Splash.
Warm water cascaded from the showerhead, quickly washing away the fatigue from his body.
"Finally over..."
Izumi Sora exhaled softly in satisfaction.
He didn't want to think about the future for the time being. Right now, he just wanted to take a nice, long shower and then get a good night's sleep.
As everyone knows, boys shower quickly because there are only two key areas to wash.
Izumi Sora was naturally no exception.
Just as he was earnestly scrubbing, a ripple like a water wave suddenly appeared in the air, followed by a figure half-crouching on the ground appearing out of thin air.
"...Ruri?"
Seeing Kuroneko suddenly appear in front of him, Izumi Sora was instantly shocked.
What's going on?
Did Mahiru activate Time Stop?
Why didn't I feel anything at all?
"Eh...?"
Gokou Ruri looked up blankly, clearly also unsure of what had happened.
It wasn't until her bewildered gaze fell upon Izumi Sora that Kuroneko's eyes abruptly widened. Her pretty face flushed crimson at a speed visible to the naked eye. Flustered, she averted her small face and shouted in embarrassment:
"P-Pervert Sora! What are you doing in the bathroom?!"
"I'm not doing anything." Izumi Sora hurriedly raised his hands, quickly explaining, "I'm just taking a shower."
"Liar! You're clearly d-doing... lewd!"
"I really am not, boys always wash it when they shower, alright."
Gokou Ruri's small face was burning hot. She didn't dare to look at him at all, her words somewhat incoherent:
"Idiot idiot idiot! If you dirty the bathroom, Mom will find out... If you really can't hold it in, at least... at least go to my room..."
I told you it's a misunderstanding! I'm really just washing it normally, alright! And saying the bathroom is a no-go, but your room is fine, that's way too generous!
Izumi Sora quickly grabbed a towel, covered his body, and then changed the subject:
"...Speaking of which, why did Ruri suddenly appear in the bathroom?"
"I don't know." Gokou Ruri's small face was completely red, almost ready to drip blood. She turned her head away, not daring to look at him. "I just bent down to pick something up, and when I looked up, I saw Sora... Could it be Mahiru?"
Faced with the sudden spatial shift, Kuroneko also immediately thought of Mahiru's Time Stop.
"It shouldn't be." Izumi Sora shook his head.
Angel-sama had a gentle and quiet personality and didn't like playing pranks. She definitely wouldn't pull a prank like suddenly throwing Kuroneko into the bathroom.
Izumi Sora had a thought. He turned and walked to the bathroom door, reaching out to give it a gentle pull:
"The door is still locked from the inside. Even if Mahiru activated Time Stop, she wouldn't be able to lock it from the inside."
Gokou Ruri furrowed her delicate eyebrows gently, her tone suspicious:
"Could it be Pervert Sora?"
Izumi Sora was expressionless: "If it were me, Ruri would be teary-eyed and crying for help right now."
"Ptooey~"
Kuroneko's small face was burning hot, and she couldn't help but spit lightly.
Teary-eyed?
And crying for help?
What does Pervert Sora want to do to me!
Izumi Sora pondered for two seconds and suddenly thought of a possibility:
"It might be related to the magic core I absorbed earlier."
"Eh?"
"That magic core was actually spatial-type. Absorbing it rashly might very likely cause rejection and conflict with my original magic power..." The more Izumi Sora thought about it, the more likely it seemed. "Ruri suddenly appearing in the bathroom has nothing to do with Mahiru. It's highly likely a 'teleportation' caused by the side effect of the magic power."
"We can talk about that later..."
Gokou Ruri pursed her pink, moist lips, her small face flushed red:
"I'm going out first. Pervert Sora, bury what just happened in the Mariana Trench, you're not allowed to tell anyone!"
Izumi Sora shook his head gently:
"I have to tell everyone what just happened."
"W-What?"
Gokou Ruri looked over in shock.
Such an embarrassing thing, how can you have the nerve to tell others!
Izumi Sora said seriously:
"A side effect that can make people teleport is quite dangerous. This time it was teleporting into the bathroom, but what if you suddenly teleported high into the air? No matter how you think about it, it's too dangerous."
"..."
Hearing this, Gokou Ruri instantly understood the severity of the situation:
"Then tell everyone... Anyway, I'm going out first."
Just as she was about to sneak away, footsteps suddenly sounded in the living room.
Followed by Yanami's voice:
"Eh, where's Ruri-chan?"
"Oh no..."
Gokou Ruri involuntarily stopped in her tracks.
If Yanami catches me, I won't be able to wash myself clean even if I jump into the Yellow River, right?
There was no other way.
Gokou Ruri could only turn her head and cast a pleading look at Izumi Sora:
"Pervert Sora, quickly use your Time Stop to think of something."
