"..."
Looking at the selfie that Kasumigaoka sent, Hoshimi suddenly felt an itch in his nose.
He rolled over, contemplating whether or not to pull Kasumigaoka into his dream to show her what it means to play with fire.
After ten seconds of consideration, the tempted Hoshimi gave up on this enticing idea.
For now, he'll let it go. He'll deal with Kasumigaoka after the midterm exams.
In the coming days, he needs to focus on studying hard in his dreams to meet Mrs. Arisugawa's demands.
If he drags Kasumigaoka into the dream, it's highly likely that things would spiral out of control, and he might lose the energy and time to study...
So, Hoshimi grabbed his phone and replied.
"Utaha! I had such bad luck because of our date today!"
"Beep--beep--"
The reply came instantly, indicating that Kasumigaoka was indeed free at the moment.
"Huh? Hoshimi, you're not asleep?! Then why didn't you reply to my messages?"
"╰_╯, Utaha, your focus is quite strange! Didn't you notice that I said I had bad luck?" — Hoshimi.
"I saw that, so what happened?" — Kasumigaoka.
"Utaha, did you know? I took the day off to meet you, and as a result, my teacher informed my guardian about my absence!" — Hoshimi.
Guardian?
Sitting by her bedside, Kasumigaoka frowned slightly. The word "guardian" gave her a bad feeling—could it be that Hoshimi is...
After thinking it over, Kasumigaoka decided to avoid that topic for now and continued chatting with Hoshimi.
"And then?" — Kasumigaoka.
"And then? My guardian came all the way from Tokyo to see me! She ended up waiting at my house all day..." — Hoshimi.
"Haha~ so you got scolded until now?" — Kasumigaoka.
"Utaha! How can you be so happy about my misfortune! Don't forget that this is all because of you! Hmph! I've decided! I won't pull you into my dream for a week!" — Hoshimi.
"?! Hoshimi Kiyokawa! What do you mean by that?!" — Kasumigaoka.
"My guardian has set a condition: I have to rank in the top five in the midterm exams. So, Utaha, you understand." — Hoshimi.
"..." — Kasumigaoka.
"Don't worry, once I finish my exams next week, we'll meet in the dream again. Oh, and remember to schedule our dates on weekends from now on. If I get caught again, I might really be in trouble." — Hoshimi.
"... Are you really going to study hard for the next week?" — Kasumigaoka.
"Of course, it's the top five in the grade. I have to put in some effort." — Hoshimi.
"Hoshimi, don't you think you need a tutor? I could tutor you in the dream, covering all subjects." — Kasumigaoka.
"No way, you'd probably end up killing me instead of tutoring. I really need to make the top five this time, or it could get complicated." — Hoshimi.
"Complicated? How so?" — Kasumigaoka.
"My guardian said if I don't make it into the top five, she'll hire a private tutor for me. Then it would be much harder to find time to meet up with you." — Hoshimi.
"Uh... I see. So, do you feel confident? If you're not sure, I could help you with some tutoring. We'll just have to be discreet... probably..." — Kasumigaoka.
"I think I can manage. If I put in the effort, it shouldn't be too difficult. As for your tutoring... if either of us loses control, it's game over..." — Hoshimi.
"..." — Kasumigaoka.
Kasumigaoka's face turned slightly red as she sat by her bed.
Okay, honestly speaking, maybe she could restrain herself in reality, but in the dream world, she wasn't so sure...
It wasn't entirely her fault. That damned experiment made it impossible for her to resist being close to Hoshimi.
"Utaha, I'm going to sleep now and study in my dream. See you tomorrow." — Hoshimi.
"By the way, nice pajamas. I've already saved the photo." — Hoshimi.
"…Alright, if you run into any problems, feel free to ask me, whether by phone or in the dream. I'm always here." — Kasumigaoka.
"OK~" — Hoshimi.
"By the way, let's plan our next date after your midterm exams? Consider it a celebration?" — Kasumigaoka.
Hoshimi wouldn't make a promise lightly, so if he said he was confident, the situation should be under control.
As long as she didn't distract Hoshimi, he should be able to pass this challenge with ease.
Moreover, she couldn't deny that this situation was partially her fault. If she hadn't impulsively insisted on meeting Hoshimi during the week, he wouldn't have been reprimanded by his guardian for taking a day off...
"Sure, Utaha, you can decide the time. As long as it's not during school hours, it's fine with me." — Hoshimi.
"Alright, it's a deal then." — Kasumigaoka.
"OK, I'm off to study in my dream." — Hoshimi.
"Sweet dreams, and see you tomorrow." — Kasumigaoka.
The idea of combining dreams and studying still felt surreal to Kasumigaoka.
Studying in a dream—this was a talent only someone like Hoshimi could possess, and it was truly an enviable ability.
Kasumigaoka shook her head, clearing her mind of unnecessary thoughts.
She walked over to her desk and looked down at the map of the Kyoto area on it, her lips curling into a smile.
From Hoshimi's schedule today, she had roughly calculated his real-world location.
First, based on the time it took Hoshimi to travel, she estimated that it took him about 70 to 100 minutes to get to Tokyo's Shinjuku district.
This travel time was relatively long. Typically, it would take about 40 to 50 minutes to get from the southernmost Ōta ward in Tokyo to Shinjuku, and about the same time from the easternmost Edogawa ward to Shinjuku.
The northernmost and easternmost areas would take even less time.
So, based on the travel time, she could almost rule out the possibility of Hoshimi living within Tokyo's 23 wards.
Next, extending outward from Tokyo, 70 to 100 minutes was an ambiguous range, but it was enough to suggest that Hoshimi was within the Tokyo metropolitan area.
This metropolitan area includes Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, and Kanagawa Prefecture, also known as the "Tokyo City Circle."
Incidentally, "Tokyo" generally refers to Tokyo's 23 wards, while "Tokyo Metropolis" includes the 23 wards plus the Tama area, the Izu Islands, and the Ogasawara Islands.
With Hoshimi's location narrowed down to the Tokyo metropolitan area, the rest would be easier.
She had already decided on the location for their next date: Saitama. By recording the time it took Hoshimi to reach their meeting spot, she could gather more information.
Kasumigaoka's eyebrows arched, and her wine-red eyes glimmered with a strong sense of possessiveness.
Hoshimi, this time, it's my turn to make the first move. You can't escape.
===
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