The misty, hazy bathroom.
The girl sat in the bathtub, hugging her knees. The 'Operator Development' module was reflected in her bright, crimson eyes.
The little rabbit's chibi avatar was tossing and turning in bed, hugging a large teddy bear.
Ms. Unohana's chibi avatar was shopping in a supermarket, a cute 'Shopping' bubble floating above her head.
Soga Yura... my sister... seemed to be out shopping.
The sweet and docile Mihou Sakai was in the hospital... uh... working her heart out. Expressionlessly, Su Yuzu switched the view to Kujou Katora.
Kujou Katora, who lived right across from her, was staring in her direction, lost in thought.
The tips of her ears felt a little hot.
She sank half her face beneath the water. The bathwater must be too hot.
Yes... that must be it.
Su Yuzu felt like she was starting to understand why someone as seemingly obedient and well-behaved as Mihou Sakai would have such strange items as favorability rewards.
Still, Su Yuzu could understand.
After all, Mihou Sakai was under immense pressure.
With her reckless training methods, her body would have given out long ago if not for her abilities: 'Body Restoration,' 'Unyielding Will,' and 'Perfect Execution.'
Her body could recover, but her taut mind... that needed an outlet too.
No wonder when she 'Developed' little Sakai, the girl's reaction was similar to the little rabbit's the second time, quickly concealed.
Gently patting her cheeks, Su Yuzu looked over her own status panel.
On her panel, the original [Level 3 - Psychokinesis User▇▇▇] had been updated.
It had changed to [Level 3 - Hand of Paradox].
Today, she had received a total of four 'Basic Combat Records' from the girls.
If she used them along with the one she kept as capital, she should be able to break through directly to Level 4.
But... she absolutely couldn't touch her capital.
Besides, Su Yuzu wasn't in a desperate hurry to raise her power by such a small amount right now.
If possible, she even wanted to keep two 'Basic Combat Records' as capital.
Just in case.
[Ding—]
[Longing: Mihou Sakai Favorability +1]
Her crimson eyes blinked.
Su Yuzu's expression turned a little strange.
This 'longing'... could it be that she's thinking of me as... the object of that?
Eek.
That's pretty weird.
[Favorability Increase Reward Acquired: Basic Combat Records x1.]
[...]
Ahem. Su Yuzu hereby officially declares that this isn't weird at all.
Little Sakai is justice.
She checked off all five Combat Records at once.
The insatiable monster hiding in her chest began to crunch and swallow.
[Level 3 - Hand of Paradox → Level 4 - Hand of Paradox]
Su Yuzu could feel it.
The duration and range of her bending ability seemed to have improved slightly.
She tilted her head and looked at the bottle of body wash on the edge of the tub.
Vmmm—
Ability activated.
The body wash bottle instantly twisted into a pretzel, and then... pssshh—
Before Su Yuzu's unprepared, panicked eyes, the body wash shot out toward her like a long dragon.
"Stop..."
"Stop it!!!"
"Ah... my eyes!"
The last thought in the teary-eyed girl's mind was—
'That stuff... is expensive!'
After washing herself all over again and cleaning up the bathroom, Su Yuzu flopped onto her bed like a salted fish.
Her whole body now smelled of the sweet and sour freshness of citrus.
Specifically, Asumi citrus.
People really do stupid things when their minds are blank.
Tomorrow, she'd have to go to the supply department to get a new bottle of body wash.
But...
"Ehehe." A cute, silly laugh.
The girl rolled around on her bed, hugging a pillow. Su Yuzu gazed at the brilliantly shining [Level 4 - Hand of Paradox] on her panel.
She... was finally no longer the useless person standing in the shadows at the edge of Soga Yura's spotlight.
Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west!
D-Don't bully a girl for being poor.
'Ngh.' Her cheeks grew slightly hot.
'That's pretty embarrassing.'
"However..."
Su Yuzu looked at the [Blood Manipulation (5%)] right next to her [Level 4 - Hand of Paradox].
It was a favorability promotion reward from Kujou Katora.
'What's this?'
'Should I try it out?'
She held out her hand, and with a flicker of her will...
Under the light, the girl's eyes instantly shifted from crimson to a scarlet hue, similar to Kujou Katora's.
A single drop of blood seeped from her fingertip and began to dance. It formed the delicate shape of a butterfly, which gently landed on Su Yuzu's finger before collapsing.
Across from Su Yuzu's room.
Kujou Katora suddenly stood up.
She stared at Su Yuzu's room in astonishment. Was... was she mistaken?
'Blood Veil.'
Someone was using an ability similar to hers, the [Blood Manipulation] ability.
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