As the four walked upstairs, a faint breeze brushed over their skin.
"Did anyone leave the windows open?" Regea asked, opening the door to the guest room.
Inside was a large bed with a bathroom right next to it.
"Doesn't seem like it," Nox replied, pointing at the closed windows before them.
Lina mustered him with a piercing glare, trying to read his thoughts.
"You guys should go to sleep too. We want to earn some points tomorrow," she suggested.
"Alright."
"Good luck," Lina whispered into Beatrice's ear.
"T- Thanks," she replied, clenching her fists in a determined manner.
As soon as the door to their room closed, Lina stepped closer to Nox. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she pushed him onto the giant bed.
"What are you doing?" he asked, gasping for air.
"What's with that devious plan of yours?"
"It's not my plan. It's Beatrice's."
"Oh, so she's making the first move?" she asked, letting go of Nox's throat.
"With a bit of encouragement."
"But Regea is so shy. Same as you," she said, making herself comfortable on his stomach.
"I helped them a bit with my ice magic."
"And I'm not shy," he added, lifting her body into the air.
Lina's eyes widened for a brief moment as their positions changed. Without resistance, her hand was pinned above her head.
"Oho. You're fighting back?"
A challenged but devious smile played on her lips, sending shivers down his spine.
-You have received Light's Sacrifice
"You would be shy if I wasn't the one making the moves," she said, grabbing his other hand.
With a strong pull, Nox was pulled onto Lina's chest."
"How naughty."
A twisting movement changed their positions again, pinning him against the bed.
"Stealing my strength?" he asked, his body relaxing as he admitted defeat.
"It's mine too now."
She absently combed through his hair. The moonlight shone through the large windows, Nox's silver glow merging with her gold.
"I can live with that," he said, closing his eyes with a warm smile.
***
As Lina closed the door, she left Beatrice and Regea standing in the hallway.
"My room is just around the corner," Regea said, stepping away.
His room was rather small compared to the house. Faintly glowing chandeliers bathed his desk in white light.
A small bed stood in the corner. It was surrounded by shelves filled with plant books.
However, that wasn't what struck them first.
"Brrrr. W- Why is it so cold?" Regea whined, desperately checking the windows.
"Did Nox really have to make it this extreme?" Beatrice thought, her body trembling.
"I hope you have a blanket," she said, letting out a nervous laugh.
"Do you have clothes to sleep in?" Regea asked.
Beatrice looked down at her dress and then back up at him with a helpless gaze.
"Y- You can have one of my shirts. But it's a bit big."
"Oh, thanks."
Regea took a black shirt and long pants from the wardrobe, handing them to her.
"I- I'll change on the other side. You can stay here," Beatrice said.
"We have bathrooms though."
"No, it's okay. There's a shelf between us after all."
She quickly rushed away before Regea could disagree.
He changed into his pyjamas, trying to ignore the rustling sound behind him.
"Why is it so cold? We can't sleep like this," he murmured. His gaze went to the only blanket in the room, then back the shelf.
"A- Alright, then let's sleep," a voice rang out.
Beatrice stood right in front of him. The normally short sleeves covered her entire upper arms. Regea's pants were far too long for her short legs, giving her a penguin-like appearance.
"What? Ah, y- yes," Regea stuttered, jumping onto the bed.
However, no matter how much they wrapped the blanket around their bodies, the cold would not leave them.
"R- Regea?"
"Yes?" he replied, lying at the very edge of the bed.
Beatrice swallowed, trying to stop her hands from shaking.
"I'm cold. Could you perhaps come closer?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Regea moved toward the middle, the back of his head now pressed close to Beatrice's face.
"Remember what his mom said. He just needs someone to guide him," she thought, closing her eyes for what was about to happen.
Regea's eyes widened as two soft hands wrapped around his chest. Beatrice's small body clung to him, her warm breath tickling his neck.
"Please don't move," she thought, pressing her lips together.
However, her hope was crushed as he freed himself from her grip.
