The second thing was, Xiao Li was actually in the ACG Club.
Su Xiaoxiao used to surf the internet often too; it helped relieve stress.
Back then, she always thought no girls liked this kind of stuff.
But Xiao Li actually liked it, and even joined, chatting with people every day.
So didn’t this turn the otaku club into a beautiful girls’ club!?
Ah, she really wanted to join.
Speaking of which, there should be a lot of guys in the club, right? She hadn’t asked earlier.
“I heard that after next week’s Final Exam, there will be a cosplay event at the Comic Convention…”
She wanted to see Xiao Li’s cosplay.
So jealous of them, being brave enough to show themselves in front of people, or rather, having the confidence to do so.
“…..”
Thinking this, Su Xiaoxiao lowered her head.
Looking at the slender, delicate figure of the girl before her, and those petite, exquisite legs, maybe she could do it too.
Later, she’d try to join the club—join Xiao Li’s club. Just being able to talk and chat with her was already a wish she had before.
Work and all that could be dealt with later.
“Oh, and that club’s QQ Group!”
She suddenly remembered something and began scrolling through her chat history with Ning Xiaoyun.
“97794….”
After finding it, she immediately typed the numbers into the search bar.
A group with just a dozen or so people popped up.
Eh?
Ning Xiaoyun had said the club was quite popular at school.
Why were there so few people?
A bit puzzled, Su Xiaoxiao clicked to apply to join the group.
[Are you female?] was the question.
“Ah, that question.”
Seeing the verification prompt, Su Xiaoxiao felt a bit hesitant.
[Yes.]
For the sake of joining the club, she’d give it her all…
“I’m female, that’s right.”
Feeling a little uncertain, she stood up and looked at her small, girl-like figure.
Hmm… no lies there.
“Beep,” after clicking send, she put her phone aside.
Now it was time to blow dry her hair and sleep—it was almost one o’clock.
Though she wouldn’t have slept at this hour before, things were different now; with this new life, she had to make changes.
Also, she would try her best not to fall asleep in class.
Before, she had no hope for life, so she lacked the energy to study; now, there was hope, so study she must!
For a diploma and all that; the internet said it was still very important.
Before that, she just needed to make sure she didn’t drop dead.
“Phew~~” she began blow drying her hair.
***
Long hair was awful—she’d been at it for almost twenty minutes with the dryer just to get it barely damp-free.
Su Xiaoxiao’s right hand holding the dryer was a bit numb now, sigh.
Maybe she should just cut it halfway off later?
She thought to herself.
If so, she could save some effort and time on her hair.
“Seems a bit hard to let go… never mind, sleep.”
Su Xiaoxiao tied up her beautiful white long hair to keep it from being crushed while she slept.
She didn’t know what she’d face tomorrow.
Oh no, today.
Be confident, Su Xiaoxiao, you can do this!
Become rich, and live happily ever after.
“Click~”
She switched off the lights in her room, closed her beautiful eyes, and embraced her Dream as she fell asleep.
***
Another day passed, bringing the second day, no, today.
That morning, what woke Su Xiaoxiao was neither bright glaring sunlight nor an alarm clock, but the sound of a message and a faint vibration from her phone.
“Ugh, do I have to get up now…”
The girl in bed shifted slowly under the covers, then impatiently tapped her phone.
She wanted to dismiss it but realized it wasn’t an alarm.
“What…” groggy, she saw several QQ messages on the home screen—someone was trying to add her.
[Guo’er requests to add you as a friend]
Along with a few words.
[Guo’er: Are you female?] 5:43
5:43 AM—almost an hour earlier than her set alarm.
“That jerk, disturbing my sleep!”
Not her time to wake, Su Xiaoxiao wanted to go back to sleep, annoyed at the interruption.
“…..”
“Wait, this person seems to be the group owner.”
Half-awake, she remembered the ACG Club’s group owner had an avatar of a cute anime girl.
Maybe she could even remember her name.
“What was it again… forgot.”
Not important—the important thing was, the group owner had added her! There was hope to join the club.
(Approved friend request)
[Yes, I’m female, a student at Xiamo No. 3 High School. Can I join the club?] 5:46
[Guo’er: No, there’s one more requirement.]
Before she could react, her phone buzzed again.
[Guo’er: Are you pretty?]
The other side was straightforward, going straight to the point.
“Uh… what kind of question is that?”
They judged appearances for joining the club? So strict.
If it had been before, she might have been discouraged right there, but now, she was a standard beauty.
[I guess so? Haven’t really paid attention.]
[Guo’er: Pretty? Send a photo.]
Uh.
Having no choice, Su Xiaoxiao casually held up her phone and snapped a selfie with a “peace” sign.
[(image.jpg)]
In the photo, the girl sat on her bed with legs splayed outward, her slender hands making the gesture, quite captivating.
Coupled with her cascade of white hair draping over her shoulders and her cute face, she looked like someone straight out of the two-dimensional world.
The surrounding environment looked a bit shabby, though.
[Is this okay… just took it now.]
[Guo’er: That’s you?]
[Yeah, it’s me… just took it on my bed. Or do you want me to stand and take another?]
[Guo’er: No, this is fine.]
[Guo’er: But if you’re lying and that’s not you, you’re dead meat, got it?]
[It’s me… I wouldn’t lie.]
After some reasoning, they agreed to meet today at 5:50 PM on the empty field to the left side of the school playground.
Guo’er would bring her phone to find Su Xiaoxiao by the photo.
“Joining a club is really such a hassle…”
Su Xiaoxiao rubbed her head after turning off the phone.
So sleepy, maybe a bit more rest.
“Zzz~”
With a flop, the girl lay back down and quickly fell asleep again.
***
In the northern part of the school, closer to the prosperous city center, in a neatly arranged room, a girl with orange hair scrolled through her phone.
She was going through each club join request one by one.
It had been a while since anyone joined the club—not because no one wanted to, but because this girl’s requirements were way too high for ordinary people to reach.
The standard was that only pretty girls could join.
Too many people had sent internet pictures before, which made her exasperated. What was worse, many were guys doing it.
When they met offline, those boys would sneak glances at her pretty face and smirk.
She found it disgusting and left without a second thought, always angry.
She wished she could just smack those guys away.
Maybe they were trying their luck—if they succeeded, they could live an idyllic life every day since this club had the most beautiful girls of all.
“Hm? This picture…”
Today, she had accepted a friend request from a user named “.” (a single period).
The person sent a photo, and the girl in it immediately hit her “xp” (exquisite preference) spot.
She just didn’t believe it, convinced it was another internet picture scam.
She wouldn’t fall for it again.
“But it seems not. Looks really genuine.”
“And they’re so pretty but have zero selfie skills? If they didn’t have that face, they’d look awful.”
The orange-haired girl hesitated a moment but decided to invite this girl to meet offline.
If it was real, she’d let her into the club immediately.
Oh no, not let—snatch.