The Guesthouse
Battler: I remember the rose garden, but... I don't remember this guesthouse at all. Was it built like recently?
"Toraian" (Visitor's Retreat) was written on a gatepost-like thing, but since everyone called it the guesthouse, I followed their lead.
The brand-new western-style guesthouse that stood overlooking the rose garden had a magnificent design carefully done in harmone with the garden.
George: Correct! It was built the year before last. ANd after that, they made us sleep over here.
Jessica: Hehe, this place's more fun than that junky old mansion you knew. I wish my room was over here!
Maria: Uu-! Maria wants one too! Waaant!
..I guess you could say my house was also upper-class, but I thought it was completely ordinary compared to the head house.
The display of wealth was shocking, as was the fact that they would build this kind of awesome guesthouse for guests who come over like once a year.
Gohda: Eva-sama, Hideyoshi-sama. Please, do make use of this nroom. Rudolf-sama, Kyrie-sama, please make use of this room here.
Eva: Ah yes, it's pleasant how pretty and elegant this place is. Western style truly is wonderful.
Hideyoshi: I can handle the western style for a few days, but any longer than that and you need the good old Japanese style! Japanese people just relax best on tatami mats.
George: ...Haha, they've been fighting over making our new house Japanese-style or western-style. Mom still holds a grudge about Dad having the construction started as Japanese-style, and they bicker all the time about it.
Jessica: I'm really jealous, George nii-san. Your parents get along well, don't they? Mine are so frosty. But even so, they're right with each other when it comes to my grades.
All the rooms seemed to be two-person.
I was grateful, because since things turned out like this, I wasn't gonna be forced to share the same room with the old bastard, under the pretext that we were family.
I figure those two wouldn't be able to enjoy themselves with someone like me around, ihihi.
Kyrie: What's that creepy smile all about? You're thinking about something dirty, aren't you?
Battler: Ihihihi~! Something diiiiiirrrty? Of cooooouuuuurse not! Do please... enjoy your staaay~! Ow, owowowow! That hurts, you old bastard!
Once again, Dad pulled my ears from behind.
Rudolf: Cut the crap. I'm getting a stomachache, and I'm not in the mood for this. You're the guest of honor this time around. You play as nice as possible with Dad and Aniki and the rest. ...At the very least, pay attention to what you say in front of Dad, got it? Because wisecracks don't go too well with him. ...Jessica-chan, what's the head of out family's mood been lately?
Jessica: ...Hmm... Same as last year, I guess. ...Considering they say he's got three months left, he's as stubbonr, grumpy, and irritable as ever.
Rosa: Meaning, this year he's in his usual bad mood. ...And as usual, the only one who's able to take care of him is Genji-san?
Kumasawa: It seems that the Master will only open his heart to Genji-san. Lately, us small people cannot even get an audience...
Jessica: He's shut himself up in his study again, probably doing nothing but that weird black magic of his. What he does for a hobby is his own damn business, but when he starts stinking up the house, it really gets on my nerves. ...And I wish he'd never come out of that study again. Heheheh!
George: You shouldn't talk like that about the elderly. We're all inbedted to him, since he rebuilt the Ushiromiya Family, and a little gratitude wouldn't hurt.
Jessica: Hm... well.. sorry.
After being rebuked by George-aniki, Jessica had no choice but to take back her thoughtless remark.
The Ushiromiya family was wealthy beyond belief, but that, of course, meant that all its members were weird people who cut themselves off from the world entirely.
The Head of the Family, standing at its peak - in other words, our Grandfather - seemed to be a particularly weird and terrifying person, even for our family.
Dad had said he was getting a stomache earlier... but I guess that was what all the adults who came here today were actually feeling.
No doubt they were jealous of us, the grandchildren, just playing and laughing without a care.
From the stories Dda told me, the Head of the Family was a violent man who rained blows on his sons with his own fists and even beat his daughters mercilessly with a wooden sword.
If he was such a hard-ass with his kids, why wasn't he the same with their names?
Because of that, it's a pain even for us grandkids.
...Well, I'm not the least unsettled by his terrifying image.
I don't have any memories of meeting him over the years, but I remember Grandpa, his face always full of menancing thunder-clouds, always making his surroundings shrink away with a sharp look.
I remember that the room's atmosphere got so tense whenever he was around, you couldn't even breathe.
What my dad said right now about me being the guest of honor now carries a little more oomph for me.
Battler: ...Six years ago I was in grade school, but as one would expect, I'm a high-schooler now. If I act up, things'll probably get serious. ...Ooo, scary.
George: He does look frightening, but he's not completely terrifying. He's definitely never unfair. He's just very direct and not a pretty talker, that's all.
Jessica: But George nii-san, you've been the family darling since like forever because of your awesome grades, right? Grandfather treats us completely different! Like me, I've gotten slapped with a wooden sword! On my ass, my ass! On my maidenly, innocent ass!
George: Well, you're the heiress of the head house, Jessica-chan. Grandfather is giving you special attention. You have to realize that his strictness shows how much he's expecting of you.
Jessica: Oh, come on. ...Seriously, I could just turn the succession over to you, George nii-san. It's a bit of a heavy burden for me to carry.
I think I already said it before, but Jessica was the daughter who would inherit the head house.
As cousins of a branch of the family, the pressure on our shoulders was probably different.
Maria: ...Uu-? Jessica onee-chan, heavy? If Maria holds it, will it get lighter?
