Yu Siwoo quickly changed clothes after finishing his shower and checked the clock.
About ten minutes had passed.
Worried that Arte might be in danger, he hurried to the kitchen.
"You're already here? I'm not done preparing yet."
"I finished fast because I was worried about you."
"You don't have to rush. Just relax..."
Fortunately, Arte seemed fine, likely because he had arrived early. He let out a sigh of relief.
This was already an improvement.
Right after they started living together, things had been far worse.
"What? Why are you suddenly quiet?"
"No, I was just thinking you’ve gotten a lot better. On the first day, you were really bad off. Now you can handle being apart for ten minutes. Remember that?"
"...Don’t bring that up!"
"You couldn’t even wait for me to finish showering. You kept pounding on the door to remind me you were there."
"Aaaaaah! I told you not to talk about it!"
Thwack, thwack.
Unable to bear the embarrassment, Arte struck his back with magic-infused hands.
That really hurt.
As he rubbed his sore back, he saw Arte glaring at him, her face flushed, as if to say, *Don’t you dare mention it again.*
...Yeah, she had definitely gotten better.
The way she’d watch him, as if begging him not to leave her—it had been heartbreaking.
Now, she was comfortable enough to hit him back when he teased her.
But even so, she still got anxious whenever he wasn’t around.
Proof of that was right in front of him—though she was trying to hide it...
Her voice had trembled slightly at first. Her eyes had wavered. Her breathing had quickened.
If he hadn’t come out when he did, Arte would’ve been in real distress.
He had sworn to help her so she wouldn’t have to go through that again. He couldn’t just stand by and watch.
"...Arte. The meat’s burning."
"Aah?! Y-You’ll pay for this later!"
Had he teased her too much?
Arte kept smacking his back, and at this rate, his spine might not survive. So he brought up the steak she was cooking.
She shot him a warning glare before flipping the meat, and his mood soured.
This was her real personality.
He had assumed the suspicious, ruthless Arachne was her true self. But in reality, she was just like any ordinary person.
Not the cruel monster people made her out to be.
"...I can’t forgive them."
No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t forgive it.
Arte being forced into that situation. The suffering she endured.
It was all that *Author-nim’s* fault.
He had asked Arte about it a few times, but she never gave a clear answer.
She’d say things like, *Thanks, but there’s no way I can win. I only know their voice. I’ve never met them, and I never will. If they ever get serious, they might actually destroy the world.*
She always cut the conversation short like that.
That was why he still didn’t know how to help her.
There was only one way.
Increase Arte’s trust in him until she felt comfortable talking about the Author. That was the only option.
And that was why he couldn’t betray her trust.
He needed it to help her.
...But they had already been living together for over a month.
Wasn’t that long enough?
He stared blankly at Arte’s back as she cooked.
The glimpse of her snow-white nape... Ah, damn it.
"The food’s ready... Huh? What’s wrong?"
"No, my eyes are just tired."
"...Should I give you a blueberry?"
"Yeah. Please."
This is bad.
I need to earn Arte’s trust.
I’m trying my hardest not to look at her in a sexual way.
But my gaze keeps drifting toward her.
She looks so soft. She must smell good.
...Hugging her would feel amazing.
Thoughts like that kept flooding my mind, and I struggled to pull myself together.
Siwoo thought to himself: I don’t know how much longer I can hold out.
Maybe it would be easier if I knew nothing at all.
But unfortunately, Arte and I had more physical contact than I expected. At least, from my perspective.
A guy who’s never even dated, and yet I’ve had so much physical contact with Arte.
...It’s embarrassing to even think about, but I once hid in her locker, didn’t I?
After killing that villain, she even hugged me from behind to comfort me.
I’ve carried her on my back, let her use my lap as a pillow.
I’ve even seen her in a swimsuit.
Because of all those experiences, it was only easier to imagine.
Thanks to my uselessly sharp senses, those memories came back in vivid detail.
Hugging her would definitely feel good. She’d be soft.
She’d definitely smell good, right? Her shampoo, or something—it smelled nice. Different from mine.
"Here, a blueberry."
"Ah, thanks."
As I ate the blueberry Arte had brought me, I realized this couldn’t go on.
She was wearing loose dolphin pants and an oversized, baggy top for comfort.
Of course it was comfortable for Arte, but for me, it was torture.
"...Hmm, still uncomfortable."
Arte sighed, glancing back indifferently as she started tying her hair up.
"Then, just wait a little! I’ll be done soon."
