“Maybe that magic circle messed with my brain and let me see special titles or something.”

“I’m not really sure yet… It’s my first time seeing a magic-circle transfer too. I’ll go ask my mom about it tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? Tomorrow’s Friday, you gonna skip class?”

“No need. My mom’s at this school too.”

“Eh? She’s a teacher here as well?”

“She’s not a teacher, she’s the Principal. The principal of this high school is my mom.”

“Eh?!”

The Succubus teacher’s mom is the Principal?

So that means the Principal’s a Succubus too!

I remembered her as a sharp-looking middle‑aged woman with a head of white hair… so that whole look was an illusion?

“The last three principals were all my mom in disguise. And there are lots of other ‘non-humans’ hiding their true forms and living among humans. For all you know, some of your classmates might be like that, Master Cheng.”

If it’s my class, I’d say at least half of them aren’t human.

Feels like I just learned something I really shouldn’t know… I’d better pretend I don’t from now on.

“Right, Lily, there’s something else I don’t get. The titles and names I see have different colors. Do you know what that means?”

The whole color thing had been bothering me for a long time. If this ability came from that magic circle, Lily should know at least a bit about it.

“Colors? You mean the titles you see are in different colors?”

“Yeah. Most people’s are white. Yours is blue… oh, when I first saw it, it was green. Now it’s turned blue.”

“That sounds kind of like the colors we demons and angels use to tell emotions apart.”

“Demons and angels…”

At this point, saying ‘Do those things really exist?’ would be unbelievably stupid.

Come to think of it, there’s even an [Intern Angel] in our class.

But if Lily knows about the colors, that’s a huge relief.

“Yeah, that’s how we tell emotions. There are three normal colors. White means a complete stranger with no ties. Green means a friend you’re on good terms with. Blue is close family you can trust.”

So green really does mean “friend.” Then Jilianbing’s title turning green means she really just wants to be friends with me? But being friends with a serial killer… isn’t that how you end up as an accomplice?

The conclusion’s still the same: I should stay far away from Jilianbing and not get involved with her.

And there’s Bai Yuhui. I don’t even know her, so why is her title blue? She feels something as deep as family for a stranger like me?

That’s seriously weird.

Whatever, I’ll ask about the other colors first.

“What about the other colors? Like gray, black, pink… red and so on…”

“Those are temporary colors that show up depending on the situation. Gray is usually jealousy or contempt, those kinds of negative emotions. When those negative feelings get stronger, it turns into black—hatred, disgust. To put it simply, that’s when their affection for you goes into the negatives.”

“I see…”

So what I felt in the cafeteria really was a wave of ‘envy‑jealousy‑resentment’… I’d better be careful not to tick people off when their titles go gray or black in the future.

“As for pink and red… mm, you actually saw a pink title, Master Cheng?”

“Uh, why? Is there something wrong with pink and red?”

I had a rough guess already, but I really hoped I was wrong…

Yet Lily went on to say something almost exactly like what I’d guessed.

“Not ‘wrong,’ exactly. Pink is romantic feelings. I just figured someone like you, who doesn’t even have friends, definitely wouldn’t have a girlfriend…”

“…I really don’t have a girlfriend…”

“Then it’s probably one-sided feelings for you. Maybe that magic circle’s working overtime?”

The ones with pink titles are… my two little sisters.

Both my little sisters have feelings for me beyond normal family affection… so the “brother‑complex” label in their titles was real.

Crap, I’m actually a bit happy about this… I’m gonna start laughing!

Hopeless. What the hell am I so happy about! It’s great that they don’t hate me or reject me, but those special feelings are nothing but trouble!

I don’t want a season pass to the orthopedic clinic in Germany!

“As for red…”

“It’s killing intent, right.”

“Yeah, it’s killing intent… um… my title turned red just now, didn’t it? I was just—”

“I get it. Anyone would want to kill over something like this.”

Putting myself in her shoes, if I suddenly had a master I had to obey unconditionally, I’d blow up too. I totally understand.

“But…”

“So as an apology, let me stay at your place tonight.”

“Eh?! W‑w‑what! If you try to do anything to me, I’ll explode, you know! B‑but if you order me to help you do it, then it doesn’t count as ‘you doing scummy things to me’… is that the loophole you’re going for? I‑I’m not gonna sit on top of you and serve you or anything!”

Here we go again. What the hell is this Succubus fantasizing about… Honestly, I hadn’t even thought about that loophole. So if I order you to do it, it doesn’t count as scummy behavior? Are you telling me this on purpose…

“I’m kidding. It’s already nine‑thirty, I should head home.”

“Eh? Wait, you’re going back looking like that?”

“Ah…”

Right, my clothes were ripped. Looks like a Succubus really is physically stronger than a human.

“Can’t you fix them with magic or something?”

“There’s no convenient magic like that… and even if there is, I can’t use it. I can count the spells I know on one hand. Take off your blazer and shirt. You can wear my tracksuit jacket home for tonight.”

“They’re torn open like this, can they even be fixed? I think it’d be better to just buy a new set.”

“Relax. I’m pretty confident in my sewing. Then I’ll draw an illusion magic circle on the inside, so no one will see the damage.”

“Alright then, I’ll leave it to you.”

Since Lily was willing to fix my uniform, I was more than happy to accept.

I stripped off my clothes without hesitation and handed them to her.

She stared at me, lips half parted, eyes unfocused, spaced out exactly like I am in class.

“What is it?”

“Ah, nothing, it’s nothing…”

Lily shook her head and gave an awkward little smile.

