"Coo-coo~"
Sakura Country, Sakuramiya Main Residence.
At this mont, the sky was not yet bright.
The faint morning light could not pierce through the heavy veil of night, only managing to leave traces of its struggle in the hollows of the clouds.
The agonizing arrival of the morning light awakened the birds that had been silent all night on the branches, and it also startled Yan Huan, who was sleeping restlessly in the guest courtyard.
After a clear chirp from a bird, he suddenly opened his eyes and sat up, clutching his sweaty forehead.
"..."
Just as he sat up, the wooden carving he was holding in his arms fell to the ground, making a soft sound.
"Thud~"
"Ugh."
The sound caused Sakuramiya Kagami, who was sleeping soundly, to groggily let out a muffled groan.
But he did not wake up at all; he rely rolled over and went back to dreamland.
anwhile, Yan Huan stared at the rough wooden carving that had fallen to the side, panting for a long ti, unable to calm down.
In his mind, the scenes from last night's dream remained vivid even now.
"What is wrong, Yan Huan? Did you have a nightmare last night, ow?"
Beside him, Myau-chan materialized, stepping on the uneven bedding with his paw pads. The black cat ran between Yan Huan's legs and looked up at him.
"It was not exactly a nightmare."
Hearing this, Yan Huan sighed, rubbing the space between his eyebrows as he withdrew his gaze from the carving.
"I just thought of so things from the past."
"About An Le?"
"Yes."
Yan Huan nodded and murmured,
"I rember that I promised her I would recognize her the next ti I saw her. But when I saw her at the ani convention, I failed to recognize her...
"Also, when I saw the doujinshi she drew before, I vaguely rembered that I had promised her sothing, which is why I thought to ask her."
Upon hearing this, Myau-chan tilted his head.
"So the promise you rembered when looking at the doujinshi is the one from the dream, ow?"
After thinking for a few seconds, Yan Huan shook his head and said,
"No, it is another one, but I cannot recall what it is for the ti being."
"ow?"
At this mont, Yan Huan's eyelashes trembled slightly.
In the gaps where his eyelashes sliced through the fluorescent light seeping in from the sliding wooden doors, he could faintly see the childhood An Le running ahead of him, smiling as she slowly turned her head back.
She revealed a cheerful smile, her hair dotted with a few beads of sweat that sparkled brightly under the sumr sunlight.
That was exactly the purpose behind Yan Huan saying those words.
Back then, Yan Huan chose to do that precisely to help her beco more cheerful.
For Yan Huan, who was living his second life, he truly treated An Le like a little sister at the ti.
Yan Huan was not Yabashi Ki. He was not a lolicon, nor did he have any other bad intentions.
It was like working for a year and returning to his hotown for the New Year, only to et a very introverted and shy younger sister from a distant relative's family.
She said she was often bullied at school and had no friends.
He found her pitiful yet adorable, so he tried his best to take her out to play during the holidays.
He took her to set off firecrackers, gorged on mandarin oranges together, went out to watch movies, and even gave her New Year's lucky money.
At that ti, in order to make her more cheerful, he comforted and guided her, making promises to her.
Were those promises fake?
Not necessarily.
It did not an Yan Huan was deceiving her, nor did it an that he had no intention of fulfilling his promises when he made them.
It was just that when he returned to his hotown the following year, he did not see that little sister again.
After asking around, he found out that her entire family had moved abroad and would not be coming back for the New Year.
Perhaps he still missed her at first, but after all, he had his own life to live and his own matters to handle.
So year after year passed, until one day, more than ten years later, he reunited with her, who had grown into a beautiful young woman.
By then, his mory had already been filled with the people and events of the past decade...
Could anyone guarantee that they would still rember a certain thing they promised a little girl on a certain day during the New Year more than ten years ago?
"..."
Yan Huan rubbed the space between his eyebrows, his feelings quite complicated at the mont.
However, based on the dream generated by the carving last night, he could at least glean two key pieces of information.
An Le still rembered this promise, and objectively speaking, this promise was extrely important.
Unless this so-called special attack item was rely a gimmick.
