Inside the dessert shop, [Seele]'s cheeks were puffed out like a baozi bun as she glared indignantly at Bronya, who sat beside Kiana. Her unspoken resentment felt almost tangible.
And Seele certainly had reason to be angry.
Since the pollen attack was indiscriminate and widespread, Seele, who had been watching, was also affected.
Yet... when Jiang Qiao-onii-chan suggested getting dessert together, that dense Bronya-oneechan hadn't thought of her at all! It was Kiana who realized later.
Good thing she was actually there. If she hadn't been, would dense Bronya-oneechan and Kiana have just gone off to get dessert with Jiang Qiao-onii-chan using her body? The thought added another layer to Seele's resentment.
Everyone getting to enjoy dessert, even her other self joining in, while she alone remained clueless... Unacceptable! That couldn't happen!
Faced with this, Bronya guiltily bit her straw, her gaze flickering away.
"Alright now, Bronya definitely didn't mean it~ Just forgive her, okay?"
[Seele] tried to play peacemaker, but this only made Seele more upset. She immediately brought up the training incident:
"And you too, Jiang Qiao-onii-chan! You were using Seele's body, showing absolutely no regard for her image!"
"If this keeps up, Seele's going to take her body back ahead of schedule!"
"Ah~ Sorry, sorry... my bad~ Hmm, how about this? Seele can have my parfait."
Seeing the parfait pushed towards her, Seele's eyes lit up, but she forced herself to maintain a stern expression. "Hmph... Seele isn't a girl you can just appease so easily! Don't think a single dessert can buy Seele off!"
Despite her words, wasn't she eating it quite happily? Still, as Seele enjoyed the dessert, she suddenly felt it was a bit plain on its own.
And so...
"There are so many sweets, Seele can't finish them alone. Jiang Qiao-onii-chan, eat with Seele~"
Using this excuse, Seele once again initiated the feeding game—though it was a bit different from last time.
Last time, Seele had used her own body, which was interesting in its own way.
But this time, from [Seele]'s perspective, feeding [Jiang Qiao] and even licking the spoon seemed to have a distinct, different flavor.
Meanwhile, Bronya, reduced to background scenery, could only watch helplessly, unconsciously biting down on her metal spoon... It was a bit hard on the teeth.
"Bronya, aren't you eating? If you're not, I'll finish it for you."
With that, Kiana devoured Bronya's dessert with lightning speed. By the time Bronya snapped back to reality, the plate looked like it had been washed clean.
Bronya erupted in anger:
"Idiot Kiana!"
On one side, the rivals bickered; on the other, the feeding game continued. A strange scene converged at a single table.
Until night fell.
Unsurprisingly, neither Kiana nor Bronya was willing to yield an inch regarding the right to share a room with [Seele].
Kiana desperately wanted to hug the nice-smelling [Seele] while sleeping—of course, her official excuse was that she had some difficulties with her training and hoped for Jiang Qiao's nighttime tutoring.
But Bronya had her own retort—who did Kiana think she was fooling with that flimsy excuse? Who didn't have training difficulties?
Bronya had been planning how to lure [Seele] into her room from the moment she first saw her.
And now Idiot Kiana thought she could just swoop in and cut her off? Dream on!
Watching the two argue endlessly over [Seele], the original Seele felt a pang of heartbreak.
Hey, how come neither of you were this enthusiastic when Seele was actually here? Is this discrimination?!
Growing increasingly indignant, Seele finally cut in—
"Stop fighting! Tonight, Jiang Qiao-onii-chansleeps in Seele's room!"
Don't ask why. The body belongs to Seele, so what's wrong with Seele wanting to sleep in the same room as her own body?
It would also prevent someone from using her body to do strange things without her knowledge.
Thinking about it this way, it was practically a win-win!
Although Bronya and Kiana had objections, they couldn't compete with that logic.
They could only watch resentfully as Seele led [Seele] away, then exchanged glares before huffing off to their respective rooms.
After Seele brought [Seele] back to her room, she didn't actually do anything.
After all, Seele wasn't exactly the forward type... and there were indeed some awkward aspects.
For instance, [Seele] would need to bathe, right?
Should she go in too?
Although [Seele] mentioned that as a Herrscher, she didn't need bathing to maintain physical cleanliness, the hygiene-conscious Seele couldn't accept that psychologically.
