As Kiana listened to the intermittent, hesitant voice coming from the communicator, her expression turned as dark as still water.
"Ngh..."
The other end of the line seemed to be hesitating, offering no direct answer.
As a 'knight' who had been through a hundred battles, her experience was so seasoned that she instantly identified the unusual nature of Mei's tone.
Dog-thief Ye Feng, you think this young lady doesn't know you're right there?
Never mind the 'sploosh' sound, I've heard things like 'pop,' 'slurp,' and 'gurgle' before, haven't I?
Getting some 'jogging' in again, are we!
You dog-thief, what do you take this young lady for!
How despicable!
Bastard!
Kiana furiously cursed Ye Feng in her heart.
She listened to Mei's faint breathing through the communicator, the crimson light on her lower abdomen flickering slightly. Her fists were clenched so tightly they made cracking sounds, her knuckles turning white.
It was hard to tell if it was from anger or restraint.
Kiana's shoulders trembled slightly. She wanted to end the call... surely Mei was thinking the same thing.
It was just like when Mei had first arrived here, and the 'invisible' Kiana had wished desperately for the ordeal to end quickly.
But Kiana just stared blankly at the communicator's screen, listening to the faint, feverish breaths coming from the other side. Her fingers felt as if they'd been frozen by a spell, rigid and unmoving.
It wasn't that she had awakened some strange new interest; she just wanted proof.
Kiana wanted Mei to make a choice between her and that dog-thief Ye Feng.
Right here, right now.
Would Mei come to her?
Or would she continue to be ravaged by Ye Feng?
This was Kiana's dilemma.
However, in the next instant, Kiana felt she was being childish, dumping such a difficult problem on Mei.
Why do I have to put Mei in such a difficult position?
Kiana softened her tone. "Ah, if you're busy, Mei, you can come a little later. I'll wait for you on the rooftop."
"Ah, ah~~ O-okay..."
Why the double 'ah'?
Why did her voice get quieter towards the end?
She probably moved the communicator further away, right?
Mei, you really don't know... your voice right now, it's so obvious.
Then again, maybe she truly didn't know.
Because that demonic dog-thief, Ye Feng, loved to play these kinds of games.
Just think of the Ji Lin 'couple', or the Cangxuan sisters; he always left one of them behind.
But leaving one behind only meant that, in the end, both would be tormented together.
Therefore, it was highly likely that Mei genuinely believed she had disguised it well and hadn't been found out, which was why she was... trying so hard.
On the other end of the line, seeing that Kiana hadn't replied for a long time, Mei's guilty voice came through.
"Um... Kiana, why did you stop talking?"
Kiana, her face scrunched up in a pout, couldn't help but retort, "I was about to ask you the same thing, Mei. What are you doing? Why did you suddenly go silent?"
"Ngh... It's Mr. Ye Feng."
!!
A flicker of joy ignited in Kiana's heart. Mei hadn't lied to her; she was telling the truth.
"Ye Feng? What is he doing to you?"
"...Mr. Ye Feng is helping me with some special training."
"Oh?"
"I-it seems to be... called... 'Raiden Shogun Special Training'~ Eee—S-slow down a little..."
Kiana heard what sounded like someone turning over, followed by the sound of dense raindrops hitting the ground. It was very faint and distant, as if echoing across a misty, empty field, but it was definitely there.
"Is that so? Special training, huh? Sounds pretty intense. Also, what did you mean, 'slow down'?"
"Eh, eh... Th-that..."
"Oh, I get it. It's the offensive part of the training, right? Seriously, when that dog-thief Ye Feng helps people with training, he never considers their feelings."
"...Ahaha, y-yes, that's it. Um, anyway, is it the rooftop... of the school building?... I-I'll~~ ungh—I'll get there as soon as I can..."
"Alright. Be quick."
Kiana took the initiative and ended the call.
The young girl sat down on the steps by the fountain at St. Freya Academy. She hugged her knees, her thighs, wrapped in tight pants, squeezing together forcefully, rubbing against each other restlessly. The taut fabric, stretched full, seemed to be faintly suffused with a moist heat, looking exceptionally sensual.
"What am I even doing? I'm such an idiot..."
Kiana mumbled to herself, pressing hard on her lower abdomen. I should have hung up ages ago.
---o---
Rita Rossweisse.
A seductive woman who could seemingly embody the very concept of sensuality.
For the past two weeks, she had been plagued by nightmares, unable to sleep peacefully.
The transition between "Day" and "Night" had left her in a crucible of torment, trapped in the crevice between "common sense" and the "unconventional."
However, after receiving "Lord Ye Feng's" suggestion and trying to leave St. Freya Academy, she had indeed been able to get a good night's sleep recently.
Rita had never before been moved to the point of gratitude simply "for being able to sleep."
"This is all thanks to Lord Ye Feng. I still haven't properly thanked him yet."
London, England.
Today was one of the rare, fine-weather days without smog.
Rita sat at an outdoor café, her plump, succulent legs, wrapped in black pantyhose, crossed over one another.
She lifted her coffee and took a light sip, her wine-red pupils lost in thought.
However, this also meant that the mission given to Rita by the Overseer could not be carried out.
Although as Schicksal's "maid," it was her duty to handle matters in an orderly fashion, what couldn't be done, simply couldn't be done.
If she continued to stay at St. Freya Academy, Rita felt that sooner or later, she would turn into a strange person...
A kind of "strange" that the secular world could not tolerate.
She would surely be looked upon by Lady Durandal and Lady Theresa with the same gaze one would use for trash.
And besides, she couldn't let down the expectations of Lord Ye Feng, who had "helped her so much all this time."
Now, her enemy was crystal clear: [The World-Serpent, Mobius].
This was an ancient being that had existed since the Previous Era.
Its level of terror was likely equal to, if not greater than, that of a Herrscher who could bring about destruction.
Rita had reported the matter concerning Mobius to the Schicksal Overseer.
But she had made no mention of "that world."
After all, even for Rita, it was impossible to describe in a Valkyrie's mission report how she had served Lord Ye Feng, or how she had been subjected to Mobius's various... experiments.
Rita knew that her "cognition" had been altered. Every time she woke up, she couldn't help but feel ashamed.
She felt she had wronged Lord Ye Feng.
He had helped her so much, yet he was being served by an indecent maid like herself.
Lord Ye Feng had clearly said he didn't want it, yet she had forced herself...
Every time she thought of this, Rita was overcome with shame.
"Speaking of which, I don't think I've entered Lord Ye Feng's world recently... Does it really only work at St. Freya Academy?"
Just what kind of place is St. Freya Academy?
Rita wondered to herself.