Chapter 703: Date I

Michael was hesitant initially, but teasing Alice was quite fun.

She responded better to his teasing than expected. He hadn't had a good talk with Alice for a while now. The date would change that.

Maria's complexion distorted drastically upon hearing Michael. She nibbled her lower lip and stared at him, yet Michael didn't notice anything. He was too busy having fun with Alice.

Complicated feelings surfaced from the depth of her very being.

Kaleb, the densest guy in the group, noticed a change in Maria's stance. She stood there as if frozen in time and continued staring at Michael. Kaleb was happy for his sister, but seeing Maria like this hurt.

'She really likes Michael.'

A burst of guilt swept through Kaleb. He couldn't help but approach Maria to distract her a little bit. It was partially his fault that Alice and Michae got closer.

"Hey Maria..."

**

Michael talked to his friends a little bit longer. It was nice to talk to them as long as he ignored Danny's warnings. They resounded in his head all day, but Michael learned to ignore them.

Once the friends split up, Michael finished his business with the Saphirelake Military Academy. He quite the academy and filled out the form to apply for Alice's assistance. The young woman responsible for the dropouts and the application forms recognized Michael. She called someone and worked slower until she was called back. After the second call, the woman smiled hesitantly at him before signing the last documents.

Michael was no longer a student starting today. He was now Alice's assistant...with an assistant working for him.

It was already late afternoon when he was done with everything. He glanced at his phone and saw that he had some time left for his dinner with Alice. His heart beat a little faster, recalling their appointment, but he forced himself to calm down.

Michael reached his room and walked past a mirror. What he saw in the mirror shocked him a little bit. He wasn't covered in dirt and blood, but Michael looked everything but clean. His hair stood in all directions, and it was a wonder that his clothes didn't fall apart. They were torn in more spots than one could count at a glance.

He glanced at the time again and disappeared into the bathroom. Michael showered first, then used a combination of Reinforced Sword Qi and the Sphere of Air to cut his hair.

Michael wanted a simple hairstyle that wouldn't annoy him once he returned to the Origin Expanse to fight. He cut the sides short and thinned out the rest of his hair. He played a bit with his hair to test the different styles he could use that way and decided that his silky hair could stay like this.

"A silver strand...weird. I never noticed that." Michael twirled the silver strand of hair in his fingers while staring at it in the mirror.

[You look good enough. Stop staring at yourself in the mirror, you annoying narcissist! I don't want to see your little guy down there in the mirror either!!!]

Michael raised an eyebrow, "You do realize that you could have stopped accessing Spirit Eyes when I went into the shower, right?"

His brother had often seen him naked when he was younger, which is also why he wasn't ashamed to reveal himself. There was no need to be ashamed of his body in the first place. Nothing about his body ashamed him. If anything, Michael was proud of his perfectly toned physique. It was a perfect combination of ginormous power and astronomical flexibility.

[You're annoying. I can sense your self-love even in the Soul Grimoire. Don't act like a Saint!]

Michael chuckled lightly.

"Whatever. It's your fault. Nothing else matters."

[You!!!]

Michael smiled vibrantly. He wore clean clothes before departing to the campus shopping district. He didn't have any fancy clothes for dates and formal events.

'I shouldn't go over the top. A suit would be a little bit too much, right? I think a fancy black shirt and the like will be enough...probably? Alice is not going to be wearing a dress. I don't think so.'

Michael was in a tricky situation but didn't want to ask Danny for help either. Unfortunately, his brother could hear his thoughts easily.

[Wear a simple suit. There is no need to go with the stuck-up suits, though. No necktie. You can remove your jacket and carry it in your hand to glance a little bit more casual, but you shouldn't store it in your War Rune's storage. The jacket is still part of your overall image. If it's cold, you can offer your jacket to that ice-cold princess, who can only be tamed and molten by you, idiot]

Michael followed his brother's advice. He entered the first shop, tried on some clothes, and bought a lot more than he'd expected. At the end of the day, Michael was not sure how many sets of clothes he would need for future dates and formal meetings. He liked the feeling those fancy clothes gave him. His new haircut and fancy clothes made him feel similar to he was a completely different person.

The clothes were comfortable as well. However, that was mostly owned by the material used and the high-class creators who'd spun several runes into the garment to engrave various effects into them.

The clothes were pseudo-Artifacts, and thus, very expensive as well.

(930)

At last, it stood time to meet Alice. Michael used Cosmic Stride to emerge near their meeting spot, a small bench surrounded by nature's beauty. He walked up to the meeting spot, happy that Alice was not yet there. It was good that he arrived before Alice.

Michael was just about to sigh in relief when he observed that Alice approached the meeting spot a moment after Michael arrived.

'Did she wait for me to arrive first?'

He was not sure how to feel about that, but there was no time to think much. A moment later, Alice arrived before him. She grinned gently and tucked a strand of hair behind her ears.

"Am I too late?"

"You arrived early," Michael uttered while pointing at the time on the crystal watch. However, he also hinted to Alice that he knew about her waiting from further away.

A faint blush blossomed on her cheeks, captivating Michael. He wanted to tease her more, but his entire being stood drawn to her appearance.

She didn't wear a graceful dress, but Alice looked drop-dead gorgeous. She wore a dark blue blouse and a short black skirt. Both pieces of clothing merged well with her long, wavy hair, which fluttered gently in the air. They highlighted her flawless skin and the excitement glimmering in her vibrant ocean-blue eyes.

Alice cleared her throat and circulated energy through her body to get rid of the blush before she dared to glance into Michael's bewitching golden eyes again.

"Where are we going?"

Michael winked at Alice, curious what kind of reaction he could get from her.

"Just follow my lead."

**