Finding Stardust

Emma saw that they all looked reluctant to take a drink from the refrigerator. So she decided to go to the kitchen to get a cold drink for herself and set an example. She thought they shouldn't think too much and just do what Marlowe said.

"Thank you for the drink, Sir," said Emma, ​​holding up the cold drink bottle in her hand. 

She wouldn't stand on ceremony with Marlowe because she knew he was not used to it.

Seeing Emma enjoying a cold bottled drink, the other girls swallowed hard. Everyone suddenly became thirsty. Moreover, they had been walking around the campus area under the hot sun.

Finally, getting rid of their shyness, they went to the kitchen and took their drinks.

"Thank you, Sir," they said to Marlowe in turn. The man just nodded. He was still shirtless, and the girls felt so blessed they could enjoy their cold drinks while watching such hotness.

Ahh ... they were so lucky to have this young, dashing man as their teacher. Compared to the other teachers, who were mostly middle-aged and ugly, he was such a welcomed change. Now, the girls all wondered whether Marlowe had a girlfriend or not.

If they looked at his home, it was so clean and tidy. They would feel like there was a woman here who maintained it and kept it spotless. But to their knowledge, Marlowe came here with only his pets and no wife.

Emma just rolled her eyes when she heard the thoughts shared by her classmates, who all fantasized things about Marlowe. She thought to herself that Marlowe was lucky he couldn't read minds because if he did, he might have felt awkward knowing what these girls were thinking about him.

Some of these girls were having perverted thoughts about the man that involved undressing him and pinning him to the bed.

"How's Lyra's condition?" asked Emma when all her friends had their drinks. 

"She is getting better. I want to ask you to give me the plant from last night. It looks like the wound healing properties in the plant you gave her worked really well," commented Marlowe.

"Oh, I will do that," Emma replied.

Marlowe signaled for Emma to follow him, and he walked over to the bed where Lyra was sleeping. Lyra raised one ear with joy when she realized Marlowe was coming with Emma.

"See? She is better," said Marlowe, stroking Lyra's back affectionately.

The other girls joined in to see Lyra and let out sighs when they saw her injury.

"Gosh .. who is so heartless to hurt this beautiful Macata," Akane said angrily. Emma immediately understood that Macata was the name for the animal she always called bunny-dog.

She made up her own name since the animal looked like a dog with really long ears like a bunny. Now, she knew it's actually called Macata.

"Ahh ..." The girls immediately linked the fact that they were not allowed to enter the forest with the attack on Lyra and understood that something bad had indeed happened.

Meanwhile, Emma just rolled her eyes and chuckled when she heard Marlowe's words. This guy just didn't care about the rules, huh, she thought in amusement.

The school had deliberately hidden this information to not scare the students, but instead, Marlowe just let them know so casually.

Perhaps he thought that these students were already adults and should be told the truth so that they would act more wisely and avoid the forest. Because usually, when humans were told not do to something without proper explanation, they would actually feel curious and do it anyway.

Lulu, who had just woken up from her nap, immediately dashed toward Marlowe and rubbed her body against Marlowe's feet. The uwauwa, whose body was covered with long hair like a ball of fur, seemed to love Marlowe very much, and everyone could see it.

"Ahh .. so cute," the girls were all in awe. They rarely saw this animal in Akkadia because it came from Taeshi, another kingdom so far away from here.

Some tried to crouch down and stroke her head, but suddenly from behind the ball of fur they heard a fierce growl. The next second, a pair of terrifying fangs appeared and threatened them so fiercely.

Several of the girls fell to their knees, while others jumped in surprise. This Uwauwa did look very cute, but if she got angry, she could instantly turn into a monster.

Emma was shocked at this sudden change. At first, she thought Lulu was a tame, domesticated animal who was very cute and adorable. Apparently, Lulu could turn vicious. Unconsciously, she down her drink in one gulp. So terrifying!

Marlowe only raised an eyebrow at the sight of the girls all scrambled in panic. He coldly said, "She doesn't like you."

His tone was flat and casual, but the words were soul-crushing. Emma wondered if there was a woman who could stand Marlowe. Maybe there wasn't any. Ah, that must be why he was still alone even though many women like him physically since they thought he was handsome and sexy. Once they knew him better and experienced that sharp tongue of his, they fled.

"I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to bother her," Akane said hastily. She was one of the girls that Lulu just threatened. Her face was pale, and she looked embarrassed.

Lulu raised her face toward Marlowe and grunt something. However, this time, her voice sounded cute, the opposite of her treatment of the girls. She then shook her long fur, and they could see a pair of round sparkling eyes from behind her fur.

Lulu then walked over to Emma and rubbed her head against her feet, just as she had been rubbing her head against Marlowe's feet.

"Lulu likes her," Marlowe said as a-matter-of-factly. 

Lulu didn't like you. Lulu liked that girl.

Ouch.

Even without Marlowe saying anything, everyone could also see that Lulu hated them and liked Emma. Their question now was, did Lulu's owner like Emma too?

As if reading their minds, Marlowe then explained. "What I mean is, you can't force your affection. Animals will choose who they like."

"Oh ..." Everyone present finally nodded in understanding.