16: Entanglement

Kato Megumi raised her eyes, a faint trace of surprise flashing in her clear gaze, as if she hadn't expected Lin Luo to notice these things. She was silent for a moment, as if sorting through her memories, then slowly spoke in her steady tone:

"Actually, my first meeting with Aki-kun was on the first day of school, on Detective Slope."

She described the scene that day: a spring breeze blew off her newly bought beret, and the hat rolled to the feet of Aki Tomoya, who happened to be cycling by. He stopped, picked up the hat, and returned it to her. It was a simple exchange at the time, with no extra words.

"Later at school, we'd occasionally run into each other, but there was never any interaction." Her tone remained flat, recounting the everyday encounters. "Until last month, once in the hallway, I accidentally dropped something, and he reminded me. I thanked him quickly then, without thinking much of it."

"And then this weekend," Kato Megumi's tone took on a barely perceptible hint of helplessness, "I felt I should formally thank him for the hat incident and the reminder. I happened to meet him on the way. After I thanked him, he said, 'I have something to tell you, would you like to go for a cup of tea?'... In that situation, it was hard to refuse."

So the two went to a cafe near the school.

"In the cafe, he said a lot," Kato Megumi frowned slightly, as if recalling the dense words, "about fate, about encounters, about... the feeling I gave him. He said I..." She paused, as if weighing her words, "...was like a 'character whose image hadn't been established yet,' and thus had a very weak presence."

Even with her calm personality, when she relayed this sentence, her tone carried an indescribable complexity. That conversation was clearly not a pleasant experience.

"Then, just this morning," she continued, "at the school gate, he stopped me again and excitedly told me, 'I'm going to cultivate you into a captivating main heroine!' and hoped I would join the game production club he had just applied for."

For her, from the simple act of picking up a hat on the first day of school, to the subsequent repeated encounters and help, then to the perplexing remarks in the cafe, finally culminating in this morning's public declaration with strong personal will... this series of events progressed so quickly that it caught her off guard, and made someone accustomed to staying in the background feel distinctly uncomfortable.

"Now, it seems quite a few people know me because of this morning's events." She concluded softly, the minuscule hint of distress in her brows perhaps only noticeable to Lin Luo.

Lin Luo listened quietly, his face still maintaining his usual calm expression. He noticed that as Kato Megumi narrated, her fingertips unconsciously stroked the edge of her book.

"He sounds like a... very proactive person." Lin Luo chose his words carefully, his tone gentle. "Don't worry too much about it; this kind of enthusiasm, based on a momentary inspiration, might fade after a while."

"Perhaps." Kato Megumi responded softly, her gaze falling on the clouds outside the window. "But I always feel that Aki-kun doesn't seem like the type to give up easily."

Her fingertips unconsciously traced the edge of the book page. She recalled the boy's fervent gaze that morning, an intense earnestness bordering on obsession, completely different from the casual attitude of her usual classmates.

"When he spoke," she deliberated on her words, "he was very much like those who bet all their pocket money on a gashapon machine."

Even with slim chances, he plunged in without hesitation. This all-or-nothing momentum made her unsure how to respond. A simple refusal didn't seem to work for this type of person.

Lin Luo raised an eyebrow slightly at her words. However, compared to the dangerous beings of the inner world, this Aki-kun was at best an overly passionate otaku.

"If he gets too out of line," Lin Luo said casually, "I can help you get rid of him."

He said it as casually as saying, "I can lend you an umbrella if it rains." But Kato Megumi noticed a sharp glint in his eyes, a look she had never seen on the face of her usually calm deskmate.

"Not yet." She gently shook her head, the corners of her lips curving into a barely visible arc. "But, thank you."

World History class on another floor.

Kirisu Mafuyu stood before an unfamiliar podium, explaining the economic policies of the "Great Fusion Era" to this temporarily arranged substitute class. Her voice was cool and clear, her blackboard writing meticulous, maintaining the dignity of the "ice queen." Here, she was merely a revered teacher who occasionally substituted, with no additional entanglements with any students.

This "stranger" environment, however, made the dangerous thought in her heart even more restless. The cold touch of the ring on her ring finger constantly reminded her of its existence, and the proven possibility it represented—over the weekend, she had successfully made the stray cat in the park completely obey her commands.

(Animals can... so, what about unfamiliar humans? If even unfamiliar students can be influenced, then what about Lin Luo...)

The ring amplified her subconscious desire for "absolute control," especially over that neighboring student who could always easily disturb her composure. Experimenting here seemed "safer" and less likely to arouse suspicion.

