SWISH.
The cool midday breeze rustled the thick green leaves of the oak tree behind the infirmary.
Chrites stood on the grass, keeping his slouched, completely average posture intact as he stopped a few paces away from Vaelora.
She smoothed down the front of her pristine uniform coat, looking slightly nervous but maintaining a deeply confident, refined posture.
“Hi, hello, Chrites,” Vaelora said softly, offering a warm, genuine smile.
“Yeah, hello,” Chrites replied calmly, stuffing his hands into his pockets.
He tilted his head, looking perfectly ordinary.
“Why did you call me out here?
Is there something important?”
Vaelora took a step closer, her cheeks flushing a light shade of crimson.
“Yeah, it is really important.
The truth is, Chrites, I really, really love you very, very much from the bottom of my deep heart.
It is not just some simple love at first sight.
Watching how you handle yourself, how quiet and reliable you are…
it is really something much bigger than that.
I respect you more than anyone else in this academy.”
The moment the words hit the air, Chrites felt his brain completely stall.
His mind went entirely blank.
Operating an underground syndicate, tracking reflection assassins, and destroying secure vaults were simple, logical tasks.
But dealing with a direct, profound romantic confession from a Legendary Master’s daughter caused his practical mind to stop working entirely.
He stood there frozen, completely answerless.
RUSTLE.
A faint sound echoed from the thick green bushes situated along the brick wall just thirty feet away.
Peeking through the dense foliage, completely hidden from sight, were Rivb, Chrono, Shevy, Linease, and Melise.
They were silently listening to every single word of the conversation.
Linease gripped a tree branch tightly, her face showing pure jealousy.
She did not say a word out loud, but internally, her thoughts were spinning with sharp anger.
She thought to herself, who the hell is this girl?
Linease had fully expected an enemy ambush, a secret duel, or a confrontation about their hidden syndicate.
She absolutely did not expect a passionate love confession.
Back under the oak tree, Vaelora looked up into Chrites’s eyes, looking incredibly hopeful.
“Will you be my boyfriend, Chrites?”
Chrites finally snapped out of his frozen state.
He let out a quiet, polite sigh, dropping his shoulders.
“Oh, I am really sorry, Vaelora, but I cannot,” Chrites answered honestly, his tone gentle but firm.
“I am just not into romance, really.
My focus is entirely on my work and my studies right now.”
Vaelora blinked, looking deeply disappointed.
Her shoulders dropped slightly, but she held her composure perfectly, refusing to shed a single tear.
She offered a small, understanding nod.
“Okay,” Vaelora said, forcing a brave smile.
“I understand.
But we can still be friends, right?
And if you think your thoughts might change later on, we can be lovers in the future.
Is that a perfect plan?”
Chrites felt a massive wave of tension leave his chest.
“Oh, okay.
We can definitely be friends.”
Inside the bushes, Linease let go of the branch, feeling incredibly relieved.
She exhaled a long, silent breath, thinking to herself that finally, nothing bad was going to happen to their organization today.
“Let us walk back toward the main courtyard,” Chrites suggested.
They turned and began walking side by side across the secluded lawn.
As they strolled, Chrites looked over at her, speaking in a deeply curious tone.
He did not sound arrogant or intimidating, just genuinely inquisitive.
“Is your father really the Legendary Master?” Chrites asked.
Vaelora looked happy to talk about her family, nodding her head proudly.
“Yeah, my father is a Legendary Master on the defense council.
Because of his high ranking, I have many, many friends in the school who always want to talk to me.”
“Okay, okay, that is great for you,” Chrites said smoothly, acting like a true gentleman.
“Really, really great that you have many friends.
But the thing is, Vaelora, they are really not as good as you.”
Vaelora blushed deeply, looking incredibly flattered by the compliment.
“Oh, thanks, Chrites.”
CRUNCH.
Before they could reach the paved sidewalk, the five friends tumbled out of the bushes, stepping directly into their path.
Rivb was grinning from ear to ear.
“Oh, so what happened out here?” Rivb asked loudly, pretending to be completely ignorant.
“What is that secret thing you two were talking about?”
Chrites did not bother hiding anything.
Speaking plainly, he told the group the complete story about the confession, his polite rejection, and their agreement to become ordinary friends.
Rivb and Shevy immediately started laughing at him, teasing his blunt honesty.
