VIP Chapter 156: Smiling Sweetly
“Hmm, speaking of which, Will, what does ‘tsundere’ mean?”
One morning, after class, Liya called Will to the corridor where they often chatted, ostensibly for “mentor’s care.” She stood with her arms crossed, one hand covering her forehead, and asked.
“Uh… wait, Teacher Liya, how did you hear that word!?”
“How did I hear it? Hmm…”
Liya pulled out a slip of paper. The handwriting looked like Will’s. However, the paper seemed torn from a page, not a full sticky note. Will was startled when he saw the slip. It was the first time Liya had seen him look so shocked and worried. In her memory, he hadn’t even reacted like this when he’d almost failed an exam because he forgot there were questions on the back of the paper.
“Ah, this… this, I… can I not say?”
“No. This paper has my name on it, my full name, and then it says ‘tsundere value,’ which was then crossed out with an ‘X.'”
“Oh no… Last night, when I was analyzing how much of a ‘loser’ characteristic I needed to fix, I felt this way of writing it didn’t make sense. I tore off the paper, but I must have accidentally taken it with me when I left…”
“And the combination of these letters is strange. It doesn’t sound like something spoken in Entak language… Is it Elvish? Or Beastkin? Or even Dungeon language? Did you just mutter something?”
“N-nothing. If I have to explain, it’s a personality type!”
“A personality type?” Liya had certainly never heard this term used to describe a personality before. However, being evaluated by her student gave her an uncomfortable feeling—though this was indeed the usual state of a teacher’s life.
“It’s like how Teacher Liya acted before. You reflexively deny things when they happen, you always speak indirectly, you’re not at all straightforward, you don’t say what you truly feel and keep avoiding it.”
“W-what are you saying? That… that person isn’t me.”
“See, this right now is tsundere!”
“Hmm? Okay, it does seem a little like it. Barely!”
“See, admitting it in such a cute way right now is also part of that personality.” Liya punched Will’s chest with her fist. After the second year, Will had grown considerably taller than her, no longer looking like someone close in age.
“Ahem. Wh-what are you saying about the teacher being cute? That… that will affect your regular grade, you know?” Liya clearly couldn’t handle Will’s direct compliments. Well, she’d admit it slightly: witches were the cutest in the world!
“Is that so. So… you said before… you said before that you wanted me to be ‘straightforward’ and ‘honest,’ was that why?”
“Yeah!” Liya watched Will nod vigorously. “Because tsundere is out of fashion now. It’s completely the backup role that’s guaranteed to lose in love.”
“In love… guaranteed… guaranteed to lose…” The witch, with her hundred-plus years of single experience, had a natural fear of such words.
“The reason is simple. If you encounter a super dense man, and you keep avoiding things like this, he definitely won’t understand what you’re thinking!” Liya looked at Will, assessing him. Will… was he dense? She didn’t think so. Why was he giving her such hints?
“Huh? Why wouldn’t he understand?”
“Because, men are fundamentally lazy. Think about it, a girl who constantly says she dislikes you and makes you guess what she’s thinking, versus a girl who is quite cute and says everything she loves…”
“—You’d definitely choose the latter!” Liya pondered for a moment after hearing this. It did make some sense.
“So, Will likes that type?”
“Yes! Teacher, at least for your student’s sake, quickly become a super straightforward person full of love—”
“No one would change for their student—”
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Liya woke up. She had finally managed to fall asleep, but the dream that followed was vivid and brief, leaving her deeply unsettled.
“Another… another dream about Will?” She looked at the newspaper and saw that sentence.
*Thump-thump.* She clutched her chest, but… When she forced herself to sleep, she could still suppress her racing heart, but now it was uncontrollable. Through her ribcage, she could feel her heart pounding violently with her fingers.
*Thump-thump-thump—* Will is…
*Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump—* being seriously watched by someone.
*Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump—* He responded to that gaze.
*Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump—* You’re not the only one he responded to.
*Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump—*
“Ha… ha…” For some reason, even though her heart was pounding so fiercely, Liya felt an unusual… emptiness.
She looked at the box at the foot of her bed, the one filled with a whole box of “Mint Essential Oil” that Will had specifically stored for her…
“Straightforward…” she crawled from the headboard.
“Honest…” In the dark room, she fumbled for the hotel desk lamp and turned it on.
“Is it because… you haven’t seen?” Then, in the dim, hazy light, with her vision swaying, she picked up the Blood Mint Essential Oil.
“Is it because I haven’t been obvious enough?” She raised it, aiming it at the lamp’s light. The Blood Mint Essential Oil was naturally translucent, and under the lamplight, the red Blood Mint Essential Oil surprisingly showed a peculiar pink hue. Just like… Liya’s eyes in the vanity mirror on the table. Her blood-red eyes had developed a strange pinkish tint at their depths. She drank the entire bottle of Blood Mint Essential Oil.
Will had advised her not to drink the mint essential oil directly. Usually, it was only applied topically. It wasn’t that drinking it would reduce its effectiveness, but rather that it could irritate the stomach. After all, it was made from mint from the Dungeon, and its extreme coolness, bordering on fiery, was not something ordinary people could tolerate.
But… Liya finished the whole bottle. She didn’t feel the icy mint essential oil suppressing the flame ignited within her heart. The pink hue in her eyes gradually spread. Her heart pounded even faster than before. The surge in her magic circuits made her skin flush red. But… looking at herself in the mirror, Liya actually felt more relaxed, her whole body becoming lighter.
“…I think I understand.”
“After these few days… these few days away from you, I finally understand, Will.”
“Why is my body feeling so empty and weak?”
“And why could I return to my original appearance after seeing the newspaper photo?”
“Why do I crave the mint essential oil you gave me back then, here?”
“As my student, in your eyes, you should indeed…”
“Only have me.” She looked in the mirror. Her smile, against the backdrop of the dim light and the dusty mirror, was somewhat terrifying. But…
“Hmm, smiling sweetly.”
“He’ll like it.” Liya glanced down at the newspaper. Now, she could calmly read every word of the interview. Including the most important sentence—
[Next, I’ll be heading to Yamik City. I hear the Ice Queen of that Dungeon is quite interesting, and I plan to meet her.]
