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The sun was blazing down, heating up the ground. The air was hot and stuffy, and people walking along the street were dripping with sweat.
Meanwhile...
Jasper was lying flat on the wooden floor. The cool surface felt amazing against his skin—though after a while, his body heat slowly warmed the floor beneath him.
A few minutes later—
He rolled over onto his other side.
At that moment, Shadow Spider was standing nearby. She was wearing a long black dress and black stockings, her feet softly touching the floor.
She was reading a book, and with more knowledge came a better understanding of human things—like embarrassment... and someone's personal kinks.
Without realizing it, Jasper had slowly shifted closer to her feet. Her body temperature was naturally cold, which made it feel refreshing to him.
So, he pressed his face against her calf.
That cool temperature felt so good.
Shadow Spider didn't react, but she still spoke up.
"Master, I think this might count as sexual harassment?" she said. Though, honestly, she didn't mind Jasper acting like this around her.
"You're part of me, so it doesn't count as harassment," Jasper argued lazily. "I mean, who harasses themselves? Besides, does this really count?"
He was clearly making up nonsense—and maybe it would work on her for now. But Jasper knew that as her knowledge grew, she wouldn't be so easy to fool in the future.
"Shadow Spider~," he muttered weakly.
"Yes, Master?" she responded right away.
Still lying on the floor, Jasper said, "Can you step on me?"
Shadow Spider closed her book and replied, "Sexual harassment!"
Then she went ahead and stepped on his stomach anyway.
Cool and comfy.
Jasper pulled out his handheld console and started gaming. Shadow Spider absentmindedly traced circles on his stomach with her foot. She was kind of enjoying it.
Time passed little by little.
Around noon—
"I want fried rice," Jasper suddenly said.
Shadow Spider put down her book, ready to head into the kitchen. Her cooking skills weren't great, but she could learn, right?
Suddenly, Jasper grabbed her leg.
"I'll do it," he said seriously. Shadow Spider had almost burned the house down last time she tried using the stove—he wasn't about to let her try again.
Shadow Spider puffed up her cheeks in frustration. What the heck? Didn't he know she was still learning?
Seeing her expression, Jasper asked, "Are you mad?"
Shadow Spider looked away. "Nope," she said flatly.
Jasper thought she looked pretty cute. She could get mad now—just another sign she was learning human emotions.
He patted her on the head. "Let's eat fried rice together later, okay?"
Shadow Spider looked at the floor and replied, "I don't need food... but since it's your order, I guess I can eat a little."
Jasper : "..."
Where did she even learn to act this tsundere?!Still—so cute!
Jasper gave her another head pat, then quickly headed to the kitchen.
A short while later, he came out with plates of fried rice.
Shadow Spider looked surprised at first, but was quickly won over by the taste. She seemed to be falling in love with the food. Come to think of it, this might've been the first time he ever let her eat anything.
After they finished eating, Jasper was washing dishes while Shadow Spider watched from the side.
As he squeezed some dish soap out, she innocently asked, "Is that lube?"
Jasper : "..."
It felt like a lightning bolt had struck him.
He turned to her, totally deadpan. "It's dish soap. For washing dishes. And have you been secretly looking at weird stuff online?"
He really didn't want her getting exposed to anything too dirty.
Shadow Spider's gaze wandered awkwardly, and then she asked, "If a man and a woman kiss... will that make a baby?"
"It will! So stay away from men!" Jasper shot back instantly.
Shadow Spider's face changed slightly.
"How long does it take to make a baby?"
"Ten months," Jasper replied.
Her expression just got weirder and weirder.
After a while, she asked, "Spiderling, can I take maternity leave? You know, the ten-month kind?"
Jasper: "..."
His hair practically stood on end.
He looked at her, dead serious. "Did you kiss someone?"
Shadow Spider hesitated and didn't answer.
Jasper sighed and said, "Just tell me. I won't get mad."
(Of course, that was a lie—if anyone did touch her, he'd go beat the crap out of them.)
Finally, she mumbled, "Last month, when Master was sleeping really deeply... I kissed you. I heard that's how you make babies, and I wanted to understand where kids come from. So I kissed you."
Jasper stared at her, speechless.
After a long pause, he finally said, "Shadow Spider, you can't let your curiosity interfere with other people. And... have you kissed anyone else?"
She shook her head. "Nope! I only wanted to kiss Master. You're special."
Jasper's feelings were a mess. He looked at her and said, "From now on, talk to me first before doing anything like that, okay? Otherwise, I'll get mad."
She nodded and said, "But you're not mad."
She could sense his emotions, after all. And she was right—he wasn't mad.
Jasper stayed quiet.
Once the dishes were done, he sat on the couch and started watching a gaming tournament.
Shadow Spider squatted beside him with her book, watching too.
After a while, she looked at him and asked, "Can I see your bird?"
Jasper: "...What?"
He turned to stare at her. "Why?"
"Because I want to know what it looks like," she said, all serious.
"No!" Jasper said flatly.
She pouted. "Stingy."
Jasper : "..."
Internally, he was screaming.
Then Shadow Spider said, "Let's trade! You show me yours, I'll show you mine."
"Nope!" Jasper shot her down again. She might look like a mature woman, but mentally she was still a little girl—he couldn't mess her up like that.
She pouted again. "But I've seen it before."
Jasper ignored her.
Slowly, she stretched out her legs in front of him and asked, "Master, do you like Annie?"
"Nope," Jasper replied.
"Oh."
"Then do you like me?"
"Yeah."
"Oh."
"So can we have a baby?"
"Nope."
"Oh~"
"Can we mate then?"
"...What the heck are you saying!?"
"Master is a liar," she said.
"You're totally right," Jasper replied without even thinking.
Then he glanced at the calendar and realized—half the holiday was already over.
He sighed. "Shadow Spider, let's go out tomorrow."
She nodded. "Let's go make a baby!"
"No! We're going to the beach!"
Seriously, what kind of books has she been reading!?
"Does Master want to have a baby with me in public?"
"Get out!!" Jasper shouted, finally losing it.
"....."