"Sure."
"Really?" Lisa's eyes brightened and she grabbed my hands. She was unable to let several tears spill from her eyes. "Thank you so much!"
Honestly, I wasn't sure about this. We had known each other for a little more than a week. Technically, I had known her for about a year, but I doubted she knew my existence until we properly met over a week ago…when I saved her class from the aberrant. Come to think of it, I saved her from a bloody aberrant twice. There was something aberrant about this situation…okay, okay. I'll stop.
I could hear the cheers and congratulations in the corridor around us. Feeling awkward under the weight of so many stares and being the subject of gossip, I couldn't help but gulp.
"We should discuss in detail later…um, when there aren't so many people around."
"Ah!" Lisa realized that everyone was staring at us. Her face turned bright red once more. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she stumbled back, steam spouting from her ears and head. Unable to withstand her embarrassment, she turned and ran off.
"Lisa!" Cole groaned. I was about to chase after her, but he turned to glare at me. "You just attend class, kid. I'll bring her back. You'll just make her more embarrassed. Either that, or the both of you will just run off and skip class together. Just because I approve of your relationship doesn't mean I'll allow you to miss lessons!"
"All right, all right." I raised both hands in surrender. Cole watched me for a second before dashing after Lisa. I stared at their departing figures before turning around and returning to class.
Before I could reach the door, I felt a hand on my shoulder.
"Not bad, friend Feng Zhi Ming," Fan Kai said with a delighted grin. "I worried for nothing. Seems like classmate Lisa is more your type of girl."
"Uh, well…yeah?"
"I support your relationship." He was giving me a thumb's up. I sort of got his hint. Now that I was going out with Lisa, he didn't have to worry about Lou Qian pursuing me or whatever nonsense. In fact, I wondered where he even got the idea from. "Seems like I misunderstood you totally. I apologize for that."
Right…this bastard was the one spreading rumors about me and insulting me behind my back. If I was the vengeful type, I would find a way to get back at him, but I had more important things to do with my life than petty revenge. If that meant he would get off my back, then I was all for it.
I had zombies and mutants to slay. Indulging in stupid grudges was a total waste of time. Besides, there would be other chances…like in the upcoming interclass tournament.
"I always thought you like student Lou Qian. My mistake."
"Nah, I'm not a big fan of the cold, indifferent ice queen type." Their arrogance put me off. I couldn't stand their snobbish, "I'm better than everyone" attitudes. Not that Lou Qian was that arrogant, but her icy demeanor and aloofness didn't appeal to me at all. "I prefer the friendly, innocent type."
"I can see that." Fan Kai was still grinning. "I hope you and student Lisa will be happy."
Then he was off. The next person to approach was Pang Fei, along with Lei Shu and Nian Qing.
"You…you…you…and the goddess…" Pang Fei was spluttering so incoherently that I was barely able to make out a few words.
"Dude…calm down."
"Sorry, it still hasn't sunk in yet…" Nian Qing was scratching his head and laughing sheepishly. Then his eyes widened. "Well, we did notice that classmate Lisa was pretty close to you during that last mission…and then you stepped in again to help her against that Mu Rong Shao just now…no wonder she is head over heels for you."
"Um, that was just a coincidence. She'll probably get sick of me after a while once she realizes my true nature."
"Are you serious?" Lei Shu scoffed. "Classmate Lisa is the innocent type. She's not the kind of person who plays with guys. She'll probably cling to you for a long time and believe whatever you tell her."
"Would she believe me if I tell her I'm an evil monster that she should stay far, far away from?"
The three guys stared at me as if I was insane.
"Why would you want to chase her away?" Pang Fei demanded, looking as if he wanted to hit me. "You got such a beautiful girlfriend! The campus goddess that almost the entire male student population is in love with! What are you trying to do?!"
"Nah, I don't want to chase her away. I like her…" As much as I could like a person who I only knew for a week and a half. But from what I saw of her, she was immensely likable. She was sweet, polite, friendly and innocent. In contrast, I was the direct opposite. Look at the forums, for example. Everyone hated my guts. "But she'll probably be disgusted once she learns of my true nature."
"Then get rid of that self-pitying attitude!" Pang Fei snapped.
"I'll do my best," I promised, not wanting to sink into a quagmire of self-loathing and depression. That would piss off the existences from a higher dimension further. They didn't come here to read about me whining about myself. "Anyway, class is starting soon, so let's go."
*
As it turned out, even though Lisa and I were officially a couple, nothing much changed. Well, a few things did. Fan Kai and Qi Ren were no longer antagonistic toward me, rumors about me being a White Dusk talent or stalking Lou Qian ceased (like, why would I do that when I had the golden campus flower as my girlfriend?), and some of the people would look at me in awe.
Nobody tried lynching me, though. Perhaps some people thought jealous male students would try to attack me because they couldn't stand the thought of their goddess dating a "pathetic loser" or "trash" like me, but such things only happened in exaggerated fiction. Also, they saw how I defeated Qi Ren before, so they weren't stupid. They knew an assault on me would end only one way.
Whatever the case, nothing much happened other than Lisa and I hanging out after school, having lunch together, and…yeah. This being Fourth Evolver Academy, students usually stayed in the dormitories and so it wasn't a simple matter for us to go out on dates after school. That would have to wait until the weekend.
