Chapter 16: People of the Same Kind

*Ding! Ding! Ding!—*

The sharp ringing of the school bell sounded, and Su Ling and Mo Ran instinctively glanced at each other.

Since they had already reached an agreement, there was no reason to delay any further.

“Can we set a time?” Mo Ran asked as they ran toward the classroom.

“Hmm, how about around 10:00 PM every night?”

Su Ling tilted her head. That was the only time she really had any freedom.

Mo Ran glanced at her.

At No. 1 Middle School, there was almost no academic pressure, and school let out at 4:00 PM every day.

For Su Ling to set the time at 10:00 PM, she must only have personal time starting then.

Thinking of Su Ling’s identity, Mo Ran’s gaze turned complicated.

She was reminded of her own sister.

“That works. And the location? Want to come to my place?”

“Where do you live?”

“31 Baker Street.”

“I’m on Pancheng Street, so it’s quite close. Okay, it’s a deal.”

As they spoke, they arrived at the classroom, only to find a teacher standing at the door.

It was their Homeroom Teacher, Gao Fei.

Gao Fei looked at Su Ling and Mo Ran with a flicker of surprise, which quickly turned into a sense of relief.

These were two of the few Witches at No. 1 Middle School who actually bothered to study.

“Teacher? Is something wrong?”

“Ahem.” Gao Fei coughed awkwardly.

Su Ling looked into the classroom and understood immediately.

A Class Collective Activity was in its final stages.

Fortunately, the students of Class 2 showed their Homeroom Teacher some respect and didn’t make Gao Fei wait too long.

When the Class Collective Activity finally concluded, Su Ling and Mo Ran followed Gao Fei into the room.

They were greeted by a wave of mixed fragrances from the teenage girls’ bodies, mingled with the salty scent of the sea breeze.

It wasn’t unpleasant; in fact, it was almost intoxicating.

Gao Fei was a biology teacher, and Su Ling recalled her mentioning in a previous lesson that a Witch’s body scent seemed to have an aphrodisiac effect on other Witches.

This was why once a Witch’s passions were ignited, they were very difficult to extinguish.

Su Ling felt her body growing warm, but she felt much better once Gao Fei ordered someone to open the windows and let the scent dissipate.

“Hehehe, Little Ling…”

At that moment, Sister Jing had a dazed, silly grin on her face.

Her cheeks, arms, and collarbones were covered in lipstick marks of various shades.

Clearly, she had just enjoyed herself to the fullest.

Perhaps the Class Collective Activity had been too physically taxing, as a large portion of Class 2 was currently passed out.

Only Su Ling and Mo Ran appeared to be paying attention to the lecture.

Gao Fei seemed used to this.

She ignored the state of Class 2 and continued her lesson.

Su Ling listened for a while.

She could keep up at first, but eventually, it started sounding like gibberish.

‘I can’t help it,’ Su Ling sighed inwardly.

‘Witches aren’t humans after all.’

Although Witches had the appearance of beautiful human girls, they weren’t the same species.

Her previous knowledge of biology was completely useless here.

As the lecture went on, Su Ling began to daze off.

Gao Fei noticed this and gave a soft sigh.

She had seen Su Ling’s grades; only her math and physics were passable, while the rest were abysmal.

Still, since Su Ling was at least trying to listen, Gao Fei didn’t say anything.

At least there was still Mo Ran.

Gao Fei looked at Mo Ran, seeing her as the only seed of hope in the room.

The class period passed quickly.

Since this was the last period of the afternoon, the ringing of the bell signaled the end of the school day.

“Ha—is school over?”

Sister Jing woke up as Su Ling nudged her, looking bleary-eyed.

“Ahem, do you have time today?”

Su Ling asked.

“Hmm? Little Ling, you mean…? No, no. Miss Ji Lingyuan specifically instructed me that I can’t let you go this week.”

Sister Jing understood what Su Ling meant and shook her head.

Su Ling pouted.

“She won’t know if you don’t tell her.”

“Oh, Little Ling, don’t push yourself so hard. It’s good to take a proper rest every now and then.”

“But…”

Su Ling felt a surge of irritability.

That 5,000,000 debt was like a mountain crushing her.

The scene of the thugs violently collecting the debt this morning was like a steel saw, constantly grating on her nerves.

Although Ji Lingyuan had helped her pay off 500,000, what about the remaining 4,500,000?

“Little Ling, really, don’t put so much pressure on yourself.”

Sister Jing saw the stress Su Ling was under, and a flash of pity crossed her eyes.

She pulled Su Ling into a hug.

“It will get better. Let yourself rest. If your body breaks down, what will happen to your sister?”

Sister Jing’s gentle voice snapped Su Ling out of it.

‘Miao Miao!’

It was like a line of core code had been triggered.

The moment she thought of Miao Miao, Su Ling immediately pulled herself together.

Right, Ji Lingyuan had paid 500,000 for now, which meant she was safe in the short term.

She had to keep herself healthy.

