On the streets of Okhema.
After arriving in Okhema with Lumina and Herta, they walked for some time.
Then, they stopped at a certain spot. Hyacine first nodded to her surrounding guards and companions, waiting until they had all departed.
Only then did she turn her gaze to Lumina and Herta.
"Lumie, Hertie, I still have some matters to attend to."
"Let's exchange Teleslate numbers and part ways here."
Hyacine prepared to say goodbye to Lumina and Herta.
But...
But Hyacine felt a pang of reluctance.
She was reluctant to bid them farewell.
Well... to be precise, she was reluctant to say goodbye to Lumina.
For some reason, whenever Hyacine was with Lumina, she felt an extraordinary warmth, a profound sense of security... Her body instinctively yearned to draw closer, to rest in her embrace...
This urge had been surging within Hyacine throughout their journey, but she had suppressed it all along.
But now, as their parting drew near, the feeling intensified.
So, after a moment's hesitation, Hyacine finally spoke the words: "It's just... Lumie, before we part, I have one small favor to ask."
After saying this, Hyacine felt a little embarrassed and quickly added, "It's nothing too outrageous, just..."
"Just a simple thing, it won't take up too much of your time."
To prevent Lumina or Herta from misunderstanding, Hyacine waved her hand dismissively.
"Of course, you can. Even if it were something a little outrageous, I wouldn't mind," Lumina replied with the warm smile of a caring big sister.
In that brief moment, all of Hyacine's nervousness vanished.
But Lumina's next words instantly brought a blush to Hyacine's fair, delicate cheeks.
"After all~ Hyie is so adorable, like a fragrant, soft little pink cake."
"How could I possibly refuse a request from such a cute little cake?"
"Fr... fragrant and soft... li... little cake." Hearing Lumina's words, Hyacine felt a little embarrassed.
But despite her embarrassment, the joy she felt from Lumina's praise far outweighed her shyness.
Scratching her head, Hyacine shook herself out of the happy daze from Lumina's praise.
She took a deep breath and finally voiced her small favor.
"Lumie... can I... can I hug you?"
After speaking, Hyacine pressed one fist to her chest and nervously clutched the hem of her skirt, her face tense with anxiety.
Although Lumina had said she would agree to any request, even a slightly outrageous one, Hyacine had no idea what the limits of that promise were, or if her request had crossed them.
After all, they had known each other for less than half a day...
Hyacine was still afraid that asking for a hug might make Lumina dislike her.
"Hmmph."
Hearing Hyacine's request, Lumina didn't answer. She simply let out a soft "hmmph," making Hyacine's heart clench.
"Lumie, I..."
"Shhh..."
Seeing Lumina's delayed response, Hyacine thought she had stepped on a landmine and rushed to apologize.
But before she could finish her sentence, a delicate fragrance washed over her, and she was pulled into a soft, warm embrace.
"Just enjoy this hug, my adorable Hyie."
Lumina gently held Hyacine, leaning down to whisper softly in her ear.
"Mm... Mmm, Lumie..."
Hyacine's ears turned bright red. Feeling the warmth of the person before her, she couldn't help but wrap her own arms around Lumina, gently hugging her back.
So warm... so blissful...
So happy.
These were the thoughts that filled Hyacine's mind as she and Lumina embraced.
The two held each other gently, and in that embrace, time seemed to slow to a crawl.
"..."
"Are these two insane?"
To the side, Herta—now feeling like a complete outsider—watched the two embrace. She clenched her fists and cursed them viciously in her mind.
If you want to hug, fine, but at least make up an excuse to send me away first!
Or just say, "Hyacine and I are going to hug now, Herta, could you please leave for a moment?" That would have been fine too!
But to completely ignore my existence and start hugging right in front of me? What the hell is that supposed to mean?!
Grind...
Herta gritted her teeth so hard they squeaked, desperately wanting to rush over and tear the two apart.
But after a moment's thought, she abandoned the idea.
"..."
A short while later, still staring at the embracing pair, Herta suddenly recalled a phrase she'd seen online.
