Ch.194Chapter 194

“Oh, looks like you two are getting along well. You’re always bickering otherwise.”

The Professor, returning after finishing her work, chuckled when she saw Ouro and me.

This looks like getting along well? I suppose being stuck together might give that impression. But we’re not particularly close—it’s just one-sided clinging regardless of whether the other person likes it or not.

Having my arms pinned to my body while being held is uncomfortable. In this hot summer, if the air conditioner hadn’t been on, I probably would have been steamed to death by Ouro’s body heat.

I’d become a dumpling…!

“Please get her off me. Ouro won’t let go…”

To prove my point, I twisted my body from side to side. Each time I did, the arms wrapped around me tightened. Nnngh, I tried leaning forward, but Ouro just tried to pull me in the opposite direction.

I’m reminded once again why weight classes exist. I realized this in the bathroom earlier, but experiencing it again makes it clear that there’s no end to these realizations.

“Really? Has Ouro suddenly taken a liking to Ourr?”

“Ourr is small and cute.”

“Ugh.”

A shiver ran down my spine as her breath tickled my ear when she spoke. I grimaced at Ouro’s words and tilted my head to one side.

I trembled and raised my shoulders. Ouro didn’t seem to care and looked up at the Professor with sparkling eyes. I wondered what the point of this was, making someone struggle on the bed.

Well, Ouro isn’t the type to move according to logic or reason. She acts on instinct and interest. How could I possibly win against that?

“It’s hard to—nngh—get out because I’m small. Hup! Ha!”

“You should stay still.”

“Argh, it’s stifling. I want to move!”

When Ouro told me to stay still, it only made me want to move more, so I rolled my body around. Eventually, Ouro seemed to match my rhythm and then laid down.

I ended up pinned underneath her while being embraced as we rolled across the bed.

My breathing became somewhat restricted. Small breaths coming out in short puffs. My chest felt compressed, but somehow it also felt a bit comfortable, so I held my breath quietly.

“Oh, you shouldn’t do that!”

“Mmm.”

The Professor, unable to watch any longer, finally loosened Ouro’s grip and moved her aside.

Despite the air-conditioned room, I finally caught my breath and realized how cool and fresh the air was. I straightened my body after being flipped over and took several deep breaths.

“Whew. Haah…”

“Did you shower with Ouro?”

Just as I was inhaling deeply enough to fill my lungs, the Professor’s sudden question nearly made me choke. I was so stunned that I couldn’t even check her expression and just opened and closed my mouth.

“Yes, I showered with Ourr. It was kind of hot.”

“Oh, good job~ I wonder if you washed your long hair properly.”

“Yes.”

While I couldn’t say anything, Ouro answered, allowing the moment to pass smoothly. I worried that my attitude might seem suspicious, but the Professor just smiled without pressing the issue further.

I was told it’s better not to tell the Professor, but at this rate, I might end up confessing out of guilt.

I should be a bit more careful. It’s not that big a deal, but thinking about it strangely makes my gaze strange too. I need to fix that so I don’t appear suspicious.

“I submitted a paper today. Now we just have to wait and see if people will acknowledge it.”

“Paper. The one you were always looking at?”

“Yes, the one I was always looking at. No, not just looking at—I wrote it myself. That makes it mine. No matter how much you copy someone else’s work, it can’t become yours. How should I put it… knowing that the source of knowledge isn’t mine is why I don’t touch it.”

The Professor wiggled her fingers at Ouro while adding the explanation.

Ouro, who couldn’t possibly understand, stared blankly with her usual expression.

No matter how kindly you explain, once difficult words come up, Ouro’s expression becomes uniform: “What’s that?” Since she doesn’t understand, she can’t be interested, and continuing an explanation to someone showing no interest is difficult, so the Professor’s lips pursed slightly.

“That was too difficult for Ouro, wasn’t it?”

The Professor stroked Ouro’s head as she sat there blankly.

As I sat down next to Ouro with a rustling sound, she subtly reached out her hand again. I gradually tilted my body to the left to avoid those devilish hands and rolled away.

Words were no longer necessary between us. It was as if we understood each other.

Actually, I didn’t want to connect like this. Why does she keep trying to grab me? Having a child’s body has no advantages at all. If we were going to be young, we should have been the same age so our strength would be equal and we wouldn’t find anything strange about each other’s bodies.

