After Rei Ao left, Kurono swiftly calmed the students, who had been thrown into disarray.
"Wow…he's so powerful…"
Among them was a black‐haired girl whose right eye was covered by her bangs. Recalling the scene where Rei Ao had cleaved the sky with a single sword strike, her gaze sparkled with admiration.
…
Stella's Dorm Room
Rei Ao gently laid Stella on the bed.
Watching her peacefully sleeping face, he pulled the covers up for her, then headed for the door.
Click!
The door opened, then closed.
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly. Under the cover of her bangs, her right eye discreetly peeked toward the door. Confirming that Rei Ao was gone, Stella finally opened both eyes.
She had only been pretending to sleep.
Rubbing the blanket Rei Ao had placed over her, Stella couldn't stifle an embarrassed little noise.
"Hmph, Stella, what on earth are you doing? Are you that happy just from being carried? Why is your heart pounding so fast!"
Indeed, having been in his arms, she found it impossible to sleep. Her heart was drumming like crazy, and it felt as if her whole body was cheering with delight. How could she possibly sleep in such a state?
Now that there was no one else in the dorm…
Should she or shouldn't she…?
Some things become addictive once you've done them even once. Stella was no exception.
Gritting her teeth, she was really about to deal with that "craving" of hers.
"What are you doing?"
Unfortunately, just as her excitement soared, a voice crashed in like a thunderbolt.
It was Rei Ao's voice.
"Huh? Am I hearing things?"
Startled, Stella looked around, only to discover that behind her bed, Rei Ao was watching her with amused interest.
"Yaaah!!!"
She let out a shriek.
Rei Ao merely waited it out. A moment later, still huddling under her blanket with a bright‐red face, Stella stammered:
"You…you said you were leaving!"
"Oh? You didn't honestly think faking sleep would fool me, did you?" Rei Ao said with a wry smile.
"Lucky I stayed; otherwise I'd never have seen this…'uninhibited' side of Stella."
He joked, bringing up a certain point:
"I recall you even set up an Anti-R18 Alliance in my group. As the Alliance's leader, pulling a stunt like this—if I posted it in the group, I bet it would spark quite the uproar, hmm?"
"Ugh!"
Stella's body trembled violently.
She could practically imagine what a catastrophic social death scenario that would be.
"D-Don't!!!"
Tearful, Stella pleaded, "Please don't do that!"
She absolutely did not want to face social annihilation! Her carefully maintained image mustn't collapse!
"Beg me," Rei Ao teased, seeing Stella like this and starting to find it entertaining.
"Please!"
But Stella's plea came out so swiftly and sincerely that it gave him no time to savor the moment. Her pitiful face stirred sympathy in anyone's heart.
"…"
Originally, he'd never planned on broadcasting her predicament to the group. So he let it go at that.
"All right, I won't post anything. But get some proper rest, don't be worrying over silly stuff."
With that, Rei Ao turned to leave. However, a slightly damp hand latched onto his.
"You're…wiping that on me?"
Rei Ao gave a puzzled look at the faintly sticky threads on her fingertip.
"Uuh…"
But Stella started crying.
"???"
Rei Ao was taken aback. Did she really burst into tears over just a couple lines? Was she truly the same Stella?
"What's all this about?"
Biting her lip resentfully, Stella sniffled, "You already saw me like that… Don't you have any reaction at all? Or is it…am I totally unappealing?"
With that, her gaze dimmed. She didn't understand: Shizuku was fine, Principal Kurono was fine, and practically everyone in the group was fine—why was she the only one who hadn't been openly adored? She'd shown him the most humiliating side of herself, yet Rei Ao was utterly unmoved. That made Stella wonder if perhaps she truly was lacking.
"…"
Being a man of many experiences, Rei Ao fully grasped Stella's mindset at that moment. She'd taken a simple suggestion (get some rest) and read far too deeply into it. But if he just left it there, it would be rude.
After all, there's a saying that only those who act boldly get what they want; the "nice guys" end up with nothing.
Seeing Stella lower her head in dejection, he stepped over.
"!!?"
Her eyes went wide. Lifting her head, she saw Rei Ao gazing down at her.
"Stella, I think you underestimate your own charm. Isn't there…plenty of proof right here?"
His stare brimmed with a certain predatory gleam. Realizing his implication, Stella felt her body flaring up, heat flooding her cheeks.
"I…"
She flustered, freezing in place, not knowing whether to advance or retreat.
Rei Ao cut straight to the point:
"Stella, be my woman."
"Mmm…"
Flushed beet‐red, Stella hardly resisted at all, nodding her assent. Rei Ao smiled faintly. See? Taking bold action yields results, while "nice guys" might just end up last among the dogs.
…
[Chat Group]
Bibi Dong: "Shinguuji Kurono? Who's that? I don't see her among the group's members."
Yukinoshita Yukino: "She's the Principal of Stella's academy, who has—"
(They start talking about other group members, references to Lan Fuzi, Bibi Dong, etc.)
At one point:
Lan Fozi, seeing herself mentioned in the chat, brightened. Clinging to Bibi Dong's arm, she said affectionately, "Dong-nee, hurry and introduce me to everyone in the chat—these are all our family, right?"
Family…
Bibi Dong found that phrase quite apt. Perhaps in the future, they might all be sleeping together under one big quilt, who knew?
"All right then."
Seeing Lan Fozi so eager, Bibi Dong helped satisfy her:
Bibi Dong: "Lan Fuzi is a 100,000-year soul beast, a Deep Sea Demonic Whale that Rei Ao subdued upon arriving in my world. Now she's in human form by my side, and I call her Lan-chan."
Busujima Saeko: "A hundred thousand years?"
Yomogawa Ayame: "What creature can possibly live a hundred thousand years?"
Tohru: "In our place, there aren't many dragons older than a hundred thousand."
Bibi Dong: "In Soul Master terms, 100,000 years is a measure of strength, but yes, Lan-chan truly has existed for well over ten thousand years."
~~~
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