With a slice of her fork, Stella cleaned her plate of the last remnants of the cake. Amanda watched as she did so and pounded the last slice of cake away into her belly. Amanda couldn’t help to feel flabbergasted at what she saw.
“Uh, Stella, when I meant we’d grab a bite, I meant more like a slice of cake. Not a whole cake.”
Yes, Amanda’s eyes were not deceiving her and it seemed her ears were also not clogged either. When she heard the order told back to her earlier, she was unsure if the server had included the word “slice” to the order.
The reality of it was that Stella had ordered an entire cake. Amanda, like a good friend, had tried to help by eating a large slice of it but there was still more than 90 percent of it left. By the time Stella finished the last bite, Amanda wondered if she was of any real help.
In the span of what was an awkward 30 minute chat, Stella had so elegantly gobbled the cake fit for two, all up. She didn’t even leave a single strawberry or sliver of whip cream off the large plate. It was so large in fact that Amanda could have laid both her hands on it.
“OH man, I really needed it today. Nothing like sweets after a somewhat bad day.”
Stella wiped her mouth with a napkin, looking like all the noble she was.
“But, I’m still kind of hungry, it was a nice snack. I think I’ll get some dinner after this.”
“Really?” Amanda wanted to shout, Just how much of a glutton are you, but kept it in.
“You’re not full yet?”
“Of course, what can I say, I’m still a growing girl in the prime of her youth.”
Stella laughed a bit and as if to affirm her words, her large breasts bounced, drawing Amanda’s exasperated attention. Jeez, just how much can this girl eat? But really, just how can she pack away so much food and still be so thin.
Putting a hand to her own waist, Amanda mentally frowned at the somewhat slight amount of baby fat on her. While she had been training more due to wanting to spend time with Stella and Ikki to see how their relationship would turn out, Itsuki’s demanding sparring matches kept her doing a good amount of cardio every day.
Running from grenades and bullets was quite the workout, but was something she would want less of in life.
Amanda sighed, feeling resigned to how her time at this academy might not change from its current situation. Ever since she became Itsuki’s assistant, her life had become hectic. She could always run away and she did, but Itsuki would always find her and drag her back to work.
A plus was that he did pay her a good amount of money for her work. The initial salary he offered would make food and living expenses a nonconcern. So, it was bearable, she thought.
After paying the tab, Amanda still couldn’t help to glare at Stella’s hourglass-like figure when they walked back to the dorms.
“Just what is your secret Stella? How do you stay so in shape?”
“Hard work of course, but really, I’ve always been like this.” Stella beamed. “I don’t know why I don’t gain any weight when I eat so much, but my parents didn’t really mind it so I thought it was normal.”
“Hah, you’re so lucky, not to mention blessed.”
Stella was a bit shaken by the word blessed and thought about what Shisuki said before.
‘A PRINCESS LIKE YOU WHO HAS EVERYTHING COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND WHAT IT TAKES TO LIVE LIKE WE DID!’
What did she mean by that? Sure I was a noble and was treated like a princess, but it’s not that easy. I have responsibilities, so just what did Shisuki mean? Did Ikki and her go through something? It sounded like that was the case, but….
Hiding her thoughts, Stella continued to walk with Amanda to the dormitory. Try to keep a conversation between them.
It was getting late and by now everyone was settling in for the night. Both of them had skipped class due to Stella’s punishment and while Amanda should have been reprimanded for ditching as well, she luckily had Itsuki, who smoothed things over with Joel.
She wouldn’t thank him for the flexible benefits she had as his assistant. Amanda knew he’d probably hold it against her since he seemed like the type to do that, or did he?
That was a worry that Amanda would have to think about later on, but for now, she said her farewell to Stella.
“See you tomorrow, we have a full day of classes but let’s try to go out on the town after classes.”
“Sure.” Stella said. “But I don’t know much about the terracolony and where to go sightseeing. Do you have any ideas Amanda?”
“No, but I do know someone we can ask? How about we bring Ikki, and then maybe….” Amanda gave Stella a look and Stella picked up on Amanda’s implications and turned red.
“It-it’s not like that Amanda, don’t just put thoughts into my head, alright? We’re just friends...But….You would do that for me?”
Her face flush, Stella didn’t want to say it, but really wanted to know if Amanda had her back on this.
“Of course I will. Just don’t croak, ok?”
“I-I have no idea what you mean. Hmph! If that’s all, then good night!”
Indignantly, Stella promptly gave a farewell and stormed off, looking pissed and irked at how teasing Amanda was being.
