"Sip..."
"Stare~"
In Totsuki Academy's cafeteria, Yan Huan sat at a table in a corner, sipping apple juice.
Across from him, You Anlina stared fixedly at the carton in his hand as it gradually crumpled.
She folded her arms and pouted, looking thoroughly sulky.
"Stare~"
Eating his food, Yatsuhashi Ki glanced at Yan Huan beside him, then at You Anlina across the table, and couldn't help asking,
"What's up today? Why's she making that weird face?"
Aishili, eating across from them, chuckled and said without looking up,
"What else? She bombed the exam."
"Stare~"
You Anlina's resentful gaze immediately swept toward Yatsuhashi Ki, making him involuntarily slow his chewing.
"It was just a Beginning-of-Semester Exam. It doesn't even count toward your grade point average. Even the dean said it was just to get us back into study mode."
Unable to bear You Anlina's resentful stare, Yatsuhashi Ki could only offer some comfort.
"Look, the person in last place only scored sixty-six. Barely qualifies as human. You scored over six times as much as her. Isn't that pretty impressive?"
"It's not because I bombed the exam!"
You Anlina sniffled and lightly slapped the table, looking utterly aggrieved, with an air of "I'm settling scores with every last one of you."
"This is obviously all your fault! What did everyone say in the group chat over winter break?!"
Her sharp gaze landed on Yan Huan first.
"President! You first!!"
Unruffled, Yan Huan said with a smile,
"You Anlina, you know me. I'm always working part-time, and I even took another temporary job over winter break. Didn't you come buy milk tea at my shop? When would I have had time to review?"
You Anlina pouted and turned toward Hitomi Sakuramiya beside her.
Hitomi elegantly wiped her pink lips and told You Anlina,
"You know me, too. I adopted a Maine Coon, the one named Mizuki. Didn't you come over to pet her? She's in poor health, so I spent the entire break looking after her. I didn't review at all."
Hitomi Sakuramiya was a copycat; Yan Huan had already led her way of speaking astray.
You Anlina pouted and looked at Yatsuhashi Ki.
Without hesitation, their treasurer Yatsuhashi Ki raised his hand and jumped in.
"Secretary, you know me, too! I'm just a Two-Dimensional World nerd. I spend every day grinding resources in mobile games and paying to pull for waifus. Every time you asked me to play, I was online. I never opened a book!"
Finally, You Anlina's gaze landed on Aishili beside her.
But Aishili looked back at her with an even more terrifying gaze and said expressionlessly,
"Are you serious? I was the one who said in the group chat that there was a Beginning-of-Semester Exam and we should review. They all said they were too busy to review. You didn't respond, but you kept asking them to hang out in private..."
"Boohoo, aaah! I get it now. Every single one of you has special talents! I'm the only stupid one, the only lazy one... Boohoo..."
Wailing, she tried to throw herself into Aishili's arms, but Aishili held out a hand and bounced her straight into Hitomi Sakuramiya's embrace.
Thud!
That embrace was flat, offering almost no cushioning, and the collision hurt her head.
"Ow!"
Then You Anlina cried even louder.
"No! Boohoo, I don't want to be the Student Council's mascot! I want to be great at studying, too! President, Sakuramiya, Yatsuhashi, help me!!"
Hitomi Sakuramiya gently patted her back, letting her burrow around in her arms.
Beside them, a vein bulged on Aishili's forehead as she said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes,
"So you just leave me out when you ask for help? Somehow, that's a little irritating..."
Yatsuhashi Ki thought for a moment, then told You Anlina,
"The president just said this morning that he wanted to restart the Study Group and make the students who are falling behind join. We talked it over and decided we'd handle it together. You Anlina, do you want to join?"
At those words, Hitomi Sakuramiya froze slightly, and her arms around You Anlina suddenly tightened a little.
On the surface, however, she merely asked with natural puzzlement,
"You've already discussed it with Yatsuhashi, President? You don't need my help?"
What did that mean?
Wouldn't that mean studying with that Spencer person?
What if sparks of love flew between them?
Was this Study Group a matchmaking event in disguise?!
Hitomi Sakuramiya had naturally excluded everyone else and felt increasingly that the situation was critical.
Yan Huan smiled faintly and explained,
"Ah, because this will probably be quite a hassle... Yatsuhashi and I both really need those summer corporate study placements. The Golden Lion Group is very famous, after all."
