The good morning kiss ended.
Kitahara Makoto carried the panting, soft and weak Hitori down to the second floor, then walked straight into the bathroom.
"Whew…"
Hitori quietly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was over, but then she turned her head and saw Kitahara Makoto start squeezing toothpaste, and quickly said:
"I-I can squeeze it myself."
Kitahara Makoto's tone feigned confusion:
"Is Ryo-senpai running a fever?"
"Of course not."
Hitori quickly shook her head.
"Ryo-senpai clearly said last night that she wanted me to help her brush her teeth today, saying she hadn't experienced what it felt like for a boy to help brush her teeth." Kitahara Makoto talked nonsense with a straight face, "Does Ryo-senpai not remember?"
This was a lie.
Ryo-senpai's hobby was challenging the unknown, wanting to go to Silent Hill to temper her courage, to comb Miss Sadako's hair, and was completely uninterested in teeth-brushing play.
The reason Kitahara Makoto said this was purely to tease Hitori.
If they hadn't swapped bodies, with Hitori's shy personality, she definitely wouldn't agree to him helping her brush her teeth, but now…
(Wh-what?)
(Ryo-senpai actually asked Kitahara-kun to help her brush her teeth?)
Hitori immediately panicked.
(What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?)
Swapping bodies did not inherit memories, and Hitori knew nothing about what happened last night. At this moment, she was both shy and anxious, and in order to avoid 'giving herself away,' she could only stammer softly:
"I-I remember… I think I did say that…"
(No choice…)
(Since it was something Ryo-senpai requested, I can only agree, right?)
Kitahara Makoto smiled slightly and finished squeezing the toothpaste:
"Ryo-senpai, stand still quickly, it's time to brush your teeth."
It was as expected.
In order to avoid 'giving herself away,' Hitori would indeed choose to compromise.
"Okay…"
Hitori, blushing, stood facing the mirror, looking at 'herself' in the mirror with a flushed face, and suddenly remembered the anime "Nisemonogatari" she had watched a long time ago.
A scene of helping brush teeth appeared in it, and she felt super ashamed at the time, and now she was actually going to experience it herself…
What should I do?
Should I find an excuse to refuse?
If I refuse, will Kitahara-kun suspect anything?
Amidst her struggle, Hitori suddenly felt herself being embraced from behind by a strong arm.
"Eh?"
Hitori nervously raised her small face, and after seeing their posture in the mirror, her pretty face quickly flushed crimson, and she completely panicked.
(Oh, oh no…)
(The posture is just too bad!)
Hitori hadn't eaten pork, but she had seen pigs run, not to mention she had now, in a sense, 'eaten pork,' so she naturally knew how terrible their current posture was.
"Th-that…" Hitori stammered, forcing herself to endure the shame that was about to explode, and pleaded softly, "I'll brush my own teeth…"
"No."
Kitahara Makoto refused outright, saying righteously:
"Ryo-senpai said last night that I absolutely must help you brush your teeth today."
Hitori was almost in tears:
"I want to brush my own teeth again now…"
"That's not allowed either." Kitahara Makoto certainly wouldn't let Hitori off the hook, "I already promised to help last night, and what I've promised, I must deliver on. Ryo-senpai wouldn't want me to become a person who breaks his word, right?"
Hitori: "…"
Without giving Hitori a chance to speak further, Kitahara Makoto simply raised the toothbrush:
"Ryo-senpai, open your mouth."
Hitori had no choice but to slightly part her lips, turning her small face away in shame:
"Ah…"
"Turn your face this way." Kitahara Makoto instructed, "You can't brush your teeth with your face turned sideways."
"…"
Hitori reluctantly turned her small face, but doing so meant she inevitably had to look at herself in the mirror.
In the bright, clean mirror, their figures were clearly reflected.
However, at this moment, 'Ryo-senpai's' pretty face was burning hot, her eyes shyly darted away, and she was teary-eyed… clearly a brand new version of Ryo-senpai she had never seen before.
(Stay calm.)
(Don't panic.)
Hitori silently clenched her pink fists, cheering herself on in her heart.
