I've already said this isn't a life simulator!

As if on purpose, Xi Wang hummed a cheerful tune and slowly walked to Ying's side. She lowered her head and whispered softly to Ying's long, slender ears, which she had covered with her hands.

"Sakura, aren't you going to come and see me?"

"........."

"And I saw those ears, didn't I?"

"........."

Sakura's body stiffened slightly.

"So cute~"

As Xi Wang spoke, she deliberately lowered her voice slightly and said in a gentle, soothing tone.

"Can I touch it, Sakura? In exchange... I can let you touch my hair, okay?"

As she spoke, Xi Wang gently pressed her body against Ying's back, resting her chin on Ying's head, right between the animal ears, causing her long hair, which had turned a gradient color due to the surgery, to fall in front of Ying, intertwining with her cherry-colored hair.

"Look, isn't it beautiful? It's a bit like white waves~ Maybe we can even braid some hairstyles in the future? Which one would you like?"

"...Xi Wang, aren't you going to ask me anything?"

After a moment of silence, Sakura asked with some doubt, her voice tinged with obvious nervousness.

"Hmm? No way~ After all... compared to things that are in the past and I can't change them, I'm more focused on the present... No matter why you participated in the surgery in the first place, I believe you must have had your own reasons... and you must have done it voluntarily, right?"

"……Um."

"That's good~ You had the surgery and survived... Now, you're still by my side, that's enough~ Nothing else really matters."

"Oh, I see... You would definitely say that to other girls, right?"

"I'll tell Eden~"

"...Can't you at least try to lie to me a little bit now?"

"No, resist, refuse! This alone won't do!"

Xi Wang fiddled with her and Ying's hair, gently picking up a small tuft of pink and white hair and lightly scratching Ying's cheek a few times to express her dissatisfaction.

"……snort."

Sakura gave a soft hum, but she wasn't dissatisfied with Xi Wang's words. In fact, she wasn't surprised by Xi Wang's answer at all, and even felt a little...joy at Xi Wang's resistance to lying to her.

Ah... If Rin finds out, I'll definitely get scolded again... I'm sorry, Rin, your older sister... I guess I'm a bit off.

"...I'm sorry, Xiwang, I couldn't tell you this...and I couldn't be by your side when you woke up."

Sakura sighed softly, released her hands from pressing down on the beast ears, and let the long, thin ears stand up, brush against Xi Wang's face, and envelop him in their embrace... Midway through, whether it was Sakura's own instinct or not, the long, thin beast ears even rubbed against Xi Wang's cheek rather affectionately, making him chuckle.

“I’m just a little worried… that I might scare you.”

"No, on the contrary, I really like it."

Xi Wang's tone was light and cheerful.

"Sakura is so cute... Can I touch it?"

"Please...please..."

"Mmm...so soft and fluffy...ah, will Sakura be sensitive?"

"No...no...that's not true..."

"But Sakura's face is very hot!"

"No...no, right?"

"Even those ears are red, huh? Heh heh~"

Xi Wang hummed softly, gently pinched the tips of the beast ears, and then spoke softly in her ear in a voice that could be described as soothing.

"It's okay to be a little bolder, Sakura~"

？ ！！

Sakura's ears immediately tensed up, trembled stiffly for a moment, and then she slumped down softly.

"Xiwang...sometimes it's dangerous for you to say things like that..."

"Well?"

"No, it's nothing..."

Sakura quickly shook her head, trying to banish her terrible thoughts.

"If I have upset you, I apologize."

"No, no, rather, I'm very happy... that you like my ears... or something..."

"Can I touch it again?"

"........."

"In exchange, I can give you this~"

Xi Wang sat down to the side, patted his thigh, and gestured to Ying.

"Come on, Sakura, you're tired, you can rest~ I'll sing you a song~"

"No...actually..."

"you are tired."

"……Um."

It seems there's no reason to refuse?

Sakura slowly rubbed her body, inching closer to Xi Wang and gently lying down.

A gentle breeze blew by, warm and comforting, carrying a faint scent of the sea, like being on a sunny beach... Xi Wang's fingertips gently pressed on Ying's forehead, massaging her with just the right amount of pressure and slightly clumsy technique, while she softly hummed a gentle melody, making one feel sleepy.

Honestly, I'm really going to fall asleep like this...

Sakura thought with a touch of helplessness, but she didn't resist the growing drowsiness... She felt that this scene was somewhat familiar, as if she had done it many times before.

