Late at night, sitting alone at my desk, I stared at the unchanging surveillance footage of the hangar on my tablet, my mind filled with a thousand swirling thoughts.
"Arona," I couldn't help but ask, "as a fellow AI, can you tell the difference?"
"Sensei, what are you saying! Even among AIs, there are levels to this!" Arona said to me. "So, as for whether Arisu is really Arisu, that is something only Sensei can judge for yourself."
I understood. Faced with AL-1S, Arona felt inferior.
It was impossible that she meant she was the one on the "higher" level, right?
Sighing softly, I instructed her: "The moment you notice Arisu... AL-1S leaving her room, or if the surveillance system is hacked..."
"Understood! Even if Arona has to stay up all night without a wink of sleep, I will definitely complete the task Sensei assigned!"
Hearing her say that actually made me feel more uneasy, I was worried she would accidentally doze off again.
However, even if only for the sake of the strawberry milk and various desserts I used as bribes, Arona would surely do her duty faithfully this time, right?
Thinking it over, it was still hard to say. Fortunately, I had also arranged for Hoshino to keep watch.
...Hoshino wouldn't run into any problems, surely?
I couldn't help but let out a long breath, feeling that tonight might be another sleepless night.
Just as I was lying on my freshly changed sheets, closing my eyes to rest before the potential chaos, I heard a knock at the door.
Opening it, accompanied by a gust of sweet fragrance, the fox girl with whom my relationship had made a breakthrough leaped into my arms:
"Darling∼ Wakamo has come to see you∼ Hehe∼"
"Mm, come in first."
Just as I led Wakamo into the room by her hand and sat down on the edge of the bed, a pair of jade-like arms wrapped around my neck.
"Ahhh∼ Dear," Wakamo whispered in my ear, her tone carrying a tenderness sweet enough to intoxicate anyone, "today, for your sake, Wakamo got along well with the other children, you know?"
She spoke as if seeking praise, and the corners of my mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly:
"Mm, I saw everything."
Throughout the entire day, Wakamo's performance had been excellent, meaning she hadn't gotten into a conflict with anyone.
She hadn't even shown any dissatisfaction when other students had relatively close contact with me, whether intentional or not.
Even though she never removed her mask for a single moment except during meals, and even then, she only slid it up halfway, her flat tone gave off an unapproachable vibe.
But compared to the usual Wakamo, being able to go this far was already a massive improvement.
And all of this was done out of consideration for my feelings.
"So, what kind of reward do you want?"
I stroked her head and asked in a warm voice.
"Hmm∼ what should I do∼" Wakamo feigned difficulty, though her words were overflowing with happiness. "Hehe∼ making me end up like this... just how should I make you take responsibility for me? Hmm? My De-ar-est?"
Hearing that word emphasized syllable by syllable, I could no longer suppress the rising flames in my heart. I removed Wakamo's fox mask and set it aside.
I tilted her chin up, gazing into her blurred eyes, and then aimed for those lips as pink as cherry blossoms...
Knock, knock, knock.
However, a sudden knock at the door interrupted my movements.
Who was so tactless to come and spoil my fun at a time like this?
While annoyed, I felt a twitch in my brow and a sudden, strange sense of deja vu.
What was going on? Had I encountered a similar situation before...
I paused for a moment of reflection and gazed sincerely into the fox girl's eyes:
"Wakamo, would you like to find a suitable place to hide for a bit?"
"Eh∼" Wakamo pouted reluctantly, but she still nodded in agreement. "Alright, if that is your wish."
This obedient appearance made my heart thud heavily again. Taking advantage of the last moment, I gave her lips a light, fleeting kiss.
Then, I licked my own lips and prepared to open the door for tonight's new visitor.
Wakamo followed behind me and turned straight into the bathroom.
...I felt that tonight was truly going to be a long one.
Secretly anticipating what was to come, I opened the door to see a girl with a mask and long, deep-blue hair standing silently before me.
The moment I saw it was Saori, I felt a slight tinge of disappointment, thinking my intuition might have been wrong.
Still, even if she was likely a spy sent by Beatrice, it wasn't entirely impossible that during our brief time together, she had been deeply attracted by my extraordinary grace and decided to abandon the darkness for the light, truly offering her loyalty and love to me.
Sigh, Card, why aren't you getting hot yet?
Don't force me to find the Engineering Department and strap a heating plate to you!
"Is something the matter?" I looked at her calmly.