"ow~"
Just as Yan Huan was frowning in thought, Myau-chan, who was examining the carving in front of him, pawed at the statue with his paw pads, then wagged his tail and owed,
"Yan Huan, look, this carving seems to have beco clearer, ow!"
"What?"
Hearing this, Yan Huan quickly looked at the carving.
Sure enough, he found that although the carving was still blurry with sharp, undefined edges, compared to last night, he could finally distinguish where its face was.
Perhaps after a few more tis, this indistinguishable carving would eventually reveal its true appearance.
As he looked at the carving, which seed like clouds parting for a mont, a flash of inspiration instantly struck Yan Huan's mind.
"I think I understand, Myau-chan."
"Do you understand how to use what you dread about last night to solve An Le's problem, ow?"
"You could say that."
Yan Huan rubbed the carving and looked at the black cat with its head raised before him, saying,
"I was just thinking, if this carving really is a precious special attack item, then even if it functions by providing information, the information it gives must be the key to solving the dilemma of An Le's Modifier.
"But since it does not provide everything in one step, can I assu that the previous dreams are either a hint to that key information, or a part of it?
"Or perhaps, it is both?"
After listening to Yan Huan's lengthy analysis, Myau-chan blinked. He opened his cat mouth and pondered for a long ti before saying,
"I feel the sa way, ow!"
But Yan Huan was completely engrossed at the mont, not even having the leisure to pay attention to Myau-chan's useless display.
"That idiot An Le is the best at wronging herself. Even if she cannot get the things she values, she will not say it out loud. Even if you ask her, she will not confide her grievances to you; you can only rely on your own guesses."
Therefore, when they were children, Yan Huan had tried every possible ans to help her break out of this awkward, twisted personality.
She was clearly about to get better, but then she left Linn, and by today, her condition had actually worsened.
"The information in last night's dream was a promise I made. If it is the sa tonight, then we can basically pinpoint that the key information is a promise I made to her."
Yan Huan tried hard to recall what else he had promised her when they were young, and for a mont, he did indeed think of quite a few things.
Promising to visit her house every week to see the cat once her family got one, promising to go see the beautiful blue sea together when she grew up, promising to learn to draw together, going to the zoo to see snakes together, watching fireworks together...
But as to which one was the most critical, Yan Huan simply could not tell.
The most critical, the most important...
And the most abnormal?
As Yan Huan pondered, although he still could not think of what the promise was, he suddenly shuddered.
He suddenly realized sothing.
These promises from just now were ones that, even if he forgot them, An Le could just swallow her grievances and keep them to herself without saying a word.
This was also why, when he first saw An Le at the ani convention and failed to recognize her, she did not ntion it, nor did she complain.
Therefore, that promise she could absolutely not accept being forgotten was the key.
Yan Huan looked at the carving in his hands with considerable excitent, seemingly having discerned the true nature of the so-called Anti-An Le Item.
"Click~"
But in the next second, the sound of a cara shutter suddenly rang out from beside him.
Yan Huan's expression froze, and he turned his head to look to the side.
He saw Sakuramiya Kagami holding up his mobile phone, pointing it at him with a sowhat fearful expression, speaking with lingering trepidation,
"No, you... you are a bit scary, right, Yan Huan?
"Damn it, not sleeping early in the morning, sitting up alone and smiling weirdly in excitent at an ugly statue...
"Are you worshiping so evil god? I am going to show this picture to Sakuramiya Hitomi, letting her get a good look at your true colors!"
Hearing this, Yan Huan's face darkened. He really wanted to smash the carving in his hand into him.
'Worshiping an evil god?'
'I do have a Divine Lord by my side. Whether it is evil or not is unclear, but it sure is a useless piece of trash.'
"ow?"
Although Yan Huan kept his face dark and said nothing, the tail of Myau-chan beside him shot up, and the cat looked around in confusion.
At this mont, its tail seed to have transford into a Trash Light Wave Antenna, able to sense if soone within a fifteen-ter radius was calling it a Useless Hachimi.
"Crazy. I am getting up."
"Getting up this early, you are the crazy one. The sky outside isn't even bright..."
