Endless Silver Machine

There is only the last week of December left. The heavy snowfall in previous years has not arrived as expected, but the biting cold wind is enough to make people lazy. As representatives of civilized weapons, heaters are still working hard today.

The central heater in the administrator's cabin is of the same design as the heater in the student dormitory. It can send the heat generated by the host in the hall to the rooms on the second floor through special pipes.

However, because the supply area is smaller than that of student dormitories, the central heater here consumes very little energy, and there is no problem even if it is turned on all night.

Aika is now in her room, "circling" with the dense black letters and strange patterns in the book.

The final practical test three days ago was suspended for one day due to an accident. Shimotsuki Academy repaired the damage to the central square within one day, and the test ended without incident the next day.

The parents of the students did not express any dissatisfaction with the accident, but spoke highly of Shuoyue Academy's timely and reasonable handling of the incident. So overall, this incident ended peacefully.

This is followed by theoretical testing. If it's Luo Luo who took careful notes in class, or Wei Xi who has already mastered most of it, you probably don't need to pay special attention to this little test. Although I don’t know how Ling’s ability to accept new knowledge is, she is definitely much better than myself.

Aika rubbed her eyes, which were getting sore, and looked away from the font that was as disturbing as a colony of ants.

It was pitch black outside the window, and the moonlight was deeply buried in the thick clouds unique to winter.

Just like Aika's mood at this time.

As I was thinking this, I felt thirsty again. Aika reached out and picked up the cup on the table. The empty weight told him that there was no longer a drop of water left in it. Aika didn't want to move now, so she put the empty cup back to its place, and then lay down lazily on the open book.

…………

Ling in the innermost room was in a similar state of mind to Aika, but she hadn't given up yet.

Wei Xi, who had been helping her review, finally couldn't resist the temptation of the heater and fell asleep leaning on her shoulder.

Suddenly feeling a light weight on her arm, Ling raised her head and looked at the clock hanging on the wall. Today is about to end in half an hour.

If it were normal Wei Xi, she would obediently listen to herself and go to bed before eleven o'clock in the evening. Today should have been the same as usual, but Wei Xi's explanation of the knowledge points was simple and easy to understand, and even I, who had always resisted learning such rigid theories, accidentally got immersed in it. By the time he reacted, it was already this time.

Ling gently carried the sleeping Wei Xi to the bed and covered her with a quilt.

"Well...I'll go to bed later. Remember that the coffee I just bought is..."

Ling muttered softly and took his empty water glass out of the room. By the way, it would be nice if there was a drinking water device in every room. It would be really troublesome to have to go to the lobby to get water every time... But I am very lucky to be able to live here. If I have any more extravagant wishes If you do, you may be punished by God. Ling simply gave up the idea.

Passing by Luoluo and Aika's room, their doors were closed tightly, so I didn't know if they were sleeping. Wait a minute and go to the window to see if the lights are on in their room.

Ling found the newly bought coffee beans at the "Moonlight Bath" in the cabinet of the kitchen counter, and poured some of them into the grinder. Wei Xi got this grinder back from Professor Cocona. Although Professor Cocona ordered this machine, he always found it troublesome to do it himself, so he could only pile it in the corner to collect dust.

Two months ago, because Aika went to visit Sister Lilith's ward alone, Ling and Luoluo, who were left behind, accompanied Wei Xi to visit Professor Cocona. Although Wei Xi showed a strong sense of resistance at first, after that experience, she was able to go alone whenever she received an email from Professor Cocona.

It will take a while for the water to heat up. While waiting, Ling walked into the bathroom.

…………

Luoluo gently opened the door of Aika's room.

She would not enter a room without her brother's permission. But after knocking on the door for a while, there was no movement in the room. Before coming here, I had already noticed the light leaking from my brother's room through the window. So Luoluo turned the handle of Aika's door out of curiosity, and then opened the door effortlessly.

You can see your brother sleeping on the desk at the door, unaware of the intruder in his room. Luoluo crept into the house and gently closed the door. Glancing back, my brother still showed no sign of waking up.

She took off her indoor slippers, and her feet wrapped in knee socks stepped on the wooden floor without making a sound, and there was no feeling of cold. Luoluo came to his brother's desk. There were books and papers piled up in a mess on the table. It was obvious that he just flipped through them randomly and then threw them aside when he was not interested. Luoluo, who had been with his brother day and night for fourteen years, could tell at a glance.

She sighed slightly and put the paper bag she brought with her at her feet.

"Brother, brother, get up..."

Aika, who was gently pushed by Luoluo, opened her hazy sleepy eyes, and her vision was blurry. A faint fragrance that does not belong to his room drifts into his nose. Even with his eyes closed now, he knows who is standing next to him.

"Well... Luoluo, what time is it now..."

"There are still dozens of minutes until the next day."

"Have I slept for so long?"

Aika's chaotic brain was impacted by Luoluo's nonchalant words, and his sleepiness completely dissipated in an instant.

Luoluo was wearing the thin pajamas she liked very much. Her long sky-blue hair was tied into two bunches and hung down on her chest. She always dresses like this when she is at home.

Although she had the support of a heater, Aika was always worried about whether she would catch a cold with so little clothing. But Luoluo is not only good at taking care of others, but also takes care of himself. As the brother who watched her grow up, Aika firmly believed this without hesitation.

