After sending Lappland to the room he had arranged for her, Ren prepared to return to the safe house to treat his injuries. Lappland had offered to help bandage him, but Ren declined—not because he didn't trust her yet, but because she was in worse shape than he was. He wanted her to take care of herself first, and they could meet again later.
Before they parted ways, Ren handed her his phone, saying he'd buy a new one and contact her again. Lappland simply nodded without protest, which felt oddly out of character for the usually wild woman. Her sudden compliance unsettled him a little.
Ren's body had returned to normal—meaning his Luperian ears and tail had disappeared. However, he could summon them anytime using the Spirit of Stone ability, which he had just discovered could do that.
It was a powerful skill, but it came with drawbacks. Staying in that form too long might cause Ren psychological damage—perhaps because Lappland, the first spirit he fused with, had such a chaotic personality. When he used her spirit, his own demeanor deteriorated noticeably. So ideally, he should only use the form when absolutely necessary—or better yet, find someone more compatible.
Even so, Ren had felt amazing in that Luperian body. It was as if he'd become a superhuman, capable of anything. That body was undeniably stronger than his normal human form.
Still, he didn't fully understand how the spirit fusion worked. From what he remembered, all he did was touch a shard of stone on Lappland's body, and the skill activated immediately. Did that mean the other person had to be Infected for fusion to work?
But there was no use overanalyzing it now. Pushing the thought aside, Ren left the dorm where Lappland was staying and headed back to the safe house.
He returned there because it was only a bit past 5 a.m., and he wanted to find a nearby clinic to treat his wounds. He dreaded what his coworkers would say if they saw him in this state, and he especially didn't want to explain his encounter with Lappland—particularly not to Texas. It could be seen as a violation of the agreement he had with Lappland.
However, at this hour, no nearby clinics were open—only the hospital downtown. And there was no way, not even over his dead body, that Ren would go back there. His PTSD made the hospital off-limits.
So, he opted to return to his safe house instead, recalling that there was an emergency medical kit in his bedroom. If he could reach his room without being seen, he could treat himself there.
He hoped no one would be awake when he arrived. But as Ren quietly cracked open the door to the safe house, the first thing he saw was Sora, already in her usual outfit, sitting and putting on her shoes—preparing to go somewhere.
Their eyes met.
Sora's widened in shock. Ren's filled with worry.
"Um...senpai—" Ren began to say something, but it was too late.
Sora rushed over and grabbed his shoulders in alarm.
"What happened, Ren?! Did someone hurt you?! Was it the mafia gang from yesterday?!"
"These injuries are too serious! Hold on—I'm calling an ambulance!"
Grab! "Please don't call an ambulance, Senpai!" Ren cried, grabbing Sora's hand as she reached for her phone, panic etched all over his face.
"I-I'm begging you, don't call them." His fear of hospitals made him visibly tremble.
Sora noticed and gradually calmed herself. She gently held his shaking hands.
"Okay... No hospital, then. But we still have to do something about those wounds—you know that, right?" she said softly, choosing not to ask how he got hurt.
"I understand… There's a medical kit in my bedroom. I think I can handle it—"
Ren didn't get to finish before Sora shook her head.
"That won't be necessary. I'll take care of it!"
"…Huh?"
Before he could question it, Sora took his hand and led him to the living room. She told him to sit on the couch while she pulled something from under the table—a large medical kit, the size of a carpenter's toolbox.
Seeing his confusion, Sora smiled kindly.
"The reason we have this here is because, after every mission, everyone usually gets a bit roughed up. Croissant thinks hospitals and clinics are too expensive, so our boss stocked these kits at various safe houses. And since I'm usually the one being protected, I volunteered to handle first-aid for everyone!"
She said this cheerfully as she expertly opened the kit and took out various supplies.
"Alright… Take your shirt off, please."
Though she said it without hesitation, a blush crept onto her cheeks. This was the first time she'd ever asked a guy to undress, and even though she tried not to think about it that way, her overactive imagination ran wild.
Ren didn't think too much about it. He simply thanked her sincerely and took off his outer shirt.
"…" Sora stared in shock at his emaciated body.
This is just too cruel… She struggled to suppress her anger at whoever had done this to her junior.
She cleaned his wounds and carefully applied medicine.
"Doesn't it sting, Ren?"
After using alcohol to clean the cuts, she noticed Ren didn't flinch or make a sound—unlike her teammates, who'd scream even at a scratch.
"They're minor injuries… And your hands are so steady, Senpai—I didn't feel a thing," he said honestly. He was used to pain, especially repeated antiseptic treatment on inflamed wounds. This was nothing.
But Sora thought differently. The wounds on his body were far beyond "minor." Especially the one on his right shoulder—it looked like it had been run through with a sword. It was worse than the injury Texas had suffered months ago.
If it's come to this… There's only one thing I can do.
After finishing up the cleaning and dressing, Sora stood up and took out her microphone.
"What are you doing, Senpai?" Ren asked, confused.
Sora just winked.
"Your senpai's about to give you a different kind of performance~"
She closed her eyes and began to sing a song Ren had never heard before.
"♫ Even if I reach out, even if I call out... ♫"
As the beautiful melody flowed, Ren suddenly felt an itch at his wounds. When he looked, he saw the medicine working faster—his injuries were beginning to close up, healing rapidly.
Is this Senpai Sora's power?
As the song progressed and reached its climax, Ren's wounds had completely disappeared—as if he'd never been hurt.
