Rebirth: The Universe's Hidden Heiress-Chapter 44: First Time Together

Kenji’s pupils shook violently. Just as he was about to look up, Yuka gently pinched his chin, forcing him to look away.

To the onlookers, the guy clung closely to the girl, his partially visible face flushed unnaturally, while the girl, with a dominant posture, touched his face and chin, preventing him from escaping.

The guys in the bar chuckled knowingly, guessing the two might have an "enjoyable" night. Some who wanted to join them, but they were deterred by Yuka’s possessive gaze and looked away.

Yuka let go of Kenji, pulled him up, and walked deeper into the bar, her arm around his shoulder.

The waiter at the door, understanding the situation, handed Yuka a key, "Room 302 upstairs."

Yuka took the key, leading Kenji step by step upstairs. She opened the door to room 302 and settled the weakened Kenji on the bed.

Kenji had endured the first phase of his illness, getting a moment to breathe. He lay on the bed, his sweatshirt collar loose, sweat trickling down to his collarbone with each breath.

Yuka closed the door, returned to Kenji’s gaze, and immediately reverted to her gentle persona, smiling softly at Kenji, "Sir, I apologize for the urgency earlier."

She complained softly while rubbing her shoulders, "Gosh, you’re huge, aren’t you? I almost fell while carrying you."

"Thanks for your help," Kenji said awkwardly, touching his forehead and then looking directly at Yuka. "But I don’t think a person with S-tier physical strength would struggle to carry me."

Yuka looked up sharply. The flickering lights from the bar only reached the bedside, leaving Yuka in shadow a few steps from the bed.

They locked eyes, Yuka in the dark and Kenji in the colorful light.

Feeling the onset of the second phase of his illness, Kenji, enduring the pain, asked her, "I’m having a problem with my body right now. Can you leave for a bit?"

Yuka took a step forward, blinking, "I won’t do anything to you. What I said earlier was just to get away. You’re not exactly my tyle, and plus, you were once so mean to me."

Kenji almost laughed in frustration. He wanted to ask when he had been mean her, but the second wave of pain hit hard and fast. He involuntarily groaned, turned over, buried his face in the pillow, bit down hard, unable to speak.

"I’ll stay here," Yuka sat on a sofa near the door, "It’s not safe for you to be alone. I’ll leave after you’re better."

Kenji had no strength left to respond. His consciousness began to blur, entering the third and final stage of his illness, the hardest phase, where he couldn’t focus on anything but his pain.

Yuka sat on a nearby sofa, pondering where she might have slipped up, allowing Kenji to guess her physical strength level.

The butler muttered quietly, "A lady shouldn’t be alone in a room with a man..."

Yuka ignored it, wondering if Kenji had gone to the extent of checking her records at the population bureau. ’Gosh... Can I accuse him of violating my privacy?’

Lost in thought, Yuka suddenly heard a suppressed groan. Shocked, she looked towards the bed.

Kenji was arched in discomfort, his hands clawing at the sheets, sweat rolling down his forehead and dampening his hair.

He bit his lower lip hard, a faint taste of blood spreading, but he endured, forcefully suppressing any sound.

Kenji was in the final stage of his illness. His brain momentarily cleared, and he awkwardly turned to Yuka, saying with difficulty, "Don’t... look at me..."

Yuka thought Kenji probably didn’t realize how he looked right now. His usually cold and stern face was unnaturally red, creating a stark contrast with his hoarse voice and awful expression.

Yuka politely looked away, reconsidering her previous thoughts. She now found herself somewhat attracted to him.

For the next few minutes, Kenji made no further sounds, and Yuka remained silent, both quietly staying in the room until Kenji recovered.

Kenji got up from the bed and went to the bathroom to tidy himself. When he returned, he was back to his aloof self, Mr. Kuba. The atmosphere was slightly awkward. As Yuka was about to say something to ease the tension, Kenji spoke, "You have great power."

His voice was still a bit hoarse. "With such strength, why hide it? Why not join the mecha specialization or the Alliance Army?"

Yuka lowered her gaze, silent for two seconds before counter-questioning him, "Your condition just now, was it due to a genetic illness? The Alliance has advanced medical capabilities, and congenital genetic diseases are virtually non-existent. So, what caused your illness?"

Touched upon their own secrets, both of the two fell silent. Then Yuka, struck by a sudden thought, cautiously approached Kenji, asking, "Um, Mr. Kuba, about the matter of helping me transfer departments, does that offer still stand?"

Kenji slowly curved his lips, responding under Yuka’s expectant gaze, answering, "Don’t even think about it."

Yuka: ... ’Oh well...’

A knock sounded at the door, and Yuka turned to open it.

