While Wendy was indulging in self-power generation, in another room, Fuli was facing his messaging app, sincerely apologizing to his internet friend cairahcS (Ana Schariac).
He had promised to update the novel entrusted to him by his friend until it was finished, but as a result of taking the HTR-type modification agent, he had ghosted for four days straight.
Although in the eyes of this dead pigeon, ghosting wasn't a big deal, he still had to make a stance first.
Stopping updates without even greeting the readers made the current comment section unbearable to look at.
Faced with Fufu-sensei's "Hontouni sumimasen!", Ana, far away at Schicksal HQ, seemed flustered, hurriedly expressing understanding and that he didn't need to be like this.
[It's okay! Really!]
The chestnut-haired girl's response popped up on the chat app, carrying a trace of soothing urgency:
[I've successfully handled the matters at hand, so I'll have free time to update it myself from now on!]
The matter Ana mentioned was the retirement security plan concerning the future lives of many Valkyries, as mentioned before.
As the absolute main group constituting Schicksal's armed forces, with St. Freya's growing medical technology significantly increasing the average age of Valkyries, perfecting the relevant security system had long been what everyone expected.
With Otto's tacit approval and the full support of Immortal Squad Captain Elsa Lopez and her best friend Mushoku Kika, the plan had overcome the major difficulties in just two short months.
Although there were still a few minor clauses involving word-picking and hair-splitting that needed discussion, the overall framework was set.
For Ana, who was responsible for this matter, the heavy stone hanging over her heart was temporarily put down, and naturally, she had time again.
[Oh, that's good then.]
Fuli breathed a sigh of relief, typing a reply on the virtual keyboard. After forwarding a few meme pictures to the group chat, he put down his phone, preparing to end the communication between them.
Buzz—
The phone suddenly vibrated.
The screen still displayed the familiar ID from just now.
But this time, what cairahcS sent wasn't text, but a surprisingly long voice message.
In all their years of interaction, this was a first.
Some faint premonition made Fuli's heart pause slightly. With a trace of imperceptible excitement, he tapped on that voice message.
From the speaker flowed a young girl's voice, clearly nervous and thus slightly distorted with shyness:
"Um, F-Fufu-sensei, will you be attending the Luminary Wardance Ceremony held by the Luofu Bubble Universe...?"
Perhaps because it was her first time sending a voice message, Ana's originally clear and gentle voice sounded a bit tight and distorted.
Plus, their last face-to-face interaction was three or four months ago, so Fuli didn't connect this slightly trembling voice with the future Herrscher of Ice in his memory.
"Can't go, wah."
He let out a long, depressed sigh, briefly explaining his situation with a gloomy tone.
On the Schicksal floating island on the other side of the ocean, inside a warm Nordic-style bedroom, Ana, wearing a soft light-colored slip nightdress, was lying on a large bed piled with several plush pillows.
Her chestnut hair was spread messily on the pillow, the screen's dim light reflecting her profile filled with anticipation.
The moment the voice message was sent, the girl held her breath, feeling her cheeks inexplicably hot.
She had hesitated and practiced that voice message repeatedly for over a dozen times before gathering the courage to send it because she had decided to officially meet her admired Fufu-sensei offline at the Luminary Wardance Ceremony!
For this possible meeting, she had even troubled her friend Asta during breaks from handling the retirement security plan to help pick out several outfits that could represent her feelings.
But the result was Fuli's depressed reply. Her shoulders, originally tense with anticipation, slumped immediately.
Ana was kind and considerate after all. After a brief disappointment, she immediately sensed the helplessness and gloom in Fufu-sensei's words.
Without a hint of complaint, her fingers flew quickly, replying with a new message carrying soothing power:
[It's okay, Fufu-sensei! Your safety is most important!]
[There will be plenty of chances to meet! Whenever it's convenient for you!]
[Besides, the ceremony will definitely be live-streamed entirely! We can, uh, video call then? Watch it together?]
Attached after the text was a clumsy but goodwill-filled bear hug comfort sticker, instantly striking the heart on the other end of the screen.
Angel!
It's an angel!
Fuli's tears flowed like a waterfall.
In his excitement, he immediately switched to voice message: "I really can't go to Shenzhou recently. How about we meet somewhere else when you're free another day? I'm super free lately! I've even started chumming in the Pacific Ocean!"
Chumming?
Ana tilted her head in confusion, her petite chin resting on her elbow, her fair, smooth calves swinging gently.
She tapped lightly, bringing up the browser, and entered this unfamiliar term into the search engine.
[Chumming (fishing term): refers to the action of throwing bait without hooks into a fishing spot to improve fishing efficiency by attracting fish.]
"Oh, so it's baiting in advance to attract fish schools to gather."
The girl understood. The next second, this realization turned into amusement.
The Pacific Ocean? That's the world's largest ocean with an average depth of nearly four thousand meters!
Chumming in such a place? This isn't fishing; this is clearly giving welfare to the fish, shrimp, crabs, and shellfish down there!
Could it be that because Fufu-sensei is called Fuli (Welfare), he wants to give welfare to the family?
