Child of Destiny

Pssh!

The next morning, Shin climbed out of his gaming cabin at his usual time.

As always, he went through his morning training before taking a quick shower and heading to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for everyone.

Everything proceeded according to his usual routine.

Or at least, it should have.

While preparing breakfast, Shin could not help but feel that something was strangely different today.

It was difficult to describe.

The atmosphere inside the villa simply felt... off.

His eyes quietly swept across everyone gathered around the dining table.

The first thing that caught his attention was Lorraine.

She, who usually spent every breakfast shamelessly teasing Leonard, was surprisingly sitting quietly in her seat today.

Not only that, but there was also even a rare trace of embarrassment lingering on her face whenever Leonard happened to glance in her direction.

Shin could not help raising an eyebrow.

He then shifted his gaze toward Arthur and Jillian.

Arthur, as usual, was enthusiastically trying to strike up a conversation with her.

Normally, Jillian would simply ignore him with her composed demeanor before continuing her meal as if he did not exist.

Today, however, she was actually responding to him.

The conversation remained brief, but the difference was obvious enough for Shin to notice.

His brows furrowed even deeper.

He then looked toward Cloe.

Fortunately, she appeared relatively normal.

She was still calmly eating her breakfast while occasionally teasing the others whenever an opportunity presented itself.

Seeing that, Shin secretly let out a sigh of relief.

At least one person was acting normally.

Unfortunately, the moment he shifted his gaze toward Alice, she immediately met his eyes.

For some unknown reason, Alice quietly looked away first.

Now Shin was genuinely confused.

After staring at everyone for another moment, he slowly leaned toward Molton, who happened to be sitting beside him.

”Is it just me... or is something wrong today?” He whispered.

Molton discreetly glanced around before leaning closer as well. ”Maybe... it’s that time of the month.”

His voice was barely above a whisper.

Unfortunately, inside this villa, a whisper carried about as much secrecy as shouting through a loudspeaker.

It was impossible to miss given their respective attainments in Martial Arts and Mentalism.

Almost instantly, every head around the dining table swiftly turned toward the two of them.

Molton immediately realized what had happened. ”I can explain.”

”You don’t need to.” Jillian smiled sweetly before slowly turning her head toward Arthur. ”Look...”

She pointed at Molton. ”Look at the kind of bad influence you’ve become on my brother.”

Arthur nearly spat out the coffee he had just taken. ”Excuse me?”

Fortunately, Alice, who was sitting directly across from him, calmly raised a hand.

Swoosh!

A thin wall of Mental Energy instantly materialized before him, intercepting the stream of coffee before it could become a tragedy at the breakfast table.

Arthur wiped the corner of his mouth before immediately protesting. ”It was Shin who asked the question, wasn’t it?”

”The answer was influenced by you,” Jillian replied without the slightest hesitation.

Arthur froze on the spot.

For the first time in his life, he felt like an innocent man being convicted of crimes he had never committed.

Before he could gather another argument, Molton suddenly stood up for him. ”It isn’t Senior Brother’s fault!”

”...”

Unfortunately, those innocent words only made the atmosphere even stranger.

Everyone slowly turned toward Arthur once again.

Their gazes were filled with understanding... and sympathy.

Arthur’s eyelids twitched repeatedly. ”Why are you all looking at me like that?”

No one answered.

Instead, the breakfast table was enveloped in a strange silence.

Fortunately for him, the attention of everyone was suddenly drawn elsewhere.

Tap. Tap.

Footsteps echoed from the staircase.

David, who rarely joined everyone for breakfast due to his busy schedule, slowly walked down from the second floor.

The moment he entered the dining area, he immediately noticed that everyone was staring at him.

He instinctively slowed his steps.

Sweeping his gaze across everyone, he realized that the girls, in particular, were giving him rather strange looks.

Confused, he subconsciously touched his face. ”Is there something on my face?”

The girls exchanged silent glances with one another.

Then, almost at the same time, they smiled mysteriously.

”What?” For some unknown reason, David suddenly had a very bad feeling about this.

Tap. Tap.

Almost at the same time, another set of footsteps echoed behind David.

Shiella also came down to join everyone for breakfast.

Just like David, her schedule had been fully packed these past few months due to the series of incidents that had occurred.

In fact, she had barely attended any classes throughout the past month because of how busy she had been.

The moment she stepped into the dining hall, she immediately sensed the strange atmosphere lingering around the table.

Her gaze swept across everyone before settling on David, who happened to be standing beside her.

”What’s happening?” she asked.

David helplessly spread his hands. ”I was about to ask the same question.”

The two subconsciously exchanged glances.

That simple interaction was enough to trigger something among the girls.

Pfft!

The four suddenly lowered their heads while desperately trying to suppress their laughter. Their shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

”What now?” David frowned.

”No...” Lorraine hurriedly waved both hands. ”It’s nothing.”

