Click.
Meer casually popped open a can, took a big gulp, exhaled loudly, then lazily remarked:
"Oh, so it's just about Luo Shu and little Kisara? I thought you were holding an internal criticism session~"
Hearing this, Luo Shu's lips twitched.
Beside him, Utaha's expression darkened.
As for Kisara, her gaze had already turned stormy.
Eriri pretended not to notice but kept sneaking glances at Luo Shu.
Meanwhile, Kurumi Tokisaki hadn't stopped laughing the entire time.
In contrast, Yukino Yukinoshita remained the most composed.
Of course, she was probably the only one with the right to stay calm—she was just here to work. What did this battlefield have to do with her?
"That may be so, but could you get off my lap now?"
Under the collective stares, Luo Shu finally couldn't take it anymore and nudged Meer's waist.
The moment she barged in, she'd asked what was happening, plopped onto his lap, and after hearing the explanation, showed no intention of leaving—even starting to drink.
'Do I look like a chair to you?'
"Eh? Why should I move? Are you uncomfortable, Luo Shu?"
As she spoke, Meer even wriggled slightly.
At that, Luo Shu froze completely.
"This is nice though~"
Meer took another sip, giggling dopily.
But before she could finish, Utaha and Kisara exchanged a glance.
They stood up, walked over, and each grabbed one of Meer's arms. Under her bewildered gaze, they dragged her to a nearby sofa, sandwiching her between them.
"Much better." Utaha clapped her hands.
"Indeed." Kisara smiled sweetly, twirling a lock of hair around her finger.
Only Meer, now squished between them, protested indignantly:
"Rude! So rude! That spot was empty—what's wrong with me sitting there?!"
The girls collectively shot her disdainful looks.
As if you just wanted the seat. We all know what you're really after. xN
At that moment, Utaha firmly pinned Meer down and turned to Kisara:
"Who is she?"
Kisara didn't hesitate to explain:
"Meer, head of the SDS Intelligence Division—same rank as Shu-kun."
Hearing this, Yukino Yukinoshita and Kurumi Tokisaki both looked over.
Yukino was surprised that SDS's intelligence director was such a young girl.
As for Kurumi, her surprise lay elsewhere:
"Is it really all right for the SDS intelligence director to expose herself to me like this? Her identity information is worth up to 30 million dollars on the black market, you know."
Upon hearing this, Meer was visibly startled and exclaimed in surprise:
"Eh? I'm actually worth that much?"
Seeing Meer's reaction, Eriri also looked sceptical:
"This frivolous person is actually director-level?"
"Frivolous?" Meer tilted her head at these words, then rubbed the back of her head with a silly grin: "I'm actually not that amazing~~"
In that instant, everyone reached the same conclusion:
This woman is absolutely playing dumb!
Wedged between Kisara and Utaha on the sofa and realising she couldn't mess around, Meer noisily gulped down another glass of wine before teasing Luo Shu with a smile:
"So Luo Shu-kun's secret harem-building has been discovered after all~"
"How pitiful~ Do you need me to comfort you?"
Hearing this, Luo Shu's mouth twitched as he replied flatly:
"You're the last person qualified to say that to me."
"Now now, don't worry about such trivial things~"
Meer waved her hand dismissively, speaking with complete nonchalance:
"Even if little Kisara doesn't make a move, there's still me~ It's all the same anyway."
Hearing such words, even normal people present - let alone Kurumi Tokisaki - found their worldviews shaken.
Eriri, whose moral compass had just been reset, muttered to herself:
"No way... people actually compete to drug someone?"
Meer placed a finger to her lips and said:
"Can't speak for others, but for Luo Shu-kun they definitely would~"
"In fact, Verde from R&D has asked me several times whether I could obtain Luo Shu-kun's genetic material. I've been deliberately putting him off."
"Genetic material..." Utaha's face flushed red, clearly imagining something.
In contrast, Yukino Yukinoshita remained proper. As an outsider to the situation, she frowned and said:
"So the director's genetic material has significant research value? That's quite unexpected."
In modern society, there have been cases of purchasing frozen sperm from high-IQ individuals to produce more talented offspring.
