Five main streets extend from Sakuramura Station in different directions.
The street to the west is known as Amusement Street and is a well-known spot for young people’s entertainment in Tokyo.
True to its name, Amusement Street is a bustling avenue packed with a mishmash of attractions, from boutiques to game centers and small movie theaters.
The shopping mall that Ibuki, Hinata, and Rui had visited before is also located about a fifteen-minute walk down this street from the station.
For the centennial festival, the street was filled with food stalls and street vendors, giving it the appearance of a theme park. It was undoubtedly the busiest of the five main streets.
“Wow, as expected of the most popular street. The crowd is insane…”
“Indeed…”
“This might be unlike anything I’ve experienced before.”
“Same here.”
Even for Ibuki, who had lived in the neighborhood for a long time, this level of crowds was unprecedented. For Hinata, who had moved from a less populated area compared to Sakuramura, it was even more unfamiliar.
The crowd moved at a snail’s pace, and the two found themselves inching along like cattle.
Normally, one might feel frustrated at the slow progress towards their destination, but…
“Look, look, Hinata-chan! They even have shooting galleries. And ring toss next to it!”
“I’m not very good at long-distance games…”
“Oh, there seems to be a mock sword-fighting stall over there. I wonder if you fight against the shopkeeper?”
“Leave close-range combat to me!”
“Hinata-chan…? Have you been talking about violent things this whole time…?”
“Huh?”
“No, never mind…”
The two were enjoying each stall to the fullest, taking in the sights peacefully(?).
Then, the next stall they came across was…
“A mask shop, I see.”
“Haven’t there been quite a few stalls that seem to have mistaken this for a summer festival?”
In front of the exasperated Ibuki hung a black fox mask reminiscent of some feudal official.
Upon closer inspection, half of the stall was selling masks, while the other half…
“They seem to be selling event headbands too.”
“As expected of Amusement Street…”
There were mini-hat attachments, rabbit ear headbands, and various other items on display.
The lineup was like something out of a dream world, but one item caught Ibuki’s eye.
“Oh, cat ears.”
A cat ear headband. The black one reminded him of the socks Hinata had been so fixated on earlier.
Remembering that precious scene, he smiled and looked at Hinata.
“—-“
Their eyes met squarely, pink irises locking with his gaze.
Hinata, who had been looking up at him with wide eyes, eventually blushed slightly and said,
“Um, excuse me. I’d like one of those ginger tabby cat ear headbands, please…”
“Eh, Hinata-chan?”
“…………”
Hinata remained silent, not looking at Ibuki. After paying a price that was clearly disproportionate to the item’s value, she carefully put it on, making sure not to mess up her hair.
Then, she turned to face Ibuki.
“—-Guh!”
In that instant, Ibuki felt as if a star had fallen on his head.
The ginger tabby cat ears matched perfectly with Hinata’s milk tea-colored hair. They looked so natural, as if she had always had cat ears. Despite this, perhaps feeling embarrassed about doing something unfamiliar, she looked up at him with upturned eyes, her face flushed to her eyes.
“…!, …!”
“I-It’s not what you think, you know, it’s a festival after all.”
As Ibuki literally lost his words to the overwhelmingly, almost violently cute sight, Hinata, for some reason, averted her gaze and flustered.
“Um… you like cats, right?”
After glancing at Ibuki’s face,
“Nya, nya~n…”
She lightly shook both hands clenched near her face.
Faced with this, Ibuki…
“Ah—-!”
As if not just a star but the sun itself had fallen on him—-he collapsed.
“Eeh!? Onii san!?”
Worried about Ibuki who had suddenly fallen to his knees, Hinata peered at his face.
“Ah, wait-“
The distance closed even further. It was a follow-up attack from the cat-eared angel.
“Guhah”
“Onii-san!?”
As he peacefully ascended to heaven, Ibuki thought.
—-Indeed, no one can beat Hinata-chan in close-range combat.
(The End)
continue
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Afterword
Nice to meet you all, my name is Shuroto Tokioka.
To briefly introduce myself, I’ve been a bookworm for fifteen years. Since starting elementary school, I’ve always been a reader, never dreaming I’d write a novel myself. Even now, I can hardly believe it, and my fingers are trembling with nervousness as I write this afterword. So, I’d like to start by expressing my gratitude.
First, I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Tomo Shinishi-sensei, who brought this work to life with wonderful illustrations. The moment I saw your vivid and adorable characters on Twitter (at that time), I was captivated. I pleaded with my editor to have you illustrate my work, and it feels like just yesterday. The cover, the color pages, the illustrations—all of them are incredible. You designed eight characters just for the first volume, and I am overwhelmed with gratitude. Thanks to you, we were able to include a character design list at the end of the book.
To my editor, Mr. S, who laughed and agreed to my silly suggestion of adding “super geeky” author comments to the character design list, thank you. I am deeply grateful that you found this work and reached out to me. I know I’ll continue to trouble you, but I hope to learn and grow with each step, remembering that “dripping water wears away the stone.”
To my dear friends, who supported me even before my web postings: I overcame the greatest hurdle of any writer—finishing the first work—because of your feedback and encouragement. You were the ones who asked, “Why not post it?” and “Isn’t it a waste not to share it?” Without your words, this work might still be gathering dust.
Lastly, to everyone involved in bringing this book to life: I reaffirmed daily that even the cover design was a collaborative effort by talented designers. And, of course, this includes you, the readers. Especially those who supported me from the web days. This work, made possible by so many, wouldn’t be complete without you picking it up. As the author—or rather, humbly, as the representative of the author—words cannot express my gratitude enough.
…It seems I’ve used up all the space with my acknowledgments. Thanks to your support, we can publish a second volume, where I will share more. Until we meet again, thank you.
TLNOTE: there’s still one extra chapter left
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