The Temptation of Chocolate? (6K) (continued)

"No, my lord, it is we who are too weak to meet your expectations. We have failed you and disappointed you!"

She had initially thought she would be punished.

As a result, Mahiro gave him a kiss as a consolation.

My Lord is truly too gentle...

This tenderness, however, made Gamma feel even more ashamed.

"Alright, Gamma, the ground is cold, get up first."

Mahiro helped her back to the sofa, and he sat back down opposite her, eating dessert and drinking black tea as he spoke:

"It's settled then. I'll go to the Lawless City Return alone, and none of you are allowed to come with me."

"No!"

"???"

I don't know where Gamma got the courage, but she loudly refuted his suggestion.

But after shouting, he immediately panicked and waved his hand, saying:

"No, no, my lord, what I mean is... no matter what, one of us Seven Shadows must accompany you, and neither I nor the others will compromise on this point!"

To be honest, this was the first time Gamma, or rather the Seven Shadows, had refuted him.

Looking at that flustered yet earnest, forceful yet still timid demeanor, Mahiro couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.

"Alright, alright, we'll do as you say. One of you Seven Shadows will come with me. Is that alright?"

"Thank you for your understanding, my Lord."

Gamma bowed her head deeply again to express her gratitude.

Although she couldn't be of any help this time, she would never give up.

One day, she will earn Mahiro's approval... She will never give up again, no matter what!

Little did she know, although Mahiro agreed to her request, who but himself knew when he would depart?

We'll head to the Lawless City tonight and resolve the problem as quickly as possible.

Mahiro had already made up her mind about this.

"Miss, this way please."

Just then, the door to the VIP room opened.

It's Claire.

She had already chosen her clothes and came in.

As soon as she entered, she saw her teacher slumped on the sofa, and sitting opposite her... an elf?

For some reason, Claire was reminded of an elf named Alpha.

She had met Alpha a few times before, but she wasn't familiar with him and only knew that he often followed her teacher.

"This young lady must be Mahiro's companion, Miss Claire Cagaino, right?"

Gamma rose from the sofa, walked gracefully to Claire, and extended her hand to her:

"Nice to meet you, Miss Claire. I am Luna, the president of the Arcadia Trading Company. Mr. Mahiro just mentioned you, saying that you have a very elegant Claire. Now that I see you, I find that not only is your demeanor excellent, but you are also very beautiful."

"I'm your date, hello President Luna, you're very beautiful too."

Claire blushed and gently shook hands with the other person.

To be honest, as expected of a businesswoman, Gamma's words not only dispelled Claire's doubts but also made her very happy.

He was even rambling a bit incoherently.

Luna is Gamma's former name, which she now uses as a pseudonym.

"Oh, by the way, Mr. Mahiro, you just ordered three more truffle chocolates from us. I suppose one of them is for you."

"Chocolate?"

Claire was slightly surprised and winked at Mahiro.

"That's right, it's our chamber of commerce's Valentine's Day special, the highest grade chocolate."

Gamma clapped her hands.

Then, the tea shop assistant who had initially led Mahiro to the VIP room pushed in a trolley with three beautifully packaged boxes on it.

Claire knew a little about chocolate.

It is said that this is a token of love, a very popular high-end dessert among couples.

Unfortunately, only the Arcadia Trading Company in the entire capital sells it, and coupled with its Valentine's Day connotations, the supply falls short of demand, and the price is extremely high.

It's said that one of them has already been sold for the astronomical price of twenty gold coins!

This box looks like it contains at least ten pieces.

This one box alone is worth at least two hundred gold coins!

And that doesn't even include the exquisite wooden box packaging!

Keep in mind that her monthly living expenses are only three hundred gold coins!

Most importantly, this item is in a situation where it's available but there's no market for it!

The teacher must have used a lot of personal connections, right?

Claire bypassed Gamma, went straight to Mahiro, took his hand, and started to walk out.

"Teacher, the chocolate is too expensive for me to accept, and I don't think Rose and Sherry would want it either!"

She knew without even guessing who the other two boxes were for.

