"Do you know him?" Zen turned to Yumi, his eyes filled with curiosity.
Yumi nodded slowly. "Oh, he's in my class. But… I've never really talked to him. If I'm not mistaken, his name is Yuto Nakamura," she answered while trying to recall the face of the man in front of her.
"Ohhh…" Zen nodded, but his eyes were still fixed on Yuto.
Yumi couldn't hold back. With a slightly annoyed tone, she asked, "Why did you separate from the others? Isn't it safer to stay together?"
Yuto flinched, then gave a bitter smile. "Ah, that's… because I—"
Before he could explain, suddenly a beautiful woman with long brown hair appeared from behind him. She wrapped her arm around Yuto's arm affectionately.
"Hey, Yuto! Let's go now!" she called out in a sweet, coquettish voice.
Yumi and Zen exchanged glances for a moment.
"Ah, I think I know the reason," Zen muttered in a flat tone.
"Yeah, I get it too," Yumi sighed inwardly. *He'd rather have fun with girls in this other world than survive together with the others.*
The woman finally noticed Zen and Yumi's presence. "Ah, who are you two?" she asked with a hint of suspicion.
Yuto looked slightly awkward. "Uh… this is Yumi Tachibana. And this one…" He glanced at Zen, who just crossed his arms with a neutral expression. "Ah, I don't know your name either."
Zen shrugged. "Zen."
"Zen, huh?" Yuto looked at him curiously. "You don't look Japanese, but you're fluent in Japanese."
Zen didn't respond, just shifted his gaze elsewhere.
Yumi, feeling that this encounter was getting increasingly awkward, decided to change the subject. "Hey, where are the others? I only heard that you all went to the Capital?"
Yuto shook his head. "I'm not sure either. But it seems like they're busy leveling up by hunting monsters."
"I see…" Yumi glanced at Zen, then back at Yuto. "By the way, how many people were summoned to this world?"
"Thirty people. Including me," Yuto answered.
"Thirty…" Yumi nodded. "And you? Where are you headed?"
"It's time to level up. My level is already 100."
As proof, Yuto opened his *Status* in front of them.
[STATUS]
◆ Name: Yuto Nakamura
◈ **Health: [100/100]
◈ **Stamina: [100/100]
◈ **Level: 100
✧ Abilities:
⤷ Healing, Fire Manipulation, Water Manipulation, Box Manipulation, Earth Manipulation, Wind Manipulation,
"Wow, you have a lot of powerful abilities," Yumi was impressed but also slightly wary.
Yuto smiled proudly. "I've killed a lot of monsters after I got used to the system. At first, I could only manipulate fire, but suddenly I gained new abilities every time I defeated certain monsters. But not all monsters give rewards like that."
"And who's this girl?" Yumi asked, glancing at the girl standing near Yuto.
Yuto gave a small smile before answering, "Ah, her name is Nina. I met her while hunting monsters in the forest. I accidentally saw her badly injured from being attacked by a wild monster, so I helped her." Yuto explained while occasionally glancing at Nina, who looked shy.
Nina nodded slowly, confirming Yuto's story. Her right hand was still bandaged, and there were a few small scratches visible on her left arm.
"By the way," Yuto folded his arms across his chest with a curious expression, "I want to ask something. Are you two planning to do something *adult* here? Are you dating?" he asked, looking back and forth between Zen and Yumi with a teasing gaze.
"Huh?!" Yumi jolted in surprise. Her face turned red instantly. "We're not dating! And why would you think we'd do something *adult* here?!" Yumi answered in a high-pitched voice, clearly annoyed and embarrassed.
Yuto chuckled softly at Yumi's reaction. "Well, you're currently in a love hotel. Look around you," he pointed to a few couples passing through the hotel lobby. "Everyone here is with their partners. Anyone who sees you would probably think the same as me."
Yumi immediately turned to Zen with a demanding look. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
Zen, who had been silent the whole time, let out a long sigh. "Why are you looking at me like that? I had no idea this was actually a love hotel," he answered with his usual expressionless face, "Besides, we're sleeping in separate rooms, right?"
Yumi paused for a moment, considering Zen's words.
"You're right," Yumi finally said, though she still didn't seem entirely convinced.
In her heart, Yumi was thinking hard. *Why should I even worry about that? We've stayed in a hotel before, though it was clearly not a love hotel. But wait a minute, Nakamura said this is a love hotel, right? Does that mean Nakamura and Nina have already done… *that* here?*
Yumi glanced at Yuto and Nina with a suspicious look. Nina's face turned red when their eyes met, and the girl immediately looked down at the floor as if embarrassed.
*No doubt about it, they must have done it,* Yumi thought, growing more certain of her suspicion. Nina's blushing face and shy demeanor made her even more suspicious.
Zen looked at Yumi with his usual expressionless gaze. From his look, it was clear he knew exactly what was going through Yumi's mind. Zen just shook his head slowly,
"Alright then, Nina and I will head out first," Yuto said, breaking the silence. He gently took Nina's hand and led her toward the hotel exit.
After Yuto and Nina disappeared from sight, Yumi snorted in annoyance. "Even though he's still a student, he dares to do that!" she muttered under her breath. "At his age, he should be focusing on his studies rather than things like that!"
"I think it's better if we don't meddle in his personal affairs," Zen replied calmly. "Besides,
"Yeah, I don't really care about him anyway," Yumi said, trying to sound indifferent though her expression still showed disapproval.
The two of them then walked to the reception desk to fill out the room registration forms. The romantic atmosphere of the hotel lobby, with its heart-shaped decorations and soft background music, made Yumi even more flustered,
"I'm sorry, but this hotel is designed for couples, so there are no single rooms," the receptionist said,
"Enjoy your stay at our hotel," the receptionist said in a tone that made Yumi want to sink into the ground.
A few minutes later in the hotel room,
"Huh?! What's going on!... Why is this happening?!" Yumi's mind was now filled with incoherent words, confusion, and embarrassment, all mixed together in her head.