The moment the door closed, Xia Zhen let out a deep sigh of relief. She touched her stomach and shook her head with a small smile.
Good. Being full would give her more energy.
She took out her lipstick and fixed her makeup again, then painted her fingernails and toenails.
She grabbed her phone and checked the Internet Café Group Chat.
Everyone had already been pulled into the dream by her cousin.
Perfect timing.
Xia Zhen's eyes lit up. She stood, vanished—
And in the next instant, she appeared at the entrance of the Grand Narukami Shrine.
With her strength, she walked straight in without making a sound. Yae Miko, working overtime in her room, didn't notice a thing.
She reached Xia Zhi's room and pushed lightly.
Unlocked.
She smiled and slipped inside, locking it behind her.
On the bed!
Xia Zhi was still in the dream.
But when he sensed something happening in the real world, he quietly slipped out of the dream with an excuse.
Most people didn't notice anything. They kept gaming.
Only Xia Ying, who always kept half an eye on him, paused with a thoughtful look.
She'd suspected something earlier.
Seeing Xia Zhi leave the dream now only confirmed her guess.
And another thought entered her mind.
Her sister… said she had to work overtime at Tenshukaku the past few nights.
Was that just an excuse to set up tonight?
After all, only with such a reason could she stay in the waking world while everyone else went online.
"Why'd you wake up so fast?"
"You got here a little early."
"I couldn't wait."
"You even put on lipstick?"
"Mm. How does it look?"
"Pretty."
"Want a taste?"
Hard to tell who was tasting who.
Eventually, they pulled apart.
"I think next time you should try a sakura-scented one."
"Tsk. We're not even done with this time and you're already thinking about next time? My charm really is something."
"Yeah."
"Wanna see the nail polish?"
"Ningguang's doesn't work!"
"Hm? Why not?"
"You can't eat it."
Xia Zhi said that with a perfectly straight face.
"I'll buy you one."
Xia Zhen blinked, then burst out laughing. "You two really don't hold back, do you?"
And that was that.
Well—if you had to say anything more, it would be that Xia Zhen ended up eating a second round of sticky midnight supper.
---
Early the next morning.
The air in the room was saturated with a soft, intoxicating scent of cherry blossoms.
Xia Zhi pushed himself upright and took a slow breath. The moment the fragrance filled his lungs, a gentle calm settled in his chest.
He turned his head to look at Xia Zhen lying beside him.
She was still fast asleep.
Maybe she'd been too tired last night, because her sleeping posture was a little careless.
But even then, nothing about her looked inelegant.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Xia Zhi's mouth.
He studied her quietly.
It wasn't like he'd never looked at her seriously before.
The first time they met, he'd already seen everything there was to see.
But that had been just a fleeting glimpse.
Now there were no barriers between them anymore. He could take his time admiring her, and the beauty he found in her felt endless.
It was a kind of beauty that words couldn't do justice to.
Xia Zhi used to think a girl's legs were prettiest when they were long and slender.
Shenhe's legs were fantastic.
Ganyu's were softer to the touch—also fantastic.
And of course, Cloud Retainer's human form had the absolute best.
But Xia Zhen's legs… everything was in perfect proportion.
That was the beauty of a goddess.
And as a goddess, Makoto wasn't just blessed with breathtaking looks and an unforgettable figure—her entire body was built beyond human limits.
She wasn't a fighter like Ei, but when it came to stamina, endurance, willpower, all those baseline stats… she completely surpassed Shenhe and the other girls.
Which meant she could handle far more than any of them.
Xia Zhi watched her for a while longer. Then he reached for his phone on the bedside table and tapped the screen awake.
Zhu Zi had sent him a voice message, saying she would bring Rii to the shrine today to hang out.
That girl was probably craving something.
After all, her parents' home cooking had the bonus of nostalgic flavor, but after a few meals… it was still just home cooking.
And a couple days ago he'd made Gods' Temptation. Everyone had posted pictures in the group chat, and the people who didn't get any practically drowned the chat in bitter emotes.
Everyone else lived too far away to do anything about it.
But Zhu Zi was different—she lived right here in Inazuma, not far from the shrine. Wanting it and not being able to have it was real suffering.
After staying home with her parents a few days, she was probably bored out of her mind too.
Xia Zhi replied to her with a short voice message: "Okay."
Rii had never tried Gods' Temptation, so he might as well make it again today.
Xia Zhen slowly opened her eyes, lifted her head, and murmured sleepily, "What were you saying okay to?"
"Nothing. Zhu Zi said she's coming over to hang out, so I sent her a reply."
"Oh. You woke me up."
"I didn't wake you up. Look at the time—"
Before he finished, Xia Zhen shifted toward him, wrapped both arms around his waist, and nuzzled her face against his chest twice. Still with her eyes closed, she muttered, "Who cares what time it is… I barely slept last night…"
Seeing an older-sister-type act clingy like this had its own unique charm.
Xia Zhi reached out, ruffled her hair, and quietly adjusted the flow of time inside the room again so she could sleep a little longer.
Some time later—
"Mmm…"
Xia Zhen finally opened her eyes with a soft, satisfied sound.
"Awake now?"
"Mm. I'm up. What time is it?"
"Relax, just past seven."
He flicked the room's time flow back to normal.
Xia Zhen watched the digits on the phone resume their normal pace.
"Oh… wow, this ability really is amazing… You just stayed like this with me the whole time?"
"Yeah."
"You didn't move at all?"
"I didn't want to wake you."
"That's so sweet! Come on, lie down. Let me give you a massage."
A faint noise drifted in from outside.
Xia Zhen snickered. "That's Ei teaching Yaoyao how to use the spear."
"Mm. She seems to really like Yaoyao."
"Yaoyao's a good kid. Everyone likes her… Now lie down."
"No need. I should get up soon."
"No! You're getting a massage first!"
"You don't even know how to massage."
"How would you know? Where's that essential oil you use for massages? Hand it over."
Xia Zhi sighed and gave it to her.
And watched her immediately pour it directly over herself.
…So she did know what she was doing.
"Well?" she asked.
"…"
"I've wanted to try it like this for a while."
"…"
"Say something, cousin—hang on, wait…"
And then nothing else really needed to be said.
Except that the flow of time in the room shifted once more.
And the cherry-blossom fragrance in the air grew richer and richer.
----
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