But bathing together...
[Seele] was completely unconcerned and readily stripped down—[Jiang Qiao] was her original body, and [Seele] was Seele's body. Neither was more familiar with their respective forms than the other.
Seeing anything wouldn't be surprising; there was nothing to be embarrassed about.
But Seele's personality wasn't quite so uninhibited. Logically, seeing her own body shouldn't have been an issue—but the moment [Jiang Qiao] saw the vast expanse of pale skin, her mind went blank, her nose grew hot, and she got a nosebleed.
What made [Jiang Qiao] want to die of embarrassment was... a certain strange place inexplicably began to react.
Although she desperately tried to suppress it, it felt like the more she tried, the harder it became.
"Er..."
[Seele] (Jiang Qiao) looked at [Jiang Qiao] (Seele) before her, her expression somewhat subtle.
Alright, it seemed he had indeed miscalculated something—not everyone could control their body's instincts as completely as he could.
If one couldn't control bodily instincts, it was easy to be influenced by the body... and the body named [Jiang Qiao] undoubtedly had stats at the peak of human limits... including hormones, of course.
"Need me to help you out?"
Looking at the embarrassed [Jiang Qiao], [Seele] made a suggestive gesture, giving her a little sign.
Doing anything inappropriate was out of the question; people as uninhibited and morally flexible as Mobius were rare.
While Jiang Qiao could act that way, out of consideration for others' feelings, he needed to maintain some restraint.
However, if it was just a simple 'stress relief'... Jiang Qiao, who had done such things before coming to this world, didn't think it was a big deal.
However, Seele was clearly much more easily embarrassed than expected.
Hearing this, [Jiang Qiao] instantly turned red as a cooked shrimp.
Logically, Seele's knowledge in this area should have been relatively limited.
Like most women, her understanding of male anatomy wasn't comprehensive.
But when she first got this body, out of curiosity... she had tested certain... boundaries... and the result...
...was inexplicably pleasant...
Honestly, Seele had never even done anything similar with her own body. This was a first...
The steam in the bathroom and the dazzling sight of [Seele] made [Jiang Qiao]'s head spin.
She wanted to escape, but looking at [Seele], she felt a shameful sense of 'anticipation'.
Dame... Dame! No... No!
Snapping back to her senses, [Jiang Qiao] saw her hand being held and instantly tried to flee like a startled deer.
But, the next moment...
A certain stimulating sensation made [Jiang Qiao]'s eyes roll back. The floor was slippery, and she nearly slipped and fell to her knees, but [Seele] caught her just in time...
"Ooh..."
Why... is this different from what I imagined...
Still slow to recover, [Jiang Qiao] voiced her confusion.
But the girl before her simply smiled, made a gesture, and stated matter-of-factly:
"I am the Herrscher of Rebirth, after all."
The structure of life itself falls within the authority of Death and Rebirth.
Mere bodily impulses were naturally no exception.
Seeing [Jiang Qiao]'s bewildered expression, [Seele] looked puzzled:
"...Hmm, did Seele think I would use a different method?"
True, there were more conventional approaches.
But relying on that sort of primitive friction for stress relief was undoubtedly quite inefficient, whether from the perspective of seeking pleasure or reproduction.
Of course, he still acknowledged its significance.
That was precisely why Mobius had the opportunity to score.
Otherwise, how could an excuse like 'collecting experimental materials' possibly be achieved through such an inefficient method?
"..."
[Jiang Qiao] was still blushing.
For someone as innocent as her, it didn't really matter which method was used.
Such a loss of composure... [Jiang Qiao] felt she was no longer 'pure', she couldn't get married now...
Okay, that seemed literal.
Noticing something, [Jiang Qiao]'s pupils quaked. Staring at certain marks on [Seele]'s body, her brain froze.
It had happened so suddenly, completely catching her off guard...
While [Jiang Qiao] was frozen, [Seele] (Jiang Qiao) didn't seem too bothered. She simply stood under the shower and casually rinsed it off... it was on her hair, her face... oh well...
It was fine...
After all, it was a product of his own body; he couldn't exactly be disgusted with himself.
Amidst [Jiang Qiao]'s trepidation, the agonizing bathing session finally ended.
And in bed... nothing particularly noteworthy seemed to happen either.
