Inside the rapidly moving yellow school bus.
"Gwen, have you been doing any exercises lately? Like yoga or something?"
Vincent asked curiously, gently massaging Gwen's wonderfully soft little feet.
The delicate feet in his hands were almost boneless, yet through the black stockings, which faintly revealed a shiny flesh tone, his five fingers could clearly feel that with every press and rub, her small foot would subtly rebound with muscle resilience, as if instinctively resisting the invasion of his palm.
"Yes..." Gwen bit her lower lip, responding in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
"When did you do it?" Vincent asked, puzzled, his fingers beginning to massage her perfectly slender ankle.
He was usually with Gwen when he went to school, but he had never seen her participate in any special school sports.
"Ugh." Gwen subconsciously murmured, "On the rooftop... No, I just occasionally do aerobics in my bedroom at home..."
"Is that so?"
Vincent didn't think much of it, nor did he have the mental capacity to. Most of his attention was now focused on Gwen's perfectly petite left foot.
This felt even more comfortable than... well, you know.
In a daze, Vincent's original rubbing motion unconsciously turned into caressing.
His rather large palm enveloped her entire soft, tender foot, then slid upwards along the high-quality black stockings. Vincent's five fingers spread out somewhat greedily, thoroughly enjoying the delicate, smooth sensation emanating from his fingertips—
"Ugh!!!"
The sensation and stimulation this time far exceeded the sum of all previous ones.
The girl's entire body felt as if struck by lightning, her eyes glistening with tears, and her small mouth, with its sharp canine teeth, opened and bit fiercely into Vincent's shoulder.
Vincent winced in pain, then realized what was happening, and quickly released Gwen's small foot.
"Ugh—" Gwen bit Vincent, suppressing the scream that had almost escaped her lips.
Inside the steadily moving school bus, it remained quiet, and no one noticed this scene.
After a long while, Gwen finally let go. She then lowered her legs, her face flushed with shame, and pretended nothing had happened as she sat properly in her seat.
"I'm sorry, Gwen, I didn't mean to." Vincent looked at the girl apologetically, but didn't explain too much. He couldn't exactly say he'd mistaken her for... you know, could he?
Gwen didn't respond or look at Vincent, calmly raising a single finger as a gesture.
Vincent instantly understood her meaning and secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "I owe you compensation, right? No problem."
As long as it wasn't a leg massage.
It wasn't that his brother wasn't strong, it was just that he couldn't take it anymore.
Vincent felt that if he continued massaging, he might suddenly awaken some strange hobby.
"Is your shoulder okay?" Gwen's anger lasted less than three seconds before she looked at Vincent's shoulder with concern, taking out a tissue to wipe away the dampness.
"It's fine, I have thick skin."
Vincent glanced at his shoulder. In fact, Gwen hadn't bitten with much force; only a tooth mark was left on his jacket, and the skin underneath wasn't deeply bitten.
Otherwise, it might have triggered the Lord of the Retinue again.
However, Gwen was just an ordinary person, so even if it triggered, it probably wouldn't cause any trouble.
"Vincent, what is that on your left hand?"
Gwen seemed to have forgotten her earlier embarrassment, returning to her composed and intellectual cool demeanor, looking down at Vincent's left hand as she spoke.
"Oh, you mean this?" Vincent then noticed that the long sleeve of his left hand was pulled up a bit, revealing the silver bracelet on his forearm.
It was a divine artifact named the Guardian Silver Bracelet!
The Guardian Silver Bracelet, made from fragments of Zeus's shield, could withstand all (physical, magic) attacks. When the arms were crossed, it could generate a powerful shield barrier and impact.
Even with Aunt Diana, fully equipped with divine gear, the Guardian Silver Bracelet ranked only second to the Sword of Vulcan!
Of course, the Guardian Silver Bracelet came as a pair. With only one, its power would obviously be greatly diminished.
However, precisely because of this, even in a human body, one could barely use the basic abilities of this half-artifact.
"This is a lucky charm my aunt gave me, for self-defense when I'm out." Vincent smiled, pulling up his sleeve to cover the single Guardian Silver Bracelet.
"Lucky charm?" Gwen murmured softly. Somehow, she always felt as if she had seen that uniquely styled silver bracelet somewhere before... New York, Manhattan.
When the school bus arrived at its destination in the bustling city, it was already nearing evening. The warm sunset fell upon the tall buildings, and neon lights illuminated various parts of the ground.
Instructor Rhodes and the Mysterio's assistant arranged a group dinner at a restaurant, then took the students to check into apartments in a residential area.
By the time Vincent entered his private small single room with his backpack, the sunset outside the window had completely disappeared, and the dark night sky began to shroud this sleepless city.
The first day of arriving in New York was almost over before it even truly began.
The evening was free time, and students could go out. However, it was limited to nearby streets, and they had to return to the apartment before 10 PM. The instructor would conduct a bed check at that time.
Only tomorrow would the instructor officially organize group recreational activities.
Vincent sat on the single bed in his room. Just as he sent a message to his aunt, informing her of his safe arrival in New York, a knock came from the door.
Vincent opened the door and saw it was Gwen, of course.
However, the girl had already taken a shower; her short blonde hair wasn't completely dry, and she had changed into an intellectual and stylish Western-style uniform.
After Vincent opened the door, Gwen stood with her arms crossed and said, "Come out with me to buy clothes. This is the compensation I want."
"Didn't you bring enough clothes?" Vincent scratched his head.
"It's not..." Gwen stopped mid-sentence, glared at him exasperatedly, then turned and walked downstairs.
Vincent was puzzled but still picked up his phone and room key, following her out the door... On the bustling pedestrian street.
Vincent followed Gwen as she browsed several clothing stores. Only then did Gwen pick out a satisfactory small dress. Vincent, seemingly having finally realized something, paid for it in advance with half a month's allowance.
The effect was naturally significant.
Seeing Gwen happily carrying the bag with the dress all the way, clearly no longer angry, Vincent also smiled.
However.
Just as Vincent and Gwen, having finished shopping, were returning to the apartment, walking down a relatively secluded and deserted residential street.
Accompanied by intense, hurried gasps and footsteps, a silver-haired boy with wind goggles on his forehead approached from behind. The silver-haired boy suddenly discreetly slipped a woman's handbag to Gwen, then immediately pretended to be holding a handbag himself, panting heavily as he exerted himself to run in another direction.
Before Vincent and Gwen knew what was happening, they saw a bearded man rush past them, catching up to the silver-haired boy who hadn't yet run out of the current road.
"Kid, where's my bag?" The bearded man angrily grabbed the boy's shoulder.
"That's not yours, you stole it from someone else!" The silver-haired boy stubbornly retorted.
"Is that so?!" The bearded man was furious. He immediately grabbed the silver-haired boy by the collar with one hand and forcibly dragged him into a dark alley without street surveillance.
"Vincent, take this!" Seeing the situation, Gwen shoved the clothes and handbag into Vincent's hands and quickly rushed towards the alley.
Glancing at the items in his hands, Vincent followed without hesitation.