Why Not Make Both Twins 'Girlfriends'?-Chapter 0Volume 3 .1 - Prologue

Prologue

Six years ago, at the Usami household──

“Look, Hii-chan, look!”

Hikari paused the video she was watching on her computer and turned to Chikage, who had just hurried back from elementary school.

Chikage was holding a slightly oversized cardboard box in her arms as if it were something precious.

“What’s that, Chii-chan?”

As Hikari approached, something white moved slightly inside the box.

It was a white cat—a kitten, a tiny newborn kitten.

“Wow, it’s a kitty!”

Hikari’s eyes sparkled with excitement, but then she quickly realized this was a serious situation.

Chikage wore an uneasy expression.

“What should we do… I picked it up on the way home…”

“I see…”

Hikari looked into the box once more.

At the bottom lay a brand-new towel—the last act of love from its previous owner.

On top of it lay a small life, likely born at the beginning of spring. Whether it was due to its youth, sleepiness, or weakness, it barely breathed and did not meow.

Chikage couldn’t overlook this small life that had been abandoned by the roadside.

That’s just the kind of person Chikage is. She often acts without thinking ahead, leading to worry or regret later.

Hikari thought it was because Chikage lacked confidence in herself.

What one believes is right may not be right for someone else. Chikage knows this, which is why she hesitates over her choices.

As her older sister, Hikari wondered what she could do for her timid younger sibling──

With determination, she suggested,

“Why don’t we ask Mom and Dad if we can keep it?”

She said this with a smile that spread across her face as if to dispel Chikage’s anxiety.

“Mom and Dad will say okay.”

“Really…?”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine. But we can’t name it yet, okay?”

“Okay…!”

Following Hikari’s persuasion, their parents soon gave their permission.

They quickly took the kitten to the vet for a check-up and medication and bought food and a cage.

Thus, a new family member was added to the Usami household.

It was Chikage who got to name the pure white kitten──

“I’ll call her Mashiro!”

“Because she’s pure white?”

“Yeah.”

“Isn’t that a bit too casual?”

“Not at all! Right, Mashiro?”

Chikage smiled at the kitten, and Mashiro meowed in response.

Thanks to Chikage’s diligent care, Mashiro, who was initially skinny, gradually grew bigger.

Strangely, while Mashiro would meow cutely when Chikage spoke to her, she would only stare back silently when Hikari or their parents spoke.

Mashiro would rub her forehead against Chikage’s hand when she reached out, but she kept her distance from Hikari and the others.

Perhaps she mistook Chikage for a parent or saw her as her savior──

It felt as if Mashiro recognized her as someone special, and that was more than enough to make Chikage happy.

Not the genius sister, but Chikage, who was ordinary, was needed by this special friend, a member of the family.

Mashiro was there for her.

That fact strengthened Chikage’s heart──

***

──Six years later, in the present.

Clack, clatter, clack, clatter──awakened by these sounds and the rocking of her body, Chikage opened her eyes.

“──Hmm… What…?”

Still caught in a daze, as if she were in a dream, she tried to remember where she was──

“Ah…?”

When she turned her face slightly, she saw Sakuto’s gentle expression close by.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

“Wha…!? Sakuto-kun!?”

Chikage was startled and quickly sorted out the situation in her mind.

It was about a week into summer vacation, and she was on her way to a vacation home destination with her boyfriend, Sakuto, and her sister, Hikari.

They were on a local train, sitting side by side on a long seat, with Hikari, who appeared to be sleeping peacefully with her eyes closed on the other side of Sakuto.

It seemed that the twins had fallen asleep leaning on Sakuto’s shoulder.

“I see… I must have dozed off… and fallen asleep…”

“It was early in the morning.”

“Um, how long was I asleep?”

“About thirty minutes?”

“That long, huh…”

Chikage suddenly felt embarrassed and looked down.

She must have been seen sleeping by Sakuto. She wondered if she had made any strange faces.

She had fallen asleep partly because she felt safe with Sakuto and Hikari by her side but also because she had been too excited the night before, like the eve of a school trip, and couldn’t sleep well.

She thought she was quite composed, but it seemed her emotions had gotten the better of her.

She still had a lot of growing up to do, Chikage thought with a self-deprecating expression.

