Master

Can this level of trauma truly become a shadow? Can this level of wound remain etched into the soul?

No matter how much time has passed, Asakusa Toru still finds high school girls somewhat incomprehensible.

He wasn't belittling Karuizawa Kei's past of being bullied, nor was he casually saying that it was all because the bullied didn't fight back.

However, he was thinking very hard about a problem.

Are you serious?

Karuizawa Kei: "Huh?"

"You, I, I'm not..." She was flustered. Faced with this question and Asakusa Toru's unexpected reaction, she seemed a little awkward and at a loss.

What's with all this talk about being serious or not...?

I'm definitely serious, right?

What's so serious about that?

Seriously wanting to parasitize you? Seriously afraid you'll see this mark? Seriously...

What exactly are you asking?!

"..." With a soft sigh, Asakusa Toru squatted down, rolled up the hem of his clothes layer by layer, and grabbed her waist with both hands.

Staring directly at the wound without looking up, he suddenly asked:

What kind of reaction do you think I would have?

"Disgust, aversion?" Karuizawa Kei's voice was barely a whisper, "Or, or rather, nausea?"

This was the only answer she could think of.

"And what's the truth?" Asakusa Toru raised an eyebrow.

"..." Karuizawa Kei hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Okay, it seems like... speechless..."

With a snap, Asakusa Toru snapped his fingers.

"By the way, I'm really speechless."

"Just consider it my way of showing contempt for you," he said. "If you choose to be a parasite for something this trivial, if you see yourself as a weakling because of something this small, if you stifle your autonomy because of something this trivial."

"Then let's just say I'm looking down on it."

The words and attitude gradually... turned into mockery.

The mockery ignited a fire within Karuizawa Kei.

You clearly know nothing...

No, you know everything, so why don't you understand me?

You should understand me.

You've said so much, isn't it all just an attempt to understand me?

Contempt, such a trivial matter, mockery.

... It's infuriating.

You are clearly the person closest to understanding that line; you are clearly the person most likely to understand me.

But why are you acting like you know nothing?

Because you only know? Because you only understand?

"Ah, well, someone like you would never be bullied in your life, so naturally you wouldn't be able to truly understand how I feel, right?"

Without realizing it, Karuizawa Kei blurted out what was on her mind.

With a face full of disappointment, and with an attitude as if Asakusa Toru betrayed her expectations, she spoke out.

"Yes, you're right." Faced with her disappointment, Asakusa Toru readily admitted her words: "I've never been bullied, so I can't possibly 'truly' empathize with you and understand what you're thinking through my own experience."

"But so what?"

"I never said I understood you, and I don't need to prove I can understand you. Your thinking has been fundamentally flawed from the start."

It needs to be corrected.

"So, what do you think? I told you I understand you, then immediately turned around and went out, demeaning myself to become the one being bullied, accepting the bullying, and then came back with a strong mentality to tell you, 'Oh, so this is what being bullied is like? I misunderstood you, you were right?'"

"I told you I have no feelings for your scars, your wounds, your psychological trauma, or your past that seems to be filled with malice. Do you still want to prove it to me, to open your mouth and lick it, to caress it, to gently tell me that it's nothing at all?"

Asakusa Toru paused for a moment.

"No, sister, you can touch your waist and abdomen, but you can't really lick or eat them..."

"--It can only be here, right?"

Nothing special, just carbs.

He plunged his knuckles into it once again.

Licking one's lower abdomen is already strange, but licking scars and such...

Am I a cat?

"Ugh..." The intrusion of the foreign object sent a subtle, electric-like sensation through her entire body. Karuizawa Kei awkwardly twisted her shoulders, but could only utter a soft moan, unable to say anything serious.

It wasn't because the feeling was particularly strong, nor was she being forcibly controlled; the hand didn't possess any magic power to manipulate her.

Only.

Only.

... What kind of nonsense is this guy spouting?

Her brain seemed to freeze.

I think this is good, etc...

... Perhaps I really have thought that way.

Listening to Asakusa Toru's rebuttal-like and questioning description, as if on a whim, Karuizawa Kei actually started to imagine it.

If he actually accepted the bullying, if he actually dared to speak up and comfort that wound.

Perhaps something deep inside will truly be changed.

... But it seems that even if we don't do that...

Something within her has changed.

In the midst of this utterly chaotic conversation, in this standoff that was clearly just a matter of shouting at each other and comparing their strength,

What started as a sense of dependence based solely on his power has now transformed into a tangible feeling, as if one can actually touch him as he lands on the ground.

I, maybe I...

"--Then lick it for me!"

With her face flushed and her pretty cheeks burning red, Karuizawa Kei closed her eyes tightly and shouted out with all her might.

Chapter 257 Master

Woohoo!

The lower Jurchen.

You really dare to say that!

Asakusa Toru.

He might say it, but his deep-seated craving for carbohydrates is something he can't hide.

What he said wasn't entirely untrue; it's not like he's never eaten carbs before.

But you, Karuizawa Kei, are so bold in saying such things.

Then all he could do was curse, "You bastard!"

Downwards downwards downwards downwards downwards.

He cursed inwardly a few times, but Asakusa Toru couldn't help but smile.

But that's what makes it interesting.

Isn't that right?

Gently withdrawing his knuckles, in the dim light, Asakusa Toru Tetsu displayed his intertwined fingertips to Karuizawa Kei for a moment.

Great, no gynecological problems.

So.

"OK."

He flashed a bright smile and gave an answer that Karuizawa Kei thought was absolutely impossible for him to accept.

She thought he was just saying it; she thought he would never actually do it.

Because, because...

It's very dirty...

Her own body was already so dirty it was hard to look at, and that scar was the most glaring thing, but that didn't mean she thought her genitals were clean.

It wasn't about being dirty or not; she genuinely lacked experience, but she was pure.

However, the deep-seated hurdle in her heart, that feeling of self-loathing, made her feel that everything about her was utterly detestable.

Especially in those kinds of places, in a general sense, men and women may feel that the other person's body is not dirty, but they may feel that their own body is very dirty.

Therefore, I often find myself sighing with emotion.

He/She can actually bring himself to eat this.

No, you can't think like that.

He already said it was okay, he already said it was all agreed, so—

"But..." Just as Karuizawa Kei was beginning to feel a surge of anticipation and even start to fantasize, Asakusa Toru's change of heart slightly dampened her spirits.

"I don't like to serve others unilaterally."

Like a rollercoaster ride, Karuizawa Kei's heart leaped into her throat, and then...

"So, you go first."

It fell again.

"..." Karuizawa Kei's body trembled slightly.

But this time it wasn't because of fear or other negative emotions.

It was because of his smile.

"Pfft, hahahahaha..." The girl was overjoyed, her smile as radiant as a night-blooming cereus. She gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with her small hand, Karuizawa Kei whispered:

"OK."

Just like his nod in response.

The gloom accumulated over three years of junior high school suddenly felt like it was swept away by this smile, bringing a sense of exhilaration.

Of course, even so, the two of them wouldn't be so oblivious to the world around them as to act like an ouroboros in such a place.

I need to find a bed, no matter what.

Whether it's splashed water or a blood-stained white cloth.

A pure white bed is obviously the most comfortable choice.

--She formed an unspoken, twisted relationship with Karuizawa Kei.

[The Rabbit Group's exam is over. Rabbit Group students do not need to take any more exams. Please be careful and do not disturb other students.]

Before the evening discussion even began, the students on the cruise ship received another text message, signaling the end of their exams, amidst a slight tremor.

That's too fast.