"Ugh..."
Kinuhata Saiai woke from her deep sleep.
She pressed a hand to her forehead and gently rubbed it, hoping to wake her still-dazed brain.
As her vision gradually cleared, jumbled memories surfaced in her mind like floating ice.
The bedding trailed onto the floor. In the spacious room, various cozy furnishings stood neatly arranged, gleaming brightly in the sunlight from the window.
For Kinuhata Saiai, who had grown up in research institutions, converting an important upper-floor laboratory into living quarters was an almost unimaginable luxury.
But thanks to that, even while living in such surroundings, Kinuhata Saiai had not felt that malicious chill or profound discomfort when she woke.
"I'm still at the Talent Workshop..."
The girl muttered to herself.
Several days had already passed since they received notice that ITEM had officially been transferred to the Talent Workshop.
The past few days had felt like a dream: the mission had failed, their entire team had been captured, and after betraying the Dark Side, they had been forced to watch their companion being tormented.
The fact that she could still sleep peacefully now was probably thanks to that man's casual attitude.
As an enemy, he had been so vicious that it sent chills down her spine, but once they submitted, he was remarkably generous.
"You're awake?"
"Huh?"
The unfamiliar voice that suddenly came from beside her made Kinuhata Saiai instinctively clutch a corner of the blanket and turn warily toward the figure nearby.
It was a girl in a pink tracksuit.
Her neatly trimmed black hair fell loosely over her fair shoulders, and her pearl-white skin glowed faintly pink in the light.
She sat like a lady, her slender, pale wrists folded in her lap, but judging by her hazy eyes, it was difficult to tell whether she was