Year 2050

  Month 2

  City of Rebirth:

  The steady drone of the teacher's voice was muffled in Dante's resting mind. His closed eyes felt comfortable and relaxed as he drifted on the edge of sleep. Through his auditory haze, Dante could hear the flips of pages and the scratching of pens. As the class continued, he caught whispered conversations—friends chatting about their weekend plans and latest hobbies in hushed tones while the history lesson droned on. The teacher continued the lecture, either unaware of the side conversations or choosing to ignore them as details of yet another forgotten war from the previous century were taught.

  Seriously, the teacher just keeps going on and on about the same stuff.

  Whatever, I'm too tired. I'll just keep my head hidden behind the textbook. She won't notice.

  “Dante Mercier! You better not be sleeping in my class.” The soft yet naturally sultry voice said in its failed attempt to sound intimidating.

  Dante, however, kept his head down, his raven dark hair covering one of his eyes while the desk concealed the other.

  “I will not ask you again, get up!”

  Struggling between the realm of dreams and wakefulness, Dante finally sighed mentally and chose to open his eyes reluctantly.

  Seriously, it's not like I'm failing her class or anything. Why does she have to be such a pain in the ass?

  Ok, I have to make a decision. On one hand, I can continue trying to sleep. Or pretend to be asleep at this point. But if I do so, she will relentlessly keep trying to wake me up.

  Let me calculate this…

  Ok, I've come to a conclusion.

  It's more troublesome to sleep than to wake up at this point. Guess that solves that.

  Dante opened his eyes to see a set of shapely legs, their curves barely concealed by a knee-length skirt. His eyes slowly lingered on those curves, tracing from legs to hips as he examined the hovering beauty before him slowly and with laziness. His gaze stopped at her large breasts, eyes seemingly trying to burn a hole through her white blouse to obtain the prize beyond.

  “Mr. Mercier, your eyes need to go higher. Now!” the sultry voice said as sternly as it could.

  Dante's eyes rose up to the beautiful and youthful face in front of him, her features almost making her seem closer to a student than a teacher. Her amber eyes glared at him with a deadly stare that would have been threatening if not for her full, slightly pouting lips.

  Heh, she is cute when she's angry. And seriously, how can anyone's natural voice be so sexy without trying! Who's the asshole who gave her this job? She is like natural catnip to young, stunning, handsome, cool, awesome guys like me!

  Hm, she’s about the same age as Emmy, isn’t she? I forgot.

  “Hi Miss Katari, it's always a lovely morning when I get to see your pretty face.” Dante gave his most charming smile.

  WACK!!

  Came the sound as she hit his head with the soft, thin paperbook held in her hand, followed by suppressed laughter of the students around them.

  "Enough of your nonsense, even if I believed your words you have a simple flaw in them. If in fact my face was pretty enough, then maybe you would actually stay awake in my class." Miss Katari said with a heavy sigh.

  Uh oh, she is annoyed... ok, quick, think Dante, think! How do I get out of this?

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Oh, I got it! Most people try to dig themselves out of a hole when they're caught, but not me. I'm going to keep digging until I hit the other side of the world!

  Business negotiation lessons come in handy for moments like this– 'When cornered, double down with such confidence that your opponent questions their own position.' Of course, when I was taught this, it probably wasn’t meant for this exact situation, but.

  …

  …

  Who cares, the principle is sound, it's about how we use what we know.

  Besides, Miss Katari might act annoyed, but I know she reads a lot of forbidden student teacher love novels, on top of it all, her boyfriend cheated on her a week ago, so her emotional state isn’t fully stable, so that's a plus.

  Anyway, our daily verbal sparring matches are probably the most interesting part of her day teaching!

  “Ayame Katari!”

  Dante suddenly stood up and yelled, his chair scraping loudly against the floor as it shot backward. The dramatic movement drew immediate murmurs and attention from the other students. As for Miss Katari, his declaration drew a startled jump from the young teacher, who nearly dropped her book.

  “Wha—”

  Before she was allowed to finish her sentence, Dante grabbed her hands passionately and stared into her eyes. His unexpected boldness drew a collective “WOAH” from the class, followed by excited whispers and some giggles from the girls nearby. Ayame simply stood there too shocked by the quickening development to know how to respond, her amber eyes wide with disbelief.

  Fuck it, here goes nothing. Let no one say Dante Mercier is a coward. Let that be on my tombstone!

  "I, in fact, did it to protect you!" Dante said loudly, his voice carrying from the front to the back of the classroom with perfect passion. His eyes staring straight into hers, not moving away for even a moment.

  “What?” Ayame Katari asked, her voice full of confusion, a slight gulp escaping from her throat despite her attempt to maintain her professional composure.

  “I slept to keep you protected from my lustful eyes. For when I am awake, I am taken by your every movement. From your amber eyes that shine like a honeyed sun!”

  Dante squeezed her hand firmly, tight enough to let her feel as if her hands were wrapped in a firm blanket. He could feel her pulse quickening through her wrist.

  “And when you walked, your legs…” Dante closed his eyes for a moment, taking a huge breath, as if overwhelmed by emotion, then, as he exhaled, opened them almost immediately to keep the momentum of his verbal assault.

  “...like living sculptures carved by gods drunk on poetry and desire. Dancing in a delicate line between lust and longing, how could a simple man like me resist what would even tempt the noblest of poets and kings alike.”

  Dante said, his voice sounding almost breathless.

  “D-Dante, this is inappropriate, you—”

  Keep going Dante, keep going! In an arena, it is not always the emperor who chooses the execution but the people. I MUST win her heart or at least the hearts around me! A few more lines and I'll have the whole class on my side—and any punishment will disappear.

  …

  I hope.

  Well, worst comes to worst, at least I took time away from class.

  Dante extended one hand high as if speaking to the sky.

  “Your breasts sway like mountains touching the clouds, bringing a longing to my heart and a fantasy—as if though I could reach them, I would be closer to the heavens themselves!”

  The teacher found herself blushing, her professional demeanor crumbling under Dante's relentless verbal assault. Her lips parted slightly as if to object, but no words came out. Dante seized the moment to take a quick glance at the students around him—the admiring faces of some of the boys, the blushes of the girls, a few scoffing at him, yet most clearly entertained by the spectacle. Just as quickly, Dante moved his deep ocean blue eyes right back to Ayame Katari's amber ones, knowing he had the audience in the palm of his hand.

  Ok, time for the kill move. I've charged up my ultimate and I'm going to use it, no mercy!

  “And so all I ask,” Dante continued, his voice dropping to a tender, almost vulnerable tone that contrasted with his previous assault of declarations, “is that you forgive me and allow me to continue protecting you from my lustful heart.”

  Dante drew her hand in and gave it a soft, gentle kiss as he bowed with the perfect grace of a gentleman, as if he were a knight of old courting a young princess. The classroom became silent as they watched the show.

  “I... you…” Ayame Katari stammered, stunned and utterly unsure of what to do next.

  That's when it happened.

  The bell ending the class rang, cutting through the tension and waking the class up from the distracting play that had commenced before them.

  “Welp, with that in mind, I will protect you from myself once more. Until tomorrow, see you, beauty! Bye!” Dante said, releasing her hand with a wink as he quickly dashed out of the classroom, grabbing his backpack.

  Ayame blinked a few times in rapid succession before grinding her teeth and yelling to the top of her lungs, her voice echoing down the hallway after him.

  “DANTE!!!”