After paying a heavy price, Sirin finally got her wish and managed to drag Mo Wang out of the dorm.
Unlike Kiana, who usually wore her hair in two braids that gave her a slight country-girl vibe, Sirin was all about being trendy. She'd let the white hair fall straight down her back, and her entire style had undergone a massive transformation.
If she just changed her eye color, she'd practically look like the Void Drifter.
"You seem... a little different today," Mo Wang said, squinting at the dazzling 'Kiana'. He almost didn't recognize her.
"Heh, I just felt like a change of style," Sirin replied. "What do you think? Are you mesmerized?"
She watched Mo Wang stare at her intently, a proud smirk gracing her lips.
Mo Wang fell silent.
He had to admit, while he found Kiana-cat's braided look incredibly cute, he definitely had a preference for her with long, straight white hair. He'd been completely captivated when the Void Drifter battlesuit first made its debut.
"What the—! He's mesmerized that easily? That idiot!"
Inside her mental space, Kiana's consciousness fumed as she watched Mo Wang gawk at her current appearance. It's just a change of clothes and a new hairstyle! Is it that big a deal? Does that mean my usual style isn't good enough?!
"Heh heh, it just proves my sense of style is superior," Sirin taunted Kiana internally. "It's a wonder he could even stand those plain clothes you usually wear. See, Kiana-chan? Mo Wang likes me more than you."
"Damn it! It's just a hairstyle! I can do that too!" Kiana pouted, glaring at the face that was identical to her own. She had never felt so annoyed.
"Hey! What are you spacing out for?" Mo Wang said, tapping Sirin on the head. "And why's your nose so high in the air?"
Sirin rubbed her forehead and huffed. "Why'd you hit me? You were the one staring so hard..." Her lips curled into a smug smile. "Looks like you've got good taste~"
Mo Wang just looked confused. "Huh? I was just thinking..."
He looked directly into Sirin's eyes, his tone completely serious. "As long as it's you, you look beautiful no matter what."
The air went still.
Sirin froze on the spot, her golden pupils widening slightly. She opened her mouth to say something, but an uncontrollable heat rushed to her cheeks. The blush spread from the tips of her ears down to her neck, dyeing her skin a delicate shade of pink.
"Wh-What are you saying all of a sudden..." she stammered, frantically turning away and fidgeting with the hem of her skirt, all her earlier arrogance gone.
In the mental space, Kiana covered her own blushing face. "That idiot..." she mumbled, her heart pounding like a drum. He's complimenting that annoying girl, so why am I so happy?!
"Hey! What are you blushing for?!" Kiana suddenly realized, shouting at Sirin's consciousness. "He was complimenting me! My body!"
For once, Sirin didn't argue back. She just huffed, "Hmph... he's looking at me right now." But her voice lacked its usual confidence, tinged with a hint of flustered annoyance.
Mo Wang tilted his head, watching the suddenly quiet "Kiana." "What's wrong? Did I say something I shouldn't have?"
"N-Nothing!" Sirin spun around, her voice an octave higher. "Let's go, let's go! It'll be dark soon if we keep dawdling!"
Neither Kiana in her mental space nor Sirin standing before him had expected Mo Wang's words to be so devastatingly effective.
Perhaps Mo Wang was a complete amateur when it came to romance, but in certain situations, sincerity was the ultimate killer move.
"What's with her? Why'd she just run off like that?" Mo Wang wondered, watching her retreating back. For a moment there, Kiana had reminded him of Izumi. [T/N: Izumi is the male protagonist from "Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie," who is famously unlucky but very earnest, often causing the cool Shikimori to become flustered.]
Is my girlfriend turning into Izumi? That's terrifying.
...
Sirin pushed open the door to the outside, and a blast of hot air hit her full in the face.
"Damn it! Why is it so hot today?!"
Beads of sweat had already formed on her skin before she'd even taken three steps into the park. She was starting to regret this entire scheme. No wonder Mo Wang had been so reluctant to go on a date when he got back. So this was why.
With that thought, Sirin immediately considered retreating back to the air-conditioned dorm.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't our dear Herrscher Queen," Kiana's voice mocked her from inside her head. "Giving up on your grand plan just because of a little heat? I thought you were the mighty Herrscher of the Void."
Kiana had been waiting for this moment. The boomerang of karma had finally come back around.
"Wh-! Heh, don't underestimate me! I am the mighty Herrscher of the Void! As if a little heat could possibly—"
Sirin tried to stand on her Herrscher pride, but ideals are one thing, and reality is another. Kiana's body was, for all intents and purposes, human. No matter how much pride Sirin had, the sun still made her sweat.
"Ha! The mighty Herrscher of the Void is sweating from the sun?" Kiana laughed herself silly in the mental space. "Need me to teach you how to use a parasol? Oh wait, you probably think that's beneath you."
"Shut up!" Sirin roared back mentally. "If I wasn't in this useless, fragile body of yours..."
