7. Nowadays, even the protagonist needs a family

It was 7 PM by the time I got home.

The Akiba residence was just a two-station train ride away from Akihabara—close enough that I could walk it if I really tried.

We moved into this ten-story apartment building two years ago, right after my dad remarried.

The old apartment the two of us used to live in was way too small for a family of four.

Thankfully, the new place was located very close to our old one, so I didn't even have to change schools.

"I'm home," I called out as I stepped inside.

"Ah, welcome back, Nii-san," Ayari greeted me cheerfully.

She appeared from the living room at the end of the hall, sporting a brown ponytail and wearing her loungewear—a tank top and dolphin shorts.

"Ayari, you're dressed way too light," I pointed out, letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Ehh, what's the big deal? It's hot, and I can wear whatever I want in my own house," she argued playfully, entirely unbothered.

As her older brother, I'd at least like her to have some modesty.

"Relaxing in comfortable clothes while listening to music is my little luxury, after all," she added with a smile.

Ayari pulled off her wireless headphones as she spoke.

My step-sister loved music, and she'd often hum along to whatever she was listening to around the house.

"Ah, Nii-san! There's food. I'll get it ready right now," she called out brightly.

"Ah, thanks," I replied.

Truth be told, Ayari was an excellent cook.

She whipped up meals effortlessly, looking entirely in her element, so I had no reservations about letting her feed me.

I wandered into the living room, tossed my backpack aside, and sank into the sofa to check my emails on my phone.

Even though I'd started my own game project, I still had commissioned freelance work to finish.

I'd reached a good stopping point, so I drafted a quick message to my clients, letting them know I'd be pausing all commission requests for the time being.

Whoa, getting some desperate replies already...

Things like, 'It'd be a real problem if you dropped out now,' 'Please, just one piece is fine,' 'If nothing else, at least do the line art,' or even, 'A rough sketch might work.'

"I... I haven't even replied yet," I muttered to myself.

These clients are just lowering the bar entirely on their own.

I'd feel pretty bad leaving them hanging completely. Maybe I should crank out one or two line art pieces.

They seem desperate enough that I could definitely turn this into a favor they'd owe me later.

Working on collaborative projects meant maintaining relationships was key... Though thinking like that made me realize how manipulative I could be sometimes.

"Nii-san! It's ready!" Ayari called out from the kitchen.

I gave a brief nod of acknowledgment and made my way over to the dining table.

"Here you go! Fried rice and soup," she announced, setting down the bowls. "The gyoza was frozen, though."

"Whoa," I breathed out, impressed.

Ayari efficiently arranged the spread of food across the table.

Even if the gyoza was frozen, it was the kind you still had to pan-fry yourself.

Just seeing a warm, home-cooked meal laid out on my own table was enough to move me.

My old man practically lived off junk food despite his age, and I'd been surviving solely on convenience store bento boxes.

I still wasn't used to the luxury of being served a home-cooked meal in my own house.

"Thanks for the food," I said, clasping my hands together.

"Yep, yep! Eat up, eat up!" she urged with a bright smile.

Ayari took her seat across from me, resting her chin in her hands and beaming.

It seemed like my step-sister got an immeasurable amount of joy simply from cooking and watching me eat.

She was an odd one, but having a delicious meal waiting for me was a lifesaver. There was no way in hell I'd complain.

"Yeah, this is amazing," I complimented her after a bite. "I love how you change up the ingredients in your fried rice every time."

"It's so you don't get bored of it, obviously," Ayari replied playfully. "Today's shrimp, so maybe I'll go with something meat-heavy next time!"

"I'll be looking forward to it," I told her honestly.

She could be a handful to deal with sometimes, but since she was so cute around the house, I always ended up being completely honest with her.

"By the way, Nii-san," Ayari asked, tilting her head. "Are you working on something right now?"

"Huh? What kind of question is that?" I asked, caught off guard.

"'Cause the look in your eyes right now... it's the exact same look you had back then," she pointed out, her tone shifting slightly.

"Back when?" I shot back.

"Back when you were making The Mirage's Future Tree, obviously!"

"..." I stayed silent, not really knowing how to respond.

Ayari seemed to be in an exceptionally good mood.

"You literally didn't do anything else but make games back then," she giggled, leaning forward. "Wait a sec. How did you even manage to get into high school, Nii-san?"

"I actually paid attention during class," I explained. "High school entrance exams don't cover anything outside the curriculum, so I figured I'd pass."

"I'm not so sure about that," Ayari replied.

She tilted her head slightly.

Regardless, as long as I didn't waste time during class, I could pour every other waking moment into making games.

I worked relentlessly in the Development Room, and once I got home, I'd eat, take a bath, and immediately go to sleep.

I was only able to live like that because of Ayari.

Even though we had only just become family back then.

"I really am grateful to you, Ayari," I said sincerely. "You didn't just cook for me; you took care of everything around the house. It was a huge help."

