The "Silent Play" Beneath the Dormitory at Midnight and the Daily Intelligence Gathering of a Dao of Gou Follower

When I said goodbye to Hirata at the dormitory entrance, the last traces of sunset had just been swallowed by the night.

Shangguan Che dragged his weary feet back to his room and flopped into his chair, his mind still mulling over the situation with Hirata.

Was this kid's self-evolution a good thing or a bad one? He pondered for a long time, but his brain felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn't reach any conclusion.

"Forget it, I'll just keep a closer eye on him from now on." He waved his hand, giving up on the thought. "Right now, Hirata and Sakura are at two complete extremes—one is as stubborn and steady as an old dog, while the other panics at the slightest breeze. The difference is just too huge, it's exhausting!"

But then, a second thought made him brighten up: "The help Hirata needs should be finished soon, right? It has to be!"

Thinking of the conditions for completing the mission, he hurriedly recited them three times in his heart, terrified that the heavens might not hear his prayers.

The sky outside the window had turned completely black.

Shangguan Che looked at his room, which had suddenly "lit up with splendor," and sighed for no reason: "May weather, it gets dark so fast."

He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts: "Tonight isn't the right time to chat with Ichinose. It's late, and if she misunderstands and thinks I have ulterior motives, that would be a disaster. I'd better talk to Sakura; I haven't said more than a few words to her all day."

Before sending a message, he habitually activated his Clairvoyance, wanting to see what his classmates were up to. He didn't know what to expect, but what he saw gave him a shock.

Ayanokoji was actually wandering around downstairs at the dormitory building!

"What is this guy doing out so late?" Shangguan Che's curiosity was instantly piqued, his eyes glued to the image without blinking.

He watched as Ayanokoji strolled slowly toward a vending machine, inserted coins, pressed a button, and performed the actions in one fluid motion, finally turning around with a bottle of orange juice in hand. Shangguan Che frowned: "Something's wrong. Who comes out in the middle of the night just to buy orange juice? There's definitely something fishy going on!"

Sure enough, Ayanokoji walked to the elevator lobby. Instead of pressing the button, he stared at the screen displaying the interior of the elevator. Soon, the figure of Horikita Suzune appeared on the screen; she was looking down at her phone, appearing as if she had just returned from outside.

The next scene almost made Shangguan Che spit out the water he had just taken a sip of.

Ayanokoji was actually crouching down, hiding behind a pillar next to the elevator!

"I knew there was something going on!" Shangguan Che slapped the table in excitement. "Buying orange juice in the middle of the night is a lie; stalking Horikita is the real deal, right?"

The more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. "Ayanokoji and I are both guys, and we're 'surface-level friends,' so checking out his little secrets shouldn't be too much, right?"

The elevator doors opened and Horikita stepped out. She had only taken a few steps when a boy in a Student Council uniform suddenly emerged from the adjacent hallway—it was the Student Council president, Horikita Manabu!

"Oh ho, a family reunion!" Shangguan Che realized with a start. "No wonder Horikita Manabu is here; he was waiting for his sister. As expected of an anime world, such a coincidence!"

He watched with rapt attention: Horikita Manabu spoke a few words to Horikita first. He didn't know what was said, but Horikita's expression darkened instantly, and their tones seemed to grow increasingly heated; it looked like they were about to start a fight.

Suddenly, Horikita Manabu stepped forward, closing the distance between them, reached out to grab her wrist, and slammed her against the wall!

"Whoa, is this a 'bone-related' plot?" A bunch of colorful thoughts instantly popped into Shangguan Che's head, and he quickly shook them off. "Don't overthink it, don't overthink it, watch carefully!"

But the next scene left him completely stunned: Horikita Manabu actually lifted Horikita off the ground!

Horikita's feet were off the floor, a painful expression on her face, her hands struggling incessantly.

"No way? Is this something a biological brother would do?" Shangguan Che was so startled he almost jumped up. He scrambled to find his phone and, relying on his memory, typed in the dorm manager's number, but his finger hovered over the call button and stopped. "Wait, this is Japan, and it's an anime world. Ayanokoji is the protagonist, so maybe there's a twist? Let's keep watching, let's keep watching."

