Asaga's heart raced with anticipation as he studied the Uchire Academy insignia on the strange girl's clothing.

As he examined the details of the badge, his thoughts raced with questions. Who was this girl? What was she doing here, lying on top of him?

For a moment, Asaga was lost in thought, his mind whirling with possibilities. Then, his gaze shifted to the nameplate on the girl's shirt. He leaned in closer to read the name, the letters crisp and clear in the dim light of the room.

“Romia Johnson- So this is her name, but why the hell is she here? And dressing like that? She looks so- No, no! I am not a pervert!”

Dark Blood's voice echoed in his mind.

“Do you want to know why she is here?”

The spirit seemed to have a wealth of information about the mysterious Romia Johnson, and Asaga was eager to learn more.

“Of course, I want to! You know her?”

“Not really, because I am always in your body, so I have paid more attention to my surroundings." Dark Blood chuckled.

And it continued:

"What I've learned is that Romia Johnson is the daughter of a noble family in Ford Anatist. She's a student at the Uchire Academy, just like you and Angel. But unlike you two, she's a bit of a mystery. No one seems to know much about her, and she keeps to herself most of the time."

Asaga's curiosity deepened at Dark Blood's words. A noble family? A mysterious girl who kept to herself? It was all so intriguing. And then there was Dark Blood's mention of Romia's beauty. Asaga couldn't deny that he was curious about that aspect as well.

"Tell me more," he said, unable to hide his interest.

"Well, I can tell you that she's quite popular among the male students at the academy, the same as Angel. Her beauty is gorgeous, and it's said that she has a way of captivating any man who crosses her path. But there's more to her than just looks. And, she's one of the top students in her class which is your class too."

“Why does every girl that we met have a noble background?”

"Actually, we're lucky," Dark Blood whispered. "These girls both study in class 1-A. People in class 1-A are among the most elite first-year trainees. Romania is no exception. She's ranked sixth in the academy. What a monster!"

"Ranked sixth?" Asaga repeated, amazed. His mind couldn't even begin to comprehend how intelligent and skilled Romania must be to have such a high ranking.

He continued to ask, “What about Angel?”

"Angel? I heard she's around fourth or third place," Dark Blood replied.

Asaga lay still, lost in thought as he gazed at the girl sleeping peacefully on him. Her soft breathing was the only sound in the room, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of peace wash over him. He glanced out the window, noticing how the bright rays of sunlight shone in, illuminating the room in a warm glow.

For a moment, he forgot about the rankings and the academy, lost in his thoughts and the beauty of the moment. Finally, he slowly closed his eyes, let all the stress out and fall asleep.

After a while, Romia woke up and stared at that boy's face, rubbing his cheeks with her hand. Then, she straddled Asaga and stroked her fingers down his chest.

“He looks so good~ I want to...”

“Who do you think you are?”

Romia heard another girl's voice, causing her to jump and look back in frustration.

"Dare messing up my fun time. Someone wants to be dead!" the girl exclaimed, her tone icy.

Romia turned to face her, she was surprised to see Angel standing across from her. The bed had been spruced up, and Romia wondered how Angel had woken up and cleaned everything without making a noise.

She stood still, not knowing what to say. Angel's presence made her feel uneasy, almost as if she had intruded on something that wasn't meant for her. But as she looked into Angel's eyes, she could see a fierce determination there, a strength that made her feel both intimidated and intrigued.

Romia's heart was racing as she tried to hide her excitement at finally meeting the famous Angel Fourmier. She couldn't help but think about all the stories she had heard about this girl, and she felt like she was about to meet a celebrity.

“This is the first time the two of us have met! I would like to introduce myself as Romia. You must have heard...”

She tried to make light of the situation by joking about how they had never met before, but she knew that Angel could see right through her.

Angel interrupted her, her tone blunt and direct.

"Stop being ridiculous," she said, causing Romia to freeze in place. "Like I never heard of you before. Romia Johnson, a talented and beautiful girl that many boys are willing to chase at all costs. Also, she has the rank of sixth in this academy. Am I right?"

“Yeah, yeah, but behind you three ranks. I'm still proud of myself that I am better than you in loving stuff. Watch me, princess. Watch and learn!”

Angel froze herself while Romia inched closer and closer to Asaga's lips. She couldn't bear the thought of losing him to someone else, especially not to someone as confident and beautiful as Romia.

Without thinking, Angel stepped forward and hold Romia away from Asaga.

