Kiana stared blankly at the pile of dirty clothes for a full thirty seconds, suspecting she might have truly soaked herself silly.
And after those thirty seconds—long enough to contemplate why the universe exploded—the clever Kiana reached a conclusion:
Staring blankly wouldn't solve the problem.
Then, as if waking from a dream, she took a deep breath—
"AHHH—!!!"
A scream rang through the bathroom, piercing the door and rushing straight into the living room.
At the same time, in the bedroom.
Shu was frantically stuffing things into his closet.
Herrscher of Flamescion? Stuffed in, display box and all.
Herrscher of Finality? Stuffed in too.
Lunar Vow: Crimson Love? That had to go in as well.
He grabbed the tiny Herrscher figures by the handful and gently shoved them into the back of a drawer.
No, the closet was full. Shu turned around and shoved the Void Drifter action figure and the plush doll into the bedside table.
Then he looked at the square pillow on his bed and fell into deep thought.
This was the most critical item... Although it wasn't a life-sized body pillow—something that would mean instant social death if seen—Shu was once again struck by intense indecisiveness.
Stuff it in the closet? Under the bed? Or just throw it out the window?
No, outside the window was the neighbor's balcony. If he threw it out, it would be all over the community group chat tomorrow.
After a fierce internal struggle in which he beat the other version of himself to death, he finally chose the bottom shelf of the closet. Since the pillow could withstand being squished, he just rolled it into a ball and buried it under his thick winter clothes.
Okay, safe for now...
He straightened up, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and looked around.
A large section of the bookshelf was empty, but there were still a few art books... that was fine, he could just say he was a normal player.
The acrylic stands were all put away, and the wall full of badges and merch was cleared. Now only the themed keyboard in front of the computer remained... He remembered he hadn't sold his old keyboard yet...
"AHHH—!!!" A scream came from the direction of the bathroom.
Shu's movements froze.
He whipped his head around to look at the bedroom door, then back at the distinctly styled keyboard in his hand.
After only a moment's hesitation, Shu put down the keyboard and strode out of the room.
So did she fall? Or get scalded? Or—
Countless possibilities flashed through Shu's mind in an instant, each one making his steps a little faster...
Then he stopped in the middle of the living room, staring at the bathroom door from a safe distance.
Hah! Did you think he would rush over recklessly like those male protagonists in classic anime, throw open the bathroom door, and ask "What's wrong?" just because he heard a scream?
Dream on!
Those situations where misunderstandings lead to accidental fanservice with beautiful girls were the worst!
Shu let out a triumphant smirk, then cleared his throat and called out towards the bathroom:
"What's wrong?"
His voice wasn't too loud or too soft—just loud enough for the person inside to hear, without sounding too frantic.
And he deliberately stood in the center of the living room, keeping a distance of at least five meters from the bathroom door.
This distance was safe.
Even if the person inside suddenly opened the door, he wouldn't see anything—
Click—
The bathroom door opened.
Shu: "..."
His expression froze on his face.
The door opened a crack.
A wet head poked out from the gap.
Long white hair was soaked through, plastered in strands against her cheeks and shoulders.
Her face was flushed from the steam, water droplets clung to her eyelashes, and her eyes blinked at him innocently.
Her body was still hidden behind the door.
Theoretically, this was safe.
But from the angle Shu was standing at, he could just see half of the shoulder behind that head.
Shu: "..."
His eyes darted away instantly as if burned, fixing firmly on a corner of the living room. There was only a potted plant in that corner, but right now, he felt that plant was the most beautiful thing in the world.
"Um..." came the voice from the crack in the door, weak and tinged with embarrassment. "Shu..."
Shu stared at the plant. "Yeah."
"Could you..."
"Hmm?"
"...Help me find some clothes?"
"..."
He took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Phew... so that scream just now... was because you didn't have clothes?"
The head in the doorway pouted and nodded, water droplets flinging from the ends of her hair. "Mhm!"
Shu: "..."
He suddenly felt a headache coming on.
How had this person survived until now?
He raised a hand to rub his temples, then turned towards the bedroom.
"Wait here."
Behind him came an awkward, "Thanks!", trying to lighten the mood with a bit of playfulness.
Shu didn't look back.
He just walked faster, wanting to escape this "visible shoulder" range as quickly as possible.
Walking into the bedroom and closing the door, Shu leaned against it and let out a long breath.
Calm down.
Calm down.
It's no big deal.
Find clothes.
Find clothes and be done with it.
Having sorted out his thoughts, Shu walked to the closet, opened the doors, and saw the various figures and merch he had stuffed inside staring back at him in all sorts of poses.
They were squeezed together, "watching" him.
Shu: "..."
He suddenly felt the urge to laugh.
He sighed and rummaged through the closet for a while, finally digging out a clean white T-shirt and a pair of black athletic shorts with a drawstring from the bottom shelf.
But holding the clothes, Shu hesitated.
Should I grab a jacket too?
Nah, it's not cold right now.
Should I get underwear?
...I really don't have that.
Not even new ones.
I've never prepared that kind of thing.
Holding the T-shirt and shorts, he walked out of the bedroom, returned to the bathroom door, and called out.
"Open up, clothes are here."
This time the bathroom door only opened a crack, and a hand reached out.
Shu kept a straight face as he handed the clothes over.
The hand grabbed the clothes and immediately retracted, then the door shut quickly.
"Thanks, Shu! Huh? No underwear?"
"How could I possibly have that kind of thing!" Shu felt his face heating up, unable to distinguish whether it was from anger or embarrassment.
Wait... that's not right. Why was he the embarrassed one?
Shu turned around with a solemn expression, returned to the living room, and felt that today had just been awful.
First, he was bombarded by phone calls in the morning and forced to go out for a checkup. Then a girl claiming to be Kiana appeared at his door, threatening him with his dark history to get inside.
Then a shower.
Then no clothes to wear.
Then asking him to help find clothes.
And now he was in the living room, waiting for her to come out dressed... without underwear.
Hiss...
What is going on today?!
Shu suddenly ruffled his hair into a mess in frustration, then whipped his head back to look at the bathroom, holding his breath as he smoothed his hair back down strand by strand.
When that "Kiana" came out later, how was he supposed to face her?
Should he call the police? Reporting a missing person should get the police involved, right?
Or had this girl thought even that far ahead? Did she prepare materials in advance to prove she had an intimate relationship with him, fool the police, and openly stay here?
Surely she wouldn't go to such lengths?!
Shu was silent for a long time.
But she had dressed herself up exactly like that "Kiana"! From looks to voice—ex-act-ly! the! same!
Click—
The bathroom door opened.
White steam poured out from the door, and a figure wearing his clothes walked out of the mist.
The white T-shirt was a bit big on her, the neckline slipping to one side to reveal a collarbone.
Although the black athletic shorts had been tightened at the waist, the legs were still wide, revealing a pair of slender, long legs.
She was holding a towel, drying her long, wet white hair, her face flushed a faint pink from the heat.
She walked towards the living room while drying her hair, muttering to herself.
"Shu, your body wash smells pretty good—"
Then she looked up and saw Shu staring straight at her in the living room.
She blinked, then suddenly grinned mischievously.
"What, mesmerized?"
Shu: "..."
Right in front of Kiana, he tilted his head back, deliberately putting distance between them.
"The hair dryer is in the bathroom cabinet."
He said.
His voice was steady.
As long as you ignored the tips of his ears, which were completely red.