Volume 5 - CH 21

The Talk

After that, I kept talking until Sakuya was satisfied. Since it’s already evening, I am about to head home for the day.

“I don’t mind if Hideyori stays the night you know.”

“I don’t even have anything to sleep in though……..”

“Then bring a sleepover kit next time you come over to nurse me okay.”

“Can you like, not catch a cold instead……..”

It’s kinda evil when she so brazenly said that I will have to nurse her again though.

Still, it’s true that Sakuya looks like the type that often gets sick.

“Ah! If Hideyori catches a cold and collapses then I will sleep over at your place and nurse you back okay!”

“I will kick you out if you don’t cosplay as a maid alright.”

“I can see your preference from the fact that you want a maid instead of a nurse you know…….”

While having some casual exchange, we headed down to the shop where Master was.

“Master, I’m going home.”

“Oh, thanks for today, Hideyori-kun.”

Said Master while he’s wiping a cup behind the counter.

Hearing that, Sakuya runs up to Master.

“I’m all good now, Master!”

“You look real energetic. It seems the iced water I prepared worked magic huh.”

“You two really are parent and child huh.”

Master smiles at my retort.

He then puts down the cup he was wiping and turns to Sakuya.

“Sakuya is still recovering so go get some rest for now okay. I will bring the dinner up later.”

“Ye~s. See you Hideyori.”

“Yeah, yeah, see you tomorrow.”

Sakuya returns to her room while waving back at me.

Well, since she’s all better now, I guess I should head home.

“Ahh, wait a minute, Hideyori-kun. Let’s talk.”

“Both you and your daughter love talking too much you know…….”

“Maybe it’s hereditary don’t you think…… Also, before she met you, she was pretty much a silent type though……”

With a bitter smile, Master pours a cup of coffee and hands it to me.

While taking a sip, I wonder what he wants to talk about. I mean, he’s staring at me right now.

“I’ve been thinking that I don’t really talk with you much you see.”

“What are you saying, we talked in-depth about Sawamura Yama before right.”

“That’s not it. I mean a serious talk.”

Ahem, Master cleared his throat.

What? He’s not going to say something stupid like please take care of my daughter again right?

“Hideyori-kun, you have a Gift don’t you?”

“Haa?”

“Gift, you have one right.”

Master repeated. His tone indicated that he was completely convinced.

I can’t understand why he would bring up something like a Gift now.

“Sakuya’s fever almost hit 38 degrees this morning. There’s no way it would go down that much in just a few hours right?”

“Who knows. Maybe your iced water was simply that good right?”

“An iced water that good doesn’t exist. And it’s not like I suspect you to have it today. It’s been on my mind for a long time. Even before Hideyori-kun first visited my shop actually.”

“………….”

I kept thinking about my Gift while drinking the coffee.

I don’t know what Master is trying to get at.

But I do trust him enough that I think I don’t have to deny it.

“What made you think I have a Gift?”

“It’s a common belief that a child of a Gift Holder would usually possess a Gift as well. Your father was one. That’s why I thought that it’s likely for you to have a Gift too.”

“That’s just an unproven myth isn’t it?”

Even when both parents are Gift Holders can bear a child without Gifts. Conversely, a child born from non-Gift Holder parents can have a Gift.

In short, it’s more luck than genetics.

“Right. But my sister’s husband……….so to say your uncle, he was a piece of trash right.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“I can easily picture that piece of trash being violent on you when he took you in. But what’s up with him now? He happily went on an anniversary trip with my sister? Impossible. That man is not that type of person.”

The relationship between Master and my aunt seemed to be good but it seems that he loathes my uncle.

But I can also confirm that my uncle was, in fact, a piece of trash.

“Then, the only conclusion I can draw is that something must have happened at the Akechi household. Did my sister manage to change her husband? No, she’s never that brave of a person. That only left me with the possibility that the child they took in, you Hideyori-kun, did something to change him.”

“I just convinced him to be a better person you know.”

“Impossible. There’s no way that man would listen to reason. He’s a beast that has already tasted blood. Telling him to stop wouldn’t do anything. He’s the type that would continue to do whatever he wants. He was such an animal after all.”

“Haha, you said it.”

“Because of that, I can only think that you have changed him with a Gift. I’ve been skeptical of it since I heard from my sister that he suddenly stopped beating you, Hideyori-kun.

He guessed that much even before he first met me. That’s some reasoning ability……..

It appears that Master is not just some stupid doting parent huh.

“But that’s not what I want to talk about. I haven’t talked to Sakuya about this so you have to keep this a secret too alright.”

“Eh? That wasn’t it?”

“Come on, don’t be like that” Master said with a smile.

“You see, I absolutely loathe Gift Holders. Sakuya seems to be looking up to them but for me, it would be better if she doesn’t ever have one.”

“Come to think of it, you used to say something like that huh.”

“I don’t even want to let a Gift Holder into my shop you know.”

“I see, I see.”

I start thinking about a lot of things while drinking the coffee.

Then, after I finished the cup, I finally understood what Master wanted to say.

“In other words, you don’t want to see me here again right?”

“……..before I answer, I need to hear something from you first.”

“I’m not going to marry you okay.”

“Why would I ever propose to you.”

I was prepared for Master’s proposal but that was not it.

Thank goodness……, I’m straight after all.

“There’s a reason I hate the Gift Holders so much.”

I don’t know why he’s telling me that but I urged him to continue.

“My friend was a victim of a Gift Holder. She was killed. Moreover, the one who did it was her own husband. What can I say, I guess a brother of a piece of trash is also a piece of trash huh.”

“What do you mean?”

His friend fell victim to a Gift Holder.

That’s why Master hates the Gift Holders.

But the latter part.

a brother of a piece of trash is also a piece of trash? What does that mean?

But if I put it all together then…….

“My mother is the friend Master is talking about. My father is a Gift Holder and the one who killed her. His older brother is married to your older sister AKA my aunt. Did I get that right?”

“As expected. You are quick on the uptake, Hideyori-kun.”

It’s been about 7 years since I was reborn as Akechi Hideyori but this might be the first time I ever have a conversation about my parents.

Through Master, I think I can get a glimpse into my background.

TLN: The plot thicken!!