I Was Possessed By An Unknown Manga

To make the hamburger steak, I took out the other ingredients from the pantry, excluding the canned mackerel and eggs in the refrigerator.

Breadcrumbs, cooking oil, starch, salt, pepper, etc.

The process wasn’t that difficult.

Finely chop the onions and mix them with breadcrumbs and beaten eggs in a bowl.

Then, take out the mackerel from the can, squeeze out the oil by hand, mash it finely, and add it to the onion, breadcrumbs, and egg mixture.

Season lightly with salt and pepper, and the key is to knead the mixture well until it becomes sticky, like a meat mixture.

After that, shape it like a regular hamburger steak, and then grill it in a preheated frying pan.

Sizzle!

The hamburger steak began to sizzle as it made contact with the oil.

It was my first time trying this dish, but at least from the outside, it looked fine.

Since I was using fish instead of meat, I squeezed out all the oil to eliminate any fishy smell, and thanks to that, only the savory aroma of cooking protein filled the kitchen.

While the hamburger steak was cooking, I quickly made a sauce using ketchup, soy sauce, and mirin.

I used ketchup not just because its tanginess helps mask any fishy taste, but also because its high sugar content makes it easy to create a sweetness that kids love.

Once the hamburger steak was fully cooked, I transferred it to a plate and poured the pre-made sauce on top, completing the manga-style mackerel hamburger steak.

‘Shall I taste it?’

Since it was my first time making this dish, I was a bit hesitant to serve it right away.

I used chopsticks instead of a fork to cut the finished mackerel hamburger steak into bite-sized pieces.

Slice!

Since it was made with mackerel, the texture was different from a typical hamburger steak.

Carefully dipping it in the sauce to avoid breaking it, I brought it to my mouth.

Nom.

“…!”

The result was much better than I expected, and I couldn’t help but widen my eyes.

I could confidently say that it tasted very similar to a regular hamburger steak.

Reassured by the taste, I motioned to Ayase’s younger brother, who was watching me anxiously from the living room.

“Say ah~”

Ayase’s younger brother opened his small mouth wide like a baby bird receiving food from its mother.

I dropped a piece of hamburger steak into his mouth, and after chewing it, he gave me a big thumbs up.

“It’s delicious!”

“Great. Can you help set the table with your sister? I’ll make the fried rice next.”

“Okay!”

Ayase’s younger brother quickly ran to the living room to call his sister.

Watching him run off, I began preparing the vegetables to make the fried rice that his sister had requested earlier.

---

““Thank you for the meal!””

“You’re welcome.”

I smiled contentedly and nodded at the siblings’ unified expression of thanks.

There was quite a bit of washing up to do since I made several dishes at once, but as long as they enjoyed the meal, it was worth it.

After placing the empty dishes in the sink, I put the freshly made vegetable porridge on a tray and went up to the second floor.

Knock, knock!

I knocked just in case, but there was no sound from inside the room.

I cautiously opened the door and entered to find Ayase lying in bed, breathing softly in her sleep.

Since she was sleeping so soundly, I didn’t want to wake her, so I decided to just leave the tray with the porridge on her desk and tiptoed over.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Click!

Just as I quietly set down the tray and turned to leave,

“…What are you doing?”

I flinched at the sound of Ayase’s voice, who had just woken up, and quickly turned around.

“Nothing. I was just going to leave this here.”

“It’s fine. Give it to me.”

I brought the tray with the porridge over to her bedside as she requested.

Cough! Cough!

Still coughing lightly, she sat up and asked me,

“What about my siblings?”

“They ate dinner and are playing in the living room. Don’t worry about them.”

“…Thanks.”

“Like I said earlier, this is nothing. Just focus on getting better.”

I said this and handed the tray to Ayase.

“You still have the energy to hold a spoon, right?”

“Of course. What do you take me for?”

She opened the lid of the pot and scooped the vegetable porridge into her mouth.

“Hurgh!”

Her eyes widened suddenly, probably because it was hot.

I quickly poured some water and handed it to her.

Ayase immediately drank the water to cool the heat.

“Be careful.”

When I said that, Ayase, with tears welling up in her eyes, gave me a reproachful look before she started blowing on the porridge to cool it down.

