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ArabicArknights: It Can't Possibly Be My Fault... Right? — Chapter 52
Chapter 52: Let’s Watch Together
“It’s no fair~ I don’t wanna have to wake up from this daydream~”
Kai hummed a cheerful little tune as he strolled down the metallic corridors of Rhodes Island, making his way back to his dormitory. He needed to pack his gear for tomorrow’s expedition to the Abandoned City, but his mood was far too good to treat it like a chore.
“You are my daydream~”
He slid his keycard into the slot and gave the handle a gentle twist. The heavy door clicked open with a satisfying mechanical snap.
“I’m back!”
Even though he lived alone, he called out the greeting to the empty room. It was an old habit carried over from his previous life. Whenever he was in high spirits, he liked to belt out a line or two to the silent walls. Today was definitely one of those days.
“The golden age will return again~” Kai tossed his bag of supplies onto a nearby chair and struck a dramatic, microphone-gripping pose like a lead vocalist at a rock concert.
“What are you doing?”
A questioning voice rang out from the shadows of his unlit room.
“Holy crap!” Startled out of his rockstar fantasy, Kai reflexively whipped the jacket he had just taken off straight toward the source of the sound.
“Wah! What are you doing?!”
Kai froze. That voice was entirely too familiar. He scrambled for the wall switch and flooded the room with harsh fluorescent light.
Sitting right on the edge of his bed was Mon3tr. The summon had his jacket draped completely over her head, looking utterly indignant.
“What is wrong with you!” Mon3tr yanked the jacket off her head and glared daggers at him. “Why did you throw that at me for no reason!”
Kai quickly raised his hands in surrender. “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t know it was you… Wait a second.” He paused, narrowing his eyes. “Isn’t this my dorm? How did you even get in? I distinctly remember locking the door when I left.”
“Uh… well… about that. Ehe.” Mon3tr offered a sheepish little sound, trying to act cute to smooth over the breaking and entering. Then, puffing out her chest, she planted her hands on her hips and acted bold despite being entirely in the wrong. “It is because I knocked for ages and you did not respond! So I came in to check on you.”
Seeing her utterly shameless behavior, Kai could only sigh. “I was down in the training room running tests all afternoon. Of course I wasn’t in the dorm.”
“I know that. I even went down there to take a look.”
“Then why did you come up to the dorm to find me?”
“I only watched you for a bit before leaving. It was boring.” Mon3tr waved a claw dismissively. “After that, I went to play with Mechanist. He asked me to help him with some self-healing function for his little gadgets. I did not really get it. When I finished and went back to the training ground, your tests were already over. I figured you would head straight back here, so I came to find you. Since you were not here yet, I just let myself in.”
She shook her head as she spoke, treating her casual home invasion as the most natural thing in the world.
Kai picked up the bag of supplies he had tossed aside and set it neatly in the corner. “Okay, but that still does not explain how exactly you got in. You do not have a keycard for my room.”
Mon3tr blinked at him innocently. “You know that the entire Rhodes Island landship is connected to PRTS, right? Every door, every gate.”
“Yeah, I know. What does that have to do with you getting in?” Kai was still drawing a blank.
“Then let me ask you this. Who has the highest PRTS clearance on the ship?”
“The Doctor, Amiya… Kal’tsit…” Kai trailed off, his eyes widening as the realization hit him. “Wait. You can use Kal’tsit’s security clearance?!”
Mon3tr merely offered a smug, silent smile.
Kai covered his face with his hand. He had accounted for almost every variable on this ship, but he had never factored in a clearance-abusing summon.
“Fine,” Kai groaned. “But what are you actually here for?”
“To get my paintings! What about the three you promised me? You did not forget, did you?” Mon3tr leaned forward, eyeing him with deep suspicion.
“Haha, of course not.” Kai forced a laugh, sweating slightly. “I was just about to start painting right now.”
To be completely honest, he had completely forgotten. He had rushed back to the dorm for one specific reason: to privately appreciate the incredibly rare Kal’tsit maid outfit photo album he had acquired.
“Is… that so?” Mon3tr remained seated on the edge of the bed, her hard, segmented tail hanging down and swaying gently like a pendulum.
“Of course it is. But I probably won’t be able to finish all three of them tonight.” Kai walked over to his desk, pulled out his chair, and stretched his arms. If he burned the midnight oil and worked himself to the bone, he could probably finish at least one portrait for her before passing out.
“That is fine. One is acceptable.” Mon3tr nodded with the generous air of a forgiving monarch.
The next few hours were a grueling test of endurance.
“Here, here! This part is clearly angled like this, okay? Look at me.”
“Why does the color look a bit off… Oh, you have to wait for the gouache to dry. What is gouache?”
