Chapter Thirty-Two: The Reason Why Rena Serizawa Cannot Draw People Is Actually...

In the silent living room, two figures sat nestled together on a chair, their attention fixed on the drawing paper set atop the table. As time passed, the outline of a human figure gradually took shape on the page. At last, with the final stroke, a young man wielding twin swords, clad in a black trench coat, emerged upon the paper.

Though it still differed somewhat from what Anhe had drawn, at the very least it now resembled a person.

“It’s finished.”

With a soft exhale, Anhe looked at the drawing before him and released the small hand of Reina Serizawa he had been holding, his palm damp with sweat.

Reina Serizawa, sitting in front of him, remained motionless. She still gripped the HB pencil, now a third shorter, staring dazedly at the picture on the table as if unable to believe she had drawn it herself.

Seeing this, Anhe patted her back, slyly using the gesture to wipe away his sweat, yet maintained a warm smile as he leaned in and whispered into her ear.

“Reina-chan.”

The sudden sound startled Reina Serizawa from her reverie. She jolted in surprise, but as soon as she realized what had happened, rather than scolding Anhe for scaring her, she leapt excitedly from the chair. She stamped her feet and pumped her small fists before her chest, her face alight with a beaming smile.

Watching her, Anhe couldn’t help but laugh as well. Yet in the next instant, he saw Reina Serizawa whirl around and, eyes shining, leap toward him.

Oh no!

Anhe’s heart skipped a beat and he instinctively leaned back, but he didn’t dodge.

The next moment, a delicate figure landed in his arms, the scent of lavender enveloping him.

“All right, all right, calm down,” he said, feeling Reina Serizawa, trembling with excitement like a kitten, squirming incessantly in his embrace. He wrapped an arm around her waist and tried to soothe her.

Reina Serizawa was very slight—that was his first impression. Even now, with the two of them tightly entwined, Anhe could only just sense a bit of softness.

What concerned him more, however, was the persistent wiggling on his thigh…

Anhe swore, if this were his previous life, Reina Serizawa would probably be in tears by now, pounding his chest and begging him to stop.

Shaking off this dangerous thought, Anhe leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Reina-chan, if you don’t get up soon, you might turn into an adult.”

Hmm?

At his words, Reina Serizawa paused, looking up at him with confusion. But almost immediately, her face flushed crimson. As if she’d been pricked by thorns, she jolted back, leaping from Anhe’s lap and stumbling several steps away until her lower back bumped into the desk and she finally stopped.

Even so, her face remained scarlet. She pressed her hands over her eyes, too embarrassed to look at Anhe. Yet before long, she peeked through her fingers, her eyes filled with shy curiosity as she glanced at Anhe’s lap.

The next instant, a wave of heat washed over Reina Serizawa, her face burning as if on fire.

It hadn’t been her imagination! She really had felt something sharp just now!

Reina Serizawa screamed inwardly, while Anhe could only cross his legs, resigned.

It couldn’t be helped; it was a reflex.

Though Reina Serizawa was oblivious, with her delicate frame pressed against him for that brief embrace, Anhe had even begun pondering what to name their future children.

Fortunately, Reina Serizawa’s excitement didn’t last long. In a few minutes, she returned to normal, though her cheeks still glowed red and she avoided Anhe’s gaze.

Anhe took the opportunity to uncross his legs.

Everything had calmed down; there was no need for further concealment.

“All right, Reina-chan, take a look at your drawing.”

Prompted by Anhe, Reina Serizawa, though still shy, nodded.

Their gazes returned to the picture on the table. Reina Serizawa reached out with a trembling hand to gently caress the page.

“All done,” Anhe reassured her. Then, noticing the glasses perched on Reina Serizawa’s nose, he asked curiously, “Reina-chan, what’s the prescription of your glasses?”

At his words, Reina Serizawa withdrew her hand, reluctantly tearing her eyes from the drawing. She opened her mouth to answer, remembered she couldn’t speak, and hastily grabbed a blank sheet of paper from the desk, scribbled something, and held it up for Anhe to see.

“These are my mother’s old glasses. I don’t know what the prescription is, I just wear them.”

“I see. No wonder the style is so mature.”

Anhe nodded, but then a realization struck him. Looking at Reina Serizawa, who wore thick black-framed glasses, he asked in surprise, “You mean you don’t know the prescription?”

Startled by his sudden intensity, Reina Serizawa shrank her neck, but nodded and wrote again.

“When I became nearsighted, my parents were already at work. I didn’t want to go get my own glasses, so I found my mother’s old pair.”

…

Anhe was rendered speechless.

Looking at Reina Serizawa, he reached out and took her glasses from her nose, putting them on himself.

The world spun instantly, his brain recoiling in discomfort.

He quickly removed the glasses, and the room returned to normal.

These had to be at least six hundred degrees, he mused, weighing them in his hand. He glanced at Reina Serizawa, who was now looking at him with confusion, and suddenly an idea occurred to him.

No sooner thought than done, Anhe set aside her previous drawing and laid out a fresh sheet of paper. He rose from his chair and, facing the bewildered Reina Serizawa, spoke.

“Try drawing again—this time without your glasses.”

Though puzzled, Reina Serizawa nodded and sat down.

But as she picked up her pencil and poised herself to begin, she hesitated, unable to proceed.

After a long pause, she turned and looked at Anhe with wide, pleading eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Anhe asked.

Reina Serizawa glanced at the empty seat beside her.

“Do you want me to sit down?” Anhe asked, his expression growing more bemused.

She nodded eagerly, then, as if worried her meaning was unclear, grabbed the sheet they’d been using to communicate and wrote again, blushing furiously before holding it up.

“If you’re not there, I can’t draw.”

Was it because of their earlier success?

Anhe considered this but offered no objection. Taking the vacant seat beside her, he settled in.

Since he didn’t need to guide her hand, Anhe relaxed, folding his arms behind his head as he watched her delicate figure from behind.

Unlike the hourglass-shaped Sawu Amamiya, Reina Serizawa was daintier, her waist so small Anhe guessed he could easily encircle it with both hands…

Reina Serizawa felt the heat of his gaze on her back. Though her cheeks remained crimson, she forced herself to focus and began drawing in earnest.

As time passed, the image took shape: “Kirito” gripping twin swords, dressed in a black coat.

This time, the drawing didn’t go askew. In fact, it surpassed the one they’d created together.

Yet suddenly, Reina Serizawa’s hand trembled and a line strayed from its intended path.

Sensing the unexpected contact at her back, Reina Serizawa’s face, which had only just regained its composure, flushed scarlet once more.

It was happening again…

She bit her lip, calmed herself as best she could, and without daring to look back, returned her attention to the drawing nearly complete before her.

PS: Don’t ask why I was a few minutes late. I revised this chapter three times before posting—the review process was outrageous.