Chapter 20 : The Question

The atmosphere was tense.

Dorothy had stayed over at Sheffil’s place many times before for all sorts of reasons—sometimes without even telling Jianle and making her worry for half the night.

But for some reason, this time felt different.

The pressure Jianle exuded was far greater than anything Dorothy had experienced before.

“What do you mean, ‘what about me’? You and Sheffil are both my good friends, aren’t you? And you’re Sheffil’s friend too, right?”

Dorothy smiled gently, her lips curling into a soft arc as she reached out and took the girl’s hand.

She didn’t know what had happened between Jianle and Sheffil to make Jianle so anxious, but as someone who dreamed of creating a home for every girl in the world, Dorothy knew that what mattered now was reassuring the one in front of her.

Feeling the warmth in the girl’s hand, Jianle opened her mouth, trying to speak.

But when her gaze met Dorothy’s lake-clear eyes, she instead reached out and tousled Dorothy’s fluffy white hair with a wry smile.

“You might be like that… but Sheffil’s a different story.”

“Aww, so you’re worried about me? Don’t worry, don’t worry! Sheffil just looks like a villain. I know him well—he definitely sees you as a friend too.”

“I didn’t say anything yet,” Jianle muttered with a helpless chuckle, giving Dorothy a light knock on the forehead.

Then her gaze shifted to the guy lying motionless on the bed.

“I just don’t know whether Sheffil considers you and me friends.”

Letting go of Dorothy’s head, Jianle stared at the sleeping Sheffil and whispered in a voice too low for Dorothy to hear.

If Sheffil was only treating the two of them as amusement, she wouldn’t hesitate to stab him for Dorothy’s sake—to make him regret it and teach him properly what love and friendship really meant.

Leaning against Jianle, Dorothy suddenly felt a chill prickle across her skin for no reason.

Maybe… Is it just her imagination?

Anyway, for now, she just wanted to enjoy the soft, fragrant warmth of another girl’s embrace.

With that thought, she buried her head into Jianle’s chest.

By the time Sheffil woke up naturally from his sleep, the sun was already high in the sky.

He sat up in bed, still groggy.

As he turned his head, he saw Dorothy and Jianle chatting by his bedside.

“Oh, morning, you two.”

Sheffil blinked at them, rubbing his aching head.

He must have overslept—he was even hallucinating that Jianle and Dorothy were sitting in his room chatting.

“Ah, Ashie, you’re awake!”

“Sleep well, Sheffil?”

Seeing him finally open his eyes, Dorothy broke off her conversation to greet him warmly, while Jianle merely turned her face slightly, still sniping with her usual sarcasm.

“Yeah, but I think I might still be dreaming.”

Sheffil flopped back onto the pillow, rolling onto his side and pulling the small blanket over himself.

“Dorothy being here I can understand… but why is Jianle in my room?”

“This is not a dream! Get up already!”

Dorothy cried out, jumping onto the bed and yanking the blanket away before he could curl up again.

Lying sideways, Sheffil squinted at her through sleepy eyes for a long moment, making Dorothy visibly uncomfortable, before finally speaking.

“Dorothy, don’t you think there’s something very… cliché rom-com about standing on your childhood friend’s bed and pulling off his blanket?”

“Now that you mention it, yeah…”

Dorothy let go of the blanket and rested her chin on her hand, deep in thought.

“And usually, what comes next is that you’d see my underwear—” As she spoke, she reached down and lifted the hem of her skirt.

Her smooth, pale thighs slowly emerged under the soft light, framed perfectly by the dark over-the-knee socks.

Smack!

“You two really don’t hold back, huh.”

Jianle landed a sharp slap on Dorothy’s rear, interrupting the “bonus content.”

Dorothy gave her a teary, pitiful look, but Jianle only rolled her eyes in response.

Even though she knew Dorothy would never take it too far, watching these two troublemakers act out these ridiculous antics made it impossible not to intervene.

