Roland couldn't help but marvel at how worthwhile and usefull the Massage Technique had been so far.
It wasn't just an excuse to freely touch Aunt Yukio, it really helps a lot.
More importantly, after some experimentation, Aunt Yukio's Health Value had gradually recovered to 30 points—a priceless and life saving achievement.
If he continued these caresses... Ugh, what caresses? It's massage! It's a simple massage to recover her health!
If he kept massaging her, he might even be able to restore her Health Value to the 60-point safety threshold in one go.
Well, that was Roland's initial plan. But when he noticed the Health Value's progress slowing down like rabbit in the tortoise and rabbbit race, just after reaching 30 points, he reluctantly had to abandoned the idea to increase her health through the massage.
Even though the progress had slowed, spending more time might still yield some improvement.
Time was the one thing Roland had plenty of. He desperately wanted more opportunities to touch Yukio, and he believed she would allow it gladly and happily.
But the problem was... Had he not noticed that after just over ten minutes of his massage, Yukio's nightgown had slipped off her shoulder, once again exposing her alluring bare shoulder and her deep cleavage, creating a disheveled, half-undressed look.
If Roland continued massaging Yukio like this, he might "accidentally" slip her nightgown off completely. While Roland would undoubtedly be delighted to have the honour, and heck Yukio might even continue to tacitly permit his actions as always.
After all, the previous incident with the bath towel had set an perfect example of her level of spoiling. Letting him undress her again wouldn't be out of the question, certainly right?.
But the main problem here was, the more he and Yukio thought it was acceptable, the more Haruno would find it unacceptable!
Damn it! They weren't the only two in the house. If Haruno regained her senses and came out of her room to find them disheveled and embracing on the sofa, what will happen then?
She'd probably flip the sofa and throw him out of the house!
This method of helping Aunt Yukio recover was too risky. They needed to address the root cause of her illness soon.
"Aunt Yukio, are you feeling better now?" Roland asked with genuine concern. He could see that some color had returned to her face, no longer frighteningly pale.
"Yes, I'm much better," Yukio replied, still shaken. "Thank you for waking me up." She had nearly been unable to rouse herself, she didn't even know what happened.
"Aunt Yukio, please tell me what happened last night. Why did your condition suddenly deteriorate like this?" Roland asked urgently.
"This... Aunt Yukio really doesn't want to talk about it, and even if I did, it wouldn't change anything," Yukio said hesitantly as she turned her face away from him. Even facing Roland, she couldn't decide whether to tell him or not.
"Please, Aunt Yukio, tell me. What if it helps? I want to help you. I don't want anything to happen to you, so please tell me what is causing you so much suffering." Roland pleaded her with puppy eyes, genuinely desperate to keep her safe from whatever harm she is going through.
"Alright, alright, don't give that eyes, I really can't resist you. Aunt Yukio will explain briefly, but please don't think I'm crazy..."
"I'm not stupid. At least, the Aunt Yukio I know has always been perfectly normal."
"Then have you ever seen a normal adult let a younger man hug them and touch them so wantonly and freely?"
"That just proves how close we are. Unconventional relationships don't necessarily mean mental instability."
"So you admit our relationship is unconventional? And you still dare to act so boldly with your Aunt Yukio~?"
"What does it matter? We haven't done anything to harm society. Why can't we?"
"You know, even though Aunt Yukio tries her best to indulge you, there are some things that simply can't be allowed, understand?" Yukio said, stroking his cheek with a doting expression. At this point, there was no need for pretense between them; they both understood the other's feelings without needing to express them through words.
But as a mother of two grown up children, she had to maintain certain boundaries. She needed to make this clear to Roland.
"I understand. That's why I won't do anything Aunt Yukio doesn't want me to," Roland said earnestly, nodding as he reached out to caress her cheek.
When he looked at her face, only evil thoughts filled his mind, telling him to act on them but he can't bear to make this woman sad.
Yukio could clearly sense the affection in his touch, an affection that went beyond any familial love and societal norms. Yet she didn't pull away. Instead, she leaned closer and press her cheek on his hand, letting him stroke and caress her face, letting him do what he wanted.
After all, if she couldn't give these "benefits" to her Little Roland, who else would she give them to? Certainly not some stranger.
Better to give them to her Little Roland~.
They had now made their understanding clear: Roland could enjoy casual benefits freely as before, but anything crossing the line required clear restraint.
As for what constituted a "line-crossing benefit," that depended entirely on the boundaries she was willing to set. Roland would never forcibly cross any line she drew.
