Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Not Continuing?

This was different from the Fujiwara Yuki in her memories. It seemed her “master-servant game” was genuinely just about trivial things like changing clothes or serving tea.  

No matter what, even though Shimizu Sakuya had plenty of experience with yuri, she wasn’t actually a lesbian.  

Why would she get flustered over something as simple as changing clothes? Besides, after having been dressed and undressed so many times before, she was practically an expert by now.  

Helping a girl as pretty as Fujiwara Yuki change was no different from playing house.  

She had loved dressing up pretty Barbie dolls as a child, after all.  

So, though slightly surprised, Sakuya agreed without hesitation.  

“Sure, but I’m not very familiar with how to put on a kyudo uniform,” she said, peering into Yuki’s locker.  

Inside the cramped space was a neatly folded black-and-white kyudo uniform, a pair of delicate wooden geta, and matching knee-high tabi socks.  

Sakuya was a little shocked. Yuki was slightly taller than her, yet her shoe size was noticeably smaller.  

Were her feet really that tiny?  

Yuki’s arms, held up for so long, finally dropped to her sides, as if she hadn’t expected Sakuya to agree so readily. A flicker of surprise crossed her face.  

“Master can teach you.”  

“Let’s start with your school uniform.”  

Sakuya slowly stepped closer.  

They were so near now that she could feel Yuki’s warm breath lightly brushing against her skin—a faint, ticklish sensation.  

Starting from the top, Sakuya began undoing the buttons of her blazer one by one.  

The entire time, Yuki’s scorching gaze never left her, watching with keen interest.  

It was… kind of embarrassing.  

Anyone would feel self-conscious under such an intense stare.  

Sakuya lightly tapped Yuki’s arm, signaling for her to raise her hands so she could slip off the blazer.  

But no matter what, she couldn’t endure that gaze any longer. Muttering under her breath, she accidentally voiced her thoughts aloud:  

“We’re both girls—what’s there to keep staring at?”  

Though her voice was soft, Yuki’s sharp ears caught it instantly.  

Her slender fingers suddenly clamped around Sakuya’s wrist. Golden pupils, molten like lava, gleamed with an odd light as she chuckled in response.  

“By that logic, Miss Maid, if we’re both girls, why are you so shy?”  

“I’m not shy,” Sakuya retorted.  

“You are. What Master says goes!” Yuki released her grip, only to pinch her cheeks instead, declaring it with absolute authority.  

“……”  

Judging from her attitude, it seemed Yuki’s only intention was to issue a warning to someone like her—someone who “curry favor with the powerful.”  

None of her actions were actually insulting.  

After all, as the best friend of someone dear to her, Yuki was still giving her some face.  

Perhaps Sakuya had just been too afraid of Yuki from her memories.  

The current atmosphere was undeniably awkward, so Sakuya tried shifting the topic.  

As she slipped off Yuki’s blazer, she asked, “Don’t you have maids at home to help you change?”  

“Didn’t I say? In private, how should you address me, Miss Maid?”  

Such a strange, twisted sense of humor.  

But once she accepted the premise, it wasn’t that embarrassing anymore.  

Resigned, Sakuya corrected herself.  

“Does the Master’s household not employ maids to assist the Master with changing?”  

Ayase Aoi’s family mansion had maids like that—but Sakuya wasn’t sure about Yuki’s.  

In the Happy Ending route, she and Yuki had eloped, so she never set foot in the Fujiwara estate. And in the Bad Ending, she’d been locked in the basement.  

As for how grand the Fujiwara residence was, how lavishly decorated, or how many servants they had—Sakuya had no idea.  

None of that had ever been mentioned in the game’s storyline.  

Yuki shook her head. “No.”  

“What about bodyguards? Why doesn’t the Master bring one?”  

“You don’t know? Shūchi High doesn’t allow bodyguards on campus under normal circumstances.”  

“Then why does Ayase-san always have bodyguards with her?” Sakuya untied the neatly fastened ribbon around her collar.  

Ah, that was a detail she hadn’t noticed before.  

In previous timelines, even after becoming a wildly popular idol, Ayase Aoi never brought bodyguards to school.  

Was there some special reason she needed them now?  

Yuki cooperatively turned so Sakuya could remove the ribbon, scoffing.  

“I’m not as delicate as she is. She’s just a vicious little dog who flaunts her bodyguards—completely useless without Kazuichi-san around~”  

Even now, Yuki couldn’t resist taking a jab at Aoi.  

Sakuya decided not to dwell on it, shaking her head to clear away thoughts unrelated to the present. She neatly folded the ribbon and blazer, placing them inside the locker.  

Next was the white dress shirt and navy-blue pleated skirt.  

For some reason, Sakuya’s hands hesitated. She took a deep breath, inexplicably nervous—even though she already knew Yuki’s body so well.  

Fujiwara Yuki loved deep embraces, breath-stealing kisses, and always being in control.  

With slightly trembling fingers, Sakuya undid the top button of her shirt. Her eyelashes fluttered rapidly, like butterfly wings ready to take flight.  

Gradually, an inexplicable tension seeped into the space between them. At some point, a faint blush had crept onto Sakuya’s cheeks, carrying a peculiar warmth.  

Time always passed the same way, day after day—but once emotions got involved, its flow became erratic.  

The reaction she’d expected didn’t come. Instead, this fleeting moment stretched endlessly.  

A single second felt like an eternity.  

Yuki’s nickname was The Black-Haired Kaguya.  

Her night-dark hair made the skin of her neck appear even paler, almost translucent.  

If they went any further, it would really…  

Sakuya still hadn’t dared to look up into those golden eyes.  

What kind of expression was she making right now?  

“Then, I’ll take off my Master’s shirt now.”  

Just as Sakuya reached for the second button—  

Yuki suddenly grabbed her wrist.  

Her voice was oddly hoarse.  

“…Let’s stop here.”  

Hearing that, Sakuya finally exhaled in relief and raised her eyes to meet Yuki’s gaze.  

“Not continuing?”  

“Wait for me outside.”  

Yuki’s eyes darted away. Her words came out rushed, and she’d even dropped the “Master” act.  

Taking two steps back, she grabbed the kyudo uniform, hakama, and obi from the brown leather bench nearby—clearly urging Sakuya to leave.  

“…Alright.”  

Sakuya obeyed, stepping out of the changing room and gently closing the door behind her.