The scorched yellow rocks lay bare in the air, and the grassless Hell Valley was filled with a faint scent of sulfur—a simple way to say it smelled like rotten eggs.
It was said that a volcanic eruption thousands of years ago created this valley.
At this moment, the accumulated snow had mostly melted from the scorching geothermal heat, and steaming white smoke gushed from the springs, crawling slowly along the jagged ridges like a living thing.
Jiang Jian Yue took her fourth video here, using this scene as the background—the flame of Saori Saiyonji.
Although Kaori Onishi’s Water Control and Saori Saiyonji’s Fire Control were both visually elemental, their inner mechanisms were entirely different.
Kaori Onishi seemed more like she manipulated the existing moisture in the environment, while Saori Saiyonji was almost magical, able to ignite flames out of thin air.
Of course, if Kaori Onishi started crying, wouldn’t that also count as producing water from nowhere?
Not far away, Kaori Onishi was leaning close to Yuki Asahi, excitedly talking about something.
Jiang Jian Yue raised her camera, letting the lens pass through the rising heat and freeze the image of the two standing close together.
After the shutter clicked softly, she walked over and quietly hooked Yuki Asahi’s jacket hem with her index finger, signaling him to step aside for a word.
Kaori Onishi looked up, her emerald eyes flashing with a trace of grievance as she watched Jiang Jian Yue’s figure.
Jiang Jian Yue could only turn her face calmly toward the white mist deep in Hell Valley, pretending she hadn’t received that burning gaze.
The two walked silently along the boardwalk, the smell of sulfur lingering, moving away from the noise of their companions.
Their footsteps echoed dully on the slippery wooden planks.
“Predecessor… what’s wrong?”
Yuki Asahi’s voice carried a hint of unease.
He had a feeling that a private conversation like this could only mean something serious.
Didn’t you call me ‘Yue’ before? Why change it after waking up?
She let her gaze fall on the hot spring gurgling at the bottom of the distant valley, her voice soft.
“Do you… really like me?”
Her tone held the same uncertainty.
Yuki Asahi’s heart thumped, and almost instinctively, he pressed his palm tightly against his chest, meeting her eyes with burning intensity.
“Of course! This feeling, this admiration for Predecessor, is absolutely real!”
The vow-like declaration echoed through the mountain valley.
Jiang Jian Yue silently stowed the camera into her bag and took out her phone.
Her fingertips quickly tapped out a line of text on the screen.
“Then, how do you measure the ‘weight’ of liking someone?”
Eh? Weight? Measure?
How is anyone supposed to answer that!
Yuki Asahi felt this was a test from Jiang Jian Yue, so he seriously thought for a while.
“Probably… the kind of weight where you want to walk side by side and spend the rest of your life together with Predecessor.”
Because he was afraid of giving the wrong answer, he hesitated a little.
But this hesitation made Jiang Jian Yue’s heart sink slightly.
She remembered a movie scene she’d seen in the forums before, from ‘Graduation’—a so-called classic shot left behind because the director didn’t call ‘cut’:
The male lead runs away with the female lead, then sits at the back of the bus, his excitement fading to confusion.
Although the male lead in that movie slept with the female lead’s mother—well, that’s not the point.
All vows to spend a lifetime together are made at the height of passion.
She didn’t want to become the bride in a wedding dress, feeling lost.
“Imagine, I mean if… one day we really became a couple. But the life after marriage might be nothing like the romance you expect—I admit, I’d probably get annoyed by your definition of romance. At that time, would you… get tired of me?”
Eh?
What is this, one of those ‘100 Difficult Questions for Boyfriends’!?
Why think so far ahead!
Yuki Asahi hadn’t thought that far, never even considered those things—a normal person wouldn’t, right?
“Answer… what you really think.”
Jiang Jian Yue buried half her face in her warm scarf, urging him softly.
A drop of cold sweat formed on Yuki Asahi’s forehead as he swallowed.
“I haven’t thought about that… either…”
“I don’t really understand what romantic things are, either…”
Jiang Jian Yue nodded lightly and continued typing.
“You don’t even know what my real self is like, but would you still like me anyway?”
Another deadly question.
“I like Predecessor, no matter what she’s like.”
Yuki Asahi found this one easier to answer and let out a silent breath of relief.
This time, he didn’t hesitate, but his blunt honesty made Jiang Jian Yue suspect—are you just a face-con!?
Jiang Jian Yue turned her back to Yuki Asahi, then pulled a folding knife from the Storage Space, making a few bloody cuts on her face.
She turned around, her face dripping with blood, but her tone was calm.
“Like this… do you still like me?”
“What are you doing!”
Yuki Asahi’s voice shot up in shock, heart twisting painfully.
Jiang Jian Yue took a step back, avoiding his instinctively outstretched hand, and stubbornly waited for an answer.
“Answer.”
“I like you!”
Yuki Asahi blurted out.
“Then… if it was Devourer G… would you still?”
“Eh?”
That…
That’s kind of extreme, isn’t it?
Yuki Asahi’s lips trembled, and it was hard for him to say he could ‘like’ that.
But if he didn’t answer…
As he struggled in torment, Jiang Jian Yue’s frosty expression suddenly melted.