It’s really not like that, Ikki is just a rival, a person I’m going to learn from and become stronger so I can protect my people. When I beat him, I’ll drag him back with me to my homeland and have him train the other explorers there and then, then…
“Heh, heh, heh heh heh.”
A weird look crossed Stella’s lips, and realizing that she was making a face, she quickly shook her head. Brushing away that fairy tale like idea out of her head. She wasn’t a kid, nor was she childish.
“Keep it together Stella, just one step at a time…..but.” Hesitation filled her. “Will Ikki really want to come with me……what if he wants to go back home……go with Shisuki…”
Recalling just how close Ikki and Shisuki were with each other, even before Shisuki’s indecent kissing, the two of them had such a strong familial bond that it made Stella’s heart clench.
Damnit, damn that flat chested witch. Ikki, you better not be a siscon, or I will..will..
As if her head were in a bind, Stella furiously brushed her hair with her hands as if trying to untie a knot. Luckily, no one saw her do this. The halls of the dormitory were empty at this time of night, a boon of silence to help her think.
After sufficiently calming down as she walked the halls, Stella stood in front of the door to her room with Ikki. Without hesitation, well just a little, she opened the door and stepped in.
“Ikki, I’m back, how are—”
But Stella had to pause since she saw a somewhat unusual sight.
“Hmmm? Oh, welcome back Stella, how was your day?”
“I umm, fine I guess but uh…why are you…wearing that?”
“You mean this?” Ikki turned to show off the frilly apron he had tied to his front. It was then that Stella caught a whiff of what was in the air. Meat.
“I thought you’d be hungry so I broke out this old thing to help me cook. I usually don’t wear it unless I cook a lot or when making meat dishes since they tend to fry up a lot, but since there’s two of us and today marks the end of the first day of school, I thought, why not?”
“uh…huh?”
Touching as Ikki’s words were, Stella was more entranced by how Ikki looked. The tight apron actually fit him pretty well. He seemed like that stay-at-home kind of dad in those dramas Stella watched with her mother when she was younger.
In this situation, like in those dramas, Stella would be the working woman who came home to her man.
The thought of this then crossed with the recent anime she had been catching up on, and the idea of Ikki wearing the apron in the…”naked” fashion, was heart throbbing. So much so that Stella felt her nostrils almost burst.
“Stella?”
“Uh ahhhh…um thanks.” She said, turning her head away from Ikki so that she didn’t try to imagine him in a sexier attire. What the heck! I’m not lewd, right? Yeah, I’m not, Shisuki is….
Unaware of Stella’s mood, Ikki just nodded and moved on.
“I’ve set the table, so come and eat, I’ll bring out the food in just a second so go ahead and get seated.”
“Uh, sure.”
Getting herself sat down at the low table, Ikki and Stella enjoyed a somewhat silent dinner together. He had taken off the apron, so Stella breathed a bit easier. By the end of it, Stella had a question on the tip of her tongue, though she couldn’t seem to find the courage to ask.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Yet, like any problem she faced, Stella went headlong into it, so..
“Ikki, I have a question.”
“Yeah?” Ikki sipped his drink and put his glass down. “What’s it about?”
“It’s, it’s about your past. Shisuki told me that you suffered in the past, something about your family, going by how she said it.”
A frown formed on Ikki’s brow and he looked as if he was swallowing a bitter pill. His hand also froze over the jug of water he was about to use to pour himself a glass.
Stella quickly took the jug and poured Ikki a glass.
“You don’t have to answer.” She quickly said, hoping that she didn’t touch a nerve.
“No.” Ikki sipped his drink after she poured and a smile formed on his lips.
Just how could he smile? Stella mentally asked herself.
Abruptly, Ikki began moving the empty plates over to the sink. Stella came with him and helped to wash the dishes. A few seconds of silence hung between them.
Stella knew not to go any further since it seemed like Ikki was trying to also put his own words in order.
With the last of the plates cleaned, Ikki sighed.
“Hah, well. To start off. My family, the Kurogen’s, valued me as the next successor. When I was younger, I had shown signs of manifesting core energy at a young age. We come from a very oriental family, so as the oldest I had to take the reins.”
“Oh? So you are like me? How old were you when you unlocked your energy?”
It was common knowledge that almost every person in the world had core energy, so while it was not that much of a big surprise for most, unlocking at a young age was deemed rare. People who unlocked core energy at a young age were also likely to become explorers.
“For me.” Said Ikki. “I unlocked it at about 5 years old.”
“Hmm, same here. Talk about a coincidence.” Stella giggled, hoping to help with the mood.
“Yeah.” Ikki chuckled as well. He was glad that Stella was so considerate. She knew that talking about this was hard for him, and he thanked her in his heart. Not many people really showed him respect, his moniker as a failure and an F-rank was a title he was stuck with. He continued.
