VOLUME 1
Season 3, Episode 1
Episode 1:
It was another one of those dreams. One of those that Shun had seen ever so often since he was kid.
In it, he was crying. Just a little boy, sitting on a bench, crying his heart out.
Having been cursed with the inability to imagine, Shun had spent most of his childhood like this, left out and all alone. He couldn"t play with his friends - they didn"t want someone who couldn"t even fathom a simple game.
"Stay away, you freak!"
Of course, he could go home. His mum would undoubtedly pet him and comfort him. But he didn"t want that. Instead, he chose to sit out on the bench, clinging on to the single ray of hope that perhaps, they would be back for him.
A shadow fell across his face.
They were back!
Shun looked up, his face alight with happiness, only to see - a giant cream puff.
And then, the dream ended.
–
"Umm…."
His sleep cut short by that dream, Shun spent the morning holed up in his room.
He was, surprisingly, a very fussy person.
Whatever mail he received, he made sure to reply as soon as possible. New Year"s Greetings, Christmas wishes, the lot. All had to be sent out before time. If he managed to receive a greeting from someone he didn"t include in his extensive list of "people to greet", he"d make sure to send them a reply on the dot.
Thus, this was no exception.
The letter lying so innocuously in front of him was neither an important mail nor a New Year"s Greeting. It was, to be honest, something that he could probably ignore.
But Shun being Shun, he decided to reply, and was currently pondering his side of the text.
A light breeze swept the edges of the open letter paper.
What to do?
Scratching his head with his pen, Shun sat down with a frown on his face.
Creak.
The door opened, revealing a young girl with golden hair and a traveling mantle.
It was Rosalie.
Shun hurriedly hid the paper behind him.
Rosalie smiled at him, and parting her sweet lips said "I will be setting off for "Bridal Training" with Manami soon."
Uh-oh.
This was bad.
–
On her back, Rosalie carried one of those old-timey bundles, reminiscence of a thief or someone trying to run away from home.
"It"s going to be a long journey."
One look at Rosalie"s determined expression was enough to tell Shun that she had gotten it all wrong.
"…What is that?"
"My travel luggage."
"…I see."
"It contains very important things."
Just then, a cream puff fell out.
Rosalie bent down to retrieve it, and just as her hand closed around the soft pastry, her other hand let go of the bundle on her shoulder. Falling to the ground with a soft thud, the tie of the bundle loosened to reveal a whole mountain of cream puffs.
Intelligence level - 40.
The figure flashed in Shun"s head.
"I don"t know when I"ll be returning from my journey."
Rosalie clearly paid no heed as to how she looked around Shun, as her mouth was currently smeared all over with cream.
"But don"t worry Shun. I will go forth and gain more experience, so that I can be an exemplary wife to you."
Not possible. Your levels have already been maxed.
He didn"t know where to even correct her anymore. Taking a deep breath, Shun shifted his weight to rest on the table behind him.
Sheesh, was there ever a son as pathetic as him? He couldn"t even stand up to his own mother"s crazy plans.
"Shun, what is that?"
Rosalie had spotted the letter on the table.
"N-nothing!"
Grabbing the paper, Shun tried in vain to conceal it behind him.
"I-It"s nothing you have to worry about!"
However, his actions had practically screamed otherwise to Rosalie. Her hero sense triggered. She stretched out towards Shun, intent on finding out what it was that he was so desperate to hide.
"Rosalie, stop!"
It was no use, she was too fast for him.
"W-wait!"
Rising from his chair in a final attempt to stop Rosalie, Shun came up, face to face with her much too quickly.
"Aaahh!"
He lost his balance and fell to the ground, sprawled on all fours.
"Shun, are you alright?"
Concerned, Rosalie rushed over. She would probably have tried to help him up too had she not spotted the letter in Shun"s outstretched hand.
It occurred to her that this was the perfect opportunity to grab a hold of it.
Falling to her knees, Rosalie tried to reach for the piece of paper. And it just so happened that her soft, fluffy, white underwear came into contact with Shun"s face.
On his part, Shun felt as though he had died and gone to heaven.
Soft, rounded lumps of flesh were inching closer to his face, and it smelt warm, wet and sweet.
His sense of smell was overwhelmed, particularly when Rosalie moved upwards and forwards in a certain motion.
If he could do one thing for the rest of his life, it would be this.
–
"La la la ~ "
Mikoto came up the stairs and barged into Shun"s room, singing one of her odd compositions again.
"Welcome to the big sister carnival!"
And then she saw Shun, and Rosalie, who was pressed intimately on Shun, lying on the ground in a very suggestive position.
"Shun-chan is going to become a NEET!"
Predictably, she fainted. Again.