After that, the seed had transformed into this enormous potted plant, bearing the fruits of wisdom and symbolizing intellect.
Compared to ancient cathedral halls, this place was somewhat more austere, yet no less elegant.
Within this vast library stood statues of literary figures at each of the four corners.
During relatively relaxed periods, many students treated this place as the best spot to pass the time.
When Wu Liang and the others entered the library, perhaps because it was not exactly a leisurely time, there were especially few students today.
Only a handful of people could be seen scattered around the tables on the entire first floor, leafing through something.
In the silent space, all that could be heard was the rustling of turning pages, along with everyone's heartbeats and breathing.
"Looks like there aren't many people here today."
Rat tilted his slightly sore neck back and grumbled.
Then again, this was hardly free time. It would have been stranger if people had come to the library.
"It's huge..."
Nan Zhu stood rooted to the spot, eyes wide in stunned disbelief.
This was practically the size of a gymnasium. It was seriously outrageous.
Although he had prepared himself to be surprised before coming here, he was still utterly shocked upon seeing it in person.
"It really is huge..."
Even Wu Liang found the sight before him somewhat dreamlike.
He had already known this library was enormous when he played the game before.
But viewing it from a god's-eye perspective while playing, he had been completely unable to experience its sheer grandeur.
Only by standing here in person could he truly understand just how terrifying Huihuangxing Academy's financial power was.
"Boss, don't you come here all the time?"
Rat looked at Wu Liang in confusion.
The boss really loved making a fuss today. First the gymnasium, then the cafeteria, and now the library.
He did not know whether it was just his imagination, but he felt like the boss seemed a little like a country bumpkin today.
"Excuse me, students? Please show me your ID plaques so I can register you."
The girl working part-time at the front desk approached the three of them with a digital tablet in hand.
Her gaze lingered for a moment longer on Wu Liang's and the male lead's faces before she finally looked at Rat beside them with some confusion.
"Oh, sure."
Rat obediently took out his ID plaque and scanned it against the digital tablet.
With a beep, Rat's identity was successfully verified, and he entered the main hall.
"Huh? Boss? Why aren't you two coming in?"
Rat, who had already entered the library hall, looked at Wu Liang and Nan Zhu still standing where they were and asked in confusion.
"I didn't bring mine."
"Me neither."
Wu Liang and Nan Zhu spoke almost in unison.
"You may not enter the library freely without an ID plaque."
The girl smiled as she looked at Rat, who had entered the hall alone.
Without scanning a card, it was impossible to enter the library, so she could only ask these two students to leave for now.
"Huh?"
Rat stared blankly at Wu Liang and Nan Zhu.
For a moment, he even wondered whether the boss had deliberately set him up.
"Then, Mr. Rat, why don't you stay here for a while? We'll look around elsewhere and come back for you."
Nan Zhu smiled awkwardly. He had not expected Rat to move so quickly.
Before he had the chance to stop Rat, the other man had already scanned his card and gone inside.
Once someone entered, they had to spend at least some time reading before they could leave.
Those were Huihuangxing Academy's rules, and there was nothing else he could do about it.
"You're the Rat! That's a name only the boss gets to call me! Who gave you the right to say it!"
"And you did this on purpose, didn't you? You definitely did it on purpose! You just wanted to separate me from the boss!"
Rat erupted in fury. This had to be that pretty boy's scheme.
That guy clearly knew the library rules, so he deliberately put on this act just to drive him away from the boss.
This guy named Nan Zhu definitely had improper designs on the boss.
Damn it! He had been so careful, yet this guy still found an opening.
"Student, please keep quiet in the library. I would be very troubled if you disturbed the other students."
"If you intend to keep shouting here, I may have to take some forceful measures."
The girl walked up to Rat with a gentle smile, her face wreathed in dark shadows.
Yet the killing intent radiating from her made Rat shudder all over, forcing him to obediently shut his mouth.
"I... I understand..."
Rat covered his mouth and muttered softly, not daring to look at the librarian before him.
Why was this woman so terrifying? The killing intent around her was absolutely real...
"All right, Rat. Just stay here for fifteen minutes."
"I'll take him around outside for a bit, then come back here to pick you up."
Wu Liang rubbed his forehead and spoke with a headache.
He had specifically brought Rat along because he did not want to be alone with this game's male lead.
