Hayashi Shuichi deliberately dragged out his tone, watching Koizumi Akane's face shift from red to ashen.
"You…"
Koizumi Akane hadn't expected the boomerang to come back so quickly. Her pretty face immediately turned iron-blue with anger, lips trembling slightly, but no words came out.
"By the way, what abilities does this doll have?" Hayashi Shuichi asked curiously.
Koizumi Akane huffed and turned her head away, refusing to answer.
On the surface it looked like she didn't want to reply, but the real reason was that she didn't actually know much about it herself.
"I possess all the abilities that the male master has mastered," the doll answered on its own. "For example, Sanda, combat techniques, cooking…"
Each skill it listed made Hayashi Shuichi's eyebrows rise slightly.
As the list grew longer and longer, Koizumi Akane's tense shoulders gradually relaxed.
She secretly glanced at the doll from the corner of her eye, the anger in her gaze slowly being replaced by surprise.
When she had originally wanted to summon a butler, it was simply so someone could take care of her daily life and keep her from feeling too lonely at home alone.
Although the doll in front of her had a face annoyingly similar to Hayashi Shuichi's, in terms of other abilities, it clearly far exceeded what she had originally hoped for.
"Let's go, we're going home!" Having accepted reality, Koizumi Akane no longer wanted to look at Hayashi Shuichi's smug face. She called out to the doll.
But the doll didn't budge. It mechanically turned its head toward Hayashi Shuichi, waiting for instructions.
Koizumi Akane clenched her fists, forcefully swallowing her anger. In her mind she silently vowed: from now on, she would keep the doll locked up at home and never let it come into contact with Hayashi Shuichi again.
"Go with her. Don't forget what I told you earlier," Hayashi Shuichi reminded it.
"Yes," the doll replied, then followed Koizumi Akane out of the ward.
After the two of them left, Hayashi Shuichi turned to look at his little cousin who was still fast asleep with her head resting on the edge of the bed.
Reiko's soft, pink cheeks still bore traces of undried tears. Her wet eyelashes clung together, and her small mouth was slightly pouted, occasionally letting out a few sobbing-like murmurs in her sleep.
Hayashi Shuichi gently lifted her onto the bed, then carried little Narumi—who was still lying on the floor—back to his own ward room.
Once everything was done, exhaustion crashed over him like a tidal wave.
Hayashi Shuichi collapsed onto the hospital bed and pulled the sleeping Reiko into his arms.
The little girl unconsciously nuzzled against his chest like a kitten seeking warmth.
Hayashi Shuichi smiled softly, closed his eyes, and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
…
The next morning.
Sunlight streamed through the window into the ward, landing directly on Kisaki Eri's face. She, who had fallen into a deep sleep due to Koizumi Akane's magic the night before, soon woke up.
"How did I fall asleep?"
Kisaki Eri slowly sat up from the bed, her eyes still a little dazed. Beside her, Orikasa Midori and Tomizawa Chiyo were still sleeping.
"Right, Shuichi…"
Fully awake now, the girl hurriedly looked toward the neighboring bed—only to see Hayashi Shuichi and his little sister cuddling together, sleeping soundly.
"Shuichi?"
Kisaki Eri froze. If Hayashi Shuichi hadn't woken up, there was no way he would be holding Reiko while asleep!
She quickly jumped off the bed, rushed to Hayashi Shuichi's side, grabbed her childhood friend's shoulders tightly, and shook him hard.
"Shuichi! Shuichi!"
"…Mm?" Hayashi Shuichi groggily opened his eyes. Seeing Kisaki Eri's reddened eyes, he instinctively reached out to touch her cheek. "What's wrong?"
"You… you're really awake?"
Kisaki Eri burst into tears of joy. Tears welled up in her eyes as she threw her arms around her childhood friend's neck, hugging him tightly as if afraid he would fall back into a coma.
"It's okay, I'm fine," Hayashi Shuichi gently patted her back, feeling her slight trembling. "I've probably just been too tired lately. Last night I accidentally passed out. Once I get some proper rest, I'll naturally wake up."
"Really?" Kisaki Eri looked at him through choked sobs. "You're really okay now?"
"You know my health better than anyone. From childhood till now, this is probably the first time I've ever been hospitalized," Hayashi Shuichi said with a smile, reaching out to gently wipe the tears from her face.
Their voices also woke the others in the ward.
When Orikasa Midori and Tomizawa Chiyo saw that Hayashi Shuichi was already awake, both their faces lit up with joy.
The two girls wanted to step forward, but upon seeing Kisaki Eri clinging to him, they awkwardly stopped in their tracks.
Reiko, however, had no such reservations. The moment she saw her brother awake, the little girl immediately threw herself onto his chest and burst into loud sobs.
"Oniichan, you scared me so much last night… I thought you'd never wake up again, waaah…"
Her small body trembled as tears quickly soaked Hayashi Shuichi's clothes.
"Haha, how could I possibly abandon such a cute little sister?" Hayashi Shuichi laughed and pinched her cheek affectionately, his eyes full of doting fondness. "Last night you were the one crying the hardest. You're such a big girl now—aren't you embarrassed…?"
Reiko's face turned bright red. Embarrassed, she grabbed her brother's sleeve and used it to wipe her tear-filled eyes.
Meanwhile, Kisaki Eri suddenly frowned. She looked at Hayashi Shuichi suspiciously. "How did you know Reiko was crying the hardest last night?"
"Uh…"
Hayashi Shuichi was instantly stumped. His mouth opened slightly, but he had no idea how to answer.
Last night Koizumi Akane had used magic to summon his soul away—he obviously couldn't say that.
First, Kisaki Eri never believed in that kind of thing.
Second, even if they did believe it, they would definitely go looking for trouble with Koizumi Akane afterward, and things would turn into chaos again.
"Kisaki-senpai," Orikasa Midori said with a surprised expression, "you're not suspecting that… actually, Senpai woke up last night, are you?"
"That's impossible!" Hayashi Shuichi laughed it off, trying to cover his guilt. "I was unconscious the whole time until midnight when I finally woke up!"
"Was it you who carried us onto this bed?" Tomizawa Chiyo asked, full of suspicion.
When she saw Hayashi Shuichi nod, she immediately lowered her head to check her own clothes.
"Hey!" Hayashi Shuichi's eyes widened. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Just checking whether a certain pervert took advantage of us while we were unconscious last night," Tomizawa Chiyo said as she tugged at the front of her shirt in confusion. "Strange… why does my bra suddenly feel so tight?"
Hearing that, Orikasa Midori also hurriedly began nervously checking herself.
"You two…" Hayashi Shuichi rolled his eyes in exasperation. "You really don't trust me at all? Am I that kind of person?"
"Shuichi," Kisaki Eri's voice carried a hint of sternness. "Were you actually pretending to be unconscious last night?"
"Oniichan," Reiko bit her lip and questioned, "you didn't really take the chance to take advantage of Chiyo-neesan and Midori-neesan, did you?"
"Chiyo, don't accuse me wrongly!" Hayashi Shuichi quickly looked toward the purple-haired girl. "Last night I only carried you onto that bed. I swear, I didn't do anything else!"
(End of chapter)
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