How to raise a Russian Girlfriend!

Alya stared at Kenshin in amazement as he narrated the tragic yet heroic story of Alistair Abara.

How the man grew up from nothing and yet through pure determination and hard work, became the strongest and vanquished evil.

What's even more surprising is that this Alistair Abara was said to not have any affiliation with women, staying pure and dedicated to improving his strength instead.

Could such a great man like Alistair Abara truly exist?

"And then, with his sacrifice, the demon king along with his spawn of evil demons and spirits were vanquished forever from the world of Fantazio!" Kenshin finished the story with an extra dramatic effect, a set of fireworks crackling across the room.

"Wow…" Alya's face froze when suddenly, the scribble on the door started to flash in red light.

Before she could make any moves, Kenshin was already ahead of her and pulled all of the papers back into his inventory while putting out the fireworks at the same time.

"I'm going in!~" The door opens and Maria, with her shoulder-length wavy light brown hair, and a tray filled with snacks and two cups of tea.

"I brought some snacks for you two! In case your friend here is hungry from his journey…" Maria stopped in front of them before placing the tray on the bedside table.

"…" After that, Maria remained standing with a soft smile on her face.

"Uhm…Do you need something else?" Kenshin was confused.

"No. Of course not. I was just thinking that maybe you guys need anything else."

"We're fine here, Onee-san. Thanks for the snacks." Alya rolled her eyes at her sister's attempt to join in on them.

Can't she understand that they're discussing a very important detail in the magical world? A great man called Alistair Abara?

"Okay!~ Don't hesitate to call me from downstairs in case you need me, okay?~" Maria slowly walked towards the door, taking her time.

'She's expecting to be called already…' Kenshin could deduce what's going on in Maria's mind right now.

Even when she opened the door and left, the process of closing the door was slower.

Thud!

"Sorry about th-" Just as the door closed and Alya was about to apologize for her sister's behavior, the door was suddenly snapped open again and Maria's head peeked inside.

"Hmm? Did you call me?"

"Onee-san, no one's calling you! Get out please!" Alya flashed in front of Maria and pushed her head out before closing the door.

Huffing, Alya sat back next to Kenshin on the bed.

"Sorry about that." Alya composed herself and apologized.

"I don't mind. In fact, I feel like you were a bit harsh against your sister. She just feels concerned about you, you know?" Kenshin leaned back slightly and said.

"I know that and I love her for being that way to me. But it's just that…she's too overbearing sometimes, I can handle myself just fine, I'm no longer a little girl she used to pamper back then…" Alya pulled her knees close to her chest before hugging them.

Seeing her down, Kenshin slowly stretched his hand forward, his hand hovering near the top of her head.

'Should I pat her? What if she gets mad at me?' Kenshin starts to hesitate.

In the end, his concern for Alya won and his palm touches her soft and silky hair before moving it slowly.

"There~ There~" Kenshin cooed with a smile.

However, he was met with Alya's cold gaze though the small tint of red in her cheeks says otherwise.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Can't I pat you like this? You're feeling down and sad about your conflicting feelings with your sister." Kenshin replied and continued before Alya could respond.

"I could understand how she feels, being the oldest sibling is hard. Sometimes they take the blame and responsibility for their younger sibling's actions, so as much as possible, they try to steer you to the right path, to make sure you don't repeat the same mistakes as they did. In your case, she must be feeling worried that you're doing something wrong by inviting a boy into your room and wants to help you as much as she can while at the same time, she doesn't want you to hate her for it."

"But that's not why yo-" Alya blushed very hard as Kenshin's words before he interrupted her.

"That's what you think. But what about your sister? She can't read your mind, you know. That's why whatever she does, just know that it's always her intention to help and care for you." As soon as Kenshin was done giving his advice, Alya burst into tears.

"Hick!… I just don't want to give her a burden. I know what it feels like to deal with people who are a burden and it almost caused me to snap at them. I don't want my sister to feel the same thing. Hick! T-That's why as much as possible, I want to be independent and reliable."

Hearing her answer, Kenshin softly sighed and kept patting her soft head, by now, she doesn't seem to care about it and more or less started to like it.

As he continues to soothe Alya, he gives the door a side-eye glance.

'She must've heard everything…'

True to his words, just outside the door, Maria can be seen leaning on the door with her hand behind her back.

Her eyes were tearing up as she heard what her little sister truly felt about her.

"You have a great friend, Alya-chan~" She mumbled to herself before smiling softly.

Perhaps, it's time for her to start relying more on Alya instead of the opposite.

'Kenshin-chan….Thank you….' In her heart, a soft and warm feeling towards Kenshin starts to bloom.

***

Seeing Alya sound asleep on the bed, Kenshin sighed.

'So much for magical lessons. She barely grasps the basics.' Kenshin muttered to himself.

After tucking her in and leaving the magical books on her table and was about to leave when suddenly, he heard Alya mumble in her sleep.

"Kenshin….спасибо… я люблю тебя…"

Kenshin froze in his tracks and he clutched his chest. He felt his heart beating fast.

'Is this…how love feels?'

