In the living room, the three sat in different postures.
Hoshimi, with his legs crossed, leaned back against the sofa with his arms resting on the back of it, sitting in a very relaxed and carefree manner.
Yukino, on the other hand, sat upright with her legs together and slightly tilted to the right, her hands folded and resting on her lap, her posture exuding elegance.
Kotoko's posture seemed a bit restless. She perched on the front edge of the sofa, gripping the armrests with her hands while looking around uneasily.
The three glanced at each other but none chose to break the silent atmosphere.
On the coffee table in front of them, the steam rising from their cups of tea gradually blurred their figures under the bright light.
"Ah-hem~"
The atmosphere grew increasingly tense.
Finally, Hoshimi made the first move. He cleared his throat, leaned forward, adjusted his posture, and rested his chin on his interlocked fingers. "Yukino, Kotoko, how about we play a game?" he suggested.
"Rejected."
"No way."
Yukino was the first to refuse, followed closely by Kotoko. Both denied Hoshimi's suggestion almost in unison.
Kotoko then raised her hand and grinned, "Hoshimi-senpai, did you forget our last game of 'Fighing the Landlord'? Playing a game with the 'reserved' Yukinoshita-senpai is exhausting. I don't want to waste hours debating the rules for the game's punishment again."
"..."
Hoshimi opened his mouth, preparing to say something, but Yukino cut him off. "Iwanaga-san," she began, "not everyone is as unfamiliar with 'restraint' as you are. As a fellow woman, I feel obliged to remind you to maintain some 'reserve.' If you don't intend to keep any 'reserve,' at least have the minimum amount of shame."
After a pause, she added icily, "This is my home, Iwanaga-san, and as a guest, you should respect my house rules. Let me make it clear: if you make any obscene remarks in my home, don't blame me for asking you to leave."
With that, Yukino stared at Kotoko, her face expressionless.
Kotoko pouted but then waved her hand nonchalantly. "Okay, okay, I get it. Your territory, your rules. But I'm curious..."
Leaning forward, Kotoko tilted her head slightly, looking up at Yukino as she asked, "Yukinoshita-senpai, you're so 'reserved.' Have you ever done anything unreserved with Hoshimi here at your place?"
"..."
Yukino's eyes grew even colder as she fixed her gaze on Kotoko without saying a word.
"Hehe~" Kotoko covered her mouth and chuckled. "Seems like you've indeed done something unreserved. Let me guess how far you've gone~"
"Holding hands? You've probably done that already. Kissing? Ordinary contact like that must've happened long ago. I wonder if you've had a French kiss that lasted over ten minutes."
Kotoko tilted her head, observing the subtle changes in Yukino's expression.
Noticing a trace of unease deep in Yukino's eyes, Kotoko easily drew her conclusion. "Looks like you've had a French kiss as well. So, what comes next..."
"Ah-hem~" Hoshimi cleared his throat, raising his hand to block the sharp gazes between the two. "Kotoko, if you don't want to play a game, we can do something else."
"Uh-huh?" Kotoko glanced at Hoshimi, blinking her eyes as she asked, "If we don't play a game, what else can we do? Do you think my relationship with Yukinoshita-senpai is good enough for us to do something else?"
"..."
Hoshimi's eye twitched.
This little fox Kotoko was really acting out of line. They had agreed to find Yukino's secret, yet she started probing the enemy first.
And it wasn't just probing; she had to take the chance to tease him too. She wasn't behaving herself at all. It looked like he'd have to give Kotoko a Morse code lesson tonight.
Yes, it was decided. He would teach Kotoko a classical Chinese text using Morse code, including its modern Chinese translation.
Having made up his mind, Hoshimi smiled warmly. "Kotoko, the midterm exams are coming up. If you don't want to play a game, we can study. You took a long leave of absence in the first half of the semester, right? Are you keeping up with your courses? If not, you can ask Yukino and me. We're both here to help you."
As he spoke, Hoshimi subtly turned his body away from Yukino's line of sight and winked at Kotoko a few times.
"Tch..."
Receiving the signal, Kotoko reluctantly agreed, "Alright, let's go with what Hoshimi said."
Satisfied, Hoshimi nodded. He then turned to Yukino. "Yukino, do you still have your first-year textbooks and notes? Can you bring them out for Kotoko to use?"
"..."
Yukino didn't reply. She simply gave a cold nod, then stood up and headed toward the study.
If they were studying at her house, she had no objections. As long as Kotoko didn't try to climb onto Hoshimi during the study session, she could accept it. Even if Kotoko kept asking her questions, she would be okay with it.
After all, it was for studying...
Also, if they kept studying until Kotoko and Hoshimi left, then the secret she had hidden would be safe...
Not being discovered would be a great victory for her!
In the study, Yukino was standing in front of the bookshelf, searching for her first-year textbooks and notes when she felt something was off, though she couldn't quite pinpoint what it was.
Casually, she glanced back toward the living room and saw Kotoko and Hoshimi still sitting in the same positions, neither speaking nor moving, just as they were when she had left.
Relieved by the sight, Yukino turned back and resumed searching for her first-year textbooks and notes on the bookshelf.
Oh, and by the way, she had deliberately left the door to the study ajar.
She clearly remembered what Hoshimi had done the last time her sister visited her place. She definitely didn't want to experience that painful scenario of being separated by just one door.
...
A short while earlier, when Yukino had gotten up to go to the study, Kotoko subtly raised her hand, signaling an invisible little yokai to follow Yukino.
The palm-sized yokai trailed behind Yukino into the study, tossing a green leaf onto her head.
Using the leaf, the yokai cast a 'distraction spell,' causing Yukino's perception of the living room to become distorted.
Back in the living room, once Kotoko confirmed that Yukino was under the spell, she pulled out an ultra-mini yokai from her sleeve.
This yokai was even smaller than the one following Yukino, barely half the size of Kotoko's palm.
Kotoko scratched the little yokai's chin and gestured for it to sniff the circular marks on the surface of the coffee table.
The mini yokai hopped onto the table and, like a small puppy, sniffed at the faint circular marks.
"Whimper, whimper~~~"
After sniffing for a while, the yokai turned and made whining noises at Kotoko.
"Go on, find the source," Kotoko leaned forward and instructed in a low voice.
"Whimper, whimper~~~"
The mini yokai whined softly before stepping on air as it made its way toward the kitchen.
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