Izumi Sora complained in a low voice:
"I'm just a useless mortal, I can't be of help to Lord Witch of the Night."
Kuroneko: "..."
After glaring at Izumi Sora in embarrassment and anger, Kuroneko could only hide behind the door and wait for an opportunity. Then she heard the sound of splashing water behind her again.
What?
He actually started washing again?
I'm still in the bathroom!
Gokou Ruri's small face was burning hot. She suddenly remembered that the reason she got trapped in the bizarre subway was because she was blocked in the bathroom by Sagiri.
After fleeing in embarrassment, she forgot about the danger of the subway station... So it really is all Pervert Sora's fault!
Fortunately, the footsteps outside quietly faded away before long.
"Yanami should have gone back..."
Gokou Ruri quietly breathed a sigh of relief, quickly opened the door, and slipped out of the bathroom.
The next second.
Kuroneko's raised right foot froze abruptly in mid-air.
On the sofa sat a blonde loli, who happened to turn her head and look over.
Their eyes met.
White steam rapidly billowed from the top of Kuroneko's head, and she felt so ashamed she wanted to hide in a cardboard box.
Why... why is Elf out here!
It's so late, hurry up and go back to your room to sleep!
"Eh, why is Ruri-chan coming out of the bathroom?"
Yamada Elf looked over curiously, a look of sudden realization quickly appearing on her small face:
"I know, Ruri-chan is repaying a favor, just like the Snail Maiden, expressing gratitude to Sora by scrubbing his back?"
Gokou Ruri: "..."
It's not repaying a favor! It's the side effect of magic power backlash!
And the Snail Maiden only helped clean the house, she didn't help scrub backs, alright!
Gokou Ruri took a deep breath, her small face completely red:
"Elf, listen to my explanation, it's not what you think!"
"No need to explain, I understand." Yamada Elf wasn't jealous. "I will take responsibility for keeping the secret."
Gokou Ruri: "...There's no need to keep it a secret!"
As they spoke, footsteps sounded again. Yanami walked over from the hallway:
"Ruri-chan, I need you for something."
Gokou Ruri covered her cheeks, a resentful 'I'm tired, let's just destroy everything' expression on her small face:
"What is it?"
"I wanted to ask Ruri-chan if there's any hot water." Yanami clasped her hands together, looking over expectantly. "After taking a shower, I suddenly felt super hungry and wanted to eat cup noodles."
Elf nodded in agreement: "I'm hungry too."
"Wait a moment." Gokou Ruri silently turned around. "I'll go boil a pot of hot water."
When the water boiled, Izumi Sora happened to come out from his shower. He then saw the girls sitting in the living room, not a single one missing.
"Sora, Sora~"
Yanami Anna raised her right hand, her smile bright and radiant:
"We're just about to make cup noodles, do you want to eat with us?"
Izumi Sora was indeed a bit hungry, so he strode over:
"I do."
"Hehehe~" Yanami hummed smugly, quickly tearing open a cup noodle. "I told you Sora would definitely want to eat too... The cup noodles will take a while, let's eat some snacks first."
Shiina Mahiru gently pursed her beautiful lips:
"It's already very late, eating too much will make us gain weight, right?"
"Don't worry, Mahiru, these are non-fried potato chips." Yanami Anna gave a thumbs-up, smiling brightly. "They don't contain oil, you won't get fat no matter how much you eat."
Hearing this, Izumi Sora looked up at Yanami, who was happily munching on the chips crunch crunch, and faintly revealed the truth:
"Non-fried doesn't mean oil-free. It actually means mixing a large amount of oil into the potato powder beforehand. The energy it provides is even higher than fried potato chips."
"Eh?"
Yanami suddenly felt the potato chips in her hand weren't as appealing anymore.
Kuroneko even silently withdrew her hand.
"I'll save the potato chips for tomorrow." Yanami put down the potato chips and picked up a bag of vegetable and fruit crisps. "These vegetable and fruit crisps taste super good, they definitely don't have many calories, right?"
Izumi Sora was expressionless as he said:
"The so-called vegetable and fruit crisps are actually soaked in sugar water and then vacuum-fried at low temperatures to set their shape. They contain sugar oil and the oil absorbed during frying. They can be considered calorie bombs, with even more calories than cup noodles."
Yanami: "...These snacks are inedible!"
Yamada Elf tilted her head and looked over, her voice crisp:
"Sora, fig shreds are okay to eat, right?"
Izumi Sora looked at Elf: "Fig shreds are okay to eat, but they have absolutely nothing to do with figs. Real figs have a short ripening period, are hard to preserve, and have a short harvesting time. Fig shreds are actually radish shreds."
Yamada Elf: "..."
Damn it! I've been lied to!
