Chapter 155. Kiana: You're Craving My Body?
Half a year of study, plus her already solid foundation, finally let Kiana try dubbing some roles.
Apex's production had reached the final stretch, and the Legend whose skill was sending out a drone to heal the whole squad and whose Ultimate was calling down a Care Package—the Legend named Lifeline—was reserved specifically for Kiana.
Considering her personality and sense for music, the cheerful Lifeline was the easiest and most suitable pick for Kiana.
Speaking of games, Xander Masato naturally wasn't going to do the whole agenda-pushing thing like in his past life.
Would it kill people to just make characters look good?
They finally gave us a better-looking Catalyst, and it turned out she's transgender—what a mess.
Here, while it's impossible to make every single person a pretty boy or girl, each one has their own distinct look.
He wasn't going to slap certain "very correct" labels onto these Legends.
As for the flaming that might pop up online?
Whatever.
The ones hurling insults are precisely the people who don't play the game—why care about them?
"Lifeline's got your back!"
Listening to Kiana repeat the line over twenty times in his headset, Xander frowned, looked at Kiana through the soundproof glass, and spoke into the mic:
"I've already told you, Kiana—when you say this line, you need confidence.
Do you get 'confidence'?
Confidence isn't being dopey!!"
"I—I got it.
Hold on a sec, okay?
Let me get into the mood again."
Scolded yet again, Kiana lowered her head, looking a bit dejected.
But she quickly rallied, closed her eyes, and started taking deep breaths.
Seeing this, Xander nodded in satisfaction from the other side of the glass.
At first he thought Kiana would throw a tantrum under his strict demands, but who knew she'd have this kind of grit?
He'd chewed her out all day and she hadn't even teared up.
Every time she made a mistake, the thing she said most was "I know," and the second time she always improved.
That was truly a pleasant surprise.
She had both talent and tenacity.
Looks like everyone underestimated her.
After a minute, Kiana signaled to Xander, then took a deep breath, mustered her spirit, and, with a smile at her lips, said confidently:
"Get up already—Lifeline's got your back!"
Clap clap clap!
Xander applauded, leaned into the mic, and said with a smile:
"Good.
Very good.
Exactly that feeling."
Hearing that, Kiana finally exhaled in relief.
Her whole body slackened as she drooped, muttering in a small voice:
"That line's finally done.
Dubbing is really exhausting."
"Hang in there.
Only two lines left today."
"Okay~"
Hearing that weak voice in his headset, Xander raised a brow and tempted her:
"Push a little harder.
Let's try to finish in twenty minutes.
When we get back, I'll have Seele make you a cake."
At once he saw Kiana straighten up in a flash.
She closed her eyes, raised a fist to her lips, and coughed twice:
"Ahem—well, actually, cake or no cake doesn't really matter.
I just love dubbing, that's all."
"You little rascal."
Chuckling, Xander started coaching Kiana through the last two lines.
Very soon, the final two takes were done.
Kiana stretched her increasingly shapely figure and came out of the booth with a lazy yawn.
"Good work."
Handing her a cup of warm water, Xander walked over with a smile.
"Gulp gulp~ Puh-ha~"
Downing it in one go, Kiana set the cup down and let out a long breath.
"How do you feel?"
He took the empty cup from her hand, and Kiana put one hand on her hip and gave him a big thumbs-up with the other.
"Feels great.
Even though the process is tiring, the moment you nail it is totally refreshing—so full of accomplishment!"
"Looks like this job suits you.
Come on, time to head back."
"Yay, going home to eat~"
After cheering, Kiana took two quick steps to wedge herself against Xander's side, batting strange flirtatious eyes at him while pressing to his arm.
"What is it?"
"Cake~"
"Relax, I already told Seele.
You won't be left out."
"Woo-hoo~"
He tapped her on the head, and Kiana didn't mind at all, happily pressing herself against him again.
Xander edged away a little, rubbing his forehead.
He glanced sidelong at that suddenly much more… noticeable chest.
If she kept squeezing like this, there'd be no way they could be "bros" anymore.
"Why are you dodging me?
You think I'm gross?!"
When the space at her side suddenly went empty, Kiana stumbled, regained her balance, then glared at him in anger.
"No.
