The sudden mission from the system left Xia Mu with no choice but to change his mind.
Ten Skill Points—in other words, he had to correct twenty percent of Sakura's progress.
That would take several days of hard work.
So, Sakura, sorry for the trouble.
"Go on. You can do it. Handle everything on your own."
Xia Mu gave Sakura an encouraging look.
"I—I understand."
Sakura gritted her teeth and looked at the store clerk. Her instincts told her he wasn't a good person.
But Xia Mu had told her to do it, so she had no choice.
For Xia Mu, and for herself, she had to change!
With that thought, Sakura finally mustered her courage and went over to speak with the clerk.
Even though she'd prepared herself, the clerk's tone and expression still frightened her.
Trembling, she followed the clerk's instructions and filled out the warranty card, wrote down her address, and completed the rest of the process.
The clerk looked like he was about to eat her alive. Terrified, Sakura was like a startled fawn. As soon as she was done, she hurried back to Xia Mu.
Then she patted her chest and let out a small sigh of relief. "That scared me to death..."
Sakura Airi's Correction progress had risen by another five percent, reaching eighty-five percent.
Her Correction was almost complete.
By then, Sakura should no longer be so closed off, right?
"Let's go."
Xia Mu glanced over his shoulder at the sleazy clerk, suppressed the urge to knock him out with one punch, then turned and left the store.
To get Skill Points, he had no choice but to sacrifice Sakura a little.
Sakura still had no idea Xia Mu had sold her out. She was happily tugging him along to browse the mall.
By chance, though, Xia Mu ran into the fat guy.
He was walking around with the girl from yesterday, and they were kissing and groping each other at the movie theater. It made Xia Mu furious.
Sakura sat beside Xia Mu, her cheeks red as she tried not to look.
She wouldn't even dare to imagine doing something like that. But if it were Xia Mu, she might be willing.
When they parted, Xia Mu told Sakura to contact him if anything came up.
Still, he wasn't reassured, so he installed on Sakura's phone the same kind of virus he'd put on the fat guy's.
By evening, the fat guy already knew Xia Mu had gone to train. He was unusually fired up today, as if he had endless energy.
With Xia Mu, a master of fist techniques, teaching him, his fighting skills were steadily improving.
At least now, ordinary students were no match for him.
After teaching the fat guy all the basic techniques, Xia Mu planned to let him train on his own from then on.
Xia Mu had other things to take care of, after all.
Back in his dorm, Xia Mu showered. In the middle of the night, he wanted a drink, so he went down to the convenience store.
Clunk.
After he inserted a coin, a can of cola rolled down the vending machine.
Xia Mu bent down to pick it up. When he looked up again, he saw someone.
The Student Council President—in other words, Suzune Horikita's so-called big brother.
Facing the student who could remain calm in front of him, Manabu Horikita pushed up his glasses and looked him up and down.
His gaze seemed to see right through him.
But Xia Mu didn't give him the time of day. He turned and walked off.
"You're the student who was absent from the entrance ceremony, aren't you?" Manabu Horikita stared at Xia Mu's back, his glasses flashing. "At this school, you can get away with breaking some rules. But if you keep ignoring them..."
"You'll regret it."
Ignoring Manabu Horikita's warning, Xia Mu went straight upstairs.
Did he really need to hear all that? He knew perfectly well.
He didn't care what happened to him, as long as he wasn't expelled and could keep enjoying life here while earning Skill Points.
By the time he graduated, his overall strength would surpass that of every student at the school.
The next afternoon, the virus Xia Mu had installed on Sakura's phone suddenly sent him an alert.
He opened it and saw Sakura running frantically. The camera bounced up and down, occasionally catching glimpses of Xia Mu following behind her.
He'd warned Sakura yesterday not to run into a dead end.
She shouldn't panic and make a desperate choice.
"Time for me to step in."
With that thought, Xia Mu ran out in his slippers, leaping down from the fourth floor and landing smoothly.
Following the location data coming from the phone, he sprinted all the way there.
"Stop running! Why are you running!?"
"I'm your fan! I love you, Airi!"
The sleazy store clerk was chasing Sakura Airi, spittle flying from his mouth and his eyes bloodshot.
Her flawless figure, enormous breasts, and round, curvaceous backside had gotten him hard.
The thought of getting to enjoy Sakura soon left him so excited he could barely contain himself.
He'd cast all thoughts of laws and regulations aside.
When he saw Sakura still running, he made up his mind, picked up a brick from the ground, and hurled it at her.
Sakura barely exercised. How could she dodge a brick flying toward her at high speed?
Thud!
Thump!
The brick slammed into her back, and the force knocked her to the ground. Her knee scraped against the pavement, and bright red blood immediately welled up.
But the clerk behind her was far more terrifying than her injuries.
"D-don't come any closer!"
Sakura pressed both hands against the ground and kept scrambling backward. Her legs had gone weak. Looking at the clerk's vicious face, she felt there was no way she could escape what was coming.
"Come on, Airi!"
The clerk stepped up in front of Sakura with a wicked grin and slowly undid his belt. The tent in his pants was straining uncomfortably. "Take care of this for me!!"
He laughed maniacally, already imagining Airi pinned beneath him.
"No, no!!"
Tears welled in the corners of Sakura Airi's eyes. She twisted around, trying to escape, but a dry, wrinkled hand reached for her back.
"Don't even think about running! You share so many photos with me every day. That's proof you love me! Now it's my turn to love you properly!"
"Ha ha..."
Thud!
The clerk's laughter stopped abruptly halfway through.
A shadowy figure kicked him flying. He crashed through a garbage can, and his head smashed against the wall with a sickening thud.
His eyes rolled back, and all he could manage was a series of groans as he crumpled to his knees.
The sirens soon sounded.
Xia Mu had called the police on his way over.
Sakura was practically in shock, gasping for breath. Liquid had soaked both her cheeks.
Seeing her progress drop rapidly, Xia Mu hurried over. "Sakura, it's all right."
"Be brave and be yourself. I'll protect you."
Xia Mu's words worked. They stopped Sakura's progress bar from falling any further.
She raised her blurry gaze and recognized the person in front of her. "X-Xia Mu!"
In an instant, her tears burst forth like a floodgate giving way.
"It's all right now." Xia Mu gently comforted her and helped Sakura to her feet.
In his field of vision, the Correction progress bar instantly filled to the max.
[Sakura Airi's Correction progress has reached 100%] [Reward: 20 Skill Points. Reward: Sakura Airi's Affection, 100%]
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