Sofia's Midnight Overture
I announced the end of roll call to reestablish the hierarchy. “Roll call is over! You may all retire for the night—!!!” After leaving Sofia’s room, I headed straight down the stairs to make the announcement.
“Hey, old man. Where’d Raylin go? Why are you the only one coming down?” I wanted to head straight to the night-duty room, but Tina on the third floor called out to me. It was as if she had been waiting. She still used that ridiculous nickname for me.
“Miss Raylin is currently in a meeting with Miss Sofia.”
“Oh, really? Lately it feels like roll call’s been ending later and later, huh?” Tina kept her distance, asking only what she needed to know. She didn’t seem particularly interested in me personally.
“…Did something happen upstairs? If you know anything, tell me. Ever since that incident yesterday, dealing with the seniors has been a real headache.”
“I’m sorry. Since it directly involves Miss Sofia, I’m afraid I can’t discuss it due to security reasons.”
Normally I would have just said sorry and left it at that. But this time I borrowed Tina’s line about “security” to dodge the question. I didn’t particularly want to explain anyway, and I was eager to get downstairs and soothe my exhausted body and mind.
“Is that so? Hmm, security, huh……”
“I’m sorry. The atmosphere was quite serious, so I didn’t catch much of it.”
“Tsk. It’s the first time things have been this noisy since the semester started…… Anyway, got it. Sleep well.”
“Yes. Have a good night, miss.”
Good thing I used the security excuse. Otherwise she would have kept me there. It’s only been a few days, yet I already feel like I’m picking up some tricks of the trade.
—Thud, thud…!
After a quick bow, I descended to the second floor.
“Thank you for your hard work. Is everything finished now?”
“Yes, it’s all done. You may retire as well, miss.”
The moment I reached the second floor, someone else spoke to me. It was the second-year student who usually went straight to bed after hearing roll call was over—without a single word. And not just any second-year. It was Sonya, who had always been so cold. Ever since yesterday she kept initiating conversations. Even with Raylin pressuring her to be nice to me, I never expected her to approach me after roll call ended. She even lingered in front of me, as if she still had something to say.
“Um… thank you earlier!”
“Huh? For what, all of a sudden……?”
“I heard from Eros. You gave her some to share with us……”
—Rustle…!
Sonya shyly lowered her head and pulled something out.
“Thank you so much for preparing these just for us… I really appreciate it. Sweet things are exactly my taste!”
Ah, so that’s what it was. The meringue cookies I had given Eros earlier when I asked about Derke’s whereabouts. Since there weren’t many left, I had only shared them in Eros’s room. If I’d given them to all the second-years, there wouldn’t have been any left for Derke. Still, they were just a few snacks—hardly worth this much gratitude.
“I’m glad they suited your taste. If I get another chance, I’ll sneak some more for you.”
Today’s words were sweet, so the reply came out sweet as well. It was an opportunity to score points with words alone, so there was no reason to hold back.
“R-Really?!”
Sonya’s eyes sparkled at my lip service. Starlight danced in her pink irises. She looked so bright that I wondered if this was really the same girl. Her reaction didn’t match her usual image at all. For a moment, even her speech pattern seemed to shift.
“Of course. It might be difficult to do often because of the others’ eyes, but if the chance arises, I’ll bring more.”
“Th-Then I’ll be looking forward to it…!”
“Ah, yes. Well then, I’ll be going now.”
I didn’t know when that chance would come, but it was just something I threw out there. I didn’t particularly like Sonya or Eros’s personalities, but they were still SSR-rank dragons. That was why I couldn’t be too cold to them if I wanted to keep future options open.
“Ah…! Then have a good night—!”
Sonya greeted me again in that still-unfamiliar bright tone. It felt awkward, but seeing the usually stiff Sonya act this way was strangely refreshing. A dragon this weak to food? It was funny, yet oddly cute. Even though no favorability notification had popped up.
—Tap, tap…!
“Breeder, thank you again today……!”
Tina greeted me on the first floor as well. She didn’t add anything extra—just offered a bright smile. From the crumbs around her mouth, it seemed she had already devoured the meringue cookies.
“Good night, Miss Tina. Sweet dreams.”
They say humans are creatures of adaptation. Dealing with the young ladies had become second nature. Dragons who once seemed impossibly difficult now felt almost familiar.
—Click!
“Whew. That aside, I’m completely out of sleep now.”
Once inside the night-duty room, I couldn’t bring myself to lie down comfortably. Raylin had been on my mind since earlier. Her timing couldn’t have been worse. Who would have guessed that the moment I tried to bring up Raylin’s name, she would actually appear?
