"Ying Gong Tong?"
Spencer repeated the na, her eyes widening in shock. Pointing at Yan Huan, she blurted out,
"Oh! That’s the one you like—the Vice President!"
"......"
Yan Huan didn’t respond. He simply took a deep breath and closed the laptop.
He didn’t know the password, but judging by the contents, there was no way it held anything ordinary.
Slowly, he sat down in his Student Council President’s chair, wrapping his coat tightly around himself as if the room had suddenly turned freezing cold.
"Hoo..."
Breathing into his hands, he stared blankly at the notebook filled with his photos. A heavy silence fell over the room.
"......"
Spencer blinked, glancing at him uneasily. It was clear—Yan Huan had taken a critical hit.
She had always wanted to steal Yan Huan away from that fake Ying Gong Tong, but even she hadn’t expected this level of perversion.
And judging by Yan Huan’s reaction, he clearly had no idea. He was completely stunned.
A rare feeling of sympathy crept into Spencer’s heart.
She hesitated, reaching a hand toward him, as if to say sothing—maybe even to comfort him.
But in the end, her hand stopped mid-air.
"Ugh..."
She folded her arms instead, pacing back and forth beside him.
She kept sneaking glances at the dazed Yan Huan.
"Ugh..."
Round and round she walked, her confusion only deepening.
What was she even supposed to do?
This was the perfect mont—while Yan Huan’s image of Ying Gong Tong was shattering, she could swoop in and take him for herself.
But looking at his current state, she couldn’t bring herself to do it.
And so, she just stood there, silent and restless.
Ding ding ding~
The class bell rang.
"Class is starting, huh..."
The sharp sound snapped Yan Huan out of his daze slightly.
He lifted his gaze and saw Spencer crouched by his desk.
She peeked over the edge, her fingers gripping the tabletop, her big blue eyes staring up at him.
"...Mm, go to class, Spencer."
"Oh, uh... You okay?"
"......"
Spencer blinked, stood up, and hesitantly walked toward the door.
"I’m really leaving, okay?"
"Mm."
"...I really am, okay?"
Standing at the doorway, Spencer turned back one last ti, voice soft.
"...Mm."
She nodded, stepping outside.
But just as the door was about to close, she poked her head back in and whispered,
"I’m really leaving, okay? You... don’t do anything stupid, alright? It’s not that big a deal... got it?"
"......"
Yan Huan’s face darkened. Just as he was about to say sothing, Spencer saw his expression and quickly slamd the door shut.
Click.
Now, only Yan Huan remained in the Student Council Office.
He glanced at the ti—it was already the start of class.
Normally, Ying Gong would have stopped by the office before class.
But today, she hadn’t co at all.
"......"
Yan Huan pulled out his phone, opened Plane, and sent a ssage to Ying Gong.
"Ying Gong, did you not co to school today?"
"......"
No response.
Frustrated, he put his phone down and flipped through the notebook again.
It contained photos from all over campus, not just the Student Council Office.
Flipping further, he even found pictures taken outside Nursery Rhy Pub and his own apartnt entrance.
"......"
Yan Huan’s stomach twisted in disgust. He nearly slamd the notebook shut as if he had swallowed a fly.
But the motion caused a loose photo to flutter out, landing on his desk.
Pausing, he picked it up.
It was a photo from when he and Ying Gong attended the Doujin Exhibition together.
In the picture, Ying Gong was smiling radiantly, her expression as perfect as ever.
His lips pressed together, and out of habit, he flipped it over to check the back.
And then—his pupils contracted.
"March 10th, Golden Lion Convention Center."
"This is the first ti in my life I’ve taken a photo with a man other than my father and brother. I’ll treasure this one."
"I loved seeing the President turn down other girls for . He looked so handso."
"So as a reward, next ti, I’ll take the initiative to get closer to the President I like~"
Yan Huan stared at the handwriting for a long ti.
On his desk, ow-chan suddenly materialized, hopping up and sitting properly.
Looking at Yan Huan, he said,
"Looks like Ying Gong really does like you, ow. No need to doubt it anymore."
"......"
Yan Huan remained silent, flipping open the notebook again.
One by one, he checked the backs of the other photos.
"November 9th, Student Council Office."
"The President seems to like petite girls who trigger his protective instincts. Also, he has a preference for thigh-high socks."
"I should wear more of these in the future."
"November 3rd, Cafeteria."
"The President prefers strong teas like black tea. As an international student, his knowledge of etiquette is limited."
"Too much formal etiquette might overwhelm him. I should remove so and keep only the essentials."
Yan Huan continued flipping through the photos, while ow-chan examined them as well.
Finally, ow-chan turned to Yan Huan and reassured him,
"Even though they’re all secretly taken, at least none of them are too extre. No photos of you changing clothes or showering, ow."
Yan Huan understood what ow-chan was trying to do—keeping him grounded, stopping him from spiraling.
It wasn’t just for his sake but for dealing with the Modifier as well.
After a pause, ow-chan added,
"But... it looks like all those details that hit your weak spots were things Ying Gong studied and intentionally displayed."
"They weren’t really her."
"......"
Yan Huan exhaled deeply and nodded.
"Yeah."
"So... what are you going to do, ow?"
Looking at the photos, Yan Huan said,
"Last night, you asked the right question, ow-chan. Now that the truth is clear, I really can’t say if I still like her."
"ow..."
ow-chan looked at him worriedly, but Yan Huan continued,
"But I also can’t say that I won’t like her anymore."
"ow?"
Resting his chin on his hand, Yan Huan gazed at the door.
"ow-chan, in my opinion, when it cos to feelings—
If you don’t like soone, walk away.
If you do, then move forward without hesitation.
