"Ah... about that... I asked Staryan today too..."
Willow Ran propped her forehead with the back of her hand. "You acted way too creepy on the rooftop. Staryan worried you’d block her after school, so she took a side path on purpose."
Just how much did she not want to see me—and was I really that perverted in her eyes?
Remembering yesterday’s "drinking bathwater"... Total creep! No doubt.
But even so.
In the end, I was the one who saved her.
Did that mean Yao Staryan couldn’t escape my grasp, no matter what?
Thinking this, even with the score at "2:1," my mood soared. It was a good omen, after all.
Then... did it also mean Yao Staryan’s danger was because of me?
Watching my expression shift from gloomy to radiant and back again, Willow Ran looked puzzled.
But she didn’t waste brain cells deciphering it.
She had something more important to say.
...
To get home early and finish "The Assassin Immortal," I skipped Sister Mengmeng’s little bookstore.
I cared about Yi Xun and Bi Yao’s final trials, but failing to hand in homework tomorrow would be pointless.
Reluctantly, I opened my backpack. An envelope stuffed inside held who-knew-what.
"What’s this...?"
I hadn’t bought anything like it.
A letter for me?
I already guessed what it was.
No—anything else would be weird.
Not long ago, I worshipped looks above all. With my perfect face, I’d received plenty of these.
Back then, busy writing, I ignored letters. But after Yao Staryan’s rejection, I understood those girls a little.
I’d failed, but gained "failure" experience.
I’d jotted it down in my notebook.
It was someone’s feelings. Using my old method would make me like Yao Staryan. This was my atonement.
Honestly, I had zero experience—a shoujo novelist with no dating life. Probably the only weirdo like that.
—Gale Splendor, I need to tell you something. Meet me at the playground after school tomorrow.
Class and name below... uh... Guo Jia?
Not in my class, but we shared lecture halls sometimes. I’d heard her name. Never spoken to her. Didn’t even know her face.
So this was a love letter?
My first time facing one head-on.
Most people might suspect a prank, but for me? Ruled out.
Not conceit—just undeniable fact.
As a human, you couldn’t ignore it.
Whoever invented this prank had a terrible personality.
"W-well, tomorrow then."
...
The letter kept me awake.
I’d never cared about love letters before. Facing one was surprisingly intense.
Tossing and turning, I woke at 5:30 AM.
I jogged to clear my head, showered, put on my uniform, ate a light breakfast of fruits and veggies, and headed to school with campus-heartthrob freshness.
"Morning, Gale Splendor!"
"Good morning, Gale Splendor!"
In a looks-obsessed world, high颜值 made you unforgettable.
On the way, exercising boys and girls smiled and greeted me.
They always started it—I didn’t know half of them!
Still, I waved back with a smile.
"Ah, morning!"
One girl blushed deeply.
Then, like she’d achieved something huge, she clenched pink fists, whispering, "Yes! Greeting successful!"
Such an exaggerated reaction.
I smiled wryly—wait! What if she wrote the letter? Greeting me as a "scout" for the confession?
The letter’s weight returned. My calm vanished. I felt paranoid, like suspecting the neighbor of stealing my axe.
Today was my first face-to-face with the sender. How to respond after being confessed to?
Reject? Accept?
For novel research, accepting might help—Yao Staryan’s route was still distant. But was that fair?
If rejecting, how to soften it?
"Morning, Gale Splendor!"
Another girl approached.
"A-ah, m-morning!"
Crap. Would this tension last all day?
She left, puzzled but light-stepped—happy I’d replied.
She might be another "scout" too!
Every passing girl looked like Guo Jia.
My stomach even ached faintly. So this was stress-induced pain.
Just then—
"What’re you doing? I saw you from afar, staggering like a bee dancing figure-eights. Found honey?"
That voice—so comforting!
A familiar voice was a ray of light in darkness. Willow Ran was my savior.
"Nothing."
The sharp Willow Ran stroked her smooth chin. "If it’s nothing, you’re suspicious... Trouble? Or don’t you trust my promise from yesterday?"
The promise: arranging a date between me and Yao Staryan.
Honestly, I doubted it.
But her words confirmed the letter’s answer.
