QT: I hijacked a harem system and now I'm ruining every plot(GL)-Chapter 249: Curiousity

Chapter 249: Curiousity
Chapter 249
Lani
I try to keep my eyes on my book, but my ears betray me, twitching toward the voices behind me. The two Longears aren’t exactly whispering, either.
We’ve all been in this extra class with Miss Edith for nearly a year now. We’re not friends, but we’re not strangers either. The history between my family and the other Longear hangs unspoken, but the familiarity of routine has dulled the edge.
Still, I can’t help listening.
"How shameless of you, Nima," Poppy hisses under her breath.
"I don’t want to talk about it," Nima mutters back.
"You should have thought about that before sneaking around in the Longear dorms," Poppy says. "The whole school knows you got it on with the panther yesterday."
A low groan from Nima. "That bad?"
"Yes. Apparently you were... very vocal, my dear friend." Poppy’s tone drips with scandal and amusement.
"I really should have thought about it," Nima admits softly. "But I can’t help it. I tend to lose my mind around her."
There’s the faint click of Poppy’s tongue. "With no shame. You used to want to bury yourself underground at the first hint of gossip. Look at you now."
"I may have been influenced by my lover," Nima replies, and both girls laugh quietly.
I keep my eyes on my book, but the words blur. My ears heat. The question loops in my head despite myself: how? How can two
females
...? How can there be pleasure? It should be impossible.
Just curiosity, I tell myself. Nothing more.
***
Daphne
My gaydar pings so hard it’s practically ringing in my skull.
The only surprise is the target. Lani.
I wasn’t suspicious before. According to the system, the only reason the younger Moonfox twin attached herself to the male lead was to compete with her sister. No genuine affection. No real attachment.
But when you think about it, it doesn’t add up. Perfect, handsome male lead, yet she doesn’t fall for him. Not saying she should, but even I with no interest dangling genitalia and flat chests, know the male lead is everything appearance wise, I don’t know much about personally wise, still wouldn’t she budge?
When I spy on her through the system’s feed, she practically glows every time Edith walks into the room.
My, my, my. What are the odds?
I don’t think she’s aware of it herself. Yet.
Let’s test this theory.
*
I unfortunately and
unintentionally
become the quiet hub for every hidden romance in Felaris.
The girls with secret girlfriends.
The boys pretending to be interested in noble daughters while sneaking off to meet stable hands.
The ones who can’t even whisper their truths without risking their houses’ reputations.
They all come to me.
Under my protection.
And because I’m bored — because the academy is suffocatingly dull and I like a bit of entertainment — I let them. I even encourage it.
If the panther duchess wants to build a little underground court of hidden lovers, who’s going to stop
me
?
I stretch back in my chair, the sunlight cutting across the velvet drapes, and watch as today’s supplicant steps forward.
A wolf-shifter girl. Pretty, sharp-shouldered, her tail stiff with nerves. She keeps her head bowed low.
"Your Grace." Her voice trembles as she greets me.
I hum in acknowledgment, resting my chin against my knuckles, studying her like prey I might or might not decide to play with.
"Hmnn." My gaze drifts lazily over her.
"Do you remember the debt you owe me? When I helped you slip free of that little arranged marriage disaster?"
She swallows hard. "Of course, Your Grace."
"It’s time to pay it back." My voice is velvet, but the weight in it makes her flinch anyway.
"Anything you would ask of me," she says immediately, her tail curling around her legs for comfort. I look at it amused, seriously am I
that
scary?
I smile slowly, a glint of fang showing. "Good girl."
I rise, circling around the chair until I’m standing in front of her. She stays bowed, eyes fixed on the carpet.
"You’ll do one small thing for me," I murmur, tilting her chin up with a claw so our eyes meet.
Her pupils dilate, confusion and fear flickering in them. You would think I want to eat her, my palate is bunny only,
my
bunny only.
***
Felix
Trying to listen to Miss Edith and Lani’s suggestion, I’ve been forcing myself to spend more time with them. Balance, attention, effort.
Lira... well. I saw her yesterday. Took her out, walked the gardens, even endured her insistence on buying half the pastry cart. I like her, I
do
. She’s sweet in her way, enthusiastic, always eager to please except in the one place where enthusiasm might
actually
matter. In bed, she turns into stone. Perfect posture, perfect silence, as if she’s bracing to pass a test instead of share a moment.
Lani is much the same.And I can’t exactly say anything. Noble ladies are raised that way, I know. Still... it’s frustrating.
Earlier in the week I spent time with Velesia.Sweet, loyal Velesia. She hangs on my every word, every glance, as if I’m the sun and she’s some fragile flower desperate for light. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the worship in her eyes—it’s flattering, intoxicating even—but gods, it’s suffocating too. Sometimes I can’t breathe under the weight of it.
I cut into the steak cooling on my plate, watching the juices spread across the porcelain. The scrape of silver against china is the loudest sound between us.
Across from me sits Lumiya.
Silent. Regal. Unshakable.
Her silver eyes meet mine briefly before sliding away, as if she’s cataloguing me, not seeing me. Her posture is perfect, her tail curled neatly around the leg of her chair. She eats slowly, deliberately, as though this dinner isn’t food but a performance.
We’ve barely spoken all evening. She doesn’t need to fill the air with chatter like the others.
It’s unnerving.
And, in some way I hate to admit... alluring.
Well
was
alluring, now it’s been months and barely know nothing about her.