Chapter 9. Elysia-sis~
"Brother, it's time to rest~"
With two gentle knocks, Seele, wrapped only in a bath towel, poked her still-damp little head through the gap of the doorframe.
Rest?
Instinctively, he glanced at the clock on the wall and found the hour hand was almost pointing to eleven.
So it's already this late.
He used a voice command to tell Hatsune to save the file and shut down the computer, then pushed his chair back and walked straight toward Seele.
Fresh out of the bath, Seele looked rosy all over.
Her little hands gripped the edge of the towel, and as he approached, a hint of expectation showed in her eyes.
Noticing Seele's look, Xander smiled lightly, then took the towel from her hands and, without a word, plopped it over her little head.
"Honestly. No matter how much you're looking forward to it, you still need to at least towel your hair a bit."
Fresh from the bath, her hair was still dripping, leaving a trail of marks on the wooden floor.
"Hehe~"
Seele just smiled without speaking.
She didn't want to wipe it herself—waiting to enjoy Brother's care was much better.
Xander indulged her pampering, gently toweling her hair as they walked into the room together.
After dozens of repetitions over more than a month, the two had long since settled into their places.
Seele sat on the stool, her little hands resting on her soft, springy thighs, happily watching herself and Brother in the mirror.
She had only a towel wrapped around her, but out of shyness she pulled it tight, revealing not a single hint of spring scenery.
Even so, the fair, rosy, silky-smooth shoulders within easy reach of his fingertips still stirred Xander's restless thoughts.
He quickly finished blow-drying Seele's hair and, ignoring her subtle attempt to keep him, hurriedly left.
If he didn't leave now, he'd end up making a mistake.
...
"Phew~"
A shower made him feel much better, as if those troublesome desires had flowed away with the water down the drain.
Lying on the soft bed, Xander stretched out his arm, groped for his phone on the nightstand, opened the chat app, and found that familiar avatar.
Quietly calculating the time-zone difference, Xander began typing in the chat box.
But before he could send his greeting, a message suddenly popped up from the other side.
"I'm guessing you're thinking about me right now, aren't you?~"
His finger paused, his mouth slightly agape.
He deleted what he'd typed and sent a new line.
"How did you know?"
On the other end, in the garden pavilion, Eden was drinking with Elysia when she suddenly saw her bestie cover her mouth with a small gasp.
Then joy overflowed at the corners of Elysia's lips, her eyes sparkling—so much happiness it was practically spilling out.
"Hehe, that's because Xander and I share a tacit understanding (//▽//)~"
Not only was it written between the lines, she herself couldn't help humming softly.
Eden found the scene quite amusing and, with wine lingering on her lips, watched quietly with narrowed eyes without interrupting.
"What an honor~"
Seeing that, Elysia quickly typed again.
"Ayaya, did you need something from me? Miss Pink Elf is in a very, very, very~ good mood today, so even if you confess your love, Xander, I might just say yes~"
"You'll really agree to anything?"
The prompt reply made Elysia lower her eyes and breathe out lightly.
Then, blushing a little, she typed quickly.
"Of course. A promise from Miss Pink Elf is something even four galloping horses can't take back!"
"Then, I want you"
Thump.
In that instant, Elysia felt her heart leap out of her chest and practically held her breath.
Unfortunately, before the excitement could flood her mind, another line followed.
"Help me compose a track for my new game."
Whoosh—her just-lifted heart plummeted to the bottom, and her delicate cheeks darkened like a soot-blackened pot.
Fine, fine, fine, so that's how you're breaking the sentence, huh.
Elysia is writing down this grudge!
"Pfft~"
Elysia's expression was too funny, making Eden chuckle despite herself.
Noticing the wistful look from her bestie, Eden waved her hand lightly and, in a gentle voice tinged with laughter, said, "Sorry, Elysia, I wasn't laughing. I just thought of something happy."
"You were totally laughing, and you haven't stopped!"
With a dissatisfied "glare" at Eden, Elysia turned her attention back to her phone.
"If you have business, spit it out!"
Clearly, Miss Pink Elf was angry.
Since he needed a favor, Xander didn't dare keep joking and hurriedly typed out his request.
"Mm, help compose music for your game? If it's just piano, that's definitely no problem for me, but…"
"But?"
"But just now a bad guy made Miss Pink Elf really angry.
Xander, tell me, what kind of compensation should Miss Pink Elf demand from that bad guy?"
"Please have mercy!"
"Aiya, it's been so long since anyone called me Elysia-sis.
If a boy could call me 'Elysia-sis' in his childhood voice right now, that would be so wonderful.
So looking forward to it, so looking forward~"
Use the old tone?
Isn't that asking him to imitate a little boy's voice?
How embarrassing!
So, Xander coughed twice, cleared his throat, and, slightly pinching his voice, said, "Elysia-sis~"
Hah.
For the game, what's a little humiliation?
After it's done, he'd still be a man of iron.
Sneaking a glance at Eden across from her, Elysia turned the phone volume down, aimed the speaker toward her somewhat pointy ear, and tapped to play the voice message.
"Elysia-sis~"
Though there were a few small flaws, when that crisp little-boy voice came from the speaker, Eden saw Elysia's whole body give a small shiver.
A strange flush rose on her face, and even her breathing turned a bit rapid.
Her expression was filled with a peculiar smile as her finger tapped the voice message again and again, enough to make Eden set down her wineglass and frown a little.
She had the distinct feeling her best girlfriend had suddenly broken.
Only after two full minutes did Elysia snap back to her senses.
Wiping the drool from the corner of her mouth, she typed quickly.
"Mm-hmm, Elysia-sis is very satisfied.
Send over the sheet music.
Sis will do her utmost to help you complete it~"
After typing, Elysia looked up at Eden—who, for some reason, suddenly seemed a bit put off by her.
Elysia frowned slightly but didn't dwell on it, and soon asked, "My dear Eden, could I use your home recording studio and piano in a bit?"
"Hmm? Planning to perform a piece?"
Hearing mention of her familiar space, Eden's eyes lit up at once and she spoke with some anticipation.
"Mm-hmm. But this is me helping Xander.
He says there's a piano track in his game only I can perform.
Ah, as expected, Xander just can't do without me~"
Ignoring the latter half of Elysia's sentence, Eden smiled, stood up, and walked toward the villa with elegant steps.
"Come on, I'll take you there."
"Yay~ Eden really is the best~"
She rushed over to hug Eden's arm, and the two laughed and bantered as they headed back inside together.
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