When someone said “Literature Club,” the first thing that came to mind was the image of people sitting perfectly still in a quiet room, buried in books. While it was a name I was familiar with, their actual activities had always been shrouded in mystery. Despite being a ragtag group of volunteers, they apparently engaged in creative pursuits like making picture books. It seemed a formal Literature Club had existed in the past, but it had eventually folded due to a lack of substantial activity. I suppose you could call this current iteration more of a circle. The fact that they’d managed to secure a space and hold an event like this for the Cultural Festival was already a massive step forward.
“It’s pretty lively in here!”
“Well, it is a picture book shop.”
I wasn’t sure if “clientele” was the right word, but the Multipurpose Hall being used by the Literature Circle was packed with small children. The space was overflowing with high-pitched squeals and giggles, evoking a strange sense of nostalgia. Now I understood why they weren’t holding this in the Library.
From what I could see, the circle was a small, elite group of four: a third-year girl, a second-year boy and girl, and one first-year boy. Bookworms tended to be the artistic type, so they looked a bit overwhelmed as they scrambled to handle questions from mothers and the innocent antics of the kids.
“Oh. Hey, there’s a ‘Past Award Winners’ corner.”
“Award winners? From our school?”
“Looks like it… Huh? I think I might know this book…”
“Ah! I’ve seen that one too!”
“Me too…”
The title was Puppy Paws. To summarize the plot in light novel terms: a puppy created through finger-play manifests in the real world to play with a little girl who was feeling lonely while watching the house. After they play for a while, the girl wakes up in her mother’s arms and realizes it was all a dream. However, when she looks in front of her, there stands the very puppy from her dream…! The picture book ends on that high-octane development, with the girl gaining a new family member that day.
“I’m pretty sure… they had this at my kindergarten. I remember everyone fighting over it because it was so popular.”
“Me too. I remember throwing a tantrum and begging my dad for a dog after reading this.”
“…Maybe that’s why we never had it at my house.”
The fact that so many locals were dog people might be due to the influence of this picture book. I was a cat person because of manga, though. Nee-chan had mentioned she’d want a Persian cat or something similarly high-class if she ever got one, so she was probably a cat person too—she was certainly good at catfights herself.
“Does Ai-chan have any specific preferences?”
“She’s five now… so she might prefer something a bit more for advanced readers.”
“U-Uh, yeah…? Advanced?”
Advanced…? Damn it, I’d been thinking about stupid things like catfights a second ago, so my mind started drifting toward weird interpretations. A vision of Nee-chan performing a German Suplex on someone popped into my head. Go for it, right there…!
“Heh… Like adventure stories?”
“I’m sure she’d like them, but you don’t see many of those in picture books. Maybe a story about a small child or animals going on an expedition… something that feels exciting?”
“Yeah. I wonder if the ones here… are ones she already has.”
“Well, let’s go pick one out while mingling with the kids over there.”
“Should I try talking in a higher voice?”
“Why would you go out of your way to sound like a child?”
As I said that, we approached the corner where the volunteer students were in a tizzy. A little girl noticed us, her face stiffening in fear, and she scurried away. Did she… just look at me?
“You scared her.”
“Well, it’s one thing if it’s the volunteers, but three high schoolers approaching from behind is a bit much.”
“Should I just leave the school altogether?”
“You’re taking it way too hard.”
Being avoided just by getting close… that was beyond just being bad with kids. Every time Airi-chan saw me, she’d attack me with a look that said, “The Phantom has appeared…!” I see… I couldn’t hide the latent potential that Nee-chan had forcibly dragged out of me, even in front of an innocent toddler. You… don’t grow up to be like me…!
Well, personally, I found aggressive types easier to deal with anyway.
Unlike the past award winners, the other picture books were scattered about—some propped up on bookstands on long tables, others just lying flat. Since they were displayed on top of oddly luxurious-looking satin cloths, the whole thing looked like a treasure hoard. Could there actually be a masterpiece hidden here…?
I struck up a conversation with a fellow male student who, like me, wasn't being approached by any children.
“You’ve got a lot here.”
“We really do. People tend to write them on impulse even if they don’t intend to enter them in contests.”
“Heh… Oh. This one looks like it’s for boys.”
“Ah, that one is…”
Let’s see… The Legendary Sword.
A long, long time ago, an evil being called the Demon King was resurrected and tried to rule the world. Many people stood up to the Demon King, but nobody could defeat him. Just then, a single hero stood up in a village in the countryside.
Awakened to the heart of justice, the hero went on a journey to find the legendary sword so he could defeat the Demon King. While he was heading for the capital of the kingdom, he heard a girl scream in the forest—
“…………This is.”
“Um… that was made around 2003.”
“Oh…”
That long ago—I see… the progenitor.
As I flipped through the pages, I saw a beautiful girl drawn in a style that was more shonen manga than picture book illustration. Just looking at the art style filled my heart with nostalgia.
