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Meanwhile, in the bedroom—
On the large double bed at the center of the room, sheets and pillows had long since been pushed aside. The mattress was now a rumpled mess of wrinkles and creases, as if thoroughly kneaded and pressed back and forth. A faintly humid, indescribable scent lingered gently in the air.
Mio Naruse, who'd just barely drifted back down from heaven, clung tightly to Bokue in a dazed embrace.
Her breathing still hadn't calmed, echoing clearly in the quietness of the room.
"Jerk,"
She mumbled softly, her flushed, overheated cheek pressing against his solid chest. Her full lips—still slick and red from their intimacy—parted slightly to whisper her complaint.
Huh?
Bokue raised an eyebrow, slightly confused as he glanced down.
Yet despite the little accusation slipping from her lips, Mio only pressed herself even closer, tightening her embrace and mumbling again in a tiny, petulant voice.
"So mean,"
Huh??
Bokue's confusion grew.
"Jerk"? "Mean"?
What on earth was she talking about? Just moments ago, wasn't this same girl crying out "You're amazing, Brother-in-law!" and "It feels so good!" nonstop?
Yet now she was suddenly blaming him?
Hey, didn't you ask for this yourself!?
"Hey..." Mio, nestled securely in his arms, raised her head just enough to gaze upward at him, crimson eyes glistening with lingering moisture and emotions. "You still haven't told me why you haven't visited these past few days."
"I already told you," Bokue replied. "I had other things to handle."
"That's exactly what I'm asking about now—what other things!?" Mio pouted stubbornly.
"Oh, right..." Now that she mentioned it, Bokue finally recalled: before dinner, when he'd explained to Mio that he'd already told Maria (but she'd forgotten to pass along the message), the two girls had immediately begun squabbling and the conversation ended there.
He sighed inwardly, mentally face-palming at the misunderstanding.
Deciding to clear things up, he concisely recounted the events of the past week on Itogami Island—including the Warlord's Domain conflict, the Black Death Faction, and their schemes and conspiracies.
Bokue initially expected Mio to show at least a bit of curiosity about these events. However, to his surprise, once he'd finished explaining, the red-haired girl simply murmured a quiet, indifferent "oh," without following up with any further questions.
"You don't have anything else you want to ask about?" Bokue prompted carefully.
"No, not really." Mio's expression turned puzzled at his confusion. "I just wanted to know why you didn't come see me. But all that stuff you said about some domain or the Black Rice Faction—"
"Black Death Faction," Bokue corrected gently.
"Whatever," Mio waved it off sulkily. "Anyway, none of that has anything to do with me."
Yet despite her casual dismissal, her face clearly lacked any sign of happiness. She looked genuinely troubled.
That was strange.
Bokue paused thoughtfully, then reached out to lightly pinch her cheek, still rounded with a hint of lingering baby fat and somewhat reminiscent of Rias.
"What's wrong? Haven't you been enjoying yourself here lately? Did Maria bully you or something?"
"No, it's nothing like that," Mio muttered, gaze lowered as she avoided eye contact. Her voice grew quieter. "It's just things feel different now."
"Different?" Bokue frowned. "How so?"
He couldn't immediately grasp what she meant.
After all, from Bokue's perspective, Mio and Maria's situation had finally settled down. They now had a stable place to stay in Tokyo and were no longer being hunted by enemies.
Granted, that stability relied partly on Sheila's Succubus magic, allowing them to comfortably freeload at this luxurious hotel—but still, it was peace and quiet they hadn't experienced in a long time.
Surely, Mio wasn't saying she actually preferred the constant adrenaline rush of their previous life—always running, hiding, and escaping danger? Did she actually miss that?
No way, right?
Aside from that, the only major difference lately had been...
Suddenly, Sheila's figure flashed vividly through Bokue's mind, and a realization dawned on him.
Ah. Of course—that must be it.
Before all this, Mio and Maria had lived as sisters completely dependent on each other, each one being the only true family for the other. Even if, from Maria's perspective, it was a partially false sisterhood, for Mio it had always been entirely real.
But now, things had changed.
Zolgear was dead. Sheila had been rescued. Maria was finally reunited with her beloved mother.
For Maria, this was undoubtedly the happiest outcome possible. Not only had she escaped Zolgear's control and no longer had to betray her beloved older sister Mio, but she'd even regained her mother, allowing all three of them—Maria, Sheila, and Mio—to settle down peacefully together, complete with a maid, Zest, as a bonus.
However, from Mio's perspective, it was a different story entirely.
To Mio, it must feel as if the family bond she'd worked so hard to regain was being ripped away yet again. She was Maria's sister, yes—but she wasn't Sheila's daughter.
Maria reuniting with Sheila meant their family had truly been restored.
But that family didn't fully include Mio.
It was as if two orphaned siblings who'd always relied solely on each other suddenly encountered a married couple claiming to be the real parents of only one of them. Even if the parents offered to adopt the other sibling as well, that sibling would forever feel a difference.
For the child reunited with parents, everything was perfect. But for the other—now living as an adopted outsider—it would feel lonelier than before.
"I don't really know how to put it into words..." Mio confessed softly, burying her face deeper into Bokue's chest. Her slender shoulders began trembling slightly. "But while you were away these past few days... I just felt anxious, hoping that you might suddenly show up again."
"Even if it meant you just sitting beside me, texting other girls—I'd still have been okay with that,"
Her voice trembled quietly, and Bokue felt a faint warmth spread across his chest as her silent tears began to fall.
"But then you didn't show up at all for days! And... And... I mean, after all, I'm not Maria's real sister, am I?"
"..."
For a moment, Bokue didn't know what to say. Instead, he gently rubbed her smooth back, silently comforting her as best he could.
Creak—
Just then, the door—which should have been securely locked—opened quietly. Maria's familiar voice softly filled the silence.
"So that's how you feel, Mio-sama... I never knew."
"M-Maria?!"
Mio's head whipped around, eyes wide with shock.
Standing at the open doorway was Maria Naruse. But rather than her usual cheerful attire, she'd chosen something significantly more daring tonight.
Gone was the casual wear she typically wore. Instead, Maria now appeared in a sultry, revealing outfit that could only be described as less "Succubus" and more outright "Succubus."
Small pieces of black leather clung tantalizingly to her youthful form, just barely concealing the most critical areas. Particularly notable was her skimpy triangle-shaped underwear, which featured a heart-shaped opening prominently displaying her flat, flawless midriff.
This provocative ensemble accentuated her youthful figure's innocence and maturity all at once, creating an utterly mesmerizing contrast.
Never expecting Maria to suddenly enter at a moment like this, Mio was left momentarily speechless, her thoughts scrambled and chaotic.
Maria simply smiled calmly, raising a finger clad in glossy black gloves to her lips, gently licking them with a mischievous glint.
"What's wrong, Mio-sama~? Surprised to see me like this?"
Then, with eyes sparkling playfully, Maria's smile deepened further.
"So tonight, Mio-sama... why don't we become real sisters in every sense of the word~?"
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