Night had fallen.
The second floor of Anteiku was quiet, broken only by the faint sound of wind brushing the window.
Inside Touka Kirishima's room, a small desk lamp cast a warm circle of light.
Her textbooks and notes were spread across the table.
Several pages filled with corrections lay scattered nearby.
Ren Kiryu sat beside her.
His finger pointed to a passage in the textbook.
"Here."
"The particle usage determines the grammatical structure."
His voice remained steady and patient.
"Changing it slightly will alter the tone of the sentence."
Touka frowned deeply.
Her purple eyes stared intensely at the complicated explanations.
Unlike mathematics or chemistry—
Language felt like an impenetrable wall.
Time passed slowly.
Finally—
Kiryu closed the textbook.
"That's enough for tonight."
Touka slumped slightly.
Her notebook was full of annotations.
Yet the rules still felt confusing.
"…I still don't really understand."
She muttered quietly.
Her fingers curled the edge of the page unconsciously.
Frustration was written clearly on her face.
Kiryu glanced at her.
Under the soft lamplight—
Her expression looked unusually vulnerable.
Without her usual sharp attitude—
She appeared surprisingly cute.
"Learning language requires patience."
He said calmly.
"Like learning how to control a kagune."
"At first it feels unnatural."
"But eventually…"
"You adapt."
He gently placed his hand over hers.
Stopping her from crumpling the page.
"Don't rush."
"I'll help you."
Touka felt the warmth of his palm.
Her tense shoulders relaxed slightly.
She looked up.
Meeting his calm gaze.
The helpless frustration slowly faded.
She squeezed his fingers briefly.
Then withdrew her hand shyly.
"…Okay."
She said softly.
"I'll try again tomorrow."
Then she suddenly remembered something.
"When is your final exam?"
Kiryu paused.
He thought carefully.
"…Tomorrow."
Touka's eyes widened.
"Tomorrow?!"
"You forgot your own exam?!"
"Then why are you here tutoring me?!"
Kiryu smiled faintly.
"I can memorize the material quickly."
"Don't worry."
Touka sighed heavily.
"I seriously don't know what to do with you."
Silence followed.
But the atmosphere remained warm.
Eventually—
Kiryu stood up.
"Well…"
"Good night."
"…Good night."
Touka replied quietly.
He turned toward the door.
But suddenly—
Touka grabbed his sleeve.
He looked back in confusion.
The next moment—
A soft warmth touched his cheek.
Touka had stepped forward.
Standing on her toes.
Her kiss was light.
Brief.
Almost like the touch of a feather.
The contact lasted only a second.
But the air seemed to freeze.
Kiryu stood completely still.
His eyes widened slightly.
Touka had already stepped back.
Her entire face was bright red.
Even her ears had turned pink.
She refused to meet his eyes.
"…Go to sleep!"
She said quickly.
"You have exams tomorrow!"
Before he could respond—
She shoved him out of the room.
Bang.
The door closed.
Kiryu remained standing in the dim hallway.
He slowly touched his cheek.
The warmth of the kiss still lingered.
The Next Morning
The sun rose over Tokyo as usual.
Inside the university corridor—
Students gathered nervously for their final exams.
Nishiki Nishio looked surprised when he saw Kiryu.
"Oh?"
"You actually came."
"I thought you were skipping the finals."
He examined Kiryu carefully.
"You look exhausted."
"Did you stay up all night?"
Kiryu yawned.
"Yeah."
"I studied all night."
Originally—
He had no intention of attending the exam.
But imagining Touka's reaction if he failed—
He changed his mind.
After borrowing Nishio's notes—
He had spent the entire night studying.
With Carnage's enhanced memory—
The information stuck surprisingly well.
"Which exam room are you in?"
Kiryu asked.
"Room 302."
Nishio pointed down the hallway.
"And you?"
"Room 105."
Kiryu checked his admission slip.
"Opposite side."
"See you after the exam."
"Good luck."
Nishio waved.
"Try not to fail."
"Retaking exams is annoying."
Soon—
The exam began.
Time passed quickly.
When the bell rang—
Students flooded into the corridor.
Discussing answers loudly.
Kiryu stepped out of the classroom.
At the hallway corner—
He ran into a familiar face.
Xiwei Jin.
"Yo, Kiryu!"
Jin greeted him cheerfully.
"How did it go?"
"Did your cramming work?"
He studied Kiryu's tired expression.
"You've got dark circles."
Kiryu thought carefully.
Reviewing the exam questions in his mind.
The knowledge he had memorized surfaced clearly.
"I think…"
He said slowly.
"There shouldn't be any problems."
"…At least…"
"…I probably won't fail."
Inside his mind—
Carnage snorted quietly.
[Hmph…]
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