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"Natsuki, it really worked! I don't feel that cold anymore."
Kitagawa Marin looked over with surprise.
"Did it work?"
Amamiya Natsuki's gaze shifted slightly, looking at the Vengeful Spirit Loli's eyes.
The moment their eyes met, the Vengeful Spirit Loli quickly lowered her head, avoiding his gaze.
"It should vary from person to person."
This Vengeful Spirit Loli, seeing him, was like a mouse seeing a cat. If he and Marin swapped places, let alone a simple hug, even if he threw the Vengeful Spirit Loli up in the air, it probably wouldn't help.
"Miyuki-chan, do you want to come out with us?"
Kitagawa Marin asked softly.
"..."
The Vengeful Spirit Loli didn't speak, looking down at her toes in silence.
She asked twice more, but still received no response.
"Probably not possible," Amamiya Natsuki said calmly, "She probably can't leave the extra dimensional space."
Kitagawa Marin could only sigh regretfully and waved goodbye to the Vengeful Spirit Loli.
The two walked out of the restroom.
"It's so cold." Kitagawa Marin hugged her arms. "My clothes are all wet."
Vengeful Spirit Loli was dripping water non-stop; of course, your clothes would get wet if you held her in your arms!
"Wipe yourself."
Amamiya Natsuki pulled out a towel and handed it to Marin.
"Eh, wait." Kitagawa Marin's eyes widened as she looked at the towel in Amamiya Natsuki's hand. Her pink cheeks puffed up at a visible rate. "Why does this towel look super familiar?"
"Sorry, I don't recognize it."
Amamiya Natsuki denied it.
"You still won't admit it!" Kitagawa Marin's pink cheeks puffed up even more, like a squirrel with its mouth full of chestnuts. "You always use this towel to gag me!"
"I was wrong." Amamiya Natsuki sincerely learned his lesson. "Next time, I'll cover your eyes first, so you won't see this towel."
Kitagawa Marin glared at him. "There won't be a next time."
"…"
After a simple wipe, Amamiya Natsuki and Marin continued forward, arriving at the location of the stairs.
"One, two, three, four, five… thirteen."
Kitagawa Marin extended her finger, counting up the steps one by one. The thirteen steps were unremarkable. "This is it, no mistake."
"You go back first," Amamiya Natsuki said. "I'll wait a bit longer."
"Okay."
Kitagawa Marin nodded lightly and stepped onto the thirteenth stair.
The next instant.
Her entire person suddenly vanished.
"Marin-chan, you're back?"
Secretary's clear voice rang in her ears.
Kitagawa Marin's vision cleared. Looking down, she saw everyone standing below the staircase, waiting for the results.
"I'm back."
Succubus Girl greeted them, then bent down to pick up a kaidan videotape at her feet, a particularly bright smile on her face.
"Verification successful!"
"…"
Seeing Kitagawa Marin pick up the videotape, the few passerby players immediately let out a long sigh of relief, feeling at ease.
The thirteen steps could consistently produce a kaidan videotape. This way, without stealing or snatching, the main quest could be easily completed.
"Natsuki-kun is still inside," Fujiwara Chika lowered her head, looking at Vengeful Spirit Loli. "Hanako-chan, where did the stairs run off to now?"
Hanako snorted lightly, reluctantly revealing the location.
Komi held her notebook, like an ancient historian, pricking up her ears, afraid of missing a single word.
Upon hearing the location, she quickly picked up her pen and sent a cheating message to Amamiya Natsuki through the air.
A moment later.
Amamiya Natsuki's figure appeared on the stairs, and the verification action was successfully completed.
"Let's stop here for today, everyone should rest, right?" Fujiwara Chika raised a hand to cover her mouth, letting out a yawn. "We'll continue tomorrow."
Shinomiya Kaguya's pretty face showed a hint of fatigue: "I am indeed a bit tired."
Her daily routine was super regular; she would go to bed promptly at nine in the evening.
Everyone had entered the instance around four or five in the afternoon in the real world. It was now past midnight, and not just Kaguya, but everyone else was very tired.
Amamiya Natsuki nodded and said:
"We'll discuss the rest tomorrow. Let's rest first."
Seeing Amamiya Natsuki make the final decision, the others naturally had nothing to say and all agreed.
The group turned and returned to the classroom.
Amamiya Natsuki found that the classroom had been cleaned thoroughly, with desks and chairs neatly stacked, curtains drawn, a blue tent propped up in the corner, and two candles burning for illumination.
Given the limited conditions, bathing was out of the question; they could only choose to sleep in their clothes.
"Wouldn't it be better if someone stood guard?"
Fujiwara Chika suggested.
"That's right."
"Someone really should stand guard."
"It's too unsafe if everyone falls asleep."
The other players all expressed agreement.
"I propose two people per guard shift," Kitagawa Marin said with a clear voice. "The night watchmen in movies almost all fall asleep. Two people can supervise each other."
"Makes sense."
"…"
Amamiya Natsuki had originally said he wanted to stand guard, but the others unanimously decided that he should rest well and not worry about the guarding.
"Then I'll rest first."
Amamiya Natsuki lay down in his clothes, closed his eyes, and began to sleep.
The night passed uneventfully.
When he woke up again, the classroom was quite quiet. The candles had almost burned out, with only a small stub remaining.
Amamiya Natsuki looked out of the classroom. The sky was still dim, but faintly, he could see that dawn was approaching.
"You're awake?"
