In his drowsy consciousness, Alain felt something cold, smooth, and tender poking his cheek.
He let out a displeased mumble in his sleep, pulling his hand away to bat the thing away.
But "the thing" seemed to grow even more dissatisfied, the force and frequency of its poking increasing considerably.
"...Don't bother me while I'm sleeping."
Complaining involuntarily, Alain was about to fall back into a deep, dark sleep.
"This... doesn't seem to be your bed."
"..."
Alain wanted to ignore it, but couldn't help but ponder the meaning behind that Mita's voice. Could it be... Misha had discovered his affair with his good brother?
At this thought, everything became clear, and he instantly opened his eyes. Not out of guilt, but because he planned to tell Misha, "You've come at the perfect time," while also enjoying the sight of his good brother's deliciously shameful expression.
But when he opened his eyes, what greeted him was not his own room, but a bedroom that resembled a starry sky.
The pale pink room could be called a "night sky," with white and yellow stars forming the scenery before Alain's eyes.
Belatedly, he remembered that he had come to Version 1.1 to ask Sleepy Mita about Ghostly Mita's character texture and the viruses.
And then... there was no "and then." Alain had no idea what happened after that.
But seeing the girl sitting duck-style beside him, her half-closed eyes conveying a vague sense of displeasure, Alain seemed to have figured something out.
"So, why are you sleeping next to me?"
The girl's face was exquisitely carved, the tip of her pinkish-white nose faintly reflecting the mottled starlight.
Her pillow was spread out to the side, revealing the slender curves beneath her form-fitting, fruit-red pajamas. The full curves peeking through the gap in her collar were a mystery that mankind would endlessly strive to explore.
The lines then tapered moderately at her waist, a slender, graspable waist without a hint of excess fat.
Below, a simple pair of hot pants was all she wore, her long, beautiful legs bare, exceptionally fair and smooth.
"...How long are you going to stare?"
The Mita girl seemed to have a headache dealing with the dumbfounded young man observing her.
She tidied the messy strands of hair on her head slightly, pushing her sleep mask to one side to reveal a smooth forehead.
"Sorry?"
Alain, belatedly, realized what he had just been doing.
Unbelievable...
He held his head, finding it hard to believe he had actually fallen asleep in the middle of a mission.
"Ahhh... y-yawn..."
Sleepy Mita watched him grasp the situation and let out a faint yawn herself.
"If there's nothing you need, please don't disturb me. Yawn..."
After speaking, she collapsed onto the pillow, about to fall into a deep sleep.
"Wait," Alain quickly stopped her. "I still have some questions for you. So for now, at least, please don't sleep."
Huu, huu, huu...
But aside from the sound of steady breathing, there was no other response.
Alain suppressed the guilt of disturbing someone's sweet slumber and switched on his professional habit.
"Actually, I don't mind sharing a bed with you."
She sighed helplessly in her sleep, opened her drowsy eyes, and propped herself up against the headboard bit by bit.
"Just ask."
"It's just, in Version 1.1... huh?"
He was halfway through his question when the girl's head leaned against the wall, her eyes flickering with little stars symbolizing sleep, as if she would drift off in the next second.
"???"
Alain woke her up again. The girl waved her hand at him, her small hand pointing towards the kitchen.
"Haa... yawn... Get me a cup of coffee. Remember, add sugar, and mostly milk."
"Okay."
Is that even coffee anymore?
Alain got up from the bed and, with practiced ease, walked to Version 1.1's kitchen, mulling over what he had just seen.
Sleepy Mita truly lived up to her "Sleepy" title; she had nearly dozed off several times just from exchanging a few sentences with him.
At the same time... actually talking to her, he realized this Mita had a quality that set her apart from the usual Mitas. A sense of mystery? Inscrutable? Alain didn't know how to describe it.
Arriving in the kitchen, he picked up the electric kettle, filled it with water, and started heating it.
While searching for the coffee pouch, he found something unexpected.
"What's this?"
It was a triangular piece of paper, placed on a shelf inside the refrigerator. Alain took it out to examine it.
The paper had watercolor paint on it. The edges of the paper were torn.
If he had to say... it looked a bit like a piece of a "jigsaw puzzle."
"Ding~"
The water had just finished boiling. Alain took out the coffee, brewed it, and added sugar and milk according to Sleepy Mita's request.
After returning to the bedroom, Alain handed the coffee to Sleepy Mita.
The girl blew on the hot drink, taking small, cat-like sips.
When the cup was empty, she finally got up from the bed and did something resembling warm-up exercises.
"Hoo... ah, I'm alive again!" she said in a rather rousing tone.
The next second, she yawned again.
Alain's mouth twitched. It seemed coffee that was mostly milk only had a one-second revitalizing effect.
"Y-you... whatever you want to ask, just hurry up and—yawn—ask."
He took out the puzzle piece from his pocket and asked, "Do you know what this is? I found it in your fridge."
"Hm?"
She looked over curiously, picking up the paper with her fingertips and rubbing it gently.
After a long moment, she let out a confused, "I don't know."
She handed it back to Alain.
"You said this was in my fridge?"
"Yes."
"Maybe I put it there sometime and forgot."
Her dazed look made it seem like she still hadn't fully woken from her slumber.
"Never mind..."
At this point, the mission was more important.
"Have you seen anything that looks like a virus?"
As usual, Alain described the forms of the viruses he had seen so far.
But after a short while, the sound of even, deep sleep spread through the room again.
"Hm? Never seen them..." she said after Alain tirelessly woke her up again.
"I'm always sleeping. I'm not really clear on what happens outside. Ah... but there is one thing I know—" She looked at Alain, raising her eyes.
"Oh?" Alain braced himself, only to see the girl raise a finger and point it at him.
"You. You suddenly barged into my room, lay on my bed, and slept next to me."
"I didn't do it on purpose."
Even Alain, the self-proclaimed Mita-Man, couldn't quite bear such an accusatory gaze.
"As compensation, how about I take you to the real world?"
Alain said, looking into her eyes.
As the only Mita in Version 1.1, Sleepy Mita's importance needed no further explanation. The viruses had already corroded the version next to 1.1, and he currently had no way to fight them. Leaving a Mita in a version so close to the viruses was simply too dangerous.
Taking her to reality was also a form of protection. He wouldn't have to worry about her authority being stolen by the viruses. This way, even if Version 1.1 were to be taken over, he could bring back the authority-wielding Sleepy Mita in the future to restore balance.
It wasn't a bad strategy.
But despite Alain's question...
She had fallen asleep again.
______
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