Chapter 86: Death Class 7 (Part 10)

She stared at Shen Qingqiu a moment, then reached out, gently lifting her shirt. Her fingers traced over the bandages, relieved to find them dry. Calling tonight’s experience a dream wasn’t too far off.

Reassured, Xiao Muyu retracted her hand, about to lie back down. But her gaze involuntarily fell on Shen Qingqiu’s lips. She leaned over to watch her. She snapped back to her senses and realized she had unconsciously moved closer. She could feel Shen Qingqiu’s steady breathing.

Feeling a little hot, Xiao Muyu quickly lay back down.

Shen Qingqiu was exhausted. The injury she’d sustained burdened her more than she had let on. Hence, she had fallen asleep so quickly.

Lying on her side, Xiao Muyu glanced at Shen Qingqiu for a while. Her gaze drifted. A moment later, she touched her own lips, her expression somewhat unclear. Finally, she closed her eyes resignedly.

She had fallen. She accepted it.

The bell rang at 6:30 AM, signaling the start of the morning self-study at Yuanning High.

The sound jolted Xiao Muyu awake. She felt something heavy on her. She glanced down, around, and finally stared at the ceiling, sighing.

Shen Qingqiu slept soundly. She clung to Xiao Muyu like an octopus, with one arm draped over Xiao Muyu’s waist, her head resting on her shoulder, and her leg thrown over her.

Shen Qingqiu’s clothes had ridden up, exposing her waist and stomach.

The body in her arms was warm and soft, smelling faintly nice. However, it still felt heavy when pressed against her like this.

The bell didn’t wake Shen Qingqiu. The other four girls in the room showed no signs of stirring, either. The nightmare from last night seemed to have left them physically and mentally exhausted.

Xiao Muyu’s gaze fell back on Shen Qingqiu. The blood on the bandages had dried but remained glaringly obvious. Did this woman have no sense of pain? Even with such a severe injury, she still stubbornly confronted the ghost.

Xiao Muyu’s hand automatically moved to touch the bandages. She traced her fingers over Shen Qingqiu’s stomach without thinking. The skin felt too smooth to the touch, and cold due to exposure.

To cling to her was one thing, but she didn’t even cover herself with the blanket. Xiao Muyu couldn’t move her body. Frowning, she hooked her fingers on the blanket and carefully pulled it over Shen Qingqiu. She then gingerly moved Shen Qingqiu’s arm and leg.

Finally, Xiao Muyu managed to extract herself from Shen Qingqiu’s embrace. She let out a long breath.

As soon as she turned her head, she met the culprit’s amused gaze.

Xiao Muyu schooled her expression and looked at Shen Qingqiu. “Your sleeping posture is beyond words,” she said coldly. “Sleep farther away from me next time. You’re way too heavy.”

“It was an accident.” Shen Qingqiu couldn’t stop smiling. “I normally sleep very still. I don’t move at all the whole night.”

“Oh?” Xiao Muyu retorted. “So I was the one who moved you onto me and wrapped you around me?”

“No, it was my fault.” Shen Qingqiu earnestly shook her head. “I don’t know why. My body automatically moves toward you when I sleep. I can’t seem to control it.”

She stared straight at Xiao Muyu. There was no teasing or frivolity in her gray eyes, only light, sparkling like stars.

For a moment, Xiao Muyu had the illusion those stars were shining for her.

She had always thought Shen Qingqiu’s eyes were only capable of flippancy, malice, mockery, and the coldness she exhibited in the face of danger. But at this moment, Xiao Muyu suddenly realized when Shen Qingqiu looked at her and smiled, sometimes her eyes would have this star-like quality. It made her hesitant to linger in them, afraid she wouldn’t be able to escape.

Flustered, Xiao Muyu averted her gaze and said stiffly, “Had I known you were awake, I would’ve kicked you off me.”

Shen Qingqiu continued to look at her steadily. “I only woke up when you touched me. It tickled.”

“When did I touch you…?” Xiao Muyu felt awkward. “I was just worried your stomach would get cold. You’re a grown adult, but you act like a child.”

She sat up to get ready for the day.

Shen Qingqiu also planned to get up. Xiao Muyu glanced at her and said, “You don’t need to get up so early. Sleep a little longer. Last night tired you out.”

“What about you?” Shen Qingqiu asked, confused.