“Puhuhu~”
A short, gentle laugh escaped her lips, as soft as melting snow.
“Idiot.”
She knew.
These questions were just willful teasing.
If Yuki Asahi really answered that he could love even a Devourer G, she’d have to question his sanity.
White smoke drifted from her wounds, and within seconds, the shallow cuts healed completely, leaving no scars.
She wiped the blood from her face with a Wet Wipe, returning to her usual state—then her Divine Brain suddenly thought of something else.
Uh… could that also recover?
Does that mean I could always have the ‘first time feeling’ every time?
“So… does this mean I cleared the level?”
Yuki Asahi asked in confusion.
“No!”
Jiang Jian Yue’s tone was sharper than usual, then she realized her reaction was too much and looked away.
“It’s still the same… condition…”
“Defeat me.”
Last night, both of them were wearing yukatas, and fighting was more like flirting than combat.
Yuki Asahi glanced around, then lowered his voice.
“Can we do it now?”
“Yes.”
The moment Jiang Jian Yue finished speaking, an AK74U appeared in her hand, pressing against Yuki Asahi’s forehead.
Her right hand was tossing an RGO Grenade.
…Predecessor, please don’t play with such dangerous things.
Jiang Jian Yue put the weapons back into the Storage Space and spoke softly.
“Let’s talk when we get back to Tokyo.”
When the two returned from the corridor to the observation deck, the other four had strange expressions on their faces.
To be exact, this odd atmosphere had started since breakfast.
Kaori Onishi pouted and moved closer to Jiang Jian Yue, whispering.
“Predecessor… last night… did you… hug?”
Jiang Jian Yue didn’t catch the hidden meaning and shook her head lightly.
“Hug? We’ve hugged a long time ago.”
“Gah?”
Kaori Onishi froze in place, making an odd sound.
The two who had been eavesdropping were also stunned.
Only Yuki Asahi and Koji Hattori, who were discussing the upcoming itinerary, hadn’t heard.
“How could this be… you two…”
Kaori Onishi remained stiff for a long time, until Jiang Jian Yue waved her hand in front of her, looking confused.
What’s wrong now?
Yamanoi Yayoi’s face was bright red as she muttered quietly.
“So they’ve already become adults…”
Saori Saiyonji was the first to react—in theory, he was an ‘adult’ too.
“Hmm… looks like Kaori-chan lost badly…”
Hearing the others’ whispers, Jiang Jian Yue suddenly remembered that ‘hug’ in Japanese could be a euphemism for ‘sex’.
Yabai… Kaori Onishi’s about to cry!
—Is she going to attack me with a tear bomb?
Jiang Jian Yue was about to explain when she saw Kaori Onishi raise both hands in front of her chest, pressing them down and letting out a sigh of relief.
“I knew Predecessor misunderstood again.”
Kaori Onishi wiped the tears from her eyes and spoke softly.
“Right?”
It sounded like self-comfort, but it was true—Jiang Jian Yue had misunderstood.
“Yeah, we haven’t had SEX.”
Jiang Jian Yue was very direct.
“But…”
She hesitated, then took out her phone and typed.
“But, I’m sorry.”
“I’ve completely confirmed that I like Yuki Asahi, and I can’t let him go to you.”
“I broke my promise. If you want to take revenge on me or get angry, it’s fine—I’ll accept it all.”
Kaori Onishi looked at the clumsy yet honest words, her emerald eyes blinking, long lashes fluttering like butterfly wings.
Suddenly, her lips curled slightly, the smile no longer forced, but tinged with relief and a bit of teasing.
“Predecessor only realized it now?”
“You only just figured out you liked him? I noticed ages ago!”
“Predecessor, you’re such a Tsundere!”
I am not! How could I be a Tsundere!
“Revenge? No way.”
Kaori Onishi shook her head easily, glancing again at Yuki Asahi.
Sunlight filtered through the thin sulfur mist, shining on his serious profile.
“I won’t.”
“But I won’t give up or admit defeat either—it’s really painful…”
A trace of cunning flickered in Kaori Onishi’s eyes.
“There’s still plenty of time, Predecessor.”
“You’re a year older than us, right?”
Wha…
Jiang Jian Yue immediately understood what she meant and was speechless.
“I can spend a lot of time with Yuki-kun, unlike Predecessor.”
“When you’re not around, it’s always me accompanying him… and after you graduate, only I’ll be able to stay with him…”
Kaori Onishi’s face overflowed with a smile, but her narrowed eyes seemed to send a dangerous signal.
“Predecessor, what can you do about it?”
Jiang Jian Yue felt her chest tighten, lips pressed together, then suddenly turned away.
“Do as you like.”
“Eh?”
“If… Yuki Asahi can be taken from me that easily by you…”
She took a deep breath, forcing herself to sound strong.
“Then I’ll just admit I liked the wrong person!”
If Yuki Asahi’s feelings weren’t firm, then there was no fate between them.
Jiang Jian Yue’s private space could only hold one person.
And that person must always look only at her, with no room for any other feelings.
That’s what it means to be an adult—such a selfish creature.
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I need to servings of angst, with some Greek tragedy on top, and a bit of political intrigue on the side thank you
Evil ass reader, I agree