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yatagarasuhonyaku · 1 day ago

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The Raven of the Empty Coffin: Chapter 3 "Chihaya" Part 3

Disclaimer: This is a fan-translation japanese-english of the original novel. The events of this novel follow after what's already covered by the anime. For an easier understanding, I recommend first reading the few scenes of previous books I've already translated.

Blog version

For the Index, you can find it HERE

Previously: Chihaya (Part 1)

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Chapter 3: Chihaya (Part 3)

With summer’s end, it was time to return after their long holidays. While the temperatures remained high, clouds, absent during the summer, now blocked off the ever waning sunlight from time to time. The trainees’ return to the Monastery marked the restart of their training.

Suikan’s attitude towards Yukiya hadn’t changed at all, even after Seiken's warning. The vacations may have come and gone, but he kept taking him on as his opponent just as relentlessly as he had before. A custom of sorts by that point, the other trainees had grown quite weary at the state of affairs—but for Suikan, it felt like a duty he absolutely had to uphold.

“The rebels’ base of operations is the temple. The suppression forces are a total of forty men. One General, two Officials. A quarter of the soldiers have Horses, Scouts and Spies available. Meanwhile, the rebel forces consist of one General, no Officials, fifty Half-Horses, no weapons, Scouts and Spies available.” As he heard his coworker dispassionately announce the conditions of the match, Suikan's eyes were fixed on the Field, ironing out his strategy going forwards.

“The Field represents the occupation of Deer Cry Temple, Ariake Township, Western Region. The events take place during the first month of the year, and the emperor orders you to suppress the revolt.”

Suikan stared at Yukiya, who was standing on the other side of the board, before doing the customary greetings. “Thank you for having me.”

“Thank you for having me.”

The loser during a Board Drill was whoever let their guard down first, no matter the opponent. Suikan wasn't planning to go easy on him in the slightest.

While he had used much more difficult Fields with Yukiya than with the others since the very start, he had switched to including Spies ever since the end of the holidays. The battles on the board had become truly intricate.

The newly added Spies were a particularly difficult piece to employ. They served a similar purpose as the Scouts, but the range of the Spies’ reconnaissance wasn’t as limited—they were even capable of accessing the opponent’s camp. On top of that, the Spies, unlike the Scouts, were invisible to the enemy's eyes until they actively sought for them in their specific position. To make matters worse, the range of such efforts was determined by the dice. All in all, it made them quite an annoying piece to handle.

On the upside, Spies were very slow to move, which made it realistic to handle all possible openings as long as one was thorough in searching for them. It was especially true as of late—Yukiya had grown quite fond of drawn-out battle strategies, which made them an inconvenience rather than a substantial problem.

Yukiya had dedicated himself to safe, steady offensives ever since that first big defeat. He played by the book, giving Suikan no opening to attack and giving consistent priority to guaranteed targets. Not like it mattered—his weakness lied at the end of a match, when he would start to panic and whatever pressure he applied would die down. In the end, his time would either run out, incapable of taking down Suikan's tightly formed defenses, or he would attempt a suicide attack right at the very end and get defeated in turn. It was one or the other, every time.

“Scout number two, move to B3. Mounted Units numbers two to seven disperse in rows of three.”

As usual, Yukiya started by building up a defensive formation for his General. He was clearly hunkering down for a long battle.

——Fine. If that was what he wanted, Suikan would let him have his test of endurance.

Suikan started to prepare for the Spies’ advancement, just in case, diligently performing searches around the Field while he flawlessly set up his armies in turn. If the situation didn’t change anytime soon, his defenses would be perfect before the first day's night time period started—or so he thought, as he finished moving his own pieces and announced so.

“Taken,” Yukiya announced with his usual, utterly unflappable attitude.

At first, Suikan couldn't make any sense of the word. He wasn't the only one—the judge too had frozen at the unexpected announcement. The other trainees, who had been watching their encounter, were similarly caught off-guard by such a sudden change to the usual flow of events. They all looked at them in shock, none of those present apparently capable of understanding what Yukiya meant immediately.

‘Taken’ was a fixed phrase. One often heard at the end of a Board Drill—quite the common one, in fact, given how fast-paced the encounters between trainees usually were.

“It can't be—” Suikan gasped, his eyes drifting towards the Assistant Instructor on scorekeeping duty. The man was pale as a sheet as well.

“Judge, please, your verification,” Yukiya asked.

In answer, the scorekeeper passed the encounter's register to the judge. The man was left in stunned silence, his gaze jumping from the paper to the board and back, comparing them with the look of someone who had just seen the most horrifying of spectacles. Afterwards, incredulity painted all over his face, he finally held up his arm in Yukiya’s direction.

“...... I verified it. Winner, upper side.”

Taken——the General's head off.

“Give me the pieces’… the Spies’ movements,” Suikan requested in an utterly quiet voice.

It was only then that the trainees finally got an idea of what had actually happened. In their astonishment, they had been causing quite a ruckus among themselves, discussing the situation. It had to be some sort of mistake, right? That is, until the movements of those invisible pieces became clear to them.

The Assistant Instructor pulled three Spies out of the box.

Suikan had found the first one during the match itself, and it was found exactly where he had expected it to be. The second one, meanwhile, was more or less where he had imagined as well, this time out of pure logic.

The third Spy, however, was the problem. The Assistant Instructor kept edging closer and closer to Suikan, piece still in hand. Finally, while looking at Suikan with actual fear in his eyes, he placed the piece with a shaking hand—it was inside Suikan's camp, right behind his General. It was impossible for his General to escape, no matter which tactics Suikan employed.

A usually impossible sneak attack—an assassination worth the name of miracle.

It cannot be, he thought. He hadn't let his guard down. While it was true he didn't expect Yukiya to send his Spies to invade so early on, he had been performing thorough searches. It couldn't have been that easy for him to miss it altogether.

At that moment, Suikan violently grabbed the Warfare Record's papers out of his Assistant Instructor's hands and started to examine them. Yukiya’s third Spy had moved through the dead angles of Suikan's army with the precision of a thread passing through the eye of a needle. It had moved as if the boy knew all along exactly which squares would be invisible to Suikan’s eyes in the coming turns.

There was no other way to explain it. Otherwise, why would he even move in such an inefficient manner? He had moved back and forth, alternating between retreating and advancing, until he had successfully invaded Suikan's camp.

It was purposeful. Yukiya had to have moved like that because he could accurately predict the range of his searches. But—how did he do it? The range was decided by dice rolls, there was no way to accurately predict random rolls. What the hell had he seen!?

Meanwhile, the trainees’ murmuring remained incessant and even the Assistant Teachers were joining in. ‘It's impossible’, ‘what's this?’ The voices reached him from afar.

And, in the middle of such chaos, Yukiya’s behavior alone was just as usual.

“Instructor Suikan, remember what you told me before?” Yukiya calmly asked him. There was no pride in his formidable win to be seen, as if it was all a foretold conclusion. “The weak have no right to speak. If you have any problems, complain after you beat me at least once, you said. So, taking you at your word, I just earned my right to speak my mind, didn't I?” Yukiya declared with a smile.

“To be honest with you, and for a long time now, I've had my doubts about whether you’re apt to be a Monastery Instructor. I mean, how can you take on such a duty when you just lost against a trainee and, more so, a Seed who has barely even started to learn Strategy?” The commotion at the Hall abruptly died down, quickly replaced by deafening silence. “Instructor Suikan, please, resign from your position. That's probably the best for everyone involved.”

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“What trick did you use?” Kimichika approached them with clear anger in his eyes. Shigemaru felt himself getting cold feet, but Yukiya, the very target of the implicit threat, kept his usual nonchalant expression.

“Oh, are you talking about me?”

“Don't you play innocent. The Instructors are in an uproar at the moment.”

It all happened during lunchtime.

Yukiya and Shigemaru had been on their way to the Dining Hall when Kimichika, accompanied by all the other Southern Court Ravens, came to surround them. The rumors had already spread throughout the entire Monastery—that a Seed had defeated Strategy’s Practical Instructor in a Board Drill that very morning and had even asked for his resignation.

Perhaps it was because of the shock he felt at Suikan's position being challenged, given he had been playing favorites with him, but Kimichika even went through the trouble of approaching them first.

“——You cheated, right?”

“Oh, no way. You really think Yukiya cheated just because he happened to win once?” Shigemaru intervened instead.

Kimichika gave him a terrifying glare in turn. “I checked the Warfare Record. That win is abnormal, no matter how you put it.”

Shigemaru was well aware of that, actually. After all, that very morning, Yukiya had dropped an ‘it’s time to pick a little fight’ to him before he had gone to Strategy. Shigemaru had no idea what trick Yukiya had used exactly, but he knew it wasn’t pure chance at least.

Yukiya had, somehow, cheated—that was the only explanation available. And yet, everyone helping out during the Drill had been staff members. There was no reason to suspect any of them, and nobody could figure out what Yukiya had actually done to begin with.