"Pfft!"
The nonsensical association made Ana laugh out loud like a silver bell. Her moist pink eyes looked at the twinkling star wall lamp on the ceiling with a smile, her mind involuntarily sketching the scene:
On the vast, deep blue sea surface, a lonely small boat carried a confident-looking big boy.
Every now and then, he would heroically dump a huge amount of bait into the sea, cast his line full of anticipation, and then wait eagerly until the sun went down, only to return with an empty bucket, head hanging in dejection.
The corners of Ana's mouth couldn't help curving into a sweet arc.
Really, how can there be such a cute person, my Fufu-sensei~
---||---
Ending the call with cairahcS, Fuli scratched his head slightly awkwardly, feeling like he hadn't had enough.
Soft-girl type beautiful girls were rare around him, and the emotional value she provided was simply too sufficient.
Placing his phone on the nightstand, he removed the necklace embedded with the Gem of Corruption from his neck and carefully placed it in the center of the soft bed.
"Awake yet?"
Sitting cross-legged, a pair of scarlet eyes locked tightly onto the deep surface of the gem, as if trying to pierce it with his gaze.
Fuli had also seen the note for Star Saint's Path. That sentence "Idiot Master! This is the true use of Jizo Mitama!" looked however he read it like Rin, the will of the Divine Key, despising him, the wielder, for not understanding how to use Jizo Mitama.
It had been almost half a year since the end of the Third Eruption. Even if she, along with Yae Sakura's body, had been blown to smithereens by his Sun Apollo, she should have recovered mostly by now after such a long time, right?
Thinking this, he began a long wait.
One hour...
Two hours...
Until the starlight outside the window began to tilt, until Fuli couldn't help opening his mouth for a big yawn, the gem, black as obsidian, remained silent as an abyss, showing no sign of response.
"Tsk! Haki-Divine Key needs correction."
The boy was a bit annoyed and started tapping and knocking on Jizo Mitama.
He didn't dare go too far, after all, he had accidentally shattered the previous Key of Domination.
Although it was reborn as the Terminal Aide System, who knew if the Key of Corruption had such a function?
[How about this.]
Dr. Mei's figure appeared on the edge of the bed, a pair of plump black-stockinged thighs particularly eye-catching: [Since the Gem of Corruption isn't large, the Host can completely stuff it into the inguinal groove and walk around rubbing it. Using this method, the will within the Divine Key will definitely appear.]
[Hiss!]
Prometheus, appearing simultaneously, sucked in a breath of cold air, cursing this person's viciousness internally.
Inguinal groove, the groove-like area connecting the lower abdomen and the root of the thigh. The skin fold area extending downward from both sides of the testicles and pubic region toward the inner thigh.
In other words, the crotch groove.
"No way, no way!" Fuli shook his head repeatedly. "If I really do that, that guy will definitely see red and try to take me down with her! The kind that won't rest until one of us is dead!"
[But she already wants to fight you to the death. The Divine Key's will inherently harbors intense hostility and killing intent toward the Host; this is an established fact.]
Dr. Mei pushed her glasses, calmly pointing out the contradiction: [Since the ultimate goal requires subduing her will, why care about the temporary additional aggro brought by this highly efficient stimulation method?]
"You crazy woman, you call this a small matter?"
Fuli's mouth twitched. "Have you never thought about where Rin would be positioned when she comes out if I really clamp it there? What if she gets too angry and self-destructs directly? At that angle, that distance... or what if she grabs my two eggs and one sausage and refuses to let go? What do I do then? Do I not want my future happiness?"
[If I recall correctly, the Host's newly comprehended 'Setsuna Slash · Moon Hidden in Light' can draw the blade to heal oneself or others.]
"That doesn't mean I can use my little brother as bait!"
Even if it could be healed, how could a man's symbol be ravaged repeatedly like that?!
[Fine.]
Dr. Mei nodded regretfully.
Prometheus comforted: [Don't be too anxious. Since you can unlock the First Rated Power, it means Jizo Mitama's growth has been stable. When the incubation is complete, she will also seek the Host for a showdown to decide whether she is free or submits.]
She looked at Fuli, the corners of her small mouth lifting slightly: [A broken will whose Imaginary connection has been severed and who has received almost no energy replenishment for fifty thousand years... Prometheus does not believe her Host will lose to such an opponent.]
Prometheus duality: when referring to herself by name, she is either happy or angry.
"Of course."
The boy patted her small head.
Ten minutes passed in a flash, and the figures of the lunar duo dissipated like stardust.
Fuli glanced at the clock on the wall; the hands had quietly slipped past 1 AM.
He got up and went into the bathroom for a quick shower.
Returning to the bedroom, he took off his comfortable pajamas.
Lifting the soft quilt, just as he was about to crawl naked into that warm place—
Hmm?!
His fingertips suddenly touched something unexpected and... furry?
Facing a formidable enemy, Fuli retreated half a step rapidly while simultaneously ripping the covers open with a swish!