"Brother..." Luoluo stretched out his hand and stacked the books randomly placed on the table. "If you want to sleep, go to bed. Are you going to spend the night at the desk like this? When you get up tomorrow , you will have to take leave because your whole body is sore."

"Of course I won't sleep here until dawn." Aika also started to tidy up the desk with the help of Luoluo to cover up her shyness at being woken up by her sister. "It's just that these things are too boring and don't feel like anything. Practicality. I watched it for two hours straight and my head was spinning.”

"Even so, it can't be a reason to be lazy." Luoluo finished the work at hand skillfully, then looked at his brother with his hands on his hips, "If you don't pass the theory test, you will have to stay in the academy for two months during the winter vacation. I would like to receive tutoring here, that would be even more boring."

"Of course I know this..."

Aika looked away. The child who could help him pass the theoretical test was standing in front of him, but Aika couldn't make such a shameless request in order to take into account his face as an elder brother.

"How's your review going?"

In order to stop Luo Luo from focusing on her review results, Aika asked her this instead.

"Well..." Luoluo glanced at the books on his brother's desk, "I have basically memorized the more important parts. But there are still four days to start the theoretical test, and until that day, I have to keep flipping through the books in order to I promise I won’t forget it.”

If I could read all these books within these four days, it would be great... Aika secretly complained in her heart, but of course this thought was not revealed in front of Luoluo.

"Eh? It's amazing, really."

"Hehe..." Luoluo smiled shyly, "But brother, it doesn't seem to be going well, right?"

The smile has not diminished.

"Oops……"

"Brother, it's getting late today, so I won't say more. If brother has already made plans to study during the holiday, I have my own way."

The sister who has been with him for so many years has disappeared, and now Aika can only see the angel with black wings behind her.

"By the way, I came here for something else this time."

Luoluo put away his black wings and squatted down. Only then did Aika notice the paper bag that had been lying at her feet.

"What's this?"

"Clang!" Accompanied by a strange sound effect, Luoluo took out a piece of knitted fabric from the paper bag, "Put it on first and see how it feels."

"Um?"

"Squat down a little."

"oh oh……"

Aika bent down slightly, and Luoluo wrapped it around his neck, and then carefully adjusted the position.

"Is this a scarf?"

"Well, because this kind of weather really requires a scarf."

Aika stood up straight and touched the soft new scarf around her neck.

"For the first time, the weaving was very good."

"Eh?" Luoluo was originally going to say it himself, but was caught off guard by his brother, "Why, why do you know this is me..."

"Why... I guess intuitively. It feels like Lolo."

"My feeling is..." Luoluo buried his head deeply, completely covering his flushed face, "No, it's better not to say it..."

"But why did you suddenly think of knitting it yourself? It would be more convenient to buy it... Wait, Luoluo... let go..."

Before Aika could finish her words, Luoluo grabbed both ends of the scarf and pulled hard on both sides.

"Idiot brother!"

After calming down, Luoluo let go of Aika.

Aika, who almost suffocated, finally breathed the long-lost air again, but when she took a deep breath, it was also filled with that light fragrance.

"Sorry, it's my fault."

"elder brother?"

Aika put her arm around Luoluo's small shoulders and hugged her gently.

Luoluo took a moment to react. She pressed her hand against Aika's abdomen, but her small strength was not comparable to Aika's.

"Actually, I'm quite happy to receive your gift."

"This can't be called a gift. There are still many places that haven't been woven yet..."

"There is no such thing. This is the best gift I have ever received," Aika touched Luoluo's long, smooth aqua-blue hair, "I will cherish it, thank you."

"...Then you must take good care of it."

Luoluo gave up resistance and naturally lowered his hands.

"Um."

…………

Ling walked up the stairs with the steaming coffee that had just been brewed. Luoluo just closed the door of Aika's room. The two met in an unexpected place.

"Ling, sister Ling, aren't you asleep yet..."

Even without looking in the mirror, Luo Luo knew that her current smile was abnormal. Obviously he wanted to talk to Ling as usual, but the moment he saw her, his heart seemed to be grabbed, and he felt an indescribable feeling of tension. This tension has been conveyed through the slightly trembling voice, and even if I use a smile as a remedy, it cannot go smoothly.

"There are too many things to carry. If I don't work hard, I won't be able to sleep peacefully even if I'm lying on the bed."

Probably because it was too late, Ling's brain was not clear enough, so he didn't seem to notice anything strange about Luo Luo. She answered Luo Luo in her usual tone.

This gap gave Luoluo a psychological buffer, and the expected questions did not reach his ears.

"Luoluo, how's your review going?"

"Ah, in order to make my brother a little nervous, I deliberately told a little lie..."

Luoluo turned what he was thinking into words into words, but at the same time he kept blaming himself in his heart. Ling finally focused the topic on the final review, but she mentioned that person again.

"Sister Ling, what is that?"

Asking knowingly.

"Coffee. Tomorrow is the weekend, so it doesn't matter if you get up a little later, so prepare to tackle more in one go tonight."

"Where's Xiao Xi?"

"I just went to bed, and I'm a little worried about whether staying up late will disturb her."

"Sister Ling, come to my room to review. I won't sleep for a while."

"Then I'm sorry to bother you."

"I'm going to make a cup of coffee too. Ah, cup cup..."

Luoluo returned to his room in a panic.

Ling hesitated for a moment, then quickly walked past the closed first door and entered Luoluo's room.

…………