That said, Kimichika’s fury was unrelenting. “What's wrong with you? You win by cheating and have the gall to ask for an Instructor to resign?”

“I didn't cheat. I'm not you, you know.”

“Not me? What are you implying? That I’ve cheated before?”

“You managed to pass and become a Sapling despite your awful scores at Theory, I’ve heard, only because you had Instructor Suikan's favor. Let me guess, perhaps that's why you're so angry now? If Instructor Suikan leaves, that means you’ll be dropping out next.”

Kimichika fell for Yukiya's blatant provocation hook, line and sinker. “Don't you fuck with me! Who even suggested such baseless crap!?”

“Oh, Sapling Ichiryuu.”

“He's right there, in fact.” Shigemaru pointed to the masses of gathered onlookers, who parted to show Ichiryuu with Akeru and Chihaya at his sides, holding him in place by the arms.

“So it was you who spouted that rubbish!” Kimichika howled at Ichiryuu, who had the look of a man wondering why his life had to turn out like this.

“And Sapling Ichiryuu isn’t the only one who thinks there’s a problem. We do too,” a red-faced Akeru declared.

Chihaya nodded in agreement. “Indeed. As someone who once served you—even if you didn't actually cheat at the exams, I don't think you are any more fit to be a trainee.”

Kimichika’s expression changed in an instant—it was rare for Chihaya to talk so much. “...... Chihaya, who do you think you're siding with?”

“Sapling Ichiryuu, of course?”

“And who the hell do you think helped you get here in the first place? We, the Minami-Tachibana, saved you from becoming a horse! It's thanks to us that you and that sister of yours didn’t die of hunger in the wild! You ungrateful scum!” Kimichika spat out.

Akeru's expression twisted pathetically. “To think I was like him once, I get the shivers……”

“But not anymore, at least.”

Comforted by Chihaya’s words, Akeru gave him a nod and, with a renewed air of dignity, turned again to lock eyes with Kimichika. “It's your mistake to think circumstances aren't ever going to change, Kimichika. I got the deed for Chihaya's sister. He isn't under your family's control anymore.”

Kimichika snorted in answer. “That's impossible, there's no way you can do that.”

“But it's the truth. Sorry to say, it's too late for you to do anything about it.”

The confidence in Kimichika's expression faltered, for a short second, replaced by uncertainty. “That can’t be…… He owes my father and I a huge debt.”

“Yes, and that shows there's a problem with you. Big enough for an indebted subordinate to forsake you,” Akeru replied.

Before Kimichika could respond, however, the sound of Yukiya's laughter interrupted them.

“I'm sorry for the insolence, Sapling Kimichika, but, you know, no matter how much I think about it, I can't understand how you can be our senior. And I swear, it's not to make fun of you. I truly don't get it.” Yukiya spoke with an artificially troubled face, derision in his eyes. “But hey, what can you do about it, really? You may lack the strength and wits, but that's something one is born with, so there's no fixing that. That said,” Yukiya added with absolute delight, “that’s not the main problem—it’s your garbage personality. No positives to be found. Sapling Ichiryuu is a hundred times more worthy of respect as our senior than you, so I hope you realize this is all your own fault?”

Kimichika’s fist launched towards Yukiya’s face, but never reached it. Chihaya kicked the boy instead.

——And so the brawl started.

“It's a fight!”

As the onlookers mostly remained to watch, a few among them quickly ran away to warn the Instructors. On Kimichika's side were his followers and other trainees affiliated with the South, which, adding up the Saplings and Seeds, totaled to about ten people. On the other hand, the study group's regulars quickly joined Ichiryuu's side. As a result, their numbers were more or less even.

Shigemaru had heard the rumors, but Kimichika proved to be a surprisingly capable fighter. Much to his misfortune, however, his opponent was none other than Chihaya, who even the Instructors called a genius among themselves.

On top of that, maybe because of all the pent-up anger, Chihaya’s kicking onslaught on Kimichika was truly one full of passion. He didn’t use his Ornamented Blade at all, despite Kimichika’s use of his own—whether it was because he wanted to faithfully keep his word to Ichiryuu or not, it was hard to tell.

Shigemaru himself was busy handling two of the opponent Saplings, but Yukiya’s loud laughter reached him all the same. “What was that? Don’t tell me you intended to hit me with such a move? That was so weak a fly could have landed on your fist mid-punch. Is everything alright with you?”

Yukiya was blocking off all attacks from Kimichika's Ornamented Blade with just the bare minimum of movement, wholeheartedly dedicated to provoking him. Then, the very second Kimichika lost his focus, blinded by fury, Yukiya closed the distance between them. He grabbed him by the joints and hurled him to the ground without letting go.

“Aurgh!”

“Are you alright? I’m so sorry, does it hurt?” Quite the crude question to ask, given Yukiya had followed it with a kick on the downed Kimichika.

“Chihaya!” Kippei yelled in a panic.

Shigemaru's gaze turned to the boy's direction. Akeru and the others were struggling, but, at the moment, Chihaya was busy punting his heel into Kimichika's nape.

“Leave this to me,” Yukiya said to him.

Chihaya nodded to him and launched into a sprint towards Akeru's group. As if taking his place, Yukiya moved to stand in front of Kimichika.

“Dammit! Fuck you, Wakamiya's dog!” Kimichika spat out venomously, shaking his head.

Yukiya’s lips, in answer, curved into an enchanting smile. “And gladly so. Much better than to be someone like you, unworthy to even become someone's dog.”

Kimichika brought his Ornamented Blade down on Yukiya, who avoided it with ease and in turn pulled him by the arm. He kicked the ground slightly, launching himself into the air in order to trip Kimichika with his own weight. The boy didn’t seem to have even the slightest idea of what was happening to him as Yukiya threw himself to the ground, dragging Kimichika along with him.

Even Shigemaru, who was relatively far away, got to hear the awful sound that Kimichika's suddenly strained joints made. He let out an ear-piercing scream, but Yukiya didn't release him.

“How does it feel, huh? To be bitten by a dog. You made fun of us relentlessly, yet your entire additional year’s worth of training has proven useless. What's it like? You know, if only you had been a bit less of an ass, I may have even given pity some thought!” Yukiya let out a raucous laugh. “Oh, and please do me the favor of placing all that blame on your own idiocy.”

By that point, Shigemaru had finally downed the two Saplings he had been fighting and was ready to intervene if the situation demanded it, but he was instead left momentarily speechless by Yukiya's delight. “...... Enough, that’s overdoing it. Yukiya, stop right there. Continuing won't do you any good.”

Yukiya looked at him in surprise. “I see… If you say so, Shige, I guess I'll leave it at this.”

Yukiya stood up and walked away, just like that. Kimichika, however, was left crouching down, drenched in cold sweat and clutching his injured arm. At that moment, a limping Akeru—he must also have gotten hurt—approached them.

“Shigemaru, Yukiya. Got any wounds?”

“None worth mentioning. How about everyone else?”

“We all got some to our name…… but our opponents got worse. All thanks to Chihaya, he took them all down.” Would it be correct to call this a win? Shigemaru wondered to himself as another voice interrupted the scene.

“What has happened here!?” It was an adult, no doubt about it. They finally arrived.

Shigemaru turned to take a look in the voice’s direction. There was a group of Instructors running towards them, led by Seiken. While he had been expecting them, Shigemaru could never have guessed he would see the man behind them. His was an unforgettable appearance.

Somewhere else in the hallway, he heard someone’s horrified yelp.

“You gotta be kidding me. What's that man doing here!?” Ichiryuu asked in terror. He must have been caught completely off-guard, much like Shigemaru.

——Rokon, Natsuka’s close vassal, was there.

Kimichika's actual older brother had just arrived with the Instructors—and right after Yukiya had thoroughly trashed the boy.

“Who started this?” Seiken closed the distance between them and took a quick look at the people involved. He already had an idea of what had transpired there, obviously enough. In answer to his question, Yukiya immediately raised his hand. Shigemaru had expected him to shamelessly place the blame on Ichiryuu, yet the truth proved to be different altogether.

“I did,” Yukiya gracefully admitted, his eyes fixed on Rokon's direction. “Lord Rokon, first, my apologies for causing harm to your esteemed brother, however—”

“Don't bother,” Rokon's low, gruff voice brusquely interrupted Yukiya's attempt at a defense. “I'm well aware of the situation here at the Monastery as of late. Including the fact that a certain someone snatched my family's servant away.”

“Brother,” Kimichika pitifully pleaded for help, groveling on the ground. “Please, punish them. They forgot their place and rank and dared to deride Lord Natsuka. It's not something we can forgive!”

“Indeed, it's unforgivable.” Kimichika's expression softened after hearing his brother's beast-like roar. But his peace didn't last long, as Rokon walked briskly towards him and mercilessly kicked his own brother in the face. Such was the impact that some of Kimichika's teeth were sent flying along with his body.

