Myra’s heartbeat slowed and she unconsciously held her breath. This was a question she had thought about for years.

Her nightmares were fueled by the many different answers that Hina could potentially give for this exact moment. Her thoughts became erratic as they swiftly skipped through the possibilities.

Why did she stop seeing me? It was me, wasn’t it? I pushed her away, right?

Perhaps… it wasn’t me. It wasn’t me! I would never push Hina away. Hina, my beloved Hina. How could I push her away? Who then?

I tried everything to get her back too! I tried arranging a political marriage with her to my brother. I tried joining our family business. I even attended this academy just for her.

So why did she leave me?

Myra slowly shook her head as her mouth began to quiver.

“It wasn’t my choice. I was fond of you, Myra, but not in the way that you see me. You were my only friend. Why would I leave my only friend?”

Myra’s heartbeat settled down after hearing this much needed response, but Hina continued speaking before she could find solace.

“I have just as much responsibility to my family as you do to yours. Don’t underestimate my position. Do you think you’re the only one being pressured to take on the family industry? Or to lead its future generations? Or to be placed in an arranged marriage?”

Myra’s soul plunged as Hina’s words filtered in. She had just accused her of not having these types of responsibilities, but that couldn’t be any further from the truth.

“You’re a princess of a powerful kingdom. That comes with a price, yes, but you also have an older brother who is going to shoulder most of the burden. The reality is that you’ve let yourself be controlled by the entities above you. You’ve let yourself fall into this state of helplessness.”

Myra shook her head in an attempt to refute these words. The ever-humble Hina was now attacking her from every angle.

“What about me? Myra? I’m the sole heiress to Lou Tech, the largest and most powerful technology company in the entire world. The entire world! I was not seen as the precious daughter of Lou Tech, I was seen as a tool. Even more so then you would have ever been considered.”

Hina took a step back and crossed her arms.

“Do you understand what I’ve had to overcome? Do you understand the difference between you and me? I changed my fate. I refuse to let my family control me. I will take my future into my own hands, and I will craft my life into perfect imperfection.”

Hina paused as she let her words sink in. Myra could only stare at the ground, caught in a daze.

“Myra, I’m going to leave now, but before I go just know something. I was able to make this change because of that man. If not for him, and the effect of his song and voice, I would be just like you; perhaps worse off. So please reconsider, and maybe our next talk will be different. Otherwise… let’s not speak again.”

Hina didn’t wait for a response and swiftly walked away. Unfortunately for Jun, Hina decided to walk in his direction, but there was nothing he could do about that.

She turned the corner and immediately sighted the young boy.

Her eyes were briefly filled with surprise, but she didn’t pause her steps. She brushed past him, but internally she couldn’t help thinking to herself.

When did he get there? How did I not notice him with my current senses?

Although she felt that Jun was strange, she didn’t pay the matter too much attention. After all, this was an academy for elites. It wasn’t too surprising that there would be a unique figure here and there.

She didn’t spare it another thought before disappearing into the distance.

Jun secretly let out a sigh of relief when Hina passed by without any commotion. Although he had been caught, it wasn’t by the vengeful party, who was still standing alone in a daze.

If only they weren’t having this heart to heart in front of the exit. She should be good now, right?

Jun decided that enough was enough and decided to announce his presence with footsteps. He needed to make substantial progress in PSI World before meeting up with Amon, otherwise he would only be filled with embarrassment.

He intentionally stepped with intensity such that they echoed in the hallway.

He turned the corner and caught sight of Myra’s back. For some reason, her red hair seemed more dim the usual, but perhaps it was just the lighting.

Myra’s ears perked up at the sound of the incoming footsteps. If she had been in the right headspace, she would have noticed different sound they made. However, her mind was currently in too much disarray.

“Hina??”

She whirled around in hope but was only met with the young outlier of her class. Her eyes grew dispirited when she realized that her obsession had not come back her. She cast her gaze to the floor.

“So what did you hear…”

Myra mumbled under her breath. Her eyes held no animosity, and it was difficult to tell whether this question was a trap to bait him into the truth.

Jun tucked his hands into the pockets of his oversized sweater. The hood of the sweater cast a shadow over his eyes, which glowed a mesmerizing blue from within the depths.

