"Huh? Did I leave my phone with that brat?"
Upon hearing this, Seika pursed her lips, a look of hesitation crossing her lovely face:
"I seem to recall bringing it back with me..."
Ryo leisurely took out her phone:
"We can find out if you left it at Kitahara's place just by sending a message."
"Mm... Kitahara replied."
Ryo turned the phone toward Seika and said unhurriedly:
"Manager, Kitahara says he just checked, and the phone is indeed with him."
"I see... I must have left it behind without noticing." Seika pressed a finger gently against the center of her forehead. "Well then, tell him to bring it over right away."
Under no circumstances could she go to that lecherous brat's place alone. It was the dead of night; going there by herself would be like a lamb walking straight into a tiger's den!
"Ah, sorry about this." Ryo gently shook the phone. "Kitahara says he's feeling unwell. If you want the phone, Manager, you'll have to go pick it up yourself."
"That wretched lecherous brat..."
Seika gritted her teeth, instinctively sensing danger.
She wanted to wait until morning to go, but... she couldn't help it; she simply couldn't resist.
Nowadays, a smartphone is practically an external organ essential for human survival—one simply cannot be without it. Since she couldn't fall asleep right away, lying in bed without her phone would be absolute torture!
"I'm going to wash my face..."
Seika was torn and couldn't make a decision immediately; feeling a bit groggy, she decided to head to the restroom to clear her head.
Watching Seika walk into the restroom, Ryo quietly stood up. Her physique and hair color subtly shifted until she returned to her "true self," and then she walked over to the door of Nijika's room.
Knock, knock.
Ryo gently knocked on the door; only after hearing Nijika's voice from inside did she push the door open and step in. "Huh? What's wrong?"
Nijika was tidying up her bed—her blonde side-ponytail swaying gently in the light, radiating youthful energy—when she noticed the good-for-nothing Ryo walking in all by herself and asked out of curiosity.
Ryo leaned casually against the doorframe, arms crossed over her chest: "I left my phone with that brat while I was at the onsen."
Nijika was taken aback by this:
"Are you sure, Sis? Could it have been left at home? Did you look for it carefully?"
"I already had Ryo message that brat; he's the one who has the phone." The "Ryo" imposter was an excellent actress, perfectly nailing the manager Seika's tone and mannerisms—at least, Nijika didn't suspect a thing. "So, I want you to come with me to get it back; I'm a bit worried about going over there alone."
"Couldn't we just ask Kitahara-kun to bring it over?"
Nijika quickly spotted the flaw in the plan.
The imposter remained unfazed: "Ryo asked, but that brat said he wasn't feeling well."
"I see..." Nijika instinctively sensed a whiff of a scheme, but agreed anyway. "I'll finish tidying up the room soon, then I'll go with you."
"Good."
The imposter turned and left, closing the door behind her.
"Next up, the manager..."
She walked toward the restroom, her figure and appearance shifting once more—this time transforming into Nijika.
Knock, knock.
She gave the door a gentle rap.
"Coming..." Seika opened the restroom door, her face still damp from washing it. "What is it, Nijika?"
"I just heard from Ryo that you left your phone at Kitahara-kun's place," the imposter said, getting straight to the point. "Shall I go with you to get it back?"
Seika hesitated. "Isn't it unsafe to go over there this late?"
"That's true, but..." The imposter shifted her tone. "You wouldn't want the secret about us swapping bodies to get exposed, would you?"
"Huh?"
"Who knows? Someone might call or text you with something weird. If Kitahara happened to see it, that would be a real problem."
She casually dropped a reason that Seika couldn't refuse. "I almost forgot about that." Seika's gaze quickly hardened with resolve. "We're going over right now to get the phone back; no matter what, the secret of our swapped bodies absolutely cannot be exposed!"
Whether it was the events in the supernatural underworld or the uncharacteristic, clingy behavior of the past few days... these secrets had to be taken to the grave!
"Wait a moment, Sis." Ryo turned toward the room. "Let me go tidy up a bit first."
Arriving at the door to Nijika's room, Ryo quietly reverted from her transformed state the moment she pushed the door open, executing a seamless transition.
"My head is spinning after that drink... I'm sleepy~"
Ryo flopped onto the bed and let out a yawn.
Nijika planted her hands on her hips, looking exasperated. "I told you not to drink."
