The Thoughts of Two Girls

Hinamori seemed to be seriously feeling the warmth on her head, but her tightly shut eyelids twitched involuntarily.

Just as Shin was about to withdraw his hand, Hinamori, with a surge of courage from who knows where, suddenly grabbed his hand with both of hers.

"President..."

Shin casually grazed her cheek with his knuckles, causing Hinamori to look as if she had lost something.

She suddenly felt a pang of regret, perhaps she should have asked for something more.

"Hinamori?"

Shin called out with a light laugh.

Only then did Hinamori slowly release her grip on Shin's hand.

She pursed her lips and said, "If anyone else made such a request, would you agree, President?"

Shin thought, Of course not. If Renji made the request, I'd just kick him away.

He gently flicked Hinamori's forehead and said, "What are you always thinking about?"

Hinamori mumbled something inaudibly, covering her forehead.

"What did you say?"

Hinamori shook her head repeatedly, covering her forehead. "Nothing..."

[Hinamori Momo]

[Affection: 70]

Hinamori's affection finally settled on a number, making her the person with the highest affection Shin had encountered among all the girls.

Rukia had only just reached 60.

During this time, as the affection of the two girls steadily increased, Shin had also received more and more rewards.

[Spiritual Pressure Level: Lv29]

[Zanpakuto Unlock Progress: 24% (Partial Shikai)]

Through his own training, Shin had only managed to raise his Spiritual Pressure Level by one, and the Zanpakuto unlock progress had only increased by 2%.

All the remaining improvements were brought about by system rewards.

A Spiritual Pressure Level of Lv29, when converted to the Soul Society's ranking system, was estimated to be above Fourth Rank Spiritual Pressure.

Captains were at least Third Rank Spiritual Pressure, while Fourth and Fifth Rank Spiritual Pressure were generally the levels of Lieutenant Captains.

In this extremely short period, Shin had made progress that others took decades, or even centuries, to achieve.

If he discounted the system, his current Spiritual Pressure probably wouldn't even compare to Tōshirō's innate Sixth Rank Spiritual Pressure.

The growth of Spiritual Pressure was different from Zanpakuto, Kidō, Hoho, and Hakuda. While these four disciplines could see progress of a thousand miles in a day with astonishing talent and comprehension, Spiritual Pressure could only be increased through gradual accumulation of training.

Fortunately, he had the system.

The afternoon class was Kidō theory, with several classes attending together in a large tiered classroom.

After entering the classroom, Hinamori saw Rukia sitting by the window.

She walked over to her.

"Momo... Momo..."

Rukia was initially happy to see her, but then seemed to have something to say but hesitated.

Hinamori's emotions were a bit complex, but she still managed a smile. "Why didn't you wait for me? Did you have lunch?"

Rukia nodded. "I ate with Renji and Kira. I thought you and the President had something to discuss, so I left first."

Renji and Izuru Kira were quite close now. Renji had mentioned that during a swordsmanship class, he hadn't held back and had injured Kira, but Kira didn't mind. Instead, he had actively approached Renji to make amends, and the two had become good friends as a result.

Rukia hesitated for a moment and then said to Hinamori, "Momo, I have something I want to tell you."

Hinamori sat down beside her, interrupting with a smile, "No need."

"Huh?" Rukia was startled. "But I haven't said it yet..."

"I know what you want to say, but there's no need," Hinamori Momo said. "Rukia, there are no misunderstandings between us, and there won't be any. Rukia, I know your character very well, and I trust you."

Rukia remained silent. She thought of the words she had overheard outside the Student Council office, and unconsciously clenched her hands, then slowly relaxed them.

"Okay," she replied softly.

Just then, a book flew through the air in a graceful arc, landing precisely on Rukia's head.

Rukia cried out in pain, then immediately knew it was someone's prank.

"Renji!"

She glared angrily at the two people standing not far away, who were Renji and Kira.

Renji simply waved at her. "Save us a seat, me and Kira!"

With that, he and Kira left the tiered classroom.