Everyone was left stupefied, even those who had just fought him, as they saw his body violently roll on the ground.

“Kimichika! Are you alright!?” A panicking Suikan took the boy in his arms and helped him sit up. By that point, Kimichika's body was wounded all over.

Rokon, the very man who had just sent his own little brother flying with a kick, shook his head in disappointment.

“Brave of you to say those things. Aren't you the one who has forgotten his place and rank? I’ve heard it all, you know.” Rokon looked down on Kimichika. “You shamelessly declared yourself part of Lord Natsuka's Faction and made a show of your contempt towards His Highness Wakamiya within the Monastery. What qualification does someone who openly despises His Highness like that have to become a Yamauchi Guard, huh!?”

“What are you saying? Brother, didn't you—”

“Shut up!” This time, Rokon slapped Kimichika into forceful silence.

“Enough, Michichika!” Seiken stood up to protect Kimichika. Rokon returned his glare, utterly calm.

“These are my family's issues. It's not your place to get involved.”

“This is the Unbending Reed Monastery, and he's a trainee. It's you who doesn't have the right to get involved,” Seiken firmly declared, much to Rokon's sudden and apparent amusement.

“——Have you forgotten the matter that brought me here today, by any chance? It's for Kimichika's expellment.” Shock ran across the until then paralyzed trainees.

“Brother…?”

Rokon looked at his stupefied brother in a manner that could only be described as heartless.

“From this moment onwards, he isn't a trainee here at the Monastery any longer. Oh, and I almost forgot. I had some words for the actual trainees.” The crowd froze out of sheer fear. After witnessing Rokon's brutal punishment, they were all terrified of him. “I don't know what my brother has prated on about, but Lord Natsuka’s loyalty to His Highness Wakamiya is genuine. If you keep ignoring his wishes and imposing your own desires on Lord Natsuka, you'll just end up like my brother here.”

After that declaration, Rokon took Kimichika by the hair and pulled him up as he let out a pained scream. Kimichika’s cheeks swelled up red as blood gushed down from his mouth. “So, sorry for all the trouble.”

“Stop!” Seiken ordered him in a fury, but he was completely ignored and Kimichika, left at the mercy of his brother’s whims, was dragged out of the building by Rokon.

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“I hope you realize why we have called you here.”

“I do.”

The trainee in question remained utterly unfazed even in front of Shoukaku, his expression filled with what one could define as serenity. Shoukaku, as the Monastery's Director, had heard all the rumors about this Seed. He had held the position of His Highness Wakamiya's close aide before even coming to join them.

2-10’s Yukiya of Taruhi.

In the middle of the hall, built specifically for Board Drills, stood a Field. Yukiya and himself aside, they were accompanied by Kashin, the Instructor in charge of the Seeds’ practical courses; Seiken, who held the same position for theory classes; and Suikan, the man who had suffered that massive loss during that very morning's Board Drill session.

Shoukaku had heard of the circumstances that had led to the brawl, and so had decided to start by clearing up the cheating accusations surrounding the cause of it all—Yukiya.

“I've seen the Warfare Records and I'm just as surprised as everyone else. It just can't be a coincidence. You planned to use that Spy piece as an assassin from the start, right?” Shoukaku asked, seeking confirmation.

“That's right,” Yukiya obediently agreed with him again.

“It's embarrassing to admit, but we can't figure out how you managed to do so. It's as if you knew what number would be rolled next and while that's the only explanation available, we had an Assistant Instructor on the task. We must consider he somehow falsified the rolls, assuming it's even a possibility, but——”

“The Assistant Instructor wasn’t trying to make me win, and he didn’t falsify anything either. There's no need to do that to begin with,” Yukiya explained to them, his expression ever so slightly troubled. “Please, take a look. I'm going to roll a one.”

Yukiya took a dice someone had left on top of the desk. Then, firmly pinching the sides of it with his nails, he rolled it on the desk. Just as he said, the result was one.

“See? It's very simple. The Ravine's gamblers often use this trick,” Yukiya disclosed in a nonchalant manner. “You turn the face you want upwards and pinch the dice just like this as you throw it, it will roll exactly three times if done correctly. For the unaware, it will look as if you had just rolled the dice normally, but this method allows anyone to determine the result with near certainty.”

Yukiya had, in fact, seen that Assistant Instructor before—at the Ravine’s gambling dens. He noticed the moment he saw him and, just like that, Yukiya came to realize something. “He used to come at the very least four times a month, which means the gamblers there probably taught him how to do this.”

“Then that means—”

“Yes, it’s just as you think. He was practicing during lessons.” His job was to sit at the desk and roll the dice, then record the results. Under the mask of dutiful work, he had started to play around with the dice, probably out of boredom brought by long battles and their ever dwindling piece movements. “He was really bad at it at first. When I first joined the Monastery he didn’t succeed that often, but he has gotten a lot better recently and, more often than not, actually gets the intended roll. At worst, the dice rolls one more time, or one less. So I thought it was just about the right time for me to try that trick out.”

“Wait. Are you implying you knew what number he was trying to get? Just like that?”

“Yes, of course. There was a very simple logic to it. Even choosing what number to get at random had become too much of a hassle, it seems, after doing so over and over again.” Yukiya poked the dice. “The Warfare Records with the previous Drill’s results remain by the side of the register. He always tried to roll the numbers from the Board Drill immediately before that, just in the opposite order.”

Shoukaku heard Suikan, pale as a sheet, groan at Yukiya’s explanation. Kashin as well had been left speechless, from the looks of it. Seiken alone, as if bothered by something, rushed to ask a question of his own. “......How did you notice?”

“By his eye movements. It was clear he was looking at something before rolling the dice, so I once took a peek at his desk when cleaning up.”

“But you have no way to see those critical Warfare Records on his desk in the middle of a Drill, do you?”

“I mean, yes, but that's solved by simply remembering the results from the previous encounter? I'm paying attention to my fellow trainees’ Drills, after all,” Yukiya announced in a shockingly casual manner. “As long as one is attending the lessons, there's really no need to do anything special.”

——And he said it as if it were nothing.

Shoukaku rubbed his temples to soothe his growing headache.

“I can't accept this…… This is not a Board Drill match….” Kashin murmured with a trembling voice.

The color in Yukiya's eyes changed.

“Then, are you suggesting that a battle of wits outside the board is unfair? Instructor Kashin,” Yukiya called to him. His tone was not so much one of reproach but of warning. “Those words of yours are no different from, say, excusing your own failure to react to the monkeys’ attack based on the fact that there was no forewarning. And tell me, what would saying ‘that's unfair, I won't recognize it’ to the monkeys even achieve? Can you even be entrusted with Yamauchi's safety if you think like that?”

Kashin struggled to answer Yukiya's question, “But—even if you say so, it's not the place of a trainee like you to ask for an Instructor’s resignation, don't you see?”

“I wouldn't say so myself,” someone's laughing voice intervened in the conversation. The entire room turned to its direction, where the figure of a giant man was standing at the door.

“Michichika!” Suikan yelled out his name, opening his mouth for the first time since Yukiya had arrived at the hall.

In answer, Rokon just grinned. He briskly walked towards them, jumping over the fence separating the seats from the Field in the process. Seiken’s harsh glare fixed on him as he approached them.

“What about Kimichika?”

“I sent him over to the Minami-Tachibana's Residence, so they're probably treating his wounds right now. He didn't get anything that can't be fixed at the very least.” Upon hearing that, Suikan let out a deep sigh of relief. His hand was resting over one of his own eyes.

“Now, leaving that aside——what do you mean? How can you say that it is Yukiya's place to ask for an Instructor's resignation?” Kashin asked.

Rokon pointed at Yukiya in an overdramatic manner. “Because this Yatagarasu here shouldn't be joining this conversation as a trainee, but as part of the Monastery's Administration.”

“Lord Rokon,” Yukiya intervened, his brow slightly furrowed. Rokon ignored him.

“I mean, I'm right, aren't I?” Rokon said in between merry laughter. “You’re the one who engineered all the recent events at the Monastery, after all.” The moment he heard those words, Suikan gazed up at the ceiling. Seiken sighed ever so deeply. “Oh, I see… Looking at your reactions, you had figured out that much already,” Rokon nodded in approval.

Yet Shoukaku couldn't make heads or tails of the situation. He wasn’t the only one either, as Kashin too was noticeably confused as he asked Rokon, “There were many times I felt something was off with him, yes. That he should be capable of doing so much more, but he was intentionally slacking off. But, what do you mean he plotted all this out?”

“I mean exactly what I said,” Rokon opened his arms wide. “There were actually two main reasons he joined the Monastery, you see. The first one was to ferret out and make an example of those willing to declare themselves part of the Natsuka Faction, and the second was to help raise anyone with prospects to join Wakamiya's.” Rokon turned to Yukiya. “It worked out really well, didn’t it?”

