Volume 1 Chapter 5

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♥

The first strategy.

“The fussy thirty year old drunk strategy.”

This… Will be difficult.

It’s embarrassing when a woman of high age drinks until she drops. But I’m pretty sure that even a 100 year old love will immediately break the moment they see a deplorable drunk.

That’s why.

The day Takkun came to give lessons to Miu, I carried out my plan.

While they were studying on the second floor… I started drinking.

I still had half of the expensive wine from the other day… And I drank it directly from the bottle.

I drank, drank and drank.

Without even enjoying the taste of it. Not even its mellowness nor the characteristic fruity aroma from a fine wine. I drank the rest of the bottle in the worst way possible.

When Takkun came down from the second floor, the bottle was already empty…

And I was completely drunk.

“Excuse me, Ayako-san, Miu wants something to drink… Eh?!”

After coming down to get something to drink, Takkun opened the living room’s door and yelled in surprise.

Probably because he found me slumped over the table.

“Ah~… T-Takkun…?”

I desperately tried to get up from the table, but I had no strength to do it.

My body was staggering, and everything was spinning for me.

Ah…

I guess I’m completely drunk.

Or rather… I felt awful. I had drunk too much alcohol at a rhythm that I had never drunk before, so my stomach was mess.

“A-Are you okay?”

“I-I’m cmpleteeelyy okaayyyy. J-Just a littleee biiit tipsyyy.”

“The remaining wine from the other day… Did you drink all of it alone?”

“Yup, I drank it all and got drunk.”

I felt awful, but I managed to make my dazed head work and act like a drunk.

I played the role of a raging alcoholic.

“You see… I’ve been hiding it until now, but actually, I drink very often on my own. I like to drink until I pass out…”

“Eh? But… Ayako-san, you don’t drink a lot, do you?”

“I do drink! I do drink! I’ve been hiding it until now, but I actually drink a ton! I love going to bars! I love to down a jug of vodka in one gulp!”

“I think they serve vodkas in shots, not jugs.”

“But I’m more into tequila with lemon!”

“Isn’t it tequila with lime…?”

“And I also love that popular hairball!”

“You mean highball, I think…” (TLN: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highball)

Damn it!

I wanted to be an alcoholic, but I actually didn’t know much about alcohol!

“A-A-A-Anyways, I like to drink! Ever since I started working, I’ve been coping with work stress with alcohol. I go drink here and there on the way home, and sometimes I don’t even return until morning—”

“What are you talking about?” I kept rambling without stop until Takkun smiled ironically and said “You yourself said you hadn’t drank much until recently.”

“Eh…?”

“You said you had rejected every drinking party from your company because Miu was still too young.”

“Well…”

“Even when you had dinner in our house… My dad offered you a cup, but you firmly denied. You said ‘What if something happens to Miu in the middle of the night, it would be a problem if I can’t drive.”

“…”

Certainly… I had rejected drinking alcohol for a long time.

Because if Miu got sick or hurt at night, I couldn’t drive the car.

In an urban city like the one we live in, cars are an absolute necessity. In our family of two, if I couldn’t drive, it would be really bad in the case of an emergency.

That’s why I tried not to drink as much as possible.

It was right after Miu’s high school entrance exam that I lifted the alcohol prohibition.

“S-So you remember that…”

“I do.” said Takkun. “Because I’ve been observing you for a long time.”

“…”

My heated face from the wine became even hotter.

“W-Well… I didn’t use to drink, but, uhm, that’s why—Aagh.”

I couldn’t look at his face and tried to get up from the chair to run away, but I got dizzy and lost my balance. It seems I was too drunk.

“A-Are you alright?!”

Immediately, Takkun held me by the shoulders so that I wouldn’t fall.

“It seems you’re pretty drunk. You can’t even speak properly…”

I had been acting like a drunk, so he seemed to conclude that my incoherent words and actions were due to my drunkenness.

I felt relieved, but complicated at the same time…

“I understand you wanted to drink that entire expensive wine by yourself, but you should drink moderately.”

“…Y-Yes…”

I was scolded by a twenty year old boy. Uuh… It’s not like that! Who does he think is responsible for what’s happening?!

“For now, let me carry you to your room.”

“Eh…? I-I’m alright! I can walk on my own…”

I put up a strong front and shook my hands, but my legs were shaking, so Takkun ended up supporting me again.

“E-Eh…? Ah… W-Well, maybe I can’t… No, I-I can manage on my own.”

“…Excuse me.” he muttered with a determined voice and… he lifted me up.

Takkun lifted me up in his arms.

He was holding me on the shoulders with one hand and the other was behind my knees.

