Chapter 221: A Bad Timing
writer:Renkinou      update:2022-08-15 13:14
  Looking at my expression, Eleonora-neesan seemed like she wanted to say something but then she just approached the Jenga silently.

  「Now then, let’s watch what she will do about it」


  Moving to the back, I say that as if saying it from a spectator’s POV.

  「The balance was already bad enough, then Al struck the whole tower making the balance worse than it was before」


  「Well, Eleonora-neesan completely messed up the tower before that anyway. So it was my return gift」


  Eleonora-neesan’s shoulder twitched as her only reaction when I replied like that as though she deserves the situation, but she didn’t make any other movements, perhaps she decided to concentrate on the Jenga.

  This is nice. It looks like it’s going to be okay to harass the current Eleonora-neesan with verbal attacks.

  Just like us before, Eleonora-neesan sits down in front of the Jenga while trying to check the whole thing.

  If she did that she will lean forward, but the tower won’t collapse because it got hit by her chest just like Ilya as though it was natural.

  However, Eleonora-neesan has long hair made into a ponytail. By leaning forward, her ponytail will be going to hit the tower.

  From Sylvio-niisan and my POV - as a threat to our turn -, it’s a good opportunity for her to self-destruct if she’s not being careful.

  But, Eleonora-neesan was the one who had been completely messing up the tower. We’ll be troubled if she didn’t experience a little feeling of fear that the tower will crumble with the slightest mistake.

  「Eleonora-neesan, your hair is going to hit the tower you know? 」


  「Ehh!」


  Eleonora-neesan - who was leaning forward - immediately restore her posture after hearing me.

  「What to do now, my hair is in the way!」


  「How about you retie it again in a short style?」


  「……I, I can only tie my hair in this style……」


  What the heck do you mean by that. The low femininity of Eleonora-neesan is clearly shown even here.

  What do you mean you can’t tie your hair in any other style besides ponytail, despite having such long and beautiful hair?

  「It will just hang to the front if I just tie it up at the back right? Wha, what should I do」


  So you can still tie it at the back, huh? But, Eleonora-neesan’s hair has its own quirks and it’s long. If you just tie it up normally, there's the possibility of them hanging down to the forward when you lean forward.

  「Can’t be helped, come over here I’ll tie it up for you」


  「Eeeh? You can tie it up in another style besides ponytail?」


  「Al can tie a girl’s hair?」


  Eleonora-neesan approaches me while looking surprised at my remark.

  Sylvio-niisan - who is beside me - widened his eyes perhaps he also thought it was surprising.

  「I was taught about how to use the hair ornament called kanzashi back when I bought it in Kagura」


  「Ahー, kaasan said that you brought hair ornaments back」


  「Al is so skilfull」


  I tried to say that as the reason, but the truth is that it was because of my sisters in my previous life.

  Despite being unable to tie their hair by themselves, those girls brought fashionable fashion magazines back home for appearance’s sake and told me to tie it up like this.

  So I said, ‘I’m not a hairstylist, so I can’t do it’. But then they won’t take that excuse and forced me to practice until I was able to do it.

  Thanks to that, I’m more or less able to tie fashionable hairstyles for women.

  I take a kanzashi from the souvenirs box in my room, carefully move the chair inside the room so that it won’t make the tower collapse, and make Eleonora-neesan sit on it.

  「Please excuse me for a moment」


  I don’t forget to let her know that I’m going to start since I remember the time when I got scolded by my sister in my previous life when I touch their hair without permission.

  And when Eleonora-neesan nodded as though she gives me permission, I unties her hair in a careful manner as if I’m dealing with glasswork.

  As I gently spread Eleonora-neesan’s slightly unique reddish-brown hair, a sweet scent unique to women spread out.

  I collect all of Eleonora-neesan’s hair behind her and make a bundle out of them. The trick this time is to lift the bundle of hair up and tied it up like it wraps around her head toward the front.

  After that, slowly rotate the hair tied to the kanzashi clockwise once. At this time, the bundle of hair being held in my left hand also support the head and sends the feeling of her hair to the person.

  「Does it feel tight?」


  「I don’t know what’s going on but I feel like my hair is being pulled a little」


  It seems like it’s a bit too tight for her, so I slowly shake the horizontal kanzashi. We can loosen up her hair by doing this. And I make sure that I’m not letting go of the bundle of hair in my left hand. It will become loose by itself if I’m not being careful and let the bundle of hair in my left hand go.

  I fastened the tip of the kanzashi to her hair while loosening up the bundle of hair, then raise the kanzashi using that as an axis. かんさ?し利用例

  After pinning the kanzashi while keeping it along her scalp, the evening party hairdo is completed.

