"I like you—there, that's good enough, right!"
Under Mio's relentless coaxing, Eriri finally said it. She kept reminding herself this was only to play along with Mio's little act. There was no way she could ever fall for that white-haired little bitch.
As Eriri's words faded, the System's voice reached Mio's ear: "Why do I feel like Host is getting more and more forward? Aren't you afraid someone will find out you have a System?"
"Whatever. It's just a ten-pull. Worst case, I use my [Purification Card]s to wipe them one by one and be done with it."
Mio had plenty of [Purification Card]s on hand right now. Even if someone did stumble onto the System's existence, she could still guarantee it wouldn't threaten her survival.
"Fair enough. So, Eriri's conquest rating toward Host has gone up by 5 points. As for why it's 5, I think Host knows perfectly well. Now, please choose your reward~"
"So I got a little worked up just now when Eriri confessed—is that really worth that big a jump in conquest rating?"
After that little grumble, Mio finally turned her attention to the semi-transparent cards.
Mio chose the [Protection Card] as her reward this time. It could be used after a failed mission to waive the Penalty Deck draw and the conquest rating drop—one of the more useful cards for her.
The moment Mio made her choice, time began to flow again.
Then she watched Eriri's fair cheeks flush a visible red, looking absolutely adorable.
"Wh-what are you looking at?" Eriri turned her head aside, trying to hide her embarrassment, but her equally red ears gave her feelings away.
"I just think a flustered Eriri looks really cute, so I couldn't help but stare a bit. How's that for a reason?"
"Wh-who's flustered!"
After a good while, once Eriri had finally calmed down a little, Mio said, "To thank you for your help just now, how about I treat you to something to eat?"
"No thanks. I'll be having dinner soon once I'm home."
"Then let's just say I owe you one. Whatever you ask, I'll do—as long as I'm capable of it. Even that kind of thing~" Mio said in a thoroughly tempting tone.
"Wh-who would ever want you to do that kind of thing!" Barely calmed down, Eriri got tense all over again at Mio's words.
Was this white-haired little bitch seriously not just finding new ways to seduce her?
Back near their homes, Eriri looked at Mio. "Do you want to come in and sit for a bit?"
"I'll pass for today. It's getting late, and I've got to cook dinner when I get back."
"All right then. Get home safe."
"Mm."
After seeing Mio off, Eriri turned and went back into her own house. Once inside, she ran straight up to her room on the second floor. That little back-and-forth with Mio had given her fresh inspiration, and she wanted to get it down before it faded.
But when she went to pin down the main character's design, Mio's image kept surfacing in her mind despite herself.
Realizing her thoughts had gone somewhere strange, Eriri clutched her head and slumped over her worktable. Why Mio again? Lately she was always thinking about that white-haired little bitch. What was she supposed to do?
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"Hm?"
Back home, Mio found she was the only one there. Mashiro and Rita hadn't returned. Mashiro had been whisked away by Rita the moment school let out that afternoon—so why weren't the two of them back yet?
Just as Mio was about to pull out her phone to reach them, the door opened. A moment later, Rita walked in with Mashiro.
"Where did you two go? Why are you only back now?"
"Nowhere, really. Just wandered around the area a bit."
"Is that really all?" Mio eyed the two of them suspiciously. Mashiro and Rita had seemed secretive these past two days, vanishing for stretches at a time. As if they were plotting something.
"Really, really. So, what's for dinner tonight? Need any help?"
"You were never this eager before. No need."
With that, Mio turned her attention back to cooking.
Before she knew it, it was past eleven at night, almost midnight. Having typed out a few thousand characters, Mio stretched lazily. Normally, Mashiro would have come to her room by now.
She hadn't shown up yet—had she lost track of time drawing?
Puzzled, Mio got up and left her room.
The living room lights were on, but there wasn't a single person in sight—unnervingly quiet. Mio rubbed her goosebumped arms, then walked to Mashiro's bedroom door.
She knocked gently. No response. She tried the handle, and the door simply opened.
The moment she saw Mashiro, she quietly let out a breath of relief. "Mashiro, so you were in here. You didn't say a word, so I thought you weren't home. By the way, where'd Rita go?"
"Rita went over to Chihiro's." As she spoke, Mashiro pulled out the chocolate she'd prepared in advance. "Mio, this is for you."
"Eh!?" Mio stared in surprise at the chocolate in Mashiro's hands. Through the clear bag, she could see the chocolate inside had obviously been reworked by hand.
Now she understood why Mashiro and Rita had been so secretive these past couple of days—in all likelihood, it was for this chocolate.
"Did you make this?"
"Mm. Rita taught me."
Mio normally didn't eat anything after brushing her teeth, but this time she still took a piece from the bag and popped it into her mouth.
It was almost cloyingly sweet. But she didn't dislike it.
"Shiina Mashiro's conquest rating toward Host has risen by 5 points." The System chimed in right on cue to remind her it existed.
Just then, Mashiro suddenly leaned in close, her expression completely serious. "Mio, I want a taste too."
"Then let me get you a piece—mmph!?"
Feeling the soft touch on her lips, Mio's eyes went wide. She really hadn't expected that the "taste test" Mashiro meant was this kind of taste test.
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