I'll Be Generous and Let You Bathe with Me

"Next time, I have to remember to close the door behind me, or Himeko will scold me again."

March hurriedly grabbed her camera, checked that the photos inside were fine, then turned and walked out, slamming the door shut behind her.

As for Lin Feng under the desk, she hadn't noticed him at all.

Having narrowly escaped, Lin Feng turned back into a human, shaken by the close call.

If March discovered that a grown man like him had appeared in her room, he would really be in trouble.

Even though the two had met once before, March and the Astral Express Crew would definitely interrogate him and give him a serious beating.

Now that the camera was gone, there was no need to stay. He could come back for a night raid later.

Lin Feng gripped the doorknob and pulled gently.

The door didn't budge—

Oh no!

Lin Feng pulled on the door again, this time with all his strength, but it still didn't budge.

March had locked the door from the outside!

He tried several times, but the door still wouldn't open.

Lin Feng turned his attention back to the room to see if there might be a key or something.

The photo wall, the cabinet, the desktop, and the drawers were mostly full of photos.

He even searched the entire bed, but aside from the distinctive lingering fragrance of a young woman, he found nothing resembling a key.

His plan to open the door with a key had fallen through.

He would just have to wait.

After about ten minutes, the sound of footsteps drew closer to the door.

"Hehe, my photography skills really are amazing. Even Dan Heng, who usually only says 'not bad,' praised me this time."

March entered the room and casually set her camera aside. She rustled around until she found a set of pajamas, then carried them into the bathroom.

Under the desk, Lin Feng, who had been a Cat Cake, returned to human form. He carefully walked to the door and turned the handle.

Click!

The door opened!

Lin Feng turned to look at the mist-filled bathroom. After taking a moment to calm down, he made up his mind.

From what he knew, girls took a long time to bathe. This was the best opportunity; there was no telling what other problems might arise later.

He would finish absorbing the data stream first!

[Ping! Data stream absorption initiated! Current progress: 2.55%]

Having made his decision, Lin Feng turned back into a Cat Cake and crouched under the desk where the camera sat.

At the current rate, it wouldn't take long to finish absorbing it.

As soon as the data stream was fully absorbed, he would get out.

"Mm~ hmm~ la~"

From inside the bathroom, March 7th's singing mingled with the sound of running water, coming and going. It sounded like a new song by the interstellar superstar Robin. She was a little off-key, but she sang with full confidence.

The singing in the bathroom stopped for a moment, and the sound of water grew quieter.

Lin Feng's ears perked up.

"Oh!"

At March's startled cry, Lin Feng's whole cake body nearly sprang into the air.

Immediately afterward, the bathroom door clicked open a crack, and steam came billowing out first.

March 7th poked half her head out, her wet hair pinned up behind it.

Everything above her shoulders was shrouded in steam. She had a bath towel wrapped around her, and one foot had already landed on the bedroom floor.

"Why do I always forget to grab that thing when I take a nice bath?" she muttered, inching toward the desk on tiptoe and leaving a trail of wet footprints on the floor.

March frowned at that. She had severe OCD, so she would have to mop the floor clean after her bath.

Lin Feng held his breath—if Cat Cakes even breathed.

March 7th stopped in front of the desk and bent down to search, muttering, "My little duck bath sponge... where did it go..."

After rummaging around a bit, she pulled the bath sponge decorated with a little duck from the corner of the desk and gave a satisfied "hmph."

"Found you."

"If I weren't worried about you getting damp, I'd just leave you in there. It's annoying having to take you back in every time."

With that complaint, March rose onto her toes and turned to leave.

Lin Feng had only just begun to breathe a sigh of relief—

March 7th's toes bumped into him.

He was soft and warm.

She remembered that she generally didn't put anything under her desk.

That way, when she sat at the desk for a long time, she could stretch out her legs and relax.

Puzzled, March crouched down. The edge of her bath towel nearly slipped, so she held it in place with one hand, braced the other on her knee, and narrowed her eyes.

A Cat Cake with blue-and-white markings appeared before her.

"Little guy, when did you sneak in here?"

Lin Feng immediately went into award-winning actor mode.

Now that he had been discovered, all he had to do was boldly act cute.

"Meow~"

He flopped onto the floor and rolled over, exposing his belly. The tip of his tail even wagged twice ingratiatingly.

March 7th stared at him for two seconds.

"Barging into a girl's room isn't a good habit," she said, reaching out to tap his head with one finger, "especially when she's taking a bath."

"Especially a beautiful girl!"

Lin Feng nodded frantically—or rather, bounced his entire cake body up and down twice.

March 7th tried to keep a straight face, but failed and burst out laughing.

She reached under the desk, picked up the Cat Cake, and held him up to her eyes for a closer look.

"I wonder if this little one is a boy or a girl. If you're a girl, that's fine. You could even take a bath with me."

"But if you're a boy..."

As March spoke, she tightened her grip on the bathrobe around her. She narrowed her eyes, her tone turning distinctly scrutinizing.

Lin Feng's body stiffened. His cute expression and movements grew even cuter, and he even rolled over on the spot.

[Ping! Data stream absorption complete! Ability acquired: Mimetic Construct Separation]

[Mimetic Construct Separation: The host can split off an independent creation (creation/mimetic construct). The two can interact with each other consciously, and consciousness can be transferred.]

Finally, it's fully absorbed!

This new skill was exactly what Lin Feng needed right now!

He couldn't get excited yet, nor could he try it out directly. He needed to deal with his current predicament first.

"Meow~ meow~"

Under March's stern scrutiny, Lin Feng moved to her heel and gently brushed his fluffy tail over the wet top of her foot.

At that moment, he almost wished he could tell her he was a girl.

Otherwise, he wouldn't escape today!

March's expression changed quickly. A moment ago she had been scrutinizing him, but now a smile appeared on her face.

"Maybe Dan Heng was right. Creations probably aren't divided into boys and girls, so that means they don't have a gender."

"Hey, this little one is always on the floor and gets all dirty anyway. Why don't I give him a wash?"

March made up her mind and grinned. Holding her bathrobe tight with one hand, she picked up the Cat Cake at her feet with the other, looked into his eyes, and said:

"Stop rubbing against my feet. You may be little, but whenever anything happens, you always start acting cute."

"But since you're trying so hard to win me over, I'll be generous and let you bathe with me."

Nani?

Hearing March, Lin Feng nearly failed to recover for a moment.

Wait, what? Sis?

I was only acting cute to get out of trouble. I wasn't planning to bathe with you!

Being in the same room as a girl, and a bathroom at that, was a little too... you know, for a grown man like him.

Even if he was a Cat Cake now, this wasn't right however he looked at it!

March didn't care what the Cat Cake was thinking. She grabbed his soft, squishy body and held him in front of her.

The warmth she had brought out of the bathroom had long since faded.

But the bath towel clinging to her body had been warmed by her body heat.

There was also a distinctive fragrance on the towel.

It was exactly the same as the one on the quilt.

"Whatever. I'm just a Cat Cake!"

Lin Feng gave up struggling inwardly. Through the towel, he could clearly feel the warmth on the other side.