Raising Gu

“That should do it.”

Under the watchful gaze of a group of tanned girls in sports gear, Lilo used the bandages and ointment from a simple medical kit to treat a girl’s scraped knee.

“Woah~”

The girls let out a collective, heartfelt exclamation of admiration.

“The Vice President is so skilled with his hands.”

“It’s so lucky you were here; you were just in time.”

“Completely different from those useless, clumsy boys.”

“Tch!”

That last click of the tongue came from a group of disgruntled boys in the distance, who had been caught in the crossfire of the girls’ remarks.

“I can only provide basic first aid. When the infirmary teacher arrives, make sure to get proper treatment.”

Lilo packed up the medical kit and stood up, preparing to leave.

“Th-thank you.”

The girl, who had ended up a dusty mess after a fall due to improper training form, thanked him with a slight blush.

“Um, after school… could I treat the Vice President to some dessert…?”

However, before she could finish, Lilo vanished from the scene like a ghost, avoiding everyone and leaving the girls staring at each other in confusion.

“Ah, Vice President Lilo, leaving already?”

At the door of the boys’ locker room in the track and field club, Nair Naya leaned against the frame, watching Lilo bend over to return the medical kit to its place.

“…This is the boys’ locker room.”

“Hmm? What’s the difference~”

“I was forced by your group to do this in the first place. Since it’s handled, I’m leaving.”

Lilo’s voice betrayed a deep exhaustion.

Because Nair Naya was the Student Council’s Executive Committee Chair, responsible for handling student violations, President Livia had given Lilo several documents to deliver to her. As the Vice President with apparently nothing better to do, Lilo had become the designated courier.

In reality, Lilo—who could have refused—took the job because he needed a reason to get close to Nair Naya.

“Still, Vice President Lilo, you’re quite full of surprises,” Nair said with a mischievous smirk.

“You look pretty intimidating, but I didn’t expect you to be so skilled at treating wounds?”

“It’s nothing…”

Lilo slowly straightened his back, speaking as if describing a trivial matter.

‘I used to get hurt a lot, too.’

He then walked up to Nair and handed her Livia’s documents.

“Also, I have some things I want to ask you. Do you have time?”

“Well, that’s hard to say~”

Nair suddenly dropped her usual persona of being unable to refuse others. She stepped closer until she was face-to-face with Lilo, clasping her hands behind her back with a mysterious smile.

“After all, my training is very important. I rarely miss it unless my body is unwell, but~”

‘You should know what to do, right, Vice President?’

The truth hidden beneath that cute face—this was a secret shared only between Lilo and Nair in that basement filled with torture devices.

“…”

Without a shred of hesitation, in the next instant…

Lilo lunged forward, his arms clamping onto Nair’s shoulders like iron grips. Simultaneously, he drove his right knee upward, slamming it violently into Nair’s abdomen!

Sharp.

Decisive.

Ruthless.

If she were human, this blow would have been enough to make her black out from pain, or at the very least, vomit up everything she’d eaten that day. However…

“Cough… cough, haha.”

Nair merely leaned forward slightly, her coughs quickly turning into laughter!

She hung her head, reaching out to cup both sides of Lilo’s head.

“Not bad~”

“Anyone else would show at least a hint of emotion when hurting someone—fear, regret, pity…”

Nair snapped her head up, her eyes narrowed with a manic grin.

“But you’re completely different, Vice President.”

In Lilo’s lifeless black eyes, only Nair’s frenzied face was reflected.

‘As I thought…’

‘You are the most suitable per (t) son (oy) I’ve ever laid eyes on.’

‘But it’s still not enough~’

‘What I want is that rage hidden in the deepest part of your heart—the kind that could burn everything to ash.’

‘I want you to reveal your true nature.’

‘Only then will I be truly “satisfied”.’

‘But it’s okay…’

‘I will break you in slowly.’

“Oh my~ since my stomach is so badly injured, I guess I have no choice but to ask for leave~”

“So, Vice President, go wait for me behind the sports field.”

Lilo didn’t wait to process Nair’s abnormal behavior; he turned and left the locker room first.

After Lilo was gone…

“Heh, hehe.”

Nair crossed her arms, her body trembling uncontrollably with excitement. Her breathing grew heavy. The pain Lilo had inflicted seemed not to bother her at all; instead, her legs went weak, and she slumped to the floor.

“Choosing to come to school was definitely the right decision.”

“Playing with a guy like that is way more fun than those desperate thugs…”

Hehe~

Just then.

“Gotta work harder for the race the week after next.”

“My old man’s requirement is top five. Just thinking about it gives me a headache.”

“You’ve got it easy; my family wants at least a runner-up finish.”

Several male members of the track team, having finished their training, were heading back to the locker room.

!!!

Nair snapped her head toward the sound.

It was a third face—entirely different from her usual cute, air-headed persona or her pain-obsessed mania!

A flash of ruthless ferocity flickered in her constricted amber pupils.

It was the look of a killer who had walked through a mountain of corpses—a bloody gaze that shot out like a blade from her wide-open eyes!

‘Did they see?’

‘Did they hear?’

In those few seconds, countless scenarios of the immediate future flashed through Nair’s mind.

Until…

“Ah, Student Naya?”

The boys spotted Nair standing at the entrance of the locker room.

“…”

The eyes hidden in the shadow of Nair’s bangs switched instantly.

“Ah! Seniors, finished with training already? Good work, everyone~”

“Oh, uh, yeah. It was pretty exhausting.”

“I heard you’re all entering the qualifiers soon. Do your best!”

“Haha, of course. We can’t let ourselves fall behind you, Nair. A mere qualifier will be a breeze.”

“You seniors really are our role models~”

The harmonious atmosphere of the track club was restored. The chill they had briefly felt dissipated like mist in the face of this ordinary conversation.

“Qi Huang?”

Behind the track and field’s exclusive sports field was a large greenbelt—the perfect place for slacking off.

Nair took a sip of cold tea from a vending machine and looked curiously at Lilo, who was sitting on a bench.

“Why are you asking about that, Vice President?”

“I want to work at Qi Huang in the future,” Lilo lied blatantly.

Regardless of his intent, he would eventually have to deal with “Qi Huang.” As someone from the lower class, his understanding of such a titan from online encyclopedias was far from enough. Perhaps as a fellow Student Council member, Nair knew something.

“Well, I don’t want to discourage you, but I don’t think you’re really cut out for that.”

“I don’t mind dirty or exhausting work.”

“It’s not that. The fact that Mutina hates you so much means you’re already out of the running. Ah, but if you want, you could come over to my side…”

“I only want to enter Qi Huang.”

Lilo’s stubborn streak was making things difficult.

“Hmm. My family doesn’t have much to do with businessmen; if it were politics, it would be easier. But as for Qi Huang… because ‘That’ is about to start, my dad told me to keep an eye on Mutina lately.”

“’That’?”

Lilo felt he might finally be getting somewhere.

“Oh, you don’t know? It’s that~” Nair gestured with her fingers.

“The current head of Qi Huang is a guy named Qi Huang Luanchuan. He’s married to a lot of wives. Although polygamy is common in the Empire, that guy has married many and fathered even more.”

But…

To whom should the next inheritance of Qi Huang be given?

And so, “That” appeared.

“Supposedly it’s an ancestral tradition. Every generation of the Qi Huang head must be the most outstanding. To ensure the family business isn’t ruined by an idiot, every head fathers a massive number of sons, and then…”

Nair’s tone turned eerie at this point.

‘They are made to kill one another… before they reach adulthood.’