After the intermission, it was time for the long-awaited, heart-wrenching interactions between the two characters living together.
“Clearly dying of impatience inside.”
“Do they want it?”
“I heard from the forum rumors that they’ve already had a Shokugeki. Is it true?”
Which forum rumors?
Can they predict the future?
Jiang Jian Yue did not realize at all that these were fake leaks spreading from her small group chat.
“Emi-chan’s fake out-of-bounds play feels a bit too real.”
“Seeing a high school student in an animation actually studying makes me feel a bit dazed.”
“Why are you always obsessing over that damned love triangle?”
“Why don’t they like the cat?”
“The cat is being rejected.”
Under Jiang Jian Yue’s “reminder,” the two finally managed to go on a successful date… many episodes later.
Though there was one date that hadn’t been included in the main episodes previously.
Of course, that particular segment soon followed.
Cuiyue’s debut.
[?]
[pro lite→]
[The middle]
“What a bombshell, Emi!”
“Wait, isn’t this that vtuber, Cuiyue?”
“So the one in the OP wasn’t a drawing error after all.”
“This is a true Loli-mama.”
Dammit, with Cuiyue’s build, she was already a Shou-gyo!
Wait, why was I even arguing about this?
Jiang Jian Yue could not even imagine how chaotic the private messages on her Cuiyue costume account must be right now.
She estimated that after this episode, even newer and trendier theories would be unearthed.
However, to her surprise, her conversation with Cuiyue was not included in the main cut.
Instead, it flashed back directly to the night Cuiyue left the Special Response HQ underground shelter.
“A clone?”
“Must be a long-lost sister, right?”
“Is she a Kamimachi Girl?”
“I envy the Supervisor.”
“I envy the girl.”
“?”
“She’s actually called Cuiyue!?”
“Huh?”
“The fake theories became real! The ARG theory is true.”
“Did you know? Cuiyue is actually part of the Kaori Faction in her settings. There’s a live broadcast recording as proof, BVxxxxxx.”
What old version of news was this even from!
“Is that so? Why are you telling me this?”
“It’s nothing, I just wanted you to know.”
“That classic sense of distance.”
Chapter 13 came to a close during the training session after Cuiyue joined Special Response HQ Unit 1.
This time, there wasn’t even a post-credit scene.
The ED had been updated along with the OP, and… it was actually related to her?
The overall style was similar to Attack on Titan ED1, “It’s a Beautiful, Cruel World.”
The protagonist of the ED was Jiang Jian Yue.
“Is this an official announcement?”
“Does a certain second-rank blonde female extra get this kind of treatment?”
“The blonde female extra hasn’t even had a character-focused episode.”
“Your Yue Jie already has a solo ED~”
“Endure!”
However, unlike the style of the first Attack on Titan ED, the sketches and the melody had a downward emotional tone.
And “Jiang Jian Yue” eventually fell into the Cold Pool.
Pah, how unlucky.
“Missy, which dress would you like to wear?”
Akimoto Miki’s voice came from behind her.
Jiang Jian Yue temporarily gave up on watching fan creations and opening the small group chat to joke around.
She did miss her group friends after not seeing them for a few months.
But for now, she suppressed her desires.
There were more important things to attend to.
For instance… the incense.
Regardless of what message the incense was meant to convey, she first ordered a ban on all “Quiet Dream” incense coming into contact with DRG personnel.
All “Quiet Dream” incense was to be collected and confiscated for a period of time.
Furthermore, she requested Special Response HQ to investigate the source of the incense, the reason being—a suspected link to the Saints.
Jiang Jian Yue didn’t know if this incense was part of a plot by the Saint Organization, but it wouldn’t hurt to pin the blame on them first.
***
Inside the underground training ground of the Special Response HQ, the hum of the air purification system echoed in a monotonous drone.
Yuki Asahi sat alone at the edge of the vast space, holding a half-finished bottle of sports drink.
A towel was draped over his neck, and sweat dripped from the tips of his hair onto the rubber flooring.
Although he had recently ended the high-intensity training with Cuiyue to maintain his condition, he still came here out of habit.
Physical exhaustion allowed him to temporarily forget the messy thoughts in his mind—about GSAC, about his responsibility as a Captain, and about Cuiyue, who had a face identical to Jiang Jian Yue’s.
“Asahi, still training? If you keep going, your body is going to protest.”
A somewhat casual yet familiar and friendly voice came from the entrance.
Yuki Asahi looked up in surprise and saw Koji Hattori leaning against the doorframe, one hand casually tucked into his suit pocket, a signature smile on his face.
“Mr. Hattori? Why are you here?”
Yuki Asahi stood up quickly, wiping the sweat from his face with a bit of restraint.
“Just came to see our Hero.”
Koji Hattori walked over, looking Yuki Asahi up and down with a click of his tongue.
“It seems the special training was very effective. This spirit of yours is much better than when I first met you.”
“You’re overpraising me,” Yuki Asahi scratched his head sheepishly.
“I just don’t want to hold everyone back.”
“Hold everyone back?”
Koji Hattori chewed on the phrase, smiling with a strange expression.
How could a main lead be this humble?
He retracted his teasing and said seriously, “Anyway, I didn’t come here to praise you today. Yuki, do you have time tonight?”
