Chapter 32

“How’s it going?”

“Yep!”

Right now, Chubby and I are focusing all our attention to make sure the Beef Wellington doesn’t fail.

Since Pretty Heart is coming home soon, if this fails, we’ll have to order delivery.

But thankfully, because I invested a lot in kitchen equipment, there won’t be any issues with the tools.

“Hello~.”

“Yahoo~!”

Is Pretty Heart already here…?

There’s still some time left, but it seems like good timing.

It’s better to chat a bit before eating rather than just diving in right away.

“Older Sister~!”

“Yeah, sure…”

She hugs me as soon as she sees me…

Do girls usually do this when they get close?

I haven’t seen that before.

“By the way, Older Sister? How did that go?”

“What? The Grand Duke-Class thing?”

“Yeah.”

“You can see it on the news. Since my ability was suited for it, I just took it down easily.”

I didn’t expect the Grand Duke-Class to be that weak.

…Tch, whatever, it’s good that the enemy is weak.

“By the way, I heard your weapon changed! What is it?”

“Huh? Where did you hear that?”

“I saw it on the news, you were slashing down with a huge Energy Blade.”

“Ah… that…”

So everyone saw it and is talking about it…

Well, I used to fight like that, so it’s not something to hide.

“I used to fight like that in the past.”

“Really?!”

“But it was too powerful, so I tried not to rely on it and fought with my fists instead.”

“Is that so?”

“My First Ability is 「Energy Rampage」. And the Energy Blade from a Magical Girl’s wand is very stable and has power close to a technique. What do you think happens if it goes out of control?”

“Ah…”

“Back then, it was too strong, but now just swinging it can split the heavens and earth… I guess you could say that. Anyway, the Energy Blade’s power is proportional to the Magical Girl’s strength.”

Surprisingly, the magic wand itself is part of the Magical Girl’s soul, so the Energy Blade’s power also scales with strength.

Now that the magic wand has been enhanced, I don’t know how far it can go if it goes out of control, so it’s better not to use it.

But why is Pretty Heart staring at the oven so intently?

…Ah, she’s curious about what’s being made.

“Is it that interesting?”

“Yes, yes…”

“Alright. It’s almost done, and we were planning to eat soon… Chubby!”

“Yes! It’s done!”

“Alright, bring it over.”

“What is it?”

“Beef Wellington.”

“Really?!”

Oh, it’s cooked well.

And… yeah, the bottom is cooked well too, so there won’t be any terrible undercooked incidents.

If the inside is raw or rare, I’ll really cry.

“Wow…”

“Made it well, right?”

“Can I cut it?”

“Go ahead.”

Oh… the meat’s cross-section is a nice pink color.

It’s great that even a beginner can make something like this with good tools.

The oven evenly distributes heat and cooks it perfectly on time.

All we did was make the duxelles and prepare the meat.

The rest was just laying it out and brushing it.

The leftover parts will be cooked by Chubby, so no problem there.

“I followed a video. It turned out well.”

“Hurry… hurry and eat!”

“Ah, right… you’re in a hurry…”

Wow… she’s taking four pieces?

I think I’d be full with just one.

She really eats a lot.

“I’ll enjoy it!”

“Sure. By the way, how’s the Earl-Class extermination going these days?”

“Hmm~… Demons are easy, but Monsters are a bit tough.”

“Well, they’re as intelligent as humans. It requires more combat sense.”

This is really delicious.

No wonder it’s such a famous dish.

But just eating this feels a bit lacking.

“By the way, did you know?”

“What?”

“A new ice cream arrived at the Magical Girl Store!”

“I know.”

“…Really? You?”

“What do you take me for… I already tried it before it arrived. It was really good.”

“Ah! That’s so mean! I wanted to try it with you…”

Getting upset over something like that…

Sigh, I guess I have no choice.

I’ll have to tell a little white lie.

“Well, it was just a taste. I had a bite of what the Fairy Queen was eating. I want to try it again.”

“…! Then… would you like to have some with me?”

“Sure.”

“Hehe~.”

Ah, really… why is everyone around me so weird…

Friends who only like older women, Diamond Dust who seems to be suffering from depression, Pretty Heart who’s oddly obsessed with me, Gravity who’s always in pajamas with a rabbit set, Magical Typhoon who’s overly enthusiastic…

Not a single normal friendship.

My life is ruined.

“By the way, this is really delicious, is it really your first time making it?”

“Yeah. Two beginners worked hard on it.”

“Wow…”

Wait, she’s already finished two pieces?

I haven’t even finished half… how much can she eat?

It’s really amazing…

“Thank you for the meal~.”

“Let’s have some ice cream.”

“Okay~.”

…Having ice cream is fine, but why is she hugging me again?

