Mei: Ki-a-na-- / Mei: Kiana? No Threat at All

However, in Otto's view, although Gwen was more adaptable than Durandal at times, he was still just as stubborn as Caslana at other times.

"Well..."

With a long sigh, Otto recalled Gwen's life plan once more, considered it for a moment, and began revising it again—

If you want a stubborn donkey to learn to be flexible at times, you must give this responsible, stubborn donkey enough constraints...

Chapter 183 Mei: Kiana——

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world in Japan, Otto was unaware that after Gwen had taken a nice nap, he welcomed the sun the next day.

Gwen had gone out for a morning run and had breakfast on the way, saw two... three figures waiting outside his door as soon as he stepped out of the elevator.

Gwen, who had checked his phone before going upstairs and knew that Mei and Kiana had already arrived, looked at the three chatting together with a slightly surprised expression.

Alongside Mei and Kiana, there is also Bronya, a tiny girl in a wheelchair.

However, unlike Gwen's Remembrance of him and Bronya being at odds and arguing every day, Kiana is now squatting beside the wheelchair, speaking softly to Bronya.

"Oh, Gwen, you're back?"

Hearing the elevator doors open, Raiden Mei, whose attention had just been on Bronya, quickly turned her head. When she saw Gwen, a smile of surprise mixed with a touch of demureness instantly bloomed on her pretty face.

Since it was a holiday, Raiden Mei wasn't wearing the slightly dated school uniform that Gwen remembered. Instead, she wore a proper long dress, which, even though it was winter, accentuated her slender figure and made her look tall and graceful.

Coupled with the smile on the girl's pretty face, a smile honed through etiquette lessons, even Gwen, who had known Mei for a long time, couldn't help but feel a flutter in his heart.

"Yes, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Gwen nodded, took the key from his pocket, and waved to Bronya in the wheelchair as he walked towards the door.

Good morning, Bronya.

Good morning, big brother.

Bronya raised her face, which showed little emotion, and responded to Gwen in her inorganic voice.

"Hey, Gwen, do you know Miss Bronya?"

A certain string in Raiden Mei's heart was touched, and she blinked, asking casually.

"Yes, I ran into them once after dinner yesterday, and I only found out when I got home that they were the new neighbors."

Gwen, who had his back to the three as he opened the door, spoke casually before turning around to look at the three starter families he had encountered earlier.

Come in—

Bronya, want to come along?

"Bronya has nothing to do and can accept big brother's invitation, but Bronya doesn't know if it will interfere with what you're about to do."

Bronya, in her wheelchair, tilted her head, expressing her opinion.

"Okay, let's do it together then..."

Before Gwen answer, Kiana, who was crouching beside Bronya's wheelchair, gave the first response—

Although Kiana only chatted with Bronya for a few minutes, she already had a certain understanding of Bronya's situation (her disguised identity). She felt very sorry for the disabled girl and hoped to help her alleviate some of her loneliness.

"..."

Bronya stared at Kiana for a moment, mentally concluding that she seemed a bit dim-witted, but a good person. She then turned to Gwen, and after receiving a smile and a nod from him, she nodded slightly and whispered,

"Thanks."

"Hey-hey..."

Kiana smiled, stood up, went behind Bronya's wheelchair, pushed the wheelchair in, and greeted Raiden Mei.

"Mei, let's go inside."

"Um..."

Mei nodded gently.

"You guys go in first, I'll stay behind and close the door."

Although something unexpected happened, Raiden Mei didn't experience any emotional fluctuations because of it.

Or perhaps, in her mind, it's normal for Gwyn, who is not someone to be trifled with at school, who confronts his former friends head -Gwen on, and who beats up troublemakers outside of school, to be willing to take care of a girl like Bronya.

Upon entering the living room, Kiana parked Bronya's electric wheelchair in a spot that pleased her before plopping down on the sofa with a rather unrestrained motion, yet radiating youthful energy through her slightly thick winter clothes.

"Hmm... As expected Chisey's sofa is much more comfortable than mine."

Finding the most comfortable position to sit in, Kiana's little face showed an expression of enjoyment—

Although she has a bank card with a considerable amount of savings and works part-time from time to time, Kiana lives a rather frugal life, and the house she rents is far inferior to Gwen's.

"I'm glad you like it."

Although he maintains his arrogant young master persona at school, Gwen doesn't deliberately put on an act when he gets to know Mei and Kiana better.

His public persona is that of a rebellious and arrogant individual, not someone who mindlessly criticizes everyone and everything.

Of course, making a few sarcastic remarks is also reasonable.

"But if you could pay a little more attention to your posture, I think this sofa would be happy for you to sit on."

"This isn't school, so don't be so demanding..."

Kiana, who had already become familiar with Gwen, was far from handing over her brains, but she had lost much of her composure, casually waving her hand without being moved at all.

Upon hearing this, Gwen rolled his eyes, Mei, standing beside him, covered her mouth and chuckled, but still offered some advice:

"Alright, Kiana, we still have to study later, sit down."

"Hmm..."

Seeing that Mei had also spoken, Kiana finally moved her body, and her lazy demeanor diminished considerably.

However, seemingly worried that being scolded repeatedly would damage her image, Kiana quickly changed the subject to her newly acquainted friend:

"Speaking of which, Bronya, you're from Russia too, right?"

