Chapter 11 - The Mob Heroine's ‘Stacked’ Genes
Ding-dong.
It took me about thirty minutes to get here from my house. In a quiet suburban neighborhood, I stood before a two-story house and pressed the doorbell without hesitation.
This was the Mogami residence. The house where Mogami Fuko lived. We were about to head to the salon, but she'd said she was nervous and lonely even about the walk there, so I'd come to pick her up.
I hadn’t been to the salon myself, but apparently, it was located inside the station building, so there was no way we’d get lost. Anyway, the original plan was for me to just text her when I arrived, but that felt like a hassle, so I just rang the doorbell. After a short wait. The door clicked open, and the person who peeked out was… not Mogami-san, but her… mother.
She looked exactly like her daughter. Her eyes weren't hidden, unlike her daughter’s, but she was a calm-looking woman with the same dark hair, and... also, a very large chest. Her facial features were pretty plain, but that chest was... yeah, that was definitely a plus. Man, genetics are a wonderful thing.
“Yes? Who might you be?”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Mogami—uh, I mean, Fuko-san’s classmate and friend. My name’s Sato. I came to pick her up.”
“...Oh my. Oh my, oh my! You’re saying that you’re Fuko’s friend, Sato-kun?”
Apparently, she hadn’t heard about me from her daughter. Mogami-san's mother... yeah, that's a mouthful. I'll just call her 'Mom.' Anyway, Mom smiled warmly and welcomed me with cheerful delight.
“Yes. We’re best friends, Mom.”
"'Mom'... huh? Fufu, all right, then. You can call me 'Mom'."
“So, is your daughter home?”
“Yes, she is. Since you’re already here, why don’t you come ins—”
"—Mom?! Wh-wh-wh-why are you talking to Sato-kun?!"
At last, the person in question made her appearance. Mogami Fuko came rushing over, looking completely flustered.
"Well, the doorbell rang, dear. Still, I had no idea you had a boy who's this close to you, Fuko. You’ve been keeping things to yourself, huh?”
“It’s not the kind of relationship you’re imagining, Mom!”
“Yes, yes. You’re all flustered, how cute.”
“She really is, isn’t she? Her flustered side is so cute.”
“Why are you agreeing with my mom, Sato-kun…?”
Well, what could I say? Mentally speaking, I'm probably closer in age to mom anyway. I can't deny our values just line up.
Before I reincarnated, I was a 28-year-old man. Mogami-san's mother is probably in her mid-thirties at most, so we couldn’t be more than ten years apart. [TN: So yeah, he used 最上さんの母親 (Mogami-san’s mother) here but in the next line, he switched back to using おかあさん (Mom)]
So when I said she was cute, my meaning was probably a lot closer to mom's, too. It's not cute in a romantic sense, but more about how her youth and inexperience just feel precious. It's like the feeling you get watching over a kid.
"So, are you two heading out somewhere?"
“We’re just going out for a bit.”
“We’re heading to the salon so Fuko-san can get her hair done.”
“Sato-kun! Why would you tell her that!?”
"Oh, my! So you're finally going to stop cutting it yourself? That's wonderful! I keep telling her she should go, but she just never listens, you know?"
“Ugh… S-Sato-kun, can we please go now? Mom, we’re leaving!”
“Fufu. Have fun, you two. Sato-kun, take good care of my daughter, okay?”
“Of course. Please leave her to me.”
After that exchange, Mogami-san pulled me by the hand, and we left the Mogami residence.
(...So that's what Mobuko-chan's mom is like, huh. First time seeing her, but... man, she was great.)
Seeing firsthand where her stacked genes came from made me oddly happy. And there was one other thing, too.
"Geez, Sato-kun... I told you to text me when you got here, not ring the doorbell."
In front of her mother, Mogami-san was just an ordinary daughter. She probably didn’t want her mom to know she was hanging out with a boy. Watching her get embarrassed and flustered was honestly kind of fun.
“I figured since I was already here, I might as well say hi to mom.”
"Y-You're calling her 'mom'...? But... well, she seemed to like it, so I guess it's fine?"
Mogami-san probably had a dozen other things she wanted to say. But, she must have also understood that it's not like I'd done anything wrong. She let out a little sigh, like she was giving up, and just shrugged her shoulders.
"Well, it is what it is. Still, you’re really good at getting along with people, Sato-kun. You were like that with me, too. Mom’s actually shy around strangers, but you got her talking so easily.”
“Really? She seemed pretty calm and easy to talk to.”
"She's usually unfriendly with everyone, even to delivery drivers, you know? I guess, how do I put it... You're not childish. In a good way. It's more like, you're mature, or... you're just calm, so it makes you easy to talk to?"
...Man, she's sharp. Mogami-san's analysis is pretty much spot-on.
I mean, I am an adult. Unlike her and Sanada, I'm a full-grown man with real-world work experience. On top of that, I'm a reincarnator—a 'meta' existence who knows how this whole world is supposed to go.
That's the only reason I'm able to help her like this. But... I'm also starting to feel like maybe it's not a good idea for someone like me to be interfering this much.
My words could easily influence or even distort the course of their lives. This time, I'm intentionally steering her, all because I want to change her 'mob heroine' fate. But... this also means I could accidentally send things veering off in some other weird direction without even meaning to.
(I guess being able to hang out with her like this is probably something that can only last for this one summer.)
Exactly like a mirage, shimmering in the summer heat. It's something that's only here for a little while, like a sandcastle, not built to last. This whole relationship with Mogami-san... it's nothing more than a passing dream.
So, I'm just going to enjoy this moment for everything it's worth.
I reaffirmed that thought, right then and there.
