CHAPTER 59
-"RAN'S SECRET ADMIRER"-
(PART I)
FURINKAN HIGH SCHOOL:
When classes ended, Ranma, Akane and Ran decided to go home, but not before paying a small visit to Kuno's.
When they arrived at the Kuno Mansion, they rang the bell. 10 minutes later, Kuno (in his Kendo uniform, as always) opens the door and greets them with a happy wave. "Ranma Saotome and the fair Akane Tendo and Lady Ran. To what do I have the pleasure of your visit?"
Ranma explains, "Just paying you a little visit. So how're you doing man?"
"Oh I'm doing just fine, thank you for asking." Embarrassed, he realizes, "Ah where are my manners! Please, do come inside."
"Thanks," Ran says as they step inside
When they enter, they see some changes inside the Kuno Mansion...
In the garden near the lake, there's a small shrine, with a full suit of samurai armor on display, some cherry trees surrounding the area, an arena floor and some Japanese Light torches. The place resembles an ancient samurai Training Ground, as the petals from the Cherry Blossom trees rain down upon it.
Akane in awe of the new renovations Kuno's done. "WOW! Kuno, is that a shrine and a practice dojo?"
Kuno replies, "Why, yes. I had it built recently, so that I could train and practice, as well as meditate."
Ranma congratulates him, "Gotta hand to you Kuno. You've really did good there. I'm impressed."
Ran's nodding in agreement, "Yeah, that Samurai Armor looks cool and adds some style to the place."
"I thank you all for that," Kuno says, accepting the complements of his friends. In the back of his mind, he is amazed at how different things are these days, being able to count Ranma and Akane (and yes, even his beloved Pig-Tailed Girl – no, Ran, he had to remind himself that was her name!) as his friends. In the past, he would have been on the receiving end of a well-placed kick or punted into the friendly skies by either one of them.
His reminiscing about the old days is interrupted when Ranma asks, "Say Kuno, where's your sister Kodachi? Haven't seen her lately."
Kuno frowns a bit, remembering the last time R came by to see Kodachi. He was out practicing in his new outdoor training area, when Sasuke arrived, informing him that there was a delivery man at the door. The faithful ninja servant was insistent that his master come outside and see "what" was being delivered. Puzzled (since he'd wasn't expecting anything else being brought to the mansion since the remodeling of the grounds), he decide to humor Sasuke and go see what the man was babbling about. Imagine his surprise (and that's putting it mildly, folks!) when he saw the eighteen-wheeler parked outside the estate and not one, but several delivery men, each man bringing huge arrangements of flowers into the house proper. When Kuno found out that all those flowers were for Kodachi, he'd suspected that R(!) was behind it. His thoughts on this were: What is the meaning of this! Has the foul sorcerer R literally bought out the entire florist? First, his transgressions against Kodachi and now this! Does he intend to invade mine noble dwelling, turning it into an elaborate garden? But for what purpose? Hmm… there is much madness behinds his methods!
Thinking about R and his eccentricities puts Kuno in a bad mood; he'd rather not think about him right now. So he just hmph's, saying, "Oh… that! Well...she's been hanging out a lot with that R fellow."
This last part took them all by surprise, especially in light of recent events…
Ran blinks, not believing what she just heard, and yet… she's not surprised. "WITH R! You don't think that...oh, you know...R and Kodachi...are, *gulp*… falling for one another? Do you?"
Ranma's confused. "R...with KODACHI?" He snorts, "Yeah right, like THAT will ever happen."
"Ranma!" Akane lightly scolds her fiancée. "That's not a nice thing to say! Sure, Kodachi's crazy, a hypocrite and a sneaky girl, but she's still a girl. And can too fall in love."
Ran admits, "Yeah, she's right. And look on the bright side Ranma...If Kodachi falls in love with R… then she'll leave YOU alone."
On hearing that part, Ranma thinks it over and agrees. "You know what Ran? That IS a good idea, if not great."
Changing the subject, Akane decides to asks, "So Kuno, what adventures did you have in your training trip up in the mountains?"
Kuno replies, "I wouldn't have call them "Adventures", but rather 'gaining' experience and knowledge. At any rate, I had plenty of time to train my Kendo and Samurai Skills. But this time, I've really learned many Techniques that I thought I could not master."
Ranma's like, "Is that so. That's cool, for you I mean."
Kuno's voice turns serious as he continues, "However, there was this...incident that happened to me in the mountains."
