Chapter 55: [World 2] Strange Campus 24 : Depression

Xunian saw him staring intently at the dead snake in her hand and thought he must be tempted by it, so she tossed the snake—looking like a rough hemp rope—toward him.

“Here, take it.”

Ran Feng dodged the dead snake with a quick sidestep, frowning as he demanded, “Who are you? Why are you impersonating Xunian?!”

A question mark slowly appeared over Xunian’s head, but she ignored him and continued searching for clues about Qi Dong.

Qi Dong really didn’t like doing her homework. Besides the textbook and workbook, her exercise book was completely blank.

Her homework was even cleaner than Xunian’s empty purse.

Under Ran Feng’s watchful gaze, Xunian flipped through everything for a long time but came up empty.

“Who exactly are you?” Ran Feng kept a cautious distance, continuing to press.

Xunian stepped right in front of him, holding out her hand. “Button phone. Let me see it.”

Ran Feng took a step back, guarding his pocket. “You prove you’re Xunian first.”

Xunian almost laughed at the absurdity. She was supposed to prove she was herself?

She instead pulled out a dagger, and before Ran Feng could react, she pressed it against his neck at lightning speed.

“Give it or not?”

“Okay, okay, I’ll give it.”

Ran Feng broke out in a cold sweat, raising his hands in surrender while carefully pulling the button phone from his pocket and handing it over.

Just as Xunian reached to take it, Ran Feng tried to snatch back her dagger.

With excellent dynamic vision, Xunian instantly pulled back the blade and lightly slashed Ran Feng.

A few drops of blood immediately welled from the cut, cold steel pressing back against Ran Feng’s neck.

He forced a bitter smile.

“Alright, I believe you. You really are Xunian.”

Only Xunian could be this ruthless.

With a knife at his throat, even if this wasn’t really Xunian, he had to admit it to save his life.

This time, Ran Feng obediently handed over the button phone.

Xunian took it and lowered the dagger.

The phone could only offer clues through calls and messages. Since Ran Feng had already mentioned a missed call from Shen Mosi’s mother, Xunian went straight to the messages.

A read message blinked brightly on the screen.

Anonymous: You don’t want your mother to see the photo, right? If you don’t want it leaked, come to the roof after school.

The top student Shen Mosi was being threatened?

Xunian noted down the phone number that sent the message.

She’d check later if it matched Qi Dong’s number.

She closed the phone and tossed it back to Ran Feng.

Flustered, he caught it. “Read it all?”

“Mm.”

Xunian mentally organized the clues she’d gathered and glanced at the time—it was still a while before the first afternoon class.

The image of those smiling eyes appeared again in her mind, always looking at her with pitiful sorrow.

She picked up the remaining boxed lunch on the desk.

She wondered if someone like the game’s BOSS even ate human food.

Carrying the lunch box, Xunian headed back to the dormitory and hesitated at the door.

Her concern for her deskmate was genuine; she hadn’t forgiven the Duke’s Daughter for lying to her.

Suppressing the twitch at her lips, Xunian pushed open the door with a stern expression.

The curtains fluttered in the breeze, dancing in the empty room.

No one was inside.

On the balcony table, a sheet of white paper reflected the white light from outside the window.

Xunian walked over and picked it up. Black letters on white paper read:

Diagnosis: Severe Depression.

It bore Shen Mosi’s name and the hospital’s stamp.

Top student Shen Mosi… was suffering from severe depression…

Xunian gently set the paper down, her mind spinning.

Where had Shen Mosi gone?

Suddenly nervous, Shen Mosi was neither in the dorm nor in the classroom. Where could she be?

Xunian’s heart jumped as she stumbled out the door, her unease growing.

She burst into the classroom and yanked the door open.

Inside, a boy and a girl sitting in her seat looked up simultaneously.

It was Shen Mosi and Ran Feng.

Xunian withdrew her worried expression and turned cold again.

Shen Mosi habitually leaned over, clinging to Xunian with a sticky “Deskmate~”

A faint scent of blood clung to Shen Mosi.

Xunian frowned slightly and backed away.

Shen Mosi looked lost, like a small dog soaked by rain, standing helplessly by Xunian.

Why was there a smell of blood on her…?

Xunian couldn’t help but quietly examine Shen Mosi but found no wounds.

She let out a quiet sigh of relief. At least she was unharmed.

Shen Mosi curved her brows into a smile that didn’t reach her eyes, and a trace of obsession flickered in her dark gaze.

Dark thoughts grew wildly inside her heart. The usual sweet talk didn’t work on Xunian anymore.

Maybe it was better to just lock Xunian up.

Xunian returned to her seat, and Shen Mosi followed to the seat beside her.

The atmosphere between them was strange. Ran Feng noticed but didn’t ask.

“Lunch break’s almost over. Why aren’t they back yet?” he muttered impatiently, fiddling with the pencil case on the desk.

“Click.”

The door opened again. Qi Ye stepped in.

His face was pale and looked bad, fear evident in his expression.

“Feng-ge, it’s bad! Yuan Shen is dead!”

“What?!”

Ran Feng jumped up in shock, a barely noticeable flicker of joy flashing in his eyes.

“Quick, take us to see!”

The group followed Qi Ye to the girls’ restroom door.

Ran Feng’s face twisted. “You mean Yuan Shen died inside the girls’ restroom???”

Qi Ye awkwardly scratched his head. “…Yeah.”

Yuan Shen was a seriously twisted guy…

“Ahem,” Ran Feng cleared his throat, embarrassed as he rubbed his nose, “Well… I guess it’s okay for us to go in and see the body? After all, it’s just us.”

Qi Ye chuckled dryly. “Ha… I already went in earlier.”

He had passed by and heard screams, following the sound to this spot. Worried someone might be in danger, he hesitated before opening the restroom door—and that’s when he saw Yuan Shen…

Ran Feng suddenly remembered something. “Where’s Qi Dong? Wasn’t she with him?”

Yuan Shen and Qi Dong had been tied up together. Yuan Shen was dead. So where was Qi Dong?

“I don’t know. You see for yourselves.”

Qi Ye pushed open the restroom door.

The scene inside was fully visible.

Yuan Shen’s corpse was gruesome, his chest blooming with a red flower drawn by blood, eyes wide open and lifeless as if shocked by something before death.

Qi Dong trembled beside him, eyes filled with terror, tears streaming uncontrollably down her heavily made-up face, leaving two dark streaks.

Her lipstick was smeared, and the area around her eyes was dark and swollen as if she had been beaten.

Ran Feng was too stunned to speak and took a step back.

What on earth had happened to these two?!

Xunian recalled the faint blood scent when Shen Mosi approached her and cast a quiet glance at her.

Shen Mosi caught her gaze and, as usual, gave Xunian a charming smile.