Chapter 38

Chapter 38: You’re Sleeping Here Tonight

The time, 5:30 AM, was a peculiar one—night had not yet fully receded, and dawn had just begun to break.

Light and darkness coexisted in division, as the rising sun in the east gradually cast its newborn radiance over the land.

On such a vibrant morning, nothing was more detestable than alarm clocks and the sudden noise of upstairs renovations.

“Bzzz, bzzz—” The frantic vibration of a phone alarm rang in her ears.

This is way too early… I haven’t slept enough yet.

Shimizu Sakuya stretched out a fair, delicate arm from the depths of her stubbornly warm blankets, fumbling along the bedside until she managed to turn off the phone with great effort.

Sitting up, she stared blankly at the carved patterns on the wardrobe, zoning out for a long while before finally regaining her senses.

Staying up late is exhausting.

Without the system’s recovery cheat, Shimizu Sakuya was now fully experiencing the consequences of her weak constitution.

Her head felt heavy and buzzed faintly, her entire body devoid of energy.

She wanted to keep sleeping, but she had to fulfill her duties as a personal maid.

With a sigh, Shimizu Sakuya dragged her weary body out of bed to wash up, change, and begin preparing for the day’s tasks.

In one timeline’s setting, Shimizu Sakuya had once been an idol, constantly rushing between events and playing up a cutesy “close friendship” act with Ayase Aoi.

Of course, it was more like Ayase Aoi actively sought her out for the sake of boosting her popularity.

This experience—something ordinary people would never get to live—had taught Shimizu Sakuya many special techniques about fashion and styling.

And one of the duties of a personal maid was to oversee the mistress’s appearance and attire.

Fujiwara Yuki’s black hair was usually left cascading down like a waterfall. When she wore her usual expressionless face, she resembled an icy, untouchable flower atop a high peak—one that seemed impossible to melt.

Because of this, she had to smile more often to maintain a gentle, approachable demeanor in social interactions.

Actually, this kind of impression could be softened by simply changing her hairstyle.

Twin tails would probably look really cute on her.

Hm? That actually sounds pretty good.

Then it’s decided! Today, I’ll give Fujiwara Yuki an ultra-adorable twin-tail hairstyle~

The thought brought a faint sense of delight to Shimizu Sakuya’s heart. Once she had everything prepared, she walked briskly to Fujiwara Yuki’s door and knocked.

“Master, are you awake? It’s time for your morning jog.”

No response. The young lady inside was clearly still asleep.

Waking the master was also an essential duty of a personal maid. Strictly speaking, they had to memorize every detail of their master’s schedule.

Without a second thought, Shimizu Sakuya turned the doorknob and stepped inside.

The translucent bed curtains were drawn, and in the dim morning light, Shimizu Sakuya could see Fujiwara Yuki’s slender figure half-sitting up.

She’s already awake?

Puzzled, Shimizu Sakuya approached and pulled open the curtains.

Fujiwara Yuki sat with her hands covering her eyes, leaning against the headboard in complete resignation—as if she were stubbornly refusing to wake up, deceiving even herself.

Wow, she’s really lazing around in bed.

With a bright smile, Shimizu Sakuya reminded her, “Master, it’s time to get up for your morning jog.”

Only then did Fujiwara Yuki reluctantly move her hands away. Her eyes were exhausted, golden pupils streaked with tired red veins—like a gaming addict who had pulled an all-nighter.

?

Didn’t she go to bed earlier than me last night? Why does she look like she stayed up all night?

“Mm… let’s skip the jog today.” Fujiwara Yuki’s voice came out hoarse.

This was unusual. Shimizu Sakuya frowned, sensing something off.

Based on Fujiwara Yuki’s meticulous, by-the-book personality, not even a thunderbolt could disrupt her rigid schedule.

Unless something unexpected had happened.

“Then what does the Master wish to do?”

“Just rest a little longer today,” Fujiwara Yuki yawned, her eyes watery with sleep. “You stay here and wake me up when it’s time.”

“Did the Master not sleep well last night?”

“Don’t ask questions you shouldn’t.” Fujiwara Yuki’s expression darkened.

“Understood, Master.”

Fujiwara Yuki burrowed back under the covers, curling up in a fetal position with her back turned to Shimizu Sakuya.

But even that wasn’t enough. She then issued a domineering demand:

“Sakuya, sit by my bed… and block the sunlight for me. It’s too bright for sleeping.”

Hm? If she just wants to block the sunlight, wouldn’t it be easier to just close the curtains or the bed canopy?

From Shimizu Sakuya’s understanding of Fujiwara Yuki, this was an exceedingly rare act of acting spoiled.

Even in the HE route, this kind of acting spoiled behavior was a rare sight—most of the time, she was busy coming up with all sorts of mischievous, lewd ideas to tease her.

When waking up, she loved playing inappropriate games, like blindfolding her maid to change her out of sleepwear—a truly terrible kind of flirtatious game.

To see her so soft now—even if she wasn’t the same person from her memories—Shimizu Sakuya couldn’t help but feel a little smug.

The contrast was staggering. It seemed that the memory she recalled in the bathroom yesterday had indeed left a deep impact on her.

It was probably this slightly awkward, unfamiliar emotion—wanting to get closer but not knowing how—that had tangled her up in hesitation.

An unexpected boon amidst all these bugs.

Eradicating her bad impression of me is just around the corner. Truly a cause for celebration.

“Understood.” Shimizu Sakuya obediently sat beside her and gently pointed out, “But closing the curtains would be more effective, Master.”

The figure under the blankets shifted slightly, the rustling of fabric against cotton filling the silence.

She didn’t respond, using silence as an answer instead—as if pretending to already be asleep.

But Shimizu Sakuya wasn’t stupid. No normal person could fall asleep in three seconds.

She didn’t press further, simply sitting quietly by the bed and humming a lullaby under her breath.

As Fujiwara Yuki’s breathing gradually steadied, she fell back asleep.

Listening to the morning chirps of birds outside, Shimizu Sakuya naturally drifted into thought, passing the time during this boring bedside vigil.

I still can’t figure out why Fujiwara Yuki is so exhausted. Did she also have insomnia?

But she was already fast asleep by the time I left last night.

Could it be that she can’t sleep without me? That can’t be it.

From her observations, Fujiwara Yuki’s current sleep quality was poor—if someone were to accompany her, even the slightest disturbance would wake her.

That said, in other worldlines, she did love having someone sleep beside her.

She would wrap her arms around them from under their armpits, clinging to them like a body pillow.

Of course, the sensation was nice—after all, her figure was the best in the Light Music Club.

The feeling of pressing against her back was also incredibly comfortable. But having her arm pinned under her for too long would inevitably lead to numbness.

Then, due to poor blood circulation, the arm would go completely numb—only to earn a slap and get shoved away.

So being a body pillow wasn’t exactly a pleasant experience. Short durations were warm and cozy, but anything longer was a recipe for disaster.

……

Time flowed away silently like water. By the time Shimizu Sakuya’s wandering thoughts returned, the bedroom’s pendulum clock had already struck seven.

Standing up and stretching, Shimizu Sakuya gently shook Fujiwara Yuki awake, calling out softly.

“Master, it’s time to wake up. It’s already seven.”

Fujiwara Yuki sat up drowsily, her brain seemingly malfunctioning from sleep deprivation as she blurted out something shocking.

“Sakuya, you’re sleeping here tonight too.”