9 PM.
After finishing dinner, the two had watched another horror movie.
Whether the horror movies were genuinely terrifying or she'd just gotten too into character, even Mio—who normally wasn't afraid of these things—felt like the house had gotten a lot more "lively."
To ease the creepy atmosphere, Mio quietly put on a comedy variety show. However, it didn't help at all—instead, it made the living room atmosphere even more unsettling.
"Yui, I'm kinda scared to take a shower. What do I do?" Mio leaned against Yui, speaking in a small voice.
"Wh-what's there to be scared of? If you're really that scared, I'll come with you."
The moment those words left her mouth, Yui regretted them. Sure, they were both girls, but just thinking about bathing together with Mio made her feel inexplicably nervous.
"What I meant was, I'll wait outside the bathroom door for you," Yui quietly clarified.
"Then I'm counting on you." Though Mio felt a bit disappointed, she also breathed a small sigh of relief.
Since Mio's bedroom had its own private bathroom, the two headed straight to the bedroom. After grabbing a change of clothes, Mio went into the bathroom.
Closing the door, Mio could finally drop the act temporarily. Still, while showering, she'd occasionally call out to ask if Yui was still by the door, maintaining her scared persona.
Less than ten minutes later, Mio emerged from the bathroom.
Seeing the water droplets on Mio's hair and how she'd put on clothes without properly drying herself first, Yui said somewhat helplessly, "If you're this scared, just don't watch so many horror movies."
"No way. It's rare to have you here, Yui. If I don't take advantage of this chance to watch more, who knows when the next opportunity will be."
"As long as you don't find me annoying, I'll come over often from now on." Yui took a towel and began helping Mio dry her damp hair.
After her shower, Mio's scent had become even more pronounced. Whether it was the shampoo, body wash, or just Mio's natural scent—Yui couldn't quite tell.
After blow-drying Mio's hair, Yui took the clothes Mio had prepared for her and headed into the bathroom.
Mio very conscientiously stood guard outside the bathroom door. "Don't worry, Yui. I'll be right here keeping you company."
From Yui's perspective, Mio was standing by the door because she was scared.
But Mio knew that Yui was actually pretty scared too—that's why she'd specifically positioned herself outside.
As the sound of running water filled the air, Mio unconsciously glanced back at the bathroom door, then silently covered her face. What the hell am I even thinking about?
Just then, the System's voice suddenly rang out: "Host, I just noticed—the bathroom door isn't actually locked, you know~"
"Could you at least give me a warning before you start talking!?" Mio clutched her chest. The System's sudden voice had nearly scared her to death. And she didn't know if it was intentional, but it was even using Yui's voice.
"But Host, you're not afraid of these things, right?"
"I'm not afraid of ghosts... forget it, you wouldn't understand anyway."
"I understand this much—it's called having a guilty conscience~"
"No, I'm not, I didn't."
"By analyzing Host's physiological responses, I can easily reach this conclusion. There's no point struggling, Host."
"By the way, why are you even analyzing this stuff?"
Hearing Mio's words, the System instantly fell silent.
Though the System wouldn't answer that question, Mio had discovered that whenever she found the System annoying, asking this question would shut it up.
Worked every time.
Yui also showered quickly, emerging from the bathroom in just over ten minutes. Though she was faster than Mio, she looked much more composed.
Right now, Yui was wearing Mio's nightgown. It was obvious the nightgown was under considerable pressure that it wasn't designed to handle.
Noticing Mio's gaze, Yui didn't think much of it. She just smiled and patted Mio's shoulder. "Mio, you don't need to envy me. You've still got room to grow."
Mio opened her mouth, wanting to say she hadn't been thinking about that, but decided against it. This misunderstanding was fine.
After blow-drying Yui's hair, Mio climbed straight into bed and burrowed under the covers, then said in a muffled voice, "Yui, the other two rooms don't have anyone in them. Just pick whichever one you want."
"Huh!? Wait, don't you have spare bedding? I can just sleep on the floor here."
Mio poked her head out from under the covers and said quietly, "I don't. Since I have spare rooms, I figured I wouldn't need it so I never bought any. Otherwise I wouldn't make you go to another room."
If they hadn't watched horror movies, sleeping alone in another room would've been fine. But after watching those movies, just thinking about being alone in an unfamiliar room made Yui feel uneasy.
She silently looked at Mio's large bed, then said, "You still seem pretty scared. How about I just sleep in your bed?"
"No problem."
Mio had been waiting for exactly this. She immediately scooted over, giving Yui more than half the bed.
After Yui lay down, Mio didn't turn off the lights—she just dimmed them.
Because of this, Yui could clearly see Mio's stunningly beautiful face so close to hers.
At such close proximity, her gaze unconsciously fell on Mio's alluring lips. The memory of that day's accident surfaced in her mind again—she could even recall the sensation from that fleeting moment.
The memories flashing through her mind made Yui unconsciously lick her slightly dry lips.
"Yui, can't sleep?"
Hearing Mio's voice, Yui finally realized what she'd been thinking about. Feeling her face flush with heat, she silently buried her face in the covers and said quietly, "We just lay down. How could I fall asleep that fast?"
"True. Thanks for watching all those horror movies with me today." Mio spoke sincerely.
"What's there to thank me for? If anyone should be saying thanks, it's me—thank you for teaching me how to make cookies."
"Let's stop thanking each other back and forth. We should hurry up and sleep. Once we're asleep, we won't be scared anymore."
"Mm."
Yui looked at Mio, so close she could almost touch her. Feeling the heat in her own cheeks, she had a feeling she might not fall asleep very easily tonight.