Chapter 386: And You Still Claim You’re Not a Sister Complex?!

“So, all of this is true?”

Machida-san looked completely shocked.

This naturally left Himekoji even more confused.

“Hold on! Didn’t you bring this up, Sonoko-nee? So why are you asking me whether it’s real now?”

Could it be…

That entire conversation just now was actually his editor testing him?

That possibility suddenly flashed across his mind. Unfortunately, it was too late to react. All that remained on Himekoji’s face was the stunned expression of someone who realized things a moment after everyone else.

“So, the things written about you in your sister’s book… they really are true…”

Instead of answering Himekoji’s question, Machida-san seemed lost in the shock of this revelation. Lips slightly parted, the words slipped out almost unconsciously.

“Huh? Things in a book?”

Himekoji keenly caught the crucial piece of information.

Mystery solved!

So that’s why Machida-san knew about all this and brought it up? Because she’d read the book Akiko wrote?

Just what on earth did Akiko write in her book?!

She wrote about the “Sister Diary” too?

This “Sister Diary”… back when his editor asked about it, Himekoji hadn’t thought much of it and had answered quite naturally. But now, thinking back carefully… yeah, it was actually kind of embarrassing…

Especially since this diary scrupulously recorded his daily updates on his sister’s three sizes and, particularly… cup size…

Wait, hold up!

A sudden doubt struck Himekoji!

This diary… wasn’t it something he wrote secretly about Akiko, behind her back?!

The “not shown to anyone” included Akiko herself, obviously.

So, how did Akiko know about his “Sister Diary”?

Not only that… but she wrote about it in her book…

“Please let me see ‘Even Though…’, I mean, please lend me that book!”

He snatched the book from his editor’s hands. In his haste, he nearly blurted out that infinitely embarrassing title, catching himself just in time.

Right there, he began flipping through the pages, flip flip flip, skimming ten lines at a glance.

Driven by the need to find the source of the “Sister Diary,” his reading speed was frantic.

But that was just at the start.

As time passed, without even noticing, Himekoji’s reading pace slowed down.

From ten lines at a glance, to one line at a glance, then finally savoring each word individually.

“This Akiko… heh…”

Unconsciously, at some point, the corners of his lips curved upwards.

“Seriously.”

His mouth kept letting out soft murmurs like that.

This book gave him a truly unique feeling.

A uniquely awkward feeling, a uniquely embarrassing sensation… and an incredibly powerful sense of immersion…

He’d started reading it purely to find out how Akiko knew about the “Sister Diary.” But as he read on, he completely forgot his original purpose.

He simply found himself immersed in savoring the scenes, the everyday moments, that felt so vividly familiar, as if he’d lived them himself. He absorbed the warmth that seemed to seep out, not just from the words and sentences, but even from the punctuation points themselves.

Reading word by word, sentence by sentence, it was as if his heart was gradually filling up.

Himekoji was sure that among all the readers of this book, he was the most special one.

Only he could read the most special emotions hidden within its pages.

No one else could be more deeply moved than he was.

The younger sister in this fictional novel felt as real to him as the one in real life.

“Whew…”

He lost track of time completely. Only when he closed the compact Bunko edition did he feel this lingering sense of wanting more, reluctant for it to end.

He clutched his sister’s book tightly in his hand; a long time passed before his turbulent feelings finally settled.

Gurgle—

Suddenly, his stomach let out a complaining rumble. Only then did Himekoji realize something felt wrong.

“Eh? It’s already dark?”

He lifted his head and looked around. He discovered that the editorial office was utterly empty; without him noticing, everyone else had left. Only Machida Sonoko remained, sitting beside him, propping her cheek on her hand, gazing at him with an expression full of utter speechlessness.

“Finished?”

“Huh? Ah, kind of…”

He hadn’t expected to get so immersed that he’d been reading for that long. Himekoji suddenly felt rather awkward, his cheeks warming uncontrollably. He scratched the back of his head and let out two dry laughs.

Seeing him like this, his editor felt a mix of exasperation and amusement. She rolled her eyes dramatically, giving him a pointed look.

“Seriously, you siblings… It’s one thing to have one with a brother complex and the other with a sister complex… But to jointly spread the gospel? The brother writes things fixated on his sister, the sister writes things fixated on her brother… What kind of game are you two playing? ‘Promoting Brother/Sister Complexes, Start With Us’? Paving the way for your eventual close-relative marriage?”

“Wha-What nonsense!”

Hearing his editor get more and more absurd, Himekoji hastily interrupted, his face flushed,

“I told you already, I don’t have a sister complex!”

“Tch, oh yeah? Do you have any idea how utterly corny and gross the expression on your face was just now while you were reading your dear sister’s dear novel?”

Machida-san pursed her lips, flinging him a face full of scorn and disgust.

“Th-There was nothing like that! It’s just plain, ordinary sibling affection!” Himekoji blustered defensively, his neck stiff.

“An ordinary big brother absolutely wouldn’t go to the lengths you have! ‘Sister Diary’? With her three sizes and bra cup?”

“That is what an ordinary big brother is like! What’s wrong with that?! Besides, Sonoko-nee, you aren’t even qualified to say things like that! As far as I know, you’re an only child, right?”

“Mhm, what about it?”

“Since you never had a brother, how do you know what an ordinary big brother is like?”

“Eh?”

Himekoji’s argument struck from an unexpected angle. It genuinely seemed to stump his editor.

“Tch… I always wanted a great brother so I could know, why don’t you magically conjure one up for me?” The apparently lone female editor with a hidden brother complex heart seemed genuinely poked in a sore spot. She couldn’t help muttering a few quiet words under her breath.

“What?” Himekoji couldn’t catch it.

“Nothing! Come on, let’s get dinner! I’ve been waiting for you this whole time, starving away!” Machida-san patted her empty stomach, putting on a pitiful face.

Having starved herself nearly to the point of ribs touching, all thanks to Himekoji, she clearly had plenty of resentment ready to unleash.

“As compensation, you’re treating me to a really nice dinner.”

She shot him an eloquent glance from her beautiful eyes, which, along with her high attractiveness, actually appeared quite charming just then.

“Ah, dinner?!”

As soon as she mentioned that, Himekoji seemed to suddenly remember something crucial—

“Oh no! What time is it?! I completely forgot I have to go back and make dinner for Akiko! She might be starving!”

The more he thought about it, the more urgent he felt. He stamped his foot and immediately took off running.

“Sorry, Sonoko-nee, I’ve gotta go! Akiko’s back home waiting for me to cook!”

“Huh? Wha— Hey! Hold up! Where are you running off to?!”

“Get back here! Himekoji! Get back here!”

“If you go cook for your sister, what am I supposed to do for dinner?! I waited patiently here at the office just for you!”

“Gah! And you still claim you don’t have a sister complex? The moment your sister gets mentioned, you run off in a total panic!”

“Go die, Himekoji! You disgusting, twisted sister-con-lover!”

……