Forcing her eyes wide, Yui saw a blackhaired man walking toward her.
Strangely, the rain seemed to part around him, an invisible barrier keeping even the hem of his coat dry.
"A person? A ghost? Am I hallucinating?"
Her surroundings suddenly twisted.
"Ugh so dizzy"
Her knees buckled and she pitched forward.
A pair of strong arms caught her.
Rei Ao brushed Yui's forehead, frowning.
"Running a fever? Your constitution is really poor."
Though he spoke bluntly, his touch was exquisitely gentle, as if holding a fragile treasure.
Warm energy flowed from his palm; the moisture on Yui's body vanished at once, her clothes turning dry and comfortable, her temperature quickly returning to normal.
She remained unconscious, long lashes casting faint shadows on her pale face.
"Sleep awhile."
Cradling her in his arms, Rei Ao strode into the rain. A playful gleam flashed in his iridescent eyes.
Elsewhere
AkiyamaMio waited anxiously, fists clenched so hard her nails dug into her palms.
She had struck a bargain with Rei Aoone "favor" in exchange for Yui's rescue.
For her friend, she would pay any price.
Her heart hammered; countless possible "prices" flashed through her mind, staining her cheeks crimson.
"Mio what is this method of yours?"
TsumugiKotobuki fixed her with a stare.
"Yeah, tell us already!"
Ritsu asked, uneasily scanning the rain.
"Yui's been gone so long"
"I"
Mio had no answer; she could give no solid explanation.
At that moment two figures emerged from the storm: Rei Ao, carrying an unconscious Yui.
Around them shimmered an invisible barrierno rain could touch them, leaving a strange dry space.
"Yui!"
Mio and Ritsu cried in unison, halfjoy, halfdisbelief.
Rei Ao laid Yui gently on a bench, as if placing down fine art.
"She's finejust frightened. A good sleep will settle it."
His deep, magnetic voice radiated calm.
Mugi hurriedly draped her coat over Yui, only to find Yui's clothes already warm and dry, as if she had never been soaked at all.
"Sir, thank you so muchhow did you find her?"
Gratitude and curiosity shone in her eyes.
"Someone asked me."
Rei Ao glanced meaningfully at Mio, a smile flickering in his rainbowcolored eyes.
"Now, it's time to collect my payment."
Mio's face flamed from ears to neck. She remembered the terms and her heart nearly stopped.
Ritsu and Mugi stared, mystified.
"Um could we maybe" Mio began, voice barely a whisper, but Rei Ao raised a finger.
"Not now," he said, smilinggentle, yet edged with danger.
"When you're ready, call me."
His gaze lingered on Mio a moment longer, as though seeing straight through her.
Then his figure faded, vanishing into the rain as if he had never been.
Only a dry, sleeping Yui and Mio's burning cheeks proved it had all been real.
"Mio who was that?"
Ritsu's voice rose with shock.
"Do you know him? What did he mean by 'payment'?"
Her questions rattled out like gunfire. Mugi, too, watched intentlyelegant, but plainly curious.
"Appeared from nowhere and vanished the same waylike a magic trick"
Mio lowered her head, ears scarlet, fingers twisting her hem.
Seeing this, even Mugi sensed the "payment" must be something personal.
"It's a long story"
Her voice dwindled to a murmur. There was no way she could explain who he was.
"By the wayyou three have no shelter. Go over there."
Rei Ao reappeared without warning, startling them all.
They followed his pointing fingerand there, ahead, stood a brandnew house.
Ritsu's jaw dropped.
"Was was that house always there?"
~~~
For Every 100 Powerstone = 1 Bonus Chapter! Please Vote for more Chapters!
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
Currently You can Read 220+ Chapters Ahead of Others!
Chapter 791: Ghost? Alien? Shock of the Girls (Bonus Chapter)
"Hiss!"
Tainaka Ritsu was standing in the doorway.
Her mouth was open wide enough to fit an egg, and her eyes were round with shockshe looked just like a startled rabbit.
"Ththis is impossible"
Her voice trembled, and her fingers clutched the doorframe.
"There was absolutely nothing here a moment ago!"
Tsumugi Kotobuki stroked the armrest of a leather sofa with practiced elegance, wonder gleaming in her eyes.
"Italian calfskin This set must cost at least threemillion yen."
She lifted her gaze and surveyed the room.
"And the dcor It's the modern minimalist style that's all the rage right now."
Akiyama Mio kept her head down, unable to meet anyone's eyes.
She knew all of this was Rei Ao's "handiwork"a house that had appeared out of nowhere in the depths of the mountainsbut she had no idea how to explain it.
Rei Ao himself stood in the center of the living room.