“I’m sorry…”

“There’s no need to apologize. But, you were talking in your sleep.”

Chikage’s face turned red again.

“Eh!? What did I say…!?”

“You said something about ‘Mashiro’… Who’s Mashiro?”

Chikage’s mouth opened wide in surprise, but then she quickly formed a smile.

“Who knows? ──Anyway, are you looking forward to the trip?”

“Huh? Ah, yeah…”

Sakuto noticed that Chikage was trying to act cheerfully, perhaps to hide something she didn’t want to remember.

It was a gesture she showed when trying to cover up something she didn’t want to think about.

Although he was curious, Sakuto didn’t press further since she didn’t seem to want to talk about it, and he simply maintained his smile.

Then──

“──Fuaaah… Sakuto, Chii-chan, good morning〜”

Hikari also woke up while rubbing her sleepy eyes.

“Good morning. Though it’s almost noon.”

“Hii-chan, you have a serious case of bedhead!”

“Eh? …Where, where!?”

In a fluster, Hikari took out her compact mirror and desperately tried to fix her sticking-up side hair, causing Sakuto and Chikage to burst into laughter at the sight.

“Sakuto-kun, are we almost there?”

“About ten more minutes, I guess?”

“What kind of place is it?”

“That’ll be part of the surprise when we get there.”

Sakuto had not gone into detail about the town where their vacation home was located.

The reason was that the town they were heading to was a very unique place, and he wanted to keep it as a little surprise for the two of them.

He wasn’t one to tease, but he was looking forward to seeing their eyes sparkle with excitement.

“What’s the name of the station we’re getting off at?”

“The station, huh… if it’s the station──”

Sakuto had an idea, and showed Chikage the transit app on his smartphone.

The arrival station was displayed as 『双子子 (Futagoko)』—which was not a typo.

“Can you read this?”

“Umm… Futagogo?”

“I thought so too at first, but that’s not it. Place names can be tricky sometimes.”

At that moment, Hikari, who had finally fixed her bedhead, joined in on this place name quiz.

“Could it be Futakko?”

“Just because it’s romanized with a repeated ‘ko’ doesn’t mean it gets a small ‘tsu’.”

“Hmm, I have no idea… Could I get a hint?”

Sakuto said, “Well then,” and switched to the memo app──

『子子子子子子子子子子子子』

He entered a total of twelve “ko” characters and showed it to them.

“…? What’s this?”

“It’s a wordplay from the Heian period. It’s said to have been invented by Emperor Saga, but do you know how to read it?”

By the way, it is pronounced『Neko ko koneko, shishi koko jishi (a kitten of a cat, a cub of a lion)』──a play on words using the onyomi and kunyomi readings of “ko” for kitten and lion cub, respectively──

“Ah… I got it!”

Hikari’s face lit up with realization.

“Because there are lots of 子, it means ‘having many kids’, right!?” (TN: 子 (ko) also means child)

“That’s not ittttt!”

Sakuto hung his head at Hikari’s surprising leap of logic, which would have even surprised Emperor Saga.

Then Chikage, her face turning bright red, timidly raised her hand and said softly, “Yes.”

“Sakuto-kun, does that mean… you want twelve children…?”

“Not at all! Didn’t I say it was Emperor Saga’s idea? Why is it being twisted into my own wish!?”

And so, with Chikage’s unusual answer, Sakuto’s face turned red as well──

“But I don’t think I could handle that many…”

“Chii-chan, we can do it! If it’s you and me, we can have six each!”

“Ah…! Then…!”

The twin sisters clenched their fists.

” “We can do it!” “

“We cannot!”

” “Why not!?” “

Leaving aside the wordplay invented by Emperor Saga of the Heian period and the Usami sisters’ enthusiasm that seemed to have a great interest in countermeasures against the declining birthrate of the Reiwa era──

“It’s because your ideas are too out of this world!”

──And so.

The summer vacation had begun at the private Arisuyama Academy High School, but Takayashiki Sakuto’s daily life was still noisy and fun, thanks to the beautiful twin sisters Usami Hikari and Usami Chikage.

Their relentless approach was still ongoing, and with the help of a trip where they didn’t have to worry about public scrutiny and the wildness of summer, their “daring and fearless” mode was activated, increasing their momentum.

