"UghHhhHaaahHhhh~" Manny moaned, catching the pink chalk by reflex, dropping to his knees when he felt the sexual energy pulse through him the first time.
His lips quivered like a virgin abruptly cumming, clearly sexually repressed.
While the sight made some Immortals wince or smiled wryly, many in the room and lobby burst into uncontrollable laughter, wiping light tears from their eyes.
Manny looked up in shame, feeling an overwhelming desire to throw the pink chalk. However, he knew he was likely in trouble, which could mean death in the apocalypse. "Emperor… EyauUhhaHh~…."
Kaze raised his eyebrows, glancing at the laughing students and back at him mockingly, saying, [you deserve this], with his eyes.
"I-I'm sorry!" The man said, "C-Can I put this down!?"
"Sure." The emperor smiled, "It seems that female sexual energy makes you uncomfortable, so please drop it on the floor."
Manny couldn't feel more humiliated as he put the chalk down, listening to the laughing students and feeling the desire to kill the emperor, fighting against his rational need not to die. "I'm not gay…."
"I think you've made that quite clear." Kaze scoffed, rolling his eyes, "Your Yang Qi ratio also agrees, as you'd experience excruciating pain if you were gay and touched Yang Qi chalk without precautions."
The man's eyes widened in perplexion, receiving a new round of directed chuckles and giggles.
"Well then, off you go." The emperor smiled bitingly, motioning to the door to the Exclusive, "I'm certain you wish to shower 'dual cultivating' with me, yes?"
Manny got up with confusion, shame, and humiliation in his eyes, trying to avert everyone's gazes. He fell silent, biting his lip and dodging the emperor's question.
"One last thing." Kaze called out mysteriously, "I recommend you cite [our dual cultivation] as proof of my sexual depravity if you speak ill of my practices.
Unless, of course, you wish to enjoy the full weight of your tortured narrative once people learn you are the protagonist. Be extra cautious if you are known for hyperbole."
While many laughed or got pulled into the excitement, Brad shivered.
Kaze exploited the man's phobia to prevent him from making false claims about his sexuality.
Now, anything Manny said to imply he was gay would be an admission of being gay himself. The more exaggerated his claims, the more damning the evidence.
Manny's only option was to lie and deny it, but everyone in the area would announce his original claim of the opposite, and he had no recourse for defense when people called him out.
It was a cruel punishment for someone with a phobia—and he did it just to send a warning not to slander his reputation.
Manny felt bitter and confused as he got up and sulked to the door with a broken expression.
CLAP!
"Okay, ladies!" Kaze clapped grandly, unusually enthusiastic for ultimate ridicule, "Who would like to [dual cultivate] with me?
Surely you want to after seeing how much I pleased [everyone] else, yes?"
"I do!" A blonde cried, playing along, "Straight men can't please me with big rods, so I'd like to see what your small stick can do."
The women burst into giggles, creating a savage yet horrifyingly playful environment.
"Choose me; I won't ask to put it in my mouth!" A brunette followed, increasing the intensity in the atmosphere.
"I won't rub it on my face—unless you want me to." A brunette said coquettishly.
"Hey, is anyone using his stick right now?" Sam asked cheekily, looking at the pink chalk that Manny left on the ground, "I don't care about misperceptions—I want it."
A mixture of cringing and laughter rocked the area, making some feel uncomfortable watching Manny jolt unnaturally, having a negative physical reaction to the words as he opened the door.
However, those who cared were in the minority. Most jumped in immediately.
"Bro, you already took it to the face; let the other guys have a turn." Marcus scoffed, "Yo, lobby peeps. Who wants to fondle the Emperor's small pink stick?"
A dozen laughing men jumped in immediately, begging for it.
"If we let others use it, it'd ruin the purity of the scene we just saw." Kaze smiled mysteriously, stopping everyone and grabbing the chalk, "For the first time in history, we've confirmed that a homophobe is actually straight."
Manny turned to Kaze with a strange expression one last time before walking out the door, leaving to the sound of ridiculing laughter.
"Unplanned, non-morally motivated, with the same relaxed demeanor as with Linus." Brad whispered in slight horror, analyzing the emperor's calm expressions, "There wasn't a grand purpose or strategy for the greater good... it was just reputation protection."
Kaze's ambivalence toward his ruthless or murderous actions horrified him. Still, he discounted it as feeling peace in doing what needed to be done for the greater good.
That viewpoint died a moment ago, watching him ruthlessly destroy Manny without remorse for what he interpreted as petty reputation protection. However—
As Kaze put the piece of chalk into his pocket, the illusion cultivation technique on the chalk broke, exposing that the chalk was blue. Yang Qi.