“After my core energy was unlocked, I was made to start my training to be an explorer soon after, I was given a lot of attention and when I was older, and ready, I went to get evaluated.”
From how Ikki’s tone went somber, Stella could tell this part of the story was going to be the hardest on him.
“After my evaluation came in, I was treated differently. I couldn’t train anymore since no one seemed to care about my future. I almost gave up on my dream of being an explorer and those years were dark…but I tried to make the best of it. I trained on my own when I could, but it was a snail’s pace in comparison to how I was improving before with my family’s support. Things only changed years later. When I sat down with my grandfather, Ryu.”
Ikki recalled that conversation from years ago, it was like a test of his determination. At every turn and word, Ryu tried to dismay him and get him to fall into a peaceful life as a civilian, but he didn’t give up.
“My grandfather, Ryu, gave me a chance and told me he would let me take up residence in Andromeda, but it came with a lot of risks. I don’t like to say it, but I was reckless back then so I took grandfather’s offer.”
This was when things got dark and I was really pushed to the edge. Ikki recalled, not letting this out and keeping it in. He sighed and sat down at the low table with Stella, as they ate a dessert of ice cream and store-bought cookies.
The sweetness helped and the mood somewhat improved as he explained further.
“In doing so.” Ikki chewed. “I made an enemy out of my family who now wanted to erase me. Because I left to train abroad, I was seen as a traitor to the family. The Eastern and Western Blocs aren’t friends per se. So the Eastern bloc marked me for termination. My father, the head of the family, never wanted this directly. He was fine with leaving me alone, or well “abandoning” me, but not everyone else? The branch families feared I’d make a name for myself, dishonor them or maybe they just wanted me dead from the first place. Either way, I’m past that point in my life now.”
“You’re really fine with that?” Stella asked, worried. “Separating from your family sounds like the most difficult decision anyone could make in their life. Even I’m not sure if I could do that.”
“Well, that’s what I did.” He said assured of himself, but in truth, a bit of loneliness festered in him, hidden away in his heart.
“I of course, still tried to connect with the people I knew in the Eastern Bloc over the web, but it was hard to do that when a majority of your distant relatives were trying to kill you and you’re a whole ocean away. In fact, during the monster stampede in the Eastern Bloc, people tried to take a shot at killing me for the bounty on my head.”
“They went that far!”
Stella was shocked by how Ikki himself was targeted in such a way. A simple travel restriction seemed suitable enough as a punishment but the Eastern Bloc, to Stella, seemed to fall towards assassination as their go to solution.
She had heard the nation was filled with prideful people, but to such an extent? It made Stella clench.
Assassinations were common for a noble like Stella, but for Ikki? Who was just a normal person? A bounty on his head seemed overkill and a terrible outcome for what was his independent decision when no one seemed to care for him anymore.
“It seems so.” Said Ikki. “Luckily, Itsuki, and the explorers with him, helped to drive off any attempts. In the last year, I was somewhat put into an odd situation. I couldn’t attend Andromeda since I needed to rectify my citizenship and it was the worst time since I just got accepted after the clean operation in the Eastern Bloc’s incident. It was such a wasted year to get through pollical channels and debating with the branch families.”
“They really tried to screw you over.” Stella said, her hands balling tighter into fists.
“That and how your explorer record was erased from that monster stampede incident….Wait?” She then realized that if the Kurogen’s disliked having their members train abroad, then what about his sister?
“If this happened to you, then what about Shisuki? Isn’t she in danger now?” Stella sounded like she was worried, but it was more so that she didn’t want Ikki to lose a family member, even if Shisuki was a brocon.
“Hmmm, Well. I’m not sure about my sister’s situation. She only communicated to me that she was attending Andromeda this year. With how I remember my grandfather was, he likely got her on a plane without anyone knowing. I’m actually a bit worried for her.”
“Huh, well sure but…….I really wish you didn’t.” Stella mumbled
“What was that Stella?” Ikki asked and she somewhat flusteredly panicked.
“It’s well, I just wanted to…to know…..Just how much…you..uh…care about your sister?” Trying to come up with a way to deflect, Stella only succeeded in fumbling through.
“She’s my sister, of course I love her.”
“N-No, that’s not what I meant, I meant if you l-love her. You know, that kind of thing. Do you see her as…a woman?”
Ikki’s face paused as he almost choked on a scoop of ice cream that got caught in his throat. Pounding his chest as he chased it down with warm tea, he regained his composure. In doing so, he went back in time in his head.
He would at first say that he never got along with his older sister as much and they were not close for a while. Not until he saw her moping during one of the family parties.
