Chapter 78: Bking Time's Here!

Rei Furuya and Jinpei Matsuda's gazes met in mid-air, and it seemed as if invisible sparks were crackling in the air.

After a few seconds of stalemate, Matsuda Jinpei clicked his tongue and looked away first, no longer daring to meet Furuya Rei's unusually serious and determined purplish-gray eyes that made him feel a little uncomfortable. Matsuda Jinpei scratched his head somewhat unwillingly, but ultimately didn't continue to scrutinize him so blatantly.

Rei Furuya withdrew his gaze, and the protective aura that had been slightly agitated around him subsided.

Perhaps it was because he saw the curious and inquisitive looks of his fellow students almost overflowing, or perhaps he felt that as the dinner party came to an end, it was time to let his friends get to know the real Nekono Ikuya.

Rei Furuya glanced at Ikuya Nekono, who was whispering and laughing with Kagemitsu Morofushi, and suddenly said softly, "...That's enough."

The three words, spoken out of the blue, left everyone else, who were unprepared, momentarily stunned.

Only Nekono Ikuya was different. A hint of understanding flashed in his warm amber eyes, followed by an almost overflowing, mischievous excitement.

"Hey, is it over already? I haven't had enough fun yet, Zero." The corners of his mouth suddenly turned up, and he pretended to complain, but anyone could tell that he was actually very impatient. The gentleness in his voice and smile disappeared at the same time, and his whole person became lively and cunning.

With just a slight twitch of his eyes and brows, Nekono Ikuya gave off a completely different impression than he had a second ago, as if he had become a different person in an instant.

Everyone: !!!

Wow--!

Under everyone's sudden focused gaze, Nekono Ikuya suddenly raised her hand and quickly brushed her hair behind her ear and on the side of her neck. Her movements were practiced and casual, almost indistinguishable from an ordinary person casually tucking a messy strand of hair behind their ear.

But something truly astonishing happened!

The gentle face with chestnut hair and amber eyes rippled slightly like water, and a tiny crack appeared on the edge of the young man's skin as it lifted up.

The next second, under the astonished gazes of everyone who couldn't bear to blink, the thin mask moved without wind, like a maple leaf drifting freely past the traveler's lens. After the momentary obstruction of vision, another person was sitting in the original seat.

The crowd gasped again: !!!

Wow! It's magic!

The chestnut-brown hair had disappeared, replaced by short, raven-black hair with slight, natural curls that made her skin appear even whiter. Her eyes were no longer the warm amber color, but a clear, emerald-green, as still and deep as a frozen pool.

His chestnut hair and amber eyes were magically replaced by black hair and blue eyes. Even though everyone watched the whole thing without blinking, they couldn't figure out how the wig and colored contact lenses that might have been there were removed by Nekono Ikuya, or where he put them away.

His movements were too nimble and too fast.

Nekono Ikuya blinked. His eyes were slightly upturned at the corners, yet somewhat rounded in the middle—perfectly cat-like eyes, possessing an inherent feline elusiveness and mystery, sometimes crystal clear, sometimes profoundly deep. His facial features had undergone an indescribable yet clearly discernible change; his features were different from before, even the lines of his face had become sharper. He had lost a touch of gentleness and gained a refined handsomeness.

What is most striking is his dramatic change in temperament.

Nekono Ikuya looked up, his demeanor shifting abruptly from the gentle, jade-like quality of a moment ago to a cold, moonlit radiance. Yet his face remained handsome and refined, giving him both a naturally aloof air and a strangely approachable quality. This contradictory quality was exceptionally captivating.

The entire private room fell silent instantly.

Completely shocked! (Stunned.jpg)

Nekono Ikuya, or rather, having regained his true appearance, raised his hand to smooth his hair, making his slightly curly black hair even more fluffy and soft.

Apart from Rei Furuya and Kagemitsu Morofushi, everyone else was stunned.

Matsuda Jinpei's mouth gaped open, his eyes wide, and he almost knocked over the teacup beside him. Hagiwara Kenji also stared wide-eyed in surprise.

Ida and Natalie leaned against each other, letting out short gasps.

Only Furuya Rei and Morofushi Kagemitsu were able to maintain their composure. Furuya Rei smiled, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes.

Rei Furuya: This cool Nekono Ikuya is his lover!

“Let me formally reintroduce myself,” Nekono Ikuya said with a faint smile, her emerald eyes sweeping over the stunned crowd. Her voice became clear and crisp, carrying a subtle, leisurely pleasure. “Nekono Ikuya.”

"Sorry, I used a little 'trick' to play a joke on everyone earlier. This is what I really look like." He winked gently at the stunned crowd, and the faint aloofness around him lessened somewhat.

The chibi version of Ikuya Nekono is laughing with his hands on his hips: That's awesome! Bking is a huge success!

Hmm, calm down, calm down.

He forced a smile down his face.

Matsuda Jinpei pointed at Nekono Ikuya, utterly shocked: "You...you..."

I was so shocked by the scene that I didn't know what to say for a moment.

Why, why does it feel like the "image quality" around Nekono Ikuya suddenly became clearer, and even the colors suddenly became vivid and saturated?

Did he accidentally wander into a movie timeline? Is this still reality? Kojinpei is utterly shocked!

In short, we can't just stand here dumbfounded.

I'll point first as a sign of respect!

"?" Nekono Ikuya looked at Matsuda Jinpei with feigned confusion, then suddenly clapped her hands in realization: "Oh right, I forgot about height!"