If she collapsed, there would be no one left to take care of Miao Miao.

“Whew! Okay.”

“Hehehe, your health is the most important thing after all~”

Sister Jing pinched Su Ling’s cheek, grabbed her backpack, and bid her farewell.

“Well, I’m heading out first. Bye~”

“Bye.”

Watching Sister Jing leave, Su Ling began packing her own things.

There were only a few people left in the classroom, though some were still slumped over their desks fast asleep, their clothes disheveled.

It was obvious they had played very hard during the earlier activity.

To Su Ling’s surprise, she saw an unexpected figure as soon as she stepped out the door.

“You haven’t left yet?” Mo Ran was actually waiting for her.

“I overheard your conversation with the Class Monitor… You have time now, right?”

Mo Ran fidgeted uncomfortably.

Sister Jing’s part-time jobs were hardly a secret.

Besides Su Ling, several other girls in their class followed Sister Jing’s lead.

Mo Ran had unintentionally heard their conversation and realized Su Ling might be free today.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop…”

Mo Ran lowered her head, not daring to look at Su Ling.

Even though they had agreed to study at 10:00 PM, she knew time was tight.

She wanted to grab every extra moment she could.

“It’s fine. I actually do have time today. Shall we go to your place now?”

Su Ling sighed.

She had originally planned to keep working after school, but Sister Jing was right—she needed to give herself a break.

As for Ji Lingyuan’s words, she had already tossed them to the back of her mind.

She wasn’t actually Ji Lingyuan’s girlfriend.

She was grateful to Ji Lingyuan for helping her when she needed it most, but she was self-aware.

It was best to give up on certain fantasies.

A “rat” of the slums one day, a “rat” for life.

“Yes.” Mo Ran nodded.

She was a bit surprised by Su Ling’s frankness.

Neither of them were people who liked to waste time.

Having reached an agreement, the two of them walked toward the school gate together.

Baker Street and Pancheng Street were very close.

After a bus ride, Su Ling followed Mo Ran to Baker Street.

Mo Ran’s neighborhood wasn’t much different from Su Ling’s—it was the same kind of old, dilapidated, and lifeless place.

The orange glow of the dusk sun spilled over the crumbling walls, adding to the desolate atmosphere.

“Welcome home… Hmm?”

Mo Ran led Su Ling to her front door.

The moment she opened it, a soft voice drifted from inside.

Immediately after, a black-haired woman poked her head out from the kitchen, but she froze when she saw Su Ling.

This was Mo Tong, Mo Ran’s older sister.

“Ah, a guest? I’m sorry, I…”

“Why are you home?”

The moment Mo Ran saw Mo Tong, she froze, her voice dripping with undisguised loathing.

“Little Ran, it’s your birthday today. I specifically took the day off and even bought a cake for you.”

Mo Tong smiled, though it was tinged with bitterness.

She hurriedly brought out a cake she had asked someone to buy from the Upper City.

Its exquisite appearance suggested it wasn’t cheap.

Mo Ran looked at the cake with a complicated expression.

She had genuinely forgotten it was her birthday today.

“Which Shao Nian You customer gave you this one?”

Mo Ran walked into the house.

Her weak, studious persona from school vanished, replaced by a sharp bitterness in front of her sister.

Su Ling was stunned, her own mood becoming heavy.

Mo Ran’s words were completely blunt; she was stripping her sister’s dignity bare.

‘Someone from Shao Nian You…’

‘Miao Miao…’

Suddenly, Su Ling felt a surge of terror.

Mo Ran’s hatred for her sister was palpable, and she didn’t even bother to give her any face in front of an outsider.

Would Miao Miao be like this in the future too?

Su Ling didn’t dare think about it.

The mere thought of a similar scene involving her sister made her heart ache intensely.

“Little Ran…” Mo Tong’s smile was pained, her voice full of plea.

However, Mo Ran only gave the cake in her hands a silent glance before walking expressionlessly into her bedroom and slamming the door shut.

Suddenly, only Su Ling and Mo Tong were left in the living room.

The atmosphere was incredibly awkward.

“Ah, sorry. Little Ran, she…”

The older sister’s lips twitched as she forced a strained smile.

“I understand. I have a younger sister too.”

Su Ling’s heart was in turmoil.

She locked eyes with the woman.

In that single gaze, they both understood what was in each other’s hearts.

Mo Tong, in particular, was startled to see a sense of shared experience in Su Ling’s cherry-colored eyes.

She was surprised at first, but then came understanding.

In the Lower City, situations like theirs were all too common.

“I’m Mo Ran’s classmate. We agreed to tutor each other.”

Su Ling didn’t say much more.

After a brief explanation, she opened the door to Mo Ran’s bedroom.

Seeing it was Su Ling, Mo Ran looked slightly apologetic.

“Sorry, I lost control of my emotions just now.”

“It’s okay.”

Su Ling shook her head, though her tone was noticeably more distant.

Mo Ran noticed the change.

She bit her lip slightly but said nothing.

In the end, they were not the same kind of people.