Kotomi Izumi originally planned to lie down on the bed without wearing anything, but considering that Arisu Sakayanagi was still in the room, she casually put on her pajama top and covered her legs with the blanket.
Little did she know that this seemingly casual outfit made Arisu lose all focus on her book.
At this mont, Arisu was pretending to read, but her eyes never stayed on the pages. Instead, she kept sneaking glances at Kotomi, who was brushing her hair beside her.
The air conditioner in the bedroom was already set to 25°C, but Arisu felt as though the room was inexplicably warm tonight.
Compared to Arisu, who was too excited to sit still, Kotomi remained calm. She was used to sleeping with nothing on, so her embarrassnt from undressing in front of Arisu earlier had mostly faded.
Wearing her pajama top loosely without properly buttoning it, Kotomi sat on the inside of the bed, unsealing a large, heavy kraft paper bag. Inside were the original drafts of a new manga drawn by Mashiro Shiina.
Although her previous manga hadn't made it to serialization, Mashiro seed to recover quickly and had imdiately thrown herself into creating a new work. She entrusted the new drafts to Kotomi, making her the first reader.
Kotomi had received these drafts a few days ago but hadn't found ti to go through them. She decided to finish reading them before school started on Monday and provide her feedback.
When she pulled out the entire stack, she was startled by its thickness, even though she had ntally prepared herself. Mashiro had created quite a substantial manuscript this ti.
If she rolled it into a tube and gave Aimi a light tap on the head, it might make her cry.
"Is that a manga?"
Arisu, who had been pretending to read, slowly crept toward Kotomi in a squatting position upon seeing the pile of drafts. Her face was so close to Kotomi's that their noses were only inches apart. A familiar and pleasant scent wafted over—Arisu had apparently used Aimi's body wash.
The delicate face being so close caused Kotomi's breathing to grow uneven.
At this distance, it felt as though there was no air separating them.
"Y-Yes!"
Earlier, Kotomi hadn't blushed while undressing in front of Arisu. But now, with Arisu so close, Kotomi couldn't help feeling nervous. She always seed to react the opposite of how she should in these situations.
Her mind was a ss of thoughts. The familiar scent of body wash brought Aimi to mind, but the adorable face before her was clearly Arisu's.
What was this? Did Arisu deliberately use Aimi's body wash and then get this close to confuse her?! Her brain was turning to mush. Wait, mush… sesa paste? She suddenly thought of sesa paste—delicious sesa paste!
"Why are you using Aimi's body wash?" Kotomi blurted out before she realized it.
Arisu tilted her head, her silver hair shimring as it shifted to one side. She smiled mischievously. "Kotomi's body wash was on the rack, and I didn't feel like standing up to get it. Aimi's body wash was right there on the floor, so I just borrowed it. Is that not okay?"
"It's fine, but I'm just so used to this scent. Aimi has been using this body wash since elentary school. Whenever I sll it, I instinctively think she's nearby. That's what happened just now," Kotomi explained quietly.
"You thought it was Aimi, but when you turned around, it was ~?" Arisu teased with a playful grin.
That was exactly what happened, but sohow, hearing Arisu say it gave the words a different nuance.
"More or less," Kotomi replied absentmindedly before returning her attention to the manuscript.
Arisu, now seemingly content, sat beside Kotomi and began looking at the manga drafts with her.
"Did you draw this?" Arisu asked.
"No," Kotomi shook her head. "It's by a friend of mine. She knows I have a manga serialized in Shueisha, so she asked to review her drafts. Honestly, her artwork is much better than mine."
Kotomi wasn't just being modest; she was sincerely speaking the truth. Whether it was this draft or the previous one she had seen, setting aside the storyline, the quality of the artwork was exceptional. The characters and backgrounds were so well-drawn that any panel could easily be turned into wallpaper.