"Lazybones."
"Heh."
Yan Huan stood up and carefully placed the carving inside his suitcase so he could retrieve it again at night.
Just now, along with the promise hinted at in last night's dream, he had already thought of quite a few.
Perhaps the most critical promise that An Le had in mind was among them?
Yan Huan had to seize the ti and quickly resolve the dilemma of An Le's Modifier. Otherwise, given how she was constantly crossing paths with the other Modifier Hosts right now, they would sooner or later generate friction until everything completely exploded.
"Phew."
Rubbing his shoulders, Yan Huan ignored Sakuramiya Kagami, who had lain back down, and pulled open the door to the guest room.
Just as Sakuramiya Kagami said, the sky outside was not yet bright, and everything was in silence.
He took a deep breath, only feeling the pressure enveloping his body.
Sakuramiya's issue, An Le's issue...
They were like two bombs about to explode, urgently awaiting Yan Huan to cut the wires and put out the fire.
Oh, right, there was also Spencer's studies, which he also had to worry about.
Thinking of all these random things, Yan Huan's footsteps unconsciously quickened a bit.
The School Trip, the most popular ti of the year for students at Far Moon Academy.
Because all the students could leave everything behind in a foreign land, enjoy their vacation, and embrace their youth.
Only Yan Huan...
Was here to work overti.
"Yan Huan! What should we do today to deal with that Lucy-sothing-na?!"
Shortly after dawn, while the staff mbers of the Sakuramiya Main Residence were still preparing breakfast, Spencer, having finished washing up, stood with her hands on her hips. She looked enthusiastically at Yan Huan, who was sitting by the courtyard, and asked this with her eyes gleaming.
It seed that Luciana Adams had left a particularly bad impression on Spencer in the hot spring last night.
So much so that Spencer hadn't even eaten yet and was already practicing her first set of ox-strength gymnastics, preparing to show Luciana what she was made of.
Truth be told, after listening to Luciana's insolence last night, it was the first ti Yan Huan felt soone deserved a taste of the Modifier's iron fist.
However, it was not entirely unexpected that no one used a Modifier against her.
Mainly because Luciana had only insulted two people.
One was Sakuramiya Hitomi, and the other was Spencer.
Between them, Sakuramiya Hitomi was very cautious with her Modifier and would not easily use it to ss with people.
If she hadn't completely snapped when Spencer exposed her peeping, Yan Huan probably still wouldn't know she was the final Host even now.
As for Spencer...
The noble stat-checker and passive player just wanted to ask: "Which button do I press to activate the Modifier?"
Since the two main targets had no reason to proactively use their Modifiers, let alone the others.
Ye Shiyu and Bai Yi's relationship with Sakuramiya Hitomi or Spencer was not quite at that level yet.
Their current relationship was an alliance, initially ford to deal with Spencer together, and now ford to deal with An Le together.
Did you really think they were now intimate best friends?
At the end of the day, Sakuramiya Hitomi not returning to Linn was actually beneficial to them, because it ant she completely had no chance with Yan Huan anymore.
Furthermore, Luciana didn't insult them either, so naturally they wouldn't go as far as using their Modifiers to stand up for Spencer or An Le.
Instead, An Le speaking up was what took everyone by surprise...
"Sorry, that is not on the itinerary today."
"Huh?"
"Today you are going to study. I just specifically designed a set of learning thods for you. How about we test the results in a bit?"
Hearing Yan Huan say this, Spencer touched the back of her head, finally slow to catch on as she rembered:
They had originally co to the Sakuramiya family simply to study!
After speaking, Yan Huan smilingly handed a stack of papers to Spencer.
Spreading them out, she saw that they were actually filled with simple yet highly accurate drawings of little pigs and little birds.
The little pigs and birds explained the knowledge points that needed to be morized and understood through dialogue or by acting out stories, making Spencer's eyes gleam the mont she saw it,
"So many little pigs! Did you draw this?!"
"Mhm, how is it?"
Last night, he gained a Skill that increased his drawing talent, and in the morning, rembering how Spencer liked to scribble and draw when taking notes, Yan Huan ca up with this idea.
