Teluminus Est (5K) (continued)

It traces its path along the temples, resting on the delicate collarbone, before slowly sliding into the unseen depths of the valley.

But in her hand she was holding a black coat, and in her scarlet eyes flowed an emotion called longing.

"We meet again, teacher..."

Claire murmured to herself, her fingertips lightly tracing the surface of her coat.

This coat was the one that Mahiro left for her when she was kidnapped and then rescued a few days ago.

She has kept this coat very well.

Perhaps to remind her of him, Claire would take it out almost every night to look at it and express her longing, as if Mahiro were right in front of her.

But what she didn't expect was...

This freakish, perverted teacher actually came to work at the college without saying a word!

Since we'll meet again, why make things so awkward for yourself in the first place?

Does this bastard teacher really want to see me make a fool of myself?!

"Teachers like this, who are so cruel and abusive, must be punished."

Claire couldn't help but think this, slightly tightening her grip on her coat, a chilling smile appearing on her usually aloof and unapproachable face.

Especially in the dead of night.

But soon, she sighed softly, loosened her grip on her coat, and gently smoothed out the wrinkles that had been kneaded.

No, that won't work...

The scoundrel teacher was not Cid; she was not someone Sid could manipulate at will.

Although the teacher had always indulged and tolerated her willfulness in the past, things are different now.

Yotsuba Mahiro, once her personal tutor, is no longer hers alone.

And most importantly, there's also Rose Oriana, who seems to be very familiar with that sadistic teacher. From the gaze reflected in those golden eyes, she could see an emotion called adoration.

That won't do!

No matter how outrageous, perverted, or monstrous that teacher is, she still belongs to herself!

How can we let someone else take it?

But how exactly do we get it back...?

Claire looked up, her gaze shifting slightly until it landed on a book on the desk in front of her.

The book is called "One Hundred Ways to Win Over a Man".

This book was recommended to her by a kind classmate who said it could solve her problems.

Now it seems, perhaps I really will have it...

Thinking of this, Claire unconsciously reached out and quietly turned the title page of the book.

How do you win a man's heart? Why not try cooking? The way to a man's heart is through his stomach! Oh!

"Cooking..."

A fighting spirit suddenly shone in Claire's eyes.

Early morning.

The chirping of birds outside the window woke Mahiro from his dream. The dazzling morning light slanted into the room from the other side of the horizon, shining directly on the bed.

"Hmm... something's not right..."

Half-asleep, Mahiro murmured something like a dream.

He felt a slight weight on his body, yet it was warm, soft, and smooth, as if someone were lying on top of him.

"... Is it Zeta?"

He couldn't help but think.

Because among the Seven Shadows, besides Ita, Zeta was the one who liked to sleep on him the most.

And Zeta even visited him yesterday evening...

Thinking this, he slowly embraced the petite body lying on top of him, his wandering hands seeming to touch something, feeling like a tiny cardamom bud.

Guni!

I gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Ugh..."

"Wrong!"

Upon hearing this voice, Mahiro's eyes widened immediately, and even his drowsy state vanished instantly.

He remembered.

Zeta came last night, but left in the middle of the night without staying overnight!

Furthermore, Zeta's body isn't that small; this size feels more like that of a young girl...

Most importantly, it's very flat...

Is it sweat?

He felt a chill creep down his temple.

No need to think about it, this is indoors, there's no rain, so this is definitely sweat.

Furthermore, the sudden appearance of a strange girl in his bed—what did that mean? Mahiro dared not even think about it.

"I don't recall having a sleepwalking problem, nor do I have a habit of luring someone's daughter into my room while I'm sleeping..."

He muttered this to himself as if making a wish, then slowly lifted the blanket covering him.

Sure enough, he saw a creature that shouldn't have been there in the blankets—

A beautiful girl with silver hair.

And it's completely bare, the kind that's smooth and untouched.

No, to be precise, she wasn't exactly naked, because she was wearing black over-the-knee socks.

This XP... oh no, this way of dressing and this appearance looked vaguely familiar to him.

Silver hair, over-the-knee socks, and she's a beautiful girl...

However, his action of pulling back the covers seemed to disturb the beautiful girl's peaceful sleep, waking her from her dream.

After rubbing his sleepy eyes and letting out a big yawn, he said to him:

Good morning, Mahiro.

"... You know me?"

"I don't know him."

The beautiful girl sitting on him shook her head, her long, silver hair swaying back and forth.

"I just heard other people call you that."

"... And who are you?"

"Est."

The girl replied expressionlessly, "Because human vocal organs cannot produce the pronunciation of formal names, it is called Est."

I even gave him a special explanation.

But this name, along with all the previous speculations, led him to a bold conjecture.

So he tentatively asked:

"Could her full name be... Est?"

In that instant, Est's deep purple pupils widened slightly as she looked at him.

"You were actually able to pronounce my name."

Est found it very novel and surprising.

It's worth noting that even her previous contractor, the saintess Arecia Idoris, couldn't reveal her real name, but this person did.

That's for sure.

He's not from that world.

Furthermore, the word Tilumminus is derived from Latin and means "this is a dividing line" or "this is the end".

However, these are all insignificant matters.

To his surprise, this little girl was indeed the guardian deity, Est...

But why are we here?

Isn't this the world of those with the Eminence in Shadow?

A Demon-Slaying Holy Sword appearing here? Isn't that like a plot hole?!

Could it be that the ancestors of this wretched world have some connection to the sword dance of the Spirit Master?!

Makoto Mahiro currently overwhelmed with thoughts, feeling that everything was rushing headlong in a subtle direction.

"What are you thinking about? If you're always frowning, good luck will slip away."

Est bent down, and as his silver hair fell over him, she reached out her small hand and gently smoothed the wrinkles between his brows.

"... I was just wondering why you were here."

"Because I belong to you, master."

Est blinked her almost transparent, deep purple eyes and answered without hesitation.

"Okay, you win..."

That's a really good answer.

But come to think of it, he was really stupid. He should have realized something was wrong with everything that had happened before, and the stinging sensation on the back of his hand yesterday...

No, that's not how a normal person would think of it!

Who would have guessed that the infamous Demon-Slaying Holy Sword from the Seirei Tsukai Blade Dance world would appear in the world of the Eminence in Shadow?!

Tired, let's destroy it.

Shinji lay on the bed looking Mahiro listless.

While I was happy to suddenly get a beautiful swordswoman, but...

"Owner?"

Est sensed his fluctuating emotions, which ultimately settled on a subtle point, leaving her quite curious.

"It's nothing... You don't need to call me master, and you're not allowed to call me dad, older brother, or onii-chan or anything like that. Mahiro call me Mahiro."

Mahiro had taken precautions in advance.

He clearly remembered that in the original story, Est, whether out of malice or simply a bit airheaded, came up with a bunch of strange nicknames.

The silver-haired beauty, wearing only black over-the-knee socks, nodded in agreement.

"Understood. I will call you Mahiro."

Mahiro... Mahiro... My master is Yotsuba Mahiro...

Est kept repeating this sentence to himself, muttering to himself.

On the surface, Est seemed to accept this fact readily, but the way she looked at Mahiro was strangely subtle.

After sleeping for a thousand years, Est should have been very happy to have a new master, but in reality, she was not in a very good mood.

Aside from the fact that she could curse her master and cause backlash, the main reason was that this wicked master actually used other weapons in front of her and never called out to her, forcing her to show herself on her own initiative!

And then there's the fact that they forcibly entered into a contract without going through any proper channels...

I'm very angry!