The sight of Eriri Spencer Sawamura's flustered denial was endlessly amusing to Kasumigaoka Utaha. The classic tsundere archetype, played out in real time—outwardly bristling with resistance while every subconscious signal screamed something else entirely—was a spectacle of pure entertainment.
"Here, take a proper look. A picture is worth a thousand words, and this one screams 'infatuation,'" Utaha teased, extending her phone.
Eriri immediately shot her a glare hot enough to melt steel, her voice thick with mortification. "You're the infatuated one! And you—you're the pervert here! What kind of shameless photo did you send me earlier?!" Having fired her retort, her curiosity instantly overrode her pride. She snatched the phone and looked down.
The image that filled the screen made her breath hitch.
It was her. Pinned beneath that scoundrel, Hozuki Nozomi, in a pose of utter vulnerability on the hotel bed. His handsome face wore that infuriatingly charming, slightly mischievous smirk, his cheek hovering mere centimeters from hers, capturing the exact moment before the kiss that never quite landed.
And then there was her own reflection.
Her delicate face was painted a brilliant, alluring scarlet. Her small hands were fisted tightly in the bedsheets, lost and seeking purchase, with one palm pressed flat against the solid plane of his chest in a gesture that could be read as both protest and pull. Her posture was one of flustered surrender, her eyes slightly narrowed, not in anger, but in a dazed, anticipatory haze.
The blush spreading across her cheeks completed the picture: a portrait of a golden-haired beauty feigning resistance while lying pliant beneath a handsome boy. It was an image that would stir any man's desire to tease, to conquer.
"A-Ah ah ah ah! This… this isn't me! Kasumigaoka Utaha, you must have Photoshopped this! You tampered with it!" Eriri shrieked, hurling the phone back onto the mattress as if it had burned her fingers, then rounding on Utaha with eyes blazing.
Kasumigaoka Utaha could only offer a look of profound exasperation. "Do I look like a tentacle monster to you? Capable of sophisticated digital forgery in the span of a few seconds?" She leaned in, her voice dropping to a sly whisper. "You were clearly anticipating being 'bullied,' Sawamura-san. It's dangerous to let the plots and fantasies from your doujinshi bleed into reality like that. You might find your future circumstances becoming… perilously interesting."
"I don't need you to tell me that! I just draw H-manga! I have zero desire to star in one! I know the difference between reality and the 2D world, thank you very much!" Eriri's humiliation had reached a boiling point. She clenched her small fists, baring her cute little canine teeth at Utaha in a display of frustrated fury.
Kasumigaoka Utaha merely smiled, a playful glint in her eye. "Good, I'm glad you're aware." She picked up her phone, tapping the screen thoughtfully. "So, are you sure you don't want me to send this to you? It seems a shame not to archive such a… historically significant scene."
To this, Eriri Spencer Sawamura fell silent for a long moment. Internal war waged on her features before she finally straightened up, adopting a posture of righteous indignation. "Fine! Send it to me!"
"Oh? I thought you said no?" Utaha's lips quirked in a half-smile.
"Hmph!" Eriri placed her hands on her hips, delivering the classic tsundere sound. "This is ironclad evidence of his harassment! If that scoundrel dares to tease me, trick me, or bully me again, I'll present this to Misaki-senpai and the others! Let him face the collective scorn of an entire council of beautiful women! See how he likes that!"
Kasumigaoka Utaha smiled wordlessly, her expression clearly reading, 'Whatever helps you sleep at night.' "Alright, alright. As you wish. Now, I'm going to sleep. What about you? Heading home, or…?"
"Of course I'm staying here with you! What if that guy comes slinking back? Kasumigaoka Utaha, I won't give you a chance to seduce him and disrupt our club's fragile peace!"
"But I am a club member now, you realize."
"Even so, it's forbidden! No lewd conduct within the club premises! Even if the 'premises' is a hotel room!"
...
Meanwhile, Hozuki Nozomi had already made his way back to the familiar, comforting embrace of Sakura Dormitory.
The common area was dark and quiet. As he slipped into the bedroom he shared, he found Kamiigusa Misaki already deep in sleep, her breathing soft and even. There was no sign of her waiting up for him, despite Eriri's earlier claim. It didn't matter. The sight of her peaceful form, silvery hair fanned across the pillow, was enough.
A quiet warmth spread through his chest, undimmed by the night's antics. He naturally pulled back the covers and slid in, gathering her soft, warm body into his arms.
"Mmm… huh? Nn… Nozomi? Why are you… Mmmph—!"
Any sleep-dusted questions were gently but firmly sealed away as he captured her lips with his own, a lingering, tender kiss that spoke of homecoming more than passion. Misaki-senpai, initially startled, soon melted into the familiar sensation, a soft sigh escaping her as she reciprocated drowsily.
