When I woke up naturally, it was already afternoon.
Praise Schale's flexible working system, which lets me freely arrange my work and rest time. When the GSC President returns to Kivotos someday, I will definitely repay her properly!
After getting up and washing up, the first thing I did was thank Tsubaki for helping me fall asleep, but I did not receive a reply. Judging from the time and her habits, she was probably taking a nap.
Next, as usual, I logged into the Shittim Chest to listen to the work briefing from my little secretary, Arona.
Inside the mysterious space of the Shittim Chest, my physical sensations were almost perfectly synchronized with the outside world.
The sea breeze brushed my cheeks with a faint salty scent, the sunlight shining on my body was warm and comfortable, the strawberry milk in my mouth was sweet and delicious, and Arona's tearful little punches landing on me were neither painful nor itchy.
Drinking down the strawberry milk that was very clearly offered voluntarily by Arona in one go, I tasted a rich sweetness, but the emptiness in my stomach did not lessen in the slightest.
The conclusion I reached was that this was probably not some other world, but a virtual space created using some extremely advanced VR technology.
After hastily comprehending a shallow portion of Kotama's authority and receiving a bit of science education, I developed, for the first time, the desire to explore the true nature of this mysterious space.
Unfortunately, Arona did not seem to be some student trapped in another dimension who called herself an AI. She really was just a silly AI.
After slightly satisfying my curiosity and easily coaxing Arona with more sweets, I returned to reality.
Rubbing my completely empty stomach, I planned to go downstairs to the convenience store to buy something to eat first, then decide on today's schedule.
But just as I reached the boundary between the residential area and the office area, my phone notified me that there was a new visitor.
Generally speaking, there are four ways to enter Schale.
First, as a registered on-duty student, you can open a dedicated app and scan a code with your phone.
This is the most common method.
Second, by entering an extremely complicated password.
As an emergency measure for special situations, the first time it was ever actually used was when Shiroko guessed the password to use Schale as a place to take shelter.
Third, a direct armed intrusion.
Aside from Yukino, there has yet to be a second case.
Fourth, sending a visit request and having someone open the door for you.
What I was seeing now was the fourth method, and also the rarest one.
If it were a student who did not know me at all and needed to commission a task from Schale, they would usually contact me by email. If it were a student who already knew me and came to visit, they would basically always contact me directly on MomoTalk.
I pulled up the surveillance footage. After clearly seeing the appearance of the quiet girl patiently waiting at Schale's entrance, I froze for a moment, then checked the chat log from when I had just woken up.
Mimori: Sensei, I heard it from Tsubaki.
Mimori: Even when Tsubaki was almost done with night patrol, you still had not rested.
Mimori: Were you really that busy…?
Me: It is only occasional. Thank you for your concern.
Mimori: I see… I understand.
Mimori: This is quite a serious situation…
Mimori: As a member of the Inner Discipline Club, I must do something about it.
After that, Mimori did not reply again.
At the time, I only had two thoughts.
One was that Tsubaki also did night patrols. The other was that Mimori was worried about me, so I really did have a place in her heart.
After that, I did not think too much about it. I simply held onto my expectations, thinking that the girl who dreamed of becoming a Yamato Nadeshiko would take action in the near future.
I did not expect her to have such high execution power. Less than an hour after saying that, she had already come to Schale.
Recalling the straight-line distance between Schale and Hyakkiyako, I suddenly began to wonder whether Mimori had been waiting near D.U. ever since she heard from Tsubaki that I was having trouble sleeping.
In any case, I hurried to the main entrance to welcome Mimori.
A moment later, I greeted the beautiful girl with pink hair and blue eyes whom I had not seen in a long time.
"Good afternoon, Mimori. If you were coming, you could have just told me on MomoTalk, you know."
Hi. Wifey. I silently recited this in my heart at the same time.
"Hehe. Good day, Sensei." Mimori smiled as she greeted me, then explained, "When visiting for the first time, one must be reserved and courteous to demonstrate sufficient sincerity."
I nodded with admiration. "As expected of a Yamato Nadeshiko."
So when are you going to marry me?
Mimori denied it. "Sensei, you jest. I am still far from having trained to that level."
This kind of ambiguous answer really made it hard to tell whether Mimori could read minds or not.
But regardless of the answer, it did not hinder me from greatly increasing my internal monologue, whether intentionally or unintentionally, whenever I faced Mimori.
Since Mimori did not object, that definitely meant she accepted it by default!
"Sensei, let us go inside first."
"Ah, alright. This way, please."
For the time being, I brought Mimori into Schale's residential area.
Mimori carefully examined her surroundings. "So this is where you usually live, Sensei? A space where a man lives alone is cleaner than I imagined."
"Ah haha, you flatter me."
In reality, it was because the beautiful maid who arbitrarily called me her master had cleaned up yesterday.
Mimori covered her mouth and let out a soft laugh. "My apologies."
"Then, would you like something to drink?" I asked. "Coffee? Tea? Or a soft drink?"
But Mimori shook her head. "No need. Before coming here, I happened to prepare something."
As she spoke, she took out an exquisitely wrapped package from the bag she was carrying and opened it, revealing what was inside.
I was slightly surprised. "Is that… a sandwich?"
"Yes. I thought that since you just woke up, Sensei, you must not have eaten breakfast yet. I happened to have this with me, so I heated it up at the convenience store downstairs. Also, in order not to put too much burden on your stomach, I carefully considered the ingredients…"
She then began explaining the types of ingredients used and the seasoning methods, and lifted a piece of the sandwich with a handkerchief, offering it to me.
Could this be… the legendary move, feeding me by hand!?
The trajectory of the girl's hands paused imperceptibly, then silently shifted upward by a few degrees, finally stopping naturally in front of my mouth.
Her explanation also came to a perfect end. Mimori paused for a moment, then gently said, "Please have some, Sensei."
Unable to resist, I eagerly enjoyed this delicious breakfast, though unfortunately, the girl also let go.
"I also prepared hot tea." Mimori took out a thermos, poured the tea, and handed it to me. "Please enjoy it to your heart's content. If it is not enough, there is plenty more. Fufu. Really now, Sensei, you are eating so fast, you are almost getting it on your face."
Mimori's smile grew gentler and gentler. She took out another handkerchief and carefully wiped my face while I ate ravenously, attending to me with great care.
I thought that this was already a perfect Yamato Nadeshiko, was it not?
I hope I can marry Mimori soon.
"Please do not rush." The girl's smile was serene, her eyes rippling softly. "No one will compete with you. Everything here is prepared for you. So, please enjoy it slowly, alright?"
"…Mm."