Chapter 254: Punishment by House Law!

The silver full moon gradually climbed to the center of the sky. The time was nearing one in the morning. The fine snow continued to fall endlessly, and a thin layer had accumulated on the balcony railing.

Smack!

Fuyuji Mikage caught Shiraishi Asuka’s delicate hand, his face showing regret.

“You really won’t stay here tonight? There are extra quilts here. My bed can go to you girls too.”

“Dame!” Shiraishi’s brows and eyes curved. Her cherry-colored lips pouted. “Every time Fuyuji keeps us here, it’s with ill intentions, and the ones who end up at a disadvantage are always us.”

She lightly pulled her hand free and crossed her two index fingers in the air. The lace cuff slipped with the motion, revealing a section of her fair wrist.

“Fuyuji is a little too cunning.”

Fuyuji’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His gaze began to drift toward the motion-sensor light in the corridor. “H-how could that be…”

“Heh…”

The girls all gave him a look that said, ‘Do we not know exactly what kind of person you are?’

Seeing his little schemes exposed, Fuyuji could only temporarily abandon his grand dream and resolve to hold an even more carefully planned one next time.

“Haah~”

Morishita Ai leaned against Yamamura’s shoulder and let out a small yawn. A few crystal tears clung to her long eyelashes.

“Let’s go back. I want to sleep.”

“Okay.” Yamamura smiled sweetly.

“Alright.” Fuyuji laughed awkwardly. “Text me when you get back to your rooms.”

“Got it.” Kamuro Masumi scraped him with a look of utter disdain, yanked her scarf up to cover half her face, and muttered, “So naggy…”

Given the density of Advanced Nurturing’s surveillance, a stranger probably wouldn’t even make it past the school gate before getting caught, let alone with cameras on every main passage of the dormitory.

“Alright, alright.” Shiraishi stepped forward two paces and gently pushed Fuyuji back into his room. “Fuyuji should go take a shower too.” With that, she lowered her head and sniffed at Fuyuji’s back with her delicate nose.

“You smell like Morishita-san. You need to wash that off quickly. Remember to wear the outfit I bought you tomorrow.”

“Shiraishi Asuka, please look carefully. Ai-sama is still right here.”

“Is that so?” Shiraishi blinked and retreated a few steps back to the doorway, letting out a light laugh. “Because Morishita-san snuck off, I’m a little angry.”

Morishita instinctively straightened her back, opened her eyes, and perked up immediately. “Is that so? Then I forgive you.”

Having brushed Morishita off with just a few words, Shiraishi refocused her gaze on Fuyuji.

“Then…”

The door slowly closed. She pressed her fingertip against the gap of the door. Her violet eyes caught a flash of light under the corridor lamp. With a smile, she said: “Bye-bye, Fuyuji~”

“Bye-bye. See you tomorrow.” Fuyuji waved goodbye with a smile.

The girls: “See you tomorrow.”

The door closed with a click, completely shutting out the girls’ pretty faces. Standing quietly at the door for a few seconds, listening to the girls’ footsteps gradually fade until they disappeared, Fuyuji stretched and walked back to the living room, flopping onto the sofa.

The throw pillow still carried the mingled fragrance of the girls.

But the living room, so noisy just moments ago, was now incomparably quiet against the backdrop of the snowy night. Only the occasional hum of the heater broke the silence.

Fuyuji let out a quiet sigh and clenched his fists.

‘If I’d known earlier, I would have clung to their legs and begged them to stay.’

He glanced around the living room. Everything that needed tidying had been tidied. The teacups were neatly arranged on the low table. The sofa blanket was folded with crisp, sharp corners. Even the game controllers were plugged side by side into the charging dock. Yamamura and Shiraishi’s diligence always left him with nothing to do.

With nothing to do, he could only pick up his phone and run through the routine procedures he needed to do.

He lit up the screen. Quite a few Class A students had already sent him Christmas greetings. Even students from other classes had sent them, including Kanzaki, Hirata, and a few others. Even Horikita Manabu and blond senpai had sent one.

Of course, that wasn’t the point.

[Merry Christmas!]

One tap, select all, send. Done!

Fuyuji lay on the sofa, admiring his handiwork with satisfaction, marveling at the greatness of technological progress.

Of course, senpai, Cha-Cha, Suzune, and little angel Hiyori and the others needed individually rewritten messages, each with its own carefully crafted flattery.

Otherwise, tomorrow senpai would probably come knocking at his door and drag him out shopping.

Just as Fuyuji propped up his crossed legs and was racking his brains over how to write several different flowery greetings to please the girls…

Buzz!

