A week had passed since I’d sent a letter to Rodney, but there had been no response.

I sent another letter, wondering if the first had not been delivered, but the result was the same. Rodney hadn’t shown up at the Marsen mansion even after a week.

“Maybe school life is quite interesting?”

I had thought he would run over as soon as he received the letter, but when that didn’t happen, I felt betrayed by Rodney.

The Marsen mansion was on the verge of collapse. Felicia and I were still not speaking, and the atmosphere was awkward with the other siblings. The relationship between Isabelle and Father was beyond words.

As soon as I woke up, I went outside the mansion.

“……You sleep well.”

The faces of Roger and Yurik, who were sitting side by side on the living room sofa, caught my eye.

For the past week, I had frequented the Fenton household. I played chess with Baron Keto there, and when not playing, I sat beside Yune and tutored her in math.

For some reason, Roger also came to the Fenton mansion when the sun rose. I worried that our presence might disturb the lady and the count, but the kind couple said they enjoyed the sound of children in the mansion and provided us with snacks and delicious meals.

So, I had no choice but to settle into the Fenton mansion.

“Why are you here when you have a comfortable home, Roger?”

I looked closely at Roger, who was sitting on the sofa across from me.

Roger seemed to have a habit of sticking to the person next to him while sleeping; he didn’t move away from Yurik. Slowly, Roger’s head rested on Yurik’s shoulder.

As their bodies touched, Roger looked startled and lifted his head. I, too, sat up quickly.

“……Roger?”

“……”

Roger glanced around with halfclosed eyes before resting his head back on Yurik’s shoulder.

“……Hey, Roger.”

“……”

He’s asleep.

Roger and Yurik’s bodies were now fully in contact. It looked as though they were the best of friends in the world… the reality was the opposite, which was a bit disappointing.

After observing them for a while, my mischievous side kicked in.

“Last time, they poked my cheek, didn’t they?”

Carefully standing up and moving in front of the two boys, I bent my knees. With one finger, I poked Roger’s cheek.

Roger’s soft cheek had a subtly addictive touch, and I ended up poking it deeper.

Roger frowned, perhaps uncomfortable. Ugly.

Barely holding back my laughter, I then targeted Yurik’s cheek. As I poked Yurik’s cheek like I did with Roger, Yurik showed no reaction. Clearly, Roger was more fun to tease.

Time flew as I continued to poke Roger’s cheek. Seeing his expression twist here and there, I was getting more entertained. Starting from his forehead to his nose, I touched him lightly.

“……Lise.”

I heard Yurik’s voice from the side. I stopped my hand movement abruptly and found Yurik looking at me with round eyes.

“Oh, um, hi. You’re awake?”

“……”

“Um, you were sleeping so deeply…”

I tried to lift the corner of my mouth into a smile. Yurik remained silent for a while, maybe annoyed by my action. I wondered how to apologize.

“Why aren’t you touching me?”

“Um, sorry… I just wanted to try because you guys were sleeping so deeply. Last time you guys touched me so… What?”

“So, I should touch you too. Why are you only touching his face, Lise?”

Yurik grabbed my hand, which had fallen to the floor, and placed it on his own cheek.

“Touch me too.”

Sometimes I couldn’t keep up with Yurik’s thinking.

Should I touch him? Eventually, I poked Yurik’s cheek. While Roger’s cheeks were soft, Yurik’s were slightly spongy yet smooth. It felt like whipping cream, which was strange.

Yurik smiled every time my finger brushed against him. He seemed to find it ticklish and twitched a bit, but it was definitely more fun to touch him than it had been earlier.

‘What am I even doing?’

Why did I end up touching Yurik’s face?
Almost instinctively as his fingers moved, Roger’s sleeping head fell onto Yurik’s lap.

“…….”

“…….”

Yurik was effectively serving as a lap pillow for Roger. Unaware of Yurik’s now icy expression, Roger was in dreamland.

“Lise! Are you here?!”

“……!”

The previously quiet entrance door opened without a sign.

It was the grand entrance of Baron Kito, who had planned to visit the Fenton Duke’s house today. Startled, Yurik flung Roger’s head far away, and I stood up immediately. With a thud, Roger, who had fallen to the floor, squinted his eyes open in confusion.

“……Oh, you’re here?”

As I greeted him, Baron Kito approached me with a broad smile.

“Lise! The final match date has finally been set!”

“I thought it would take longer, but it seems someone has forfeited. The bracket came out sooner than expected, and the date has been pushed up.”

We were all gathered at the Fenton Duke’s house having lunch. An excited Baron Kito paused in his eating to speak.