“Is that so? But I really think that outfit was quite pretty, and you would definitely look good in it.” Gou Yu was not stingy with his praise at all this time. “Let me take another look?”
“You’re still looking!” Zhu Niao reached out and slapped the back of Gou Yu’s head. “Everyone is looking this way. Don’t go losing face for both of us.”
“I’m merely appreciating beauty, what do you know?” Gou Yu said, showing no fear.
“Then why aren’t you looking at me? Am I not pretty?”
“You’re not wearing white stockings.”
“And you still claim to be appreciating beauty!” Zhu Niao pounced to pull at Gou Yu’s mouth.
“Wait, hold on,” Gou Yu said, holding out a hand.
Even when Zhu Niao was at her angriest, she would still stop when Gou Yu told her to. Though most of the time, nothing serious ever came out of his mouth.
“What now?”
“That character over there from the Anime Club, I think I saw you playing a gacha game with her before.” Gou Yu pointed toward a certain white-haired character.
“It is her.” Zhu Niao pulled her fist back.
“Then aren’t you going to go take a look?” Gou Yu asked with a hint of doubt. “I saw you glancing over there several times. Isn’t it obvious that you’re interested?”
“No, it’s like when you see someone on the street in middle school wearing the same school uniform as you. Would you go up and say hello?” Zhu Niao tried to explain why the situation was inappropriate.
“Of course I would go up and say hello. Otherwise, how would I have met you?” Gou Yu didn’t seem to think he had done anything wrong at all, even asking Zhu Niao in return.
Zhu Niao’s face stiffened.
‘Crap, that really is how this guy met me.’
“The past is the past, and the present is the present. Man, if you have to compare the two, why don’t you compare the moment I was born to who I am now?” Zhu Niao held her hands up like a megaphone as she offered her advice.
“If I had met you when I was born, I would have untangled my umbilical cord just to go see you,” Gou Yu said with a straight face.
“Dude, do you really think you’re being romantic?”
“Never mind all that. Just come with me.” Gou Yu grabbed Zhu Niao’s wrist and pulled her away from the Literature Club booth toward the outside.
“Wait, wait! I think there’s still room for negotiation here. There’s no need to get this excited!” Zhu Niao’s feet kicked at the ground, almost as if she were trying to leave two marks on the pavement as Gou Yu dragged her along, but she still couldn’t stop him.
“You’re just a bit too insecure. At times like this, you should bravely pursue what you want.”
Of course, that sentence only applied because Zhu Niao was looking at a girl. If she had been looking at a boy, Gou Yu not only wouldn’t have pulled her over to meet him, but he would have even found an opportunity to challenge the guy to a duel once the event was over.
It wasn’t for any particular reason, other than to prove that he was more worthy of Zhu Niao’s gaze.
“I wasn’t looking at her because she’s a character I like. I just thought she looked a bit familiar.” Zhu Niao was still resisting, but she had already been pulled out of the Literature Club booth’s area.
“If she looks familiar, then you should definitely go take a look. What if she’s an acquaintance?” Gou Yu said, increasing the strength in his grip.
But with Zhu Niao resisting so much, Gou Yu couldn’t bring himself to let her wrist get hurt.
So, he thought of a brilliant solution.
He threw Zhu Niao over his shoulder, looking exactly like a parent forced to carry a crying, screaming child away from the toy section of a supermarket.
Dangling over Gou Yu’s shoulder, Zhu Niao could only pound on his back. “Put your father down, right now!”
“I’ll put you down once we get there.” Gou Yu kept walking.
The struggling Zhu Niao seemed to realize that Gou Yu wouldn’t put her down.
So, she resigned herself to her fate, like a chaste woman on a large bed ending her final struggle before being ravished.
For once, the term “chaste woman” was actually used correctly.
Gou Yu brought Zhu Niao to the Anime Club’s recruitment booth and set the girl down.
Of course, this unique entrance successfully drew the attention of the vast majority of people there.
“Straighten up, don’t lose face,” Gou Yu whispered, lightly patting Zhu Niao’s back.
Zhu Niao took a deep breath and looked up at the girl who had looked familiar to her. She felt like she had seen her somewhere before, but she just couldn’t place it. Plus, the girl was wearing makeup, making her even less certain.
But for a “mouse” living in the dark sewers like her, anyone who looked familiar had to be someone she knew.
“Hello, I was wondering if we’ve met somewhere…?” Zhu Niao looked up, trying to piece together fragments of her memories based on the girl’s features.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t remember.
“Of course we’ve met. My, you’re quite the busy person with a short memory.”
The moment those words were spoken, Zhu Niao froze.
It was as if something had finally clicked, and she stood there in a daze.
Not only Zhu Niao, but Gou Yu was also stunned.
That lively, playful girlish voice…
It was the damn Apprentice Goddess who had turned their entire dormitory into what it was now.
“Holy crap!” Zhu Niao was the first to react. “How are you here?”
“Repaying a favor.” The Apprentice Goddess smiled and pointed to the back of another white-haired boy not far away. “I borrowed a senior’s power, so I have to repay the debt. I was originally planning on going to an anime convention, but there weren’t any happening right now. It just so happens that I’m here to see how you two are doing.”
She stood on her tiptoes to look at Ye Qingchang and Xiao Yi’an in the distance. “Hmm, not bad. At least it hasn’t reached the point of life and death yet.”
Then, she looked at the two people in front of her who were glaring at her. “Your expressions are terrifying. But unfortunately, you can’t do anything to me. Besides, even if I were to die here, your situation wouldn’t change at all.”
Zhu Niao and Gou Yu’s glares shifted from direct hatred to the resentment of someone who couldn’t get their revenge.
The Apprentice Goddess glanced at them. “You’re acting the part well enough. Do you really want to change back?”
Zhu Niao and Gou Yu spoke at the same time, “Isn’t that obvious?”
Then, they both stole a glance at the person beside them.
“Heh…” The Apprentice Goddess let out a cold laugh. “Alright then, just pretend you didn’t see me today. And don’t tell anyone else I’m here. I’m afraid some of the more impulsive ones might come here to fight me to the death.”
With that, the Apprentice Goddess turned around and ran off to watch the other couples on the field. She seemed to really enjoy watching things like that.
What a voyeur