"...Yeah. Got it."
This is driving me crazy.
What was driving me crazy? The fact that she was the absolute perfect match for my tastes.
Baggy top, dolphin pants.
As she raised her arms to tie her hair, I caught a glimpse of her armpit, and with her hair up, her pale nape was fully visible.
Her smooth-looking waist also came into view.
Normally it was fine, but these little accidental glimpses were maddening.
This isn’t good for my sanity.
Up until now, I’d been pretending not to notice, but maybe I should say something?
"...Arte."
"Yes?"
"Do you... no, never mind."
I’d made up my mind today—I had to say it. But the moment I called her name, my resolve crumbled.
Does she not wear leotards at home?
There was no way I could say that out loud.
I decided to keep my words to myself.
I could guess why Arte wore leotards.
To make combat easier, she needed to use the threads attached to her body, so she wore clothes with maximum surface area.
Since the school uniform was mandatory and couldn’t be altered, she used gloves, stockings, and underwear to somehow maintain her combat ability.
But there was no way I could tell her I knew all that.
Technically, a leotard was Arte’s underwear.
Last time I hid in her locker, I confirmed it—under her uniform, she only wore a leotard.
But if I, a guy, said something like that to Arte?
“Arte, you wear different underwear at home, huh?”
Are you insane, Siwoo? She’d probably kill me on the spot, not just slap me.
That’s just rude.
Siwoo buried the thought deep in his chest.
Arte wears the most comfortable clothes at home. That’s enough.
He decided not to delve too deeply into it.
"?"
"It's nothing. Let's eat. ...Hmm, it's really good."
"Right? I’m confident in my steak!"
As Yu Siwoo savored Arte’s steak—something he’d grown familiar with after eating it so many times—he pondered.
Lately, the way he looked at Arte had been feeling more and more sinister.
He’d been doing his best to suppress it, but it was getting harder and harder.
Even now, he was struggling to keep his gaze off her.
"Haa..."
He really, truly didn’t want to try this.
But Yu Siwoo resolved to use his last resort.
Maybe Amelia would have some useful advice?
With his doubts growing by the day, hiding it any longer seemed pointless.
Glancing at Arte, Yu Siwoo decided to consult Amelia the next day.
"I had a feeling you two were sticking together way too much lately."
Ah, so that’s what this was about.
Muttering to herself, Amelia started circling around me.
"I don’t have time, Amelia. I told her I was going to the bathroom and came to you. What do I do?"
"...You’re a lost cause too, huh?"
I ignored Amelia’s incomprehensible muttering as she stared at me.
If it were any other girl, I couldn’t have brought myself to ask for advice like this.
In times like these, I was glad Amelia was already tangled up in Arte’s affairs.
If I’d tried talking to Dorothy or any other girl about this, they’d either call me a pervert or get all worked up and waste time gossiping.
But Amelia? No worries. She wasn’t the type for that.
Sure enough, Amelia brushed aside the small talk and got straight to the point.
"True. If you can’t stay more than 10 minutes apart in the same house, that’s pretty rough. Arte’s the kind of girl who’d make that hard for you."
"Don’t you have any good ideas?"
"Do I look like some kind of idea bag to you? Like I’ll just answer anything you ask?"
Amelia stared at me like I was being ridiculous.
...Well, she wasn’t perfect either.
Even if she was the only one I could ask, assuming she’d have a solution was just my own wishful thinking.
Only then did I realize my mistake.
"It’s not like there’s *no* way..."
"W-what?! There is?!"
"...Hmm. I don’t know if it’ll work, but it’s worth a try. Want to give it a shot?"
"Tell me. Now."
Just as I was hanging my head in despair, a glimmer of hope reached my ears.
Even if it wasn’t certain, if there was a chance, I had to try.
I *needed* some time to myself.
I couldn’t hold out much longer.
"...How about this?"
Amelia continued her explanation.
And after hearing it all, I nodded.
I didn’t know if it would work. But if there was even a chance, I had to do it.
"The key is sincerity. Got it?"
"Got it. Thanks."
"No problem."
"...Oh no, it’s already this late. Sorry, Amelia. See you later!"
Glancing at the time, I realized over five minutes had passed.
It was about time to get back to Arte.
Yu Siwoo hastily said his goodbyes to Amelia and started heading back toward Arte.
"...What is this, acting like a devoted husband? Anyone who sees this will think you’re already married."
And so, Yu Siwoo didn’t hear Amelia’s muttered words.