Chapter 3: End.

It’s nothing important, but when I got home, Takahiro was waiting.

…Ah. Right, I forgot to message him. Sorry, Takahiro. But hear me out—I’ve got good news. There’s a girl who understands how you feel. Lucky you. No, no, no need to thank me. As your friend, let me celebrate this with you. As a friend, okay? You get what I mean.

For some reason, Takahiro kept bombarding me with questions—where I went today, who I was with, and so on—so I brushed him off with a string of “yeah, yeah, sorry,” “uh-huh,” and “sure, sure,” before promptly showing him the door.

After that, I went back to my room and flopped spread-eagle onto the soft bed covered with pink sheets.

Pof.

A ridiculously light sound.

…Hmm. Shione-chan, isn’t this a bit too light?

Rolling from side to side across the bed, I went over the events of the day again.

"Quite a lot happened today… but hey, I got to meet Kaimori-chan…"

At the very least, meeting Kaimori-chan today meant we’d avoided that unfortunate future where she’d be alone in the courtyard, searching for things by herself. Just that alone brought me one step closer to the happy world I’m aiming for. Thinking about it that way, it was a pretty fruitful day.

Now then… the question is who to pair that idiot Takahiro up with…

As I drifted deeper into thought, a wave of drowsiness gently crept in, threatening to carry me off. But still… Kaimori-chan had already been promoted to Takahiro’s fiancée in a single day. Doesn’t that basically mean the problem’s solved? Maybe from here on out, I can just take it easy, deepen my relationships with the characters, and wait until the dream ends…

Reassured, I let myself drift… and slipped into sleep for the second time that day.

"Shione! Go take your bath first!"

"Oh—okay!"

I answered my mother’s call almost on reflex and sat up—but the next instant, I froze.

…Wait. A bath? Hold on—what does that even mean? To get in… what exactly does that… entail…?

Looking around nervously, I stepped into the bathroom. Slowly, cautiously, I eased myself into the hot water and leaned my back against the edge of the tub.

It was a normal-sized bathtub, but since Shione-chan is… well, mini-sized, there was enough room to stretch my legs.

…Well, not that I actually could.

Like that, I tilted my head upward as far as I could.

…Yeah. I mean, doesn’t this kind of feel like I’m doing something wrong? I mean, I’m a gentleman, after all. Not sure who I’m even trying to justify myself to, though.

For a while, I emptied my mind.

But gradually, the heat rose to my head, and everything started spinning. Before I knew it, nearly half my face had sunk into the water—blub blub—bubbles rising to the surface.

"…Hey… is this really a dream?"

I muttered it while staring up at the steam-covered ceiling.

Of course, there was no reply.

After spending about an hour in the bath, I returned to my room.

…Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re going to say. Normally I’d take, what, twenty minutes tops? But come on—it’s a bath, right? You’ve got to wash your body.

And that… was the real problem.

…Well, to put it bluntly, I had no choice but to see everything.

But no, wait—it wasn’t my fault. It was unavoidable. Still… everything was so pale, soft, smooth… and no matter where I scrubbed with the sponge, it tickled like crazy. I even let out a small “Eek!” without meaning to.

So embarrassing.

If anyone I knew had seen me in that moment, I’d probably die of shame on the spot. Just remembering it makes my face heat up again.

…Even so, after lying face-down for a while with a cushion pressed against my face, occasionally kicking my legs back and forth, the heat gradually faded.

Whew. Guess the old trick for dealing with cringe memories still works. Experience really does matter.

As I hugged the large cushion, I felt strangely calm. Maybe Shione-chan used to do the same thing to settle herself down. It kind of feels like we have something in common—one-sided, though.

But after going through an experience that mortifying, I decided to seriously think about the core issue behind everything that had happened today.

In the end, it all boiled down to just one question.

I repeated the same words I’d muttered in the bath as I leaned back against the bed.

Creak.

"…Is this really a dream?"

There were only two possible answers: either it was a dream, or it wasn’t.

If it was a dream, fine.

But if it wasn’t—

…then what is this world?

Why am I here?

As I thought about it, drowsiness crept in again.

…Yeah, I’m completely out of stamina. Makes sense—I searched, I ate, I slept. Shione-chan, good job today.

Besides, maybe when I wake up, I’ll be back in my own room. I’ve already had my fill of talking with Kaimori-chan, so that’d be ideal.

I’m counting on you.

…Not that I even know who I’m asking.

I cut off the meeting in my head, climbed onto the bed, and wriggled under the blanket.

A soft, sweet scent enveloped me.

This must be Shione-chan’s scent. Gentle. Sweet.

…Crap. That was a bit creepy of me.

Then, as I closed my eyes and my consciousness began to sink into darkness, something about that earlier question crossed my mind again.

It was a thought—unsettling, almost frightening.

—A dream, or something else. That is the question.

But… what if this is a dream that never ends?

In that case… is there really any difference between the two?