“Oh my, Ouro really seems to like Ourr. Is it because of the clear difference in body size? …You shouldn’t think of her as a doll though.”

The Professor spoke as if troubled but didn’t seem inclined to restrain Ouro. After struggling on the bed and ending up in another standoff, I growled and raised my guard.

“I’m not a doll. I don’t like being held still… it’s suffocating, isn’t it?”

“That’s true. Ouro, come here.”

“Mmm…”

Nodding at my logical argument, the Professor brought Ouro over and stroked her head.

Ouro seems to like being held as much as holding others. No, maybe not by anyone, but just by the Professor.

Anyway, with this body, trying to hold someone would be overwhelming, and it wouldn’t feel much like holding them anyway. Usually, even when the smaller person tries to hold someone, it’s often described as being held instead, so Ouro probably wouldn’t be satisfied.

The Professor can restrain her to some extent, but when that’s not the case, I end up in a vulnerable position again, which is the problem.

For now, since the Professor was holding her, I relaxed my shoulders a bit, feeling somewhat relieved.

“…Will you be busy again now, Professor?”

“I’ll be even busier from now on. Hmm, if things go well, I might travel around giving lectures. It’s all thanks to you and Ouro. Without you two, it would have been difficult to write such a paper and get these results… Originally, with papers, even if the results are predetermined, you need to prove why, and if not, you have to make assumptions and repeat hundreds or thousands of studies to reach that result, but it was easier because of you two.”

The Professor’s smile contained genuine happiness.

She looked happy. It seemed like this level of academic passion was basic for someone in a professorial position. I hadn’t found anything to be so absorbed in, either in my previous life or current one, so seeing that made me envious.

Those sparkling eyes filled with longing. Just their presence seemed to captivate people, making me wonder what it would be like to become a professor like her.

Just wondering, that is. I didn’t particularly want to put in the effort to become a professor. I was just thinking about what it would be like to spend days together at the Academy.

“What if you get too busy, Professor? Won’t you attend the Academy?”

I suddenly became curious. There are lectures and such, but to become world-famous, wouldn’t it make sense to increase external activities rather than staying within the Academy? So I asked casually.

The Professor thought for a moment and then shook her head.

“I have to attend the Academy. No matter what, I need a place to stay, don’t I? As a professor, if I just stayed at home like an unemployed person and went around giving lectures, I’d seem more like an instructor than a professor.”

“Are professors and instructors different?”

“They are, of course~ There’s a reason professors are called professors.”

After stroking Ouro’s head, the Professor turned her gaze to me.

“Anyway, I understand your concern, Ourr. But don’t worry. I have no intention of separating you from your friends. It’s because of Iris and Karen, right? They’re still attending school.”

“Hehe…”

“It’s fascinating. When you first make friends, you worry about where to go play, but once you actually have friends, you’re busy playing with them.”

“Well, it’s inevitable to play with friends you get along with… You play more often because you get along better.”

“That’s true. The Professor doesn’t have many friends either. But I think I’ve lived well enough with just one or two really close friends. I hope Ourr makes such friends too.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

There’s also Sera and Aria who graduated and entered the academy. It’s harder to see them within the Academy, but if we keep in touch occasionally, the connection won’t be broken.

Since we have phones, there’s no need to worry.

“Anyway, the Professor was in a good mood today. I was surprised to find you two rolling around playing when I came back.”

Seeing the Professor chuckling happily, I glanced at her cautiously.

“Come to think of it, I think Ouro needs to study more.”

“Ouro?”

“Me?”

The Professor looked at Ouro, and Ouro looked at me.

I just realized exactly what Ouro needs. It’s something like a sense of shame. Of course, focusing solely on sex education might seem strange, so it would be best to bundle everything together for her to learn at once.

“Ouro needs basic knowledge. I think she needs to be able to think for herself about how to live and interact with other people outside in the future…!”

“That’s… you’re right. Hmm. That makes sense.”

“Huh?”

Ouro’s expression as her future was decided without her input was worth seeing. She tilted her head with a blank expression, and when she realized something strange had been added, the look of betrayal she gave me is something I’ll never forget.