The Correct Japanese Terms of Homestay Seems to Be Marriage - Chapter 6

I Didn’t Hear About This

“Right, have you decided on a school to attend yet?”

Suddenly remembering to ask, Keitaro twisted his neck to inquire of Sophia. An indefinite homestay would undoubtedly have different considerations from before. In fact, it’s questionable whether such an unusual arrangement could even be called a homestay.

“Yes. Of course, I’ll be attending the same school as Keitaro.”

Sophia answered smoothly, as if it were a matter of course.

“Seriously? Our school is pretty competitive, Sophia. You’re amazing.”

“Ehehe, I did my best. You can praise me more, you know?”

“Your Japanese has gotten so fluent; you really have been working hard. Good job.”

Keitaro gently stroked Sophia’s head, which was thrust forward, appreciating her efforts up until now.

Anyone could tell it was a gesture he was accustomed to, likely how he always interacted with Sophia when they were children.

Sophia, being stroked by Keitaro, grinned blissfully. If Sophia were a dog, she would probably be wagging her tail so hard it might come off.

“Huh, don’t be ridiculous. It’s not just some competitive school. Our Eihou Academy is a super-competitive school with one of the nation’s top academic achievements. Eventually, it will become the number one school in Japan… no, the world.”

“Wait, Sophia’s coming to Eihou? That’s amazing. I heard the transfer exams are brutally difficult.”

“Yes, it was very, very difficult, but somehow I managed to pass. I was lucky.”

Hiroshi proudly adjusted his glasses, and Tsubaki let out an impressed sigh.

Sophia was being modest, but luck alone wouldn’t be enough to get through the school Keitaro and his friends attended.

(Are those kids Eihou students?)

(So even kids from Eihou talk about things other than studying.)

Just the mention of Eihou changed the reactions of those around them completely. That’s the kind of name value Eihou had.

Eihou Academy.

A pioneering garden of learning created by the world-renowned wealthy Souichi Ichinoyama, aimed at establishing innovative and efficient new-age educational methods.

Though it’s only in its fourteenth year since establishment, it already stands head and shoulders above the rest in the prefecture and boasts one of the highest deviation scores on a national level as a middle and high school.

That’s Eihou Academy, the school Keitaro and his friends attend.

(Maybe that was a social experiment or something like that? Like something out of a psychology study of behavior.)

(Probably. There must be some meaning behind it. After all, they are students from Eihou Academy.)

Under the name of Eihou, even Keitaro’s eccentricities were received positively. It was a clear demonstration of the importance of who rather than what was said.

“I hope I end up in the same class as Keitaro…”

Sophia muttered quietly, and Keitaro shook his head.

“That’s unlikely. If you passed the transfer exam, you’ll probably be placed in Class A, or at least B, right? Right, Class A’s Tsubaki?”

“Yeah, considering the level of the exam, that seems fair. Unfortunately, our school completely segregates classes by academic ability from high school onwards.”

“Hahaha! Keitaro is once again a prime candidate for Class D!”

“That goes for you too…”

Keitaro looked at Hiroshi, who was laughing despite himself, with a look of disdain.

“Aw, that’s too bad…”

Sophia’s eyebrows and shoulders drooped sadly.

“But it’s strange. In Japan, D being the top… it feels out of place.”

“No, normally even in Japan, A is the top rank, and it goes down from there.”

“Then it’s even stranger. Why would Keitaro be in the lowest class?”

Hearing Keitaro’s explanation, Sophia tilted her head with a puzzled expression, reminiscent of a small animal that evokes a protective instinct.

“Why? Because, Sophia, my grades are bad, that’s why.”

Keitaro stated the obvious. With classes divided by academic performance, there’s no reason to be placed in a lower class other than poor grades. Anything else would be nothing short of misconduct.

“Keitaro always lives on the brink of failure. I’m more surprised he hasn’t been held back.”

“Shut it. Except for history, you’re not much better.”

“Still, having no subjects you’re good at is worse than having at least one.”

As Keitaro and Hiroshi bickered over such unimpressive matters,

“That’s so so wrong! Keitaro is a genius! He’s amazing!”

Sophia slammed her hands on the table as if defending her beloved hero, refusing to accept any denial of his greatness.

“…Calm down.”

“But, but…! Keitaro is amazing… absolutely amazing… He’s always been there to save me…”

“Alright, alright. So, hey, calm down.”

Keitaro soothed Sophia by gently stroking her back. Ironically, Keitaro, the one being defended, was the most troubled of all. His heart pounded noisily.

“Though we’ve been stuck together since the third year of middle school… I’ve never once thought of him as a genius…”

“Hiroshi…”

“Yeah, yeah! If he passed Eihou’s entrance exam, I can see how he was treated as a genius in his younger years! Even I was hailed as a prodigy back in my hometown! Ah, those were the days!”

