Mo Wang sat on pins and needles in Olga Marie's office, under her silent, icy gaze. She had been ignoring him for a full hour, and no matter what he said, she just stared at him with cold, emotionless eyes.
He knew this was the calm before the storm. The more silent she was, the angrier she was.
"Olga?"
"Director?"
"Director Olga?"
"My dearest Director Olga Marie?"
"Please, say something. I was wrong, okay? You're scaring me," he whined, sidling up to her.
She finally stopped writing and gave him a "gentle" smile. "Oh, my dear Mo Wang, how could you possibly be wrong? Tell me, what did you do wrong?"
Her voice was dripping with sarcasm, and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
"Do you remember what you promised me before you left, Mo Wang?" she asked.
"Uh, not to cause trouble, and to come back as soon as I finished the singularity?" he blurted out.
"So this is you 'not causing trouble'?!" she slammed her hand on the desk and grabbed him by the collar. "You dug up Charlemagne's grave, built a giant robot and a spaceship, and made a mess of the entire singularity by attracting a bunch of weirdos! And then you got taken by the Counter Force and disappeared for a week! Is this what you promised me?! Is it?!"
He wanted to tell her that it wasn't a big deal, but then she buried her face in his chest and started to cry.
"Do you know... the alarms in Chaldea were blaring all night... When SHEBA lost your signal, I thought my world was ending," she sobbed, her fingers digging into his back. "You bastard... you said you'd be back on time... When the alert popped up that you'd been taken by a Gaia-side Heroic Spirit... I even wrote your eulogy..."
He felt a pang of guilt. He hadn't realized how much his disappearance had affected her.
"I was wrong! I have sinned! I shouldn't have deceived our lovely Director Olga Marie!" he wailed, dropping to his knees and hugging her waist. "It's not my fault, Director! How was I supposed to know the singularity would get so out of control?! That Marshal summoned a sea monster, and then the Demon King showed up! I was forced to use those things! I wasn't trying to cause trouble!" he sobbed, his tears and snot soaking her uniform.
"Y-you bastard! Let go of me!" she blushed, trying to push him away, but he clung to her like a limpet.
"Those Gaia bastards are the worst, Director!" he cried, his voice muffled. "They said they needed me to fix a hole in the world barrier, and then they made me work for seven days straight without sleep, patching up the Throne of Heroes! Look at my dark circles! I could cosplay a panda!" he said, pointing to his perfectly clear eyes.
In the Root, Gaia and Alaya were fuming. He's the one who caused all the problems! What a liar!
"Just... let go..." Olga's voice softened. She saw the faint, purple marks of magical burns on his neck.
"Does it hurt?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper. She gently touched the marks, her eyes filled with tears.
"Actually—" he started, but she pushed him onto the sofa.
"Idiot! Why didn't you say you were hurt?!" she scolded, her touch surprisingly gentle as she used a healing spell on his neck.
He grabbed her hand and placed it over his heart. "This is where it hurts the most. Being given the silent treatment by you for a whole hour... my heart is breaking."
"Don't push your luck!" she snapped, pulling her hand away and shoving a box of strawberry daifuku into his chest. It was the limited-edition box she had been saving. "Eat your sweets! When Romani gets back, you're getting a full check-up... and if there are any lasting effects, I'm throwing you to Fou!"
"Hehehe," he grinned. She wasn't angry anymore.
"What are you laughing at?"
"Want one?" he offered.
She turned away, but then sat down beside him. Just as she was about to take one, the door opened.
"Marie-chan~ The limited-edition daifuku I left with you..." Da Vinci's voice trailed off. She stood in the doorway, her eyes darting between the two of them.
The air froze for three seconds.
"Ara" she said, fanning herself. "It seems I've come at a bad time." She started to back out of the room. "You two, carry on"
"Wait! It's not what you think!" Olga jumped up, nearly crushing the daifuku in her hand.
"I understand, I understand" Da Vinci said, giving them two thumbs up. "Post-battle supplies are very important! By the way—" she poked her head back in. "—Marie-chan, you've got some cream on your mouth"
"Wha—!" Olga frantically tried to wipe her mouth, but just smeared strawberry jam on her nose. Mo Wang instinctively reached out to help her, and Da Vinci's suppressed giggles echoed down the hallway.
"Attention, everyone!" her voice boomed over the intercom. "The cafeteria will be serving extra dessert tonight! In celebration of... a certain blockhead finally getting a clue~"
Olga stood there, petrified. "I'm cutting off her lab's mana supply tomorrow..."
"You're sweeter than the strawberries, Director," Mo Wang said with a smile.
"S-shut up, idiot! Who gave you permission to say that?!" she snapped, but her ears were bright red.
"Alright, alright, don't be angry, Director. By the way, this daifuku is pretty good. Where did Da Vinci get it?" he asked, handing her another one.
Outside, Da Vinci skipped down the hallway, humming a tune. Marie-chan, you have no idea. That box of daifuku was specially made for the two of you. You'll thank me later. Huhu~ She even put a "Do Not Disturb" sign on their door before she left.
As Mo Wang ate his third strawberry daifuku, he felt a strange heat spreading from his lower abdomen. "Director... is there something wrong with this...?"
He looked up and saw Olga clutching her collar, her ears a fiery red. "D-Director?" He reached out to touch her forehead, but she grabbed his wrist. Her gray-purple eyes were misty, her pupils dilated.
He remembered Da Vinci's strange smile and realized with dawning horror that the box was empty. At the bottom, a tiny alchemical symbol of two intertwined hearts was glowing faintly. He tried to get up, but she pushed him down onto the sofa.
"Look at me," she said, her voice husky and commanding. "You dare to flirt with other girls in the singularity? It seems I'll have to teach you a lesson." She leaned in close, her hair brushing against his cheek. "I'll make it so you can never look at another girl that way again."
She had gone full yandere.
Before he could protest, her lips were on his.
He had no idea that Da Vinci had given the Director such a thing. And now, he was in for a wild ride.
"Director! Calm down! Yamero!!!"
His screams echoed from behind the closed door.
As for what happened next, please use your imagination... (Wink.jpg)