Marcus left the dorm early in the morning, wearing Levi's, sneakers, and a black t-shirt. After walking to a secluded area on campus, he stood and waited for a bit until he heard a girl's voice call out.
"Sorry to keep you waiting!"
He looked over and saw Moka running over, dressed in her gym clothes. Marcus gave an appraising nod. "Okay, I guess those are easy to move in."
Moka rubbed the back of her head and chuckled, a little embarrassed. "They're kind of all I have."
"Did you not pack normal clothes?" Marcus asked, raising an eyebrow.
Moka blushed, looking down at her feet. "I was just so excited for school, I didn't think about that kind of stuff. So all I have is my uniform, my gym uniform, and my sleepwear."
"We should leave campus this weekend and hit the mall so you can get some clothes," Marcus suggested.
Moka's eyes lit up with excitement. "You wanna go shopping with me?"
"Yeah, sure. We're allowed to leave campus on the weekends; why not take advantage?" he replied with a shrug. "Anyway, come here. I promised your inner self."
Moka nodded and walked over to Marcus. He reached out and gently pulled off the rosary. After a brief, shimmering flash of light, the inner Moka appeared, her posture and presence immediately more confident and fierce. Marcus pocketed the rosary.
"Morning," he said.
Inner Moka stretched her arms above her head, a small, fierce smile on her lips. "Good morning, Marcus." She then looked down at her gym clothes, and her expression shifted to one of pure embarrassment. "The hell am I wearing?"
"Yeah," Marcus said, amused. "She and I just talked about that. We're going shopping for clothes this weekend."
"Wait, don't tell me that airhead didn't pack any of our clothes," Inner Moka groaned, facepalming.
"Apparently not."
"I'll have to make sure to stay awake this weekend so she doesn't buy something ridiculous," Inner Moka sighed, shaking her head. "Anyway, you woke me up for a spar, right? Let's go."
Marcus smiled, and the two rushed at each other. As they traded swift blows—blocks, punches, and kicks—the air crackled with their movement.
"So tell me honestly, Marcus," Inner Moka said, ducking under a swing. "Are you actually a demigod?"
Marcus dodged a sharp kick aimed at his side. "What, you think a regular human could keep up with you?"
"Fair point," she conceded, blocking a punch aimed for her ribs. Marcus then caught her leg mid-kick and tossed her away. She effortlessly backflipped, landing in a low, poised crouch.
"Oh, by the way," Marcus said, resetting his stance. "Anything about you I should be aware of? Like, you won't turn to ash in the sun, right?"
Moka put her hands on her hips, frowning. "You idiot! Those are just movies. The worst the sun will do is give me a sunburn since I'm naturally pale. But if you must know, I'm weak to water and holy objects, and I have a minor silver allergy."
Marcus paused. "Isn't your rosary silver?"
Moka's eyes widened. "Wait, is it? Who the hell put that on me?"
"I don't know," Marcus admitted. "But the water thing… that blows. Any workarounds?"
"Yeah, keep me away from it," she said flatly. "Other than that, I can enter any water that's been treated with a special herbal mixture. It's the only way I can bathe."
"So that's why you smell like grass," Marcus remarked casually.
He had to quickly dodge to the right just in time as a furious spin kick from Moka sliced through the air where he'd been standing, obliterating a small tree behind him.
"Stay still so I can kick you!" Moka yelled, her face flushed with anger.
"Woah, chill! I didn't mean it in a bad way!" he said, holding up his hands in mock surrender.
Their spar continued for another forty-five minutes, a blur of motion and controlled power. Finally, Moka called a halt, panting slightly. She took the rosary from Marcus's pocket.
"See you tomorrow," she said, and after the familiar flash of light, the outer Moka stood before him again, blinking softly.
The two returned to the dorm to change and then began walking to school.
"So what's it like when you change?" Marcus asked as they walked.
"Oh, we simply switch places," Outer Moka explained cheerfully. "She gets the body, and I go into the rosary."
"That's weird," Marcus mused. "You sure you're two personalities and not two souls? Cause I'm pretty sure you're both supposed to exist in the body together."
