"That's enough, Koakuma." Patchouli saw Koakuma, who was clinging to Kars with an indescribable expression on her face, and spoke up to prevent things from escalating further.
"Lady Patchouli…" Koakuma reluctantly obeyed Patchouli and released Kars. Honestly, she wanted to spend the rest of the day just hugging Kars. Especially since Kars wouldn't object to her doing so. Unfortunately, her wish was dashed.
Patchouli completely ignored Koakuma's pleading gaze. This wasn't the first time this had happened, so there was no need to pay any attention to it.
Kars, however, didn't leave Koakuma's side. Seeing her give Patchouli a pitiful look, he didn't quite understand what was wrong this time. Had she done something to displease Patchouli again? And he always felt it had something to do with him, as these incidents started happening after he arrived at the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Thinking this, Kars wondered if he was causing trouble for Koakuma, since such situations were rare before.
Kars reached out and patted Koakuma's waist. When she looked at him, he gave her an expression that seemed to say, "Don't worry, I'll be here for you."
Koakuma didn't know what Kars was thinking, but she felt a surge of warmth nonetheless. Patchouli watched and wondered if Kars had misunderstood the situation. I'm trying so hard to keep Koakuma from laying a hand on you, and yet you approach her willingly? What's with that expression of yours? But then, thinking about the Yuuka Kazami situation, Patchouli thought, Oh well. It's not the first time this guy has willingly walked into trouble. Sigh.
Patchouli sighed lightly and decided not to say anything more. She told Koakuma to go back to sorting books.
Kars, meanwhile, ran to Patchouli's side and hugged her.
"Patchouli, if Koakuma did something wrong, I'm sure she didn't mean to. So please don't be too hard on her." Patchouli thought Kars was mistaken about one thing: Koakuma always knew exactly what she was doing. There was no need for any excuses.
"Don't talk nonsense if you don't know what's going on. I think you don't know the situation at all and just came over to plead for Koakuma, didn't you?" Patchouli pinched Kars's cheek. Kars, whose thoughts had been instantly guessed by Patchouli, gave an embarrassed smile.
"You're amazing, Patchouli. You guessed it right away. Even though I don't know, I still feel like it has something to do with me, right? It seems like Koakuma always gets into trouble when she's with me."
That much was true. After all, when a little boy is constantly around a shotacon, and he willingly presents himself for attention, how could she not want to do something?
"So, I was thinking, if it's my fault, then please don't scold Koakuma too much, okay?" Kars pleaded, resting his head on Patchouli's lap.
"I never said I was scolding her, did I?" Kars thought about Patchouli's reply and realized she was right. Had he been overthinking it? Had he then unjustly blamed Patchouli?
Thinking this, Kars scratched his head, looking apologetic toward Patchouli. This action earned him a deadpan tug on his face from Patchouli.
"I know I got it wrong. I'm sorry, Patchouli." Faced with his cheeks being pulled, Kars meekly accepted his fate.
"And I know Patchouli, being a beautiful, gentle, clever, and smart person, will definitely choose to forgive me, right?" Kars said, winking and giving Patchouli a look that begged for forgiveness, which only made her hands pinch his cheeks more frequently. This made Kars wonder if he had messed things up. He then tried to read Patchouli's expression, but could only see a slight blush on her face. Otherwise, he couldn't discern what she was thinking.
"I haven't said anything, so don't keep making up things in your head. That's not a good habit. It's fine if you're right, but if you're wrong, it only makes things worse." After she satisfied her urge to pinch his cheeks, Patchouli finally spoke, gently correcting Kars's behavior.
"Okay! I'll remember that! I won't make up things in my head anymore!" Kars promised. How well he would stick to it remained to be seen, so Patchouli didn't press the issue.
Later, as evening arrived, Kars, instead of going to bed early as usual, was sitting by the window, staring at the starry night sky. The main reason was that he had slept quite late in the Garden of the Sun, leaving him energetic at night. He glanced at Remilia in the garden, who was, as always, enjoying the moon and drinking tea, sometimes taking a stroll outside the mansion.
While sitting with his Little Auntie, drinking tea, and admiring the moon was nice, Kars found it a bit dull. It would be much better if it were the sun, but he knew that was just a fantasy.
"Still can't sleep…" After a while, Kars still felt no desire to sleep. He suddenly felt a bit envious of Hong Meiling's ability to sleep while guarding the gate and also sleep after her shift. Should he ask her to teach him? Since he would be frequently visiting Yuuka Kazami for sunbathing, this sleep problem shouldn't happen again.
"I'd better go see Patchouli." Waiting until he was sleepy felt too boring for Kars. He might as well find something to do, and Patchouli's area was the obvious choice. Kars flew out the window and toward the Great Library.
Upon entering the Great Library, Kars quickly reached the door to Patchouli's room. However, the sight that greeted him when he opened the door made him think he had chosen the wrong time. Patchouli was facing away from him, not wearing her usual nightgown. She was only wearing a pair of purple and white striped panties, using a wet towel to wipe her slender, pale body. Before Kars could react, Patchouli turned her head and saw him.
Kars: (´･ᆺ･`)