"Stop it!" she exclaimed, her voice trembling with emotion. "He's not a prize to be won. He's a person with his thoughts and feelings."

Romia stumbled back, surprised by Angel's sudden outburst. "What's your problem, princess?" she smiled, her eyes narrowing.

"My problem is that you're treating Asaga like he's some kind of object to be won," Angel retorted, her voice growing stronger. "He's a person, not a game. You can't just decide to pursue him without considering his feelings in the matter."

Romia glared at Angel, her own emotions starting to get interested "And who are you to say that? Are you claiming that you have feelings for him too?" she sneered.

Angel felt her cheeks grow hot with embarrassment. She couldn't deny the fact she had feelings for Asaga, but she had never been courageous enough to act on them. "I...I..." she stuttered, unable to form a coherent sentence.

Romia smirked triumphantly. "I thought so. Don't worry, princess. I'll take care of him for you." With that, she continued to put her lips close to Asaga's face.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

[Golden Roses]

A yellow magic circle appeared from the ceiling. From there, a sword emerged, tightly wrapped in lush green roots, and began to liquefy as it got closer to Angel.

She grabbed the hilt of the sword and pulled it out of the slime. Pointing it straight at Romia, she spoke with a resolute voice, "Leave him alone. Or, we will do this the hard way!"

Romia just kept giggling, her eyes never leaving Angel's face. She seemed unfazed by the threat, and this only made Angel even more certain about protecting Asaga.

In a second, Angel suddenly felt a strange sensation at her feet. Looking down, she saw a small tube-shaped object that had snuck out of Romia's skirt, rolling towards her. The object released a thick white smoke as soon as it touched her feet, and Angel quickly realized that it was some sort of smoke bomb.

“Don't play dirty!”

Angel surrounded herself with a dazzling aura emanating from her uniform. The light itself had cleared away the smoke and restored her vision. But what she saw next left her stunned.

Romia had a gun in her hand and pointed right at Angel’s forehead. It was clear that Romia had outsmarted her, leaving Angel with no choice but to surrender. The speed at which she had pulled out the gun and aimed it at Angel had been too fast for her to react.

Angel was unsure of what to do next. She had been caught off guard and outmaneuvered by Romia, who had shown herself to be a formidable opponent.

Finally, Angel broke the silence. "You got me!" she grudgingly admitted defeat.

A slight shuffling sound unexpectedly erupted, and two pointed sickles flew in the direction of Angel and Romia. The sickles moved with lightning speed, hooking onto their SoulEquipment and quickly yanking their firearms from their hands.

Both girls looked around frantically, trying to spot their attacker. Who could have done such a thing? They were the only ones in the room, right?

Heartbeats thumping in their chests, they turned to face each other, both of them demanding answers.

"Who was that?" they asked in unison, their eyes darting back and forth in search of any clues.

“It’s me! Your lovely teacher.”

Surprised to see their principal, Angel and Romia were shocked. In a plush black suit and with the weapons of the two females in his hands, John Freak posed in front of them with an attitude of grandeur.

He glanced around the space and then focused on Asaga, who was peacefully dozing on the bed. He turned to the two females and asked them with a sarcastic smile.

“Tell me, ladies. Who started this fight? Was it Asaga's lover?”

Both Romia and Angel blushed at the same time and shifted their gaze toward Asaga. Blame was quickly cast between them, each trying to shift the responsibility onto the other.

“It wasn’t me! Romia...”

“Whoa! Looks like the blonde princess is running away from her action.”

“What did you just say?”

The tension between Angel and Romia dissipated as their attention was drawn to the authoritative voice of their teacher. John had a way of diffusing conflicts with his calm demeanour and wise words.

“Ladies, ladies! I’m just kidding. You are sixteen years old already, okay? Time to grow up! Angel, please take Asaga to the practice area. And Romia, just go somewhere and don’t bother them. Please, I still have lots of things to do today. Okay?”

Though they still harboured resentment towards each other, they knew better than to defy him.

While John was pleading with Romia, Angel sneakily approached Asaga's bed and checked on him closely. He seemed to be in a deep sleep, but she could sense that something was amiss. As she furrowed her brow, Asaga's eyes suddenly opened, and he sat up, looking around in confusion.

"Are you okay?" Angel asked, holding his hand.

Asaga rubbed his eyes and shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. "Yeah, I think so. What happened?"

“Follow me!”

He was dragged away by Angel before he could realize everything. Asaga showed no resistance at all but followed silently, ignoring the other two, and left the infirmary with her.

