One afternoon, as I was relaxing in my easy chair in the garden of the mansion, which I had not been able to do for some time, I heard my sister’s footsteps.
“Hermes, what are you doing?”
Saying that, nee-san then stuck her head out from behind suddenly and peered into my hands from above.
I have a picture in my hand.
It’s a picture of a stocky, pretty dandy man.
“A man!? Such a thing is no good, Hermes――hah.”
She swallowed the words she was about to say, took a deep breath, and started mumbling something.
“No, no, let’s not jump to the wrong conclusion here. Orthia-chan also told me that Hermes-chan is a bit of a taciturn, but he seriously likes girls.”
I felt like I had been told something drastically rude.
When I was wondering if I myself should retort, my sister put her hand on her well-shaped chest and took a deep breath to calm herself down.
“Hermes, whose picture is that?”
“Ah, it’s been a long time since someone applied, but it’s the person who wants to meet with nee-san――”
“So~i!”
Nee-san snatched the picture from my hand and threw it away with a splendid form that I always fondly see.
Kiran!
Poor Dandy Macho, his picture became a star far away in the sky.
“I’m already good, Hermes!”
“I know, nee-san. I’m not going to let you fall into the hands of a man of that caliber.”
“Eh……”
The faltering nee-san, opened your eyes wide and stared at me.
“I know how nee-san feels.”
Dokin.
As soon as I said that, I heard nee-san’s chest bouncing with all its might.
This timing, I know that I definitely hit the mark.
“Y,you noticed?”
“If I think about everything up until now, yes, I did. Nee-san’s behavior is consistent, so as expected, I understand it.”
“Hermes……”
Nee-san’s eyes became moist.
“You have me take out my seriousness, display my power and make my name known to the world. Nee-san likes me the way I am now, right?”
“I,it’s not like that, that’s ――”
“That’s why I’ll choose earnestly. I’ll choose a man with a high position who has shown his power and has risen through it.”
“――Eh?”
Nee-san who was about to say something looked at me again with a dumbfounded look on her face.
……A’re?
From some time ago, somehow, is it different?
“……”
While I was puzzled, nee-san’s eyes became colder and colder.
Nee-san clenches her fist and smacks me on the head.
“Wait, hey, what are you doing, nee-san?”
“……”
Pokapokapoka.
“Stop it, nee-san. It doesn’t hurt but what are you doing. What’s bothering you?”
“I don’t know! Hmph!”
Nee-san turned away with a pout and walked away with a sulky look on her face.
Err…… What the heck happened?
☆
The next day, I brought out the easy chair in the garden again, and this time, as I was relaxing and looking at nothing, nee-san came over again and peered into me from above.
“Hermes.”
“What’s up nee-san. Today――”
I swallowed the continuation, “you’re in a good mood”.
I didn’t understand what happened yesterday, but I thought it would be better not to dig around it.
“Yes, this.”
Nee-san put a pile of pictures on my lap.
“What is this…… pictures of a girl?”
“They are potential new members of HHM48. I’ve got 200 people lined up to join.”
“Eh?”
“Choose the ones you like from these. Ah, not choosing anyone is a no-no. I got a royal decree from His Majesty yesterday. Everyone is treated as His Majesty’s recommendation.”
“Eeeeeeeeeeh!?”
What is this all of a sudden?
Or rather, His Majesty’s recommendation, you said…… It’s as forceful as when my sister became my daughter.
Why? Why all of a sudden?
“Uhmm…… nee-san?”
“What is it?”
“Somehow, are you mad?”
I asked because it kind of felt that way, but.
“No, I’m not”
“No……. you are. Because……”
I looked at the photos.
For some reason, all of them ―― literally all of them.
All of them resemble nee-san in some way.
“Choose well, Hermes.”
She was smiling, but there was a strange intensity on it.
I was so pressured by it that I somehow chose one of them who looked especially like nee-san.