[Check Out My P4treon For +50 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! And get chapters before publishing them here for free on my p4treon][https://p4treon.com/roaverse]
===
The standoff in the hallway had reached a fever pitch. Star and Bronya were locked in a silent war of attrition, their eyes narrowed, practically radiating sparks of competitive electricity.
"Bronya," Star said, finally breaking the silence with a flat, accusatory tone. "Are you thirsty. Again?"
Bronya didn't flinch. She had realized that in the face of a "raccoon" like Stelle, subtlety was a wasted currency. She stood her ground, her voice disciplined and sharp. "No. I am here to see Kenta."
Star raised an eyebrow, her expression shifting into a mask of exaggerated, wide-eyed wonder. "What a coincidence! Me too!"
The deadlock was total. Neither the high-born Commander nor the Galaxy Baseball Bat Hero was willing to concede an inch. But before the tension could snap, a third player emerged from the shadows.
Creak—
A pink-haired head peeked out from the bedroom across the hall. "Wow. It's pitch black out here. What are you two doing, summoning a ghost?"
It was March 7th. She had tried to sleep—she really had—but the constant creak-click-creak of Star leaving and entering their room had acted like a rhythmic Chinese water torture on her nerves. 'How can I sleep? My mind is just a recording of a door hinge on loop...'
"I say..." March whispered, her voice laced with awkward suspicion. "You two aren't actually planning on sneaking into Kenta's room in the middle of the night, are you? Haha... right?"
Star and Bronya remained silent.
Finally, Star let out a long, dramatic sigh. "March!"
"Here!" March responded, her Trailblazer training kicking in reflexively.
"Lift up the rug."
March was confused but obeyed. To Bronya's absolute shock, March pulled a small string of brass keys from under the fabric.
"Those are... house keys?" Bronya gasped. "How did you find those?"
Star smirked, the corners of her mouth curling into a look of supreme confidence. "When we first arrived, I wanted to raid Kenta's trash can, obviously. But the man is a freak—his trash was perfectly clean. Zero loot. So, I expanded my search radius and found the emergency spares."
Bronya was bewildered. "Then why tell me? Why give up your advantage?"
Star wagged a finger. "Because neither of us is backing down! If we stay here staring at each other, we'll waste the entire night. So, I'm making the information public. March, you're the referee. Hold the keys."
Star pointed at Bronya, her face becoming a mask of grim determination. "Let's duel, Bronya! One-on-one. Rock-Paper-Scissors! I've checked the set—Kenta's room key is the longest one. Winner takes the key from March. Loser goes back to bed and stays there!"
March 7th's face was covered in metaphorical black lines. "Rock-Paper-Scissors? This is how you decide a life-changing event? Bronya, please, don't humor her—"
She stopped. Bronya's face was set in a look of icy, terrifying focus. She wasn't smiling. She wasn't laughing.
"I'm coming," Bronya said, her voice a low, fearless growl.
"When it comes to finger dexterity, I will not be defeated," Star countered. A single bead of cold sweat traced down their noses simultaneously.
"Three... two... one!"
"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"
Their hands fell with the weight of a judge's gavel.
Star: Paper.
Bronya: Rock.
Bronya stared at her closed fist in utter disbelief. She staggered back, leaning against the wall as if she'd just been struck by a physical blow. Star, meanwhile, let out a silent cheer, her tense posture melting into a smug victory dance.
"Yes! Victory is mine!" She stepped toward March 7th, hand outstretched. "The key, Ref. Hand it over."
"Wait!" Bronya's voice cracked from behind her. "Best of three! Two out of three!"
Star stopped. She didn't turn around. She slowly closed her eyes, her voice dropping into a magnetic, cool register. "This is unsightly, Bronya. There is no time to mourn your defeat. What arrives on the battlefield now... is me. And Kenta's room key."
She reached for the ring in March's hand.
But then, the unthinkable happened. March 7th lowered her head, her face shadowed. Before Star could grab them, March's hands tightened. Snap.
"?????"
Star's jaw hit the floor. She pointed a trembling finger at the pink-haired girl. "March! Why? Why did you break the Ultra Key?!"
March 7th looked just as bewildered by her own actions. A voice in her heart had screamed: 'If you let them go in there tonight, you will regret it for the rest of your life!' So, her hands had moved on their own.
"Whatever," March thought, trying to play it cool. "Kenta calls me 'bro,' so I'm just looking out for him." She puffed out her chest to lecture Star. "Now listen, Star, what you were doing was wrong—"
Click.
The three girls froze. Their eyes snapped toward Kenta's bedroom door. The handle was turning.
Bronya: 'Did we wake him? Does he think I'm a creep? He's going to hate me!'
Star: 'He's awake? No! I haven't even achieved anything yet!'
March: 'Why am I the one sweating? I didn't even do anything!'
The door swung open. But the figure standing there wasn't the black-haired pyromancer.
"Dan Heng?" Star blurted out.
But as the realization hit them, the three women's expressions shifted from shock to a shared, simmering indignation.
"Why," Star asked, her voice dangerously low, "are you in Kenta's room?"
Dan Heng looked at the three of them, took in the broken keys, the rock-paper-scissors starting positions, and the general aura of 'late-night heist' in the air. He let out a long, weary sigh.
"Kenta came to my room after you all 'went to sleep,'" Dan Heng explained calmly. "He said he'd made a mistake in the dark—that the room he gave me was actually his bedroom. So, we swapped. He's in the guest room next door."
At the time, Dan Heng had found the "mistake" suspicious. After seeing the girls lurking outside the door, the calculation was complete.
The three women stood in the hallway, the weight of Kenta's masterful "Defensive Manuever" sinking in.
"Kenta..." Star whispered, her eyes narrowing into a look of pure, unadulterated challenge. "You are too despicable for words."
===
Note: This story is currently available up to chapter 40 on my Patreon, go check it out.
exclusive 18+ character images, and early chapters, please visit my Patreon. Thanks for your support!
https://p4treon.com/roaverse
if you want more updates == supports with power stones
Every 10 Power Stones==Bonus Chapter
every three 5-star reviews == Bonus Chapter