“Do you understand?” The principal asked.

“Yes!” Romia replied in disappointment, “Wait, where is Asaga?”

Romia felt her heart drop as she realized that Asaga was nowhere to be found. Had Angel taken him away as part of some devious plan? She turned to the principal in frustration, her hands clenching into fists at her sides.

"Where did they go?" she demanded, her voice rising in anger.

The principal gave her a stern look, shaking his head in disapproval. "You should learn to control your temper, Romia," he said. "Angel took Asaga to the practice area. They need some time alone."

"That little bi-"

“Chill, chill! Do not swear and come on, there is always a second chance for you. By the way, I have to go now. Have a nice day, Romia!”

John patted Romia on the shoulder and left the room. Although it was just a few small words of encouragement, it relieved the anger inside her.

Romia leaned against the wall, feeling bored and restless. She absentmindedly checked her pockets and out popped a radio. She picked it up, curious to see who was calling her.

“You have a call from the Council of Power!” a mechanical voice announced.

Rolling her eyes, Romia put the radio to her ear. “You again? Hurry and tell me the task. If it is about the son of Divine Duo, then sorry, I won’t do it.”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line before a strange voice spoke up.

“Ah, but we have another task for you. One that will surely interest you, Miss Romia.”

Curiosity piqued, Romia straightened up and listened intently.

"Our lord has directed an attack on the border between the Ford Anatist Kingdom and Replord Empire. But, that was just a decoy to disperse the defenders in the centre of the capital. Take advantage of this opportunity and do what you must.”

“Jeez, can you please lower your voice? I’m still in the room.”

Romia wrapped the radio with her shirt to reduce the volume. If someone accidentally heard it, she would get into big trouble.

Next, Romia's amusement turned to concern. The Council was discussing plans to target the Ford Anatist Kingdom, a powerful nation that had defeated the Komodo Empire in the past. It was a dangerous move, and Romia questioned their sanity.

“So, you want to set the Ford Anatist Kingdom as the first target. Honestly, are both of you from the lord to the generals going crazy together? Provoking the very nation that ended the Komodo Empire?”

“Do not insult our lord, child. You know the consequences if you dare to open your mouth like that again,” the voice on the other end of the radio snapped.

Romia raised her eyebrow at that puzzling answer. She pulled a chair close to her, sitting on it to avoid having to have a stand-up talk.

“Have you just been drinking again? I remember you didn’t value leaders that much. Especially Lizalost, you always cursed him,” Romia probed, hoping to get some answers.

The voice on the other end of the radio grew quiet, and Romia could almost hear the wheels turning in their head. After a long pause, it spoke again.

“Things have changed, child. That role is just to act as a puppet for the Council of Power to conveniently manage the country. The two people I only respects are lord Komodo and your father, none other than them. This leader is the representative of Komodo’s will, so he easily has my acknowledgment.”

Romia’s eyes widened at the words of the voice on the other end of the radio. She gritted her teeth and tried to calm herself down. She couldn’t afford to let her emotions get the best of her in this situation.

“All of you do both go nuts like that maniac Komodo. There are many powerful Soul Warriors in Ford Anatist and around the world. Do you think you can defeat them like in the old time? They are getting stronger. Besides, that leader- I sense a bit of bullshit in your words.”

“What do you mean, child?”

She explained to that mystery voice:

“Representative of Komodo’s will while that psychopath only cares about himself and slaughters everything, even his own kind. Do you guys want to glorify your nation, or receive a large-scale ethnic massacre?”

“You are a foolish child, not a politician. And, don’t say that when you failed your own words,” the voice replied coldly.

Romia felt a pang of guilt at the mention of her failure. She had tried to stop a war between two nations in the past but had ultimately failed, leading to a devastating loss of life.

“Look, I know I’ve made mistakes in the past, but that doesn’t mean I’ll stop trying to do what’s right. And right now, attacking the Ford Anatist Kingdom is not the answer. It will only lead to more suffering,” Romia said firmly.

There was a pause on the other end of the radio before the voice spoke again.

“Very well, we’ll discuss this further. But don’t forget your place, Romia. You are not in a position to question our orders,” the voice said before the radio went silent.

Romia sighed and rubbed her forehead. She knew she had to be careful from now on. The Council of Authority was not an organization to be taken lightly, and she didn’t want to end up on the wrong side of them.

Romia put the radio back in her pocket.

“This bastard! First, old man. Now, him. Never mind, this will be fun!”