"Hm? What's wrong?"
Seeing that the other woman did not seem very happy, Ei tilted her head in confusion.
"Ah... Ei, it's like this..."
The Shogun had already guessed Miko's intentions after hearing that, so she immediately moved in for another assist. She slightly straightened up to draw Ei's attention.
Miko wiped away a cold sweat and once again looked gratefully toward her good little sister...
She really was such a good little sister!!
"Uh... Miko, she..."
As the Shogun spoke, she glanced once more at the pink-haired woman behind her. Their eyes met briefly before she looked away again.
"Recently, she's been suffering from insomnia. She keeps having nightmares at night and needs someone to stay with her."
"Nightmares? Is that so? Then wouldn't having Hanachirusato stay with her work just fine?"
Ei asked in understanding.
"!!"
Behind her, Miko silently shook her head at the Shogun before pointing toward Ei.
"But... if it isn't someone close to her sleeping beside her, she'll still keep having nightmares. Hanachirusato already tried before."
The Shogun gave another meaningful look with her eyes as she explained.
"That's right... even when I stayed with Guuji-sama, she still continued having nightmares. And every time, she would murmur Lady Ei's name in her sleep. I think having Lady Ei sleep beside her would be much more effective."
Hanachirusato cooperated flawlessly, speaking so smoothly that not even a trace of fabrication could be heard in her nonsense.
"..."
Hearing that, the Shogun smiled toward Hanachirusato from an angle Ei could not see. Hanachirusato blinked back at her, carrying a bit of Kitsune Saiguu's old mischievous charm.
"Is that true, Miko?"
At this moment, Ei was already looking at the pink-haired woman behind her with concern. After all, Miko was her familiar. If she was sick, Ei would naturally feel bad too.
"It is!! Really... look at my dark circles."
Miko immediately nodded.
"Mm... then I suppose it can't be helped. You can sleep in the same room as me tonight."
Ei nodded in understanding and changed her decision.
"Mm-hm~ That's fine with me..."
Thank you, everyone!!!!!
At this point, Miko was practically crying internally.
Where could anyone possibly find such a wonderful little sister?! Where could anyone possibly find subordinates this amazing!!!
"Haa..."
The Shogun finally let out a sigh of relief. If this went on any longer, she felt like she would start sweating.
Afterward came the room assignments for everyone else. In truth, Tenshukaku had an absurd number of rooms. Even so, the rooms were spread across complicated layers of floors, so for convenience, nobody wanted a room all to themselves. Instead, they paired up two to a room and divided themselves between the first and second floors.
It worked out perfectly.
And in the end...
Ei and Miko shared a room.
The Shogun and Kokomi shared a room.
Ayaka, Hanachirusato, and Pandora shared a room together.
As for why Ayaka was sharing a room with Hanachirusato and Pandora—
"Ayaka... aren't you coming?"
The Shogun looked toward Ayaka, who was currently packing her clothes and preparing to head into the neighboring room.
"..."
Kokomi also silently looked at her, unable to understand why Ayaka would hand over such a precious opportunity to spend the night alone with the Shogun-sama.
"Mm... I think I'll sleep next door instead. I've been somewhat sleep-deprived lately as well."
Ayaka smiled.
"I see... in that case, hurry and get some rest. Don't overwork yourself. After all, the Yashiro Commission still needs you to manage things in the future."
The Shogun nodded in understanding.
"Alright... mm—"
When Ayaka was about to stand up, she hesitated slightly. She glanced toward Kokomi, who had been staring at her the entire time, before suddenly revealing a mysterious smile. Then she walked over to the Shogun's side and crouched down.
Smooch~
Without saying a single word, she directly stole a kiss from the Shogun's lips.
"!!"
The Shogun immediately trembled adorably once more.
"Good night, Shogun-sama."
Ayaka looked very satisfied by the sight of her blushing expression. Then she glanced toward Kokomi, whose expression had become somewhat anxious despite still trying to maintain her usual composure.
