Summer Vacation Arc: 70 Hating to Lose and Undefeatable

Summer Vacation Arc
70 Hating to Lose and Undefeatable

Stepping out of her room, Meru wanted to convey her thanks for taking her in for the next while and to tell Hayate that she’d arrived, so she headed toward Yuuri’s grandfather’s room.

“Excuse me. It’s Kusuhara.”

When she announced herself in front of the shoji door, Hayate’s voice sounded from within.

“Meru, glad you could make it. Come in.”
“Alright.”

Meru slowly opened the door upon hearing Hayate’s words.
Inside the room, Hayate was looking at Meru with his usual smile while Yuuri’s grandfather was groaning in front of the go board.

“Did I come at a bad time? Should I come back later?”
“Nope. We’re just finishing.”
“We’re not finished! There’s still somewhere I can…”

Saying so, Yuuri’s grandfather stared at the go board seriously. Hayate looked at him with a helpless expression.

“There’s nothing left. It’s your loss.”

With Hayate saying that once more, Yuuri’s grandfather shouted in frustration as he smacked the tatami.

“Kiiii! Perfect boy, you’re supposed to take care of the elderly!”
“If I were to lose on purpose, you’d be angrier, no?”
“Mumumu. I’ll get you in this next game!”

Yuuri’s grandfather spoke with sparkling eyes, causing Hayate to shrug.

“Again?”
“Until I win!”

Slapping the table, Yuuri’s grandfather spoke, breathing violently out his nose, and Hayate sighed before looking toward Meru.

“Meru.”
“Hahaha. Do your best, Kamishiro-kun.”

Understanding what his gaze meant, Meru tried to cut off the discussion. However, Hayate smiled playfully, having guessed Meru’s intent.

“It looks like Meru will be your opponent.”
“Wai—”
“Ohh! I was so into it I didn’t even notice. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

Upon noticing Meru, Yuuri’s grandfather spoke to her. Meru did as she had initially set out to do and thanked Yuuri’s grandfather for taking care of her this time around.

“Foh foh. What, it’s normal for me to let my granddaughter-in-law stay over, isn’t it? How have things been with Yuuri lately?”
“Even if you ask me how things have been…”
“Excuse me.”

Hayate spoke to Yuuri’s grandfather with a beaming smile when he called Meru his granddaughter-in-law.

“Yuuri should be the one who picks his own partner.”
“Of course. Isn’t Yuuri also on board?”
“… At any rate, I would appreciate it if you would stop with that ‘granddaughter-in-law’ business.”
“Hmm, I see. However, if the person involved isn’t against it, there’s no problem, right?”
“I’m saying that Meru also doesn’t like it.”
“Eh?”

When Meru let that silly noise slip, having no memory of saying anything like that, Hayate directed his shining smile toward her and tilted his head to the side with a, “What is it?” Meru felt a chill and said, “No, it’s nothing,” while laughing aimlessly.

“Hoh. But I want to call her that.”

Saying that, Yuuri’s grandfather stole a glance at Hayate.
After having a slightly dissatisfied expression, Hayate seemed to think of something and his smile returned.

“Well then, if you win against Meru in go, it’s fine for you to call her that.”
“Ehhhh…”
“Foh foh foh. That sounds fun. I’ll say it ahead of time, but I don’t think I’ll lose to anyone other than you, perfect boy.”
“If that’s the case, it’s a profitable wager for you. How about it?”
“Foh foh. I’ll agree to it.”
“You’re just going to ignore my opinion, huh…”

Meru narrowed her eyes as they continued the discussion on their own without including her.

“Meru.”

As Meru moved to face Yuuri’s grandfather, Hayate beckoned her toward him.
When she went next to Hayate with an inclined head, he whispered into her ear.

“If you lose, you’ll be punished.”
“…”

Meru paled as she thought about what would happen if she lost. Thinking of Fuuga who was often faced with that deadly mountain of work in the name of ‘punishment,’ Meru decided that she absolutely didn’t want to lose.

From there, Meru unwillingly played go with Yuuri’s grandfather.
Of course, since the future if she didn’t win was terrifying, the match ended with Meru’s complete victory.

“It’s so annoying to lose. But the fact that you can also play go… I want to make you Yuuri’s wife even more.”
“Ahem.”
“Oh, I got it. Don’t make such a scary face. Let’s see…from now on, I guess I’ll call you ‘Meru-bou’¹?”

Since Hayate was glaring at him with such an angry expression, Yuuri’s grandfather asked Meru with a wry smile. Meru nodded while also smiling wryly.

“So there are also times when the undefeatable perfect boy gets worked up. You really let me have a good time.”
“Kamishiro-kun hates to lose more than you’d expect, you know? He’s the same as you.”
“Meru… I’ve only ever lost to you.”
“Foh foh. I see.”

Yuuri’s grandfather seemed to understand something and nodded.

“Well then, we have work to do, so you’ll have to excuse us. Meru, let’s go.”
“Okay.”

Hayate pulled Meru’s arm and went to leave Yuuri’s grandfather’s room.

“Perfect boy. Could you come here for a moment?”

Yuuri’s grandfather stopped Hayate from leaving, and Meru waited for him in the hallway.

“What did you call me for?”
“Perfect boy, while you all are here, it’s best if you don’t let Meru-bou out of your sight.”
“…?”
“If you do, I’ll persuade her to become Yuuri’s wife!”

Yuuri’s grandfather said and gave his ‘foh foh’ laugh.
Hayate left Yuuri’s grandfather’s room with a troubled expression.

“Meru-bou is a good kid, but there are those in the world who can’t recognize a good kid as they are.”

Yuuri’s grandfather murmured to himself in his room.

“What did he want to talk to you about?”
“He said he was going to persuade you to be Yuuri’s wife.”
“Ahh…”

Meru’s eyes turned into half moons when she smiled. Seeing that, Hayate had a slightly downcast expression.

“I said all that earlier, but if you truly choose someone who isn’t me, I don’t have any right to stop you.”
“…?”

When Meru tilted her head, not understanding what he meant, Hayate caressed her head with a smile.

“This is something for the future, though.”
“Kamishiro-kun?”
“Let’s go.”

Hayate smiled at Meru with his usual gentle smile, and they headed toward the workroom where the others were waiting.

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1 I thought about going with an actual translation for this, but since I keep other suffixes as they are, I decided to keep it for consistency’s sake. ‘Bou’ is an odd one because it’s used pretty much exclusively for boys, but Yuuri’s grandfather is a unique person haha.

<TLN>
I’m not gonna lie, y’all, I have a soft spot for rascally elderly types. Grandpa alone might be swaying me toward Yuuri (though I already kinda lean toward him hah). How are you all feeling about our options so far?

15 chapters left in the summer vacation arc!