The main reason was actually that Spencer's Modifier was very unusual. His thoughts had been strangely influenced back then, and he wasn't sure whether it would have the same effect on Hitomi Sakuramiya.
He didn't know what role the cuckold would play in her Modifier; there were quite a few types, after all.
For Sakuramiya's safety, and to give himself more room to maneuver, Yan Huan decided not to involve her.
"You don't need any of that, Sakuramiya, so why go to the extra-"
"It's all right~"
Hitomi Sakuramiya smiled, making You Anlina look up blankly from her arms.
Because she suddenly felt the temperature in Hitomi Sakuramiya's embrace plummet.
"As it happens, I've thought of a whole series of ways to help struggling students improve their grades. Perhaps we could try them and see how effective they are."
Hitomi Sakuramiya parted her pink lips and spoke with the terrifying goal of "killing that Spencer" in her heart.
"Two sets of exam papers for every subject each day, ten pages of math workbook exercises, ten exam essays, ten reading comprehension passages, memorization reports and spot checks for sociology, and then..."
Whether Spencer would be daunted remained unknown, but You Anlina was already turning paler as she listened, struggling fearfully in Hitomi Sakuramiya's arms.
"N-no!! I don't want to be great at studying anymore! I don't want to be great! I want to be a mascot! Boohoo..."
She hurriedly escaped Hitomi Sakuramiya's embrace and threw herself into Aishili's arms, meeting no resistance this time.
Aishili merely sighed speechlessly and pinched her ear.
"Sakuramiya's joking with you. How could anyone do that much?"
"Hehe..."
Hitomi Sakuramiya covered her mouth and chuckled, yet looked perfectly serious.
Propping up his cheek, Yan Huan looked at the pitiful You Anlina and comforted her.
"You Anlina, there's no need to get so worked up over one exam. It's just a Beginning-of-Semester Exam. It doesn't decide anything. You should know that all this time, you've been the only one who thinks of yourself as the Student Council's mascot."
"President."
You Anlina looked at Yan Huan, deeply moved, only for Aishili, who was holding her, to throw cold water on her feelings.
"I think so too, actually~"
"Aishili!"
As for Hitomi Sakuramiya...
Yan Huan slowly tidied his nearly empty tray and asked them,
"All right, we're pretty much done eating. I'm heading back to class for a midday nap. What are your plans?"
Aishili and Yatsuhashi Ki planned to buy a few things on Commercial Street outside campus, while Hitomi Sakuramiya still chose to return to the Student Council Office.
You Anlina had completely forgotten the pain now that the wound had healed. Just moments ago, she had been utterly distraught over her grades, and now she was off to the third-year section to hang out with the older girls again.
After returning their trays, they parted at the cafeteria entrance, leaving only Yan Huan and Hitomi Sakuramiya walking toward the first-year Teaching Building.
Yan Huan yawned lazily. A breeze brushed past, letting his crooked bangs fall and slightly veil his eyes.
Beside him, Hitomi Sakuramiya walked elegantly, as though catching the breeze that carried Yan Huan's scent as it stirred her long sidelocks, faintly pink at the tips.
She was petite, yet beside the 184-centimeter-tall Yan Huan, she didn't look frail at all, thanks to that air unique to her.
Spring was stirring, youth was in bloom, and the boy and girl walked side by side.
They had always been so well matched.
"President."
Just as Yan Huan closed his eyes to yawn, Hitomi Sakuramiya suddenly spoke beside him.
"What is it, Sakuramiya?"
"I said earlier that I wanted to join the Study Group. I don't believe you've answered me yet, President?"
You Anlina's interruption earlier had actually cut off Yan Huan and Hitomi Sakuramiya's conversation. Afterward, Yan Huan had also taken the initiative to end lunch without resuming it.
Only now did she bring it up again.
Yan Huan blinked and smiled helplessly.
The main issue was that Spencer's Modifier was nothing good, and it was closely connected to Sakuramiya.
Sakuramiya had no resistance. What if the Modifier distorted her consciousness?
They had known each other for half a year and were good friends. Whatever else, he couldn't let her come to harm, could he?
"I understood what you were getting at. It's just-"
"You seem to have been yawning a lot these past two days, President."
Before he could finish, Hitomi Sakuramiya spoke again beside him.
Yan Huan froze slightly and turned toward Hitomi Sakuramiya, only then realizing that she had already lifted her head to look at him.
"You're already so busy, President. You have to balance your studies and Student Council work, and you work part-time after class. With the Study Group on top of that, you must be exhausted."
