Chapter 45: Chapter 46: Following in the Footsteps
Tsubaki dressed, leaving Qingqiu feeling odd being the only one undressed.
He picked up his battered, nearly worn-out uniform and casually put it on.
It seemed necessary to have a few more sets of clothes on hand; not only would Rias and the others have their clothes torn in battle, but Qingqiu couldn't escape this fate either.
Rias and the others had their clothes torn in fierce battles, while Qingqiu's were torn before the battle even began...
Everything was ready, just waiting for Sona.
Qingqiu lounged lazily in a chair, gazing at the orange-red sunset outside the window.
"Is it this late already..."
He glanced at the clock, realizing the club activities had ended while he was engrossed in his efforts.
"Qiu, the president should be here soon. Just wait a bit longer."
"Ah... oh, no worries, I'm not in a rush to go home." Qingqiu waved his hand, reassuring Tsubaki.
Having already released his energy, little Qingqiu was now calm.
After Sona used devil pieces a few more times, he probably wouldn't have the energy to train the Takamine sisters at home.
Roughly five minutes passed, and just as Qingqiu was preparing to discuss the physiological differences between men and women with Tsubaki, a flash of blue light signaled the disappearance of the magic barrier, and Sona's slender figure appeared in the club room.
"There's a perfectly good door, and yet everyone insists on teleporting. Just because you can use teleportation magic..." Qingqiu muttered softly, his eyes vacant.
He wasn't really envious, just feeling sorry for the door.
Landing lightly on the ground, Sona wrinkled her nose and frowned, "What is that smell? Were you eating dried squid in here?"
Tsubaki blushed deeply and quickly opened the windows to let in fresh air.
Having been in this environment for so long, she almost forgot about the smell.
Moreover, because the magic barrier enveloped the room, the scent had barely dissipated.
With the evening breeze, the fishy, sweet, and greasy odor quickly diminished.
"President, good afternoon~"
Qingqiu was in high spirits; just moments ago, he had acquired a new talent, making a significant step toward becoming a magic prodigy.
[Copy failed]
[Acquired Talent: Lightning · Remnant]
[Talent Description: Greatly increases affinity with lightning elements, significantly boosts the power of lightning magic]
This was a talent detected from Himejima earlier, and due to Rias' 'timely' arrival, Qingqiu hadn't successfully copied it.
An hour without exchanging body fluids with Akeno, the remnant version of the Lightning talent found its way to Qingqiu.
"Uesugi... Qingqiu-kun, good afternoon."
Anticipating the upcoming transformation, Sona corrected herself, directly using Qingqiu's name.
Qingqiu chuckled and gladly accepted.
Compared to Uesugi, Qingqiu felt more comfortable.
As for nicknames like Qiu or Little Qiu, they were okay after hearing them enough.
Qingqiu stood up, adjusted his expression, and asked seriously, "President, shall we begin now?"
"Yes." Sona took out a row of devil pieces from her bosom, "What role do you want? Pick one."
Though Sona appeared less enthusiastic than Rias, she valued Qingqiu equally.
It's just that her personality was different, and she expressed it differently.
Qingqiu scratched his head; he was ninety-nine percent sure it wouldn't work, but just in case...
After some thought, he chose the castle piece.
Sona also had only one castle piece left, the other occupied by a tall beauty with indigo mid-length hair.
Yura Mikasa was also a first-year at Kuoh Academy, someone Qingqiu had met a few times.
However, her attitude was rather indifferent, so Qingqiu hadn't interacted much.
As a castle piece, Yura was also skilled in martial arts.
"Qingqiu-kun, are you sure you want the castle piece?"
Sona adjusted her glasses, explaining, "With your magical talent, the bishop piece would actually suit you better."
If the castle role specialized in close combat, then the bishop was specialized in magic.
The enhancement in magical abilities was significant.
"President, didn't Rias mention it to you?" Qingqiu asked curiously. "My talent in close combat is even stronger than in magic."
Sona took a moment to ponder and then slowly said, "Rias did mention it in passing, but I thought she was joking..."
Sona had been almost certain that Qingqiu would choose Rias, and she subconsciously dismissed Rias's words as mere boasting.