Outside stood Ayoi and Alex, who had heard about the events in the bar and looked at Yuka and Kenji with complex expressions, their eyes shifting back and forth between them.

Yuka smiled at them without offering any explanation. "Let’s head out."

She lagged a step behind Ayoi and Alex, walking alongside Kenji.

In a low voice, she threatened him, "Mr. Kuba, if you reveal my physical and psychic power levels to others, I’ll spread the word that you seduced me, we had sex, and you dumped me ever since."

Kenji’s pupils shook once more. "You’re... threatening me?" he gritted out.

Yuka boldly admitted, "Yes, I am threatening you."

Ayoi and Alex, who had turned around, caught a glimpse of Yuka and Kenji standing very close, gazing into each other’s eyes with what seemed like sparks flying. They looked on, their feelings even more complicated.

Kenji was the first to look away, compromising. "I won’t tell others, but I will push you to study hard and join the Alliance Army." In other words, he planned to make Yuka reveal her level herself, leading to her recruitment by the Alliance Army.

Yuka forced a stiff smile. "Rest assured, Mr. Kuba. I’ll definitely ’work hard’ and leave the mecha specialization next year." Both resolved not to let the other succeed.

Returning to the ground floor of the bar, some people recognized Yuka and Kenji, giving them meaningful glances and jokingly commenting on their quick return.

Yuka glanced at Kenji, whose expression turned peculiar, as if he’d swallowed a sour lemon but had to keep it down. Struggling to control her laughter, Yuka covered her mouth and turned away, continuing forward.

At a four-person table, Snakehead tactfully stood up, offering his seat to Kenji and moved aside to let the four talk. Ayoi and Alex, sitting opposite Kenji, were too nervous to even breathe, focusing on the table.

Kenji asked, "How do you plan to leave?"

Yuka replied, "The only way now is through competition. As long as we make a name for ourselves, we can follow the boss back to Capital Octoxis."

Ayoi and Alex nodded in agreement.

Kenji continued, "Isn’t that a slow process?"

Yuka responded, "Not really. The boss flies to Capital Octoxis at the end of the month, and the day after tomorrow is the last day of this month. We just need to ensure we make it to the sixth floor by tomorrow."

Ayoi and Alex nodded again, indicating their agreement.

Yuka mentioned, "Ayoi, Alex, and I are competing in the team competition, where the competition isn’t too tough. But you..."

"Oh, I forgot," Yuka said with a mock serious tone, her arms crossed. "You’re Admiral Kuba, the Alliance’s top commander. How could you possibly lose?"

Kenji simply chuckled dryly.

Ayoi and Alex, who were nodding along, suddenly felt something amiss. The atmosphere between these two seemed odd. ’Could it be... some discord in that little room, maybe... in bed?’

"Let’s rest for tonight and gather some information about our opponents for tomorrow," Yuka suggested.

The others agreed.

...

"What kind of day is today that all these extraordinary people are showing up here?"

On a black leather couch, a man with a beer belly extinguished his cigarette, eyeing the footage of Yuka’s team’s matches on the screen in front of him.

He also observed Kenji’s efficient fighting style and touched the armrest of his couch thoughtfully.

Seeing Scarface lying on the ground with broken limbs, the man chuckled, "Well, looks like I’ve lost one of my fierce dogs."

Blackvest approached quietly, asking in a low voice, "Sir, should I look into these new folks? Maybe teach them a lesson..."

The incapacitated Scarface had been one of the boss’s favorite "mad dogs," effectively weeding out the useless and sending them to their deaths. Now that the boss’s favorite "dog" was out of action, these newcomers might have to pay for what they had done.

"No, no, no."

To Blackvest’s surprise, the man remained in high spirits. He lit a new cigar and said, "Here, we don’t ask about the past or origins, we only care about only if a person can be useful to me. Anyone who can work for me is a good dog. No need to check on them."

The Grand Coliseum was named so because it selected the most ferocious beasts. Regardless of how sharp their fangs or brutal their nature, they all had to obediently follow his commands. The man relished this feeling.

"Right," the boss added, "Tomorrow is the last day. You must ensure that those I favor participate in the matches. We need to pick out a few good ones."

Blackvest nodded, "Yes, boss."

The next day arrived.

As Yuka and her team entered the Grand Coliseum, they immediately sensed the heightened tension. It was the last day of the competition, and if they didn’t make it out today, they would have to wait another month. Everyone was desperately battling their rivals, filling the arena with a scent of blood.

Yuka and her team bypassed the frenzied crowd and approached Blackvest, preparing for their match. Kenji didn’t go to the singles arena but instead joined the spectators to watch how Yuka and her team would perform.

Snakehead squeezed next to Kenji and tried to inquire with a meaningful look, "How was last night..."