And now Rat had managed to get himself left behind.
"O-Okay..."
Rat wore a miserable expression as he looked at Wu Liang with deep resentment.
Then he turned his gaze to Nan Zhu's smiling face. That damned cheating cat, even though he was a man...
'Outside the Library'
"Then let's go. Is there anywhere else you want to see?"
Wu Liang glanced at Nan Zhu and spoke flatly.
"There's nowhere in particular. I'm just a little interested in you, Wu Liang."
"I've already heard some rumors about you from my classmates and Teacher Ye."
Nan Zhu, who was walking ahead, turned around to look at Wu Liang behind him.
An intrigued smile appeared on his delicate face, making him seem somewhat eerie.
"And?"
Wu Liang suddenly felt a chill run through him. The feeling of being watched by a wild beast made him uneasy.
Was this what one would expect from the so-called male lead? Was this his innate aura of suppression?
"I don't think you're as much of a bastard as the rumors make you out to be."
Nan Zhu casually shrugged and looked elsewhere.
He had heard about how Wu Liang supposedly behaved, but from what he had seen so far, those rumors seemed more like they existed to slander him.
"Is that why you deliberately sent Rat away? You had your library ID plaque with you all along, didn't you?"
Wu Liang crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. This Nan Zhu did not seem as simple as he was in the game settings...
"Nan Zhu" Seemed a Little "Purple"
Wu Liang narrowed his eyes and carefully examined Nan Zhu before him. Unlike his simple self in the game, he was instead highly meticulous and wary.
If the Nan Zhu in the original game settings had been a cute, clueless little puppy, then the person before him was more like a cunning old fox.
Wu Liang stroked his chin and thought silently. He had indeed entered the ACG dating game Who Is Your number one Goddess~ Love Rhythm.
But the personalities of these characters seemed somewhat different from the original now. Every one of them had changed to some degree.
"Come to think of it, this isn't bad either."
Wu Liang suddenly grinned. If everything followed the game's plot that he already knew, could it even be called a challenge? It would just be child's play.
He did not know what this male lead was really up to, but this unknown change was clearly much more interesting.
"You had your library ID plaque with you all along. Did you deliberately send Rat away just to tell me this?"
Wu Liang rolled his neck. When facing Nan Zhu, he was actually still somewhat nervous.
In a sense, the man before him was the grim reaper who would come for him in a year.
To avoid his inevitable ending, Wu Liang needed to grow closer to Nan Zhu.
"I merely wanted to know what kind of person the delinquent young master from those rumors really was."
"But from what I can see now, that delinquent young master seems to be nothing more than an ordinary person who's been ostracized and is a little cold."
Nan Zhu spread his hands and casually shrugged.
Wu Liang was not as hard to approach as the rumors claimed, nor was he as irritable as they said.
Those rumors were completely contrary to Wu Liang's conduct. One could even say they existed specifically to tarnish him.
This made him intensely curious about Wu Liang. What kind of person would inspire such strange rumors?
"Why are you so interested in me? Our only interaction was that one encounter in the alley."
Wu Liang could not understand what this Nan Zhu was thinking.
And he did not know whether it was merely his imagination, but this Nan Zhu seemed strange somehow.
Indeed, Nan Zhu before him had almost the same face as the male lead from the game, but if one looked carefully...
"What would you think if I said I wanted to fence with you?"
Nan Zhu lowered his head and pondered for a long while before suddenly looking up with a brilliant smile.
"I'd kick you straight home."
Wu Liang's eye twitched. Something was wrong. This was way too wrong.
The Nan Zhu before him, who blurted out all sorts of bizarre one-liners, was far too different from the shy male lead in the game.
Though they had nearly identical faces, they were completely different people on the inside.
"That's really cruel."
Nan Zhu gave Wu Liang a disdainful look. So he could not take a joke at all.
Did he really think he wanted to fence with him? He had only been trying to lighten the mood.
"That's called self-defense."
Wu Liang himself did not know why he was standing here chatting nonsense with Nan Zhu.
Whenever he spoke with him, though, he could not help being led around by the nose.
This passive feeling made Wu Liang extremely uncomfortable, especially given that the other party was a man.
"All right, it's about time we headed back. Otherwise, your number one lackey is going to explode."
Before you continue