“What is happening so early in the morning?!”
A roar erupted from Chihiro Sengoku, clearly annoyed at being disturbed.
Heavy footsteps followed.
Impeccably dressed and fully made up, Chihiro Sengoku stepped over the fallen door and entered Sorata’s room.
From her elevated stance, she looked down at the young man still sprawled on the bed, radiating reluctance.
“Kanda, you’re still not getting up?” She frowned slightly.
Since yesterday, he had seemed somewhat different.
“Sorry. I’m currently contemplating the three great truths of the universe. But Sensei, is it really fine for you to enter someone else’s room without permission like this? What about my right to privacy?”
Having already been interrupted twice, Sorata gave up on pretending to sleep.
He sat up slowly, shoulders drooping.
“That’s something you’ve never had,” Chihiro Sengoku replied with open disdain.
She leaned forward slightly, her presence pressing down on him.
Without realizing it, something eye-catching was exposed.
“Kanda, remember this. People only grow stronger by accumulating experience.”
“Is that so? But can I choose not to become strong?”
Anticipating what she would say next, Sorata instinctively leaned back a little.
Ignoring him, she continued, “Can I leave Shiina to you? Take her to the faculty office later.”
“Sensei, do you mean just leading the way? Or something else? Do you understand what that request implies?”
Instead of agreeing immediately, Sorata asked calmly.
He neither complained nor flustered.
He simply met her gaze.
A flicker of surprise crossed Chihiro Sengoku’s eyes.
“It was her choice to come.”
“Alright. It’s settled then. Don’t forget to bring her to school. It’s the first day of the new term. I’m busy.”
Without waiting for a response, she made the decision and left.
“Do I really look that reliable…?”
Ding.
His phone screen lit up.
“Wishing Kanda-sama a pleasant first day of school. Master has instructed that if Kanda-sama needs anything, please refrain. He is busy. Solve your own problems. Otherwise, a virus will be sent to your phone. Courtesy of the maid who loves Master the most.”
“Does everyone know something?”
Sorata shook his head and changed clothes.
If both the guardian and the person involved didn’t care, there was no reason for him to overthink it.
Besides, he currently had no goals to pursue.
He might as well treat this as reliving school life.
After spending so long alone in darkness, living in Sakurasou did not seem so bad.
The daily noise at least made him feel alive.
He brushed his teeth, washed his face, got dressed, and repaired the broken door with some tools.
Then he headed upstairs to the second floor, the area forbidden to male residents.
A trace of doubt lingered in his mind.
Could someone’s common sense really be that lacking?
Standing before the door with Shiina’s nameplate, Sorata knocked.
Knock knock knock.
“Shiina, get up. Chihiro Sensei asked me to take you to school.”
No response.
He knocked again.
Still silence.
“Shiina, I’m coming in.”
He turned the doorknob.
Click.
It wasn’t locked.
The moment he pushed it open, a chaotic scene came into view.
Clothes, books, and undergarments were scattered everywhere, as if the room had been ransacked.
“Seriously…”
Carefully finding somewhere to step, Sorata entered.
His gaze swept the room, then quickly locked onto the space beneath the desk.
Clothes and blankets were piled together there.
Only Shiina’s head was visible.
She was asleep, her delicate face relaxed and content.
Pale golden hair fanned out messily around her.
A pink bra rested absurdly on top of her head.
Sorata sighed.
“Wake up and I’m handed a wife. A genius, beautiful painter too. Not exactly a bad development.”
“Fine. I’ll treat it as something to occupy myself with.”
He pushed the chair aside, crouched down, and called out, “Hey. Shiina-san. Time for school. You’ll be late.”
No reaction.
Speechless, he shook her shoulder lightly.
“It’s already morning. If you don’t get up, I’ll delete the manga on your computer.”
“Morning won’t come…” Shiina mumbled groggily.
She tried to burrow back into the pile.
“Still sleeping? I don’t really care about being late, but you should get up.” The source of this chapter is g.com.
He reached out and pinched her nose.
The sensation was unexpectedly soft.
“Nnh…”
Unable to breathe, she lasted only a few seconds before her eyes slowly opened.
She stared at him blankly, then crawled out reluctantly.
Blankets slipped down.
Shoulders.
Arms.
Smooth skin.
She rubbed her eyes sleepily, unaware.
Or perhaps unaware of concepts like modesty altogether.
Sorata observed for a moment, expression steady.
Then he turned away, picked up underwear from the floor, found her uniform, and tossed them over.
“Shiina-san, you can’t do this. I admit I’m handsome and harmless, but you should put your clothes on first.”
She took the clothes.
Sorata turned his back to her.
A faint drowsiness tugged at him.
His mental energy had not fully recovered, leaving him somewhat listless.
“I’m dressed,” Shiina’s calm voice came.
“Good.”
He turned around.
The shirt hung loosely over her shoulders, unbuttoned.
The skirt was on, but she was still holding her underwear and bra in her hands.
“If I were really a pervert, you’d be in trouble.”
With a quiet sigh, Sorata stepped forward.
Under her calm gaze, he took the garments and helped her put them on, guiding her to raise her arms and step properly.
Even during the process, he remained composed.
He then had her brush her teeth, washed her face, dried her hair, and organized her school bag.
By the time he finished playing nanny, it was nearly nine.
“Didn’t Sorata say we’d be late?”
At the entrance, Shiina sat on the floor while Sorata helped her into her shoes.
He gestured for her to lift her foot, then slipped the shoe on over her black stockings.
“It’s already eight-thirty. Being anxious won’t change anything,” Sorata replied calmly.
“Sorata is strange.”
Shiina tilted her head, watching him with bright, steady eyes.
A faint sense of closeness flickered within them.