I, the spiritual mentor of beautiful girls from all over the world

She looked at the calm silver-haired girl, then at her own petrified, foolish daughter, and a clear thought came to mind.

Oh no, how am I supposed to beat this? We're not even in the same league.

Yui Yuigahama seemed to have all her bones removed in an instant, collapsing limply into the chair.

She lowered her head and mechanically poked at the rice in her bowl with her chopsticks. Each grain of rice felt like grit, difficult to swallow.

Crushing, this is utter crushing.

The courage to risk everything is like child's play in front of the other person—laughable and pathetic.

Lynn, at the center of the storm, calmly accepted the service from the dome.

He naturally said "thank you" to Sora, then picked up a tissue, wiped his hands, and smiled at Mrs. Yuihama, who was barely able to keep her expression up.

"Madam, your cooking is absolutely amazing! This is definitely the most delicious home-cooked meal I've ever had."

A perfect compliment, like an invisible hand, subtly stirred up the frozen air, forcefully ending this silent war.

Dinner ended in this strange yet harmonious atmosphere.

Lynn took Qiong and said goodbye.

At the entrance, Mrs. Yui looked at Lynn, her gentle eyes filled with complex emotions.

There was reluctance, appreciation, and an even more intense emotion that she herself dared not delve into.

……

On my way home, the night breeze was slightly cool.

Qiong, like a koala that had finally won, clung to Lynn's arm, her small face pressed tightly against his shoulder, absorbing the warmth that made her feel safe and secure.

However, in Lynn's [Emotional Perception], the emotional spectrum of the little beast beside him was more chaotic than ever before.

That icy blue possessiveness, declaring sovereignty, remains strong, but at its core, a large part represents a dark gray undercurrent of "guilt" and "fear".

She did win; she protected her world in the most direct way.

But for some reason, when she recalled Yuihama's silly expression at the dinner table—almost on the verge of tears, yet instantly healed by the piece of stew her older brother had placed on her plate—she felt a strange unease.

The sense of satisfaction from the victory didn't seem as fulfilling as I had imagined.

Instead, there was a sense of emptiness and fear that even she herself found unfamiliar.

She hurt Yui.

Her only friend in her entire life.

This realization caused her to unconsciously tighten her grip on Lynn's sleeve.

(Onii-chan is mine... he's my everything... I absolutely can't let him be taken away...)

This thought screech in her mind like an alarm, the only creed she relied on to survive.

(But...Yui...she cried...she cried so hard...because of me...)

That girl, who was always like a little sun, clumsily yet sincerely trying to get close to her, had a face wet with tears that, like a needle, gently yet continuously pierced her heart.

(Onii-chan... he saw everything, right?)

(Seeing how awful and heartless I was in bullying Yui...)

A fear sharper than the fear of losing a friend instantly gripped her heart.

(Will he... think I'm a really bad, really annoying person?)

(Like Yui... a warm girl who's always smiling... wouldn't Onii-chan... prefer someone like that?)

This thought, like an icicle, pierced her weakest defenses.

What she feared was losing a friend, but what she found even more unbearable was that losing this friend would lead to being rejected by her entire world—by her older brother.

If Onii-chan, like those relatives, thinks she's a troublesome, unreasonable child... and then throws her away like an old piece of luggage...

Just imagining that scene sent a chill down her spine, enough to freeze her soul.

(No... absolutely not!)

(Is there...is there any other way?)

For the first time, a crazy idea, one that even frightened her, quietly emerged from the barren field of her heart, filled with fear and possessiveness.

(What if... I shared a little bit with her?)

(Just a little bit...like lending her my bunny doll to hug for a moment...)

(Will she... never cry again?)

(Wouldn't you... also think of taking away my whole world?)

(So ​​Onii-chan... won't think I'm a selfish bad kid anymore?)

The thought was so humble, yet so dangerous, that it made her tremble slightly with this treacherous idea.

But the pain of not wanting to lose friends and fearing the loss of the whole world clung to this thought like vines, quietly taking root in the deepest part of his heart.

...

Meanwhile, at the Yuihama family.

After seeing Lynn off, only the mother and daughter remained in the living room.

Mrs. Yuihama looked at her daughter's dejected and wilted appearance and sighed helplessly in her heart.

She sat down next to her daughter, gently put her arm around her shoulder, and spoke in a gentle tone that suggested she had been through it all.

"Yui, Mom can tell that you really like Teacher Lynn."

These words were like a key, instantly unlocking the floodgates of Yui Yuigahama's emotions.

She could no longer hold back and buried her head in her mother's warm embrace. The grievances she had suppressed all day finally turned into sobs.

"But...but I'm nowhere near as good as Xiaoqiong...she...she and the teacher are more like family..."

Mrs. Yui tightened her arms, burying her daughter's face deeper into her embrace, her voice gentle yet carrying an undeniable strength.

"Silly child, when it comes to liking someone, it's never about who's better, but about who can make him... unable to live without them."

These words, full of wisdom from someone who's been there, made Yui's crying pause slightly.