Didn't they say Yan Huan had endless vigor all day?
Not long after waking up, he was able to ponder solutions for Sakuramiya Hitomi's and An Le's difficult problems while simultaneously drawing a bunch of little picture books for Spencer to study with.
It could only be said that, relying on this boundless energy, Yan Huan would succeed in whatever he did.
However, this was definitely not perfect and would need the other mbers of the Study Group to help supplent it.
He would discuss it with Sakuramiya and the others later.
But right now, Spencer stared with her eyes gleaming for a long ti, only to blurt out a single sentence,
"It looks great... Seeing this makes
want to play Angry Little Pigs."
Hearing this, Yan Huan's face instantly darkened, and he quickly gave her a flick on the head.
"Still playing! This is for you to morize knowledge points!"
"Ouch."
Receiving the flick on the head, she scrunched up her face and clutched her head.
Looking at her expression, Yan Huan found her adorable and regretted tapping her head.
"..."
After a mont of silence, Yan Huan could not help but reach out and rub her head.
His fingertips rubbing against her blonde hair transmitted a ticklish feeling, making Spencer unconsciously tilt her head back and narrow her eyes.
And because she tilted her head back to face him, Yan Huan's gaze inevitably fell on her beautiful features... especially her full lips.
It made him want to kiss her.
"...Let's go to where we eat breakfast. I am a little thirsty,"
Tearing his gaze away with difficulty and withdrawing his palm, Yan Huan managed to say this dryly.
Spencer did not realize anything; she just happily nodded while holding the stack of manuscript papers,
"Okay."
The two of them walked all the way towards the main hall, passing by the area where Sakuramiya Hitomi and An Le were resting.
Ye Shiyu and Bai Yi were already awake, observing this direction from the doorways of their respective rooms.
They seed to be worried that a war had broken out in that room last night, and that only one person would co out this morning...
Fortunately, the door slowly opened, and both Sakuramiya Hitomi and An Le inside were completely unhard.
Daybreak, open your eyes; last night was a peaceful night~
"Good morning, President, Spencer."
"Good morning, Xiao Huan..."
Upon seeing Yan Huan approaching, both of them said their good mornings one after another.
"Morning, Sakuramiya, An Le."
"Morning, Sakuramiya, An... An Le."
Spencer followed behind Yan Huan, mimicking him by politely greeting them. Sakuramiya Hitomi returned a good morning, but An Le didn't even look at her, showing no reaction whatsoever.
This caused Spencer, who had finally mustered her courage, to shrink back slightly in disappointnt.
Seeing this, Yan Huan could not help but look at An Le.
Feeling Yan Huan's gaze, with her slightly pale face, she pursed her lips and revealed a shy smile.
Perhaps beneath that emotionally restrained smile, there also laid a certain precious promise waiting for Yan Huan to recall or realize.
Only at this mont, regarding that promise, Yan Huan had no definitive answer whatsoever.
"...Let's go. We should eat breakfast first."
"Okay~"
Spencer scrunched up her face and raised her eyes, deep in thought.
Stare~
What entered her sight was Ye Shiyu's expressionless face.
"Ugh."
That face made Spencer uncomfortable, so she turned her head to look elsewhere.
Stare~
On the other side was Sakuramiya Hitomi, who was earnestly organizing the study materials in her hands. Seeing her look over, Hitomi calmly asked,
"Have you figured out the answer?"
"Uh... not... not yet! Let
think a bit more..."
That face gave Spencer a guilty conscience, so she turned her head to look in yet another direction.
Stare~
On this side was Bai Yi's face, unearthly beautiful even while yawning.
"So stupid. You still can't figure it out after all this ti."
These words inevitably incensed Spencer. She slamd the paper covered in little pigs and birds onto the wooden table, pointing at Bai Yi as she declared,
"I object! The two of you are fine, but she clearly joined the Study Group just like . Why does she get to teach
now?!"
As soon as these words ca out, Ye Shiyu and Sakuramiya Hitomi couldn't help but look at Bai Yi.