After tucking Ryo in, Nijika stepped out of the room. "Sis, let's go."
"Right." Seika nodded. "Should we let Ryo know?"
"No need; she's already sleepy from the alcohol." Nijika lowered her voice. "We'll make it a quick trip—we're just grabbing the phone, so we'll be back in the blink of an eye."
"Then let's go."
"..."
The two sisters stood before the mirror, summoned "Hana-chan," and quietly departed via fast travel.
Meanwhile.
In the living room of the Kitahara household.
As Nijika and Seika stepped out of the full-length mirror into the brightly lit room, they saw Kitahara sitting on the sofa with his head bowed.
"What is this? I thought you said you weren't feeling well?"
Seika couldn't help but remark.
"..."
Kitahara didn't speak; he simply raised his head slowly.
"Huh?" Upon seeing his eyes, Nijika hurriedly stepped forward, her voice laced with concern. "Kitahara-kun, why have your eyes turned red again?"
Indeed.
Under the bright lights, Kitahara's eyes had once again turned red—clearly in that "Red-Eye" state.
"I'm fine..."
Kitahara's voice was low and slightly hoarse:
"I was replenishing Aoi's energy earlier, but since it was my first time, I lacked experience and lost control of the power."
That was a lie. Aoi was in the hands of Ryo—nowhere near him. The reason Kitahara had developed "red-eye syndrome" wasn't because his powers had spiraled out of control, but because he had eaten a "Magic Cookie."
The new semester had just begun, and final exams were still a long way off, so there was naturally no need for academic-themed cookies. Ever since experiencing the thrill of the "Sensitivity Cookie," Kitahara had experimented with making Magic Cookies with various effects; one of them happened to be a cookie that turned the user's eyes red.
Nijika bit her lower lip. "Why didn't you say anything earlier?"
"I thought you were all asleep, so I was planning to just tough it out on my own..."
Kitahara lowered his head again, his voice low and hoarse:
"My phone is on the table. Nijika-senpai, Ryo-senpai—please take it and head back."
A few minutes earlier, Ryo had handed the phone to Hana, instructing her to bring it over.
Nijika bit her lip and let out a soft breath, her gaze quickly turning resolute. She bent down, picked up the phone, handed it to Ryo, and lowered her voice:
"Onee-chan, here's the phone. You should go back first."
"Huh?" Seika tilted her head in confusion. "What are you staying behind for, Nijika?"
"Kitahara-kun has had symptoms of 'red-eye' before; it's incredibly painful. The only way to..."
Nijika's pretty face flushed slightly; she was too embarrassed to voice the rest of the explanation.
In short, she had to stay behind to help soothe the unbalanced energy surging within Kitahara. She couldn't bear to watch him suffer in silence.
"What exactly is this 'red-eye' state?"
Seika pulled Nijika into a corner and asked in a hushed tone.
"Well..."
Nijika hesitated for a moment, still too shy to tell the whole truth, and gave a soft, awkward cough.
"It's nothing serious... Anyway, Onee-chan, you should go back. Leave the rest to me."
If it were the real Ryo, they could certainly fight side-by-side, but the person currently inhabiting Ryo's body was her older sister—she certainly wouldn't agree to that kind of thing, would she?
"I wonder if I can handle this..."
A look of worry and fear flickered across Nijika's face. Usually, Ryo is the one handling the heavy lifting, but today she isn't here—it's just me. Plus, with Kitahara-kun in that "red-eye" state, he's bound to be rougher than usual... I hope I don't end up broken...
Although Seika didn't know exactly what this "red-eye" condition entailed, she could clearly see the worry and fear on Nijika's face. Crossing her arms over her chest, she stated firmly:
"I'm not leaving."
"Huh?"
"You looked so scared when you were speaking just now, Nijika. How could I possibly abandon you and leave?" Seika's gaze was resolute, her words ringing with conviction. "No matter what happens, I won't leave you behind and run away."
Ichiji Nijika: "..."
If you knew what was about to happen, Onee-chan, you definitely wouldn't be saying something so impassioned!
Just as Nijika was about to speak, a low, pained groan reached their ears.
"Kitahara-kun, hang in there."
Looking worried, Nijika hurried over to where Kitahara stood:
"Let's head to the onsen resort right now, okay?"
"I'm coming too."
Seika stepped forward to join them.
"Ryo, you go back first."