Her gaze calmly swept across the classroom, quickly locking onto a boy sitting in the back row, secretly reading a manga hidden behind his textbook. A perfect, completely unrelated "test subject."

(Just a tiny command, harmless... just to verify again...)

Within the ruby of the ring, dark currents seemed to surge. An invisible and intangible mental fluctuation, like a precise arrow, silently shot towards the boy.

Kirisu Mafuyu continued to discuss tariff clauses without changing her expression, but her will focused on issuing the command:

「Close the manga, look at the blackboard.」

The next moment, the boy's movements abruptly stopped, a brief look of confusion flashed across his face, and then he "slammed" the manga shut, somewhat mechanically raising his head and directing his gaze towards the blackboard. Although his eyes seemed a little vacant, he was indeed "listening attentively to the lecture."

A shiver, a mixture of immense success and bone-chilling cold, instantly ran down Kirisu Mafuyu's spine.

It worked! So easily!

She felt as if the ring had come alive, fusing more tightly with the base of her finger, and a cold, somewhat corrosive energy silently spread up her arm, like tiny ice needles, trying to pierce deep into her Soul. She could even "hear" the tempting whisper more clearly: See, you can control them... so, what you truly want... She clenched her fingertips tightly, her knuckles turning white, barely maintaining her outward composure to continue teaching. But she dared not look at the boy again, yet deep inside, a voice was screaming wildly:

(It really works... even strangers can be controlled... then Lin Luo... he...)

This realization was like the sweetest poison, making her taste ultimate temptation amidst guilt. The ring's erosion, with each of her compliances and uses, clung to her Soul more deeply, like a maggot in the bone.

Meanwhile, in another classroom, Lin Luo remained completely unaware of everything that was happening.

During lunch break, Lin Luo and Kato Megumi were walking through the corridor connecting the school building and the courtyard. Sunlight streamed through the glass ceiling, casting bright spots of light on the clean floor. Just then, a figure rushed over energetically from ahead, precisely blocking Kato Megumi's path.

It was Aki Tomoya, his large round glasses and ear-length short hair his trademarks. His face held a mix of excitement, like discovering a new continent, and the focused scrutiny of a creator examining raw material.

"Kato-san! It's really you!" Aki Tomoya spoke quickly, his eyes burning as he scrutinized Kato Megumi up and down, as if analyzing a unique work of art. "I've been thinking for a long time, and ever since we talked this morning, I finally understand!"

He gave Kato Megumi no chance to respond, continuing his passionate speech: "This... this almost blank transparency you have now, this lack of presence due to your 'character image' not yet being established, is precisely the most precious uncut jade state! This is by no means a flaw!"

He waved his arms, emphasizing his point: "This means you have infinite potential for shaping! Therefore, I have officially decided—" He took a deep breath, as if announcing a grand mission, "—I will cultivate you into a captivating main heroine! This is more challenging and creatively valuable than simply finding an existing 'character'! Please, you absolutely must join the game production club I just applied for; this is your first step towards becoming a heroine!"

These remarks, which completely objectified Kato Megumi and treated her as raw material to be shaped, made her face turn slightly pale. She instinctively took another step back behind Lin Luo, seeking cover.

Aki Tomoya then noticed Lin Luo. He pushed up his glasses and asked curiously, "Who are you? Are you Kato-san's friend?" His tone carried a natural inquisitiveness, as if Lin Luo was just a background element that had suddenly appeared in his "heroine cultivation plan."

Lin Luo's calm expression receded slightly. He didn't answer Aki Tomoya's question but looked at him calmly, his tone not harsh, but carrying a clear coldness and a hint of displeasure:

"Before you get busy planning other people's 'character images,' shouldn't you first learn to respect her true feelings as an independent individual at this moment?"

These words were like a needle, accurately puncturing Aki Tomoya's self-immersed creative bubble. He opened his mouth, and those passionate words about "shaping" and "potential" got stuck in his throat.

He was used to others being surprised, disgusted, or even mocked by his behavior, but he was rarely so directly called out for the disrespect his actions showed towards "people" themselves. He looked at Kato Megumi's slightly pale face and evasive posture, and for the first time clearly realized that his "grand plan" seemed to have completely disregarded her wishes.

He was speechless for a moment, frozen in place.

Lin Luo no longer looked at him, turning his head to Kato Megumi beside him and softly saying, "Let's go."

Kato Megumi nodded gently, following Lin Luo past Aki Tomoya, who was momentarily speechless. Aki Tomoya watched their retreating figures, pushed up his glasses, a flicker of confusion and unprecedented frustration on his face, but the cluster of flames named "creative desire" deep in his eyes, after a brief flicker, seemed to burn even more complexly.