Chapter 88 - Shenzhou’s Flatboard

As Nagami walked along, a familiar figure suddenly caught his eye.

His steps instinctively slowed, eyes dark as ink quietly fixating on the silhouette in the distance.

At first glance, the figure appeared to be a slender, graceful young man—delicate wrists, porcelain skin.

Dressed in light-blue robes with a distinct Shenzhou aesthetic, he looked serious, almost stern.

There was no trace of warmth in his expression.

Nagami narrowed his eyes, observing the barely noticeable rise at the figure's chest. He let out a sigh, filled with complicated emotion.

Ah, time...

Why must you be so merciless?

As if sensing his gaze, Fu Hua turned to look in his direction—and immediately locked eyes with him.

Her expression grew guarded in an instant.

That face—wasn't that the mysterious person called Nagami?

She recalled her recent communication with Otto.

That unfamiliar name had left an impression.

He was the one who halted—or perhaps, ended—the Third Honkai Eruption.

But why... was he at St. Freya?

Shocked by his appearance, Fu Hua's mind began churning with questions.

But as the distance between them shrank, her expression began to shift—growing subtly awkward.

Despite being classified publicly as an A-rank Valkyrie, Fu Hua was in fact one of the most powerful warriors humanity had ever produced.

In the previous era, she had been CM-014—a Honkai Beast gene fusion soldier of the anti-Honkai group, MOTH.

She was also the legendary guardian of Shenzhou, the Red Kite Immortal.

But thanks to betrayal by her disciples, she had lost most of her strength... and even parts of her memory.

Still, to uphold a promise made long ago with her closest friend, she had struck a reluctant deal with Otto, the overseer of Schicksal, borrowing his power to continue protecting Shenzhou from the Honkai's threat.

That's why she was now stationed at St. Freya.

Even though her current strength was nowhere near her former peak, it was still more than enough to sense where exactly Nagami's eyes had just lingered.

And judging from the look of mournful sympathy in his gaze...

Her fists clenched.

They were clenched hard.

Sure, she was annoyed—but since she had no real connection with this person, she couldn't exactly vent her anger.

All she could do was force a polite smile, her sky-blue eyes narrowing sharply as she locked onto him.

Just from his looks alone, it was obvious to her, the Red Kite Immortal who had seen centuries pass that Nagami was clearly know her.

But in her culture, staring impolitely at a woman's chest, especially someone you're meeting for the first time—was a massive taboo.

Too bad Nagami didn't seem fazed at all.

He kept walking in silence.

As they passed each other, a gentle breeze drifted through the air.

"Hua?" A nearly inaudible whisper stirred the still atmosphere.

Fu Hua's pupils shrank.

Her body tensed instantly as she whipped around.

But behind her, the boy continued strolling forward as if nothing had happened.

"You!"

With lightning speed, her delicate but powerful hand clamped onto Nagami's shoulder.

Her tone turned unusually stern.

Nowhere in Otto's intel had it mentioned this!

Fu Hua may not have been much of a strategist, but she had lived for 50,000 years.

Even with gaps in her memory, she still retained a healthy level of caution.

And truthfully, even if she had every one of her memories intact, she wouldn't dare claim to outmatch Otto in a battle of wits.

To strike a deal with a man like Otto, someone over 500 years old, she had known never to fully trust him.

"Do you need something, student?" Nagami turned around with an innocent look on his face, as if none of the last few seconds had happened.

Fu Hua opened her mouth, but for a moment, couldn't speak.

Nagami wasn't going to admit what he said, clearly.

That barely audible voice—anyone else might've thought they imagined it.

"…I must've mistaken you for someone else," Fu Hua finally forced a strained smile. "You just looked a lot like an old friend of mine. I got a bit carried away. I apologize."

"Oh, I see. Don't worry about it~" Nagami gave her a gentle smile, his expression full of understanding.

As if this kind of encounter with pretty girls was something he experienced regularly.

"Are you a student at St. Freya?" Fu Hua asked through gritted teeth.

Even though she knew he was pretending, that only made it more irritating.

"No, I…" Nagami gave the exact same explanation he had used earlier with Welt.

It didn't matter what he said—Fu Hua clearly wasn't going to believe it. But he had achieved what he came here for.

After all, there could never be complete trust between Otto and the Red Kite Immortal.

This didn't really count as sowing discord—because as long as Fu Hua didn't regain her full power, she'd have no choice but to rely on Otto's protection for Shenzhou.

To be honest, Nagami thought Fu Hua's current approach was full of flaws.

But with someone he'd just met, it wasn't the time for deep conversations.