A clear, pleasant female voice sounded in his ears.
Amamiya Natsuki turned his head. On a nearby gymnastics mat sat a girl whose hair was tied with a red ribbon. It was Shinomiya Kaguya.
"You're up so early?"
Amamiya Natsuki got up and walked over to Kaguya.
"I was on guard," Shinomiya Kaguya replied softly.
"Where's the person who was on guard with you?"
Amamiya Natsuki looked around.
The two groups of guards they had agreed upon, but now only Sheltered Ojou-sama was awake.
Shinomiya Kaguya glanced and said softly:
"It was Kitagawa Marin."
"…"
Amamiya Natsuki silently turned his head to look at the Succubus Girl who was sleeping soundly nearby, and he was instantly speechless.
And you even said that the night watchmen in movies would foolishly fall asleep. I didn't expect the person you were talking about in the end was yourself!
Amamiya Natsuki sat down beside Kaguya and said in a low voice:
"I'm well-rested. You can sleep a bit longer."
"No need." Shinomiya Kaguya shook her head lightly. "I just woke up not long ago; I'm not sleepy now."
"Then let's talk for a bit."
"Mm."
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"Sleeping in the classroom is uncomfortable all over. I wonder how the hot spring inn has been cleaned. If it's clean, we can go stay there tomorrow."
"It won't be that fast." Shinomiya Kaguya couldn't help but glare at him. "Besides, there are so many Haunted Lolis in the inn; it would be too dangerous to go there."
"I believe in one saying: 'Money makes the Vengeful Spirit Loli turn the millstone.'"
"Besides the staff, there are other guests in the inn," Shinomiya Kaguya pursed her pink lips. "If they could choose, those people would probably rather sink into their dreams, right?"
"Here."
Amamiya Natsuki took a candy from his game backpack and gently tossed it to Kaguya.
This stuff was game-certified food, so it could be put into the backpack, but unfortunately, there were only a few pieces, not enough for a main meal.
"The joys and sorrows of people are not interconnected," Amamiya Natsuki said calmly. "To know if those people regret it, we can only conduct a survey."
Plop.
Perhaps because she had just woken up not long ago and was still a bit lazy, Shinomiya Kaguya didn't catch it steadily, and the candy fell to the floor.
Amamiya Natsuki and Sheltered Ojou-sama bent down together to pick it up.
Their fingers touched in mid-air, and Sheltered Ojou-sama's breathing paused slightly.
Amamiya Natsuki turned his head to look at Kaguya.
Their eyes met.
The air instantly quieted, and an indescribable subtle atmosphere quietly spread between the two.
Amamiya Natsuki's gaze shifted down a few centimeters, landing on Sheltered Ojou-sama's delicate, thin lips, as pink as cherry blossoms.
Noticing Amamiya Natsuki's gaze, Shinomiya Kaguya's pretty face quickly flushed red.
(Wait, wait a minute, he wouldn't be thinking of kissing me, would he?)
(He must be thinking about that kind of thing!)
(Hayasaka said that boys, those creatures, are always insatiable!)
The events that happened in the inn resurfaced, every frame exceptionally clear.
Shinomiya Kaguya only thought for a few seconds, and then steam whistled out from the top of her head. In a daze, she started to ponder the previous question again.
Did a kiss in a dream count as a real kiss after all?
Was her first kiss… still there?
"No, I'm already pregnant with a baby…"
Someone in the classroom was dreaming, and a sleep-talked phrase startled Sheltered Ojou-sama.
"P-pregnant with a baby?!"
Shinomiya Kaguya subconsciously covered her lower abdomen, leaning back, her eyes wide with panic.
(Holding hands certainly won't get you pregnant, but kissing…)
(No, no! It's too early to be a mother now, I'm completely unprepared!)
(While being a parent doesn't require a qualification exam, you still have to take responsibility and be competent!)
"What are you thinking?"
Seeing Kaguya covering her lower abdomen, her eyes wide with panic, Amamiya Natsuki couldn't help but ask in a low voice.
What's with that innocent girl expression of yours, as if you accidentally got pregnant and don't know what to do?
Sheltered Ojou-sama's pretty face was flushed red like fire, and she stammered:
"Ch-child…"
Hey, hey, what child?
Where did the child come from?
I know you're a germ-free young lady, but you can't be so ignorant of basic physiological knowledge, can you!
Amamiya Natsuki narrowed his eyes and said, "Didn't you attend the health education class in elementary school?"
Shinomiya Kaguya: "...No."
She really hadn't, no wonder she didn't understand anything!
Amamiya Natsuki looked at Kaguya and asked again, "Then do you know how two people can have a baby?"
The Sheltered Ojou-sama turned her pretty face away, stammering and unable to explain: "Th-that..."
"That what?"
Amamiya Natsuki pressed on.
Shinomiya Kaguya closed her eyes, steam rising from her head, and said with all her might: "Kiss..."
If kissing could lead to pregnancy, Japan's birth rate wouldn't be so low!
"Kissing won't make you pregnant," Ghost Story Hanako appeared out of nowhere, joining the conversation, hands on her hips, and snorted proudly, "You need a boy's 'O—'"
Did you hear that?
Even an elementary school student knows more than you!
"O-O..."
The Sheltered Ojou-sama's eyes widened. It seemed the word had overloaded her brain, turning her eyes into spiral patterns. She quickly lowered her head, and her shoulders began to tremble slightly.
So... so strange.
Her body suddenly felt strange!
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