Taking the Saint’s First Kiss

“Is it too late for me to run away now?”

The two had already been led by staff to the backstage preparation area.

Before them lay a set of pink couple’s athletic wear, printed with chibi-style magical girl character portraits.

“Of course not. How can you back out at the last moment?”

Li Yu’an blocked the changing room door with her body, making sure Yang Yuan had no chance to escape.

At the same time, she quickly scrolled through her phone, finally uncovering the truth.

When they had registered online, they had only noticed the bolded text saying “Team of Two,” completely overlooking the tiny footnote beneath it.

“To create a warm atmosphere, this event is open only to couples or married partners.”

“Tch… what were the organizers thinking? How are we anime fans supposed to find boyfriends?”

Li Yu’an muttered under her breath, handing one set of the couple’s outfit to Yang Yuan.

“Since we’re already here, we might as well make the best of it.”

“We’ll have to pretend to be a couple for now.”

Yang Yuan took the clothes. Under her firm pressure, he reluctantly agreed.

Without much thought, he turned his back and swiftly began removing his shirt to change.

“You—how can you just take your clothes off like that!”

“How else am I supposed to change if I don’t take them off?”

Only after saying that did Yang Yuan suddenly remember—men in this world were supposed to be far more reserved.

Meanwhile, Li Yu’an felt as if she’d been thrown into a steamer.

Heat surged to her head. Every pore on her body opened up, sweat beading and seeping out uncontrollably, dampening her clothes.

“At least warn me first, so I can turn around!”

Li Yu’an tried to look away, but found her eyes completely glued to Yang Yuan’s upper body.

‘Does this Yang Yuan really have zero sense of caution around women?’

She muttered inwardly, completely unaware that Yang Yuan had already finished changing.

“Sorry, sorry. I’ll be more careful next time.”

“I’ll wait for you outside.”

After dressing, Yang Yuan hastily fled the awkward scene.

Only after hearing the changing room door close did Li Yu’an finally exhale.

Leaning against the cool wall, she frantically wiped sweat from her body with tissues.

In her mind, the image replayed over and over—the first time in her life as a lifelong single woman that she had seen a grown man’s bare torso so clearly.

‘What’s wrong with me… what am I even thinking?’

Li Yu’an shook her head hard, trying to shake off the chaotic thoughts.

‘Why do I feel like some kind of pervert…’

She took several deep breaths, fixed her appearance, changed into the outfit, and finally stepped out.

Together, they walked toward the event area, ready to begin.

The first challenge was “Test of Chemistry.”

A series of obscure trivia questions about Stellar Magic Girl appeared on the big screen. Both partners had to write their answers on individual boards at the same time—only matching answers counted as a point.

The host announced loudly, “First question: In chapter 37 of the manga, what is the full incantation used when the heroine first unleashes the true name of her magic wand?”

Yang Yuan stared blankly. As a casual fan, he didn’t even know what the wand looked like, let alone its incantation.

Beside him, Li Yu’an wore a confident, triumphant smile. She picked up her pen and quickly wrote a long string of words on her board.

Yang Yuan, meanwhile, discreetly glanced at her board and copied every character without hesitation.

Li Yu’an could feel Yang Yuan’s gaze shifting toward her.

Unaware that he was blatantly cheating, she assumed he was staring at her.

Under his gaze, her handwriting grew slightly shaky.

‘Why is Yang Yuan looking at me so much? Is it because I’m sweating too much?’

Thanks to this misunderstanding-fueled cheating, they barely passed the first round.

But the second round would not be so simple.

“Second challenge: Recreate the Classic Scene!”

“All couples, please use the props provided to reenact the iconic scene from episode 12, where the heroine and hero share a snack under the cherry blossoms. The most accurate recreation wins!”

When the staff handed over a chocolate stick, Li Yu’an froze completely.

The scene required both partners to bite from opposite ends of the same stick, eating until their lips were nearly touching.

“This is basically an indirect kiss!”

As Li Yu’an hesitated, Yang Yuan suddenly noticed something off about the couple nearby.

The girl only pretended to take a small bite, yet the long chocolate stick suddenly shortened dramatically.

“They haven’t even gotten close, and the chocolate’s already gone.”

Yang Yuan’s [Insight] ability activated instantly.

[Ability Name: Accelerated Consumption]

[Ability User: Lu Renjia]

[Description: Accelerates the physical consumption process of a specified food.]

[Potential Risk: High risk of overeating to the point of death.]

[Evolution Status: A random bystander isn’t worth evolving.]

‘So they’re cheating!’ Yang Yuan thought bitterly.

Li Yu’an also noticed other teams finishing one by one. Her anxiety overpowered her embarrassment.

For victory. For the mysterious grand prize.

Li Yu’an steeled herself. She lifted half of her mask, bit the end of the chocolate stick, and signaled Yang Yuan with her eyes to hurry up.

The heated atmosphere of the competition ignited Yang Yuan’s competitive spirit.

“I hate cheaters more than anything!”

Their faces drew closer—ten centimeters, five, three.

Just as Li Yu’an’s rational mind prepared to stop at the last second, Yang Yuan didn’t slow down.

“There’s no way we can win with that length.”

In a flash, Yang Yuan wrapped an arm around Li Yu’an’s waist, pulled her in, and closed the gap with his lips.

And just like that, he stole Li Yu’an’s first kiss.

Li Yu’an’s mind went completely blank. The sensation of Yang Yuan’s lips made her entire body go weak.

Driven by instinct, she subconsciously extended her tongue, clumsily intertwining it with his.

Of course, Yang Yuan wasn’t thinking about the kiss at all—his mind was focused solely on winning.

He quickly gulped down the last piece of the biscuit along with it.

“Congratulations to these two couples for tying in first place!”

****

Mid-event break.

Li Yu’an, her first kiss stolen, sat lifelessly on a chair in the rest area.

She kept touching her lips with her fingers, reliving the sensation over and over in her mind.

‘This is what… a kiss feels like.’

A scene she had only ever seen in anime and manga—she never imagined she’d experience it herself in real life.

Yang Yuan returned with a bottle of water and, seeing Li Yu’an in such a dazed state, finally realized what had just happened.

He had acted too impulsively. He had actually forced a kiss on her.

Carefully, he handed her the water and asked tentatively.

“Um… was that… your first kiss?”

Li Yu’an nodded blankly. Then, almost instinctively, she asked back.

“Wasn’t it yours too?”

It was just a reflexive question, but to Yang Yuan, it carried a completely different weight.

His mind raced. He had just acted so aggressively—what if he said no? Wouldn’t that make him look like a womanizing creep who took advantage of girls?

Especially since she was the Saintess. If she felt disrespected, the consequences could be disastrous.

To make his actions seem like a moment of passion rather than intentional disrespect, Yang Yuan decided to lie.

“O-of course it was my first kiss too!” he replied, voice slightly shaky.

In truth, his first kiss had long been given to Su Xiaoyou on a quiet night long ago.

When Li Yu’an heard his answer, she felt a small, inexplicable spark of joy. Quietly, so only she could hear, she whispered.

“That’s good…”