None of the teachers at our academy, male or female, are as short as you. / What hot-blooded manga protagonist has a cheat ability as lousy as yours?

"If you don't believe me, just do it again." Hara Shichi pointed solemnly at the floor-to-ceiling window. "If I laugh again, I'll jump off this balcony."

"There's a big tree under the balcony that'll catch you..." Ai said resentfully.

"Uh... then if I laugh, I'll run twenty laps around the academy tomorrow?" Hara Shichi changed the terms.

"Honestly... you're not allowed to trick me." Blushing, Ai avoided Hara Shichi's burning gaze. She hugged her slender legs and curled herself into a ball like a fluffball, parting her red lips. "Meow~"

Hara Shichi froze on the spot, seemingly unable to process what had just happened.

Seeing that he did not react, Ai grew somewhat dissatisfied. "Meow?"

Only then did Hara Shichi snap out of it. He subconsciously wiped away the nonexistent cold sweat from his forehead, awkwardly turned his head aside, and cleared his throat twice. "Enough, enough... You don't need to keep going."

No, this was too cute. He could barely take it.

He could not let Ai keep this up, or he might actually turn into a lolicon!

What was that supposed to mean? You were the one who told me to keep meowing.

Ai stood up indignantly, took one step, then another, to the edge of the bed, rose onto her tiptoes, wrapped both arms around Hara Shichi's neck, and kept nibbling at his ear. "Meow~ Meow meow~ Meow meow meow~"

For an instant, Hara Shichi truly felt as if an adorable kitten were acting spoiled in his arms. But the faint fragrance and soft touch jolted him awake, and he nearly stumbled back a step.

"Um... Ai, don't you think we're being a little too intimate like this?" Hara Shichi forced the improper thoughts from his mind and smiled stiffly.

"Hm? Weren't we always like this before?" Ai asked strangely.

But you didn't have a physical body back then!

"Could it be... you're embarrassed?" Ai asked with a grin.

"No. Impossible." Hara Shichi denied it decisively.

"Oh... then how about this?" Ai gave a light hop on her toes and pressed her whole body directly against Hara Shichi.

Pretty flat. And kind of pokey.

Hara Shichi really wanted to say that, then muddle through it with a joke.

But as he looked into Ai's smiling eyes, his throat seemed to jam for some reason, and no joking words would come out.

"Fine, I admit I'm embarrassed," Hara Shichi said softly. "Aren't you embarrassed too?"

"I... I'm a god who's lived for many, many years. How could I possibly be embarrassed?!" Ai's little pink tongue nearly tied itself into a knot. She hurriedly released Hara Shichi, floated into the air, and coughed twice, seemingly trying to hide the shyness on her face.

"If that's the case, let's get some sleep early." Hara Shichi stretched. He had been busy all day and was a little tired.

"Wait, we can't rest yet." Ai hurriedly spoke up.

"Is there something else we haven't done?" Hara Shichi asked curiously.

"Yes, I want to go take another look at this academy's central system." Ai nodded.

Put bluntly, she wanted to see if she could fleece a little more Duel Power.

Chapter 92: None of the teachers at our academy, male or female, are as short as you.

In the central zone, Hara Shichi stepped inside wearing a hood, once again shattering the silence of the place.

"Foolish human, I never expected you to dare return here." aaa76's ghostly blue projection soon floated halfway in the air, looking down at Hara Shichi expressionlessly.

"Didn't we agree to play cards together next time?!" Hara Shichi was not surprised to see the "girl" before him. Instead, he feigned shock.

"I never agreed to that. This is not a place you should be. Leave immediately." aaa76 issued the expulsion order coldly.

"Since I'm already here, don't be in such a rush to chase me out." Hara Shichi walked up to the console with practiced ease, inserted his hand into the port, and familiar power surged into his palm.

"Mhm, nice. This feels so good. Is this what it feels like to get something for free?" Ai clapped her little hands happily as her petite body began to emit a faint rainbow glow.