Before long, the cup noodles were ready one after another.
The girls put away the snacks and started eating cup noodles together.
Izumi Sora looked at Kuroneko, asking with his eyes:
"Should you tell them, or should I?"
Gokou Ruri's small face grew slightly hot, choosing to take the initiative herself:
"Umm... I have something to tell everyone."
"What does Ruri-chan want to say?"
The girls all looked up.
"Just now, the phenomenon of spatial teleportation suddenly occurred on me. It should be the side effect of the magic power we absorbed in the subway."
Elf was straightforward:
"No wonder Ruri-chan came out of the bathroom."
Kuroneko: "..."
Please hurry up and forget about that!
"Teleportation?" Yanami Anna's eyes lit up. "Sounds super amazing."
Izumi Sora interlaced his fingers and looked at Yanami:
"It's actually more dangerous than you imagine."
"That's right." Angel-sama nodded gently, also realizing the danger involved. "If you suddenly teleported into the middle of the street, no matter how you look at it, it's very bad."
Yanami Anna imagined that scenario and couldn't help but get nervous:
"That wouldn't happen, right?"
"Better safe than sorry. We currently don't know the exact mechanism of the spatial teleportation." Izumi Sora said seriously. "So for the next period, we must purify the magic power once a day to prevent accidents... starting right now."
Yanami Anna hurriedly extended her right hand:
"Sora, I'm counting on you."
Yamada Elf's voice was curious:
"Besides invisibility, I haven't felt like I can teleport."
Shiina Mahiru said softly:
"It's probably because we absorbed less magic power... How about you, Sora-kun?"
Izumi Sora closed his eyes to sense it: "I can indeed sense a special power in my body, but the specific effects are still unclear."
"It's already very late, let's verify it tomorrow." Angel-sama raised her right hand, tucking a stray hair behind her ear, revealing her snow-white, delicate earlobe. "Let's purify the magic power first, then everyone should get some rest."
The magic power purification was complete.
Everyone quickly washed their faces and brushed their teeth, then headed to their rooms.
Kuroneko went to her parents' master bedroom, while Izumi Sora and the others went to Kuroneko's room.
The futons and pillows had already been laid out on the tatami mats, ready for sleep at any time.
The lights were turned off.
The room plunged into darkness.
Angel-sama's gentle voice rang out:
"Goodnight, everyone."
"Goodnight."
"Goodnight~"
"..."
The night passed without words.
The next day.
Izumi Sora, awakened by his biological clock, opened his eyes right on time.
His physical constitution had already broken through the human limit. Just a few hours of rest had completely restored his energy and spirit.
"Sora-kun, good morning..."
Hearing the movement, Mahiru groggily opened her eyes. Having just woken up, Angel-sama's voice was soft, glutinous, and exceptionally cute.
"Good morning." Izumi Sora turned his head to look. "It's already 7:00 AM, time to get up."
"Okay..."
Shiina Mahiru agreed softly and softly, pulling back the covers and sitting up.
Because she had just woken up, Angel-sama's pajamas weren't very neat. The collar was slightly open, faintly revealing a glimpse of snow-white, rounded curves. Even the bravest sailor would probably drown in it.
Noticing Izumi Sora's gaze, Angel-sama's pretty face flushed red. She hurriedly raised her hand to cover her chest, her bright eyes glaring affectionately and shyly:
"Sora-kun, you get up and go wash up first."
Izumi Sora averted his gaze, feeling slightly guilty:
"I'll calm down for a bit first."
"Eh?"
Angel-sama tilted her head in confusion. Her gaze shifted downward, and after seeing a certain spot, she quickly understood what he meant. She rapidly turned her flushed pretty face away:
"Lewd."
"It's just a normal physiological phenomenon..."
"Don't say it."
"..."
After calming down, Izumi Sora got up and left the room.
Angel-sama breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly woke Yanami and Elf up.
When everyone had finished washing up, Mrs. Gokou had already prepared breakfast, which could be considered quite lavish.
After breakfast, Izumi Sora and the girls quickly took their leave.
Today wasn't a day off; they still had to go back to school.
"We have to go back and change clothes first." Yamada Elf put her hands on her hips, wearing one of Kuroneko's dresses. "If we don't have our school uniforms, we'll be stopped by the disciplinary committee at the school gate."
Angel-sama furrowed her delicate eyebrows, calculating the time: "Going back to change clothes now, and then taking the train to the academy, we'll probably be late... We should call the teacher to let them know first."
At this moment, Izumi Sora suddenly spoke up:
"If I teleport you guys back, we won't be late."
"Eh?"
The girls all looked over in surprise and curiosity.
"The ability analysis is complete. I now possess the ability to teleport..." Izumi Sora extended his hands. "So we just need to teleport back."