Episode 337: What an Engagement Is

「Mnh…」

It felt a bit shorter than usual…

Yet, it felt like it was filled with so many feelings…

We exchanged a kiss from the heart, overflowing with that emotion… and Sara-san slowly pulled her face away.

The hand that had been around the back of my head was released at the same time, and Sara-san’s sorrowful eyes stared into mine… and at that moment, my gaze was somehow stolen by her glossy lips that had been connected to mine just now…

「「Ngh…」」

「「Gah…」」

「…Impact noise defense, set.」

「…Wait, isn’t that just plugging your ears…」

「…Natsumi-san, hurry!!」

「…………」

「Nishikawa-san, this is no time to be turning dark!!」

「…Awa-wa…」

「…Marina-san, over here!!」

「「GWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!」」

「「KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!」」

「W-whoa!?」

「uh!?」

An unbelievable volume of wailing and screaming or cheering was released from the audience, and the microphone instantly amplified it. I didn’t even know what was what anymore, a mixed sound wave called voices enveloped the entire school, flew lightly over it, and swallowed this area… no, this whole town… wait, this isn’t the time to be thinking so leisurely!?

「Sa, Sara-san, are you okay… wagh.」

「Kazunari-san, over here.」

I tried to pull Sara-san close, but an arm stretched out even faster, and my head was pulled in with force. Unable to react to the suddenness, I was pushed deep into my designated shelter… a private heaven filled to the brim with peace, happiness, and softness(?)…

Tight squeeze…

「Mgh!?」

And apparently trying to plug my ears, Sara-san wrapped her arms firmly around the back of my head, cradling it deeply. In other words, my face was buried as deep as could be in the center of heaven…

Sara-san’s warmth, sweet scent, and something large and soft hit me as a full combo, and I’m sure from an outside perspective, it looked like… a scene of a guy doing something outrageous without any regard for where he was.

But you see, being done to me at this timing…

「「GWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!」」

「「KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!」」

Well, it ends up like this, doesn’t it?

I get it… yeah.

「Where are you sticking your face, you bastarrrrrrd!!!!!」

「Cut it out already, you craaaaaap!!!!」

「Dammit!!!!! I’m so jealoussssss!!!!」

「Fuuuuuuck!!!!」

「…Kyaaaa!!! Satsukawa-san, so bold!!!!」

「…Whoa, whoa, he’s buried that deep!!??」

「…Fooo, Satsukawa-san, that’s a man-killer!!!」

「Aaaah… what are we gonna do about this?」

「Fufu… sorry about that. Sara-chan can’t see anything around her when it comes to Kazunari-kun.」

「No, I got that part loud and clearrrr… but I mean, isn’t her character changing a bit too much?」

「Well, I was surprised at first too… but, it is because he is just that…」

「Does that mean Kazunari-kun is that special?」

「That is right♪」

While they’re at it, Mayumi-san looks in a good mood, and Minamin looks obviously fed up.

By the way, it’s not like I don’t understand the current situation… but Sara-san’s doting is just so comfortable, I can’t help but want to act spoiled. It’s unavoidable… I’m a man, after all.

「By the way, Mayumi-san… are you really okay with this?」

「Oh, I wonder what you mean?」

「I mean, she accepted such a solid engagement ring…」

「Ah, that. It is not a problem, you know?」

「Not a problem… sure, at our age, we might not need to take talk of marriage seriously. But she accepted that as an engagement ring, right? And it looks like a pretty high-quality item…」

「Yes. Knowing Kazunari-kun, I’m sure he worked his hardest without compromising on that. Honestly… he’s just so sweet… how cute♪」

「!?」

Just now, I felt a shiver… something mysterious ran down my back!?

And even though I can’t see, for some reason, the image of myself being pampered like a kitten by Mayumi-san comes to mind!?

WHAT ON EARTH IS THIS FEELING?

「C-Cute… this is no time to be saying things so leisurely? Looking at them just now, it feels like those two are seriously thinking about marriage…」

「E-Exactly!! To go as far as saying engagement or marriage… it’s like children playing house without understanding the meaning!! That kind of talk is for after taking the proper steps, isn’t it!? It is not a word you should use so easily!?」

I thought she wouldn’t interfere anymore, but is she still at it?

It feels like she’s half-desperate now… like she’ll bite anything she can get her teeth into.

