What If You Spoil a High School Girl Who Looks Like a Landmine? - Volume 1 Chapter 4.5

Fight a monster with a monster 5

“I’m sorry… for disturbing you…”

“No, it’s fine. It also helps me out.”

Tap- tap- tap- tap.

There’s a rhythmic tapping sound.

“You’ve been working so hard lately, I can see why you’re feeling the backlash.”

“If you say so…”

Raihara-san, whose voice seems timid, is currently cooking in my kitchen.

I received a message saying something like ‘I’m sorry, I’m experiencing withdrawal symptoms’ on a Wednesday evening after work.

Raihara-san had been making positive changes recently, confidently expressing her preferences about movies or inviting people to places she wanted to visit.

However, it seems like this surge of confidence had a counter-reaction.

Just like the previous cheat day, she asked if she could do something for me and is now cooking.

“…Do you always cook, Chifuji-san?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

I live with my mother, but she’s often not home.

Household chores are my responsibility.

So, seeing someone else cooking in my kitchen… How many years has it been since I’ve witnessed such a scene?

The last time Raihara-san made porridge and some other dishes for me, I was asleep in my room and didn’t see it.

“I try to cook, but I don’t really improve much. Raihara-san, you’re quite good.”

“R-really?”

“Yes, the lunchbox you made was also delicious. It has a taste that makes me feel pleasant.”

“…I’m glad to hear that.”

The rhythm of the knife chopping falters slightly. I might have said something strange while she was cooking.

I’m sorry, but it’s the truth. The meals I prepare for myself always give off a vibe of ‘as long as it’s edible, it’s fine.’

Compared to that, Raihara-san’s cooking seems to be infused with genuine hospitality and consideration——and I feel it deeply in my heart.

I wonder if it’s because I’m not used to eating such food with so much care and thought?

“…..”

The day has grown quite long, but it’s not yet dusk.

The reddish light from the setting sun pours into the room.

The delicious aroma from the pot on the stove fills the air, accompanied by a consistent rhythmic sound.

Such a scene, perhaps it might also be in my future… No.

…thinking like that really gets to me. My eyes are getting a little misty…

“…Um, Chifuji-san. I’m sorry…”

“Uh, what’s wrong?”

“…Well, I… I’m having so much fun cooking that I can’t stop…! I love cooking for someone else… If it’s alright, not only for today’s dinner, but I also want to prepare some dishes in advance…”

I had thought that my intense staring might have been bothering her, but it turned out to be a completely different issue, and this is so typical of Raihara-san.

Since today is another ‘cheat day,’ it’s probably best to let her do as she pleases.

Of course, for me, the opportunity to eat more of Raihara-san’s cooking is very welcome.

“I’d appreciate that. I’m looking forward to it. …Ah, do you have enough ingredients?”

“…Well…sorry, I might be running a bit short.”

“I guess so. I’ll go buy some.”

The supermarket is quite nearby.

She sent me a list of the missing items via a message on my phone, and I headed out to shop.

“…Having someone cook for me at home, huh?”

On my way, I felt a strange emotion, but I quickly finished my shopping.

When I returned, there were already many dishes prepared.

“Raihara-san, I actually have a concern.”

“What?! What is it!? Is there something I can do?”

“…At this rate, I might end up loving eating so much that I’ll gain weight.”

“Geez… ahaha, then I guess I have to cook more!”

Raihara-san laughed at my silly comment which was delivered with a serious expression.

…In truth, there was another concern that I couldn’t voice.

When Raihara-san’s prepared meals run out, I might get disheartened by the blandness of my own cooking.

But I couldn’t possibly say that out loud.

***

『And, this goes in the refrigerator…』

“…..”

There’s a bit of static noise, but it’s tolerable.

『Now then…』

Following the voice, the sound of dishes being washed comes through.

Subtle murmurs and sounds of everyday life seemingly made without consciousness.

Right now, I’m listening to these sounds which weren’t meant for someone else to hear through my earphones.

“…..”

After finishing cooking at Chifuji-san’s place and being given a ride to my home not far away, I arrived here.

This place, a small park, is located about a hundred meters from Chifuji-san’s residence.

The sun had completely set, with only the light from a single streetlamp illuminating the surroundings.

The sounds of dishes being washed continue to flow from the earphones, unchanged.

In the dimly lit landscape, I was listening to the sound I had obtained through shady means.

While Chifuji-san was out shopping for ingredients, I had planted a listening device.

It captures real-time audio and transmits it within a radius of about a hundred meters.

I’m doing something wrong. Not just ethically but legally as well.

Yet, knowing that, I…

『…Hmm, hello?』

” …! “

There was just something, something I desperately needed to hear——

『Me? I just finished washing the dishes from dinner. Right now? Ah, I’m good. Let’s do it.』

“…..”

『Oh, right, that event started. Should I participate in it? …Oh, is that so? Then, let’s do it.』

It seems that, right away, it turned out to be a precisely targeted moment.

Playing games together in the evening. With a junior from his workplace, and it’s a girl.

『…Is this lineup okay? Hm? I’ve only done the free gacha draws, you know…Oh, is that how it is? Hmm, then I’ll work on it later…』

I don’t really understand the game.

『Haha! No, sorry, sorry, I made a mistake… Oh, nice! That’s some great aggression there… Haha, really?』

I can feel that they’re having a good time.

With a casual tone, joking around here and there, the two of them are enjoying their game together.

In contrast, I’m here alone in this dimly lit park, realizing just how distant my relationship with him is compared to that girl’s.

I wanted to know——I needed to confront the truth.

Even if I clenched the receiver so tightly that it creaked, even if the taste of blood persisted from my bitten lip.

If I don’t know how much I’m losing, after all, I can’t win.

I can’t help but laugh at my own thoughts…

Win? Me?

It’s not even a matter of whether I stand a chance.

Should I even be thinking of winning?

“…Me…”

I love him.

Amidst his strong, kind, and mature demeanor, there was a distorted and fragile vulnerability——a bomb that went off right at my feet when I was drawn to it and stepped closer.

In other words, I fell in love as if stepping on a landmine.

The problem is that I ended up being a genuine Jirai-kei (Landmine type) with quite a problematic nature.

Honestly, I truly don’t wish for him to do everything just for me without even sparing a glance at other women.

However, I genuinely want to be the one to handle everything about him, and I wish from the bottom of my heart that he doesn’t give even a single thing to another woman.

For that, I’d disregard both ethics and the law, and I’d effortlessly lie——

“…..”

If there’s pain and hurt within him… if he’s bleeding, I want to do everything I can for him.

However, I couldn’t convince myself that a woman like me deserved that right or was in a position to earn it.

I want him to be happy.

Because I wish for his happiness, I’m clear about it.

Raihara Amane is a visible landmine.