Moreover, judging by his demeanor and physique, Qingqiu appeared to be a natural-born magician.
Sona wasn't sure why Qingqiu suddenly changed his mind, but it was likely due to her vice president's influence.
After so much time had passed, smelling the same sweet and fishy scent emanating from Tsubaki, Sona finally understood what that peculiar smell was.
Especially as Qingqiu approached, the male pheromones mixed with Tsubaki's scent kept invading her nostrils...
Sona suppressed the strange feelings rising within her, forcing herself not to think about what had transpired here earlier.
She discreetly took two steps back. "Since that's the case, let's begin."
Qingqiu nodded, indicating he was ready at any time.
"Qingqiu-kun, don't resist what's coming next."
Sona revealed her true demon form, and a familiar magic circle appeared beneath Qingqiu's feet.
"Buzz—"
...
Moments later, Qingqiu looked innocently at the black chess piece that had fallen onto the table.
Sona and Tsubaki were both dumbfounded, staring at the demon piece on the table, filled with questions.
Grabbing the piece to examine it, Sona ignored the strange scent on Qingqiu and moved closer, her hands exploring up and down.
Qingqiu wasn't one to be taken advantage of, so he returned the gesture, feeling around as well.
A faint blush crossed Sona's fair face, but due to the angle and the glasses she wore, neither Tsubaki nor Qingqiu noticed.
Seeing Sona continue her exploration unabashedly, Qingqiu didn't hold back either, slipping his hand inside her uniform right in front of Tsubaki.
After a thorough close-range inspection, Sona didn't find anything unusual nor any sign of a sacred gear.
Just as Qingqiu was about to test the depths with his fingers, Sona pulled away.
Who would have thought that the president, though slender, was well-endowed where it mattered.
Putting away his regret, Qingqiu wiped the stickiness from his fingers onto his clothes and kindly suggested, "President, maybe you should try a different piece?"
Unable to find another reason, Sona agreed to Qingqiu's suggestion with a trial mentality.
Subsequently, under Qingqiu's 'kind' persuasion, Sona followed in Rias's footsteps, all the pieces were imbued with Qingqiu's aura.
Sona noticed that the pieces could still be used and even seemed to have improved in quality, so she didn't think much of it.
"Regarding this issue, I'll look into my family's records in the demon realm once I get a break."
With the failure of the transformation, Sona reassured Qingqiu, who looked pale, "There must be a solution. We can hold another ceremony when the time comes."
Qingqiu nodded weakly, "President, I'll head back for today..."
With that, he staggered out.
He wasn't faking it; ever since awakening his dual cultivation ability, he hadn't felt this weak in a long time.
Every time a piece left his body, Qingqiu felt a wisp of his vitality slipping away.
One or two times was fine, but he couldn't withstand the repeated attempts by Rias and Sona.
"Tsubaki, see Qingqiu off."
Watching Qingqiu's frail figure, Sona felt uneasy and arranged for Tsubaki to provide close protection.
Strength and physique could be enhanced through successful transformation, and side effects from failure were quite normal...
Both Rias and Sona thought so.
After all, with such unprecedented phenomena occurring with Qingqiu, post-failure weakness seemed quite ordinary.
Nothing unusual happened on the way back, except that Tsubaki felt a bit embarrassed from the stares of passersby.
The marks on her were too obvious, not to mention the hickeys on her neck.
The dried white fluid on her thighs not only made her black stockings stiff but also left a large white stain.
...
Takamine family entrance.
Takamine Lily accepted Qingqiu from Tsubaki's hands, "Thank you, and you are...?"
"Tsubaki Shinra, Qiu's senpai."
Tsubaki's expression was cold, resembling an aloof goddess.
If it weren't for the strange scent and the post-intimacy marks on her, Takamine Lily might have believed her.
Looking at Tsubaki, Takamine Lily saw a reflection of her former self.
Despite liking Qingqiu and the joys they shared, she maintained a stern facade, constantly reprimanding the mischievous Takamine Ayame.
[•———•——•———•]
𝙥𝗮𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣(.)𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧
✨ • 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟲𝟬+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.