Anya froze, then turned to look at Lirina.

“…Mm, Kasa… has been watching over me since I was little. And… she’s not the kind of demon who would hurt you, Anya…”

Lirina bit her lip, trying to find the right way to explain—

—but in the end, she gave up and turned directly to Kasa.

“Ah—so, Kasa… why did you suddenly show up?”

“…Mm.”

Kasa paused for a moment.

The little princess seems troubled…

Well… that actually lines up perfectly with what I came to say.

“It’s because Lady Naliena said she misses you very much. She asked me to bring you back this weekend for a couple of days.”

“Eh? W-What??”

Lirina froze in place.

“And,” Kasa continued calmly, “I figured it was about time the little angel here learned about me. To avoid any misunderstandings, I thought it’d be best to introduce myself directly.”

This time, both Lirina and Anya fell silent together.

There was nothing wrong with the logic.

But there were… a lot of questions.

Lirina spoke first.

“Um… what exactly did Mom say?”

“Nothing much. Just that she misses you.”

Kasa shrugged.

“It’s been over a month—it’s only natural.”

“Oh… mm…”

Lirina’s cheeks warmed slightly.

But then she remembered Anya’s strained relationship with her own family…

She glanced at her cautiously.

However, Anya seemed lost in her own thoughts, so Lirina quietly let out a breath.

“…Miss Kasa…?”

Anya suddenly spoke, looking at Kasa.

“…Ah, no—please don’t call me that. I’m not that young.”

Kasa waved her hand, then smiled.

“Since you’ll be living with Lirina from now on, how about calling me Aunt Kasa?”

“…Lirina calls you Kasa directly, but that doesn’t feel appropriate for me.”

Anya frowned slightly.

“But calling you ‘Aunt Kasa’ feels even less appropriate.”

Kasa was speechless for a moment.

Silence lingered.

Anya scratched her head.

“…Then… fine. Aunt Kasa.”

She took a breath.

“When I attacked Lirina back then… why didn’t you step in to stop me?”

“Because I didn’t think you were dangerous.”

Kasa smiled faintly.

“And as it turns out, I was right.”

Anya looked away.

There was nothing wrong with that answer.

But still…

“…Then… are you here every day?”

She suddenly turned back, asking again.

“No.”

Kasa spread her hands.

“I’ve got my own responsibilities too. I only show up occasionally—I mostly travel back and forth.”

That was somewhat reassuring.

But only somewhat.

There wasn’t much else she could ask…

And maybe it’s not my place to ask anyway.

“…Well then, I won’t take up more of your time.”

Kasa stood up.

“Lirina, after school tomorrow, we’ll head back.”

“No need to prepare anything.”

“Ah… okay.”

Lirina nodded.

A crack tore open in space—

and Kasa stepped through it.

~~~~~~~~

After that, Anya and Lirina worked on their homework.

Since Anya had joined midway, there were things she didn’t understand, so she asked Lirina.

Lirina explained what she could…

…and for the parts she didn’t know either, they simply left them blank.

But aside from homework—

They didn’t talk about anything else at all.

Seeing Lirina like that, Anya couldn’t bring herself to start any other conversation.

So the time dragged on…

By the time they finished, it was already night.

Anya watched as Lirina stretched—

then collapsed onto the desk.

…She spaced out at least twenty times.

How do I know?

Because I kept watching her…

This can’t happen again. Spending an entire afternoon just doing homework is way too inefficient.

Let’s just call today a special case…

Ugh… my legs are numb.

Anya stood up, stretching, rubbing her sore hips.

“Lirina…”

“Mm…”

Lirina didn’t move, replying dully.

“…You’ve been acting strange today… are you okay?”

After hesitating, Anya asked again.

Even though she already knew… she probably wouldn’t get a useful answer.

“…I don’t know.”

Lirina murmured.

Then suddenly—like a spring snapping—she shot upright.

“Ah! I—I’m fine!”

“You don’t look fine at all.”

Anya frowned, scratching her cheek.

“But if you don’t know… then asking won’t help much, will it?”

“….”

Lirina lowered her head, face flushed.

“…Did I do something wrong?”

Anya pressed her lips together and asked quietly.

“Eh?”

Lirina froze—then waved her hands frantically.

“No—no! Of course not!”

“…Mm.”

Anya sighed softly.

Yeah… asking like this won’t lead anywhere.

“…Anyway, you’re going back to the Demon Realm tomorrow.”

She changed the topic.

“What about me?”

“Ah… I’ll leave you the key.”

Lirina lowered her head again.

“And… for these two days, if you go out… be careful. And… the rest, you already know… so I won’t say more.”

That’s not what I meant.

What am I supposed to do… staying alone?

~~~~~~~~

Night.

Lirina walked into the room, lightly brushing her half-dried hair aside.

Anya sat at the edge of the bed and turned at the sound.

“Um… Anya.”

Lirina’s cheeks flushed for no reason, and she turned her face away.

Anya opened her mouth—

then closed it again.

Lirina stepped closer, hesitating as if gathering courage.

Finally, before Anya could speak, she said—

“…Um… Anya… about tonight… maybe we shouldn’t hug… okay?”

The moment she finished speaking, she lowered her head again—

like she had done something wrong.

“…Huh? W-Why?”

Anya froze.

“Well… you see… I haven’t really been myself since this afternoon… even though I said I’m fine…”

Lirina fidgeted, her toes rubbing together, fingers twisting nervously.

“And… last night, the dream magic didn’t go right… and today I’m like this again… so if something happens to you… that wouldn’t be good… so tonight, let’s just…”

“…I understand.”

Anya sighed lightly and smiled.

“Then let’s just rest early.”

“…Anya… are you really okay?”

Lirina bit her lip, sneaking a glance at her.

“…I should be. I’ve been in a pretty good mood these past few days.”

Anya waved it off.

You already said that… how could I still ask you to hug me?

It’s not about the dream magic…

It’s about… you. Soft, warm, and close in my arms.

…What am I even thinking?

Embarrassed by her own thoughts, she turned away and lay down.

…That’s not really the reason.

Lirina lay on her side, facing away.

Yes… I’m worried about the dream magic… but that’s not why I said no.

I’m… jealous.

Of the Light Novel Club members.

Of everything about Anya.

It took so much for us to become this close…

And yet… everyone just naturally laughs and talks with her… like it’s nothing.

I’m even jealous of my own friends.

They’re my friends too… but they pay so much attention to Anya…

I know she stands out… but still… it just makes me unhappy…

Ugh…

I actually want to hug her.

But… I’m a little… just a tiny bit… angry.

So I lied… not really a lie… but still…

And now… I just feel a little… lonely.

Sleep.

Just sleep.