"♫ I cannot see the present, the past was full of despair... ♫"
"♫ But the light has shown me the way—what you gave me was the song of tomorrow ♫"
"♫ The chest of hope, don't ever let go of me ♫"
"♫ No matter how hard it gets, I'll keep moving forward ♫"
Clap clap clap!
Ren applauded, his face full of awe.
"That was amazing, Senpai Sora! Your song was beautiful!"
He didn't hide his admiration—he had never heard anything so warm and uplifting. It was clear now how powerful and special her voice was. No wonder she had the potential to become a famous singer, just like Exusiai had said.
"It wasn't that
"Sorry, Ren… Looks like I have to go to work."
"At this hour?" Ren frowned. It was barely 5:30 a.m.
"Yeah… I'm still a trainee idol, so there's a lot I have to do."
Clearly trying to change the subject, Sora walked toward the door. Ren followed her, now clothed again.
Before stepping out, Sora turned and gave him a serious look.
"Listen up, Ren. Don't get hurt like this again. If anything happens, contact us immediately. Got it?"
"Yes… Thank you, Senpai Sora. And I'm really sorry for making you worry."
He looked at her, and she gave him a sad smile.
"I am
Ren quickly waved it off.
"It's fine, Senpai! We can do it next time!"
"…Yeah. Let's cook together next time!" Sora beamed and stepped outside to a black car waiting at the front of the safe house.
"See you later, Ren!" she called, waving one last time as she climbed into the car.
Ren waved back, watching as her figure disappeared from view—his face slowly filling with worry once again...
The young man watched as Senior Sora's figure disappeared into the distance in her car. A faint look of concern appeared on his face—just moments ago, he had activated his Eye of the Mind ability and secretly glanced at her, only to notice something suspicious...
[Sora] [Affection: 40% (Junior)] [Status: Friendly] [Emotion: Worried]
"Senpao Sora… what could she be worried about?"
Ren tried to stay optimistic. Maybe she was just feeling stressed from work, which would explain her anxiety. After all, she hadn't looked well yesterday either—he remembered hearing that her agency had canceled some sort of appointment.
So, he tried not to overthink it and carried on with his day as usual.
Ren took a shower, changed into fresh clothes, and tied up his old ones in a trash bag to throw away later.
He headed to the kitchen to make a meal. Senior Sora had briefly taught him the basics of using the gas stove and other kitchen essentials. Naturally, the first dish he tried was the fried fish recipe that Brother Jay had once shown him.
It wasn't hard—just heat up oil in the pan until it's extremely hot, cut the fish into pieces, fry for about ten seconds, then take it out. That was all it took to get tender, juicy fried fish ready to eat. And once Ren finished, a system message popped up:
[Fried Nijiro [Quality: 2 Stars]]
[Grants 50% Fullness and 30% Happiness when consumed]
"Only two stars? That's kind of low…"
Ren figured the food quality ranking worked similarly to Genshin Impact, where 5 stars was the maximum. The fact he only got two probably meant his cooking wasn't up to par yet. He wasn't even sure what the "Intermediate Chef Skill" he had did exactly—so far, it didn't seem to make any difference while he was cooking.
But once Ren took a bite of the fish, his eyes lit up with excitement.
"It's delicious!!!"
Even without any seasoning, the flavor was amazing—it was better than anything Brother Jay had made for him…
"Maybe the cooking skill actually enhances the taste of the food?" Ren wondered.
Still, he couldn't be sure. He knew he had an "alligator tongue"—everything tasted good to him. So, he decided that next time Senior Sora was around, he'd ask her to taste it for a second opinion.
While Ren was setting the table and placing the food down, he suddenly flinched. In the far background, he spotted two female figures—one with red hair and the other with brown—peeking out from behind a pillar, staring at him without blinking.
"Uh… Good morning, Miss Exusiai, Miss Croissant."
Once the two realized they'd been caught, they casually walked over, pretending like nothing had happened.
"Oh, Ren! What a coincidence! You're cooking? Smells amazing! Mind sparing a plate for your big sister here?" Exusiai said brightly, sitting down at the table with her usual cheer.
"Yeah… the smell's so good I almost wanted to snatch—uh, I mean, I'd love to help you taste it," Croissant added, still trying to maintain some seniorly dignity. But a thin string of drool at the corner of her lips betrayed her true intentions.
"You two want some? I made a lot, just in case," Ren replied. He was actually glad—he'd finally get some feedback from others.
He served both of them plates of freshly fried fish. The two girls lit up with joy at the sight of the dish.
But the moment they took a bite, their faces froze.
"IT'S AMAZING!!!" Exusiai exclaimed, immediately going in for more.
"What is this fish?! Why is it this good?! I-I can't stop eating! I can't stop at all!!"
[Lemuel (Codename: Exusiai) is delighted by your food. +300 Emotion Points]
[Codename: Croissant is delighted by your food. +300 Emotion Points]
"Aren't they overreacting a bit?"
Ren scratched his head, seeing both the pop-ups and their dramatic reactions.
He figured they must also have "alligator tongues" like him. Looks like he'd have to rely on Sora or maybe Texas for reliable feedback.
"Still, this isn't bad… I could probably farm favor points this way. Maybe I should volunteer to cook for the whole team?" Ren mused playfully.
But as he turned back to the stove to fry the remaining fish, a system message appeared—
[Emergency Quest: Rescue [Sora], your colleague who has been kidnapped, within 24 hours]
[Reward: One skill from [Sora]]
[Failure: Death of [Sora]]
Ren's eyes widened in shock as his spatula clattered to the floor.
"Senpai Sora's been kidnapped?!"
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