Shiro had already taken her bath and was lying under the covers playing on her phone.
Yusei didn't turn off the light because playing with a phone in the dark was bad for the eyes. So, for Shiro's sake, he simply slept with the light on.
.....
In the middle of the night, Yusei vaguely heard some noise, as if there was a rumble outside the window, and someone seemed to be tugging at his blanket beside him.
He drowsily opened his eyes and found a petite figure in pajamas standing by his bed.
The room's light was off now, and the room was pitch dark.
The petite figure was trembling slightly. In his blurry vision, Yusei saw it was his little sister… Shiro.
"Nii, I'm scared..." Shiro's voice trembled a little.
Yusei didn't understand what she meant at first when suddenly, a loud rumble came from outside.
A clap of thunder resounded loudly.
Shiro's body couldn't help but shiver. Before Yusei could say anything, she lifted his blanket and crawled in.
Yusei immediately felt a petite figure burrow into his arms, trembling slightly.
It was Shiro. She was wearing a white cartoon nightgown. Because it was summer, it wasn't very thick.
But this was his little sister, so Yusei had no other thoughts. He patted the trembling Shiro's little head in his arms, comforting her.
"It's okay, Shiro. I'm here."
Yusei soothed Shiro in a soft voice.
It seemed Yusei's comfort was really effective. Shiro murmured softly.
"Nii's embrace... is very warm."
Shiro nuzzled against Yusei's chest like a little kitten and soon fell asleep, emitting soft breathing sounds.
Yusei carefully readjusted his sleeping position without waking Shiro.
Feeling the petite body in his arms, Yusei suddenly felt a sense of responsibility… the first such feeling since arriving in this world.
Perhaps, for him, protecting this little one in his arms was something he should pursue?
…
The next morning, when Yusei woke up, he felt some weight in his arms. Opening his eyes, he found Shiro clinging to him like a koala.
Since Shiro was still asleep, Yusei didn't wake her, quietly put her down, and got out of bed.
Although he really wanted to spend time with the little one today, he still needed to go to class and find a wife for his little sister.
After washing up, Yusei looked at his uniform-clad self in the mirror.
Still handsome, the uniform suited his high school student's somewhat youthful, handsome face.
Perhaps because he had started practicing Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, the previously submissive aura had faded.
It was replaced by a confident, sharp, sunny handsomeness, completely devoid of the previous gloomy, insecure demeanor.
'It's not just because of the training… I myself am naturally in this state of mind.'
Yusei felt he was in great shape. After bidding farewell to Kanako, he grabbed two slices of bread, held them in his mouth, and headed for school.
After about ten minutes on the train, Yusei arrived at the school gate.
It was currently the time students arrived, bustling with people, making it somewhat crowded for a while.
Yusei yawned and was about to take a side path to avoid the large crowd when he inadvertently saw a poster placed at the school gate.
[The National Middle School Kendo Tournament is opening! Students who want to sign up should hurry!]
The poster's title was quite simple. Below were the specific event schedule, time, registration fees, etc....
Of course, those paying the registration fee were individual entrants. If signing up through the school's Kendo club, no fee was required.
Looking at this Kendo tournament, Yusei felt a bit itchy.
'Should I... give it a try?'
Participating in this tournament to practice sword skills was clearly impossible, as these were all middle and high school students. If he went all out, he might accidentally kill his opponent.
What really made Yusei want to join was the final prize money.
One million, five hundred thousand yen!