"Ahem! My apologies for interrupting class, but right now… everyone, eyes on me! I have an announcement to make!!" Elias declared with unwavering confidence.
The sheer boldness and self-assurance radiating from him made everyone firmly believe—this guy was definitely not socially anxious.
A social terrorist!
But before they could adjust their mindset and enjoy the spectacle, Elias' next words left them completely stunned.
In front of everyone, he boldly wrapped his arm around the sinner's daughter's shoulder, pulling Raiden Mei into his embrace and announced:
"From this moment on, Raiden Mei is my girlfriend. I'm warning all of you—not just my classmates, but the entire school—stop badmouthing her and stop bullying her! Otherwise, you'll have to deal with me!"
"￥%@*￥#..."
The teacher standing at the podium was utterly dumbfounded, wearing a bewildered expression as if questioning their own existence: Who am I? Where am I? Elias, what on earth are you doing?!
If this were any other school, the teacher would have started yelling by now. But this was Chiba Academy, a school for the wealthy—here, teachers didn't dare offend the students.
And so, Elias' declaration stood unchallenged. Meanwhile, the girl in his arms, Mei, was blushing furiously, her eyes spinning into swirls like a dazed mosquito coil.
But Elias wasn't finished yet.
"And as for you girls over there—uh, what were your names again? Eh, doesn't matter. Just hurry up and apologize!"
"You, you, and you! Stop trying to hide. If you had the guts to do it, then have the guts to take responsibility. Don't make me drag you up here and press your heads down to apologize!"
Grabbing a ruler from the desk, Elias pointed it directly at a few girls below who were trying to shrink into the background. These were the ones who had stolen Mei's clothes.
At this point, even if the teacher wanted to intervene, it was far too late.
Elias had caused a complete scene. In the end, those girls had no choice but to apologize to Mei under the watchful eyes of the entire class.
And their expressions? Utterly priceless. The level of discomfort on their faces was comparable to swallowing an entire tube of bitter medicine.
After everything was settled, Elias finally turned to Mei, giving her a satisfied thumbs-up. Mei, on the other hand, was at a complete loss for words—her heart, buried beneath her ample chest, was racing just a little too fast.
At that moment, in her eyes, the boy before her shone like a radiant beacon of light.
...
After school, back at her home.
Although most of the Raiden family's assets had been frozen, Mei's house remained untouched. While she could no longer live a life of extravagant wealth, living an ordinary life was still not a problem.
After all, even though Raiden Ryoma was now a convicted criminal, he had once been an executive of Anti-Entropy, a former Schicksal Knight, and a close friend of Siegfried Kaslana and Welt Yang—the Herrscher of Reason.
It was precisely because of the existence of these people that Cocolia didn't dare go to extremes. Otherwise, let alone having a house to live in, Mei might have ended up like a certain paramecium running around the world, sleeping in parks every other night.
"…"
Mei had no idea how she got home.
The entire afternoon, she had been in a daze, completely zoning out during class. She couldn't remember a single thing from the lessons—her mind was filled with the image of a certain white-haired boy.
Her body, finally able to relax, collapsed onto the bed. Hugging her pillow tightly, she buried her face deep into it, her ears turning an unmistakable shade of red.
"Elias…"
She recalled the conversation in the girls' locker room, where Elias had proposed his plan.
Elias: "As long as I publicly announce that you're my girlfriend, there should be far fewer people daring to bully you. After all, most school bullying happens because the victim is isolated, and those around them choose to turn a blind eye."
Mei: "W-wait a second! Announcing that I'm your girlfriend—will that really work?"
Elias: "Of course. My name will serve as your protection. If anyone still wants to bully you, they'll have to think twice about whether they want to mess with me."
Unlike the current, weak and powerless Raiden Mei, Elias wasn't the type to show mercy.
If someone dared to target him, Elias, who was far more emotional than rational, would never swallow his anger.
But what Mei cared about wasn't that.
Twice now, Elias had stepped in to help her. Even if it meant making an enemy of the entire school, he still chose to protect her. And now, he was bringing up being a couple… Maybe this was just a purely strategic move—she really shouldn't overthink it.
But!
Something about Elias' actions and kindness made Mei unconsciously have a certain thought.
"Elias… do you… like me?"
The moment the words left her mouth, Mei regretted it.
If the answer was yes, then she didn't have the courage or the right to accept it right now.
If the answer was no, then—Mei wasn't sure how to describe her feelings. But just thinking about it made her feel inexplicably disappointed.
For a moment, Elias was stunned.
But in the next second, he nodded calmly and admitted it.
"Yeah, I like you, Mei."
"Eh!? I—this—uh…"
"Haha, don't be so nervous. Let me put it this way—I really like your appearance. After all, you're undoubtedly a super beautiful girl. But… that's not something I'd call love, so don't worry."
In name, they were boyfriend and girlfriend, but in reality, it was nothing more than a fake relationship to protect Mei.
Elias made it clear that he wasn't in love with Raiden Mei. In fact, if someone else were in her situation, he probably wouldn't have interfered at all.
The only reason he was giving Mei special treatment was because she was a character from his favorite game.
Mei hadn't expected that answer.
"I see… but if that's the case, Elias, then why? Why are you going so far to help me?" Mei couldn't help but ask.
"Hmm? That's an easy question. Because I want to save you. I want to save all of you. That's all there is to it."
Elias didn't hesitate in his response.
All he wanted was to shatter every single cruel twist miHoYo had written—to grab fate itself (the damn writers) and slam them into the ground.