The rosary around Moka's neck lit up for a moment, and the voice of the inner Moka sounded through it, thoughtful and intrigued. "Huh. I didn't think about that before, but you might be right. Are we two separate people?"
"Guess we'll have to find out," Marcus said.
They continued down the path, but halfway there, Outer Moka turned to him with a bright, slightly shy smile. "Oh, I almost forgot! You owe me some blood."
Before he could respond, she wrapped her arms around his shoulder in a quick, affectionate motion and lightly bit into the side of his neck. When she was done, she pulled back, licking her lips, her expression one of pure bliss.
"Well," Marcus said, adjusting his collar with a wry smile. "That was the deal. The inner one gets to fight, and you get blood."
The two continued on. As they walked, they noticed a beautiful young woman with blue hair tied in a ponytail and striking violet eyes. She was wearing their school's skirt, but instead of the blazer, she wore a yellow sweater with a red bowtie positioned just above her rather prominent assets. She sat alone in the middle of the park by the pond, her posture radiating a profound sadness and loneliness.
"Oh," Moka whispered, her expression filling with concern. "She seems so sad. Should we help her?"
"Nope," Marcus said without breaking stride. "Where I'm from, a girl sitting alone in a secluded area is always a trap, with a thirty percent chance of death ninety percent chance if you don't know what you're doing." He kept walking decisively.
Moka looked back and forth between the lonely girl and her retreating friend. After a moment of hesitation, she chased after Marcus, calling out, "Wait for me!"
After they left, however, the girl with the blue hair raised her head, her previous sorrowful mask melting away into an expression of cold, calculating curiosity. She stared at the spot where Marcus had been, her violet eyes narrowed.
"How did he see through my plan?" she murmured to the empty air.
-----
Later in class, the girl from earlier was sitting in a seat next to Moka, her posture stiff and her eyes glaring daggers at her. Moka shifted uncomfortably, feeling the intensity of her stare. She leaned forward toward Marcus and whispered, in confusion, "What did I do?"
Marcus glanced past her briefly, then shrugged, and said in a low voice, "I don't know. Do you know her?"
Moka shook her head slightly, keeping her eyes forward as she whispered back, "No, I've never seen her before."
Marcus frowned faintly, scratching the side of his head before saying, "Which is weird, since she's apparently in our class. But whatever, just ignore her."
Moka exhaled softly and settled back into her seat, shoulders tense. She awkwardly avoided looking in the girl's direction, even though she could still feel that unwavering glare burning into her from the side.
-------
After class, in the school's main common area, Marcus and Moka walked side by side through the steady flow of students. Just as they rounded a corner, the girl from earlier suddenly appeared in front of them, planting herself firmly in their path and blocking the way entirely.
She pointed a sharp finger straight at Moka, her eyes blazing with hostility, and said, "I've got a bone to pick with you, Akashiya Moka."
Moka blinked, taken aback, and frowned in disbelief before replying, "Seriously? I don't even know who you are. How could I have upset you?"
The girl crossed her arms, clearly offended, and snapped, "First of all, my name is Kurono Kurumu."
Marcus tilted his head, looking her over with mild curiosity, and remarked dryly, "That is a lot of vowels."
Kurumu shot him an annoyed look but waved it off as she continued, gesturing dramatically with her hands. "Anyway, I had this whole plan to make every guy in this school fall in love with me so that I could rule the school and hopefully find my destined one while I'm at it."
Marcus raised an eyebrow, clearly amused, and commented, "That mindset is similar to some of the Aphrodite girls."
Kurumu paused mid-gesture and stared at him, confusion replacing her irritation. "The what?"
Marcus shrugged casually and explained, "Where I'm from, there's a few girls that measure their success by how many hearts they've broken."
Kurumu recoiled slightly, wrinkling her nose in disgust, and protested, "Eww. Don't group me with them. I'm trying to find my true love, not hurt people."
Moka hesitated, then spoke up carefully, "But you just said you wanted to control all the boys and rule the school."
