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The commotion in the room didn't fully die down until nearly midnight. The earlier shower had turned out completely pointless, thanks to the vigorous, three-player "exercise session" that followed.
Scene change—
In the familiar shower room, the showerhead, originally hanging from the wall, had been taken down.
Though it wasn't exactly the same time, the location was identical. Bokue sat cross-legged on the floor, with the two Nekomata sisters—one big, one small—resting their heads on either side of his shoulders.
Kuroka held the showerhead attached to the hose, gently rinsing off her exhausted younger sister with a caring, affectionate expression.
Tonight had been Koneko's first time. Compared to the far more experienced Kuroka—who had already "replayed this game" thousands of times—the silver-haired girl's performance tonight had been truly inexperienced, even clumsy. She had mostly depended on Bokue's guidance, barely keeping pace. The rest of the time was essentially spent watching her older sister's "careful demonstration."
"How are you feeling now, Shirone? Is your body holding up okay~?"
Acting as if she completely missed the incredulous look in her sister's eyes, Kuroka patiently directed the warm water over Koneko's delicate skin, carefully and gently cleaning off any remaining residue.
"Onee-chan… Why did you…?"
Under the soothing rinse of warm water, clarity slowly returned to Koneko's eyes, yet her voice was still fragmented. Already not much of a talker, Koneko was now exhausted beyond belief—both physically and mentally—making it especially difficult for her to articulate her thoughts clearly.
"Hmm? Why did I what?"
Humming casually, Kuroka reached out, grabbing a bar of soap from the shelf beside her and passing it over to Bokue. Then she gracefully began cleaning herself up as well.
After getting wet, obviously, you use soap next. Even kids know that basic rule.
"Doesn't Shirone feel a whole lot better now? You know, Bokue already told me you'd had that kind of reaction before~ Having to forcibly resist your Nekomata powers, unable to use Senjutsu, trying to endure all that built-up frustration by sheer willpower alone—must've been really uncomfortable, right?"
Naturally, she was referring to the incident back in the old school building—when Koneko had inadvertently triggered her heat by catching Bokue's scent.
"That's not… what I meant!"
The silver-haired girl desperately tried moving her arm to grab at Kuroka. But drained of all energy, even raising an arm slightly was already too difficult; her arm rose weakly only to fall limply back down.
She could only stare intensely into that familiar face mere inches away, forcing out her question with all the strength she had left:
"Why… is Onee-chan together with Bokue-senpai?!"
"Hmm?"
As if she'd expected this question all along, Kuroka theatrically tilted her head with a drawn-out hum, and then curved her lips into a faint smirk.
"Oh my~ Now, isn't your question a bit strange, Shirone? Don't tell me you thought your Onee-chan deliberately got close to Bokue only after you met him? Wrong, wrong~ Actually, your dear sister here has known him for a long, looong time already~"
"Eh…?"
Though Koneko had already guessed something like this might be true, hearing it confirmed directly still caused her pupils to briefly contract in shock.
"Mmm… it's probably been about six or seven years now."
Kuroka paused thoughtfully, adding another teasing remark as she smugly flicked her damp ears.
A few droplets sprayed Bokue's face, prompting him to gently swat her backside with his soap-covered hand.
"Hey, watch it. You want to wash Shirone instead?"
Koneko's original name was Shirone—"Koneko" was the nickname Rias had given her later. Previously, Bokue had intentionally called her "Koneko" to keep Kuroka's identity concealed. Now that Kuroka herself had spilled the beans, there was no longer any reason to keep pretending.
"Nyahaha~ No thanks! If I wash Shirone now, she'll definitely scratch me up good!"
Kuroka acted as if she'd perfectly read her sister's mind, nodding knowingly.
"Besides, the aftercare cuddling session is super important, you know? This is Shirone's first time, after all—Bokue, you gotta properly clean her up and give her lots and lots of extra affection~"
Well, wasn't she suddenly generous when it came to her little sister?
Bokue mentally rolled his eyes at her attitude. Given Kuroka's normal personality, let alone sharing him with others, she would usually explode with jealousy even if she merely smelled another girl's scent on him after he returned home.
"Shirone, lift your arms a bit."
Bokue gently washed Shirone from head to toe.
But just as his fingertips brushed her underarms, Koneko, who had seemed utterly drained moments ago, suddenly found strength from who-knows-where. She abruptly jerked her arms away from him, forcing out her normally soft and ethereal voice with surprising strength:
"Answer me clearly, Onee-chan! What exactly is going on here?!"
This strained outburst, coming so soon after barely regaining a hint of energy, quickly left the silver-haired girl panting again.
In stark contrast, Kuroka remained relaxed—casually rinsing both herself and Bokue, even shifting to a more comfortable position in his embrace.
"Hmm… Well, since you're so determined to ask, Shirone, I guess I can—"
"Hold it. Let me explain this instead."
Bokue quickly interrupted her, knowing precisely how carelessly casual her tone would become.
He wasn't sure why, but ever since revealing herself, whenever Kuroka addressed Shirone, she'd always adopted an oddly teasing, slightly mocking tone—as if intentionally playing the role of an aloof older sibling.
Yet, at home, whenever Kuroka spoke about her younger sister, she always did so with a quiet, gentle concern. Was this perhaps some form of classic tsundere behavior?
Deciding to step in decisively, Bokue leaned forward, giving his teasing cat-girl partner a soft kiss to keep her quiet and satisfied at the side. Then he repositioned Shirone comfortably, making direct eye contact.
He gently held the petite, silver-haired cat-eared girl, the one who had once been a "subject" in Naberius Clan's cruel "Artificial Transcendental" experiments.
"Look, Shirone, I don't know exactly how you truly feel deep inside about Kuroka. But I can tell you one thing for sure: Everything your sister did back then was entirely to protect you."
"From Kuroka's perspective back then, if the experiments continued, both your lives would undoubtedly have been in serious danger. But simply causing a small disruption wouldn't have ended things—remember, that was the Naberius Clan from the Seventy-two Pillars of high-ranking devils. Even if something went wrong, they'd just cover it up and send in more personnel to continue those experiments."
"So, at the time, Kuroka's only viable option—the one way she saw to permanently halt the experiments and ensure they'd never continue—was to create an incident so serious it couldn't be ignored. And to shoulder all the blame herself."
"That's why she pretended to lose control, killing all the researchers involved, thereby proving the project's dangerous nature. She then fled the scene, becoming a Stray Devil to draw all the Naberius Clan's attention away from you. She purposely left you behind, disguising you as an unused experimental 'material,' a subject of minimal involvement."
"This way, all the hostility and punishment would focus solely on her, sparing you from any follow-up retaliation."
"It sounds incredibly harsh, I know. But at that time, this was the only plan Kuroka could think of to ensure your survival."
Bokue finished softly, the gentle running of the shower water filling the silence that followed.
There was no immediate response.
After a long pause, the silver-haired girl quietly lowered her head, remaining silent.
At last, the truth between sisters was finally out.
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