She raised her tear-filled face, looked blankly at her mother, and repeated the sentence softly, as if she were chewing on a completely unfamiliar concept.

"To make him... unable to leave?"

The thought lingered in her mind, but she couldn't find any reality to attach herself to.

What should she do? What does she have that can make that godlike teacher inseparable from her?

In terms of talent, she is no match for Yukinoshita.

In terms of family background, she was just an ordinary person;

In terms of that innate "special quality" that teachers cherish so much, she was utterly crushed by Xiao Qiong.

This "tactical guidance" from her mother not only failed to bring her hope, but instead served as a mirror, reflecting her "utter destitution" even more clearly.

A profound sense of powerlessness overwhelmed her, causing her tears, which she had just stopped, to flow again.

"But I can't do it, Mom!" She shook her head in despair, her voice filled with heart-wrenching sobs.

"Mr. Lynn... he's so amazing, he has everything! I have absolutely nothing that would make him need me, that would make him unable to live without me... Mom, was I... particularly embarrassing today? Like a clown..."

Seeing her daughter's complete breakdown, Mrs. Yuihama's heart clenched.

She gently stroked her daughter's beautiful orange-pink hair, letting her vent her emotions.

After crying for a long time, Yui Yuigahama gradually stopped sobbing.

It was as if she had cried out all her strength, and all her resentment.

She lifted her head from her mother's arms, her tear-streaked face unusually calm, her red eyes flashing with a chilling light that was a mixture of despair and stubbornness.

She looked at her mother and, in a trembling yet unusually earnest voice, uttered a sentence that shook Mrs. Yuihama's soul.

“Mom…I know…Since I have nothing, I can’t win from the start.”

"But...I don't want to give up..."

"If...if Xiaoqiong really refuses to let go..."

Yui Yuigahama took a deep breath, as if using all her strength, and spoke the only possibility that had arisen in her heart from despair.

"I only need a little bit... really, just to be near him, to have a small spot where I can see him... that's enough..."

This humble declaration, which was almost a declaration of willingness to be a mistress, struck a chord with Mrs. Yuihama.

Her hand, which was stroking her daughter's hair, froze in mid-air.

So, that man was so outstanding that his daughter was willing to be so humble?

Looking at her daughter's earnest face, which pained her deeply, she felt a surge of emotions.

But soon, that shock was replaced by a more complex, adult-like sharpness.

She cupped her daughter's face in her hands, forcing her to look at her; those usually gentle eyes were now incredibly serious.

"Yui, Mom is asking you, are you really sure about this?"

After receiving her daughter's tearful yet resolute nod, Mrs. Yuihama took a deep breath and spoke in an unprecedented tone of both heartache and pride:

"Okay. Since you've made up your mind, then listen to what your mother has to say. First, lift your head, Yui."

She gently wiped away the tear stains on her daughter's cheek with her thumb.

"To want to get close to someone you like at all costs, and to bravely fight for a place in their life, is never called being humble. It's called... enlightenment."

These gentle yet powerful words, like a warm current, instantly flowed into Yui Yuigahama's cold and desperate heart.

Mrs. Yuihama, seeing the glimmer of light rekindle in her daughter's eyes, then carefully and deliberately steered the conversation to a deeper level:

"So, your thinking isn't about backing down, it's a tactic."

"Also, since you've made up your mind, you need to know..." Her tone became more serious than ever before.

"A man like Professor Lynn is like the only bonfire in the dark night."

"...It will attract more than just Xiao Qiong, this little bird that's frozen...there will be many, many hungry foxes who know better than you how to keep warm."

Her words seemed to be encouraging her daughter, but the inexplicable, wistful feeling in her tone, because of her daughter's earlier remarks, became even more complex and profound.

For the first time, she realized that her daughter's "relationship" might be far more turbulent than she had imagined.

And where does she stand in this storm?

……

Return to the apartment.

Lynn ruffled Qiong's hair: "Go take a shower, the water's already prepared for you."

Lynn breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the sofa, feeling even more exhausted than if she had been teaching for three days straight.

Dealing with girls, especially those caught in an emotional whirlwind, is truly the most troublesome thing in the world.

He closed his eyes, but his mind was racing.

The scales of Qiong have already tipped, and Yui's side has also entered a dead end.

To break the deadlock, simple isolation and appeasement are no longer effective; new "variables" must be introduced, or... we should simply fill both sides of the scale to allow it to regain balance in a higher-dimensional way.

He pondered with a headache whether he should find an opportunity to involve Yukino Yukinoshita, or simply use other girls as a shield.

What's even more critical is that Qiong's identity as the "world anchor" makes him dare not handle things in the conventional way.

This is no longer a simple question of "whether or not to cry"; it concerns whether the world will collapse "physically".

This question is way beyond the scope of the curriculum...

Lynn scratched his head in frustration, feeling his brain cells dying at an unprecedented rate.

...

at this time.

"Click."

A very faint sound, like the door lock popping open, came from the direction of the bathroom.