The meaning in her eyes was obvious.
'I already gave you the entire night. Asking for one kiss shouldn't be too much, right?'
Ayaka smiled, stood up, hugged her sleepwear, and left the room.
Slide~
She gently closed the door behind her.
"...Haa, honestly... Kokomi—"
The Shogun calmed her emotions slightly and had just started calling out to Kokomi beside her when—
Smooch~
Her lips were suddenly kissed by the girl beside her as well.
"Mmph~! Why did you also... ///?"
The Shogun puffed up her cheeks adorably and looked at Kokomi, who was now extremely close to her. Perhaps because she had finally kissed the lips she had long dreamed of tasting, Kokomi's eyes now carried a faint haze of intoxicated satisfaction.
"Mm, this way it cancels out."
Kokomi gently rested her chin against the Shogun's shoulder, soft and delicate like a kitten.
"Cancels out? Ayaka's kiss?"
The Shogun touched her lips and asked in confusion.
"Mm, that's right."
Kokomi looked at her actions with eyes full of affection and softly answered.
"Haa... why do all of you love kissing me so much?"
The Shogun turned around and began laying out bedding for herself and the girl beside her. Her movements were so practiced that she resembled a virtuous housewife. During the process, she gloomily muttered her question.
"..."
Kokomi did not answer.
Of course, it was not because she did not want to answer.
Rather, she was sighing inwardly at the Shogun's innocence.
Watching the gentle woman laying out bedding for her, Kokomi's lips slowly curved into a beautiful smile as she silently moved closer, intending to take over.
"Let me do it... Shogun-sama."
However, the Shogun slightly avoided her before instinctively reaching out and gently grasping her wrist.
She did not use any force.
It was merely a soft hold.
That faint cool touch felt extremely familiar.
It was Kokomi's temperature.
"...?"
Kokomi paused and looked at her in confusion.
At this moment, their faces were separated by less than a few centimeters. They could both clearly feel the rhythm of each other's breathing.
"..."
Looking at the beautiful woman so close before her, Kokomi's gaze once again drifted uncontrollably toward the Shogun's soft pink lips.
Under the warm-colored lighting, those delicate lips shimmered with a crystalline luster, occasionally pursing slightly as though deliberately tempting her.
Kokomi narrowed her eyes and once more leaned forward, intending to kiss her there.
However, the Shogun did not allow her to succeed.
Just as Kokomi was about to touch her lips, the Shogun gently extended a finger and pressed it against Kokomi's lips.
"...?"
Kokomi snapped back to her senses and blankly looked at the woman currently pressing a fingertip against her lips. For a moment, she felt somewhat embarrassed.
"Can even fish become overwhelmed by desire?"
The Shogun looked at her and softly asked. The fingertip pressing against Kokomi's lips even lightly tapped against them a few times on purpose.
"...I'm not a fish~"
Kokomi bashfully muttered in protest.
"Smelly fish~"
The Shogun smiled slightly and changed to another nickname.
"I'm not smelly~"
Kokomi puffed up her cheeks and protested again.
"Then what are you?"
The Shogun withdrew her finger and wrapped herself in the blanket before casually asking another question.
"I am Sangonomiya Kokomi."
Kokomi answered.
"Pfft~ Yes, yes. I know.
She was amused by Kokomi's answer and played along with a smile.
"..."
Kokomi said nothing more and silently moved closer again, helping her continue laying out the bedding.
A few minutes later, the two finally changed into their sleepwear and slipped beneath the same blanket together. Perhaps because they had only just climbed in and the bedding was still slightly cold, both of them let out long breaths.
At first, the two lay facing the ceiling side by side. Before long, however, it turned into Kokomi lying on her side, quietly gazing at the Shogun alone.
Meanwhile, the Shogun still stared upward at the ceiling.
The candlelight within the room remained lit, though its glow illuminated only the small area surrounding the two of them.
"..."
