“Thank you, Shion-san!” Sakuya gazed at Shion, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “If you hadn’t been here, I might have collapsed from exhaustion on that mountain path…”
“But you’ve climbed up here before, haven’t you? Why the sudden difficulty now…?”
Sakuya picked up her phone. “Oh, that’s because I was busy promoting with Ayane-san last night, you see.”
“Huh?” Shion was momentarily bewildered by Sakuya’s words. ‘Hadn’t all the promotions wrapped up days ago?’ she wondered.
“Ayane… what have you been up to now?” Shion cast a sidelong glance at Ayane. Iori Shigure, sitting beside Ayane, quickly shifted away, eager to avoid Shion’s irritated gaze.
Ayane’s eyes flickered to the side. “Mm, just wait and see, Big Sister.”
“I don’t understand, but don’t take it too far, alright?” Shion was already feeling rather helpless over Ayane and Sakuya’s ‘promotional strategies.’ She was almost too weary to bother scolding her mischievous younger sister and Sakuya, who seemed to be ‘aiding and abetting’ her.
“Don’t worry, Big Sister!” Ayane quickly nodded. “I’m the only one who gets to have your alluring photos!”
Upon hearing the words “alluring photos,” the other girls couldn’t help but turn their attention to Ayane.
“Hey!” Shion’s face flushed crimson as she tried to grab Ayane, but Ayane swiftly darted into the kitchen, hiding behind Nanami, who was busy preparing tuna.
“Hm, hm?” Despite holding a chef’s knife still slick with fish oil, Nanami wore a bewildered expression. “Did I miss something?”
****
The sky slowly transitioned from an endless expanse of azure to a soft, pale gold, while the clouds glowed fiery red, set ablaze by the evening sun. One by one, the pale yellow lanterns of the autumn festival illuminated the venue.
Stall owners had begun to arrive, making their final preparations for the grand opening.
Meanwhile, the girls also made their way to the shrine’s booth. The stall had been mostly decorated in the days prior, and with the merchandise now arranged, preparations for opening were complete.
“This outfit… is it really alright?” Shion, now dressed in a red and white skirt, meticulously examined every detail of her attire.
“No problem at all, no problem!” Ayane patted her older sister’s head. “You can trust my taste!”
“I’m not asking if the clothes are pretty; I’m asking if the Disciplinary Committee will catch me!” Shion exclaimed, her face red.
“Actually… if Shion-san wasn’t caught for her Culture Festival outfit before, she probably won’t be today…” Shigure timidly offered from the side. “After all, it doesn’t show much…”
Nanami added, “Truthfully, if Ayane-san were wearing it, she might be caught by the Disciplinary Committee. But for Shion-san, it’s definitely safe.”
At this, Shion’s eyes narrowed, hinting at a desire to commit murder. “Kazama-san, would you care to repeat that?”
“Uh… I have some orders to process, so I’ll be busy!” With that, Nanami quickly retreated to her half of the stall and began slicing fish.
Just as Shion was about to pursue her, two girls’ voices suddenly echoed from behind. “Is that Hoshimori-san?” “It must be, judging by the white hair!”
Before Shion could react, Sakuya quickly stepped forward. “Yes, that’s right! If you spend enough at the shrine booth today, you can take a photo with Hoshimori Shion-san!”
“Huh?! When did that become a thing?” Shion quickly whispered.
“Ayane-san said so,” Sakuya whispered back. “It’s like what they say at anime conventions… ‘collecting stamps,’ you know.”
Ayane also chimed in softly, “Don’t worry, how could I ever trick Big Sister?”
“That… remains to be seen.” Shion covered her face.
“Really?” Hearing Sakuya’s reply, the two girls were pleasantly surprised.
Sakuya consulted her notebook, quickly reviewing the established sales strategy. “However, you’ll need to promote it on LINE.”
“No problem!” Both girls made an ‘OK’ gesture and quickly began selecting shrine merchandise.
Shigure, knowing she wasn’t good at interacting with strangers, stayed quietly at the back of the booth, swiftly making change for the first two customers.
“Well then, Hoshimori-san!” One of the girls turned to Shion.
“Y-Yes!” Shion quickly straightened up. “Ah, right, time for the photo.”
“Big Sister, show them the same energetic charm you had at the Culture Festival!” Ayane quietly leaned into her sister’s ear and whispered.
“Ugh… Ayane, you…” Shion shifted her legs, the soft rustling of her white stockings betraying her reluctance.
Ayane pressed her cheek against Shion’s. “Don’t worry, Big Sister, you can definitely do it.”
Shion took a deep breath and flashed a dazzling, practiced smile. “So, my two lovely patrons, what kind of picture would you like to take with me?”
The two girls looked overwhelmed with delight. “Then, how about a heart pose together?”
“Mm, no problem at all~” Shion deliberately pitched her voice, adopting an adorable, loli-like tone.
“Say, Iori-san,” Nanami, who was offering salmon samples to a nearby customer, suddenly asked Shigure, “Do you think if we buy some shrine merchandise, we could also take a photo with Shion-san?”
“I think so, yes… and actually, I’m a little interested myself,” Shigure replied. For some reason, she had been counting a pile of money for quite some time, yet still hadn’t finished.
After seeing off the previous two customers, Ayane draped an arm over Shigure’s shoulder, rattling the money she had just collected, and smugly declared, “Well, Big Sister? What do you think of my marketing strategy?”
Sakuya also boasted, “I deserve some credit too!”
“You two, don’t get too carried away. That was just the first customer.” Shion wanted to lecture them further, but before she could finish, several more schoolmates in casual clothes approached.
“Is this the Hoshimori Shrine booth?”
Shion’s practiced smile, which she had only just dropped seconds ago, had to reappear on her face. “Hello everyone! This is the Hoshimori Shrine booth! We have salmon and shrine merchandise, welcome!”
Perhaps it was Shion’s infectious smile, but more and more people gathered around. The goods at the Hoshimori Shrine booth, both the merchandise and Nanami’s salmon, began to disappear at a visibly rapid pace.
“Say, Ayane, how about you take over for me?” Shion’s face was stiff from smiling. During a brief lull, she quickly pulled her sister aside. “If I keep this up, my face might not be able to move tomorrow…”
“Silly Big Sister, they’ll definitely know who’s who at a glance.” With that, Ayane proudly puffed out her chest.
‘Just another day of wanting to throttle my sister~’