Listening to the story, Ran's interest is piqued. "What happened, Kuno?"
"Well..."
-(BEGIN FLASHBACK)-
IN THE MOUNTAINS OF OKINAWA, JAPAN - 9:40 pm:
Kuno is seated in the Lotus position, meditating in front of a fire. His eyes are closed and he's deep in concentration…
Then again, this IS Kuno we're talking about…
However...he was not alone.
Hiding inside a tree, is one of Erick's Zero-drones spying on him. With its single camera-eye lens mounted in its head, it's recording all of Kuno's movements and stuff.
The flames in front of Kuno suddenly die out. He somehow senses that someone is watching him. Opening his eyes, he gets up and scans the area around him. In a commanding voice, he says to whoever might be out there, "I know that you're watching me. Come out from wherever you are. I do not appreciate being spied upon. So show yourself now."
Total silence...
"So...you won't come out then...in that case...!"
Grabbing his sword, he swings it fast, releasing a Ki-charged blade of air toward the trees.
KLANG!
Seconds later, something drops to the ground hard...
THUMP!
Kuno sees it getting up slowly and looks at it. It was the Zero-drone. On its chest there was a huge gash, courtesy of Kuno's newly-developed Kokuuzan (Arc Air Slash). The mecha-minion covers up the damage to its body with its metal hand, as sparks came out of it. Kuno didn't know what it was...
"Who...or what are you? What kind of warrior are you?"
The Zero Clone didn't say anything and teleports away, leaving Kuno shocked and confused.
-(END FLASHBACK)-
After Kuno's finished his tale, Akane says, "That sure was weird! So what do you think it was Kuno?"
Kuno answers, "To tell the truth...I have no idea. I couldn't get a good look, because of the darkness of the night."
With concern in her voice Ran asks, "But...you're alright, right?"
"Yes. But...enough dramatic stories. Not all of them are awful, for I've also met another warrior of the Art."
Ranma's like, "Really, you don't say?" Truth be told, he's secretly interested. Who could Kuno have met up there in the mountains?
"Indeed," Kuno nods. "Her name was Tsuruko Aoyama. Like myself, she was a Samurai who practices the Art of Kendo. And she was very excellent. A true warrior of the Art."
Akane's pleased to hear that. "That was so nice to meet another fellow fighter, Kuno. You ought to go out more, and meet more people."
"I will. I, Tatewaki Kuno, thank you for your concern and wise advice Akane Tendo."
RED CAT GANG'S SECRET BASE:
We see the happy-crazy Mad Bomber Grenademan trying to write poetry for his 'lovely' Ran. But so far...he's not doing well...
"Lets see, this..." He clears his throat. "Ahem...Ummm...Roses are Red…" Then with an idiotic Butt-Head-style moan, he continues, "Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuummmmmm...Violets are like Blue, or something, your eyes are cute, and, so like you...NO NO NOOOOOO!"
Then he tears up the paper and tosses it into the garbage, frustrated. "Oh man, writing poetry is more complicated than I thought it would be. Making bombs is easier then this. But I have to do this,...but how?"
Then...Grenademan gets a devilish idea...
"I know...there is nothing wrong with, oh I don't know...copy some stuff off it and use that instead? YEAH! I mean, no harm's done, right? No one would know right?"
"Only you, and the person you want to conquer."
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHA!" Grenademan jumps out of his metal hide, as Erick appears behind him from the shadows. "ERICK...! *Huff, huff…* Where did you come from! How do you DO that, that sneaking behind thing!
Erick chuckles, "Like I ALWAYS say to everyone…" Yep, you guessed it; here comes the signature Xellos-schtick catchphrase. "THAT is a secret." Becoming serious, he then says, "Grenademan, I gave you that book, not so that you could cheat, but for reading and inspiration in creating your OWN poetry, understand?"
"Yeah, but…." Grenademan starts whining, "IT'S SOOOO BORING. Why can't I just, you know, improvise?"
"Because, if you do that, you'll be cheating; there's no reason to do that. And besides, do you want to conquer the heart of the girl Grenademan?"
Grenademan so happy, his reply's obvious. "DO I...! YES! OH YEAH!"
"Good, if you do what you were about to do, copying the info that is, you won't be conquering her, but the author of the book. If you really want to win her over, then I suggest you READ the book and create your own poetry. That way, it will be YOU and your words that will conquer her, don't you think?"
"Well, yeah...but...it's soo hard man."
