Utaha Kasumigaoka Feels Something Is Very Wrong

Arifureta simply hummed in response and didn't press further. She had long since grown accustomed to this kind of situation. Shifting her gaze from Eriri, she turned her attention back to the television screen, watching the game being played.

During this time, Shea and Reina were fully absorbed in the game, completely unaware that the entire world had undergone a transformation in just a few minutes.

Eriri, after taking her eyes off the game screen and giving Reina's fox ears a gentle rub, redirected her focus back to her phone. She opened the messaging app and resumed chatting with Utaha Kasumigaoka.

"Yes, I've finished everything. Senpai, why are you still up so late? You've got school tomorrow."

In a high-end apartment, Utaha Kasumigaoka, fresh out of the bath and wrapped in a white towel, was lounging on her bed, rolling around as she looked at her phone. Her freshly washed face, slightly flushed from the bath, displayed a silly smile.

Her long black hair, still damp, cascaded down her back, and without her usual white headband, she exuded a different kind of charm. The towel clung to her curvaceous figure, revealing tantalizing glimpses of her body, while her slender, snow-white legs were exposed to the air, making her look exceptionally alluring.

"Mm-hmm, I was just about to go to sleep."

After typing out her reply, Utaha frowned slightly and muttered to herself, "No, this would kill the conversation. I need to rewrite it."

"It's nothing much, I just got delayed by some things I needed to finish. That's why it's so late."

Too stiff, too arrogant. Not good. Delete and rewrite.

"I stayed up late just to wait for your message."

Ah, this... too exaggerated. I can't even stand to read this myself. Delete and rewrite again.

...

After several rounds of brainstorming, Utaha finally composed a reply that she was satisfied with and sent it. Fortunately, she was a fast typist and a quick thinker, so it didn't take her long to respond to Eriri's message.

"I got delayed by something I had to finish, so that's why I'm up so late. Sawamura-san, aren't you going to sleep?"

On the other end, Eriri saw the reply come in two or three minutes later and didn't find it strange. After all, not everyone was like Megumi Kato, who was always glued to her phone and could respond to messages instantly.

Thus, Eriri was unaware of the considerable effort Utaha had put into crafting that simple response.

As for the "things I had to finish" that Utaha mentioned, Eriri knew exactly what she was referring to—likely something related to the second volume of Love Metronome. Since Utaha didn't want Eriri to know she was working on her novel, Eriri didn't press the matter.

"I wonder how Senpai's second volume is coming along. When will it be released? I could use my Twitter account to give it some promotion when the time comes."

Yes, Eriri, known in the otaku community by her pen name "Kashiwagi Eri," had millions of followers on her Twitter account, thanks to her top-tier artistic skills. Her true identity remained a mystery to the public, and within the otaku world, even the gender of Kashiwagi Eri was a topic of speculation.

It wasn't that Eriri was opposed to revealing her identity, but she simply felt it wasn't necessary at the moment. She hadn't gone out of her way to hide it, and the fact that it hadn't been exposed yet was likely thanks to Mrs. Sayuri.

Although Eriri could have used the resources of the Sawamura conglomerate to ensure Utaha Kasumigaoka's novel received top-tier promotion, leading to instant success, she chose not to do so. She preferred to help Utaha through her own influence in the otaku community.

She couldn't help but think about how interesting it would be to see Utaha's reaction when she eventually discovered that Eriri was Kashiwagi Eri.

Setting aside these miscellaneous thoughts, Eriri continued to chat with Utaha Kasumigaoka through text.

"Is that so? Senpai, you're really diligent. I'm not very sleepy yet, so I'm staying up a bit longer."

"Are you going to school tomorrow?"

"I took a seven-day leave, and only five days have passed. It'd be a waste not to use the remaining two days, hehe."

"You're unbelievable, taking leave on the second day of school. Your name is pretty well-known at Toyogasaki now."

"Of course! With my unrivaled beauty, it would be strange if I didn't become famous."

"That's part of it, but it's also because you took leave so early in the semester. A lot of students haven't seen you and don't believe the rumors about how gorgeous you are. Instead, Megumi Kato has become the school's recognized beauty, overshadowing my fame."

"Really? Megumi-chan is amazing!"

"Mm-hmm, there are many students pursuing Kato-san now. Aren't you worried?"

"Of course not."

...

"Goodnight, Senpai."

"Goodnight, Sawamura-san!"

After finishing her text conversation with Eriri, Utaha stretched out on her bed, still wrapped in her white towel. Her long, slender legs were bent, her delicate feet playfully entwined as she radiated a sense of inner joy.

"Achoo!"

Utaha suddenly let out a cute sneeze as a chill swept over her body, causing her to shiver. It wasn't until then that she realized she still hadn't changed into her pajamas.

The temperature during early spring nights was still quite low, and to avoid catching a cold, Utaha quickly put down her phone and went to her wardrobe to pull out a set of light pink pajamas. She casually tossed the towel she had been wearing onto the nearby rack.

As her black hair fluttered, her perfectly sculpted, porcelain-like figure, with its alluring curves, was briefly exposed in the room.

Utaha's mind wandered to the beautiful face of Eriri that had etched itself into her memory. Subconsciously, she reached out with her left hand and gently brushed it over the soft, full curves of her chest, a faint blush spreading across her cheeks.

Suddenly, her movements froze. Realizing what she was doing, she quickly withdrew her hand, clutching the pajamas in her right hand tightly to her chest. She took a few deep breaths.

"What am I even doing? This is totally unacceptable..."

She shook her head with a bitter smile, slipped into her pajamas, and rubbed her cheeks to calm herself. Then, she climbed into bed and pulled the covers over her head.

Utaha couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about her behavior just now.