When he heard Mujin’s moe-girl voice, Zhou Ruiyang was completely stunned.

He hadn’t heard that voice for long, but he was sure it was Mujin’s.

He glanced at his phone, then at the timid girl in front of him, and froze.

Weird. Shouldn’t the girl in front of him be Mujin?

Then who was on the call?

He asked, confused, “Mujin, why are you calling me?”

“Cut the crap. How are we fixing this Wi‑Fi? I still need to watch anime.”

“The net… I’m not sure right now…” Zhou Ruiyang’s brain shorted for a moment, not knowing how to answer.

The girl leaned toward the phone, brows shooting up, anger in her voice. “Who are you? Why are you calling Xiao Yang?”

“Who are you? Xiao Yang’s my friend. What’s wrong with me calling him?”

“Friend? What kind of friend stays in his dorm!?”

“Why do you care so much… Oh, you’re Xiao Yang’s girlfriend, right? He mentioned you. Sorry, sis-in-law. I’m Xiao Yang’s… little sister. Yeah, little sister!”

“Little sister? Hey, hey?” Mujin shouted into the phone, then looked at Zhou Ruiyang. “She hung up. Who is she?”

Zhou Ruiyang stood there, dumbfounded.

What was going on?

Wasn’t this girl supposed to be Mujin here to repay him?

But the one on the phone was definitely Mujin too.

How could there be two Mujins?

No, no. No matter how absurd, there can’t be two Mujins. Which means…

He lowered his head. The girl’s brows were raised, her eyes held grievance, her cheeks slightly puffed—she was playing jealousy to the max.

This girl wasn’t Mujin?!

If she wasn’t Mujin, a new problem popped up.

Who was she?

A girl who suddenly appeared, calling him “hubby” every other word, hiking her skirt for fanservice, rushing in to save him when he was in danger, and even kissing him several times.

Mystery, with a touch of eerie.

Zhou Ruiyang was lost. Mujin, meanwhile, was laughing inside.

That voice just now was indeed her real voice, but it wasn’t her in person.

She’d recorded her voice on her computer ahead of time and set up a timed call in a chat app. When the time hit, the computer would auto-dial Zhou Ruiyang.

She set the time to 1:45. She knew he didn’t nap in the dorm at noon on school days, so around 1:30 he’d most likely be in class.

To be safer, she pushed it fifteen minutes later.

That timed call was bold. If he didn’t come to school because of something unexpected, she’d be busted on the spot.

But she lived for the thrill: win a villa with models, lose and go work the docks!

To make the call feel natural, she had a plan. As long as he picked up, she’d use the girl on his side as a reason to argue, wrench the talk away from him, and finish a solo performance.

From his expression, her self-directed play was a hit.

Her goal felt achieved. She was about to find a reason to leave when the System chimed.

[Task issued: “Jealous Girl’s Tsundere.” When you leave, make Zhou Ruiyang actively ask you to stay. Success rewards: 1% progress bar, 15 points, and special reward, Freedom no Henshin.]

[Freedom no Henshin: Host no longer needs to remain in female form for a continuous 30 minutes. You can control transform time freely, as long as it totals 30 minutes per day.]

A 1% progress bar and a special reward—best payout she’d seen lately.

But the task was equally tough.

She and Zhou Ruiyang weren’t a couple. With his personality, how would he ask a stranger, jealous girl to stay?

The description didn’t say she had to fake jealousy to leave. She could leave some other way, as long as he kept her, it counted.

Easiest way? Mujin could “forget” a wallet or phone so he’d call her back. But she had nothing on her except clothes. She couldn’t exactly “accidentally” drop the panties under her skirt on the floor.

Mujin’s eyes rolled. She extended a finger and poked him. “Hey, I asked you something. Say something.”

“What?” Zhou Ruiyang snapped back to reality, all his earlier certainty gone.

“Who was that girl? Your little sister?”

“Uh… yeah. She came to hang out today, so I let her stay in my dorm for a day.”

He already felt she wasn’t Mujin, so he hid Mujin’s identity.

After all, “little sister” sounded more plausible than a talking Sparrow.

“How can a little sister go into the boys’ dorm?”

He lowered his gaze. “You went in too, didn’t you?”

Her face flushed. “I… mine was a special case, okay!”