What a pain she is…

「Honestly, trying to cover up the cohabitation with such a made-up story, it’s so cunning and foolish it makes me laugh. At this point, no matter what anyone says, it is nothing but an impure relationship, and ethically unforgivable…」

「Mmm? But Kazunari-kun and Sara-chan have been engaged for a long time, and they are living together with our approval, so I don’t think there is a problem. Right, Sara-chan?」

「…Hah?」

「…Eh?」

「That is right. We are formal fiancés approved by both families, so whether it is cohabitation or anything else, I believe there is no problem at all, you know?」

「「…Ah?」」

Minamin and the stuck-up woman let out soundless voices at the massive truth told so naturally.

And it completely wiped away the voices of the guys heckling me and the noise of the crowd… a silence so deep it didn’t feel like we were outdoors enveloped the area…

「Uhyahyahya!!! Look, look at that stupid look on Kusahara’s face!!! I’m gonna take a picture!!!」

「Yuri, please be quiet!!」

「Why do you have to speak up at a time like this, you!?」

…Silence enveloped the area!!

I didn’t hear a thing. So that description is fine!!

「F-formally, already… engaged?」

「S-Satsukawa-san… don’t tell me… all of it, from the start…?」

「Yes. If you mean the talk about the engagement, it was decided a long time ago. We have already made a promise to marry, and we have the consent of both our parents.」

「H-whaaaaaaaaaaaa!!??」

「W-w-wait a second!? We’re still in high school!!?? A-and yet… Satsukawa-san and Takanashi-kun are, don’t tell me, for real, for real, for REAL!!??」

「Yes. It is all true. We are formal fiancés on the premise of marriage, and we are currently in a relationship based on that. So our cohabitation is also a serious matter for the future… does that mean the words of that person who has been shouting so noisily are completely off base?」

「Ugh!?」

Suddenly being targeted by Sara-san, the stuck-up woman entered a silent state for the nth time today.

But to be honest, I wanted to be the one to declare the deciding blow of already engaged as the finishing move at the very end… oh well.

This probably crushed the ethical problem of cohabitation, which was her only point of attack. All that’s left is to keep the pressure on all at once… alright, me too!

「Sara-san.」

「Yes, Kazunari-san.」

When I called her name, Sara-san seemed to understand my intent immediately and gently loosened the strength of her arms… but right at that moment, she gave me one last tight squeeze as if she didn’t want to let go.

「Geez… Sara-chan. Think about the situation a little, won’t you? If you keep holding onto Kazunari-kun like this, it looks bad for him too, doesn’t it?」

「Y-You are right… my apologies, Kazunari-san.」

「Eh, no, well, I ended up acting spoiled myself…」

「Kazunari-san…」

I almost got lost in Sara-san’s eyes as she smiled happily… but unfortunately, the priority right now is shutting up that noisy stuck-up woman.

And since the final card has been played, I have to push through to the end, including the audience.

So… here goes!

「Hey… I’ve been sitting here listening, and you’ve been talking like you know everything. Does that talk about ethics and impure relationships apply to a couple like us who are going to get married?」

「Th-that is…」

「Of course, in terms of school talk, there are parts you won’t know unless you ask the right people. Even if we’re sure it’s okay, it’s a fact we’re still minors… so maybe there are some rules about that. But if you mean ethically, we are formal fiancés and have permission from our parents. We’re serious about marriage too…」

「Oh, you don’t need to worry about that. We reported to the school that those two are living together… well, the part about being fiancés was technically off the record… but at this point, it is probably fine.」

「Ah, I knew it. …So it seems, are you satisfied now?」

「Ugh… gugh…」

Strictly speaking, I can’t say for sure if it’s okay by society’s standards.

But as long as we are formal fiancés in a serious relationship on the premise of marriage, I don’t think we have to answer to anyone else’s complaints.

By the way… let’s just ignore the fact that we were living together before the engagement.

「Hey… how long do you plan to keep this up?」

「W-what do you mean so suddenly…」

「I don’t know why you’re being so stubborn, but does continuing to oppose us do any good for you?」

「…u」

「Look around you. You’ve surely noticed by now, haven’t you? Is there anyone supporting you now? Is there anyone calling your name?」

She must know everything. That her reputation has hit rock bottom, that she has no chance of winning the Miss Contest, and that she has no ground to stand on regarding her accusations. Even so, the reason she won’t stop directing malice at us is… maybe she’s just desperate because she can’t back down, or she wants to prove her claim is right even slightly to save face… it’s probably something like that.

But if she still won’t stop for such a pointless reason…

I have no choice but to corner her until she’s speechless and give her the ultimate humiliation at the end.

So this is… my final notice.

「There is no point in doing this anymore. As long as we have the fact that we are dating on the premise of marriage and formal permission from the school, your logic doesn’t work.」

「…Ugh… uuu…」

Showing her greatest level of frustration yet… the stuck-up woman dropped her shoulders visibly and looked down.

