As Su Moqian stroked her, Bronya felt warmth blossoming in her heart.
Of course she knew how difficult it was to bring Seele back. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been helpless for all these years.
And yet Su Moqian had actually managed to save Seele. Just how much effort had he put in behind the scenes all this time?
"Besides, Moqian said he did all of this for Bronya..."
Bronya covered her heart with both hands, clearly feeling her heartbeat quicken.
Then Bronya opened her arms and suddenly hugged Su Moqian, sobbing:
"Thank you, Moqian. Bronya really is grateful to you..."
Feeling Bronya's embrace, Su Moqian was overjoyed as well.
He knew that before now, no matter how Bronya acted, it had all been an act and meant nothing.
But things were different now. Su Moqian could tell that Bronya was genuinely happy.
At that moment, he opened the system and saw that Bronya's affection for him had passed 70.
Seeing this, Su Moqian finally felt at ease.
As the saying went, you had to secure your home before dealing with outside threats. Once the Bronya at home had truly given her heart to him, things would be safer when he went after ME Corp.
However, Su Moqian was so absorbed in his own thoughts that he didn't notice.
Behind him, Kiana watched him and Bronya embracing, her eyes narrowing as a dangerous glint flickered in them.
Kiana: "Staaare—"
After talking with Bronya for a while longer, Su Moqian successfully persuaded her to surrender, with Seele's help.
After all, Seele was the emotional pillar that had kept Bronya going through all of this. Now that she could see Seele, why would she keep helping Cocolia commit such heinous acts?
At the same time, Bronya learned that Seele could only come out for one hour every 12 hours.
Bronya accepted this readily.
At least she could see Seele. Even if they only got to spend two hours together a day, Bronya was already content.
Of course, to keep Bronya from worrying, Su Moqian reassured her:
"Bronya, don't worry. Even though Seele can only return to the real world for a limited time right now, I'll find a way to bring her back for good someday!"
"Mm, Bronya believes you!" Bronya nodded earnestly, pressed close to Seele.
Seeing that Bronya believed him, Su Moqian smiled, then asked the system:
"System, can the skill Wrath of the Minotaur be upgraded?"
The system replied: [As the core skill of the Blondie Simulator, it can certainly be upgraded. The conditions are just a little strict.]
Su Moqian frowned. "Go on."
[As long as the host performs exceptionally well while completing a Blondie mission, there's a chance the core skill will be upgraded!]
Hearing this, Su Moqian's expression darkened even more.
"Your missions are all that kind of thing, and I have to do exceptionally well? What exactly counts as doing exceptionally well?"
Actually, Su Moqian already had an idea of what the answer might be, but he didn't dare say it outright.
Evening came before long.
Seele had already been forced back to the Sea of Quantum, but Bronya didn't look sad. Instead, she was looking forward to seeing Seele again.
Bronya had promised Seele that as soon as 12 hours had passed, she'd have Su Moqian summon her again.
It was already evening, and according to Raiden Mei, she should be arriving soon.
For now, Su Moqian had decided to stay in the living room. He could wait for Mei while keeping Bronya and Kiana company.
"Son, I'm home!"
Just as the three of them were getting bored, a voice suddenly rang out.
Recognizing his mother's voice, Su Moqian immediately got up to greet her.
"Hasn't Shenzhou Headquarters been busy lately? It's rare for you to come home in the evening, Mom."
"I'm just home for dinner. I have to go back tonight." Su Wuxian waved a hand, then pointed behind her. "By the way, look who came with me."
Only then did Su Moqian notice that someone else had entered the room with Su Wuxian. It was Raiden Mei.
Su Wuxian pointed at Mei and said, "Son, Mei just told me it's inconvenient for her to live alone, so I suggested she move in with us. You don't mind, do you?"
Su Moqian smiled and nodded. "Of course not. We've got a few spare guest rooms anyway."
"Moqian, I'll be in your care from now on." Mei raised a hand to greet Su Moqian, the corners of her lips curling upward.
She glanced at Bronya, who was sitting on the sofa, and thought:
This bad duck wanted to get close to him by living under the same roof, didn't she? Well, now I'm moving in too. Let's see what she can do about that.
Bronya, who was looking their way, naturally noticed Mei's smile. Her heart sank a little.
I can't believe Mei went straight for an underhanded tactic like buttering up Auntie.
Hmph. Even so, Bronya will never give up. For herself and for Seele, Bronya has to win Su Moqian!
At the same time, Kiana glanced at Bronya and Raiden Mei, who were glaring at each other, and fell into thought.
Could those two be interested in Moqian too?
But if that's true, what should I do?