Erick chuckles again. "Of course it is. If everything were easy, then anybody could do it. But, only the dedicated and passionate person can achieve and create true poetry. So, my advice to you is... " His voice suddenly shifts to a menacing tone. "GET TO WORK AND READ. You've had MORE than enough time to prepare, so unless you want to face the Cat Ghost King and Wily's wrath step on it...okay?"
The Blast King fearfully complies. "*Gulp*….Okay."
And now Erick's all happy and smiles. "Good. I will leave you to your work. Good luck." Then he vanish into the shadows, leaving Grenademan worried.
Grenademan shudders, as he says, "Man, I don't know who's more creepy, that Cat Statue, or Erick!"
So, once again, he resumes his task of reading the book given by Erick in order to compose poetry for conquering Ran.
SHADOWLOO HQ – VEGA's QUARTERS:
Vega is in his room admiring two things...his own beauty (no surprise there!) and... a picture of the Darkstalker Morrigan.
"Oh Morrigan, your beauty is only matched by your dangerous spirit. I wonder, wonder if you will take up my offer for a date?"
Why did he ask that question? Weeell…
-(BEGIN FLASHBACK)-
After the battle between Shadowloo and Demitri's Darkstalkers (see chapter 39), Vega brought Morrigan to the base after his triumph over her when he fought her. He is carrying her in his arms like a groom would carry his bride. Once he reaches his room, he gently puts her in his luxurious king-sized bed.
Standing away from the bed to gaze on her, Vega's in awe at her beauty. Even as she slept (actually, she's been unconscious the whole time), she looks beautiful in his eyes. He sighs happily, "Morrigan, through our hard battle, I was able to win you. But now, I will try to win your heart."
Just then, Balrog and Tron Bonne happened to walk by and see him, and the guest he's having over.
Balrog gets his colleague's attention. "Yo Vega, whassup? How did your battle go?"
Vega replies, "Marvelous I must say. I, naturally, came out victorious."
Tron spots Morrigan on his bed. "Vega...what in the world is SHE doing here? Most of all...in YOUR bed?"
"Easy. She is gonna be my date."
Needless to say, Balrog and Tron reactions were simultaneous. "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!. YOUR DATE?"
Vega's so happy, he's squealing in delight. "Yes! Isn't it marvelous guys?"
Tron decides to set Vega straight; 'cause apparently, in her opinion, he has NO clue what he's doing. She calmly says to him, "Okay...I know this is gonna sound crazy, but..." then shouts, "JUST WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING BLONDE AIR-HEAD!"
Balrog, likewise, agrees with Tron. "She's right man. She's like the enemy. Won't that cause trouble?"
"Not to worry my friends. You see, I made a bet with her..." Vega then proceeds to explain all about the proposal he'd made to Morrigan during their fight, that if he won, she would go out with him.
Vega finishes his story, "And so, when I won, I decided to bring her over here to ask her out."
A moment of total silence passes before anyone says a word...
It's Tron who breaks the silence. Sarcastically, she asks, "So tell me Vega. What makes you think that she will honor that bet? I mean, come on, she's the enemy, like Balrog says. What's gonna stop her from going back on her word?"
Vega replies, "Easy. I have a good feeling in my guts."
Tron Bonne snorts, "Yeah... IF she doesn't rip them out of you, that is."
"That was VERY rude of you. Now if you'll excuse me, she will wake up soon, and I want to be there for her."
"You got it. I really DON'T want to be here when she wakes up. Cause I'll bet you that she won't be happy to see YOU. Let's go, Balrog."
A scared Balrog nods. He thinks Vega's lost his marbles if he goes through with this. "Don't need to tell me twice."
After that, both of them leave Vega's room...
Just in that moment...Morrigan began to moan softly. Slowly, she opens her eyes, and sees that she's in a bed in a large room. She mumbles, "Ummm...where...where am I?" Then, as she comes to, she notices her surroundings. " Huh! What is this place?"
"You're in my room my dear Morrigan, here in Shadowloo," a male voice says.
Morrigan gasps and looks everywhere, and then she sees Vega... "YOU! WHY AM I HERE? WHY DID YOU BRING ME HERE? ANSWER ME NOW!"
Vega had wisely removed his claw earlier. He waves his hand to calm her. "Easy there. I brought you here cause you were injured and he passed out. And as for why...don't you remember our deal?"
Morrigan gasps when she remembers her battle with him...and the bet she made with him to go on a date if she loses. That part did not like her a bit. "Wait a minute there! I remember, but...you're not… SERIOUS about that, are you?"