Saori remained silent for a long while before lowering her gaze: "Sensei, may I... come in to speak?"
I couldn't help but look down as well, deeply drawn to her flat midriff that possessed several elegant lines, looking so white against her black clothing that it seemed to reflect light.
How strange, how is it that Saori happens to have a navel, and I happen to have a tongue?
Unfortunately, I still had to wait for the day she could truly be won over.
Feeling a bit of regret, I stepped aside.
After Saori entered the room, she stood stiffly in front of the bed, staring straight at the floor without any of the curiosity a normal student should have when visiting my room for the first time.
"Sit down... I didn't say sit on the floor. The bed, or the chair, whichever you like."
So Saori obediently sat on the chair by my desk, not saying a word.
Her condition seemed a bit strange.
Sitting on the bed, I looked at this girl who was usually taciturn, but I noticed her tightly clenched fists.
...She wouldn't be trying to assassinate me, would she?
The very next moment after that alarming thought surfaced.
Saori suddenly stood up and began to unfasten her tactical harness...
"Wait, wait!" I also leaped up. "Saori, what are you doing?"
"Because I can no longer suppress my love for you." Saori stopped her movements, her tone like a pool of stagnant water. "So, please allow me to offer everything I am to you."
Silence filled the room as the words fell.
I looked at her expressionlessly, anger churning in my heart.
"Did Beatrice tell you to do this?" I asked abruptly.
"...This is entirely of my own will."
I said coldly: "Take off your mask."
Under my gaze, after a long silence, Saori did as she was told.
As the mask hit the floor with a crisp thud, she finally revealed her cold expression before me after a long time.
"Say it again."
"This is entirely of my own will."
Saori repeated herself, but her eyes, which were as still as an ancient well, and her frost-cold expression gave her words zero conviction.
I gave a cold laugh and walked up to her: "In other words, you trust Beatrice more than you trust me... does she have some kind of leverage over you?"
Her eyes flickered slightly, but she didn't answer.
"I know you didn't come to my side as a 'gift'."
I said in a low voice.
However, to my surprise, Saori actually spoke up then.
"I am." Saori looked into my eyes with utter earnestness. "The Madame said that as long as you are willing to truly take me as your own, I will... only be a gift."
Hearing this, I narrowed my eyes and sat back on the edge of the bed, scanning the beautiful girl from top to bottom.
Recalling the actions of that woman with the uncanny beauty at Gematria headquarters, I let out a sneer.
So, that was it.
Beatrice was coveting the power my Card possessed.
By sending Saori to me, was she hoping to study her after she was won over by me and attempt to replicate it?
Even if this guess wasn't perfectly accurate, it was likely close enough.
How should such behavior be evaluated?
Probably, it could only be summarized with the word "arrogant."
I wasn't so conceited as to think that those Gematria fellows had absolutely no possibility of deciphering some of the technology used in my Card.
But wanting to study it through a student? And a student after being won over by me?
At the very least, Beatrice was completely disregarding me.
Fine. Since it was for such a ridiculous purpose, Saori's danger level had dropped significantly.
I believed that once Saori was won over, she would make the right choice. And until then, Beatrice, who coveted what I held, would likely refrain from acting rashly.
When faced with the enemy's sugar-coated bullets, one should calmly eat the sugar coating and then fire the defecting bullet back at them.
"I understand."
I looked at her calmly: "Convey to Beatrice for me that I like the gift she sent very much, but since I have accepted it, how I handle it is my business. If she is so impatient, tell her to take the gift back."
This way, Saori wouldn't have to go against her own heart and fawn over me like a plaything.
And she would be able to feel my care and protection even more, wouldn't she?
Sigh, for Saori, who was being coerced into being used as a tool, developing a true infatuation for me because of this gentleness was only a matter of time.
"...Yes. I understand."
Saori hesitated for a moment: "Then, what happened just now, do we still need to continue...?"
What just now? Hadn't I stopped it before it even began?
I frowned, suddenly feeling that Saori might very well have been moved by me and wanted to repay me with her body...
No, it was also possible she wanted to take this chance to satisfy the hidden desire she had for my appearance...
"Of course not." I refused with righteous dignity, but then changed the subject. "Speaking of which, aren't you cold like that?"
"...What?"
"Your midriff is always exposed."
"Thank you for your concern, but I am used to it."
I felt a flash of annoyance. I've already asked, don't you know to ask me for help covering it up!
Just as I was about to give a more subtle hint.
Thud, thud.