Time: 23:24.
After watching Kikyō return to her dorm, Houtarou prepared for bed.
As compensation for her betrayal of Class D, he helped cover for her by informing Suzune that the trap set for Ryūen had worked. Since it was a trap from the beginning, Suzune hadn't specifically considered which classmate would steal the key.
After all, she too was working alone. So whatever happened to Class D... that was normal, right?
His thoughts from the day soon manifested in his dreams. After falling asleep, Houtarou found himself dreaming about Kikyō and Suzune.
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{T/N: Precognitive Dream.}
"I'll be back in three days." Suzune said.
The dream was set ten years in the future.
After graduating from Advanced Nurturing High School, Suzune had pursued her education and become a lawyer. She had built an excellent reputation defending the poor at affordable rates.
Perhaps as a reward for her good deeds, in the fourth and fifth years of marriage, she had given birth to twin daughters: Rinrin and Nene.
Before leaving for her business trip, Suzune handed him a "special cup".
"Though I don't quite understand it myself, I thought you might feel lonely, so please make do with this for now."
She said this with slightly reddened cheeks.
So even in the future, after marriage, she would still look after him this way?
Houtarou thought she was worrying too much. He wasn't that dramatic — having been single for 18 years, three days would pass easily. Three days without a girl around wouldn't feel like anything special.
Besides, that kind of thing wouldn't be comfortable anyway. So he accepted the gift but didn't use it.
However...
"About our kids..." Houtarou seemed to struggle with handling the "children problems" (their infinite hunger and energy, to be exact).
"Kushida will come over later." Suzune said.
Kikyō, huh.
After seeing his wife off, Houtarou stayed in the yard.
The two children were also there. Both daughters were as beautiful as their mother, with long black hair and delicate features. Their pupils, however, were like his — a dark green color.
This was the Oreki Family trademark. He remembered his sister had the same eye color.
The children were playing with sand. Worried about outside dirt, a special area had been designated in the yard specifically for them.
This was quite challenging for him — sitting to the side, watching them dig over thirty small holes. Yet because his daughters were cute, watching them wasn't boring.
"Oh my... So you're watching the kids today..."
While Houtarou was lost in thought, a woman's voice came from outside the yard.
Upon hearing it, Rinrin and Nene rushed to the gate before he could.
"It's Auntie Kushida—no, Big Sister Kushida~"
"Presents~"
The children were clearly familiar with her. They'd been taught to call young, pretty ladies "big sister" instead of "auntie".
Adult Suzune had softened her severity, gaining sophistication in its place.
And adult Kikyō... Hmm. Her long hair gave her a refreshingly new look.
"Hehe. I knew you two little ones would like these. I brought snacks and new toys." Kikyō said.
She handled children with natural skill.
Following Suzune's request to watch the children, she played with them, shared snacks, and soon had them tucked in for sleep.
Being a gentleman, Houtarou prepared tea for her.
"Thank you for your trouble." He said.
"What trouble?" Kikyō said, "Children are troublesome, yes, but they're also easy to handle."
Ah. You're still the same — making such likability-reducing comments right to his face.
"Well then, let's begin..." But she showed no interest in the tea.
"Hmm?"
"Of course we should do something meaningful." She tilted her head, "By the way, is Horikita's sleepwear still in the third cabinet? I checked but couldn't find it."
"I washed it last night — it's hanging on the balcony." Houtarou said.
"Oh, then I'll go get it." Kikyō said.
"Get it now?"
"Yes." She gave him an odd look, "Why else would I come over if not to wear Horikita's clothes and sleep with her man?"
Houtarou: "..."
?? Eh?
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The dream's impropriety jolted Houtarou awake.
The clock by his bed showed 3:39.
"Mmm—"
Unable to fall back asleep, he sat up clutching his blanket.
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8:30 AM.
According to the exam rules, students were allowed to discuss the VIP exam daily from 9-10 AM and 9-10 PM.
Due to his outrageous dream from the previous night, Houtarou had woken up early and couldn't fall back asleep. He arrived early at Room 204, the Rabbit Group room.
His well-trained instincts immediately sensed someone inside as he stood at the door.
Houtarou saw Honami, an exceptionally pretty girl, lying asleep on the floor inside.
Though the ship's wooden floor was clean enough, that wasn't the immediate concern — her short skirt position was rather compromising.
Could he see under it? He could... No, he shouldn't entertain such thoughts.
But he had seen it — blue and white.
Houtarou blamed his sleep-deprived state for fixating on Honami like this, though what he'd seen couldn't be unseen.
Should he wake her up?
No, that didn't seem right. She wasn't in any danger — probably just arrived early and dozed off after breakfast.
Class B had been through a lot lately with the island exam, and this current test was equally demanding. She'd already been caught in the rain once before. With no achievements yet in this exam, the pressure must be intense — perhaps affecting her sleep.
After entering, Houtarou remained completely still, knowing that even the slightest sound could wake a light sleeper.
Yet his deepening relationship with Kikyō must have changed him somehow. What started as considerate behavior — staying quiet to let Honami sleep — had led to something else.
Standing there silently, he couldn't help but notice her smooth, beautiful legs. She really was cute, wasn't she?
He had to acknowledge her status as this year's most attractive student.
Some people might sleep so deeply that they wouldn't notice being touched... No, that's wrong.
Houtarou felt that his recent accidental glimpses of Suzune's and Kikyō's intimate moments had affected him strangely. Even now, he found himself distracted by Honami's sleeping form, admiring her graceful legs and fighting an inappropriate urge to touch them.
"So I'm saying..." A voice suddenly drifted in from the hallway.
Someone was coming?
"Ichinose-san!" Worried about her compromising position, Houtarou rushed to wake her.
"So that drama was super interesting—"
The voice belonged to students passing by Room 204, their conversation and footsteps fading into the distance.
They had walked right past.
"Hmm?" Honami stirred awake, "Ah, Oreki-kun... why are you in my room?"
"Room? Ichinose-san, you must be still half-asleep. This is the exam venue." Houtarou said.
"Ah!" Her face flushed red, "So you mean I fell asleep here?"
"Probably."
As they spoke, Kōji from Class A stepped into the room. True to his Class A nature, upon seeing Houtarou and Honami talking on the floor, he sensed he might be intruding and quickly stepped out.
His brief appearance had fully roused Honami from her sleep.
More students arrived shortly after, and with the school's broadcast announcement, the Rabbit Group began their third meeting.
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