Chapter 16
The Thing Called an Older Brother
A few days had passed since the scrimmage match.
My skills, Takachika’s, and those of the other first-years had officially been acknowledged, and the soccer club had entered a completely new era.
There was no longer a fixed lineup.
No one knew who would play in the next match.
Takachika designed the training menus, collected data, held meetings with the coach and manager, and chose the best formation for each tournament.
Sometimes the team composition changed entirely depending on the competition.
Different drills every day.
Different challenges every day.
We were in constant special training.
—But there was one problem.
Since then, I kept having the same dream.
A wide pitch.
Someone standing in front of me—someone who looked just like me.
An angry “Nijikoi.”
He grabbed me and shouted, Give it back.
I woke up like that every morning.
“…You’re building up a lot of frustration, aren’t you?”
Takachika said that one afternoon after practice.
“What are you talking about?” I replied bluntly.
“You score goals, but everything is brute force.
And your attitude is getting worse by the day. You’re starting to look like a delinquent.”
Takachika leaned closer.
Behind his thick glasses, his round eyes stared straight at me.
“Even the teachers are avoiding you. You noticed, right?”
“Ah… yeah…”
He was right.
My old player mentality was leaking out unconsciously.
At home, I snapped at my mother and my father who came back late from work.
At school, I gave off a clear don’t come near me aura.
Even that loud, goofy guy who used to invite me to play soccer had started keeping his distance.
“Do you think it has something to do with Nijikoi-kun?”
“Huh?”
“The original owner of this body. Saeki says he keeps feeling a presence in the house.
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Especially when you come over.”
“Every day, I dream of being yelled at. On a wide pitch. By someone who looks just like me.”
He grabs me and demands his body back.
That kind of life.
“Come to my house today.”
“Why?”
“My brother is free all day today. He’ll be home. Let him check you.”
“Your free brother? You mean a doctor?”
“From what I can see, you’re pretty messed up. Seriously.”
That was how our second sleepover was decided.
The Harumiya residence.
“Hey! I’ve heard all about you!”
A strangely energetic man appeared.
He looked a lot like Takachika—but taller, better-looking, and extremely suspicious.
“Brother…”
“Yeah, yeah, don’t worry.”
Before I knew it, I was pushed into a chair.
My eyes were examined, and a stethoscope was pressed to my chest.
“Hmmm. Your body is perfectly fine.
Even the numbers look normal.”
“Could be side effects from the soul swap. Or the dreams. Or both.”
“Brother, could it be—”
“I told you, I already know.”
Takachika rummaged through his bag.
Out rolled a bugging device and a hidden camera.
“…Brother.”
“Let’s not worry about the details!”
Ignoring his brother’s death glare, the man laughed cheerfully.
“This is what you’re looking for, right?”
He held out a small glass bottle.
It had a talisman stuck to it—just like something from a yokai anime.
I couldn’t see anything inside.
But—
THUD.
There was definitely something moving inside.
“It was about to disappear in the house, so I protected it.
Tomorrow, I’ll try putting it back into your body.”
“Brother… you didn’t seal it, did you?”
“Nope. I just put a curse on it so it wouldn’t vanish.
And I had Saeki cook meals for it to recover its strength. That was a lot of work, you know?”
He grinned.
“You should be grateful.”
Then he looked straight at me.
“If this thing had disappeared, you would’ve died. Nia Sunway.”
A chill ran down my spine.
“And Nijikoi-kun might have died too.
I was saving lives.”
He smiled wickedly.
—Harumiya Kazuchika.
This man knows something.
And this house—
Is definitely not just a doctor’s home.
