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Itogami Island, west district, in an upscale apartment building near the city center.
Inside the penthouse suite, Bokue Keikain, fresh from a shower and dinner, relaxed comfortably on the sofa.
Asagi Aiba—whose face was still tinted with lingering blush—had changed into a soft bathrobe, curled horizontally across his lap. Her slender yet shapely legs stretched gracefully from beneath the robe, crossed elegantly at the opposite armrest.
Cool air gently circulated from the quietly humming air conditioner, softly rustling her delicate toes—her shy little gesture of embarrassment.
Bokue gently embraced the girl's shoulders with one arm, his other hand smoothly tracing over the soft towel-like fabric, giving a playful pat to her soft, rounded behind.
"Alright, let's get up—I should be heading back soon."
"Are you going already? Isn't it a bit too early…?"
Instinctively, Asagi glanced toward the clock on the living room wall.
She hadn't actually caught the precise time—but just because she hadn't noticed didn't mean Bokue didn't know.
It was already seven in the evening.
"Not early at all," Bokue reminded gently. "Considering the time, your mom should be back anytime soon."
He clearly recalled the conversation earlier—"coming back after dinner."
Asagi simply pursed her lips slightly, feigning indifference:
"Oh? Now you're suddenly afraid of running into my mom? You were pretty bold when answering her phone call before, weren't you?"
"Bold…? Me…?"
Bokue mentally face-palmed.
That entire phone call had been sheer helplessness—he'd only answered because Asagi herself had been otherwise… "preoccupied" at the moment. He'd even covered her mouth desperately, but she'd been far too lost in the moment for him to contain her cries. If he'd truly been so bold, he wouldn't have bothered muffling her voice at all—he'd have just let her mom hear everything clearly from the beginning.
Realizing the exaggerated nature of her earlier claim, Asagi's cheeks flushed a deeper pink, her voice softening gently.
"So, are you heading straight back to Kyoto now?"
"Not quite yet."
Bokue paused thoughtfully.
"I need to stop by Yukina's apartment again first and check in with her. Technically, she's still my 'client,' so even if I'm heading back to Kyoto afterward, I still owe her a quick check-in."
"Ah, right…"
Asagi murmured softly, but quickly her expression shifted, as though suddenly reminded of something critical.
"Wait a minute—doesn't that mean when you come back here tomorrow morning, you'll have to see Miss Himeragi first?"
"Well, yes. What's the problem?"
"Absolutely not!"
The blonde girl immediately vetoed this idea.
"Definitely out of the question!"
"…Why?"
Bokue stared blankly.
This felt like someone asking if your first task at the office each morning was clocking in. Naturally, you said yes. Then suddenly your partner objected and said "no." If clocking in wasn't your first task, then what? Punching your boss?
Hmm… not entirely impossible, but still…
"You don't understand?"
Asagi rolled her eyes playfully.
"Miss Himeragi is a girl! Girls have tons of little morning routines—washing up, makeup, changing outfits… no girl wants to be caught looking plain-faced in the morning, much less in the middle of changing clothes!"
She actually had a point.
Bokue's eyebrow rose slightly.
"So…?"
"So what else? You should come here first."
Asagi sighed dramatically, a brave, sacrificial air in her voice.
"Anyway, it's far too late for me—every embarrassing thing has already been seen by you. And as for me without makeup? You've seen it your whole life—there's no point pretending now."
"Huh…"
Bokue's raised eyebrow slowly relaxed.
He raised an eyebrow when intrigued, and lowered it once everything clicked.
The blonde girl, hearing his neutral tone, grew slightly flustered again:
"W-what? I'm only telling the truth! Besides, she's a Sword Shaman from the Lion King Organization—if you accidentally saw anything inappropriate, she'd probably gouge your eyes out."
"Alright, alright," Bokue chuckled lightly, patting her gently once more. "Tomorrow morning, I'll come straight to you first."
"Mmn, good—"
"Now," he urged gently, "let's get up. It's really time I left."
"Wait, just a moment…"
Sitting up slightly, Asagi tilted her flushed face upward, cupping his cheek softly, wine-red eyes fluttering closed.
"One last kiss… Mua~"
❁❁❁❁
He'd said he was leaving, yet in the end, Bokue lingered another fifteen minutes before finally departing Asagi's home.
Fifteen minutes later—
In the apartment provided by the Lion King Organization as their temporary base, a figure suddenly materialized out of thin air—as abruptly as if he'd been painted directly onto reality.
The air shimmered with faint mist, humid and filled with the lingering scent of soap—and just a hint of metallic fragrance.
Wait… metallic fragrance?
Bokue opened his eyes fully, realizing instantly he was standing right inside an occupied bathroom. He stood near the empty toilet, steam clouding the separate shower stall so thickly that nothing could be seen clearly beyond.
Nothing except for the delicate outline of a girl's graceful figure within—and a gleaming silver spear emerging sharply through the slightly parted door, aimed directly at his nose.
Its tip hovered less than two centimeters from his face, prompting him to tactically lean back slightly.
"So… what's this about?"
"Bokue… Senpai, is that right? You're really quite bold, aren't you?"
From within the misty shower stall came Yukina's forcibly calm yet slightly angry voice:
"First, you vanish without a word all afternoon. And now you immediately resort to blatant peeping the moment you return?"
"Peeping? Hardly. I just happened to teleport back here at an unfortunately awkward moment."
Bokue casually shrugged.
"Oh, by the way—I highly suggest pulling that spear back inside. If you don't close the door soon, the steam on the glass will fade completely."
"Ah—!?"
Immediately, the spear vanished, and the stall door slammed shut.
Bokue stared at the steamed-up ceiling, speaking evenly through the closed stall door:
"I only came back for two things. Firstly, to tell you I'm heading back to Kyoto for now. Secondly, to check if you've noticed anything unusual about our little vampire neighbor this afternoon."
"Eh? N-no, not really…"
Behind the misty door, Yukina hurriedly snatched a towel from the rack, swiftly wrapping herself.
"I spent the entire afternoon with Nagisa. We planned on heading to the nearby shopping center to buy groceries for the next few days. But with the sudden heavy rainstorm, we ended up not going. Anyway… there's nothing unusual to report."
"Good to hear. I'll head back then—call me if anything happens. I'll return tomorrow morning."
Waving lazily, Bokue's figure slowly dissolved back into the air, leaving one last casual remark behind:
"And for the record, I really wasn't planning on peeping at your… rather modest figure anyway."
Modest…!?
Inside the stall, Yukina froze mid-action, repeating quietly under her breath:
"So… he thinks I'm modest… and never intended to peek…? Oh, so that's how it is…"
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Meanwhile, in Kyoto—the Keikain household's master residence.
When Bokue reappeared once more, he stood back in his familiar room.
The room lights were off, pitch-dark and silent, illuminated only by the gentle glow of moonlight filtering through the window.
Upon the soft tatami mats, a graceful blonde woman, who had clearly been waiting for him, slowly turned to face him, smiling serenely. Behind her, nine beautiful fox tails swayed gently, conveying a subtle, inviting message.
"You've finally returned?"
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