Chapter 56

"What a shame," Hana sighed, glancing at Natsuki. "What about you, Natsuki?"

A few days had passed, and Hana had gotten over the button incident. She could now talk to Natsuki easily again.

Natsuki paused for a moment before answering seriously, "I want to see the Great Pyramid of Khufu in all its glory, take a selfie with the Sphinx, have a philosophical debate with Socrates, and even fight in the war between Athens and Sparta."

"Wow, that's incredible!" Hana's eyes widened in amazement.

"Are you talking about that travel simulator game?" Miko chimed in, revealing the truth.

Don't underestimate travel simulators. There's a rumor that before Notre Dame caught fire, the staff used a simulator to gather information!

Too bad it's just a rumor.

"Games can do all that?" Hana's eyes sparkled. "I want to try it too!"

Natsuki casually replied, "Come over and play with us sometime."

"I'll keep that in mind," Hana nodded.

The three of them chatted as they walked, soon arriving at school.

Mrs. Kaguya had been walking beside Hana the whole time, and her form looked noticeably more solid. Who knew this good friend could double as a power bank?

They spotted the Ice Queen getting off the bus not far away.

"Oh, it's Kaguya..." Hana said, admiring her. "She's always so pretty." She then turned to Natsuki, curiosity getting the better of her. "By the way, why did you get into Kaguya's car the other day?"

To get warmth, Mrs. Kaguya was sticking close to Hana. From a distance, it looked like two beautiful girls hugging.

Seeing your mother being intimate with another girl would make even an ice queen jealous!

"Good morning, Kaguya-chan," Mrs. Kaguya waved, her smile particularly bright in the sunlight.

It's the transparency of her body that's worrying.

"I'm heading to class," Natsuki said, turning towards the school building with no intention of talking to Kaguya at the gate.

Anyone brave enough to approach the Ice Queen is a true warrior. Natsuki has zero desire to be a campus hero.

It was still early, and the classroom was mostly empty. Natsuki's seat was near the window by the back door. Shortly after he sat down, Kaguya walked in, extending her slender, pale fingers, and whispered:

"Come with me for a moment."

Geez, why does this feel like a teacher summoning a student?

Natsuki stood up silently and followed her out.

"Little Kaguya, do you miss your mother?" Mrs. Kaguya asked playfully, tilting her head to look at the Ice Queen.

Kaguya looked straight ahead, pretending not to hear.

"That's so mean," Mrs. Kaguya pouted. "I've been looking forward to seeing you all day, and you won't even smile at me!"

The Ice Queen has another title: "Kaguya-sama: The Unsmiling Princess." If she showed a bright smile like her mother's at the school gate, it'd be headline news before lunch!

"Little Kaguya really hates her mother, doesn't she?" Mrs. Kaguya covered her cheeks dramatically. "I want to run away from home!"

Enough already. As a guardian spirit, your range is limited to a single room. Where could you possibly run to?

"...Stop talking," Kaguya finally spoke up. "It's not appropriate to talk in the hallway. Let's go to the activity room."

"You can pretend to be talking to Natsuki-kun," Mrs. Kaguya suggested quickly.

"Please don't," Natsuki refused firmly. "I always feel like something dangerous will happen if I'm seen whispering with Kaguya-san."

"Where's the danger?" Kaguya tilted her head, seemingly displeased with Natsuki's answer.

Natsuki thought for a moment. "...I'd probably become the school's public enemy number one?"

Kaguya folded her arms and raised an eyebrow. "If you care too much about what others think, your life will be very difficult."

Is that why you often look at others like they're paramecium?

If you treat everyone else like single-celled organisms, you naturally don't need to care about their opinions!

"We're here," Kaguya stopped at a classroom door.

"Isn't this an abandoned classroom?" Natsuki recalled, thinking to himself.

"I'm not going to the board game club. It's too much trouble with people coming and going," Kaguya said as she unlocked the door. "I had... someone clean this up yesterday. I'll use it as my activity room until I become student council president."

Natsuki walked in curiously and was shocked by the transformation.

The floor was covered in plush carpet. There were high-end leather sofas, a tea set on a low table, bookshelves, plants, a dining table, and even a calligraphy desk. This was way more than simple cleaning - it was a complete makeover!

The power of money is terrifying.

"Your mother was up late on her phone again," Natsuki explained. "By the way, Fujiwara and I entered the game copy on the subway last night. Did you know?"

"Fujiwara messaged me," Kaguya nodded. "I saw it. I didn't receive any instructions when you entered the dungeon yesterday."

Natsuki replied, "There's still a lot about the game we don't understand."

"Little Kaguya, hurry and recharge Natsuki!" Mrs. Kaguya urged. "It feels awful being weak and powerless."

"If you know it's uncomfortable, don't stay up late on your phone," Kaguya scolded.

"But phones are so fun!" Mrs. Kaguya's eyes sparkled. "When I passed away, we only had simple phones. I never imagined they'd become so powerful."

"Facebook changed its name and is going all-in on the Metaverse," Natsuki said as he took off his jacket and lay on the carpet. "We might see a big leap in a few years... Kaguya, we can start now."

Kaguya looked down at Natsuki's back, pursing her lips slightly.

You're so practiced at lying down. How many times have you done this with Miko?

She casually slipped off her indoor shoes and stepped onto Natsuki's back with her stocking-clad feet.

Even the sheltered young lady who knew nothing could feel how compromising this position was. The tips of her ears turned slightly pink.

"Mmm..." Mrs. Kaguya leaned back on the sofa, exposing her slender white neck as she let out a seductive moan. "A strange warm current is entering my body."

This is the legendary void charging technology, converting emotional energy to other forms. It's not some weird warm current!

Natsuki's feelings were complicated.

Being honest with himself, having Kaguya step on his back was indeed more comfortable than with Miko.

Suddenly, his phone vibrated.

Natsuki checked it. "It's a message from Chika. She saw our bags and is asking where we are."

The pressure on his back paused slightly.

"...You exchanged contact info with Fujiwara?" Kaguya asked abruptly.

"I added her a while ago. She even messaged me last night about some creepy presence staring at her in her room..."

As Natsuki replied to Chika, he felt the movement on his back stop. Without thinking, he turned and said:

"Don't stop, keep going."

"..."

He was met with a dazzling white view - the area between Kaguya's knee-high socks and skirt hem, bright in the sunlight.

Natsuki's breath caught for a moment.

Looking up, he saw Kaguya's arms crossed, staring down at him with her usual cold disdain.

That look in her eyes is really too much!

"You never told me about this," Kaguya said casually.

"You didn't ask," Natsuki replied just as casually. "I thought you knew."

No. I had no idea, Kaguya thought. Contact info is so important, but that airhead just opened her mouth and you gave it without hesitation, even though we haven't exchanged info!