The Home-Wrecker

So cute.

Cute, I want to...

I want to...

So cute. What a shame she's already the streamer's exclusive character. Otherwise, if I got the chance to come back later, I'd want to give it a try too.

Get a grip! She's a female ghost! Try it and you'll die!

Qiqi lay face-down on the desk, turning her face slightly from where it rested on her arms. She secretly watched Wen Nan and couldn't help smiling to herself.

Wen Nan smiled back at her, while asking the system in his mind to check Qiqi's capture progress.

9527: [Congratulations! Qiqi's capture progress is back to 99%!]

9527: [A Level 1 Taming Sigil is ready to be activated. Would you like to reactivate it?]

Wen Nan felt a little relieved.

The moment he'd walked into the classroom, he'd instinctively pulled up Qiqi's status panel in the system to check on her. He'd discovered that her capture progress had dropped to 94%.

He hadn't expected... So this progress value could actually go down?!

Did that mean the capture progress he'd earned with the characters could, with one careless mistake, be sent right back to square one?

Although Qiqi's 94% was still far above the amount needed to clear the game, the fact that it had dropped five percentage points after one night's sleep still made Wen Nan feel uneasy. If it fell below 90%, he wouldn't be able to activate Qiqi's Taming Sigil anymore.

Qiqi only had a Level 1 Taming Sigil. The activation requirement wasn't high—just 90% affection—but the duration was just as short: one hour.

When Wen Nan had returned to the dorm last night, the countdown on the sigil in his palm had ended, and the once-bright sigil had gone dim.

However, Qiqi was already his exclusive character. Even if the sigil went out, no other player could tame her. Wen Nan just needed to make sure his capture progress with her stayed above 90% if he wanted to activate her Taming Sigil again.

Fortunately, Qiqi was an adorable girl who was easy to win over. A kiss or a hug, and her progress would shoot right back up.

Wen Nan: [Activate.]

9527: [Qiqi's Taming Sigil has been activated. While it is in effect, you may ask Qiqi to do anything for you. Duration: 1 hour.]

Wen Nan shrugged. He didn't have anything in mind for Qiqi to do right now, but since the Taming Sigil didn't have a cooldown, he could activate it whenever he wanted as long as his capture progress stayed above 90% and Qiqi was nearby. He might as well keep it on, just in case.

Come to think of it, when he'd checked Qiqi's capture progress last night on his way back to the dorm, she and Wen Nan had already parted ways, yet her progress had risen to 99% on its own. So why had it dropped to 94% after a night's sleep?

"Did you sleep badly last night?" Wen Nan pointed at Qiqi's eyes. "They're a little puffy."

"No, I slept great," Qiqi said, rubbing her eyelids. "I just wake up puffy in the morning." She hurriedly took a small mirror out of her bag. "Do I look ugly now?"

She checked her reflection from side to side, then pouted. "I do look ugly. My double eyelids are so swollen they've turned into single eyelids."

Wen Nan chuckled. "You still look lovely." He reached over and pinched her chubby cheek. "You're all round now. Even cuter."

Qiqi moved her face out of reach and felt her cheek herself. "Really?"

"Really." Wen Nan nodded with complete sincerity.

If it wasn't because she'd slept poorly affecting her capture progress, then...

"Qiqi, did someone say something to you last night?" Wen Nan asked instead.

Qiqi pressed her lips together and thought for a moment. Her conversation with that person from last night came back to her.

She'd promised not to tell anyone about it. But the Taming Sigil at the nape of her neck glimmered faintly, making it impossible for her to refuse deep down. Nor did she want to refuse the man in front of her.

After hesitating for a moment, Qiqi nodded. "Yeah. It was my roommate. She told me about Xiao Wei. She said Xiao Wei cried all night because the two of us got together. She also said she thought it was unfair to Xiao Wei for me to keep you all to myself..."

So that was what this was about?

Wen Nan gave a helpless smile. "When it comes to feelings, you either like someone or you don't. What does fairness have to do with it?"

"I told her the same thing, but she said it was because I got lucky and gave you the letter first. That's why you came looking for me and chose me."

"Don't listen to her nonsense. I chose you because of who you are. It had nothing to do with who came first."

"But what do you like about me?"

"You're cute."

Qiqi thought about it, as if she wanted to believe Wen Nan. But then she remembered what her roommate had said, and her little mouth drooped again. "But my roommate said you chose me because my 'attribute' is 'pure romance,' and you rejected Xiao Wei because her attribute is 'unrequited love'... I don't understand. What did she mean by 'attribute'?"

Wen Nan felt a chill run down his spine. For an instant, he nearly broke out in a cold sweat.

He looked at Qiqi and asked gravely, "Qiqi, who exactly is this roommate of yours?"

"Xiao Jun. Yu Shujun," Qiqi replied. "You know her pretty well, don't you? She even helped you catch up on your studies."

Yu Shujun...

As expected, it was that top student again...

Wen Nan's expression darkened.

What was this guy trying to do? He'd turned a blind eye and was even ready to sign a noninterference agreement with him, but the other guy just had to stir things up in his harem?

Thinking this, Wen Nan looked around the classroom. "Where's Yu Shujun sitting?"

Qiqi pointed at an empty seat in the front row. "Over there. She hasn't arrived yet. Class starts in a minute. I wonder if something happened. It's strange."

What was strange about that? A player sneaking into a map wouldn't be there to sit in class with the other NPCs. She was probably exploring the map somewhere.

Just then, the surroundings suddenly grew brighter.

At some point, the black fog that had shrouded the campus had lifted, and sunlight poured down again.

"Oh, there she is!" Qiqi suddenly pointed at the flower bed outside the window. "Who's she talking to? What could be so important that she's skipping class?"

Wen Nan followed Qiqi's finger and sure enough, spotted the top student.

This guy had just finished messing with Qiqi, and now he was going after Xiao Wei?

Wen Nan couldn't sit still any longer. He jumped to his feet.

Ding—

The class bell rang.

The teacher walked in carrying a lesson plan, but Wen Nan didn't care. He turned and headed straight for the classroom door.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Qiqi called after him. "Class has started!"

Wen Nan waved without turning around and tossed back:

"Someone's stealing my girl! How can I sit through class?!"