Afraid

"Why are you studying and doing homework again tonight?" "Can you even call yourself a college student if you don't study and do homework every day? I paid so much tuition and took out student loans—if I don't study hard, how am I going to make back what I spent?" "Wow, so impressive. Well, good luck with that." "Wait, I remember your wanted poster mentioned that you went to college too! Come on, how about helping me with my homework?" "Weren't you just so eager for knowledge, dead set against cutting corners, and determined to study hard?" "Some assignments are pointless, though. I only have to do them to scrape up credits. Come help me out, please, help me—" "Don't—don't press up against me. It's so hot, I'll start sweating. Let me see... (takes it and glances at it) Mm, oh, I see." "Well? Are you willing to help?" "Yeah. I'm willing to offer every kind of support except actual help." "What's that supposed to mean?" "It means I don't know how to do it either." "Aren't you a graduate? You must have done assignments like this before!" "How could anyone remember the taste of every slice of bread they've eaten in the past? Why would I remember how I finished this kind of homework back then?" "Ugh, gray substandard college students are so useless." "If you want to become a gold legendary college student, then be a good girl and do your homework yourself. For your own good, I'm willing to bear this humiliation and serve as a negative example to spur you on." "(⊙～⊙) You're so shameless." ...... "Yaxiu—the shampoo ran out! Grab me a new one from the bottom shelf of the cabinet!" "How odd. You actually know better than to just walk out naked to get it." "I haven't finished bathing yet, and I'm too lazy to dry off. Walking out dripping wet would get the floor soaked. I at least have that much common sense." "I'm so touched by your thoughtfulness. I just hope you can acquire even more common sense... like not sticking half your body out of the bathroom just to take something!" "(*￣ー￣) You're so annoying." ...... "Ha, mm, mm, phew~~~ Ah, Yaxiu, you're done showering? You took even longer than I did. Water is very expensive..." "Whose fault do you think that is?" "Why do you make it sound like I forced you to take so long... Oh, oh, I get it! Goodness, I'm not even shy about it, so what are you being shy for?" "What?" "If you wanted to handle things yourself, you didn't need to hide in the bathroom. As long as you don't make a mess everywhere, I wouldn't mind if you took care of it in my bed. Besides, while I haven't saved many videos meant for men, I know which Curtains you can download them from, so you can take your time finding casting materials. And I have lube too, which works way better than water..." "Stop. I really was just taking a shower in the bathroom. I didn't do anything else!" "Then did you handle it during the day when you were alone in the apartment? Oh right, let me check the browsing history..." "I didn't! I haven't done that kind of thing at your place at all!" "No way. You've lived at my place for three days already... Do you have a masochistic streak?" "I'm not wasting my breath on you. Out of the way, move—I want to use the Curtain of Knowledge." "╮(╯▽╰)╭ You're pretty weird." ...... "Asleep yet?" "No." "Sleeping on the floor isn't comfortable, is it? Why not sleep in the bed? The most I can do is scoot over and give you some space." "No thanks. I'm afraid of you." "Aw—that really hurts my feelings. Frankly speaking, even though quite a few people are afraid of my Veela constitution, far more people are drawn to my looks. After all, besides going all the way, there are lots of little games that can make you feel great... Want to give it a try?" "Speaking of which, I've had a question for a while. Freya, with your good looks and body, if you went to a wine cafe, plenty of people who aren't afraid of dying would hit on you. Why would you rather spend money at a mud cafe?" "Hey, Yaxiu, haven't you ever hung out at a wine cafe? You really don't understand common sense at all." "Oho, I'm actually being told I lack common sense by someone who sleeps naked without even using a blanket." "Let me tell you, the biggest difference between a wine cafe and a mud cafe or tea cafe is that in a wine cafe, everyone is equal." "Isn't equality a good thing?" "Except equality means both parties have to serve each other. If you make me feel good, I have to make you feel good too. However much you want to get out of it, you have to put in an equal amount of effort. And I just happen to not be the type to enjoy serving others, so I'd rather spend some money at a mud cafe." "Hearing that, it sounds like you just want to take without giving..." "Besides, mud cafes also have buffets, baths, saunas, hydrotherapy, and all sorts of entertainment. 'Mud worker services' are just one part of it. Every woman can temporarily set aside reality's troubles at a mud cafe and find entertainment that suits her, so a trip to a mud cafe is a wonderfully soothing, relaxing treat. According to statistics, every adult woman visits a mud cafe on average once a month. Some high-earning career women even have permanent private suites in exclusive mud cafes, practically moving in so they can enjoy top-tier service every night." "Oh, oh, I get it: 'I am the queen, radiating confidence!'" "Also, if you pay, you can make requests that an ordinary man wouldn't agree to." "Mm, I see... Huh?" "Yaxiu, come on (pats the bed). If it's you, I wouldn't mind serving you." "Once you finish serving me, will you turn around and make a request of your own, demanding repayment?" "..." "And the request will be one of those special services that 'an ordinary man wouldn't agree to'?" "But you aren't an ordinary man! Show some courage, will you, Fiend Saint!" "I've realized the floor is actually pretty comfy. Time to sleep, time to sleep." "Humph. (＃￣～￣＃) You're pretty cowardly." ...... "I've wanted to ask for a long time: why do you always wear arm warmers and leg warmers?" "What arm warmers and leg warmers?" "Isn't that layer of fluffy white fur on your hands and feet something you put on?" "How rude! That's my natural charm fluff! Every Veela has it. It's the biggest difference between Veelas and humans." "A male Veela I know doesn't have fur like that." "There are no male Veelas in this world, only men with 'a certain amount of Veela heritage.' 