Truth be told, neither Kiana nor Bronya dared to mention Shu's role as their accomplice.
Shu was officially recognized as a "victim" in this scenario. Dragging him down with them would only add two more charges to their crimes.
The two girls watched helplessly as Shu self-righteously promised Seele he would diligently act as their guardian, a promise fully supported by both Mei and Seele. Bronya and Kiana knew instantly:
The sun has set on our freedom.
These three were definitely going to form a secret group chat just to ruthlessly isolate and oppress them.
However, this tense, polarizing atmosphere didn't last long.
"Yaaawwn—"
Accompanied by an earth-shattering yawn, the door at the end of the hall swung open, and a petite figure rubbed her eyes as she stumbled out.
Theresa, wearing a HOMU onesie that made her look like a life-sized mascot, still sported her dangerously braided hairstyle. With a few cowlicks standing stubbornly at attention, she groggily made her way into the living room.
Completely ignoring the tense, drawn-swords atmosphere in the room, she walked straight to the water dispenser and poured herself a cup.
Glug, glug, glug...
After downing more than half the cup in one breath, Theresa let out a long, satisfied sigh. Her slightly unfocused blue eyes finally sharpened, taking in the room full of "statues."
"Hmm? Everyone's here?" Theresa blinked, looking genuinely confused. "Wait... what time is it? Have you guys eaten breakfast yet? Don't tell me you ate without me!"
Dead silence.
Everyone stared at Theresa in absolute shock.
Shu instinctively checked his watch, confirming it was indeed past 2:00 PM. He then mentally reviewed last night's five-player raid roster, confirming that Theresa was absolutely not one of them.
Which meant—
Theresa had genuinely slept straight through from 11:00 PM last night until right now?!
Wait. Fifteen hours?!
I can't even make fun of her for that. She must have actually been cursed by a sleep demon.
"Haa... As expected, the older you get, the more sleep you need." Completely oblivious to everyone's shock, Theresa touched her cheek with a profound sigh. "Are these the traces of time? Truly troubling."
The entity whose body, hobbies, habits, and entire existence—excluding her chronological age—were exactly twelve years old, lamented the passage of time.
Mei: "..."
Bronya: "..."
Seele: "..."
Shu: "..."
Shu felt his internal snark-meter short-circuiting. There was just so much wrong with that statement, he genuinely didn't know where to start.
"Auntie Theresa! Have some self-awareness!" In the end, Kiana couldn't take it anymore and chose to directly disrespect her elder.
"Hmph! The Principal has always been incredibly self-aware!" Theresa actually assumed the haughty posture of an elder, crossing her arms smugly. "Besides... Kiana, did you just get scolded by Mei again?"
Kiana instantly deflated.
Hilarious. Getting completely destroyed by a single sentence must feel terrible.
"Ugh~" Theresa stretched luxuriously, letting out a comfortable hum before beginning to impart her wisdom on health and wellness to the youths. "A good nap is essential! You only have the energy to live if you've slept enough, right?"
The logic itself was flawless.
The flaw was Theresa herself.
The atmosphere during lunch was slightly bizarre, but at least everyone ate their fill.
And after they were full?
"Let's go explore outside the base!" Kiana, her energy fully restored, suggested as she helped Bronya wash the dishes.
"Outside the base?" Mei, enjoying a rare moment of freedom from household chores, thought about it for a second and nodded.
"Seele wants to see the outside world too. It must have changed a lot, right?" Seele also voiced her agreement.
It had been over a month since Arc City's restoration. Otto had been working overtime for over a month—rumor had it he hadn't left his office a single time.
With a month of his relentless effort, the outside world must have undergone massive changes, right?
"Mhm... I agree." Shu also wanted to go out and see the results of Otto "working himself to the bone" for Arc City.
Granted, if he truly wanted to know, he could just turn off the information filter connecting him to his Scepter and instantly download the current state of the city.
Sigh. [Wish] and Authority are ultimately external tools. True understanding doesn't come from a data dump; you have to see it and experience it yourself.
"Bronya has no objections." Bronya placed the last washed bowl on the drying rack, letting Kiana rinse it. She washed and dried her hands before walking into the living room.
Six people, six votes. The motion passed unanimously.
Wasting no time, everyone quickly changed into outdoor clothes, attached their [Mosquito Breath] pins, scooped up Rice Cake—who had spent the entire morning being incredibly lazy—and prepared to take the cat for a walk.
Rice Cake: "?"
Taking the elevator up, they eventually reached the surface level. After a brief security check, the group walked out the main doors of the Fire Moth headquarters.
The long-absent sunlight poured down on them like a golden waterfall, instantly washing away the lingering dampness and claustrophobia of the underground base.
"Ah! Real sunlight feels the best~"
Kiana threw her arms up like a bird finally freed from its cage. She took a deep breath of fresh air and spread her arms wide, looking as if she wanted to embrace the entire world.
The others weren't quite as dramatic as Kiana, but as the sun warmed their skin, genuine smiles blossomed on their faces.
Even Shu smiled briefly in the sunlight.
And then, right in front of everyone, he popped open a parasol.
"Huh?" Instantly, every eye turned toward him. A group of beautiful, delicate young women stared in utter bewilderment as the only male in the group huddled under a black umbrella like a vampire...
Oh, right. They almost forgot. They were just delicate girls. Shu was genuinely made of glass.
Under the current intensity of the sun, it would only take an hour before Shu started performing a biological phenomenon known as "molting" right in front of the Valkyries.
"Sigh, what a shame," Kiana lamented, happily soaking up the sun while watching Shu cower beneath the shadow of his black parasol. "Basking in the sun feels so good..."
"Bronya seems to recall Idiot Kiana dragging Shu to sunbathe in the illusion of the Herrscher of Obsession, which caused him severe physical distress?" Bronya deadpanned, pulling Seele closer as she speechlessly reminded Kiana of her past crimes.
Kiana choked on her words.
"W-Well... that was just an illusion..."
"Exactly. Our real Shu doesn't have a constitution nearly as sturdy as his illusion counterpart," Mei smiled, holding Rice Cake in her arms. "We need to protect Shu carefully..."
"Why does it feel like Big Brother Shu is the endangered species here?" Seele mumbled quietly. Shu heard her perfectly.
Preposterous!
Shu felt his reputation was being slandered. He decided to correct Seele's blasphemous perception immediately.
"I am protected trash," Shu stated, his tone incredibly self-righteous.
Seele: "..."
She didn't believe him for a second.