"University…"
Kurose Akira murmured softly, then leaned back lazily in his chair.
After a brief moment of silence, he casually asked, "By the way, what major are you planning to choose?"
Liu Xue shook her head, looking somewhat absent-minded.
"I haven't decided yet."
"There's still two months before classes start anyway. I'm planning to relax for a while. I don't feel like thinking about it."
"Relax? You mean traveling somewhere?" Akira asked.
Liu Xue glanced at him, a faint sparkle of anticipation flickering in her eyes.
"After experiencing that game, do you really think there's any scenery left on Earth that can compare to the Magic Continent?"
She continued, excitement creeping into her voice.
"Vini said she can take me to live in the Sacred Land of the Elves for a while. I heard the scenery there is the most beautiful in the entire world. I'm planning to stay there for two months."
Akira frowned slightly.
"The elves' sacred land? Can people just enter a place like that?"
If it was truly a sacred land, outsiders shouldn't be able to enter so easily.
"Of course it's not open to everyone," Liu Xue replied, smiling proudly. "Only beings recognized by the Mother Tree of the Elves are allowed to enter."
"And I was fortunate enough to receive permission to enter the Elven Sacred Land—though only for three months."
"I see."
Akira felt a spark of interest rise within him.
Suddenly, he also wanted to see the breathtaking scenery of the elves' sacred land.
"I also heard that the Sacred Land contains incredibly rich elemental magic," Liu Xue continued excitedly. "Staying there can increase your elemental affinity!"
"Really?"
Akira nodded thoughtfully.
From the way she described it, the place was probably somewhat similar to the baptism of the Mother Tree of the Elves.
However, the Mother Tree's baptism was reserved exclusively for High Elves.
Meanwhile, the Sacred Land was open to ordinary elves—or outsiders recognized by the Mother Tree.
"Is everyone here?"
At noon, the class monitor began checking attendance one by one.
After confirming that everyone had arrived, the reunion officially began.
There were no particularly special activities.
The students simply took turns raising glasses to thank their teachers for taking care of them during the past three years of high school.
Akira followed the others and offered a toast to the teachers before returning to his seat.
As he ate, he casually chatted with nearby classmates.
Everyone exchanged contact information and reminisced about the moments they had shared over the past three years. Laughter and lively conversations filled the room.
Akira spent most of the time quietly sitting to the side, listening to their conversations and occasionally smiling.
During the gathering, several female classmates approached him and asked him to step outside privately to talk.
They didn't confess their feelings or anything like that.
Instead, they asked strange questions—like which university he had chosen and what plans he had for the future.
Some even complimented him.
"Lately you've gotten really handsome—honestly you're exactly my ideal boyfriend type."
Things like that.
But when Akira revealed that he would be attending Zhehai University, their expressions visibly changed.
A hint of disappointment appeared.
After all, only a handful of students in their class had managed to get accepted into Zhehai University.
It meant that their future paths would likely diverge from here on out.
When Akira returned to his seat, he noticed the class monitor sitting there quietly crying while a group of classmates surrounded him, trying to comfort him.
"What happened to him?" Akira asked Liu Xue in confusion.
"His confession got rejected."
Liu Xue replied without even looking up, casually scrolling through her phone.
"Oh."
Akira nodded after hearing her explanation and didn't think much more about it.
Liu Xue glanced at him briefly, then said nothing further as she silently deleted several contacts from her phone.
Before long, the reunion came to an end.
Some of the other students suggested heading to a KTV or a bar to continue the celebration.
But Akira and Liu Xue quietly slipped away as they had planned earlier.
The two of them walked side by side toward the bus stop.
Halfway there, Liu Xue suddenly spoke in surprise.
"It looks like that game company just released a new announcement!"
Akira looked at her curiously.
"A new announcement?"
"Yeah!"
She nodded and held her phone out for him to see.
"I heard that when the game enters open beta, they'll release a second-generation console. Apparently the entire system has been compressed into a portable wearable device, so players can access the game anytime and anywhere."
"?"
Akira was quite surprised by the news.
The first-generation console was basically a heavy metal chassis.
But the second generation could compress all that hardware into a lightweight wearable device?
That kind of technological leap would be like a smartphone suddenly surpassing the most powerful gaming PCs within half a year.
