"What can I help you with?" Sunny Xu asked.

"I'm here to express my gratitude to Starry Lin," Seigetsu Zhu replied with a warm smile. "If it weren't for her timely intervention, I don't know what would have happened."

"Um..."

Sunny Xu turned to his friend beside him.

For Starry Lin, this was probably the first time, and he didn't know how she would respond. Just as he was curious, he heard the girl beside him speak in her usual cold tone:

"If you want to thank someone, thank him."

Starry Lin pointed at Sunny Xu.

"He was the one who said he would save you, so I helped."

...Huh?

Sunny Xu was taken aback. Before he could react, the girl with long hair decisively turned and left.

After patting Sunny Xu's shoulder, she whispered:

"I won't disturb you two anymore."

After saying this, Starry Lin returned to the classroom without looking back.

What does this mean?

Sunny Xu was a bit puzzled.

He turned to Seigetsu Zhu. Although she still had a smiling face and didn't seem to think anything was wrong, he felt awkward.

Seeing that Seigetsu Zhu didn't intend to speak, Sunny Xu scratched the back of his head and said dryly:

"If you...if you want to thank someone, thank Starry Lin. After all, she helped you."

"Heh."

Seigetsu Zhu covered her mouth and laughed lightly, finding the reactions and conversation between the two amusing.

"It's okay, I'm grateful to both of you. I will thank you later..."

"Just say 'thank you,' Seigetsu classmate." Sunny Xu nodded at her. "Then I'll go back first."

"Wait, Sunny Xu, I have something to tell you."

Before he could turn and leave, Seigetsu Zhu called out to him.

"What is it?"

"I have a study group here, organized by the grade leader. Are you interested?" Seigetsu Zhu clasped her hands together on her chest, with a pleasant smile. "I remember you were second in the grade on the last exam, right?"

"Are you talking about the weekend remedial classes?"

"No, for remedial classes, the top fifty students in the grade have a spot."

Seigetsu Zhu replied.

"The study group is for self-study. Students with good grades can communicate with each other, and there are also a few...students who are falling behind in their studies. The teacher wants us to help them."

"Only students?"

"After school, teachers from the grade will take turns to supervise. Although they won't directly teach, they will answer questions and help us. We can also apply on our own. I have invited a few classmates from the same class and hope that students from other classes will join... Ah, of course, it's okay if you don't want to."

Seigetsu Zhu clapped her hands, showing a sincere attitude.

"It's all up to me. The teachers basically won't interfere. Of course, it would be great if you are willing to help. I might be a bit busy alone."

...According to what she said, Sunny Xu thought, it's probably the teacher's suggestion for him to join. But unlike remedial classes, it requires students to put in effort, so it's not easy to say directly, which is why Seigetsu Zhu was asked to come.

He pondered for a moment and didn't object.

"Is it a long time commitment?"

It can't be too long, as he still has to go home every day to tutor and check Starry Lin's homework.

"Not long, usually two hours, just enough to complete the assignments given by the school. And you can leave anytime during that time."

"Then let me try it once and give you an answer later, is that okay?"

"No problem, no problem."

The class monitor nodded.

"Also, if it works well..." Sunny Xu hesitated a bit. "Can I recommend other people to join?"

"Hmm~" Seigetsu Zhu blinked and easily guessed the answer. "Are you talking about Starry Lin?"

"...Yes. Didn't you say this study group is meant to help students who are falling behind in their studies?"

Sunny Xu felt a little guilty making this request.

If Starry Lin could have the opportunity to study and communicate, it would be a good thing for her, so he fought for it. However, the problem was that she had a bad reputation, and most of the teachers and students in the grade knew her. Starry Lin had been to the office more than once, and she had even been publicly criticized and punished through the school broadcast.

"Of course, no problem. As long as she is willing, I will explain to the teacher that this study group was established to help students."

Seigetsu Zhu didn't seem to think there was any difficulty and readily agreed.

...

It was a noisy morning, Sunny Xu thought, feeling as exhausted as if he had already attended classes all day.

After bidding farewell to Seigetsu Zhu in the corridor, he was about to return to the classroom. When he reached the vicinity of the back door, he noticed that the girl with long hair was standing there.

She had her arms crossed and was silently leaning against the door panel.

It seemed like she could easily see the scene in the corridor from her angle... Sunny Xu thought for no reason.

Starry Lin seemed to be lost in thought. She only raised her head and stared at him with bright eyes when she realized someone was approaching.

"Is it over already? Why didn't you talk to her more?"

Sunny Xu felt a bit helpless.

"We're about to start class. And even if I wanted to talk more, we need something to talk about."

"What were you talking about just now?"

"Of course..."Sunny Xu did not answer immediately, but stared into his friend's eyes, hesitating to speak.

Seeing her friend's reaction, the girl couldn't help but purse her thin lips, feeling a subtle nervousness in her emotions. It seemed that she realized she had been stared at for too long, and her expression became somewhat unnatural as she turned her head and asked softly.

"Is... there something you can't tell me?"

"No, I'm just thinking about how to say it."

Sunny Xu sighed and finally decided to tell the truth.

"It's actually about your studies."

"...Huh?"

"I signed you up for an evening study group without asking you. If you're willing, you can stay after school and take a look."

Although Sunny Xu estimated that this group would be helpful for her, studying still relied on personal motivation. If Starry Lin wasn't willing, it would be counterproductive.

"With Seigetsu Zhu and me, along with other classmates and the teacher, we can better fill in the gaps--"

"What? Is that it?"

Starry Lin's sigh was even louder than Sunny Xu's, interrupting his words directly.

"I told you I would listen to you. Geez, you can arrange such trivial matters however you want..." Suddenly, she seemed to remember something. "Oh, by the way, it might not be possible tonight."

