Vivienne sat in her room, still recalling the day she saw the true strength of Void. "Void, my brother... we were the same age when he was brought here. At first, he was shy, but as we grew, we both forgot we were not blood-related. Maybe because of that incident when we were attacked by assassins."

Vivienne drifted into a flashback, reliving that traumatic day.

They were both attacked by assassins. His maid, Arcane, was badly hurt, and Vivienne herself was not in good shape. Void was poisoned and tortured mercilessly. Vivienne, only ten at the time and never much focused on training, thought her life was about to end. But then, he came.

The old blade of their grandmother was in his hand, his eyes glowing fiercely. The whole mansion bore ice crystal designs, and everything was shaking as if the mansion itself was trying to calm him down. In the next moment, everything was silent and calm. Half of the mansion was blown away, and Void was heavily injured, bleeding from many parts, yet he still stood.

Before this incident, Vivienne had despised him, hated him, ignored him, thinking he was just using their mother's feelings. But after that day, she realized two things: first, that he was a weirdo and a feminine guy, and second, that he saw their mother and herself as his own family.

Even when the truth was told to him, she thought he'd leave them or gain hatred against their mother for his parents' deaths. But he forgave her, calling her his own mother. Tears played on Vivienne's cheeks as she wiped them away with one hand. After the recent events, people were talking about Void, some appreciating him, while others criticized him, questioning why he wasn't trying to be more masculine. Vivienne wanted to punch those critics in the face. She saw their mother concerned about this too.

The Night Before the Departure

"Mother, I have a plan," Vivienne said, while Marcus and Maria both seemed stressed. "What if we let Void stay at Miss Takahashi's place until the year of enrollment?"

Maria was not happy with this. She replied, "Why Takahashi's place? What good will it do to Void? We are talking about fixing his femininity!" Maria grabbed a photo of Void. "I can't let my baby stay away from me."

"Milady, I think what Mistress is saying is correct," Marcus said, his voice calm yet calculating. "We know that the young master has only one affinity, and that's for ice. The Takahashi family are experts in ice and water magic. I remember Miss Aoi being interested in the young master."

Maria was still unable to connect the dots. She asked, annoyed, "Still, what good…?" Her thoughts cleared as a smile spread across her face. She took her seat and lit a cigar. "That's right, they have expert skills, especially for males in ice magic. If Void stays around different people, he will start gaining his manly charm. Moreover, this will surely work in our favor."

"Mother, I have one request. Please cancel my engagement with Void," Vivienne said. "I don't have interest, and it's not like he'll be leaving us. We can adopt him legally now as he truly wants to be with us. Don't you think I deserve this for helping you out with two things?"

Maria's eyes darkened for a moment as she processed Vivienne's words. "If that's what you desire, it's fine by me now, as he won't be leaving anyways," Maria said, clearly disappointed by Vivienne's decision but still agreeing. She turned her gaze towards Marcus, who seemed disappointed too but knew his boundaries.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"Marcus, prepare the files for Void's adoption. It's not like we will have a problem even if we don't make it official," Maria said, placing the photo back on her desk. "But I don't want to get into a mess in the future because of this."

Marcus nodded in agreement, knowing they could face problems later if they didn't make it official. "Milady, what if we send Master with Miss Cassey and Arcane to protect and take care of him? I recently got some news that Miss Cassey is practicing her sword skills. Looking at her past instances with the master, she seems friendly with him," Marcus suggested.

"Hmm…," Maria seemed to agree. "I think that's perfect. This way, around these girls, he will surely try to be more manly and eventually lose his feminine personality. Arcane will be ready anyways. As for Cassey, I'll talk to Miss Heart." Maria smiled.

Meanwhile, Void was sleeping, unaware of the plans happening behind his back. As he regained consciousness, he found himself not in his limousine but in a large wooden-roofed room. He was in a Japanese futon and rose up, trying to sit.

"Where am I?" Before Void could lose his mind, Aoi entered the room in her Japanese yukata. As she came, she hugged Void tightly, her grip showing a possessive aura that wasn't too overwhelming yet.

"Mr. Void, I missed you! A lot," Aoi said before bombarding him with questions. "How was your trip? Was it relaxing? Did you see the pretty mountains?"

"Ahh… Miss Aoi...!" Void tried to catch his breath in her tight hug. "Aren't we friends? Why are you still calling me 'Miss'?" Her words carried a hint of menace, as if she had a knife hidden behind her.

"Aren't you the one still calling me 'Mr'? If you won't stop using honorifics, how would I stop?" Void replied. "Besides, where are Miss Cassey and Arcane?"

Realizing her mistake, Aoi's face turned bright red. "Oh, yes, I'm sorry... Void!... Void," she chanted his name like a spell while resting her head on his chest, her grip still tight.

"Mr. Void, are you alright?" Cassey entered the room. Seeing Void and Aoi in such an intimate state, she exclaimed, "What the hell do you think you're doing, you crazy yokai!" Cassey quickly grabbed Void's arm, pulling him. Seeing her advances, Aoi grabbed Void's other arm, and both started pulling him.

"He's mine!" Aoi said, pulling Void towards her.

"No, he's mine! Keep your hands off him!" Cassey retorted, pulling Void back. Void muttered to himself, "Both of you, please release me! I'm not a toy. What the hell is wrong with these two?"

Suddenly, both Aoi and Cassey were tied to a web by Arcane, who seemed calm yet visibly furious. "Both of you, refrain yourselves! Master Void isn't fully recovered from the tiring journey."

Seeing themselves in the web, both Cassey and Aoi realized they had gone overboard. "O... okay," they said in chorus.

"It seems you all are having fun?" Rin entered the room. "I was quite shocked when she said she is letting her beloved little one stay here in my territory away from her."

"I hope you had a safe journey, and I'm sorry we made you sleep because the path to our territory is a bit edgy and dangerous," Rin Takahashi said, her voice soothing. "Anyways, Aoi dear, please show Mr. Void around our humble abode."

Without wasting another moment, Void was again pulled by Aoi. "Let's go, Void! I'll show you around!" she said, clinging to his arm and dragging him along.

"Wait, I'm coming too!" Cassey quickly clung to Void's other arm, with Arcane following the three of them from behind.

Initially, Void had a hard time managing these three while acting like a good boy and learning new skills. His training sessions were mostly based on low mana usage since he couldn't always use natural mana. His trainer had examined his body and found it damaged, but the talent was rare. Hence, he was advised to use it only when necessary.

Keeping that aside, Void realized something strange: Christina wasn't there for training. If he remembered correctly, she had an affinity for ice magic and was the Ice Princess of the game. "It's not like I want her to be here," Void thought. "Right now, I can just enjoy and focus on strengthening myself. Many deaths, levels, and events are waiting for me, along with finding the heroine playing all along."