With some skepticism, he asked, "Are you sure that announcement actually came from the game company? You can't even find their address online."
"It's probably real—about an eighty or ninety percent chance," Liu Xue replied as she lightly hopped onto the bus platform.
"Many players ranked Class B or higher have already confirmed the news."
Akira stepped up beside her and continued asking,
"So do we need to replace our current consoles?"
"For closed beta players, we just need to submit a survey report and the company will mail us the new device. But I heard that one week after the open beta begins, the old consoles will stop working."
"I see."
Akira nodded, gaining a clearer understanding of the upcoming open beta.
Then he asked curiously,
"How do you know so much about this? What kind of group did you join?"
Liu Xue answered casually,
"Just a regular player group. Lingxi invited me."
She shrugged as if it were nothing important.
"…"
Akira was silent for a few seconds.
Why wasn't he in any groups like that?
"The bus is here!"
Honk—!
The bus pulled into the station, and the two of them boarded.
Their routes were the same, requiring about half an hour of travel.
Buzz—buzz—
During the ride, Akira's phone suddenly vibrated.
He took it out and saw a message from Xu Feiyan.
Ever since they had agreed to meet, he had obtained her contact information.
When he added her on WeChat, Akira had been momentarily stunned.
Her profile picture was actually a pink bird, seemingly from some anime.
The bird wore a tiny floral dress and looked ridiculously cute.
No matter how he thought about it, that didn't seem like the kind of avatar a wealthy, mature woman would use.
It felt far more suitable for someone like Liu Xue—a high school girl.
Meanwhile, Liu Xue's own avatar was completely blank, with only a faint cherry-pink dot in the center…
[Fei: Let's meet here tomorrow.]
Xu Feiyan sent another message, this time including a location.
Akira glanced at it and realized it was one of the most expensive restaurants in Hangzhou.
"She sure knows how to pick a place…"
The kind of prices there weren't something a poor student like him could afford.
A single meal started at several thousand yuan. The cost-performance ratio was terrible.
He'd rather go for Crazy Thursday.
Still, Akira replied with a simple "Okay."
"Who are you chatting with?"
Liu Xue suddenly leaned closer, peeking at his phone curiously.
"A friend from the game," Akira answered calmly. "I'm planning to sell her some gold."
"Selling gold?"
Liu Xue's eyes lit up with excitement.
"I've got ten gold coins right now. How much could those sell for?"
That was basically her entire guild's treasury.
"At the current price, probably around ten thousand."
"Ten thousand?!"
Liu Xue exclaimed in shock.
The number clearly exceeded her expectations.
Then she looked at Akira with hopeful eyes.
"Could you help me sell five of them?"
"In a few days it'll be my sister's birthday. I want to buy her a necklace as a gift."
"Your sister's birthday?"
Akira nodded after hearing that.
"Sure. Just wait for my good news."
"Then I'll transfer the gold to you when I get home?" Liu Xue asked cautiously, a hint of excitement in her eyes.
"…You won't just pocket my gold and run, right?"
"You don't trust me?" Akira frowned.
They had known each other for so long, yet this girl still doubted him?
"You~"
Liu Xue looked him up and down carefully, then smiled playfully.
"Of course I trust you unconditionally~"
"…"
Akira remained silent.
Something about that response felt… strange.
"My stop is here. I'll head off first~"
"Mm."
Liu Xue waved goodbye and got off the bus.
Akira rode for a few more stops before eventually getting off as well.
The moment he arrived home, the first thing he did was log into the game.
Because of the time difference between reality and the game world, it was only about six in the morning inside the game.
Akira planned to organize the guild's assets in preparation for tomorrow's gold transaction with Xu Feiyan.
He had just sat down on the sofa when a faint fragrance suddenly drifted toward him.
Turning around, he saw that Ivsha had appeared behind him at some point.
She wrapped her arms around him and said in a charming voice,
"Mr. Kurose Akira~"
Akira blinked in surprise.
"Ivsha? Why are you here so early today?"
"That's because Mr. Akira hasn't 'fed' me in quite a long time," Ivsha said as she gently cupped his cheeks with both hands.
"I'm starving~"
Her tone carried a teasing hint of coquettishness, and her eyes sparkled with anticipation.