"Do you want to be detained by me again?" A red glint flashed through aaa76's eyes as she looked at Hara Shichi.

"See? You really do want to play cards with me." Hara Shichi did not particularly like the Duel Supremacy philosophy of this continent, but it was quite convenient sometimes.

Especially when doing bad things.

"Laughable human. You only defeated me through luck last time, yet you still dare act so arrogantly?" aaa76 mocked.

Nonsense. This time was different.

Hara Shichi subconsciously touched the deck at his waist. There was no one else around this time. Though his Marincess deck was a nerfed version, there was no way it would lose to Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

"Why are you here again?"

A cool voice rang out. Hara Shichi's hand, which had been rubbing his deck, stiffened slightly. He instinctively turned around and saw a somewhat familiar figure behind him.

The black-haired girl still wore her white mask, with a red Duel Disk strapped to her arm, looking no different from when they had met before. Yet for some reason, Hara Shichi caught a faint fragrance this time, gentle and sweet like milk, while carrying the fresh clarity of morning dew.

"Then why are you here again?" Hara Shichi countered.

The black-haired girl ignored his question, walked to his side, extended her right hand, and inserted it into the port.

"Why aren't you saying anything about her?" Hara Shichi asked aaa76.

aaa76 fell silent for a moment before continuing in her mechanically synthesized voice. "I am only an alarm system, not an anti-theft system. The amount she steals is insufficient to trigger an alarm."

After saying that, aaa76 gave Hara Shichi a meaningful look. The meaning was obvious: you were simply too greedy. If you had not stolen so much at once last time, she could not have been bothered to deal with you.

"Ahem." Hara Shichi coughed twice and gave Ai a look.

"Don't worry, I understand the importance of taking it slow and steady." Ai gave Hara Shichi a thumbs-up.

Thus, the two quietly continued fleecing the system until Hara Shichi suddenly remembered something and asked, "Did you watch today's duel?"

"What duel?" the black-haired girl replied flatly.

"The duel between first-year student Hara Shichi and third-year student Kiritani Aki." Hara Shichi did not use terms like classmate or senior here, lest he reveal his identity.

"I didn't."

"..."

Fortunately, the girl added, "But I heard about it. It seems a student named Hara Shichi won, right?"

"That's right. What do you think about it?" Hara Shichi probed.

"It was just the outcome of a duel. What is there to think about?" the black-haired girl said indifferently.

"I mean... do you think that student named Hara Shichi has a chance of winning a Starting Roster Spot? Or... do you think he has a chance of defeating Crimson Lotus?" Hara Shichi asked.

"Impossible," the black-haired girl said directly.

Hara Shichi had not expected her to be so blunt, and he was slightly taken aback.

"You're that sure?"

"Yes."

"Any reason?" Hara Shichi asked in confusion.

"No reason." The black-haired girl's voice did not waver.

"Then do you think you can defeat that Crimson Lotus?" Hara Shichi did not pursue the matter further and changed the topic.

"Can I defeat Crimson Lotus?"

The pretty face beneath the black-haired girl's mask immediately turned strange.

Can I defeat myself?

What a weird question.

Wait...

The black-haired girl lightly swept the black hair from her shoulder and teased, "Say, aren't you trying to ask whether I plan to join your team, Hara↗ Shichi↘?"

"Pfft!"

Hara Shichi's heart seemed to stop beating as every muscle in his body instantly tensed.

"W-what are you talking about? I don't really understand..." Feeling guilty, Hara Shichi looked at the floor and tried to hide his face even more deeply.

"Stop pretending. Even if you press your head against the ground, it won't help." Crimson Lotus laughed lightly. "I knew the first time I met you."

"I think you're being rather hasty with your conclusion." Though Hara Shichi said that, cold sweat was already pouring down his face.

"Your Duel Disk is way too flashy." Crimson Lotus exposed the truth in one sentence.