Just then, Ayanokoji, who had been hiding behind the pillar, suddenly rushed out, grabbed Horikita Manabu's arm, and forcefully stopped his next move.

The three of them stood there and exchanged a few words. Because the distance was too great, Shangguan Che couldn't hear the content, only seeing Ayanokoji finally let go.

"Did they reach an agreement?" He had just had this thought when he saw Horikita Manabu suddenly throw a punch toward Ayanokoji's face!

"Damn, the president is pulling a sneak attack too?" Shangguan Che was dumbfounded. "This move is way too underhanded!"

The ensuing fight left Shangguan Che, a total "newbie," completely stunned.

Horikita Manabu's fists were as fast as the wind, yet every single one was dodged effortlessly by Ayanokoji. He didn't seem to be using much strength, yet he always managed to avoid the attacks with precision.

After fighting for a while, Horikita Manabu stopped, and the three stood together talking again. Shangguan Che stroked his chin, guessing: "Is anyone going to sneak attack again this time?"

As it turned out, nothing happened, and Horikita Manabu turned and left. Horikita and Ayanokoji stood there in silence for a long time before they started "bickering" again. As they argued, Ayanokoji suddenly reached out and grabbed Horikita's wrist—the exact same opening move as Horikita Manabu's earlier!

"No way, why does everyone love grabbing wrists?" Shangguan Che couldn't help but complain. "Does Horikita's wrist have some kind of magic in this world?"

The two argued a bit more, and finally, Horikita took the initiative to reach out. Ayanokoji took her hand, and it looked like they had made up.

As the sole audience member of this "silent play," Shangguan Che slumped in his chair, unable to recover for a long time: "Protagonists are just different; they trigger special events wherever they go. I need to keep a closer eye on Ayanokoji from now on; I might be able to gather quite a bit of intel."

He tried hard to recall the anime he had watched, looking for a similar "brother hits sister" plot for reference. After thinking for a long time, he finally remembered: "In Tokyo Ghoul, the female lead's younger brother hit her too, saying it was for her own good. Although I didn't really understand it, it's probably the same idea, right? Maybe Horikita Manabu is also doing this for Horikita Suzune's own good, using such an extreme method?"

Having figured that out, Shangguan Che started worrying again: "I guessed the motive, but the method is just too absurd; I can't understand it at all. It looks like I need to read more mystery novels to cultivate some logical thinking."

As for why he wouldn't read professional books? The answer was simple: he couldn't get into them. Those dense walls of text made his brain go on "strike" immediately.

Suddenly, Shangguan Che slapped his forehead: "Damn it, I was so busy watching the drama that I forgot something important!"

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Once he calmed down, he finally remembered: "Horikita Manabu is the pinnacle of the student body, right? He solves problems with force, and even when stopped, he uses force. Is this school really that obsessed with violence?"

Shangguan Che hurriedly opened his skill panel, looked at his mediocre stats, and decisively decided: "Lay low, I must lay low! From now on, if I can avoid trouble, I will. Safety first!"

Since he had decided to lay low, gathering intelligence was crucial. Shangguan Che felt that in this "mystery-style" anime, it was definitely easier to gather intel at night.

"Come on, let me scan the whole school properly!" He activated his Clairvoyance, his vision sweeping across every corner of the campus like a radar.

When his vision passed by the riverbank, he suddenly stopped. A girl in a short skirt was kicking the railing violently—it was none other than the "most popular" girl in the class, Kushida Kikyo!

Shangguan Che rubbed his eyes, confirming he hadn't seen wrong: "Kushida has this side to her? She usually looks so gentle and cheerful; I didn't expect her to kick the railing with such force." He stared for several moments until Kushida turned and left, only then noticing that the railing was slightly deformed.

"No way, a girl with that much strength?" Shangguan Che gasped. "It seems like no one in this school is simple. The way of laying low is truly important!"

He turned off his Clairvoyance, pulled out his phone, and sent a message to Sakura: [Sakura, are you asleep? I've finished organizing today's study materials; I'll bring them to you tomorrow.]

Not long after, Sakura replied: [Not yet, thank you, Shangguan-san, sorry for the trouble.]

Looking at the message on the screen, Shangguan Che smiled faintly: "Today's intel gathering went okay. I'll keep working hard and try to survive until the end in this dangerous school!"