"Mn..." I tossed then pen across the table, indicating I finished my studying session.

"..."

"Ahem! I said: Mn...!" I repeated a tad louder as I kicked her shin under the table.

"Not listening." Green girl tuned me out fully.

"Oh come on! You're still mad about me calling you a name or two?!" I slammed the table, making all the stationery jump, "Just how childish can you be? Grow up, you damned snowflake!"

"Hmph, looks who's talking." She proudly displayed her glorious cleavage, "In my eyes, the only childish one here is you, mademoiselle."

"Oh, so now we're going there, huh!?" I reached over to yank at her stupid tank top straps, "Now you're gonna make fun of me for something I can't fix, huh? Totally uncool!"

"A-And who was the one that started it, exactly?!" She tried squirming away, but to no avail.

"Don't even try to weasel your way out, you good-for-nothing fake adult!" I noticed the tank top start to rip, "I only made fun of you because it's a situation that can be actively fixed! You just called my body small and childish, which isn't something I can ever actively improve on!"

"You sure?" She didn't even try to stop her breasts from spilling out at this point, "Humu, maybe you ought to drink more milk?"

"Like hell that works!" My eyes started to water after seeing her tiddies in full display, "I tried everything, from drinking milk to massaging them, but nothing works! Mom even found me fondling them once first thing in the morning, and you know what she did?! She immediately started telling everyone in the household!"

"Yikes, that's a bit much, now..." Even she couldn't help but agree, "I'm gonna put on a spare shirt now, since this tank top is as good as ruined."

"Ah, sorry about that. I'll pay for a new one."

"No, it's nothing to worry about. God knows I have spares." She joked about the surplus of clothes we had just folded a few hours ago, "But really, you didn't seem too fond of speaking about your family back home. Is everything alright?"

"Alright, you ask?" I let out a self-deprecating chuckle, "The situation is everything but, dammit... Everything was pretty fine before dad died, since he was the one keeping mom in check, but ever since then, all I would ever hear were words like "You should quit" and "You're not a kid anymore, it's time to let go of those fantasies". I think dad took her optimism with him when he died, I guess."

"Aw geez, that's rough." She tried finding the appropriate response, "But hey, Meil mentioned you have other family members as well, no?"

"Well, kind of." I explained, "We've got uncle Ed and auntie Anna, not to mention doctor Harper who is like a cool auntie to me as well. Then there's great grandpa Arthur, though mom said he's starting to grow senile from old age."

"Is there anyone who you could confide in?" She asked.

"No, not really. Ugh, ever since uncle told everyone why I wanted to go to University in the first place, everyone suddenly turned against me. Damned idiots..."

"The reason behind going to Uni?" She raised an eyebrow, "Was it so difficult to accept you wanting to help Meil with finding out about his past?"

"Oh, not that." I corrected her, "It was to swoon him, nothing more. The Raaman part is just a possible means to an end in my eyes."

"O-Oh." She was at a loss for words, "Sooo, about him... I've read my fair share of romance novels, but are you sure he isn't just a tad too old for you? He's nearing his thirties, you know."

"Don't say it like that! He's 28 and that's still pretty young!" I defended my beliefs, "Besides, he's very dear to me, practically the only one who gets me out of everyone I know."

"Hold on, your father is how old now?" She posed an odd question.

"Well, he died three years ago, so now he'd be about... 28 as well, actually."

"..."

"What? What's with the scornful gaze all of a sudden?"

"Nothing." She continued on with the conversation, "If you believe you are capable of it, then by all means, I wish you the best of luck. Still, I doubt you'd get your point across if you rush things too much like you were planning to."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Think about it - Imagine a guy friend fancied you, but you weren't aware." She pointed out a flaw in my plan, "Now imagine you two play a friendly bet where the loser is forced to do any one thing the winner decides."

"Isn't that exactly what's happening though?"

"No, don't imagine the guy friend being Meil!" She urged, "It has to be someone else."

"But I don't have any other guy friends." I slouched.

"Oof..." She looked to the side a bit before continuing, "Alright then, imagine Javi."

"Okay?" I tried recalling how Librarian guy's face looked like, "Though it's weird for a guy his age to be gunning for a girl as young as me."

"Javi and Meil are practically the same age!" She yelled, "Ugh, whatever. In any case, now imagine you lost the bet and Javi suddenly goes "For your punishment, you have to have sex with me!""

"Eugh, disgusting!" I backed away with great haste, "That's sick! Who approaches a girl like that, regardless of age?!"

"Exactly my point." She smiled as she folded her arms under her breasts, "Such a cold approach will only be met with disgust and contempt. Besides, if you frame the act of lovemaking as nothing more than a "punishment", then he surely won't feel the need to actively seek you out after the fact."

"Is that right...?" It finally dawned on me, "Wow, I never thought about it like that! You sure know your stuff, Green girl!"

"Heh, but of course." She donned a smug smile, "A mature woman like me is quite experienced in the art of love, after all."

"More like the art of love flopping." I tossed back without a hint of hesitation, "You could've at least been honest and confessed you just read all that from a romance novel. Aren't you forgetting that you already told me about your dumb love drama?"

"Ah, that's right!" She facepalmed, "Well, in any case, do be sure to keep me updated on any progress you may come across on that front. You mentioned before you had no one to confide it, so if you ever come across some trouble, you're free to come over for a friendly consultation."

