Tenderness

The road leading to Yingtai Advanced Nurturing High School stretched ahead, a streamlined obsidian-hued "Dawn" stretch sedan gliding smoothly along it.

Outside the window, the bustling cityscape blurred past, rapidly giving way to the open greenery of the suburbs.

Inside, the cabin was spacious, comparable to a small living room.

Premium leather, solid wood trim, and dark metal accents created an environment of understated luxury, solid and secure.

The air circulation system delivered a temperature-controlled breeze carrying a faint, plant-like fragrance.

Liu Zheng leaned back on a wide leather sofa, eyes closed, seemingly dozing.

The uniform of Yingtai Advanced Nurturing High School—a red blazer, white shirt, and green trousers—was crisp and new, yet it still couldn't fully contain the sharp, weathered aura about him that clashed with the campus, an air forged through storms and trials.

His lips moved unconsciously, murmuring the core of the mission: "S System... the ultimate masterpiece..."

His lashes trembled, and he opened his eyes.

The first thing to meet his gaze was a patch of soft, dark pleated skirt fabric, along with the edges of a white shirt and red blazer above it.

His sight shifted slightly upward, locking onto a pair of calm, deep purple eyes, still as a bottomless pool.

Runa Inoue was looking down at him, a few strands of her black hair slipping over her shoulder, her demeanor cool and ethereal, like an orchid blooming silently in the morning mist of a mountain valley.

"Your Highness, you're awake."

Her voice was steady, betraying little emotion. She simply reached out with a slightly cool hand and, with natural ease, gently smoothed the disheveled hair from Liu Zheng's forehead.

"There's still some distance to our destination. You can rest a bit more."

The scent of the girl—a crisp, clean fragrance mixed with faint soap and an indescribable cool perfume—drifted to his nose, abruptly relaxing his mind, which had been tense from the mission.

It also made him fully aware of his current position—pillowed on Runa Inoue's closed legs, wrapped in black stockings, enjoying what was called a "lap pillow."

"See, see! I told you Runa's body temperature is too low! His Highness definitely got woken up by the cold!"

A voice full of energy, like dancing notes in sunlight, rang out immediately, carrying an undisguised "I told you so" smugness and a hint of petty regret.

"I should've been the one just now! My temperature would've been just right!"

Liu Zheng turned his head slightly to look at the source of the voice.

By the window on the opposite side, a girl with platinum-blonde hair was practically bathed in the sunlight streaming in, her strands shimmering like scattered gold. Her ruby-like eyes sparkled as she puffed out her cheeks, looking over like some vibrant sunflower.

It was Chisato Nishikigi.

Her uniform was the same as Runa's—red blazer, white shirt, blue bow, white skirt with black trim—but she wore it in a way that made her look ready to spring into motion at any moment.

"Chisato, your theory is flawed."

Runa Inoue's expression didn't change, her tone still flat and matter-of-fact.

"Your body temperature tends to run high when you're excited, and you can't stay still. If His Highness used you for a lap pillow, he'd more likely be woken up by 'heat' or 'jostling.'"

"That's completely your bias, Runa!"

Chisato Nishikigi shot back immediately, leaning forward and gesturing with her fingers. "It's obviously because you sat closest to His Highness and grabbed the prime spot! Otherwise, I definitely would've been chosen!"

"That's just your wishful assumption."

Runa Inoue replied curtly, her gaze dropping back to Liu Zheng's face, as if Chisato's protest didn't register at all.

"Hey, hey, you two, quiet down a bit."

A slightly lazy voice, crisp with an electronic edge, cut in.

On a single seat at the other side of the cabin, a loli with flaxen hair—Walnut—was hugging her clearly extraordinary lightweight laptop, fingers tapping on the keyboard.

She wore a black ribbon headband, her blue eyes focused on the screen behind anti-blue-light lenses, not bothering to look up. "Rising decibel levels will affect His Highness's rest and my information filtering efficiency."

"Yeah, it is a bit 'noisy'..."

Liu Zheng finally spoke, his voice slightly hoarse from just waking, but the corners of his mouth couldn't help lifting.

"My deepest apologies, Your Highness. I was out of line."

Runa Inoue said immediately, a flicker of chagrin passing through her purple eyes.

"No, no, Your Highness, blame me! I shouldn't have argued with Runa!"

