"I made some sweets for everyone. Come and try them!" Kazama Aoi opened the food box, laying out an assortment of delicate pastries.
"Whoa! These look delicious!" Tanjiro was the first to lean in, picking up a cherry-blossom-shaped treat. "Thank you, Aoi-chan!"
"Mmm! For sweets handmade by Aoi-chan, I'd be willing to die!" Zenitsu declared, striking an exaggerated pose of pure bliss as he reached for one.
Aoi's gaze drifted surreptitiously toward Inosuke.
"What's this? Something good to eat? The Great One wants some too!" A boisterous voice rang out.
Aoi's lips curled into a tiny smirk. I've got your number, you little wildling.
Inosuke launched himself off the bed like a cannonball. His boar mask sat askew for a moment before slipping off entirely, revealing the refined face hidden beneath.
This was the first time Aoi had seen Inosuke without his mask.
Without the jagged boar head obscuring him, the boy's face was unexpectedly pretty—almost delicate. Beneath his short, dark hair, a pair of eyes as bright as emeralds sparkled with excitement at the sight of the food.
Aoi's heart skipped a treacherous beat.
Dammit, this kid is actually a looker...
"Hey! Woman! What are you staring at?" Inosuke barked, clearly annoyed by her fixed gaze. He planted his hands on his hips and furrowed his brows. "Is something wrong with the Great One's face?"
"Ah... no, nothing!" Aoi snapped out of it, her cheeks flushing a deep crimson. She quickly averted her eyes, though her heart refused to stop its frantic thumping.
Blast it! I'm a mature woman from the twenty-first century—okay, eighteen, but still!—and I'm actually getting charmed by a kid's face? This is definitely a side effect of the stress from these system missions!
"What's this? It's soft."
"Is this one sweet?"
"Is this edible?"
Mmph!
In the next second, Inosuke's eyes lit up. The soft, chewy texture of the mochi skin combined with the sweet-but-not-cloying bean paste filling melted in his mouth, delivering a wave of pure euphoria.
"Delicious!" he hollered through a mouthful of food, beginning to devour the rest like a whirlwind.
Sensing her opening, Aoi lunged and snatched up his mask.
"Hey! Woman! What are you doing with the Great One's head?!" Inosuke roared, his mouth still stuffed with rice cakes. He reached out to grab it back.
"Don't move!" Aoi clutched the furry mask to her chest, nimbly dodging his grasp. "Inosuke, let's play a game!"
"A game?" Inosuke paused, seemingly hooked by the word.
"That's right! A game called 'Find the Boar'!" Aoi's brain worked at lightspeed as she fabricated the rules on the fly. "The rules are simple: if you catch me, I'll give the mask back!"
"Hah! Like that'll be hard!" Inosuke's competitive streak was instantly ignited. "The Great Me is the strongest! You can't hide!"
Tanjiro and Zenitsu watched the scene, utterly dumbfounded.
"Aoi-chan... is this really okay?" Tanjiro whispered, sensing that things were taking a very strange turn.
"It's fine! It's a new type of 'Evasion Training' to improve reaction time!" Aoi shouted back without looking.
"Evasion Training?!" Inosuke's emerald eyes sparkled with even more excitement. "Good! Let's go!"
"Right!" Aoi took a deep breath, clutched the mask, and began to weave through the room.
Inosuke gave chase with reckless abandon. His movements were fierce and direct, completely unpredictable. Several times, his fingers brushed against her sleeve.
Aoi dodged frantically, screaming in her mind: System! Trigger the check already! I'm literally holding his personal mask, surely this counts as "Intimate Contact"?!
However, her mind remained deathly silent. Aoi was starting to lose it.
In a split second of distraction, Inosuke seized the opportunity. He lunged, tackling her from the side.
THUD!
The two of them collided hard, tumbling to the floor together. Aoi felt the world spin as she was pinned beneath him. The boar mask flew from her grasp, rolling away into a corner.
Inosuke held her down in a position that was embarrassingly intimate. His face was mere inches from hers, his emerald eyes flashing with triumph and adrenaline.
"Heh, gotcha!" he laughed triumphantly, his hot breath puffing against Aoi's skin.
Time seemed to stand still. Aoi could see his long lashes clearly; she could smell the faint, boyish scent of sunlight and sweat clinging to him.
This contact... this distance... this posture...
System! If you don't trigger now, I'm going to... I'm going to...
Just as she was about to throw caution to the wind and just kiss him to get it over with, that heavenly chime finally rang in her head.
[Ding! Detected long-duration, high-frequency physical contact and entry into "Intimate Space" with target: Inosuke Hashibira. Criteria for "Intimate Contact" met.]
[Mission Complete! Reward: One "High-Grade Healing Agent" has been issued to the System Inventory.]
Aoi's body went limp as a wave of post-disaster relief washed over her. It's over... finally over...
She had saved her eyes.
Inosuke, seeing her stop struggling, assumed she was admitting defeat. He preened even more. "Well? The Great Me is strong, right?! Now give me back my head!"
"I know, I know..." Aoi pushed at him weakly. "Get off me first... you're heavy..."
"Hmph!" Inosuke climbed off her reluctantly, stomped over to the corner to retrieve his boar mask, and jammed it back over his head.
"Aoi-chan, are you okay?" Tanjiro ran over, looking at her with concern. "Your hand is scraped."
"I'm fine, really. It's just a scratch," she waved him off.
"Oh my, it seems I've missed something rather interesting."
Shinobu Kocho's voice was as light as a feather, but it sent a sharp chill down Aoi's spine.
Great. It's the other devil from hell.
"Kocho-san!" Tanjiro and Zenitsu immediately snapped to attention.
"How are your physical conditions?" she asked.
"I'm feeling much better!" Tanjiro straightened his back, trying to look as spirited as possible.
"Then it's about time for your Rehabilitation Training to begin," Shinobu said with a closed-eye smile.
"Rehabilitation Training?" Tanjiro and Zenitsu exchanged a wary glance.
"That's right. And everyone must participate."
"Me too?" Aoi pointed at herself.
"Of course!" Shinobu's smile widened as she reached out and gently tapped Aoi's chest.
"Fine," Aoi sighed, the word leaving her lips with a sense of utter defeat. She had no choice but to surrender to her fate.