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"Really? That means a lot, actually." I got up, all smiles, "Thanks. I'll try my best then."

"Good luck on the exams tonight." She walked me out of the building."

***

"Yo, how did the study session with Kiria go?" Meil walked up to the dorm just as I was leaving.

"It was... fun. And helpful." I replied feeling all fuzzy.

"Was it now? That is great." He smiled, "Because now it is time to put what you have learned to the test!"

"Yea-Wait what?!" I shouted in the middle of the street, "Didn't you say we'd do it late at night?"

"Well, I know what I said, but I just cannot stand to wait any longer when I see you so enthusiastic." He bashfully scratched his cheek, "You are surely old enough to understand me when I say this but... We would not want to spoil the mood."

"Ahem." An officer grabbed Meil's shoulder, "And just what exactly will you be doing with this young girl later tonight, sir?"

"Ah, officer! Good day!" He smiled back innocently, "It is such bliss to finally have her come around to it, I am just so ecstatic! She used to be super against the idea, but now as you can quite clearly see, Nelly is really eager to try it again!"

"H-Hey, I think the cop guy is misinterpreting something..." I glanced over at Meil, though he completely tuned me out.

"Officer, pardon my boasting, but I just do not have anyone else to tell this to - She is really quite mature for her age!"

"Is she now?" The officer jotted Meil's every word on his clipboard, "Well, just to make sure once and for all - What exactly are you planning to do with this young lady? Remember, be as concise as possible, I don't want any misunderstandings here."

Oh, thank Prylos the officer is reasonable! Meil was THIS close to being thrown in jail, and it would have all been because of me! Well, because of his stupid excitement towards learning, but nonetheless, I was still the reason behind it! Now Meil's quite dense, but even with his weird phrasing, I'm sure he'll be fine now.

"We are gonna go at it all night, officer!" He smiled as the officer slung the handcuffs on him, "...Eh?"

"S-Studying! He's talking about studying officer!" I stopped Meil from getting dragged away.

"Hm? Well duh, what else could I have been talking about?" Meil turned to the officer with a genuinely baffled look on his face, the honest face that had earned him his freedom, thankfully.

"Aw, geez!" I whined as we entered the house, "You couldn't have made yourself look any more suspicious, could you?!"

"I still do not understand what that officer had against studying..." He still didn't get it, "Still, I'll deal with him tomorrow, but for now - It is exam time!"

"Yippee." I unenthusiastically threw my fist up before sitting down at the table, "Alright, gimme."

This time, the test was quite easier to do than it was just this morning. This would be considered my second mock exam today, but I didn't mind. A lot of the questions were similar to the ones I had this morning, so I actually finished everything before the one hour mark. Tossing aside the pen and handing him the papers, I reclined in my seat with my arms crossed and a smug grin on my face.

"I can't wait for my reward~!" My legs tapped the ground restlessly as I awaited his corrections.

"Hmm, good, alright..." He went through the papers one by one, "Ah, you got this one wrong last time. I can see Kiria taught you well."

"Yeah, she really helped clear a lot of things up in my mind." I smiled.

"That is the very reason I befriended them, so I am glad to hear it." He looked up for a moment, his piercing white gaze making my heart flutter.

"S-So, about the reward..." I got a bit excited just thinking about it.

"Hold that thought!" He stopped me, "You made a mistake here."

"What!?" I jumped out of my seat and ran around the table to look over his shoulder, "Where?!"

"Question 99 - You messed up the angle. Sine of π/4 is 90°, not 60."

"Ughhhh, you're kidding!"

"I am afraid not, though it is nothing too scary, since even with this you still managed a 75." He smiled, "So, what was that about the reward?"

I... passed? Awesome! I passed! Ah, wait, I still haven't passed the real exam, so I shouldn't be getting my hopes up just yet. Still, this means I get to claim my reward! But...

"I don't want it." I slouched a bit.

"Huh? But you passed, fair and square." He tilted his head, "There is no reason to hold back. You name it, whatever it is you want, I will get it for you."

"No, it's just..." I sighed, "I'm not really happy with a 75, y'know? That's just barely a pass, and I'd rather I try my best while I'm here."

"But you are trying your best though." He got up to give me a big hug, "Your Family has been sending me letters similar to the ones you saw previously, and it honestly made me sick every time I read one. Lune, ever since he passed, they must have given you a really difficult time, but you still pressed on."

"H-Huh?"

"I know you must be absolutely livid with them, but just know that cutting contact is not the correct path." He advised, still tightly holding onto me, patiently waiting for me to reciprocate, "Take it from a man who did not appreciate his Family until it was all too late - You absolutely must cherish them, no matter what they say. And hey, if you really want to get back at them, is the best way to do that not to prove them wrong by succeeding in your academics?"

"Sniff... Y-Yeah..." A steady flow of tears madme their way down my cheeks as I hugged him back, "Y-Yeah..."

"I can respect wanting to go above your limits, but that also means you must accept the rewards you earn along the way." He wiped the tears away from my eyes, "Now then, what is the reward for making this first step, Nelly?"

"S-Sniff... Oh, I know." I smiled before going back to hug him again, "L-Let's stay like this for a while longer, okay?"

"Heh, is that all?" He chuckled.

"Yeah." I smiled, "More than enough."