I shrugged and put on the tracksuit jacket she gave me, zipping it all the way up. The style was unisex, and Lily was taller than me, so it didn’t feel weird to wear. The jacket had a faint, pleasant scent too. Even if you can disguise your face and change your voice, I guess you can’t hide your body’s scent.

Now that I look, this tea‑colored jacket is really old‑fashioned… Does she normally dress like this? What a waste of that face.

Ah, wait. In everyone else’s eyes, Lily still looks like her old self. So this outfit’s probably just to match that image.

“I’m heading home. Lily, don’t worry about that master‑servant contract, just pretend it doesn’t exist. Starting tomorrow, we’re back to teacher and student. That’s it.”

“Mmm…?”

Before she could answer, I slung my bag over my shoulder, waved, and walked out of the library.

I hope saying that makes her feel a little better. I never planned on being anyone’s master anyway… cutting ties is for the best.

…Suddenly I feel like I just passed up something huge.

Forget it. Taking advantage of someone’s weakness isn’t my style.

Because of last night, I was a bit traumatized. I didn’t wander around and just went straight home.

I took off my shoes and walked into the living room with my heart in my throat. If I ran into my sisters right now, I’d probably turn to stone on the spot… But what I saw in the living room was a sloppy woman half‑lying on the couch like a total bum.

She must’ve heard me come in, because she tilted her head back toward the door. When she saw it was me, she lifted a hand in greeting.

“Oh, Juncheng, welcome home.”

My savior!

It’s Mom! Mom actually came home today!

She’d been out every night since last week, and now she was finally back!

Wow, Mother Dearest! You’re like a beacon cutting through the darkness!

This is the first time I’ve ever been so happy you’re home at night!

“Oh, Mom, you’re actually home.”

“Yeah, a coworker covered my shift. I finally get a day off… ahh, I’m dead tired, my shoulders ache~”

Then Mom gave me a squinty look, clearly telling me to massage her shoulders.

Normally I’d use this to demand some kind of payment, but since you pulled me out of hell tonight, Mom, I’ll give you a free massage.

I walked behind the couch and started kneading her shoulders, then glanced at the space above her head.

[Death Makeup Artist]

[An Yue]

Just like Lily said, family names are blue.

But Mom’s title… “Death Makeup Artist,” that sounds badass.

So hers is a job‑type title. Dad’s probably the same. The two of them are workaholics through and through.

Mom isn’t my biological mother; she’s my stepmother.

But there’s no barrier between us. We get along like real mother and son.

My birth mother died right after giving birth to me and Xinran. Mom stepped in and took over the role.

I’m unlucky, because I lost my mother as soon as I was born.

But I’m also lucky, because I didn’t lose a mother’s love.

“Ahh~ I’m alive again~ Your hands are better than the massage chair, Juncheng!”

“Where’s Dad? Pulling another late night?”

“Yeah. I went to see him this afternoon, he’s as busy as ever. I waited outside the operating room three, four hours just to see him. His dark circles are this thick!”

I opened the fridge, grabbed some chilled juice, and said as I poured it into a glass, “Why’d you even go to the hospital?”

“To bring him food. You know how he is—if no one reminds him, he’ll forget to eat. And I had to check if any cute nurses were giving him bedroom eyes.”

“Uh… I don’t think Dad would ever cheat…”

Dad’s even more serious than I am, to the point of being stiff and wooden. Xinran and I both turned out so quiet largely because of him.

I just can’t picture him cheating.

Mom and Dad met at my birth mother’s funeral and stayed in touch from then on. But they didn’t remarry until I was eight… They dragged it out for eight whole years.

“Hmph, your father’s at that age where his middle‑aged charm is peaking. I have to keep an eye on him so those home‑wreckers don’t get their way!”

“…”

So Mom’s not worried about him being unfaithful by nature. She’s guarding against other women.

Which, to be fair, isn’t impossible. Dad’s just as passive as I am… If a strong‑willed woman kept coming at him, he might just give in.

“By the way, Juncheng, come help me with work on Sunday. It’s been funeral after funeral lately, I can barely keep up.”

“Uh? Funeral after funeral?”

That’s… unusual. Did everyone line up to reincarnate at once?

“Yeah, I don’t know what’s going on, but there’ve been way too many funerals.”

Some huge accident? No, in that case they’d hold a joint ceremony. One funeral after another… what an unpleasant bit of news.

It’s not my first time helping out at the funeral home. I did odd jobs there sometimes back in middle school, so it’s nothing new to me.

“Got it. Sunday, right?”

“Mm, Sunday’s fine. I’ll call you then. Anyway, good night~ my precious baby boy, Mommy loves you~”

“Please don’t call me that… I’m not a kid anymore…”

“Precious baby boy”? That gives me goosebumps.

“Hmph, no matter how old you are, you’re still a child in your mother’s eyes!”

“Yeah, yeah… good night. You should go to bed early too.”

Wearing a bitter look, I waved at Mom, then slumped my shoulders and dragged myself up the stairs. Not running into Xinran or Keling was a blessing.

Back in my room, I closed the door and threw myself onto the bed without even taking off my clothes.

My head felt fuzzy, my eyelids kept drooping, and my consciousness was thinning out.

Today seriously drained me… it felt like more had happened in this one day than in the past three months combined.

This long day was finally over…

Man, what a ridiculous day. I’ll just toss all that messy crap to the back of my mind and sink into sleep.

That’s what high school life is about: when you’re tired, when you’re sleepy, you just crash!

Everything else can go to hell.