Yukiya didn't answer him.

“You all got some instructions from Wakamiya about this year's dormitory arrangements, didn't you? It took some close examination of all the registered trainees, both old and new; but it was all Yukiya's doing.”

There were a few people who caught Yukiya's attention before even arriving at the Unbending Reed Monastery.

The first one was Shigemaru of Shimaki, a trainee of commoner origin.

He was second only to Chihaya in the practical section of the admission tests. Shigemaru’s physical prowess was beyond question, and he had no problematic noblemen backing him. That, plus his reasons to join the Monastery, made Yukiya think he would be the easiest recruit for Wakamiya's faction.

The only point of concern was the fact that he came last at theory during those same tests. To fix that, he chose to share rooms with him. Besides making the recruitment itself all the easier, it would make it possible for Yukiya to help him with his study problems.

The second one was Akeru of the Western House, whose circumstances were all too similar to Yukiya's own.

He had already declared himself part of the Wakamiya Faction. His attitude, however, was a problem—a point which both Yukiya and Wakamiya agreed on. He had gotten first place at the admission tests, but whether he could keep up was far from clear even at the time. It was hard to tell if he would manage to graduate to begin with.

In consequence, the plan had been to see if they could get him to fix his personality problem at least and only then consider what to do with him moving forwards.

The third one was Chihaya, a servant working under Minami-Tachibana.

He had proven to have exceptional skill at the practical section of the admission tests, and he was far from stupid. To miss out on someone as talented as him would be a complete shame, so Yukiya figured he could easily use Chihaya's little sister, whom he cared so much about, to easily take care of the problem. “Which is exactly why he got the deed from me in advance, a money loan of sorts, so he could act as soon as the opportunity presented itself.”

“But that means…” Seiken watched Yukiya with mixed feelings.

“That Chihaya's sister was under Yukiya's ownership before the year even started at the Monastery, yes.” There was never any need for complex negotiations or to pull off any tricks. Yukiya had Yui's freedom in his hands the entire time and, had he wanted to, he could have given it to her at any moment. But he didn't.

——He had to wait for the right moment, all to guarantee Chihaya's recruitment.

“Such a caring friend, don't you think?” Not even Rokon's ironic retort got a reaction out of Yukiya, who remained both silent and expressionless. Yet that wasn't even the end of it, as there was a fourth person who had caught Yukiya's attention. This last individual was, in fact, none other than Kimichika of Minami-Tachibana. “Then, he even came all the way to ask me ‘will you let me use your brother?’. It sounded like fun, so I agreed,” Rokon explained without even the slightest sign of shame.

Yukiya had gotten a chance to check the old trainees’ scores and had caught on to the criticisms on Kimichika's personality, which was how he came up with the idea of turning him into a representative of the Natsuka Faction. Before the Seeds’ entrance into the Monastery, Kimichika was just another Court Raven—one with the exact same issues as Akeru, just to a different degree.

But then Rokon, in coordination with Yukiya, pushed Kimichika to openly act as part of the Natsuka Faction. Encouraged by his older brother, Natsuka's close vassal, Kimichika transformed into the acting head of Natsuka's supporters among the Monastery trainees.

“Thanks to that, we could figure out which trainees were secretly part of the faction. A trainee's beliefs are those of the family supporting him, after all.”

And so, ignoring Wakamiya and Natsuka's wishes on the matter, the conflict at the Unbending Reed Monastery grew increasingly worse. Yukiya's plan had been to dispose of them that way. He and Rokon had both agreed to make an example out of Kimichika from the very start. If they made a good show out of it, there wouldn't be any idiots whatsoever left at the Monastery willing to align themselves with the Natsuka Faction.

“That is, if a certain someone hadn't intervened and attempted to protect Kimichika.” Rokon gave a meaningful look to Suikan, who looked away with wholehearted distaste.

“...... When did you realize?” Yukiya asked Suikan, not a single emotion showing in his voice.

Suikan answered with a stifled tone, “The moment I read your answers for the admission test. It was just a hunch back then, but I couldn't help but to feel I shouldn't be treating you the same as other trainees.”

It was obvious Yukiya wasn't even trying. Suikan could already tell back then that Yukiya had three whole years’ worth of theory in his head. Then, his suspicion grew into certainty the moment their quarrel with Kimichika took place.

“You got away scot free because Instructor Seiken was there but, according to what I heard, you intentionally provoked Kimichika into attacking you.” That's how he figured it out. It was clear to him that Yukiya was trying to cause an escalation of the faction conflict at the Monastery, pushing the Natsuka Faction into acting out.

It was also why Suikan stubbornly kept challenging Yukiya to Board Drills.

“...... I don't think we have ever talked properly to one another, but I could easily figure out what you wanted to tell me from the first time we faced each other,” Yukiya said quietly. “I chose a strategy that aimed at the weaknesses of the standard tactics, but you went out of your way to use said by-the-book tactics to defend against me and then, on top of that, changed plans midway and completely blocked off my ambush.”

During their constant Drills against each other, Suikan battled with all his might and overcame Yukiya every single time. It was as if he was telling something to him. ‘I see what you're trying to do, and I won't let things go your way.’ To add to that, Suikan would punish Yukiya and Yukiya alone to isolate him from the other trainees as much as possible.

“...... There had to be many other, more peaceful ways to ferret out Natsuka's secret supporters for someone as brilliant as you.” Suikan glared at Yukiya with hate burning in his eyes. “Besides, even if you were to drop out, you have so many other options to live on. You just have to go and become Wakamiya's close vassal or whatever you want!”

Suikan began to scream at him. “But that's not the case for others. Many trainees don't have anywhere else to go outside of the Monastery. And you used those poor kids as you pleased just to achieve your goals as fast as possible! The kids that aligned themselves with the Natsuka Faction are no different,” Suikan added as he pulled his hair. “Even if their families are politically opposed to you all, that means nothing to them themselves. They’re the second and third sons of low ranking nobility, left with no place for them at the Court. The commoners with nothing left for them in their birthplaces. There are plenty without a place to go among those who serve under such kids as well!”

After Kimichika's downfall, whether those serving and following him would be able to remain at the Monastery as trainees was questionable at best. It had driven Suikan desperate, worried sick about their futures.

“You're as naive as usual, huh?”

“Shut your trap, you cold-hearted bastard! How could you punish Kimichika like that?” Faced with Rokon's utterly happy tone, Suikan glared at him with pure hatred before turning his damning gaze back to Yukiya. “A trainee, you? How?”

Suikan looked like he was about to cry as he denounced Yukiya. Yukiya, however, remained unfazed.

“If you refuse to see me as a trainee, then I'll take my chance to speak as His Highness Wakamiya’s subordinate and not as one of your students.” Yukiya's gaze passed over all the Instructors present before he fiercely asked, “Are you all even aware of what the Unbending Reed Monastery's actual purpose is? There were Yamauchi Guards involved in Wakamiya's assassination attempt two years ago, young ones.

“It made it clear that the Yamauchi Guard, the organization meant to protect the Imperial Family, was no more, and that there was a long-standing problem with the facility raising its members—the Unbending Reed Monastery. It was because nobody in the Administration supposed to fix such an issue did anything at all that I had to take matters into my own hands,” Yukiya brazenly declared. “If you have any problems with my actions, I would first like to ask the Director something. Why won't you do your duty? Where do you plan to guide this Monastery from here on?”

“I—” Shoukaku deeply sighed, Yukiya's accusing glare boring onto him. “The Unbending Reed Monastery's Director is a servant who shares a destiny with his generation's Golden Raven. It's my duty to build a Monastery suitable to His Majesty's wishes.”

“If that's so, what did His Majesty ask of you?”

“...... His Majesty has given orders to me only once in his entire reign.”

The Emperor abhorred the Yamauchi Guard. He wouldn't ever approach them to discuss anything out of his own volition, and this sentiment was extended to the Monastery's Director, the very man supposed to support his reign.

The time had been when Shoukaku went to perform his mandatory greetings upon taking on the position. He was called to the Hall of State Ceremonies, where he got to meet His Majesty through the bamboo curtains. He didn’t speak to Shoukaku even once, however. One of his secretaries, standing right by his side, did so instead.

“You are to treat Lord Natsuka as the Crown Prince, not Wakamiya.” Those were the secretary’s strongly worded orders to him. Orders that left the Director with suspicion.

“Your Majesty, is that truly what you wish?” He asked, confused by a command that blatantly disregarded the previous Emperor's wishes.

The answer that came from the other side of the curtain was a terribly irresponsible “just do as you want.” As a consequence, the Director was never able to settle on a stance on the matter, and the current status quo, with the faction division between Natsuka and Wakamiya, came to be.

“That Yamauchi Guards would attempt to assassinate His Highness should be unthinkable, and yet His Majesty didn't make even the slightest show of reproach to me…….”

