Treating Kojou wasn't difficult—Shichen just needed to extract the rib and then heal him.
Not only would he leave Kojou without any damage, he'd actually make him healthier.
It was Shichen's first ti doing a rib extraction, let alone regenerating a brand-new rib for Kojou.
Magic wasn't the issue; it just took ti. While he worked on Kojou, the living room fell a bit quiet.
Avrora ate her pudding with a beaming smile. It was truly delicious—sweet and
icy-cool—impossible to stop.
She wondered if Shichen knew how to make it; if so, she'd have him make more later.
Kaguya, unlike Avrora, wasn't lost in the food. She unobtrusively sized up Aiba Asagi and Akatsuki Nagisa.
Those two clearly had "issues"—obvious hostility toward the pair of them.
Had they recognized who Avrora and Kaguya were?
No—Kaguya realized it started when Shichen said he liked cute girls.
A mont's thought and it clicked: they were treating them as romantic rivals.
She stopped caring and enjoyed the pudding. There was no need to be hostile; given who Shichen was, he was destined to have many won around him.
"Um…" Avrora glanced hesitantly at Nagisa.
"What is it, A-Avrora?" Nagisa asked.
"Uh… is there any more?" Avrora indicated her empty plate—licked clean of even a speck of pudding.
"Of course. Just a sec." Nagisa smiled lightly and headed to the kitchen.
"Nagisa, I want more too," Yaze Motoki said, raising a hand.
"Motoki-senpai, you've had plenty. We're out," Nagisa replied without looking back.
"…Nagisa, that's favoritism. Why does Avrora get more? I've only had two."
"Avrora's a woman—are you really competing with a woman? And Sensei hasn't had much; I need to save so for him."
"That's still favoritism. And aren't you saving so for Kojou?"
"He doesn't need it; he gets to eat it all the ti."
"Wow. Get a sweetheart and forget your own brother, huh."
"W-what sweetheart! Don't talk nonsense, senpai!" Nagisa ca back with several puddings, cheeks red as she glared at Motoki.
Motoki shook his head—her reaction couldn't be more obvious.
Not that he couldn't understand: Shichen was handso and formidable, and won tended to like n a bit older—plus he'd saved her.
If it were him, he'd be moved too.
Unfortunately, excellent n ant fierce competition.
He looked at his childhood friend, at the hostility in her gaze toward the others.
Of course he knew what she was thinking, but he couldn't help her.
All he could do was hope their wishes ca true.
"Avrora, your pudding."
"Thank you~"
"You're welco… Kaguya, want one?"
"In that case, thank you."
"No need to be shy—there's plenty… Asagi-nee, want another?"
"Mm." Asagi didn't bother with politeness around Nagisa.
"Really none for ?" Motoki couldn't help asking.
"Nope. The last one's mine." Without hesitation, Nagisa picked up the final cup and started eating.
"…" Motoki sighed helplessly.
"By the way, Avrora, are you and Kaguya twins?" Nagisa asked.
"Hm?" Avrora blinked, not following.
"Yes," Kaguya nodded.
"I see—no wonder you look so alike… Then what's your relationship with Sensei?" Nagisa couldn't hold back and went straight to the point.
"Uh… Shichen is my bodyguard!" Avrora answered eagerly after swallowing a mouthful of pudding.
"Bodyguard?" Asagi looked at her, puzzled.
"Mm! I'm unfamiliar with this world, so I need Shichen to protect !" Avrora nodded—then blushed, rembering the "protection fee" he'd set—one kiss a day. She knew perfectly well what that ant.
"Avrora, what's wrong?"
"Eh? Ah—n-nothing…" she said quickly, shaking her head.
"Is that so…" Asagi didn't buy it. There had to be so unspeakable secret there.
"So, Avrora, you an you only just ca to Itogami?" Nagisa asked.
"Itogami?"
"This city."
"Mm, more or less."
"Then how did you et Sensei?"
"Uh… he sought out first…" Avrora replied, face red.
She rembered how, when they first t, she hadn't been wearing anything—and he'd seen everything. Shichen had to take responsibility!
And he'd already kissed her!
"Sensei approached you?" Nagisa looked confused.
"I an… I was asleep the whole ti, and Shichen woke . This place isn't very friendly to …"
"Unfriendly…" Asagi pulled out her phone and searched for "Avrora," but beyond "Sleeping Beauty" there was nothing useful.
Asleep… Sleeping Beauty—was there a connection?
"It's fine, it's fine. Avrora, with Sensei protecting you now, no one should dare bully you," Nagisa said gently, perceptive enough not to pry further.
"Exactly. Other than Shichen and Natsuki, no one can bully ," Avrora said with proud little nod.
"Sensei bullies you?" Asagi seized on the key phrase.
"Um…" Avrora couldn't bring herself to ntion the daily-kiss "protection fee."
But her hesitance only deepened Asagi's suspicion. If a man "bullies" a woman… it usually ans adults-only stuff, right?
Avrora was so cute—what normal man could resist?
And it wasn't like she herself was lacking!
Why didn't Sensei want to "bully" her?
She was about the sa age as Avrora too—both young won.
"Um… Kaguya, are you the sa as Avrora?" Nagisa asked curiously.
"I'm not," Kaguya said evenly, shaking her head. "Shichen is my master."
"Eh?!"
At that, Asagi and Nagisa stared at her in shock, imaginations running wild.
"Oho~," Motoki chuckled from the side. Watching the drama was fun.
"Kaguya… y-you said Sensei is your master… what do you an?" Nagisa asked, flustered.
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Finishing the last bite of pudding, Kaguya looked up calmly. "Shichen is my master. I'll obey anything he says and fulfill any request he makes."
"A-any request?!" Nagisa's cheeks went scarlet.
"Has Sensei asked you to do anything?" Asagi pressed, eyes locked onto Kaguya.
"Not yet," Kaguya said with a regretful shake of the head.
If Shichen didn't give her tasks, she felt unsettled—no sense of footing.
"That's good."
Asagi and Nagisa both exhaled in relief.
"But he did ask one thing," Kaguya added, rembering.
"What?" they asked in unison.
"He told to grow my hair out."
"Grow it out?"
"Mm. Shichen doesn't seem to like short hair," Kaguya said, shaking her head ruefully.
Now she really regretted cutting it so short. If it were longer, maybe Shichen would be willing to do sothing with her.
"So Sensei likes long-haired won?" Asagi touched her own long blonde hair, relieved.
"Long hair…" Nagisa frowned. Hers only reached her neck—barely enough for a simple ponytail.
Did Sensei not like it this short?
"Long hair what?" Shichen erged from Kojou's room just then.
"Sensei! You're out!" Nagisa hurried over to him.
"Mm. What are you all talking about?" Shichen asked, ruffling Nagisa's hair with a smile.
"Hehe~ Sensei, Kaguya says you like won with long hair. Is that true?"
"Not exactly."
"Eh? What do you an?"
"Just… not this short like Kaguya's—like a boy's."
"Oh, that's all!" Nagisa laughed.
"By the way, there's more pudding in the fridge. I'll get you so, Sensei."
"Great—perfect timing. I worked up an appetite."
Keeping up the treatnt on Kojou—even for a man—had been a bit tiring.
"Almost forgot! How's Kojou?" Motoki asked, rembering at last.
"Ah!" Nagisa, just coming out with pudding, rembered too.
"Haha—no worries. Kojou's back to normal. He can keep playing basketball from now on."
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