This made Bai Yi unable to hold back, innocently retorting,
"Why are you guys looking at ? I never wanted to teach anyone in the first place, alright? You make it sound like I joined the Study Group on my own initiative..."
After saying that, however, she looked at Sakuramiya Hitomi and curiously asked,
"By the way, what exactly did you and An Le talk about last night? Not only did she not fight with you, but she hasn't troubled us today either, staying far away... Did you actually convince her to give up using her superpower on us?"
This morning after breakfast, once the Study Group formally began, An Le had disappeared sowhere by herself.
Yan Huan had been with the Study Group the whole ti and was currently only absent because he went to the restroom. "It is not that simple, but she definitely won't make a move against us for the ti being..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi sighed, ruminating on An Le's hint from last night.
The one about the side effects.
Thinking of this, she looked at the few people in front of her and probingly asked,
"By the way, An Le told
sothing last night. I am not sure if she was lying or if it is actually true..."
"What is it?"
Everyone's gaze fell on her. Sakuramiya Hitomi weighed her words and tentatively said,
"An Le seed to vaguely hint to
last night that there is a price to pay for using superpowers. Do you guys think this is true?"
Hearing this, Ye Shiyu and Spencer didn't have much of a reaction, but Bai Yi's expression instantly froze.
She opened her mouth, glanced at the two unresponsive people beside her, and then cautiously remained silent.
Ye Shiyu pondered for a mont, shook her head, and said,
"Using my superpower up to now, I haven't felt anything wrong."
Hearing this, Sakuramiya Hitomi turned to look at Spencer...
Well, looking at her was pointless.
Therefore, Sakuramiya Hitomi could only speak for herself,
" neither, so I don't know how An Le ca to this conclusion."
Hearing them both say this, Bai Yi, who originally had a slight suspicion of this herself, couldn't help but wonder if she was just imagining things.
'Was the feeling that I was being changed just an illusion?'
'Did I just beco arrogant and dismissive of others on my own, and then blad it on so external force?'
Thinking of this, Bai Yi couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilty conscience.
"Bai Yi, it should be the sa for you, right?"
"Ah? Uh... yes."
Bai Yi grew increasingly convinced that it was just an illusion, and so she agreed.
"So, could it be that An Le misunderstood? It is possible that she only experienced side effects because her tentacles were severed in her fight with us..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi was still analyzing, but as she spoke, the room's sliding door opened.
The group hastily fell silent, maintaining their bottom line to never expose themselves in front of Yan Huan.
Yan Huan, wiping his still-damp hands, looked at Spencer,
"How is it, did she morize those knowledge points?"
"Huh?"
Hearing Yan Huan ask this, Spencer imdiately deflated.
She had been too busy joining their discussion and had completely forgotten about it.
"I-I am almost there! Just a little more and I will have it all morized!"
"..."
Yan Huan was speechless. He was just about to say sothing when his mobile phone suddenly rang in his pocket.
"Ring-ring-ring~"
A call?
Yan Huan raised an eyebrow, taking out his mobile phone to check.
It was actually Yabashi Ki calling.
Why was he calling?
Yan Huan was puzzled and prepared to step outside to answer the call.
But before heading out, he looked at Spencer, feigning a serious expression.
"I will give you a bit more ti. Finish morizing that section."
"Okay."
Spencer nodded weakly, holding up the papers and lying down on the tatami mat, repeating the contents like a chanting monk.
Yan Huan closed the sliding door and, while answering the phone, walked toward the other side of the corridor.
"Hello, what is wrong?"
"President!! Where... where exactly did you guys go?!"
To his surprise, the voice on the other end was Yurianna's loud shouting.
The sheer volu hurt Yan Huan's eardrums, prompting him to quickly pull the mobile phone further away.
Only after she finished did Yan Huan reply,
"It is a secret. Either way, we are handling serious business."
Joke aside, if he really told the big mouth Yurianna that he and several girls ca out to hold a Study Group...
Believe it or not, by the next day, rumors like 'President Yan Huan is secretly building a harem' would spread throughout the entire school.
"Damn it, President, you bad guy! You just left, leaving
all alone to deal with this burdenso School Trip!"