She then immediately lowered her head again before another burst of laughter almost escaped her mouth.

Alice quietly covered her lips.

Even Cloe had to lower her teacup to hide the smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Only Jilian looked back and forth between the two groups in complete confusion. ”Can someone tell me what I’m missing?”

Unfortunately, no one intended to answer.

The more they looked at David and Shiella standing side by side, the harder it became to suppress their imagination.

Tap. Tap.

Another pair of footsteps suddenly echoed from outside.

Without waiting for anyone’s permission, Miss Bunny casually entered the villa.

Ever since signing her contract with the Flying Dragon Corporation, she had been living in the neighboring villa together with the girls.

She greeted everyone as usual. ”Good morni—”

Her voice abruptly halted.

The moment she stepped into the dining hall, she found David standing directly before her.

The two stared at each other for a brief moment.

Miss Bunny blinked once before quietly clearing her throat. ”Ahem...”

She then calmly walked past David as though nothing had happened before taking her usual seat. ”Good morning, everyone.”

Silence descended upon the dining table.

Then, almost simultaneously, Cloe, Alice, Lorraine, and Jillian slowly turned toward Miss Bunny.

The four pairs of eyes all carried the exact same meaning. – ”We saw that.” –

Miss Bunny’s composed smile stiffened ever so slightly. ”What?”

Lorraine could no longer hold herself back. ”Big Sister... Are you sure there’s really nothing going on?”

Miss Bunny glanced at David before looking back at Lorraine. ”What exactly is supposed to be going on?”

Unfortunately for her, neither Cloe nor Alice looked convinced in the slightest.

Even Jillian, despite having no idea what the others were implying, instinctively narrowed her eyes.

For the first time that morning, Miss Bunny suddenly understood exactly how Arthur had felt just a few moments earlier.

She had absolutely no idea what crime she had committed, yet, somehow, she already felt like she was being interrogated.

Against all odds, the breakfast somehow ended without anyone dying from embarrassment.

Everything proceeded as usual, albeit under the strange atmosphere lingering throughout the dining hall.

Not long after, Shiella stood up from her seat. ”I’ll be going.”

She then turned toward Shin. ”Are you preparing dinner later?”

Shin paused for a brief moment, mentally reviewing everything he had planned for the day.

Unfortunately, according to Benedict, Professor Henry was still fully occupied with his current research project. That meant his consultation regarding the mutation of his Heart Realm Technique would have to wait for another day.

After thinking for a moment, Shin nodded. ”I should be free tonight.”

”Good.” Shiella simply nodded before leaving the villa.

Tap. Tap.

David also stood up shortly afterward. ”It has been a while since I’ve logged into the game.”

He stretched his body before smiling helplessly. ”I’ve already fallen too far behind everyone.”

”Looks like I’ll have to spend the next few days grinding.” After saying that, he immediately headed toward his room.

With the current situation already stabilized by the elders, there was no longer any urgent matter requiring his attention.

The younger generation could handle the rest themselves.

Watching the two leave, the four girls quietly turned toward Miss Bunny once again.

Miss Bunny suddenly felt an inexplicable pressure despite being the oldest among them. ”Why are you looking at me again?”

Unfortunately, before anyone could answer, Shin suddenly remembered something.

”Ah!” He turned toward the girls. ”You were doing that special quest, weren’t you?”

”How did it go?” He tilted his head slightly before asking with genuine curiosity. ”Do you still need some help?”

Silence.

Almost simultaneously, Miss Bunny, Chloe, Alice, Lorraine, and Jillian abruptly straightened their backs.

They looked exactly like a group of frightened cats whose tails had just been stepped on.

Shin’s innocent question instantly dragged their memories back to the previous night.

System: Requirement Unfulfilled.

System: A male and a female are required to open this gate.

Without warning, the five girls’ faces turned bright red.

Lorraine immediately buried her face on the dining table.

Alice quietly lowered her head behind her teacup.

Chloe covered the lower half of her face with one hand while pretending to remain composed.

Jillian hastily looked away, not daring to meet Shin’s eyes. She even dodged Arthur’s eyes, who was attracted by the question.

Even Miss Bunny awkwardly coughed before pretending to become very interested in the remaining breakfast on her plate.

Shin blinked repeatedly. ”Did I... say something strange?”

None of the girls answered.

The dining hall once again descended into an indescribably awkward silence.

Only Molton quietly leaned toward Arthur before whispering. ”Senior Brother.”

He hesitated for a moment before continuing. ”I really do think... that it is that time of the month.”

He then knitted his brows in genuine confusion before adding. ”But... how come they all came at the same time?”

Arthur’s pupils instantly shrank. ”Don’t ask.”

”For your own safety... just don’t.” He even emphasized.

Molton blinked innocently. ”I don’t understand.”

”Neither do I,” Arthur sighed helplessly. ”And I don’t think I want to.”

......