Natsui slept until the sun was high in the sky before lazily opening his eyes.
He rubbed his temples.
He had to admit, the fruit wine had a strong kick. He had originally thought the effects of the alcohol would disappear after a night's sleep, but it turned out that no matter how low the alcohol content, drinking too much would still inevitably go to his head. Even now, his head was still spinning.
Half-awake, he reached out to his side, but the pillow was empty. Sabrina was clearly not there.
Huh? Where is she?
Letting out a big yawn, he lazily sat up and looked around, but he couldn't see Sabrina anywhere.
Thinking back, he had indeed been a bit too impulsive last night, using the alcohol as an excuse to force himself on Sabrina…
After washing up, he folded the bedsheet and put it in his backpack, planning to find a place to secretly throw it away after leaving.
This was, after all, the 'evidence of his crime', and of course, he couldn't leave it here for others to laugh at.
Once he was ready, he went to Sabrina's room and knocked on the door, but after waiting for a long time, there was no sound from inside.
Puzzled, Natsui turned and went to the banquet hall.
At this time, Ash, Misty, Tracey, and Delia were slowly eating lunch. Seeing Natsui, they all greeted him.
"Natsui, you're up so late! We've been awake for ages," Ash said, chewing his food and raising an eyebrow at Natsui. "After we finish this lunch, we're leaving to challenge the gym. Misty was just saying that if you didn't get up soon, we were going to come and pull off your blankets!"
Misty's face immediately turned red.
"Don't talk nonsense!" she said, glancing shyly at Natsui. Then, ignoring that Delia was right there, she gave Ash a sharp rap on the head. "You were the one who said that! Don't try to blame it on me!"
Natsui glanced at Ash's feet. Their bags were already packed and bulging, clearly full.
He smiled. "I couldn't help it. I've been so tired these past few days, I really didn't want to get out of bed. Besides, I'd advise you not to barge into my room so easily…"
Ash was stunned. "Why?"
Natsui spread his hands and grinned. "Because for some reason, I've recently taken a liking to sleeping naked… And if you two gentlemen were to see something you shouldn't… I'm afraid you'd feel inadequate…"
Ash: …
Tracey: …
After making a small joke, Natsui walked over to them. Just as he was about to sit down at the table, he noticed a few people were missing and couldn't help but ask, "By the way, where are Professor Oak and Professor Ivy?"
Misty studied Natsui. She wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but she felt his aura was a little different than before. It seemed that overnight… he had matured a lot.
The thought flashed through her mind, but she answered without hesitation, "They went to the three islands with Ms. Carol with diving equipment for their research paper. From what they said, it seems they're going to observe the ocean currents at the bottom of the sea to verify something."
"Is that so…" Natsui smiled. "That must be really tough. I originally thought professors like them would just stay in their labs all the time."
Just then, Tracey remembered something and whispered to Natsui, "By the way, Ms. Carol said this morning that last night, on her way back to pick up Ms. Mei, she also took a look around Lightning Island but didn't find the collector or his body. She only saw debris everywhere. I think that man must have secretly left."
To be hit by Lugia's Aeroblast and not only survive but also escape?
Natsui raised his eyebrows.
But this was also within his expectations. After all, just from his appearance, the collector didn't seem like a simple character who would die so easily.
He wondered if, after this experience, the collector would change his ways and continue trying to capture Lugia.
However, none of this had anything to do with Natsui anymore. Once they left the Orange Archipelago, he believed they would never meet again.
Still, Sabrina was nowhere to be found. Natsui scanned the surroundings, and just as he was about to ask, he heard footsteps behind him.
He turned his head and saw Sabrina and Mei walking into the hall from the corridor, one after the other.
Sabrina's hair was a little damp, clearly from a recent shower and not yet dry. Mei was also yawning, looking sleepy, as if she had just woken up too.
Before Natsui could speak, Mei's eyes widened when she saw him, and she said in an annoyed tone, "You guys are something else! I kindly took you to Fire Island, and you just left me there without a word! Poor me, waiting and waiting, and then getting blown by the cold wind all night!"
Actually, Mei wasn't the type to hold a grudge. She had already heard the whole story from Carol and didn't blame Natsui and the others. She was just joking now to ease their awkwardness.
However, hearing her hoarse voice and stuffy nose, it seemed she had caught a cold, and Natsui still felt a little guilty.
"I'm so sorry. We were captured by the collector at the time and had no way to inform you."
Misty and Tracey also apologized profusely.
Seeing their serious expressions, Mei knew her joke had backfired. She waved her hand dismissively. "Hey, forget it. This little cold is nothing. I just took some medicine, and I'll be fine after a few days of rest!"
After Mei also sat down at the long table, Natsui finally had time to focus his attention on Sabrina.
Right now, her expression and mood seemed completely normal.
However, Natsui knew her personality. He couldn't tell her true feelings just from these outward signs.
"Sabrina…" Natsui cleared his throat, not knowing how to face her for a moment. He could only ask tentatively, "Are… are you okay?"
Sabrina looked at Natsui with a hint of amusement, knowing what he was thinking. She shook her head gently, a touch of tenderness in her gaze.
"It's nothing. The bed was just too hard, and I sweated a lot last night, so I just took a shower."
Their conversation sounded a bit strange to the others, but thankfully, no one thought anything of it.
Seeing that Sabrina really had no intention of settling scores, Natsui finally relaxed.
There were still other people around. It would be better to wait for a private moment to talk to her properly.
However… at this moment, Natsui was more worried about another problem…
Last night, in the heat of the moment, he had no idea about restraint and took no safety precautions. Thinking back now, he was a little scared.
------------------------
Support my projects and get immediate access to hundreds of chapters of Bleach, Naruto, Pokémon, and more! ✨ Key Benefit: Your favorite novels, with my quality, and always up-to-date.
Featured Novels (with hundreds of chapters available NOW!):
The Heroine Wants to Join My Harem (1050 caps)
Goddess Training Manual (800 caps)
I Have Caught a Pokémon (700 caps)
Bleach Getting Stronger (330 caps)
Naruto: Saving the Uchiha (300 caps)
And many more!
Why subscribe?
🔥 Immediate Access: Read my new chapters before anyone else.
📚 Huge Library: Access my complete catalog instantly.
⭐️ High Quality: Enjoy the novels with a professional and well-crafted text written by me.