The portion wasn’t large, so she finished it in no time. Feeling a bit better, she wiped the sweat off the back of her neck with a towel and asked,

“So when do you plan on leaving? My mom should be back soon.”

“I was just thinking about heading home soon. I’ve been here quite a while.”

As I answered and stood up with the tray of empty dishes, Ayase quickly reached out her hand.

“Oh, wait.”

“What is it?”

“Can I ask you a favor?”

“What is it?”

I asked curiously, and Ayase hesitated, struggling to answer, before finally saying,

“Could you help me wipe my back? I can’t reach it myself.”

“…Your back?”

I froze at her unexpected request.

Is it normal to ask a friend of the opposite sex to do something like this?

Perhaps my thoughts showed on my face because Ayase quickly waved her hands, flustered.

“I didn’t mean it like that! I just don’t want to pass my fever to my siblings!”

“Well… if that’s the case.”

As I reluctantly agreed, she handed me a towel soaked in water from the basin.

“Could you turn around for a moment?”

“Sure.”

I obediently turned around as she asked.

Rustle, rustle!

I could hear the soft sound of fabric brushing against her skin.

“You can turn around now.”

After getting her permission, I turned back around to an unexpected sight.

She had taken off her bra and was now facing the wall, her bare back exposed, with her shoulders hunched.

“H-hurry up.”

Thinking of how she usually is, I never imagined her acting shy like a girl, and I hesitated for a moment, but then I started wiping her back with the towel. ℟ά

“Ah!”

Her shoulders twitched as the cold towel suddenly touched her skin.

I thought I’d gotten used to seeing a woman’s naked body after seeing the President’s, but apparently not.

The towel traced down her spine, wiping just above the small of her back.

‘Think good thoughts, think good thoughts.’

Ayase trusted me as a friend to show me her bare skin, so I didn’t want to cause any misunderstandings. I silently recited the Heart Sutra to myself while wiping her sweaty back.

After wiping her small back in one go, I immediately turned around and said,

“It’s done.”

“I-is it?”

It seemed Ayase also felt awkward in this situation, as she quickly picked up her discarded clothes and began putting them on.

The awkward moment passed, and after getting dressed again, she spoke to me, her cheeks slightly flushed, possibly from the fever.

“Thank you so much for today. I feel much more at ease thanks to you.”

“Don’t mention it. Friends can do at least this much for each other.”

As I said that modestly, she asked with a slightly tired expression,

“So you’ll be heading back soon, right? I’m too sick to see you off.”

“It’s okay. Your health comes first.”

As I said that and stood up with the tray, she yawned widely.

“Then… I’m going to get some sleep.”

“Yeah. Rest well.”

Ayase nodded and lay back down on the bed. After confirming she was settled, I quietly closed the door and left.

‘I hope she gets better soon.’

I’ll just do the dishes and head home today.

---

Ayase Satsuki is an ordinary high school girl.

Her family consists of her single mother and two younger siblings who are in elementary school.

Her father passed away in a car accident when she was in second grade, leaving her mother to support the family on her own.

As a result, her family was not well off during her childhood.

Supporting three children instead of just one obviously cost several times more.

Her mother worked day and night as an editor at a small magazine to earn enough to feed her three children.

Naturally, when her mother was away, Ayase, as the eldest daughter, became the caregiver for her siblings, which forced her to mature early when she should have still been acting like a child.

She started her first part-time job when she was in middle school.

Unlike now, she wasn’t a model student back then, and she took on various part-time jobs to help out with the household expenses.

Of course, she sometimes had her wages withheld because she lied about her age to get the jobs, but she was satisfied just to be earning money.

However, when her studies began to suffer because of it, her mother found out that Ayase had been secretly working part-time jobs. After a big argument in her second year, Ayase started looking for work she could do from home.

That’s how she discovered the job of being a VTuber.

Unlike other part-time jobs where she had to work physically hard, she could easily make money by simply talking and posting videos of herself playing games.

Of course, the money she earned was still just pocket change, but for a middle schooler who got 1,000 yen a week in allowance, even that was quite a lot.

She started in a poor environment without proper streaming equipment, but a company that quickly recognized her talent suggested she try being a VTuber, which drastically changed her circumstances.

‘Minazuki Luna’

A virtual female character with purple hair and a cute voice, who flirts with her viewers.

And that became another name and a job for Ayase Satsuki, an ordinary girl.