And so, the morning "exercise" at La Folia's home continued all the way until noon.
Just like last time, Bokue didn't take Kanon Kanase back to school until after they'd had lunch together.
The only difference was that last time, Nagisa had accurately predicted the situation and gone to school that day to help submit a late absence request. This time, Kanon had submitted her leave request in advance.
Since she'd known ahead of time and left plenty of buffer, there was no rush at all. If anything, she'd been able to invest even more effort into... participating.
❁❁❁❁
The scene shifted to Saikai Academy.
During the familiar lunch break, after dropping Kanon off at her classroom, Bokue headed straight to the infirmary on the first floor of the administrative building.
When he reached the infirmary door and pushed it open, he found the two female school nurses seated at their desks by the window, each occupied with their own activities.
Chisato Hasegawa was the same as always—afternoon coffee freshly brewed and steaming beside her, wisps of white vapor rising in the sunlight streaming through the window. She'd take an occasional sip while scrolling through web pages with her other hand on the mouse.
After all, being a school nurse was typically a pretty leisurely job.
As for Raphaeline... she didn't have much to do either. Perhaps because she had no real interest in computers, she was currently slumped over her desk, listlessly twirling a strand of her long golden hair.
It wasn't until she heard the door open that her ears twitched slightly. She sat up, and when she turned to see the young man standing in the doorway, she blinked—then let out a startled little gasp.
"B-B-Bokue?! What are you doing here?!"
?
By this point, Bokue had already stepped inside and closed the door behind him. A question mark materialized above his head.
"What's wrong? Am I not allowed to come here?"
"No... that's not what I meant, it's just... how do I put this..."
???
Seeing the goddess stammering nervously, Bokue's single question mark multiplied into three.
This was strange. She'd never struck him as the shy type. And it wasn't like they were strangers to each other, right?
What was going on?
"Hehehe~ Don't worry about it. Big sis here is just a little emotionally worked up today."
While the two were talking, Chisato Hasegawa—who had also noticed the young man's arrival—downed the rest of her coffee in one go. She pushed up her glasses and rose from her desk, approaching Bokue with a subtle smile. The rich aroma of coffee wafted from her lips as she spoke.
Her words carried a certain meaningful weight.
"After all, big sis has been really looking forward to your visit today."
"...Is that so?"
Bokue tilted his head, his gaze drifting past the female nurse's shoulder to land on Raphaeline still sitting at her desk behind them. The goddess had her small fists clenched tightly on her knees, sitting ramrod straight like an anxious elementary schooler.
Something about this felt... off.
"Of course."
Chisato didn't give the young man any time to think. She stepped forward and pressed her lower abdomen firmly against his, leaning her upper body back slightly while wrapping both arms around his neck.
Her intention was crystal clear—hold me.
And in Japanese, "hold" had another meaning as well...
"Mm-hmm~"
With a pleased little hum from the female nurse, Bokue scooped her up on the spot. Carrying her like a front-facing piggyback, he walked toward the curtained examination area in the back, parted the white drapes, stepped inside, and gently lowered her onto the bed.
But just as he was about to throw up a barrier and get started like usual, Chisato pressed a finger against his lips to stop him.
"Not so fast~ First, tell me—did you notice anything different about the infirmary when you came in today?"
Different?
Bokue thought back carefully.
"No. Nothing at all. Is something different?"
"Of course there is."
Chisato smiled and offered a hint.
"Let me put it this way—when you walked in earlier, did you see big sis using her computer?"
"I don't... think so?"
Bokue was fairly certain about this. The first thing he'd noticed when he entered was Raphaeline slumped over her desk.
So she probably hadn't been using the computer.
"And did you notice whether big sis's screen was lit up or dark?"
"I think it was... dark."
He'd only glanced at it from the side, but if the screen had been on, it would've been pretty obvious.
Seemingly satisfied that all her little riddles had been answered, Chisato's smile grew even brighter. She propped herself up slightly and leaned close to the young man's ear, her breath warm and fragrant.
"So—can you guess why that is?"
"...Why?"
"Simple. Because big sis's computer broke~"
"Broke?"
"Mm-hm. To be precise, it broke before she left work last Friday."
Huh?
A loading icon briefly spun above Bokue's forehead.
Last Friday was Raphaeline's very first day working at Saikai Academy. When he'd come by that day, he'd even seen Chisato teaching Raphaeline how to use a computer.
And Raphaeline had seemed pretty into it, too.
In other words, the computer had been perfectly fine before he arrived. But by the time work ended, it was broken. Which meant...
"As for why it broke—well, I'll let you figure that out on your own~"
At this, Chisato deliberately left him hanging, flashing a mysterious smile while lightly patting the young man's shoulder blade.
"Anyway, let me get up for a second. I keep forgetting to mention—I've prepared a big surprise for you today."
"Surprise?"
Bokue didn't understand, but he got up and let the female nurse rise anyway.
Chisato smiled once more, climbed off the bed, and stepped out of the curtained area.
A few seconds later, Bokue heard Raphaeline's embarrassed, flustered voice from outside.
"Huh? You want me to go in there now? But... maybe you should go first, Afureia? I'll just wait a bit longer... W-wait, you're going to tell Bokue exactly why the computer broke?! Please don't... F-fine, I'll go! I'm going, okay...?"
A few more seconds passed before he heard the soft patter of hesitant footsteps approaching.
The next moment, Raphaeline—face flushed crimson—carefully parted the curtain and stepped inside, "escorted" by her younger sister Chisato. Then, right in front of the young man sitting on the bed, she delicately pinched the hem of her pleated skirt and slowly began lifting it. Turning her head away and biting her lower lip, she stammered.
"Um... w-well... last time, I heard you and Afureia having so much... fun in here, so today I also want to... want to, um..."
"You have to say it loud and clear~ Otherwise, I'll tell Bokue exactly why the computer broke."
Chisato's voice came from behind, a not-so-subtle reminder.
The words seemed to jolt Raphaeline. Her body stiffened for a moment—then, as if she'd completely given up, she took a deep breath, squeezed her eyes shut, and shouted with her face burning red.
"SO I ALSO WANT TO JOIN IN TODAY, THAT'S ALL!!!"
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~ 70 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon
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