"Goodnight, Seele~"
While [Jiang Qiao]'s mind raced, [Seele] acted perfectly normally. This contrast left [Jiang Qiao] feeling rather lost.
How come... it feels like Seele is the weird one here...
With a deeply conflicted heart, [Jiang Qiao] drifted off to sleep. However, her terrible sleeping habits hadn't changed even in a different body—she immediately clung to [Seele] like a koala, leaving the latter rather speechless.
Glancing down at the restless, mischievous hands that felt like they were kneading cotton balls, [Seele] could faintly sense an awkward, uncomfortable foreign presence...
The girl's lips twitched, and she sighed.
What rotten luck... tormented by Seele while using Bronya's body, tormented by Seele while using Seele's body, and now tormented by his own body possessed by Seele.
He thought for a moment and silently passed control of the body to Veliona.
Veliona, who had been resting comfortably, was suddenly brought forth and felt momentarily bewildered.
But upon realizing the situation, she instantly became furious, wanting nothing more than to punch Seele, yet unable to bring herself to do it because... well, it was Seele.
That night, [Jiang Qiao] slept very happily.
She had a dream.
She dreamed she was back at the orphanage, hugging her beloved teddy bear.
It smelled nice, felt soft, and the texture seemed even better than she remembered.
The next day, she woke up feeling wonderfully rested, only to look in the mirror and find she was back to her original appearance—Seele had returned to her loyal vessel, the '[Seele]'.
Jiang Qiao, however, was nowhere to be found.
"Other me, where did Jiang Qiao-onii-chan go?" Still groggy, Seele tied her half-open pajama top and rubbed her eyes. Although certain places felt a bit sore, she was more concerned about where Jiang Qiao-onii-chan had gone.
"I don't know!"
For some reason, Veliona's mood was exceptionally foul.
...
Xianzhou Luofu, Divination Commission.
"Phew... Finally finished this quarter's work." Qingque, the Acting Grand Diviner in her green attire, slumped unceremoniously over her desk, letting out a long sigh of relief.
Just when she thought she could take a short break, Jingzhai arrived, slamming a thick stack of documents onto the desk.
"Acting Grand Diviner, these are the preliminary divination matters required for the upcoming coordination with the Zhuming and Yuque Xianzhou."
"Huh?" Qingque was bewildered. "Isn't the Yuque Xianzhou super far away... And the Zhuming..."
"Have you forgotten? The Xianzhou Tournament is coming up soon," the petite Huixing reminded her.
Mingyue also sighed, "Although the Xianzhou ships probably won't dock together, the various related matters still require careful deliberation and clarification from each commission's Grand Diviner."
"Right, I completely forgot if you hadn't mentioned it... Damn it, shouldn't this kind of thing be handled by the Grand Diviner herself?!"
Qingque scratched her head, then grit her teeth slightly.
"It's been so long, the Grand Diviner's injuries should be pretty much healed by now, right?"
"Mm, probably about healed," Jingzhai nodded.
"Knowing the Grand Diviner's personality, she definitely can't sit still," Huixing added.
"But really, Little Qingque, you're so capable. I think the Grand Diviner intends to cultivate you as the successor to the position of Grand Diviner of the Divination Commission," Mingyue remarked teasingly, holding a jade scroll. Yet, her words held a note of genuine admiration.
Huixing and Jingzhai nodded in agreement.
They hadn't paid much attention to Qingque before, but after working together recently...
All they could say was that this kid was natural-born Grand Diviner material.
Aside from lacking a bit of experience, she far surpassed the three veteran Diviners in other aspects. Even when she encountered something she didn't understand, she never tried to bluff her way through.
Of course, the most important factor was that Qingque's style as Acting Grand Diviner was much more relaxed than Fu Xuan's.
Although Jingzhai kept an eye on things to prevent excessive laziness, compared to Grand Diviner Fu's stringent, almost harsh attitude, Qingque's balanced and measured approach brought a sense of relief throughout the Divination Commission.
Even Jingzhai, Fu Xuan's most loyal supporter, had to admit that Qingque handled things remarkably well in this regard.
Except for her tendency to slack off!
"No way!"
Hearing this, Qingque's face turned green.
Make me the Grand Diviner? Might as well send me straight to the Ten-Lords Commission!