"Sora-kun, can you speak?"
"..."
Sora remained silent.
Although he could hear Angel-sama speaking, he couldn't even blink his eyes, let alone open his mouth to respond.
"Since that's the case... excuse me..."
Mahiru's pearly white teeth gently bit her delicate lips. A crimson flush flowed across her pretty face. She took a deep breath, opened her arms, and gently embraced Sora.
Thump-thump, thump-thump.
In the deathly still time-stopped world.
The girl's rapid heartbeat was exceptionally clear.
"D-Don't beat so fast..." Mahiru's pretty face was burning hot, and she couldn't help but pray silently in her heart. "He'll definitely hear it, right?"
Having such a rapid heartbeat heard by a boy felt super embarrassing.
Unfortunately, the prayer was useless.
Mahiru was completely unable to control her heart rate. She could only try her best to endure the shame, maintaining the embracing posture to conduct reverse mana replenishment.
A moment later.
Sora suddenly felt he could breathe through his nose again. The girl's faint fragrance quietly drifted into his nose, exceptionally tranquil and elegant.
Following that, his eyes, which felt as if they had been solidified by glue, could finally blink.
Finally, his mouth opened and closed, producing a sound:
"Mahiru-san..."
Sora's gaze fell, looking at Angel-sama in his embrace. "It seems I can speak."
"..."
Mahiru's body trembled slightly as if electrified. She quickly broke away from Sora's embrace and stepped back several paces before finally stopping in embarrassment. She turned her pretty face away and apologized in a small voice:
"I'm sorry. After activating Time Stop, Sora-kun was completely unable to speak. I remembered the experience on the train on Monday, so... anyway, I'm very sorry."
"There's no need to apologize," Sora complained. "If the boys at school knew, they would definitely be dying to take my place."
"Mmm..."
Mahiru puffed her pink cheeks slightly.
If it were any other boy, I definitely wouldn't hug them!
Seeing Angel-sama glaring affectionately in dissatisfaction, Sora decisively changed the subject: "Bring the phone over, let me see if there are any hidden folders."
"Okay..."
Mahiru took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing her surging sense of shame. With a blushing pretty face, she stepped forward and held the phone up in front of Sora:
"Can Sora-kun see clearly?"
"I can see clearly, it's just that my body still can't move." Sora tried to move his body, but unfortunately, there was no reaction. "I'll have to guide you, and Mahiru-san will be responsible for operating the phone."
"No problem." Mahiru nodded gently. "Let's begin."
"First, find the video player app. Many apps nowadays have a playback history..."
"Is it this app?"
"That's right."
"History... Hmm, there's nothing inside."
"If there's nothing, it can only prove one thing," Sora's tone was deep. "And that is that he actively deleted the history."
"Eh?"
"There's highly likely something shady on his phone, otherwise there'd be no need to delete the history."
"That sounds like it makes some sense..."
"..."
A moment later.
Under Sora's guidance, Mahiru finally clumsily unlocked the hidden folder on the phone.
"There really is a hidden folder." Angel-sama's voice carried a hint of pleasant surprise. "Shall I click play?"
The next second.
An indescribably terrible sound abruptly rang out in the deathly still time-stopped world.
"W-What is this..."
Mahiru blankly widened her beautiful eyes. Looking at the terrible images on the phone, her pretty face instantly flushed red at a speed visible to the naked eye. After snapping back to reality, she quickly and shamefully threw the phone away, as if the phone were some untouchable, filthy object.
"Lewd!"
"Simply... simply too lewd!"
Even Yamada Elf says 'idiot' and 'pervert' when cursing people. You only repeat the word 'lewd' over and over again. You don't even know how to properly curse someone!
"Calm down." Sora coughed softly twice. "Many boys have unspeakable things hidden on their phones, it's very normal."
Mahiru furrowed her delicate eyebrows, biting her lower lip as she looked over: "Does Sora-kun also have those kind of... lewd videos on your phone?"
"I don't." Sora answered with absolute righteousness; a clear conscience fears no false accusations. "Mahiru-san is welcome to check my phone. If there are things like that, I will eat the phone."
Their eyes met.
Looking into Sora's unevasive, bright eyes, Mahiru quickly chose to believe him:
"Now... what do we do?"
"Our goal is to find the cat abuse videos." Sora coughed lightly twice. "So we have to keep looking."
"No!"
Mahiru quickly turned her pretty face away, refusing without hesitation.
Such a lewd video, I absolutely don't want to look at it a second time! I feel like my whole being has been polluted!
"Perhaps there's another way." Sora pondered for two seconds and suggested, "Since Mahiru-san was able to restore my ability to speak, if you hug me a little longer, maybe it can restore my ability to move?"
"Eh..."
"If I can move, I'll be the one to inspect the phone."
"..."
Faced with Sora's proposal, Mahiru couldn't help but feel her heart flutter. After hesitating for a few seconds, she quickly made up her mind.
She absolutely didn't want to look at such filthy things on the phone ever again, so...
"I can only let Sora-kun inspect it."
Mahiru stepped forward with a blushing face, comforting herself in her heart:
We've already hugged anyway, so there's no difference between one minute and three minutes. Besides, doing this is to protect those innocent little lives...
Having prepared herself mentally, Mahiru gently bit her lower lip and once again softly embraced Sora.
"Mahiru-san..."
"Don't speak, keep quiet. If you can move, tell me immediately."
"Yes, yes."
"..."
Mahiru originally thought the second hug would be even more embarrassing. Unexpectedly, not long after embracing again, her heartbeat inexplicably calmed down instead.
In the completely silent time-stopped world, the two embraced quietly, as if everything else in the world had receded into the distance, leaving only them as the sole existence in the void.
"Sora-kun's scent..."
Mahiru could clearly smell a faint scent of sweat drifting into her nose, but inexplicably she didn't hate it. There was also a faint scent of sunlight and grass, making her involuntarily want more.
Time quietly slipped by amidst the girl's bewilderment.
She didn't know how long it had been, but Mahiru finally couldn't help breaking the silence: "Sora-kun, can you move now?"
Sora's voice was full of righteousness: "Mahiru-san, you can reach out and touch me."
"Eh?"
Mahiru's cheeks abruptly puffed up, her bright eyes glaring over in embarrassment and anger.
"I mean my chest, don't let your imagination run wild." Sora's expression didn't change. "Although my brain can think and my mouth can speak, my heart is clearly not beating."
"It does seem like I can't hear a heartbeat..."
Mahiru hesitated for two seconds. She extended her right hand and gently pressed it against Sora's chest.
Hey, hey, you actually touched it?
The trust between people is gone!