Hajin’s eyes slowly opened to a canopy of dark leaves and a sliver of night sky peeking through the branches. He blinked a few times, his mind still heavy from the deep sleep, and then he felt it.

Something soft and warm was lightly nibbling on his ear.

He flinched, his head snapping to the side as his hand flew up to check what was touching him. Loccy was leaning over his shoulder, her ears twitching as she pulled back with a slightly guilty expression.

"What the hell?" he muttered, sitting up slowly while rubbing his ear.

She shifted back on her heels, her movements completely steady now. There was no trace of the clumsy wobbling from earlier, her legs planted firmly on the ground as she adjusted the blanket draped over her shoulders. She had clearly gotten the hang of her new body in the short time he was out.

Juna was sitting a few feet away, sharpening a small knife with a steady rhythm. She looked up as he sat up, her ears swiveling toward him.

"Just how long was I out?" he asked, rubbing the last of the sleep from his eyes.

"Ten hours," she answered, setting the knife down and brushing her hands against her thighs. "Jeez, Master, how can you sleep that long?"

He stared at her, blinking once after hearing the time. In the ring world, it had felt like maybe a few minutes at most.

He hadn’t even noticed the time passing while he was talking to Vella. ’Just how fast does time move in there compared to out here?’ he thought, making a mental note to figure that out later.

He shifted his attention back to Loccy, who was currently testing her balance by shifting her weight from one foot to the other without any trouble. "Looks like she’s gotten used to her body already."

"Yeah," Juna said, nodding slightly. "Turns out they might just adjust on their own with time. I barely did anything. She just figured it out on her own."

She paused, her ears twitching as she glanced at the bunny girl with a slightly amused expression. "Master, you’re going to be surprised. She’s stupid strong physically."

"Is that so?" he said, getting to his feet and brushing the dirt off his clothes before turning toward Loccy.

He didn’t give any warning.

In one smooth motion, he pivoted on his heel and sent a spin kick flying toward her head, fast enough that a normal person would have at least flinched.

Loccy’s hand shot up and caught his shin an inch from her face, her fingers locking around his leg like a vice and stopping the kick cold. She didn’t even budge, her feet planted firmly on the ground as she held his leg in the air. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Master, what are you doing?" she asked, tilting her head with genuine confusion.

He hung there for a second, his brain catching up to what just happened. ’I didn’t put any mana into that, but even my base kick should have at least made her react. Instead she caught it with one hand and without even trying, interesting.’

He pulled his leg back and she let go without resistance, letting him drop back to the ground.

"Nothing," he said, keeping his voice flat while his mind raced. ’This is crazy. If her base physical stats are already this high, what is she going to be like with actual training?’

He turned toward Juna and let out a breath. "We should head back. Tomorrow is a big day."

Before he could take a step, Loccy was already in front of him, her face inches from his as her ears shot straight up. "What tomorrow? What is happening tomorrow?"

He pulled back slightly, caught off-guard by how fast she had moved, before reaching out and placing his hand on her head, feeling her ears twitch against his palm. "You will just have to wait and see," he said, patting her once before stepping past her.

The next morning, Hajin woke up with a groan, stretching his arms above his head while his joints popped in protest.

Then he felt something strange.

He froze, his eyes slowly drifting down to the lump under his blanket. Something was pressed against his side, small and soft, with a faint rise and fall that meant it was breathing.

’What the hell,’ he thought, his hand moving slowly as he pulled the corner of the blanket back.

Cyan hair spilled across his pillow, and Vella’s face came into view, her eyes closed and her lips slightly parted as she slept peacefully against his arm, completely naked.

He shot out of bed so fast he nearly tripped over his own feet, landing on the floor with a loud thud while his brain tried to process what he had just seen.

The noise stirred Vella, her eyes fluttering open as she let out a soft yawn before propping herself up on one elbow, the blanket slipping down to reveal her bare shoulder.

"Good morning, Master," she said, her voice still thick with sleep. "Did you sleep well?"

"What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice climbing higher than he meant it to. "And why are you naked?"

She tilted her head, a slow, teasing smile spreading across her lips. "Do you like what you see?"

He opened his mouth to respond, but before any words could come out, the door burst open.

Juna stood in the doorway, her eyes sharp and her claws already out as she scanned the room. "Master, is everything ok? I heard a loud noise and—"

She froze.

Her eyes locked onto the bed, where Vella was sitting up with the blanket barely covering her chest, her hair a mess and a lazy smile on her face.

Juna went completely still for a second before she slowly turned around, her movements stiff and mechanical.

"Oh," she said in a flat voice. "Master has a guest."

She walked out of the room like a robot, reaching back to pull the door shut behind her without looking back.

He let out a long, heavy sigh, dragging a hand down his face before turning back to Vella. "Is this what you meant by surprise?"

"Bingo," she said, her smile widening as she threw the blanket off and swung her legs over the side of the bed, getting up in one smooth motion with absolutely nothing covering her.

He averted his eyes immediately, his face heating up while she started walking toward him completely unbothered.

"Stay right there," he said, his hand shooting out as the golden chain burst from his palm and wrapped around her body in a tight coil, pinning her arms to her sides and stopping her mid-step.

She blinked down at the chain, then back up at him with an amused tilt of her head. "Really? What are you going to do to me now, Master? Is this the type of foreplay you are into?"

He just stood there, his mouth opening and closing as he rubbed his temples. ’My first impression of this girl was completely wrong. I thought she was this elegant, mysterious spirit trapped in a tragic situation, but she turned out to be a complete freak.’