We're good bros, sure—but Kiana, you need to understand there are boundaries between men and women, okay?"
Hearing that, Kiana froze, furrowed her brows, then lowered her head to take a look.
She lifted her head again, abruptly hugged her chest, backed away defensively, and cried out in alarm:
"You're craving my body?!!!"
"..."
For crying out loud—could she talk like a civilized person?
They were still outside, and she didn't notice the curious looks the employees were shooting over?
Could she give her boss a little face?
Seeing Xander go quiet, Kiana grew even more wary.
She side-stepped twice to widen the distance and said in a grave tone:
"So you really are craving my body!"
Mouth twitching, Xander strode out of the office.
If this were at home, he'd absolutely give Kiana's head a firm kiss—with his fist.
"Hey, wait for me!!"
Hearing her behind him, Xander walked even faster.
"I'm telling you—Sirin's made it super obvious she likes you.
You can't let Sirin down, okay?
I'm a beautiful girl you can't have..."
"Speaking of which, I heard from Sirin last time she's already been on seven dates.
You're almost at the 'may kiss' level.
Get your head in the game and win her over already, okay?"
"..."
All the way, until they reached the residential street, Kiana was still chattering at his side.
Seeing there was basically no one around, Xander finally couldn't take it anymore and snapped back, eye twitching:
"So what you're saying is—you have no charm?"
"Nonsense.
How could that be?
Yours truly is an extremely cute beautiful girl!"
"There's nothing wrong with my body.
Having a bit of a reaction is normal, isn't it?!"
Kiana stopped walking.
She lowered her head and thought it over, then, a few seconds later, said with dawning realization:
"You know, that kind of makes sense."
"Exactly.
So what I meant just now was..."
Seeing Kiana finally behaving, Xander prepared to give her a patient, earnest explanation.
But right then, Kiana's voice cut him off:
"So you got turned on just now?"
"?????"
Xander clutched his chest, feeling like he almost spat blood.
Could she at least remember she's a girl?
What girl talks that bluntly?!!
Impossible to talk to!
Gritting his teeth, Xander quickened his pace toward the dorm.
"Hey, wait a sec—
Did you seriously # just now!!!"
Xander didn't answer and simply broke into a run.
Kiana didn't chase him.
She stood there, staring blankly at the shrinking figure in the distance.
She lifted a hand and gently touched her cheek, muttering softly:
"Why is it suddenly so hot… seriously..."
...
After a day's work, Bronya returned home together with Kaguya.
As soon as they stepped through the door, they saw Xander slumped on the sofa, wearing the most dead-inside expression.
"What's wrong?
Run into something unlucky?
Tell me so I can get a good laugh."
Changing into slippers and taking off her jacket, the familiar homey air let Bronya lazily stretch her curvy body.
She walked to the sofa and lay right down across Xander's lap.
"Husband, do you have something on your mind?"
Kaguya came up behind him, bent down, and gently massaged his head.
"No need.
You've been busy all day too, Kaguya.
Sit down and rest a bit."
"Xander's right.
Come here—
I'll make room for you."
As she spoke, Bronya shifted her head to the side.
"T-That's not necessary..."
Glancing around at the lively living room, Kaguya mumbled softly.
Then she simply sat beside Xander and quietly took his hand.
"That's a shame."
Bronya turned over and buried her face against Xander's abdomen.
She reached out and poked that firm muscle, grumbling:
"Seele's thigh is still more comfortable.
You're too hard."
"Be glad I'm letting you use me as a pillow at all!"
Smack!
He slapped Bronya's butt, and she instantly behaved, falling silent.
"By the way, were you busy with Kiana's dubbing today?"
"Mm.
Worked on it all day, and I'd say it's done."
"Kiana finished in one day?"
Bronya's voice held surprise.
"Yeah.
And she did pretty well."
"That's honestly surprising."
"Don't underestimate her.
Kiana has way more talent and grit than we gave her credit for."
At that moment, Kaguya squeezed his hand, leaned gently against him, and asked softly:
"In that case, Husband, why were you making that face just now?"
After a moment of silence, Xander looked toward Kiana, who was some distance away happily chatting with Mei.
She seemed totally unfazed by her earlier outrageous remarks and was back to laughing without a care.
