"Lu Chen, wake up. It's time to get up for class," Hermione's gentle voice sounded in his ear, rousing Lu Chen from his sleep.
"Mhm, I know," Lu Chen replied. He had a beautiful, innocent dream.
In the dream, he entered a candy castle where the air was filled with a sweet fragrance. He battled marshmallow warriors, whose soft bodies could neutralize all his attacks. Fortunately, he eventually discovered their weakness and ate them as food.
?
Why would I have a dream like that? Lu Chen sensed something was wrong and immediately woke up. Sure enough, one of his hands was wrapped around Taihou's slender waist, and the other was tucked under her shirt.
Lu Chen quickly withdrew both hands. Damn it. Why didn't I know my sleeping posture was so bad? Oh, he had always slept alone before. Never mind.
More importantly, had Taihou not noticed him touching her? Lu Chen looked at Taihou's lovely face and met a pair of wine-red eyes.
"Did you sleep well? You can touch Taihou more, you know~" Taihou's face was beaming with happiness.
"Cough, I didn't know I was restless in my sleep. I apologize," Lu Chen said awkwardly, having been caught taking advantage of her. "When did you wake up?"
"Taihou woke up the instant you touched me," Taihou smiled casually. "Taihou belongs to you, so it doesn't matter how you use me. More importantly, I don't want to hear you say the word 'apologize' again. It makes Taihou angry!"
"...Alright." Lu Chen rolled off the bed, put on his shoes, and shook his head. "Let's go. We have class now."
His sleep quality this time was excellent. By all accounts, he should have slept like a log. So why was he so restless?
Lu Chen couldn't figure it out, because he thought of Taihou as too simple. The instigator of all this was, of course, Taihou herself. Reality wasn't a manga; there weren't so many coincidences for him to enjoy benefits. It was more a consequence of premeditated actions.
Sleeping in this dream realm was essentially entering a deeper state of rest. His body wouldn't react, but that didn't mean Taihou couldn't move him. Posing him and taking a couple of photos was definitely possible.
The determined Taihou hadn't slept at all during the entire lunch break. Since it was a virtual space, engaging in activities here was a form of rest itself. It was better to keep an eye on the Commander's every move. Affection had to be nurtured from the details.
See? They had already shared one intimate contact. Soon, the Commander would recognize Taihou's status was no lower than that of Noshiro, who had gotten there first. The content after that would be less suitable for young audiences.
"Coming~" Taihou put on her loafers, following closely behind Lu Chen.
Lu Chen said to Hermione, "Nurse Hermione, thank you for accommodating us this afternoon."
"Not at all. If anything, it made me feel useful. Come whenever you want to rest, but no pretending to be sick and no skipping class. Good students shouldn't do that," Hermione smiled gently. To keep her quiet, Taihou had shared a few photos of the Commander's sleeping face.
Hermione had thought that, given Taihou's personality, she would try everything to monopolize the Commander. Her act of sharing surprised Hermione. It seemed Taihou was making a lot of changes to be more likable to the Commander.
After saying goodbye to the gentle nurse Hermione, Lu Chen took Taihou back to the second-floor classroom, parted ways with her in front of her own classroom, and returned to his.
"Are you really not going to give me a farewell kiss?" Taihou asked reluctantly, but Lu Chen's answer was naturally negative. He should give Noshiro, the only one who had declared her claim, the respect she deserved.
Sitting back down in his seat and looking at Noshiro's profile, Lu Chen felt a long-lost sense of tranquility. She and Taihou were like two completely opposite girls: one full of possessiveness, the other treating it like air; one burning with enthusiasm, the other calm and gentle.
Could it be some kind of mystical split-soul setting? Lu Chen couldn't help but look down. It seemed he was overthinking it. If their personalities were complementary, Noshiro's figure would have to be either completely flat or concave. Based on his measurements, the girl was quite well-endowed.
Although Noshiro only faced Lu Chen in profile, she was constantly aware of his every move. Sensing his gaze growing strange, she turned her head and asked, "What is it? Are you thinking about something odd?"
"Nothing much. I just can't quite handle Taihou's enthusiasm," Lu Chen said.
As if she had experienced it herself, Noshiro chuckled. "That's a happy problem that belongs only to you."
"Let's not talk about that. What class do we have this afternoon?" Lu Chen asked.
"It's Physical Education."
"P.E.?" Lu Chen thought for a moment and asked, "Just to be safe, I'll ask: Is the P.E. class you're talking about the same one I'm imagining? The kind where everyone gathers, runs two laps, is dismissed, and then has free activity?"
Noshiro asked in surprise, "What world is your P.E. class from? Of course not."
"I didn't think so." Lu Chen looked out the window. Even though he wasn't in the protagonist's seat, the second-to-last by the window, he could clearly see the various sports fields that took up far more space than the academic building. If it were just for running laps, it would be a huge waste.
"Our P.E. class involves choosing a sport you like and practicing—or playing—on the relevant field. It's entirely self-directed."
"That sounds like the style of this academy. So, what did you choose?" Lu Chen asked.
Noshiro paused, looked down so Lu Chen couldn't clearly see her face, and said in a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz, "Beach volleyball."
?
"Did I hear that right? Beach volleyball? Is there an ocean here?" Lu Chen asked in surprise. Given Noshiro's demeanor, he had thought she would choose something like Kendo.
In various fictional works, black-haired Japanese JK girls with a strong aura seemed to be tied to the katana. In an academy setting, they would be the Kendo club's ace. In a superhuman battle setting, they would be the master swordsman girl with a katana. In short, he had never heard of anyone having beach volleyball as their ace skill.
Surely not?
Noshiro said with shame and annoyance, "My plan was to join the Kendo club, but my sisters both advised me that the Kendo club was too unoriginal and that I should try a different path. I wish I had stuck to my own idea."
As a Ship Girl who used a katana as her rigging weapon, Noshiro's swordsmanship was naturally superb, but other than the katana, she couldn't find another sport she was familiar with, except for beach volleyball.
While the katana was mainly used by a large number of Japanese people, beach volleyball was played by virtually everyone at the base. After all, the base was on a secluded island surrounded by the sea, and Ship Girls naturally loved the ocean. Everyone often played freely on the beach in their swimsuits, and beach volleyball was the most common activity.