"So this is an Uma Musume."
Bless the Moment set down the controller after securing another win. "They possess physical abilities far surpassing humans, along with faster reaction speeds."
"...the middle part's a blur, and the rest too, anyway, aaaaaaaahhhhh!"
The white-haired Uma Musume shook her head and sighed as she looked at her father sitting beside her. "Dad, why torture yourself like this?"
"This isn't torture," the middle-aged man protested weakly. "...It's called perseverance."
"Choosing not to give up when facing an opponent with better skills and faster reactions, but instead choosing to get closer to her?" Bless the Moment understood. "Commendable courage, but that's about the only praiseworthy thing here."
"What were you thinking, Dad?" Kawasaki Ryoko, who had been watching them play the fighting game from the sidelines, also began chiming in. "Playing a fighting game with Bless?"
"Ahem... winning or losing isn't the point," the man cleared his throat, subtly placing the controller he'd been gripping onto the sofa. "I just wanted to play some games with Bless after so long."
"Really?" Ryoko sounded skeptical. "You didn't seem to feel that way when you were mashing buttons earlier."
"Maybe it's because I called him out for being sensitive to the cold when I got back?" Bless the Moment mused. "Dad, you wouldn't...?"
"Ahem, ahem, ahem! People just get a little competitive during games, that's all!" The man quickly cut her off before she could finish, then stood up to offer his seat to his older daughter. "Your turn."
"Finally, my turn?" Ryoko leaned forward to grab the controller, then grinned at her sister, who was facing the TV. "How about a co-op game?"
"Sure." Bless the Moment nodded, watching her sister navigate the menu to select a game, and flexed her fingers.
A co-op game? Even better.
Co-op games require teamwork to clear stages, but they also encourage a bit of friendly sabotage.
A co-op game without messing with your teammate has no soul!
Facehugger! This game will be my perfect revenge for what you did before!
Click!
The moment they picked up the first power-up, both Bless the Moment and Kawasaki Ryoko without hesitation threw it at each other.
Seeing the frozen status effect appear on their respective characters, the two girls followed the on-screen prompts to break free and immediately locked eyes.
—Let's go!
The instant their characters shattered the ice, they both hammered the forward button, racing to get ahead.
"Not good enough! Not good enough! Not good enough!" The white-haired Uma Musume, who had just grabbed a Starman, saving her from the bomb Ryoko had launched, slammed the reverse button, watching her character charge straight at her sister's. "The star is the strongest!"
"Hah, just lucky!" Ryoko scoffed.
"Stop running away!"
"Then you stop chasing me!"
"..."
Sitting to the side, watching his daughters play, the middle-aged man rested his chin on his hand, his eyes occasionally drifting toward the screen.
...Maybe I should play a co-op game with Bless next time.
He thought back to the miserable beating he'd just taken from his younger daughter in the fighting game.
Anyway, getting cornered and pummeled by Bless was just too humiliating, especially since his kids saw him get so worked up. It damaged his image.
No matter how much his daughters liked messing with each other in co-op games, it surely couldn't make him as frustrated as the fighting game did, right?
"Bwahahahaha—!"
Just as the two reached the boss fight, and the man thought they would finally start cooperating, he stared in shock as Bless the Moment launched another bomb at her sister's character.
Even though the boss was actively attacking them, Bless and Ryoko completely ignored it, solely focused on using the spawned items to attack each other.
"Haha! I'm one step ahead!" Seizing the chance to defeat her sister's character with an item, Bless the Moment declared her victory, only to be immediately pulled into a tight hug by a grinning Ryoko, initiating their usual sisterly roughhousing.
"Mmph mmph... Let me go, you facehugger— Mmph!"
Bless the Moment managed to wrench her face free from her sister's chest for just a second, barely getting a sentence out before being smothered again, leaving only muffled protests.
"You're not getting away!" Ryoko, gleefully rubbing her sister's face, let out a strange, gleeful chuckle. "A cute kid like you was born to be teased by adults!"
"Mmmph—!"
Her mouth blocked, Bless the Moment shot a desperate look toward her father.
Dad! Why are you just watching!
Have you really betrayed me?!
"..."
The man ignored his younger daughter's pleading gaze and turned to look out the window.
The weather's so nice today... Maybe I'll go sunbathe on the balcony at noon.
Pretending not to see the look she was giving him or hear her muffled cries for help, the middle-aged man stood up and quickly walked away, leaving the sounds of his younger daughter's struggles and indistinct 'mmph' sounds behind him.
"What are you doing in here?" The middle-aged woman preparing lunch in the kitchen glanced at her husband as he approached.
"...Not playing with them anymore?"
"Ryoko and Bless are playing." He grunted in response, picking up a knife and starting to chop. "I didn't have anything to do, so I thought I'd come help you."
"Actually, you lost to Bless in the fighting game and were too embarrassed to stay, right?"
"Ahem...!" The man's face reddened. "I wasn't going all out... And besides, losing to your daughter, can you even call that a real loss?"
In that moment, a joyful atmosphere filled the kitchen and beyond, creating a world where only Bless the Moment—trapped in Ryoko's arms, her face being relentlessly squished—was suffering.
--+--
"Vega?"
"Hm?"
The brown-haired Uma Musume, who had been staring intently at her phone screen, finally looked up at the sound of her father's voice.
"Did something good happen today?"
"...Is it that obvious?"
Admire Vega raised a hand to touch her face, only then realizing the corners of her mouth were turned up in a smile.
"Quite obvious." The middle-aged man nodded. "I haven't seen you look this happy in a long time."
"Is that so?" Admire Vega murmured.
"I don't know what made you so happy... but you really do look better when you smile more." The man patted her shoulder, speaking with heartfelt sincerity. "Just like you did when your trainer was still here."
"Back then, you had a smile on your face every day."
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.