"But I still have classes early tomorrow morning."
Ihei Byakuya said.
"I do not care, you have to keep reading until I fall asleep."
Yoshimura Eto started acting willful again.
"Alright, alright, everything as you say."
Ihei Byakuya said helplessly, "Then let's read on the bed."
Of course, this was not because he had any improper thoughts.
It was simply because lying on the bed made it easier to feel sleepy, so it would help Yoshimura Eto fall asleep as soon as possible.
"Mm."
Yoshimura Eto replied.
After that, the two of them lay down on the mattress in the living room.
Yoshimura Eto was still thinking about what posture would be more comfortable and convenient when Ihei Byakuya suddenly turned sideways and directly pulled her into his arms.
"Mm..."
Yoshimura Eto let out a soft sound.
She clearly had not expected Byakuya to suddenly be this bold.
"Lie on my arm, it should feel more convenient to read like this."
Ihei Byakuya said.
"It does seem like it..."
Yoshimura Eto lay in the crook of Byakuya's arm, closer to his upper arm. Although Byakuya's build was not that of a big guy, his muscles were still quite firm.
Lying on Byakuya's relaxed biceps, the comfort was no worse than a soft pillow.
Just like this, the two of them lay on their sides facing the same direction and read together.
...
Less than half an hour later.
Just as Ihei Byakuya had expected, Yoshimura Eto, who was still a little kid after all, became sleepy very quickly.
At this moment, he could already hear Eto's light and even breathing.
Sure enough, a little kid was still a little kid...
Yoshimura Eto curled up in Byakuya's arms and fell asleep, seemingly having no sense of danger at all, not afraid that Byakuya might do something bad to her.
After all, Yoshimura Eto's strength was right there.
From her point of view, if Byakuya really dared to do anything to her, she could immediately twist off this half-human brat's head.
That was why she was so unrestrained...
After confirming that Eto had fallen asleep, Ihei Byakuya gently closed the book in his hands.
Then he carefully pulled his body away, stood up, and picked Eto up, being very careful throughout the entire process to avoid waking her.
After that, he carried Eto into the bedroom and let her sleep on the bed in the bedroom.
The reason Byakuya did this was still the same. He did not want to be stabbed to death by Eto in his sleep in the middle of the night.
Even after he tucked Eto in with the blanket, she was still sleeping very soundly.
Only then did Byakuya feel relieved enough to close the bedroom door and go back to his own bed to sleep.
...
The next morning.
Yoshimura Eto woke up naturally.
She rubbed her eyes and sat up, her mind still a bit unclear.
After a while, she remembered that last night she seemed to have fallen asleep unknowingly in Byakuya's arms, but when she woke up she was already on her own bed...
So she must have been carried over by that guy Byakuya?
"..."
Yoshimura Eto suddenly cared about this a little.
That half-human brat was always somewhat resistant to staying with her at certain times, and she could feel a vague sense of distance from him.
Eto was not worried about her identity being exposed, because in her view there was no reason for him to be able to discover her true identity.
Besides, if it really were exposed, then as a half-human from the Washuu Clan's Sunlit Garden, Byakuya would definitely report it immediately and have her captured.
So the possibility of her identity being exposed could basically be ruled out.
Then... why did that half-human brat maintain that sense of distance toward her?
This inexplicable sense of distance also made her inexplicably feel a little irritated...
"Eto, are you awake? It is about time to get up and eat breakfast."
Just at this moment, Ihei Byakuya lightly knocked on the door outside.
"..."
Yoshimura Eto was in a bad mood at the moment and did not want to pay attention to Byakuya. She got out of bed without a word and went to the bathroom to wash up.
Outside the door, when Ihei Byakuya did not hear Eto respond, he thought she was still asleep and did not rush to push the door open to wake her.
As a result, while Byakuya was eating breakfast, Eto walked out of the bedroom.
"So you were already awake. I thought you were still sleeping just now."
Ihei Byakuya immediately said.
"Hmph-"
Yoshimura Eto let out a light snort and directly ignored Byakuya.
"...?"
Ihei Byakuya was immediately confused.
What was going on here?
Yoshimura Eto sat down at the dining table, still turning her head away and refusing to pay attention to Byakuya.
"What is wrong? You look like you are not very happy?"
Ihei Byakuya finally could not help but ask directly.
"Hmph--"
Yoshimura Eto snorted again and turned her head to the other side.
"..."
Ihei Byakuya was completely baffled.
He had not done anything, right?
Last night he had also satisfied Eto's request and read to her until she fell asleep.
So why did she look like she was angry first thing in the morning after waking up?
Even if Yoshimura Eto was acting, there was no need to act out something like this...
In reality, Yoshimura Eto was half genuine and half acting.
Feeling a bit sulky was real, while that childish and cute "I just will not talk to you" behavior was acted out.
...
Even after breakfast, Yoshimura Eto still looked like she was sulking.
Ihei Byakuya had no solution either. He simply could not figure out what Eto meant by acting like this.
"I have already prepared lunch in advance. It is being kept warm in the kitchen. When you get hungry, you can just heat it up a bit and eat it yourself."
Before going out, Ihei Byakuya explained to Eto, "Then I am heading to school now."
"Got it."
Yoshimura Eto finally responded, still sounding not very happy.
Completely unable to understand the situation, Ihei Byakuya scratched his head and did not say anything more before heading out.
...
At the classroom.
As Ihei Byakuya walked toward his seat, his gaze happened to meet Uruka Minami's.
"Good morning, Ihei."
Uruka Minami immediately smiled and greeted him.
"Good morning."
Out of politeness, Byakuya also responded.
However, Fura Taishi was not in the classroom yet. He was probably late again or something like that.
Compared to skipping classes altogether, being late was already a very minor issue.
If Fura Taishi had been in the classroom and seen that scene just now, he probably would have exploded again.
Today, in Byakuya's schoolbag, besides his quinque and books and stationery, there was also an extra bento, which was meant to serve as his lunch.
At noon, when class ended and it was time for lunch break.
It could be seen that Uruka Minami got up and left the classroom directly at this time. Because she was a ghoul and could not eat normal food, she tried to avoid eating together with her classmates.
Yet Ihei Byakuya deliberately followed her at this moment.
"Minami, let's continue eating together at that place today, shall we?"