The cafeteria food was still as awful as ever. Even though my stomach growled, and there’s that saying—"when you’re hungry, everything tastes good"—I still found it terrible.
Especially that single spoonful of bamboo shoots stir-fried with meat in three servings. After the cafeteria auntie’s vigorous wok-tossing, barely any meat remained.
Where was Yejia Yin eating lunch? I wondered idly about Lanying’s cafeteria while chewing the bland stir-fry. Honestly, if I’d just dragged her out to eat off-campus earlier, I could’ve gotten it reimbursed by finance. Now, I deeply regretted not acting sooner.
Plus, I’d have spent the whole noon with her. Of course, it was just because her gentle personality made her easy to be around—not because she was pretty and cute.
I’d completely forgotten the resentment I felt when I first got this mission this morning.
I shook my head, trying to banish the image of that black-haired girl. Though I had free time now, more important matters demanded attention. After days of nonstop busyness, I finally had space to think about myself. Because of tonight’s big event, these past two days had crawled by, but time marched on—it was already Tuesday.
Five days until I became a girl.
What should I do? My best idea was convincing Mom to let me switch from commuting to boarding school. That way, I’d stay on campus six days a week and easily skip Sundays with excuses.
But solving home didn’t fix school.
I’d tried searching online, only finding unreliable advice: cut my hair, bind my chest, wear height-increasing insoles… all theoretical nonsense. Cutting my hair? Would light gray naturally turn sakura-white? Binding my chest? Shameful as it sounded, I doubted my size could even be contained. Height insoles? Going from 134 cm to 170 cm—was I supposed to walk on stilts?
And even if I managed that, my face would change completely. A decent-looking boy’s face turning into one between a child and a petite girl? Only an idiot wouldn’t notice. Should I get plastic surgery?
I hadn’t thought it through before, but now I realized my problem was far tougher than I’d imagined.
I weighed my options carefully. First, as a girl, I’d need a whole new identity. Second, boarding school could fool my family—if my grades improved, they’d stop micromanaging me. Third, everyone here knew me too well. Without a way to alter their memories, transferring schools was my only choice.
Well, "knew me" was generous. We just shared a classroom daily; I barely had any close friends among my classmates.
Rubbing my inexplicably sore eyes, I set down my chopsticks and carried my tray to the disposal area. Bad mood, bad food—I couldn’t swallow another bite.
It was so unfair. I hadn’t chosen this transformation, yet I had to shoulder huge responsibilities—maybe even fight wars. This was the kind of thing I’d normally whine about to my parents for comfort, but I had to hide it from them at all costs.
Actually… not just them. I was mainly scared of Dad.
He was strict, with sky-high expectations. Since elementary school, he’d demanded I rank near the top in my small school environment.
That’s why I’d given up my dream of attending the provincial key high school—ten times larger than City No.1—and come here instead.
"It’s too expensive there," I’d explained to him with a forced smile back then. "All key high schools are similar. Their higher admission rate is just because they have way more students. Percentage-wise, City No.1 is comparable. Plus, it’s so close to home—commuting’s easy."
Truth was, I feared ranking low among elites at the provincial school. Dad would be crushed—and furious. I was terrified of him.
"Oh, fine," he’d replied. "City No.1’s proximity makes it easier for me to check on your progress with teachers."
He rarely actually contacted my homeroom teacher, though—probably because my grades kept me afloat in this city’s key high school "pond." Still, after a few bad exams, he’d scolded me like I was a kid again. Those memories stung fresh.
So, imagine a father who dreams of his son becoming a dragon… only to find his son turned into a fox spirit. I couldn’t even picture his reaction.
He’d be furious. Heartbroken. I sighed, resolving to focus on hiding this. Later, as a girl, I’d achieve something impressive—maybe that’d soften his disappointment.
Dazed, I stumbled out of the cafeteria without watching my step—and bumped straight into someone.
"Sorry, sorry!" I blurted an apology. But after the *thud*, it was me sprawled on the floor. Yejia Yin stood adorably before me, blinking her amber eyes. "Are you okay?"
How did a 170 cm guy like me end up flat after colliding with a girl barely 160 cm tall? Embarrassed, I rubbed my nose and stood up. "I’m fine. Have you eaten lunch yet?"
"Not yet," she murmured, lightly biting her lower lip like she was pouting. "I didn’t know what to get here, so I came looking for you. But I couldn’t find you anywhere."