Vega counters, "And why not my Lady? You DID promise to date me if I defeated you, and I did, fair and square."
"But...but.. I didn't think that you could...well...defeat me."
Feeling it's safe, Vega risks approaching her while saying, "Its because you underestimated me, you let your ego cloud your judgment. So...um…" He blushes. "Will you go out with me as we agreed?"
"But...why would I go out with you? Because of a stupid bet? I...I don't think so."
Vega sighs, a look of defeat on his face. "I see...so your word means nothing. I thought you were a person who valued honor. But perhaps, I was wrong."
OK, now THAT Morrigan objects to. "WHAT! HOW DARE YOU! I AM ROYALTY IN MAKAI, SO DONT YOU DARE QUESTION MY HONOR!"
"I am not. But, you're doing so by not holding on your end of the bargain."
Morrigan's a bit deflated here. "Look, um..."
"Call me Vega." He gallantly bows to her, Matador style, as he introduces himself properly. "Vega Fabio de la Cerna."
"Riiiiight. Listen Vega, WHY do you want to go out with me? I don't know you, and you don't know me."
Vega nods, admitting, "I know. But, I want to know YOU, a lot. And I want YOU to get to know ME."
"But why? Why with ME? I don't understand."
Vega's answer is simple. "Because...I find you very attractive, so beautiful. And...well…I...like you very much."
This took Morrigan by surprise, a lot. A mortal telling her she's beautiful. For her, it's been a long time since someone's told her that. She couldn't believe it. She's blushing as she says, "Me...beautiful? Please, you're joking right? Why would you say that about me?"
"Because it is the truth. You've set my soul on fire. My heart burned with passion when I first saw you."
Morrigan's cheeks are bright red now as the loony matador attempts to woo her. "Stop that! Look, you're a nice and cute guy and all, but, you're asking for the impossible. Why would you want me? I am a Darkstalker, and you're a human! It could never work, because we're too different."
Vega calmly objects, "False. A French Revolution-era philosopher once said -"True love knows no boundaries, no age, no size. And those who truly love one another don't care what other people would say" - So what if you're different from me! You bleed like me, you weep like me, you laugh like me, so there's nothing wrong."
"You don't understand. I'm not even a human being...just how could you love that?"
"I see only the beauty within, of the soul. THAT is what I love. You may be from another race, but.. it doesn't matter to me. So Morrigan, I ask you if you would do me the honor of a date with you?"
Morrigan was thinking this over hard. No one has EVER wanted to get to know her, let alone go out with her. It was a very difficult choice to her...to go out with him, or kill him where he stood? What...what do I do? No mortal was ever interested in me, and usually I'M the one who seduces men! But him, there's something I can't just put my finger on. But...he's right, he did beat me fair and square, so... I suppose that I must oblige him. I have nothing to lose, right?
Then, she turns her focus on Vega, who was anxious to hear her answer...
Sighing in defeat, Morrigan says, "Alright, you win. I'll...go out with you. BUT...just for one time only, got that?"
Vega's delighted. "YOU WILL! Oh thank you, thank you so much, my lovely rose. I promise you that I will give you a great time, just you wait."
"Whatever. So...where's the exit here, I need to return to Makai, so if you don't mind…"
"Oh yes, of course. Walk this way and I'll show you out."
Once she left the base, Vega was left there, watching her as she flies away toward the night sky... "My dear Morrigan, you fly like a beautiful eagle soaring toward the sky. I will wait for you, that I will."
Then he goes back inside. While walking down the hallway, he bumps into Tron, who's actually surprised to see him. "Vega! My, oh my, you're STILL alive. I would have thought that woman would have skinned you alive by now. So how did it go?"
Vega laughs, "Hm hm hm...as I wished. She accepted. I'm going on a date with her."
Tron gasps excitedly, "WHAT! NO WAY, REALLY! SHE DID!"
"Of course. No woman, mortal or demon, cannot resist my charms. I will win her heart, and I'll give her mine."
-(END FLASHBACK)-
Alone now in his room, Vega regards the photo of Morrigan. "My lovely Morrigan. I don't care if you are a demon. I don't care what the others will say. You shall fall against my charms, just as I have fallen to yours."
Umm… wow folks, this is certainly gonna be one interesting, if downright BIZZARO, love pairing.
MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE RANCH…
(Sorry, couldn't resist using that one!)
