"That's right~ I won't be affected by Castorice's curse."
Hearing Trianne say this, Lumina smiled gently.
Although she had already withdrawn the small hand that was wrapped around Castorice's waist due to everyone's gaze and Castorice's shyness, the other hand that was holding Castorice's two small hands had not been withdrawn.
Still maintaining this posture, one palm held Castorice's two small hands within it, constantly touching, rubbing, constantly feeling the warmth coming from Castorice's hands, feeling the softness coming from Castorice's hands...
This is a celestial product!
Without a doubt, Castorice's hands, which very few people have touched, feel super great!
It was just that through a black glove, a lot of the tactile sensation was reduced, making Lumina feel a little pity.
Well... it was just a little pity.
After all, having taken Castorice's first... touch and hug, it would definitely be much more convenient for her to do something to her in the future as the first person.
As for whether she was really the first, Lumina felt that she was.
By "first touch and hug," Lumina meant the first time someone could stand before Castorice, perfectly healthy and unharmed, after touching or hugging her.
Lumina was certain that she was the first person Castorice had ever encountered.
Although Lumina didn't have Mind Reading, she had studied psychology extensively.
Based on what Castorice had said to Stelle and her blushing, flustered reaction, Lumina was convinced of this.
If someone else had previously touched Castorice and remained unaffected, Castorice would have remembered them. When she saw Stelle about to do the same, she would have been surprised and curious, but not with this kind of blushing, flustered surprise.
So, once Lumina realized this...
She decisively rushed forward and snatched Stelle's "opportunity."
After all, if things had proceeded as they were, the title of winning Castorice's first... hand-hold and hug would have fallen to Stelle, wouldn't it?
That was absolutely unacceptable.
How could Lumina possibly stand by and watch such a great opportunity slip away?
Fortunately, the final result was good.
It's just a shame for Stelle...
Hmm... I'll have to compensate her well later.
Lumina thought to herself.
Having stolen her beautiful girl's "opportunity," how could Lumina accept it without any guilt?
She definitely needed to give her some compensation.
As for what to compensate her with... she'd figure that out later.
"Sister Lumina is amazing!"
Although Trianne was older, she wasn't particularly knowledgeable about intimate matters.
Hearing Lumina's words, Trianne clapped her hands, her face full of happiness for Castorice.
Trianne felt even happier than Castorice that she could emerge from solitude!
It made sense after all, since Castorice's changes in personality and behavior since arriving in Okhema had happened right under Trianne's nose.
If Castorice could truly overcome her solitude and experience the beauty of the world, everyone would surely be happy for her.
"Um... Sister Lumina... hand..."
"Also... the other hand."
Although Lumina had already withdrawn the hand wrapped around her waist, there was still another hand.
If there weren't so many people around, if it were just her and Sister Lumina, Castorice might be a little bolder and let Sister Lumina hold both of her hands.
After all... this warm feeling was making Castorice a little addicted...
But with so many people here, under so many people's gazes, Castorice still... felt a bit shy.
Of course, this wasn't the main reason.
The main reason was that Big Sister Herta's gaze made Castorice feel completely uncomfortable all over...
She was actually doing this kind of thing with Sister Lumina right in front of Big Sister Herta... This... this really made Castorice want to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
It was really... really too embarrassing!
Castorice could feel that Big Sister Herta's gaze at this moment seemed to be able to pierce right through her...
Big Sister Herta must be especially angry that she was doing this kind of thing with Sister Lumina, right?
She could be with Sister Lumina, and in terms of both identity and status, she must be about the same as Sister Lumina, right?
Then if she was because Sister Lumina made a move on her...
Castorice's heart was filled with apprehension and unease.
After all, in Castorice's heart, Sister Lumina and Big Sister Herta were actually a couple...
Based on their previous interactions, Castorice felt that this possibility was extremely, extremely high, and was even silently constructing a romance novel about Lumina and Herta in her mind...
A "Girl's Love Power Couple" story, it would definitely be popular!
And the result?
The result was that a... a little purple butterfly who only knew how to hide in dark corners, far away from the mortal world, had actually crashed into this "Girl's Love Power Couple" novel...
The original Pure Love novel had instantly turned into... a Shuraba novel? How could Castorice possibly accept this!
And what made it even more unacceptable to Castorice was that the little purple butterfly crashing into someone else's world was... herself...
"Little Sister Castorice, don't let your mind wander."
Although Lumina didn't know what was going on in Castorice's head, she could roughly tell from her slightly trembling body and eyelashes that she was thinking about something terrible.
Lumina found this utterly baffling.
"I'm holding your hand and hugging you, yet you're thinking about something terrible?
How on earth did you manage to connect this to something scary?"
Lumina was intensely curious.
If only circumstances had allowed, and if Lumina hadn't been unwilling to harm a beautiful girl, she would have split Castorice's head open, no matter what, just to see what was inside.
"Um..." Castorice's face and ears were both flushed bright red, like a scorching hot sun emitting heat, just like a freshly baked delicacy from an oven that one couldn't resist biting while still hot.
"That..." After waiting a while and seeing that Lumina still hadn't let go of her hand, Castorice continued in a weak voice, "Sister Lumina... can... can you let go of my hand?"
This feeling of sitting on pins and needles made Castorice feel extremely uncomfortable.
This atmosphere, as if she were a third party intruding on a couple's world, made Castorice feel deeply guilty.
Sister Lumina and Big Sister Herta, they should be a very good couple, right?
If, because of her, their relationship deteriorated and eventually led to a breakup... then Castorice really wouldn't know what to do...
Should I take Big Sister Herta's place and compensate Sister Lumina?
Castorice thought this over and over again, eventually arriving at a thought that felt both utterly absurd and incredibly bold.
"No, no, absolutely not."
"This... this is just being a homewrecker!"
The moment this thought surfaced in Castorice's mind, it startled her completely.
How could she even think such a thing? Could it be... could she actually be... an immodest woman?
Castorice pressed her lips tightly together, hurriedly suppressing the thought.
Yes... suppressing it, not throwing it away...
Castorice pushed the thought down into the deepest recesses of her heart...
"Um, okay." Hearing this, Lumina, unaware of Castorice's inner turmoil, knew that continuing to hold her hand would only cause Castorice to feel averse. She agreed and reluctantly released her grip on Castorice's small hands.
As Lumina let go of the two small hands, her palms instantly felt cold, creating a sense of emptiness in her heart.
Wuuu, I haven't held them long enough.
Lumina felt truly regretful about it in her heart.
At the same time, she was silently setting her next goal in her heart.
Next time, I'll do it when I'm alone with Castorice: skin-to-skin hand-holding~
By skin-to-skin hand-holding, of course, she meant touching palm to palm.
This time, with the gloves in the way, she couldn't fully feel the softness of Castorice's palms, which Lumina still found very regrettable.
On top of that, the gaze of the people around them was a distraction, making Castorice very shy and uncomfortable. Because Castorice was so shy, she didn't dare continue with this behavior, which ultimately left Lumina feeling somewhat unsatisfied.
Without skin-to-skin contact, with a glove in between, and under everyone's watchful eyes, the time was also short, so this definitely couldn't satisfy Lumina.
But this was just a small matter. Since she wasn't satisfied, it wouldn't be too late to get her satisfaction next time.
Lumina was no mere scoundrel, not the kind who would only do something once and never again.
For Lumina, once there was a first time, it meant there would be countless more.
If nothing unexpected happened, Lumina would be able to achieve the feat of being alone with Castorice upon returning to Okhema...
Hmm... In an environment where she was alone with Castorice, Herta naturally wouldn't count as another person.
Lumina wanted to see, to see just how long this fellow Herta could endure.
When the time came for her to be "alone" with Castorice, she would leave Herta to watch from the side... and then quietly observe whether she would be driven away in anger before their time alone ended...
Lumina eagerly anticipated this scene.
At that time, she would take down both Little Castorice and Little Herta together!
Hahaha!
As Lumina thought about it, a beautiful picture instantly formed in her mind.
And as she thought of this image, a laugh like [Elation] echoed in her heart.
Two birds with one stone, this is truly killing two birds with one stone!
No...
There's still Aglaea and Hyacine in Okhema...
If I put in a little more effort, if I work a bit harder, could I achieve the legendary killing four birds with one stone?!
"Daydreaming again?"
As Lumina was happily indulging in her fantasies, a voice filled with mockery reached her ears, pulling her thoughts back to reality.
"Hmm?"
Coming back to her senses, she found that Castorice had already moved a certain distance away from her.
She was now squatting on the ground, her face flushed red, using the flowers in the grass to test if the flaw of her being a Chrysos Heir had disappeared.
After confirming it hadn't disappeared and that Lumina was indeed somewhat special, she wrapped her arms around her calves, buried her small head in her knees, and lost herself in thought.
At the same time, Herta's unique fragrance wafted from Lumina's right and reached her nose.
"What's wrong, Little Herta? Are you scared?"
Lumina didn't even have to think to know who had spoken with that familiar voice.
Without a doubt, it was Little Herta, who was about to become a subject beneath my skirt, about to be defeated by my hand.
"Scared? What do you mean by that?" Herta crossed her arms and retorted, hearing Lumina's words.
"You don't even know what 'scared' means? Did you get your seat in the Genius Society through the back door?"
"Yeah, the back door. You want to use it? I can introduce you to the big robotic head's back door if you want."
"Forget it, forget it. If someone like you can get in through the back door, then I finally understand what kind of organization this [Genius Society] really is."
Lumina snorted coldly and refused to follow Herta's words any further.
Trying to trick me? Go practice in the [Genius Society] for another few dozen thousand Amber Eras first.
"So, Miss Little Herta, how would you evaluate the scene from just now?" Lumina's small eyes flickered, the corners of her lips curving slightly as she turned to Herta and launched a direct, close-quarters assault.
After doing something like that right in front of Herta, she definitely had to ask Herta for her thoughts on it.
Watch, then write down your reflections. Isn't that the normal procedure?
For this scene, it also fit this procedure perfectly.
Lumina wanted to hear Herta's reflections on the matter.
"Evaluate, huh..." Herta's expression didn't change at all, as if she didn't care about it in the least.
Seeing Herta have this ideal reaction, a look of joy immediately appeared on Lumina's face.
The calmer Herta was, the more it proved that Lumina's move was taking effect.
Having traveled the Cosmos for so long, what kind of people hadn't Lumina seen?
The more severely a person is stimulated or psychologically traumatized, the more exceptionally calm she will appear, looking no different from a normal person at all.
But in fact, in fact, red hurricanes and red storms have long since started to brew in her heart.
And when she falls into this state, a tiny stimulus is all it takes to make her completely erupt...
Without a doubt, Herta was currently in this very state.
Next, Lumina just needs to provide one more stimulus, just one more little stimulus, and Little Herta can be put back in her place~
It seems the plan is proceeding very smoothly.
Lumina nodded with great satisfaction in her heart.
"I'm jealous."
But in the next second, Herta's truthful reply made the joy on Lumina's face instantly freeze.
"So..."
Taking advantage of the time Lumina was fantasizing, Herta reached out to tuck the hair by her right ear behind it, leaned her body slightly, aimed at Lumina's right cheek and gently pressed her lips against it, successfully leaving a mark on her cheek that belonged uniquely to Herta's lips.
"So... just use this one kiss to suppress the jealousy in my heart."
Although it was just a fleeting touch, and a kiss on the cheek at that.
It still left an indelible impression on both Herta and Lumina.
"..."
Recalling the sensation on her lips, Herta still turned into a bright red little apple.
And Lumina herself had long since turned into a gradually cracking stone statue...