Hmm… what to say.

“So you heard everything then?”

Apparently, the small pause was enough for Myra to immediately assume the worst, which showed just how unstable she was.

“Is it fine for you to just die?”

Jun simply stood there as he watched the young girl battle her own demons. He had assumed correctly that this troublemaker would have wanted his head, but her next words caught him off guard.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“I can let you live, but please… can you help me. You’re so carefree… I just need someone to fix everything.”

Her eyes shook erratically as if she were experiencing an internal earthquake.

Mmm, I’ve seen this before. This little pepper is close to taking her life.

He took a small step forward, and she took a small step back. It seemed her body was acting unconsciously.

That Hina girl, with the way she idolizes me. I wonder if she was in a similar state? It looks like Myra was using Hina as a lifeline, and now that line has been broken.

Myra slowly lifted her gaze from the floor and her mouth hung open as if it were trying to say something.

She looks like a marionette with half of its strings cut. I highly doubt she’ll make it through the night like this. She needs a reason to live, at least for tonight. That way she can stabilize herself.

“Myra.”

Her eyes focused on his mouth when he spoke her name.

She couldn’t pinpoint why, but the way he called her name seemed to soothe her inner turmoil. It was like a warm blanket enveloping her naked body, which had been left shivering in a blizzard.

“Let your troubles go."

He spoke again, but there was no response, only a blank stare.

She definitely won’t make it through the night.

Using the same techniques from his singing voice, he tried to smooth out the crumpled piece of paper that was her soul. A couple moments passed by.

Just as he was about to speak again, her eyes lulled back and her body fell forward.

“Oohp.”

Jun quickly darted beneath and caught her before she hit the floor; even though she wouldn’t have sustained any damage from a small tumble like this.

She’s out cold. Well I can’t just leave her here. Aiya, so troublesome…

He fumbled his hand along the side of her dress. From a distance he might have seemed like a defiler taking advantage of an unconscious girl, but in reality he was searching for a hidden pocket.

Success. And now to just grab this device.

He wrapped her hand around the small circular device in her pocket. This was a common device that would allow someone to connect to the world system. Unfortunately, to make things more secure, it had formations that would bind it to a user.

This was to prevent someone else from misusing a user’s device, or in this case, impersonating the user. However with a little bit of finesse, Jun was able to get around these protections by using Myra’s own hand to activate it.

Once her hand was securely around the device, he then called out in an altered voice.

“System, call father, no visual.”

His voice sounded exactly like Myra’s.

For the current Jun, this little bit of voice manipulation was nothing at all. A small humming noise radiated from the device, before suddenly, an older man with long scarlet hair appeared on a spectral display that hovered above the device.

“My Little Rose? I’m in an important meeting right now, can this wait?”

A deep voice came through. This fact that the man responded with endearing words meant that the visuals were definitely turned off.

“Father, I’m not coming home tonight. I’m going to spend time with my lady friends.”

He spoke in a tone that was almost commanding, attempting to recreate the Myra attitude he was somewhat familiar with.

“That’s fine my little spark. Just let Reila know.”

Who’s Reila? Well that’s not going to work.

Jun thought to himself carefully before replying. It was time to spice up this girl’s life.

“I’m not going to tell Reila, actually, I don’t want Reila watching me anymore. I want to live my own life. I don’t want to be followed, and I don’t want to be controlled. I don’t want to be constrained. You have brother for that.”

Jun was getting carried away and eventually the older man sputtered about in confusion.

“D-Daughter? What are you saying all the sudden? C-Can we talk about this? This is too sudden. Wait, let me leave this meeting. This is important, do you understand what decisions you’re making? I just want the best for my baby girl. It’s normal to have some responsibility. Are the suitors not to your taste?”

Myra’s father was reduced to mere rambling as he swiftly glanced side to side. It looked like he was briskly walking somewhere.

“I didn’t like them. It’s not their fault, and it’s not yours. I just want to live my own life. Don’t leave your meeting, I will contact you when I’m ready. Maybe it’ll be tomorrow, maybe a week from now. Thanks daddy, I love you!”