Ultimately, it all came down to her ability to maintain her boundaries. As long as she could stay clear-headed and keep their physical intimacy within acceptable limits, their behavior would remain normal, regardless of their true feelings for each other.
For example, just because she had developed feelings for Roland that went beyond familial affection, holding his hand couldn't suddenly become a taboo act, could it?
It was just holding hands, after all. They had done it countless times before since ages.
The only real challenge was whether she could maintain her composure. Last night, she had made the decision to let Roland photograph her nude body with his phone.
At the time, she had clearly been swept up in the moment, her judgment clouded and murky. Now, after calming down and reflecting, she realized that such an act had undoubtedly crossed the line sheever should even think of crossing as his elder.
She never imagined she'd have such an irrational day. From now on, she'd have to exercise more restraint, especially when it came to that bottom line. She couldn't let that little rascal run wild like this anymore.
So... should she tell Roland to remove his hand from inside her pajamas right now?
Yukio knew Roland's intention was to give her a massage, and the end result was indeed quite soothing and blissfull filling her body with unprecedented comfortableness. But surely he'd taken advantage of her in the process, right?
He was still groping!
Did he really think, I his Aunt Yukio wouldn't notice his sneaky moves?
She remembered every spot he'd touched perfectly. Should she expose his attempt to slip his hand into her panties?
Yukio rolled her eyes at him, a mix of affection and resentment.
Oh well, she thought. At least Roland's initial goal had been to alleviate her pain. Now that she was feeling a bit better, it would be ungrateful to immediately cut him off without giving him some benefits as his elder.
So Yukio silently tolerated the little rascal's misbehavior, considering it one last indulgence before tightening her boundaries for forever.
Hmm... why does this "last time" feel like it's been said so many times?
Never mind, let's get to the real issue.
"Your aunt Yukio's condition isn't exactly a physical problem, but rather a mental one. She hasn't had a proper night's sleep in over two weeks," Yukio said, her spirit visibly draining as she spoke of her illness.
Still shaken, she nestled closer to Roland, pressing her cheek against his chest as if only his embrace could offer her solace and warmth.
"Is it insomnia?" Roland asked, frowning. He doubted insomnia alone could lead to such a state.
"If only it were insomnia. My problem is the opposite—I'm afraid to sleep. Every night, I hear strange noises, and they grow louder and more chaotic as the night deepens.At the end I couldn't even sleep."
"Did you hear them last night too?" Roland frowned. He hadn't heard anything unusual.
"Yes, the noises returned after you left."
"What happens if you fall asleep?"
"If I fall asleep..." Yukio paused, her voice trailing off.
Roland could clearly feel Yukio's hand, intertwined with his, tighten slightly, as if she were still deeply afraid of those voices.
After a moment of silence, Yukio continued, "When I falls asleep, I have nightmares. In the dream, I'm in a bizarre and grotesque place filled with strange, twisted, indescribable things. There's also a faint voice calling out, a voice that makes me feel utterly nauseous."
"Is it always the same dream?" Roland asked.
"Every time. And when I wake up, my head feels like it's about to split open, as if my brain is going to burst open," Yukio said wearily.
So, the thing that had been tormenting her, leaving her so weak, wasn't some mysterious illness at all—just a recurring nightmare.
"What did the doctors say? You must have gone for checkups, right?" Roland asked.
"The doctors just said it might be due to recent stress from work. After all, even after thorough examinations, they couldn't find anything wrong," Yukio replied, shaking her head as she told him.
Roland finally understood why Yukio had said, "There's no point in talking about it." Even the doctors couldn't help her with this.
After all, doctors aren't dream interpreters.
To treat an illness, you need to find its cause.
How could anyone prescribe medication based solely on Aunt Yukio's claim that it was caused by nightmares?
Even the psychiatric drugs they tried proved completely ineffective.
In the end, Yukio had no choice but to endure it herself. Last night, she nearly reached her breaking point, and she even considered visiting a shrine for a fortune slip, resorting to mystical unorthodox methods.
But then something unexpected happened...
Just as Roland approached her, the eerie voice that had haunted her nightmares suddenly vanished. In its place was Roland's voice, waking her up. His voice acted like a beacon, guiding her out of the dreaded dream.
And that wasn't all. When Roland held her tightly, even the splitting headache that always greeted her upon waking was significantly subdued. Apart from the lingering exhaustion in her mind, she felt almost no pain.
This was utterly bizarre. Why did Little Roland's presence make me feel better?
Could it be... that my illness stemmed from prolonged abstinence? Had Little Roland somehow replenished my energy?