"It's silver and compact, with patterns, portraits, and unknown runes engraved on it. There are already very few duelists in Duelist Academy who use silver Duel Disks, and yours has such obvious markings..." Crimson Lotus could not help clutching her stomach. "Pfft, you didn't really think you'd hidden yourself well, did you?"

"..."

"That's impossible... During daily duels, the crowd stays so far away... and who would be bored enough to pay attention to whether a Duel Disk has patterns on it..." Hara Shichi had not noticed it despite using the Duel Disk every day. He only discovered it after Ai pointed it out.

"You don't know this, do you? There's a small fan group at the academy that follows your duels. They've collected plenty of photos and information about you. Forget the patterns on your Duel Disk—your height and weight aren't secrets to them. For all you know, they might even know exactly how many hairs you have." Crimson Lotus continued.

"..."

"Not taking off your hood?" Crimson Lotus pressed on.

"Please let me keep this last shred of stubborn dignity." Hara Shichi tugged at his hood, his black eyes glaring fiercely at Ai beside him.

Ai, your sins are unforgivable!

Ai was currently absorbing Duel Power with an utterly blissful expression. When she saw Hara Shichi glance at her, she giggled, stuck out her little pink tongue, and tried to charm her way out of it.

"So what's your answer?" Hara Shichi continued.

"Why invite me? Maybe I'm actually a teacher," Crimson Lotus said noncommittally.

"None of the teachers at our academy, male or female, are as short as you." Hara Shichi shook his head as he looked at the girl, whose head only reached his chin.

"..."

Crimson Lotus suddenly wanted to pull out her Crimson Lotus Beast and let the man before her experience what it felt like to take a direct hit from 16,000 attack power.

Chapter 93: What hot-blooded manga protagonist has a cheat ability as lousy as yours?

"I refuse."

That was the girl's answer.

It was an answer without the slightest doubt.

Who would go up against herself?

"Won't you consider it? There's a Starting Roster Spot, and the rewards for this year's National Higher Academy Tournament are quite generous." Hara Shichi continued trying to persuade her.

I already have a Starting Roster Spot.

Crimson Lotus rolled her eyes irritably.

"No need. I'm not interested in the National Higher Academy Tournament." Crimson Lotus repeated what Nero had told her that night.

"All right then." Hara Shichi was somewhat disappointed, but he did not force the issue.

Come to think of it, this was the second time his invitation had been rejected, wasn't it?

Could it really be like Ai said? Did he have some kind of problem?

Then came another stretch of quiet fleece-gathering, until Crimson Lotus withdrew her hand and said to Hara Shichi, "I've gotten about enough. I'll be leaving first."

Hara Shichi glanced at Ai, who was still not satisfied, then said to Crimson Lotus, "Then go ahead. I'll stay a little longer."

"Yes, and also..." Crimson Lotus hesitated for a moment. After struggling internally, she finally said to Hara Shichi, "As for your teammates, don't worry. Someone more suitable than me will join."

"Thanks." Hara Shichi took it as Crimson Lotus trying to comfort him.

"You leave too," aaa76 suddenly said.

"Why do I feel like you're treating us differently?" Hara Shichi frowned suspiciously.

Watching Crimson Lotus gradually disappear, aaa76's otherwise flat voice seemed to carry the slightest fluctuation. "Because for her, this is necessary. She has no choice. You do."

Hara Shichi could not refute that, but...

"I can accept that an alarm system has advanced intelligence, but why do I feel like you also have something called 'emotions'?" Hara Shichi looked at aaa76 suspiciously.

"Are 'emotions' something exclusive to humans?" aaa76 asked expressionlessly. "Can't other species possess 'emotions'?"

"Can't I possess 'emotions'?"

No... of course emotions were not unique to humans, but you were clearly not even a living creature!

After all, technological development on this continent was not particularly advanced. Smartphones had not even become widespread, color television had only just appeared... and many regions still relied on letters to transmit information.