Akira responded with a confident smile.
"Well, that's perfect. I've recently discovered a new technique you'll definitely enjoy."
"Really?"
Ivsha's smile deepened.
"Then I'm… very much looking forward to it~"
(What followed was a rather detailed description of disciplining a succubus orally… omitted here: roughly one hundred thousand words…)
...
At seven in the morning, sunlight finally slipped through the curtains.
Only then did Akira finish his "discipline" of Ivsha.
After obtaining the trait [Tongue of Death], he finally possessed the means to compete against Ivsha's [Death Coil] trait.
Combined with the power boost from the Blood of the Demon King of Lust, Ivsha was no longer his match.
The only problem was…
Even the sweetest honey becomes tiresome if you taste too much.
"Umi-umi~"
"Hm?"
Akira suddenly heard a sound.
Turning his head, he saw that Xue'er had appeared beside him at some point.
Her bright eyes stared at him curiously as her tiny hands waved in the air, as if trying to imitate something.
Her movements…
Akira frowned slightly.
Why was this little one mimicking the life ritual he had just performed with Ivsha?
"You little brat… were you watching the whole time?"
Akira picked Xue'er up, looking somewhat exasperated.
"Y—yes~ dear… Aki~"
Xue'er covered her mouth with her tiny hand and smiled innocently, looking extremely pleased.
"..."
Akira's expression instantly turned serious.
Not only had this little creature failed to sleep in her nest—
She had secretly watched the entire ritual between him and Ivsha.
And now she was even copying Ivsha's tone and gestures?
"Pfft~"
Ivsha giggled softly and poked Xue'er's smooth cheek with her slender finger.
"Looks like this little one is quite curious about the ritual of life too~"
"..."
Akira said nothing.
He absolutely did not want this pure-looking snow spirit to develop a personality like a succubus.
"Why aren't you wearing any clothes?"
Just as Akira and Ivsha were both focused on Xue'er, Lucy arrived at the guild.
The moment she saw the two of them sitting on the sofa in the guild hall with their clothes in disarray, her expression instantly darkened.
"Why are you here so early too?" Akira hurriedly put his clothes back on and asked.
Why was everyone arriving so early today?
"..."
Lucy didn't answer.
Instead, she cast a cold glance at Xue'er in Ivsha's arms, her expression complicated.
She hesitated.
Should she tell Akira the truth?
That he had brought the Frostfield Witch into the guild?
Yet…
Although Xue'er's aura was identical to that of the Frostfield Witch, her appearance was completely different from the legendary witch who had once destroyed an entire kingdom.
Lucy simply couldn't reconcile the two.
After thinking for a long time, she finally made her decision.
"Xue'er might be connected to the Frostfield Witch," Lucy said carefully.
She wasn't completely certain that Xue'er was the witch herself.
Akira nodded thoughtfully.
"Snow dolphins were magical creations of the Frostfield Witch. It makes sense that they'd be closely connected."
"If…"
Lucy's expression grew serious.
"If she really is the Frostfield Witch, what would you do?"
Akira froze for a moment.
Then he turned to look at Xue'er in Ivsha's arms.
This little creature… the Frostfield Witch?
No way.
She didn't look like it at all.
"I'm just saying if," Lucy added.
"When the time comes, I'll make my decision," Akira replied calmly.
"Then it will be your choice."
Lucy said nothing more.
After all, this was Akira's guild.
If the Frostfield Witch truly appeared here, how he handled it was his decision.
"Well then~ Miss Saintess~"
Suddenly, Ivsha appeared silently behind Lucy and wrapped her arms around her, preventing her from escaping.
"What are you doing?" Lucy asked, confused.
Ivsha leaned close to her ear and whispered softly,
"I just experienced Mr. Akira's new weapon…"
"Now it's your turn~"
"…New weapon?"
Lucy frowned.
At first she didn't understand what Ivsha meant.
But then—
A memory flashed through her mind.
Her face instantly turned pale.
Her heart began pounding as fear crept across her expression.
Could that "new weapon" be…?
"Oh~"
Ivsha noticed Lucy's reaction and smiled sweetly.
"So Miss Saintess already knows about Mr. Akira's new weapon?"
"I thought I was the first one lucky enough to try it~"
…
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