These Dangerous Girls Placed Me Into Jeopardy

That morning, I arrived at the classroom much earlier than usual. I might’ve even beaten the class monitor—who’s usually the first—to school.

And what made the morning truly rare was the fact that both Serena and Cora came to school with me. Normally, the three of us leave the house at different times: I’m always the earliest, then Serena, and Cora last.

In the past, Serena would ride her bike with Cora on the back, but today, they didn’t use the bike at all. Instead, they each clung to one of my arms and walked to school beside me.

Thankfully, it was still early and there weren’t many people around. Otherwise, I would’ve been hit by the full force of the 2.0 enhanced version of the envy-jealousy-hate death beam. I could already imagine half the names in my field of view turning black from resentment.

Ah... what a strange, nostalgic feeling. If I ignored all the complicated details, this really was what a close and harmonious family was supposed to look like, wasn’t it?

After entering the main school building, we split up—Cora went to the first floor, and Serena continued up to the third.

Serena was in Class 2-1, the first room on the third floor. But right after that was Class 2-3. Only our class, 2-2, got shoved onto the second floor, and even then, to the very end of the hallway. That’s why our classroom had the nickname “Room 222.” For the record, there’s also a “Room 111” on the first floor—Cora’s in Class 1-1. And Room 333 is right above us on the third floor, meaning our class is sandwiched between Rooms 111 and 333. Together, they’re nicknamed “Rooms 666.” Back in my first year, I was in 1-1, so I’ve already done time in one of those cursed rooms.

The way they assigned classrooms doesn’t seem to follow any real logic. At least, I never thought our class was anything special... Wait, no—that’s not true! Our class is weird as hell!

Now that I think about it, none of the other classes have those strange hidden titles. It’s only our class!

Did they seriously gather all the freaks into one room!?

Who did this? The principal!?

Come to think of it, the principal’s supposed to be Lily Yang’s mother, right? Which means the principal’s also a succubus, a literal non-human... Did she intentionally isolate all the “abnormal” ones?

No—then why the hell am I in this class!? It’s true I can see all this weird title stuff now, but I couldn’t before!

...This is starting to feel like some kind of major conspiracy. I better stop thinking about it before I get dragged into something I can’t handle.

I’ll just pretend I don’t see anything. Go on living my normal little life... Man, if only there were a way to stop seeing all these titles...

Wait! I can’t see my own title in a mirror, and I can’t see other people’s titles through a glass window. So if that’s the case... wouldn’t wearing glasses solve the problem?

I’ll go get a ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) pair of plano lenses made this Saturday.

While thinking all that over, I arrived at the end of the second-floor hallway and slid open our classroom door.

I thought I’d be the first one there today for sure—but someone had beaten me to it. In fact, two people had.

One of them was the walking headache known as Lillian Ji, and the other was Lan Hua, the classmate with the “Stalker” title. Huh? Her title was showing up gray... and that expression—why does she look so gloomy and resentful?

Why’s she looking like that so early in the morning? Did she have a nightmare or something?

...Whatever. Best not to get involved in other people’s drama. Trouble always finds you when you poke your nose where it doesn’t belong.

I walked over to my seat, dropped my bag on the desk, and pulled out my chair. The classroom was so empty it made our little corner feel strangely isolated.

After ignoring me all afternoon yesterday, Lillian now seemed to have recovered her mood. She smiled at me and greeted me casually.

“Good morning, Ethan~”

I responded flatly.

“Morning.”

She blinked at me, a little surprised at my chill response, then gave me a teasing smile.

“Oh my~! You’re greeting me so openly now. Could it be... you’ve fallen for me?”

“Sure. Totally.”

I rolled my eyes and replied with the most half-assed tone possible.

“Eh?!”

That exclamation didn’t come from Lillian—it came from Lan Hua sitting next to her.

Why the hell is she reacting like that?

Wait... her title’s gray...

If I remember right, gray indicates jealousy, doesn’t it? Which means...

Don’t tell me... Lan Hua’s a lesbian?

That’d actually explain a lot. Think about it:

① Lillian teases me and says I’ve fallen for her.

② I respond nonchalantly.

③ Lan Hua gasps in shock.

Put those clues together and her internal monologue probably went something like: “What?! This bastard just brushed off Sister Lillian like that!? That shameless pig of a man!” — or something along those lines.

Wow, Lillian... Didn’t expect you to be that popular with the girls. (Monotone.)

So my theory from yesterday was spot-on. The girls in class don’t avoid Lillian because they hate her. They avoid her because they admire her too much to approach.

Come to think of it... Lillian’s never dated a guy, has she? Could it be she swings that way too?

Ooh~ Scandalous. The most popular girl in school is a lesbian. That’s newsworthy.

“...You’re thinking something awfully rude right now, aren’t you, Ethan An?”

“Nope. Not at all.”

“Hee~ Is that so?”

“Yup. Totally.”

Still giving her flat responses. With any luck, she’ll get bored and leave me alone.

And as expected, Lillian did stop bothering me... until two classes later.

I was heading out as usual for a break at the Ethan Pavilion. But as I turned the corner near the science building, right by the basketball courts—

—Lillian was already waiting for me.

Holy crap! I swear I saw her sitting at her desk just a few minutes ago! How the hell did she beat me here!?

“Oh my~ What a coincidence, Ethan~”

“Coincidence my ass. You were clearly waiting for me.”