He was doing a princess carry…

“E-Eeehhhhh?! W-What are you doing, Takkun?!”

“I’m sorry… It’s dangerous to leave you by yourself.”

“But…”

I’m so embarrassed!

I can’t believe I’m being princess carried at my age!

“…Am I not heavy?”

“Not at all, you’re very light.”

Having said that, he really lifted me up easily.

“I’ll take you to your room then.”

“…Yes.”

With nothing more to say, I nodded.

I was supposed to show him how bad I was after getting drunk… But for some reason, it was me who ended up seeing how kind and reliable he could be.

The fussy thirty year old drunk strategy—Failed.

The second strategy.

The thirty year old money waster strategy.

This… will be difficult.

A woman that wastes money in brand products and only likes to go to expensive restaurants isn’t probably the type of woman that a man would like.

In fact, even I find a woman like that annoying.

Well, if it’s a professional woman like Oinomori-san, who created her own company and makes a lot of money, she’s free to spend her money however she wants. But if a regular worker like me starts spending money left and right, it will be seen by others as a shameful act.

Takkun will definitely be disappointed if he finds out I’m an egotistical spender.

That’s why.

In order to pretend that I’m a wasteful woman, I was going to pick and buy brand products that I didn’t care about online… Or that was supposed to be the case.

I was in the middle of having an internal conflict with myself.

“Uuhh… Aahh…” I moaned in the living room’s sofa.

I had my phone on my hands.

The screen showed the website of a store, and with a tap of the screen, the sale would be confirmed… But an hour and a half had passed by without being able to touch it.

“Eeehh… Uwaaa… “T-This costs twenty thousand…? For such a small bag… T-Twenty thousand…?”

To summarize what was happening, I thought of buying a purse from a famous brand that everyone knows, but when I saw the price, my eyes almost fell out.

It was very expensive.

Even the cheapest purse was too expensive.

What the hell was this?

Twenty thousand yen for a purse?

Of course, it wasn’t like I couldn’t afford it with my budget… But we weren’t so rich.

Miu had just entered high school and we’ll have to spend much more money later on. I’d like for her to go to university, and if possible, without the need of a scholarship. That’s why, I wanted to start saving up right now…

So… Could I afford the luxury of wasting money right now?

“Uuhh… Aaahh… It’s not worth it…”

After agonizing for so long, I tapped the screen to cancel the sale.

The thirty year old money waster strategy—Voluntarily aborted.

The third strategy.

…The great strategy I didn’t want to use.

This strategy… was my last resort.

But due to my constant failures… I had no choice but to do this.

For me… this was a strategy that required the will to risk my life.

The two previous plans… The drunk, and the spender, in a certain way, had been overly acted.

However… This time was different.

With this third strategy of mine, I’ll reveal everything about me.

I’ll show him who I really am without hiding anything.

In exchange, what I’ll lose is immeasurable.

But even then… I had no choice but to do it.

I must show Takkun the real me and shatter his illusions…

Upon making up my mind and making all preparations, I called Takkun.

“Ayako-san, what did you want to show—?”

When he entered and opened the door to the living room, he was frozen. His eyes and mouth were fully open.

“Shine, solitary silver bullet! Love Kaiser Solitaire!”

I said.

Yes, it was me who just said that.

In the middle of the living room, leaving behind my shame, my dignity and everything, I yelled with all my strength.

I yelled the name of an anime character while posing.

I was dressed in an outfit that seemed to be made for young girls, with frills and shiny ornaments.

And on my hand, I had a flashy and colorful gun which was a transformation item, that looked like a weapon.

“A-Ayako-san…”

“…Fu… Fufu… so you’ve finally seen it, Takkun” I said with a dry voice to the surprised boy.

Well, it’s not that he saw it, but rather I showed it to him, but that’s beside the point.

“This is… m-my true self.”

Even though I was still doing cosplay, my attitude went back to the same as always.

All the energy I had to become an anime character was exhausted instantly.

“I’ve been hiding it my entire life… But actually, I like the anime ‘Love Kaiser.’ I like it a lot… I’m an otaku that buys toys and clothes at my age… And I’m already above thirty…”

Suppressing my inner feelings and hesitations, I revealed my secret.

Love Kaiser.

It was an anime for girls that was aired on Sunday mornings. The story is about a magical girl that obtained a transformation item and fought against villains. The 14^th season is airing right now, ‘Love Kaiser Vegetable,’ which is about samurais and vegetables.

And I… was very into the ‘Love Kaiser’ series.

I record each episode every week and I watch it at least 3 times.