Suddenly, Xander felt a little foolish for minding what she'd said.
He sighed and rested his head on Kaguya's shoulder:
"It's nothing.
I was overthinking.
Now that I think about it, there's no real problem."
Breathing in the soft perfume at his nose, Xander slowly closed his eyes.
"That's good."
Stroking his hair gently, Kaguya cradled his upper body in her arms.
Sadly, he hadn't relaxed for long when Seele's call to dinner rang out.
"Everyone, dinner's ready~"
The delightful voice made everyone sit up on reflex.
Half a year had gone by, and Seele had cemented her status as the household's "Chief Steward."
At this point, almost no one dared disobey her.
Everyone's stomachs were in her grasp; nobody dared rebel.
As for Mei, she'd just been too busy with work these last six months to compete with Seele.
Kiana hurried over to help Seele carry plates.
Dressed like a little chef, Seele stepped out of the kitchen, surveyed the living room, and shouted from afar to Xander:
"Big bro, Griseo's still upstairs—go call her down~"
"You got it~
Bronya, Kaguya, you two go ahead.
I'll head upstairs."
Giving Seele an OK gesture, he turned and walked up to the second floor.
Griseo's room was at the far end of the second-floor hallway.
Passing door after door, Xander finally stopped before a door with a cute little wooden plaque.
The plaque had a chibi blue-haired girl drawn on it, with the words "Griseo's Home."
He didn't barge in.
Xander raised his hand and knocked lightly, then called out:
"Griseo, time to come down for dinner~"
Thud!!!
Suddenly, Xander heard something heavy hit the floor inside, along with Griseo's cry of pain.
He frowned and immediately pushed the door open.
After half a year, Griseo had painted her room into something like a fairy-tale house.
All sorts of adorable plushies sat in different places—some were ones Xander had won for her at the amusement park; others were gifts from the older girls at home.
Everyone doted on the adorable little Griseo.
Soon, he noticed the toppled chair on the floor, and, wearing a puffy long dress, Griseo sat on the floor rubbing her butt, her little face all scrunched up.
Her smooth little legs extended from under her skirt, her tender, pale feet resting on the floor.
Her toes, delicate and slightly curled, and the soft soles of her feet creased with shallow folds, making one inexplicably want to...
Ahem—off topic.
Xander shook off the stray thoughts and hurried over.
Griseo, having heard the door open, looked up and, seeing her Sir Knight, was so startled she forgot the pain in her butt.
She shot to her feet and used her body to block the computer screen.
"Griseo, are you okay?"
"I—I'm fine.
Sir Knight, why did you come in all of a sudden?"
Her gaze darted away, and her face flushed red.
"I heard you fall, so I couldn't help coming in.
I'm just glad you're okay."
"Mm.
Th-Then, Sir Knight, please go on ahead.
I'll come down to eat right away."
"Were you drawing something?"
Seeing she was fine, Xander let out a breath.
But her posture made him curious.
Was there something on that covered screen she couldn't let him see?
"N-No, it's nothing.
J-Just… just… j-just some after-class practice..."
No sooner had she said that than a voice—also rather childish—came from the speaker by the computer.
"Wow, Griseo, you actually got a photo of the boss's bare upper body!
Guh-heh-heh—
I've wanted to look at that for so long.
I wanna draw it right now~"
"Griseo?
Griseo, are you there?"
Very quickly, Xander recognized it as Griseo's gal pal, Sagiri.
Griseo went rigid.
She'd turned off her mic but forgot to mute her speakers.
As Griseo panicked, Sir Knight suddenly stepped in front of her, and, using his height, looked over her head at the monitor.
"D-Don't—don't look!!!!"
Her mortified cry rang out as Xander's eyes froze on the screen.
He saw a beautiful man with his upper body bare.
The art style was a bit idealized, but his own features could be made out.
And this beautiful man was doing a wall-pin on a small, shy-faced girl who looked like Sagiri.
In a speech bubble beside the characters, an oily line had been written.
Instinctively, Xander read it aloud:
"Woman, you've caught my attention..."
"Don't look—don't look anymore!!!!"
In an instant, Griseo's voice—so mortified she was on the verge of collapse—echoed through the entire villa.
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