Though the roles were different, she felt the words perfectly captured the current situation.
"I'm very happy, and my wife is very faithful."(in green text)
Even though Lumina wasn't her wife—just a friend—Herta couldn't shake the feeling that this phrase was uncannily appropriate for the scene...
-
"Lumie, Hertie, goodbye!"
"I'll contact you with the Stone Slate when I'm free later."
After their reluctant embrace, Hyacine waved at Lumina and Herta, then hurried off toward a specific location within Okhema.
Apparently, she was in a great hurry.
The time she'd spent hugging Lumina had been squeezed entirely from her travel time.
Even so, she hadn't shown the slightest hint of displeasure.
On the contrary...
She seemed to wish she could sacrifice even more travel time to prolong her embrace with Lumina.
But she couldn't. Hyacine worried that if she held on too long, Lumina might grow annoyed.
She had clearly overthought it.
After bidding Hyacine farewell, Lumina watched her retreating figure with a face full of reluctance.
"Stare, stare, stare. Had enough yet?"
"If not, why don't you just go after her?"
"Follow her, stalk her, and when the time is right, unleash all those thoughts in your head on her."
Watching Lumina stare at Hyacine's retreating figure, as if her very soul had been stolen away, Herta crossed her arms. It would be a lie to say she wasn't annoyed, wouldn't it?
So, let's be blunt: Herta was very annoyed by Lumina and Hyacine's behavior.
Well... of course, this annoyance was only voiced in her heart.
She didn't point a finger at Lumina's nose and list her "sins."
"Little Herta, you've just reminded me." Hearing Herta's words and seeing her seemingly calm expression—which was clearly surrounded by an aura of displeasure—Lumina's eyes darted, and a smile tugged at her lips.
She moved to Herta's side and, before Herta could react, pulled her into a tight embrace.
Compared to the gentle hug she'd given Hyacine, Lumina's embrace with Herta was much rougher.
But Herta... didn't seem to mind this roughness at all...
After all, back in the small forest, Lumina had done that to her, and Herta hadn't cared much.
Why would she care about a mere rough hug now?
"What are you doing?"
Although Herta felt immense joy at Lumina's embrace, and most of her negative emotions vanished because of it, she maintained her usual calm and indifferent demeanor, speaking flatly.
"Let's do it."
Hearing this, Lumina tightened her arms around Herta.
"?"
"What do you mean?"
Herta, who never understood subtext, had a large question mark appear above her head at Lumina's words.
"What else could I mean?" Lumina chuckled softly, leaning close to Herta's ear to explain what she'd just said.
"Little Herta, we were interrupted in the forest earlier, so we never finished."
"So, let's continue now."
"Let's continue what we left unfinished in the forest."
Perhaps intentionally, Lumina's voice was filled with irresistible temptation. As the words reached Herta's ears, they made her heart itch with anticipation.
But soon, that itch completely vanished.
She glanced at the bustling street, where people were constantly passing by, and asked in confusion, "Here?"
"Of course. We'll just take care of it right here." Lumina smiled faintly, seemingly oblivious to the constant stream of people passing by.
"Are you crazy?!" Lumina's casual words shocked Herta to the core. She immediately scolded her.
"Even if they're all just data, that doesn't mean you can stop treating them like people!"
"At least, in our eyes right now, they're living, breathing humans who can think for themselves!"
"Right here... Do you want everyone to see?"
Herta seriously suspected Lumina had lost her mind.
Taking care of it right here—what was the difference between that and streaking or putting on a public performance?
The only difference was that what happened here wouldn't be broadcast on the Interastral Network...
"How could that happen?" Lumina released her embrace but didn't step back, remaining pressed intimately against Herta.
Placing one hand on Herta's waist and the other on her hip, Lumina whispered, "With our power, how could mere pedestrians possibly notice us, even on a crowded street?"
"Don't you agree, my Little Herta?"
"Stop messing around..." Herta quickly shook her head, firmly rejecting the idea.
"You... If you really want to, we... we can go back to the room..."