At the sa ti, Kotomi didn't ntion to Arisu that these drafts were drawn by Mashiro Shiina. Until Mashiro herself decided to reveal it, Kotomi intended to keep it a secret.
Mashiro's manga creation was a shared secret between her and Kotomi.
"Indeed, I know a bit about art, and the quality of this draft is breathtaking—whether you're an expert or a layman, the elegance would still amaze anyone."
After making this observation, Arisu thoughtfully added, "Of course, Kotomi, your Chainsaw Man is excellent too. The plot and concepts are eye-catching, and the art style exudes a sense of freedom."
"I'll do my best to improve my skills..." Kotomi tugged at the corner of her mouth in a faint smile.
Still, she didn't plan to change her art style anyti soon. After all, her next manga after Chainsaw Man was Fire Punch.
35 Minutes Later
Kotomi set down the manga draft in her hands and stretched her neck. She wasn't finished yet; the pile of drafts was simply too thick. Additionally, the panels were filled with intricate and fascinating details that kept Kotomi slowing down her reading pace.
In the 35 minutes that had passed, she had only managed to finish 22 pages.
Mashiro's new manga was no longer a school romance but a cyberpunk-thed story involving battles in a school setting.
In a near-future Earth, a threat known as "Aragami" erged, monstrous beings that posed imnse danger. Legend spoke of priestesses capable of purifying the Aragami using sacred blades, wielding powered scabbards as their source of energy. Each blade was forged to suit the unique traits of its wielder.
The girls who successfully synchronized with these blades and wielded them in battle were known as "Blade Priestesses," gradually hailed as heroes by humanity.
The institution responsible for training these girls in blade techniques and Aragami combat was called Eden.
Not only did Eden train girls to fight, but it also served as a regular school, providing them with education and guidance. It acted as a sanctuary and a pillar for each city, protecting and leading the populace.
The story began with a girl nad Karen Ichiyanagi enrolling in Eden as a first-year student. However, due to her low synchronization rate with her blade, she found herself at the bottom of the rankings and was left feeling troubled during the entrance ceremony.
Amidst the commotion, Karen noticed a group of girls gathered in admiration around soone in the distance. A tall girl with long black hair and a cold deanor walked toward the school building under their worshipful gazes.
Through a friend's introduction, Karen learned that this was Kagura Muniya, a second-year student at Eden. Kagura was incredibly powerful and accomplished but known for her cold personality and tendency to keep others at arm's length.
As Kagura was about to enter the building, a first-year student who looked like a wealthy heiress, Mahiru Kaede, called out to her. Mahiru brandished her blade and challenged Kagura to a duel, making a bold declaration: if she won, Kagura would have to agree to form a Guardian's Bond with her.
The Guardian's Bond was a formal arrangent among Blade Priestesses where an upperclassman and a lowerclassman would acknowledge each other as sisters, undergo a ceremonial vow (which bore an uncanny resemblance to a wedding), and exchange rings that could sense each other's presence.
In everyday life, the upperclassman was expected to ntor and guide the lowerclassman, and in battle, they were responsible for protecting them.
Just as Kagura was about to refuse Mahiru's absurd request, alarms blared—the Aragami were launching their third attack on Eden!
Kotomi stopped reading at this point, deciding it was ti for bed.
However, she couldn't help but marvel at how much Mashiro had improved her storytelling. The plot was genuinely intriguing.
Moreover, the combination of katanas and cyberpunk aesthetics—with their flowing lights and chanical scabbards—created a stunning visual contrast. These elents, which should have been difficult to integrate, were rendered seamlessly thanks to Mashiro's exceptional drawing skills and brilliant designs.
Still, Kotomi couldn't shake the feeling that the three female characters introduced so far looked strangely familiar.
Arisu's casual remark snapped Kotomi out of her thoughts: "This Karen Ichiyanagi—short pink hair, right? She kind of looks like you, Kotomi."