Kenji just gave him a threatening glance.

Chilled by Kenji’s icy stare, Snakehead shivered and immediately fell silent, turning his head away.

Yuka and her team were already on the stage. Unable to contain himself, Snakehead leaned towards Kenji again, saying, "Sir, their opponents almost made it out last month. They’re all holding a grudge. It won’t be easy for them to win this one."

The match began.

The three rival mechas targeted Yuka from the start, having learned beforehand that she was the key player of her team. They launched a relentless assault, aiming to knock her out of the contest quickly. Due to the limited space of the arena, Yuka couldn’t dodge one of the blasts, resulting in a spiderweb of cracks on the protective shield of her cockpit.

During the violent shaking, Yuka’s head hit the control panel. She hissed in pain, quickly rolled to dodge an incoming heavy sword from her opponent.

Kenji frowned the instant Yuka was hit. Snakehead’s loud cries drowned out Kenji’s quiet warning of "Be careful."

Ayoi, on one side, fired at another mecha while blasting the one in front of Yuka, forcing it to retreat.

Alex, seizing the moment, thrust his sword into the mechanical leg of the third mecha, bringing it down. However, a fourth mecha pounced on him from behind, pinning him to the ground, and they grappled fiercely.

Ayoi raised his mechanical arm, aiming carefully at the tussling duo on the ground, firing bullets cautiously to avoid hitting his teammate.

Meanwhile, Yuka used the distraction to perform a backward roll and stand, slashing her long sword across an opponent’s cockpit. As she stepped forward to strike again, another mecha, with a damaged leg, grabbed her mechanical leg, pulling her backward.

The enemy mecha, seizing the advantage, raised its heavy sword to strike at the falling Yuka.

In a split-second decision, Alex, still entangled on the ground, flipped over and shot a blast from his mechanical arm at the attacking mecha.

Yuka ducked and thrust her sword into the shoulder of the mecha holding her leg, moving aside just in time to avoid Alex’s shot, which hit the attacking mecha squarely.

The blast exploded, shattering the cockpit of the opposing mecha. Yuka, getting back on her feet, kicked it out of the arena with a swift spinning kick.

Ayoi quickly moved to the center of the arena, pulled out the long sword still stuck in the mecha’s shoulder, and threw it to Yuka.

Yuka leapt up, catching her sword and prying the mecha off Alex.

The cooldown period for the heavy artillery had passed, and the mecha on the ground aimed again at Yuka, intending to fire a shot. However, Ayoi interrupted its attack, and together with Alex, they subdued the mecha, dragging it by the leg and throwing it off the stage.

Yuka’s opponent, with its mecha’s head sheared off and teetering on the edge of the platform, was in a vulnerable position.

The crowd below roared, eager to see Yuka finish the opponent with her blade.

Yuka blocked the mecha’s punch and deflected its cannon with her sword, then kicked it off the stage.

The audience, craving more bloodshed, found the ending unexciting and only cheered symbolically before waiting for the next match.

Kenji approached Yuka as she exited her mecha, rubbing her head, and asked with concern, "Are you hurt?"

Yuka shook her head, "No, just bumped my head, nothing serious."

Kenji parted Yuka’s curly hair to check for any bleeding and, finding none, asked, "I’m about to go for the singles match. Do you want to continue fighting or rest first?"

Yuka tidied her hair messed by Kenji and replied, "We’ll continue."

Kenji nodded, glanced at Ayoi and Alex standing behind, and encouraged, "Good luck."

Ayoi and Alex nodded excitedly, "We will!"

After Kenji left, Ayoi turned to Yuka, "Let’s continue, Yuka."

"Wait," Yuka rubbed the bump on her head, "Let’s watch Kenji... Mr. Kuba’s match first, then we’ll continue."

Without questioning, Ayoi cheerfully followed Yuka, with Alex reluctantly trailing behind.

The competition in the singles matches was fiercer than in the team battles, with matches concluding in just a few minutes.

Yuka watched as Kenji stepped onto the stage. He didn’t wait for his opponent to raise its arms to fire; instead, he threw his long sword, precisely lodging it into a gap in the opponent’s mechanical arm.

As the opponent was still stunned, Kenji stepped forward, punching the cockpit and retrieving his sword, blocking a counterattack. With a sweep of his leg and a shove with his mechanical arm, he quickly finished the match.

Jumping down from his mecha, Kenji spotted Yuka’s retreating figure in the crowd and slightly curved his lips, intending to follow and watch their next match. However, Blackvest approached him from behind, gesturing with an inviting hand, saying, "The boss wants to see you upstairs."

Kenji paused momentarily, then followed the man, leaving the arena.