Volume 4 Chapter 24 Rainy Class Observation Day
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Just yesterday, the start of the rainy season was officially announced.
Damp, muggy, and miserable. My skin feels constantly tacky—it’s disgusting. And despite the endless piles of laundry, nothing ever seems to dry. It’s enough to make anyone lose it.
A truly wretched time of year has arrived.
But well, complaining won’t change anything. It’s just the price you pay for living in modern Japan. I’ll just have to let Mr. Air Conditioner carry the burden. Long live the wonders of modern civilization!
Thinking about it now, I’m truly glad I wasn’t reincarnated into some fantasy world. Sure, maybe magic could handle the humidity, but still…
I’ll just have to endure it and tell myself the dams are being refilled so we won’t have any trouble enjoying “wonderful Japanese culture” once summer hits.
Still, I can’t help but wish it hadn’t rained today.
Today is Sunday. Or as it’s also known: Sunday, Domingo, Dimanche, 星期日, Воскресенье, Sunnuntai… Man, having so many names for one day is a real pain.
It’s my mother’s day off, but we’ve been hit with rain since the crack of dawn. At this rate, we have no choice but to stay cooped up inside!
”Maa-kun, shall we get going?”
”Yeah,” I said.
Today is Sunday Visitation—the one day a year parents come to observe our classes.
Even though my mother is going to the trouble of trekking all the way to the kindergarten, the weather is miserable. I couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty, which left me with a sour look on my face.
But contrary to my gloomy mood, Mother seemed excited at the prospect of seeing me in my element at school.
She was dressed in an “office casual” look—personally selected by Mio-P¹—and she’d clearly spent more time on her makeup than usual.
”You look beautiful today, Mother.”
I’ve grown quite used to the flattery. I have an excellent role model in Mitsuhisa-san, after all.
”Oh, why thank you!” Mother said.
She gave me a beaming smile and stroked my head. To be clear, that wasn’t just flattery; I was being sincere. I’m a good boy who doesn’t tell lies.
”And you, Maa-kun… hee-hee, you’re the same as always.”
Well, I’m just going to kindergarten like I do every day. Oh, wait… I guess the other parents will be watching too.
”Maybe you should try doing this?” Mother asked.
With a playful smirk, she used both index fingers to hook the corners of my mouth into a smile. This… this actually feels more unnatural, doesn’t it?
”Hee-hee…”
”Mother, we should pr—”
”Oops, right you are,” she said.
This is no time to be messing with my face. We still have a little time before the shuttle bus arrives, but our neighbors are likely already waiting for us.
”—Maa-kun! Morning!”
”Whoa… Morning, Suu-chan. Sorry to keep you,” I replied.
The moment I opened the front door, the Totsuka mother-daughter duo was already outside, just as I’d expected.
Suu-chan lunged at me with a “I’ve been waiting for you!” energy. Even in the rain, she’s as hyper as ever.
”Suu-chan, your hair looks cute.”
”Ehehe… thanks!”
”Maa-kun, you’re quite the sharp one…” Mio-san said.
Sharp? She was wearing the birthday present I gave her—that scrunchie she usually keeps tucked away “for safekeeping” because she’s afraid of getting it dirty.
It was obvious at a glance that she’d put a lot of effort into her look today.
”Maa-kun, don’t you have anything to say to me?”
Mio-san puffed out her magnificent chest as if to say, Well?
I mean, she’s the neighborhood’s resident “femme fatale” housewife, always oozing s*x appeal.
On top of that, she seemed extra fired up today, as if she was determined not to be looked down on by the other moms.
Usually, she has a bit of an “approachable” vibe, but today that was gone. She was radiating a completely different aura.
”You look great, Mio-san,” I said.
”Maa-kun, your heart isn’t in it at all!”
”Well, isn’t that Mitsuhisa-san’s job…?”
”Hmph. Maa-kun, you really don’t know how to handle women,” Mio-san replied.
”Hee-hee… Oh, Maa-kun…” Mother said.
”Mama is beautiful! She’s my pride and joy!”
”Suu-chan! Thank youuu!” Mio-san cried.
Ah, Suu-chan was snatched away… Oh, never mind, she was returned immediately.
After meeting up with the Totsukas, we huddled under the apartment stairwell to stay dry while waiting for the shuttle bus.
”Oh, the bus is here!” Suu-chan said.
