"Himeko, I think I gambled away all my money."
Not long after leaving the dormitory, Theresa's voice was filled with melancholy and sorrow.
"Mhm, you lost it all."
Murata Himeko looked at Theresa with deep pity in her eyes.
Just now, Theresa had gone to the Vice-Commander to demand her salary, only to be harshly criticized.
Arriving late, leaving early, reading manga during work hours, dumping work on a still-immature student (referring to Fu Hua, who was the same age as Ancestor Kevin, over fifty-five thousand years old)...
Theresa had violated too many disciplinary rules. The fact that she was still getting twenty percent of her original salary was already a sign of him going easy on her.
However, Li Zihan didn't seem to be completely unreasonable. He proposed a card game: if Theresa could beat him, he wouldn't mind sharing a bit of his own salary with her.
Theresa was grateful for his gesture. She promptly took out a deck of cards and pulled him, herself, and Bronya—who was helping Li Zihan with his affairs—into a game of bridge.
And then...
And then there was no "and then."
A crushing defeat.
I made my move, got insta-killed, what more is there to say?
If it weren't for Li Zihan's good temper in not collecting the betting money, Theresa would probably have to eat dirt for the rest of the month.
"That Li guy is surprisingly a good person."
Murata Himeko, who had also lost but wasn't charged any money either, remarked with emotion as she patted the dejected shorty's head.
"I know."
Theresa, having failed in her salary demand, sounded utterly despondent, her exquisite little face completely fallen.
It looked like she wouldn't be able to buy any limited-edition HOMU dolls and merchandise this month.
For a veteran HOMU enthusiast like Theresa, this was undoubtedly a very depressing matter.
But not long after, her expression perked up.
"What's wrong?"
Murata Himeko was slightly perplexed, looking at the shorty who should have been gloomy and listless, but was now inexplicably excited.
"Didn't you notice?"
Theresa recalled a certain corner of the living room where they had played cards. An oil painting stood there, its upper half blocked by a canvas. Her expression grew more and more excited.
The painting was of a girl, her head and shoulders obscured by the canvas.
But one could see that the girl in the painting was wearing a St. Freya Academy uniform. Her figure was slender but not thin, and her chest was very full.
That must be an oil painting of the girl that Li guy likes.
Feeling as if she had just stumbled upon some incredible gossip, the great-aunt-like light of gossip lit up in Theresa's eyes.
Prompted by Theresa, Murata Himeko also remembered the half-visible oil painting placed in the corner.
That Li guy had just finished moving in and he already started painting a portrait of a girl?
So, who is that girl?
At this thought, a light ignited in Murata Himeko's eyes as well.
Murata Himeko was a professionally trained person. She normally wouldn't suddenly become interested in gossip.
Unless she couldn't help it.
Now, a piece of gossip related to Li Zihan—a man of high status with direct connections to figures like the Schicksal Overseer and the Anti-Entropy Sovereign, and who also shouldered the mission of establishing a super-organization called Chaldeas—had been leaked.
Gossip about such a major figure was not easy to come by.
Murata Himeko's brain began to spin at high speed, recalling the bust measurements of her students and comparing them one by one with the figure in the oil painting, searching for the truth.
Clearly, faced with such juicy gossip, she was starting to lose control.
"It's probably Mei."
Theresa pursed her lips, her eyes twinkling with a brilliant light.
The girl in the painting had a great figure. Good figure, and a close relationship with Li Zihan...
Barring any surprises, it had to be Raiden Mei, who had something of an engagement with Li Zihan.
"Not necessarily."
Murata Himeko shook her head seriously, offering her own opinion.
Her point of focus was a little different from Theresa's. Because Theresa herself was a flatboard, she had always been concerned with the fat on her chest, so she was searching for the person based on bust size.
Murata Himeko had a great figure herself and wasn't too concerned about oppai.
Her attention was on the waist of the girl in the painting.
For aesthetic reasons, the St. Freya Academy uniform was a slim-fit design. With careful observation, one could easily calculate the waist measurement.
The waist of the girl in the painting was extremely slender, so much so that even Murata Himeko, a woman herself, was stunned by it.
And in Murata Himeko's impression, the student with the characteristic of a slender waist was not Raiden Mei.
"Perhaps it's Kiana."
Murata Himeko, vaguely remembering that Kiana's relationship with Li Zihan was also very close, stated her speculation.
"Aaaahhhh, who is it?!"
Theresa, who had completely forgotten that her salary was insufficient, had a face full of curiosity (gossip).
I really want to know who it is!
Should I sneak back in and lift the canvas?
Theresa looked back at the dormitory door, which had already been closed, and considered it very seriously.
Maybe doing so would be very rude...
But she still really wanted to see the truth!
While she was struggling, a hand rested on her shoulder.
It was Murata Himeko's hand.
"Let's go."
Murata Himeko, who had no missions recently, had been relieved of her captaincy, and had plenty of time to explore gossip, said.
"Go back now?"
Theresa looked back at the dormitory, which held an irresistible attraction for her gossip-hungry heart, a little reluctant to leave.
"Mhm."
"Perhaps we should talk to Mei and Kiana about this," said Murata Himeko, who was basically certain that the person in the painting was either Mei or Kiana.
"Why?"
Theresa, who just wanted to satisfy her own curiosity, was a bit baffled by Murata Himeko's words.
"Don't you think the relationship between that Li guy, Kiana, and Mei is too messy?"
Murata Himeko, who cared deeply for Mei and viewed Kiana as a niece, sighed and said.
Theresa fell silent.
Kiana went on all day about how she liked Mei and that she and "Ah Li" were just bros, but her reaction after seeing Li Zihan was definitely not right.
Raiden Mei had basically adapted to the role of a fiancée and saw Kiana as her best friend, but the relationship between them was also quite subtle.
As for Li Zihan himself, there was no need to even mention him. He acted like a Sea King all day, flirting around, yet he was secretly painting an oil portrait of one girl...
"Indecisiveness breeds chaos."
Feeling that the relationship between the three of them was as messy as a ball of yarn that had been mauled by a cat, Murata Himeko's voice was very steady.
She felt that now seemed to be a good opportunity to make these people reveal their true feelings.
"This matter could be the catalyst to straighten out the relationship between the three of them."