“You really don’t remember anything from just now?”
Su Xinran had lowered her guard for the most part, her tightly wound nerves finally relaxed as she sat on the edge of the bed and asked.
“No… Once the other me takes over, I can’t remember what happens. My memories go blank. Only she knows what happened just now—but she can still access the experiences of the main personality.”
“In fact, I had just gotten you a meal from the cafeteria this afternoon. On the way back, I picked up your blood test report and was about to read it when she came out. I truly have no recollection of anything after that.”
“Eh? You didn’t see the blood test report?”
Su Xinran’s heart skipped a beat.
No wonder she had still been able to summon the mechanical exoskeleton earlier—it turns out the one who knew about it was only Makima’s alternate personality.
The anxiety that had been hanging overhead finally dissipated.
Su Xinran deactivated the mechanical exoskeleton and collapsed weakly onto the bed.
“Did I… do something really awful to you just now?”
Makima asked cautiously.
“No, no, it wasn’t that bad, just… sigh, let’s not bring up the past. After all, it wasn’t really your intent.”
Su Xinran replied generously.
“Even if you’re not mad… I still want to apologize!”
Makima stood up and gave a solemn, formal bow.
“No, no, that’s not necessary…”
Su Xinran hurriedly sat up from the bed, helping Makima back up.
She also grabbed a few pieces of gauze to help wipe the blood from Makima’s face.
The wound on Makima’s forehead had already healed.
Watching Su Xinran gently wipe the blood from her face, Makima felt a wave of guilt.
An angel… she’s truly an angel!
That bastard… actually seized control of the body outright.
They had agreed earlier that any switching would be discussed in advance!
What the hell happened today?
Even though Su Xinran didn’t want to talk about it, Makima knew her other self all too well—there’s no way it was anything good.
Doing that kind of thing to such a kind and beautiful classmate was absolutely unforgivable!
“Oh right, where’s my blood test report?”
Makima stood up and patted the pockets of her white lab coat.
“If you can’t find it, just forget it. I feel totally fine now.”
Su Xinran waved her hand, hoping the report had vanished the same way childhood erasers always did—straight into the Earth God’s pocket, never to be seen again.
“Tch… ah, forget it. You’re already better anyway. I took a sample of your saliva for testing—it’s all good. The blood test was just extra precaution. School’s almost over now. You must be hungry, right? Fighting off a virus takes a lot of energy. Come on, eat something.”
As she spoke, the school bell rang, and the quiet campus was filled with the bustle of students finishing for the day.
“Mm… I’ll take it to go. If there’s nothing else, I’ll get going?”
“Wait!”
“Hmm?”
Just as Su Xinran was about to open the door and leave, Makima suddenly stood up, clutching her temple with a pained expression.
“I know this is really rude, but… my other self wants to talk to you… and she’s being really persistent… I can’t stop her…”
“Please… Su Xinran… I promise I won’t completely lose consciousness. I’ll be monitoring her from the inside. If she crosses any lines, I’ll take control immediately!”
“No, I refuse!!”
The moment Su Xinran heard that that person wanted to talk to her, goosebumps erupted all over her body.
Her hair practically stood on end.
She bolted for the door, mind full of one thought:
Get the hell out of here!
Don’t see that psycho ever again!!
BANG!
The infirmary door suddenly slammed shut with a strange gust of wind.
Su Xinran scrambled to twist the handle—but no matter what she did, it wouldn’t budge!
“Where are you trying to run off to… little kitten?”
Makima looked up, eyes glinting with wicked charm as she stared at Su Xinran.
“Eek!!”
Su Xinran completely freaked out, shrinking into the corner of the room, trembling.
“Su Xinran, what are you doing?! Hurry up and use your invincible mechanical exoskeleton to smack that crazy woman!”
Raphael’s voice shouted anxiously in her mind.
What a joke—of course Su Xinran wanted to fight back!
But judging from that brief earlier scuffle, it was clear that Makima-sensei’s combat strength wasn’t something she could just casually overpower.
If they really went at it, the whole infirmary might get torn apart—and with school just letting out, their battle would be exposed in seconds!
Then it wouldn’t just be one person who knew Su Xinran was human!
It definitely wasn’t because she was scared to the point of losing the will to fight—no way!
That would be a terrible excuse!
“W-What… what do you want…?”
“Heh, relax. I just had a little epiphany. Locking you up in a dungeon would be like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. After all, you’re a rare and precious species—a human. If I accidentally play you to death, that would be such a waste.”
Makima crossed her legs elegantly.
A flash of light shimmered from her belt pouch as she pulled out a piece of white paper and waved it in front of Su Xinran.
It was Su Xinran’s blood test report!
“Give that here!”
“Nonono~ What a naughty little kitten. And to think, I even hid this for you while my control was being forcibly taken away. Do you know how my main personality would react if she saw this? Heh heh.”
Makima wagged her finger with a smirk.
With a push of her feet, her rolling office chair scooted backward, causing Su Xinran to lunge and miss.
“What are you really after…?”
Su Xinran stood up, staring at Makima.
If the woman really wanted to control her, she would’ve already made a move by now.
“Let’s make a deal.”
Makima flicked her wrist, and the blood test report flew through the air like a playing card toward Su Xinran.
“What kind of deal?”
Su Xinran caught the report midair.
“I’ll keep your secret safe.”
“And the price?”
Su Xinran knew all too well—there’s no such thing as a free lunch.
“Heh heh… clever little kitten, aren’t you?”
Makima smiled slyly.
“The price is that you’ll supply me with the alchemical ingredients I need—fingernails, sweat, tears, hair, and holy water.
Don’t worry.
The basic agreement between me and her is that I can’t harm anyone she doesn’t want harmed.
If humans hadn’t gone extinct and most alchemical ingredients hadn’t disappeared with them, I wouldn’t even be interested in you.”
“Wait—‘holy water’? I can accept everything else, but that… that stuff… don’t tell me it’s…”
“Exactly what you’re thinking.”
“W-Why do you even need that…?”
“Virgin’s holy water is the best catalyst for restorative potions. Whether you include it or not makes a massive difference in effectiveness—and price. We’re not talking small change here.”
“My… my holy water… and you want to sell it?! I refuse! I’ll agree to everything else, but not that!”
“Haah… Ah, I get it now. You’re just embarrassed to collect it yourself, aren’t you? Here.”
Makima pulled a pair of white underwear from her pocket.
At first glance, it looked normal—until a few slimy tentacles dangled from the inside.
Upon closer inspection, the interior looked disturbingly like living, pulsating flesh.
“Use this. It’s one of my alchemical bio-creations. I call it: Group Leader’s Happy Pants.
Just wear it and go about your business—it’ll collect everything for you.
Once it’s full, it’ll crawl back to me on its own and deliver the goods.
No leaks.
You can think of it like wearing a fancy diaper.
Convenient, right?”
“Convenient your ass!! I refuse!!!”
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.