Afterward, Vanessa helped Mirexia with official duties, and the two prepared lunch and dinner together in Mirexia's dormitory. Although mostly it was Vanessa doing the cooking, while Mirexia, who had little skill in the kitchen, simply stood by, handing over ingredients now and then.
When night fell and the twenty-four hours were up, Vanessa transford back into Winnie, changed into male attire, and casually strolled out of Mirexia's villa courtyard as if nothing had happened.
Instead of returning directly to his dorm, he turned to the business district, entering an affordable perfu shop.
"Shopkeeper, could I get a bottle of Foxtail Grass scent perfu?" Winnie approached the counter and ordered his usual brand and scent.
Foxtail Grass was a common herb growing on the grasslands, emitting a fairly distinctive aroma. Whether the scent was pleasant or not varied from person to person, so found it tolerable, others thought it slled wonderful, while so considered it utterly foul.
He'd always use this perfu. Originally, he'd chosen it not for any personal preference, but simply because the raw materials were cheap and the production cost low. Although it was a branded product, it was essentially no different from those street-vendor perfus back on Earth, anyone could tell just by the sll that it was cheap stuff. The only advantage is that it was made from herbs and thus gentle on the skin.
"Foxtail Grass? Kid, that perfu doesn't sll good, you know?" The shopkeeper lowered his newspaper and glanced at Winnie, unable to resist comnting.
"It's fine, the worse it slls, the better," Winnie replied. If it slled good, how could it possibly mask his scent? Right now, his entire body reeked of Vanessa, white tea blossoms and lavender. He felt like he'd been marinated in Vanessa's fragrance.
With that, Winnie placed three copper coins on the counter.
"Alright, here you go." The shopkeeper handed him a bottle of perfu with no packaging at all.
"Thanks." Winnie took the perfu, and as soon as he stepped outside, sprayed himself several tis, on his collar, sleeves, and pant legs, ensuring every trace of Vanessa's scent was thoroughly covered before heading toward the dormitory.
Winnie arrived at the dormitory entrance just like always. He figured Shikondell should've returned by now. He trusted Luna and the others completely, so he knocked on the door and called out, "I'm back," just as he usually did when returning ho.
Thinking about how he'd soon return to his peaceful daily life, Winnie's eyes softened.
Soon, he heard footsteps approaching from inside, familiar footsteps that ward his heart.
"Winnie, you're finally back? Welco ho." The familiar voice from within stirred deep emotion in Winnie.
Nothing felt more comforting than reuniting with loved ones after surviving a disaster, returning safely to one's warm ho.
Simply being unhard was already a stroke of luck amid misfortune. There were others who never made it ho, forever separated from their families and friends by life and death.
"I'm back, Dell. You're awake? I'm glad you're alright." Winnie lifted his head. Before he could finish, his expression froze upon seeing the Shikondell before him.
"Took you long enough to co back, human." Shikondell stood with arms crossed against the doorfra, a mocking smirk on her lips.
'Virtue 50.'
Current Virtue: 9844.
That was a tone Shikondell would never use. Clearly, the person standing before him was not the real Shikondell.
"Oh! I suddenly rembered I left sothing at the shop earlier. Sorry, Dell, I'll head back to get it. You stay here and... ow, ow!" Before Winnie could finish, Shikondell pulled him inside and slamd the door shut.
"Not that urgent, right?" Shikondell pinned Winnie against the wall. Although significantly shorter than him, she completely dominated him with her presence.
"S-Dell? Um, what are you doing? I really did leave sothing at the shop." Winnie instinctively shrank back. For so reason, he couldn't bring himself to look directly into Shikondell's sharp, piercing eyes.
Ugh, this was weird, why did it feel like he'd been caught red-handed by his wife after cheating with a mistress?
Was this right?
Ah, no, no, first of all, he'd healed Shikondell, and due to identity issues, he absolutely had to leave and could only return tonight. This was beyond his control; there was no other way.
He could only rely on his closest childhood friend, Mirexia. What was wrong with that? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Besides, the identities didn't even match!
This sense of deja vu was completely off.
"Oh, you left sothing behind? Seems quite important then. Well then, human, I'll co with you to retrieve it." Shikondell suddenly smiled coldly.
"Ah, no need, no need! I can go get it myself. It'd be a bother to trouble you, Dark Dell." Winnie hurriedly replied.
"That won't do. What if the shopkeeper lies and denies you leaving anything?" Shikondell conjured a ball of erald-green nature magic in her hand. "If I go with you, there'll be a backup. If he dares deny it, I'll use magic to hang him upside down until he admits it."
"Ah, no need for such a big fuss. Wouldn't that be too much?"
"It's fine. Winnie, you worked hard saving . Since your body's still weak, shouldn't I follow you everywhere?" Shikondell grinned widely.
"But what if sothing happens to you?"
"N-No, Dark Dell, you flatter . I didn't do much at all. It was really Fanya and Senior Luna who handled everything. That's not my specialty, so I had to rely on others." Winnie laughed it off. "Besides, we're still inside the academy. Nothing bad will happen here."
"Didn't I tell you not to call Dark Dell?" Shikondell raised an eyebrow.
"Well then, how else am I supposed to tell you apart? You're called Dell, and the regular Dell is also called Dell. When I call out, how would anyone know which one I an?" Winnie snapped.
"What's so hard to distinguish? We can't appear at the sa ti anyway." Shikondell smiled. "Just like how you can't appear alongside that cherry pink-haired big sister, right~?"