…
Not long after, Kamiigusa Misaki lay nestled securely in the crook of his arm, having drifted back into a contented, sweet sleep. Hozuki Nozomi, however, remained awake, his mind still humming with the evening's events. He extracted his phone, its glow illuminating his thoughtful expression.
He navigated to a particular contact and began to type.
Hozuki Nozomi: Eriri Spencer Sawamura. Report to Sakura Dormitory tomorrow. Be a good girl and come on your own.
He waited. The minutes stretched out with no reply.
Hozuki Nozomi: Don't pretend to be asleep. I know where you live. If you don't come, I'll have to come fetch you personally. I'm sure Sister Sayuri would be delighted to see me.
This threat, strategically aimed, hit its mark almost instantly.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: YOU'RE SHAMELESS!
Hozuki Nozomi: Who told you to lie to me? And ruin a perfectly good opportunity?
A little more back-and-forth, a few more veiled threats and indignant retorts, and Hozuki Nozomi finally put his phone down, a refreshed, almost mischievous sense of satisfaction settling over him. In that moment, a sliver of self-awareness surfaced. I really am getting worse, aren't I? He pondered it for a second, then shrugged inwardly. Ah, well. It is what it is.
…
Back in the hotel room, Eriri Spencer Sawamura huffed and slammed her phone down on the nightstand, then turned to glare daggers at the raven-haired beauty sharing her bed. "You! You black-stockinged, voluptuous menace! This is all your fault! Now he's threatening me!"
Kasumigaoka Utaha, having also seen the message thread, covered her mouth with a hand, her shoulders shaking with silent laughter. "Who told you to go and ruin a boy's 'research'? It's obvious Hozuki-kohai is quite put out. He lost a prime opportunity to get closer to a beautiful senior, after all."
Eriri stared at her, a complex mixture of frustration and disbelief on her face. "Kasumigaoka Utaha… are you actually serious about him?"
"What of it?" Utaha replied, her smile softening into something more genuine. "I simply find Hozuki Nozomi… compelling. Being near him feels like standing before a wellspring of endless inspiration. And he's a genuine admirer of 'Kasumi Utako'—we share a foundational passion. He's the first boy in a long time, perhaps ever, to make my heart flutter with actual anticipation. Why shouldn't I explore that?"
"You're hopeless," Eriri muttered, turning her back to Utaha with a final, dismissive huff.
Utaha wasn't offended. As she lay in the darkness, replaying the day's events, a faint tremor ran through her heart. Today, she had truly, physically walked in Sayuri's footsteps—and experienced a fraction of her protagonist's emotions. It was… thrilling. A quiet sense of contentment washed over her. She closed her eyes, ready to let sleep claim her.
Beside her, Eriri Spencer Sawamura tossed and turned, the mattress creaking with her restlessness. Sleep eluded her, chased away by the specter of that looming threat.
That bastard. 'Report to Sakura Dormitory.' If I don't go… he'll come to my house. To my room!
It was naked coercion!
Gritting her teeth, she grabbed her phone again, her thumbs flying over the screen.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: .Scumbag. Pervert. What exactly do you want from me?!
The reply came swiftly.
Hozuki Nozomi: Eriri Spencer Sawamura, I want you to be the heroine.
Her heart did a funny little stutter before indignation reclaimed it.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: Hah?! What heroine?!
Hozuki Nozomi: The heroine of my story. Mine alone.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: PERVERT! GO DIE! I'M CALLING THE POLICE!
Hozuki Nozomi: Don't. I'm joking.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: Hmph! Too late! I've saved the evidence! Who do you think Officer-san will believe, huh?
Hozuki Nozomi: I was wrong. Seriously, I just wanted to invite you over to discuss the illustration work. And… about the manga adaptation for Magical Girl Misaki.
The shift in tone gave her pause.
Hozuki Nozomi: Today, thanks to Utaha-senpai's connections, I met with an editor from Fujikawa Shoten. I've already submitted the manuscript for the Magical Girl Misaki light novel. Barring any surprises, it should be published soon. Remember what I said before, Eriri? About you wanting to step beyond the doujinshi circle and create real, published manga?
Hozuki Nozomi: So, I'm asking you formally. Would you be interested in handling the manga adaptation for Magical Girl Misaki?
Eriri's eyes, wide in the dark, instantly sparkled. This was it—a genuine, legitimate gateway into the professional manga industry, adapting a story she already found incredibly fun to illustrate. Yet, her tsundere instincts demanded a final stand.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: There's no such thing as a free lunch. What's your angle? Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden?
There was a brief pause. Then, the reply appeared on her screen, simple and disarming.
Hozuki Nozomi: What angle could I possibly have? It's just… I'm a little bit fond of you, that's all.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura stared at the glowing words. Her breath caught. Her heart, traitorous and loud, began to hammer against her ribs.
Eriri Spencer Sawamura: !!!