Chapter 64: The Truth Beneath the Towel

In truth, Ink Crystal harbored a slight suspicion.

Had Ox Mask truly perished?

Logically, she should have placed her trust in Lin Han. Teacher Lin was, after all, the person she trusted most, their relationship the closest she knew. If he claimed to have eliminated Ox Mask, then it should undoubtedly be true.

Yet, it was precisely because of her profound understanding of Teacher Lin, and the intimate bond they shared, that she sensed he was lying.

It was a truly contradictory sensation.

Ink Crystal inwardly questioned herself, believing she was a rather intelligent person.

If Teacher Lin’s relationship with her had been merely ordinary, a typical teacher-student dynamic, she felt confident that as a magical girl, she could have easily arrived at the most rational conclusion.

But was their connection truly just that of a teacher and student?

Certainly not.

They were close friends.

In a sense, Ink Crystal trusted Lin Han even more than her own parents—a fact that explained why her parents had entrusted her care to him.

Thus, she found herself in a rare state of bewilderment.

She even considered not raising the question at all, wondering how Teacher Lin would respond if she did.

And so, the magical girl Ink Crystal once again trespassed into his bathroom.

Even if Teacher Lin had grown wiser this time and locked the door, he still underestimated the power of a magical girl! What exactly was a magical girl?

No matter how much Ink Crystal tried to deny it, she was still touched by the words “magic.”

Moreover, she was inherently intelligent. It was hardly a difficult task to simply refine crystals, peer through the keyhole, and pick the lock.

“Ink Crystal!”

Lin Han hadn’t anticipated that even with the door locked, Ink Crystal would still rush in, wrapped only in a bath towel.

While she was undoubtedly wearing a swimsuit she’d acquired from who-knew-where, Ink Crystal had indeed grown increasingly brazen lately! Though, to be fair, this was her home!

Still, this was simply too much!

Ink Crystal approached Lin Han with a mischievous smile. “Doesn’t Teacher Lin like it?”

She blinked. “Living in your cute magical girl student’s home, where I cook for you, help you upgrade your equipment, and even come in to scrub your back while you bathe~ This is the dream of countless boys. Does Teacher Lin still have any complaints?”

“If even this isn’t enough to satisfy you, Teacher, then your demands are far too high! It wouldn’t be wrong to call you insatiable!”

“While you make it sound like I’m getting a great deal, you aren’t a true beautiful magical girl in the real sense!”

Ink Crystal’s eyes widened. “What?! Does Teacher Lin actually have his sights set on my girlfriend?!

“…That’s not what I meant.”

Lin Han, who had been perfectly justified in his stance, faltered the moment Liu Xingyue was mentioned. He had deliberated for a long time over whether to tell Ink Crystal about the previous incident, but ultimately couldn’t, having promised Liu Xingyue to keep it a secret.

Revealing it to Ink Crystal would go against his principles, not to mention potentially causing conflict between Ink Crystal and Liu Xingyue, which was unacceptable.

“What kind of expression is that?”

Ink Crystal bristled, taking two or three quick steps to stand directly in front of the bathtub. “Teacher Lin, you’re not really interested in Liu Xingyue, are you?”

Lin Han’s expression, no matter how one looked at it, clearly held a hint of guilt.

This immediately sent a wave of panic through Ink Crystal’s heart.

Although she and Liu Xingyue weren’t truly a couple in the conventional sense, they currently held the title of girlfriends. If Teacher Lin liked Liu Xingyue… wouldn’t that mean Teacher Lin was the kind of person like Mengde?

Would that imply that for Teacher Liu to make Lin Han like her, she would first need to find someone to marry to pique his interest?

That was simply awful! She didn’t want her Teacher Lin to have such a perverse fetish!

Besides, what opportunity would Lin Han have had to fall for Liu Xingyue?

In terms of looks, Amethyst and Ink Crystal were certainly no less attractive than Emerald! And among the magical girls she’d recently encountered, Ink Crystal found her own battle dress to be the most alluring.

Teacher Lin had indeed reacted when she had approached him before.

What was so special about Emerald anyway?

Even if they were to assume, for argument’s sake, that Teacher Lin and Liu Xingyue were mutually enamored, what then? Both of them were rather old-fashioned people; what possibility was there of them actually getting together?

At this thought, she decided she must be overthinking things.

“What are you saying now? Why would I be interested in Liu Xingyue?”

Lin Han tried his best to remain calm, speaking as nonchalantly as possible. “Stop saying such ridiculous things. And! Don’t come so close! I’ll throw you out!”

“Oh? Is that so? Teacher Lin, I must inform you beforehand, I’m wearing absolutely nothing today~”

“…”

“Oh? Teacher Lin, I, Ink Crystal, truly dislike that look in your eyes~”

Staring into Lin Han’s eyes, Ink Crystal said with a smile, “That look seems to suggest you don’t believe me.”