***

After silently leaving the room, Kenshin sighed in relief.

"….Thank you for taking care of her."

He turned his head to the side and saw Maria with her eyes slightly red from crying earlier. However, there's a smile on her face.

"As her friend. It's my duty to support her. You don't need to thank me. In fact, I'm the one who should thank you, for always being there for her." Expressing his gratitude, Kenshin bowed his head at her.

Sure he just met Alya a week ago but their recent interactions combined with the fact that he knew her from an anime make him quite attached to her.

It's hard to explain but that's that.

"You're a good boy, do you know that, Kuroki-kun?" Maria smiled softly and said, her tone mixed with a hint of happiness and what seemed to be longing.

"Thanks? And please, just call me Kenshin, you're Alya-san's sister, you deserve the same treatment as her." Kenshin doesn't know what to make of being called a good boy.

"Really? You're truly kind, Kenshin-kun." Maria released a sigh of satisfaction.

"I'm so jelly of Alya-chan, she was able to find a friend like you." Maria's gaze on Kenshin went from top to bottom.

"U-Uhmm. I gotta go, Alya's asleep and she probably won't be waking up anytime sooner." Kenshin grabbed his shoes and was about to leave when his arm was suddenly grabbed.

"How about you stay for a few more minutes? Alya-chan's not a heavy sleeper, she might wake up anytime soon." Maria suggested.

Albeit hesitant, Kenshin was left with no choice but to agree.

"Okay…"

After getting dragged into the living room and pushed into the couch, Maria grabbed two cups of tea from the kitchen but the flavor this time was different.

'This one seems to be her favorite than the one she delivered in Alya's room earlier.' Kenshin concluded.

"Nice tea."

"Right! It's my favorite tea!" Maria looked happy with the compliment.

'I was right.' Kenshin mumbled to himself as he slowly sipped on the tea.

"You know, when Alya was a child, she wasn't like that. She used to be like any other child. She was happy, friendly, eager to prove herself and she even used to be childish. But that was the past. Perhaps it's because of her classmates or maybe because I was here in Japan and I left her in Russia that she started to turn cold and indifferent to other people and sometimes to us, her family." Maria sighed as she started to narrate their backstory with solemn nostalgia.

"Are you blaming yourself?" Kenshin turned to her and asked causing her to blink in surprise.

"…Maybe? I'm not sure. But after I heard the truth from here when you two talked inside her room, I felt like a burden that I didn't know I was carrying was lifted off my shoulders. You're a good man, Kenshin-san."

"Although it's quite shameful of me to say this but…can you please help me take care of Alya-chan? You're her only friend and I feel like she's starting to trust you like family." Maria was quite a bit embarrassed while saying this.

"You didn't have to tell me, Maria-san. I would take care of her, she's a dear friend of mine."

"I'm glad!"

The two spoke for a few more minutes until Maria realized that Alya won't be waking up anytime soon and could only send Kenshin off herself.

'Of course she wouldn't wake up, not only did she cry her emotions off, but combined with the fact that I just awakened her magical potential, it took a toll on her physical and emotional body.' Kenshin muttered to himself as he walked towards a nearby alley and left through the sky.

***

Inside a fancy-looking Japanese mansion, three figures sat behind a table full of various delicacies.

However, despite the countless mouth-watering foods on the table, the expressions of the eating figures were the opposite.

"Do you know what you've done back in Shinjuku, Yasaka?" On the head of the table sat a tall middle-aged-looking woman, her golden hair mixed with a few whites tied like a flower behind her back, and her face riddled with makeup, trying to cover the wrinkles on her face.

Despite her beauty which some used to compliment as a woman who aged like a fine wine, her expression was ugly.

She was staring at her daughter, Yasaka, who sat across from her, looking down at the ground with a solemn expression.

"Not only did you leave him hanging when he tried to have a chat with you, but you also dared to leave us at the banquet and even killed some of his men who simply wanted to fetch you back! Are you trying to start a fight against a Yokai Noble?" Yasaka's mother snarled at her.

"But they were the ones who-" Yasaka tried to reason with her mother only to be met with a scolding shout.

"Silence! You shall not speak until I say so!"

Yasaka shifted her eyes towards her father, trying to ask him for help however, but the man simply gave her an apologetic smile before minding his own business.

"….I'm sorry, mother…" Yasaka could only bow her head down and endure.

"Starting next week, your marriage with Fideus will commence." Her mother loudly declared, causing Yasaka's eyes to widen.

"No! Mother no!" Yasaka stood from her seat, startling both her parents.

"I will not marry him, mother!" Yasaka clenched her fists and spoke the words in disgust.

"What is the meaning of this, Yasaka. Are you going against your mother? Your Queen?!" Her mother stood and did the same, facing off against her daughter.

"No, I'm not going against my mother…" Yasaka slowly said, causing the Queen of Kyoto Yokai faction to huff in satisfaction.

Just as she was about to sit back down, Yasaka's next words made her and her husband freeze.

"…I'm going against the person who tries to control my destiny! I will never listen to you anymore, Inari!"

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[Next Chapter: Ch. 30 - Yasaka's rebellion!]