“I’m not tired.” Xiao Muyu got dressed. “I’ll go check on the class today. The wake-up bell just went off, so they should all be up. But our roommates haven’t moved yet. I think those who got dragged into the game last night can afford to sleep in a little. Besides, the system didn’t warn you. Stay here and rest a while.”

“Nope.” Shen Qingqiu shook her head. “I won’t be able to sleep without you here anyway. I’ll get up, too.”

Xiao Muyu stopped moving, then turned to look at Shen Qingqiu. She was already sitting on the edge of the bed, swinging her legs, revealing a pair of fair feet. Despite her serious expression, her voice was soft, carrying a natural charm she didn’t even realize.

Xiao Muyu stared at her for a long time. She then turned around and searched the bedside dresser for some clothes Shen Qingqiu could wear.

Shen Qingqiu took the clothes from her and gave an amused huff.

“What are you laughing at?” Xiao Muyu asked, bemused.

“Just thinking about how considerate you are, Muyu.” Shen Qingqiu put on the clothes. “You folded my clothes for me before. Now, you’re finding me clothes.”

“Stop daydreaming.” Xiao Muyu gave her a dismissive look. “When you’re awake, just get up.”

They didn’t head straight to the classroom after washing up. Instead, they made their way to the teacher’s dorms.

Su Jin opened the door after they knocked. She and Zuo Tiantian relaxed upon seeing Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu.

“Are you both okay?”

Xiao Muyu nodded. “We didn’t have a chance to talk properly last night. If it weren’t for you and Tian… Zuo Tiantian, someone would’ve been done for last night.”

She had almost said ‘Tiantian’ without thinking but swallowed the name before it escaped her lips.

Shen Qingqiu stared at her, then quietly let Xiao Muyu’s backhanded jab pass.

Zuo Tiantian and Su Jin didn’t hear anything amiss.

“We’re all teammates now.” Su Jin hurriedly waved her hand. “It’s the least we could do. Besides, if you and Ms. Shen weren’t so capable, we wouldn’t have had the guts to throw a basketball at that thing.”

“Yeah,” Zuo Tiantian chimed in. “I never would’ve thought players could make ghosts wail if I hadn’t met Ms. Shen. Honestly, we were both scared and excited last night. And Leader Xiao, stop scolding Ms. Shen. She just acted rashly out of worry. You two shouldn’t fight anymore.”

Xiao Muyu gave Zuo Tiantian a strange look. Zuo Tiantian could sense some resentment in it. But Xiao Muyu quickly turned away and muttered, “Me, scolding her? She was the one yelling at me and cussing me out like crazy last night.”

Shen Qingqiu widened her eyes at Xiao Muyu in disbelief. What a petty woman.

Zuo Tiantian and Su Jin were also surprised. They exchanged glances before saying in unison, “No way.”

Shen Qingqiu snickered. Xiao Muyu frowned at her smug expression. No way? Shen Qingqiu has done plenty of excessive things.

Su Jin noticed Xiao Muyu’s expression was off. “What we meant was,” she quickly added, “Forget about scolding. If it’d been anyone else, we wouldn’t doubt Ms. Shen stabbing them with her dagger. But how could Ms. Shen ever yell at you?”

Zuo Tiantian bobbed her head like a chicken pecking at grains.

Xiao Muyu couldn’t be bothered to respond. She turned and started walking. “Let’s head to class.”

Shen Qingqiu followed behind her, also bobbing her head. “Exactly, exactly,” she said in earnest. “How could I ever scold you? I cherish you too much to even think of doing that.”

“Shut up!” Xiao Muyu shot back without turning around. She walked even faster.

The instance had just begun. They still had much information to collect and many dangers to face. However, Shen Qingqiu was in an unusually good mood.

“Muyu, weren’t you about to call ‘Tiantian’ earlier?” Shen Qingqiu raised a brow. “Why didn’t you?”

She seemed to be asking for a beating. Xiao Muyu shot her a sideways glance. “Annoying.”

“But I’m serious.” Shen Qingqiu caught up to her. “Can you address me more affectionately?”

Xiao Muyu paused, then suddenly turned around to look at Shen Qingqiu. “How affectionate? Should I call you ‘Qiuqiu’?”

Shen Qingqiu almost bumped into her. Qiuqiu?

It was an overly intimate nickname. Yet, Xiao Muyu said it with so little emotion that it sounded awkward.

“How can you make such a cheesy nickname sound so cold?” Shen Qingqiu muttered.

“Let’s go, Shen Qingqiu,” Xiao Muyu said softly with a long-suffering tone. She waved Shen Qingqiu over.