“‘Just do as you want’, huh. So your efforts to faithfully follow that one order from His Majesty were what ultimately led the Monastery to become what it is now. How laudable,” Yukiya said, incapable of restraining his contempt. “Laudable, and idiotic like nothing else.”

“I know. And yet, I have only one master and that's His Majesty.”

“Well, much like you're His Majesty’s loyal servant, I'm the same for the True Golden Raven. If it's to follow my master's orders, I'll show no mercy—even against my own teachers.” Yukiya's gaze fixed on Suikan, who bit his lip in frustration. “His Highness Wakamiya is the only one with the ability to protect Yamauchi against the monkeys at present.”

Having said that, Yukiya faced Shoukaku once again. “Were the Yamauchi Guard still raised with animosity towards Wakamiya in their hearts and kept attempting to harm him, it would probably just end in the death of His Majesty who you treasure so much and the collapse of all of Yamauchi. How about you finally open your eyes to reality? The current threat to His Majesty’s life isn't found amongst the idiots of the Imperial Court, but in actual, legitimate monsters—those monkeys. It's not the time to spend all that effort on keeping the balance between the Four Houses! I'm actually furious, you know.”

Yukiya's voice got rougher. “Up until now, His Highness Wakamiya has sought your opinion numerous times. He requested an opportunity to have an open talk with you, even just a chance at an interview, yet you disregarded it all out of scruples about His Majesty or something, I don't know what. You may not have had any other option left as the Monastery's Director, but this isn't a matter in which ‘not having options’ works as an excuse.

“Uncountable talent was wasted, talent that should have been part of His Highness' assets in this crisis, because of you. You failed to train the precious Yatagarasu that would have become His Highness’ hands and legs—Yamauchi's protectors. That ‘loyalty’ you have kept to the very end, Director, is now endangering all of Yamauchi and His Majesty's safety. Don't you see it!?”

“Enough,” Seiken raised his hand as if to stop Yukiya's onslaught on Shoukaku. “I'm sure the Director has gotten your message as His Highness' subordinate. Anything beyond that is for His Highness Wakamiya to say himself, not you. Am I wrong?”

Serenity returned to Yukiya's face after Seiken's gentle question. “...... That's true. I overstepped, my apologies.”

Yukiya bowed his head, and Seiken regarded him with calm eyes. “I have a question for you. It seems Suikan didn't consider you a trainee, but I’ve been of the mind to treat you as one all along.”

Yukiya's eyes went wide and then he smiled wryly. “Yes, I'm aware.”

“Which is why I believe something. That while it's an unmistakable fact that, as His Highness’ subordinate, you used your fellow trainees for your own ends, you also were moved to act out of genuine love for your friends just as much.” Yukiya’s expression, which had remained impassive no matter how much they decried and cursed him, now, for the first time since he had arrived in the room, crumbled ever so slightly. “You believe that to defeat the monsters, you have no alternative but to become one as well, right?”

For a second, Yukiya tried to answer, yet he found himself unable to do so. He stood there, motionless. All the while, Seiken watched over him mournfully. “You may say you don't mind being a monster, but there’s a part of you that most definitely isn't one. Please, don't ever forget that.”

Yukiya looked back at Seiken intently. All of a sudden, the boy’s expression had shifted—he seemed to be at a complete loss.

“...... Even if that's the case, I don't have the right to say so myself, do I?”

⊛　　　　　⊛　　　　　 ⊛

Ah, the moon sure is big tonight, Shigemaru nonchalantly thought to himself as he walked through the Monastery's grounds. As they hadn't been informed about their punishments for the brawl just yet, once they took care of their wounds, their entire group had decided to return to their respective rooms and wait.

Among them all, only Yukiya had been called by the Director and Shigemaru was worried sick about him. The lecture must have dragged on—he still had yet to return to their room.

“I'll go to take a look,” he had said to Ichiryuu and Chihaya before taking off.

As he left the dormitory behind, he was overcome by the smell of dirt warmed up by the day's sunlight and the refreshing scent of grass covered in moisture. The full moon was up in the sky, the same rich yellow as a boiled egg yolk.

Just when Shigemaru was en route to the designated hall for Board Drills, however, he caught sight of a figure slowly walking in the shade between the buildings. Shigemaru immediately sprinted towards it through the moonlight’s shadows.

“Hey!” he called out. “That sure took you long, you must be tired.”

“Shige……” Yukiya raised his head with a start. He seemed a bit out of it.

Uwah, he’s sure feeling down as hell, Shigemaru mused to himself while he offered Yukiya the package he had been carrying around. “You must be hungry, right? I got you this from the kitchen.”

“Ah, thank you. You didn't have to.” Yukiya tried to give him his usual smile, but it was a blatantly forced attempt—and Shigemaru didn't like that one bit. Yukiya sat down on a stone wall close by to eat the cold rice balls in the package, and Shigemaru became all the more certain.

There was something different going on with Yukiya.

“Did they scold you that much?”

“That they did.”

“What did they tell you?”

“Ah, well. They got angry at me, told me my personality sucks.”

Of course, Shigemaru didn’t believe even for a moment that the Instructors used that exact expression, but even if the wording was different, the gist of the message was likely the same. The matter was, then, how he could comfort his friend. Shigemaru pondered the matter for a while, before finally giving a confident answer. “Well, it does certainly suck.”

Yukiya silently gulped before murmuring, “Ouch, even you, Shige?”

As much as Yukiya was trying to keep up appearances, Shigemaru could tell that his expression had gone completely stiff. He, however, pretended to not notice. “I mean, it's the truth, isn't it?”

Shigemaru had been, at first, under the impression that Yukiya was a nice, cheerful kid. However, as time passed, he came to realize the truth—that Yukiya was, in reality, quite the twisted and vindictive young man. The more he got to know him, in fact, the more Shigemaru came to strongly believe that Yukiya was the last person anyone would want as his enemy.

“Well, that’s…” Yukiya attempted to speak, even more downcast than before.

“—But,” Shigemaru intervened, “Akeru, Chihaya, Ichiryuu, Kippei, me and everyone else. We all hang out with you fully knowing that. All Yatagarasu, to a greater or lesser extent, have a good and a bad side to them, you see. The gap between those in your case is exceedingly wide, yes, but there's nothing wrong with that!”

“But, Shige! You can probably only say that because you don't know everything bad about me.”

“Everyone hides the darker part of themselves. So, it's all about seeing the good in people and deciding whether that’s worth spending time with that person.” Yet, despite Shigemaru's many attempts at comforting Yukiya, it all seemed to be falling on deaf ears. His expression remained just dark as before. “—You know, from time to time, you look like a little boy alone on an errand to me.”

“Huh?” Yukiya let out a confused screech.

Shigemaru laughed. “Oh, I’m not saying it because you're tiny. It's just that face—like you know where you have to go and what you have to do so it’s not like you’re about to actually cry, but, with no adults to accompany you on the way, you can't help but to feel oh so helpless and lonely.”

The observation must have caught Yukiya off guard. He remained silent.

Shigemaru didn't ever intend to say this to Yukiya, but he had met a boy with an expression much like his once before. A brave errand boy who properly performed his given duty and politely took off—one whose countenance Shigemaru wouldn't ever get to see again. It wasn't like Shigemaru could have done anything for that boy's sake, yet he still regretted not paying him more mind.

“I'm an idiot, so I have no idea whatsoever what kind of errand you’re on or where you‘re trying to go. But I can at least tell you're trying your hardest to do whatever you can, to fulfill your duty, and I can at the very least imagine it must be something very, very important.” Shigemaru roughly ruffled the still silent Yukiya's hair. “It doesn’t matter to me where your destination is, what your goal is, or how blackhearted you are, I’ll never ever abandon you. So! You don’t need to worry so much.”

“...... You really won't, Shige?”

“Really! And I'm not alone in that, you know? There's others too. People who may complain on the way, but ultimately follow you. Many more than you may think, of that I’m sure. It may take you a while to find them, though,” Shigemaru added. Yukiya’s expression crumpled entirely as he said that, rice ball still in hand. “Don't ever forget it. We got your back.”

After a long silence, Yukiya nodded ever so slightly as he let out one single whisper, “Thank you.”

“Good, now, shall we go back?”

