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Watching Kojou lying on the ground clutching his head, Asagi felt an overwhelming sense of worry.

After all, no matter how you looked at it, Kojou was her good friend, even if he had changed a bit lately.

August observed the scene quietly, mildly surprised by the power of the "Fourth Primogenitor." Setting everything else aside, the ability to enhance one's strength by devouring others' memories was, in a word, overpowered.

A vampire's power stemmed from their "innate accumulated time." To amass a significant amount of it, one typically had to survive for a long time and feed on blood to build it up.

But as the Fourth Primogenitor, created to kill a legendary figure, he didn't have the luxury of time to accumulate it naturally.

So, he was granted this ability—to fill his "innate accumulated time" by seizing the memories of others. This power allowed even a newly born Fourth Primogenitor to instantly rival or surpass the might of the other three great primogenitors.

This was the true reason the Fourth Primogenitor was called the "strongest primogenitor." His power, in a sense, had no limits.

However, this ability had barely been used outside of one specific event in the past, which left August disappointed more than once. The most overpowered ability was perpetually locked away, unused.

"Kojou, are you okay?"

"I'm fine~"

Kojou recovered quickly, though. It wasn't the first time this had happened.

Asagi looked at him, her heart heavy with disappointment. Kojou was definitely hiding something from her.

This wasn't the first time she'd noticed. Over the past six months to a year, her sharp instincts had picked up on something off about him.

But she didn't feel it was her place to pry, so she'd kept quiet.

Meanwhile, Kojou hadn't noticed the shift in Asagi's demeanor. His attention was fixed squarely on August.

Even he hadn't fully realized it, but his hostility toward August stemmed from the way his sister, Nagisa, had grown close to him—especially after she started calling August "big brother." That had sparked an increasing resentment in Kojou.

After all, even Nagisa only called him "Kojou-kun," not something as familiar as "brother."

"Kojou, you're kind of disappointing me like this," August said.

"You jerk~"

Kojou instinctively wanted to snap back, but his head still throbbed uncomfortably, forcing him to stifle a groan.

He didn't let it show, though. Glaring at August, he felt a deep loathing. If he could, he'd drive August out of here for good, keeping him far away.

"Nice look in your eyes. That's the spirit, Kojou. You need to have the resolve to kill me—otherwise, this is just boring."

"You—"

Kojou opened his mouth to retort but caught sight of Asagi nearby and swallowed his words.

Asagi didn't know his true identity, and he didn't want her to find out. They were friends, but if she learned he was a vampire—let alone the Fourth Primogenitor—he had no idea how she'd react.

August noticed Kojou's little maneuver and let out a mocking scoff. What an idiot.

In the original story, this was exactly how the rift between Kojou and Asagi had formed. Everyone else seemed to know Kojou's true identity—newcomers included—yet she was the only one left in the dark.

That kind of secrecy, once exposed, would leave anyone feeling betrayed and excluded.

Seeing all this, August had lost interest in dealing with Kojou further. Here at Saikai Academy, he couldn't make a move anyway—not after that warning from a certain teacher.

If a fight wasn't in the cards, there was no point in provoking Kojou further. With no medium available anymore, all Kojou could rely on was his golden lion familiar.

"You're running out of time, Kojou. Before my patience wears thin, get stronger and try to impress me. Otherwise, when the end comes, destruction's the only path left."

Ignoring Kojou and Asagi, August turned and walked away.

Unlike Kojou, August wasn't about to play coy with Asagi. He wouldn't outright reveal Kojou's identity, but he certainly wouldn't cover for him either.

"Damn that guy~"

Hearing August's words, Kojou cursed under his breath and glanced at Asagi.

To his confusion, though, Asagi acted as if she hadn't heard a thing. After giving him a brief look and a sigh, she turned and left too.

"Asagi, where are you going? No more practice?"

Yes, practice. Kojou was only here because someone had set him up to play tennis with Asagi as a doubles partner.

"No, I'm not feeling well. I'm heading back."

"Oh, okay. Rest up."

"Don't you have anything to say to me?"

"Uh… drink more water?"

That single sentence killed the conversation dead. A flash of displeasure crossed Asagi's face.

Without wasting another word, she turned and stormed off. Despite wearing a pink tennis outfit, she looked like an angry little bird flapping away.

Kojou watched her go, utterly baffled. He had no idea what had set her off this time.

After leaving the back campus, Asagi instinctively glanced behind her. Seeing no sign of Kojou, she let out a self-mocking laugh. What had she been expecting? That blockhead wouldn't chase after her.

She returned to the locker room, changed into her school uniform, and, still in a foul mood, decided to head home alone.

But just as she stepped out of Saikai Academy's gates, she spotted a familiar figure across the street at a café—August.

He was sipping coffee, a massive mousse cake sitting in front of him.

This wasn't one of those pre-sliced cakes you'd see in a display case—it was a full-sized, oversized mousse cake.

August was digging in like a seasoned foodie, sipping his coffee and eating the cake with the air of someone who'd won at life.

Normally, that wouldn't stand out, but a cake like that wasn't on the menu at this shop.

Which left only one possibility: August had brought it himself.

For some reason, Asagi found herself pushing open the café door and stepping inside.

"Miss, what coffee would you like?"

"I'm here to meet someone."

"Alright."

Asagi walked in and headed straight toward August.

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