A message suddenly popped up at the top of his phone screen. Fuyuji’s face darkened instantly.

[Perverted Scrap Loli: Although I’m pleased that you would send me Christmas wishes, isn’t a mass send a bit too rude?]

[Fuyuji Mikage: Heh… Sorry, my mistake. I forgot to delete you.]

The message had just been sent. Before Fuyuji’s finger could even move to the delete button, the reply popped up.

[Perverted Scrap Loli: I heard from Father that Ayanokouji Atsuomi came to the school looking for you, and then got into a car accident right after leaving?]

His finger, about to press down, hovered in midair…

Well, well, rotten loli. You know I’m not interested in you, so you just toss out a topic I am interested in?

On the other side.

Having just finished her shower, her silver-white hair still slightly damp, Sakayanagi Arisu returned to her bed. Looking at the screen, a confident smile curved at the corner of her mouth.

As expected, you’re interested in this. I don’t know exactly what connection you have to Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, but you should at least be interested in the latest news about Ayanokouji Atsuomi, right?

[Perverted Scrap Loli: Then, as a return gift for your Christmas wishes, let me tell you a piece of news.]

[!]

[The other party has enabled friend verification. You are not yet friends.]

The elegant smile from a second ago froze completely on her face. Sakayanagi gripped her phone tight, ground her silver teeth, her chest rising and falling a few times. A droplet slid along her collarbone into the collar of her pajamas.

This person… doesn’t even care about this?!

Her slender fingers tapped the screen. Sakayanagi, unwilling to give up, sent another friend request.

Back in room 404, Fuyuji casually tapped reject, comfortably rolled half a turn, and continued thinking about his greeting content. He tapped the screen, typing his cheesy lines into the message box character by character.

Senpai… Merry Christmas… Happy every day?

…No, no. There’s an eighty percent chance senpai will reject it. Then I’ll be the one who’s not happy.

A few minutes later.

Having truly run out of ideas, Fuyuji abruptly propped himself up, scratched his head in frustration, and began pacing aimlessly around the room.

He had no idea how Cha-Cha, that social expert, usually came up with this stuff.

How about…

Fuyuji switched his phone to the chat page.

Ask her for advice?

Babe… help me think of a few Christmas greetings that would make someone happy, and then I’ll send one of them to you?

After thinking for a long time, Fuyuji spread his hands, did a kip-up, and headed straight for the bathroom.

Forget it. Cha-Cha’s toxic remarks have been getting fiercer lately. Better not court death.

I’ll leave this to tomorrow’s me!

A moment later, accompanied by the sound of running water, steam fogged up the bathroom glass door. A melodious tune drifted out, as if carrying one into a trial of blood and fire.

[This is absolutely the most savage sword-forging competition in history. Dog Bro actually split a dummy’s skull with one strike…]

The increasingly intense battle completely captured Fuyuji’s attention in the bathroom.

The hot-blooded BGM echoed through the previously empty living room. Under the white fluorescent light spilling from the living room, the door handle at the entryway suddenly pressed down out of thin air. The door, which had seemed properly closed, silently cracked open a sliver, revealing a pair of bright violet eyes.

…

By the time Fuyuji braced a hand against the tile wall and walked shakily out of the bathroom, the time was already past two.

The warm steam wrapped around him, taking away the last of his clarity, leaving only a heavy drowsiness. After lazily yawning, Fuyuji set his phone on the bedside table. With a click, the lights went out, and the whole room fell into darkness.

Outside, the clear moonlight passed through the balcony, casting long, slender shadows onto the floor. From a distance, the moonlight coated the fine snow in a layer of luminous white, making the whole Advanced Nurturing campus seem even more serene.

The bedding lifted. Shoes off. Onto the bed. Lying down. Blanket over him.

The next second, Fuyuji’s entire body froze instantly. He lay there, stunned. He sensed something was off.

The bed… was warm.

A wisp of elegant fragrance, carrying a hint of warm floral sweetness, seeped through the blanket and wound around the tip of his nose, instantly dispelling the remaining fatigue. In its place came a heart-stopping, tingling sensation that climbed all the way up his spine.

In the darkness, a jade-white arm reached out and wrapped around his neck. A whole soft body pressed against him. His back sank into a marshmallow-like softness. Warm breath fell evenly into the shell of his ear. Below, a pair of feet, with the rustling touch of stockings, was slowly moving up along his ankle, lightly teasing his thigh. The touch was delicate and maddening, ticklish, like a goose feather lightly scratching across his heart.

“Going to sleep this late isn’t okay, you know~”

As Fuyuji’s spirit grew stronger, he could now, even without activating his detection, vaguely sense some things in advance.