Nijika hurriedly tried to signal her sister with her eyes.
Unfortunately, Seika chose to turn a blind eye: "No matter what happens, I won't leave you all alone, Nijika!"
"Nijika-senpai... I can't hold it back anymore..."
Seeing the red glow in Kitahara's eyes intensify—clearly signaling he was on the verge of losing control—Nijika stopped hesitating. She quickly stood on tiptoe, leaned close to Seika's ear, and whispered shyly:
"Onee-chan... the only way to get Kitahara-kun back to normal is by balancing our yin and yang..."
"Huh?" Seika tilted her head, not quite grasping it yet. "What do you mean?"
"It means... we have to do that... the most intimate thing..."
"The most intimate... thing?"
Seika's eyes widened; she finally understood why Nijika had been stammering and reluctant to say it plainly earlier.
They had to do that to get the brat back to normal?
Oh no!
This is absolutely terrible! "Sister, you go first," Nijika urged in a low voice. "I'll stay behind."
"I..."
A look of hesitation crossed Seika's face.
As the older sister, she felt she ought to shield her younger sister from whatever might happen.
But the situation was different now; even if she stayed, would she really be of any help?
Seika began to waver, but before she could speak, she suddenly felt a wave of scorching heat wash over them.
The sisters instinctively turned their heads and saw Kitahara—his eyes burning red—appear before them as if by teleportation, instantly grabbing both their wrists.
Seika's heart began to race:
"W-wait a minute..."
Before Seika could finish her sentence, the light in the living room warped slightly, and the next instant, the three of them vanished into thin air.
"Is this... a onsen resort?"
After taking in her surroundings, Seika was about to speak when she caught sight of Kitahara pulling Nijika into his arms and beginning to have his way with her.
"You lecherous brat!"
Seika involuntarily took a half-step back, her heart pounding:
"I'm right here! You're actually messing with Nijika right in front of me?"
"Do you want me to break all five of your limbs?"
Thanks to Nijika's earlier explanation, Seika already knew what was coming. She wanted to leave, but the onsen rt was a sealed pocket dimension—there was no escape.
"...Pervert!"
Seeing Kitahara's actions, Seika's lovely face flushed crimson; she spat the word under her breath and held her breath, preparing to slip away quietly.
But just as she moved, a hand reached out and yanked her in.
A scorching, familiar presence instantly enveloped her, and Seika's heart began to hammer wildly:
"What is that lecherous brat trying to do?"
"Let go of me, right now!"
Seika was a mix of embarrassment, anger, and panic.
She had swapped souls with Ryo; if she were to be ravished alongside Nijika, wouldn't that mean... oh no! It was a terrible situation, no matter how you looked at it!
But perhaps because of the alcohol, my physical reactions were noticeably sluggish—far slower than usual. Far from being able to throw a punch, even my attempts to push him away were pathetically weak.
"W-Wait a minute... You actually posed me right next to Nijika?!"
"You lecherous brat, you'd better know when to draw the line!"
"..."
Seika tried to resist, but she couldn't muster any strength; before long, her consciousness began to drift, leaving her with nothing but boundless regret:
"If only I'd let Ryo wear the bracelet and switch bodies back..."
The night passed without further incident.
Naturally, the specific details cannot be recounted here; suffice it to say, Kitahara walked away with seven "Rice Bowl" achievement badges.
At the first light of dawn the next day, Nijika and Seika finally returned to their home in Shimokitazawa.
"Sis, are you hungry?"
Nijika broke the silence with a soft question.
"I'm not hungry."
Seika's voice was slightly hoarse; she kept her head down, staring at her toes, unable to bring herself to look anyone in the eye.
"I'm going to go rest now."
"Um, I passed out at the end there... did you make sure to use protection, Sis...?"
"D-Don't say another word."
Seika was so mortified she felt like she might just explode on the spot.
"Nothing happened last night! And don't ever bring it up again!"
Nijika: "..."
Watching her sister scramble back to her room in a panic, Nijika sighed helplessly.
She was a grown woman, yet she was a massive tsundere who said the opposite of what she meant and refused to face reality. No wonder she was destined to grow old alone...
Meanwhile.
Elsewhere.
Kitahara had just finished freshening up and was sitting in the living room, feeling refreshed, with the "Book of Answers" in his hand.
"It's time to go on the offensive."