Despite her sharp words, Mai hopped off the desk anyway. She dragged a chair across the floor and planted it next to Ren's, sat down, crossed her legs, and looked out the window like she had somewhere better to be. Her shoulders said otherwise.
Ren kept Maki's hands in his left, then reached out with his right and caught Mai's before she could cross her arms. He laced his fingers through hers.
Both sisters went stiff.
Ren looked between them, that same tired smirk still on his face, softer now.
"See? This isn't so bad." His voice dropped low. "We're just one big happy family. Alright?"
Mai's eyes went wide, color rushing up her neck to match her sister's.
"Any objections, Maki?" His thumb moved slow over her knuckles.
Maki glared at him. She opened her mouth, closed it again, and looked away, jaw tight, saying nothing. Whatever she'd been about to say, she swallowed it back down.
Ren turned to Mai. "And you? Any objections?"
Mai's eyes dropped to his mouth for half a second before coming back up. "Of course not," she said.
Then, ignoring the fact that her sister was sitting right there, Mai leaned in and kissed him.
Not a quick one. She lingered, fingers tightening around his, kissing him slow enough that there was no mistaking what it meant.
Maki's mouth fell open. It took her a full second to find her voice.
"Are you—!" She yanked at her trapped hand; his grip didn't move. "You can't— can't you two do this somewhere else? Have you both lost your minds?"
Ren just smiled. Without letting go of either of them, he turned to his left and kissed her too.
Maki made a muffled sound of protest, eyes flying open. For a second she didn't move at all. Then his mouth stayed slow and unhurried against hers, and whatever she'd been about to yell just went quiet. Her eyes slid shut. Her shoulders came down. She sighed into it.
When he pulled back, she didn't look up. Her face had gone red all the way to her ears, and her eyes stayed fixed on her own lap.
Mai watched the whole thing from her chair, cheeks pink, a slow smile pulling at her mouth.
"Wow," she said, chin propped on her free hand. "You talk a lot of game, Maki, but you really just melt the second he touches you, huh? Sharing a room with you two is going to be loud."
Maki groaned into her free hand, face burning, and didn't say a word.
Ren gave her hand one last squeeze before he let go and pushed his chair back, putting a little space between the two sisters.
Mai's smirk eased off her face. She leaned back in her chair and turned toward the cracked window, watching smoke drift across the setting sun over what was left of the city. After a moment, Maki lowered her hand and leaned her elbows on the sill next to her.
Neither of them said anything. Neither of them needed to.
Ren leaned back against the blackboard, arms crossed, watching them for a second before his attention shifted somewhere else entirely.
System.
The air rippled in front of him — a translucent blue grid only he could see. He hadn't checked notifications since the crater. Points from Jogo, the technique's evolution — all of that had taken priority. But one gold icon was still sitting there, pulsing, waiting.
He tapped it. Timestamped from the fight against the old sorcerer and his ice-wielding vanguard.
[ ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Against The Monk ]
Condition Met: Successfully suppress and survive the combined assault of a Special Grade (Uraume) and an Ancient Sorcerer (Kenjaku) without suffering fatal casualties.
He tapped the header.
[ REWARDS DISTRIBUTED ]
System Points: +150,000 SP
Special Reward: [ Consumable: Elixir of the White Lotus x2 ]
He raised an eyebrow. The System usually handed out points, weapons, passive traits. Actual consumables were rare. He pulled up the item description.
[ Elixir of the White Lotus (Divine Grade Consumable) ]
Description: A restorative liquid forged from concentrated, perfected positive energy. Unlike standard Reverse Cursed Technique, which cannot rewrite established cellular damage or deep-rooted soul trauma, this elixir permanently erases all physical anomalies, disfigurements, and permanent scarring.
Note: Capable of completely healing anomalous burns caused by Special Grade Disaster Flames.
Ren read the last line twice.
He lowered the screen and looked across the classroom.
///
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