Yangyang's cottage. The Rovers' shared room.
From the shower stall adjacent to their bedroom, the sound of running water drifted through the wall, carrying with it all the implications that sound could carry. Even through the frosted glass door, one could make out the silhouette of a figure that warranted the word stunning.
She was humming, too. Some melody without a name, light and lovely, the kind of voice that could make certain gentlemen wolf down three bowls of rice just from listening.
Rover, for his part, was in the bedroom studying his new abilities.
He had zero interest in eavesdropping. That would be creepy.
Besides, he'd be holding her while they slept in about twenty minutes anyway.
"Yeah, the development potential on this is insane."
His previous life had been a world without superpowers. Now, freshly transmigrated and handed something this spectacular, he felt like a kid who'd been given the coolest toy on the shelf. Spatial Power consumed his full attention.
Scar's Forte had only manifested in two forms: spatial teleportation and the creation of pocket dimensions. Even so, the applications were enormous. An idea was already taking shape in his mind.
Pocket dimension creation should let me design the space however I want. Which means I never have to worry about terrain again. I'll build a few environments that give us the advantage, and the next time we face a tough enemy, we drag them inside and fight on our terms. Containment, attrition, support... it covers everything. Actually, why stop there? I could build an entire house in one. Buy some furniture, decorate it, ask her what style she likes. We're loaded now. Wherever we go, we'd always have a place to come home to.
A quiet laugh escaped him. He'd essentially built the housing system before Kuro even shipped it.
But while he was busy architecting his pocket dimension, Rover didn't notice his own body flicker for just an instant.
...
"Mmm... that's the stuff. What a day."
She sank deeper into the bathtub, hot water lapping at her shoulders, and stretched with a sigh of pure contentment.
Droplets traced down her hair and along a face so beautiful the word "magnificent" barely covered it, skin flushed pink from the heat. Clothed, her figure was already hard to ignore. Like this, with no audience to appreciate it, the sight was something else entirely.
She glanced down and couldn't see her own feet past her chest. Compared to Yangyang and Chixia, the difference was obvious enough, but she had even Baizhi beat.
And yet her waist tapered to almost nothing.
Long legs, taut and straight.
Her looks matched his, the kind of face that seized your attention on first sight. But anyone who spent real time with either of them quickly learned the same truth: their appearances were the least remarkable thing about them.
Still gazing down at herself, curiosity wandered somewhere new.
What does his body look like? He definitely doesn't have... well, obviously. His legs are a little longer than mine. But the rest... hmm. The more I think about it, the more I want to know.
Maybe it was exhaustion from the long day, or maybe the steam had overheated that sharp mind of hers by a degree or two. She caught herself drifting in a direction that was, objectively, a bit strange.
"Ugh, I should've just asked him to wash up together."
Given what they were to each other, it wasn't that big a deal... probably.
Doing it here in Yangyang's house felt a little disrespectful to the girl, though. Then again... that also made it kind of thrilling.
The corner of her lips curled upward at the thought.
She slid a little deeper into the water.
The warmth was pulling her under. Drowsiness crept in, and the idea of napping right here in the tub grew more appealing by the second.
He's right there. Even if I fall asleep... it's fine...
She thought she might be changing.
Her lost memories still hadn't returned, but the person she was now had to be different from whoever she'd been before. With him beside her, she had someone to lean on without reservation. That had to be a good thing.
She let her eyes drift shut, ready to surrender to sleep.
"Huh?!"
Her eyes snapped open. She shot upright, water cascading off her body.
"What was that..."
It had lasted less than a heartbeat. Maybe not even a full second. But the connection between them, that constant thread tying her to him, had severed.
Hot water still clung to her skin, but a cold so deep it felt like plunging into an ice cavern tore through her. The most important part of her chest felt hollow, punched clean through, leaving nothing behind.
Terror.
"Rover!"
She activated the teleportation without a shred of hesitation. A portal opened and she stepped through, crossing the ten meters to their bedroom in the space of a blink.
And scared the living hell out of him.
"Holy... y-y-you, why so suddenly?!"
The pocket dimension he'd been painstakingly constructing collapsed the instant his hands jerked. He stared, slack-jawed, at the girl who had materialized in front of him wearing absolutely nothing. Water still running down her collarbones, between her breasts, along the curve of her hips. Every line of her on full display with zero warning. Only one thought managed to surface through the static.
So... so beautiful...
His brain stopped working after that.
She didn't spare a thought for the clothing situation. Hands trembling, she cupped his face and examined every inch of him, checking and rechecking, until several minutes had passed and she was certain nothing was wrong.
A long breath left her.
"You're here. You're right here, aren't you?"
"...Yeah. I'm here."
He didn't know what had triggered this, but he knew she was afraid. That was enough. He pulled her close without hesitation, arms tightening around her.
"I'm right here. Right in front of you."
Their faces hovered inches apart, close enough that the next second could have tipped into a kiss. He took her hand and pressed it to his cheek. His own arms wrapped around her, holding her firmly against him.
The placement was, admittedly, somewhat precarious. But it let her feel him, undeniably and completely, and in that moment they fell into perfect sync. The hollow in her chest sealed shut.
"You're here. That's all I needed."
"So what happened?"
"For just a second, I couldn't feel you anymore. It was probably nothing." She paused. "Definitely nothing."
She settled herself onto his lap without ceremony. He grabbed a towel and dried her still-dripping hair, taking the opportunity to appreciate the view at extremely close range.
Then, from the bedroom doorway, something clattered to the floor.
They both turned.
"R-Rover... you two are..."
Yangyang stood frozen, face scarlet, trembling from head to toe. A girl of her grace and composure lacked the vocabulary for the expletive the moment demanded, which only made her struggle for words all the more painful.
In the end, red enough to steam, she stumbled backward out of her own house and fled. These two were out of their minds.
"So... what do we do now?"
"Go take your bath. The water's still warm."
"Works for me."
Something in her expression said she'd had an idea. He raised an eyebrow but didn't argue, heading for the bathroom she'd half-finished using. He tossed her clothes to her on the way.
Thirty seconds later...
He was soaking in the still-warm water, savoring a moment of peace, when he became aware of a gaze at point-blank range that made absolutely no effort to be subtle. Even for him, an eye twitched. He turned to look at her.
"I'm bathing. Why are you in here?"
"Hehe. Just playing spot-the-difference."
And there it was: the downside of unconditional mutual teleportation. A locked door meant nothing to someone with the will and the warp to bypass it.
She'd already gotten dressed, and now sat perched on a small stool with her chin propped in one hand, surveying the scenery with obvious enjoyment.
Warm skin without a single flaw. Eight neatly carved abs that caught the light. Solid, defined muscle everywhere else that gave him the coiled power of a predator at rest. Paired with that face, the kind you'd remember for the rest of your life after a single glance.
The sort of sight that would make any number of girls lose their composure entirely.
She suddenly felt a little indignant. When she was naked, she just looked sexy. Fine, she was a girl, that tracked. But why did he look like a work of art? How was that fair?
"Do all guys look this artistic with their clothes off?"
"Get out. Are you going to let me bathe or not?"
"No way. You already saw everything. If I don't look back, I'm getting ripped off. Even between siblings, accounts must be settled!"
"Who's your sibling! If anything, I'm the older brother here. But if you're not leaving..." A dangerous grin spread across his face. "Don't blame me for what happens next."
"Ow! What are you doing?!"
"Get in and wash again!"
He grabbed her arm and hauled her into the water with a wicked smile.
Within minutes, the bathroom had become a battlefield.
The splashing kind. Get your mind out of the gutter.