Chapter 118 – Did I Come at the Wrong Time?

"Think carefully about what you just said."

"What do you mean?"

Before Bronya could voice her confusion, she caught sight of Nagami pulling down her stockings.

Her slender, pale legs were now fully exposed to the air.

The gentle breeze from the air conditioner wasn't strong, but it carried just enough chill to tickle her skin.

Smooth, glowing, with even muscles and a delicate layer of supple fat—her legs looked flawless, like perfectly cooked duck legs fresh from the oven.

Particles of faint blue light flowed endlessly into Bronya's legs.

The Herrscher's power was reconstructing her cells, weaving healthy tissue while also absorbing the lingering traces of Honkai energy buried deep inside.

Nagami was healing her by carefully replacing the necrotic cells in her legs with newly replicated normal cells.

He suspected that this was probably the method Bronya used to heal herself in the game as well.

As the Herrscher of Reason, she would naturally be able to sense the condition of her own body.

"That exoskeleton armor of yours really ruins your cuteness, my dear partner"

Nagami reached out, sliding his arms under Bronya's slender frame from behind her arms, effortlessly lifting her light body and placing her gently in front of him.

"I don't think you need something like that anymore."

Her delicate, bare feet touched the polished wooden floor, reflecting a soft, snowy glow under the light.

"Bronya's legs..."

A barely perceptible tremble touched Bronya's voice—a rare break in composure for someone as expressionless as her.

It was a sign of just how deeply shaken she truly was.

"That's right. You're a healthy little duckling now~"

Nagami gently untied the ribbon that held her signature Roman curls.

Her soft, wavy gray hair cascaded down naturally, shimmering faintly under the warm light.

"Though the damage to your emotional center will still take some time to repair. My understanding of the human brain isn't complete enough yet. When it comes to the so-called 'God's Forbidden Zone,' it's best not to rush in without absolute certainty."

With gentle fingers, Nagami stroked her loosely curled gray hair.

Then, using the Herrscher of Reason's power, he conjured her favorite Homu doll and placed it atop her head.

"And don't worry—I've already started preparations to save Seele. I'm still missing a few things, but it won't take long. Soon, I'll get her out of the Sea of Quanta."

Trying to distract himself and calm the excitement that Himeko and Bronya had stirred within him, Nagami kept talking, unaware that the girl before him had fallen silent the moment she stood on her own two feet.

The ever-quiet, expressionless girl tilted her small head slightly, staring at Nagami with iron-gray eyes—eyes that now shimmered with emotions she had never shown before.

As an executor of Anti-Entropy with connections to the World Serpent, Cocolia had access to research resources beyond imagination.

After the X-10 experiment went wrong, Cocolia had ordered every researcher to devise a way to heal Bronya.

But even with so many brilliant minds working together, they couldn't repair the damage Honkai energy had inflicted on her emotional center or her legs.

Bronya had long since accepted that this condition would follow her for life.

Raised from childhood as the assassin known as the Ural Silver Wolf, she had never hoped for a bright or happy future.

And with her emotional center damaged, the fact that her legs were crippled hadn't even affected her much emotionally.

That was the real reason she could bear it so well.

Aside from matters related to Seele, nothing could ever stir Bronya's heart.

But now...

A small, pale hand rested gently over her chest.

Bronya watched Nagami as he continued to talk about saving Seele, her long lashes trembling softly.

What is this feeling...?

[System warning: body temperature rising due to unknown cause…]

[System warning: body…]

The alerts from her biochip echoed crisply in her mind—but Bronya paid them no attention.

With hesitant steps, her bare white foot moved forward.

Because her healing had been done through Herrscher powers, there was no muscle atrophy, no need for rehabilitation like a normal patient recovering from paralysis.

Her legs were as perfect and healthy as any normal person's.

The only awkwardness was psychological—her mind still struggling to adjust to the sudden change.

As she gazed at the boy in front of her, so seriously plotting Seele's rescue, Bronya's iron-gray eyes briefly lost focus.

"Nagami... hug me."

Two slender arms stretched out toward him.

Just four simple words—but for the first time, Nagami could hear real emotion in her voice.

