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Nanana’s Buried Treasure Volume 9 Chapter 5.4

But then a justice-obsessed bride thief appeared, and the feelings she had been suppressing were pried open.

「I see, you’re just like me.」

「And to be honest, I didn’t want to get married today. If I married Juugo today, I wouldn’t be able to truly marry the person I love. But I thought that would be my atonement. Never being able to truly be united with the person I love for the rest of my life. But that was just too hard for me.」

These are the true feelings of the girl who made this plan and tried to carry it out. Followed by the weak smile of a 15 year old girl.

「If you commit a crime, you have to receive the punishment you deserve. How stoic. And Ulysses’s lover must be very lucky to have someone like that thinking of him.」

「…Juugo is smart, but when it comes to thinking of himself, he’s a bit of an idiot.」

I get annoyed, but laugh.

「Yeah. I really do think so.」

「You are going to make me a little angry.」

「?」

Ulysses Korunald faced me head on.

「Juugo, what are you doing here?」

「Huh?」

「Juugo-san. I’m not a cool girl like Kunon. I can’t be honest about my feelings like that and keep my cool. I need a reason for everything I do, and I can only act when I come to terms with myself. That’s the kind of person I am.」

「That’s not true…」

「That’s right. That’s why I always look for meaning in my actions. Reasons to prove the righteousness of my actions. Much more so than Juugo-san.」

I can’t help but feel a chill.

「Do you remember when I said to you the other day when we were jogging? Before I made this plan, I worried a lot. Is what I’m about to do right or wrong? Even though it’s for my beloved family, is what I’m about to do really the right thing? Is it really what I should be doing? Is it what I want?」

「…」

「Juugo, do you remember the answer I gave you?」

「You said, ‘I stopped worrying’.」

「What did you think that meant?」

「Like, just do it without any hesitation?」

When I voiced my honest opinion, she chuckled and said, 「That’s a bit of a rough interpretation.」

「Juugo, at that time, I thought to myself, ‘No matter what reason I find, in the end, my actions will not change. No matter how much I worry about it and what conclusion I come to, in the end, I will act for the sake of my beloved family’. That’s what I thought.」

「So you stopped worrying?」

「It’s not that there’s no point in worrying. The important thing is to realize what lies beyond that. What’s important is not to find a reason to do something, or a reason not to do something. It’s not a justification for your existence or actions.」

「…」

「What is really necessary is to know what you want to do for that person, and to have the determination and resolve to put those thoughts and feelings into action.」

「Determination and Resolve.」

「So you lied about your feelings and proposed marriage to me in an invasive marriage. You tried to fight for your family… well, you lost before you even had a chance to fight.」

「Let’s just forget about that. I’m in the middle of a lecture.」

In response to my retort, she clears her throat and says, 「I’ll do that next time.」

「Juugo.  You already realize what I’m saying, don’t you? That the answers you’re searching for don’t exist anywhere, that they’ve only ever been inside of you. That it’s something you have to decide for yourself and accept.」

「I…」

As I stumbled over what to say and looked away, Ulysses smiled gently at me.

「It’s okay. Because you’ve already demonstrated it properly. You tried to help me like this. You might have made everyone in my family your enemy, but you still tried to do something for my sake.」

「Ulysses-chan.」

「I’m okay now. So Juugo-san, please do your best for the person you most care about right now.」

Ulysses-chan smiled as if she knew my heart. As if drawn out by her words, the smile of a girl eating pudding came to my mind.

The beautiful bride asked me again, 「Juugo, what are you doing here? Don’t you have some important business to attend to?」

I’m getting a lecture from my former bride. And some support too.

The girl in front of me, younger than me, has already far surpassed me in life. After agonizing alone and coming to a decision, the girl planned and fought for everything. And now she’s trying to take me by the hand, when I can’t put one foot in front of her. She’s encouraging me, saying that everything will be okay.

I voiced my honest thoughts, 「I made a mistake. I should have just forced you to be my bride.」

「As long as it’s not today, anytime is fine.」

「I’ll get the wrong idea.」

「I don’t care. That’s how I really feel.」

「Wow, a love confession.」

「Yes, a love confession.」

Ah, you’re serious after all, Ulysses-chan.

It’s bad manners to dodge a question, so I’ll answer you wholeheartedly.

「When you become a cool and wonderful girl that I like even more, I’ll think about it, my cute other imouto」, I say with a grin.

And the girl who told me she liked me smiles back.

「You’ve now achieved a wonderful goal.」

「Hmmm, Juugo-kun, that was too pretentious.」

Before we knew it, my real little sister (with her mean eyes) was standing next to us. She started criticizing me.

「What? Seriously! That was no good?! I tried my best to look cool!」

I was actually blushing quite a bit. Man, momentum is important after all, and she said something like that so easily.

「That’s right, it’s so like you to try and make fun of me to hide your embarrassment.」

That’s probably true.

「I’m so clueless.」

Kunon-neechan points her finger at me.

「Listen, Juugo-kun. I’ll tell you this. Ulysses is mine for now. If you want her, you’ll have to take her from me.」

「Yeah yeah, I got it. I’ll keep that in mind. So get ready to make a quick escape.」

「Ah, I’ve done it now.」

I snuck my head out of the ladies’ room to have a peek, and my eyes met with the Korunald family across the hallway. I would have been fine with them mistaking me for a pervert, but they have definitely noticed them hiding behind me.

「Come on, just go.」

So I send them off quickly.

「Yeah. I’ll leave the rest to you, just take this seriously.」

「That’s not what a kidnapper of a bride should say to the person she stole the bride from!」

「But it’s the right thing for a sister to say to her brother.」

「Okay, okay, I get it. Leave it to me. …Ah, that’s right, Kunon-neechan.」

「What?」

「You were really cool.」

That’s how I honestly feel.

Kunon-neechan then says with a big smile.

「Of course. It’s justice that you protected.」

I’m taken aback by what she says.

「I didn’t do anything. I’m just helping out a little bit.」

「No, not now.」

「Huh?」

「When I was little, everyone around me laughed at my sense of justice, but Juugo was the only one who believed in it. You told me, ‘You’re right’, and that’s cool’. So I can believe in my sense of justice, just like I did back then. Because Juugo believes in me, I can stick to my sense of justice. My sense of justice will always be with me.」

Then Kunon Yama laughed happily and said this to me, 「I love you, Juugo-kun. My righteous big brother.」

So I smile too, and express my unchanged feelings.

「I love you too, Kunon-neechan. My sister who stands for justice.」

My beloved sister takes the bride’s hand and runs off. As she leaves, the face of the bride, being led by Kunon-chan, comes closer and closer.

And then…