At the time, he of course, was left alone due to his poor F rank status. He knew he shouldn’t have approached Shisuki since the adults told him to not get in her way. His father especially didn’t want him to disturb Shisuki, telling him that he was a distraction to her focus in becoming the next head of the family.
Yet even so, he didn’t turn away from Shisuki. He saw her silently suffering and he reached a hand out. It was after that day that their relationship changed and while Ikki first thought their past interactions were normal, now that he compared what he knew about sibling relations in the Western Bloc, his and Shisuki’s relationship were far from normal.
In fact, back at today’s stimulating reunion, Ikki actually found his sister attractive and he…
His mind going blank, Stella watched as Ikki’s eyes turned distant while his cheeks turned red. That heart throbbing emotion in Stella’s heart churned and in her mind, she redirected her emotions.
“IKKI!” She yelled and Ikki came back to himself, his shoulders jolting up like a scared cat.
“ANSWER! THE QUESTION!”
Stared up by Stella, Ikki put his hands up in surrender.
“I uh well…..of …hmmm y-yes?…”
*Bam*
“Grah! Ouch! Argh!”
Punched in the face, Ikki rolled back a few times and landed on his back the third time he rolled over. His back hitting the door to their dorm room, he rubbed the bump on the back of his head.
“Idiot!”
Without another word, Stella turned away and hid herself under the covers of her bed. Ikki on the other hand tried to correct himself.
“Stella? Wait! I didn’t say…well…I said yes but…I didn’t…”
He tried to approach Stella but his feet stopped when she yelled at him again. They reminded him of how the adults and branch families yelled at him, and his heart sank a bit.
“Go away! PERVERT! I can’t believe you’re a, you’re a…..”
Stella groaned, feeling tears form in her eyes but she hid them away under the blanket whilst squeezing the life out of the pillow on her bed.
She really couldn’t believe it, that Ikki of all people was a degenerate like his sister. If this was the truth of the matter, then.
Fine! Let it be, it’d be a match made in heaven for all I cared.
“Jerk, Idiot, Nincompoop, Dolt.” The hateful words spilled out, but so did more tears. Tears that were from her throbbing and aching heart. Just why, why do I feel this way?
He was just a crush right? Just a…..crush…It’s not like I……I….
Stella’s mind went still and she finally noticed that she could no longer hear or sense Ikki nearby.
Uncovering herself from her blanket, she looked around and saw as Ikki was moving to the door.
“W-where are you going?”
She asked, somewhat half concerned and half angered at Ikki's somber look which had a bit of red color on his cheeks. They were both making complicated expressions and neither of them could look into the other’s eyes.
“I’m going to cool my head in the bath, I need to think about this.”
The sound of the door clicking close behind Ikki followed him out. The moments before Ikki went out of sight, Stella wanted to reach out to him, but she stopped herself.
Why? Because maybe Shisuki was right? That she made this worse.
But that made Stella feel a bigger pain in her heart.
With him gone, Stella only had herself, herself to keep herself company. This loneliness was killer, it ate away at her, but even though she knew he’d come back, how they had separated right now left a bitter mood between them.
“What do I do? Why? Why can’t I just admit it!”
Stella punched her pillow and screamed into it. Her two long braids of red hair came undone, flowing across the pillow as she forced her forehead into it.
“I wanted to kiss him too, you know.” Stella mumbled, recalling how Shisuki had done so. So intimate, so close, so.. Romantic and fulfilling. “I wanted him to look at me that way. Like how he was with Shisuki, that little…hmmmmmm.”
Can’t Ikki just….can he just hurry up and fall for me already…He told me I was pretty but come on… if you’re going to say that, then at least follow through. We’re roommates for Pete’s sake.
“Wait….. what am I thinking, I must sound so selfish, or am I just a coward. Argh, what do I do? How can I make him see me? But Do I want him to see me that way?”
If Amanda were here, maybe she’d have some tips, or maybe a senior here at the school. Itsuki came to mind but Stella immediately burned that idea. The stern idiot likely didn’t even have a girlfriend with how unlikeable he was.
Just how, how could Stella increase her likability? In old romance games, you could give presents and do all sorts of things, so maybe…maybe there was something.
“That’s it!”
[Andromeda Dormitory]
Description: The massive complex is able to house thousands of students, It comes with public lounges, large baths, and even fully stock cafeteria that has private rooms and dining halls. A more public option is available, but most students tend to make food in their rooms. A rumor of a haunted cook that roams the kitchen drives students away, yet, there is always good food waiting for anyone there. Is a demon tempting them?
image [https://i.postimg.cc/vHmQrNKg/1697423499855.jpg]