Kurumu's expression hardened, and she clenched her fists as she snapped back, "Yes, it's necessary. But I can't do that as long as you're in my way, Moka. You're taking too much of the boys' attention. It makes it harder to control them. I'm gonna take you down, and I'll start by taking Marcus from you."
With that, Kurumu turned sharply toward Marcus, her eyes glowing faintly as she activated her charm magic. She leaned in close, invading his personal space, and as she did, Moka panicked, her face instantly turning beet red. Kurumu pressed herself against Marcus deliberately, her voice dropping into a sultry tone as she asked, "Hey, Marcus… do you like me?"
Marcus barely reacted, blinking once before answering flatly, "I literally just met you."
Kurumu froze, eyes widening in shock, and exclaimed, "What?"
Her surprise only deepened when Marcus calmly grabbed her by the shoulders, lifted her off of him with ease, and gently sat her down a short distance away. Looking down at her, he added casually, "Yeah, I'm immune to charm magic."
Kurumu stared up at him in disbelief, her mouth hanging open. "You're what? I've never heard of that."
Marcus smiled faintly and replied, "A blessing from Lady Freya. You'd have to be a goddess to mess with my head."
Kurumu burst out laughing, her expression twisting into something more dangerous as she snapped her fingers. "Fine. Hard way it is."
At once, every guy in the area stiffened, their expressions twisting into hostility as they turned toward Marcus. He sighed, reached over, and pulled Moka's rosary off her neck before stepping forward. As he walked toward the horde of angry students, he called back over his shoulder, "Don't kill her, Moka."
Kurumu glanced back toward Moka with a mocking grin and started to say, "Hah, like you could kill—" only to falter mid-sentence as she stared at her in shock. "Who the hell are you?"
Moka smirked confidently, power rolling off her as she answered, "I'm still Moka. This is just my true form. Now, where do you want your ass kicking, in here or outside?"
Kurumu snarled, her eyes narrowing as she shot back, "You won't be so smug in a second."
Her nails elongated into vicious claws, leathery bat wings bursting from her back as a black, heart-shaped tail appeared above her rear. She launched herself at Moka, slashing wildly, only to hit empty air as Moka dropped low. Using her hand to propel herself upward, Moka kicked Kurumu hard in the side as she flew past, sending her crashing into a wall.
Kurumu coughed violently as the air was knocked from her lungs, but she forced herself back to her feet and charged again. Moka vanished from sight, reappearing behind her in an instant and kicking her once more. This time, Kurumu collapsed, unable to find the strength to rise.
She looked ahead in horror as she saw Moka lifting her leg high, ready to bring down a brutal axe kick directly onto her head. Just before it landed, her foot was caught by a strong, masculine hand.
A familiar voice said calmly, "I said don't kill her."
Moka turned sharply and protested, "But she endangered your life."
Marcus laughed lightly and replied, "Look at the pile of bodies and tell me who exactly was in danger."
Both Moka and Kurumu looked over and froze. Every guy from the earlier mob lay beaten and broken across the floor.
Moka relaxed, letting out a breath as she said, "I guess I worried for nothing."
Marcus turned back toward Kurumu, his expression firm. "And you."
Kurumu panicked, scrambling backward as he approached, only to flinch when she felt a sharp sting as he flicked her on the forehead. He said, "Go on some damn dates like normal people. Brainwashing is no way to find a romantic partner."
He smiled casually and added, "See you later."
Marcus turned and walked away with Moka, neither of them noticing Kurumu staring after him, her eyes sparkling and her face flushed with a massive blush.
------
As they walked back toward the dorm, the tension of the earlier confrontation finally beginning to fade, Moka glanced sideways at Marcus. After a moment, she spoke, her tone a mix of curiosity and mild reproach. "Why'd you even call me out? You had that under control."
Marcus kept his hands in his pockets as he walked, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. Without slowing, he replied, "I didn't want to take a chance on you being cut in half while I was having fun."
Moka let out a soft chuckle, her shoulders relaxing as she looked ahead again. "Fair enough. The outer one may have been strong enough to defeat that girl, but her timid nature makes fighting difficult for her."
Marcus nodded in agreement, his expression thoughtful as he answered simply, "Exactly."