However, she didn't notice that Mahiro's expression was also quite surprised, and he looked at Gamma in a daze.

Is this some kind of fully automated wingman?

He hadn't even thought about any of these things, yet Gamma had arranged everything for him!

Gamma secretly gave him a thumbs-up, encouraging him to keep going.

However, although he was a little surprised, he felt it was worth the price of admission to see Claire's flustered and embarrassed expression for the first time.

So he accepted Gamma's kindness, reached out and touched Claire's long hair, and said:

Price is not an issue, as long as you like it.

Claire's face instantly turned as red as an apple, and she stammered for a long time, unable to speak, completely different from the usually imposing Claire.

At the same time, Mahiro asked again:

"President Luna, how much are these three boxes in total?"

"It doesn't cost any money."

Gamma smiled and replied, "The money for Miss Claire's clothes and chocolates has already been deducted from your Mahiro Card, Mr. Makoto, so there's no need to pay anything extra."

"A black... Obsidian Card?!"

Claire felt her worldview had been shaken once again.

An ordinary school teacher possesses an Obsidian Card that even royalty doesn't have?!

"Well, as I mentioned before, I know Ms. Luna, the president of this club."

Mahiro offered an explanation that wasn't really an explanation.

"Yes, Mr. Mahiro and I are very good friends; he saved my life. By the way, why don't you two rest here for a while? No one will bother you, and you can stay as long as you like. We'll take our leave now."

After saying that, Gamma left the VIP room with the other staff. Before closing the door, Gamma deliberately gave him a encouraging look through the crack in the door.

Even without being told what Mahiro knows very well.

After Gamma and the others left, Claire, who was sitting on the sofa, became fidgety, her fingers digging into the crease between her thighs, which were covered by black stockings, and her eyes kept wandering elsewhere.

"... Teacher, could you come watch my match at the Bushin Festival in a few days?"

Claire suddenly pulled a ticket from her clothes and handed it to him.

It still retained the warmth of body heat and a faint fragrance.

I asked you, "Where did you hide the ticket?"

While inwardly complaining, Mahiro shook his head and said, "Sorry, I'm afraid that won't work. I have to go on a long trip in the next few days."

Where is the teacher going?

Claire blinked in surprise.

"Because of the Lawless City, I probably won't be able to witness Claire's victory at this year's Bushin Festival."

"I see..."

Claire looked slightly disappointed, and her scarlet eyes dimmed a little.

But unusually, she wasn't as willful as usual this time; instead, she seemed to have made up her mind about something.

"Teacher, could you help me take a look at the underwear I've chosen?"

Claire jumped up from the sofa.

Mahiro was slightly taken aback.

Then Claire gently pinched the sides of her skirt, and the curtain slowly rose.

Her porcelain-white legs, encased in black pantyhose, were gradually exposed to the air...

Black lace trim...

It perfectly matches Claire's image.

But...

"Miss Claire, you're playing with fire."

Claire didn't speak, but instead gave him a defiant look with her bright red eyes.

Tsk...

We really need to teach you a lesson!

"..."

"Hmph... you really are a perverted and sadistic teacher...?!"

"..."

However, it wasn't just that she started behaving strangely after giving Claire the chocolate; she even triggered that emotion and made him eat it willingly.

Even the usually composed Rose was the same.

He accepted the chocolate with a look of surprise and delight.

Even in front of a group of students, disregarding the sweat dripping down her body, she immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a sweet kiss.

Although it was a kiss on the cheek.

He was somewhat curious; was this thing really that powerful?

Little did anyone know that Gamma had taken its publicity campaigns, scarcity marketing, and market monopoly to an alarmingly outrageous level.

Sherry, however, didn't react much to receiving the chocolates; instead, she seemed quite curious.

"What exactly is this thing...?"

Sherry sat in the research room, looking calmly at the brown object in the box, occasionally tilting her head in confusion.

She tried picking up the objects that seemed to emit a sweet, cloying fragrance, but still couldn't identify them.

All she remembered was that Ms. Mahiro said it was "chocolate".

But she had absolutely no idea what chocolate was.

"Sherry, what's wrong?"