She then slowly turned her back. “After all, a bath towel is quite thin. Letting Teacher Lin touch me directly might not be ideal, but… you could use your fingers to gently trace my back and see if you can find anything like a bra strap.”

“Gulp!”

Lin Han swallowed hard.

Lin Han swallowed heavily.

He gazed at Ink Crystal’s body, wrapped in the bath towel. Her back appeared perfectly flat beneath the fabric; if she were wearing anything underneath, it would be quite noticeable.

Had she truly just walked in with only a towel?

What was she planning?

Trembling, he extended his hand. His fingers landed on Ink Crystal’s back, then slowly slid downwards.

“Mmm-hmm~”

The girl let out a soft, melodious moan.

“You, you can’t make noises like that!”

Ink Crystal turned her head slightly, her cheeks flushed. “This, this is even more… shameful than I imagined…”

“Then why are you doing this…”

But Lin Han was certain now: this girl had indeed entered the room with nothing but a bath towel.

She was playing with fire! If it were anyone else, they would surely have been ‘rectified on the spot’ right here!

It was a testament to his own relatively strong willpower!

Ink Crystal turned back around, her face flushed as she asked, “Why I’m doing this, doesn’t Teacher Lin know in his heart?”

“What?”

‘What should I know?

Is it not that you like me?

That makes no sense! Aren’t you and Liu Xingyue girlfriends, and haven’t you agreed that if you still feel good about each other later, you’ll genuinely start dating? When I spoke with Liu Xingyue before, she seemed to have good feelings for you too…

What do you mean by this?

My girlfriend is wearing a bath towel, coming to me, blushing like this, looking at me with such tender affection. What exactly are you trying to say?

What am I supposed to know?!’

Lin Han truly felt that his days as a teacher were numbered. Moreover, Rainbow Jade might even come knocking, declaring his sins as a “subject of observation,” and then directly dispatch him!

“Teacher seems very confused~ Even when I say this, Teacher doesn’t understand what I’m saying~”

Ink Crystal’s words seemed to carry some hidden meaning, but Lin Han didn’t quite grasp it.

“How dull~ Teacher, you’re a genius scientist, a psychological counselor. Logically, whether it’s science or the human heart, Teacher Lin should understand them very well. So why are you so slow?”

‘Hey, why are your words getting more and more ambiguous, more and more suggestive? Are you confessing to me?’

Lin Han was utterly overwhelmed.

Just as he was struggling to cope, Ink Crystal’s bath towel slipped.

Her bare, white body suddenly entered Lin Han’s line of sight.

He immediately closed his eyes.

“Teacher Lin, you saw it, didn’t you?”

‘I did not.’

He heard Ink Crystal’s light chuckle, and then the girl directly entered the bathtub.

‘Whether he saw it or not, it doesn’t matter. I did it on purpose anyway.’

Lin Han’s body began to tremble.

Ink Crystal today was inexplicably strange. If past Ink Crystal had been teasing Lin Han, today felt like she was serious, determined to engage in *that kind* of act with him.

“Teacher… this is torture, you know~”

“Torture?”

“Why use that word?”

Amidst the rippling water, the girl’s soft body had already made contact with his.

“Teacher, your body seems very excited~ How long can you endure? If you can’t hold back~ then our relationship will undergo a huge change~ As a weak magical girl, I’m certainly no match for Teacher Lin. If Teacher Lin were to do something here, I could only silently accept…”

“Ink Crystal, this is meaningless for both of us! It will only lead to an outcome where everyone suffers!”

“Then, Teacher Lin, why won’t you tell me the truth?”

“The truth?”

After Lin Han asked this question, Ink Crystal fell into an eerie silence.

The water rippled in circles with their breathing, and the entire bathroom suddenly became incredibly quiet, as if only the two of them existed in the world.

“Sigh!”

He heard Ink Crystal’s faint sigh.

“Teacher Lin, did you really kill Ox Mask?”

Lin Han’s eyes snapped open.

His gaze met Ink Crystal’s, which were now incredibly close. Ink Crystal had moved so near without him even realizing it.

The girl’s eyes locked with his; his gaze was captured in that moment, unable to move away even if he wished to.

“So that’s it—that’s why it’s torture…”

“Yes~ Teacher Lin, I think I’ve been very good, haven’t I~ I haven’t done anything to let Teacher Lin down~ And, I’m a magical girl too. Although I’m not very powerful, I am a magical girl. If Teacher Lin has any plans or anything, why don’t you tell me? Why do you lie?”

Her eyes held a mix of sadness and fear.

“Will I be a burden to you, Teacher? Am I useless to you?”

She pressed herself so close to Lin Han.

“Then… although I’m not a true girl, you are a true man, aren’t you, Teacher? Will you also react to this body of mine? Can it be considered a kind of value?”