Under a mess of black hair, iridescent eyes rested calmly on the four girls, the faintest smile at the corner of his lips.
"Mio"
Tainaka Ritsu suddenly seized Akiyama Mio's wrist and spoke in an almost inaudible whisper.
"Your friend he isn't a ghost, right?"
Her gaze darted repeatedly toward Rei Ao, then away again.
"How could a normal person conjure up a villa in the middle of the mountains?"
Akiyama Mio felt her cheeks grow hot.
"Nno, Rei Ao isn't a ghost"
Her voice grew softer and softer until it was nearly a murmur.
"What matters most right now is that we change clothes."
Unsure how else to respond, she hurriedly changed the subject.
Gently she shook the stilldazed Hirasawa Yui.
"Yui, wake up. Let's take a hot bath first, or we'll catch a cold."
Hirasawa Yui blinked her large, confused eyes; when they fell on Rei Ao they suddenly lit up.
"Ah! You're the person in the rain!"
She pointed at Rei Ao, her voice rising in surprise.
"I remember you!
"When you walked in the rain, the raindrops all avoided you!"
The living room fell silent at once.
Tainaka Ritsu and Tsumugi Kotobuki turned to Rei Ao simultaneously, their eyes full of shock and questions.
Rei Ao chuckled softly, shattering the silence.
"The bathroom's down the hall on the right. The hot water's ready."
He pointed upstairs.
"There are clothes that should fit you in the wardrobe on the second floor."
With that, he turned toward the sofa, picked up a magazine, and began flipping through it, as if the conversation had never happened.
Akiyama Mio felt as if a great weight had been lifted.
She quickly pulled Hirasawa Yui toward the bathroom.
Tainaka Ritsu and Tsumugi Kotobuki hesitated; only when Rei Ao, still not looking up, said, "Relax, I don't have a voyeurism fetish," did they follow.
A luxurious bathroom.
As soon as the door closed, the girls all exhaled in unison.
The room was absurdly large: in the center bubbled a round Jacuzzi big enough for six or seven people.
Beige marble tiles lined the walls, and soft lights from the ceiling created a warm, cozy atmosphere.
"Wow~"
Hirasawa Yui dashed over first, shed her wet clothes in a flash, and leapt into the tub.
"So comfy!"
She sank into the hot water until only her head remained above the surface.
Akiyama Mio, cheeks crimson, undressed slowly.
Her movements were stiff, her gaze wanderingclearly burdened with worry.
Tsumugi Kotobuki noticed but said nothing, gracefully unbuttoning her uniform.
Tainaka Ritsu, far less reserved, stripped while looking the bathroom over.
"This place is ridiculously fancy!"
"That Rei Ao guywhat's his story? Conjuring a villa in the middle of nowherethat's beyond just being rich!"
One after another, the four girls slipped into the tub.
The hot water wrapped their chilled bodies, driving away the mountain rain's cold.
Hirasawa Yui closed her eyes in bliss, like a lazy cat.
Tainaka Ritsu leaned against the rim, enjoying the massage jets.
Tsumugi Kotobuki washed her golden hair with aristocratic poise.
Only Akiyama Mio seemed absentminded, mechanically scrubbing her arms, eyes drifting again and again toward the door.
"Mio."
Tsumugi suddenly spoke, her gentle voice leaving no room to dodge.
"That Rei Ao isn't just your 'friend,' is he?"
The atmosphere in the tub froze instantly.
Hirasawa Yui blinked curiously; Tainaka Ritsu sat straight, waiting for Mio's answer.
Under the water, Akiyama Mio twisted her fingers together.
"Well I"
"He appeared out of nowhere, then produced a house out of thin air,"
Tsumugi went on, her jewellike eyes fixed on Mio.
"That's hardly something an ordinary person could do."
"Exactly!"
Tainaka Ritsu nodded vigorously.
"And Yui said he walked through the rain without getting wet! Mio, is he really a ghost? Or an alien?"
Her imagination galloped off.
"He's not!"
Akiyama Mio shook her head quickly.
"Rei Ao's neither a ghost nor an alien, but"
Seeing there was no escaping the topic, she bit her lip and said, "He really isn't an ordinary person."
Not an ordinary person?!
Tainaka Ritsu and Tsumugi Kotobuki straightened at once.
"So what is he?"
Hirasawa Yui asked, a little rubber duck bobbing atop her head.
Akiyama Mio drew a deep breath.
"If you truly want to know why not ask him yourselves?"
With that she suddenly stood.
Water streamed down her pale skin.
She snatched a towel, wrapped it around herself, and hurried out of the bathroom, leaving Tainaka Ritsu and Tsumugi Kotobuki staring at each otherand Hirasawa Yui blinking in bewilderment.
