Treating Kojou wasn't difficult—Shichen just needed to extract the rib and then heal him.
Not only would he leave Kojou without any damage, he'd actually make him healthier.
It was Shichen's first time doing a rib extraction, let alone regenerating a brand-new rib for Kojou.
Magic wasn't the issue; it just took time. While he worked on Kojou, the living room fell a bit quiet.
Avrora ate her pudding with a beaming smile. It was truly delicious—sweet and
icy-cool—impossible to stop.
She wondered if Shichen knew how to make it; if so, she'd have him make more later.
Kaguya, unlike Avrora, wasn't lost in the food. She unobtrusively sized up Aiba Asagi and Akatsuki Nagisa.
Those two clearly had "issues"—obvious hostility toward the pair of them.
Had they recognized who Avrora and Kaguya were?
No—Kaguya realized it started when Shichen said he liked cute girls.
A moment's thought and it clicked: they were treating them as romantic rivals.
She stopped caring and enjoyed the pudding. There was no need to be hostile; given who Shichen was, he was destined to have many women around him.
"Um…" Avrora glanced hesitantly at Nagisa.
"What is it, A-Avrora?" Nagisa asked.
"Uh… is there any more?" Avrora indicated her empty plate—licked clean of even a speck of pudding.
"Of course. Just a sec." Nagisa smiled lightly and headed to the kitchen.
"Nagisa, I want more too," Yaze Motoki said, raising a hand.
"Motoki-senpai, you've had plenty. We're out," Nagisa replied without looking back.
"…Nagisa, that's favoritism. Why does Avrora get more? I've only had two."
"Avrora's a woman—are you really competing with a woman? And Sensei hasn't had much; I need to save some for him."
"That's still favoritism. And aren't you saving some for Kojou?"
"He doesn't need it; he gets to eat it all the time."
"Wow. Get a sweetheart and forget your own brother, huh."
"W-what sweetheart! Don't talk nonsense, senpai!" Nagisa came back with several puddings, cheeks red as she glared at Motoki.
Motoki shook his head—her reaction couldn't be more obvious.
Not that he couldn't understand: Shichen was handsome and formidable, and women tended to like men a bit older—plus he'd saved her.
If it were him, he'd be moved too.
Unfortunately, excellent men meant fierce competition.
He looked at his childhood friend, at the hostility in her gaze toward the others.
Of course he knew what she was thinking, but he couldn't help her.
All he could do was hope their wishes came true.
"Avrora, your pudding."
"Thank you~"
"You're welcome… Kaguya, want one?"
"In that case, thank you."
"No need to be shy—there's plenty… Asagi-nee, want another?"
"Mm." Asagi didn't bother with politeness around Nagisa.
"Really none for me?" Motoki couldn't help asking.
"Nope. The last one's mine." Without hesitation, Nagisa picked up the final cup and started eating.
"…" Motoki sighed helplessly.
"By the way, Avrora, are you and Kaguya twins?" Nagisa asked.
"Hm?" Avrora blinked, not following.
"Yes," Kaguya nodded.
"I see—no wonder you look so alike… Then what's your relationship with Sensei?" Nagisa couldn't hold back and went straight to the point.
"Uh… Shichen is my bodyguard!" Avrora answered eagerly after swallowing a mouthful of pudding.
"Bodyguard?" Asagi looked at her, puzzled.
"Mm! I'm unfamiliar with this world, so I need Shichen to protect me!" Avrora nodded—then blushed, remembering the "protection fee" he'd set—one kiss a day. She knew perfectly well what that meant.
"Avrora, what's wrong?"
"Eh? Ah—n-nothing…" she said quickly, shaking her head.
"Is that so…" Asagi didn't buy it. There had to be some unspeakable secret there.
"So, Avrora, you mean you only just came to Itogami?" Nagisa asked.
"Itogami?"
"This city."
"Mm, more or less."
"Then how did you meet Sensei?"
"Uh… he sought me out first…" Avrora replied, face red.
She remembered how, when they first met, she hadn't been wearing anything—and he'd seen everything. Shichen had to take responsibility!
And he'd already kissed her!
"Sensei approached you?" Nagisa looked confused.
"I mean… I was asleep the whole time, and Shichen woke me. This place isn't very friendly to me…"
"Unfriendly…" Asagi pulled out her phone and searched for "Avrora," but beyond "Sleeping Beauty" there was nothing useful.
Asleep… Sleeping Beauty—was there a connection?
"It's fine, it's fine. Avrora, with Sensei protecting you now, no one should dare bully you," Nagisa said gently, perceptive enough not to pry further.
"Exactly. Other than Shichen and Natsuki, no one can bully me," Avrora said with proud little nod.
"Sensei bullies you?" Asagi seized on the key phrase.
"Um…" Avrora couldn't bring herself to mention the daily-kiss "protection fee."
But her hesitance only deepened Asagi's suspicion. If a man "bullies" a woman… it usually means adults-only stuff, right?
Avrora was so cute—what normal man could resist?
And it wasn't like she herself was lacking!
Why didn't Sensei want to "bully" her?
She was about the same age as Avrora too—both young women.
"Um… Kaguya, are you the same as Avrora?" Nagisa asked curiously.
"I'm not," Kaguya said evenly, shaking her head. "Shichen is my master."
"Eh?!"
At that, Asagi and Nagisa stared at her in shock, imaginations running wild.
"Oho~," Motoki chuckled from the side. Watching the drama was fun.
"Kaguya… y-you said Sensei is your master… what do you mean?" Nagisa asked, flustered.
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Finishing the last bite of pudding, Kaguya looked up calmly. "Shichen is my master. I'll obey anything he says and fulfill any request he makes."
"A-any request?!" Nagisa's cheeks went scarlet.
"Has Sensei asked you to do anything?" Asagi pressed, eyes locked onto Kaguya.
"Not yet," Kaguya said with a regretful shake of the head.
If Shichen didn't give her tasks, she felt unsettled—no sense of footing.
"That's good."
Asagi and Nagisa both exhaled in relief.
"But he did ask one thing," Kaguya added, remembering.
"What?" they asked in unison.
"He told me to grow my hair out."
"Grow it out?"
"Mm. Shichen doesn't seem to like short hair," Kaguya said, shaking her head ruefully.
Now she really regretted cutting it so short. If it were longer, maybe Shichen would be willing to do something with her.
"So Sensei likes long-haired women?" Asagi touched her own long blonde hair, relieved.
"Long hair…" Nagisa frowned. Hers only reached her neck—barely enough for a simple ponytail.
Did Sensei not like it this short?
"Long hair what?" Shichen emerged from Kojou's room just then.
"Sensei! You're out!" Nagisa hurried over to him.
"Mm. What are you all talking about?" Shichen asked, ruffling Nagisa's hair with a smile.
"Hehe~ Sensei, Kaguya says you like women with long hair. Is that true?"
"Not exactly."
"Eh? What do you mean?"
"Just… not this short like Kaguya's—like a boy's."
"Oh, that's all!" Nagisa laughed.
"By the way, there's more pudding in the fridge. I'll get you some, Sensei."
"Great—perfect timing. I worked up an appetite."
Keeping up the treatment on Kojou—even for a man—had been a bit tiring.
"Almost forgot! How's Kojou?" Motoki asked, remembering at last.
"Ah!" Nagisa, just coming out with pudding, remembered too.
"Haha—no worries. Kojou's back to normal. He can keep playing basketball from now on."