From now on, you should call her sister-in-law.

A noble and exquisite face, a figure beyond words. The sheer black stockings she wore made her beautiful legs even more alluring. And, as if that weren't enough, they added an extra point to her charm! Lady Maki was already a peerless beauty, but with this added allure, she had transformed into an enchantress capable of beguiling all living things. Even Daji would pale in comparison.

Matsudaira Kiyomizu didn't dare look at her for more than a moment. Any longer, and his filial piety might start to waver.

[After putting on new stockings, Maki Matsudaira's affection for you has increased.]

"...?"

It increased again?

This is reckless!

After breakfast, Matsudaira Kiyomizu wrapped a sandwich in plastic wrap, ready to leave the house immediately. He couldn't bear to stay another minute.

"Big Brother, please wait a moment." Matsudaira Kiyoyuki trotted over, tiptoed, and carefully helped her brother tighten his tie at the entranceway.

Kiyomizu lifted his chin slightly, letting her fuss over him.

"Big Brother, you're a truly wonderful person!" Kiyoyuki suddenly praised him out of nowhere.

"Oh, thank you for the compliment, Koyuki."

"You always listen to me with a smile and never criticize."

"Actually, I sometimes complain inwardly."

"You're always so patient with my whims, never showing any annoyance."

"Since you know you're being willful, you should try to change that."

"Ahem!"

Completely ignoring her brother's playful retorts, the angelic Kiyoyuki tucked a stray strand of hair into his tie and gave a gentle, radiant smile. "Do your best today, too, and try to make some friends soon!"

Faced with such an adorable little sister, Matsudaira Kiyomizu decided she needed a lesson on the darker side of human nature.

"Thank you for your concern, Koyuki. But I’ve already made a friend, and she’s a very cute girl. I’m planning to go on a date with her this Saturday."

"...A date? Eh?!"

Her brain flat-out refused to process the word. She froze on the spot, eyes wide, racking her mind like a confused robot: "Big Brother doesn’t even have any female friends, and now suddenly says he’s going on a date? How can you have a date if you don’t even have a friend? Something’s not right here!"

Kiyomizu smiled silently at her troubled expression.

At the table behind them, their mother was doubled over, shoulders shaking as she tried not to burst out laughing.

"Oh, I get it now!" Kiyoyuki exclaimed, pounding her fist into her palm as realization dawned. "This is that girlfriend-for-rent service, right? I heard from my friends—you pay money, and then you can pick a girl to go on a date with. Big Brother, you really didn’t have to go that far..."

"No, Koyuki," Kiyomizu cut her off, ruffling her hair. "The girl I’m dating is a classmate, not a rented stranger. If things go as expected, you’ll be calling her sister-in-law in the future..."

With that, he gave a slight smile, made his quick escape, and headed out for school.

"You’ll be calling her sister-in-law..."

"Sister-in-law..."

The words echoed in Kiyoyuki’s ears as she stood rooted to the spot. Her face went slack, eyes losing their light. Her small frame seemed ready to collapse like a decrepit old house.

"Ha ha ha, I can’t take it, this is too funny..." Their mother, well aware of the truth but not sharing it, simply lay across the table, clutching her stomach, laughing mercilessly at her daughter.

Yes, that’s a real mother, alright.

※

Matsudaira Kiyomizu stepped outside and glanced at his watch.

7:56 a.m.

He stood in front of the house, waiting for four minutes.

"Eh? Good morning, Kiyomizu."

The door to the neighboring Yanami family opened, and out stepped a widow who looked about thirty-five or thirty-six. She had a beautiful oval face and stood about 1.6 meters tall. Though in her mid-thirties, her figure was still attractively proportioned, her eyes gentle and inviting—a womanly charm radiated from her.

She was Old Hachi’s mother.

She was also the head of sales at his mother’s publishing company.

Don’t let her current gentle, inviting aura fool you—in the office, she was formidable, though most of the time she simply played the “good cop” to his mother’s “bad cop.”

Alright, Kiyomizu decided to retract his previous dislike for married women. If it was Yanami’s mother, he was absolutely fine with it!

"Good morning, Aunt Yanami," Kiyomizu nodded in greeting.

"Are you waiting for Meigetsu?" she asked with a knowing smile.

Kiyomizu nodded. "I just stepped out, and the timing worked out, so I thought I’d wait for her."

"Looks like you two have made up? That’s as it should be—young people have the privilege of quarreling and making up..." Aunt Yanami smiled, then turned back toward the house and called, "Meigetsu, hurry up! Kiyomizu’s been waiting for you!"

"Coming!"

With a slice of bread in her mouth, Old Hachi rushed out, bag in hand. Her sleepy eyes, gentle tousled hair, and the hurry in her movements gave her a distinctly feminine charm.

"I’ll head to school with her," Kiyomizu said to Aunt Yanami.

"Go ahead, and take care of Meigetsu for me," she replied with a smile, her gaze full of affection, almost as if looking at her future son-in-law.

On the way to Sendagaya Station, Yanami Meigetsu swallowed the last of her bread and nudged Kiyomizu with her shoulder.

"What is it?" he asked, turning to her.

"Hehe, be honest!" Meigetsu’s lashes curled as she grinned smugly. "You waited for me because you were afraid I’d run into perverts on the train by myself, so you’re playing the knight in shining armor, right?"

"No."

"Come on, just admit that you still have feelings for me—"

"Enough," Kiyomizu interrupted, shoving something into her hands.

The sandwich he’d brought from home—that was what it was for, after all.

Today’s feeding: complete.

"Mmm, delicious!" Meigetsu beamed as she tore open the plastic wrap, cheeks puffed out with pride. "You know, Kiyomizu, your situation is quite tricky. I guess I’ll have to do something really off-putting so you’ll stop thinking I’m attractive..."

Kiyomizu couldn’t even be bothered to reply.

Still not satisfied, she sidled up and nudged him again. "Since you don’t know how to date a girl, why don’t you buy me something tasty and let me teach you how to win over that fake-sweet girl?"

"Your behavior lately is seriously pathetic—such loser vibes!" Kiyomizu said with exasperation.

"Loser? No, I just care about you. If it weren’t for me, you’d never even dare go to the club..." Meigetsu, cheeks full of sandwich, looked at him with feigned concern.

"Just don’t cry when I start dating someone else!"

"I won’t! With your personality, there’s no way you’ll have a girlfriend in a year or two. And even if you do, I’ll just watch you from the sidelines, feeling proud, like, ‘I raised that child myself!’"

"Alright, I’ll remember you said that."

"Let’s bet on it, Kiyomizu! Loser treats the winner to a week of McDonald’s."

"..."

Just McDonald’s?

Can’t you aim a little higher...

Kiyomizu didn’t even know how to retort.

When they arrived at Sendagaya Station, the two of them tapped in and waited on the platform. The rush of wind from the incoming train tousled his hair.

It was rush hour—every car packed tight, just like a can of sardines.

Kiyomizu shielded Meigetsu as they squeezed into the carriage, using his own body to protect her from the crowd. He put on his headphones and adopted an air of three parts melancholy, three parts indifference, three parts impatience, and a dash of annoyance at the woman in front of him, gazing out the window.

He was a bona fide transmigrator, after all, with a system at his disposal.

How could he possibly fail to find a girlfriend?

This Saturday, he’d be going on a date with Suzura Sakurane, to gain some experience.

Once he’d leveled up enough, he’d find the right girl to truly fall in love with—let’s see how smug you are then, Old Hachi...

As the train rocked back and forth, Kiyomizu’s mind wandered through a jumble of thoughts, and soon enough, they arrived at Yotsuya Station.