan, let’s go.”
“H-Hey, Amatsuki Suzuna…!!”
I left the classroom with Kokona-chan.
◇◇◇
In the courtyard.
Spring can be chilly, but fortunately, the weather was nice today.
The sun was out, the temperature was warm, and the wind was gentle.
It was comfortable enough to be outside in our uniforms.
“Let’s sit over there.”
I pointed to a bench in the shade and led her there.
As I sat down, Kokona-chan looked down at me with a dissatisfied expression.
“What… are you playing at?”
“I told you, we’re eating lunch together.”
“I’m asking what your goal is.”
“It’s for Shindo-kun’s… no, for your benefit, Kokona-chan.”
I returned her gaze, not flinching from her suspicious eyes.
“If I’m lying, you can leave right away.”
Perhaps convinced by my sincerity, Kokona-chan sat down next to me with a sigh.
“Fine. Then open your lunch.”
“Okay…”
Kokona-chan opened her bento box.
Half of it was filled with onigiri, the other half with side dishes.
A pale, yellow-less tamagoyaki, unevenly colored broccoli, and a mushy hamburger.
The contents were quite chaotic.
It’s a character trait, but isn’t this a bit much…?
“This is mine.”
I opened my lunch box in the same way.
“Amatsuki Suzuna, that’s…”
“Yeah, I made the same thing.”
I had already researched Kokona-chan’s limited cooking repertoire through the game.
Using that knowledge, I deliberately prepared the exact same dishes.
“…Amatsuki Suzuna. These… are the same?”
“Eh?”
Kokona-chan stared at my bento box as if it were some strange object.
“Don’t they look… kind of… bad?”
“Ah, well… the shape is… charming.”
“Isn’t the hamburger too lumpy?”
“Kneading is difficult, isn’t it?”
I’m just clumsy.
“Why are the onigiri so perfectly round?”
“Shaping them is difficult, isn’t it?”
I actually wanted to ask her how she managed to shape them into such perfect triangles.
“Amatsuki Suzuna… when did you become such a bad cook?”
“Ehehe…”
“It’s not funny… I don’t know what to say.”
It’s true.
I’m sharing Amatsuki Suzuna’s memories. There’s no doubt about that.
But the miscalculation was that I didn’t inherit her skills.
So my hands can’t keep up with what I want to do.
In fact, because I have Amatsuki Suzuna’s cooking memories, the gap between ideal and reality is even more stark.
The result is a vicious cycle where the more I cook, the more frustrated I get.
I already dislike cooking, and in this state, there’s no way the food would look presentable.
“I guess it’s like the yips.”
“Is that a thing with cooking?!”
Ah, they really are siblings.
I remember Shindo-kun reacting the same way.
“Well, well, the most important thing about cooking is the taste. As long as it tastes good, it’s fine.”
“…I can’t imagine someone who can’t even shape onigiri properly can make something taste good.”
I know that.
Or rather, I’m the one who wants to complain.
Normally, I think you’d retain some level of skill after being reborn.
But this Amatsuki Suzuna is almost entirely the same as me, except for the memories.
I think she could have been a little more accommodating.
“Just… eat it.”
I offered her the bento box.
Kokona-chan looked at it suspiciously.
“Is it cooked properly…?”
“It’s fine, I tasted it.”
“If you say so…”
Kokona-chan hesitantly picked up a piece of my hamburger with her chopsticks and brought it to her mouth.
She chewed cautiously, her eyes wary.
“How is it?”
“It’s… delicious.”
Exactly.
Even if it looks bad, that’s just the appearance.
Even a clumsy person like me can manage the seasoning, heat control, and other cooking processes.
The taste itself replicates Amatsuki Suzuna’s cooking. Probably.
“Can I have some of yours?”
“You’re supposed to ask…”
Without waiting for her to finish, I picked up a piece of tamagoyaki from Kokona-chan’s bento and ate it.
“Hmm… it’s a little overcooked. And Shindo-kun likes mayonnaise better than dressing on broccoli.”
“Wh-What…? Onii-chan always eats his salad with dressing.”
“Salad, yes. But he likes mayonnaise on cooked broccoli. He told me that before.”
When I was playing the game, I thought, “Who are you to complain about the condiments when you’re just eating what’s given to you?”
I never thought this knowledge would be useful in a situation like this.
“What? Are you trying to show off? You said you weren’t making lunch anymore.”
Appearance aside, Kokona-chan’s breathing grew ragged, sensing the difference in taste and my understanding of Shindo-kun’s preferences.
She was my rival, so the difference must be frustrating.
“No, that’s not it. I just wanted to give you some advice, Kokona-chan.”
I placed my hand on Kokona-chan’s shoulder.
“Don’t touch me!”
But my hand was immediately swatted away.
“Ouch…”
A jolt of pain shot through my hand.
“Ah, Amatsuki Suzuna… your hand…”
My hand had several band-aids on it.
I cut myself with the knife.
“It’s… nothing. I’m not good at cooking.”
“Why… would you go that far…?”
Her expression said she didn’t understand my actions.
“It’s obvious, isn’t it? I’m… rooting for you, Kokona-chan.”
“Seriously…?”
She was still half-doubtful, but my inexplicable actions lent some credibility to my words.
“Yeah, Shindo-kun needs you, Kokona-chan. I just want to help you.”
“…Why… all of a sudden? It’s like you’ve become a different person…”
The hostility in Kokona-chan’s tone softened slightly.
Her words were a bit unsettling, but she probably doesn’t suspect anything.
“Here, try another bite.”
“If you insist…”
Just as she was about to take a second bite—
“—Suzuna…? What’s going on here?”
““?!””
A sudden visitor.
Riri-chan stood behind us, smiling.
But her tone was completely different.
And judging by the tense atmosphere and her stiff smile, she wasn’t happy…
Leave a Reply