Recommended: Thoughts of the Barren Tree (Coming Next)

Next: Yukiya (Part 1)

#Translation: The Raven of the Empty Coffin #yatagarasu #yatagarasu series #the raven does not choose its master #karasu wa aruji wo erabanai #Oh no translations notes you may think.........#wait for the short story where I think there may be easily 6 of those

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mochinomnoms · 3 months ago

Text

say you can't sleep, baby, I know

NSFW!Trey x Reader

Synopsis

You're doing this on purpose, aren't you? You're trying to rile him up, right? He's supposed to be the responsible, big brother of Heartslabyul, he tries so hard. So, so hard to stay out of trouble and have a normal day-to-day life. Trey used to pride himself on his levelheadedness and restraint, but that all went out the window into a swan dive into the lake when he saw you in his bed in that damn one-piece. “Happy Birthday Trey~”

[wc} - 5,258

[cw/tags] - afab!gn!reader (im sorry folks it's all i know how to write still), NRC is a university in this, domesticity kink, birthday sex, breeding kink (sue me), oral (giving & receiving), trey can be a little mean as a treat

[notes] - i apologize for the person i've become after seeing trey's new b-day card. it does things to me and this is 100% self-indulgent for me. also, tried to use very neutral descriptors for reader so tell me how that went and if it reads well! lastly, the outfit the reader wears is based on sabrina carpenter's outfits from her short n' sweet tour, specifically the baby doll one!

Written while listening to “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter, I recommend listening to it while reading :)

Let’s consider exactly the type of person Trey is.

Ever since he’s started school at NRC, he’s always taken a bit of a parental role in Heartslabyul, even before he became vice housewarden. Even Cater would joke about it when they first became friends:

“You’re, like, a total big bro! O-M-G, no! You’re like a dad friend! I’m totes willing to bet that the incoming freshmen are gonna slip up! Call you Dad or something!”

Evidently, when Riddle came into the picture and Trey was appointed his vice, Cater was proven right. He didn’t mind it too much, despite what others might think.

He liked the familiarity of it, being the oldest at home, it translated well into his position at Heartslabyul, and it came with the added bonus of being able to minimize any chaos that arose.

That was his main goal, especially with Riddle’s temper during his freshman and at the beginning of his sophomore year. Honestly, he had phenomenal conflict resolution skills, and he just wanted to make his life as easy as possible.

Everyone at this school liked to make that difficult, though, especially the freshmen of this year.

“Oh fu—I mean sh—dam—fuc—shi—FIDDLESTICKS!”

“Dude, just say fuck, why you gotta say the corniest shit—OW—Treyyy! Deuce hit me!”

Deuce had a guilty look on his face as Trey looked up from his notebook to raise a brow at the two.

“W-well, Ace cussed, so he has to put money in the swear jar!”

“Aw what! Come on Trey!” Ace whined, shoving Deuce’s face to the side as the latter grunted and started pulling at his cheeks and arm. “Riddle’s not here, he’ll never know, so I don’t gotta! Don’t make me!”

Trey simply smirked and gestured to the jar on the fireplace mantle, helpfully available to everyone in the lounge.

“You know the rules, bud, two thaurmarks for the f-bomb and a .50 cent for the other.”

Ace tossed his head back and groaned, begrudgingly dragging himself over to the jar as he dug around his pocket for change.

“Don’t be rude to your father, Ace.” A few giggles and snorts vibrated amongst the small group studying in the lounge as you wagged a finger at Ace, Grim squinting angrily at the book in your lap.

Your lips quivered as you hid a laugh, jokingly chastising the ginger.

“No need to be a brat.”

Trey had to withhold a snort at that comment, rich coming from you. He knew better than anyone that you could be as much of a brat as you were another parental figure.

“Oh ha-ha, very funny, Prefect. What, does that make you, Mom or Dad 2?” Ace stuck his tongue out at you as you grinned and focused back on Grim.

“Okay Grimmy, so remember, what alchemy recipes need mandrake root?”

Watching from the corner of his eye, Trey watched fondly as you murmured soft words to Grim. It reminded him of his Mom talking to his siblings after a nightmare, or of his Dad after one of them would get hurt in the kitchen.

Soft, soothing, parental. You’d make an excellent parent one day.

Trey felt himself get warm at the thought, adjusting himself in his seat and looking back at his musicology notes. He couldn’t sing very well, but he can memorize notes, and that’s what the upcoming exam was focused on.

That’s what he needed to focus on, not the way you cradled Grim against you like a parent with their child. Focus on his alchemy flashcards, and not the way you cleaned up the mess on the table so you could bring everyone a tray of snacks he’d prepared earlier that day. Focus on the history textbook in front of him, and not the way you cleaned up the lounge as it got later and later.

It wasn’t fair. It was so unfair how well you fell into the role. Cleaning and humming, one of his spare aprons on you as you wiped down the tables of crumbs and stacked a pile of dishes. It was unfair how sweetly you murmured to the few remaining students, and told them to go to bed and rest up.

They obliged, probably half asleep at this rate, since it was an hour until midnight. Ace and Deuce had retired a while ago, the latter leaning on the former as they haphazardly stumbled to their room.

Riddle had dropped by after his housewarden meeting, satisfied by the study group, but ultimately stuck to his very strict evening routine.

Now it was just you two. Even Grim had been tugged along with Ace and Deuce earlier, not unlike a rag doll slung over their shoulders.

“Trey? Honey, when are you going to sleep? It’s almost midnight.” His eyes fluttered tiredly as he felt your hands slide over his shoulders and a kiss pressed against his temple.

He felt warm again, heat pooling in his belly. You were so unfair.

“You should go to bed soon, come on, I’ll take care of you.”

He can think of a few ways you could ‘take care’ of him.

“It’s fine, why don’t you get Grim and head back to Ramshackle? Curfew is in 30 minutes, you know?”

You rolled your eyes, sighing into his ear, making a tingle go down his spine.

“Okay, but please go to bed soon? I left you a little birthday surprise in your bedroom~”

Trey perked up at that, eyeing your mischievous grin as you waved your fingers goodbye, going down the hallway to the dorms to grab Grim.

To be honest, he’d forgotten that his birthday was tomorrow, he’d been so focused on his midterms that it just slipped his mind. Well, he can’t say he’s not excited to see what you got him, especially since you’d been not too subtly probing him for preferences.

He groaned, running his hands over his face and sighing, heavy and exhausted.

“Ugh, just a bit more and I’ll retire for the night.” Trey reassured himself, eyes straining as he looked between the books in front of him.

The words on the papers blurred after a bit, the sound of the grandclock lulling him further into sleep, his head nodding off until a ping from his phone started him awake.

It was Cater, his Magicam user popping up on his screen.

cay-cay_diamond: hbd trey!! 🥳🎉🎉🎉grats on being an old man now!

Blinking at the clock, Trey realized that it was now a few minutes past midnight, so it was technically his birthday. He’s lucky that Riddle followed his own sleep schedule so rigorously, or else he’d be getting a scolding for breaking curfew.

luckyclover: Old? I’m only like 4 months older than you cay-cay_diamond: yeah. old. cay-cay_diamond: anyways! enjoy the gift in ur room!!! i helped (name) pick out the wrapping 😘😘😘

Trey hummed, a small smile on his face as he imagined the two of you bickering over wrapping paper and messily wrapping up a box with a bow. You did seem very excited for him to find it earlier, maybe you two picked something out together.

He was curious on what exactly you got him and why you hadn’t waited to give it to him at his actual birthday party. And why did you need Cater to help you…you’d always shoo him away when he’d tried helping you with gifts for other’s birthdays.

Stacking his books into his left hand and walking towards the junior dorm rooms, Trey looked at his phone as it pinged again.

cay-cay_diamond: on that topic thooo…u should rly go 2 ur room and get ur present! the poor thing! they’ve been w8ing very patiently 4 u~ luckyclover: Waiting? (Name)??? cay-cay_diamond: 🤭🤫😉

Trey sighed, shaking his head and tucking his phone away and digging out his room keys. It was times like these, deep into the night, when he was thankful for having his own room. He felt a bit bad now, you probably fell asleep in his bed waiting for him.

Though, the thought of you clutching one of his pillows, maybe in one of his sweaters to keep warm, made him smile. Then he could come in, gently take your clothes and shoes off to get you more comfortable, and dress down himself to slip in right behind you.

As he finally managed to get to his room, he heard shuffling as he turned the keys. Trey smirked, noticing that only his rose lamp remained on, and all the drapes to his canopy were now closed.

He could just barely make out the shadow of you moving behind them, hearing you gasp and the bed squeak, making him let out a soft laugh under his breath.

“You’re breaking curfew, you should be asleep you know? You're such a troublemaker sometimes.” Trey teased you as placed his books on his desk, tossing his hat onto its stand and slipping his shoes off to throw them into his wardrobe and grab his slippers.

He yawned, the late night really starting to sink into his body as he started undressing, his jacket and vest getting hung back up in the closet as he worked on his sash and unbuttoning his pants.

“Only like a third of the time!” You whined, the bed softly squeaking as you followed his movements behind the canopy. “Besides, I really wanted to give you your present. Don’t you want to unwrap me?”

Trey paused at the purr in your voice, narrowing his gaze as he saw your hand ever so slightly move the curtain at the end of the bed to peek at him. You were still mostly shrouded in darkness, but there was a very soft glow coming from inside the canopy, so he could just barely make out your mischievous smile.

Though, you quickly frowned, eyeing him up and down out of concern.