"Something came up?"

"Yeah. Also, whether I can go to your house afterwards depends on whether there's enough time. I need to help my mom."

"Is it okay?"

Sunny Xu remembered the family situation that Starry Lin had told him about last night, and felt somewhat worried. And as if she could see through his concerns, the girl answered casually.

"Don't worry, that guy isn't home. And even if he is, I have no reason to back down now."

"But still, be careful..."

Before Sunny Xu could finish his sentence, the bell for class rang, announcing the end of morning self-study. The subject teacher walked into the classroom with textbooks and teaching materials in hand.

Just now, at least half of the classmates in the class were stealing glances at the two chatting by the door. They pretended not to see and returned to their seats.

*

Soon, it was time to finish school for the day.

Sunny Xu tidied up his books and let out a sigh of relief.

He had a tough day.

No one dared to approach Starry Lin in the class, so they could only focus on Sunny Xu, who usually had a good attitude towards others.

Although it wasn't to the point of being annoying, continuously dealing with several people asking almost the same questions was still exhausting. And most of these questions were both laughable and tear-inducing, such as asking if Starry Lin came from a hidden martial arts family, or if her conflict with Shi Hui was related to the conflicts between their families.

Some even speculated that based on the rumors of "the two of them being boyfriend and girlfriend," there was a grand drama where "these two had a pre-arranged marriage by their families, and Starry Lin chose to rebel against the feudal customs of the past for the sake of freedom in love." By the way, when proposing this guess, that classmate even winked and gestured as if saying, "I know you're the one who made Starry break the rules!"... It can only be said that children of this age have a rich imagination.

There were even people who said they wanted to learn martial arts from Starry Lin. Although it was said in a joking tone, seeing the excited eyes of the people nearby when that person mentioned it, Sunny Xu knew what they were thinking.

The only thing that made Sunny Xu feel fortunate was that no one thought Starry Lin was a superpower, let alone guessed the nature of her abilities, which were actually summoning monsters from another world that ordinary people couldn't see.

On one hand, the existence of superpowers was even more unbelievable than martial arts, so no one would easily believe it. On the other hand, it also showed that her approach was quite effective: in order to not expose her secret, while beating up Shi Hui, Starry Lin deliberately performed punching movements.

Sunny Xu couldn't help but admire his friend's adaptability in critical moments. If Starry Lin had just stood there motionless and sent Shi Hui flying, or made even more noise, the situation would have been different.

Thinking of her, Sunny Xu, who had picked up his backpack and stood up, subconsciously glanced at his friend's seat and found that she was no longer there.

Did she go to her mother's place?

While he was thinking this, a clear and pleasant voice came from the back door.

"Is Sunny Xu here?"

Seigetsu Zhu knocked on the door. She stood quietly by the door and politely asked the other students in the class.

"Uh... I'm here."

Sunny Xu quickly responded. Curious gazes from his classmates turned towards him, and he didn't want to think about what they might be imagining. He hurriedly walked over.

"Why are you here?"

"I'm here to pick you up."

Seigetsu Zhu didn't have a backpack. She placed her hands behind her back and smiled as she looked up at him.

"I originally wanted to ask other classmates to let you know, but since I'm applying to join, I thought I'd take you to see the teacher."

"Okay, I understand."

"...Huh, your complexion doesn't look good." The girl's observation skills were sharp. "Is it because you've been studying too hard recently?"

"No, the classes are the same as usual. But after what happened this morning, everyone's emotions were too high." Sunny Xu felt a bit helpless.

Seigetsu Zhu quickly understood his experience and couldn't help but laugh lightly."Hehe, no wonder. After all, you are the one closest to Starry Lin, so students who are curious about her will definitely pester you. By the way, where is she?"

"She had to go home early due to some family matters."

"Alright, let's give it a try today."

……

The study group was held in Class Five. Before that, the two of them had to stop by the office.

One side of the corridor was lined with classroom windows, the other side was a wall. To prevent accidents, the wall was guaranteed to be high and thick. Underneath the wall, there was a row of spaces specifically for placing small potted plants.

Each class had a row of plants in front of their door, and taking care of these plants was also the responsibility of the on-duty students.

As Sunny Xu was about to walk past the door of Class Five, he suddenly spotted something shimmering in the sunset among the green leaves of one of the plants.

Was it something someone had dropped?

Sunny Xu walked closer for a look but couldn't make out what it was; he simply squatted down and leaned in for a closer look.

"What's wrong?"

Seigetsu Zhu, who was walking ahead, stopped and turned around, curiously staring at him.

"…There's a tooth."

Sunny Xu said.

A human white tooth was quietly lying in the soil.

Seigetsu Zhu was silent for a moment, then whispered.

"It's probably Shi Hui's."

"Uh-huh."

A thought crossed his mind: Was Shi Hui's body really undergoing some sort of mutation due to the possession of a bug monster, as Starry Lin had said? If such a change existed, where would it manifest? Could it be detected through medical examination?

Sunny Xu, suppressing his disgust, picked up the tooth with a napkin.

At that moment, his body stiffened, as if he had been struck by lightning, and he didn't move.

Search tinyurl.com/2p9emv8w for the original.

"…Sunny Xu?"

Seigetsu Zhu looked at him in surprise, called out to him, but found that he seemed to be in a daze, completely unresponsive to her words.

"Xu? Sunny? Are you okay?"

The girl's hand wanted to touch the boy's shoulder, but stopped halfway, as if hesitant.

"…I'm fine."

After a while, Sunny Xu shook his head, his voice dry.

"Shall we go?"

He didn't move, maintaining his squatting position, and didn't even turn his head, but said in a low voice:

"I'm sorry, Zhu, I won't be going today."