She stepped in close, hands behind her back, staring up into my eyes with those deep black pupils that looked like they could suck a person in.

“You’re right. I was waiting. I want to hear your answer.”

Answer—about the confession yesterday, right? Wow, already pushing for a reply? Whatever. The sooner I get this over with, the better.

“Sorry, but like I said yesterday—I just don’t think we’re a good match.”

“Why reject me so decisively? I was being sincere, you know. That’s so cruel... I could cry...”

“Sincere? Give me a break. That was obviously a lie.”

“A lie? You really think I was lying?”

Tch. Of course it was a lie. I mean, your title’s only green. And that confession of yours sounded like a total joke.

“Yeah, it was a lie.”

“Ugh, how mean... I really do like you, Ethan...”

I expected her to drop the act once I exposed her lie. Thought she’d smirk and reveal her real motive.

But she didn’t!

She actually started crying—tears welling up like a rejected girl with a broken heart!

And then her title turned pink!

W-WHAT!?

Since when did she actually like me!? Did my power bug out or something!?

“Uh...”

Does she seriously like me!? What the hell!?

I froze like a complete idiot. My brain short-circuited. Was I supposed to comfort her now? And if she’s being sincere... should I accept her confession? But then again, her title is—

My thoughts were spinning out of control again.

“I-I just thought that, um...”

“Fooled you~”

...Huh?

“Hehehe~ So as long as I show real emotion, you can’t tell lies apart, huh, Ethan~?”

Her title instantly reverted to green. The tears vanished as she wiped her face, and in three seconds flat she went from crying to smiling.

WHAT THE HELL!?

This girl can manipulate her emotions on command!?

She’s terrifying!

“Aw, you finally showed a different expression~”

“......”

I never should’ve talked to her. I should’ve just ignored her from the start!

Fuming, I stormed past her toward the pavilion.

Lillian trailed behind me, sounding way too cheerful.

“Aww, don’t be mad~ Come on, I’ve got something to show you~”

Please don’t say pervy things with such a pretty face!!

No. Don’t respond. She’s trying to bait me into talking.

“It’s a photo~ I think it might be important to you, Ethan~”

...A photo?

Hah. Probably some embarrassing childhood pic or something. That kind of stuff doesn’t bother me.

I don’t have any real skeletons in my closet. I never had a cringe phase, never did anything shameful. So even if it’s a baby pic, I don’t care.

“Aww, what a shame. In that case, maybe I’ll send it to your dad. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.”

My... dad? Why him?

Wait... Is it a family photo or something?

Like she read my mind, Lillian kept talking, each word tugging harder at my nerves.

“Maybe I should give you some hints~ First clue: it was taken in the bathroom.”

The bathroom...

“Second clue: it features you and your little sister~”

Me and my sister...

“Final clue: position—reverse cowgirl.”

WHAT THE HELL KIND OF CLUE IS THAT!? Wait, is that just describing Serena hugging me from behind!?

Freeze—

The image flashed in my brain, cold sweat beading on my forehead.

I instantly spun around and grabbed Lillian’s wrist to see the photo.

“WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL IS THIS PHOTO!?!?”

The second I saw it, my brain stopped functioning. It felt like my skull was being kneaded into mush by a vampire’s claws. Full-blown mental breakdown.

In the photo, I was shirtless, pants down, and almost completely naked. And behind me, Serena was hugging me—hand on my...

AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!

They even put censor mosaic! But it totally looks like—

WHY THE HELL IS THERE WHITE LIQUID!? That has to be edited! I don’t pee white!

It looks like Serena’s jerking me off, goddammit!! Like some depraved brother-sister fetish scene!!

“WHERE THE HELL DID YOU GET THIS!?”

I’d completely lost it.

The worst possible blackmail material had been captured in HD. I was on the verge of collapse.

Lillian, pleased with my reaction, handed the photo to her other hand and pressed it to her lips.

“Well~ after I got home yesterday, I had one of my family’s maids investigate your house. I didn’t expect such a fun little surprise~”

“Your maid can infiltrate and spy!?”

And not even get caught!? That’s not a maid—that’s a ninja!

“Heehee~ Never mind how she did it. The real problem... is this photo, don’t you think?”

“That’s just—!”

“Just what~?”

“Just...!”

Think, Ethan! Come up with a plausible excuse!

I stood speechless. Lillian covered her mouth with a fake-sorrowful expression.

“Ai-yah~ What is the world coming to? For a blood-related brother and sister to engage in such filthy...”

“GIVE IT BACK!”

“Hehehe~ You want it? Come and get it~”

I lunged forward to snatch it. Rationally, I knew grabbing it wouldn’t help—if she had the original, she could print infinite copies. But I wasn’t thinking straight.

Even worse—I missed.

She dodged my hand effortlessly and even tripped me. As I stumbled forward, she grabbed my wrist and pulled me back with the momentum.

I ended up leaning backward—head resting against her chest.

I looked up, gulped. She looked down, licking her lips.

“Well then, you understand now, don’t you... Ethan An? Or should I say... Ethan-kun~?”

A demon. She’s a demon.

I’d just been caught by a classmate with the ultimate blackmail.

That ominous feeling I had yesterday—it came true way faster than I expected.

I could already see my future—bleak and filled with coercion.

With a pained heart, I closed my eyes... and gave in.

“...At your service, my lady...”

The future... looks so damn dark.