Jessica: Hm? Ahahahaha, thanks. It's alright, it's not gonna get pushed on you, Maria. ...I'm gonna bear that cross until my grave. ...Don't worry.
She was grateful for Maria's innocent consideration, but it seemed that anxiety for the future she couldn't clear away remained on Jessica's face.
...Were we the same? If it was a high-schooler near an examination, nobody'd be able to hide their anxiety for the future.
Rosa: Maria, come here. Mom and Maria will be in this room.
George: Battler-kun, you will be with me in this room here.
Battler: Oh? This is a surprise! It's bigger than our parents' room, wo~w!
Jessica: Anyway, being cousins, I think we'll gather together. I went and told them in order to get a bigger room.
Maria: Uu-! Maria likes here best too! Here is better than being together with Mom! Uu-uu-!
Battler: Okay, you like it here better too, Maria! Alright, this room is George's and mine, but we'll specially allow you to come in and out! Keep it a secret from your mom, right?
Maria: Uu-! Secret!
Her mother, Aunt Rosa, was right behind us, but Maria still answered, striking the air with her fists clenched tight.
After our parents put the luggage in the rooms, they gathered again in the corridor.
Rudolf: Hey brats, what'll you do? Are you cousins just gonna stay here and chat?
It seemed they were heading to the mansion to announce their arrival.
...Normally, we would have had to follow them and greet everyone together, but if that had been the case, Dad would just have said "You guys come!" and finished it.
He was telling us that it was alright if we didn't come, so what'll we do?
Hideyoshi: Anyway, it's goona be high noon soon. Better let the kids unwind here. Besides, if worse comes to worst, this might be the last chance they get to play outdoors.
Maria: Uu-! Maria will go too!
Rosa: Maria, you house-sit for Mommy, okay? You behave yourself and wait here.
Maria: ...Uu-.
Telling Maria to house-sit was a pretty lame excuse for leaving her behind.
George-aniki soon realized it and gave a clear reply for all of us.
George: Well, we'll accept your offer and house-sit. We have lots of stories to tell each other, after a year.
Kyrie: That's nice. And Battler-kun has six years' worth, doesn't he?
Battler: Yeah, yeah. I'll take care of the house like a good boy.
Jessica: Kumasawa-san, I'm gonna stay here too! We'll leave the rest to the adults and us kids'll break rank, hehehe!
Kumasawa: That's nice, hoh-hoh-ho. I'll report it to Madam...
Gohda: Then, everyone, I will be guiding you to the mansion. Please, this way.
Eva: ...Since George isn't a child anymore, and is getting to be an adult, wouldn't it be better if he came with us?
Hideyoshi: If we make him come, only poor George will be out of place. Interacting with his cousins is also important. Okay, bye then!
The adults left one after the other.
Like the time he had guided us from the harbor, Gohda-san went ahead, with Kumasawa-san at the rear.
As we gathered in the cousins' room assigned to us, George-aniki asked us to excuse him for a second. He rushed over to Kumasawa-san, who was following behind the disappearing adults, and seemed to be asking her something.
He soon finished his business and came back.
Battler: What's up, Aniki?
George: Ah, nothing. I just wanted to ask something.
Maria: Uu-! Tell Maria too! Tell Maria too!
Jessica: ...Hm~? Hmhuhuhuhu. What could it be that George nii-san asks Kumasawa-san and doesn't ask me, I wonder~? Ah, I don't have a clue~!
George: No, it's a misunderstanding...! I'm not sure what Jessica-chan is misunderstanding but...!
Aniki was getting pretty tongue-tied.
It's almost as though he had a guilty conscience and he was putty in Jessica's hands.
...Why? Something only Jessica knows and I don't is no fun at all!
Battler: Well, Maria, it seems only us two are out of the loop, right~? What is this all about, now? I want to know, hmm~?!
Maria: Uu-! Battler and Maria want to know too! Battler and Maria want to know too!
Battler/Maria: Uu-uu-uu-uu-!!!
I fooled around while "Uu~"ing together with Maria.
George: No, I'm telling you... it's no bog deal, ahahaha...
Battler: Li~ar! You suck at lying, now confess! Maria, you tickle his right side, I'll tickle his left!
Maria: Uu-! Maria right side, Battler left! Uu-!
George: Wait a second!! Wait you two...!! ahahaha, stop, ahahahahaha!
Maria and I played around, chasing George-aniki, who ran away, rolling on the bed.
I think that when you're a high-schooler you try not to act like a kitten anymore, but in spite of that, I missed this kind of fun.
A warm kind of fun.
Jessica: Haahahahahaha, George nii-san, what were you asking Kumasawa-san? Hmm~? Well, I've got a good guess. It's been a year since you last came to the head house. During that time, some servants retired while new one came over... and you wanted to say hi, right?
Maria: ...Uu-? Greet, Maria will greet too!
Battler: What the hell, that's not anything to feel guilty about, Aniki. ...Hmm~~m? That's not it? Maria, don't be fooled, what are you hiding, Aniki? More torture! Uworyaaa!
George: S-Stop it, seriously! Aahahahahaha! Maria-chan, you too, stop already!
Maria: Aahahahaha, aahahahaha! Hahahaha!!
Jessica: They're probably busy with cleaning or lunch arrangements. It's alright, we'll go and greet them properly afterwards. Shanon's recpetion will sure be better than Gohda's nosy one, right? Heehehe!
Battler: Shannon? ...Shanon. ...Aaaaahh... I remember, that girl! She's still a servant now? Such spirit!
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