The morning sunlight streamed through the classroom window, casting a warm patch of light on the desk.
Ling Ling sat in the second-to-last row by the window in Class 2C, propping her chin on one hand as she quietly watched the playground outside.
This was her first day back after sick leave.
After the “gas explosion” three days ago, she had taken three days off citing “illness.”
Lin Jiu had taken the same leave—the teacher found it reasonable that both sisters were sick at the same time, since they lived together and it was common for illnesses to spread.
But in truth, she had only done one thing during those three days: recover.
The carbonized burn on her left shoulder had basically healed by the second day, and by the third day not even a scar remained. Lin Jiu’s fractures and rib cracks had recovered around the same time.
After all, the two of them possessed physical constitutions that surpassed most Supernatural Ability users, and with their own abilities, even serious injuries could be healed.
Now, they had turned back into “ordinary high school girls.”
At least on the surface.
“Lin, are you feeling better?”
The girl in the front seat turned around and asked cautiously.
“Mm.”
“That’s good… Um, if you’re still not feeling well, just tell me, and I’ll help you ask the teacher for leave…”
“No need. Thanks.”
Ling Ling’s tone was flat—not deliberately distant, but with no intention of continuing the conversation.
The girl gave an awkward smile and turned back.
This was Ling Ling’s daily life at the Academy.
She was beautiful—that had been confirmed on the first day of enrollment.
The combination of white hair and crimson eyes was rare even in all of Akasha City, and paired with that exquisitely delicate face, calling her a “work of art” wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
But the problem was, she was too cold.
Not the kind of “trying to be cool” aloofness, but a genuine “don’t come near me” chill.
She never initiated conversations with anyone, and when others spoke to her, she only replied with the shortest possible sentences, her face never showing any expression.
Over time, a consensus formed at the Academy: Lin Lingling of Class 2C was beautiful, but her aura was too cold to approach.
Ling Ling’s evaluation of this: ‘Good. Saves trouble.’
In her previous life, she had been a lazy bum. Though she had become a 153-centimeter white-haired girl in this life, deep in her soul she was still that male college student who hated trouble, hated socializing, and just wanted to quietly coast through life.
Passively playing the role of a “Three-No Beautiful Girl” gave her a perfect social camouflage, and she even kind of enjoyed it.
After all, in her past life, she had been an utterly ordinary male college student—the kind you’d lose sight of in a crowd.
Now she had become a delicate girl with white hair, crimson eyes, and a height of 153 centimeters, drawing eyes wherever she went.
Troublesome, yes, but also kind of… satisfying.
Of course, she had never told anyone that.
“Lin Lingling.”
A familiar voice came from the classroom door.
Ling Ling turned her head and saw Ye Fengxue standing at the doorway. Her emerald eyes glanced at her, then she turned and walked away—the exact same motion as three days ago, the exact same signal for Ling Ling to follow.
Ling Ling stared at her back for two seconds, then continued propping her chin and looking out the window.
About ten seconds later, Ye Fengxue’s footsteps returned.
“Can you not do this every time?”
“Do what?”
“When this miss tells you to follow, just follow, okay?”
“Lazy.”
“You—” Ye Fengxue took a deep breath, walked into the classroom, grabbed Ling Ling by the wrist, and pulled her up. “Get up. Walk with this miss.”
Ling Ling let herself be dragged to her feet without struggling or resisting. Since she was already being dragged, struggling was useless.
And honestly, being dragged was pretty effortless—she didn’t have to walk on her own.
‘That’s the philosophy of a slacker.’
Ye Fengxue dragged her to a corner at the end of the hallway, where there were few people and it was convenient to talk. She let go, turned around, and looked Ling Ling up and down with those emerald-like eyes.
From the white hair on top of her head, to her delicate little face, to the collar of her uniform, finally stopping at her left shoulder.
“Healed?” Ye Fengxue’s voice was very low.
“…Healed from what?”
“Don’t play dumb. This miss isn’t an idiot. The commotion you caused in the Seventh District three days ago was big enough that you couldn’t have escaped without injury. And I’ve seen the Countermeasures Section’s report.”
Ling Ling paused for a second.
“Healed.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Then… don’t take three days off next time. This miss… this miss has a hard time explaining it to the teacher.”
“You explained for me?”
“Because your homeroom teacher asked me, ‘Are you close to Lin Lingling?’—What was I supposed to say? ‘Not really’? Then you’d be gone for three days and no one would know where you went!”
Ling Ling looked at her flushed face. Though her own expression remained as expressionless as ever, a faint flicker of amusement passed through her eyes.
“Thanks.”
Ye Fengxue’s ears turned red.
“Who… who asked for your thanks! This miss just didn’t want the Countermeasures Section to get suspicious. Don’t read too much into it!”
“Mm. I’m not reading into it.”
“What do you mean by that ‘mm’?”
“It means ‘mm.'”
Ye Fengxue took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and began to silently chant: ‘I’m not angry. I’m the Miss of the Ye Family. I cannot lose my composure in the hallway.’
Ling Ling waited quietly for her to finish.
That was their understanding.
Ye Fengxue—on the surface, the Miss of the Ye Family, always saying “this miss”—but in reality, she didn’t really put on much of a noble air.
She had a good reputation among her classmates and treated people well. She wasn’t the type to look down on others because of her family background.
But her personality was also rather… awkward.
In her previous life, Ling Ling had been an anime fan, having seen countless tsundere characters.
She knew the classic tsundere heroine inside and out—someone who said, “It’s none of my business whether you live or die,” but if you really died, they’d regret it forever and silently shed tears in a corner.
And Ye Fengxue was the real-life version of that.
So when Ling Ling teased her, she never went too far.
Because she knew that the reason Ye Fengxue liked to banter with her wasn’t because she was naturally sharp-tongued, but because in a prestigious family like the Ye Family, there was constant infighting and hypocrisy every day. She was tired of that atmosphere.
When she bickered with Ling Ling, she didn’t need to maintain a young lady’s facade or worry about family image or someone using her words against her.
She could just be “Ye Fengxue,” not “the Miss of the Ye Family.”
That sense of ease—probably only Ling Ling could give her in the entire Academy. That’s why she was willing to trade barbs with Ling Ling.
And Ling Ling, in turn, didn’t bicker with the Miss of the Ye Family simply because she had nothing better to do. She did it because she felt that Ye Fengxue deserved a place where she didn’t have to pretend.
Though she would never say those words out loud.
After all, her “Three-No Beautiful Girl” persona couldn’t be compromised.