Akiyama Mio stood in the hallway.
Her heart hammered so hard it felt ready to burst from her chest.
Beneath the towel her body trembled slightly
whether from leaving the hot water or from what lay ahead, she couldn't be sure.
She understood the terms of their bargain: the "right to use" her body.
Rei Ao had fulfilled his part.
Now it was time for her to keep her promise.
At the thought, her face burned even hotter, her ears reddening to their tips.
The second floor was silent.
Only her own footsteps echoed in the corridor.
At the far end was a closed doorsurely Rei Ao's bedroom.
With every step her heartbeat quickened; her legs felt heavy as lead.
At last she stood before the door.
Akiyama Mio lifted her handyet could not bring herself to knock.
~~~
100 Powerstone Bonus Chapter!
For Every 100 Powerstone = 1 Bonus Chapter! Please Vote for more Chapters!
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
Currently You can Read 220+ Chapters Ahead of Others!
Chapter 792: The Curious Girls
AkiyamaMio's hand hovered in midair, trembling slightly.
Countless thoughts flashed through her mind: Is it still possible to back out? Will Rei Ao force me?
Am I really about to give my first time to a man I've only met once?
While she was struggling with herself, Rei Ao's voice came from inside the room.
"Come in."
Mio's body shuddered; she almost cried out.
How did he know I was outside?
Has he been watching me the whole time?
The idea made her feel both ashamed andstrangelymade her heart race.
She moistened her dry lips and gently pushed the door open.
The bedroom was even more spacious than she had imagined.
A large bed stood in the center, dressed with darkblue silk sheets.
Beyond the floortoceiling windows lay a rainfresh mountain forest.
Rei Ao sat in a single armchair by the bed, holding a glass of red wine.
He had changed into casual clothes.
The collar of his black shirt was slightly open, revealing a glimpse of his collarbone.
Seeing Mio enter, his iridescent eyes narrowed a little, and a faint, elusive smile touched his lips.
"Close the door."
His voice was low and magnetic.
Mio obeyed, closing the door while her fingers clutched the edge of her bath towel in nervousness.
She stood by the doorway, not daring to meet Rei Ao's eyes.
Her damp black hair hung over her shoulders, still dripping.
Since she wouldn't move, Rei Ao had to take the initiative.
He set down his wineglass and walked toward her.
He was a good head taller than Mio.
As he approached, a faint cologne mingled with an indescribable hint of danger.
"Raise your head."
He spoke softly.
Mio hesitated, then slowly lifted her face.
Rei Ao's gaze roamed over itfrom her wet lashes to her slightly trembling lips, down to her slender neck and the faintly visible collarbone at the towel's edge.
His stare was so direct it felt as if it could pierce the cloth and see what lay beneath.
Mio's toes curled with embarrassment.
"You're beautiful," Rei Ao said suddenly, admiration in his voice.
"Even more beautiful than I imagined."
Mio's cheeks flushed even deeper; she hadn't expected such praise.
Rei Ao reached out and lightly stroked her cheek; the warmth of his fingertips made her shiver.
"Are you ready?" he asked,
his tone as gentle as if inquiring about the weather.
""
Mio didn't know how to answer.
Ready?
Of course not!
But a deal was a deal; she couldn't back out.
So she gave the faintest nodalmost imperceptible.
Rei Ao seemed to see right through her and chuckled low.
"I knew you wouldn't be, so just leave the rest to me."
He leaned close to her ear, warm breath brushing its sensitive rim.
"I promise I'll ease your fear."
Those words flushed Mio from her ears down to her neck.
Instinctively she tried to step back, but Rei Ao wrapped an arm around her waist.
Their bodies pressed tightly together.
She could clearly feel the warmth of his chest and the strong beat of his heart.
"Relax."
Rei Ao's voice carried a soothing magic, and Mio's tense muscles loosened a little.
He lowered his head and kissed heran impossibly gentle touch.
Mio's eyes flew open.
This is my first kiss!
Far gentler than she had imagined.
Gradually Mio relaxed her rigid frame.
That was exactly the signal Rei Ao had been waiting for.
As a consummate flirt, he naturally pressed his advantage.
Meanwhile the atmosphere in the bathroom was tense.
"Don't you think Mio is acting weird? What's going on with her?" TainakaRitsu frowned, idly stirring the bathwater.
"She really has been strange lately," KotobukiTsumugi mused.
"Ever since she said she saw a ghost last month, she sometimes zones out"
She looked toward HirasawaYui.
"Yui, have you noticed anything?"
Yui tilted her head; the little yellow duck on her head slid off.
"Uh Miochan sometimes stares into empty space, like she's looking at something"
