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Morning came.
The golden sun rose over the sea, scattering the last of the island's shadows.
In the southern district of Itogami, inside one of the luxury villas, a certain black-haired girl lay curled beneath her blankets, still sound asleep. Gone was the gothic dress she usually wore, tonight, she'd traded it for soft children's pajamas.
This was Natsuki Minamiya—once the Witch of the Void, now a Senior Attack Mage of the Island Guard, living here in her own villa.
In the past, when her "thought-body" projections did all the work, she never needed rest. This house had stood mostly unused for years.
But now, stripped of that detached existence and living as flesh and blood, she was no different from any other human. She got tired, and she needed sleep.
Which made having a proper place to rest more important than ever.
BEEP—BEEP—BEEP!
Without warning, the phone by her pillow lit up. The shrill alarm cut the morning silence like a knife, the screen reading 7:00 a.m. in glaring digits.
No one could stay asleep through that racket. Not even Natsuki.
"Ugh…"
Her brows pinched, lips parting in a groggy protest.
"Seriously… what time is it? Can't I have five more minutes? Maybe my phone glitched and rang early…"
Mumbling the classic excuse of every professional slacker, she forced her heavy-lidded eyes open. One glance at the screen told her the truth: it really was seven.
"Damn it…"
If this were the old days, she'd never have needed to wake up so early. Sleep was unnecessary for a projection. But the real reason was harsher: she was no longer the Witch of the Void. No more teleporting across Itogami at will.
Now she had to commute like everyone else—bus, train, transfers. And her villa wasn't close. Just the ride to the Security Forces HQ downtown ate up an hour each way.
And even though she was "just human" now, her workload hadn't shrunk. Overtime until midnight was still standard. She wasn't used to this whole sleeping-at-night routine either; last night, she'd tossed and turned until two in the morning before finally passing out.
If not for the alarm, there was no chance she'd be awake now.
"Summer break and I'm already this swamped. When school starts again, I'm going to drop dead at my desk…"
She silenced the alarm and flopped back down with a sigh.
The second her head hit the pillow, a crushing wave of drowsiness rolled in. Her eyelids waged a brief war with each other and lost almost instantly.
"No good… still so tired… maybe I should sleep five more minutes… Just five…"
Kanon would call her for breakfast soon anyway. That would wake her.
Convinced by her own excuse, she let her eyes fall shut, a faint smile of relief on her lips. One second passed. Two. Three. Her mind slipped toward dreamland.
—until she felt a warm, solid chest press against her back.
It was strong. Comforting.
Her body reacted before her mind could. She curled into the warmth instinctively. An arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer, steady and possessive.
Yes… this is fine…
She relaxed into the embrace, about to drift off again, when a cool sensation brushed her thigh. Then lower. Across her backside.
And then—something pressed inside.
"Mm—ghh!"
The black-haired girl's eyes snapped open. Sleep shattered. Her teeth clenched, fingers clawing at the bedsheets. She didn't even have to look. She knew exactly who it was.
"Bokue... what the hell are you—ugh—doing?! If you're that desperate, go bother Yuuma! She'd... hah... gladly entertain you! Just get out of me already!"
"But if I stop now, Natsuki, you'll just fall asleep again."
His voice was calm, maddeningly casual, as he lay pressed against her from behind. His hands slid from her shoulders, easing her down firmly into the mattress.
"Besides, didn't your alarm already ring? If you don't get up, you'll be late for work. They dock your pay for that, don't they?"
"Whose… whose fault do you think that'll be?!"
Her voice broke, words catching as the "progress bar" surged forward. She'd just woken up—and he had the audacity to...
Her protests dissolved into a strangled gasp. The bar that had crawled at seventy percent suddenly leapt to completion, like a game that freezes then jumps to one hundred percent in a single burst.
Her pale throat arched back, taut with shock.
Bokue rolled onto his back, pulling her with him. Her small frame turned too, settling against his chest, her head pillowed on him as though they'd been positioned that way all along.
His voice rumbled low against her ear.
"Relax. It's just temporary. I'll restore your strength later. But… wouldn't it be easier if you moved into Keystone Gate? Closer to work."
"…No… way…" she forced the words out through gritted teeth.
"Fair enough."
He chuckled softly, gripping her shoulders again. And then, without hesitation, started adjusting her "progress bar" all over again.
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