(This is Ryo-senpai's body, Kitahara-kun doesn't know it's me right now, so there's no need to be ashamed…)
Unfortunately, despite saying this, the shame in her heart didn't diminish in the slightest.
No way.
Human emotions originate from the soul, so even if the body is changed, what makes one shy still makes one shy.
"Ryo-senpai, don't zone out." Kitahara Makoto looked at Ryo, whose pretty face was crimson in the mirror, and instructed, "Raise both hands and support yourself on the sink."
"Eh?"
"Support yourself on the sink, then lean your body forward, so you don't get your clothes dirty while brushing your teeth."
Hitori's head was spinning, feeling that what he said made a lot of sense, so she supported herself on the sink with both hands, and her body instinctively leaned forward…
For some reason.
Hitori felt that her action of leaning forward was quite practiced, as if it had been unconsciously ingrained as a bodily instinct.
"Very good, hold still."
Kitahara Makoto looked at the two of them in the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
Hitori was wearing a shirt at this moment, and the hem of the shirt opened under the force of gravity, her slender waist, which could be grasped with one hand, was clearly visible, and coupled with Hitori's expression of shame at this moment… the level of temptation directly broke through the heavens.
However, what was temptation for Kitahara Makoto was a standard shameful execution for Hitori.
"Ah…"
After seeing their posture in the mirror, Hitori's shame finally became unbearable, and steam billowed from the top of her head.
(So scary, so scary, so scary...)
(It's too embarrassing to have a boy help me brush my teeth!)
(This world is too scary. I want to go back to my mother's womb...)
"Open your mouth, time to brush your teeth."
Kitahara Makoto instructed.
Hitori's eyes were tightly shut, her lips slightly parted, her fists clenched, and her small face bore an expression of shame as if she were about to be executed. It had to be said, she looked exceptionally cute.
Only after closing her eyes did Hitori realize that the feeling of shame hadn't lessened much.
The reason was simple.
When a person closes their eyes, their other senses become exceptionally sharp, like now.
Although Hitori no longer had to look at 'herself' in the mirror, the sensation of the toothbrush sweeping across her lips and teeth became incredibly clear. Not only that, but there was clearly an even more terrifying presence behind her...
Caught between the front and back, Hitori now had only one thought.
(Quick, finish quickly...)
(The outside world is truly too scary.)
(I want to go back to my mother's womb. If only I could stay there forever...)
After an unknown amount of time.
Kitahara Makoto's voice finally sounded:
"Your teeth are brushed."
Upon hearing these words, Hitori felt as if she had heard celestial music, and her entire being suddenly regained vitality.
"It's finally over..."
"I will definitely never let Kitahara-kun help me brush my teeth again!"
Opening her eyes in surprise, Hitori looked at 'herself' in the mirror, teary-eyed and flushed, and felt as if her eyes had been scalded. She hurriedly turned her head away:
"K-Kitahara-kun, you can let go of me now."
"Alright."
Kitahara Makoto released his hands upon hearing her.
Hitori's legs went soft, and she nearly fell, but thankfully she had been obediently holding onto the washbasin, which prevented an accident.
"K-Kitahara-kun, you can go out now..." Hitori took a breath and stammered softly, "I'm going to wash my face."
Kitahara Makoto said gently:
"Do you want my help?"
"No help!"
Hitori refused in a panic.
"Alright then." Kitahara Makoto didn't force Hitori. "I'll go to the kitchen to bring out the food. Ryo-senpai can come out to eat after she finishes washing her face."
Hitori was already teary-eyed. If he continued to tease... Take advantage of her, she might actually cry.
Let Hitori calm down first; there would be plenty of opportunities later.
A moment later.
Hitori finished washing up and cautiously walked out of the bathroom.
"Ryo-senpai, come quickly and eat."
Kitahara Makoto sat at the table and beckoned.
"C-Coming..."
Hitori hurried with small steps towards the dining table, preparing to sit opposite Kitahara Makoto.
However, as she passed by Kitahara Makoto, she suddenly felt a hand reach around her waist.
"Ryo-senpai, where are you going?"
Kitahara Makoto's tone was puzzled.