Chisato Nishikigi quickly waved her hands too, her lively expression shifting to earnest apology.

"You two..."

Liu Zheng chuckled, raising a hand to rub his temple. "Why so tense? We've been running around bare-assed... uh, growing up together since we were kids, haven't we?"

He corrected himself in time, glancing at Runa Inoue's slightly reddening ear tips and Chisato's suddenly wide eyes, his smile deepening. "When I said 'noisy,' I meant 'nostalgic.'"

He shifted a little, settling more comfortably on Runa's lap pillow, his gaze sweeping over the three girls before him.

"Usually, we're either crawling through hails of bullets, rolling in wilderness mud, or dealing with all sorts of monsters and freaks... A day like this, sitting steady in a car, listening to you two 'bicker'—it's been a long time. How long has it been since the four of us gathered like this, even just to chat casually?"

"Hmm..."

Chisato Nishikigi counted on her fingers, her blonde hair swaying as she tilted her head. "Must be... eight years?"

"Yes, eight years."

Runa Inoue confirmed softly, her gaze growing distant.

"Before Your Highness's eighth birthday, there were scattered tasks, but we could still meet often. After that birthday, though... the times we could see Your Highness could be counted on one hand."

"Every meeting was rushed. Your Highness always bore fresh wounds or barely concealed exhaustion, then soon departed for the next destination."

Runa Inoue spoke.

"Precise calculation: 2928 days and 16 hours."

Walnut finally lifted her eyes from the screen, her blue gaze locking accurately onto Liu Zheng as she recited a string of numbers.

"Counting from the seventh day after Your Highness's eighth birthday to just before today's departure. That's roughly eight years and one month. It has indeed been a very long time since we've gathered for a four-person exchange that wasn't a mission briefing."

Walnut said.

"So... it's been that long, huh."

Liu Zheng let out a soft breath, a tender place in his heart touched.

"No wonder it feels so... nostalgic. But..."

His tone turned firm and warm, his gaze sweeping one by one across three faces—each distinct, yet all equally etched with concern.

"That won't happen anymore. This is the last mission. After it's over, we won't have to be apart again. Of course, even now, this counts as being together."

Liu Zheng said.

"That's right, that's right!"

Chisato Nishikigi immediately bounced back to full energy, clenching her fists.

"This time I finally get to move with Your Highness! All those etiquette lessons from the palace matrons—tea ceremony, flower arranging, combat, marksmanship... even the medical ability—I've mastered them all inside out. Lately I've been studying mind control courses too, since life force really is amazing. I've been waiting for the day I can truly help Your Highness!"

"Rest assured, Your Highness. If any blind fool dares to stir up trouble this time, leave them all to me. I'll make sure they vanish without a sound."

Chisato Nishikigi said.

"Chisato is right."

Runa Inoue nodded, a sharp, blade-like glint flashing in her violet eyes.

"We will become the sharpest blade in Your Highness's hand. My spatial ability will clear every obstacle for you. Finally... no more just standing in the distance, watching Your Highness bear everything alone."

Runa Inoue said.

"His Majesty's orders are clear. This time, we are permitted to fully assist Your Highness."

Walnut adjusted her glasses, her tone carrying an unyielding seriousness.

"So, Your Highness, please do not try to shoulder all the danger and pressure alone like before. My database and analytical abilities exist to serve you."

"In the electronic star sea, I am an invincible existence."

Walnut said.

Watching their unreserved loyalty, trust, and emotions—burning even hotter after the long separation—Liu Zheng felt his chest fill with something warm and substantial.

The last trace of mission-induced gravity faded from his face, replaced by a genuine, relaxed, and joyful smile.

"Yeah, I know."

He said softly, his voice carrying unprecedented gentleness and resolve. "Thank you... my... maids, and above all, my family."

Outside the window, scenery raced past. The stage called "Yingtai Advanced Nurturing High School" drew closer and closer.

Inside the carriage, the four-person group, reunited after eight years, carried complex emotions.

The warmth of reunion after long separation. Alertness toward a new environment. Focus on the mission. And a faint, barely perceptible anticipation for the "ordinary" campus life about to begin—all driving them toward the unknown three years.

The luxury car glided silently into a dedicated lane. In the distance, the school complex—a gathering place for elites and secrets, hailed as the "cradle of future leaders"—was already faintly visible.