Kokomi simply curled beneath the blanket and watched the Shogun's profile without saying a word, her eyes filled entirely with enjoyment.
Whoosh...
The Shogun, who had been staring at the ceiling while lost in thought, slowly turned onto her side as well.
Now she directly faced the girl watching her.
And with that movement, the distance between them shrank once more.
The Shogun silently looked at Kokomi.
Kokomi, in turn, revealed an exceptionally beautiful and gentle smile beneath the candlelight.
"..."
The Shogun wanted to say something.
However, although her soft lips parted slightly, no words came out.
She felt somewhat awkward.
Would being a little more proactive sometimes make the other person happier?
Rustle~
Yet beneath her gaze, Kokomi silently extended her arms toward her in invitation.
"...!"
The Shogun's eyes widened slightly.
"Would you like to come here, Shogun-sama?"
Kokomi softly asked.
As expected... she still was not good at taking the initiative.
The Shogun sighed inwardly.
Then her cheeks flushed red.
She blew out the candle, plunging the room into darkness.
Their faces were instantly hidden from one another within the dark, making it impossible to see each other's expressions.
Kokomi was briefly stunned by the sudden darkness.
But in the very next moment, after a soft rustling of blankets, the warmth of a delicate body suddenly filled her previously empty embrace.
She instantly understood why the Shogun had extinguished the light.
A doting smile rose within her heart.
Kokomi wrapped her arms around the delicate body that had burrowed into her embrace. That familiar fragrance once more entered her senses, making her utterly intoxicated.
"Kokomi..."
"Mm? Shogun-sama?"
She responded gently.
"How have things been with Ayaka? Have there been any unpleasant moments between you two?"
The Shogun asked with concern.
If the two of them did not get along, she would inevitably worry.
"No, not at all. Miss Kamisato is a very kind person. She's taken very good care of me."
Kokomi smiled as she answered.
Her fingertips lightly kneaded the ear of the person in her arms, almost like a massage.
"That's good... the two of you mustn't quarrel. Get along properly. Seeing the two of you not getting along makes me feel a little upset..."
Feeling the gentle rubbing against her ear, the Shogun narrowed her eyes comfortably. She buried her face against Kokomi's chest and adorably rubbed against it while muttering softly.
"...Please rest assured. We won't. We would never do anything to upset you."
Smooch~
Kokomi comforted her as though soothing a child. While speaking, she also lowered her lips and kissed the Shogun lightly on the forehead.
"Back then... I hurt you, didn't I? Was it serious?"
The Shogun asked quietly from within her embrace.
"No, not at all. You didn't hurt me. Look, there aren't even any wounds."
Kokomi lovingly stroked the hair of the woman in her arms, gently soothing her.
"...Even if I had hurt you, you still wouldn't say it, would you?"
The Shogun lightly pinched Kokomi's back as she complained.
"Hehe... even if I were telling the truth, you would still think I was lying anyway, wouldn't you?"
Feeling the touch on her back, Kokomi softly laughed and asked in return.
"Mean..."
The Shogun adorably rubbed her forehead against Kokomi's chest, making Kokomi feel slightly ticklish.
"Then let's call it even. How about we just pretend nothing ever happened?"
Kokomi softly suggested.
"...Mm."
The woman in her arms nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing.
However, before long, she stopped moving entirely.
"...Shogun-sama?"
Kokomi froze briefly before softly calling out to the person in her arms.
"...(breathing)"
Only the faint sound of steady breathing could be heard.
The woman's chest rose and fell rhythmically.
Clearly, she had already fallen asleep.
Which made sense.
After all, the person who had suffered the most today was undoubtedly the Shogun herself.
She must have been utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally.
"Good night, Shogun-sama."
Smooch~
Kokomi pressed a kiss to her forehead once more before pulling the blankets tighter around them both.
Then, hugging the other woman in her arms, she gradually fell asleep as well beside this warm little 'body pillow.'
Please... let everything that happened today not be a dream.