Little Ai Was Stunned...

"Why did I wake up even more tired?"

As they left the library, Lu Guan rubbed his lower back and questioned Dania helplessly. She was clinging to his arm with a smug look on her face.

"Hehe, Dania doesn't know!" The culprit behind it all blinked her big eyes and put on an innocent look.

An unhappy childhood had left her with a deeply insecure personality.

Only in front of Lu Guan did Dania show a hint of the willfulness unique to a young girl. In Lu Guan's words, this was how a girl her age ought to be.

Dania didn't understand what it meant to be willful, because her past experiences hadn't allowed her to be. But as long as Lu Guan liked it, she would learn how to be a little willful on occasion while still knowing her limits, just as she had learned to fly Snow Velvet.

"It's good to be young..." Lacerta, who was drinking coffee and watching Lu Guan nearby, couldn't help sighing.

Suddenly, she recalled her own school days, when everything had been so wonderful and fulfilling.

And now...

A student who had only recently enrolled had already found a partner, while she, after so many years as a teacher, was still a single dog...

At the thought, the light went out of Lacerta's eyes.

Ever since that special CG in the library, Dania had become increasingly clingy.

Aside from returning to their dorms to sleep at night and attending different classes, Dania spent most of her time glued to Lu Guan's side, guarding him as if he were more important than her own life.

She had to lean on Lu Guan when she dozed off, feed each other with him at meals, and even wait outside when he went to the bathroom. As soon as he had washed his hands, she would cling to his arm again.

"Are you treating me like some little kid who might wander off and get lost?"

In response to Lu Guan's question, Dania showed a strong possessive streak. "If I don't keep a close eye on you, what if another girl seduces you away while I'm not looking?"

"Are you that unsure of yourself?" Lu Guan asked with a smile.

Dania shook her head. "No, it's you I'm not confident in."

"Uh...?"

"Think about it. How many days have we known each other?" Dania counted on her fingers. "Our feelings for each other aren't that strong yet. What if another pink-haired girl suddenly shows up and steals your love for me?"

"Unless..." Dania's eyes darted around, and a sly look crept onto her face. "You can leave me something that will put my mind at ease."

So that's what she was getting at!

"...How about we change the subject?" Cold sweat poured down Lu Guan's face. Over the past few days, he had gotten a taste of just how pent-up Dania was.

As for that "something that would put her mind at ease," Lu Guan couldn't think of anything it could be other than CCB.

If he agreed to her request, there probably wouldn't be a drop left! He could forget about sleeping tonight, or getting out of bed tomorrow.

Besides, Lu Guan had always been concerned about that "gaze of the Tacet Discord of Nihility." The system hadn't answered when he asked, so he could only set it aside for now.

At the rate Dania's Star Desire Points were currently rising, he believed she would completely break down in a matter of days.

For now, though, he would put it off for as long as he could.

"No..." Dania hugged Lu Guan's arm and shook it back and forth. "You keep avoiding the subject whenever I bring it up. We've already done everything we should and shouldn't have done, so what's one last step?"

"No... This is a matter of principle." Lu Guan was firm. "I'll go along with whatever other nonsense you want. But for this, I'd like to wait until everything has settled down."

"Settled down, settled down. That's all you ever say," Dania complained. "How much longer do you expect me to wait?"

"...It won't be long now."

"Hmph~" Dania turned her head away, seemingly sulking at Lu Guan, but her grip on his arm tightened.

[Beep! Dania's Star Desire Points +1]

[Beep! Dania's Star Desire Points +1]

[Beep! Dania's Star Desire Points +1]

How can these still be called Star Desire Points? Might as well call them Dania's Frustration Points!

"Come on, you're coming into the café with me!" With her Star Desire Points about to max out, Dania grabbed Lu Guan and pulled him into a roadside café.

Luminous Forest.

"Oh, thank you, little ones!"

With the help of the Sun Sprites, Augusta had just used the Furnace Core to strengthen her power again, and she now felt full of energy. She wanted to reach down and stroke the Sun Sprites who had always helped her, only to discover awkwardly that she couldn't touch them.

"Sorry, little ones." Augusta smiled apologetically. "Once I'm back to normal, I'll be sure to come play with you often."

With that, she stood up and looked in the direction of the academy.

Since that accident, Augusta had gone from a campus idol and pink-haired songstress to an electronic ghost who could only entertain herself.

But she hadn't lost heart. Because her condition had been abnormal when she resonated, she was an incomplete Tunneler Resonator, and her powers were incomplete as well.

Fortunately, after becoming an electronic ghost, she existed attached to the Tunneler, so the Tunneler's heart-the Furnace Heart-was also effectively Augusta's heart.

For over a decade, she had been using the Furnace Heart to strengthen her power, hoping that one day she could repair what she was missing and find a chance to return to reality.

"Little Ai, charging complete!"

"Destination: Stardust Academy. Let's go!"

The same familiar formula, the same familiar Void Matter Bubble.

But today, Dania seemed to want to play a little differently.

"Here, try this grape."

With no choice, Lu Guan could only keep playing along with Dania.

But that was exactly what Dania wanted. Her aim from the start had been to punish Lu Guan through their game.

But now, it seemed Lu Guan was actually enjoying himself?

Lu Guan was indeed enjoying himself.

During the game, Dania kept making adorable sounds, which instead prompted Lu Guan to think of taking the opportunity to be naughty.

Clearly, he had almost succeeded.

"...Hey, that's cheating!"

"Cheating? The rules didn't say I couldn't do this." Dania smiled as she showed Lu Guan the grape. "After all, you were destined to lose this game from the very beginning."

"Hehe... Be a good boy and accept your punishment for losing!"

(Some content omitted)

[Beep! Dania's special CG 3 unlocked!]

Somewhere the two hadn't noticed, another pink-haired girl was watching their exercise with a stunned look on her face.

A mere Void Matter Bubble naturally couldn't fool Augusta, a Tunneler Resonator. As soon as she entered, she saw Lu Guan and Dania's "grape-eating game," and the way they played left her stunned.

"Th-that's so creative!" In all her years, Augusta had never seen a couple dare to get so kinky in public.

But just as she thought eating grapes was as far as it went, she hadn't expected there to be a second round.

"Whoa! That's so perverted! Isn't this pornographic?!" Augusta covered her eyes, but her fingers opened a gap of their own accord.

"This is way too thrilling!"