Jun swiftly ended the call. He added a splash of honeyed words towards the end to ensure that her father didn’t act too dramatically. At this point, he would likely deduce that his daughter had entered some sort of rebellious stage.

“Humm.”

His voice returned to its normal tone as he glanced down at the sleeping beauty in his arms.

“Alright, let’s go. What a mess.”

He lifted her up in a princess hold and made his escape.

Luckily he was right next to the exit with no spectators. Soon his cloudsplitter journeyed toward his original destination, the clubhouse. Unfortunately, this time he had an unconscious extra.

Her eyes remained shut as they sailed through the sky. Since he didn’t need to manually control the cloudsplitter, he spent the entire time watching over her.

Beads of sweat accumulated again and again across her brow, while he played the role of caretaker and gently wiped her face clean with a damp cloth.

It seems she is having some interesting nightmares. Ah, and I can sense it. Her soul is wrought with despair. It’s practically screaming.

Jun let out a long sigh.

I promised Ana I wouldn’t manipulate world energy, but this should count as an extenuating circumstance, right?

He soon let out a series of soft hums as he continued to look after Myra. Her sickly face soon stabilized as his voice filled the main room of the cloudsplitter.

“Mmmhmm, hum, hum.”

Jun bounced a little as he hummed to the tune that played in his head. At the same time, Myra’s mouth slowly shaped itself into a peaceful smile.

----------------------------------------

The flight didn’t last long, and eventually Jun found himself carrying the sleeping princess into the main arena of the clubhouse. The domineering girl seemed incredibly small at the moment while she unconsciously clung onto Jun’s body.

“Young master-“

Ciena noticed Jun’s presence, but before she could greet him properly, she detected something unnatural.

Who is this barbarian that dares touch the young master!

Her thoughts practically rattled Jun’s brain.

This was the first time in a long time that he heard Ciena’s unfiltered thoughts. After all, normally she was content and happy to just be around him.

He pretended not to notice her reaction and simply waved her down.

“Ciena my darling, could you be so kind as to help me out? This young lady will be staying in the fourth room, I’m assuming that one is still available?”

Jun flashed a charming smile to his lovely assistant. Her thoughts were swiftly scrambled with a mixture of displeasure and adoration.

“Um, yes. No. I mean, yes…”

Her face twisted briefly once she realized that this young girl could potentially be staying here with them. Jun once again ignored the free range of emotions that raced across Ciena’s face and he made his way towards the unused room.

Ciena followed in his steps without a word. At least, without a verbally spoken word.

What did this bitch do to get his attention? Who is she? Should I investigate her? If she’s a nobody, should I… I could make it painless. I can make her quietly disappear, yes… What if the young master hates me afterwards? What if she’s special to the young master? That can’t be.

Her thoughts soon became a jumbled mess.

“This girl has some value to me, please treat her with a little kindness until otherwise noted.”

Jun casually glanced towards Ciena as he said this, which redirected her thoughts once again.

Just a little bit of kindness then. Not too much kindness, just the smallest amounts possible.

Jun chuckled quietly as he came into the empty room. The entire time, Myra was still clutched onto him tightly. Who could know what she was dreaming about?

He tried laying her down onto the bed, but her grip proved to be much stronger than anticipated.

So tedious.

He reached for an extra pillow and placed it between them. He didn’t have to wait long before she transferred her grip from his shirt to the pillow.

“Whew. That settles that. Ciena, if you could be so kind as to get her a change of clothes. Ideally a few sets of clothes for casual wear and training. Please make them fashionable and comfortable. Hmm… and whatever else you think she might need. Do give this proper attention.”

He stretched his body and gave a small yawn.

“It seems I’ve overexerted myself. I’ll take a small nap. Please watch over her and take her to me when she wakes up.”

Jun wasted no time and immediately stalked off to find his bed. Although he had gotten plenty of rest in his dream world with Ana, he had then exhausted himself by manipulating the world’s energy.

He didn’t feel guilty about using this ability considering the circumstances, but regardless of his conscience; he knew he was only hastening the onset of the next blackout.

Hopefully I don’t blackout while doing something important in PSI World. Ah well, I’ll deal with it as the time comes.

He swiftly closed his eyes for peaceful nap without a care in the world.