The next morning, only after seeing Arisu off on the train back to Millennium was I finally able to sleep in peace.
A little over an hour later, with my energy fully restored, I sat at my desk handling the backlog of unfinished work from the day before while replaying everything that had happened the night before.
First had been the night shift with Arisu that stretched deep into the night. Once Arisu had fallen asleep from exhaustion, I urged Kei, who had taken over her body, to go wash up in the bathroom.
After that, my all-night jail time journey began.
Exactly as expected, Kei's gaming skill was atrocious beyond belief.
That in itself wouldn't have been a problem. After all, Kei had never actually played before, so it was understandable, and her rate of improvement wasn't slow either, roughly on par with Arisu back in the beginning.
The real issue was that this girl was not only terrible, but also foul-mouthed and stubborn. She flatly refused to admit how bad she was, pinning every mistake on the game's design or even on me, sending my blood pressure skyrocketing.
On top of that, Kei was using Arisu's body, so I couldn't lay a hand on her. Corporal punishment that caused no real harm might have properly disgusted her, but it would have left a bad taste in my own mouth as well. In the end, the only option left was to fire right back.
And so, amid almost nonstop arguing, a night somewhat noisier than usual slipped by without us noticing.
By the very end, Kei's skills had finally improved just enough that she could pass herself off as Arisu and clear stages online with Maki without giving anything away.
"Easy."
After tormenting me for at least six hours, Kei hid her delight at clearing the dungeon and evaluated it in a proud, disdainful tone. "Something this simple and boring… I don't get why Arisu likes it so much."
I had just let out a cold laugh and was about to start roasting her when she suddenly said,
"Hey. I've decided. Even though your teaching is so awful it made me take forever just to barely learn the skills needed to complete Arisu's tasks… from now on, the number of times I have to kill you can be reduced by one."
... Was I supposed to thank her for that?
Even now, looking back, I still found it baffling and could only chalk it up to Kei being a little off in the head.
In any case, with this, once the news arrived that Arisu had successfully invited Maki to play, it would mean that the friends usually around Hare had all been either persuaded by me, bought off by me, or reassigned by me, completely cutting her off from outside influence.
All that remained was to find a chance to make Hare want to quit caffeine again and regain her fighting spirit.
I'd look for an opportunity, try inviting her out to play, get the mood going, and then bring it up naturally.
For the rest of the time, I focused entirely on work.
It wasn't until the afternoon that I finished every pending document. After grabbing a late lunch and double-checking the planned itinerary with Arona, I headed to Shanhaijing Senior High School.
"Ah, welcome, Sensei."
Inside the laboratory, the mouse-eared girl who was mixing chemicals said to me, "Perfect timing. This great one has been dying to test the new medicine! Ah, but wait a moment. This is a critical stage."
This arrogant girl was none other than the genius president of the Eastern Alchemy Society and renowned expert at creating trouble, Yakushi Saya.
I had only come to ask Saya a few questions face-to-face about Hare's severe caffeine addiction and possible medicine difficulties the RABBIT Squad might face, while also building a bit more rapport with her. The moment I heard the word "experiment," the smile froze on my face.
Maybe… it would be better to go to Trinity and ask Mine, who also had deep knowledge of medical supplies, for help instead…
But in that brief moment of hesitation, Saya had already neatly sealed the suspiciously colored liquid into medicine bottles labeled with hazardous material warnings.
Then Saya grinned at me. "Fuhahaha~ Speaking of which, Sensei, you finally found some free time? I thought it would take a while longer!"
Even though I could tell there was no hidden dissatisfaction in her words, I could no longer back out.
I sighed. "No helping it. I've been really busy lately… By the way, where's Nezusuke?"
"Squeak?"
Hearing someone call, a small mouse poked its head out of Saya's bag. I stepped closer and stroked its head, privately lamenting that I might soon suffer the same fate.
As if sensing the shared misery of Saya's victims, Nezusuke squeaked and actively gripped my hand with its two tiny paws. The round little eyes somehow even managed to look sorrowful.
Yet the chief culprit responsible for all this remained completely unaware and kept chattering beside us.
"Ehh!? Se-Sensei, when did you get so close with Nezusuke…"
Saya looked a little sulky. "Th-This great one's ears feel way better than Nezusuke's… and my hair is well taken care of too…"
She was even jealous of her own pet. Sigh. I'm just that charming.
Since she was inviting me so enthusiastically, my curiosity was piqued. I immediately abandoned Nezusuke, ignored its anxious squeaks and the even more sorrowful gaze that looked as if it had been betrayed, and devoted myself entirely to the feel of the top of Saya's head.
Before long, however, Saya, who had gradually started to enjoy it, returned to her original shyness and weakly said,
"Se-Sensei, aren't you stroking a little too… too long… Even if this great one allowed it… a-and the way you're doing it is a bit… Eek!"
Saya suddenly shuddered, shoved me away hard, then covered her two round mouse ears that she couldn't control and forced out, "I-It's time to start the experiment!"
I sighed inwardly. What a pity... I was one move short. And Nezusuke, really. It failed to grasp my good intentions~
If I had used my outstanding eyesight and technique to force Saya's Authority out on the spot, wouldn't we both have escaped disaster?
"No time to waste,"
Saya steadied her breathing a little, the flush on her face fading. "Don't be shocked when you hear this! The medicine we're testing today is actually—"
But before she could finish, several knocks suddenly came at the door.
Immediately after, several women in suits and sunglasses pushed the door open without waiting for a reply.
The one in the lead said, "President Saya, regarding this month's supply of aromatic medicines to the Xuanlong Office… Hmm? And this is?"
The girls, who appeared to be members of Genryumon, looked me up and down with wary expressions.
"This is Sensei from Schale. He's here to discuss official business with me."
Saya hurriedly introduced me, then added, "Schale is a recently established club that has become quite famous throughout Kivotos. Even President Kisaki of Genryumon ought to treat Sensei with proper courtesy… Ah."
Suddenly, as if realizing she had said something wrong, Saya corrected herself. "No—! absolutely do not treat him with proper courtesy—"
But it was probably already too late.
Those Genryumon members showed smiles that somehow filled me with dread.
"Please rest assured."
The one in the lead said, "Since you are such an honored guest, we will of course give you a grand reception with the [Courtesy of Genryumon]!"