  It’s a hairstyle used by women at the time when they wear a yukata, in a marriage ceremony, or at a party.

  「Okay, it’s done」


  「Amazing! It’s like you’re using magic. So you can use a single kanzashi and arrange it like this!」


  「Eeh? Hey what’s going on?」


  Sylvvio-niisan - who was watching closely - got really surprised as he yelled after seeing the result.

  However, Eleonora-neesan - the person with the arranged hair - doesn’t seem to understand the reason for his reaction, so he stood up from the chair and went to the front of the mirror.

  「It’s nice that you arrange it shortly like this! My hair will not get in the way with this!」


  I wonder if I wanted to receive a comment of ‘It’s cute’ or ‘it’s pretty’ after I arranged it so neatly and with great care.

  Nevertheless, she looks more elegant and has a more mature air around her than usual, maybe it’s due to the fact that I can see her nape now.

  As expected, if the material is great - combined with good skill -, the results will also be different, huh.

  I’m also satisfied when I looked at Eleonora-neesan who is looking happy as she looked at herself in the mirror.

  「By the way, how do you untie this?」


  「It’ 's simple since you only have to pull the kanzashi」


  「That’s great then!」


  After she said that, Eleonora-neesan return and sit in front of the Jenga tower.

  Now that she doesn’t have to worry about her hair, she is able to grasp the blocks’s condition.

  「Hmーm, I wonder which block should I pull out?」


  「How about the lower parts?」


  「No, those parts are impossible」


  「Then, how about the left side in the middle part?」


  「No, definitely not there either」


  「Why don’t you try checking it by touching them?」


  「There is no need to try and check it by touching them. That part is definitely a no go.」


  By my estimation, the place I told her just now is a dead zone. With the current situation, there is the risk of the tower collapsing if you just touch it.

  Though it’s a shame since it turns out interesting if she just touches it.

  「……Eleonora-neesan」


  「……what?」


  「I’m hungry」


  「You, you just want to bother me by talking at me, right! Can you stop doing that? You’re distracting me from concentrating」


  I’m talking to you to make you lose concentration after all. I’m not lenient enough to stop now.

  Eleonora-neesan moves her finger as if to feel around the tower. And every time Eleonora-neesan moves her finger and tries to touch the block, I disturb her concentration by deliberately saying something like 「Ahー」 or 「Ehー」 or 「That placeー?」―― calling her attention.

  「Al, can you be quiet for a bit. I’m gonna hit you if you talk to me again」


  「Okay okay」


  But I should talk with Eleonora-neesan.

  「Sylvio-niisan, you’re hungry right. What’s for today’s lunch?」


  「Ahaha, Al. Neesan will really spank you if you disturb her too much」


  When I tried to talk with Sylvio-niisan on purpose, but Sylvio-niisan chided me while smiling wryly.

  Err, I’m just chatting with Sylvio-niisan and I don’t have any intention of disturbing Eleonora-neesan at all.

  I look at Eleonora-neesan while thinking such, and she looks really irritated.

  She seems like she’s going to throw herself with great vigor at me at any moment if it were not a Jenga.

  It’ll be really fun to bother Eleonora-neesan as she’s concentrating, but if I do it more than this my life could also collapse like the Jenga tower.

  I guess I’ll stop harassing Eleonora-neesan here before things went downhill.

  Eleonora-neesan once again faces the Jenga tower after I close my mouth.

  And when Eleonora-neesan is checking the blocks again, I suddenly felt two presence of people approaching the door from the hallway.

  「Everyone, it’s almost time for lunch!」


  Mina vigorously enters the room at the same time she knocks on the door.

  Mina is fulfilling her duty as a maid as she probably came to tell us that lunch was already prepared.

  However, what would happen to the unstable Jenga tower with the vibration from the knock and the wind pressure generated by the door being opened……?

  The Jenga tower, completely collapsed.

  「Ah, aaaaaaaaaahhhhh!?」


  「Kyaaaaaaaaaaa!? What is it!?」


  Eleonora-neesan screams at the collapsing tower, while Mina got surprised at Eleonora-neesan’s scream.

  The two’s high-pitched screams even drowned out the sound of the Jenga tower collapsing.

  「Hey, Mina! Just what do you think you’re doingー!」


  「Eeh? Could it be something break because of me!? I’m sorry! Eleonora-sama! Wha, what should I do!?」


  Looking at the collapsed Jenga and the angry Eleonora-neesan, Mina looks apologetic.

  「……Mina, this is all happening because you did not wait for an answer after you knocked, you know」


  「Uu, certainly that was true」


  Mina is dispirited after being warned by Sara - who is behind her.

  Mina might indeed be at fault here, but it was probably just bad timing on her part.

  So I thought while looking at the collapsed Jenga.