Somewhere else in town, in a posh little restaurant where the napkins were worth more than a commoner's monthly wage, two lovebirds were enjoying their lunch.
"What exactly is this gift, babe?"
"How would it be a gift if I spoiled what's inside the wrapper? Just eat your food for now, Thomas."
Sitting across the table was none other than Alex's innocent prey—sorry, correction—his cute little stepsister Marine, with her boyfriend Thomas.
Thomas was twenty, a year older than Alex, and about as exciting as a stale piece of bread. Buzz cut, black hair, black eyes, normal build—he was so aggressively average it almost hurt.
The kind of guy who'd politely greet your grandma, hold the door open, and never once consider stealing your wife.
Unlike a certain someone who had the predatory nose of a wolf, sniffing out other men's women like it was a profession.
It was Thomas's birthday, and his cluelessly sweet girlfriend had dragged him here for lunch, handed him a neatly wrapped gift, and unknowingly built the emotional wall he desperately needed in his life.
"How's your studies going, Thomas?"
"E-enough about my studies… I just… you know…"
Marine blinked, lifting her eyes from her plate. He was stammering again. She had no idea why—he wasn't the type to get nervous.
"You know what?"
Her innocent eyes searched his face, unaware that her boyfriend's heart was hammering like a war drum.
Seeing her nonchalant, utterly clueless expression, Thomas just sighed. There was no point in dressing things up with flowery words.
This woman was as clueless as a newborn chick—she didn't know what love language was, didn't know flirting from a sneeze, and probably thought "romantic tension" was something you measured with a ruler. She was that stupid. Cute, but stupid.
"I just wanted to say… thank you for this gift, baby. I'm really happy. I don't have many people who give me gifts, let alone remember my birthday. This means a lot to me."
And for once, he wasn't fumbling. He meant every word.
Coming from an orphanage, clawing his way into the Grand Arcane Institute by sheer grit, he'd forgotten how to form meaningful bonds. And then this clueless little beauty crashed into his life.
At first, his flirting had been painfully awkward, he already knew the result. Same rejection he'd gotten a dozen times before. But to his shock, she laughed.
Of course, he didn't know then that Marine hadn't actually understood the flirting. She thought he was cracking a joke.
That was the day he learned the painful truth.
This girl wasn't ignoring the signs, she simply didn't see them. Her radar for romance was so broken it may as well have been pointing to another dimension.
This woman was that clueless.
Thomas's hand crept over the table, slow and cautious, until it rested lightly on Marine's.
For any other girl, this would've been the cue for heartbeats to sync up, maybe shy smiles, maybe sparks flying.
But she simply looked down, blinked, then pulled her hand back like it was blocking her fork from the mashed potatoes. She just went right back to eating, lips puffing adorably as she chewed.
Thomas didn't even get mad. He couldn't. A romance NPC without the programmed dialogue options. That was his girlfriend.
So instead of sulking, he smiled and reached into his bag.
"Here. I wanted to give you this."
Marine looked up, eyes bright, crumbs on her lips.
"Eh? What's this?"
"A book."
He slid it across the table toward her like it was a secret treasure map.
She tilted her head, picking it up with both hands as if it might explode.
"What kind of book?"
Thomas cleared his throat, looking determined.
"It's something to help us… take our relationship to the next level."
Marine blinked, confused, then opened it. One glance at the first page, her whole body jolted. Her cheeks flushed crimson, steam might as well have poured out of her ears. She slammed the book shut with a squeak.
"S-s-sex…"
She ducked her head, both hands gripping the book tightly, her face so red it was a miracle she didn't combust right there at the table.
Thomas laughed softly. Not mocking, just gentle.
"It's normal, you know. I mean, we haven't even kissed yet, but… I want my first to be with you."
Marine's lips trembled. She peeked up at him like a guilty cat, then whispered,
"I… I want it too. But I don't know anything at all…"
He reached out again, this time not to hold her hand but to give her a reassuring pat on the wrist.
"I know. I know about your family and the recent moving to a new home and all the pressure it was putting on you.
"I know, your mom is busy taking care of the new family and your sister is...well, not good at this...this stuff since you know, she is a...she is a... Well, anyway, that's why I got this book. So you won't feel lost."
She nodded furiously, still hiding her face behind her hands, her thumbs pressing into her hot cheeks.
"O-okay…"
Then, after a beat, she peeked up at him with wide innocent eyes.
"Th-thank you."
Thomas chuckled, and they continued their meal, until he suddenly thought about something.
"By the way… how did you get this much money for the gift?"
"Eh?!"
Obviously, what both of them didn't know at that time is that, Marine was going to need a certain someone's help to understand this "book." A certain someone, who was planning something devious with her.