Still, given Sofia’s gentle nature, she probably wouldn’t make a big deal out of it.
“Mmm…… I really can’t sleep.”
I forced myself to lie down and close my eyes, but only uneasy sighs escaped. Troubling thoughts refused to leave. What if this incident had soured things not just with Raylin, but with Derke and Sofia as well……?
‘They’re SSR-rank dragons I successfully bonded with…… We even formed a pact. Surely nothing serious happened, right?’
Besides, no notifications had appeared yet. If something had gone wrong, a message would have shown up. It’s fine. Everything will pass without incident.
—Rustle, rustle……
“Ugh……”
I kept tossing and turning, trying to bury my complicated feelings, praying that no flood of favorability-loss notifications would greet me in the morning……
……
The dormitory night grew deeper. My eyelids were finally growing heavy. It was truly time to sleep……
—Creaaak……!
‘……?!’
In the middle of the night, the door to the night-duty room slowly opened.
—Soft, soft, soft……
Footsteps followed. Because I couldn’t sleep, I heard them clearly. But I didn’t sit up right away. It might be Berman again, trying to dump his shift on me like last time. If that was the case, I planned to ignore him even if it killed me and pretend to be asleep.
“Breeder……?”
“…Hm? Wh-Who is it?”
But I couldn’t ignore the gentle female voice that brushed against my ears.
“Oh my? Did I wake you?”
When I looked toward the door, Sofia stood there in a pure white negligee, wearing her usual gentle expression. It was the last person I expected, yet relief washed over me rather than surprise. From her face, it seemed the conversation with Raylin had ended without any major conflict.
Still, what could she possibly want at this hour?
“It’s fine. I just couldn’t fall asleep……”
“I see. You slept so soundly yesterday, after all.”
So she really had come like this last night too. She must have noticed the lip mark Raylin left on my cheek. I must have been truly exhausted yesterday to miss even that presence.
More importantly, why had she come tonight?
“…Yes? By the way, what brings you here so late?”
I sat up quickly, fixing my messy hair. It wouldn’t do to greet a lady while lying down.
“You don’t need to get up. Just stay seated like that.”
“No, even so—”
“Stay seated. I came because there was something I couldn’t tell you earlier.”
—Rustle……
Sofia placed her soft hand over the back of mine and sat down beside me.
“Miss?”
“Hehe, don’t worry too much about Raylin. I cleared up all the misunderstandings on my way down. And I have something else to tell you.”
Every time she smiled at me, a faint halo seemed to light up the dark night-duty room.
‘She smells nice……’
Had she just taken a bath? A sweet fragrance drifted from Sofia. Her natural scent carried a subtle sweetness. We were so close that it was hard to turn my head and meet her eyes.
“I’m glad you cleared up the misunderstanding. But what is it you wanted to tell me? At this hour……”
“Tomorrow—no, after breakfast today—you’ll be joining the pilgrimage, right? You know that, don’t you?”
“Ah, yes. I heard from the communion teacher earlier, but…… was it today?”
“Yes. After breakfast, everyone will gather at the dormitory and depart. You’ll be coming with me, Breeder.”
“Understood. Thank you for coming all the way here this late just to tell me.”
“No. There’s also a personal matter I came for.”
“A personal matter?”
She seemed to have quite a few reasons for visiting. Not just to pass on information, but something personal as well?
“I’m sorry about earlier.”
“Miss?”
Sofia suddenly apologized out of nowhere.
“I thought I might have lost my contracted Breeder to a junior again…… I got impatient and let my emotions get ahead of me. That wasn’t like me at all.”
“It’s fine. You had every right to misunderstand.”
“Hehe, I like more than just your cooking skills, Breeder. Even when you’re tired and exhausted, you never show it and always smile for us.”
Sofia looked at me with a bright smile. Had I really done that? Well, I couldn’t let it show on the surface. Who knows what would happen if I did…… To be precise, I had only been currying favor with the young ladies to survive.
‘Still, I’m glad she saw it in a positive light.’
But what exactly was this personal matter? She hadn’t come just to apologize, had she? I should ask now. I was also curious about the pilgrimage, so I might as well ask about that too.
“Miss, about this personal matter you mentioned—mm……?”
The moment I lifted my head to ask, I couldn’t finish the sentence.
“Breeder? Would you close your eyes for me?”
Because Sofia had suddenly leaned in, her moist lips drawing closer.
“……This time, I’ll properly give you the Dragon Heart. So please stay still♡”