“At first… I only watched it because of Miu. When I started taking care of her, she liked the show like any other girl, so I started watching it with her. We used to watch it together every week…”

That was 10 years ago…

After we started living together, I wanted to get closer to her and share things together, so I started watching the shows she liked.

At the time, the 4^th season had just started airing, ‘Love Kaiser Joker.’

And then… My addiction with the show started.

“As a result… I ended up falling in love with the series.”

—Heh… Girls’ anime nowadays are incredible.

—During my childhood, they were completely different. Now they move so fluidly.

—…Amazing.

The story was so elaborate and had such a deep plot that it was hard to believe it was for children.

—…Eh? Eh? No way… What’s with that unexpected twist?! And, don’t tell me… All of this is just the first chapter?! H-How incredible! I have to buy every season of this!

—…Wow. Amazing! They even have merchandise for adults!

It was something like that.

I started watching girls’ anime for Miu, but in the end, I ended up getting more hooked than Miu herself.

“When Miu entered middle school… No, when she was on her last years in elementary, she stopped watching them… But I… didn’t. Even now, I watch it alone. And I go watch their movies in secret every year… And I often buy merchandise for adults from ‘Premium Danbai’…”

I looked at myself.

A costume with frills predominantly black and a transformation gun with decorations.

I bought everything in PreDan.

PreDan… Short for ‘Premium Danbai,’ a sale site for adults managed by the famous toy maker company, Danbai.

There, they sold many products from shows and animes that were pretty expensive and high quality. And I… was a habitual client.

I hesitated a lot on buying that brand name purse, but these types of products made me open my wallet easily.

“And so…? What do you think Takkun? This is… My true self. At my age, I’m obsessed with girls’ anime and I secretly do cosplay… This is me.” I said.

I exposed my biggest secret to its fullest extent.

I was so embarrassed and hollow that I wanted to cry… But that’s fine.

With this, I’ll destroy all of Takkun’s illusions.

As a thirty year old obsessed with kids’ anime, there’s no way he’d like me…

“Uhm…”

Finally.

After being silent for a long time, Takkun opened his mouth.

Looking at my cosplay, he smiled.

“That’s Hiyumi Kuinajima’s outfit when she transforms in ‘Love Kaiser Solitaire,’ isn’t it?”

“…Eh?”

“Even after 10 years, Kuinajima is still popular. They regularly keep releasing merch of her and she even made a surprise appearance in the movie last summer.”

“T-That’s right! Hiyumin showed up in the movie last summer! It was a big surprise because no one had announced it and it caused a commotion in the movie theater the opening day! I was so surprised that I couldn’t help but cry! Even the voice actress was the same! …Eh?”

I got carried away without thinking but composed myself halfway.

And stared straight into Takkun’s face.

“H-How do you know that? About Hiyumin and her outfit.”

“Well, that’s… because I also watch ‘Love Kaiser’ every week.”

“E-Eeehhhh?!”

While I was surprised, Takkun continued.

“Actually… I already knew. That you liked ‘Love Kaiser’ I mean.”

“…Eehhh?!”

He knew?!

About my embarrassing hobby?!

“H-H-H-How…?”

“Miu used to complain about it all the time. About how you secretly bought all types of products and cosplayed in your room, and also how you persistently kept inviting her to the movies and events.”

M-Miu…!

Why did you expose that embarrassing part of your mother to our neighbor?!

“Well, I’ve always been a bit of an otaku, and in general I like anime and manga… So, I thought that if you liked that anime, I would also like to watch it and started the series from the first season… It was quite interesting, and I became a fan.” he said, scratching his cheek and smiling shily.

I was so surprised that my mind wasn’t thinking.

Takkun knew.

He knew, as if it was the most natural thing ever, about how I was hiding that embarrassing hobby desperately.

And in fact… tried to understand me.

Without hate or prejudice, he tried to understand what I liked…

“‘Love Kaiser’ is a very interesting series. At the beginning, I thought it was for kids and wasn’t expecting much, but it had surprisingly deep and serious themes… But in the end, I think it’s better that it’s for kids.”

“Y-Yes! Exactly! It’s important for the series to be for kids! It’s so cool that they heavily pushed for it, despite the problematic limitations they would’ve had like the toy making and the pressure from the Education Department!”

I was excited and got carried away.

And then, Takkun looked at the toy gun I had on my hand.

“That’s… the transformation item of ‘Love Kaiser Solitaire,’ isn’t it? If I’m not wrong, it was a limited edition from PreDan, quite expensive too…”

“Y-Yes… This toy wasn’t released when the anime was airing… It was released a few years later for fans… It’s worth around fifty thousand…”

“Fifty thousand…?”

