Chapter Eleven: The Hour Takes the Fall

At the turn of the corridor, Su Mo leaned against the wall, finally letting out a sigh of relief once he was sure that Teacher Xiaozhu hadn’t followed him. He hadn’t expected that a woman desperate for marriage could be so terrifying.

Meanwhile, in the Ratatoskr hall, everyone who had witnessed the scene was utterly dumbfounded. Among them, the so-called master of romance, Kawano, collapsed to his knees, sobbing, “Compared to Lord Su Mo, I am the lowest of the low. He is the true master of love.”

Hearing this, Kotori was completely stunned, her head nodding instinctively.

“To think it could be done this way… It’s simply unbelievable!” she murmured, her eyes vacant.

Standing beside her, Kyohei Kamizuki brushed his hair back and squinted in delight, “Although Lord Su Mo’s methods in love are astounding, his taste is dreadful. As for me, I like only the Commander.”

Kotori’s face darkened at his words. But she was long accustomed to Kyohei’s eccentricities, so without saying a word, she extended a hand and snapped her fingers.

Immediately, two burly men in black suits appeared in the command room. They deftly grabbed Kamizuki’s arms on either side and dragged him out like a dead dog.

Once the annoyance was out of sight, Kotori slumped into the command chair and spoke to Su Mo through the intercom, “Alright, I admit you have plenty of experience in love. But that Teacher Xiaozhu was clearly not normal. No student confesses and gets accepted so quickly, so it doesn’t count. You must confess to another girl, this time choosing only from your classmates, not teachers.”

“…”

Su Mo was speechless, then couldn’t help but ask, “Why? We agreed—all I had to do was confess successfully. Are you going back on your word now?”

“My dear brother, don’t you know that little sisters are born with a certain power?” Kotori’s face lit up with an unprecedented smile, as if a holy light shone upon her.

“What power?” Su Mo asked instinctively.

“The power to be unreasonable, of course.”

At that, Su Mo was left utterly speechless.

Your logic is so flawless, I can’t refute it.

But having to find another girl to confess to was truly asking too much. He didn’t know many people at school to begin with, and if not for his foreknowledge, he doubted he could have succeeded with Teacher Xiaozhu.

“Should I go confess to Shizhi?”

The dangerous thought barely surfaced before Su Mo hastily suppressed it. Though Shizhi was gentle and considerate, the fact that she was the gender-swapped protagonist made him uncomfortable. They were destined to remain siblings, never lovers.

While Su Mo wrestled with his thoughts, a striking figure emerged from the stairway below.

Shoulder-length white hair.

An icy expression.

A perfectly fitted school uniform.

Origami Tobiichi walked straight up to Su Mo and stopped, staring at him with a blank face.

“Are you free?” she suddenly asked.

“Ah?”

Su Mo was clearly taken aback. He felt this oddball was somewhat abnormal too—after all, they barely knew each other, so why did she keep initiating conversation?

“Are you free?” she repeated.

After a moment’s hesitation, Su Mo finally asked, “What do you need me for?”

“It’s something important,” Origami nodded, then added, “It’s about yesterday.”

“Yesterday?”

“That’s right. You saw me yesterday, didn’t you?” Origami asked in a firm tone.

Before Su Mo could answer, she continued, “Don’t tell anyone.”

Su Mo opened his mouth, his face showing confusion.

“And, except for things about me, just forget everything you saw and heard yesterday.”

“Why?” Su Mo asked.

“Because what you saw yesterday were Spirits—my parents. Five years ago, they died because of Spirits.” Origami raised her eyes to meet Su Mo’s. “I don’t want more people to end up like me, so I hope you’ll forget everything.”

Her voice was cold, her words succinct.

Looking at Origami, Su Mo couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. But before he could even indulge in sympathy, Kotori’s excited voice echoed in his ear, “Su Mo, choose her! Your next target is her—go confess!”

He strongly suspected Kotori was just stirring up trouble.

Confess to Origami Tobiichi?

This had to be a joke. He wasn’t the original protagonist; if confessing were that easy, she wouldn’t be known as the Permafrost.

“Less chatter, hurry up!” Kotori urged, eager for chaos.

“Um…”

Su Mo looked troubled, but finally gritted his teeth, resigning himself to rejection, and asked in a defeated tone, “Origami, would you be my girlfriend?”

He’d already braced himself for refusal. After all, Origami had shut off her emotions after her parents’ death; she couldn’t possibly fall in love with anyone.

But—

“I will!” Origami nodded without hesitation.

“So I said, it’s impossible to succeed…” Su Mo smiled, but soon realized something was off. Had he misheard? He asked again, “What?”

“I will!” Origami tilted her head, as casually as if she were eating or drinking, her tone utterly flat.

“Wait, my head is spinning.”

Su Mo wanted to step back, but the wall was behind him and there was nowhere to retreat. So he lifted his head, scrutinized Origami Tobiichi, and asked, “You really want to be my girlfriend? You’re not joking? Or, are you sure there’s nothing wrong here?”

He pointed at his own head, though the gesture was rude.

Su Mo felt as if fate itself was playing tricks on him.

“I’m sure. So let’s start dating!” Origami replied.

Su Mo gulped, swallowing involuntarily. He cautiously asked, “Even if I’m a lolicon, often sneak into the girls’ restroom and locker room to peep, and perversely sniff your discarded clothes, plus I’m violent, smoke, drink, perm my hair, like to hit women, and am a complete scumbag—are you still willing to date me?”

“Is that so?”

Any normal girl would have been unable to stay calm after hearing such things, but Origami’s expression remained unchanged.

Not only that—

“I’ve done those things too,” Origami said calmly.

Su Mo: “????”

Wait, you’ve done what?

Does she mean in that way?

With a broken expression, Su Mo let out a nonsensical laugh, and over his headset he heard the crashing sounds of bodies hitting the floor—at that moment, in the Ratatoskr command room, everyone, including Kotori, had completely collapsed.

Kotori clutched her head, looking on the verge of a breakdown.

What’s wrong with this world?

Is it me who’s gone mad, or the world itself?

No, perhaps it’s all the fault of fate!