Chapter 15 : Caught on the Spot

The weather was sunny, and the city bustled with activity.

Though the population was only half of what it was before the “Pre-Spirit Era,” the living space had also shrunk. Still, the central district remained the most crowded and vibrant place, unchanged as ever.

A few people stepped out of a side alley. Seeing it was still early, they leaned against the wall to rest for a bit.

“Weren’t we supposed to act on the weekend? Why is it suddenly moved to Monday?” a sleep-deprived woman asked.

She seemed like the leader, fiddling with a handheld DV camera. She glanced at a group of three standing in the corner:
“Ask them.”

These three were the survivors of the failed mall mission in Central City. They had been reassigned to the neighboring main city to continue the operation.

One of the men looked at the camera with a face full of memories. Just a few days ago, he too had confidently led his team into battle with one of those in his hand—and most of them never came back.

“We underestimated the target. They were just students, but some people can’t be measured by common sense.”

He wanted to pass on this lesson to other squads so they wouldn’t make the same mistake.

The others didn’t say much, but they didn’t really take his words seriously. Honestly, no one could understand how an entire squad was wiped out by a student who hadn’t even reached Tier 2.

“Let’s move. Time to begin.”

“Action!”

The sweet-looking Big Thunder girl declared dramatically—before proceeding to “launch her mission” in an empty classroom.

She messed up the desks and chairs in the middle of the room, knocked over a few chairs, scribbled wildly on the blackboard, and even scattered the contents of the teacher’s desk on the floor. The scene looked like a panicked evacuation had taken place.

As for why she was the only one in class—

That morning, their homeroom teacher had sent a message:

[Homeroom Teacher: Xu Chuyao, let Shen Ning know that today’s culture class is cancelled; the teacher had something come up. We’ll have P.E. instead.]

Since Shen Ning didn’t have a phone, someone had to relay the message. Why the teacher picked Xu Chuyao to do it… she had no idea.

Did the teacher think we’re close or something?

Either way, this heaven-sent opportunity fit perfectly into her wicked plan. As for what the plan was—

“What are you doing?”

“I’m staging a scene that looks like the class fled in terror.”

“Why?”

“So when Shen Ning walks in and sees this, she’ll think she scared everyone off. She’ll feel all smug about it. Then I’ll jump out and say, ‘Ha! Fooled you! They all went to P.E. class!’ And then I get to enjoy the look on her face when she realizes she’s been had.”

As Xu Chuyao chattered away, busily setting up her trap, Shen Ning stood behind her, listening. Her mind flashed back to yesterday afternoon, when the homeroom teacher had called Xu Chuyao “a very wise person.”

Wise? Maybe. But she clearly lacked both shame and morals.

At that moment, Xu Chuyao’s movements started to slow. She sensed something was off. To be fair, she was used to having Mi Xiaolu around as a sidekick, always responding on cue. She answered before realizing the voice just now… wasn’t her roommate’s.

She looked up slightly and caught a glimpse of white hair—then quickly ducked her head, pretending she hadn’t seen anything.

“You think your plan is going to work?” Shen Ning asked.

“Well… who’s to say? You know, everything depends on effort, but fate is out of our control. Anyway, I just remembered—the P.E. teacher is going to take attendance. I need to get to the training grounds!”

Xu Chuyao bolted toward the door like a true escape artist. She was so close to freedom…

Thud. Caught.

She moved quickly, but Shen Ning—now with a tier advantage—was faster. She grabbed Xu Chuyao by the back of her collar. The struggle pulled the fabric tight, outlining the round curves of her chest.

“Careful! Careful!” Xu Chuyao cried. “The buttons are about to pop!”

“Then don’t run,” Shen Ning said flatly. “They won’t pop if you stand still.”

And anyway, so what if they popped? Shen Ning wouldn’t lose anything.

Xu Chuyao seemed to realize this too, so she stopped struggling.

“Didn’t you just say you had a plan? Why the rush now?” Shen Ning asked, pulling her to turn around.

The Big Thunder girl’s cute face was full of despair.

Damn it. A few days ago, I totally could’ve escaped. But now with her power-up, there’s no way I can win. I’ll have to find a chance to slip away.

Thinking fast, Xu Chuyao blurted,
“Actually, the Shen Ning in my plan—‘Shen’ as in ‘interrogate’, and ‘Ning’ as in ‘freeze’—was someone else at school. You misunderstood me.”

Shen Ning laughed, half-angry:
“Do you think I’m stupid?”

【Villain Points +40】

Hm?

Xu Chuyao peeked at her. The icy beauty looked visibly pissed off—her cold expression cracking at the corners. Even her eyes betrayed her irritation.

Xu Chuyao’s brain whirred into overdrive. She had thought the whole plan was ruined—the unexpected classroom visit had caught her off guard, and she’d spilled the beans. But now it looked like… she had a chance to recover.

That’s right—whether through a brilliant master plan or just clever words, all that mattered was earning Villain Points. As long as the result was achieved, a messy process didn’t matter—it was just a different path.

She quickly switched strategies and let out a dramatic sigh.

“Sigh~”

Shen Ning was startled by the sigh.
“Why are you sighing?”

What’s with that sigh when I just asked if you think I’m an idiot?

“Three years… and now you’ve finally found out,” Xu Chuyao said, face full of regret. “It’ll be so much harder to trick you from now on.”

What?!

Shen Ning’s blood pressure spiked. Her temples throbbed.

【Villain Points +40】
【Villain Points +40】
【Villain Points +60】

Xu Chuyao kept her face regretful while squealing inside—Yes! Yes! Yes! Climbing fast!
Now this is what wisdom looks like!

“You think I can’t do anything to you?” Shen Ning said coolly.

Xu Chuyao scoffed internally—still trying to act aloof? The system’s notification already gave you away. You’re clearly fuming.

She couldn’t help but chuckle.

But a few seconds later, Shen Ning had her bent over a desk. Her upper body was pressed flat against the surface, hips sticking up—a pair of “white rabbits” serving as cushions so she wouldn’t get hurt.

“What are you—” Xu Chuyao blinked innocently. “What are you trying to do?”

SMACK!

Her answer was a firm slap on the butt.