"Eh?" Hitori blinked and said cautiously, "To sit down and eat..."
"Ryo-senpai said yesterday that when no one else is around, you want me to hold you while we eat." Kitahara Makoto spoke nonsense with a straight face, his right hand gently exerting force, directly pulling Hitori into his embrace. "Did you forget?"
Hitori panicked:
"Not today..."
"No." Kitahara Makoto said righteously, "What was promised must, of course, be done."
Hitori: "..."
Ryo-senpai is actually this clingy?
It doesn't feel like her at all...
Although Hitori was suspicious, she didn't dare to ask too many questions, fearing to expose her identity. She could only shyly sit in Kitahara Makoto's embrace and eat together.
"Ryo-senpai, open your mouth."
"I-I'll eat by myself..."
"Eating by yourself is fine, but Ryo-senpai has to feed me."
"Eh?"
"Either I feed Ryo-senpai, or Ryo-senpai feeds me. Choose one."
Hitori: "..."
After dawdling for half an hour, breakfast was finally finished.
"I-I'm going home!"
Hitori got up in a panic, eager to escape the tiger's den.
"Phew..."
Arriving outside, she covered her chest and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Finally out..."
Looking up at the clear blue sky, Hitori was teary-eyed:
"I'll go home first, then meet with Ryo-senpai."
"..."
The journey was silent.
Hitori soon arrived home.
Shortly after pressing the doorbell, footsteps approached the door, followed by the opening of the door.
Their eyes met.
Looking at 'herself' behind the door, Hitori parted her lips, feeling exceptionally subtle.
"You're back?"
Ryo-senpai moved aside from the door:
"Come in first."
"I'm back..."
Hitori responded softly, stepping into the entryway.
"Woof woof!"
The Gotō dog ran over, barking incessantly at Hitori.
"Jimihen..."
Hitori looked over, feeling wronged.
(Jimihen doesn't recognize me anymore...)
Dogs identify their owners by scent. Hitori currently only had Kitahara's and Ryo's scents on her, so the dog naturally didn't recognize her.
Thump thump thump.
A small radish head who was watching TV ran over, looked up at Hitori at the door, and shouted with wide eyes:
"Ah, it's the big sister from big sister's poster!"
Ryo-senpai extended her right hand and rubbed Futari's small head:
"That's right, she's a friend from my Kessoku Band."
"A friend actually came to play with big sister, how wonderful!" Futari thumped back, "I have to tell Mom to cook red bean rice for celebration tonight!"
Hitori: "..."
It's just a friend coming over to play; there's no need to cook red bean rice, right?
Watching Futari turn and run away, Hitori felt even more wronged in her heart.
(Futari and Jimihen don't recognize me anymore, so Dad and Mom probably don't either, right?)
(No!)
(Absolutely not that sort of thing!)
"Little Futari is very cute, Jimihen is very cute, Little Hitori's family is all very cute, unlike me, who can only stay alone in a villa~"
Ryo-senpai folded her arms across her chest, preparing to put a little pressure on Hitori:
"How about this then?"
"Eh?" Hitori looked over in confusion, "What does Ryo-senpai mean?"
Ryo-senpai lowered her voice and said:
"There's no need to switch bodies back. I'll take over Little Hitori's life, and we'll just refer to each other as we are in private."
"N-No!"
Hitori's eyes widened, and she completely panicked.
(Ryo-senpai actually doesn't want to switch bodies back?)
(I won't agree! I can't agree to that no matter what!)
"Then Little Hitori needs to hurry up." Ryo-senpai lowered her voice and said, "Don't make me wait too long."
"I understand..."
Hitori nodded quickly.
At the same time.
Kitahara Makoto was doing his fitness routine for the day.
After finishing a thousand handstand push-ups, he was about to drink some water when his phone suddenly vibrated.
"Is it Anon?"
Kitahara Makoto originally thought it was a message from Ryo-senpai, but when he picked up his phone, he realized it was Anon.
"Kitahara-kun, something terrible has happened!"
Kitahara Makoto: "Did Mount Fuji erupt?"