"Ta-da! The heroic journey of challenging not to look at handsome guys for 365 days—Day 1 officially starts♪!"
On the soft double bed, Elysia, who had long occupied the favorable terrain, sat up generously, clenching her pink little fists, her face brimming with sworn determination.
However, when her gaze landed on Fuli's face, that perfect smile froze for a second, then transformed into exaggerated 'annoyance' as she knocked her head:
"Oh my, oh my, it's over. Saw Little Li's peerless beauty on the very first day. The challenge of not looking at handsome guys is declared a failure♪~"
"Hiss! You!"
Fuli wanted to keep a straight face and pretend to be angry, to teach this little fairy who disturbed people's dreams in the middle of the night a lesson.
But the little grand-auntie hooked him into a smile instantly.
Under the gaze of Elysia's pink-blue eyes that were smiling as if they had seen through everything, he bent down somewhat speechlessly and somewhat resignedly to pick up the pajama pants he had just taken off, putting them on quickly with his back to her.
"Not sleeping in the middle of the night, what are you doing running over to my place?"
If this were anyone else, Fuli would at least accuse them of harboring ulterior motives and coveting his beauty.
With Elysia, it didn't matter; as long as she was happy.
"Little Li, Little Li! Did you know? Miss Elf seems to have discovered a theorem, tentatively named the 'Excited-Erotic Absolute Value Equality' theorem!"
Simply put, when an excited sentence is transformed into an erotic sentence, the degree of excitement equals the degree of eroticism.
The transformation method is simple:
First is the transformation of simple sentences: replace the exclamation marks at the end of the sentence with ❤, keeping the quantity consistent.
Example:
Loaded! Fire! Target hit!
Loaded❤ Fire❤ Target hit❤
Then is the transformation of compound sentences: replace commas and semicolons in the sentence with ellipses, and exclamation marks at the end with ♡, keeping the quantity consistent.
For example:
I am! A fourth-year student, Corporal Morishita! Here to supervise you! We fourth-year students are always your best big brothers!
I am❤ A fourth-year student... Corporal Morishita❤ Here to supervise you❤ We fourth-year students... are always your best... big brothers❤
"(*°口°) It's truly amazing!"
Elysia twisted excitedly on the bed, looking like a baby begging for praise.
Meanwhile, Fuli suddenly had the complex psychological feeling of a wife entering the delivery room, and the baby running out to ask him if they should save the soldier or the doctor.
"...Just because of this, you crawled into my bed in the middle of the night?"
"Mm-hm? Jealous?" Miss Elf blinked playfully, leaning her body forward, bringing a wisp of fragrance close to his face, breathing like orchids: "Don't worry❤, Little Grand-Auntie will only say this to Little Li and cute girls♪~"
"Well, I really thank you then!"
Fuli said grumpily, scooping his arm and directly pulling this large pink ornament radiating sweet fragrance and trouble into his embrace.
Going with the momentum, he fell onto the bed and covered both of them with the quilt.
"Sleep!"
Less than two minutes later, even and slight snoring came from under the covers.
"Eh? Eh?"
Elysia, suddenly encircled by his arm, was stunned at first, then couldn't help laughing softly.
Feeling the rapidly calming breathing and warm chest beside her, the excitement in her heart from the night raid also gradually calmed down.
Turning her face slightly, the girl quietly raised her eyes, her gaze landing on Fuli's sleeping face close at hand.
Watching and watching, she began to count those starry, dense eyelashes with interest.
One, two...
Drowsiness slowly attacked.
The pink-toned girl curled up in the boy's arms leaned in, lightly kissed his lips, and also closed her moist eyes.
"Little Li, goodnight. Zzz..."
"Mmm."
Fuli in his sleep smacked his lips, unconsciously burying his face in Elysia's fluffy pink hair, his arm tightening slightly.
Just like they did in the previous loop, depending on each other for survival in Nagazora City during the Third Eruption.
Several days passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, the time for parting arrived.
The trainee Valkyries had been working very hard, and Wendy, guest-starring as a maid, was equally dutiful.
If there were any shortcomings, it was probably that she refused to get close to Fuli and her face was becoming increasingly pale.
The former was due to the influence of the Star Saint's Path, and the latter, well, could also be generally attributed to the influence of the Star Saint's Path; self-power generation definitely consumed vitality.
She wasn't the only one looking unwell; Fuli was too.
In recent days, he had been having that absurdly erotic dream more and more frequently.
Many times, just after closing his eyes, the gorgeously dressed, perfectly figured 'Kiana' in the dream would come to his door, 'devouring' him completely time and again.
Could it be that I'm too thirsty in puberty? What one thinks about by day, one dreams about by night?
Thinking this, Fuli specifically took a day off without contacting the girls. Sure enough, he finally had a peaceful sleep at night.
The problem was that there were only beautiful girls and non-humans on the Hyperion; completely avoiding contact was definitely impossible.
[Sigh, what a luxurious trouble.]
He thought on the Hyperion's deck, focusing his gaze on Houraiji Kyuushou and the others who were about to depart.
...