I might have crushed her pride at least, but she should be grateful I didn’t push her all the way to the edge at the very end. Besides, I don’t have time to worry about just her.

From here on, as planned…

「And… I want everyone here to hear this!! Like we’ve been saying, Sara-san and I really are engaged!! It’s something both our parents have approved, and I’ve already decided on my career path with that in mind!! And once all of that settles down, I’m going to marry Sara-san!! This isn’t a lie or a joke!! We’re serious!!」

Originally, I was going to say this right after giving her the ring.

I knew that if I didn’t clearly state how serious we were and how realistic the engagement was, the meaning of the ring and my actions would be taken lightly. But as a result, the flow up to this point has become the proof of it all… so there’s no better time to say this than now!!

「Fufu… I understand.」

「…Sara-san?」

「No… I just now realized that you were clearly thinking about the timing of the marriage, Kazunari-san.」

「Eh… ah!?」

Crap… I might have said too much in the heat of the moment…

Specific talk will depend on when the time comes, so I was only thinking vaguely about around that time…

Plus, I just said it without consulting Sara-san at all, I really jumped the gun.

「S-Sorry, Sara-san. That was just me thinking that might be the time, I just said it on my own…」

「No. I also believed that the timing of the marriage would depend on you, Kazunari-san… so there is no problem at all, you know?」

「Eh? Um, Sara-san. Surely that’s something we should decide together…」

「Fufu… do not worry. I don’t mean that I am dependent on you, but simply that I thought you would be busier than I am, considering employment and other factors. If that is the case, I thought I would eventually leave it to you.」

「Ah, that’s what you meant…」

「Yes. That is why I said I would eventually leave it to you. But if you are using employment as a benchmark, then I shall prepare myself for that as well, okay?」

「U-Understood. But, isn’t that still a bit premature?」

「Is that so? Since we are actually engaged, strictly speaking, it would be possible for us to marry the year after next, you know?」

「N-Now that you mention it, that’s true…」

The word future made it feel like something far off… but like Sara-san said, since we’re already engaged, it means we can marry once I turn eighteen.

Of course, I think that’s for after I have a solid income and have established the necessary foundation for life… but thinking that we could marry as early as the year after next if we wanted to, it suddenly feels real, and maybe it’s not so premature after all.

「Nfufu, I just heard something good!」

「Hah? I don’t understand why you are happy, Mother?」

「Eeeh? I mean, once Kazunari-kun gets a job, you two are getting married, right?」

「That is just a benchmark. It is just talk that Kazunari-san’s plan might turn out that way. What is the point…」

「That means I might be seeing my grandchild’s face sooner than I thought!!」

「「…Hah?」」

Sara-san and I spoke in perfect unison, like we’d planned it.

For a second, I didn’t understand what I’d been told at all… what did Mayumi-san just say?

Grandchild?

What is she talking about?

「Mother, what on earth are you talking about…」

Sara-san didn’t seem to keep up either, staring at Mayumi-san’s face suspiciously while blinking over and over.

But gradually… for some reason, her face started turning red…

「Eh? I mean, if you get married, the next thing is naturally talk about children, isn’t it?」

「No, that’s…」

「Th-That might be so, but isn’t that kind of talk way too early?」

「Nfufuu… they say having a girl first and a boy second is ideal, but Mother definitely thinks a boy would be better!」

「L-Like I said, why are you saying such things, Mother!?」

Wait, wait. What is this flow!?

What is Mayumi-san talking about all of a sudden… and I don’t know why, but she seems to have entered rampage mode?

I hope not, but is she saying that because she wants to entrust her dream of having a boy to Sara-san… no, surely I’m overthinking it?

「Don’t you think you want a boy too, Sara-chan?」

「Wh-Why would it turn out that way!?」

「Eeeeh? But wouldn’t you be happy if the baby you gave birth to was a boy who looked like Kazunari-kun, Sara-chan?」

「Eeeek!? Th-That’s… well… um…」

Sara-san looked down in embarrassment and started stealing glances at me.

I mean, acting like that is basically admitting that Mayumi-san hit the nail on the head!?

「Nfufu~… what do you think, Kazunari-kun?」

「Hwah!? I-I don’t know!? I haven’t even thought about it!!」

「Sara-chan says she wants a boy, but… do you want a boy or a girl, Kazunari-kun?」

「Like I said, I don’t know if you ask so suddenly!?」

「M-Mother!! I haven’t said a single word about that yet!?」

「Ah, I wonder if men prefer having girls after all? What do you think, Kazunari-kun?」

「I said I don’t know!! …But if I had to choose, I guess a cute girl who looks like Sara-san would be better than a boy who looks like me…」

「Hey Takanashi-kun, your inner voice is leaking out completely, you know?」

「Hwah!?」

C-Crap, my true feelings slipped… no!!