Kiana Was a Good Girlfriend, So There Was No Need to Suspect Her
At dinnertime, all five of them sat around the table together.
As usual, Su Moqian sat in the middle, with Kiana on his left, Mei on his right, and Bronya directly opposite him.
Su Wuxian should have been eating with them too, but she'd suddenly received a phone call and hurried off.
Su Moqian had heard the caller mention that they'd discovered another new Honkai Energy device in Changkong City that needed to be dealt with.
He figured his mother had been so busy lately because she'd been handling these things.
So tonight, it was just him, Kiana, Mei, and Bronya having dinner together.
"Here, Moqian, try my cooking. I've been practicing recipes at home lately." Raiden Mei smiled and placed some food on Su Moqian's plate.
She hadn't been good at cooking before, but after practicing hard lately, Mei felt she was practically a natural in the kitchen.
Of course, she wasn't just confident about cooking. Mei was now brimming with confidence about romance, too!
After taking one hit after another over the past few days—and realizing that Bronya was a formidable rival—Raiden Mei had realized she couldn't keep acting so proud.
Otherwise, sooner or later, she'd end up a loser, kneeling on the ground and crying that she was "unable to do anything at all."
So she'd even gone to ask the Herrscher of Thunder inside her for advice, and had gotten Miss Herrscher's Guide to Romance from her.
After reading it, Raiden Mei had been amazed. She couldn't help asking:
"Miss Herrscher, how are you so good at this? Have you had lots of romantic relationships before?"
In response to Raiden Mei's question, the Herrscher of Thunder smiled faintly.
"I don't remember my past. It's just that when I saw Su Moqian and Kiana interacting, I suddenly remembered that a white-haired girl once chased after me too."
"I see." Raiden Mei nodded.
So that guide was based on the way that white-haired girl had pursued Miss Herrscher?
It didn't matter who it was from, as long as it worked.
Raiden Mei was sure that with Miss Herrscher's Guide to Romance to help her, she'd easily defeat that stinking duck and reclaim her rightful place!
"Here, Moqian, have some more."
Drawing on what she knew about Su Moqian, Raiden Mei served him food like a devoted wife.
At that moment, she even wanted to feed Su Moqian herself, but Mei managed to restrain herself.
The guide said that in front of a rival, you absolutely couldn't make a careless move. You had to keep them calm first, then make progress in secret.
"Here, Bronya, you should have some more too. Don't be shy. Make yourself at home."
As she spoke, Raiden Mei smiled and served Bronya some food as well.
Although she seemed to be showing goodwill, she was subtly acting as if she were the lady of the house.
How could Bronya, who was no less skilled at such tricks, fail to see through that?
But after thinking it over, Bronya didn't act rashly. She smiled at Mei and said:
"Mei, you're the one who shouldn't be shy. In fact, Bronya has known Brother Moqian for a long time."
"I've lost count of how many times I've stayed here. I'm definitely more familiar with this place~"
Bronya raised an eyebrow and spoke in a meek voice:
"If you've stayed here so many times, you must be used to it. In that case, you should have no trouble sleeping alone, right, Mei?"
"But Bronya isn't used to it yet. So Bronya can give her room to you, and go sleep in Brother Moqian's room instead."
Bronya's strategic retreat sent a jolt through Raiden Mei.
She'd never expected that all of Bronya's earlier remarks had been a trap, set up so she could make this move!
Thinking of this, Raiden Mei felt a little helpless. "Why is this duck so hard to deal with?"
Just as Raiden Mei was about to counterattack, Su Moqian tapped the table and said:
"What's there to argue about? We have several guest rooms. You can each have one."
"All three of us?" Raiden Mei and Bronya asked in unison, both looking confused.
They could both accept a draw like this.
It was just... Kiana was going to stay here too?
Kiana, who'd been focused on eating, suddenly noticed both girls staring at her.
So she stuffed food into her mouth and answered with puffed-out cheeks:
"I don't mind. It's just one night in a guest room."
Seeing Kiana's silly, food-obsessed look, Bronya and Raiden Mei both relaxed.
"Oh well. Kiana's an idiot. She's no threat."
"Oh well. Kiana's a good friend. There's no need to suspect her."
At that moment, Bronya and Raiden Mei reached a rare agreement.
After dinner, the four of them watched a few movies together in the living room.
Once they'd more or less passed the time, it was time for bed.
By the time Su Moqian got back to his room, the clock had reached 11.
"Ugh, why have I been going to bed so late lately? Is my healthy sleep schedule gone for good?"
After sighing, Su Moqian quickly climbed into bed, pulled up the covers, and went to sleep.
"One Kiana, two Kianas, three Kianas..."
Before you continue