"But…" Akane Koizumi's face fell, a deep flush creeping up her cheeks. Her eyes were a storm of hesitation and unease. "I've never even been in a relationship. How can I just give away my first kiss like this?"
"How can you even call this a first kiss?!" Hayashi Shuichi argued frantically, trying to dismantle her logic. "A 'first kiss' is something that happens between a man and a woman. But when you kiss my body, my soul won't even be inside it. It'll just be a soulless vessel—an object! When you kiss an inanimate object, like a book or a mirror, do you call that a first kiss?"
"...That actually makes a bit of sense," Akane admitted, blinking her large, crimson eyes as she processed the thought.
"It doesn't just make sense; it's the objective truth!" Shuichi suddenly slammed his wooden hands onto the apprentice witch's slender shoulders, making her jump. "Now, get me back into my body. My entire future is riding on you!"
"Can… Can you let me think about it for just a little longer?" Akane stammered, instinctively taking a half-step back.
Before she could finish her sentence, she saw a dangerous glint ignite in Shuichi's eyes.
"Is your backside itching for another round?!" He made a deliberate motion as if raising his hand to strike.
"I'm going! I'm going right now!" Akane shrieked. She leapt up like a startled rabbit, her hands flying back to cover her rear in a defensive reflex.
The humiliating memory of being spanked the previous night flashed vividly in her mind, and for a second, she could almost feel the stinging heat returning. It was an absolute disgrace—one that Akane Koizumi was determined never to experience again!
Beika Central Hospital
The hospital corridors were thick with the sharp, sterile scent of disinfectant. Inside the emergency room, doctors were performing an urgent examination on Hayashi Shuichi.
Outside, the three women waited in agonizing silence, their eyes glued to the closed doors.
Eri Kisaki's eyes were red and swollen, resembling bruised peaches. Midori Orikasa's knuckles were white as she gripped the fabric of her skirt with bone-crushing force. Reiko, the youngest among them, had already dissolved into a mess of tears.
Every few seconds, they would stand on their tiptoes, trying to peer through the narrow gap in the door to catch a glimpse of what was happening inside.
Finally, the light above the emergency room shifted to green. A doctor stepped out, his expression clouded with confusion. He paused for a moment, appearing lost in thought, before he was instantly swarmed by the three women.
"How is my Oni-chan?!" Reiko wailed, her small hands clutching the doctor's white coat with desperate strength.
"Doctor, is Senpai going to be okay?" Midori asked, her face pale with tension.
"What is Shuichi's status?" Eri Kisaki forced herself to sound composed, but the slight tremor in her hands betrayed her internal turmoil.
The barrage of overlapping questions clearly overwhelmed the doctor. He raised his hands, signaling them to calm down, before answering with a frown. "The patient's condition is… unusual. His vital signs are perfectly stable. In fact, his body shows no signs of illness or injury whatsoever."
"Does that mean Oni-chan is okay?" Reiko cried out in relief, her face still streaked with wet trails of tears.
Eri and Midori both let out audible sighs of hope.
"We can't make that judgment yet," the doctor cautioned, shaking his head. "If everything were truly 'normal,' he should have regained consciousness by now. For now, all we can do is keep him under observation."
As the doctor finished speaking, a group of nurses wheeled Hayashi Shuichi out of the emergency room.
His face was unnervingly pale as he lay motionless on the gurney, looking as though he were merely caught in a deep, dreamless sleep. The three women followed him closely, their eyes never straying from him for a single second until they reached his hospital room.
"Oh? What are you all doing here?"
Chikage Tomizawa, dressed in her patient gown and returning from a walk, looked at the group in surprise. Beside her stood little Narumi, looking equally curious.
"Chikage-san…" Reiko sobbed, throwing herself into Chikage's arms. Her voice was so choked with emotion that she could barely form words. "Oni-chan… he…"
"Shuichi?" Chikage's heart skipped a beat. She hurried to the side of the bed and saw the unconscious man. Her face drained of color instantly. "What… what happened to him?"
"We don't know," Eri Kisaki said, wiping the corner of her eye. "The doctor says his body is fine, but for some reason, he's in a coma. We can't wake him up no matter what we do."
"How can this be?" Chikage staggered slightly, her world spinning.
"Chikage-san!" Narumi quickly reached out to steady her, his small face filled with worry.
"What exactly happened?" Chikage pressed. "He was perfectly fine when I saw him last!"
"We aren't sure either," Eri explained briefly. "About an hour ago at the izakaya, he said he was going to the storage room to get some ingredients. When he didn't come back, we went to check… and found him collapsed on the floor." By the end of her explanation, Eri's voice had broken into a sob.
"Everyone, could you please step aside so we can get him settled into the room?" one of the nurses asked gently.
The women moved back, allowing the staff to transfer Shuichi to his bed.
Once he was settled, the four women gathered around his bedside. The room fell into a heavy, mournful silence, punctuated only by the sound of soft weeping.
Reiko leaned against the bed, her small hand tightly gripping her brother's, as if terrified that he would vanish the moment she let go. Eri leaned against the wall, her gaze hollow and distant. Midori kept her head bowed, her tears dripping silently onto the white sheets. Chikage sat in a chair, her hands clasped so tightly in her lap that her fingers were bloodless.
"Shuichi-niichan will be okay," Narumi said firmly, breaking the silence. "My dad always said that good people live long lives. Shuichi-niichan is the best person I know; he'll definitely wake up."
"Narumi is right. He'll be fine," Eri said, wiping her tears with a renewed sense of resolve. "Reiko, Midori, you two should head home. You have school tomorrow. I'll stay here and look after him."
"No!" Reiko cried, tightening her hold on Shuichi's arm. "I'm staying right here with Oni-chan!"
She pressed her tear-stained cheek against his hand.
"I can call in sick to school," Midori added softly. "Senpai just got admitted. If I stay, maybe I can be of some help."
Seeing their stubbornness, Eri didn't have the heart to argue further. She simply nodded in silent permission.
The atmosphere of grief in the room was palpable—so much so that the spectator outside the window was growing increasingly agitated.
Hayashi Shuichi, currently in his puppet form, sat perched on the flying broom with Akane Koizumi. They were hovering just outside the window, watching the scene through the glass.
"You really are popular with the girls, aren't you?" Akane remarked, her lip curling slightly as she looked at the diverse group of women gathered around the bed. "Look at how many people are crying over you."
"Just get me back in there, fast!" Shuichi snapped. Watching the girls suffer was like a knife to his heart.
"If I use any other magic, my invisibility spell will break," Akane huffed, crossing her arms. "They're all packed in there like sardines. What do you expect me to do?"
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 70 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
[patreon.com/TripleCrown07]
Thank you so much for your support!!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"