What? You Want Me to Become a Blonde-Tanned Guy?

I returned home after a long absence.

“I’m back.”

Taira Kanna had just returned to the family estate after completing a short study-abroad program combined with a European vacation during her school break. Since this was her first time coming back to the main house after leaving directly from Miya-shi, where the academy was located, she greeted her father, Taira Danjo. Taira Shizuku was away on personal business, so she only needed to pay her respects to him.

“Ahem… Did you learn well in Europe?”

“Yes. I observed and studied properly at the European branch.”

Taira Danjo had made sure all his children received basic business education. Once they graduated from university, he would ask if they wanted to participate in company management. If they had no interest in becoming the successor of the Taira Group, he paid them no further attention. He was a man who thought only of the Taira family’s interests.

A prime example was Alice Fitzgerald. After graduating from university, she announced her intention to marry the heir of a respectable but not particularly famous company. Taira Danjo did not oppose it and gave his permission without resistance.

After that, he showed no interest in how Alice Fitzgerald lived. He had simply given her a portion of the family assets in advance instead of leaving it as an inheritance.

Although Taira Kanna was still a high school student, she had received the same management and imperial studies training as her much older brothers. And she had excelled. Her grades were far superior to theirs. It was because she possessed a brilliant mind and excellent judgment.

The Taira family’s retainers, while watching her, often remarked that if Taira Kanna had been born male and a few years older, the position of the Taira family successor would have been decided without question.

This latest trip to Europe had also been part of her management and imperial studies curriculum. While there, she had toured the European branch of Taira Electronics and gained hands-on experience with basic operations.

“Hmm. I already received the report, but you did very well. School will be starting again in less than a month, correct?”

“Yes. Classes resume in about twenty-four days.”

“There’s something I need to tell you about school.”

Taira Kanna looked at her father with a slightly puzzled expression. Up until her third year of high school, Taira Danjo had only ever said one thing to her about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠school.

—Do not get involved with Minamoto Risa.

That was the only thing he had ever said about school. For several years afterward, he had never brought it up again. So it was only natural that she found it strange for him to suddenly have something to say about it now.

“Your nephew Ryuta will be going to St. Francisco Academy.”

Taira Kanna’s eyes widened slightly at her father’s words. Taira Ryuta… the nephew who carried the blood of her beloved older brother Saburo. The nephew who resembled him so much that she couldn’t help but pay attention to him. He was coming to her school? Suddenly, her father’s story had become incredibly interesting to Taira Kanna.

“School? Since Cousin Ryuta has already graduated from high school, he won’t be coming as a student. What will he be doing there?”

“He will be infiltrating the school disguised as a teacher for one semester, on a special mission.”

At Taira Danjo’s words, Taira Kanna thought to herself, Well, that makes sense, and nodded. A typical twenty-year-old would look far too young to be a teacher, but Taira Ryuta was an exceptionally handsome man whose face matched his age. However, thanks to his height and build, which far exceeded the Japanese average, he actually looked a bit older than his peers.

He could easily pass for a newly graduated first-year teacher. Taira Kanna imagined what Ryuta would look like as an instructor. She pictured him wearing round glasses that would suit his fair skin and the standard teacher’s attire. It looked surprisingly convincing.

“What should I do?”

Even as she pictured her nephew as a teacher in her mind, Taira Kanna kept her face expressionless as she asked what her role would be.

“Hmm… Do not act like you know him. If you suddenly treat him like family, people around you might start digging into it.”

“Ah…”

Don’t act like I know him… That’s too much. It was such a good opportunity to get closer to her nephew.

“Still, shouldn’t I help him adjust to the environment? If I assist him as a student, it would make his job easier.”

“Hmm… In that case, he will be teaching Korean as a second foreign language. You may attend that class and offer him a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠little help.”

Korean class…! Taira Kanna had already decided that she would definitely take that class in her final semester.

“Understood. Then I’ll take my leave now.”

“Yes. You must be tired from the trip. Go rest in your room.”

When Taira Kanna bowed and stood up, Taira Danjo waved his hand dismissively, telling her to rest. She left his room and headed to her own.

Unlike what one would expect from the bedroom of a conglomerate heiress, Taira Kanna’s room was almost entirely white and nearly empty, save for a few pieces of furniture and the bed. She drew the curtains, turned off the lights, and switched on the beam projector mounted on the ceiling.

The projector’s light pierced the darkness and projected an image onto the pure white wall. It was a photograph of her deceased older brother, Taira Saburo. Looking at the image on the screen, Taira Kanna smiled faintly and spoke in a soft voice.

