Chapter 1: Mysterious Woman

On the large bed of the hotel slept a man and a woman, holding each other tightly in deep slumber.

The blanket was kicked aside, exposing the woman’s fair, porcelain back, which indicated she was completely naked. As for the man, he was fully clothed.

Traces of vomit lingered on the bedsheet. When a sharp ringtone broke the quiet, the man groggy reached for a phone encased in a pink cover and answered, "Hello?"

A middle-aged woman’s voice came through the line: "Who is this? Why are you answering my daughter’s phone?"

"I’m Quillan. Who are you?"

Just as Quillan spoke, the woman beside him let out a sleepy murmur: "Mmm..."

"Is that Norika?" The woman’s anxious voice echoed from the receiver. "Norika-san, don’t you have some explaining to do? Why are you sleeping with a man? Are you two dating?!"

Beep...

Before the woman could finish, Quillan hung up, muttering impatiently, "So noisy! Who is that woman?"

Then, he snapped wide awake. Beside him, Norika Harada woke up at the exact same moment.

"Ah..."

"Ugh!"

A cry of surprise and an exclamation of shock sounded simultaneously. Compared to the woman who gasped and hurriedly pulled the blanket over herself, Quillan was noticeably calmer. Facing Norika Harada’s gaze—a mix of shock and fury—he slowly stood up and asked offhandedly, "Do you... usually sleep naked?"

"Who... who are you?"

Norika Harada asked cautiously, wrapping the blanket tightly around herself. "Why are you in my room?!"

"I should be asking you that!"

Quillan opened the room door—scaring Norika into hiding behind the bed—and pointed at the room number. "See that? 808. This is my room number. You..."

Closing the door, Quillan walked over to the nightstand, unzipped a bag, pulled out a keycard, checked it, and shook his head.

Tossing the keycard in front of Norika Harada, he said, "Sorry, but your room is next door. Thanks!"

"Alcohol really ruins everything!"

Only an idiot—or someone who had never had a drink in their life—would say something like that...

Norika Harada grumbled in annoyance. Catching Quillan staring straight at her, her face flushed red. Realizing she had spent the entire night sleeping next to him like this—where everything that could or couldn’t be seen, and everything that should or shouldn’t be touched, had been seen and touched—she felt an overwhelming sense of grievance and helplessness.

Yet, ironically, she was the one who had gotten drunk and stumbled into the wrong room!

"A teacher’s ID... Couldn’t tell you were a teacher. Harada-san, right? Can’t you tell that I’m a student?" Quillan continued rummaging through her bag, finding a few personal items, including a bottle of pepper spray...

Anyone carrying something like this around has got to be a leftover old maid nobody wants!

Quillan looked at her in exasperation and said, "Hey, you definitely don’t have a boyfriend, do you? Carrying something like this around!"

"Who... who says I don’t have a boyfriend?" Norika Harada retorted defensively. Fairness dictated that while she might be a bit older, she was still very pretty and had a great figure. Thinking of this, she regained a sliver of confidence, wrapped herself in the blanket, and stood up. "Hey, you guy, do I look like someone without a boyfriend?"

"Very much so... Wait, not just ’look like’, you actually don’t!"

Quillan exposed her lie without mercy. "If you had a boyfriend, why would you need this? It means you lack a sense of security. Even though I’m American, I know that while there are plenty of perverts here in Japan, most of them are just acting in AVs. Why carry this unless you feel unsafe? Besides, do you know that even if a girl is as pretty as you, carrying pepper spray everywhere turns guys off? Not because they don’t want to pursue you, but because you don’t give them the chance. Am I right?"

"I..."

Caught in her lie, Norika panicked slightly, her eyes dodging his as she said, "Fine, I admit I lied! But don’t you have any respect for women? And you said you’re a student—what kind of student is as rude as you? Step aside, I... I need to get dressed!"

"Feel free!"

Quillan gave a sly laugh, tossed her clothes—a skirted teacher’s uniform—over to her, and stood his ground, folding his arms with a mischievous look. He clearly had no intention of turning away. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"You... you bastard! Are you really planning to watch me change?"

