“Thank you for the meal. Today’s dinner was delicious too. Thank you as always.”
“Yeah, I’m just doing what’s expected.”
After returning home from work, Haruto finishes the meal prepared by Yuno and expresses his gratitude as usual.
“Oh, Onii-chan. Is it okay if we have Oyakodon again tomorrow? If there’s something missing, I can make extra side dishes.”
“No, it’s totally fine! But… I can’t just keep relying on you, so I’d like you to teach me how to cook soon…”
Haruto looks at Yuno with hopeful eyes, but his request is easily dismissed.
“I can’t let someone who confuses sugar with salt into the kitchen. It feels like you’ll start a fire someday.”
“Oh, ahaha… I’m really sorry about that, really.”
It was Yuno’s birthday, and Haruto tried his best to cook and entertain her with an unfamiliar dish. However, he ended up making the worst mistake of mixing up the seasonings.
Yuno, while saying it was delicious, banned him from the kitchen since then.
“In a way, it became a good memory.”
“Being ‘in a way’ is really pathetic.”
“Well, let me be serious for a moment. Onii-chan, don’t worry about anything. Household chores are my responsibility.”
“Even if you say that, it would be easier for me if I could learn how to cook, right?”
“Well… It would be a lie to say it won’t be easier, but I enjoy doing it, and if you push yourself any further, you’ll break down. I’m serious.”
Yuno continues speaking while curling her antennae-like hair with her index finger.
“I know, you know. I know that even after finishing your cafe job, Onii-chan, you stay up late editing videos. If I rely on you too much, it’ll come back to bite you.”
“Well, I’m not saying you’re relying on me. Yuno, you go to school, work part-time, do household chores, and even study for university. You’re busier than me.”
“Onii-chan is busier.”
“No, Yuno is.”
“Onii-chan!”
“No, Yuno!”
In reality, both of them are busy. This sudden argument arises from their mutual concern for each other.
The battle of not giving in continues in the living room for about a minute.
“Bzzz…” Haruto’s smartphone, which was placed on the table, vibrates.
“Oh…”
Whether it can be called good timing or not, this becomes the trigger that signals the end of their battle.
“Notification?”
“Yeah. I’ve set it so that I only receive personal messages because there have been some disturbances. Only people I follow back can send me direct messages on my Twitter account.”
In other words, it inevitably becomes messages from people with whom he has some connection.
“I wonder who it is.”
He voices his thoughts and checks the notification. Ac_Ayaya’s name catches his eye.
Tapping on the screen to view the message, he finds a message that doesn’t seem like something you would expect from a streamer with over 300,000 subscribers.
“Hey, Oni-chan! When can we collaborate again? I was thinking if we could adjust our schedules soon, but is it difficult?”
Haruto, currently with 180,000 subscribers, knows that he can’t match Ayaya’s numbers, and there’s little benefit for her to collaborate with him. However, she is taking the initiative to coordinate their schedules.
“…”
“Hey, Onii-chan. Is that an email from a girl?”
“Huh? How did you know…?”
“Because you were looking at the screen with a happy expression.”
When he raises his head from his phone, he sees Yuno, resting her cheek on her hand and giving him a side glance.
“It’s not that I’m happy just because it’s from a girl. I’m happy because of the content of the message.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“I am. It’s a message saying that she wants to collaborate with me.”
“Huh?”
Yuno raises her eyebrows in surprise, then her expression becomes complex.
“It seems like it’s going to be noisy…? If someone who can collaborate with Onii-chan also engages in provocation.”
“No, that’s just how pro gamers are.”
“A pro gamer!? Is that okay…? I understand that Onii-chan, you are playing the role of a villain for my sake, but won’t people misunderstand and think, ‘She’s collaborating with someone who does bad things, so this person must also condone trolling!’?”
“Well… um… I think it’ll be fine.”
The words Yuno just said were also in Haruto’s mind.
That’s why he had been working alone without collaborating with anyone, but things were different now.
After the broadcasting accident, where his business trolling was exposed to viewers, he couldn’t continue that way.
“Is that so? If it’s okay, you should reply right away. She’s an important person after all.”
“Yeah… I’ll reply once I wash my dishes.”
“I’ll wash them, so reply quickly!”
“Haha, understood. Thanks for being considerate.”
From here, they discuss their work.
Haruto takes his phone to the gaming room and, while looking at his work shift schedule, coordinates schedules with Ayaya.
After safely settling on a collaboration schedule and using the remaining time to get closer through casual conversation, Ayaya suddenly sends this message:
“Hey, I know this is out of the blue, but are you good at giving relationship advice, Oni-chan?”
“Relationship advice?”
“For example, how to get along with someone you’re interested in!”
“Huh?”
“Don’t get the wrong idea! This is not about me, it’s about a friend! My friend was in trouble and I could only give normal advice, so I’m really troubled!”
She emphasizes that it’s about her friend with a mysterious tone, adding, “I want to hear opinions from the opposite s*x too!”
She starts telling him about this person.