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“……37.8°C. You’re not going to school like this, I’ll let them know you’ll be absent.”
“Ughh…”

Amari checked Kou’s temperature on her NLD’s monitoring systems, and then spoke with a stern voice, and in response…Kou hid her face, red from the fever, under the covers as best as she could, all to escape her mother’s gaze.

…It was already November, and they were in the Tohoku region.
Kou had only been wearing panties and a camisole the previous night, right after coming out of the bath, which completely slipped off her mind once she logged into DUO and spent many hours there…and in such weather, it was no surprise when the next morning she was afflicted by a terrible cold.

“Either way, I’m sure it also got this way because of all the fatigue you’ve been building up lately. But to sleep in undies like that…you really are more of a fool than I thought.”
“…I wasn’t just wearing undies, and I wasn’t sleeping either.”
“You were there with your belly fully exposed so it’s the same. Also, your body is in the same state as if you were sleeping when Full-Diving.”

Amari flicked her finger onto Kou’s forehead, the only part of her body not covered, reprimanding her for being so careless, and Kou could not find anything to say back.
Her mother was pleased to see that, and began humming as she turned around to pick up a towel from a bowl, wringing most of the water out of it, and placed it on Kou’s forehead.

“…What’s so fun?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. It’s just that it’s been a while since I’ve been able to do more motherly things.”
“Hmm…”

Seeing her mother enjoy her suffering was not something Kou appreciated, pouting and puffing her cheeks, but Amari did not seem to care about that.

“I wasn’t expecting that we’d be out of cooling pads though, so I’ll have to go buy that and a few other things we need. You be a good girl and rest.”
“Okayyy… Ah, but can I log into DUO-”
“Of course not.”
“Owie!”

At the same time as Amari rejected that, she flicked her finger onto Kou’s forehead through the towel, making Kou let out a pained yelp.

…In reality, Kou did not have the intention of skipping school and playing games all day, it was just one form of seeking attention.
She just wanted to feel cared for, even if it was because she caught a cold. But whether Kou was actually aware of that desire was a different question.

Before leaving, Amari reminded her “get some proper sleep,” and went downstairs. As her footsteps waned in the distance, Kou was left alone and she did as told, closing her eyes.

*…When was the last time I caught a cold?*

It really had been years since the last time she fell ill, excluding her time in the hospital at the start of the year, and the troublesome time she had to endure twice a month.

Staying home while everyone else had to go to school made her feel a bit guilty, but her fever would not let her mind latch onto thoughts for too long, and soon her consciousness shut down.

◇◇◇

*…Beep.*

The sound alert of an incoming message pulled Kou out of an incoherent dream, brought forth by her fever.
At the top of her inbox, she saw the newest message, which she was surprised to see came from Suzaku.
Wondering why he would text her, she opened it and…

*”I heard you caught a cold and couldn’t come to school. Stuuupid.”*

“Ughh…how’s this child in a higher year than me, unbelievable.”

Suzaku’s message even included plenty of mocking emoji, angering Kou as she decided to check the rest of the messages she got.

Hijiri and Subaru had sent more normal messages hoping she would feel better soon, and Subaru even attached a copy of the notes he took from their classes that day, which Kou made sure to save.

Haru had also sent a concerned message, as it had only been a day since she mentioned how Kou should try to get some rest. Kou wrote a quick response apologizing for making Haru worry and sent it.

With that done, there was nothing else she could do while lying on her bed…other than to wait for time to slowly pass by.

“…Oh, you’re awake. Do you think you can eat something?”
“Ah, yes. I already feel much better after sleeping, so I can probably handle some food.”
“That’s good to hear. I’ve prepared lunch already, so I’ll be showing myself in.”

Saying that, Amari opened the door to Kou’s room and entered holding a tray with a small earthenware pot. Kou also sat up on her bed.
…Only then did she realize that the wet towel on her forehead had been exchanged for a cooling pad. Her mother had done that while she slept.

Kou could smell broth and miso coming from the pot as Amari scooped up a spoonful and began blowing on it to cool it down.

“I’m not a child, I can eat it myself…”
“Hah, my child will forever be my child. Stop resisting and let me take care of you.”

Amari seemed to be really enjoying herself, and was determined to do everything she could to take care of Kou.
Left without choice, Kou reluctantly let the spoonful of porridge into her mouth.

…It had been cooked with miso broth, green onions, seaweed, and finished with some egg to thicken it.

It had a really easy to eat consistency, and had been cooled to the perfect temperature, and Kou could almost feel her body instantly absorbing the nutrients from it.

And it was the familiar flavor that came from her mom’s cooking every time Kou was sick.
…Amari had been distant in recent times, but she would always make sure to be present if Kou caught a cold.
Because of that, Kou did not really mind having to stay still and sleep when she caught a cold, even if she was too embarrassed to admit that to her mother.

“So, is it good?”
“…It’s yummy.”
“That’s good then. Here, eat more.”

Kou quickly let the second spoonful of porridge into her mouth, trying to mask over the burst of emotion that suddenly took over her.

That went on for a while longer, with Amari hand-feeding Kou until around half of the serving of porridge was gone, and then…Kou remembered that girl in Destiny Unchain Online with an enormous appetite.

“Mom…you know the enemy NPC Ba‘al Zəbûl Aery, right?”
“What’s this now? I’m not going to spoil how to fight her, if that’s what you want.”
“I don’t want that, I can figure that out myself. Instead, I think she’s somehow figured out *our real world exists*, all on her own. Do you think that’s a problem?”
“…Oh?”

As soon as Kou mentioned that, Amari’s face went from her motherly one to her serious researcher one.
For a moment, Kou was terrified, thinking that maybe they would issue a patch to restrain that devil girl’s thoughts because of Kou…
…But all that happened was that a hand gently ruffled her hair.

“Don’t look so concerned now, don’t worry.”
“So you won’t do anything to her?”

Hearing that, Kou breathed easy, realizing that nothing awful was going to happen, but she was still curious.

“No. As far as I and NTEC are concerned, we have no intention to issue a patch to that enemy.”
“Does that mean this result is within the scope of the program?”
“Not even in our wildest dreams. I’ll have to call an emergency meeting as soon as I get back to work. But *we were anticipating things to happen outside of our expectations.* And if anything, *that’s exactly what we were trying to accomplish.*”

She let out a wicked chuckle…and Kou spoke her mind.

“Well, just don’t do anything illegal.”
“You fool, what do you take your mother for?”

While Kou stared suspiciously at her mother, she replied by handchopping Kou’s head.