Volume 3 - CH 10

The next day.

“The fever’s gone, so that’s a relief.”

“… Yes.”

When Yuzuru said that, Arisa replied, hiding her face half under the covers for some reason.

She’s been like this since this morning.

Probably… because she was embarrassed.

Her ears were bright red as proof.

For what reason she was embarrassed, Yuzuru could somehow guess the answer.

The other day, Arisa was acting a little strange.

She was proactively trying to get spoiled by Yuzuru.

Perhaps it’s just that she’s usually too cautious, and the spoiled girl from the other day was the “real” Arisa.

“…I’m sorry for the trouble I caused you yesterday.”

Arisa said this while hiding her face.

And then she glanced at him and checked how he was faring.

The gesture was quite flirty and cute… and it made Yuzuru also feel embarrassed.

“I don’t mind, it’s okay.”

“… I hope that’s the case.”

Then that’s ok.

But even as she said this, Arisa was still looking at Yuzuru.

She still seemed to be worried about something.

“What’s up? … I’ll listen to whatever you request.”

“… Yuzuru-san no baka.“

As Arisa said this, she pulled the covers over her head.

No matter how embarrassed she was, why did she have to scold me?

Yuzuru couldn’t help but chuckle.

Then, the next day, Monday.

When Yuzuru arrived at school, he found Arisa already in the classroom.

Her fever had already gone down on Sunday morning, but she seemed to have recovered completely without any recurrence.

For a moment, Yuzuru and Arisa’s eyes met.

Then she smiled slightly.

Then, as Yuzuru took his seat…his smartphone rang.

He looked at it and saw that it was a text from Arisa.

[“Thank you for the other day”],  with a cute stamp.

Yuzuru also sent a text saying, [“Take it easy, okay?”].

The response was immediate.

[“If I collapse, please help me again.”]

Yuzuru judged that it was probably a joke since it was accompanied by a cute stamp.

[“Leave it to me. Do you want me to carry you to the infirmary then?”]

[“Since you’re being generous, please take me home.”]

[“Is it okay if I carry you like a princess?”]

[“It is okay, but do you have the strength for that?”]

[“Are you that heavy?”]

[“That’s very rude.”]

A stamp with an angry face came back.

Yuzuru almost laughed and held his mouth.

If he grinned here, he would be one of those creepy guys who grins and smiles while playing with his cell phone.

[“I’ll do my best for you.”]

[” ‘Doing your best’ makes it sound like I’m heavy, doesn’t it?… “]

The reply that he would do his best also seemed to be unsatisfying to Arisa.

By the way, Arisa’s weight was not heavy, but it was not as light as a feather either.

While not going into specifics, Arisa does have some flesh on her body where flesh is supposed to be.

It’s not that she doesn’t have any muscles, because she seems to be exercising more or less regularly.

She had a healthy weight in her body.

[“You weren’t heavy.”]

[“How do you know?”]

[” I lifted you on the day before yesterday.”]

Yuzuru replied, and after a moment of silence, a reply came back.

[“Ah…”]

Now, what kind of expression does Arisa have on her face right now?

Yuzuru was a little curious, but as expected, if he were to check her expression, people might find out that he and Arisa were communicating via cell phone.

It was not his intention to do so, so he had to endure it.　

It was very frustrating.

[“How was it?”]

Finally, the message that came back was a question asking for his impressions.

What exactly should he say?

Yuzuru pondered a little.

(…Well, I guess it was soft.)

When he picked her up, what he felt was softness.

It was a very girlish softness, even though various parts of her body were touched by force majeure.

And then…

(It was cute…)

She grabbed Yuzuru’s clothes and looked up at me with moist eyes, which was very cute and endearing.

It was clear to him that she was relying on him, as she was physically and mentally weak after catching a cold.

He felt a strong desire to protect her mixed with a desire to conquer her.

I will protect Arisa.

It was a bit presumptuous of him, but such a desire came to him.

However, he couldn’t just say that outright.

Also, given the context… It was probably a question about Arisa’s weight.

[“I think it’s a reasonable weight.”]

[“That’s sexual harassment.”]

Such an answer came back to him immediately.

In the first place, you were the one who first made fun of me asking if I have that kind of muscle strength. And you were the one who persisted in talking about weight…

Yuzuru felt that it was a bit unreasonable.

So, as both payback and a prank, he decided to ask a question of his own.

[“How was it for you?”]

If you’re going to ask someone for impressions, you have to answer them, too.

And so, with such a nasty thought, Yuzuru sent such a text.

As expected, she seemed to be at a loss for an answer, and after being read, she didn’t reply.

Yuzuru felt a sense of frustration as he waited for Arisa’s answer.

But with no answer from Arisa… It was time for the short homeroom to start in a few minutes.

Could it be that I’ve angered her?

just as when Yuzuru started to feel a little uneasy, 

The answer came back from Arisa.

[“It made me go ‘kyun~’.”]  

(TN: ‘Going Kyun’ means it made her feel like squirming with emotions like joy and shyness and stuff like that. )

Yuzuru also felt a bit of “kyun~” in his heart.

His heart thumped noisily in his chest.

He was tempted to check to see …what kind of expression she had typed this sentence with.

[“Can I rely on you again? … when I have a cold.”]

Then came the next message.

Somehow, Yuzuru felt that the first half of the message was Airisa’s true feelings, while the second half was an excuse or a cover-up.

Yuzuru immediately typed back.

[“That’s no problem at all, Princess.”

[“…Isn’t it embarrassing, to say that?”]

[“It’s embarrassing when people point it out, so please stop.”]

New dere degree: 35% → 40%