The Manga Research Club was on the fifth floor of the Club Building, so the two of them could get there directly without going downstairs.
The Club Building had no elevator, and the fifth floor was relatively high. So, ordinary, less significant clubs were placed on the fifth floor, while clubs that were beneficial for further education were on the first and second floors.
But this still couldn’t stop the students’ enthusiasm for cultivating extracurricular interests.
Participating in school club activities added an extra 5 points to the Comprehensive Cultivation Score, which accounted for about 20% of the semester-end grade evaluation.
Even those who just signed up for a club got points. So, in all of Zhuming Girls’ High School, apart from those who genuinely had no interest in clubs, most girls were in a club.
This led to the number of clubs and club members at Zhuming Girls’ High always being at a relatively high level, with no need to worry about recruitment.
Naturally, this also fostered quite a few strange clubs.
The two arrived at the door of the Manga Research Club.
“Knock on the door.”
“Yes!”
Lin Yi stepped forward and knocked three times.
Bang bang bang.
No one answered.
“Knock again.”
“Yes!”
Bang bang bang.
Still no one answered.
Lin Yi breathed a sigh of relief and shrugged. “Well, isn’t that unfortunate? No one’s in the Manga Research Club today. Let’s just go home…”
She saw Jian Shuye take a large keychain from her pocket and start selecting a key by the door number.
Seriously, if you had a keychain, you should’ve said so earlier. Why make me knock?
Lin Yi’s anger was building.
Click.
Jian Shuye quickly found the key for the Manga Research Club. After opening the classroom door, they were engulfed by the darkness inside.
Once their eyes adjusted to the light difference between inside and outside, the two realized it wasn’t that no one was there. Rather, the three girls inside were each wearing VR headsets, deeply engrossed in an intense game.
They had reached a state of complete oblivion, utterly absorbed, lost in the virtual world and unable to extricate themselves.
Jian Shuye crossed her arms. “How would you evaluate this?”
Lin Yi thought for a moment and replied, “Tax thieves.”
“Not entirely accurate, but you’ve grasped the core idea.”
Jian Shuye took two steps forward, found the electrical panel, and flipped the switch. Immediately, the classroom echoed with the girls’ wails.
“What happened—”
“A blackout, a blackout!”
“I told you, President, the typhoon just passed, the power is very unstable.”
“Sigh…”
The three girls were still chatting about the game content, completely unaware that two Charm Rank A beauties were standing behind them.
“Ahem.” Lin Yi coughed twice. “Is anyone here?”
“Whoa, when did you two get here?” The girl called ‘President’ turned around, startled. “That’s weird, I definitely locked the door. How did you get in?”
Lin Yi smiled. “It wasn’t locked. We just turned the handle and came in.”
“Yuki, it must have been you! You always forget to lock the door!”
“It wasn’t me, President. You locked the door this time…”
“You dare defy me, your President?!”
“Wah…”
Jian Shuye took two steps forward, her voice cold. “What are you doing?”
The President showed no fear. “As you can see, we’re playing games.”
“Why are you playing games?” Jian Shuye glanced at the doorplate. “Isn’t this the Manga Research Club? What you should be doing is researching manga, practicing techniques, preparing manga publications for the Club Recruitment Fair and the upcoming Cultural and Sports Festival!”
The girl named Yuki looked surprised. “President, I didn’t know we were so capable!”
“Right? We’re pretty amazing.”
The girl who was the President still wore a full smile. “Are you here to join the club? Sorry, but we don’t plan to recruit new members this year.”
“Why not?”
“Because training new members is such a hassle.” The President let out a long sigh. “We have to teach them how to draw, how to develop a plot, help them prepare their work… it’s like having a job, but without the pay. Might as well just slack off.”
Lin Yi was shocked. At such a young age, she’s already grasped the ultimate philosophy of life: all labor deserves reasonable compensation. This girl must not be allowed to remain.
“Exactly, exactly. You have no idea how hard it is to prepare publications.”
Jian Shuye looked serious. “That’s still no reason for you to play games in the clubroom.”
The Manga Research Club President seemed to sense a hint of danger. She stood up, hands on her hips. “Who are you?”
Jian Shuye glanced at Lin Yi. Lin Yi naturally knew what role she should play and stepped forward.
“Listen well! Standing before you now is the All-Universe Number One Beautiful Girl, the Earth-Level Life Mentor, the Top Academic Rank in the Entire Grade, the Designated Successor for the Next Student Council President, the Chuming Girls’ High Behind-the-Scenes Mastermind, the Myriad Phenomena Club President, The Ultimate Solution to All Problems—Owowowowowowowowow! Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch! Lady Jian Shuye!”
Jian Shuye’s loafer was stepping on Lin Yi’s shoe.
The Manga Research Club President clutched her stomach, laughing. “I wondered who it was… hahaha… so it’s… that Jian Shuye. The one in the recent rumors shamelessly occupying someone else’s club classroom.”
Lin Yi, standing on one leg like a golden rooster, sucked in several sharp breaths of cold air, heartbroken over the new little gray footprint on her system shoe.
And she hadn’t even said ‘thank you for the hospitality’ to Jian Shuye yet.
Jian Shuye’s expression didn’t change at all. “Since you know it’s me, you should also know why I’m here.”
“What, one classroom isn’t enough, you need two?” The Manga Research Club President said disdainfully. “Jian Shuye, I don’t deny you have a lot of influence among the first-years. But I’m a third-year, and the other two members here are second-years. You should be the one feeling afraid!”
“You’re using the school’s classroom, so you must…”
“We are doing club activities, you know?”
She pointed to a nearby bookshelf. Member Yuki immediately went over, took out a sample publication, and handed it to Jian Shuye.
Jian Shuye opened the first page. Lin Yi also leaned in to look, causing the All-Universe Number One Beautiful Girl to glance back at Lin Yi’s grimacing face. She took two steps to the side to express her disgust.
To be fair, this manga publication was actually not bad. While it fell short compared to proper manga on the market, as a product of a school club’s self-indulgence, it could be considered above average.
At least, based on Lin Yi’s decades of otaku experience from her previous life, if this were a doujinshi at a comic market, it could probably sell about half its inventory.
It contained the Manga Research Club’s self-introduction, research articles on well-known manga from the market, reviews and recommendations for new manga works, and, as usual, an original manga created collectively by the club members.
The title page stated that the President was responsible for the main work: plot conception, storyboarding, and preliminary line art. Member Yuki was responsible for design and coloring. The last member, Zhu Yu, was responsible for typesetting and proofreading.
Member Zhu Yu took out her phone, proving that the club not only had printed sample publications but also electronic versions. They had even prepared an outline for a work to be serialized on an online manga website.
Although the completion level wasn’t high, with a little more work, it could handle the tasks for the upcoming Club Recruitment Fair.
Professional!
Lin Yi’s heart was already beating a retreat. The Manga Research Club… was actually researching manga.
They weren’t slacking off at all. They were good kids who, after completing their assigned study tasks, rushed home to open their computers and start playing games.
What right did she have to criticize such members?!
Lin Yi felt Jian Shuye had hit a wall this time. She was about to silently hide behind Jian Shuye when she heard Jian Shuye snort coldly.
“A level like this is completely insufficient to match all the benefits you enjoy in this classroom.”
Really?
Lin Yi was shocked.
The Manga Research Club President, naturally, was unconvinced. “The goals the Student Council set for us are exactly these. We completed them, so we completed them. How can you say it’s insufficient?”
Jian Shuye responded, “Because I can prove this isn’t your actual level.”