"There's no need to change my shoes, right?"
Sora's tone was hesitant.
"No, you must change your slippers." Mahiru put her right hand on her hip, glaring at him affectionately with her bright eyes. "The soles of your shoes are very dirty. If you don't change them, after I finish mopping the floor, you'll definitely leave a dirty footprint with every step you take."
Sora: "..."
Letting a girl help mop the floor and wipe the tables is fine, but having someone else wash my shoes is something I absolutely cannot agree to.
"I'll wash the shoes myself."
Sora decisively changed into new slippers, then carried his old ones to the bathroom.
Watching Sora walk into the bathroom, the corners of Angel-sama's moist pink lips curled upwards slightly, and she began to clean the room in earnest.
A moment later.
Sora took the cleaned shoes outside to dry in the sun, then decided to head out for a bit.
"Keep busy, I'm going to the convenience store to buy some ingredients."
Mahiru looked up and gently instructed, "Be careful outside, and watch out for red lights."
Hey, hey, I'm not a three-year-old child, I don't need you to remind me to look both ways before crossing the street!
"..."
Shortly after Sora left, a blue-haired girl with light footsteps arrived outside the door and happily pressed the doorbell.
The door quickly opened.
"Sora, good morning..."
Anna raised her right hand, her smile bright and radiant.
"Ehh?!"
However, upon clearly seeing the figure opening the door, the smile on Anna's face instantly froze, and her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Shiina-san?!"
(Meow meow meow, what's going on? This is Sora's house, right?)
(Why is the person opening the door Shiina-san?)
(Did I go to the wrong door?)
"Yanami-san, please come in." Mahiru's tone was natural as she stepped aside. "Izumi-kun went to the convenience store to buy ingredients. He'll be back in a while."
"Wait a minute, let me calm down first..."
Anna raised her right hand, pressed her index finger against her brow, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. When she opened her eyes again, the Angel-sama in front of her still hadn't vanished.
"Damn it, it's not a hallucination..."
Anna finally accepted reality and couldn't help but ask curiously:
"Why is Shiina-san at Sora's house?"
"It's a long story." Mahiru's expression remained unchanged, her voice as gentle as ever. "I moved next door to Izumi-kun a couple of days ago, and happened to come over today for a visit."
"Ehhhh?"
Anna felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck her head.
Angel-sama actually lives right next door to Sora?
No way!
Even I, his childhood friend, don't live next door!
"What a coincidence..." Anna forced a smile, her voice curious. "But why is Shiina-san cleaning?"
Not only was her hair tied back, but she was also wearing an apron. If a stranger came to the door, they would think she was the lady of the house doing chores!
Mahiru's gaze was calm as she replied softly:
"Sora-kun helped me with something last night. When I came over for my official visit today, I saw the house was very messy, so I helped clean up as a gesture of thanks."
(Bad, bad, bad, bad...)
Alarm bells rang loudly in Anna's heart.
Oh no, my base was stolen by Angel-sama!
"I'll help!" Anna quickly raised her right hand. "Cleaning all by yourself is too much work."
"I've already finished cleaning." Mahiru's voice was gentle. "Come in and take a seat first, Yanami-san... Here, change into these slippers first. Izumi-kun just washed them, so they might be a little wet."
Watching Angel-sama bend down to fetch slippers from the shoe rack, the bad premonition in Anna's heart grew even stronger.
Why does it feel like the lady of the house is entertaining a guest?
Director, yell cut! I want a retake ahhhhh!
Unfortunately, reality isn't a script. Even though Anna desperately wanted a do-over, she had already come inside, and couldn't very well back out now. She could only bite her lower lip, change her shoes, and enter the house.
The atmosphere quietly fell silent.
Fortunately, it wasn't long before Sora pushed the door open and entered the house.
"I'm back."
"Welcome back, Izumi-kun."
Mahiru happened to be standing in the entryway and greeted him softly.
Anna: "..."
Shiina-san is clearly just a guest! Why can she say "Welcome back" so naturally!
"Sora, let me help carry the things!"
Anna quickly stood up and walked over.
Sora shook his head.
"No need, I'll carry them myself..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the shopping bags were already snatched away by Anna.
"Please, absolutely leave it to me."
Sora: "..."
Angel-sama slightly lowered her eyes and softly took her leave.
"Sora-kun, the cleaning is done. I'll be heading back now."
"Thanks for your hard work." Sora naturally responded politely. "Would you like to stay for lunch together?"
"I..."
Just as Mahiru was about to speak, a soft, sweet voice suddenly echoed.
"Nii-san, it's so noisy downstairs... Eh?"
Seeing Mahiru and Anna in the living room, the silver-haired loli who was coming downstairs widened her eyes. An expression of facing a formidable enemy quickly appeared on her small face.
"It's that bad woman who snatched Nii-san away!"
In the first playthrough, whether it was Elf, the gluttonous Inmate Eight, or the other bad women, they all lost in the end. Even with all their might, they still couldn't defeat the Angel-sama standing before them.
"Sagiri, you came down?" Seeing his sister coming downstairs again, Sora was already accustomed to it and introduced them. "This is Mahiru-san, who moved in next door a few days ago."
Mahiru looked over. A gentle smile appeared on her pretty face as she gave a polite greeting. "Hello, I am Shiina Mahiru. Nice to meet you, please take care of me."
Sagiri bit her lower lip, turned her head away, and refused to speak.
(I didn't expect Nii-san to encounter that terrifying bad woman so quickly. What do I do, what do I do, what do I do...)
While she was panicking, Sora spoke up.
"Sagiri, are you busy right now? I have a favor to ask you."
"Eh?" Hearing this, Sagiri blinked in confusion. She tilted her small face up, her voice soft and cute, full of curiosity. "Nii-san actually has a favor to ask of me?"
"That's right." Sora sat down on the sofa, full of enthusiasm. "I remember Sagiri is very good at drawing, right?"
"I-It's okay..."
Sagiri felt incredibly guilty, thinking her identity as Eromanga-sensei had been exposed.
Sora picked up his laptop and displayed the project proposal. "I'm planning to make a small game called Plant Girls vs. Monsters. Can Sagiri help draw the concept art?"
"Eh, Nii-san is going to make a game?"
"That's right. I suddenly had a very good idea. The scope of the game isn't large, and it can be finished in one or two months. When the time comes, maybe we can pay off Auntie's loan shark debt all at once..."
"Nii-san shouldn't aim too high. The game might not necessarily be popular."
As Sagiri spoke, she sat down next to Sora.
Anna's pretty face was full of curiosity. Sitting on Sora's other side, she looked at the laptop. "That sounds very interesting. I want to help too."
Time quietly slipped away.
Sora earnestly described the game's setting and concepts. During this time, a gentle and pleasant voice periodically echoed in his ears.
"Sora-kun, what dishes are you planning to prepare?"
"..."
"Understood, leave it to me."
"..."
"Everyone go wash your hands, dinner is ready."
"..."
Sora snapped back to reality. Looking at the chef angel with an apron tied around her waist, his mood was incredibly subtle. He felt as if he had inexplicably turned into a useless person.
"Wait, how did you end up finishing all the cooking?"