After walking past the two girls, Eiden resisted the urge to glance back. His body itched with curiosity, but he refrained, fixing his eyes straight ahead as he made his way toward the classroom. The hallway buzzed faintly with scattered conversations, and the tap of his footsteps mixed with the ambient noise. His thoughts were scattered, trying to digest the recent whirlwind of events from Linda’s strange behavior to Deuel’s pointed questions. But he had no ti to unpack it all.
As he reached his classroom, the door creaked open, and a petite figure stepped out. Eiden instinctively halted. It was Airie. Her head barely reached his chest now that he stood at a solid six feet tall, and when she looked up, her wide eyes had to travel all the way to et his gaze. There was a brief flicker of recognition or maybe surprise in her soft, unassuming eyes. But her expression quickly returned to its usual neutrality.
"Excuse ," she said politely, her voice gentle, almost like wind chis. Eiden stepped aside imdiately without saying a word, his body moving on its own like a reflex. Airie walked past him in silence, her short steps light and silent, almost like she floated away.
He didn’t follow her with his gaze. In fact, he actively avoided doing so. Instead, he walked into the classroom and tucked himself into a corner near the windows. His hands reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. With the screen lit up against his cheek, he held it like he was mid-conversation.
"...Yeah, I’m already here... No, no rush," he murmured vaguely, though no one was really listening. It was overkill. He knew that. No one would’ve thought it strange if he just stood silently at a corner. Students did weirder things on a daily basis. Still, sothing in him refused to be seen as odd, creepy, or worse suspicious. Even if the fear was irrational, this little act soothed his nerves.
But the real reason for the fake call was glowing in front of his eyes not the phone screen, but the system window. "System-chan, pull up the map again," he whispered internally.
Ding!
The translucent window shimred into view, displaying the sa glowing campus layout. Bright, color-coded arrows blinked with subtle motion, each marking the location of a "harem target." A new addition had been implented at Eiden’s request: the nas of the girls were now labeled beside the arrows.
He scanned the layout. Lyra was at the Cafeteria , Miss Mika was at the Office, Arin was at the Theatre Club Room. "Huh... She did say sothing about acting," Eiden thought, nodding faintly.
Then his eyes landed on Airie’s na. Airie seed to be at the Rooftop. "Huh? The rooftop?" His brow furrowed. Without wasting a second, Eiden slipped the phone back into his pocket and exited the classroom with casual strides. He made sure not to look hurried. Acting overly sneaky would just invite attention. But once out of sight, he quickened his pace.
The stairwell echoed as his footsteps carried him higher. Occasionally, a few students walked past so descending, so ascending. He glanced at one or two without saying a word. As he climbed higher, the flow of people thinned. By the ti he reached the final flight leading to the rooftop, the halls were almost silent.
Standing before the thick tal door, Eiden leaned toward the small glass window embedded at eye level and peered through it. The rooftop appeared empty at first glance. Cautiously, he pushed the door open with a soft press, barely allowing the hinges to creak.
The wind was stronger up here, brushing against his hair, carrying the distant sound of traffic and chatter from the campus below. The rooftop was more expansive than he’d imagined. Not flat and open like he thought, but layered with high walls at so corners, ventilation systems, and elevated panels.
Eiden glanced at the system map again. She was to the right. He moved silently in that direction, the soles of his shoes barely making a sound. A low concrete wall shielded him from view. As he got closer, muffled voices reached his ears. He slowed, hugging the wall tightly.
He carefully positioned himself so he could listen without exposing himself. A man’s voice firm, professional. "No... I can’t do that. Or rather, I’m not capable of doing that. I can’t enter her room. It’s beyond my authority."
Eiden felt like that he seed familiar , As the man was dressed in a black suit crisp, ironed, clean. But instead of looking refined like so elite businessman, his posture and deanor scread bodyguard. Earpiece. Sunglasses. And his physique seed good enough to be one.
Airie stood before him, arms folded loosely, her brows slightly furrowed. She wasn’t speaking loudly more like giving a series of controlled instructions.
"Fair enough," she said. "But I want updates. Tell whenever she cos in contact with males who clearly show interest in her." Eiden blinked. She? Who’s she? Airie continued calmly. "And keep tabs on her personal bodyguard. That man is... suspicious. Too much of his background is scrubbed. It’s like it was intentionally erased. I don’t trust him."
Eiden’s eyes widened. He leaned in slightly more. "His purpose isn’t clear. Sothing about him doesn’t sit right," she added, her tone sharpened. "I want all his movents tracked if he breathes wrong, I want to know."
The man hesitated. "It’s not that simple," he said. "He’s... highly trained. His gaze detection is off the charts. Last week, I stared at him for four seconds and he turned around, scanning the surroundings for who was watching." He let out a sigh. "I can barely observe Lady Eva properly when he’s around. He shadows her movents almost perfectly."
Eva?! Eiden’s thoughts nearly exploded. Wait hold up Eva? He gripped the edge of the wall, his mind racing. This isn’t normal behavior... Airie’s stalking Eva? And she hired a spy to track her?! This is... this is next-level yandere sht.*
Images ford in his head Airie sitting in a dark room filled with candid photos of Eva, string connecting thumbtacks, muttering to herself, obsessively tracking every interaction she had.
He shivered. As their conversation veered deeper into business, nas, and dealings that went way over his head, Eiden decided it was ti to leave. He wanted to hear more badly but the risk was climbing. If they decided to wrap up and head back, he’d be caught trying to sneak away.
Nope. Not worth it. Carefully, he stepped back. The wind picked up, rustling his hair as he retraced his steps to the rooftop door. With the sa quiet finesse, he cracked it open, slid through, and gently closed it behind him.
Only when he made it back to the stairwell and saw students casually moving around again did he exhale the breath he’d been holding.
His heart still beat like a war drum. Thoughts swirled in his head. Airie’s not just so quiet girl with good manners. She’s wrapped up in sothing heavy spying, politics, and who knows what else. Who even is Eva to be tracked like that? Why is her bodyguard a stealth master?
Still consud by these thoughts, he descended the stairs absentmindedly. His hands folded under his chin, posture slouched forward, his eyes glassy and unfocused.
And that’s BAM! His forehead slamd into sothing hard. A dull thunk echoed as two heads collided, followed by a yelp and the sound of soone stumbling backward. "Ah shit," Eiden groaned, rubbing his forehead.
He hadn’t fallen, but the other person had.
Snapping out of his ntal fog, he instinctively reached down and offered his hand to the person on the floor.
Their hand reached back slender, delicate fingers land as he pulled them up, their face ca into view.
Miss Mika. Eiden froze. Mika blinked up at him, her expression caught between surprised and various mysterious expression .
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