"Why not? Seen it all anyway, right, Miss Harada?"

"I’m... I’m a teacher! Also, which school do you go to? For an international student like you, I’m going to ask why they even allow you to stay in Japan!"

"Go ahead. Oh right... speaking of school..."

Quillan immediately checked his phone for the time and gasped, "Shoot, I’m late!"

"What?"

Norika Harada panicked too. Throwing caution to the wind regarding Quillan’s presence, she hurriedly pulled on her clothes. Just as she finished, she heard Quillan’s infuriating voice: "Tsk tsk, Teacher Harada, you’ve got a great body—really a feast for the eyes! Haha, alright, I’m off to school. See ya... never!"

Watching Quillan’s smug figure depart, Norika Harada’s expression darkened. She picked up her own phone to check the time, and her face turned green!

It was only 7:40 AM—a full fifty minutes before school started. The hotel was located right in the Bunkyo District of Tokyo, only a ten-minute taxi ride to Saint Sakura High School.

In other words, just to watch her change, that guy had lied about being late!

"Dammit!" Norika clutched her fists in fury.

Having pulled off his prank, Quillan felt much better. He returned his keycard at the front desk to check out. Looking at the few thousand yen left in his pocket, he sighed deeply and called Gavin.

"Hey, how is it going, Young Master? Is life in Japan sweet and vibrant?"

"Vibrant my ass, I’m broke!"

"What? Young Master, you only arrived a few days ago! And you just passed the entrance exam yesterday as a specially recruited student at Saint Sakura High School, getting your tuition and fees waived—how are you broke already? You... you didn’t go to a hostess club, did you? Haha..."

"Screw off! I haven’t found an apartment yet, so I’ve been staying in hotels these past few days. Of course I’m out of cash. Cut the talk and help me figure something out!"

"I really can’t with you. Hey, you’re a rich young master, why ask a middle-class guy like me for money? I’m telling you, I don’t have any cash. Tell you what, I’ll give you my cousin’s phone number. Students studying in Japan can totally support themselves!"

"Tell me more..."

Shouldering his backpack and walking toward Saint Sakura High School, Quillan stayed on the line with Gavin. By the time the call ended, Quillan understood the plan: Gavin suggested he get a part-time job after school to work while studying. Conveniently, Gavin’s cousin worked at a coffee shop on the street next to Saint Sakura. Gavin told him to go see her and guaranteed that as long as he dropped Gavin’s name, she would definitely help.

Gavin’s father was a multinational businessman who married a Japanese woman, which is how Gavin came to be. Technically half-Japanese, Gavin was Quillan’s close brother, and he was the one who taught Quillan Japanese in the first place—knowing the language was precisely why Quillan chose to study in Japan when forced into a corner.

Gavin was a wealthy kid himself, but in front of Quillan, he could only consider himself "middle class."

The reason was simple: Quillan came from an extraordinary old noble family, one whose lineage stretched back centuries. From childhood, he had been raised as the heir and trained in the family’s ancient power-awakening tradition.

Years later, at a gathering of several prominent families, Quillan met Victoria Quinn, the daughter of another distinguished house. She quickly became the talk of her generation. Fierce, fearless, and exceptionally skilled, she could easily overpower most of the boys her age.

But she lost to Quillan.

At the time, Quillan had even teased her about it. He could barely remember what he had said, though. He had only been twelve. What he never expected was for the girl to take the defeat so personally. From that day onward, she followed him everywhere, challenging him to duel after duel.

Eventually, unable to endure her relentless pursuit, Quillan began transferring from school to school. It made no difference. No matter where he went, even to another city, Victoria Quinn somehow managed to find him.

Then Quillan discovered the truth: his family had been secretly telling her where he was.

That was the final straw.

Desperate for a peaceful life, and unwilling to risk being dragged out of bed for another duel in the middle of a good dream, Quillan quietly left America. With Gavin’s help, he eventually made his way to Japan.

Because of that, Quillan even decided to temporarily cut ties with his family.

From then on, he was completely on his own.

Even his living expenses were now his own problem.