Chapter 07 Class Introduction and Desk Buddy

They froze.

Their faces were a breath apart. Molly could see every individual eyelash, the faint blush on his cheeks, the parted surprise of his lips. His body was a solid, warm line pressed along hers. The strange, magnetic pull between their magics, now so close, a fizzy, electric current that made her skin feel hypersensitive.

"…She’s beautiful. Her eyes… they sparkle. Like golden gems. Her skin glows like warm honey. I've stood in ballrooms, met countless ladies. They were pretty but I felt nothing. Pretty to look, that was all it was. This… this is different.

She smells like vanilla… and something else. Something nice. Like the forest at midnight. My heart is beating too fast. It's not from the fall. It's from her. This pull I feel… it's not just curiosity anymore.

When I'm this close to her, the world goes quiet. All I see is her. All I feel is this… warmth. This wanting.

Molly Moriana… what are you doing to me?"

"IT WORKED! IT WORKED TOO WELL! Kyaaaa! He’s on top of me! He’s so close! His lips are RIGHT THERE! I could just… tilt my head… it would be so easy… Do it, you coward! You’re a demon! Take what you want! But… what if he gets mad? What if the ‘pure hero’ hates me? But he looks… he looks like he might… maybe…"
Her thoughts were a screaming, chaotic mess of desire and panic. The heat of his body was intoxicating. 

“I-I am so sorry!” Leon blurted out, running a hand through his perfect hair. “That was entirely my fault! I wasn’t looking, I stumbled, are you alright? I didn’t hurt your ankle further, did I? To try and help you only to nearly injure you again. I'm a complete failure. As a hero, and as a… as a person.”

“It’s… it’s okay! Really! No harm done! See?” She wiggled her ankle, giving him a wobbly smile. “All good! Just… a really dramatic way to get to bed, hehe!”

Suddenly, the infirmary door flew open with a bang.

“Leon! There you are! The whole academy is saying you fought some new student into the infirmary! Are you insane! Going against a newbie!”

A girl stood in the doorway. She was pretty in a classic, elegant way. Pale skin, long silver hair tied in a braid, and intelligent blue eyes that immediately scanned the room, landing first on Leon, then on Molly lying on the bed.

Leon put a foot of distance between himself and the bed. “Celica. The rumors are exaggerated. It was a friendly sparring match. Miss Moriana here merely suffered a minor, accidental twist.” He gestured between them. “Ah, yes. Miss Molly, this is Celica von Mayar. She’s a talented healer and a member of my adventuring party.” He turned to the silver-haired girl. “Celica, this is Molly Moriana. A new transfer student.”

Molly pushed herself up, offering a bright, sparkling smile and a little wave. “Hi there! Nice to meetcha! Yeah, just a little oopsie with my ankle. Champion Leon was just being super helpful and heroic!”

Celica gave a small, perfect curtsy. “A pleasure, Lady Moriana. I’m glad your injury appears minor.” Her gaze flicked. “Leon, we really must go. Professor Alden’s seminar started five minutes ago. You know he deducts points for lateness. You know better than anyone that you can't lose any more points! Let's go! Greg and Kon already in class.”

“Right. Of course. My apologies for cutting this short, Miss Molly. Rest your ankle. We… we will meet again. I look forward to another match.”

-----------------

Molly flopped back onto the pillow, staring at the ceiling. "Celica, huh? Pretty. Smart-looking. In his party." A tiny, unfamiliar spark flickered in her chest, jealousy.

"Of course he has a pretty healer in his party. With silver hair and a perfect curtsy. Ugh. How ‘close’ is a healer, really? When he gets hurt fighting Dad… does she patch him up? Does she have to… touch him? Put her hands all over his heroic muscles to channel healing light? Does he take his shirt off for her?"

A low growl escaped her lips. She stuffed it down, her cheeks flushing. "Kyaaa! Stop it, you lewd demon! But… she just waltzed in here and called him away like she owned him! 'Leon. Now. Good boy.' Who does that?! Is he into that? The stern, smart healer ordering the hero around…"

A new, even more intrusive fantasy unspooled in her mind. "What if… they’re not just party members? What if, after a long day of slaying monsters, they go back to some cozy inn… and she ‘debriefs’ him? Very thoroughly. In a room with only one bed. Because inns are always like that! And she’d know all the right pressure points to make a righteous hero just… fall to his knees…"

She kicked her foot against the mattress in frustration. "No! He’s mine! I saw him first! Well… Dad saw him first, but that doesn’t count! I have dibs! I’m the one who’s gonna corrupt him, not some… some prim and proper walking first-aid kit! This is a problem. A sexy, silver-haired problem. I need a new plan. A better plan. A plan that involves marking my territory."

A sly, demonic glint returned to her eyes. "Okay, Celica. You might be in his party, but I’m going to be in his head. And his dreams. And hopefully, eventually, his arms. Game on, Healer-girl."

"Ahem."

Molly blinked.

"Are you enjoying your fantasies again, little sister?"