”You’re right,” I replied.
Suu-chan noticed it first, and I followed her gaze.
* * *
”Suu-chan, do you like the rain?” I asked.
”I don’t hate it!”
”I see.”
Suu-chan seemed to be in high spirits, clinging tightly to my arm to stay under my umbrella. She marched ahead in her pink rain boots, acting as if puddles weren’t even an obstacle.
”Hey Akari, should we share an umbrella too?”
”Hmm, I think I’ll pass,” Mother replied. “I’d feel bad for Mitsuhisa-san.”
”No fair! Like mother, like son—you’re both so cold to me… Mi-kun, help…”
Rejected by my mother, Mio-san went back to being sulky. It hadn’t even been five minutes since we left the house, and she was already pining for her husband.
As you might have guessed from that exchange, Mitsuhisa-san is staying home.
He has Fuu-chan and Kyo-chan to keep him company, so I doubt he’s lonely. In fact, he practically volunteered for the job.
He claimed it would be too hard to drag six-month-old twins out in the rain. I suspect there’s more to it, though.
He skipped out on Suu-chan’s birthday party, too—probably because he’s still busy dreaming up ways to “deal with” any brat who dares to make his daughter cry.
And so, only the mothers from the Totsuka and Yashiro families were attending.
After greeting the teacher and boarding the shuttle bus, our mothers sat in the row right behind us.
”I need to make sure I burn every second of Maa-kun’s big day into my memory,” Mother said.
”…It’s not a ‘big day,’ it’s just a normal lesson, okay?”
”Hee-hee, that’s right. For you, it is just normal, isn’t it?”
Mother’s words were loaded with meaning. I felt like if I kept arguing, I’d just end up digging my own grave, so I looked straight ahead and exercised my right to remain silent.
”The Rabbit Group where Maa-kun is sounds so interesting, too~,” Mio-san said.
”But I want to watch Suu-chan… Oh, I know! Suu-chan, do you want to come watch Maa-kun’s lesson with me?”
”Can I!?”
”No, Suu-chan has to attend her own class properly…” I said.
”Aww…”
I really wish Mio-san wouldn’t make such wild suggestions. It’s a pain having to deal with Suu-chan after her hopes have been dashed like that…
”By the way, in the Rabbit Group, there’s a child who hasn’t come to kindergarten even once since starting the middle-class year, right?” Mio-san asked. “Maa-kun, do you know them?”
”Yeah, I know the name at least,” I replied.
It’s been nearly two months since the school year started. In the back of the classroom, one locker has remained empty the entire time, without so much as a toolbox inside.
At first, because she never showed her face, I’d jokingly dubbed her the “Cloistered Princess”² in my head.
Looking back, I regret being so flippant. Given that she hasn’t shown up at all, I can’t help but feel there’s some serious story behind it.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious.
I know it’s not right to stick my nose into another family’s business, but… I suppose I’ve been poisoned by the neighborhood “mom-friend”³ gossip culture.
Still, if it’s something like neglect, then…
”Mio, do you know why?” Mother asked.
”Nope, not a clue. It seems like the parents don’t interact with the other ‘mom-friends’ at all. Even Mayumi-san and her group don’t know anything.”
”I see…” I said.
Mayumi-san is the “Don” of our generation’s mom-friend world. Her daughter, Shiho-chan, is good friends with Suu-chan, and since they’re in the same class, Mio-san talks to her often.
But if even Mayumi-san doesn’t know… then the only ones who know the details are likely the kindergarten staff…
Inugami Anna.
She’s the only child in the Rabbit Group I haven’t been able to make friends with yet.
—
Summary:
As the humid rainy season begins in Japan, Maa-kun and his mother prepare for a special class observation day at his kindergarten. They meet their neighbors, the Totsukas, and travel together despite the downpour. During the journey, the conversation shifts to a mysterious classmate, Anna Inugami, who hasn’t attended school since the start of the year. This mystery looms over the group as they arrive for the school event.
—
Trivia:
- The empty locker and the nickname ‘Cloistered Princess’ suggest a character with either severe social anxiety or a difficult family situation.
- Maa-kun’s realization that he might be ‘poisoned’ by gossip culture shows his deepening integration into his current life despite his adult past.