“Brother, I’m home. I missed you.”

Today, with only one day left of my vacation, I was heading to the Yamashiro family estate. This was because Fumimoto Takayuki, Taira Danjo’s secretary, had contacted me to say he had scheduled a visit.

The Yamashiro family was a branch family of the Ichijo clan, just like the Daigo family. Unlike the Daigo family, which held a near-monopoly on the education of upper-class young ladies—excluding those who studied abroad—the Yamashiro family was neither particularly famous nor powerful.

In other words, they were doing the Taira family a favor by lending their name. If I caused any trouble while using the surname Yamashiro, the Yamashiro family would have to take full responsibility.

Even though the Yamashiro family was relatively obscure, they were still a branch of the Ichijo clan, just like the Daigo family that ran St. Francisco Academy. There was a chance someone might recognize them, so I decided to visit the estate in person to obtain information that anyone from the Yamashiro family would be expected to know.

The Yamashiro family had originally been based in Kyoto, but as their influence gradually declined, they were pushed further east until they ended up in Hino Town in Shiga Prefecture.

Because their location was rather inconvenient, I took the Shinkansen while carrying a small motorbike, then rode the bike the rest of the way to the Yamashiro estate. It would have been much more convenient to fly, but there was no airport in Shiga Prefecture, so it couldn’t be helped.

Even though they had fallen from grace, they were still an old and distinguished family. And since it was in the countryside where land was cheap, their estate was quite large. I had heard that all the surrounding farmland belonged to them. They weren’t extremely wealthy, but they seemed to live comfortably enough.

“Please follow me. The head of the family is waiting.”

I followed a servant wearing a kimono and was greeted by a plump, friendly-looking middle-aged man. He appeared to be in his mid-fifties. His tanned skin stood out—whether from working in the fields or from actual tanning, I couldn’t tell.

So that’s why the old man told me to get a tan.

“Hello. I am Taira Ryuta.”

“There’s no need for such formalities. I am Yamashiro Naotaka, the current head of the Yamashiro family.”

When I greeted him politely, Yamashiro Naotaka waved his hand as if uncomfortable with the formality and introduced himself.

“There isn’t much you need to know about the Yamashiro family. Our main house was originally in southern Kyoto, and we only settled here relatively recently. I’ve compiled the kind of information that people who know the family might ask about.”

The documents Yamashiro Naotaka handed me contained information that only someone truly from the Yamashiro family would know. As I read through them, I asked him questions whenever something caught my interest, committing everything about the Yamashiro family to memory.

“This should be enough. No one will doubt that I’m a member of the Yamashiro family.”

“Thank you. I’ve learned a great deal thanks to you.”

After studying for about two hours, I stood up. Yamashiro Naotaka saw me off as I headed toward the main gate of the estate. Since I had the documents with me, I could review them whenever I had time and fully memorize everything.

“By the way, what did you receive in exchange for lending us your family name?”

“That would be…”

Suddenly curious about the compensation, I stopped midway and asked. Yamashiro Naotaka hesitated for a moment before answering.

“I received a promise that my second ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠son will join the Taira Group this year.”

So he sold the family name for his son’s future… It was hard to say who truly benefited more. If it was this year, that meant his son would be entering during the second-half new employee recruitment.

“What is your son’s name?”

“…It’s Atsuteru.”

When I suddenly asked for his son’s name, Yamashiro Naotaka hesitated briefly before answering. It wasn’t like I was going to eat the kid. Why was he so reluctant?

“If he joins this year, he’ll be sent to the Human Resources Development ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Center for training. Since that’s where I’m assigned, I’ll make sure to put in a good word for him.”

“Oh! Thank you! Thank you so much!”

At my words, Yamashiro Naotaka bowed repeatedly, expressing his gratitude. I waved casually and left the Yamashiro estate.

It wasn’t just lip service—I genuinely planned to speak well of Yamashiro Atsuteru, the second son of the family head, at the Human Resources Development Center. Considering the trouble I was about to cause at St. Francisco Academy, simply getting a job at the Taira Group would be far too small a price for the risk the Yamashiro family was taking.

After all, I was planning to seduce Minamoto Risa—the cherished daughter of one of the two most powerful people in Japan—while using the name Yamashiro Ryuta. If things went wrong, the Yamashiro family could be wiped out. The least I could do was give them this much help.

“Hmm~!”

Humming a tune, I rode the small motorbike toward the nearest station. The air in the countryside was so clean that the wind hitting my face felt incredibly refreshing.