If I were asked which I’d prefer, I just thought a girl who looked like Sara-san would definitely be cuter than a boy who looked like me!!

There’s no deeper meaning than that, none at all!!

「Ka-Kazunari-san…」

「Sa-Sara-san!! This is, well… how should I put it…」

「…It’s embarrassing… Kazunari-san, you idiot…」

「Gagh!?」

It was already an awkward enough situation, but looking down with a bright red face and muttering in a small voice… Sara-san, that’s just too unfair. It’s a foul… so cute…

「Listen, I just…」

「Um… Kazunari-san? Regardless of whether it’s a boy or a girl… someday…」

「KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! CUT IT THE HELL OUT ALREADY, YOU SUPER-ACCELERATED IDIOT COUPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!」

「「Hah!?」」

I snapped back to reality after being hit by Minamin’s massive roar that pierced the heavens.

Waiting for me there was the figure of a demon who had already lost her character… I mean, who had lost something.

「I was sitting here listening in silence because Takanashi-kun started talking seriously… how long are you going to keep flirting!!?? You super-idiot couple!!!!」

「I’m s-sorry…」

「My apologies…」

「I mean, what are you going to do about this!!??」

「…This?」

I followed Minamin’s finger as she pointed sharply with a sound effect, and the scene there was…

The scene was…

「GWOOOOOOOOOOH, I KNEW IT, I KNEW IT, BUT STILLLLLL!!!」

「RIGHTTTTTT, THEY’RE LIVING TOGETHER, SO OF COURSE IT’D BE LIKE THIIIIIIIS!!!」

「Aaaaaagh… a relationship where they’re already talking about kids… Satsukawa-san is…!!!」

「GOD IS DEAD!!!!!!!!!!!」

「L-Living with… Satsukawa-san… a promise of marriage… meaning they can take responsibility no matter what happenssssss!!!??」

「DON’T SAY IT!!!!!!!!!! DON’T SAY THAT ONE THING!!!!!!!!!!」

「KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!」

「Even babies, even BABIESSSSSSSS!!!!」

「Satsukawa-san said she wants a baby who looks like Takanashi-kun!!!!!」

「No, right!!! Takanashi-kun wants Satsukawa-san to give birth to a baby girl!!??」

「Kyaaaaaaa!!! That’s so direct!!!」

「Stop it already!!!! Takanashi-kun, how BOLD!!!!!!!!!!」

Whoa… what should I do…

I’d intended to wreck the Miss Contest from the start, so the commotion itself wasn’t a problem, but having it turn into a commotion with this kind of content was completely outside my predictions.

And the crowd’s voices are so loud I can hear exactly what’s being said through the speakers…

I mean…

I don’t recall saying a single thing about wanting Sara-san to give birth to a baby girl!?

「Geez, Kazunari-kun and Sara-chan are both so bold.」

「Wait, this is Mayumi-san’s fault, isn’t it!?」

「E-Exactly!! Because Mother started saying weird things!!」

She’s the one who caused this, and yet she’s acting so nonchalant…

Mayumi-san showed no sign of feeling bad at all, and it looked like even Sara-san couldn’t hide her panic. If this topic keeps going, the story’s just going to keep ballooning, and I’m scared to think of how I’ll be looked at starting tomorrow.

Mainly by the girls…

「What do you mean weird… isn’t this very important? So Sara-chan, you don’t want Kazunari-kun’s baby?」

「No one said that!? I just mean it is too early for that kind of talk, but if it is Kazunari-san’s baby, I…」

「Sa-Sara-san!!??」

「Hah!?」

「「GWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!」」

「「KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!」」

At Sara-san’s unintentional crazy statement, a massive wail and high-pitched scream erupted from the stands once again.

And Sara-san herself was now so red it was beyond belief… and I have no idea what the reason for that is. I really don’t!!

「Mayumi, that’s enough.」

「「「Huh!?」」」

「Oh, dear?」

In that chaotic venue, a familiar man’s voice sounded out with startling clarity. I looked around with a bad feeling and saw a silhouette that had appeared in that empty space by the stage… the same place where intruders had been appearing one after another.

Dressed in a suit that was out of place, just standing there with a dignified aura… a figure that somehow reminded me of Sara-san, the literal ideal of a capable man.

That person was, of course, the one and only…

「Ma-Masaomi-san!!??」

「Father?」

Yes… if we’re talking about today, the number one person I didn’t want to be here!!

Sara-san’s biological father, my future father-in-law.

I mean…

WHY ARE YOU HEREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!??