In the meantime, whatever time we could spend together in school was cruelly cut short when Teacher Jiao called for me again.
"After the success of your previous two missions, we would like to send you and your team out again," Xiao Zhang explained when I went to his office. Instructor Jiao nodded, standing a few paces away.
"More and more warrior-category mutants are being sighted just beyond the barrier. It makes expansion much harder…and we're also anticipating a major invasion against District 4 soon."
"That's not good," I muttered.
"Thankfully, no commander-raked mutants have been sighted…yet." Instructor Jiao sighed. "But the principal and I believe it's only a matter of time before they appear."
"As such, we must raise the combat capabilities of our students as quickly as possible." Xiao Zhang fixed me with a stern look. "So we're sending students like you to gain more combat experience. Fan Kai, Qi Ren and the higher-ranked students are all leading teams of their own. Normally student Lou Qian would lead a team of her own, but she has expressed that she wants to remain in yours."
"She should be the leader," I muttered under my breath. Frankly, I didn't want the damned responsibility. I had my own personal matters to take care of, and I wasn't sure I would be able to juggle that task with looking after my teammates. Not to mention, I was an inflexible and straightforward person. I would prefer receiving commands instead of handing them out.
"Student Lou Qian insisted that you lead," Instructor Jiao said. He shrugged when I gaped at him. "She felt that you handled the last two missions better than she could. Also, she said something about you being more courageous than her. That you didn't hesitate to risk yourself to save your classmates, which was something she was incapable of doing."
"Is she confusing competent leadership with reckless stupidity?" I grumbled, scratching my head. Xiao Zhang snorted.
"A leader is someone who inspires. It's not just about intelligence or creativity. You inspired your classmates with your bravery and self-sacrifice. They will be more willing to follow someone who looks out for them than someone who's smart or strategic. The most important thing for a leader isn't for him to be a genius who can come up with foolproof plans, but someone who inspires trust and loyalty. And your teammates trust you. They are loyal to you. Student Lou Qian insisting to be in your team is evidence of that."
"Uh, well…" Surely they were all making some sort of mistake. Well, there was no point in arguing. I was given a task, so the only thing I could do was accomplish it to the best of my ability. Having doubts right now would be fatal.
Also, this was a great chance for me to go out there and hunt zombies and mutants. My Kill Count had remained stagnant for the last few days, which was, frankly, inexcusable. I wanted to unlock my next Ability, and I also wanted to increase my stats. If what Instructor Jiao was saying was correct, then I would need to improve my power as soon as possible.
I didn't want to be still at this level when a Commander level mutant attacked.
"Understood." I took a deep breath and saluted. "I'll do it then."
"Excellent." Xiao Zhang leaned forward conspiratorially, even as he swiped several holographic windows toward my direction. "Your mission is to eliminate a warrior category mutant…the same kind as the one you blew up about two weeks ago."
I groaned when I saw the figure of the grotesque. Of all the bloody mutants to…
Rubbing my fingers together, I gritted my teeth and sighed. "I'll try to enjoy killing that bastard, if I don't puke myself first…"
*
"Is this the best you could do?" Mu Rong Shao asked, his voice dripping with scorn. His butler kept his head lowered and his eyes downward.
"With respect, young master, the Dark Shadow Guild is a hard organization to contact. Even with the Mu Rong family's connections, the underground channels that they use is…obscure."
"Yet they demand a million credits upfront." Mu Rong Shao scowled. "They had better be worth the money."
The butler hesitated, but then finally mustered the courage to speak up. "I mean no disrespect, young master…but is it really worth a million credits just to kill a student? Over a petty grudge?"
"Petty grudge?!" Mu Rong Shao roared, hurling his cup at his butler, who instinctively dodged it. "The bastard stole my woman! He deserves death!"
"Um…there are plenty of beautiful girls in District 4, and Lady Lisa has already rejected you countless times…"
"How dare she reject me and confess to another guy?! It's her honor to go out with someone like me! I'm the young master of the Mu Rong family! Is she insane!?"
The butler sighed. "We'll do our best to use an anonymous and untraceable account to transfer the funds, but given today's technology, there will always be gaps. If the authorities find out about this…"
"So what if they find out eventually? The authorities won't dare to touch the Mu Rong family." Mu Rong Shao's face was twisted into a sneer. "All these lowly commoners will find out the hard way what will happen if they mess with the Mu Rong family!"
The butler shook his head in quiet disapproval. To resort to murder over these nonsensical, trivial matters…if Mu Rong Shao's father found out, the young master would be in serious trouble. Mu Rong Zhu wasn't beneath disowning his son and kicking him out to save the reputation of the Mu Rong family.
"Not just that…" Mu Rong Shao rubbed his hands gleefully. "Have you contacted Mr. Yoo yet?"
"Yes." The butler nodded glumly, holding back a sigh. Mu Rong Shao's grin grew wider.
"Excellent. Tell him to proceed with the plan."
"With respect, young master…is this really necessary?"
"Of course," Mu Rong Shao snapped. He turned to look out of the window, his hands clasped behind his back. "I don't just want Feng Zhi Ming dead. I want his family utterly destroyed too. Whoever offends me will have to pay the full price."