As the tension in the room finally eased, Aoto, eager to shift the conversation to something less hazardous, said with a grin, "You know what we could buy? Rings(school rings). Or something."

He barely got the words out before he noticed the girls' faces turn bright red, all of them completely misunderstanding what he meant. Their eyes widened, and their expressions shifted from mild annoyance to sheer embarrassment.

Matie, usually the calm and collected one, was now full-face blushing, her gaze suddenly avoiding Aoto's.

Kay, her tough persona cracking, crossed her arms over her chest, her cheeks practically glowing. "W-Wait... did you just say rings? As in... wedding rings?"

Aoto, confused for a moment, raised an eyebrow. "Uh, no... I meant like school class rings for us. You know, to show we're all from the same place—"

Before he could finish, Rika stuck out her three tongues in excitement, practically vibrating with joy. She clung to Aoto's arm, looking like she was about to explode with happiness. "WEDDING RINGS?! Hell yes! I'm in! Let's do it!"

Aoto, blinking in confusion, suddenly realized what they had all assumed. His face turned beet red as he stammered, "W-Wait, no! That's not what I meant at all! I was just talking about school rings, not wedding rings!"

But the damage was already done. The girls' imaginations had run wild.

Mako, who had just recovered from her earlier rage, was now fidgeting nervously, her face flushed. "A-Aoto... you mean... you'd marry all of us?"

Matie, trying and failing to stay composed, was blushing so hard she could barely meet his eyes. "I-I wouldn't say no..."

Kay, the last to break, mumbled something under her breath, barely audible. "Damn it... you're really messing with my head, Aoto."

Rika, her excitement growing by the second, laughed as she playfully leaned into him. "You better pick out some good rings if this is happening, because I'm not going halfway on this one!"

Aoto, his mind reeling from the sudden turn in conversation, raised his hands in surrender. "Guys! I seriously just meant class rings, not wedding rings!"

The girls, still caught up in the moment, seemed to ignore him, all of them now fantasizing about what their future would be like with Aoto as their partner.

Matie was the first to snap out of it, clearing her throat and trying to regain some sense of composure. "R-Right... sorry. That was a bit... premature."

Kay nodded, still red-faced but managing a small smirk. "Yeah, you really threw us for a loop there, Aoto."

Rika, meanwhile, was still all in, winking at him. "Well, if you ever decide you want to make this official, you know where to find me."

Aoto, face-palming, muttered to himself, "I seriously need to be more careful with my words around you guys."

Though they eventually calmed down, the awkwardness and blushes lingered, the idea of wedding rings—and everything it implied—still floating in the back of everyone's minds. Rika, of course, was the least subtle about it, shooting Aoto excited glances the rest of the day.

Just as the atmosphere was settling down after the whole "rings" misunderstanding, Aoto suddenly remembered something important—the check he received was meant for his own finances for the next six months. He realized that he couldn't just blow it all on crazy ideas, especially since the next one wouldn't come for half a year. He started thinking about how to be responsible with it.

It was at that exact moment that they all heard a voice from behind them. "You should probably deposit it in your bank account, Aoto."

Aoto and the girls all froze, eyes wide in shock, and turned toward the source of the voice.

Headmistress Harriet had somehow managed to sneak in without a sound and was now standing just a few feet away with her arms crossed, giving them a serious look.

The collective jumpscare was instant.

Akia, who had been standing a little off to the side, let out a loud yelp and, without thinking, jumped straight onto Aoto's chest, clinging to him like a scared kitten. "Aoto!!" she shrieked, burying her face in his chest as her body trembled in fear.

Rika, Matie, and Kay weren't any better off. They all flinched, each of them reacting with startled expressions as their hearts raced from the sudden surprise.

Aoto, still reeling from both Harriet's sudden appearance and Akia clinging to him, stammered, "H-Harriet? How did you...?"

Mako, recovering a little faster than the rest, muttered, "How the hell does she always do that?"

Headmistress Harriet, completely unfazed by the chaos she had caused, shrugged casually. "It's my job to know what's going on with my students. And more importantly, that check needs to go somewhere safe. You don't want to be careless with that kind of money."

Still clutching onto Aoto, Akia peeked up from his chest, her face completely red. "Y-You really need to stop sneaking up on people like that, Headmistress..."

