Chapter 70: Wrap Party ②

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Translator: Soafp

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How on earth did Kokoa-san figure out my home address?

My thoughts were a complete mess.

Of course, I'd never told her—or her agency—where I live.

And it's hard to imagine Airi or Nodoka letting it slip.

(Come to think of it… it was the same during the trip.)

The memory of when Kokoa escaped the hospital and suddenly showed up in front of me flashed through my mind.

At the time, I was too shocked to question it—but now that I think about it, it was strange.

How did she even figure out which inn I was staying at?

“Sponsor-sama, you're there, right~? You're the one at the intercom right now, aren't you?”

“…Ah, yes, sorry. This was so sudden. I'll open the door right away.”

I didn't understand what was going on.

But I couldn't just leave her standing outside forever.

Maybe sensing the situation, Nodoka and Airi stood up as well and followed me to the entrance.

When I opened the door, Kokoa was standing there exactly as she appeared on the monitor.

“Sorry for showing up so suddenly!”

She bowed politely.

…At this point, it almost feels like her usual strategy is to force her way in first, then apologize after.

Still, something felt off.

She looked like she was forcing her energy more than usual.

(…Ah. The man who died in her place.)

Given the current atmosphere within her group, it's probably hard for the other members to comfort her properly.

Her manager isn't the same age, so there's only so much they can do.

Even so, it's not like we can do anything special either…

“For now, come in. There's nothing much here, though.”

“Eh? Don't say that! Honestly, for Sponsor-sama's house, it's kind of normal—pretty surprising—but what matters isn't the house, it's the people! Nodo-san and Secretary-san are here too!”

…Was she expecting a mansion or something?

She's a bit too honest.

Well, it's true this isn't exactly a luxury home.

Nodoka leaned in and whispered nervously in my ear.

“Is… is it really okay to let her in?”

“She's already come this far. There's no point turning her away now.”

“I guess that's true, but…”

I understood her concern.

Honestly, I felt a bit uneasy myself.

“Alright then, excuse me~!”

Without hesitation, Kokoa walked straight into the living room.

Right at that moment, Anna-chan and my mom came out of another room.

…Anna-chan was dressed in a princess-like outfit my mom probably picked for her.

The moment my mom saw Kokoa, her eyes widened.

“Who is this girl?”

Crap. I should've explained before letting her in.

I completely forgot.

Maybe shy around strangers, Anna-chan quickly hid behind my mom.

…Looks like she's gotten pretty close to my mom.

“I'm Kokoa from Jirai-chan Syndrome! Sparkle!”

Kokoa posed with a peace sign near her eye.

No way that introduction would get the message across.

And it felt oddly outdated.

“Whaaaat—!? That Kokoa-chan from Jirai-chan Syndrome!?”

But my mom shouted in shock.

“Mom, you know her?”

“Of course I do! She's a super popular idol lately! And she even got struck by lightning recently!”

“I didn't get struck! I dodged it just in time!”

“That's why everyone's talking about you online—an idol chosen by heaven!”

Meanwhile, Anna-chan, who's actually in elementary school, looked completely confused.

Why is my mom more up-to-date than her?

“Exactly! My popularity is skyrocketing right now! At this rate, we're heading straight for the dome!!”

“But why would an idol like you come to our house…?”

“Oh, I came to see Sponsor-sama! Are you Sponsor-sama's mother?”

“Huh? Sponsor-sama?”

I hadn't explained any of this to my mom.

No wonder she was confused.

But I also couldn't exactly start explaining the whole “nightmare” situation in front of Kokoa.

I awkwardly cleared my throat and whispered into Kokoa's ear.

“There are some circumstances, so please keep it a secret that I'm your sponsor. Including the part about me having money.”

“Aah~ that tickles. Geez, you're making moves so casually.”

“…”

With just that one joke from Kokoa, all the women in the house immediately shot me cold looks.

Wait—what did I even do?

This feels completely unfair.

“Anyway, please change how you address me. At least while you're here.”

“Hm, what should I call you then? Fukagawa-san feels too normal. And everyone here is Fukagawa-san anyway. Ren-san doesn't feel special either.”

“…Does it have to be special?”

“Of course! You're a special person, so I have to call you something special!”

Is this her way of treating a sponsor?

Or is this just her personality?

“If nothing comes to mind, just go with something normal for now.”

“Alright! Then I'll call you Ren-sama for now!”

That's not normal at all.

This time, my mom whispered into my ear.

“H-hey, what are you planning!? Two girls weren't enough, so now you're bringing in a third!? I didn't raise you like this!”

“…It's all a misunderstanding. I'll explain later.”

I mean, there's no way an active idol would see someone like me as a romantic interest.

There are countless better-looking, richer guys in the entertainment world.

I'm about to get disowned over a false accusation.

Kokoa then approached Anna-chan, who was still hiding behind my mom.

“What's your name? I'm Kokoa! I'm an active idol, you know?”

“Ah, um… nice to meet you… I'm Anna…”

“Ren-sama's little sister? You're so cute!”

Kokoa probably still thinks Nodoka and I are engaged.

“Well, she is my little sister—technically Nodoka's sister.”

“Ohhh, I see! No wonder you don't look alike! You do resemble Nodo-san more. Anna-chan, want to shake hands with your big sister? Or want an autograph?”

“I… don't want either…”

Anna-chan's blunt response made Kokoa freeze on the spot like she'd been petrified.

I awkwardly cleared my throat again and spoke.

“Let's go to my room.”

“Ah… okay…”

Kokoa walked upstairs with her shoulders slumped.

But the moment she entered my room, she looked around and instantly returned to her usual self.

“Ooooh! So this is a guy's room! It's surprisingly normal.”

“Why is that surprising?”

“And also…”

For some reason, Kokoa started sniffing the air.

“It smells nice in here!”

“H-hey! Why are you sniffing my fiancée's scent!?”

“It's not like it'll run out. Don't be stingy.”

“That's not the point!!”

Is this her first time in a guy's room?

It reminded me of when Nodoka first came into mine.

Just then, Airi came in carrying cold barley tea on a tray.

“Here you go, Miyoko-san.”

“Thank you! …Wait, it's not Miyoko, it's Kokoa!”

“Oh? You wanted cocoa instead of barley tea? What a demanding guest.”

“I never said that! And why are you acting like the owner of the house, Secretary-san!?”

“Because I live here too.”

“…Huh?”

Kokoa looked back and forth between me and Airi.

“S-Secretary-san… are you Ren-sama's older sister? You don't look alike at all…”

“I'm one year older than him, but not his actual sister.”

“Huh? Then why are you living together…?”

“That's not something I can tell you.”

“U-uh…”

It felt like she was intentionally leading her to misunderstand…

But that's not the issue right now.

I sat down on the floor and faced Kokoa.

“How did you find out my address?”

I needed to know exactly how my information had leaked.

If it spread beyond just Kokoa, we could be in serious danger.

But Kokoa tilted her head.

“I just checked the car navigation in the hire car.”

“…Huh?”

“It shows where you've been recently, right? The destination history.”

“…Ah.”

When the driver came to pick me up yesterday, he must've entered my home address into the navigation.

And he probably forgot to delete the history.

Normally, no one would think to check someone's address from a car's navigation history.

(This is completely my mistake.)

From now on, I'll have to make sure the driver deletes it every time.

I didn't think I'd have to be careful about something like this too.

“So, Kokoa-san, why did you come to my house?”

“Well, first of all—”

Kokoa suddenly bowed her head deeply toward me.

“Thank you. If you hadn't arranged that car at that moment, I would've died.”