Hitomi Sakuramiya looked at Yan Huan, her eyes full of seriousness.
"So, even if it's only a little, I can share some of your burden. After all, I'm the Student Council's vice president, too."
There was a pause after "after all," and it was unclear whether the girl had secretly substituted the words in her heart.
"..."
Although Yan Huan's drowsiness wasn't because his body couldn't handle the workload-he seemed to have endless strength every day, perhaps because his yang energy remained unreleased and his innate reserves were full-still...
Hearing Hitomi Sakuramiya say that felt pretty nice.
He stopped yawning, but could only decline politely with a smile.
"I've never stood on ceremony with you when I needed help, Sakuramiya. But let's leave it this time. Next time, definitely."
"..."
Hitomi Sakuramiya pressed her lips together, but with him having gone that far, she could only nod and end the conversation.
She would bring it up later.
As they walked, they reached the foot of the Teaching Building. It was about time to part ways.
"Have a good afternoon, President."
"You too, Sakuramiya."
Yan Huan was going to Class A on the ground floor, while Hitomi Sakuramiya took the stairs up.
The Teaching Building was deserted at midday, and their classroom didn't have a single person in it. Commercial Street outside campus was probably livelier.
He planned to come back and organize his books, then take his schoolbag somewhere quiet for a midday nap, study for a while afterward, and then go play mahjong.
It was Tuesday. He was originally supposed to attend the elective Handicrafts Class with Ye Shiyu. Yan Huan had chosen that class for her to give them more opportunities to meet, making it easier to check on her and her Modifier at any time.
But the handicrafts teacher had sent an email that morning saying students could volunteer to go downtown to buy craft materials. She had chartered a school bus, and anyone who didn't go would see her again on Thursday.
Yan Huan had already bought his supplies before the semester began, which saved him the trouble that afternoon.
Mahjong, here I come.
Having happily made his plans, Yan Huan hummed as he headed out of the classroom, only to run straight into a familiar floral fragrance.
No way?
Yan Huan was just reaching the classroom doorway. His steps halted, but his head, already poking out the door, still caught sight of the cool, aloof girl standing in the corridor outside.
She wore a white dress, her black hair falling like a waterfall. Her exquisitely beautiful, expressionless face only shifted slightly when she saw Yan Huan emerge from the classroom.
Needless to say, it was Ye Shiyu.
She held a cloth bag in her arms, seemingly with something inside.
"..."
Yet Yan Huan was struggling a little to keep it together.
He felt rather like an office worker on a Friday, ready to clock out and happily welcome the weekend.
Just as he was cheerfully about to clock out, some dumbass boss came over and announced a meeting.
That was roughly how he felt.
Thank goodness for Perfect Facial Expression Control, which let Yan Huan remain that smiling boy.
"Sister Shiyu!"
He greeted Ye Shiyu with a smile. Hearing him, Ye Shiyu walked over to him, still expressionless.
"..."
"What brings you to the first-year section all of a sudden, Sister Shiyu? Did you need something?"
Looking at Yan Huan before her, Ye Shiyu nodded.
"..."
Just as Yan Huan's smile was about to collapse, she suddenly opened the little cloth bag in her arms and took out a small black lunch box.
Needless to say, her name was written on the lunch box, too.
Ye Shiyu gently opened it, revealing the neatly arranged cookies inside.
Yan Huan froze slightly at the sight, then looked up at Ye Shiyu and asked,
"Did Aunt Chen send these for me?"
"..."
Ye Shiyu tilted her head, hesitated a moment, then finally spoke.
"...I made them."
Yan Huan raised an eyebrow and was just about to say something when Ye Shiyu spoke again.
"There's something I'd like your help with."
The words came suddenly, as though some emotion inside her had pushed them out.
She lowered her head, took her laptop out of the cloth bag in her arms again, and said to Yan Huan,
"My computer's been really slow since last night. I don't know why. Everything takes ages to open, and ads keep popping up for no reason. I'm not very familiar with Linmen, so I don't know where to get it repaired, and I don't really want to trouble Mom, so..."
"I see."
Slow? Can't open the browser or other apps? Pop-up ads?
A disk problem, or...
At that thought, Yan Huan asked,
"Sister Shiyu, did you bring the charger?"
"Yes."
Yan Huan turned to check the time, then said to Ye Shiyu,
"I know a little about computers. Let me take a look first, Sister Shiyu. If I can fix it, you won't have to make a trip to a repair shop."
