The air was a little cool.

A sign that rain was coming.

Or maybe the AC was set too low.

Bai Ningning hesitated, then spoke up.

“Big Sis Yueyue, can you turn the AC up a few degrees? I’m a little cold.”

She also tried to change the subject.

Qin Yue smiled.

“Cold? It’s fine. You won’t be cold in a bit.”

Bai Ningning’s delicate body trembled.

She asked in a small voice, “What kind of way won’t be cold?”

The pure kind... right?

“Ningning,” Qin Yue called her in a lowered voice, gentle and intimate, “stop playing dumb when you already know, okay?”

“...”

It was over.

This time she was really mad.

So mad she’d practically developed a new personality.

But Bai Ningning couldn’t figure it out no matter how much she thought about it.

She hadn’t said anything wrong, so why was big sis this angry?

She asked what I was looking at, and I said I wasn’t looking at you.

I really wasn’t looking at you.

Then I said I was looking at a loli.

And I was looking at a loli, that’s true.

She was super cute too. If you don’t believe me, I can bring her for you to see another day.

Right then, Qin Yue suddenly asked, “Is the loli pretty?”

“Pretty,” Bai Ningning answered without thinking.

“Really pretty.”

“...”

Crap.

It somehow felt even colder now.

Looking at the big sister radiating chilling killing intent from head to toe, Bai Ningning swallowed and kept a straight little face.

“I think there may be some misunderstanding between us.”

“A misunderstanding? Sure. Tell me.”

Qin Yue stood up, shut the door, and locked it.

“What misunderstanding? That I misunderstood you looking at a loli?”

“I did look, but not the way you think.”

Bai Ningning came up with an explanation.

“I didn’t completely look.”

Qin Yue raised a brow.

“Didn’t completely look?”

“Right. She was dressed properly.”

Bai Ningning looked at her calmly.

“I didn’t finish seeing what should be seen, and I completely didn’t see what shouldn’t be seen.”

That flat gaze.

That cold little face.

It was like she’d already forgiven big sis.

Qin Yue stopped looking at her and started searching for something on her own, rolling up her sleeves.

Bai Ningning blinked, seeming to notice something.

She tested the waters.

“Did you get even angrier?”

Qin Yue ignored her and charged straight over to—

“Wait, I have to get up early tomorrow. I’ve got something to do.”

Bai Ningning started to panic.

“How about... meow?”

No, that wasn’t enough.

She needed to show a little more sincerity.

Propping herself up, she sat on the bed in a duck-sit, tilted her head lightly, and raised her right hand in a cat-paw pose.

“Meow meow?”

Qin Yue abruptly shut her eyes.

Hiss... exhale!

“Fine. Since you said you’ve got something to do, I’ll spare you half the suffering.”

Qin Yue looked at her.

“Surrender cuts the loss in half. So in the end, it’s a quarter.”

Bai Ningning tilted her head the other way.

“Meow?”

Qin Yue ignored her, turned around, and went upstairs.

After a while, she came back with a set of hollow-cut cat lingerie in her hand.

Bai Ningning froze slightly.

“This is...?”

“It came as a matching bonus when I bought you that chocolate maid outfit last time.”

Qin Yue tossed the clothes onto the bed.

“Put it on.”

Bai Ningning touched the soft, high-end fabric and carefully tested the waters.

“If I put it on, can I trade it for one life?”

“Put it on!”

She quickly hid under the blanket and changed with a rustle.

Qin Yue didn’t care.

Either way, she’d be doing it herself soon enough.

Self-service meant abundance.

But if it was just the outfit, it still felt like something was missing.

After a lot of effort, Bai Ningning finally got dressed.

Her icy little face was slightly red.

She poked her head out from under the blanket, only to find Qin Yue gone again.

A while later, big sis came back once more, this time holding a pair of cat ears and a cat tail accessory.

“Put these on.”

The girl touched the fluffy accessories and tilted her head.

“If I wear them, can I trade it for one life?”

“Wear them!”

Okay.

Right away.

The cute-faced, well-built little kitten was ready.

Qin Yue clicked into the game.

Tonight, she wasn’t playing Dota.

Not LoL.

Not DNF either.

Tonight, she was playing Nekopara!

That song rang out by Bai Ningning’s ear again.

“Oshiete nya~ shiawase nya~~”

“N-no, didn’t we agree surrender cuts the loss in half, and only a quarter is left?”

“Watch how you talk. Be mindful of your current identity.”

“We agreed surrender cuts the loss in half, meow. Only a quarter is left, meow.”

“Yeah, a quarter.”

Big sis let out a soft laugh.

“Tonight I’m only unlocking a quarter of the CGs. If you don’t believe me, open the game and compare.”

“...”

Fine then, meow.

The night was long, and one sleep later, it was over.

When she opened her eyes, the sun was already high.

She picked up her phone and looked at it with difficulty.

What, only 60:11... oh, no.

She was holding it upside down.

It was 11:09.

Not bad.

At least it wasn’t noon yet.

After struggling for half an hour, Bai Ningning finally got up and cleaned herself up.

Today was the first day of military training for the junior girls.

She had to hurry and bring them their stuff, and change into something better for going out.

A white sleeveless T-shirt.

Dark navy denim hot pants.

It was her first time wearing pants outside since her rebirth.

She felt like she’d finally triggered armor proficiency.

Her stats seemed to jump, and even walking felt light and floaty.

Still, it felt like she’d forgotten something.

What was it?

Forget it. No time. School first.

Time to go.

When she walked into the garden, Auntie Zou, the head maid, greeted her.

“Miss Ningning, you look so pretty today. Going out?”

“Yeah. To school.”

“And where’s the eldest miss?”

Auntie Zou asked after the lady of the house.

Bai Ningning looked back.

“She’s still asleep in bed.”

“It’s almost noon and she’s still not up? Was she up very late last night?”

Auntie Zou asked.

“Yeah, very late.”

Bai Ningning said, “She was playing Nekopara last night. She played so late she got too tired.”

Auntie Zou had never heard the name before, so she didn’t quite understand.

“The eldest miss didn’t let Miss Ningning play too?”

“No.”

Bai Ningning tugged at the corner of her mouth with a complicated expression, then smiled.

“I am Nekopara.”

“...”

Under the silent stares of the maids in the garden, the girl strode away on her glossy, slender long legs.

Auntie Zou stared at those long legs for quite a while.

Then she took out a small notebook and wrote—

[Today’s Observation Report: Miss Ningning’s recovery ability has improved further. Her natural adaptability is obvious. By 11 a.m., her mobility had already recovered to full.]

...

After arriving at school, Bai Ningning asked around and found the freshmen’s military training grounds.

But she didn’t go there right away.

She first ran to the campus store.

“Three bottles of chilled mineral water, floral water, and... one bottle of milk.”

Yesterday, she’d promised Xiao Yi, the twin-tailed loli, that if she brought drinks, she’d bring her an extra bottle of milk.

That was supposed to comfort the girl’s wounded heart.

Though Bai Ningning had no idea why her heart was wounded.

It was seriously weird.

Bringing supplies to juniors during military training counted as an optional volunteer task.

So the campus store was packed with upperclassmen, and business was booming.

Bai Ningning stood there gracefully in front of the store, drawing countless heated gazes.

And at that moment, she finally remembered what she’d forgotten.

She forgot to change out of the cat lingerie from last night.

Don’t panic.

Stay calm.

It’s not like anyone can see it anyway.