"System, out of all the Cards you've got, isn't there a single one that can heal someone?"
Watching over the now-sleeping Haruno, Mio asked the System out of idle curiosity.
"Of course there is. But it only works on the Host—it's useless on anyone else. And even if it did work, there's no guarantee you could ever draw it, so you might as well give up on that idea," the System drawled.
"I was just asking on a whim."
With her luck, Mio figured she probably wouldn't manage to draw it even by the time the System up and left her.
Setting her wandering thoughts aside, Mio turned her attention back to drawing.
While Haruno was awake, at least there'd been someone to chat with. But once she'd fallen asleep, Mio found herself with nothing to do.
Since she really didn't feel like sleeping, Mio simply went and hauled over her drawing equipment, hooked it up to Haruno's computer, and got to work. At this rate, she figured she'd finish the last illustration by the time the afternoon was out.
Then she could hand it off to her editor, and if there were no problems, the novel she'd carried over from her old world could finally go on sale.
The minutes ticked by, and by the time Mio finished the illustration, it was five in the afternoon.
She gave a lazy stretch, then walked over to Haruno's bedside.
The instant Mio laid a hand on Haruno's forehead, she saw the other woman's eyes slowly open.
Waking to find Mio crouched at her bedside, Haruno gave a faint smile. "Don't tell me my kouhai was planning to do something naughty to me while I was asleep? I wouldn't mind, mind you—but you really ought to wait until I've recovered first."
At that, Mio rolled her eyes. "I was only checking whether your fever had broken, and then you woke up. Please don't make me sound like some pervy creep."
Though, in fairness, some of her behavior really wasn't far off from a pervy creep.
But that was all the System's fault. It had nothing to do with her.
Yep. Exactly. That was all there was to it.
"Oh, so that's how it is."
"What's with that disappointed tone?"
Sensing that letting this continue would only lead her into a trap, Mio decisively changed the subject. "How are you feeling now, Senpai?"
"Better than before. I'll probably be fine by tomorrow."
"Well, if you're that confident, then I can relax."
Something seemed to strike Mio then, and she asked, "Should we let Yukinoshita-san know you're sick?"
"There's no need for that."
Having apparently anticipated exactly that answer, Mio gave a soft laugh, then said with a perfectly straight face, "Senpai—you wouldn't want your little sister finding out you got sick, now would you?"
"Mm, so—what is it my kouhai wants to blackmail me into doing? Anything at all is fine with me~"
"No good. That reaction's far too boring, Senpai. Not a shred of tension to it."
"Ah, so my kouhai prefers the flustered kind of reaction? I'll be sure to give it a try next time," Haruno said, deadpan.
After chatting with Haruno for a while, Mio realized that, before she knew it, it was already nearly six in the evening.
Thinking back on how she used to be, she remembered always hoping her conversations with Haruno would end as quickly as possible. She never would have imagined that one day she'd talk with her long enough to lose all track of time.
Mio didn't know whether this change was, for her, a good thing or a bad one.
But she didn't dislike the feeling.
Ignoring the System's chime announcing the Affection Level increase, Mio stood up. "Get some more rest, Senpai. I need to head back and cook. Tell me whatever you'd like for dinner—and once it's done, I'll bring it over so you can have a good sniff."
"My kouhai really does have a wicked streak."
"Can't be helped—you're the one who's sick, Senpai~"
Mio stuck out her tongue at Haruno, then turned and walked out of the room with a light, breezy step.
The moment Mio stepped out of Haruno's place, she happened to run into Shiina Mashiro and Sengoku Chihiro on their way back.
"Yo. How's Haruno doing?"
"Under my attentive care, she's pretty much recovered. She should be back to her old self by tomorrow. Just to be safe, though, Chihiro-sensei, don't ask her to drink with you again for the next few days."
"You don't need to tell me that. I already know."
Bringing Mashiro back home, Mio set about preparing tonight's dinner.
After a stretch of busy work, dinner was ready. Mio shot Chihiro a quick text, then walked straight to Mashiro's room.
When she knocked and stepped inside, Mio found that Mashiro wasn't sitting at her computer drawing as usual—instead she was lying on her stomach on the bed, absorbed in reading something.
Curious, Mio leaned in. "Mashiro, what are you reading?"
"The study material Rita gave me," Mashiro said, handing the material over to Mio.
Mio flipped through a few pages at random. Just as she'd suspected, it was 18+ yuri doujinshi—the milder sort, which let Mio quietly breathe a sigh of relief.
She was plenty interested herself, honestly. But for the sake of maintaining her image of unshakable dignity, Mio handed the doujinshi back to Mashiro and said, "Same as before—read it if you want, but whatever you do, don't go projecting what's inside onto real life."
To be on the safe side, Mio decided she'd sit Mashiro down tonight and give her a proper rundown of the relevant knowledge, so she wouldn't end up going down the wrong path.
"Oh."
"You can put it away for now, though. It's time for dinner."
"Mm."
Mashiro obediently tucked the doujinshi away, then followed Mio out of the room.
Mio had barely stepped out when the doorbell rang—it was Sengoku Chihiro and Rita.
Seeing how nervous Rita looked, Mio gave a helpless laugh. "Don't be so scared of me. I'm not going to bite."
"Um—about the study material, that was my fault. I'm sorry!"
"Forget it, forget it. I don't care about that sort of thing. And honestly, Mashiro does need to learn a bit about all this, so she doesn't end up teaching herself the wrong lessons."
At that, Rita finally let out a quiet breath of relief.
"Study material? What study material? What are you two talking about in riddles?" Chihiro, standing off to the side, looked between them in utter confusion, completely lost as to what this "study material" was.
"Nothing, it's just... just some knowledge you need for drawing manga, that's all. Don't worry about it, Chihiro-sensei."
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