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They finally arrived at the hospital.
By now, it was already the middle of the night.
Haruno Yukinoshita walked into the hospital room with Andrew by her side.
She sat down by the bed and gently held her little sister's hand, her face soft and tender.
"Andrew, I'm counting on you."
She looked at him with eyes full of something… like a mother doting on her pet. It was intense.
"Mm, leave it to me."
Andrew nodded seriously, took a deep breath, and slowly leaned down.
He brushed aside Yukino Yukinoshita's bangs and admired her adorable, doll-like face up close. Honestly, his heart started racing a little.
"Alright, here I go."
He slowly leaned in.
His target? The slightly pale, cherry-pink lips of the sleeping beauty on the bed.
But just before he could reach her, Haruno pinched his lips with her fingers.
"Hold it! I told you to heal Yukino, not kiss her!"
Andrew shrugged helplessly.
"Kissing is part of the healing. I mean, how am I supposed to treat her without making physical contact?"
Haruno frowned. Can't you just touch her with your hands? Why does it have to be your lips?
"Using my lips gives the best results. Her condition's pretty bad, you know? She's only alive thanks to the nutrient IV. Look at her — Yukino's all thin and weak. But with my method, she'll be up and ready for school by tomorrow."
"Of course, if you'd rather I go with the regular treatment and let her suffer longer, I'm cool with that too."
Andrew spoke like he was completely confident, then sat back and let her decide.
Haruno gritted her teeth and shot him a death glare.
"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you? Be honest — do you have a thing for little Yukino?"
"Hehe… I mean, come on, she's super cute. What guy wouldn't fall for her?"
He didn't even try to deny it.
Haruno was speechless. He just flat-out admitted it.
Screw it, she thought. Let's just heal Yukino first and argue later.
Not wanting to delay treatment over something stupid, Haruno shut her eyes and turned away.
"Go ahead. Use whatever method's best."
"Alright, here I go." Andrew didn't hesitate. He'd had his eye on the younger Miss Yukinoshita for a while now.
And now he finally had a reason to kiss her without anyone stopping him.
Why waste the chance?
He removed her oxygen mask carefully.
Then Andrew leaned down and gently pressed his lips against Yukino's.
Her lips were soft and slightly cold — the sensation made his mind wander a bit.
Haruno couldn't help sneaking a peek. Her cheeks burned instantly, and her heart filled with a strange, bitter feeling.
Ugh… why do I feel jealous?
I kissed him first…
So why is he being so damn gentle with Yukino?
He was super rough with me…
While Haruno simmered with jealousy, Andrew activated his damage-absorption ability.
A faint purple glow shimmered around him.
Then, Yukino's body began glowing with the same purple light.
Haruno watched in awe as thin streams of dark energy flowed from Yukino's body into Andrew's.
Her sister's face, once pale and thin, slowly returned to a healthy pink glow. Her body also filled out a little, clearly recovering rapidly.
But at the same time, Andrew's face turned ghostly white.
Soon after, he collapsed.
Haruno immediately caught him and let him rest against her.
"Andrew! Are you okay?!"
Of course, Andrew had done all this on purpose — absorbing the damage himself made him look cool in front of Haruno.
If healing Yukino cost him nothing, there's no way Haruno would be emotionally moved, right?
"I'm fine… cough, Yukino's stable now. Let her sleep a bit longer, and she'll wake up naturally."
"Don't worry about me. I just transferred her damage to myself. I'll recover with a bit of rest."
Haruno's eyes began to water slightly.
So he wasn't just trying to cop a feel — he'd actually healed her… by taking on all her injuries himself?
That hit her right in the feels.
She wasn't mad about the kiss anymore. In fact, she was staring at him with warm, emotional eyes.
Andrew inhaled her gentle scent and smiled.
"After all, I'm a demon. I don't have some holy healing magic like an angel. What I do have is the power to transfer someone's damage into my own body and slowly digest it with my regeneration."
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. A demon's strength grows over time. You'll see."
"And don't forget — you're already mine now, Haruno. From now on, your life belongs to me."
"…Yeah, yeah. I won't forget. Thanks."
Haruno leaned down and gently kissed his forehead — like a caring older sister.
Andrew blinked, stunned.
Did she just… kiss me?
Was that… super gentle??
The mature big-sister energy was overwhelming.
And the crazy part?
That was usually his move — he used to do that kind of thing to his sweet little angel Mahiru!
"What? Cat got your tongue?"
Haruno chuckled and poked him on the forehead when she saw him zoning out.
"Yeah, just kinda dazed… If Haruno's this gentle to a demon like me, I might end up turning even worse."
Andrew grinned and took her hand, planting a kiss on the back of it.
Haruno's body shivered like she'd just been electrocuted.
She was definitely flustered.
This guy… he's good. Too good.
Definitely not someone to underestimate.
They locked eyes, and both burst out laughing.
Andrew wiped the sweat off his forehead, hugged Haruno for a moment, and then let go.
"Alright, I'm gonna go rest too. Haruno, stay with your sister for now. I'll catch you later."
"Oh, and about the power inside you — if anything weird happens or you feel anything off, let me know. I'll teach you how to handle it properly."
With that, his body shimmered with magic, and he vanished on the spot.
Back in his bed, Andrew snuggled up with Mahiru Shiina and quickly drifted off to sleep.
Of course, he also stopped digesting Yukino's damage with his own energy — he only kept that going earlier to mess with Haruno.
No point torturing himself anymore.
That damaged-cell, full-body-exhaustion, high-speed-regeneration combo? Pure hell.
From now on, he'd save that trick for his enemies.
Definitely worth keeping in the vault.
"..."
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