落とし穴１６５堀：こうして彼らの物語は走りだす (Part1)
**Pitfall 165: And So, Their Story Begins**
And so, their story begins.
Side: Yuki
"Well then, I'll leave the cleanup to you guys."
No sooner had she said that than Naoko Sudo began tidying up after the meal, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. To an outsider, she would look just like a wife.
Asking why she was so efficient at housework would be boorish. Her entire family had been sent to the hospital, so she had no choice but to do it herself. That was all there was to it.
"…What should we do? Should we just give her some money for now and see how things play out?"
"…We can't really do that. If anything, this is the perfect opportunity. In her case, she’s aware of the cause, so if we resolve it, she’ll likely be cooperative with us in the future. To that end, we should aim for an early resolution. Besides, whether or not we can solve this will confirm if we can clear the scenario without the protagonist."
"Oh, I see. And if we can't, we just ask the protagonist to step in, right?"
"Exactly. If we can resolve this early, we can identify the causes for the other heroines and nip them in the bud quickly, too."
"But won't our interference put Senior Sudo in danger?"
"I understand your concern, but if that were the case, we’d have been taken out first. The same goes for her parents."
"Ah."
The evil spirit in Naoko Sudo’s scenario was the type that directly harmed people. While there was a "Bad End" route where the protagonist tries to help and ends up dying, that only happened because the protagonist meddled directly. The proof was that her parents had only ended up in the hospital. If the spirit had truly wanted to finish Naoko Sudo off, it would have done so long ago.
"Even if the protagonist enters Sudo-san’s route, it’s not guaranteed that he’ll succeed. It’s worth a shot. If it follows the game, that evil spirit can’t leave the house. In the meantime, Sudo-san just needs to stay at this house or Taiki-kun’s. We can just use the 'we're cousins' excuse to make it stick."
"Oh, right. It only attacks people who come to that house. Meaning, as long as she’s not there, she’s fine."
"Exactly. It’s better than leaving her alone, anyway."
If she refused and left, then so be it. In that case, we’d just beat her to the house and crush the source of the problem ourselves.
As we were talking, Naoko Sudo finished washing the dishes and walked back over to us.
"There. Dishes are done."
"Thank you, Sudo-san. Sorry for making you do everything."
"It’s fine. It helped me out, too. Here, some tea for after the meal."
The fact that she prepared tea and sat back down as if it were perfectly natural made me realize how much she must hate the idea of going home.
Well, as far as we’re concerned, this situation is something to be happy about, but how do we maintain it? Asking, *'Sudo-san, why don't you live with us?'* would sound like a marriage proposal, and I’d probably just creep her out.
Should I be honest? Tell her we know the circumstances?
Yeah. That might be best. Hiding it poorly would just be a hassle for both of us.
"Sudo-san. Could we talk for a moment?"
"Hm? What is it, Torino-kun?"
"It’s a bit of a complicated topic, so please hear me out. If you don't want to talk about it, just say so and I’ll stop."
"What is it, so formal?"
"…Don't you find it strange that two relatives of ours would move here at the same time during a period like this?"
"Well, I suppose it is a bit odd, but I heard you were locals to begin with. So, what is it? Is there some secret?"
She didn't seem to realize it involved her, as she leaned over the table to listen.
"Yes. We’ve heard that your parents were in an accident at home and are currently hospitalized."
"……"
As expected, it was a taboo subject; her expression went blank.
"So, this is a proposal from our parents as well: if you find it difficult to stay at your house, why not spend some time at one of ours?"
"…Eh?"
She was stunned, unable to process the sudden suggestion. I decided to repeat it.
"Your parents were in an accident at home, after all. We’re worried about whether or not that’s weighing on you. We heard you’re having trouble staying at your house, so why not live here? Oh, and if you’re worried about a man and a woman living under the same roof, we can clear out my place or Taiki-kun’s…"
"Living together is fine! Yes, I want to live together!"
I thought it would be hard to persuade her, but she jumped at the offer. And she specifically wanted to live under the same roof.
"…Yeah, you're right, Torino-kun. When I'm at home, I can't help but remember the scene where my parents collapsed. That’s why I haven't been going back lately and have been staying in capsule hotels. I guess your aunts knew about that, huh?"
"I suppose so."
In reality, I’m certain my parents have no idea, and Luna is too scatterbrained to think of anything like that. Still, I wasn't about to rain on her parade by being honest, so I kept quiet.
"But are you sure you're okay with staying with us?"
"I'm sure. Oh, what? Are you going to get tempted because I'm cute? You might not be able to stay at school, you know? I am the student council president."
"No, we definitely won't!"
She was even joking around with Taiki-kun’s confirmation, so her mental state seemed okay for now. Well, Naoko Sudo’s instability usually only starts once school begins. Perhaps the school had already told her she needed to go home. In this day and age, teachers couldn't just let students stay at their homes, and from an outsider's perspective, it was just a case of her parents having an accident. It might sound cold to say "just an accident," but it wasn't a very convincing reason to refuse to go home. She looked perfectly normal, after all.
…If she said she couldn't go home because she was afraid of ghosts, no one would believe her.
Well, we’ve secured the point that Naoko Sudo will stay with us. The next step is how to get her to go back to her house, but that isn't much of a problem.
"Well then, you probably have some belongings, so shall we go pick them up?"
It was the perfect suggestion. It was only logical.
"Eh?"
However, Naoko Sudo froze completely. Stiff as a board. It seemed the idea of returning to that house wasn't even an option in her mind.
Still, suggesting we just go buy new clothes might be a bit much, right? Or maybe I should try being gentle about it.
"Ah, I’m sorry. You remember the accident when you go home, don't you? In that case, let’s go buy some extra clothes. We can still make it to the shops before they close."
The shopping district in the center of town was connected to the station, so it was surprisingly lively and stayed open late. Though, most of the main shops closed at nine, so we didn't have much time.
Now, how would Naoko Sudo take this option?