"Huh? Wait, what are you talking about? I don't understand you at all."
Just as Yan Huan was feeling confused, Yabashi Ki's and Ashley's complaints chid in perfectly,
"What do you an, 'all alone'?"
"Yeah! We both had to endure a lot too, okay!"
"..."
Wait a minute, how did this make him seem like a scumbag who walked out, and the three of them the poor souls he abandoned?
The question was, what had he even done to them?
"So, can one of you explain what exactly is going on?"
"Hmph, President, you—"
"Stop right there. I don't want to hear it from you. I want Ashley or Yabashi Ki to speak."
"Eh-eh-eh?! Why?!"
On the other side, Yurianna reacted as if struck by lightning, loudly shouting in disbelief.
Beside her, Yabashi Ki chuckled and took the phone, explaining the situation to Yan Huan.
"It's like this, President. Even though you left, others have been sending you matchmaking gifts because of the Ten-Day School Trip legend!"
"Yeah, and since you aren't here, those girls asked Yurianna and
to pass them on to you..."
Yan Huan roughly understood but was still full of confusion.
"So, couldn't you guys just refuse them?"
"It is all Yurianna's fault! This idiot, people trade classmates' gossip with her, and the mont they feed her a little gossip, she giggles and agrees! Now our bedroom is full of black cat rchandise! Every day when we move our suitcases, we have to move all this stuff too!"
"Wu-wu-wu, s-sorry... But I just had to hear about the love-hate drama between the senior female student Fujiwara from the third year and the three boys from Shuurei Academy..."
On the other end, Yurianna's voice was pitiful at first, but then turned indignant.
"Besides, Yabashi Ki is even worse than ! He is so soft-hearted that he agreed to pass them along without needing anything in return!"
"Heh, there are fewer gifts from the guys' side, so carrying them isn't tiring."
While listening, Yan Huan was just about to nod when his expression imdiately contorted.
'What do you an fewer gifts from the guys' side? Are there guys sending
matchmaking gifts too?!'
"...Mhm."
Hearing Yabashi Ki's confirmation, Yan Huan's face completely darkened.
"Mhm my ass, Yabashi Ki! Did your brain short-circuit?! Return them all! Just say it ca from , and return everything!"
"Got it, President."
Just you wait, Yabashi Ki.
Once we arrive in Tokyo, I am going to gift you a set of femboy galga rchandise.
When you happily take it ho and prepare to play, intending to et cute lolis in the two-dinsional world, I will make you experience the despair of 'when they whip it out, it's bigger than yours'!
"...But speaking of which, how did those girls know that I like black cat rchandise?"
He was about to hang up on his bad friend, but Yan Huan suddenly recalled a small detail Yurianna had just ntioned.
He usually didn't chat much with others online, and only people very close to him knew that he liked black cats.
Think about it, even Ashley and Yabashi Ki from the sa Student Council were unclear about it and needed to be reminded.
Yet, out of nowhere, all these outsiders were unanimously sending him black cat gifts?
"There is a fan support website created during your election, President. It's written on there."
"We initially thought Yabashi Ki made it, but he didn't even know this website existed..."
"But this website seems to be quite popular among the girls. At the ti, quite a few people noticed you because of this site, President."
The three of them took turns speaking, leaving Yan Huan montarily stunned.
A fan support website?
And during his Student Council election?
More than a sester had passed, and this was the first ti Yan Huan was hearing about it.
"...Send
the link to that site so I can take a look?"
"OK."
"Hmm, I wonder who made it. Could it be so little fangirl of yours, President?"
"..."
Yan Huan thanked them over the phone and then tapped the link Yabashi Ki sent.
The mont it opened, a webpage featuring a hand-drawn portrait of himself as the background caught his eye.
"Hiss."
Looking at such a large hand-drawn portrait of himself, Yan Huan blinked, then scrolled on his mobile phone, browsing through all the contents of the website.
Just as Yabashi Ki had said, this was indeed a fan support website intended to aid his campaign.
The exquisitely crafted page was neatly laid out, displaying a nearly complete set of campaign promotion sections.
Candidate Introduction...