RED CATS' BASE – GRENDAMAN'S BUNKER - 10:00 pm:
After many tries and tries and fails, Grenademan looks at joy at the paper he's holding in his metal hands...why...?
With tears in his eyes, Grenademan says, "At...at last. After all my hard work and dedication, its finished...!"
We switch to a scene outside the RED CATS' Base...
-"...I DID IT, I DID IT! MY GREATEST WORK IS DONE WOO HOOOOOOO!"-
It's Grenademan's voice we hear, his shouts of joy so loud, they can be heard from even outside the base.
What work could the Blast King be so happy about?
What work is he referring to?
FURINKAN HIGH SCHOOL:
Another day, another day of mayhem and chaos at Furinkan High School, just the typical day at this school...but...today, it will be one wild day for someone. ONE girl will receive quite a surprise...the girl...?
Ran Hayami.
It's P.E. Ran's with Akane doing morning exercises, running around the track, and playing volleyball. After they're finish, they hit the showers with the other girls.
Afterwards, Ran heads to her locker to grab some books for her next class. When she opens it, she finds an envelope, with a flower attached to it. "Huh! What's this? A rose, and a letter. Hmmm, what could it be?"
Next she opens it and begins to read...the letter says this...
-"My lovely Ran...
I have seen you, and, words cannot describe how I feel for you. No words would ever describe your figure, for you have a body of beauty. NO. You are beauty made flesh. And, because of that...you dazzle me. I would do anything to even feel your body, for I am not worthy of that pleasure. I hope that I can...
Signed...
Your Secret Admirer.-
Ran was in awe and gasp at what the letter said about her. She feels butterflies in her stomach, as she blushes lightly at what she's read. "Oh dear, this, this, this is a love letter, and from an admirer? Wow, it's...it's so beautiful. I wonder who could have sent it? There's no return address or something."
Day 2.
Once again Ran found a letter from her secret admirer, this one says:
-"My Dear Fireflower:
You hair is as shine as the blue night that radiates my heart. Your eyes are my torches of light that illuminates in the dark. Oh would thy give me passage to your heart, then I would crave to the night to obtain that key to your heart I might. For my love is like a bird that soars in the sky, waiting to reach you."-
Ran's squealing happily, "Oh, that is so cool! But i want to know who's sending them."
Day 3.
Again, she finds another letter, this time, the poem's a little different.
-Lovely Ran:
If you were a newspaper, then I would be your ink
If you were a piece of doo-doo, then I would be your stink
We go together like Abbott and Costello
Bill Cosby and Jell-o, peeing and yellow
If you were a face, and love was a fight
Then I would rearrange you, oh yes I just might
Lady you look luscious let me lick you like a dum dum
Just let me get to know you, and show you where I come from
I pump you like diesel, pop you like a weasel (Vanilla Ice)-
Ran blinks, briefly confused. This one's not like the last two she's received. She's like, "Oooookay… that was weird. But I guess it's the thought that counts. Then she reads it again, and softly giggles, "Well, it's a little funny (and definitely weird), but lovely though. Oh oh, who could it be? How can I know?"
Then...a crazy idea occurred to the Ranma clone...
"Could...could it be...*gulp*...from Ranma!"
That part got to her good. Part of her, her heart side, wanted to be from Ranma, since she started developing strong ties with him over the course of time, while her other part, her logical side, brushes it off. She knew very well that Ranma's heart belonged to Akane, but it was a loooong shot to her, wishful thinking, that maybe Ranma might like her. But she has to be sure, for if she's wrong... the consequences could be severe for her.
Determined to find out the truth, she embarks on finding out the identity of her secret admirer.
RED CATS' BASE – GRENDAMAN'S BUNKER:
The happy-bomber robot was working on his latest explosive masterpiece, and in the same time, his most lovely poem for Ran.
Grenademan's singing (badly, this narrator adds), "Iiiiiiiiiiiiiii've been working on this boooomb all the freaking day, iiiiiii've been working on this booooomb, cause i'll blow that Ranma away! OH YEAAAAAH!"
Before him is a sophisticated bomb, a big and dangerous one. Why did he build it? To use it on Ranma Saotome, of course!
"Almost finished. My baby's almost finished. Once it's done, it will definitely take down that cursed sex-changing freak Ranma Saotome, and once that's over, I'll have lovely Ran for me, FOR MEEEE! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!"
From the shadows, Erick fiancée Delia appears. Grenademan sees her and gasps, "ACK...! Oh, it's you. What do you want?"