"Hm? Bronya… what did you just say?"

He forced himself to stay calm, trying not to let the rush of hormones override his thoughts.

After focusing on serious matters, he'd just barely managed to cool his head.

It wasn't that he hadn't heard her clearly—just that he couldn't believe the meaning behind those words.

The gray-haired girl shook her head softly, taking the Homu doll from her head.

She gazed at the familiar toy, then at the boy in front of her.

For the first time, Bronya's eternally blank expression cracked.

Her silver-gray eyes shimmered like water.

A faint, gentle smile touched the corners of her lips.

Even though it lasted only an instant—that fleeting smile nearly made Nagami's heart stop.

Before crossing into this world, Nagami had seen that very same smile once—at the end of the Reconstruction of an Angel short film, where Bronya finally smiled.

It was because of that smile that he had spent everything—scraping together every last bit of luck and money—to pull the Herrscher of Reason in the game.

And now, seeing that smile in reality, on the girl's delicate and stunning face, it carried an even more irresistible charm. Nagami felt his heart skip uncontrollably.

And then—

Bronya's slender, fair hand slipped over Nagami's shoulder.

With a light bounce, like an elegant princess, her soft gray hair swayed in the air as the petite, adorable girl pounced onto Nagami, toppling him onto the bed.

"Partner... Bronya has detected abnormal emotional fluctuations... Bronya might be breaking down."

Her delicate gray eyes blinked slowly, as if she were reporting something terribly serious.

"Partner! if you keep this up... the one who's going to break is me!"

Nagami gently ran his fingers through her soft gray hair that now spread like silk around them.

Honestly... if he could still hold himself back in this situation, he wouldn't be human.

Slipping his arms around her slender waist, Nagami naturally pulled the girl closer, flipping her gently underneath him.

As he gazed into Bronya's porcelain-like, delicate face, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers.

A sensation he had never felt before spread from their lips—numbing, like a mild electric shock.

Then came the continuous flood of system notifications ringing out in Bronya's mind.

[Warning: Body temperature rising due to unknown cause…]

[Heavy Bunny 19C: Unknown intrusion detected in core body region…]

The warning messages echoed endlessly through her biochip, while her iron-gray eyes rippled like a rain-kissed lake.

Perhaps annoyed by the constant alarms buzzing in her head, Bronya blinked softly and issued a command with the highest authority.

[Defense protocols against Nagami permanently disabled.]

A sweet, smooth warmth mingled as their tongues entwined, the girl's faint fragrance spreading gently inside Nagami's mouth.

As the long, lingering kiss deepened, the room's air grew noticeably warmer, a gentle tension and sweetness filling the space.

Just as Nagami was about to fulfill Bronya's whispered promise to "repay her partner"...

"Nagami! We can't get past this stage, come help—"

The voice cut off instantly, like a faucet turned off without warning.

Standing at the door, the heiress Kiana's mouth hung open mid-sentence, frozen in shock.

No more words came.

It was as if time had stopped, leaving her standing there like a statue.

Because the scene before her eyes was far beyond anything she could have imagined.

A boy and a girl tightly embracing on the bed, the boy's arms wrapped around the girl's slender waist, their lips still so close they seemed to share the same breath.

"…Sorry. Did I come at a bad time?"

Her gaze silently swept over the boy who had stopped mid-action because of her arrival, and the girl lying beneath him, not struggling at all.

Leaning casually against the doorframe with arms crossed, the heiress smiled—a gentle, polite expression that might've felt like a spring breeze.

But the glint in her eyes was as sharp and cold as the flash of a blade, freezing Nagami in place.

"Uh… no… nothing like that"

His guilty voice stumbled out as he glanced down at the delicate, adorable girl beneath him.

Somehow, without him even realizing, one of his hands had freed itself, which he now awkwardly raised in greeting.

"G-Good evening, Ki-Sirin"

But the moment he finished speaking, another visitor arrived—the little tuna, having come to check why the heiress hadn't returned, quietly stepped into the room.

And when she saw the boy and girl entwined on the bed…

Her face changed faster than the Herrscher of Domination.

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