Ethan had no idea what was going on. Just as he spoke, Lyla blurted out, "Celeste, you've got to be kidding, right? There's no way they'd recruit him into the Ninth Division."

As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt a little guilty. That was a bit too harsh, wasn't it?

She peeked at Ethan, stuck out her tongue, and made a silly face, hoping to lighten the mood.

Celeste, however, just laughed. "Lyla, you really don't know Ethan, do you? He had quite the moment today."

"Huh? What happened? Tell me!" Lyla's curiosity was instantly piqued.

Celeste shrugged. "Nothing much. He just wrecked the guy I was considering for the spot."

Lyla's eyes widened. "Wait, seriously? You? That strong?" She turned to Ethan, her face full of disbelief. "I thought they called you a weakling."

Ethan groaned internally. 'Can't this girl ever just hold back? Give me some dignity, please.'

Lyla, clearly amused by his reaction, covered her mouth as she giggled uncontrollably. "So, Celeste, how bad did he get beat?"

To be honest, she felt proud. She didn't know how Ethan had suddenly become so strong, but that didn't matter. If he was getting stronger… maybe…

A little idea was starting to take root in her mind.

Celeste smirked. "Oh, nothing serious. Just five broken ribs, six missing teeth, a severe concussion—no idea when he'll wake up. Oh, and his heart took some damage, so no more intense exercise. In fact… let's just say, certain bedroom activities are off the table for him now."

"Uh…" Lyla had been staring at Ethan in shock, even squeezing his arm as if to check if he was actually that strong. But Celeste's last comment—well, that had her blushing furiously.

Ethan, on the other hand, was just as shocked. He hadn't expected to do that much damage.

Still, regret? Not a chance. That guy had it coming. He was lucky Ethan hadn't finished the job.

But Celeste cracking jokes like that? That threw him off. He gave her a suspicious once-over.

'Did she have a twin I didn't know about?'

Noticing his gaze, Celeste casually added, "Don't look at me like that." Then, in full view of everyone, she grabbed Lyla's hand and said, "Lyla, even if you can't join the Ninth Division, we should still stay in touch. Come hang out with me sometime."

Ethan stiffened, goosebumps crawling over his skin.

Wait.

What?

Even the fork in his hand trembled before slipping through his fingers and hitting the table.

For some reason, his brain conjured up a smut filled scene, two stunning women, wrapped up in nothing but silk sheets, their smooth skins glistening with sweat as they explored each other's bodies, their soft moans filling the air…

"Uh…" Lyla subtly pulled her hand back, her cheeks still flushed. "Yeah, sure. I'll, um, hang out with you sometime."

She stole a glance at Ethan, who looked like he'd just been flash-frozen.

What the hell? Not only did she agree, but she looked shy about it?!

"No way!" Ethan shot to his feet.

Ethan's outburst was loud, loud enough that half the street probably heard him. Realizing he'd just made a scene, he quickly sat back down, feeling a little embarrassed.

To cover up, he grabbed Lyla's hand and, under Celeste's amused gaze, blurted out, "Uh, can I, uh… join you guys when you hang out? Wait, no—what I meant was, you can't hang out together!"

Celeste rolled her eyes, while Lyla covered her mouth, giggling. "Why not, Ethie? Are you jealous? You can join us if you really want."

Ethan wasn't falling for it. That scheming little look in Celeste's her eyes was a dead giveaway. She was setting a trap.

He straightened up and answered with full seriousness, "Assistant Instructor Hawthorne is a very busy person. She doesn't have time to mess around with you, right, Celeste?"

Celeste didn't even bother replying. She just let out a soft hum, clearly unimpressed.

Dinner went on after that, but the mood had shifted. Conversation turned awkward, mostly because Ethan spent the rest of the meal keeping a wary eye on Celeste, making sure she wasn't getting any funny ideas about Lyla.

Eventually, though, Celeste cut to the point. "So, about the Ninth Division. Have you thought it over?"

"I don't even know what you guys do. And more importantly, what's in it for me?"

Celeste smirked. "Ask Lyla when you get home. Once you've made up your mind, let me know."

And just like that, her usual icy demeanor returned. She stood up, said her goodbyes to Lyla, reminded her again to definitely hang out sometime, then left.

For some reason, as soon as she was gone, Ethan felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his chest.

He trusted Lyla, sure. But Celeste was a wild card. If she kept hanging around, what if she… converted his precious little Lyla? Worse, what if Lyla wanted to be converted?

Nope. Not happening. Keeping them apart was now a priority. At least they hadn't exchanged numbers.

After Celeste left, Ethan and Lyla ate a little more. Ethan was stuffed, he hadn't eaten all day.

Morning had been spent working out, followed by a brutal commute to school, then an afternoon of combat training. Even if he hadn't moved around much, going a whole day without food had taken its toll.

Now that he had money, he could finally eat like a king. Honestly, he almost felt like ordering extra food just to throw it away, just because he could.

His past self never had this luxury. Back then, it was instant noodles, if he was lucky. Sometimes, he just went hungry.

As they ate, Ethan told Lyla everything that had happened earlier. He even pulled out the bracelet, showing it off like some rare treasure.

Lyla was beyond thrilled. She was so touched she nearly teared up.

After dinner, the two of them made their way back near the villa. But before heading home, Ethan decided to give his future lady a tour of the gym he'd just bought.

Back at the gym, Todd was gone, but Quinn was handling things surprisingly well. Everything was running smoothly.

At night, the gym was much busier. With Jade gone, Quinn had to manage the entire place herself, acting as both the manager and the front desk staff. She was completely swamped.

Ethan told her to put up a hiring notice. Two new employees would take over her and Jade's old responsibilities, so she could focus solely on managing the gym. If any problems popped up, she'd just call him.

After that, he dragged Lyla, who was still busy checking everything out, back to the villa. Ethereal was about to go online.