Chapter 20: Damn it, let’s fight with them.

On the way home from school, the setting sun stretched Aiden’s shadow long across the ground.

[Check Celes’s favorability level.]

Aiden glanced over at Ruby, who was perched on his shoulder.

Ruby unfolded the system panel, displaying a number: -225.

[Why is the favorability still negative by so much?]

Aiden frowned slightly.

He could clearly feel Celes’s attitude toward him had changed.

Although their relationship wasn’t very close, they should at least be ordinary friends by now.

So why was the favorability still below -200?

At this level, shouldn’t it still indicate a strong aversion to men?

[Master, Celes’s dislike of men is deeply rooted and not easy to change. Perhaps she subconsciously still hates men deep down.]

Ruby fluttered her wings and offered her analysis.

[This task really isn’t easy to complete.]

Aiden sighed involuntarily, thinking about the three other targets he still had ahead.

He couldn’t help but feel a headache coming on.

Kurokami Akane’s favorability toward men was already at -520; were the other witches even worse, possibly exceeding -1000?

At the current pace of gaining favorability, a whole year seemed long but was actually quite tight.

[Master doesn’t need to focus on just Celes; you can multitask. How about approaching Kurokami Akane?]

Ruby suggested, thinking this would improve the efficiency of advancing multiple targets.

[No, forget it. I don’t have the luxury right now.]

After a moment’s thought, Aiden shook his head.

Kurokami Akane was the disciplinary committee chair at the academy, a high-status position clearly out of reach for someone like him.

For now, it was better to concentrate on winning over Celes, gain more points, and strengthen himself before making further plans.

One step at a time, one bite at a time.

[Speaking of earning points, is completing tasks the only way?]

Aiden rifled through the system interface, hoping to find some forgotten function, but came up empty.

[No new tasks have triggered so far, and no Branch Tasks are available?]

[Ruby doesn’t know~]

Ruby spread her small hands in the air.

[You really are useless.]

Aiden’s shoulders instantly slumped.

[The goddess said Ruby is very useful! It’s just that Master hasn’t unlocked it yet!]

Ruby puffed out her cheeks, looking adorably huffy.

Just then, Aiden suddenly sensed something was wrong.

Three young men appeared at the alley ahead—definitely not students from Saint Dias Academy.

He immediately became alert.

Due to his past life experiences, he was especially sensitive to other people’s gazes.

Now he could clearly feel their hostile eyes, closing in step by step.

Instinctively, he wanted to turn and leave, but not far off stood the Senior Students who had cornered him in the restroom earlier that day.

They were grinning viciously in his direction.

Was revenge coming this quickly?

Meanwhile, Celes was walking home alone.

She noticed Aiden across the street, hesitating whether to greet him, when she saw a few Senior Students following him with ill intent as they turned into a small alley.

Celes recognized them all—Lufas’s cronies. When Lufas had pursued her before, these were the same students “assisting” him.

Celes’s sharp intuition told her something was wrong.

These guys surely intended to harm Aiden, and she couldn’t just stand by.

But just as she was about to follow them, someone suddenly grabbed her shoulder from behind.

She instinctively spun around and saw Lufas smiling at her.

The noble youth’s handsome face and noble aura would have turned any other girl’s eyes to stars.

Celes’s expression darkened immediately.

She shook off Lufas’s hand and, suppressing her disgust, forced out a polite tone.

“Don’t touch me, thanks.”

Instead of getting angry at her rejection, Lufas found it even more challenging.

Conquering such a woman was a real achievement, wasn’t it?

He smiled and glanced toward the alley where Aiden had disappeared, then said to Celes,

“I suggest you don’t follow. You might get splattered with blood.”

“What do you want to do to Aiden?”

Celes stepped back warily, putting distance between herself and Lufas.

“He won’t think he can mess with me and get away with it, right? I’m just giving him a lesson. At least I’m going to make him repay the injuries he caused me exactly as they were.”

Lufas, thinking himself very handsome, ran a hand through his hair and chuckled.

“But those injuries of mine? The best Medical Institute had me recovering for two days. If it were that kid, I bet he wouldn’t get out of bed for a month. Might even have permanent damage. Haha.”

“You’re too much.”

Celes’s pupils contracted slightly, her voice trembling.

Then she immediately turned and hurried toward the alley.

Lufas’s smile vanished at last.

With a swift move, he blocked Celes’s path—his agility not at all like a magician’s.

“Step aside.”

Celes looked anxious, fearing Aiden was already in trouble.

“What’s so special about that transfer student? Why do you care so much? Am I not better than him? If you agree to be my girlfriend, resources, status, power—you name it, you’ll have it.”

Celes’s concern for Aiden annoyed Lufas, but he restrained his anger and lowered his voice.

“Aiden isn’t like you at all. Not just stronger—there’s no comparison between you and him.”

Celes replied coldly, trying to slip past.

“I won’t let you go! Stay here, or you might get caught in the crossfire!”

Lufas’s expression lost all calm.

He grabbed Celes’s arm forcefully, his voice rising.

In that moment, he felt like a domineering CEO—suddenly he thought of himself as very cool.

Celes was pulled forward, head bowed, bangs hiding her cheeks, her expression unreadable.

“I said, don’t touch me!”

Instantly, Celes’s magic surged wildly.

Though there was no wind, her ice-blue hair lifted as if blown, and tiny snowflakes drifted around her.

Frost rapidly spread from Lufas’s hand, instantly coating his wrist.

Startled, Lufas instinctively withdrew his hand, now covered with a thin layer of ice on his wrist and hand.

He hurriedly cast fire magic to melt the frost, but when he looked up again, Celes had already fled.

“Damn it, it’s all that transfer student’s fault.”

Lufas shook the water from his hand, teeth clenched in fury, his noble gentleman act completely gone.

Deep in the alley, Aiden was completely surrounded, his path blocked front and back.

“You really never learn, huh.”

Aiden sighed, looking at the students he had beaten before.

“Last time in the teaching building, you got lucky since magic was banned. Don’t think you can walk away unscathed this time!”

The lead Senior Student sneered, his magic stirring restlessly around him.

At that moment, the system alert sounded sharply.

[Task issued: Survive the current danger without dying. Reward: 1000 points.]

Aiden’s eyes lit up—this was a tenfold bonus!

Was the village handing out gold bars now?

Although the situation was unfavorable, Aiden was ready to give it his all for this jackpot.

He had no choice but to fight.

Aiden extended his right hand forward, and an ordinary longsword appeared out of thin air—his previously drawn White Weapon.

Though it had no special effects, it was still more than enough to slash people.

Damn it, let’s go all out on them.