In a sense, I might have found a real treasure. For a picture book, it had a mysterious thickness to it, and aside from the hellish composition of being written entirely in hiragana, it seemed like it might be something of extreme value. I felt an urge to head into the depths of the Amazon to solve this mystery.
“…”
The name of the legendary sword was “Excalibur.”
As a fellow man, I wanted to praise the courage of the person who left this masterpiece at my alma mater. I truly hoped this book would remain unsold and be passed down to the future. Not wanting to damage the paper by touching it needlessly, I gently placed it back onto the satin cloth.
“Hey, look, Aichi. There’s a picture book where a five-year-old girl is told ‘You’re an interesting woman’ by a super handsome prince and they fall in love.”
“Put it back.”
The Literature Club… even though it was a club that had already vanished, it certainly had a deep history.
“I feel like I understand what kind of picture books win awards now!”
“It’s not as simple as just writing text for all ages, is it…?”
“It might be fresh and interesting in its own way… but that kind of stuff is a no-no.”
Natsukawa said this while holding a cute tote bag exclusive to our school. Inside were two picture books. Even if the stories were ordinary, she apparently preferred the fine, beautiful animal illustrations compared to typical picture books. She looked satisfied, thinking Airi-chan would definitely be happy with these.
“Where to next?”
“I can do it later, but I want to see the fashion show hosted by the Handicraft and Fashion Club in the gym.”
“Whoa, Sajocchi. You’re with us and you want to go look at girls?”
“No, someone asked me to vote for them. Since they asked, I figured I should go see. If you guys want to join in, you should install the voting app from the pamphlet while you can.”
“Someone asked you? Isn’t that rigging…? Come to think of it, was it a contest?”
“I don’t think it’s about being chosen as Miss Kouetsu or anything.”
Besides, most of the entries were supposedly third-years. I guess it was one of those things people did as a final memory of high school. The first-year, Young Lady Shinonome, who jumped in and entered must have nerves of steel. She was a blonde half-Japanese girl to begin with, so from the Fashion Club’s perspective, they couldn't ask for a better model.
“But… it looks like there’s still some time.”
Natsukawa said as she checked the event schedule in the pamphlet. The fact that she replied like that meant she wasn't against going to see the fashion show.
“Ah! Then let’s go to the handicraft side first! It says ‘Handicraft Club Project,’ so it’s probably accessories and stuff, right?!”
“I wonder. Shall we go find out?”
“You come too, Sajocchi!”
“What is this? Is there a system today where I get checked to see if I’m an ally every time we move somewhere?”
Was I a reinforcement for a random party? Granted, I was in a different party yesterday. Leave the tanking to me. I’m confident in my ability to take a hit.
I hurried to follow Ashida, who had started heading off high-spiritedly. I bet she’d had her eye on this even before we went to the Literature Circle. Knowing her, she must have read the room and let Natsukawa go first.
The Handicraft Club, huh. Separate from the Literature Circle, I had the impression that this club handled anything involving fabric. That was probably why they were split into handicraft and fashion within the same club. Also, all the members seemed like they’d have high femininity. Was I an idiot for expecting something like silver accessories?
“—Hey, um.”
“Hm? Oh…”
Someone poked my arm from the side, and when I looked up, there was Natsukawa. She had that expression again, like she was trying to gauge my mood, just like before we went to the Picture Book Shop. She looked so defenseless—or rather, she was so close it made my heart race. This was beyond happiness; it was becoming a literal strain on my heart.
“About what you said earlier………… about being ‘asked to pick them.’”
“U-Uh, yeah…? Oh, the fashion show…”
That was a close one… I was startled because Natsukawa had suddenly brought up the topic of picking someone. She’d been playing with my heart for a while now. But I knew the truth: a woman who does that kind of thing naturally isn’t a femme fatale; she’s just a good woman.
“Was that… your sister?”
“No, it wasn’t…”
“Eh…”
Nee-chan wouldn't do something that felt like rigging in the first place, and she wouldn't even expect me to pick her. Even though she was the Vice President now, she was originally a delinquent—not the type of person who would want to stand out and appeal to people of her own volition.
“T-Then, was it Shinomiya-senpai? Or one of the other Disciplinary Committee members…?”
“Ah, no, it wasn’t a senior. Someone in our year.”
“Our year…”
“You know, from before summer vacation. That blonde, half-Japanese, high-handed Young Lady.”
Had I ever known anyone else with such a one-of-a-kind set of attributes? That Young Lady had a higher character density than anyone else, for some reason. Nee-chan seemed to harbor a lot of resentment toward her; maybe it was a case of same-breed loathing since Nee-chan used to be blonde herself.
“Blonde, half-Japanese… Young Lady…”
“She’s cut out for modeling. She has a Western look. Having someone like that there really adds a sense of the Paris Collection and makes the whole thing feel stylish.”
“…………Who?”
You’ve got to be kidding me.