“Not if you’re too tired though, you have bags under your eyes, Trey. Do you just wanna go to sleep?”

Giving you a weary smile, Trey finally tossed his sash to the side and reached for the curtains, pushing them to the side to finally take a look at your “mysterious” present.

“In a bit, let me see what you got me…”

Trey’s breath hitched, he suddenly felt very wide awake as his eyes roamed up and down your body.

From the corner of his eye, he could see that you set up string lights along the top of the canopy for ambiance, making you look like you were almost glowing. Though it wasn’t that that made him lose his voice.

You were sitting on the edge of his bed with your legs curled underneath you, dressed in the most darling sage-green, sheer baby doll dress. The dress's puffy sleeves and hem were lacy, matching the lace on the stockings.

Holy shit you were wearing stockings.

“Ha, I wanted to surprise you, I thought you could use a stress reliever.”

You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?

“I should’ve realized that you’d be tired from studying for midterms, sorry.”

You're trying to rile him up, right?

“But, still, do you like it? I wrapped myself up just for you~”

He's supposed to be the responsible, big brother of Heartslabyul, he tries so hard. So, so hard to stay out of trouble and have a normal day-to-day life. To behave.

“In any case,” You shifted onto your knees, the dress splitting in the middle, the only thing keeping it together being a small bow at the base of your neck, revealing the lack of undergarments, just your bare skin underneath. “Even if you’re too tired and just want to sleep, I just wanted to say…”

Trey leaned in as you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him in, batting your eyelashes and ghosting your lips over his with a teasing smile. Your hands caressed the back of his neck, a thumb rubbing soothing circles, making him melt.

“Happy Birthday Trey~”

It’s now that he noticed that you even added a gloss to your lips, and he could smell the warm perfume on your neck as you pressed your lips to his, tongue swiping over his mouth, asking for permission to enter. Obliging, Trey sighed into the kiss and tangled his tongue with yours, his hands slipping underneath the baby doll and squeezing at your waist.

He really should go to sleep. He has to wake up early for the party. He has to dress in his birthday robes. He has to make sure that the others don’t burn down the kitchen or damage his expensive bakeware as they made his cake.

But the way your skin felt under his gloved hands, skin meeting skin, lace, skin, and lace again.

How could he be expected to sleep now?

Trey used to pride himself on his level headedness and restraint, but that all went out the window into a swan dive into the lake when he saw you in his bed in that damn one-piece.

Humming in delight against your mouth, Trey slid his hands down, as you curled into his body in response, and squeezed at the fat of your thighs before picking you up.

A yelp left your mouth as he picked you up and tossed you up the bed, pulling off his shirt and tossing it behind him as he crawled on top of you.

His tongue darted out to wet his lips as he saw the way the dress fell open to expose your body, your chest moving up and down as you watched him with a giddy smile.

“Oh! I guess you’re not that tired—ah!”

You gasped as Trey grabbed your calves, tugging you up to place the back of your knees on his shoulders. He leaned in to press a chaste kiss to your right thigh, smirking against the lace.

“I was tired. I should be asleep,” Trey murmured against your stocking laced skin, pressing kisses as he went farther and farther down. “Resting—kiss—Up—kiss—but no.”

He gave you a half-hearted glare, which you responded with a smile and lacing your hands through his hair as he pressed another kiss to the bend where your thigh met your sex.

“You broke curfew, you wanted to keep me up with your little ‘present’, you know I’d get in trouble for hiding you out in my room.”

Trey gave you a bite on your thigh, groaning as he felt your hands tighten in his hair, moving back to press a soothing kiss to the mark he left.

“Are you trying to get me in trouble? Throw me in the doghouse?” “Cause I’ll make sure you come right with me, after a little taste of my birthday treat.”

The same time he ran his tongue up your sex, Trey could feel you shiver and pull on his hair as he ate you feverishly, like a man starved from food or water for ages.

“Mmm! Trey!” You threw your head back, bringing one hand up to slam a hand over your mouth to muffle your cries, the walls here weren’t known to be sound-proof.

He should probably care a bit more, especially when you let out a particularly high-pitched squeal as his tongue began fucking into your hole.

“Trey! Oooh, Trey~”

Bringing a finger to join his tongue, Trey smiled against your skin as you squeezed your thighs around his head, using his free hand to push his pants and underwear down to palm at his dick.

“Trey—aaaah—wait, let me—mmph—Honey—” You let out a shuddering gasp, pulling his head up from your sex. Trey locked eyes with you, leaning into the hand you slid down to cup his cheek and caress his lower lips, wiping the slick and drool from the corner of his mouth.

“Yes? Honey?” Removing his hand from inside you to cover your own hand and kiss your palm, Trey smiled and hummed, “I like that, you know, reminds me of a husband coming home to his spouse.”

Pressing kisses up your body, soft and tingly, up your neck, and back to your lips where they belonged.

“Hmm, I really like the sound of that, (Name) Clover.” You murmured against his lips, smiling as you wrapped a leg around his waist to bring his dick closer to your sex, rubbing against him as you both sighed into each other’s mouths.

“Is that what you want? You want me to be a cute little spouse? Dress up in a cute apron? Greet you when you come home from work?”

So focused on the softness of your lips and the wetness sliding against his dick, Trey didn’t even notice you twisting your body to turn him onto his back, the back of his head hitting the back of his pillows as you sat on top with a cheeky grin.

“Hm? How would my husband want me to welcome him home? A hug? A kiss? Mm, what about…me?” Trey watched you with flushed cheeks as you kissed down his body, mimicking his earlier actions as you helped him tug off the rest of his clothes.

“Oh, how nice it would be for you to come back to a warm, clean home with a spouse…” Looking up at him through your eyelashes and giving him a kitten lick to his tip. “...ready to give soft wet holes for you to fill~”

Giving him a vision into that sweet, sweet future, you swallowed his tip, down his shaft, and started sucking.

“Haaah—”

Trey lolled his head back into his pillow, letting out a breathless moan as you bobbed your head up and down his length, your hand working the rest that didn’t fit into your mouth.

“Fuuuuck. That does sound nice—mmh!” Reaching his hand down, you immediately took one of your hands to lace it with his, squeezing it as you hummed around his cock.

“My lovely spouse—nnnngh—their pretty mouth—unnnh—soft holes—aaaah—all for me to come home to every day, what a dream~”

A particularly harsh suck made Trey arch his back and squeeze your hand harder, a giggle vibrating his dick as you pulled off.

“Hehe, is this your way of proposing? Kinda dirty to do it with your dick on my mouth.” You giggled, pressing kisses and quick licks along his shaft.

“That’s okay though, you and I both know that deep down, you’re a bit of a pervert. Right?”

Trey scoffed, tugging you up with a bemused smile. “Yeah? How can you tell? Thought I hid that pretty well.”

A soft laugh escaping you, you held both of his hands, bringing them up to press kisses on his knuckles, making the green-haired man sigh fondly.

“The way you look at me sometimes, like you’re undressing me. It makes me feel all warm and tingly, especially when I piss you off.”

Both of you let out a breathless moan as your wetness rubbed against his hard dick, grinding against one another as the tip occasionally caught against your hole, making you shiver.

“Is it bad that sometimes I wanna get you mad so you’ll fuck me real mean? Is it bad that I want you to use me? To fuck your stress out with me?”

A lump forming in his throat, Trey let go of your hands to pull at the string holding your flimsy baby doll together. Eyes half lidded, he pushed the fabric off your shoulders, watching it pool at your elbows as you placed your hands on his chest to steady yourself as your grinding turned into vigorous humping against him, making you both gasp in pleasure.

“Ooh, Trey, honey, baby, hubby~ Won’t you use me? Be a little mean? Pleeeease? Fuck me, fill me up like I know you want! Pleeeeease Trey? Pretty, pretty please?”

Lips smashed against yours as Trey bolted up, groaning into your mouth as he grabbed your hips in an almost painful grip.

He picked you up once again, throwing you on all fours, covers tangling against your knees and hands, as he ripped your dress off and tossed it.

Trey’s left hand placed itself on your hip, while his right pushed down on your back, following up your spine to the base of your neck where he pushed you down to shove your face into the sheets, forcing you into a doggy pose.

“So you do like getting me in trouble, little brat. Fine, I’ll be mean.”

Trey lined his dick against your throbbing hole, leaning down to press a tender kiss to your ear and moving the hand on your neck to wove with your right, squeezing it reassuringly.

“Squeeze three times if you need me to stop, otherwise, I’m going to fuck that brain right out of your pretty little head, since you don’t seem to be wanting to use it.”

In one, swift move, Trey slammed his hips to your ass, sinking nearly half his length into your warm, waiting hole.

“FUCK! YES—MMMPH” Burying your face into the sheets to muffle your cries, Trey did the same into your shoulder, shivering at your tightness around him.