“B-But the quality is worth the price! They recreated everything to the smallest detail and it really feels like an item from the anime! If you press here, it plays the voice from the voice actress!”

“—Here’s my trump card… Revert!”

“Wow, that’s so cool! That’s… That’s the famous line from episode 36, isn’t it?!”

“That’s right! It’s the famous line from episode 36! It has a lot of other famous lines recorded! Furthermore, if you press here, it plays the main theme!”

“I see… The price makes sense now.”

“Makes sense, right?!”

“Ayako-san, is Hiyumi Kuinajima your favorite?”

“I guess so… She went through all kinds of ups and downs, so at the end I became a big fan of Hiyumin. ‘Love Kaiser Joker’ is definitely a masterpiece. I don’t think it’s possible in this day and age to have the ‘Love Kaisers’ fight and kill each other until only one is left. But 10 years ago, the producers did. And in that crude world in which almost every week someone died, Hiyumi Kuinajima transformed into ‘Love Kaiser Solitaire,’ a secondary character so to say… But in any case, she’s extremely cool!”

“Yes, she’s cool. Initially, she was cold and had the air of a lone wolf, but bit by bit, she started to show a warm side to her teammates… And later, in the middle of the show.”

“Yes, in the middle of the show she fell into darkness! It was so sublime to see her return to the world of light after falling to the depths of hell!”

“Yes, she was really cool and sublime. Uwaa, what do I do? From talking so much about it, I want to watch ‘Love Kaiser Joker’ again.”

“Do it! Watch it! I have all the blu-rays! You can borrow them… No, wait, I’ll watch it together with you too! Let’s arrange a marathon!”

“Y-You sure?”

“Of course! I’d be happy to watch it with you! Oh, I know! Let’s go watch the movie this summer together! Until now, it was really embarrassing for me to go alone… But it would be comforting to go with you!

“Yes! Let’s go together!”

“It’s a promise then! You can’t take it back now!”

After that, we talked about Love Kaiser, the anime which I’ve been hooked to since I was 20… It was the first time I spoke about this hobby with someone else, and of course, it was fun and enjoyable.

After making that passionate promise of going to watch the summer movie together and watching Takkun leave… I was very regretful.

“…No… Why? How did that happen?” I held my deeply dejected head in the living room.

Why?

How the hell did this happen?

I was supposed to make him hate me, so, how did we set up a date?

Furthermore, it was me who invited him.

“Uuuhh… Everything is Takkun’s fault… Because he said he liked Love Kaiser… Listening that made me really happy! After all, it’s a hobby I’ve been hiding all this time…”

But even then, I can’t believe he accepted.

I thought it was an embarrassing hobby, but it turned out to be a hobby we shared…

“Although Miu always makes fun of me…”

“Of course I’m going to make fun of you.”

I hadn’t realized.

That Miu had already returned from school and was standing there in the living room.

It seemed like she was already used to seeing me laying in the couch that she didn’t even say anything. She simply looked at me in amazement.

“After all, my mom is addicted to a girls’ anime, goes to the theater to see their movies every year and even buys their merch.”

“M-Miu…”

“Well, everyone is free to have their own hobbies. But I would like you to stop inviting me. I don’t want to do something that I don’t care about.”

“B-But… What else can I do? If I went to the movies or a Love Kaiser event on my own… How do I say it… I’d feel out of place! I could keep going with a face of ‘I only came here to grab some things for my daughter,’ but even that has a limit! It’s much easier to go with someone!”

“Then, why don’t you go with Taku-nii from now on?”

“W-Well…”

My words didn’t come out and I couldn’t say anything back.

Miu sighed deeply.

“It looks like your great strategy to make Taku-nii hate you didn’t go that well.” she said.

Once again, I couldn’t say anything back.

It’s like she said, all my strategies had been a failure until now.

I was convinced that if I showed him my most embarrassing side, he would be disappointed, but that wasn’t the case at all.

Rather, it was the opposite… I feel that we got even closer.

I feel that we are becoming more and more compatible.

“B-But my strategy has just started! I have a lot of defects, so from now on, I’ll try to ruin his image of me—”

“Listen.” Miu interrupted me.

With a voice that exuded some wrath and went beyond mere exasperation.

“How long do you plan to keep running away?”

“Eh…?”

I was perplexed.

I didn’t understand the meaning of her words.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. If you want to continue with that attitude, I have an idea.”

Ignoring my perplexity, Miu went to the second floor.

Extra (Shout out to Bry19an for doing the heavy lifting with the design by the way):

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