The reporters exchanged puzzled glances, unable to comprehend what their colleague was suddenly trying to pull.
What was a Blazer?
The stage was completely isolated—not only was prana flow undetectable, but even sound couldn't penetrate it. Without any fluctuations, how could you possibly tell?
Stella stared at the reporter, noticing his bizarre expression and the unnatural contortion of his features. Alarm bells rang in her mind.
"Just who are you?!"
Her face filled with wariness as she sharply demanded an answer from the reporter.
The moment these words left her mouth, Roy, who was hiding behind Okita, inwardly groaned.
Girl, by saying that, you've basically admitted you're a Blazer, haven't you?
Sure enough, seeing her reaction—not denying but instead becoming so defensive, as if a major secret had been exposed—the reporters instantly grew excited, like sharks that had caught the scent of blood.
"So, Miss Stella, you're not denying that you're a witch?"
"Miss Stella, are you truly not a witch? Then how did you control those flames?"
"Miss Stella, what exactly is a Blazer? Is that the secret behind your fire manipulation?"
The reporters swarmed forward, eagerly thrusting their microphones toward Stella's face as if determined to uncover all her secrets.
Stella was momentarily stunned by the sudden frenzy of the reporters, taking a while to regain her composure.
She should have played dumb from the start, dodged the reporter's question, and then found an opportunity to interrogate him later! Now she'd fallen right into the trap!
At this realization, she couldn't help but silently curse her own underdeveloped brain.
"Tch!"
Okita sighed.
Girl, you're really hopeless. What would you do without me?
Okita stepped forward, her sword ringing as she unsheathed it, flashing through the air in a swift arc.
The blade left its scabbard, its gleam flickering momentarily.
Every reporter present instantly fell silent.
Their faces filled with panic as they stared at Okita, now holding her drawn sword, terrified she might impulsively start cutting them down.
"It's true there was no prana flow when we acted—that's because I'm a witch capable of concealing prana fluctuations. Are you satisfied with that answer?"
Seeing the crowd as quiet as a litter of newborn kittens, Okita smugly sheathed her sword.
"As for what a Blazer is, you should ask this reporter. He was the one who brought it up—he ought to know better than anyone. Let's go."
She motioned to Stella before striding off without a backwards glance toward the end of the passageway.
Stella exhaled heavily in relief and quickly followed.
Meanwhile, the reporters hesitated, exchanging glances, but none dared to chase after Okita Souji. Instead, they redirected their cameras and microphones toward the reporter who had first posed the question, aggressively shoving their mics toward his mouth.
"Wait, don't ask me! I really don't know!"
"That wasn't me speaking earlier—I don't know why I suddenly said those things. It was like my body moved on its own..."
The reporter floundered, bewildered as he fended off his peers, though inwardly, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of relief.
The questions he had asked earlier weren't actually his own. From midway through, his body had been beyond his control—as if manipulated by someone not present—posing strange queries he himself didn't understand, plunging him into uncontrollable panic.
Thank goodness!
He'd regained control of his body midway through, and upon reflection, it was precisely before Okita began speaking...
"Souji, thank you so much for earlier!"
Stella quickly caught up to Okita's stride, expressing her heartfelt gratitude with visible relief.
Though it was just one interview unlikely to fully expose her secrets, given her special circumstances, she absolutely didn't want her secrets revealed before finding hope of returning home. Every potential leak had to be nipped in the bud!
"Don't casually reveal your emotions when things happen. It only gives others leverage over you."
Okita seemed unconcerned but offered this well-meaning advice nonetheless.
"Yes, I've learned my lesson."
Stella nodded obediently, determined to keep this lesson close to heart.
Simultaneously, she gazed at Okita with a mix of admiration and curiosity.
"What are you looking at?"
"Oh, I was just thinking... You appear to be around fifteen, even younger than me, yet you're so much more composed and quick-witted?"
"Hmph, you said it yourself—I appear to be."
"Huh?"
"Nothing. Experience teaches wisdom."
Okita shook her head, unfazed by Stella's inquisitive stare.
Trailing behind Okita, Stella reached out hesitantly, then withdrew her hand with a conflicted expression, as if wrestling with some troublesome thought.
While she hesitated, Okita had already walked ahead, forcing Stella to scurry after her like a chick following its mother.
In the fourth match, Julis and Kirin teamed up to effortlessly defeat their opponents, advancing to the semifinals of this year's Festa.
"Seems our next opponents will be them—Seidoukan's #1 and #5. They're formidable powerhouses!"
On their way back to Queenvail, Stella pulled up a space window to rewatch the fourth match, the screen finally freezing on close-ups of the rose-haired princess and the silver-haired l0l!.
"Don't tell me you lack confidence?"
Sylvia sat across from her in the student council president's extended limousine, teasing the solemn-faced Stella.
"Just charge straight through like you always do!"
"What kind of impression do I give you all?"
"Hmm... not particularly shrewd."
Sylvia pondered briefly before smiling and raising a finger.
"High emotional intelligence."
Okita gave Sylvia a thumbs-up.
"My impression is simpler: brute."
"Souji, sometimes tact is a virtue, you know."
Sylvia lectured Okita with motherly earnestness.
"Next time, definitely."
Though Okita wore her usual poker face, Sylvia had long learned to distinguish between her sincere and dismissive tones.
"This 'next time for sure' is definitely just brushing her off."
Looking at Okita like this, Sylvia found it hard to imagine her being lovestruck.
Could she have misunderstood the situation after all?
But Sylvia couldn't completely dismiss the possibility either. She'd already learned from Stella about the circumstances that led to their hasty departure from the preparation room to the redevelopment zone that day. Souji had gone to the redevelopment zone most likely to help that guy named Roy. It was clear that Okita had an unusual relationship with Roy—or at the very least, her feelings toward him were anything but ordinary.
"I really need to keep probing this matter!"
The thought of Roy spending entire days in the pleasure district gave Sylvia another headache.
While she didn't think Roy was that kind of person, Sylvia didn't dare jump to conclusions before uncovering the truth. She certainly couldn't casually spread this information around, especially when it might concern her best friend's future happiness!
She'd probably need to make more frequent visits to the redevelopment zone in the coming days.
***
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