"Ah? Cherry Pink-haired big sister?" Winnie fell silent for a mont, then stared at her with a strange, bewildered expression. "Dark Dell, who exactly are you talking about?"
His expression and reaction showed no hint of deception. The hesitation and confusion after a mont of silence were perfectly tid.
Ha! Who was he, Calla's Idea King Winnie? He'd anticipated this exact scenario when healing Shikondell.
He knew fooling the simple-minded Shikondell was easy, but deceiving her second personality was more challenging. Hence, he'd prepared for this.
"Tch, are you treating like an idiot? Did I ever say I had her complete mories?" Shikondell raised an eyebrow.
"So then, what are you even talking about?"
"What else? Don't you rember what happened earlier?"
Winnie scratched his head, looking truly confused. "Earlier? I just asked Fanya and the others to save you. They thought I was in the way and kicked out. Other than that, I didn't do anything."
"Dark Dell, are you still dreaming? Why are you talking nonsense?"
"Also, Dark Dell, I recall that after regular Dell woke up, she had so of your mories, right? Don't keep misleading her." Winnie pouted.
"Is that so? Then explain this, where were you all day? Why didn't you even co back for dinner?" Shikondell crossed her arms.
"Uh... does this have anything to do with the cherry pink-haired lady you ntioned?" Winnie asked strangely.
"Of course it does. So where were you today? Normally, you should have been waiting at ho for us this morning?" Shikondell raised an eyebrow.
"I got dragged into work!" Winnie replied exasperatedly. "Dark Dell, you know I'm a student council mber. Our household, uh, our dorm, depends on this inco. After that huge incident earlier, it was completely unexpected chaos. The student council at Carillian Academy is swamped right now, completely overwheld."
"So they called in to slave away. President Mirexia herself summoned . Ugh, what can I do? They're short on manpower now." Winnie expressed his helplessness, actually signaling to Dark Shikondell that he'd spent the day working at the student council, with Mirexia as a witness.
"Oh, really?" Shikondell tilted her head, eyeing Winnie sideways.
"Really. Truer than pearls." Winnie affird firmly.
"Well, that's awfully convenient." Shikondell shook her head. "That cherry pink-haired woman's way of speaking is oddly similar to yours, Winnie."
"I could coincidentally dream sothing like that, quite the coincidence indeed."
"So who exactly is this pink-haired person you're talking about?" Winnie still looked clueless. "Besides, Dark Dell, dreams are chaotic and lack logical sequence or ti order. Isn't it normal for people or things you've seen to appear in dreams in different forms?"
"Oh, that's right. You're saying that." For so reason, Shikondell's lips curled into a malicious smile. "Yes, people can't dream of things they've never seen, right, human? That's what you just said, wasn't it?"
"But the problem is, I've never seen that cherry pink-haired woman before my dreams."
"So what?" Seeing Shikondell lean in closer, Winnie instinctively shrank back again. "Dark Dell, I think you're asking the wrong person. I'm not a dream interpreter. I don't know much about your dream. How about I ask Fanya to check if she knows any dream interpreters specializing in dreams within the Church?"
"..." Shikondell stared at Winnie, silent for a long ti.
"?Dark Dell?" Winnie asked hesitantly. "A-Are you okay?"
"Ah, I see. So that's how it is. Looks like I misunderstood you, Winnie." Shikondell grinned, teasingly. "You still don't believe , do you? I've explained everything already. I…"
"Snap!" Before Winnie could finish, Shikondell suddenly lunged forward and knocked him flat onto the floor.
Winnie felt Shikondell's unique fragrance, like blooming roses, enveloping him, brushing past his nose. Then, those usually delicate almond-shaped eyes were right before him.
"Whoa, Dell, what are you doing?! Stop it! We're both guys, I'm not gay! My sexual orientation is perfectly normal!" Winnie panicked.
"Also, don't make such big movents! You just recovered from a serious illness. Your body hasn't fully healed yet!"
"Human, you're really delicious~" Ignoring Winnie's frantic shouts, Shikondell provocatively licked her lips. "Your actions and words tell you're full of secrets. But your eyes tell you an us no harm."
"Ah, well. Maybe there are so things she'd be better off not knowing too soon." With that, Shikondell stood up and gave Winnie a deep look. "This ti, I owe you, human. Without you, maybe she and I would've never woken up again."
"Don't move." Just as Winnie tried to get up, Shikondell called out.
Then, Shikondell lifted her foot, clad in a white short sock, and placed it gently on Winnie's chest.
Hmm, not heavy at all, she stepped slightly, as if afraid of hurting him, almost like playful teasing.
'Virtue 50.'
Current Virtue: 9894.
Wait, why was Dark Shikondell giving him Virtue points for stepping on him? Was she a sadist or sothing??
"Human, why are you staring at my foot so intently? Could it be that you actually like this?" Shikondell looked down at Winnie, grinning mischievously.
"Dark Dell! What random nonsense are you babbling about?? Without warning, you step on and then ask if I like it??" Winnie pursed his lips, showing an angry face.
"You humans, out of every three words you say, at least one is a lie. So mischievous. Do you really enjoy deceiving that little girl so much?" Shikondell removed her foot, crouched down, and grabbed Winnie's chin.
"How about I leave you with a mark, you bad guy?"
"W-What kind of mark? What are you even talking about? Dark Dell, don't do this! I'm straight! Guys shouldn't touch each other like this!" Winnie hurriedly protested.
"Oh? Is that so?" Shikondell tilted her head.
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