"What's with this all of a sudden?" she laughed. "Mama barely ever ate at home either, so doing chores wasn't exactly rewarding. Honestly, I'm lucky Nii-san is so high-maintenance."

"You're totally gonna get caught by some bad guy,"

"You could say I already have," she teased.

"............"

I'm not a bad guy, but I guess I'm definitely a bad older brother.

"I feel like I'd earn some serious grudge points if you ever got a boyfriend," I noted. "If that happens, I'll try not to be such a burden."

"Impossible," she shot back instantly.

"What is?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "You getting a boyfriend? Or...?"

"You not being a burden on me, obviously," she said with a smirk. "After all, Ayari-chan is super popular."

"I can't deny that,"

Noëlle was incredibly popular in class, but since she intimidated people, surprisingly few guys actually wanted to date her.

When you think about it, Ayari might actually be the most popular girl in our class.

"Well, I won't be getting a boyfriend anytime soon, so I'll just keep being your cute little sister for a while," she declared brightly. "I can get a boyfriend whenever, but I can only play the sister role right now."

"You can be my sister forever, you know," I pointed out. "As long as Dad and Mom don't get divorced."

"Hmm, I don't know about that," she hummed. "Nii-san, we're step-siblings, right? If we got married, we'd be husband and wife, wouldn't we?"

"............!"

I nearly did a spit-take with my fried rice.

"Wh-What the hell are you talking about, Ayari?!" I coughed.

"You don't need to look so shocked," she giggled. "Nii-san, you're a capable guy, so I think it's totally fine if you aim for a cute girl, you know?"

"...Ignoring the fact that you just called yourself cute," I muttered.

Was I really a capable guy?

I mean, I was confident in my art skills, and I had a solid track record as a game creator.

I even managed to get into a decent high school without obsessively studying for the exams... Wait, am I actually a capable guy?

"But still, isn't the whole step-sister thing kinda erotic?" she asked with a sly grin.

"You're saying that too!?"

"Too?" she repeated, blinking.

"Ah, no," I stammered.

Crap, I almost slipped up and exposed Noëlle's ridiculous comments.

"A-Anyway, being erotic and being a step-sister have nothing to do with each other!" I declared, quickly changing the subject. "More importantly... I'm going to start making games again."

"Then I'll make sure to cook delicious meals every day," she smiled warmly. "Should I bring some over to the Development Room?"

"I-I'll pass on the deliveries," I politely declined.

It wasn't that making a game with Noëlle was a secret... I just found it incredibly hard to say out loud.

After all, I was using Noëlle as the model for an eroge heroine...

People might think we were completely out of our minds.

"Hmm..." she hummed suspiciously.

"Wh-What is it, Ayari?"

Ayari was glaring at me with half-lidded eyes.

This step-sister of mine might look all soft and fluffy, but she's actually pretty sharp.

"It's just, Nii-san," she began, "Your games are fun and the art is good, but the heroines aren't cute at all."

"Huh," I blinked, taken aback.

"They just feel like, 'I'm strictly here as part of the story,' you know? That's why you should use a cute girl as a model. Like me, for example," she suggested seamlessly.

"...You really do love yourself, don't you," I sighed.

More importantly, hearing that my heroines weren't cute was a serious shock.

Was using Noëlle as a model the right choice after all...?

"Step-sisters are unconditionally cute, anyway," she continued proudly. "Having a real-life step-sister is a huge advantage, you know."

"I wouldn't say it's unconditiona—n-no, I don't need a model," I stammered, quickly recovering. "There probably won't even be a step-sister character."

"Ehh, and here I thought it was a great idea," she pouted. "But still, if there's anything I can do, just tell me. I'll do anything for my big brother."

"........."

Ayari leaned heavily over the table toward me.

Her cleavage was heavily emphasized by the neckline of her tank top.

This step-sister of mine might not be on Noëlle's level, but she's definitely well-endowed...

"Nii-san..." she murmured, her voice dropping. "Where are you looking?"

"N-Nowhere," I denied instantly. "See, this is exactly why I told you to stop wearing such revealing clothes."

"You were totally looking," she giggled, unfazed. "I don't mind wearing whatever around you, Nii-san...?"

"........."

What the hell is with this weird atmosphere?

She might be my step-sister, but she's still my sister... and a girl in my class—

"I'm home~" a voice called out from the entryway.

".........!"

I immediately tore my eyes away from Ayari's cleavage at the sudden interruption.

The living room door opened shortly after, revealing a woman with black hair tied into a braid.

"Welcome home, Mama," Ayari greeted cheerfully.

"W-Welcome home, Kinu-san,"

Ayari welcomed her mother brightly, as if the strange atmosphere from a moment ago had never even existed.

That's right, this was Akiba Kinu—Ayari's biological mother, and my step-mother.

"I'm back, Ayari, Masato-kun," she smiled.

She was wearing a long-sleeved blouse and jeans, and even the way she walked was brisk and stylish.

