Seeing Su Ruanruan sink into a “I’m a failure” funk, Shiori didn’t feel disgusted; instead, quite the opposite, she found her dejected look quite adorable.
“If you don’t want to be a ‘face’ streamer, you can be a gaming streamer who shows her face,” Shiori guided her persuasively. “As long as you’re good at games, or have good entertainment value, you can even take game promotion deals later on. That’s very lucrative.”
While making this suggestion, a picture had already surfaced in Saginomiya Shiori’s mind:
A clumsy Ruanruan getting scared by monsters in a game, crying and turning back to ask her for help.
And she could then rightfully sit behind her, teaching her how to play the game hand-in-hand.
No interruptions from others, and especially not that eyesore Chu Youyu—just a world for the two of them!
At the thought of this, even Shiori’s earlobes couldn’t help but turn a shade of red.
“A gaming streamer…” Su Ruanruan’s eyes lit up.
Right! In her past life, she was a veteran gamer after all!
The two immediately used their phones to check the most popular game in this world. They found a phenomenon-level Battle Royale shooter called Deadly Crosshair, which had both PC and mobile versions with cross-progression.
Watching the “pew-pew-pew” action in the promotional video, Su Ruanruan’s previous self-loathing vanished instantly, her confidence exploding.
It’s just a shooter! Isn’t it just moving the crosshair onto the enemy’s head and then firing? How hard can that be? With the hand speed I’ve built up over twenty years of being single, wouldn’t a “Gun God” title be a piece of cake?
“It’s decided! This is the one!” Su Ruanruan clenched her tiny fists, her fighting spirit soaring.
Ring—!
The bell for the end of class rang right at that moment. The second the history teacher stepped out of the classroom, Su Ruanruan’s seat was swarmed by a crowd of girls, making it impassable.
“Ruanruan! I was watching you during class—why are you so cute today?!”
“Come, say aaa—these are limited-edition macarons my driver just had flown in from France. Open wide~”
“Ruanruan’s hair smells so good. What shampoo did you use today?”
A group of wealthy young ladies instantly submerged Su Ruanruan. She was surrounded on all sides. Someone pinched her cheek, someone rubbed her hair, and someone else was stuffing snacks directly into her mouth—they were completely treating her like the shared, ultimate “mascot” of the class.
Saint Lilith Academy was mostly filled with the daughters of financial magnates; no one was short on money. Back when Su Ruanruan was in her “bratty girl” phase, she had borrowed money from almost everyone in the class, relying on her cuteness.
But these young ladies weren’t angry; instead, they enjoyed it.
Because even though Su Ruanruan acted like an arrogant brat on the outside, acting as if everyone else was “trash,” the moment you got a little firm with her or pinched her face, she’d instantly lose her “hiss” and turn into a stuttering, jelly-legged mess.
This “gap moe” hit the sweet spot of these young ladies’ preferences perfectly. It delighted them to see that cute side.
“By the way, Ruanruan, are you short on pocket money again?” A girl with wine-red curly hair giggled as she pulled out a Black Card. “Tell me, how many tens of thousands do you want this time? As long as you put your hands on your hips and call me ‘trash’ like last time, I’ll let you swipe this card.”
If it were the previous original soul, she would have taken the card and started the insults immediately without hesitation.
But the current Su Ruanruan, hearing this request, felt like her toes were going to dig a hole through the floor and straight to the Notre Dame. What kind of cringy dark history was this?!
“I… I’m sorry! For.. forgive me !”
Su Ruanruan suddenly stood up, pushed away the macaron at her lips, and gave a very solemn ninety-degree bow to the students around her.
“I was immature before and tricked you all out of your money. I have deeply realized my mistakes! I will definitely find a way to pay you all back. Please give me some time!”
Her look of extreme sincerity—with eyes turning slightly red from shame—left the surrounding students completely stunned.
The classroom was silent for two seconds.
Then, a wave of regretful wailing erupted.
“Eh?! No way! A well-behaved Ruanruan is cute too, but I still prefer the arrogant bratty girl from before!”
“Exactly! Give me back the Ruanruan who calls us trash!”
“Ruanruan, don’t be like this. You’re making us look like bullies. You don’t have to pay the money back—could you just insult me one more time?”
Hearing these outrageous comments, Su Ruanruan’s face turned completely red. She wished she could find a crack in the floor to crawl into.
Just as Su Ruanruan was at a loss from being teased by these young ladies and was about to burst into tears—
A powerful arm suddenly reached in from outside the crowd, grabbed Su Ruanruan by her slender waist, and pulled her out of the circle.
Saginomiya Shiori had an extremely handsome but cold face, emitting a low-pressure aura that told people to stay away. Her sharp eyes swept over the girls who were still trying to reach out, her gaze filled with a strong warning and a hint of jealousy.
“Excuse me, Every body move aside.”
Shiori held Su Ruanruan’s shoulder tightly, almost shielding her entirely in her arms. Her tone was ice cold. “Ruanruan has work after school. We need to leave now.”
With that, ignoring Su Ruanruan’s weak cries of “I haven’t grabbed my bag yet,” Saginomiya Shiori snatched up Su Ruanruan’s schoolbag with one hand and, in a protective posture that was half-carrying and half-dragging, strode out of the classroom.