For some reason, Shen Qingqiu felt her full name sounded much more comfortable than ‘Qiuqiu’. And quite affectionate.

The sky hadn’t brightened when the two returned to Class 7. The school buildings looked so alike, and it was dark outside. They almost went into the wrong one.

By the time they made it to the classroom, everyone except for those involved in the game the night before had already arrived.

The sound of dispirited reading abruptly stopped. Almost everyone turned to look at them. Shock covered their faces, as if they were seeing monsters.

Shen Qingqiu boldly walked in, drawing most of the class’s attention. Xiao Muyu appeared indifferent, gazing straight ahead. But she observed each person’s reaction from the corner of her eye.

Most of the students acted normally. However, Xiao Muyu noticed Liu Ya’s face remained expressionless as she coldly looked at the two of them. It didn’t look like the behavior of an ordinary student.

Her deskmate Lin Xue, on the other hand, looked no different from the others. Her face showed a complicated mix of surprise, fear, and other emotions.

The English teacher was already in the classroom. The young teacher let them in and similarly looked at them with sympathetic and resigned eyes.

“Alright. Continue reading, everyone,” said the teacher.

The sound of reading gradually resumed in the classroom. Like before, it seemed too peaceful.

It appeared Shen Qingqiu was right. They had gotten used to this situation. Everyone must know by now what the students of Class 7 would be facing.

“It’s hard to imagine how they can still sit here under such stress. Normal people would already be going nuts.” Shen Qingqiu ignored the teacher’s request. She mumbled, “Loving Family,” and typed a message in the group chat.

Chen Kaijie: [? What happened last night? Are you all okay?]

Zuo Tiantian: [We were chosen to enter a hunting game last night. Class 7 students are in the selection pool. If someone fails the game, they become the next Luo Zihao.]

Zuo Tiantian’s fingers trembled as she brought up last night’s game. Seeing Luo Zihao bouncing along on his head honestly spooked her out of her mind.

When she watched Su Jin knock him over with the basketball last night, she was so scared she kept stomping in place. It had been a hair-raising experience.

Chen Kaijie: [You guys made it out, right?]

Xiao Muyu: [Don’t worry. We’re fine.]

Su Jin: [It’s strange. Technically, we should all be connected to Class 7. Why did Brother Chen get a police officer role?]

Xiao Muyu’s movements faltered a moment after reading Su Jin’s message. That thought had crossed her mind last night, too. It didn’t make sense.

Zuo Tiantian considered it before replying: [Brother Chen’s role helps us gather certain information. If we’re all just students and teachers, our information sources would be too limited.]

Chen Kaijie: [And a police officer could have a connection to Class 7. The police need to investigate whenever something happens to a student. Speaking of which, Class 7 had three incidents this semester. I handled them all.]

Xiao Muyu read the chat while staring at her interface without offering a word. That explanation made sense. Still, something was off.

Not to mention, they knew from the start that the system would intentionally maintain fairness between players. Even if this was a team-based instance with no competition, every arrangement the system made had a purpose.

And that purpose would never be to make things easier for the players. While a police officer role had its uses, it shouldn’t all be an advantage.

Su Jin: [Leader Xiao, why aren’t you saying anything?]

Shen Qingqiu glanced down at her interface, then tilted her head to look at Xiao Muyu. The girl sitting there, around sixteen or seventeen, had a delicate, graceful appearance. She sat upright with an impeccable posture.

She had been beautiful since that young age. How could someone be that good-looking? Sitting there, doing nothing, she effortlessly captured Shen Qingqiu’s attention.

But this pretty girl, sitting so properly, wasn’t paying attention to the lesson. She was frowning slightly, lost in thought.

Shen Qingqiu loved watching Xiao Muyu like this—serious and focused, her lips pressed together, jawline tense. It was adorable.

Shen Qingqiu: [She’s thinking about something. Don’t disturb her.]

Su Jin instinctively typed a reply: [Then what about you, Ms. Shen?]

Shen Qingqiu: [I’m watching her think.]

Su Jin turned to look at Zuo Tiantian, making porridge nearby. Zuo Tiantian leaned over to glance at the chat and laughed. “Why even ask? Those two never know how to restrain themselves.”

Su Jin nodded seriously, then corrected, “Actually, only Ms. Shen doesn’t know how to restrain herself.”

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Author had something to say:

When will Xiao Xiao kiss Xiao Shen back? Haha.