Chapter 26 The Case I Ended Up Staying Over at a National Idol's House

The Case I Ended Up Staying Over at a National Idol’s House

After getting out of the bath and relaxing, we decided to eat sukiyaki, as suggested by Amane-san. I felt a little uneasy because I was temporarily wearing one of Amane-san’s T-shirts.

A large pot was placed on the dining table, with high-quality meat arranged nearby, ready to be cooked.

“It’s Onee-san’s treat today. Eat as much as you want.”

Amane-san said this cheerfully as she placed the luxurious meat into the pot.

As the beef simmered quietly, a sweet aroma filled the room.

“Thank you. I’ll dig in.”

I expressed my gratitude and took a bite, immediately overwhelmed by the rich flavor.

It’s so delicious…

The meat was incredibly tender, practically melting in my mouth.

“What is this? It’s amazing!”

Meanwhile, Shirasaki-san ate her sukiyaki with sparkling eyes, clearly enjoying it.

The way she picked up the meat with her chopsticks, dipped it in raw egg, and brought it to her mouth looked completely natural.

Or rather, her eating speed was just too fast…

“By the way, Amane-chan, do you usually cook?”

Shirasaki-san asked curiously.

“I do when I have time. I wanted to cook today too, but I thought it’d be better not to keep you both waiting.”

So Amane-san is good at cooking too…

Her image as an idol who can do everything isn’t an exaggeration.

“I’d love to try your cooking someday, Amane-san.”

For a moment, I imagined how lucky her future husband would be to eat her meals every day.

“Speaking of which, Amagi-kun, do you like girls who are good at housework?”

“I haven’t really thought about it, but probably.”

“Oh, I see. Then Kanade-chan will have to try harder too.”

Amane-san teased Shirasaki-san playfully.

She reacted with a flustered expression.

“I don’t know what you mean…”

“Well, you know, Kanade-chan is known for being bad at cooking on Luminous Stars’ shows.”

Luminous Stars has a flagship show featuring its members weekly.

One of the segments involves cooking battles.

“T-That’s just a character I play to make the show more fun! If I tried seriously, cooking would be no problem for me!”

“Really~? I thought you genuinely couldn’t cook.”

Shirasaki-san faltered but quickly regained her composure.

“Even if that were true, I’m still young, so I’ve got potential!”

“Y-Young… Oh no~! Amagi-kun, Kanade-chan is playing the youth card on me!”

“W-Wait…”

Amane-san, feigning shock at being outdone by a high schooler, leaned into me as if pretending to cry.

I froze, unsure how to react to the sudden gesture.

That’s when an issue arose.

Squish…

A soft sensation pressed against my arm. I almost jumped at the unexpected contact.

Is she… not wearing a bra?

While she didn’t seem bothered, I made eye contact with Shirasaki-san.

Shirasaki-san gave an awkward smile, though something seemed off about it.

Even though she tried to stay composed, I could sense complex emotions in her gaze.

This is bad…

Just as I was thinking that, my phone rang from my pocket.

“Ah…”

When I looked at the screen, my sister’s name appeared. My heart skipped a beat, and I felt a sudden sense of urgency.

“What’s wrong, Amagi-kun? You look like someone caught cheating…”

“N-No, it’s not like that!”

I decided to answer the call for now.

“Hello…”

[Onii-sama! I finally got through! I was so worried because you didn’t reply to my messages.]

The first thing I heard was my sister’s concerned voice.

Apparently, she’d sent me messages, but I hadn’t checked my phone due to the sudden change in plans.

“Sorry, I haven’t looked at my phone for a while.”

[I see… So, where are you now?]

Just as she asked, Amane-san turned to me with the same question.

“Amagi-kun, who’s calling?”

“I-It’s my sister.”

As soon as I answered, my sister’s voice grew louder.

[That voice… It’s a woman! Onii-sama, do you have a new girlfriend? I’d like to congratulate you, but as your sister, I need to check her out first. Could you put her on the phone?]

The conversation had suddenly taken an unexpected turn.

Of course, Amane-san and I are not in a relationship.

But from my sister’s perspective, it’s understandable for her to misinterpret the situation, seeing as I’m with a woman on a weekend night.

“We’re not dating or anything like that.”

I decided to clear up the misunderstanding right away.

[Is that so? Still, I need to evaluate the women around you, Onii-sama. So please, put her on the phone.]

Maybe she’s being overly cautious because of what happened with Chiharu. Either way, if I didn’t agree now, she’d definitely question me later. Reluctantly, I handed the phone to Amane-san.

“Um, Amane-san, my sister wants to talk to you…”

“Me? Well, I suppose that’s fine…”

Though she looked slightly bewildered, Amane-san accepted the phone.

“Hello? Amagi-kun’s sister? This is Amane speaking.”

[Thank you for always looking after Onii-sama. I’m Nana, his sister. Um, what’s your relationship with Onii-sama?]

I was dying to know what they were discussing, so I anxiously watched Amane-san.

I worried my sister might say something strange—or Amane-san might respond in an equally odd way.

Meanwhile, Shirasaki-san happily continued eating sukiyaki, acting as if nothing unusual was happening.

“Amagi-kun and I are just coworkers.”

[Coworkers… Oh, could you be Sakuraba Amane from Luminous Stars?]

“Yes, that’s me.”

[I see! I’m so sorry. I thought Onii-sama was being seduced by some random woman… But I’m relieved it’s Amane-san!]

“Sorry to make you worry, Nana-chan. He came over because he got drenched in the rain. He’ll head home tomorrow morning since I have work as well.”

[Not at all… By the way, are you two alone right now?]

“No, no, that would be a huge scandal. Kanade-chan is here too.”

[Is Shirasaki Kanade there too? I’m so jealous of you, Onii-sama…]

“Next time, you should come over too, Nana-chan. Bring Amagi-kun with you.”

[Really? I’d love to!]

It seemed like Amane-san and my sister were having a lively conversation.

Since the misunderstanding seemed to have been resolved, I called out to Amane-san.

“Um, Amane-san, are you okay?”

“Yeah. Nana-chan, I’ll hand the phone back to your brother now.”

I took the phone from Amane-san.

“Hello…”

Before I could finish speaking, my sister interrupted.

[Onii-sama! I think Amane-onee-chan would make a great girlfriend! I want to call her Amane-onee-chan!]

“W-What are you even talking about?”

I didn’t fully understand, but my sister seemed entirely on board with the idea of Amane-san being my potential girlfriend.

Well, that’s impossible. She’s way out of my league, and there’s no way she’d ever see me that way…

[Sorry, I got carried away. Onii-sama, since you’re staying over tonight, be careful heading home in the morning, okay?]

“Y-Yeah…”

As soon as I replied, the call ended.

At the same time, I felt a strange sense of unease.

Something’s wrong…

Hold on, am I really staying over at Amane-san’s house tonight?

I didn’t agree to this… Did I?