"Eh? Really?" Kotomi was startled by the comnt. She took another look at the illustration and, upon closer inspection, had to admit there was indeed a resemblance.
"She really does! Look, if you tied the left side of your hair into a short side ponytail, it'd be an exact match," Arisu said with a teasing smile.
As Arisu spoke, she took a picture of Kotomi.
Kotomi glanced at the photo Arisu had just taken, then at the protagonist of Mashiro Shiina's manga draft… The resemblance wasn't just "a little"—it was like the character was directly modeled after her!
She then looked at Kagura Muniya from the sa manga. Good grief, that character was clearly a black-haired version of Mashiro herself.
So, Mashiro had turned Kotomi into a bubbly, slightly naive pink-haired girl, while drawing herself as a stunning and aloof cool upperclassman!
As for Mahiru Kaede, there was a strange sense of déjà vu about her appearance, but Kotomi couldn't quite place who she resembled.
"They really do look alike..." Kotomi said with an awkward smile, carefully putting the manga draft back into the kraft paper bag. She got out of bed and stored it in her bookshelf.
However, when she stood up, her loosely worn pajama top failed to cover everything, giving Arisu a perfect view. Arisu's eyes were filled with satisfaction as she took in the unexpected sight.
An hour had passed since the lights went out. Only the small bedside lamp was still glowing faintly.
While Kotomi fell asleep almost instantly, Arisu lay awake, staring at the ceiling. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't fall asleep.
Turning to her side, Arisu looked at Kotomi's peaceful sleeping face under the soft light of the night lamp.
"Sleeping Kotomi looks so cute… I wonder… if I kissed her, would she wake up? Just one kiss, it should be fine!"
Muttering to herself, Arisu leaned closer, her lips brushing against Kotomi's in a fleeting touch. She thought a simple kiss would satisfy her, but the mont her lips t Kotomi's, it was as if Pandora's box had been opened.
"So soft, so… soft…" Arisu murmured, lightly tapping Kotomi's lips with her finger. Compared to when they were children, Kotomi's lips were now even softer, more tender, and sweeter.
Cotton candy? Cloud-like fluffiness? Soft and juicy?
No, none of these descriptors were enough to capture it!
Thump-thump-thump—
Arisu could hear her own heartbeat pounding in her chest.
She straightened up, placing her hands on either side of Kotomi's head. Looking down at her from above, she saw her serene sleeping face, like a lamb peacefully resting in a trap.
So cute, so cute, so cute, so cute!
I love you so much!
Arisu didn't even realize when her hands moved to Kotomi's neck. By the ti she noticed, her hands were already there, but she didn't let go. Instead, she leaned in for a deep kiss.
It was like two slippery water snakes intertwining tightly together.
I love you! I've been hopelessly in love with you ever since you kissed for the first ti! Kotomi, why did you let gumi Kato kiss you? I could give you so much more!
I know everything about you—your favorite foods, clothes, socks, gas, toys… everything!
The grip of Arisu's hands on Kotomi's neck tightened slightly as her racing heartbeat and surging emotions overwheld her.
In her sleep, Kotomi wriggled her legs slightly. She felt so hot… But the familiar scent in the air made her think it was Aimi beside her. Instinctively, she reached out and hugged Arisu tightly, mumbling affectionately in her sleep.
The unexpected embrace stunned Arisu. For a mont, she thought Kotomi had woken up. But when she looked at her still-sleeping face, she realized Kotomi had done it unconsciously.
After a brief mont of shock, Arisu's lips curled into an intoxicated smile. With a quick tug, she pulled the blanket off completely—
In the adjacent room, Aimi Izumi, busy with her howork, had her headphones on and was listening to music. She didn't hear a thing.
At this exact mont, what was gumi Kato doing far away in Hokkaido?
"Ah~ This is so relaxing. Coming to Hokkaido is all about soaking in a hot spring," gumi said as she entered the won's bath and subrged herself in the warm waters.
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