Setting a rhythm, hips smacking into your ass, Trey worked the rest of his cock into you until he could hear the smack of your ass against his hips, the sound echoing with the creak of the bed.

Your tightness around him was heavenly, as was the sight of you sinking further into the bed and arching your ass to sloppily meet his thrusts. Straightening again, bending your arm back so that your hands could remain intertwined.

His left hand caressed your back and the fat of your behind, before bringing it down in a harsh slap to your ass, making you yelp and squeeze his hand in a vice grip, though you also tightened around his cock.

Rubbing a soothing circle against the reddening skin, slowed his thrusts, making you whine and push against him.

“Haaah, that okay? Feel good?” Trey murmured, smiling at the frantic nod and wiggle against him. “Want me to keep going?”

“Mmmph... yessshh... mmmore, mmmore... pleeeashh, honey~” Your sounds were muffled as you bit into the blanket, getting higher and higher as he obliged, not one to deny you after all.

Every other thrust was met with a slap to one cheek, then the other, the skin turning redder and redder with his handprints marking you. The harder he went, the more and more slack you went, until he was eventually just fucking you like his personal toy.

Though, you did offer yourself as his present, didn’t you? So it was only fair that he got to use his present as he wished, and right now, he wanted to feel you cumming around him.

Ceasing his smacks, making you whine, Trey instead melded his body against yours, the weight both overwhelming and comforting, as his left hand instead moved to your sex to rub you to completion.

Trey watched as you gasped for breath, completely burying your head into the bed to muffled your screams as you came around him, trembling and squeezing him.

The feeling of your walls pulsating around his shaft was becoming dangerously addicting, and he was very greedy for more of that.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck! I’m so close! You can give me another one, right?”

Slipping his arms around your waist and pulling you up, Trey adjusted you so that you sat on his dick, kissing the side of your neck for reassurance as he let go of your hand to quickly slide his arms under your knees.

From all his years of tossing bags of flour and sugar, from kneading dough, from all the labor he’s done as a baker, picking you up was like child’s play.

Folding your knees up to your chest so he could hold you, back flush to his chest, was nothing for him. Everything for you, though, your over sensitive hole squeezing down on him again.

“FUCK! I caaame! Treytreytreytrey—” You dug a hand into his arm, tossing your head back and lolling your tongue out with a dumb, drooly smile on your lips.

“A-almost there—nngh—just squeeze if I need to stop—I’m so close~”

Smashing his lips against yours for an open mouth, wet kiss, Trey pounded faster into you, determined to feel your walls pulsate again, this time as he filled your insides up like one of his pastries.

Then, an awful, perverted thought filled his head, like a devil was whispering in his ear.

Why doesn’t he fill them up with his kids? Don’t stop until his cum is drooling out of their hole, and go again to make up for the lost seed. He already wants them to be his spouse, why not add a few little ones to that picture?

Trey was losing any bit of restraint that he may have had as he was now determined to fullfill his fantasy. Even if you couldn’t do it, magic made anything here possible, and right now is good practice anyway.

“I’m—aaaahhh—I’m gonna come inside, okay? Fill you up, yeah?”

Digging your nails into his skin, you nodded against his mouth and whined.

“Yessssss! Fill me up! Inside! Gimme a baby Trey! I wanna make you a daaaaddy~”

Squeezing your legs further against your chest, Trey pounded faster and faster, trembling as he reached close and closer to his peak.

Warmth flooded his body, tingles, and he swears sparks, flying over his skin as he felt you clamp down on him for a third time.

Your voice squealed higher and higher, any previous attempt to be quiet for naught as you practically screamed.

Trey shuddered as he finally came, cum flooding your warm insides as you went limp in his arms.

Panting for air, both of you remained still for a minute, the bed feeling stuffy with the curtains still closed. After another minute, Trey pulled you up and off of him, shaky as his now limp dick left your warm, comfortable embrace.

Doing his best to gently place you on the bed, Trey let out a breathless laugh as you collapsed on the bed like a rag doll, blinking your eyes tiredly at the ceiling of the canopy.

“Haah, sorry, I went too hard there, huh?”

You shook your head, giving him a tired smile and reaching a hand for him, which he took and brought up to kiss.

“It was good, really, good. You liked your present?”

Snorting and nodding, Trey carefully scooped you up to move your head onto the pillows and gently roll off your garter stocking, thumbs rubbing soothing circles as he did.

“Yeah, I did. Come on, let me get you a shirt.”

You whined as he pulled away, exhaustion starting to steep into him as he tied back the curtains to the canopy to let the stuffiness out. Trey picked up the baby doll he’d tossed earlier, placing it into his wardrobe drawer as he dug out a shirt and sweatpants for himself and a shirt for you.

As he closed the drawer, he noticed your backpack hidden underneath it, digging in it to grab you some underwear. You had packed a pair of pajamas, apparently, but…he’d rather see you in his clothes.

“Hmm, honey? Come to bed…” You whined, hands reaching out for him impatiently as he slipped on his clothes, crawling over to you and helping you slip your underwear and his shirt on.

“I’m here, I’m here.”

Trey slowly blinked, eyelids heavy as he scoop you up to place you two under the covers, the soft mattress making him practically become one with the bed and you as you nestled into his chest.

Your legs tangled with his as Trey wrapped his arms around you and tucked your head under his chin. He could feel fatigue and sleep quickly taking over him as your voice vibrated against his chest, soft and sleepy.

“Happy birthday honey, I—yawn—love…you…”

A different kind of warmth, soft and sweet, filled him as he squeezed you tighter against him, murmuring back.

“I love you too…”

*Riiiing* *Riiiiiiiing* *Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing*

An irritating, loud noise filled Trey’s ears as he groaned, half-awake as he turned over to smack his hand on his phone, silencing the alarm.

“Aah…Noisy…hhggh.” Trey groaned, rolling over, careful to not crush you under him to blindly reach for his glasses.

“Glasses…glasses…ah..”

Plastic and glass finally under his palm, Trey slipped his glasses on his face, ultimately throwing himself back into bed next to you, who’d begun shifting awake.

“Mmm, honey?”

Grunting in response, Trey threw an arm over his eyes, irritated at the sun seeping through the window into his eyes.

“Early…”

You chuckled, a yawn escaping you as you decided to move closer and slip a hand under his shirt to rub at his chest, pressing kisses into his neck as well.

“You’re so grumpy in the morning. Come on, you've got a big day ahead.”

“…Ugh, I do?”

Snorting at his response, Trey grunted as he felt you move, peaking under his arm to see you resting on your elbow. You had puffy, dark circles under your eyes from the little sleep you managed to get.

“Birthdays are a pretty big deal, right?” Smiling at him, Trey squinted an eye and groaned, squeezing his eyes shut in protest.

“Ugggh, yeah…”

Hearing you hum, Trey groaned in surprise as he felt you straddle his waist and caress his neck and cheeks, making him remove his arm to blink up at you.

Your hair was a tangled mess, sticking up in all sorts of places. The bags under your eyes more noticeable under the night. His shirt dwarfed you. You were a hot mess, all things considered.

He probably wouldn’t say it out loud, with how cute you were last night, but he thinks you look most beautiful like this. Better than any frilly, skimpy, or tight outfit.

“Come on, Birthday Boy, want me to give you a little pick me up?”

Kissing him with a smile, Trey moaned into the lazy, sloppy morning kiss, tilting his head back as you pressed kissed down his neck, deciding to work on leaving a love bite at the nape of his neck.

Trey’s phone chimed, making him sigh as he reached for it, letting you continue your love bites and kisses,

Squinting at the few messages, it seemed like a few of his friends and classmates were already sending him birthday wishes. Though, a message from Cater made him blot up, a sudden shock of alertness running down his spine.

“Ah! Trey, what is it?”

cay-cay_diamond: morning!! happy bday 2 the bday boi again! thought i let u no tht u owe me a favor, had 2 cast a silencing spell on ur roum last nite. totes ruined my beauty sleep! cay-cay_diamond: also i know u got ur lil cutie 2 distract ya, but liek dont b l8 2 ur bday breakfast, grimmy might eat it!

“Shit, we were too loud, Cater had to cast a silencing spell on the room.”

You made an ‘oh’ shape with your mouth, giving Trey an apologetic smile.

“Sorry, but at least you enjoyed it, right?”

Trey smiled, more awake now, and nodded, sharing a sweet kiss with you.

“Definitely. You might have to consider making your go-to gift for now on, it’s gotta be my favorite one I’ve ever gotten.”

He solidified that statement with one more, firm, assuring kiss with you, before having to leave your sweet dream into the real world.

At least he could have one part of that dream with him at his side from now on: you.

comments and reblogs appreciated 🩷

#mochi fic #twst #twisted wonderland #trey clover #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #trey clover x reader #twst trey #twisted wonderland smut #twst smut #trey clover smut #happy birthday trey #anyways thats my husband and i probably wont get this out of my system for a while

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