Brad was stunned by what he had just seen.
"Okay, let's get back to class." The emperor clapped, "We'll conduct the rest in the open so everyone can watch.
I don't want people to think scandalous and depraved events are happening in my classes—when I don't announce them ahead of time."
The women giggled at his cheeky yet charming statement, and the people who weren't part of the class rejoiced they'd get to watch.
***
"Emperor…." Brad said, walking up to Kaze nervously after class.
He was grateful to be there, as he was a guest teacher, building his reputation and earning RP and Skye. Still, the events in the class bothered him.
"Speak your mind, Brad." Kaze smiled calmly, feeling his anxiety.
"Manny is gay, isn't he?" Brad asked hesitantly.
"Cor~rect." The emperor replied nonchalantly.
"Then… why did you do that?" The blonde athlete asked, "If you just wanted to prevent him from spreading false rumors about you, you could've found other ways to punish him, right?
However, you just declared him straight with false evidence. Now, coming out would be difficult."
"Observant." Kaze mused, impressed, "However, sending a warning to those who would disseminate false allegations was a secondary motivation here."
Brad's eyes widened in disbelief. "Wait, then what was your primary motivation?"
"Sparking the wrath of the wrong person will get you killed in the new world, Brad." The emperor warned, "Manny's irrational fear led him to decry his leader in public—within hearing distance.
How long will it be before his phobia gets him [and others] killed?"
Surprised by the emperor's reasoning, the athlete opened and closed his mouth in perplexion. "That makes sense, but... isn't putting Manny in a position to defend his sexuality counterintuitive in that case?"
"Manny needn't defend his sexuality, as I confirmed it." The emperor smiled, "For whatever trifling motivation, he wishes for people to think he's straight, so I [proved] he was with absolute certainty.
While it makes it difficult to come out non-destructively, it's equally difficult for someone to accuse him of homosexuality and trigger a sexuality-related beating or death.
There are a surprising number of bi-sexual and gay people in Immortal Skye. I will not allow hate crime allegations to spread fear or social disorder, least at a time when a single act of violence can cause panic and internal breakdown."
"Wait…." Brad said in disbelief, "You mean that you exploited this random, timely opportunity to prevent accusations of a hate crime if someone beats or kills him for being homophobic?
How did you come up with that on the spot?"
"You'd save a child from getting hit by a truck, knowing what would happen, correct?" Kaze smiled amusedly.
"So you have enough experience to know what would happen, so you acted on it without hesitation?" The athlete asked, "If so, I understand.
However, how did you think of that solution? That's what I want to know."
"Let me ask you something, Bradley." Kaze smiled mysteriously, "Would you spartan kick a child to prevent a truck from hitting them?"
"Of course." The athlete scoffed in bafflement, "Though I feel like there's a better way to move a child out of the way of a moving truck. I wouldn't even consider your solution; that's what we're talking about."
"Your unwillingness to consider undesirable options is where we differ." The emperor smiled mockingly, "A swift push kick is an undeniably effective method to send a child flying without continuing with forward momentum and threatening death, is it not?"
Images of Truck-Kun killing the virgin [heroes] of every isekai novel and show he watched during this era of his life flashed before his eyes, making him smile in amusement.
"You're one wild dude, Emperor." Brad laughed, looking to the sky with a baffled smile, "Lower your ethical limiter, and a world of options awaits, huh."
"Lower your ethical limiter, or a world of ruin awaits." Kaze correctly brazenly, making the athlete chuckle in disbelief, "Experience enough, and you'll learn that for yourself."
"Will you ever tell us who you are, Emperor?" Brad asked pensively, studying his expressions, "I know you're now—"
"KAZE!" Jake yelled, crashing through the front door of the Exclusive, "WE HAVE A PROBLEM!"
"Does it require privacy?" The emperor asked boldly.
"No… it doesn't…." Jake said, taking deep breaths after his mile-long sprint.
"Then speak, you fool!" Kaze snapped impatiently, "Foregoing communication to underscore the direness of a situation can spread miscommunication and panic.
When a pressing matter is looming, effective communication is tantamount to decisive action."
"The Scavengers…." His Director of Human Affairs said nervously, "They were attacked."
Kaze scoffed in disbelief, turning away to take a sharp breath. "Did you not just hear a word I said?"
"By whom, Jake?" Brad asked, watching the panicked man seize at the chastisement.
"They…." Jake gulped nervously, taking a sharp breath, "The Scavengers were attacked by… a flying cultivator."