In the courtyard outside the window, the game continued.
The shadows of Hanayuki Ichika and the four little girls stretched long, intertwining in an incredibly warm display.
Hanayuki Ichika played with the four sisters for a long, long time before smiling and saying goodbye.
“Thank you, big brother!” It was rare for Nichika to speak up of her own accord, her voice crisp and clear.
Hinaki, Kanata, and Kanao all bowed slightly toward him, faint smiles still lingering on their small faces.
“Let’s play together again next time.” Hanayuki Ichika ruffled Nichika’s hair.
He was getting more and more used to this gesture…
After all, no perverted lolicon could resist patting a loli’s head.
Of course, he stated beforehand that neither he nor the author were perverted lolicons…
…
Afterward, Hanayuki Ichika turned and left the courtyard.
The four sisters watched him leave before sitting back down in the courtyard.
But this time, they didn’t immediately begin their meditation; instead, they looked at each other with slight smiles on their lips.
By the time he returned to the Butterfly Mansion, the sky had turned completely dark.
Warm lamplight glowed in the dining room of the Butterfly Mansion.
When Hanayuki Ichika walked in, he saw Kochou Shinobu sitting at the table reading a book, while Kanao sat quietly beside her, sipping tea.
“Ah, Ippū-san is back~” Kochou Shinobu looked up, her purple eyes shimmering with a gentle luster under the light.
“A bit later than expected~”
She pointed to the food covered by a food box on the table: “I saved dinner for you, but… it might be cold already.”
However, his experience of being human in his past life made him still inclined to eat warm meals like a normal person.
Moreover, he had no other food choices right now.
Looking at Kochou Shinobu with her eyes narrowed slightly and a gentle smile…
His mind involuntarily conjured an image of her taking off her Demon Slayer Corps uniform and haori, tying an apron around her waist…
The image of a gentle and virtuous wife preparing a meal for him…
“Do you want me to heat it up?” Kochou Shinobu closed her book and stood up, smiling.
“Even though it’s edible cold, a steaming meal is always more delicious, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I’ll have to trouble you, Shinobu-san.” Hanayuki Ichika nodded.
As Kochou Shinobu was about to pick up the food box, her gaze caught another small plate on the table—it was the leftovers from her own meal.
Because she was very petite herself.
Light weight, small frame, petite build, and only 1.51 meters tall.
To put it bluntly…
The Wisteria Toxin in her body probably weighed more than she did.
So she had a small appetite, getting full after just half a bowl of rice and a few bites of side dishes.
She had originally planned to…
“By the way,” Hanayuki Ichika suddenly spoke up, pointing to the small plate.
“Kochou, can you heat these up together as well?”
Kochou Shinobu’s movements froze.
She slowly turned her head, the calm and composed smile on her face stiffening for a split second.
“I was planning to feed these to the little puppy in the backyard~”
“Yes.” Hanayuki Ichika nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“I want to eat them.”
The air in the dining room went silent for a few seconds…
Kanao held her teacup, her purple eyes quietly watching the two of them, tilting her head slightly…
Little Kanao’s little worldview is currently being reconstructed!!
A vein on Kochou Shinobu’s forehead twitched ever so slightly.
The smile on her face became even…
more radiant.
But those narrowed eyes and the perfectly curved lips emitted a certain dangerous aura.
“Ara ara~ May I ask why, Ippū-san?” she asked gently,
“Why… do you want to eat someone else’s leftovers?”
Hanayuki Ichika thought for a moment and gave a sincere answer: “No, I don’t want to eat just anyone’s leftovers. But—I want to eat Kochou’s ‘imported’ food.”
“‘Imported’… food?” Kochou Shinobu repeated the word, her smile growing increasingly sweet.
“Ippū-san means… food that has ‘entered’ my ‘mouth’?”
“Exactly.”
“…”
Kochou Shinobu took a deep breath, the smile on her face now perfect to an almost terrifying degree:
“Ippū-san… are you a little puppy?”
“Woof, woof.” Hanayuki Ichika barked twice, very cooperatively.