How is your Japanese level?

Would you like to learn with us?

Like Gwen before her, Kiana also learned to listen to and speak Japanese thanks to her intelligence and linguistic talent, but reading and writing were also very problematic.

Kiana joined in because her new friend was taking Japanese lessons.

"...OK."

Bronya, still considering what excuse to use to observe him, blinked. Seeing that Gwen Raiden Mei showed no unusual expression, she nodded in agreement.

"Then I'll have to trouble Mei with this."

For Bronya, who has faced the twins in the orphanage, dealing with Kiana is a piece of cake. In comparison, Mei, who appears more mature, needs to be watched more closely.

"I'm glad I could be of help to you Bronya..."

Mei only nodded slightly at the result.

She wasn't going to object to anything her two friends were willing to do.

However, Raiden Mei still gave Kiana, who was somewhat causing her trouble, a deep look—

Mei wasn't too worried about Kiana, who had been acting a bit silly lately, but with Bronya, whom she wasn't very familiar with, there were many things she couldn't do.

Chapter 184 Mei: Kiana? A Non-Threat Person

Although the experiences of the past month or so have given Raiden Mei a considerable fondness for Gwen, this feeling is still in its infancy.

For Raiden Mei, who hasn't yet experienced the personality shock of the Third Honkai Eruption and still retains the pride and reserve of the Raiden Family's young lady, to reveal this budding affection in front of Bronya, a little sister she doesn't know, she needs more experience.

As for why Kiana is unrelated?

Kiana has practically witnessed the entirety of their relationship, so there's nothing to worry about anymore.

However, although Kiana also has a place in this relationship (in the audience), it doesn't mean that Raiden Mei wouldn't have a problem with Kiana bringing others into the group without her consent.

"Kiana, copy this five times later. I need to see it tonight."

When Kiana was checked again, her long hair was styled in a high ponytail, and she wore a women's jacket, looking shrewd and capable. Mei adjusted her non-prescription glasses, and her serious and cold aura made the white fluffy ball almost shrink into a ball—

This was the fourth time Kiana had been unable to answer a question this morning. The teasing look in Gwen's eyes, the scrutinizing look in Bronya's eyes, and the stern look in Mei's eyes almost made Kiana think that she was not the genius who had taught herself two languages and could communicate fluently with people, but a hopeless idiot.

"Hmm... Mei is so strict..."

Unable to face Mei, who looked exceptionally serious with her glasses on, Kiana could only mutter to herself, thinking about the "homework" she had accumulated that morning, and felt like crying.

"Bronya, answer the question from earlier?"

Mei withdrew her gaze from the white fluffy ball and looked at Mei beside Bronya, her expression softening slightly.

It wasn't because Bronya was making great progress in self-study, but simply because she felt pity for this unfortunate disabled girl.

"Okay, Mei..."

Although she was still in the critical observation period for Raiden Mei, Bronya didn't hesitate for a moment when calling for help.

As she spoke, Bronya answered the question Kiana had just answered incorrectly, and even analyzed Kiana's mistake, which made the white fluffy girl look enlightened and give Bronya a grateful smile.

Bronya's expression didn't change, but she subtly responded with a gesture.

Meanwhile, watching the two who should have been the clueless one and the unhappy one getting along so harmoniously, Gwen, though still feeling a bit of a strange sense of unease, wasn't so surprised anymore.

In the story, Kiana and Bronya are always bickering because they were enemies when they first met, and later Bronya even tried to steal Mei's affection from her.

Now Bronya appears as a frail, disabled girl, and there is no longer any conflict with her. Given Kiana's personality, she wouldn't actively target her, so naturally, she wouldn't be as noisy and disruptive as she was in the original timeline.

"Then let's continue..."

After giving Kiana a little punishment, Mei looked at the pitiful white fluffy ball curled up in a ball and let go of her slight displeasure.

Looking at Mei like this, Gwen was once again certain that the current Mei was indeed very different from the gentle Mei he knew. She was proud, confident, and assertive. Rather than a cook, the title of "Electro Queen of the Senba Academy" suited her better.

Gwen couldn't help but feel relieved once again, realizing that he had approached the other party by becoming a bullied companion.

Otherwise, given Mei's current level of defensiveness, the two of them would probably still be stuck at the stage of being just friendly classmates...

That's all for this morning...

As it turned 11:30, Mei finally put down her lesson plan, took off her black-rimmed glasses, and revealed a smile.

"Great!"

Kiana, who had been timid and hesitant during class, suddenly let out a cheer, and the two braids behind her head even floated up because of her excitement, showing just how excited Kiana.

"What's wrong, Kiana? Is my class boring?"

Mei, who was about to discuss lunch with Gwen, raised an eyebrow, narrowed her eyes, and asked Kiana with a smile.

"No... no..."

Kiana's smile froze instantly, and she shook her head repeatedly, patting her flat stomach with her little hands, trying to fool the situation with a silly grin.

"I just ate too early this morning and I'm hungry now..."

"Why haven't I seen you this hungry at school?"

Gwen, who was getting up and stretching, casually made a joke.

"Which school course is as good as Mei's?"

Kiana retorted to Gwen with a perfectly justified statement.

"So, you didn't really pay attention in class at school, right?"

Gwen raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile.

"Hey-hey...

"It's just that their lectures are so boring..."