Sakuto, on the receiving end, wanted to escape──

However, considering the feelings of the Usami sisters who had been holding back on their lovey-dovey behavior until now, he decided to go along with their wishes as much as possible on this seaside trip, even if it meant stopping occasionally.

Because──

《The fact that the three of us are dating will be kept a secret》

Under this rule, the purpose of this trip was to let off the stress that the girls had been suppressing, or so Sakuto secretly thought.

However, he must not go too far──due to his seriousness, it was as if he was tightening the noose around his own neck.

Being a boyfriend does not mean he can just go with the “brother, just do it” mindset, so his automatic avoidance technique for lovey-dovey situations was becoming something to be proud of in the world (whether it should be a matter of pride is another question).

Therefore, while Sakuto managed to dodge the Usami sisters’ bold pursuit as usual, he couldn’t shake the concern that a major accident might happen someday.

The sisters, as if to dispel his worries──

” “Let’s sleep together tonight♡” “

──No, that was not his intention at all.

Rather, it was a welcome to a major disaster.

Not just a car, but runaway locomotives times two.

Although it was an attractive proposal, Sakuto had no choice but to hold his head in his hands.

Since they were outside of school, there was no need to hold back, but to some extent, they needed to save things for the sake of common sense because various things could become various problems.

But could he really put a stop to these two──

Even now, his reason was being shaken.

Hikari, the older sister, blushed and looked at him with a mischievous sidelong glance. And Chikage, with teary eyes, looked at him with a longing gaze.

That being said, it was definitely an enviable situation──

“Um… let’s go back to the answer for earlier!”

” “Ah, he escaped…” “

“Sa… the answer earlier was ‘Neko ko koneko, shishi koko jishi (a kitten of a cat, a cub of a lion)’! You see, ‘ko’ can also be read as ‘shi’ or the zodiac ‘ne’ and so on──”

” “Mmm…” “

Despite being flustered by the two clinging onto his arm, Sakuto continued his explanation.

“Anyway, the place we’re going to is called 『Futagoko (Twins Child)』!”

At that, both of them reacted with a start.

Hikari had a look of interest, saying, “Ohh,” but for some reason, Chikage’s expression darkened.

“Futaneko… Neko… Cat…”

“Hm? What’s wrong, Chikage…?”

The moment Sakuto asked, Hikari suddenly became flustered.

“Ah, it’s nothing! Right, Chii-chan!?”

Hikari sought agreement from Chikage with a bright tone, but it was clear she was trying to hide something.

Could it be related to earlier, when Chikage had evaded the word 『Mashiro』?

Just as Sakuto felt a sense of doubt, the train announcement came on──

『──We will soon arrive at Futagoko, Futagoko station. This is an unstaffed station, so please insert your fare tickets into the box at the front and exit through the front door. For those with commuter passes──』

The three of them quickly took down their carry-on luggage from the overhead rack and started preparing to disembark.

Eventually, the train came to a gentle stop, and the door at the front opened.

The three of them stood in front of the middle-aged conductor, about to put their tickets into the fare box when──

“Thank you for riding with us…!”

Sakuto didn’t miss the conductor’s sudden change in complexion.

(What’s going on…?)

The conductor’s expression had changed the moment he saw Hikari and Chikage’s faces.

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He was now looking away as if trying not to see something ominous──

“Oh, I’m sorry…”

Then, the conductor quickly put on a smile.

“Are you all on a trip? I-I hope you have a good time.”

With that, the conductor hastily covered his eyes with the brim of his cap and returned to the front as if nothing had happened.

──And so.

Sakuto, Hikari, Chikage──these three stepped off into the well-known resort area of 『Futagoko Town (Twins Child Town)』.

The conductor’s behavior was certainly concerning, but so was Chikage’s reaction to the words “Mashiro” and “cat.”

(Mashiro… cat… A pure white cat…)

As Sakuto walked along the platform, pondering such things──

“Kyaa!”

Suddenly, something darted in front of Hikari, causing her to scream and fall on her behind.

“Hikari!?”

“Hii-chan!?”

What on earth had happened to Hikari?

And what was about to happen to them in this Futagoko Town──