Chihaya Anon: "Of course not! If Mount Fuji really erupted, the entire Tokyo would be destroyed, wouldn't it!"
Kitahara Makoto: "Then it's too much nuclear wastewater discharged, and Godzilla landed?"
Chihaya Anon: "That's even more impossible, alright? I had a nightmare again last night!"
Kitahara Makoto: "And then?"
Chihaya Anon: "When I first woke up, I just thought it was a normal nightmare and didn't think much of it. But when I got up this morning, I heard Mom and Dad talking, saying they had the same nightmare, and the content of all three of our dreams was exactly the same. Isn't that super unreasonable?"
Seeing the message on his phone, Kitahara Makoto raised an eyebrow slightly.
It was indeed incredibly unreasonable for an entire family to have the same nightmare.
Who knew Anon would continue sending messages:
"And also, Karin-chan just messaged me saying she also had a nightmare. The dream content was almost identical. Not only that, Karin-chan's mother also had a nightmare."
Kitahara Makoto frowned: "Is it the nightmare ghost story provoked by the Ouija board game that day?"
He had clearly used the Hand of Deprivation to remove the curse, so how could they still be entangled?
Chihaya Anon: "Maybe not, because I asked my other friends, and besides Karin-chan and me, none of my other friends had nightmares last night."
Kitahara Makoto mused: "In that case, there must be some commonality between you and Karin-chan."
Chihaya Anon: "It feels very wrong, but I can't figure out what the commonality is, so I can only ask Kitahara-kun for help."
Clearly, Anon didn't intend to use her brain, but wanted to directly ask the answer book.
Kitahara Makoto: "Of course I can help, but Anon has to promise me one thing."
Chihaya Anon: "Eh, what is it?"
Kitahara Makoto: "Watch manga with me."
Chihaya Anon immediately breathed a sigh of relief: "What the heck, it's just watching manga, don't make it sound so serious, okay?"
Kitahara Makoto: "Read R-rated manga together."
Chihaya Anon: "...Pervert!!!"
"..."
Kitahara Makoto was truly not a pervert. The reason he wanted to read R-rated manga with Anon was entirely due to a simulator task.
[Daily Task Four: Summer Little Secret]
[Task Requirement: Read R-rated manga with a girl of the opposite sex]
The world was quietly surging with undercurrents, becoming increasingly dangerous. No one knew what would happen tomorrow, and Kitahara Makoto's desire to become stronger was exceptionally intense.
Only by being strong enough could he protect the important people.
Therefore, he had to try his best to get the daily lottery chances.
The best candidates for watching manga together were naturally Soyo or Ryo-senpai, but Anon was also fine.
After chatting with Anon and agreeing that Kitahara Makoto would bring the answer book over in the afternoon to find out the truth in the evening, Kitahara Makoto continued his fitness tasks.
Due to the body swap, 'Hitori' had already sent a message saying she wouldn't go to the driving school for practice today.
Kitahara Makoto, having nothing to do, continued to invite Sakiko to lose weight together for business.
In the afternoon, he rested briefly and then went to shoot a mini film.
The campus storyline had been filmed, and now they were in other scenes. After the script was revised, Kitahara Makoto's scenes were basically gone, and he was just there to join the fun.
In a blink of an eye, it was evening.
Today's filming task was successfully completed.
"Anon-chan, Kitahara-kun, I'm going back first."
Kita waved her hand and quickly scurried away.
The matter of being unable to resist going online to share last night was truly too embarrassing. Now, she really couldn't face Kitahara Makoto as usual.
"Hmph~"
A soft snort, full of jealousy, came from beside him.
Kitahara Makoto turned his head and looked at Anon.
"Kita is acting strange today, is it related to perverted Kitahara?"
Chihaya Anon crossed her arms over her chest, looking at him with disdain.
Kitahara Makoto said without changing his expression:
"You should ask Kita, not me."
"Pfft~" Chihaya Anon lightly spat, "Those perverted things, you have the nerve to do them, but Kita doesn't even have the nerve to say them."
Kitahara Makoto raised an eyebrow:
"How am I a pervert?"