Harriet smirked slightly. "It keeps you on your toes. Now, about that check."

Aoto, still flustered but more composed now, nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I should probably deposit it sooner rather than later."

Rika, finally recovering, leaned back against the couch, chuckling. "Geez, Harriet. You could give people heart attacks. That was like getting hit by a ghost."

Matie added, "No kidding. I think you shaved off a few years of my life."

Harriet, still standing calmly, sighed. "Just don't waste it. The money's meant to help you, Aoto, not make you a target for trouble."

Aoto nodded again, this time more earnestly, realizing Harriet's point. The girls, still a little shaken from the surprise, agreed that getting the money into a bank account was the smart move.

Akia, realizing she was still hugging Aoto in front of everyone, quickly pulled away, her face still red. "S-Sorry about that!"

Aoto, still blushing from the whole scene, smiled. "Don't worry about it. At least now I know how you react when you're scared."

The group laughed nervously, but the underlying truth was clear: Harriet always had her eye on things, and her sudden appearances—while terrifying—weren't always bad.

Aoto made a mental note to take her advice seriously and not make reckless decisions with his finances, knowing full well that the headmistress was always just one sneaky moment away from watching his every move.

The tension from Harriet's sudden appearance finally seemed to die down when she casually dropped her next bombshell.

"Oh, and Aoto," Harriet added, her tone still calm, "you should save at least 25% of that money for emergency funds... or, you know, if you get a couple of my female students pregnant."

The room went dead silent.

Aoto blinked, his brain practically short-circuiting at what she had just said. "Wait... WHAT?!"

Matie, Rika, Kay, and Akia all turned bright red in unison, their mouths dropping open as they stared at Harriet in complete disbelief.

Akia, the first to react, stammered, "H-Headmistress! W-What are you saying?!"

Matie, her entire face flushed, growled, "You can't just say something like that out of nowhere!"

Rika, ever the bold one, grinned slyly at Aoto. "Well, she's not wrong... I mean, with the way things have been going..." she teased, clearly enjoying the awkwardness.

Kay, her usual composure broken, muttered under her breath, "She went straight for the jugular with that one."

Aoto, completely flustered and trying to process everything, waved his hands in a panic. "Hold on, hold on! I haven't even— I mean, we haven't even... you know...!"

Harriet, still calm and completely unbothered, shrugged and gave him a pointed look. "Look, Aoto. I've been running this school for a long time, and I've seen how these things go. You're surrounded by... let's say, a very interested group of girls. So it's just smart to plan ahead."

Mako, who had just started to wake up from her earlier mental overload, heard the tail end of the conversation and blinked in confusion. "Pregnant? Who's pregnant?"

Aoto, still red-faced and flailing to control the conversation, shouted, "NO ONE IS PREGNANT! No one's getting pregnant! I— I don't even know how we ended up talking about this!"

Harriet smirked and raised an eyebrow. "I'm just saying, it's good to be prepared. After all, the Warrior Class students do tend to... be very passionate."

Kay facepalmed, still blushing but now laughing a bit. "She's got a point, though. We are pretty intense."

Rika snickered, clearly enjoying Aoto's discomfort. "Yeah, and I bet if you weren't so shy, Aoto, we'd be hearing little feet running around already!"

Aoto, completely overwhelmed, buried his face in his hands. "Oh my god, please stop..."

Matie, who had been relatively quiet, finally spoke up, her face still red but with a soft smile. "Don't worry, Aoto. No one's rushing into anything. Right?" She glared at Rika, who just stuck out her tongues.

Harriet, completely satisfied with the chaos she had caused, nodded. "Good. Well, just keep what I said in mind, Aoto. Better to save now than panic later. You never know what could happen with this group." She shot the girls a knowing look before casually turning to leave.

As Harriet walked out of the room, the girls and Aoto were left in stunned silence, still trying to process the whole conversation.

After a long pause, Rika finally broke the silence with a mischievous grin. "So, Aoto... when's our first kid due?"

Aoto, absolutely done with everything, groaned loudly. "Please... stop..."

Despite the awkwardness, the girls couldn't help but giggle at the situation. Even though Harriet had left them all completely embarrassed, the group's bond only seemed to grow stronger... though Aoto was going to need some time to recover from this one.