"It was futile. What was I even thinking?"
Tears began to form in her eyes. The cold immediately returned; more aggressive and artificial as if mocking her foolish plan.
"I shouldn't have done… huh?"
Her face turned into a mixture of surprise and relief as two large hands gripped her waist and lifted her into the air.
She landed on top of Regea, who wrapped his arms around her.
"It should be better now," he whispered, pulling the blanket over them. He didn't sound nervous, which surprised her even more.
"Y- Yeah," she replied, wiping her tears away.
"Can we do this more often?" she asked, her gaze filled with newfound courage.
Regea's hands froze for a moment before gripping her again. Their faces were now right in front of each other.
"Of course," he replied, his words like birds chirping on a summer morning.
Beatrice could feel every one of Regea's movements as his breathing gradually became steady.
The cold didn't matter anymore.
As the first rays of sunlight entered the small room, Regea found himself clinging to Beatrice.
For a moment, he just lay there, watching her sleeping face.
His finger brushed over her soft lips, imagining how they would feel on his.
"No, what am I thinking," he murmured, trying to restrain himself.
As his face hovered close to hers, Beatrice's eyes snapped open.
"Good morning," she yawned, still half asleep.
"I- I'm sorry," Regea said, trying to move away.
"Sorry for what?" she asked, gripping his shirt and pulling him back.
"I can go a bit more offensive now, right?" Beatrice thought, throwing the blanket aside.
Suddenly, the door swung open and two women stood before them.
"Guys! There's breakfast-"
Lina stared at them with wide eyes.
"Wow, it worked better than I thought," Loli said behind her.
Before the two could react, Lina grabbed the camera from the nearby desk.
"Gotcha!" she shouted as a small, colored photo printed out.
"W- What are you doing here?" Regea asked, his ears burning red.
"You don't have to be embarrassed. It's normal for teenagers," Loli replied, pointing from one to another.
"Where's Nox?" Beatrice asked quickly.
"He's still lying in bed," Lina sighed.
"It might be because I stole his shirt while he was sleeping."
The white shirt was too small, revealing part of her flat stomach.
After everyone stumbled out of bed, they sat at the large dining table. The sun had just started to rise, diving the room with the kitchen and the couch in a golden light.
"Did you have a good night?" Nox asked, slicing his cheese with small ice crystals.
"Y- Yes, but it was really cold!" Regea complained.
"Really? That's unfortunate," he replied with an innocent expression.
"I hate to break it to you, but we should return to the academy. All the missions will be taken soon," Lina said.
She grabbed a banana from a bowl and stuffed them in her new leather jacket. It was quite handy to have an item of clothing for every occasion in the dimension bag.
"Alright, then let's go," Regea said, lifting his new, special shelf in the air.
"I always forget how high his strength stat is because he doesn't fight in close combat," Nox thought.
A high strength stat didn't just mean more strength, it meant a better defense and thicker skin as well, which was quite useful to him.
When Regea packed the shelf in his dimension bag, it stretched awkwardly before disappearing.
As the group walked toward the entrance, Lina dragged Beatrice aside.
"Girls support each other, right?" she whispered, pulling out a set of clothes.
"What is that?"
"Regea's worn clothes," she said with a mischievous smile.
"No! That's so perverted!" Beatrice shouted, covering her eyes.
"Is something wrong?" Nox asked, turning to them.
"No, no, just girl stuff. Keep walking."
"I can't do that. Imagine if it were the other way around!" Beatrice whispered.
"You would like that, wouldn't you?" Lina replied bluntly.
"…"
"I knew it."
Lina gave her a brief pat, then pointed at Regea who put on his shoes.
"Only pants and shirt," Beatrice said.
"This sweater too. For the coming winter."
"Deal."
"You won't regret your decision," Lina said, pressing the photo from before and the clothes into Beatrice's hands.
"Thanks," she replied with an overly serious face.
"Come on, girls!" Regea shouted from ahead.
"Yes!" Beatrice answered, placing her new treasures in her bag.