"Thank you for reminding me." Nekono Ikuya smiled gratefully at Matsuda Jinpei.

Matsuda Jinpei: "..."

Although he really wanted to know after Nekono Ikuya brought it up, but—

Who asked you that?!

I always felt that beneath Nekono Ikuya's elegant and refined exterior lay a mischievous heart that loved to play pranks and enjoy seeing others' expressions of shock.

It's nothing like the blond jerk's somewhat serious personality.

Well, it's said that the three of them are childhood friends who grew up together, and the blond jerk's other childhood friend, Jing Dan, can sometimes be a bit wicked.

Does this blond jerk simply prefer associating with those seemingly innocent but actually mischievous cat-eyed people? Is it because their personalities complement each other, like his relationship with Hagi? But when they're together, doesn't the blond jerk always get teased by his two childhood friends?

Matsuda Jinpei briefly drifted into thought, pondering Furuya Rei's past life.

Falling down to zero: QAQ~

It's a living hell, but—

It smells amazing, I must say.

Rei Furuya, the best friend on the left and lover on the right: Satisfied.

Then Nekono Ikuya stood up and calmly stretched his shoulders and neck in front of everyone. Then, a few very faint "click" sounds, like bones being put back together, came from inside his body. They were unusually clear in the quiet private room where you could hear a pin drop.

His posture straightened, becoming even more upright than before, almost the same height as the wolf-tailed youth in Matsuda Jinpei's memory.

He gradually "grew taller" in full view of everyone.

Everyone: !!!

Huh?!

Pupil earthquake.jpg

As Nekono Ikuya stretched out his posture, his expression gradually became languid and relaxed.

His emerald eyes narrowed slightly, he shook his head, and let out a comfortable sigh, his voice even carrying a slightly lazy tone: "Hmm~ Indeed, this is the most comfortable!"

His black hair fell softly, the ends slightly messy and unruly, making his slightly narrowed emerald eyes appear even more emerald green, the playfulness and cunning in his eyes mostly hidden by his eyelids.

It wasn't an illusion; Nekono Ikuya really had grown a lot taller, as evidenced by the exposed section of his fair ankle. Or perhaps Nekono Ikuya had simply reverted to his original height.

Not only does it have disguise, but it also has bone shrinking!

The legendary... shrinking bones!

Everyone's mouths dropped open slightly. Could it be that the kung fu in martial arts movies is actually real?!

Art originates from life. Just as parkour masters' ability to scale walls and leap across rooftops can create illusions of lightness and agility, shrinking bones and disguise are not things that are unattainable for people in reality.

Matsuda Jinpei: "!!!"

Kenji Hagiwara: "Wow—!"

Date Wataru: "This...this is really..."

Natalie also covered her mouth in surprise.

Even Furuya Rei and Morofushi Kagemitsu, who had seen this before, were filled with amazement. No matter how many times they had seen it, they still found it incredible!

Kenji Hagiwara is a cat with black fur and green eyes, which is a classic color combination for cats. Ikuya Nekono has a pair of cat eyes with upturned corners.

He rubbed his chin and began to write out equations.

Cats have cat eyes, and so does Ikuya Nekono.

Cats can stretch into long strips, and so can Ikuya Nekono.

Furthermore, the name Nekono Ikuya is also very cat-like!

Kenji Hagiwara's eyes lit up little by little, then he suddenly clenched his fist. Therefore, the equation holds true: Ikuya Nekono equals a cat! Perfect logic, applause!

Time to Bking!

As the stunning display of the disguise and the ability to undo the bone shrinking was revealed, Matsuda Jinpei and the others stared wide-eyed, their heads involuntarily craning forward, towards Nekono Ikuya.

Swish, swish, swish.

Everyone turned into a Q-version big-headed emoji.

Wow, they're saying wow!

A magic show was included with the dinner party – amazing!

On the surface, Nekono Ikumi maintained a faint, reserved smile, as if to say "it's nothing," but in reality, she was quite pleased, and the little devil in her heart kept putting his hands on his hips.

It was worth it for him to have studied bone shrinking in order to perfect his disguise skills. Nowadays, most disguise experts can only disguise themselves as people taller than them, because it is easy to increase height but difficult to decrease it. Disguising themselves as people shorter than them requires walking with bent knees, and the choice of clothing is limited in order to cover up their posture, which also makes it easy to give away their secrets.

But Nekono Ikuya is perfectly fine with it! Being ten centimeters shorter is no problem at all, being twenty centimeters shorter is also manageable, and if he's even shorter... Nekono Ikuya's eyes darted around, he could ask the witch for help!

His superb disguise skills, which are flawless from both close up and far, in both static and dynamic states, and even allow him to pinch his face without much effort, are the result of learning a little from this and a little from that, evolving by combining the strengths of many schools.

It's just that Ikuya Nekono herself is a bit of a perfectionist, and she has a deep love for her daily routine of changing into different appearances. With a little practice and a little bit of talent, the ever-changing Nekonono was born.

Nekono Yuuya glanced at the crowd who were stunned into looking like chibi-style memes. "Hey, why does the violet-eyed person in the middle look a little strange?" she thought. "Never mind!" She was about to continue saying something with her usual composure.

Sudden!

"Ahhh—"

A piercing scream rang out from outside the private room, and several police academy students looked up in alarm.

Then, one by one, they dashed off with practiced ease and without surprise.

Inside the private room, Nekono Ikuya and Natalie, a beat behind, stared at the suddenly empty room: ? ? ?