"Is there something else you need my help with?"
Kato Megumi walked into the restroom and looked at Shirai Mio standing in front of the sinks as she asked the question.
Shirai Mio had not greeted her directly just now and had sent her a message instead, so Megumi had already figured as much.
"Well, here's the thing." Shirai Mio put on an awkward yet polite smile.
She had not expected another Kato Megumi-related mission to appear so soon after she had completed one that very morning. Shirai Mio felt helpless about it too.
"So what do you need me to help with this time?"
"Hold hands with me for half an hour."
Hearing Shirai Mio's request, Kato Megumi's expression did not change, but she silently breathed a sigh of relief inside.
"Sure. Are we going to keep staying in the restroom?"
"Better not. Let's go outside."
"Eh!? Aren't you worried someone will see the two of us holding hands?"
If Shirai Mio had not been worried about that, she would not have called Megumi to the restroom alone.
"Honestly, I am a little worried. But I can't exactly make you stay in the restroom with me for half an hour, can I? Rather than spend half an hour in here, we might as well use the time to walk around together." As Shirai Mio spoke, she took Kato Megumi's hand and led her outside.
Feeling the warmth from Shirai Mio's palm, Kato Megumi had been about to say something, but she hesitated.
By the time she came back to herself, Shirai Mio had already pulled her out of the restroom.
The shopping center was huge, and Shiina Mashiro and the others were in a clothing store on the first floor.
So as long as she and Kato Megumi went up to the second floor, there should not be any problem.
After confirming there were no familiar faces outside, Shirai Mio led Kato Megumi straight to the elevator and took her up to the second floor.
The main problem was that her hair was simply too conspicuous. Otherwise, changing into a different outfit alone would have gone a long way toward keeping people from recognizing her.
"Where are we going now?"
"How about we check out an optician?"
Kato Megumi looked at Shirai Mio curiously. "Are you nearsighted?"
"A little."
She still had an unupgraded penalty deck that could reduce her eyesight, so even without glasses she normally had no real trouble seeing.
Besides, she owned [Eriri's Black-Rimmed Glasses], which could automatically adapt to the wearer's prescription. She usually wore those whenever she was working.
But that did not stop her from getting a new pair of glasses.
The two of them went to an optician. Since they could not let go of each other's hands, Kato Megumi had to go along even while Shirai Mio had her eyes tested.
Watching the two girls holding hands, the clerk smiled and said, "You two really are close~"
"Of course. We're more than just close, you know."
Hearing Shirai Mio's answer, the clerk froze for a moment before instantly understanding. So the two of them had that kind of relationship.
Kato Megumi had heard the exchange as well. She merely gave Shirai Mio's hand a small squeeze and did not explain anything.
Once the eye test was done, naturally it was time to pick out frames.
Shirai Mio squeezed Kato Megumi's hand and said, "Megumi, which pair do you think looks good on me?"
Kato Megumi chose carefully and eventually picked a rather ordinary-looking pair. Of course, how ordinary they looked depended on who was wearing them. On Shirai Mio, they did not look ordinary in the slightest.
"Then I'll take these."
"You're not even going to try any others?"
"No need. I think the pair you picked suits me just fine."
"More like anything would suit you." Kato Megumi looked at Shirai Mio's breathtakingly beautiful face as she spoke softly.
"You'll make me blush if you say things like that~" Despite her words, not the slightest trace of embarrassment could be found on Shirai Mio's face.
After buying the glasses, Shirai Mio took Kato Megumi around a few more places. Only once half an hour had passed did she bring Megumi back downstairs.
Seeing Shirai Mio head straight toward the clothing store, Kato Megumi asked in surprise, "Is it really okay to go back there now?"
"It's fine. Half an hour was exactly enough."
Hearing that, a thoughtful look flashed through Kato Megumi's eyes. It felt as though some kind of existence was giving Shirai Mio strange tasks, such as exchanging clothes with her or holding her hand.
Judging from Shirai Mio's behavior, there was probably some kind of punishment if she failed to complete a task.
If failure came with a punishment, then did completing a task also come with some kind of reward?
Before Kato Megumi could reason it all out, Shirai Mio brought her back to the clothing store.
Of course, it was not the same clothing store as before. Rita had messaged her earlier to say that they had moved to another store, while also asking whether Mio had gotten diarrhea so badly that she had collapsed from exhaustion.
When Rita saw Shirai Mio finally return, she was about to say something, only to notice the cute girl standing beside her.
She said, somewhat exasperated, "How did you manage to go to the restroom and come back with another person?"
"Kato Megumi, my classmate and good friend. I happened to run into her on the way."
Isshiki Iroha had just stepped out of a fitting room. Looking at Kato Megumi beside Shirai Mio, a trace of puzzlement flashed through her eyes.
She wondered whether this girl and Shirai Mio were really just ordinary friends.
Since when had she started suspecting the relationship between Shirai Mio and every girl she saw beside her?
Obviously, this was all Shirai Mio's fault. After all, there were so many rumors about her at school.
To avoid another accident, Shirai Mio directly used a [Slacking-off Card], which would prevent her from triggering any missions for twenty-four hours.
She had already used the restroom escape trick once. With three targets from the System's panel here, if another mission triggered, she truly would not know what to do.
So using a [Slacking-off Card] was the safest option.
After Shirai Mio used the [Slacking-off Card], the System's voice rang in her ear. "Tch. Half the day is already gone. Isn't using that kind of card now a complete waste?"
"It's fine. I still have plenty of these cards. Besides, if I don't use one, I keep feeling like you're going to cause trouble."
"What do you mean, cause trouble? Do I look like that kind of person... no, that kind of System?"
"You don't look like it. You are."
In the past, she had been too stingy and that was what had led to all kinds of unexpected problems. She was done being stingy now. For the sake of having a better experience, she would use things when the time was right.
No more hesitation.
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