Applying this concept to the mystic side would mean children inheriting Director Luo Shu's genes would possess greater mystic potential - hence becoming research targets for that Verde from R&D.
The reason Meer didn't mind Kisara's involvement with Luo Shu was that her worldview aligned with mystic side values.
'Artificial insemination among noble families?'
Well-read Yukino could understand such concepts.
After all, her own mother had selected the optimal candidate - her father - when choosing a husband.
Therefore...
'Mother must absolutely never find out about this, absolutely not!!'
Yukino steeled her resolve for the sake of her future.
Meer nodded repeatedly in agreement:
"Exactly exactly, such good stuff should be kept for personal use. Why give it to Verde for research?"
Hearing this, Yukino glanced at Meer, further confirming her earlier suspicions.
'Personal use?' With her vivid imagination, Eriri's face instantly turned crimson, her eyes spinning in circles.
Nearby, Kisara nodded vigorously in approval:
"Right, right, how could we possibly hand over something like that?!"
"Tch!" Utaha couldn't help clicking her tongue, suddenly realising why she'd lost.
Because she was a normal person with sound morals, unlike Meer and Kisara, who had no morals at all!
'Damn it, a momentary lapse in judgment actually made me lose to people like this!!'
"My, seeing you all fighting over him makes me want to join in too." Kurumi Tokisaki teased, clearly enjoying the chaos. "Luo Shu, how about sparing some time tonight~"
"Adding fuel to the fire at a time like this? At least consider how I feel about this, you bastard..."
Luo Shu shot Kurumi a glare, muttering under his breath before hurriedly flipping the skewers on the electric grill to avoid burning them. But in his foul mood, he decided to throw caution to the wind and bluntly declared:
"I almost forgot to mention—the pain Kisara experienced when we did... that thing is exactly what I used my ability to bestow upon you, Kurumi!!"
At those words, Kurumi's expression froze.
In that instant, Kurumi had an epiphany... or so one might think!!
'Oh no, has this man been provoked to the point of abandoning all shame?'
"What thing? Luo Shu, what did you give this shameless woman?"
Eriri's ears perked up, her eyes gleaming with gossipy curiosity.
"Wow!" Meer's eyes sparkled with intrigue as she chimed in for the others: "Actually, I'm super curious too."
"Why would Truth Astronomy's Time Angel, Kurumi Tokisaki, be captured by Luo Shu? What exactly happened? I'm dying to know!!"
"Hmm?" Utaha also turned her gaze toward Kurumi. She wasn't unaware of Kurumi's constant provocation, but other matters had preoccupied her until now.
But it seemed there was more to this story!!
Utaha promptly joined the gossip brigade.
Not just Utaha—Yukino Yukinoshita also cast a questioning glance.
This Kurumi Tokisaki, who had appeared this morning and was introduced by Luo Shu as a new member, was actually a defeated enemy from an opposing faction?
No wonder she kept picking fights with President Luo Shu. So that's how it was!!
Just as Yukino was piecing things together, Luo Shu, now fully shameless, declared outright:
"My ability allows me to manipulate the pain and suffering inflicted upon myself or others."
"And before, since I hadn't bestowed Kisara with the relevant knowledge, when she forced herself on me, she skipped foreplay and went straight for it."
Hearing this, Utaha, Eriri, and Yukino—all well-versed in physiology—instinctively clenched their legs, faces paling as they grasped the sheer magnitude of that agony.
"That direct?!" Meer, who had been eavesdropping all afternoon, hadn't known this detail and now regarded Kisara with newfound admiration.
This girl was truly fearless!!
"Please stop, this is too embarrassing..." Kisara had already buried her face in her hands, crouching on the ground.
Meanwhile, Kurumi was in full panic mode, frantically grabbing Luo Shu's arm as she pleaded:
"Luo Shu, I apologise, okay? Can we please drop this?"
Luo Shu fixed her with a deathly stare and murmured ominously:
"As I said before, I can extract pain and suffering from myself or others. So at that time, I extracted Kisara's pain and bestowed it upon you during our fight!"
"So! Kurumi Tokisaki!"Luo Shu's face twisted into a vicious grin.
"Don't say it!!" Kurumi Tokisaki screamed in utter despair.
"You————are the woman in this world who understands my shape the most!!!"