Chrono, however, did not laugh.
Looking highly serious, Chrono reached out, grabbed Chrites by the collar of his uniform coat, and pulled him aside for a private boy chat away from the girls.
“Why the hell did you reject her?” Chrono whispered sharply.
“Ah, I did not reject her out of spite,” Chrites explained calmly.
“I just told the absolute truth.
I do not want to be involved in romance.
You know me, Chrono.
All of you know me better than anyone else here.
My focus is entirely on my responsibilities.
Why would you be suspicious of my answer?
I am not lying to you.”
Chrono studied his face for a second, then sighed.
“Okay, well, whatever.
It is great that you two agreed to be friends.
Just be highly aware that hurting a girl with that kind of family backing would cost you dearly.
Her father does not take insults lightly.”
“Ah, yeah, I am well aware of that,” Chrites agreed.
RING.
The loud warning bell echoed across the campus.
The seven teenagers hurried back inside the academy buildings, navigating the crowded corridors until they reached Class Division Four.
They took their respective seats just as the afternoon lectures commenced.
Finally, the dismissal bell rang, and the academic day ended.
The core group of friends gathered their bags and left the campus, walking together down the wide, paved avenues to head home.
Because Vaelora had officially joined their circle, all seven of them walked together.
The conversation along the sidewalk was lively and completely mundane.
“I am absolutely buying a massive soda at the transit station,” Rivb announced, swinging his bag wildly.
“Defensive theory makes my throat incredibly dry.”
“You drink way too much sugar, Rivb,” Melise noted softly, offering a quiet, amused smile.
“Sugar is pure energy,” Rivb argued happily.
“It is false energy,” Shevy corrected, rolling her eyes.
“Linease, Vaelora, do you two want to check out the new equipment shop downtown tomorrow before classes?”
“I would love to,” Linease said, looking excited.
“My sidearm needs a new focus ring.”
“Count me in too,” Vaelora added cheerfully.
While the six of them chatted warmly, Chrites walked at the edge of the group in complete silence.
He was not participating in the conversation at all.
Instead, he kept his hands deep in his pockets, his eyes fixed entirely on the bright, vibrant sun slowly descending over the city skyline.
Noticing his quiet demeanor, Rivb and Vaelora turned their heads toward him at the exact same time.
Speaking in perfect sync, their voices overlapped completely.
“Why were you so silent today, bro?” Rivb and Vaelora asked together.
Chrites blinked, pulling his gaze away from the horizon to look at them.
He offered a small, ordinary smile.
“Oh, it is nothing much,” Chrites replied poetically.
“I was just looking at the sun.
Watching that bright sun going down…
the dreaming sun setting over the buildings is really great.”
“You are in a weirdly philosophical mood today,” Rivb laughed boisterously.
They reached the central transit intersection, where the main bus lines and subway paths divided.
Sharing warm goodbyes, the group separated, heading off in different directions toward their respective homes.
Chrites walked the remaining blocks alone, enjoying the quiet.
When he finally turned onto his property and approached his house, he saw his older brother standing near the driveway, leaning against a sleek, polished civilian sedan.
“Oh, you finally arrived,” his brother said, standing up straight and unlocking the vehicle doors.
“Let us go.”
Chrites walked up to the passenger side.
“Okay, where exactly do we have to go?”
“Nothing too far, just to a nearby place downtown,” his brother explained calmly as he opened the driver’s door.
Because his older brother worked as a highly busy corporate manager at a major logistics company, he frequently handled complex literal and physical operations.
He needed Chrites to come along purely for physical assistance, knowing his younger brother was dependable for managerial lifting tasks.
However, keeping his usual professional demeanor, his brother did not explain exactly what the specific heavy work would be today.
SLAM.
They both shut the car doors securely.
His brother turned the ignition, the engine purring smoothly to life with a low VROOM.
His brother pulled out of the driveway, merging seamlessly onto the main highway leading toward the neighboring commercial sector.
The drive was relatively short, covering approximately twelve to thirteen kilometers across the continent’s secure transit bridges, so navigating the evening traffic did not take too much time.
Eventually, the sedan slowed down, pulling into the paved parking lot of a highly popular, brightly lit establishment known as the Grand Spire Cafe.
His brother shifted the car into park, turning off the engine just as they arrived perfectly outside the cafe entrance, ready to begin their evening task.