But there were exceptions. The exceptions were the very few people to whom he had actively granted that permission. And among those few, this soft touch, this faint body fragrance, and this way of acting…

No doubt about it!

“Shiraishi-mama…” Fuyuji forced out a smile.

“Mm…” Shiraishi lowered her head, buried it against his back, and sniffed lightly, letting out a satisfied sigh. Her intoxicated voice spilled out from behind him. “You washed well. You washed off all of Morishita-san’s scent. Next… is mine.”

He finally understood. Why Shiraishi had let him off so easily during the day. Why Shiraishi had just taken the lead in refusing his invitation to stay over. She’d been waiting for him here all along.

“How did Shiraishi-mama get in?” The only one with a key card was Yamamura, and she shouldn’t have allowed Shiraishi to pull a sneaky move like this anymore.

“This?” Shiraishi spread the palm wrapped around Fuyuji’s neck, revealing a small paper ball. “Stuff it into the groove between the door lock and the frame, then close the door. As long as Fuyuji doesn’t deadbolt it, the door looks closed from the outside, but it opens with a single twist. Fuyuji, remember from now on, don’t be fooled by this trick again.”

“…”

No. The truth is, this is a method only you girls can use.

A long while later.

Fuyuji smiled helplessly and reached out to hold both her palms. He teased, “So… what did Shiraishi-mama come to see me so late for?”

“To eat Fuyuji, or be eaten by Fuyuji.” Shiraishi answered with a smile.

“Is there a difference?”

“Of course.” Shiraishi let out a light laugh. Her water-soft voice lingered by his ear, carrying a faint hoarseness, as if it held a bewitching magic that tempted one to fall. “Eating Fuyuji… is me telling Fuyuji just how much I like him. It’s a side of me Fuyuji has absolutely never seen, and a side shown only to Fuyuji.”

Under the covers, her little feet wrapped in pure white stockings began a rhythmic rubbing, like a witch’s whisper reaching straight to the tip of his heart.

“Being eaten by Fuyuji… is me giving everything to Fuyuji, letting myself be thoroughly dyed in Fuyuji’s colors, forever becoming Fuyuji’s private property…”

With a whoosh, Fuyuji turned over and clamped down on those mischievous little feet. He pressed his forehead against Shiraishi’s, nose tip touching nose tip.

Their breaths instantly tangled. The scorching heat spread through the tiny space between them.

Gently brushing away the pale golden hair at the corner of her lips and cheek, Fuyuji whispered, “Can’t we just eat each other, bit by bit, and become forever belonging to each other?”

“Then…” Shiraishi’s breathing also quickened. One fair hand, trembling slightly, took Fuyuji’s palm and guided it, placing it on the soft, smooth warmth below the collar of her nightgown. “Fuyuji needs to be careful. I wasn’t lying to Fuyuji. I really am very impressive.”

Through the thin fabric, the full, abundant touch instantly captured his palm. The delicate, tender sensation carried astonishing elasticity and heat. His breathing unconsciously quickened.

Moonlight spilled down, illuminating her open nightgown collar. Her delicate collarbone gleamed with a jade-like luster under the moonlight, rising and falling faintly with her breath like butterfly wings.

“Asuka-chan, you’re being a bit lewd, you know.”

“It’s Fuyuji who’s too unfair.”

Shiraishi was also panting. Her slender fingers slowly traced across Fuyuji’s chest.

Under the moonlight, the girl’s pale golden hair bloomed like flower petals. Her lips were slightly parted. Her long eyelashes trembled gently with the opening and closing of her eyes. Her violet eyes began to mist over with a layer of water.

“The current Shiraishi-mama is pretty unfair too.” Sensing the rising emotion in the girl in his arms, Fuyuji’s breath grew hot as well. The two unconsciously rubbed against each other’s bodies, fitting together more and more seamlessly.

“Then…” A faint panting came by his ear. A warm touch traced across his cheek, wandering like a nimble little snake. “What are you still waiting for? Bad boy. Or should I say… dear husband?”

The moment the words fell, Fuyuji seemed like ignited gunpowder, exploding instantly.

“So arrogant. Watch me punish you by house law!”

What greeted him was a peal of silver-bell laughter and vines that coiled up to meet him like a storm.

…

A swan-like neck arched high. Violet eyes flew wide open. Golden petals bloomed in the darkness…

Motion and stillness…

Cold and heat…

Serenity and fervor…

Outside the window, the curtain of snow filled the sky. Everything, all of it, was covered by this great snow in the night. The snow, over and over, boundless and endless…