In an instant, the mood in the room turned unbearably awkward.
From a normal person's perspective, it was obvious to Raiden Mei what was happening. What she saw could only be interpreted as someone with questionable intentions toward Lunelle being caught red-handed in the act.
"Kiana! I can't believe you'd even target Lunelle now? I'm seriously disappointed in you!"
Having already suffered enough from Kiana's unique… preferences, Mei naturally assumed the worst.
Given the scene she'd just witnessed, her conclusion was simple: this was Kiana's twisted objective all along.
"Mei! It's not what you think! Please, listen to me! Just hear me out, please QAQ!"
Faced with Mei's sigh full of disappointment, Kiana—who had momentarily lost her reasoning due to Lunelle's overwhelming cuteness—finally realized how incredibly easy it was to misinterpret the situation.
"Fine. Then explain, Kiana-san. Why did Bronya and I open our eyes to see you grabbing Lunelle's hand and pressing it to yourself?"
Seeing Kiana's flustered expression, Mei, still soft-hearted, decided to give her one last chance.
If Kiana could offer even a halfway decent explanation, Mei was ready to forgive her.
But…
"Um… Mei, actually… I didn't mean for things to end up like that. I don't even know what came over me. I just… Seele looked so cute, and before I knew it, I… I touched her…"
Kiana's explanation, drenched in shame and sounding uncomfortably suspicious, made even Bronya's expression twist into a permanent (???).
As for Mei, who had been halfway to forgiveness, her face went pale. Kiana's excuse sounded less like a defense and more like a full-blown confession of guilt.
Kiana, you really are something. I gave you a chance and you used it to bury yourself deeper.
Honestly, Mei was half-tempted to pry open Kiana's head to see just how much water was sloshing around in there.
Was there really anyone this gifted at digging their own grave?
"…Alright! Kiana, I've heard enough. I get it now."
At this point, it no longer mattered to Mei whether Kiana had intended it or not.
Because one thing was certain: Kiana had definitely developed some very impure thoughts about the sweet and innocent Seele.
"Really? Hehe, I knew Mei would understand me. I mean, sure I had the thought, but I didn't actually do anything..."
Kiana, mistakenly interpreting Mei's cold declaration as forgiveness, relaxed. She genuinely believed their years of unspoken understanding would save her here.
But Kiana clearly hadn't expected what came next.
"From now on, whenever we sleep together, please keep your distance from our dear Lunelle."
Kiana: "Eh∑(′△｀)?!"
Watching Mei, the one person who usually stood by her, turn away, Kiana could only sulk in frustration.
But the truth was simple: in the face of irrefutable evidence, nothing she said could fix the impression now planted in Mei's mind.
And so, naturally—
"Seele... this idiot clearly has bad intentions toward you. Stay away from her from now on. Understand?"
Without holding back in the slightest, Bronya immediately warned Lunelle in front of Kiana. Then, dragging the still-shy and clueless girl away, she left without a backward glance.
If she let Seele hang around Kiana any longer, who knew what that fool would try next?
Once everyone had left, Kiana—whose brain tended to lag a few beats behind—finally had a delayed realization.
Wait a second.
Sure, maybe I did have some weird thoughts about the soft, adorable Seele...
But I didn't even get to enjoy it! Nothing actually happened!
So why does it feel like I've been wrongfully accused?!
Unfortunately for her, there was no one left to clear things up.
After getting some rest, Lunelle checked the wall clock—it was barely past four in the morning. She recalled going to bed around 8 p.m., squeezed into the same bed with her three wives.
A bit of quick math told her she'd only been asleep for about seven hours before waking up on her own.
But based on past experience, Lunelle knew what this probably meant.
Whenever the simulation system woke her automatically, it almost always meant the cooldown timer had fully reset.
So she called out to Systema in her mind and got straight to the point.
"Systema? Has the cooldown finished?"
[Yes, host. The simulation cooldown is complete. Would you like to start the next round?]
"Huh? That was fast, even for deep sleep. Why is it over already?"
[Close contact with characters flagged as capture targets in the real world accelerates simulation recovery.
It is recommended that the host continue engaging in such behavior to deepen bonds and unlock exclusive mystery rewards.]
"What?! How dare you suggest that I—Lunelle, a once noble woman—should sell her dignity for some petty reward?
Never! Absolutely not!
I would rather starve, jump off a cliff, die—than ever sell myself!"
At Systema's totally shameless suggestion, Lunelle snapped, loudly declaring—for the umpteenth time—her firm refusal.
But if the simulation sprite had a mouth, it would've smirked.
Because from its perspective, everything was going exactly according to plan.
As the saying goes, the most dangerous kind of seduction is the one that pretends to be innocent.
Lunelle, the textbook example of a charming succubus in denial—who unknowingly enticed every beautiful girl around her—kept clinging to her pure maiden image.
That combination of sweetness and forbidden allure made her absurdly powerful.
Yet Lunelle, utterly unaware of her own lethal charm, had just walked straight into the outcome Systema had been aiming for all along.