As Aoto left the apartment, heading to the bank to deposit his check, the atmosphere in the room shifted. The girls sat silently for a moment before Harriet, who always seemed to have a knack for steering conversations in unexpected directions, cleared her throat.

With a calm, almost analytical gaze, Harriet looked over the group sitting in front of her: Matie, Kay, Rika, Mako, and Akia. Her sharp eyes carefully scanned each of them before she spoke. "So... let's talk about Aoto and this... situation we've got developing here."

All eyes turned to Harriet, with Matie and Kay blushing slightly. Rika, as usual, was unbothered, while Akia looked nervous. Mako was... well, Mako—blissfully unaware of the impending conversation.

Harriet tapped her fingers together, her tone taking on a serious edge. "Three Warrior Class girls—" she pointed to Kay, Rika, and referenced Kaira, who wasn't there. "One Warrior/Giant Class hybrid—" she nodded at Matie. "One Islandar Class dumbass—" her eyes fell on Mako, who just blinked innocently. "And one Softy Class—" she pointed to Akia, who looked down nervously.

The girls all knew what Harriet was leading into, but no one said a word.

Harriet leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. "So, what's the plan? You've all clearly developed feelings for Aoto. Some of you are more forward about it than others." Her eyes glanced at Rika, who smirked, then shifted to Matie, who fidgeted under the headmistress' gaze.

Harriet continued, her tone growing darker. "But what if, all of a sudden, Aoto was... gone? What would you do if he died? Or if he was killed?"

The question landed like a ton of bricks, and the mood in the room instantly plummeted. The idea of Aoto, the boy who had worked his way into their hearts, suddenly being taken from them was unthinkable, and yet Harriet had just brought it up so casually.

Matie was the first to react, her face showing clear discomfort. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her large hands gripping her knees. "I-I don't... I don't even want to think about that. Why would you even say something like that?"

Kay narrowed her eyes at Harriet. "Yeah, why bring that up? Are you trying to freak us out or something?"

Rika, however, wasn't as rattled. She crossed her arms, her usual smirk gone, replaced with a more serious expression. "It's a valid question. Shit happens. You never know when things can go sideways, especially around here."

Harriet nodded approvingly at Rika's understanding. "Exactly. You're all getting closer to him. If something happened to him, how would you cope? Would you be able to move on? Would you... want revenge?"

Akia, who had been quietly sitting the entire time, finally spoke up in a soft voice. "I... I don't think I could handle it if something happened to him. He's so... kind. I don't want to lose him."

Mako, still not fully understanding the depth of the conversation, tilted her head in confusion. "Wait, so... we're talking about Aoto dying? Why? He's not going to die, right?"

Matie, growing more agitated, snapped. "No, Mako, he's not! But that's not the point!" She turned back to Harriet, her fists clenched. "Why are we even talking about this? Why would you ask that?"

Harriet remained calm, her eyes steady. "Because it's a real possibility, and I've seen it happen before. You're all emotionally invested in him now. If something happens to him—whether it's an accident, a targeted attack, or even something related to your... extracurricular activities—how will you deal with that grief?"

Kay frowned, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. "If something happened to him... I'd want to make whoever was responsible pay." Her voice was low, filled with a quiet rage.

Rika nodded in agreement. "Same here. No one messes with my Aoto and gets away with it."

Matie, clearly uncomfortable with the idea, looked conflicted. "I... I'd want justice, but... I don't know if I could handle losing him."

Akia, tearing up slightly, whispered. "I-I don't want him to die... I don't want to lose him. He's too important to us."

Mako, finally catching on to the seriousness of the conversation, frowned, her usual lightheartedness fading. "I'd protect him..." she said softly, her usual ditzy persona replaced by genuine concern.

Harriet sighed, leaning forward slightly. "Look, I'm not saying it's going to happen. But I want you all to be prepared for the worst, just in case. You care about him, and I respect that. But being close to someone also means you're vulnerable if they're taken from you."

The girls sat in silence, each of them processing Harriet's words in their own way.

Harriet then stood up and made her way to the door. "Just think about it. And make sure you're not just clinging to him out of fear of being alone."

As Harriet left, the room remained silent, the gravity of her words hanging over them. The girls all knew they had deep feelings for Aoto, but the thought of losing him had never crossed their minds this clearly until now.

As much as they didn't want to think about it, Harriet had a point.