St. Freya Academy, Principal's Office.
"Theresa, are you okay?"
Himeko pushed the door open, only to find Theresa completely unresponsive to her arrival. She said with a strange look, "I've noticed you dazing off for the past two days. What's on your mind?"
As Theresa's "external brain," Himeko didn't believe she was thinking about anything deep. Since there were no major Homu events lately, Himeko was genuinely stumped.
"N-Nothing." Theresa snapped out of her trance. Turning the tables, she asked, "Himeko, why are you here?"
"Forget it," Himeko sighed, seeing Theresa had no intention of talking. She turned serious. "The fact that we picked up Wendy so smoothly... could that be part of Overseer Otto's plan?"
Although Himeko hadn't entered Luo Hong's world yet, Theresa had shared all the intelligence she had gathered. Faced with Otto's total lack of reaction, Himeko was growing suspicious.
"I don't know," Theresa shook her head. "Grandpa hasn't contacted me in a long time. Even my request to pick up Wendy was relayed through Amber. I have no idea what's going on with him." She looked uneasy. According to the intel, Otto shouldn't be this indifferent.
"Is he planning to wipe us all out in one go?" Himeko theorized.
"It's not impossible," Theresa agreed. "With his power, he could easily do it. I just don't understand why he's being so patient."
After learning everything about Otto from Luo Hong, Theresa knew they had zero chance in a direct confrontation. Their only hope was to sway Otto's subordinates to their side. To do that, she needed to trade for more intel from Luo Hong.
Yet, for some reason, after that night in the cafeteria, she felt an instinctive urge to stay away from him. Fortunately, Luo Hong hadn't approached her either; her nights were mostly spent guiding Mei in combat training. But now, with Otto's plan looming, she had to think about the future.
"Grandpa's thoughts have always been inscrutable," Theresa said. "I'll go find Mr. Luo Hong tonight and ask him. Even if he won't tell me that, I'll trade for intel on Durandal and Rita. He mentioned that with the right information, we could convince them to join us."
Those two S-Rank Valkyries were her biggest headache.
"We'll have to rely on him then," Himeko conceded. It felt foolish to pin all hope on one man, but they had no other options.
"Yes," Theresa nodded. "And your body, plus Wendy's legs—we need him to fix those too. Though what price he'll demand... is hard to say."
"Whatever," Himeko shrugged with a smirk. "Bronya and Mei say he's quite the handsome young man. Even if he wants me to spend a night with him, I wouldn't mind." Since it was just her and Theresa, she didn't mind being a bit "shameless."
"Hah!" Theresa mocked her. "In your dreams! Don't forget, you can't even get a date because of your drinking. Try quitting the booze first!"
"Tsk!" Himeko clicked her tongue, unable to argue. While she might not be looking for a relationship, she knew most men would be put off by her alcoholism. "Fine, fine, stop lecturing me." She prepared to leave.
"Wait..." Theresa called out suddenly.
"Hm?" Himeko paused at the door. "Something else?"
"Um, Himeko..." Theresa bit her lip, looking uncharacteristically bashful. "What kind of thing... is both hard and soft at the same time?"
"Huh?" Himeko tilted her head, thinking Theresa was messing with her. But seeing the dead-serious and blushing face, the "Veteran Driver" Himeko slammed the accelerator. "Why, a [Beep], of course!"
"Wha—?!"
Theresa's face went from pink to bright crimson. Steam practically erupted from her head as her eyes turned into dizzying swirls.
"Heh!" Himeko laughed. "You're the one who asked. Otherwise, maybe a... whip-sword? But I'm not an expert on those; ask Fu Hua."
Theresa, however, looked like she had just "disconnected" from reality.
"Sigh... all bark and no bite." Himeko shook her head and left. But as she walked away, a thought struck her: Was she dazing off because she was thinking about THAT?
If so... this Luo Hong guy is something else! Her eyes sharpened as she grew more wary of him.
Student Dorms.
"Sigh..." Kiana lamented. "How come I haven't gotten in yet?"
While snuggling with Mei was her primary goal, she desperately wanted to enter Luo Hong's world too. The idea of training while sleeping was a huge temptation for someone so eager to get stronger.
However, after that long sleep, she woke up to broad daylight without having experienced even half a dream.
"No need to rush," Mei said, patting Kiana on the shoulder to comfort her. "According to the Class Monitor, these things depend on fate and opportunity."
"I guess all I can do is wait then..." Kiana nodded, sprawling both hands across the table, wanting to lie completely flat. However, due to her "front armor," she couldn't quite lie as flat as she hoped.
"By the way, where's Bronya?"
"Right here, idiot Kiana."
A refreshed Bronya walked down with a light, brisk step. Her aura of having swept away all the gloom left both Kiana and Mei stunned. At the very least, Kiana was so shocked she even forgot to talk back.