Inside, there was another hand-drawn portrait—a side profile of him sleeping on a tree branch during his lunch break.
It included the resu Yan Huan had written on his campaign flyers back then. Furthermore, akin to an idol, it added a plethora of personal details like his hobbies and interests.
All these details were highly private; ordinary people couldn't possibly know them.
His birthday, his fondness for black cats, the sea, etc.
As Yan Huan looked at the exquisitely hand-drawn layout, he almost instantly realized who had made this.
"..."
Staring in disbelief at the beautiful images and the website on his mobile phone, Yan Huan was just about to close it and switch his Plane chat page to another person.
But the mont he lowered his phone, his peripheral vision caught sight of a black-haired girl not far off in the courtyard. She was standing beneath a planted cherry blossom tree with her hands behind her back, tilting her head up to gaze at the pink petals drifting down in the wind.
She was wearing a dress, and as her black hair fluttered in the breeze, she absentmindedly caught a petal in mid-air and tucked it into her hair as an ornant.
It was An Le.
"Mm."
Feeling a tickle on her head from the petal, An Le raised her hand and turned her head to pick it off.
But she happened to catch sight of the young man standing in the corridor a short distance away, looking right at her.
The mont she felt the young man's gaze, her slightly pale face gradually dyed with a pink hue akin to the cherry blossoms. Even the hand reaching to pluck the flower trembled slightly as she quickly retracted it.
"X-Xiao Huan?"
Hearing her deer-like gasp of surprise, Yan Huan snapped out of his daze, locked his mobile phone screen, and walked toward her.
"Are you looking at the cherry blossoms?"
"Mhm... they are pink and very pretty."
Seeing Yan Huan approach, An Le averted her gaze, hastily pretending to look at the cherry blossoms to dodge his eyes.
Drawing near, Yan Huan looked at An Le's slightly averted face and raised his hand toward her.
"Wu."
Sensing Yan Huan's hand reaching toward her, An Le imdiately squeezed her eyes shut, standing motionless on the spot.
Like a cat caught by the scruff of its neck, she had no thought of resisting, rely letting Yan Huan do as he pleased.
Seeing her flushed face and compliant deanor, Yan Huan actually felt a bit unnatural.
In the end, he didn't reach out to touch her, but only pointed at the top of her head.
"There is a cherry blossom stuck in your hair."
"Eh?"
Hearing this, An Le quickly opened her eyes and, blushing, grabbed her head to pull the cherry blossom down.
"S-Sorry."
"What is there to apologize for?"
Hearing her apology, Yan Huan couldn't help but laugh, reminding her.
"O-Oh, right. Sorry..."
Consequently, she apologized for apologizing when there was no need to apologize.
This ti, Yan Huan was smarter and completely bypassed the topic.
"Um, An Le... I seem to have promised you before that no matter what you beca, I would recognize you at a glance... but I forgot about it."
Upon hearing these words, An Le's pupils slightly contracted, and she hurriedly looked at Yan Huan.
And the Yan Huan before her was also staring straight at her, their gazes eting.
"So, when we reunited at the ani convention back then, I failed to recognize you."
Hearing that the reunion Yan Huan spoke of was at the ani convention and not an earlier ti, An Le, whose pupils had contracted, finally regained her composure.
In the next second, she blinked and quickly waved her hands in understanding.
"It is okay, Xiao Huan. After all, it has been so long... If Xiao Huan hadn't reminded , I wouldn't have rembered it very clearly either..."
Saying so, An Le also placed her hands over her chest, speaking softly and tenderly,
"Besides, it is fine now that Xiao Huan and I have reunited, you don't need to take it to heart."
"..."
Listening to her words, Yan Huan couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Just as Yan Huan had said, An Le was precisely like this.
She clearly rembered it vividly herself, but because he didn't rember, she would proactively give him a way out to prevent him from feeling awkward.
At tis like this, for the beneficiary to expose her behavior would actually be cruel to her.
Even if his original intent was to stop her from considering him so much and make her speak her own mind.
However, from her reaction, it could also be understood...
That important promise was not the one he dread about last night.
