Clack—
A crisp sound came from outside the door. Bronya abruptly looked up.
After two seconds of silence, a hesitant knock sounded on the door.
"Ahem, Bronya, are you awake?" Kiana's wavering voice came from outside. Even Seele, who wasn't that familiar with Kiana, could hear the thick guilt in her voice.
Bronya could imagine Kiana's actions of eavesdropping at the door even without her Homu. She looked at the door helplessly and sighed.
"Awake..."
Without a shred of hesitation, the door was thrown open. Kiana tried hard to suppress the excitement on her face, but when she didn't see what she was looking for upon entering, a look of disappointment appeared on her face.
Seele, leaning against Bronya's bed, looked at Kiana's disappointed expression with a puzzled look.
"You have two beds here too..." Kiana muttered under her breath at the door. Although she had deliberately mumbled, Bronya still caught the keywords.
"Kiana—" she glanced at Kiana, her eyes holding a hint of threat.
Kiana immediately shut her mouth and gave Bronya an "I understand" look.
"Time for breakfast. Mei has already gone to call Shu and the others. I still have to go get Dr. Schrödinger," Kiana waved at Bronya from the door and then ran off in a flash.
Bronya watched her leave, then silently began to quickly grab her clothes and change out of her pajamas.
"Hurry up and change, Seele," Bronya said to Seele, who was still leaning against the bed. "If we're late..."
"What will happen...?" Seele asked, puzzled. Bronya paused for a moment. She recalled Kiana's appetite from yesterday and realized that something was indeed off.
Usually, Kiana ate more than all of them combined, but yesterday, she didn't seem to have gotten a second helping...
Something was wrong...
It was normal for one's appetite to change with one's mood. Her own emotions had been off yesterday, and she hadn't eaten much either.
But this was Kiana... one person's portion probably wasn't even enough to whet her appetite. If a normal person only ate one mouthful for every meal for a whole day, there would definitely be something wrong.
How had she not noticed this yesterday? Was it because she was too...
Bronya finished getting dressed. She would have to talk to Kiana later...
---||---
On the other side, Mei arrived at Shu's room to see the door ajar. But she still raised a hand and knocked lightly before pushing it open.
The moment she entered, she saw Shu leaning against the bed, his eyes glued to the screen, his fingers flying across the phone screen, and Frélle sitting on the side of his bed, craning her neck to look at his phone screen.
"Shu, breakfast is ready," Mei said, clearing her throat after standing at the door for a second.
"Mm, I know," Shu replied quickly. Mei looked at him with some confusion. Frélle, on the other hand, immediately ran from Shu's side and stood obediently by Mei.
Both of them were already dressed. Shu's fingers danced for a while longer before he got a free moment. Then Shu quickly got out of bed, put on his outer robe and hood to cover his long hair and pointed ears, and then his gaze fell back on his phone.
When Mei turned to leave, Shu followed behind, his eyes still glued to the phone screen. Mei, walking in front, could hear the sound of Shu's fingers swiping across the screen from his footsteps.
This unusual situation puzzled Mei, so she looked down at Frélle, who was following beside her.
Frélle looked up, her eyes still a bit dazed. Seeing the confusion in Mei's eyes, she snapped back to her senses and wanted to explain.
But Shu was still behind them, and she had no special abilities. She couldn't even use sign language, so she could only shake her head and express her helplessness with her eyes.
When they reached the cafeteria entrance, Kiana was just pulling along two people who were dozing off in different positions.
Sirin was hugging a Homu doll, and Schrödinger was hugging her Little Hei, who seemed to have gotten fatter again. Both of them were being pulled along by Kiana with one hand each.
The moment they reached the door, Kiana let go. Sirin's head tilted and rested on Schrödinger's shoulder. Schrödinger also tilted her head and rested it on Sirin's.
The two of them stood at the cafeteria entrance, "supporting" each other.
"Good morning!" Kiana greeted them cheerfully. Everyone raised a hand to greet her. Even the two dozing people raised a hand and waved perfunctorily.
Only Shu looked up and said a quick and short "Good morning" before lowering his head again.
The cowlick on Kiana's head suddenly sprang up. The next moment, Kiana whipped her head around and shot behind Shu, standing on her tiptoes to peek over his shoulder at his phone screen.
[Shu Is Nothing Special: Get outta here! Do you know Shu or do I know Shu?!]
Kiana: "?"
Something's not right. There's a problem. I need to look again.
Then she saw Shu's fingers moving in a blur, replying at lightning speed.
[The Dawn I Promised: That was two Herrschers, okay?! They could cooperate and complement each other. How do you think Shu could defend against both a physical collision and a mental suggestion at the same time?!]
And the other person's reply was just as fast, a speed that also left Kiana dumbfounded.
Almost the second Shu's message was sent, the reply came.
[Shu Is Nothing Special: That's your lack of imagination! Can't Shu solve one of them in a short time? With his abilities, is it hard to trap an opponent with no direct combat ability?]
[The Dawn I Promised: He has that ability? He probably doesn't even know he has the ability to trap a Herrscher with a wave of his hand!]
[Shu Is Nothing Special: A hater is a hater. And you have the nerve to use that ID. You're just a troll, SMH.]
[The Dawn I Promised: And you have the nerve with that name? Praising him to the high heavens here. You'll see how funny it is when he has his downfall!]
The speed of their messages was so fast that even Kiana had trouble keeping up. But what made her head spin was the content.
She stood behind Shu, her mind struggling to sort out their positions and wording.
Wait... who was Shu? [Shu Is Nothing Special] or [The Dawn I Promised]?