"W-wait…"
Nina's voice was as thin as a mosquito's buzz.
My hand stopped on the door handle, and I turned slightly to face her.
"Something else?"
"I… I can't get up…"
She leaned against the wall with one hand while her other hand rested weakly on the edge of the sink, and her burned leg was curled slightly, afraid to put any weight on it.
"The wound… the wound is really high up, so… so I have to sit on the sink to rinse it… but I don't have any strength…"
As she finished speaking, the calm she'd been forcing held together until it finally shattered into a helpless, crying tone.
I assessed the situation in silence.
She was right. The burn was on her inner thigh, close to the top.
Standing at the sink would make the water hit at the wrong angle, and it would soak her other leg too.
The most effective way was to sit on the counter.
But for a girl who was hurt and still shaking from shock, that height was definitely too much to manage on her own.
"Men and women should keep their distance."
I explained, "If I lift you up, then later… you'll have to take your pants off too."
It was a statement, not a question.
I laid out the awkward reality she'd have to face if she wanted the problem solved.
"Huh? I… I…"
Her pale face flushed bright red again at my words, even brighter than when the coffee hit her.
She looked down fast and stared at her shoes while fidgeting.
She clearly understood everything I was implying.
In the cramped room, the only sounds were the drip of the faucet I hadn't fully closed and the soft, hurried whimpers she made to hold back the pain.
Just when I thought she'd give up or ask me to call an ambulance, she spoke in a voice so low it was almost silent, offering a new solution.
"You can use scissors…"
With a flushed face and a muffled voice, Nina said, "Just cut the fabric open. Then… then I won't have to take them off…"
That suggestion surprised me a little.
But it also meant I'd have to use metal scissors near a soft, sensitive part of her body.
The risk and difficulty were way higher than just lifting her up.
She read my hesitation as something else.
Her tear-filled eyes looked straight at me, and she couldn't hold back the sob in her voice anymore. "Please…"
Her shaky, desperate tone made her look like a beauty pushed to the edge, fragile and broken.
"It really hurts…"
I frowned.
Faced with this mix of innocence and temptation, and that pity-me look, I didn't feel anything except annoyance.
Why does trouble always have to stick to me?
"Sorry, I…"
"I can pay you. Please, Bro."
Hmm?
My brows smoothed out.
If you're talking money, then why didn't you say so earlier? I'll help you, no problem.
"Okay."
I dropped one word, light and flat, breaking the deadlock.
When she heard my answer, hope sparked in her teary, beautiful eyes.
She nodded messy and fast, like a small animal grabbing onto a lifeline.
I walked up to her, bent down like I was picking up cargo, and signaled for her to cooperate.
"Arm around my neck."
Nina obeyed and reached out.
Her slim arm looped around my neck and rested on my shoulder.
Her hand was cold, and slightly damp from nervous sweat.
I didn't hold her waist. Instead, I kept one hand steady on her back and used the other to support the bend of her uninjured leg.
Even through the fabric, I could feel the soft spring of her skin where I touched.
Just as I was about to lift.
The cold, mechanical system voice rang in my head.
[Ding]
[Detected valid intimate physical contact with potential Thought Source]
[Target identification in progress…]
[Target: Nina Quinn.]
[Identity: First-year student at Mistvale Girls' School.]
[Traits: Science Genius, Mistvale Physics Competition Champion, Top 10 in City for Math, Physics, and Chemistry]
[Select this target as Thought Source? Countdown: 30 seconds.]
The text scrolled line by line across my vision.
Science Genius?
My movement paused for a split second.
I glanced at the girl in my arms, who had her eyes squeezed shut from pain and shyness, tears still hanging on her long lashes.
She looked pretty and cute, the kind of soft, cotton-candy girl who blushed just from a compliment. But she was a top-tier science genius?
Really… you can't judge a book by its cover.
The thought flashed by in an instant.
There wasn't much time left to choose.
The system's countdown kept ticking, reminding me I didn't have time to waste.
I'd been stressing about how to get close to Runa or Seraphina.
I didn't expect the best solution to deliver itself to my door in such a random way.
[Select Nina]
I gave the command in my mind.
At the same time, Nina felt incredibly ashamed of this overly intimate princess carry.
Her white teeth bit down hard on her glossy lower lip, and in the dim light, that unconscious action radiated extreme shyness and silent temptation.
I didn't pay any extra attention to it.
My arms exerted steady force, and I easily lifted her light body.
Careful to avoid her injured thigh, I set her gently onto the waist-high sink counter.
The cold ceramic seeped through her thin clothes, making her tremble again.
Once she was steady, she let go immediately.
Her arms braced awkwardly on either side of her body, and she kept her head down, afraid to look at me.
I extended my index finger.
Through the dark fabric soaked in hot coffee, I pressed lightly on the edge of the burn area on her inner thigh.
"Here? Or here?"
"Mmh… a… a little higher…"
She stammered, and her cheeks turned so red they looked like they were about to bleed.
guided by her, I finally pinpointed the exact range of the burn.
The area was larger than I expected, and the location was definitely awkward.
It reached right up to the root of her thigh.
I took the office scissors used for opening packages from the shelf nearby.
After carefully wiping the blades with an alcohol pad, I bent down.
"Don't move."
The tip of the scissors lifted the fabric of her pants, and with a snip, I cut a small opening.
Sharp metal was only a hair's breadth from her skin.
My cutting was steady and slow.
Snip, snip…
The sound of the scissors opening and closing was magnified in the silence.
The soaked dark fabric split open inch by inch in my hands, going up, and further up, gradually approaching that mysterious triangular zone.
The moment the red, scalded skin was exposed to the air…
My eyes inevitably caught the flash of spring scenery hidden in the shadows at the edge of the cloth.
Black. Lace trim.
With a bold, sexy, semi-transparent floral pattern.
The underwear style was daring and mature, forming an incredibly strong contrast with her innocent, little-white-flower vibe.
Hmm…
You can't judge a book by its cover.
That phrase echoed in my mind again, in a totally new and deeper way.
Nina clearly realized where my gaze had paused.
She clamped her legs together in a panic, and her already red face looked like it was about to steam.
"Lilu Bro… d-don't look…"
Her soft, bone-melting tone turned purely shy and panicked.
Mist filled her eyes again, making her look like she was going to cry the next second.
"Sorry." I looked away.
Three years of the talent curse loop had long ground all my physical desires into a barren desert.
Faced with a scene that would make any normal guy's blood pump, my emotions stayed calm, and I just felt sleepy.
I set the scissors aside.
I turned on the faucet and adjusted the flow to medium.
I didn't let the water hit the burn directly.
Instead, I held my palm up to catch the cold tap water.
Buffered by my hand, the water flow became much gentler.
I let it sprinkle continuously over the red, swollen skin in a dispersed way.
The flowing tap water carried away the burning sting.
Nina's tense body finally relaxed.
A tempting, comfortable moan slipped from her lips.
"Mmh-ngh~"
That sound was really easy for anyone listening to misunderstand.
I felt speechless inside.
But on the outside, I kept my posture and spoke up to remind her.
"If it feels uncomfortable, or if the water is too cold, say so."