“Tonight?”
Yuki paused for a moment.
“I was planning to go back to the apartment to review some schoolwork, and then…”
“Put the studying aside for now.”
Koji Hattori waved his hand, interrupting him.
“There’s a very important banquet tonight. The Government is hosting it to celebrate that GSAC wasn’t delayed. It’s at the Tokyo Imperial Hotel.”
“A banquet?”
Yuki was a bit dazed.
“What does that have to do with me?”
“How could it not? The Captain of Special Response HQ Unit 1, the future national Hero.”
Koji Hattori raised an eyebrow.
“Of course, that’s just the official reason. The real reason is…”
He leaned in closer and lowered his voice.
“Missy will be there too. This is her first time officially appearing in a social setting full of old foxes as the top head of DRG Japan.”
“Although Missy usually seems omnipotent, and the Morita Butler and Head Maid will be following her, still…”
Koji Hattori sighed.
“I think… if someone she truly trusts could be by her side, she would be much more at ease.”
Someone she truly trusts.
Yuki Asahi held his breath slightly.
“Besides, it’s a good opportunity, isn’t it?” Koji Hattori patted Yuki Asahi’s shoulder and winked meaningfully.
“To declare to everyone… that you are the person standing by her side.”
“I… I’ll go.”
Yuki Asahi looked up, his gaze firm.
“But I don’t have a suit, and I don’t know anything about social etiquette.”
“Leave such small matters to me!”
Koji Hattori snapped his fingers, smiling like an abductor.
“Come on, young man. Let’s perform a ‘Grand Transformation’.”
***
2 hours later.
Inside a high-end custom menswear store in Ginza.
Koji Hattori, who wore suits all year round, had a very sharp eye for clothes.
He didn’t choose anything too flashy or old-fashioned.
Instead, he picked out a deep navy-blue slim-fit suit.
“This color looks steady without being as stiff as those Politicians. And…”
Koji Hattori held his chin, looking at Yuki Asahi as he walked out of the fitting room with satisfaction.
“It really complements your eyes.”
Yuki Asahi tugged at his tie uncomfortably.
The young man in the mirror stood tall.
The deep navy fabric shimmered faintly under the lights, perfectly masking his student-like greenness and highlighting a heroic air that sat between a youth and a man.
“Style the hair a bit. Showing the forehead makes you look more spirited.”
Koji Hattori directed the store’s stylist.
“Don’t give him those idol group bangs. Give him… well, a feeling of grit.”
When everything was finished, Yuki Asahi looked at himself in the mirror and felt a sense of strangeness.
“Perfect.”
Koji Hattori whistled.
“Let’s go. Don’t keep Princess Yue waiting.”
***
Shared Apartment, Living Room.
The evening glow had completely faded.
Night had fallen, and the city lights had taken over the sky.
Yuki Asahi stood in the shinkai, taking a deep breath to calm his slightly accelerating heartbeat. He checked the time on his phone; it was just right.
“I’m back.”
The main lights in the living room were not on.
Only a few floor lamps emitted a warm yellow glow, creating a quiet and hazy atmosphere.
Hearing the door open, the figure who had been sitting on the sofa with her back to the entrance slowly stood up and turned around.
In that instant, Yuki Asahi felt his breath be taken away.
He had seen Jiang Jian Yue in a school uniform, he had seen Jiang Jian Yue in Lolita dresses, and he had even seen Jiang Jian Yue without clothes.
But the Jiang Jian Yue before him was so beautiful that it gave him a dizzying sense of impact.
She was wearing a pure black, off-shoulder evening gown.
It wasn’t a complex style piled with lace and ruffles, but a silk gown with an extremely simple and smooth cut.
The black fabric was like flowing night, tightly wrapping her slender body and outlining the curves of a young woman coming of age.
The line of her exposed shoulders and neck was blindingly white under the light. Her collarbones were as delicate as if they were artworks carved by God himself.
Her pale grey long hair, which was usually left loose or slightly messy, was now meticulously pinned at the back of her head.
A few strands had been curled into elegant arcs, hanging by her ears and adding a touch of softness.
And the thing Yuki Asahi could not take his eyes off of was her makeup.
The plainness or the aggressive coldness from her daily life had faded.
Today, a faint layer of warmth colored the corners of her eyes and brows.
She looked like a noble daughter stepping out of an oil painting—lofty, elegant, yet possessing a sense of fragility that made one want to reach out but not dare to desecrate her.
“…Yuki?”
Seeing Yuki Asahi standing dazed at the entrance without moving for a long time, Jiang Jian Yue tilted her head slightly, a flash of doubt in her eyes.
Then, she became a bit flustered and annoyed by his direct stare.
“What are you… doing standing there like an idiot?”
Her voice broke Yuki Asahi’s daze.
“Ah… I…”
Yuki Asahi snapped back to reality, his cheeks instantly flushing red.
He even fumbled to adjust his sleeves.
“Yue, you… today…”
He stammered, searching his mind for a suitable adjective, only to find that all praise felt hollow at this moment.
“…You’re very beautiful.”
In the end, he could only clumsily utter those three words, his gaze so sincere that no one could doubt it.
“Really, very beautiful.”
Smooth