Before she could finish her tirade, a cool hand enclosed hers. The chill spread through her skin like a balm, instantly chasing away the oppressive heat.
"What are you spacing out for? You're the one who wanted to come out," Mo Wang said, tilting his head and giving their joined hands a little shake. "Let's go."
Sirin was stunned. She looked down at their linked hands, then back up at him. "Wait, why is your hand so cold? What did you do?"
Mo Wang gave her a mysterious wink and leaned in close. His warm breath tickled her ear, and she instinctively flinched.
"The secret is..." he whispered, "...I'm using the Core of the Herrscher of Ice."
"Oh, so it's the Herrscher of Ice's Core. No wonder it's so cool," Sirin nodded, then froze. She stared at Mo Wang in disbelief. "Wait! The Herrscher of Ice... you mean the one I'm thinking of?"
"Who else? Cocolia, of course."
"H-How do you have that?!" Sirin was utterly confused.
"I took it after I beat her, obviously. I've been using it for myself." Mo Wang admitted it so calmly, as if he were talking about borrowing a library book.
"It's... on you?"
Sirin was starting to lose it. She had planned to find the core to supplement her own power but couldn't find a trace of it anywhere in St. Freya. Theresa had even said she'd never recovered it. She had assumed it was destroyed in the fight.
And now he was telling her it had been in his pocket this whole time, being used as a personal cooling unit.
"Honestly, this thing is a lifesaver in the summer," Mo Wang confided. "Don't tell anyone, but our fridge and air conditioner run on this."
Both Kiana and Sirin were rendered speechless. The Core of a Herrscher! And he was using it as a portable AC and a power source for his home appliances?!
"Don't get mad, don't get mad. He's always like this," Sirin muttered to herself, forcing down the urge to scream. "Don't get angry at a monster. You can't beat him."
She walked alongside him, trying to decide what was more infuriating: the fact that she'd been in his house for nearly two months without noticing the core, or... everything else.
"You know, this core really is nice and cool," she had to admit. It was actually pleasant to be out in the sun now. She seemed to have completely forgotten that Mo Wang was still holding her hand.
It was official. Sirin was heading down the path of Izumi, never to return.
after take a train, they arrived at the Sapphire city shopping district. They take this route as Mo Wang seen want take a look if he found something interesting or discount. (Mo Wang: Living with greedy bible creatures isn't easy!)
Even in the sweltering heat, the street was packed with people.
"Are these humans insane...?" Sirin muttered, unable to comprehend why anyone would be out in this weather.
Suddenly, Mo Wang stopped dead in his tracks, as if petrified.
"What's wrong?" Sirin asked, turning to see him staring, transfixed, at the display window of a nearby game store.
"I can't believe I found it here!"
His eyes lit up with an otherworldly glow. Before Sirin could react, he dashed into the shop.
"What... was that about?"
Three minutes later, Mo Wang emerged with a look of pure satisfaction on his face.
"Kiana! Look! Look what I found!" he exclaimed, holding up his prize like a child with a new toy.
"What is it?" Sirin asked, peering at the object in his hand.
"This is the Homu Grand Melee Collector's Edition! There are less than a hundred of these in the entire world! I can't believe I found such a sacred relic in this little shop! This is my lucky day!" He held the game aloft as if it were a holy artifact.
"Huh? What the heck?"
As if Mo Wang's sudden mania wasn't enough, Kiana started freaking out in her head too.
"The Homu Grand Melee Collector's Edition?! Even Auntie Theresa and Bronya don't have that sacred relic! Damn you, Herrscher! Let me out! I want to see it too!"
"Have they all lost their minds?" Sirin wondered, completely bewildered. All she knew was that Mo Wang and Kiana both seemed to really, really want this thing.
"So, how much did you pay for it?" she asked.
"Well, you can't put a price on a divine treasure like this," Mo Wang said, his eyes darting away.
"How much?" Sirin repeated, a bad feeling creeping over her.
"N-Not much. Just... a month's salary."
Sirin fell silent. She finally understood why Mo Wang was always broke despite his decent salary. He'd spent an entire month's pay on... this. And the Kiana in her head still seemed to think it was a bargain.
"Are these people completely insane?" she muttered.
"Excuse me, is that the Homu Grand Melee Collector's Edition?" a familiar voice asked from beside them.
A mysterious woman wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a face mask had sidled up to them.
"I'm sorry, but would you be willing to sell that to me? I'll pay double."
"You've got to be kidding me! Someone else actually wants to buy it?!" Sirin thought, not knowing how to react. But as she looked closer, the woman seemed... familiar.
After a moment of thought, Sirin slowly uttered the mysterious woman's name. "Bronya?"
At this crucial moment, the mysterious girl Bronya had inserted herself between the couple, Mo Wang and Kiana.
Next time! The brutal shuraba between my girlfriend and her best friend begins!