A woman stood beside the bed. Nurse's uniform. Neatly pinned hair.

"LILITH?! What? How? Why are you HERE?! In a human disguise?!"

"Oh, you know. I decided to have a bit of fun as well. The academy was hiring temporary infirmary staff. And I am more than qualified. Also, I wanted to check on my favorite little sister.

Speaking of which, I came to deliver news. I told Father you'll be staying at our mansion near Sunny Beach Town. Along the way, you'll be going on 'sightseeing' in nearby towns. Taking the scenic route. Seeing the countryside."

She leaned in closer.

"You have three months, Molly. That's how long Leon's semester lasts." She tapped Molly's nose. "After he graduates, you'll have no reason to stay here. No classes. No academy. No convenient excuses to run into him."

She straightened up, adjusting her nurse's cap.

"So, you'd better put in some serious effort. Seduce that hero. Make him miss you so much that he can't imagine life without you." She winked. "Or, you know, just lock him in the mansion and have your way with him. Either works."

"Thanks, Big Sis. I'm working on it."

Lilith patted her head.

"I know you are, little demon. I saw the pheromone levels coming off you from across the room. Practically a love bomb. Oh, and Molly? Try not to be late for your class."

--------------------

Molly slipped into the classroom just as the last echoes of the previous student’s introduction faded. All eyes turned to the door. Professor Hemsley, mid-sip from a teacup, looked up and gave a faint, encouraging nod that screamed ‘please don’t blow my cover or Lilith will punish me.’

“Ah! Our final new arrival!” Hemsley said, a little too loudly. “Class, this is Lady Molly Moriana, our transfer. Lady Moriana, would you do us the honor?”

Molly strolled to the front and turned to face the room, a bright smile on her face.

“Heya, everyone! I’m Molly Moriana from Sunny Beach! I like ocean, you can get crazy tan over there! Oh, by the way, you can just call me Molly! I’m super into, like, cute things, fashion, and… hero stuff, I guess? Totally stoked to be here and make, like, a bunch of new friends! Let’s all get along, ‘kay? Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!” She finished with a playful bow.

A polite applause rippled through the room.

“Thank you, Lady Moriana,” Hemsley said, clearing his throat. “Now, take a seat. There is an empty one next to Mr. Cedric.” 

She pranced down the aisle and stopped beside the empty seat. Instead of just sitting down, she leaned over Cedric’s desk, putting them at eye level. She gave him a fresh, dazzling smile and a playful little wave with her fingers.

“Heyyy, Cedric! Fancy meeting you here! No hard feelings about earlier, ‘kay? We’re desk buddies now! Yoroshiku!” She gave him a close-up, sparkling wink.

Cedric flinched at the sudden proximity and the soft blast of vanilla-sweet scent. He recovered with admirable stoicism, giving a stiff, polite nod without looking at her. “Lady Moriana. A… pleasure.”

The lecture began. Professor Hemsley droned on. It was, to a demon lord’s daughter who’d read the whole library, painfully, mind-numbingly boring. She already knew all of it.

Her eyes drifted to Cedric. He was the picture of academic dedication: back straight, pen moving in neat script, nodding at Hemsley’s dullest points. He was pristine. So, rule-abiding. It was an irresistible target.

About ten minutes in, she slowly slid a small, folded piece of paper onto the corner of his open textbook. It had a cute, drawn cat with a smiley face on it.

Cedric stared at it, then at her. She was looking intently at Hemsley, face perfectly innocent.

He ignored it.

A minute later, another note appeared, this one with “Your pen is about to run out of ink :)” written on it.

He glanced at his pen, it was full. He shot her a look. She met his gaze and slowly mouthed the words 'Just kidding.' Then she grinned and turned back to the front.

Cedric’s ear twitched.

"What is she doing? Take this more seriously. Is she even taking the notes or just messing around?"

But when he glanced over, she was doodling little hearts in her notebook, humming softly.

"Oi! Why did come here if you're not taking it seriously! Ahh! Whatever it's got nothing to do with me. Focus Cedric, don't let some flunky chick distract you. Focus."

Molly’s pencil rolled off her desk with a clatter. She didn’t glance at the floor. Instead, she slowly turned her head toward Cedric.

It was a playful gaze. Her pretty eyes, lined with sparkling peach shimmer, squinted slightly as a wide smile spread across her lips. It was the look of a cat who had just spotted a particularly plump canary. She looked like she wanted to take a little bite out of him. She even licked her lips for effect.

Her focus zeroed in on his leather pen case. She lifted one finger and began to tap the surface of her desk. Tap. Tap. Tap. Each tap was slow and brought her fingertip closer to the border of his table, inching toward his pen case.

Cedric could feel the pressure. The rhythmic tapping synced with his heartbeat. He refused to look, but the tapping didn’t stop. It just got closer.

With a sigh of surrender, he snatched a spare pencil from his case and thrust it toward her without meeting her eyes, placing it on the very edge of her desk.

“Thanks, desk buddy~” she whispered.