'Veela' is a term referring specifically to females. Furthermore, if a Veela gives birth, any daughter is guaranteed to be a pure Veela, while any son will take after the father's racial heritage." "Another piece of useless common sense learned." "Hey, do you think my charm fluff looks nice? Even though I love it myself, quite a few people seem to dislike charm fluff, feeling it's a beastly trait. Some Veelas even get hair removal surgery so they look completely identical to humans..." "It looks great! Can I touch it?" "Don't you think it looks too much like a beast?" "Isn't that even better?" "Huh? Could it be that you're into the Moon Shadow clan type, Yaxiu?" "What I mean is, the charm fluff only makes you look better. It gives you a wild charm, and you make the fluff look all the more adorable and beautiful. Or rather, what looks good isn't the charm fluff—it's you. Even if you shaved your head bald, you'd still look gorgeous." "Really?! I was actually thinking of changing my hairstyle..." "—Though I think your current hairstyle is already great. No need to change it." "Heehee, I think so too. o(*￣▽￣*)o You've got pretty good taste." ...... "What are we having for dinner tonight?" "Fruit salad, and..." "No rice bowl topped with Blazing Lalafell and fish roe?" "That's actually pretty troublesome to make..." "Oh. Then I'm off to class." "Though I feel like eating it today too, so let's swap the pan-seared steak for the rice bowl topped with Blazing Lalafell and fish roe." "(～￣▽￣)～ You're the one who wants to eat it, not me begging for it, okay?" ...... "Did something good happen to you recently?" During class, Adela suddenly asked this out of nowhere. Freya found it baffling. "No, why?" "Then why have you been so happy these past few days?" "Am I that happy?" "The corners of your mouth have been turned up non-stop; they haven't dropped once! My face hurts just watching you!" Adela rested her chin on her hand, tilting her head toward Freya. "I don't think I'd be this happy even if I got accepted into the Red Mist Research Institute." Freya subconsciously covered her mouth, but quickly dropped her hand. "Not at all. I've always been a cheerful little Veela, every single day." "Come on, tell me. Did something good happen? Can't you share it with me?" Freya cast a strange look at Adela. "Adela, you're being a bit... impolite." Although the two of them were good friends, they were only good friends. They could share their quirks and kinks—Adela taking Freya to casinos and Freya taking Adela to mud cafes posed no issue at all. But once personal privacy was involved, it became a taboo neither could touch. Although it was hard to define precisely what privacy counted as a taboo, determining whether a current topic was taboo was remarkably simple: the moment the other party tried to evade or refused to answer, it became a taboo you could not keep probing into. Anyone incapable of that was an uncouth barbarian who couldn't read the room, lacked social skills, and easily hurt others with words. Adela naturally wasn't a barbarian. In fact, she was quite well-liked, having several other good friends besides Freya. On top of that, her ambition lay in the mind faction, so reading the room should have been second nature to her. Seeming to sense Freya's astonishment, Adela asked in return, "You're planning on seeing a psychotherapist soon, aren't you?" "How did you know?" Freya blurted out. Right on the mark. Lately, Freya had felt that strange emotion in her heart growing thicker and stronger, to the point where it was beginning to affect her rational mind. Though this was her first time experiencing something like this, she hadn't let her imagination run wild or tried to deal with it on her own; instead, she planned to see a psychotherapist for treatment. For the citizens of the Blood Moon Country, seeing a healer if something was physically wrong and seeing a psychotherapist if something was mentally amiss were survival skills known even to ogres. Moreover, the rate of psychological issues among modern people was exceptionally high. Some even had to maintain monthly appointments with a psychotherapist starting in childhood. As a result, the demand for psychotherapy grew day by day, even surpassing that of ordinary medical treatments—after all, a modern person might go an entire year without falling ill or getting injured, but virtually no modern person could make it through a year without developing psychological problems. At the same time, psychotherapist was an extremely common, everyday profession. If Freya didn't become a sorcerer in the future, she would likely end up as an ordinary psychotherapist. With a vast market, abundant practitioners, and medical subsidies for college students, undergoing psychotherapy was cheaper for Freya than having a meal, so naturally she wouldn't force herself to face it alone. Adela said softly, "Because right now, you're afraid."