Chapter 218: 219 | The Philosophy Paper Defense
"You didn’t say I couldn’t use them."
"I said no abilities above B-rank output."
"Liminal Step is B-rank." Technically. Mera’s version was B-plus, but the copy in my head degraded slightly from the original. "Clean hit. One to one."
Her expression shifted. The playful energy gave way to something sharper. More focused. Her Essentia flared around her legs, visible now as faint white lines tracing her muscles.
"Fine. No holding back then."
She disappeared again.
This time I was ready. My drain reached outward, feeling for the disturbance in Essentia that marked her movement. Her ability enhanced her physical capabilities but it also left a trail. A wake in the ambient energy that someone attuned to Essentia manipulation could track.
There.
I opened a disc directly in her path.
She ran into it at full speed.
The exit disc deposited her twenty feet in the air above the training field.
"What the—"
Gravity took over.
She twisted midair. Managed to land on her feet. But the impact staggered her. Broke her momentum. Gave me the opening I needed.
I closed the distance. Normal speed. Human speed. My fist caught her shoulder before she could recover.
"Two to one."
"That was dirty."
"That was strategy." I stepped back. Gave her space to stand. "You’re faster than me. Stronger when your Essentia is flowing. The only way I win is by changing the rules."
She stood. Brushed grass from her leggings. Her pink eyes watched me with an intensity I hadn’t seen before.
"You’re not the person I thought you were."
"I’ve been hearing that a lot lately."
"The Rome I heard about was lazy. Arrogant. Coasted on his family name and never worked for anything." She rolled her shoulders. Popped her neck. "You’re not lazy. You’re not coasting. Whatever happened to change you..."
She didn’t finish the sentence.
She didn’t need to.
"One more hit." I raised my fists. Dropped into something resembling a fighting stance. "Winner buys lunch."
Her smile returned.
"You’re on."
The third hit took twenty minutes.
Usagi adapted faster than I expected. She stopped running in straight lines. Started feinting. Testing my reactions. Probing for the tells that would reveal when I was about to open a disc.
I adapted too. Stopped relying on Liminal Step. Started reading her movements the way Cheon’s data suggested. Looking for the patterns in her attack rhythm. The moments when her Essentia flared brightest and the moments when it dimmed.
She got her second hit during minute eight. A knee to my stomach that knocked the wind out of me and left me gasping on the grass.
She got her third hit during minute fifteen. An elbow to my temple that made stars explode across my vision.
Two to three. Her win.
I lay on my back. Staring at the sky. My whole body ached.
"You owe me lunch."
"I’m aware."
She dropped onto the grass beside me. Breathing hard. Her tank top was soaked with sweat. Her chest rose and fell with each breath. Her ears drooped with exhaustion.
Cheon was right. After ten minutes, her output dropped significantly. But significantly still meant she could kick my ass in a straight fight.
"You’re better than the reports said."
"What reports?"
"Hae-Won keeps files on everyone in Class 1-A." Usagi’s head turned toward me. Her pink eyes catching the morning sun. "She shared yours with me when I asked about training partners. It said you were unmotivated. Unfocused. Possessed no documented abilities and showed no aptitude for combat training."
"Hae-Won’s files need updating."
"Obviously." She was quiet for a moment. "The portal ability. That’s not yours, is it?"
I considered lying.
Decided against it.
"No. I copied it from someone else."
"Copied?"
"My ability lets me... absorb things. From other people. Through contact." I kept my eyes on the sky. Couldn’t see her face. Didn’t want to. "The portal is something I borrowed. The other things I can do are borrowed too."
Silence.
Then: "Is that why you have multiple women sleeping at your apartment?"
"Partly."
"Because you need contact to copy abilities."
"Yes."
"And the contact has to be..." She trailed off. Her ears went flat. "Oh."
"Yeah."
More silence.
I braced for the judgment. The disgust. The inevitable realization that everything between us had been calculated. Strategic. Another step in a quest I didn’t ask for and couldn’t escape.
"That sounds exhausting."
I turned my head. Looked at her.
She was staring at the sky now. Her profile against the morning light. Her ears slowly rising from their flattened position.
"What?"
"Building relationships because your ability requires it. Maintaining connections because your power depends on them." She shrugged one shoulder. "It sounds exhausting. Like you can never just... be with someone. It’s always complicated by what you need from them."
"It’s not that simple."
"Nothing ever is."
She sat up. Looked down at me. Her expression was unreadable.
"The women at your apartment. Do they know?"
"Yes."
"And they stay anyway?"
"Yes."
"Because they want to? Or because they have to?"
I sat up too. Met her eyes. Let her see whatever she was looking for.
"Because they want to. Because I give them the choice. Always." My voice was steady. I needed it to be. "I don’t take from anyone who doesn’t offer. I don’t keep anyone who wants to leave. Whatever power I have, whatever ability makes me what I am, it doesn’t work on people who aren’t willing."
She studied my face for a long moment.
Then she laughed.
Bright and sudden and completely unexpected.
"You’re serious."
"Why is that funny?"
"Because you’re sitting here defending your harem like it’s some kind of ethical position." She covered her mouth with her hand. Her ears bounced with suppressed giggles. "You have multiple girlfriends because your superpower requires intimacy and you’re explaining it like a philosophy paper."
"I don’t think it’s funny."
"That’s what makes it funny." She lowered her hand. Her smile was softer now. More genuine. "You’re ridiculous. You know that, right? Completely, absolutely ridiculous."
"I’ve been told."
"Good." She stood. Extended a hand to help me up. "Because I’m ridiculous too. And I think we should be ridiculous together."
I took her hand.
Let her pull me to my feet.
"What does that mean?"
"It means I’m not running away screaming." Her fingers stayed wrapped around mine. Warm and strong and deliberately present. "It means I want to know more. About your ability. About your situation. About why you look at me like I matter when you’ve got a penthouse full of women who clearly already do."
"You do matter."
"Prove it."
Her ears twitched.
Her eyes held mine.
I leaned down.
She leaned up.
The kiss was soft. Brief. Just long enough to taste the salt on her lips and feel the flutter of her heartbeat through her fingers.
When I pulled back, her cheeks were flushed pink.
"Was that proof enough?"
"It’s a start." Her voice was breathless. "But I expect lunch. And explanations. And probably more training because you still owe me for that portal trick."
"Fair enough."
