Qiu Mian lifted her head and looked straight at the boy named Yamaguchi.
Her face showed no expression at all, yet the air around her seemed to drop several degrees in an instant, radiating an unmistakable chill of rejection and hostility.
She didn’t speak.
She simply stared, her slightly narrowed eyes clearly conveying one unmistakable message: Stay away from her.
The look wasn’t particularly vicious, but combined with the sharp, distant aura she naturally carried—and the unmistakably protective stance she’d just taken—it was enough to make the self-proclaimed bold boy instinctively take half a step back.
The smile on his face froze.
The rest of his words lodged in his throat.
The other boys who had been about to join in or follow him over immediately fell silent too.
A few awkwardly averted their eyes.
The atmosphere turned stiff and heavy for a moment.
Yamaguchi clearly felt the sting to his pride, but faced with Qiu Mian’s unmistakable “keep your distance” ice wall, he ultimately rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment and forced out two dry laughs.
“Uh… haha, well… let’s talk about it later, yeah? Later…”
He quickly turned and scurried back to his seat, earning a few muffled snickers from his friends.
Only then did Qiu Mian let out a small breath of relief.
She released the wrist she had been gripping tightly the entire time.
She hadn’t even realized how hard she was holding on.
Turning to look at Qiu Kui, she wanted to check whether the other girl had been frightened.
Instead, she met those still watery purple eyes staring back at her without blinking.
Qiu Kui’s face remained flushed, but beneath the shyness there seemed to be something else—something subtle and difficult to name.
“J-Jie-jie…” she called softly.
Her fingers unconsciously brushed over the wrist Qiu Mian had just held, as though the faint warmth from her palm still lingered there.
Qiu Mian felt oddly uncomfortable under that gaze.
She looked away and muttered stiffly in a low voice.
“…Stay away from boys like that in the future.”
The tone was still blunt, almost like an order, yet if one listened carefully, there was an awkward trace of concern hidden underneath.
Tsk, why am I even explaining myself?! The villainous big sister bullying her little sister and stopping her from making friends is completely in-character, isn’t it?!
She mentally scolded herself.
But when she recalled the way that boy had looked at Qiu Kui earlier, that inexplicable irritation bubbled up again.
He clearly had bad intentions! Qiu Kui is so innocent—what if she gets deceived?!
Qiu Kui nodded obediently.
“…Mm. I’ll listen to Jie-jie.”
At that moment, the homeroom teacher finally walked in carrying the attendance roster.
The classroom gradually returned to order.
Qiu Mian and Qiu Kui were assigned adjacent seats.
Sitting by the window, feeling the gentle breeze carrying the scent of fresh grass drift in from outside, Qiu Mian watched the teacher begin the usual introductory speech from the podium.
Her thoughts, however, had already drifted far away.
The “corner incident” this morning… even though Yellow Hair interrupted it, Xia Qingkong did appear and saw the second half. Does that count as the plot progressing normally?
It’s my fault. I panicked about being late and just dragged Qiu Kui away. I didn’t even get a chance to observe Xia Qingkong’s reaction, much less have the kind of first direct confrontation the original story described…
Sigh. Being a villain isn’t just physically weak—it turns out my mental fortitude is lacking too. The moment something unexpected happens, I revert to reflex…
Whatever. At least I’ve seen her now. Xia Qingkong is in the neighboring class. There will be plenty of opportunities later…
The real problem now is…
Her gaze casually swept across the classroom—over the various stares, both open and furtive, that kept landing on them.
Especially the occasional glances from the boys in the back row directed toward Qiu Kui.
I need to figure out a way to let Qiu Kui integrate a little into this class… while still blocking any gazes with bad intentions.
And then there’s Yellow Hair… She’s definitely a student here too. Upperclassman? Or same year, different class? What did she mean by those last words?
And most importantly… the white-masked killer… right now, which corner of this school are you hiding in?
Her thoughts tangled chaotically like a knotted thread.
Qiu Mian let out a soft sigh and turned her gaze toward the clear blue sky outside the window.
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