After a few meaningless exchanges, Nagami gave a relaxed nod and turned to leave—while Fu Hua's gaze remained heavy and suspicious behind him.

...

Night fell quietly.

A full moon rose into the sky, its silvery glow cascading down like molten mercury.

But at St. Freya Academy, night and day hardly made a difference.

Brilliant neon lights painted the dark sky in dazzling colors.

With Himeko Murata accompanying the entire process, the enrollment procedures were completed quickly.

The new girls were all placed in the same class.

Apart from a bit of commotion caused by the identical looks of the "Sirin" and the Kiana (leading people to assume they were twins), the real shock came from one person: C.C.

Her exquisite features, voice as clear and serene as a mountain spring, and the mysterious, bewitching aura from her character card—

She was like a bomb dropped into the classroom, exploding with presence.

If she wanted to, she could instantly ascend to the throne of Queen of All Women.

Fortunately, thanks to the unwavering pride of the true noble lady (the aforementioned Ojou-sama), who firmly stood her ground with aristocratic dignity, things managed to stay… mostly under control.

On their way home after class, the girls stopped by a nearby supermarket to pick up some groceries.

Once they got back, Mei naturally took on the role of head chef.

As C.C.'s maid, Rita couldn't just stand idly by, so she quickly volunteered to help in the kitchen.

Dinner was filled with laughter and lively conversation.

"Welcome, everyone, to St. Freya Academy! As the Dean of the school—"

Theresa puffed up her chest, trying hard to exude authority and deliver a host-worthy welcome speech.

Unfortunately, she still hadn't realized her attempts at gravitas were about as convincing as the young mistress of the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

"Alright, alright, Theresa~ what are you even saying that for?"

Himeko, already slightly flushed from the wine bottle in her hand, gave her a teasing grin.

The older single lady who had clashed with Bronya earlier now looked to be in a precarious mental state.

She slung an arm around the unprepared Theresa, pulling the tiny girl into her chest and smushing her flustered, pale face right into her bosom.

"Come on, drink, drink~!"

"Mmph!! Mmmph!!"

Theresa struggled desperately before finally breaking free from Himeko's bear hug.

Her face was flushed crimson, breath short, and her expression screamed shame and fury.

"You need to drink less!!"

Nagami silently watched this play out, his eyes wandering to Bronya, whose face was only faintly flushed.

'If it's that kind of 'wine,' then maybe I can have some too...' He inwardly sighed.

Truly, racial traits were no joke.

"C.C., try this!"

On Nagami's left, "Sirin" delicately picked up a piece of soy-braised chicken drumstick and held it up to the green-haired girl.

One hand rested naturally on her shoulder in a familiar, affectionate gesture.

C.C. opened her lips with elegant grace and took a small bite.

Instantly, "Sirin" raised a tissue and gently dabbed at the corner of her mouth, wiping away the sauce.

Under the warm glow of the lights, her soft, refined features looked every bit like a virtuous wife.

On Nagami's right, the Kiana glanced over at Mei feeding Nagami a bite, bit her lip, then turned away in a pout.

She puffed her cheeks and stared at "Sirin".

"C.C., try this! It's super tasty~"

She picked up an entire pork knuckle with her soft, pale hands and offered it to C.C.

The green-haired girl instinctively leaned back to dodge the dripping grease, giving the Kiana a deadpan side-eye.

'How am I supposed to eat that?'

"Here you are, Lady C.C.~"

Rita's smile bloomed like a rose in full bloom.

She gently blew on a spoonful of savory Dongpo pork, then brought it to C.C.'s lips with practiced elegance.

'You're just joining in the chaos, aren't you?!'

C.C. gave her a sidelong glance and sighed in resignation.

'What is even going on anymore? Can we not just eat like normal people?'

A glint of amusement flickered in her golden eyes.

Her lips curled into a playful smile.

She took the porcelain spoon from Rita and tested the meat's temperature with her lips.

Not too hot, not too cold.

Then, with the kind of mischievous charm that made hearts skip a beat, C.C. turned to Nagami and brought the spoon to his lips.

"Ahhh~"

'Clatter!' The sound of chopsticks dropping echoed across the table—Mei's.

'Clatter!' Then came "Sirin" and the Kiana.

Everyone at the table froze, eyes wide, expressions blank—except for Theresa, who continued nibbling on her food like nothing happened.

It was as if the entire room had been struck by lightning.

Unfazed, Nagami calmly accepted the bite from C.C.

Crossing his arms, he leaned back in his chair with a smirk.

Now then… time to draw a relationship chart.

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