“Then I’d love to hear what kind of ‘special case’ lets you enter our dorm not wearing a stitch.”

That was one of his unresolved doubts. If she wasn’t Mujin, how did she appear naked in their dorm?

Mujin opened her mouth.

True and fake Mujin could confuse him for a while, but if she didn’t explain this, his doubts wouldn’t go away.

No problem. She’d long expected this question.

“Because that day… I wanted to give myself to you as a gift. So I snuck into your dorm, took off my clothes, and lay on your bed waiting. You didn’t come by noon, and your roommate showed up first.”

“Where were your clothes from when you came?”

“I hid them in the quilt. But I wanted your clothes, so I found an excuse and asked for two pieces.”

“What did you want my clothes for?” He lifted a brow.

“Just… I liked them. And it let me make an excuse to get close to you next time.” Mujin chuckled, trying to look pure.

“Alright, next question…”

“Huh? There’s more?” Her mouth popped open, a little nervous.

“Why do you like me? We didn’t know each other before. What’s your reason?” He stared at her, eyes bright.

This was his last suspicion.

Mujin pressed her lips together. After a short think, she raised her eyes and tested, “Do you remember saving a kitten two years ago?”

He recalled finding an injured little tabby on the road. No one was watching it, so he picked it up and took it to a pet hospital, paying out of pocket.

For that, he pinched pennies for half a month. Mujin even had to help him out.

“I remember—wait.” He blurted, “Don’t tell me you’re that cat, transformed, here to repay me?”

Mujin froze. “What’s going on in your head? How could a cat turn into a girl? I was just a passerby. But the way you saved that cat was really cool, so from then on… I kinda liked you.”

“You were on the spot? With a girl like you there, even if it wasn’t a scene, I should at least remember your hair.”

“Uh… I dyed my hair recently. Back then I looked lame. Braids, glasses, plain clothes. Just a passerby girl.”

“I see. Then why didn’t you come find me then? And after two years, you should’ve liked someone else, right?”

“No. I was really self-conscious. I didn’t dare say it. Only lately did I start learning to dress up and be a bit stylish. And I didn’t plan to find you, actually. I overheard your classmates say you’re always single and no girl would like you. I thought they were wrong, so I came to prove you’re liked too.”

Mujin lowered her head, pouting. “Looks like you don’t like me though. Sorry. Barging into your life without talking to you first must’ve been annoying. Since you don’t like me, I’ll step out of your life. Then… goodbye.”

She turned to leave, and Zhou Ruiyang suddenly grabbed her hand.

His hand was big. It easily wrapped her small hand.

Her hand was soft, almost boneless. His palm had thin calluses from training, a faint sandpapery feel.

“That’s not what I meant.” He scratched his hair. If he let her go now, he felt like he’d be committing a crime against history.

He weighed his words. “I could lean on your feelings and say sweet things you want to hear, and trick you. But that’s not me. I don’t think feelings happen in a glance. That’s just worshiping appearances or money. If you really like me, shouldn’t we start as friends?”

His words came steady and firm. An autumn breeze rose, mussing the bangs on her forehead.

Mujin’s eyes went wide. She stared at him, then suddenly smiled. “How is there a straight-laced idiot like you in the world?”

“If you mean in love, I’d rather be an idiot.” Seeing her mood shift, he relaxed and smiled. “So you accept my proposal? Let’s start as friends. By the way, I don’t even know your name.”

“Mm, true.” She nodded and held out her hand. “Let’s meet again from scratch. I’m Yewanmu. You can call me Mumu.”

“Zhou Ruiyang.”

After reintroducing themselves, Zhou Ruiyang headed back to the teaching building, almost time for class. Mujin stayed where she was, watching his back fade.

When he turned into the building, the System’s voice sounded.

[Congrats, Host, task complete. On leaving, you made Zhou Ruiyang ask you to stay. Rewards: 1% progress bar, 15 points, and Freedom no Henshin.]

Plan, great success!

She felt a little guilty tricking Xiao Yang, but at least he probably wouldn’t doubt her identity anymore.

But…

The girl lowered her head. Her brown hair fell over her eyes, only a faint curve visible at her lips.

That guy, Zhou Ruiyang—he could really talk, unexpectedly.