“Hmm… I feel like you did not fully capture my inherent cuteness, but it is alright. I will give you a passing grade.”
Kai slumped over his desk, completely burnt out. His soul felt like it was leaving his body, turning his entire worldview a dull, exhausted gray. He ignored his demanding model entirely.
Mon3tr, however, was absolutely thrilled. She looked over the finished portrait that belonged solely to her, her eyes practically sparkling. She had already made up her mind: this masterpiece was going to be the very first item displayed on her personal memorial wall.
“Heh heh heh. Good job, Kai.” Mon3tr patted his slumped shoulder approvingly.
Leaving the exhausted artist to his misery, she wandered over to the corner where he had dropped his supplies. In truth, the moment Kai had walked into the room, she had noticed the bag. More specifically, she had caught a very familiar scent lingering on it.
Setting her precious painting aside safely, Mon3tr glanced over her shoulder. Kai was still face-down on the desk, completely unresponsive. Satisfied that the coast was clear, she opened the bag.
‘Hmm… Coffee?’she thought, sniffing the package.’It is the exact brand Kal’tsit likes. Did Kai go to Kal’tsit’s office after his training just to raid her personal coffee supply?’She dug a little deeper.’What is this? An Employment Letter… Oh, so he got promoted. Heh heh heh. Not bad, not bad.’Her claws brushed against something else at the very bottom.’And… huh? Why is this here?’
Mon3tr pulled out a small, sleek black booklet. She recognized it instantly. She had seen this exact item in Kal’tsit’s possession before, but the stern feline had strictly refused to let her look inside. How on Terra did it end up in Kai’s hands?
She shot another cautious glance at the desk. Still no movement. Kai’s current status was effectively stunned.
Confirming that he wasn’t going to suddenly jump up, she neatly packed the coffee and the letter back into the bag. She picked up her painting, grabbed the mysterious black booklet, and sat back down on the edge of the bed.
Curiosity was a powerful thing. Slowly, carefully, Mon3tr flipped open the cover of the small booklet.
“Ugh… what a hard-won victory…” Kai finally groaned, slowly peeling his face off the desk. That was undeniably the most exhausting piece of fan art he had ever produced. Not only was his demanding client supervising him the entire time, but the client was also the model.
“Whoa!”
The sudden exclamation snapped Kai fully back to reality. He shook his groggy head and turned toward the bed to see what had provoked such a reaction.
His heart stopped.
Mon3tr was sitting there, holding his prized Kal’tsit Maid Photo Album, carefully and thoroughly appreciating the contents.
‘Wait, seriously? I haven’t even looked at it yet!’
Adrenaline flooded his system. He launched himself across the room in three quick strides and snatched the booklet right out of Mon3tr’s claws.
“Hey, hey! I was not finished yet!” Mon3tr snapped crossly, reaching for it.
“I haven’t even looked at it yet!” Kai yelled, clutching the photo album to his chest like a priceless artifact. “You little brat, taking advantage of my stunned debuff to sneakily raid my loot!”
“What are you even rambling about? Let me see it!” Mon3tr rolled her eyes and lunged forward.
“Heh heh, that is not up to you…” Kai started to say, backing away.
He didn’t get to finish. Mon3tr took a flying leap off the mattress and pounced directly at him.
“Oh man, not again!” Kai cried out.
Before he could dodge, he was tackled to the floor. However, having learned from previous physical altercations with the summon, he skillfully shifted his weight, resisting her initial swipe and temporarily shielding the photo album with his body.
But human endurance had its limits. Two fists were simply no match for four, five, six, seven, or eight sharp claws coming at him from every conceivable angle. Kai put up a valiant fight, but he eventually lost the wrestling match.
Mon3tr stood victorious over him. She planted one hand triumphantly on her hip and held the black booklet high in the air with the other. “Heh heh heh. In the end, I win!”
“Oh no…” Kai let out a highly exaggerated wail of defeat from the floor.
In truth, he wasn’t actually upset. Mon3tr would definitely give it back after she finished looking at it. He was just playing along to humor her, a small physical compensation for making her wait so long for her painting.
Mon3tr was clearly immensely pleased by his dramatic surrender. Her tail swayed happily, and she looked down at him with an air of absolute superiority. She tapped her chin in thought for a moment, then surprisingly lowered the photo album and nudged Kai with it.
“Consider yourself lucky,” she declared, her tone magnanimous. “I am in a great mood today, so I will allow you to look at it with me.”
Kai blinked, a grin slowly spreading across his face as he pushed himself up from the floor.
Looking at Kal’tsit’s secret maid photos side-by-side with Mon3tr? That sounded like an absolute win.