So it really is like this, huh?
Eyes still a touch bleary, Mio stared up at the slightly unfamiliar ceiling.
She really had, just like she'd declared the night before, slept until she woke up on her own—except the time she "naturally" woke happened to be six in the morning.
Mio let out a soft sigh. Awake now and unable to drift back off, she spared a glance at the still-sleeping Shiina Mashiro beside her, then carefully rolled out of bed.
After a quick wash-up, Mio changed into her outdoor clothes, planning to head out for a casual stroll.
The moment she stepped out of the room, she heard Yukinoshita Haruno's all-too-familiar voice. "Good morning, little kouhai~"
Following the sound, Mio finally spotted her—Haruno was leaning against the wall right beside her room, for all the world like she'd been waiting there just for her.
"What a coincidence—fancy running into my little kouhai right here."
"Senpai, there's no need for nonsense like that. Why are you actually out here?"
"To wait for you to come out, obviously."
"You were that sure I'd come out?"
Haruno leaned in close and raised an index finger to tip up Mio's chin. "I know your habits well. You wake up around six every morning, and you're the type who can't fall back asleep once you're up. Knowing your personality, there's basically no chance you'd stay cooped up in the room—so if I stake out here around six, the odds are very good I'll catch you on your way out."
Mio slapped Haruno's hand away. "And if I hadn't come out?"
"What else? I'd knock, of course. Do I look like the type who'd wait out here forever?"
Looking at the matter-of-fact expression on Haruno's face, Mio sighed in resignation. "I'm about to go for a walk. Want to come along, senpai?"
"Of course~"
Haruno seemed to have already guessed Mio would head out for a walk, since she'd changed into her own outdoor clothes before stepping out too.
The two of them walked out of the inn together. Feeling the cold wind blowing straight into her face, Mio couldn't help shivering.
Seeing this, Haruno asked with a smile, "Want to head back?"
"Nah. We're already out—might as well walk around a bit."
Mio breathed out a puff of white mist, then ambled down the road alongside Haruno.
"Speaking of which, senpai, how come you didn't drag Yukinoshita-san along too?"
"I wanted to, believe me. But she didn't want to come." Haruno gave a helpless little smile.
Just as Mio was about to say something comforting, the System's voice suddenly rang in her ear. "Looks like... my timing's a little off, hm?"
"Your timing's a pain no matter when you show up."
"Can't be helped. Whose good luck triggered a task, hm~?"
"Host's objective: before returning to the inn, get Yukinoshita Haruno to initiate physical contact with the host, lasting no less than thirty minutes. Any break in contact resets the countdown. Success may yield the Yukinoshita Haruno card set or an item reward; failure means drawing from the penalty card set."
"A nice, simple task. Do your best, Host~"
"Simple my foot!"
The task looked simple enough on the surface, sure—but it all came down to who the target was. And if the target was Yukinoshita Haruno, pulling it off was nowhere near as easy as it sounded.
What's more, this time the task required Haruno to be the one to take the initiative.
Beside her, Haruno keenly noticed that something about Mio's expression seemed off.
Just a second ago she'd looked like she wanted to offer some comfort, and then all at once her face had shifted to something exasperated—as if something had abruptly changed her mood.
But Mio was right there beside her, and she hadn't done a single thing. So why the change?
Had she suddenly thought of something?
Or was there some other reason?
Finished talking with the System, Mio suddenly realized Haruno was watching her with keen interest.
She couldn't help blinking. "Senpai, what are you suddenly staring at me for?"
"I'm curious—why does my little kouhai keep spacing out all of a sudden? And spacing out aside, your expressions get so animated. It's almost like you're talking to someone."
Hearing that, Mio felt the word DANGER flash across her forehead.
Maybe it was because Haruno's attitude toward her had softened so much lately, but she'd let her own guard slip too—and only now, hearing this, did she snap back to attention and realize she'd forgotten to keep her expressions in check.
Still, it should be fine. The System's existence wasn't something that could be guessed at so easily.
"It's just the two of us out here, senpai. Where would anyone else come from?"
"That's precisely what puzzles me."
Haruno gave Mio a long, searching look. She had the feeling she was getting very close to the truth—and yet it also felt like she was missing some last piece of the puzzle.
She was truly curious just what sort of secret Mio was keeping.
Mio pulled her hand out of her pocket and reached it toward Haruno. "Senpai, could you hold my hand?"
"Just a moment ago I wanted to hold your hand and you turned me down—and now you're asking me to hold yours. My little kouhai really is a fickle girl~" Even as she said it, Haruno took Mio's hand and tucked it into the pocket of her own coat.
Mio looked at Haruno, caught a little off guard—she'd assumed Haruno would make her spend one of her favors, but Haruno had just tossed out a teasing remark and left it at that.
"What is it? Is there something else you want me to do?"
"No, that's all. Senpai... you don't want me to use up a favor on this?"
"Oh dear, I forgot all about that. Let's just let it slide this time," Haruno said dismissively.
Come to think of it, every time Mio spaced out, she seemed to do something odd right afterward. Like yesterday, suddenly asking Haruno to kiss her. Like just now, suddenly asking Haruno to hold her hand.
Almost as though someone were making her do these things.
Haruno's lips twitched. This guess of hers felt a little too far-fetched—this was reality, after all, not some novel.
The two of them soon reached the nearby small town, but it was still early; few of the shops were open, and there was hardly a soul on the streets.
"Looks like we came a bit too early."
"It's fine. We're just walking around anyway. If we actually want to buy something, we can come back after breakfast."
"True enough—but if we head back and come out again, it definitely won't be just the two of us anymore. It's so rare to get my little kouhai all to myself, so let's stay out a little longer."
······