It’s uncomfortable, but she’s sitting on my lap and hugging me.

And why is she feeding me ice cream?

“Here, say ah~.”

“I’m not a baby.”

“I know. But I want to try it!”

“No. This is absolutely not allowed.”

“Then… how about we feed each other?!”

“…Fine, sure…”

In the end, I couldn’t resist Pretty Heart’s puppy eyes and ended up feeding each other ice cream.

Chubby saw it and chuckled, so I grabbed his head and threw him out, but otherwise, it was fine.

“Yuri couple~!”

“Shut up.”

“Ehehe~.”

Tinihu, you too…

Why are you so happy about this…

Sorry, but you still feel like a kind younger sister to me, so I don’t feel anything.

I don’t know how you feel about me, but… that’s how it is.

This is what being asexual is like.

Well, even if I were a guy, I wouldn’t have felt anything towards a middle schooler.

“Ah, Older Sister. I’m playing this game… let’s play together!”

“Huh? …Looks fun. Sure.”

Is it a kart racing game…?

I’m not good at racing games, what should I do?

I said yes, but I’m not confident.

“But I don’t have the console now, so let’s play together when it arrives.”

“Okay~. Then sit on my lap and watch today!”

“…Why?”

“Hurry!”

“Sigh… alright, fine.”

Does she really want to do this with me…?

But she’s a promising Magical Girl and works hard, so it’s hard to be harsh with her…

“Eigh…!”

“……”

By the way, she’s really bad at racing games.

But she’s usually 8th or 9th out of 12.

As long as she’s not last, it’s fine.

“Your turn this time!”

“Sure.”

Let’s see… is this how you control it?

Oh, I got the start boost right.

Then use the random box item… oh, I hit it.

“Older Sister, you’re really good…”

“Am I?”

I think the game is just easy rather than me being good.

But it’s more fun than I thought.

And the drift controls are easy and nice.

“Oh, I got first place.”

“Wow… Older Sister, have you played this a lot before?”

“No, I haven’t. I’m not good at racing games, so I never touched them.”

“…? You’re lying!”

“I’m not lying…”

“Then how are you so good?!”

“I’m not that good…”

Probably because Pretty Heart is so bad that the ranking is low.

It’s the abyss of the abyss, so there are a lot of really bad players.

…And being 8th or 9th means she’s at the bottom of the abyss…

“By the way, where do you practice when you’re creating new techniques?”

“Huh? I just go to the Training Ground.”

“Do you have a private training room or something?”

“No?”

“…Really?”

Then where and when does she train?

I’ve never seen her there.

Maybe she goes in the evening?

If that’s the case, it’s unavoidable not to run into her.

She’s in middle school, so she doesn’t have much time.

She can’t skip class like I do.

If she did, the closed-off groups that form and ostracize others… she wouldn’t have a good time.

“Meow.”

“…Huh? A cat!”

“…Ah, right.”

Come to think of it, I decided to raise a kitten instead.

I forgot after getting it.

Chubby’s been taking care of it, so that’s why.

“Wow… it’s so cute~.”

“If you think about it running around all day in a few weeks, it’s not that cute.”

“Older Sister, you’re too harsh! Look closely!”

“……”

“Meow.”

…Well, it is cute.

If it weren’t cute, it would have gone extinct long ago.

“We can’t have pets at home…”

“Really? Why not?”

“Well… my mom has trauma from cats, and my dad was chased and bitten by two dogs when he was young…”

“Ah…”

Then what about hamsters or parrots?

Why can’t they have any pets?

Do they only think about cats and dogs?

“Then try raising hamsters or parrots. Especially large species, like macaws, can live up to 80 years.”

“Really?!”

“There are some with divisive appearances, some really cute ones… it’s varied, but most are cute.”

“Then… I’ll talk to my mom about it!”

“But birds don’t have sphincters, so they poop wherever they are.”

“Ew…”

Ah, maybe I shouldn’t have said that.

But still, if you can raise a cute cat, why not a bird?

I wouldn’t raise one, though.

“If it poops a lot, I might have to think about it…”

“But they don’t poop that often, right?”

Even so, birds don’t poop that much…

Anyway, she does play games.

Then next time she comes, I’ll install various games so we can play together.

“Umm… by the way, if you came on Saturday, you could have stayed over, it’s a shame…”

“Stay over? You have to go home.”

“Do… do you not like me…?”

“What are you talking about? That’s a separate issue.”

“Then let’s take a nap together now!”

“…Why?”

“It’s time to prove that you don’t dislike me!”

“I think it’s already proven…”

“Come on!”

“……”

In the end, I had no choice but to take a nap with Pretty Heart.

I wasn’t particularly happy, just annoyed.

Isn’t this something you do when you’re younger…?

…Wait, stop hugging and rubbing against me!