Starting a New Life in Tokyo by Inheriting a Shopping Street [63]

[Then you’ll just have to keep sulking. I’ve got things to do today, I didn’t go over to the shopping street. Mm, my onee-san didn’t either. Disappointed?]

Ogawa Sayuki’s smile practically radiated from the screen.

[If I don’t get to touch a thigh, I’ll die…]

[A grown man, whining like that? Don’t you feel embarrassed?]

[I’m not whining. I’m simply stating a fact—whether or not I touch a thigh, people die sooner or later.]

[…]

[Next time, can I whine to Sayuki-neesan?]

[There’s absolutely no need for that!] Sayuki curled her lip in disdain. [I’m busy.]

Chiba Shuuichi chuckled to himself and put away his phone. By now, he’d more or less figured out the pattern.

The two “madames” in this twin set had, in a certain sense, the same taste—both liked fragile-looking, soft boys. The difference was, the elder sister liked closeness, while the younger liked bullying.

Tsk.

...

After school, Shuuichi slung his bag over his shoulder, automatically heading toward the shopping street—but stopped short.

Going home this early today, there’d be nothing to do.

Tamako wasn’t there today. Go home early just to hole up in his room, watch anime, play games?

Sure, anime and games were fun—but right now there were clearly more interesting things to do…

He stepped back from the classroom door and went over to Akiyama An’s desk.

“Today I’m coming with you to the student council.”

“Eh?” An blinked, then remembered they were in the classroom. She quickly schooled her face into seriousness.

“Does Chiba-kun have business with the student council?”

“No business. Just bored—thought I’d visit.” Shuuichi glanced around the classroom; a few classmates were still packing up, but no one was looking their way.

He leaned in and, without warning, pinched the faintly baby-fat softness of An’s cheek.

Mm. Soft. Satisfyingly stress-relieving.

An didn’t get angry, only murmured quietly, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Chiba-kun’s really stingy—thought today I might escape the cheek-pinching.”

Knowing when to quit, Shuuichi let go after two squeezes. If anyone else in class saw this, their jaws would drop.

The ever-cool class rep, letting the resident otaku pinch her cheeks?

Oh, right— she suddenly remembered—I forgot to ask Mama last night about confessing! That was a life event!

Mama had started dating Papa at about this age, so she should get a move on too.

Otherwise, if Chiba-kun ended up like Papa—chased by lots of girls—how would she win, like Mama did?

Mama had made it sound easy, but was it really?

An felt a little pressure for a moment. Still, it was lucky Chiba-kun was an otaku—for now, no one was competing with her.

“What’re you thinking about? If we don’t go now, we’ll be late.”

Shuuichi saw her small, pink mouth moving silently, then drifting off into a daze, and had to snap her out of it.

“Coming.” An quickly put on her serious face, packing her things in brisk, efficient motions.

The two left together; only a few classmates gave them curious looks, but no one paid much mind.

“So, how’s the sports festival planning going?” Shuuichi asked as they headed to the student council office.

An kept her serious mask on, lips moving slightly.
“Onee-san’s amazing—everything’s organized perfectly. So far, it’s all going smoothly.”

“In that case, on the day of the festival, find me a nice, suitable job.” Shuuichi’s tone was casual.

Generally, only elementary schools called it “undoukai” and had the school run it. Above that, it became a “taiikusai,” led by the student council—good practice for students’ abilities.

It also required everyone to participate—not just in competitions, but in other roles. Total spectators weren’t allowed.

“What kind of job?” An glanced sideways at him, checking no one was paying attention.

“For example… guarding the sports equipment storage.” A meaningful smile tugged at Shuuichi’s lips.

All the props for the festival were kept in the equipment shed. Guarding it was boring, unpopular work—but for an otaku, it was the best job there was.

“But that position isn’t necessarily assigned to our class.” An scratched her head.

“No problem—it hasn’t been assigned yet, right? Just suggest it at the meeting.” Shuuichi sounded confident.

Sure, every class’s otaku wanted that job—but they had no say in it. Class reps preferred positions where they could stand out, not babysitting a shed.

“Alright.” An didn’t see it as a big deal, so she nodded.

“It takes two people to guard it. Have me paired with Uchida.” Shuuichi trusted Uchida Yae as a perfect tool—if it were anyone else, he might not be able to send them away.

“That’s fine. But… tomorrow’s bento…” An’s eyes lit up, full of anticipation.

“You can pick three things, any you like.”
Looking at her clear, innocent smile, Shuuichi suddenly felt a bit evil.

The storage shed arrangement… was for her onee-san. Plenty of strange, questionable things would happen there.

And here was the class rep, just thinking happily about bento…

Not long after, they reached the student council meeting room. By now, most of the class reps were already there.

The school had eighteen classes, eighteen reps—some brought assistants, some came alone.

With the student council members added in, the room was packed.

When she saw Shuuichi walk in unexpectedly, Akiyama Tsuki’s eyes lit up—and in her excitement, she shot to her feet.

“Kaichou?” The discipline committee member beside her looked at her oddly.

“Ahem. Nothing. Just been sitting too long—stretching my legs.” Tsuki cleared her throat and answered calmly.

But the discipline committee member’s expression flickered with suspicion. Lately, Kaichou had been… off.

She looked toward the door and saw Kaichou’s younger sister walk in with a smiling male student.

A guess formed immediately—Kaichou’s little sister had a boyfriend, so Kaichou was paying close attention? Is that why she slipped up?

No time to dwell—things were busy lately. And Tsuki had always worked with sharp efficiency, which made everyone else more efficient, too.

Once everyone was present, they sat down. The student council took one end of the long table. Normally, Tsuki sat at the very center.

But today… she was at the far left. Which only cemented the discipline committee member’s guess.

Akiyama An’s seat was the first on the left side of the table. The Kaichou was clearly positioning herself to keep watch. So protective…

Shuuichi, posing as An’s assistant, sat next to her—but with his chair slightly back, so it looked like he was in the outer ring. In reality, he was perfectly placed between the two sisters.

“Since everyone’s here, let’s begin. The sports festival events have been finalized. Venue divisions and equipment procurement have been discussed…”

At that, Tsuki suddenly paused, turning to the student council treasurer, her voice turning cold.
“Procurement’s going smoothly, I trust? Let’s not see a repeat of what happened under the previous student council.”

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This is a fan translation of 从继承商店街开始东京生活 by 净消尘土 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!