Chapter 30: "If only I had stepped in..."

The bell for class rang, but the teacher had not arrived. It wasn't Cheng Sanli’s Chinese class, yet absenteeism was still an issue. Su Yi was long past being surprised by this ragtag group that struggled so hard to pretend they were actual teachers.

While teaching Lolihi how to read, he silently spun a ballpoint pen in his hand. What exactly had been transported over from the Wasteland? Had a Wastelander managed to cross over? Otherwise, it was hard to imagine why so much radiation had been leaked.

However, the Great Xia government did not seem as cold-blooded as he’d feared. He overheard students discussing a recent outbreak of a major flu, for which the government was distributing free antiviral pills to every resident in Luo City. It was almost mandatory for everyone to collect them, with the exception of high school students.

Yet, outside of Luo City, there had been no reports of any major influenza epidemic.

"It’s likely a cover to distribute anti-radiation medication to those who haven't had the chance to awaken their abilities," he mused. Furthermore, areas near the explosion site had been designated as danger zones and completely evacuated—the efficiency was quite impressive.

It was clear that the Great Xia government was eager to cultivate ability users, but they clearly still cared about the lives of the populace; at the very least, they didn’t sacrifice the fundamental for the trivial, unlike the Wasteland.

Some organizations in the Wasteland would force all children of a certain age to be exposed to radiation for centralized selection. Anyone who survived and awakened an ability was kept; those who didn't simply perished in the intense radiation.

To gain reinforcements, their methods were as cruel as could be, devoid of any humanity.

Su Yi had been conscripted exactly that way when he first awakened his powers. The scene remained vivid in his memory to this day.

The past was too painful to revisit. In short, he despised the Wasteland with every fiber of his being. It was a place filled with chaos, filth, and cold-blooded indifference, a hotbed for all sorts of cyber-psychopaths.

Words like "lacking any legal or moral constraints" or "a hotbed of sin" were insufficient to describe it.

Su Yi licked his lips, took a sip from his water cup, and pulled a textbook in front of him as a shield. Leaning against the desk, he continued to scan the window.

He found no obvious surveillance. The person from earlier seemed to have been dissuaded by his eraser and had not reappeared.

*At least they weren't too thick-headed,* he thought. *They know when to be afraid.*

However, Mu Xiaowei seemed to be late today... The empty space in front of him felt strange. He hoped nothing had happened to her.

Just as he thought this, soft, faint footsteps drifted from behind the classroom door.

"Oh, speak of the devil."

As a master of locating people by sound, Su Yi was well-acquainted with the rhythmic patterns and movements of those around him. The footsteps were light, characterized by the habit of landing on the balls of the feet, accompanied by the faint clicking of the metal tags on her little boots. Without a doubt, it was Mu Xiaowei.

Only today, there was an extra rustling sound of plastic bags.

"Xiaowei, you’re so late today!" Lu Guoguo placed her hands on the desk, leaned over to stroke her own cheek, and turned around with a grin to greet her.

"There were so many people at the breakfast stall..."

"It’s the first time I’ve ever seen you buy breakfast," Lu Guoguo said, tilting her head. But soon, her gaze locked onto the plastic bag in Mu Xiaowei's hand, and her face lit up with the gossipy expression of a young girl.

"Two cups of soy milk, two meat sandwiches—I don't remember you having such a huge appetite. This must be for two people, right?"

At the mention of "two people," the male students in the class, who hadn't yet settled into their studies, all turned their heads. He Cheng, in particular, craned his neck so far he looked like a sauropod. He couldn't help but want to see for himself.

As the perennial top-ranked academic, Mu Xiaowei was not only brilliant but also exceptionally beautiful, with a sleek, jet-black high ponytail, a delicate face, and a soft, gentle way of speaking.

She was the recognized beauty of their grade. The only reason she hadn't achieved "school-wide" status was that she was too focused on her studies and rarely ventured out, and the senior class was possessive enough not to share her fame.

She was smart, pretty, and took the initiative to keep her distance from boys. The only thing one could complain about was that she didn't belong to them...

"Yes, it’s for two," Mu Xiaowei nodded silently, her little bear backpack on her shoulders.

Under the collective gaze of the class, she walked quietly to her seat, placed the items on Su Yi’s desk, and then glanced at him. Her pretty face flushed slightly, and she murmured in a shy, soft voice:

"Su Yi, I remember you don't have the habit of eating breakfast."

"That’s not good... so I bought you some..."

Sensing the commotion, Lolihi, who was crouched in the corner earnestly flipping through a Chinese dictionary, blinked her light blue eyes. She balanced the dictionary on her head, looked up, and fixated on the soy milk and sandwiches on the desk.

*Commander, do people give out supplies at school too?* Lolihi wondered, blinking.

She was becoming increasingly confused about Mu Xiaowei's identity. When she had first arrived at the base, Su Yi had claimed an enemy was attacking and arranged for her to hide. Later, he had used the internal hand signals of the Sword-Bearers, and today, she had delivered supplies. She certainly looked like one of their own.

Yet, the Commander insisted she wasn't...

It was truly baffling.

But she wasn't the only one confused.

Su Yi was also slightly stunned. He ate breakfast every day; he had no idea where she got the idea that he didn't.

After thinking for a moment, he vaguely recalled that before he transmigrated, he had loved sleeping in, always waking up at the last possible second and arriving at school on an empty stomach.

Having spent so much time in the Wasteland, where time felt like a distant memory, he had forgotten he ever had that habit.

"Oh, thanks. I'll take it," Su Yi nodded without excessive pleasantries. He was burning a lot of energy these days and could eat plenty, plus Lolihi had never tried soy milk.

But this act drew a chorus of wails from the classroom.

"Damn it! So, if a hero saves a beauty, she really does fall in love unconditionally and offer herself in return? Is that actually a thing in real life?"

"To bag the prettiest girl, you really just need the simplest methods!"

He Cheng sighed toward the ceiling, scratching his head in grief and indignation. They were both sitting in the back, both neighbors at the same distance.

He had spent a year building relationships, only to be rejected whenever he tried to ask someone out.

It was infuriating. They were at the same distance, had the same opportunities, yet he couldn't compare.

"Ah, why wasn't I there at the time!"

"If only I had been the one to intervene!"

The boys in the class groaned in despair.

They didn't know that Su Yi and Mu Xiaowei were close in private. Seeing the "goddess" blushing while delivering breakfast in front of everyone made them insanely envious.

Those who had been mocking Su Yi for getting beaten up earlier were now filled with nothing but jealousy. It seemed like a worthwhile trade-off.

He didn't suffer any real injuries, and the next day he could come to school as if nothing happened, all while gaining the favor of the goddess.

"If only I had been the one to step in..."

"If only I had been the one to step in..."

"If only I had been the one to step in..."

Su Yi felt the resentment surging around him, the muttering of regret coming from all directions. These people seemed to have forgotten that the person whose ability had gone berserk could bend an iron railing with a single slap.

With so many eyes on him, Su Yi was slightly worried that Lolihi, currently clutching her Chinese dictionary, would be exposed. If they found out he had an invisible beautiful girl trailing him, they’d probably lose their minds.

Fortunately, the teacher arrived before the public outcry boiled over, temporarily quelling the commotion.

However...

Mu Xiaowei was indeed acting a bit strange today.

Before their "Ms. Xu" had married, when the two of them were close, had she ever taken the initiative to bring him breakfast?

Su Yi frowned. They were separated by too much time, and although his memory had been enhanced, he could only recall things from after the enhancement. He truly couldn't remember.

But due to his ability, he suffered from memory loss quite often, so he was used to it. He’d just have to write more in his diary from now on.