"Huh? OWO!" With food still unswallowed and my cheeks puffed out, I didn’t immediately catch what Xialin was saying.

"You’ve got crumbs all over the corners of your mouth," she remarked, pulling a handkerchief from her pocket and gently wiping the oily smudges off my face.

"Mmm..." Only after she finished did I snap to attention. My cheeks instantly flushed crimson, burning like fire.

"Xi... Xialin..."

She acted as if nothing happened, urging me to keep eating. Then she slid the only fried egg from her plate onto mine.

Flustered by her kindness, I ate while stealing shy glances at her from the corner of my eye. Finally, I couldn’t hold back and whispered, "Th... thank you."

She paused briefly at my words, then her smile widened into something radiant.

"You always seem like a little kitten needing care, Wu-chan," Xialin said, beaming at me. "But tending to a cute kitten isn’t troublesome at all."

"That’s not true!" I protested. "I can take perfect care of myself alone." Wait—why did that sound off?

I quickly added, "I like cats, but I’m not one~"

Xialin replied in a teasingly dismissive tone, though her eyes held that same doting, kitten-like warmth. "Mhm, mhm, Wu-chan, you’re absolutely not a cat."

Why did Xialin suddenly feel so playful? Was it just my imagination? QwQ

After dinner, we strolled around the playground near the girls’ dorm. Xialin also filled me in on the key parts of the opening ceremony I’d missed.

"...We must be back in our dorm by ten PM, or it locks—we’d be stuck outside. Patrol officers might catch us, and that means scolding. Only six classes a day leaves plenty of free time. After afternoon lessons, we’re free to manage evenings ourselves. Classrooms aren’t ready until tomorrow. Lessons are in small groups for better efficiency."

"Then wouldn’t they need tons of teachers?" I blurted out, stunned by the relaxed schedule.

Xialin glanced at me with a knowing smile. "You really don’t know our school yet, do you?"

"Our school’s a noble private academy funded by major families. Every year, it produces countless elites—tech geniuses, political leaders, high-ranking officers. They succeed, then reinvest here, creating a cycle that makes us stronger. With top salaries and amazing conditions, teachers fight to join. Students? Only those with exceptional backgrounds or talents get in. But..."

She turned to me, eyes sparkling with suppressed amusement.

"...I still haven’t spotted where you shine, Wu-chan."

"Lin~" I whined, tugging her sleeve. "Keep going."

"Mhm. Back at the dorm, we’ll meet our new roommate—a second-year senior sharing our room."

"Huh? A senior? I thought it’d be other first-years." I was surprised; I’d expected classmates, not an upperclassman.

"It’s a decade-old tradition. Seniors help freshmen adjust faster. When we’re seniors, we’ll room with freshmen too—but we can choose."

"Hm?"

"When we’re second-years, we pick: stay with our first-year roommate or move in with a new freshman. It’s very thoughtful."

"But that’s a shame," Xialin sighed softly, then murmured too quietly for me to hear, "...means I won’t room with you..."

"Wow, such an option exists?" I missed her whisper but happily praised the school’s management in my heart.

Mmm, brilliant. As for my dad working somewhere in Europe—you got me into this amazing school, so I’ll go easy on you when you return.

The playground’s track stretched a standard 800 meters. Spectator stands with rain shelters and a giant glass roof lined the sides, ensuring clear views even in downpours. The field’s center held a golden sandpit, marked with lines and a sand-leveler tool nearby.

On the track’s opposite side stood leg-stretching bars and pull-up bars for boys’ training.