Terrified that Lumina would actually do that right here, Herta clenched her jaw. After a moment of internal struggle, she forced the words out.
Doing something like that on a crowded street... Even if no one could see or notice them, Herta still couldn't get past the mental block.
Of course, there was also the most important reason.
She didn't want Lumina's body exposed on the street like this... even if no one but her could see...
"No, I want to do it right here."
Lumina's tone was firm and direct, making it clear she intended to continue what they had started in the forest.
"Little Herta, don't you think this would be much more... stimulating?"
Lumina leaned close to Herta's ear, her voice a seductive whisper, like a demon's temptation.
"You..." Seeing that Lumina actually enjoyed this, Herta fell silent.
She had never imagined Lumina would have such a... fetish.
An exhibitionist fetish...
Doing it on a public street, just for the thrill...
Oh... wait.
Recalling what happened in the forest, Herta realized she was the only one whose clothes had been in disarray...
Lumina's clothes had been perfectly neat...
Did that mean... the only one playing the role of the exhibitionist would be her?
What if... what if Lumina took her clothes away again... leaving her... what would she do then?
Even though Herta's power would prevent anyone from seeing or noticing her...
But... but...
But... that's still not okay, is it?
"Can we, Herta?"
Lumina's voice, brimming with endless anticipation, reached Herta's ears, filling her heart with turmoil.
Lumina seemed to really enjoy this...
But for Herta...
It was completely unacceptable.
Herta pressed her lips together, her mind racing as she tried to think of a reason to refuse Lumina.
"Never mind, Little Herta. If you don't want to, then let's just forget it."
Seeing the conflict on Herta's face, Lumina sighed and decisively turned to leave.
Her departing figure radiated endless loneliness and sorrow.
She looked like a lonely old woman abandoned by her children, evoking a sense of pity that made one want to do anything within their power to help her.
"..."
Watching Lumina's desolate back, Herta's heart clenched.
She lowered her head, her hands balled into fists, trembling uncontrollably.
A moment later, not long after Lumina had started to walk away, Herta's trembling fists grew still.
Lifting her head, Herta watched Lumina silently walk away, her expression hardening with resolve.
She quickly broke into a run, chasing after her.
Reaching out, she grabbed Lumina's small hand, stopping her from leaving.
Feeling Lumina's confused gaze as she turned, Herta squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, then opened them with determination. Her voice trembling slightly, she gave her answer: "I... I agree!"
"I agree to let you... do those things to me here that we didn't finish back then!"
The moment the words left her mouth, Herta's face flushed crimson.
Her cheeks felt as if they'd been plunged into a solution of tens of thousands of degrees, making her feel like she would melt at any second.
But Herta forced herself to endure the sensation and quickly added, "But... I... I have one condition."
"After... after you're done doing those things to me here..."
"I... I get to do them to you too..."
Having said her piece, Herta lowered her head, unable to look at Lumina.
"..."
Herta waited for Lumina's reply.
But...
After waiting for a moment, Herta received no reply.
Confused, she lifted her head.
The sight that met her eyes was Lumina, struggling to suppress a laugh.
"..."
Seeing this, Herta froze completely.
"Pfft... Hahaha."
Seeing Herta's utterly bewildered and adorably dazed expression, Lumina couldn't hold back any longer and burst out laughing.
"..."
Herta understood.
In that instant, Herta understood everything.
Lumina...
She had been teasing her from the very beginning.
And she... she hadn't realized it at all...
"Little Herta, I never knew you had such... preferences."
Lumina pressed a hand to her mouth, feigning a look of astonishment.
"How truly incredible."
"But don't worry, Little Herta," Lumina said, patting Herta's shoulder with an air of righteous solemnity. "I won't look down on you for your... special tastes!"
Herta: ...
So... so...
So it's better this way, right?
Herta lowered her head, a flicker of dark energy flashing in her eyes.
She mentally recorded today's events, etching into her memory everything Lumina had done to her...
Then, in the future, she would return everything Lumina had done to her today.
In full...