Considering she had a sixteen-year-old daughter, she couldn't possibly be that young, but she wouldn't look out of place at all if you said she was in her twenties—no, she looked exactly like a female college student in her twenties.

In eroge and galge, young-looking mothers are practically a given—in fact, finding a mother who actually looks her age is near impossible—but this woman genuinely fell into that category in real life.

Of course, it seemed she put a lot of effort into maintaining her youthful appearance.

"You can just call me Mama too, you know, Masato-kun," she teased.

"Having a high schooler—especially a step-son—call you 'Mama' is just creepy..."

"I wouldn't mind it at all, you know? In fact, it's very welcome!" she insisted enthusiastically.

Kinu-san was looking at me with an expression of pure excitement.

Yeah, even with a face like that, calling her 'Mama' is still way too tough for me.

"Well, that's fine," she conceded smoothly. "I'm just happy I got a cute son out of all this. My daughter might have inherited my cute face, but her personality is just a bit too calculating."

"That's mean, Mama. You make it sound like I'm acting cute on purpose,"

"Are you not?" Kinu tilted her head with a teasing smile.

"I'm not! My cuteness is completely natural! Right, Nii-san?!" Ayari protested loudly.

"Don't drag me into this," I sighed, refusing to play along.

For the record, they say you should never trust someone who claims their cuteness is one hundred percent natural.

"Ah, changing the subject," Kinu suddenly clapped her hands together, "I ran into Yui-chan just down the street."

I blinked in surprise. "Yui? At this hour?"

Yui lived nearby, so bumping into her wasn't entirely out of the question, but... she really wasn't the type to be out and about this late at night.

"Seems like she was going to the supermarket. Yui-chan is going to make a wonderful bride. Good for you, right?" Kinu giggled, resting a hand on her cheek.

"Why are you telling me that...?" I grumbled, shoving a bite of food into my mouth.

"Even if Nii-san doesn't get a good bride, he's got a great little sister, so he's all set," Ayari chimed in, leaning over with a smug grin.

"Oh my, he has a great mother too, you know?" Kinu added smoothly.

"Why are my step-mother and step-sister competing with each other..." I muttered under my breath, shaking my head.

I need to hurry up, finish eating, and escape back to my room.

I still have plenty of work I can do at home.

"Oh, I completely forgot something important," Kinu suddenly spoke up.

I looked up from my plate. "Hm? What is it, Kinu-san?"

"I stopped by the shop today," she began, her tone light, "and one of the part-timers mentioned that it was pretty noisy up on the second floor."

"Ah, sorry," I apologized instinctively.

I naturally ended up apologizing politely. With my step-mother, the formal speech just seemed to slip out on its own.

The 'shop' Kinu-san was referring to was none other than Vierge—or Viju for short.

As it turned out, my step-mother was not only the manager of Vierge, but also the owner of the entire Ota Building.

Her maiden name was Oda, and the building itself was a property owned by her side of the family.

Apparently, her family was wealthy enough to own a prime piece of real estate in the heart of Akihabara and casually hand it over to their daughter.

I didn't share a drop of blood with her family, so I didn't know all the details, but still...

"Junk Soft just picked up a new staff member," I explained. "They started working in the Development Room today. You're running a business on the first floor, so it's probably pretty bad if we're too loud, right?"

Back when I was developing The Mirage's Future Tree, Ayari would pop in to hang out occasionally, but otherwise, I rarely had any other staff coming in and out of the room.

"I don't mind the noise at all," Kinu replied breezily, waving a hand. "Our customers aren't exactly the delicate type to care about that sort of thing anyway."

I gave a stiff nod. "...I see."

Viju was an eroge shop, after all. It certainly wasn't the kind of establishment that demanded a quiet, refined atmosphere.

As the owner, she seemed perfectly content leaving the day-to-day management to the staff, and she didn't appear all that interested in turning a massive profit.

Kinu smiled warmly at me. "But bringing on new staff means you're working on your next game, right? Your mother is looking forward to it too, you know."

"Y-Yeah. You can look forward to it," I forced a slight nod, a nervous sweat forming on my brow.

Even so, the game I was actually making was an eroge.

My step-mother might have been easygoing, but I couldn't even begin to guess how she'd react if she found out what I was really working on.

I'll just keep it a secret for now... not that I'll be able to hide it forever.

"Hehh, a new staff member. A new staff member, huh..." Ayari hummed, a suspiciously sharp glint in her eyes.

"........." I stared at her in silence.

Crap, I've piqued Ayari's interest.

Just like how she constantly went out of her way to mess with me in the classroom, my step-sister had a bad habit of taking an overly keen interest in the people around me.

She might just barge right into the Development Room at this rate... Should I casually mention Ayari to Noëlle beforehand?

What would happen if Noëlle and Ayari ran into each other? And what if my step-sister found out I was making an eroge on top of that...? I really don't want to think about it.