Rukia casually tossed Renji's textbook onto a nearby desk and said indignantly, "Renji, that bastard! How dare he!"

Hinamori smiled and said, "But Renji is only like this towards one person, Rukia. You're special to Renji, and he is to you, isn't he? You're most relaxed only when you're facing Renji."

Rukia was startled by her words. Hinamori had teased her about her relationship with Renji more than once, but hearing it again now, Rukia felt Hinamori had ulterior motives.

Does she really want to set me up with Renji...?

During class.

Hinamori and Kira were diligently listening and taking notes, while Renji was dozing off. Rukia was lost in thought.

She was thinking about why the Kuchiki family was looking for her.

Rukia didn't know anyone from the Kuchiki family, and there weren't many people with the surname Kuchiki in her class. Class A didn't seem to have any either.

So, what business did the Kuchiki family have with her?

Could it be because someone from the Kuchiki family was in the audience when she performed at the cultural festival?

Because of what Shin had told her earlier, she subconsciously started thinking about the Kuchiki family's purpose in looking for her in that direction.

But Momo should be prettier than me, so why would they specifically seek me out?

Rukia wasn't very confident about her looks or figure. She was the shortest among the people she knew.

The president told me not to worry. He'll definitely protect me...

After class, Renji seemed to have had enough sleep and stretched.

Rukia also came back to her senses belatedly, regretting that she had wasted a whole class period like that.

Renji called out to Kira to go for their swordsmanship practice, but Kira said it was his turn to be on duty for the student council today and couldn't go.

Renji pouted and said he would go alone.

"Do you want to see my notes?" Hinamori offered her notebook to Rukia.

"Thank you, Momo. You've been a great help," Rukia said quickly.

"What were you thinking about during class?" Hinamori asked with a chuckle.

Rukia pondered, "It's about the Kuchiki family, one of the four great noble families, coming to the student council today. The president said they were looking for me, and I'm a bit worried..."

Hinamori comforted her, "Don't worry, nothing will happen. You have the president."

Rukia still nodded with a worried expression. She watched Renji's receding figure and realized she hadn't told him about this matter yet.

Two more days passed.

The Kuchiki family members came again, this time heading straight for the student council office.

Coincidentally, Shin and Rukia were both there.

Rukia became instantly nervous upon seeing them and instinctively hid behind Shin.

"Lieutenant Captain Kuchiki, we meet again," Shin said with a light smile.

Kuchiki Byakuya silently observed Rukia, who was standing behind Shin. He had learned all the information about Shin and Rukia over the past two days.

There was nothing special about Rukia. She was an orphan from the Inudari district of the Rukon District. She came to Seirei Academy with someone named Renji Abarai and joined the student council.

Her resume showed no outstanding achievements, and she was only in Class B.

In Kuchiki Byakuya's opinion, the position of student council president's assistant was by no means outstanding.

It was this Shin Tachikawa who was quite surprising.

Kuchiki Byakuya spoke expressionlessly, "Shin Tachikawa, I have some matters to discuss with Rukia. Could you please step aside?"

Upon hearing this, Rukia quickly tugged on Shin's sleeve.

Shin's expression was calm as he said, "Rukia is my assistant, and this is the student council. There's nothing here that requires me to step aside."

Rukia also mustered her courage and said, "Please just say whatever you need to say."

Kuchiki Byakuya showed no particular joy or anger on his face. He merely gestured to the old man beside him. The old man then took a step forward and spoke to Rukia.

"Rukia, would you be willing to enter the Kuchiki family and become a member of the Kuchiki family as an adopted child from now on?"

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Three Kingdoms: I'm Not Liu Bian

Synopsis:

Liu Bian, holding Liu Xie's head in his left hand and a dripping sword in his right, slowly walked towards a terrified Liu Hong.

"Your Majesty, I've decided. There can only be one Crown Prince today!"

"I want command of the Northern Army's five schools!"

"You unfilial son, you...!"

"Please address me as Crown Prince, Your Majesty!"