- The name ‘Inugami’ (dog-god) can carry heavy, supernatural connotations in Japanese lore, possibly hinting at the girl’s importance
—
Character Insight:
Maa-kun continues to use his ‘adult’ awareness to manage the women in his life, specifically using flattery to keep his mother happy and navigating the ‘mom-friend’ dynamics between his mother and Mio.
—
Lore And Worldbuilding Context:
Introduction of the ‘Rabbit Group’ (Usagi-gumi) classroom structure and the social hierarchy of ‘mom-friends’ led by the ‘Don’ Mayumi-san.
—
TL Notes:
Maintained the ‘Mio-P’ suffix as it establishes a specific pop-culture reference to idol producers, characterizing the relationship between the two mothers.
—
Glossary:
Notes:
• Ai – Dark‑brown short bob hair, former long‑distance track star turned homeroom teacher of Chrysanthemum Class and Riko’s senior; athletic yet unrefined, never drinks, drives. When stressed she slips into regional dialects, voice frantic over drills. Now a kindergarten teacher and Rabbit Group “Mom,” blunt with parents, single and job‑frustrated. Fast, playful, competitive in Cops‑and‑Robbers, suspicious of Makoto’s maturity, responsible and cheerful guide for the youngsters.
• Mio – Mio-P (28, 164cm, 57kg) is a pregnant, gray-clad Totsuka resident with a baby-faced charm and G-cup curves. A former athlete turned teacher, cook, and photographer, she is a patient, tech-savvy “Love Guru” who guides Makoto, Suu-chan, Fuu-chan, and Kyo-chan with understated wisdom. Whether driving them to parties or baking, she remains a nurturing, amused caretaker who cherishes her role in their lives.
• Mitsuhisa – Mitsuhisa, 33, 184 cm, 71 kg, toned and reserved, is the giant‑physique father of three—Suu‑chan, Fuu‑chan, Kyo‑chan—married to Mio. On modified childcare leave, he’s protective, doting, and takes quiet pride in their growth, often theatrical play‑acting with his daughters. He keeps a distant rapport with Akari, shares dark banter with former teammate Makoto, and feels unsettled by his influence on others.
• Suu-chan – A refined young girl with soft skin who values etiquette and ‘lady’s grace.’ She holds Makoto to a high standard of grooming.
• Suu – A female student in the Rose Class. Very close to Makoto (Maa-kun). Has mud on her cheeks and makes high-quality dorodango.
• Totsuka – Totsuka Mio is the wife of Mitsuhisa Totsuka and mother of Suu-chan. She is a hardcore gamer, part of the neighbor family that supplies hand‑me‑down consoles to the protagonist’s household. Mio attends parent‑teacher conferences and worries about her daughter’s growing dependence on Makoto.
• Akari – 28‑year‑old single mother, long dark‑brown hair, subtle makeup, poised and observant. Lives beside best friend Mio, drives a black light‑compact car, cares for newborn son Maa‑kun and raises Makoto. After childcare leave she works in IT for balance, prefers quiet home, feels guilty missing the party. Strict yet loving, polite, estranged from her own parents, mischievous, monitors Makoto’s health via a ‘status report’ network.
• Fuu – One of the twins, approximately four months old. Currently learning to swivel their head and grab objects.
• Kyo – One of the twins, approximately four months old. Shared traits with Fuu-chan.
• Mayumi – Elegant and refined, she often appears in soft pastel dresses, accompanying her daughters Hina and Shiho to swimming lessons and helping them change. A graceful, trusted “mom‑friend” to Mio‑san, she is close to Nanami and Akari, balancing maternal care with warm parent‑circle friendships. A veteran of the neighborhood mother circle, she’s also close to the mother of the rumored boy, Makoto.
• Shiho-chan – A member of the friend group who arrived early and is close enough to Yuma’s family to stay over.
• Shiho – A four-year-old Rose-Class girl with a side-up ponytail, Hina’s younger sister and close friend of Makoto, Suu-chan, Yuma and Suzuka. She wears a kitten-themed hair clip and placemat, uses training chopsticks, loves picture books and Hiragana, swims, makes mud dumplings with Makoto’s tips, and quietly competes with Suu for Makoto’s attention, often following Suu-chan to meet Makoto.
• Mom – A 30‑year‑old mother who recently switched jobs for more time with her son, Maa‑kun. She’s supportive, manages household shopping together with Mio‑san, and balances family life with her new career.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply