Both girls nodded stiffly.
"Yes, sir," they answered in unison.
Shocked. Defeated. Humiliated.
They sat back down with perfect posture, but the storm in their eyes betrayed their bruised pride.
From the back corner of the classroom, Seo Yuna leaned closer to Sayaka, eyes still fixed on the scene.
"Well… didn't see that coming," Sayaka muttered, flipping her pen in her fingers.
Yuna's lips parted slightly, surprised, but not displeased.
"I knew you were interesting, Takumi," she murmured softly.
Then she giggled — a small, melodic sound that didn't quite match the sharp glint in her gaze.
"Even a rat, when cornered… bites."
⸻
The bell rang.
Chairs scraped. Bags zipped. The classroom gradually emptied, leaving only the aftermath of a silent war.
Raizen stood, cracking his neck and left.
Suddenly, SWAY peeled off the professor's body like smoke lifting from burning flesh — unseen by all, but for a moment, the shadows in the room seemed to flicker.
The professor blinked. His vision blurred. A splitting headache cracked behind his eyes.
"Shit… what the hell have I done?" he muttered to himself, gripping the desk for support.
That momentary surge of confidence, that unmoving confidence he wore minutes ago — gone.
Replaced by the meek self-doubt of the original. His posture drooped again, shoulders curled inward like a kicked mutt.
As Raizen walked out, he chuckled to himself.
"Good luck sleeping professor ."
⸻
Later that afternoon…
Raizen slumped in the passenger seat of Ryo's car as they cruised through the city. The windows were half-down, letting the humid breeze roll in.
He had already calmed down.
His eyes stared into nothing, watching neon lights blur past.
"I was too hot-headed…" he muttered. "I might've just walked into a tiger's den and a snake pit at the same time."
But then—he felt it again.
Doubt.
It gnawed at the edges of his mind, rising like bile.
"No… how many times have I said this—Takumi, stop trying to control me!"
The voice wasn't out loud anymore. It was inside. Shouting. Burning.
He gritted his teeth.
"I'm not your puppet," he growled under his breath. "I'm not you, Takumi. I'll never be like you."
But the rage kept rising — hot, violent, hungry. The beast inside him stirred again.
After being stepped on, humiliated, mocked—
It was clawing its way back up.
The inner demon was returning.
His nails dug into the armrest — not from fear… but hunger.
A craving.
Images flashed: their faces earlier — shocked, desperate, powerless. The moment they fell silent. That was his doing.
He won.
Not them.
"I planned this," he hissed. "I took control. That was all me."
And then—
"They're all starting to look like prey," something inside him whispered.
He sniffed the air without thinking — like a predator catching a new scent.
The car kept moving, neon lights streaking past the windows.
"I'll ride this out," he muttered darkly. "Earn the cash. Build something of my own."
A smirk crept onto his lips.
"One day… I'll dominate this city."
His voice dropped to a whisper, cold and certain.
"They'll all be bowing at my feet."
In the driver's seat, Ryo remained oblivious to the demonic thoughts brewing beside him.
⸻
Meanwhile, in the backseat of a luxury car weaving through uptown traffic…
Seo Yoori crossed her legs tightly, arms folded, eyes blank as the city rushed past her tinted window.
"What the hell just happened back there…?"
Her voice was calm, but her inner thoughts screamed.
Should I tell my parents? That damn professor forced me to… to say yes in front of everyone.
She raised a hand to dismiss the thought. "No. That'll just prove Xuē right. That I'm too soft to handle my own problems."
Her nails tapped her chin, then slid to her lower lip.
"Wait… Xuē looked shocked too. So… was she really part of this? Or did we both just get outplayed by one damn guy?"
Then, her eyes narrowed. A wicked glint formed.
"If they did plan this together… fine. I'll make his life miserable either way. He won't get away with taking advantage of me."
The memory of that night — the warm breath on her ear, the collar brushing her bare shoulder, the blurry man kissing her — flashed again. Her face twisted.
"…I'll find out the truth. Whether he's the bastard from the Astro Festival or not."
Her fingers brushed the spot on her shoulder where lips once ghosted across her skin.
No scar. But the memory still burned.
"I'll make him regret it," she whispered.
⸻
Elsewhere…
Xuē Liuyue sat at her desk in the sorority's hidden office — a minimalist room laced with luxury and dominance. Her fingers tapped idly against a porcelain teacup, her expression unreadable.
Her assistant whispered something. She waved her off with the grace of a queen swatting a fly.
"That wasn't how it was supposed to go…" she muttered to herself.
The plan was simple: poke at Seo Yoori's nerves, force cracks in her pride, and use Raizen as the convenient pawn to stir chaos.
But somehow — that damn bastard turned the board around.
For a brief moment, her fingers trembled against the porcelain rim.
She stilled them with a breath. No one saw. No one could.
She folded her arms, legs crossed elegantly under the table. The smooth slit of her hanfu revealed just enough to remind anyone watching who ran this city at night.
"Hanazawa Takumi," she whispered, eyes darkening.
"You're impressing me more and more… but if you think I'll let you work peacefully under my bar — you're sadly mistaken."
She smirked, cold and slow.
"Welcome to hell."
She was confident. Cunning.
But she didn't realize…
She hadn't just opened the gates to a devil.
She'd handed him the keys.