Delia tells him, "I've came to deliver a message from Erick. He wants to see you in his chamber right away."
"Oh, well, tell him that I'll come by later. I got work to do and..."
Delia eyes shine all white with no iris like Bison's, but even scarier... In a hard voice, she says, "HE wants to see YOU in his chamber NOW."
Grenademan eep's, scared into submission. "ACK...! Okay okay! No need to do the scary face!"
Delia smiles. "Good. Now come with me."
Next, Grenademan follows Delia into the shadows, he's a bit scared, but even more so of disobeying Delia so he enters the shadows and vanishes.
WITHIN ERICK'S DARK CHAMBER:
Erick is sitting on his throne watching several monitors floating in front of him; he's reciving the latest reports from his Zero-drones. Just then, Delia and Grenademan show up. "Erick-san, Grenademan is here as you requested."
Grenademan's amazed at how fast they got here. "Wow, you definitely gotta show me that trick of the shadows, girly How do you do it?"
"Enough," Erick interrupts. To Delia he says, "Delia, sweetie, could you leave us alone for a minute. There's a matter I gotta handle with Grenademan, okay."
Delia respectfully nods. "Of course my love."
Then she vanishes. Grenademan wonders what could Erick want to talk about with him... "So um...what could I do for you Erick? Why have you summoned me?"
Erick wastes no time; he gets right to the point. "Tell me Grenademan, how are things going with your plans to eliminate Ranma?"
"Oh? That? I'M JUST FINISHING THE FINAL PARTS OF MY CREATION THAT WILL DESTROY RANMA ONCE AND FOR ALL! OH YEAAAAH!"
"It better be, cause your deadline expires tomorrow. So, for your sake, you'd better accomplish it. Otherwise...you'll be heading on a way ticket to the junkyard. Do I make myself clear?"
Grenademan responds with a nervous laugh, trying not to show his fear. "Y-yeah, yeah...no...p-problem! Hehehehe!"
"See that you do it. Leave my sight. NOW," Erick commands.
FURINKAN HIGH SCHOOL:
Still puzzled about her secret admirer, Ran seeks advice and clues...she decides to go to Kuno.
At the Kendo Club's dojo, Kuno was in the middle of training and teaching with his fellow club members. Ran enters and sees that he's kinda busy for the moment and agrees to wait.
Two hours later, Kuno finishes practice and spots Ran waiting for him. He approaches her, happily waving to her. "Ah, Lady Ran, hello. What brings you here? Do you need something?"
Ran reluctantly says, "Um...kinda. You see, I've got a...situation that has me intrigued."
"Oh? What do you mean by that? Why don't you explain it to me. Perhaps I can help you.?"
"Well, it's like this..." She clears her throat, then tells him, "Ahem...I have...a...secret admirer."
Kuno seems delighted to hear that. "You do? Marvelous." Flashing a wicked smile, he teases her, "You sneaky devil! For a beauty like yourself to obtain someone! So tell me, who's the lucky guy to obtain your heart?"
"Well, the thing is, I don't know."
"You don't know? How?"
"Like I said, it's a secret admirer. He's been sending me love letters and poetry, and they're cool and all. Kuno, you know about poems right?"
"Why, of course, it's one of my hobbies."
"Well, could you tell me what you think of these poems, and give me your opinion?"
"I don't see why not. Very well, let me take a look."
Ran hands over all her love letters to Kuno, and he begins to read them...7 minutes later, she asks him, "Well Kuno, what do you think of them?"
Kuno looks up from reading. "I must say Ran, whoever your secret admirer is, he's very dedicated… but not very creative in his verse."
"Really! Why do you say that?"
"Whoever wrote these poems, does not quite have an originality all his own. I mean, judging by the way he wrote them, it appears he does not know much about it. Clearly, this is the work of an amateur, as if he only copied the info and wrote it down, and I should know, since I know about the poetry he supposedly wrote here."
Hearing this makes Ran a little sad. "I see."
"But cheer up Lady Ran. On the bright side, he is very determined to impress you. Though he lacks the poet's soul, it does not hinder his noble pursuit of winning your affections." Kuno then hands the letters back to Ran, who takes them and places them in her book bag.
Ran smiles at that. "I guess you're right. Well, I'd better go, thanks for your time and help Kuno. I really appreciate it."
"The pleasure was all mine. And good luck with your secret admirer."
TO BE CONTINUED…