“Well, seeing Jianle like that confirms it—this isn’t a dream.”

Satisfied with the morning’s chaos, Sheffil finally sat up and began unbuttoning his pajama top.

He turned to the two girls sitting at his bedside.

Jianle and Dorothy were staring at him dead-on, their gazes full of confusion as if wondering what he was doing looking back at them.

“Excuse me, ladies. I am, biologically speaking, a male about to change clothes. Mind giving me a little privacy?”

“What’s there to be shy about with your body?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. We’re not embarrassed at all.”

“Well, I’m embarrassed! Get out!”

Completely exasperated by their nonchalance, Sheffil shoved the two of them away.

Just because he was a guy didn’t mean it wasn’t a big deal to be seen like that!

“Come on, we’re all so close and you’re still so shy,” Dorothy pouted as she let Jianle pull her away by the hand.

On their way out, she turned and stuck out her tongue at him with a peace sign.

Jianle, surprisingly, didn’t say much.

Though her words were still sharp earlier, she seemed calmer now—as if the tension had eased.

Maybe Dorothy said something to her while he was asleep.

“Yeah, yeah. And shut the door on your way out.”

Sheffil shot her a glare as he grabbed his coat.

Whatever momentary gratitude he’d felt toward Dorothy vanished instantly.

If he actually said thank you, she’d probably make him call her Dad for a day.

After changing, Sheffil stepped into the living room. The two girls were sitting on the couch watching the latest broadcast on the obsidian screen.

Dorothy was excitedly chatting with Jianle about the show.

“What’re we watching?” he asked as he sat down beside Dorothy.

He reached into the drawer of the coffee table, pulled out a milk brick, and began nibbling on it while shifting his gaze to the screen.

It was showing the qualifiers for the Ten Outstanding Youth Tournament.

This prestigious competition, held once every three years, selected ten of the strongest individuals from all of Jadecrest Academy.

Not only were they powerful, but each was also a top talent in their respective fields, destined to become future leaders.

“And if you win, you get a hundred thousand rupees in scholarship money! A hundred thousand!”

Dorothy, of course, had her priorities elsewhere.

“Is that so? That is quite a bit,” Jianle responded with little interest, her eyes fixed on the fierce battle playing out on screen.

The qualifiers lasted ten full days and were broadcast across the entire academy via obsidian screens.

The screens and communications operated through a system that transmitted specific obsidian waves to corresponding receivers, generating the visuals through complex magitech programming.

“By the way, Jianle, about the other day… I’m sorry. I didn’t know you hated that kind of stuff.”

Taking the opportunity, Sheffil didn’t hesitate to get on his metaphorical knees and apologize.

Though he was still curious about why Jianle had shown up at his place so early, that could wait.

“It’s fine. I’m not mad.”

But his apology barely landed.

Jianle responded coolly and then reached into her pocket, pulling out an envelope and placing it on the table.

“Almost forgot. I found this at your doorstep this morning and brought it in. There’s no name on it.”

“Is that so? Let me take a look.”

Sheffil reached for the unmarked envelope and began tearing it open.

“What’s that? Let me see too!”

Dorothy leaned in behind him, resting her chin on his left shoulder.

“You’re heavy…”

Just as he was about to brush her off, he felt another weight on his right shoulder.

He turned to find Jianle staring at him with a slightly annoyed expression.

“What?”

“Nothing, nothing…”

Mimicking Dorothy’s tone, Sheffil ducked his head and obediently opened the envelope.

Inside was a single photograph, with a note stuck to the back.

The moment he saw the image, his expression darkened.

“Whoa, is that…”

“What is it? Sheffil?”

In the photo was a girl with short black hair and a streak of white highlight—basically a female version of Sheffil.

Both girls involuntarily gasped.

Sheffil ignored Jianle’s question and ripped the note off the back of the photo.

There was only one line written on it—more of a question, really.

“If something looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, and walks like a duck… what is it?”