After receiving a sharp glance from Tsubaki, Hiroshi hastily came to Keitaro’s defense.

“I agree with Sophia. Keitaro always seems to be holding back, always keeping some reserve. I’d like to see Keitaro’s full effort for once.”

“Don’t make me laugh. I’m always giving my all. As serious as a high school baseball player.”

Keitaro sighed at Tsubaki’s overestimation, viewing him as nothing more than a slacker.

“That’s right! Keitaro is amazing! When I first met Keitaro, we couldn’t communicate at all because we didn’t speak each other’s languages. But just three days later, Keitaro was able to speak English!”

“Wait, Keitaro, is that true? But your English grades are just…”

Prompted by Tsubaki’s words, Sophia proudly began to boast about Keitaro, which surprised Hiroshi.

“Ah… don’t get the wrong idea. It was just the bare minimum for conversation. I just memorized a few frequently used sentence patterns and fitted simple words into them. It was more like a puzzle than language. My English was barely coherent.”

After a deep sigh, Keitaro casually dismissed the notion. He implied that what he did wasn’t anything special.

“Even so, that’s not something ordinary people can do. Keitaro really is… Keitaro.”

Hearing this, Tsubaki seemed pleased for some reason, saying something incomprehensible to Keitaro.

“But then, ten days later, I no longer felt any discomfort with Keitaro’s English.”

“That’s just your memory playing tricks. It was definitely terrible English. And now I’ve completely forgotten it. I’m too scared to even give directions to tourists.”

No matter how much he was praised, Keitaro never seemed proud. He never exaggerated his achievements, but he also never compromised in belittling himself.

“Hmm…”

Sophia appeared to be glaring at Keitaro for constantly undervaluing himself, but with her cheeks puffed up like a squirrel, it just looked adorable.

“You know, even though Keitaro’s test scores are never great, he’s never once failed. I think he might be the only student in Class D who didn’t have to take any makeup exams or remedial classes last year. It’s weird how he scores low across all subjects but never fails.”

“Now that you mention it, it is curious. I thought he was just lucky to be skating on thin ice… But now it feels a bit strange…?”

“I do study a bit, of course. And I pray a lot. All thanks to the devout prayers to the myriad of gods. I can’t thank them enough.”

For Keitaro, who prioritizes living as an unremarkable person, the conversation is moving in an unwelcome direction.

With Sophia proudly talking about him, the focus inevitably shifted to Keitaro.

(…This is bad. All the efforts I’ve made up until today are about to go to waste.)

This wasn’t good. He had to cut off this line of conversation immediately.

(There’s only one way to change this awkward situation.)

Determined to escape this predicament, Keitaro decided to forcefully change the subject. If he needed to divert attention away from himself, Sophia was the only option.

Keitaro spoke up.

“By the way, Sophia, you were heading to our house, right? Do you have the keys?”

“Yes, I do. I received them from Sae-san.”

“Well, that’s good. But seriously, mom, at least you could’ve taken Sophia to the house. Making her walk with all that luggage and even take the train, don’t you feel sorry for her?”

“Please don’t be so angry, Keitaro. Sae-san was busy, so it can’t be helped. Besides, thanks to that, I was able to reunite with Keitaro a bit earlier.”

Successfully diverting the topic, Keitaro was relieved, but now he was annoyed at his mother’s irresponsibility, so it was a wash.

“Ah, you blatantly changed the topic.”

“Huh, a spare key… and it’s parent-approved… Keitaro, you…! How envious can one person be…!”

Tsubaki noticed Keitaro’s intentions, but Hiroshi had already forgotten the previous conversation, consumed by jealousy. Everything was going as Keitaro predicted.

“Even if she was busy, she should’ve had time to take you home.”

“No, it was impossible. The check-in time was almost right after I arrived. We barely had time to talk and for me to receive the keys.”

Sophia’s words made Keitaro freeze. He sensed a critical word amidst her speech. What was this “check-in” she mentioned?

“…Huh? Check-in for what?”

“Of course, for the airport.”

Responding with a puzzled look, Sophia answered Keitaro’s question. Why would his mother have anything to do with the airport? Keitaro’s mind was once again filled with questions.

“Sae-san is going to England today. She’ll be staying there for a while to help Akira-san with his work.”

The significant news was delivered not by his mother or father but by Sophia. Keitaro felt a severe dizziness hit him. His vision even darkened for a moment.

“Oh, she also said she might not be able to return until we graduate.”

Another bombshell. Unable to bear it, Keitaro buried his head in his arms on the table. He wasn’t robust enough to accept this reality all at once.

(Two whole years, huh…! Those free spirits…!)

With a loud thud, Keitaro banged his forehead on the desk. He tried to forget everything, but all he ended up was hurting his head.

tln : long chapter…