CHAPTER 104: CAN I CRASH HERE?

Disbelief was written all over Mikel’s face as he sat in the chair at the sturdy desk. He had turned it around, resting his arms over the backrest. His eyes moved from the left bed to the right.

There’s no way, he thought. They don’t look alike at all.

Not that Ran was ugly, but compared to this little sister right here, there was clearly a gap.

"The two of you are... siblings?" he asked, and somehow, when he asked that, he looked at Ran with doubt.

Ran offered an awkward smile, though he couldn’t help but feel slightly insulted. Why did Mikel make it sound like there was no way Ran could have a little sister?

"Yes, we are~!" Zira beamed, only for Ran to cut in.

"Cousins," he corrected.

Zira pouted. "It’s the same thing, Big Brother Ran. Our blood shares the same origin."

"Zira, what are you..." Ran trailed off and pinched the bridge of his nose, still exhausted and sleepy. "What are you doing here? And why were you sleeping here?"

"I missed you, so I wanted to surprise you." Her frown deepened as her shoulders slumped. "The headmaster told me I can stay in the dorm. I didn’t know there was a gender-specific one."

Ran’s face grew bitter, looking at Mikel apologetically.

"Sorry about her," he sighed. "She’s a bit of a klutz."

"Big Brother Ran, why would you say that?" Zira clicked her tongue. "I’m not clumsy."

"If you’re not, why would you even sleep on his bed? Do you know how rude that was?" Ran gently scolded her while Zira just lowered her head.

Meanwhile, Mikel, who was listening to this, had quite a conflicting feeling about it.

[Master, I suggest stopping him. Having another roommate isn’t bad. If one disappeared or died, there’s one more left.]

Shut up, Doom.

[She is a fine young lady.]

I know, Doom. I’m a seventeen-year-old, where everything is heightened, including my libido.

Mikel wasn’t a monk or a mannequin. He was a young man, and waking up next to a young, beautiful lady with a perky pair of breasts was more of a fantasy for young men like him. He was no hypocrite not to admit that.

"I’m sorry," Zira apologized as she faced Mikel under Ran’s instruction.

Mikel nodded. "Sure. You didn’t mean it. You thought I was Ran."

[Master, I do not think the young lady is blind not to see the difference in one glance.]

She puffed one cheek and bit her tongue, looking away from Mikel. Seeing this, he narrowed his eyes.

[She knew you weren’t her cousin.]

Doom, I’ve seen a lot of your antics, but this is the first time I’ve seen you overly supportive. Reboot yourself.

Ran also picked up on her cue, frowning even more deeply. However, he wasn’t about to reveal to Mikel that Zira slept where she wanted to—not because she mistook him for Ran. Although Mikel already realized that, Ran had no idea.

"Ahem!" Ran cleared his throat. "Zira, what are you doing here?"

"I told you, because I missed you," Zira muttered. "And I’m bored."

Mikel blinked, listening and watching the cousins until he blurted out, "You don’t study here?"

Ran and Zira stopped, turning their heads in Mikel’s direction. The latter raised his brows.

"What?" Mikel asked.

"Ahh... hehe..." Ran scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly. "Zira is an agent of Zone Zero."

"..."

[...]

Zira then smiled sweetly. "I wanted to enroll here with Big Brother Ran, but I was told that I don’t need to since I’ve been working for Zone Zero for three years now."

Again, Mikel and even Doom were rendered speechless. All they could do was stare at Zira and then at Ran. The blank look on his face compelled Ran to explain.

"Zira was gifted with a lot of spiritual energy and has good control over it since she was young. So, she had advanced lessons back home and was sent to Zone Zero for their trials."

"Then I passed all of them!" Zira chimed in. "But I put it off for a while because I wanted to play with Big Brother Ran."

As she thought about it, her lips puckered as her brows knitted with displeasure. She crossed her arms.

"It’s not like Zone Zero is that fun," she grumbled. "It’s very boring."

Mikel opened and closed his mouth, pointing at her. "You’re already an agent?"

"Unfortunately," she sighed, exaggerating like someone being forced to do homework.

His eyes scanned her, ignoring her fair legs that were exposed due to her shorts. She was young, and if she was calling Ran her big brother, that meant she was around fifteen or sixteen.

And if he remembered correctly, she started working three years ago? What was that? She started just before or at the moment she became a teen?

[Launching Civil Labor Rights for review...]

"I see," was all he said, just ignoring Doom, who was showing him their country’s labor rights.

"Zira, seriously," Ran spoke again. "What are you doing here?"

Zira smacked her lips before she grinned. "I will tell you if you let me sleep here!"

The second those words escaped her mouth, Ran deadpanned. Mikel? No reaction, but he didn’t want that. He had to stay out of being a father while being a child himself.

As for Doom, [Yes.]

Doom, are you a pervert?

Mikel side-eyed the screen like it had just betrayed him.

[Master, I am merely a guide with no emotion. As such, I do not have any of the human sex drive. However, sex is good for you. It might elevate your mood. My best interest is my master’s well-being.]

[And you mention it yourself. You are a seventeen-year-old student, where everything is heightened. It’s about time, Master.]

"Fine!" Zira conceded after trying to ignore Ran’s death stare. She raised her hands and sighed. "I can’t tell you every detail about it, because it’s classified. But I am here for a mission."

"A mission?" This time, Mikel and Ran spoke in unison.

She nodded. "Mhm, a mission. It’s a top mission, so I can’t tell you that there have been some strange anomalies happening with the corrupted beings and the frequent meddling of the Type X. Zone Zero and the headmaster were worried that they’re eyeing the Academy and might find a way to infiltrate it and hurt the students..."

Mikel and Ran just stared at her blankly.

Just now, Zira told them she couldn’t tell them as if it were "classified," but here she was, dumping everything about her mission.

"So, me and a few of my colleagues from different departments were told to stay in the Academy for the time being as students until it’s safe," she giggled, giving Ran and Mikel a peace sign. "So, in a way, I’ll be here for a while, and I need a place to sleep! Can I crash here?"