It's strange, why would I have this thought?

Sakura couldn't help but think this way, but gradually, she lost interest in such things.

Her eyelids slowly closed, her thoughts gradually relaxed, and her breathing became steady... Finally, to the gentle strains of a song, Sakura, with a slight smile on her lips, slowly drifted off to sleep.

In her sleep, Sakura's slender animal ears would twitch from time to time, and she would occasionally rub against Xi Wang's waist affectionately, seemingly unconsciously revealing her affection for him.

???~

And so, Xi Wang hummed a soft song, and a gentle breeze surrounded the two of them, soothing Ying's thoughts in her sleep and allowing her to drift off to sleep... With her fingertips lightly pinching the trembling, slender ear, she felt the slightly shy warmth, and gently rubbed it, feeling the soft, downy touch that she couldn't bear to part with.

Click——

After an unknown amount of time, a soft sound of the door opening came from inside. A pink figure peeked out. Alicia looked around the room and finally her gaze settled on Xiwang.

She blinked her beautiful and lovely eyes, her gaze lingering for a moment on Xi Wang, who was softly singing a song, before moving to Ying, who was breathing steadily. She winked at Xi Wang, as if asking if she had disturbed them.

???~

Xi Wang sang a soft song, her tone unchanged by Alicia's arrival. She slightly raised her hand and placed her fingertips lightly on her lips, indicating that she should just keep her voice down.

So, Alicia quietly and carefully approached the two of them, squatted down, looked at the sleeping Sakura, and showed a joyful smile.

She quietly reached out and gently touched Sakura's slender ear... but perhaps because she sensed something was wrong, Sakura's ear twitched slightly, pulling away from her hand and making her look a little sulky.

Xi Wang simply chuckled a few times, her singing unchanged, but the breeze blowing around her carried a hint of joy, creating a wonderful feeling.

Alicia seemed to hold a grudge about this. She shifted her body and, as if in revenge, began to play with Xiwang's hair, separating it into sections and starting to play with it... In the end, she seemed to get into it and simply started to braid Xiwang's hair.

Ta-da~

Deliberately braiding Xi Wang's hair into princess braids as a small revenge for his "mocking" her, Alicia removed her own hair ornaments, letting her long pink hair fall loose, while tying Xi Wang's hair up again. Finally, she opened her arms and mouthed a surprised gesture to Xi Wang, leaving him speechless and amused.

Then, Alicia pointed to Xiwang's already braided hair, then to her own elven-like ears, and blinked, as if to indicate that she wanted to use this as an "exchange"... or rather, an "apology".

Xi Wang simply smiled and shook her head, indicating her refusal.

Alicia put her hands on her hips, deliberately showing a somewhat unhappy expression. She fiddled with a small tuft of her hair and deliberately tickled Xi Wang's nose twice with the pink ends to express her dissatisfaction. Then, she left the room with quiet but light steps.

Just before closing the door, Alicia leaned back a little, made the shape of a picture frame with her hand, and framed Xiwang and Ying's figures in it. She then blinked her slightly sly eyes, as if she were pressing the shutter, "capturing" their current appearance and memorizing it.

Immediately, she stuck out her tongue at Xi Wang, gave him a cute expression, and quickly slipped away.

"........."

After Alicia left, Xiwang's singing gradually softened and stopped, and the room fell silent again.

"Sakura, she's gone?"

"........."

"Pretending to be asleep is not a good thing, is it?"

Xi Wang lowered her head gently and spoke softly, a hint of a smile in her eyes.

"........."

"...Okay~"

Xi Wang lowered her body and gently... *chirp*

He lightly tapped Sakura's chin.

You can feel the warmth of her/him coming from your lower lip.

？ ！！

In that instant, Sakura opened her eyes and sprang up, narrowly avoiding a collision with Xi Wang's face... otherwise, something interesting might have happened.

"........."

Sakura glared at Xi Wang with a hint of embarrassment and annoyance, but when she looked at Xi Wang's neatly braided hair, the corners of her mouth unconsciously turned up slightly, but she still managed to suppress it.

With her head bowed and her face flushed with embarrassment, Sakura quickly left, leaving behind only a faint, fitting scent of cherry blossoms.

"……uh-huh?"

Xi Wang tilted her head, feeling the gentle breeze around her. She seemed to sense the joy hidden in Ying's heart, and gave a faint smile. She got up and walked away slowly.

There's a celebration tonight, so don't be late!