"Okay."
"Then let's go to my classroom. There aren't really any people there."
"Okay."
Yan Huan led Ye Shiyu into the empty classroom and over to his seat, set down the laptop, plugged it in, and turned it on.
Actually, he wasn't turning it on. The laptop had been on standby all along.
Ye Shiyu seemed to think computers could heal themselves-that leaving it alone overnight and turning it on again the next day would restore it to normal.
But that hadn't helped at all. When she opened it the next day, it was still just as slow.
He sat down and moved the cursor with the touchpad, while Ye Shiyu sat beside him, her hands on her thighs, blinking her long lashes as she watched him work.
"Sister Shiyu, have you done anything on your computer lately?"
"...No."
"Have you downloaded anything, then?"
"No."
All right, she doesn't know anything. I'd better check it myself.
"The password, Sister Shiyu."
"Mom's birthday and mine. 06270903."
Yan Huan glanced at Ye Shiyu, typed it on the keyboard, and opened the desktop, revealing a background photo of a life-size doll dressed in exquisite clothing.
He dragged the cursor with the touchpad, and the moment he started, he felt how incredibly sluggish it was.
It seemed to teleport around, making it extremely difficult to control.
He glanced at the desktop and the bottom-right corner. Ye Shiyu hadn't downloaded any strange software, and there was no stubborn junk like Bird Wallpaper in sight. It was extremely clean.
"I don't see any rogue software."
"Mm."
Ye Shiyu nodded.
"There's plenty of disk space, too. On both the C Drive and D Drive."
"Mm."
Ye Shiyu nodded again.
"..."
At that, Yan Huan turned to look at Ye Shiyu beside him, and she stared blankly back at him.
Every time he muttered something and checked another item, she nodded in response beside him.
It really felt like having a girl who knew absolutely nothing about computers or games sitting beside you, watching you work and agreeing with everything you said.
Secretly satisfying.
That was the only way to describe it.
But if it wasn't this or that, then what exactly was wrong with this computer?
Yan Huan thought for a moment, clicked on Task Manager, and opened the performance tab to check the CPU and disk.
He hadn't realized until he looked, but the CPU usage had already hit 100%!
Yet there weren't any applications open.
He opened the processes tab and discovered that a system process was maxing out the CPU.
It wasn't normal for a system process to use up the CPU for so long, and there were pop-up ads, too...
Was this a downloader virus?
Yan Huan raised his eyebrows and said to Ye Shiyu,
"It's probably a virus, Sister Shiyu. We just need to download some antivirus software and run a scan. It's nothing serious."
"Mm-hmm."
Yan Huan was really good at this, too.
Ye Shiyu thought silently, her gaze turning to the cookies she held in her arms.
These were her thanks for his help repairing her computer this time.
But she still hadn't settled on the earlier thank-you gift, the one born of guilt.
Yesterday, she'd clearly intended to ask him what he liked, but in the end, she hadn't managed to get the question out.
Now, there were only the two of them here, and the atmosphere seemed nice, too. It was a good time to ask.
She parted her lips and raised her eyes, the words already in her throat.
"Yan-"
But the instant she looked up, she saw Yan Huan moving the cursor toward the browser icon.
And that icon was already present in the taskbar below, indicating that the browser was open.
She suddenly remembered that she'd tried opening the browser after getting up that morning, wanting to visit that strange website again.
She'd managed to get in, but it had been terribly slow.
And just then, it had been time to leave for school. Aunt Chen had come to hurry her along, so she'd minimized the page, closed the laptop, and put it in her schoolbag, planning to have Yan Huan take a look.
A morning of classes had made her forget that she'd left it on standby without even closing the browser.
And now, Yan Huan was about to click on that browser?
"Sister Shiyu, I'll just download some antivirus software and run a scan for you. It'll be fixed in no time."
In there...
There was something in there... that he absolutely couldn't see!!
Beside him, Ye Shiyu's face grew paler and paler. Her phone slipped silently down in her hand, lighting up with a sinister purple glow.
Her lips trembled slightly, and she suddenly called Yan Huan's name, using the form of address only his mother used.
"Xiao Huan."
"Huh? Sister Shiyu, wha-"
Hearing that name, Yan Huan immediately turned toward her in surprise.
But what met his eyes was an all-too-familiar deep-purple vortex on a purple phone screen.
[Effect: Individual Hypnosis] [Duration: 15 minutes] [Timer started]
Yan Huan: "????"
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