"I see... Then, An Le—"
"As long as Xiao Huan rembers what we agreed upon for the final day of the School Trip, it is fine."
Just as Yan Huan was about to speak, intending to exchange so pleasantries before testing the next promise.
An Le before him suddenly spoke up with this.
These words made Yan Huan freeze. He quickly raised his eyes to look at An Le, only to see her pursing her lips, with a gaze that seed both pleading yet incredibly determined.
"..."
As stated earlier, that incredibly abnormal promise that could not be compromised on, under any circumstances, must be the key.
Now, this promise An Le brought up was exactly that.
But the problem was, this promise was one he agreed to before the School Trip!
And it was one he agreed to after being ambushed by her Modifier, solely to avoid instantly losing his Chu Nan status and turning into a geyser...
Yan Huan could scrape his sea of consciousness clean and swear that he could never have made such a promise to An Le when they were kids!
He wasn't that degenerate, okay?!
"...Ah, of course."
eting An Le's gaze, a light sweat broke out on Yan Huan's forehead, yet he still nodded as if everything were perfectly normal.
Hearing Yan Huan's answer, An Le breathed a sigh of relief, as if granted amnesty.
"T-That is wonderful, Xiao Huan..."
"..."
"But, Xiao Huan, I wonder when we will finish resolving Vice President Sakuramiya's issue. What if we can't go back until the very last day? We wouldn't have any ti to prepare, would we..."
An Le pursed her lips and looked at Yan Huan sowhat shyly.
"I... I want to buy so lingerie... to use that day... I don't know which type you... which type you like, Xiao Huan... As long as you like it, I will wear it for you to see..."
Upon hearing these words, Yan Huan's brain practically short-circuited.
He didn't even dare to look at An Le's body; his own body rely stiffened slightly as he forced himself to play the role of common sense adhering to the promise.
"Uh... didn't we see before going up the mountain? There is a shopping area nearby. If we are really out of ti, we can go there to look at so clothes or sothing..."
Yan Huan's wording remained quite cautious.
He used clothes, unlike An Le's bluntness.
Though he didn't know what point there was to doing so.
"Mhm... And what about a hotel by the seaside for that night? Tokyo should have hotels with an ocean view too... As for the price, there is no need to worry. I have saved so money, and my father also gave
plenty of money when I left..."
Saying this, An Le hurriedly pulled out a credit card from her pocket, doing her best to assure Yan Huan that there would not be any issues and he would not bear any financial burden.
It was as if she were terrified that the slightest problem would make Yan Huan change his mind and ruin the plan.
But this ti, Yan Huan didn't pretend to go along with her words.
Because he keenly sensed that An Le's current state was off.
"An Le."
"Eh?"
As soon as she heard Yan Huan call her na, she imdiately stopped speaking and moving, raising her eyes to look at Yan Huan attentively.
Looking at her widened eyes, Yan Huan realized even more that sothing was wrong.
Thus, he couldn't help but ask with concern,
"An Le, have you... encountered sothing bad again?"
Yan Huan felt that An Le's current state was even worse than before coming to Sakura Country.
It was just that she had hidden it well over the past two days, not revealing it in front of him, but now that she got emotional, it was exposed.
"..."
Faced with Yan Huan's simple question, An Le widened her eyes, suddenly freezing in place.
Her lips trembled slightly, as if she wanted to say sothing.
But in the next second, her eyes, which had been fixed intently on Yan Huan, suddenly shifted to look behind him.
"Xiao Huan, behind you..."
Feeling the change in her gaze, Yan Huan furrowed his brows and turned his head as well.
He then saw that on the eaves behind him, Luciana Adams, wearing a bathrobe and resting her chin in her hands, was sitting on the roof, watching the two of them.
He had no idea when she had gotten there.
"You..."
Seeing Yan Huan and An Le look at her at the sa ti, she blinked and smiled,
"Oh my, it looks like I overheard sothing I shouldn't have..."
"..."
Yan Huan narrowed his eyes, while Luciana twirled a cherry blossom petal between her fingers and said with a smile,
"For example, the promise you made to this girl regarding lingerie and a seaside hotel?"
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