"Wait a sec!"

Seeing Air Groove behind him poised to pull off his clothes, Mizuno hurriedly spun around, grabbing her wrist. "I—I can explain this, too!"

"..." Air Groove didn't speak, just stared intently at Mizuno, her severe expression clearly saying: If you can't give me a good reason, I'm going to take action.

"Ahem…" Mizuno cleared his throat awkwardly, scratching his face.

Indeed, admitting that he wasn't an "Onii-sama" was simply impossible for him.

But he still had one last resort—his ultimate hidden technique. However, this move was dangerously powerful, the kind that hurt himself as much as his enemies. He'd never use it unless absolutely necessary.

Yet now, the situation had become so dire that Mizuno had no choice but to open this Pandora's box and unleash the demons within.

It was time for these innocent Uma girls to experience the full force of American cultural shock!

Mizuno cautiously asked:

"Um…have either of you ever heard of LGBT?"

"Huh?" Both Uma looked bewildered.

Tokai Teio blinked innocently, completely oblivious to what "LGBT" meant.

Meanwhile, although Air Groove didn't fully understand it herself, she'd had to briefly research it before when preparing to receive American journalists.

"LGBT…isn't that something related to homosexuality?" Air Groove asked hesitantly.

"It is…and it isn't…" Mizuno nodded vaguely before explaining further:

"More accurately, LGBT represents gender diversity. For example, myself…" Mizuno gestured toward himself.

"While biologically female, I have a gender identity disorder, so I've always considered myself male. That's why my behavior is entirely masculine…"

Air Groove: "?"

Mizuno: "Also, I'm a strict vegetarian, but at the same time, I have severe pica, so besides vegetables, I also have to eat meat…"

Air Groove: "??"

Mizuno: "And I also have masochistic tendencies, but as a Protestant, I can't harm my own body, so I can't indulge in self-harm, which gives me depression and intermittent autism—but the autism only kicks in when I'm sleeping…"

"Enough, enough! Please stop talking!" Air Groove quickly released Mizuno's coat hem, backing away fearfully.

Air Groove was utterly speechless. Trainer Mizuno's name sounded Japanese, but after hearing that bizarre explanation, she felt he seemed more American than anything else…

Air Groove had always considered herself open-minded and receptive to new ideas. As the Academy's vice-president, she'd met journalists and Uma from around the world, always accepting even what she didn't quite understand.

But the string of horrifying things Mizuno had just described—his "preferences" lecture—made her feel for the first time like some old-fashioned elder, her traditional mindset completely unable to accept such things!

"Now you see, right? Because I identify myself as male, Rice Shower addresses me as 'Onii-sama' instead of 'Onee-sama'. It's just my special preference," Mizuno calmly explained.

"I get it, I get it… You don't have to explain anymore…" Air Groove covered her ears, turning her back on Mizuno completely.

The things Trainer Mizuno had just said were far more terrifying than President Rudolf's terrible puns, plunging Air Groove into such deep mental chaos that she'd momentarily forgotten her quest to find the mysterious man… Get full chapters from novel fire.net

"Eh?" Unlike the terrified Air Groove, Tokai Teio was simply baffled.

"Hmmm…What did all that mean?" A giant question mark popped up over Tokai Teio's head.

To be honest, Tokai Teio hadn't understood a single thing Mizuno had just said. Her pure, innocent brain couldn't comprehend such weird ideas at all. She only selectively heard four words from Mizuno's long explanation at the very end—

"I am a man."

"Oh, whatever! Trainer Mizuno is definitely a man." Tokai Teio happily hugged Mizuno tighter, continuing to rub her face affectionately against him.

Mizuno: "..."

Though slightly different from his expectations, it had still basically accomplished his goal.

Without losing his precious "Onii-sama" title from Rice Shower, he'd also eliminated Air Groove's suspicion about him. Get da☆ze!

As for Tokai Teio now 100% convinced he was male…well, that didn't matter…

"Since we've cleared up that misunderstanding, Air Groove-sensei, shall we start our lesson?"

Mizuno hadn't forgotten the day's real task. If he could learn to hear flowers quickly and speed up his research, that would obviously be ideal.

However, Air Groove still hadn't fully recovered from Mizuno's terrifying revelations. Her ears drooped low as she shook her head quietly: "Sorry… Could you give me a moment to recover first…?"

"Of course," Mizuno nodded gently. "Just let me know when you're ready. I'll be waiting."

"Huh, huh? Trainer-san, what lesson are you two talking about?" Tokai Teio asked curiously, still clinging comfortably in Mizuno's arms.

Thus, Mizuno explained Air Groove's ability to hear the voices of flowers to Tokai Teio.

"Ehh?! That's incredible!" Tokai Teio's mouth dropped open in astonishment. She quickly turned to Air Groove, her blue eyes glittering with excitement. "Air Groove-senpai, I want to learn it too!"

"..." Tokai Teio's request momentarily stunned Air Groove, clearly not expecting the girl to be interested.

But Air Groove thought about it for a second. Since she had to teach Mizuno anyway, one more student wouldn't hurt.

So she silently nodded, indicating her agreement.

"Yay~!" Tokai Teio cheered happily, secretly stealing a glance at Mizuno and smiling mischievously.

Listening to flowers' voices? Isn't that just mind-reading? Once she learned how to read someone's thoughts, Trainer Mizuno would never escape her again—even if he tried to hide, she'd instantly know where to find him.

"Hehe~" With that delightful thought, Tokai Teio hugged Mizuno even tighter.

"Teio! Too tight!" Mizuno gasped, feeling like his waist was being crushed by iron clamps.

"Sorry, sorry~!" Teio quickly released him, sticking out her tongue cutely.

"..." Mizuno narrowed his eyes, clearly sensing the little schemes running through Tokai Teio's head.

This girl's definitely plotting something again…

Ten minutes later, Air Groove, whose worldview had just suffered a brutal, merciless beating, finally recovered somewhat. She turned back toward the two, her previously drooping ears perking up again.

Approaching Mizuno and Tokai Teio, Air Groove crossed her arms stiffly, nervously staring down at her feet. She awkwardly adopted a teacher-like stance and quietly announced:

"Let's…let's begin…"