Chihaya Anon lightly bit her teeth, unable to help but retort:
"Asking me to watch R-rated manga with you, isn't that perverted enough?"
"We are in a proper dating relationship." Kitahara Makoto said shamelessly, "It's very reasonable to watch some interesting manga together, isn't it?"
"Reasonable, my foot!" Chihaya Anon stretched out her right hand, unable to resist lightly pinching Kitahara Makoto's waist, "It's clearly your head that's full of lewd things!"
Kitahara Makoto smiled:
"So Anon isn't refuting that we're dating anymore?"
"Tch." Chihaya Anon huffed tsundere-like, "I won't easily agree to a harem scumbag's dating request."
"Anon, are you going home for dinner tonight, or eating with me?"
Kitahara Makoto asked softly.
"Hmm..." Chihaya Anon hesitated for two seconds, took out her phone, and said softly, "Then I'll send a message to my mom and come home later."
After sending the message, Chihaya Anon urged:
"Quickly find a secluded place and ask the answer book what's going on. I've been wondering all day."
"Okay."
"..."
The two arrived at a secluded, deserted alley.
Kitahara Makoto took out the answer book and handed it to Anon.
"Why are Mom, Dad, and everyone else having the same nightmare?"
Chihaya Anon asked impatiently.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
The answer book flipped through pages rapidly without any wind.
A line of text quickly appeared:
[You are in the hunting ground of the nightmare ghost story]
"Hunting ground?"
Kitahara Makoto raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at Anon:
"Anon and Karin-san live closer, and farther from your other friends, right?"
"That's right." Chihaya Anon lightly bit her lower lip with her pearly teeth, already understanding what it meant, "It seems it's not that Karin-chan and I are special, but that everyone is just unlucky and happens to be near the nightmare ghost story."
Kitahara Makoto took the answer book and asked softly:
"How can the nightmare ghost story be eliminated?"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
The answer book once again flipped through pages rapidly.
[The nightmare ghost story exists within human dreams and can only be eliminated within the dream world]
Clearly, the nightmare ghost story was likely something similar to Freddy, existing directly within human dreams.
If it were ordinary people, they would naturally be helpless, with no way out.
But coincidentally, Kitahara Makoto and Hana both possessed the ability to enter dreams.
Seeing the message in the book, Chihaya Anon couldn't help but look up at Kitahara Makoto, pleadingly saying:
"Kitahara-kun..."
Kitahara Makoto glanced over: "Just now you called me Pervert-kun, now why the change of address?"
Chihaya Anon hugged Kitahara Makoto's arm, swaying coquettishly:
"I'm sorry, I was impulsive just now."
Kitahara Makoto lightly clicked his tongue:
"I still prefer Anon's unruly look."
Chihaya Anon: "..."
Knowing the truth of the nightmare and the way to eliminate it, Chihaya Anon finally relaxed, but soon pursed her lips again:
"I'm still a little uneasy... Although Kitahara-kun is very powerful, what if something goes wrong? How about we call Tomori over and ask about the nightmare ghost story's weakness?"
"I have no objection." Kitahara Makoto agreed, "But we still have to watch the manga."
"Pfft~"
Chihaya Anon's pretty face flushed slightly, and she couldn't help but lightly spit.
"Boys' heads are indeed full of lewdness!"
Despite her complaints, Chihaya Anon, though verbally disgusted, actually didn't dislike it at all.
If it were any other guy who dared to suggest watching R-rated manga together, Chihaya Anon would have already blocked and deleted them, permanently adding them to her blacklist.
Kitahara Makoto stepped forward half a step, reaching out to pull Anon into his arms:
"Anon keeps saying I'm lewd, if I don't do anything, it would make me seem a bit unromantic."
"No." Chihaya Anon quickly pushed against Kitahara Makoto's chest, her face hot, "It's too hot outside, let's kiss later tonight."
After a pause, Chihaya Anon's pretty face flushed slightly and she said:
"After dinner, I want to go to the bookstore to choose my own manga."
"What?"
...I definitely don't want to read weird NTR-themed stuff, I'm into pure love and wholesome vanilla!
☰