"There’s no point in avoiding it, only to end up tangled in regret. That kind of indecision only tortures both sides..."
He didn’t move from his seat. Instead, his voice was firm as he declared,
"So, I want to understand the real Ying Gong.
"I want to confront her about what she’s done. I want to talk about our feelings, honestly.
"I’ll wait here for her to co back and explain."
ow-chan, watching the resolute Yan Huan, nodded in approval.
"Yan Huan, I’ll stay with you, ow."
anwhile, on a highway in Jinghe District, inside a moving black sedan—
Ying Gong Tong stared at her phone.
The screen displayed a live feed from the Student Council Office’s surveillance caras.
Although Spencer had broken the Barrier, the physical caras were still functioning.
So, she quickly pulled up the feed to check on the situation.
And then—
She saw Spencer opening the drawer.
She saw Spencer find the laptop and the notebook.
"SPENCER!!"
Ying Gong’s eyes turned red with rage as she clenched her teeth.
Just as she was about to order Nara to speed up—
She saw a young man in a coat enter the room.
"Pr—President..."
Her eyes widened in horror, her face draining of color.
"N-no... Spencer..."
But what could she do? She was kiloters away.
She could only watch in helpless terror as Spencer handed the notebook to Yan Huan.
Yan Huan flipped through it—
And his expression froze.
"...N-Nara, STOP THE CAR!"
"Huh?"
The car screeched to a halt by the roadside.
Nara turned back, only to see his young mistress ashen-faced, staring at the screen like a lifeless doll.
"What's wrong, Miss?"
The phone slipped from her hands, landing on the car floor.
With a trembling voice, she muttered,
"Th-the President... he found out...
"He knows I was monitoring him..."
The sa theory applied—if the Barrier was divided into two spaces, one nad "Outer" and the other "Inner", then as long as the notebook and other items were stored in the Inner Barrier while Ying Gong herself remained in the Outer Barrier, Spencer wouldn't be able to break through it just by opening the door.
That was why, when Spencer and An Le barged into the Student Council Office before, nothing had triggered the Barrier.
But what Ying Gong had never anticipated was that if she wasn’t inside the Barrier herself, then even if the Outer Barrier was active, the Inner Barrier would collapse the mont Spencer entered the room.
This disaster had been caused by three completely unexpected factors—
Ying Gong Tong didn’t fully understand her own or Spencer’s Modifier abilities.
She had been too excited the night before, barely slept, woke up late, and was delayed getting to school. Normally, she would have arrived at the office much earlier, never giving Spencer the chance to enter alone and disrupt the Barrier.
Spencer, feeling guilty over stealing Yan Huan’s first kiss last week, had a sudden morning outburst and stord into the Student Council Office alone.
Three seemingly minor details had stacked together, triggering a butterfly effect that spiraled into a disaster.
But now, it was too late.
Because Yan Huan had already seen everything she had done.
"...W-What do I do... I can’t go to school anymore..."
Ying Gong clutched her head, breathing erratically, her face turning deathly pale.
It was like a rat being dragged out of the sewers.Like a vampire exposed to sunlight.
Instant death.
The feeling of her deepest, darkest secrets being ripped into the light burned through her soul, an agony she couldn’t bear.
"Maybe... I should transfer... to another Linn school... or if not, I could just go back ho... let my brothers take back and hide for a while..."
Nara, watching the way Ying Gong was gasping for breath like she was about to pass out, knew she was on the verge of breaking down completely.
Her body was already weak—if this continued, sothing serious could happen.
Gritting her teeth, Nara picked up the fallen phone and looked at the screen.
On it, Yan Huan sat alone in his office chair.
The class bell had already rung, but he still hadn’t left.
Instead, a ssage from Plane had co through—
"Ying Gong, did you not co to school today?"
Staring at the phone screen, Nara clenched her jaw, grabbed Ying Gong by the chin, and forced her to look up at her.
"Ying Gong Tong, calm the hell down!"
"I-I can’t calm down! It’s all over... Just yesterday... the President gave a gift, we planned to go see the ocean together... I..."
"It’s NOT over!!"
Nara shoved the phone screen in front of her face, pointing at Yan Huan’s ssage.
"He saw what you did. He didn’t leave, he didn’t call you out, he’s asking when you’re coming to school! Isn’t that a chance?!"
She stared directly into Ying Gong’s red, terrified eyes.
"Do you really plan to wear this mask for the rest of your life? Yeah, taking it off hurts, but are you really gonna just give up because of that?!"
"This is your chance—your test. You need to get your act together and go explain everything to him!"
Nara pressed her forehead against Ying Gong’s, feeling how ice-cold she had beco.
The warmth of Nara’s skin slowly transferred over as she firmly stated—
"So what if you have to start over? So what if you have to rebuild this relationship from the ground up?
"You’re still young. Are you fighting for this mont, or are you fighting for a lifeti? You need to figure that out yourself."
Ying Gong’s trembling gaze locked onto Nara’s, her head instinctively shaking as if to say, "I can’t do it."
But Nara wouldn’t let go—
"Make your choice. Do you want to run away and regret this forever, or do you want to face him?"
"......"
Ying Gong bit down on her lip, still terrified, still desperate to escape.
But then—
She suddenly rembered—
She still had the Barrier.
That thought alone gave her courage.
After a long silence, she clenched her fists and whispered through gritted teeth,
"I... I’m going to school. I’m going to see the President..."
"That’s more like—"
But just as Nara let go of her, Ying Gong suddenly clutched her stomach in pain.
She gagged, dry-heaving a few tis.
Startled, Nara quickly grabbed a vomit bag and handed it to her.
"Ugh..."
Pale as a ghost, Ying Gong held the bag and threw up what little breakfast she had eaten.
"......"
Nara sighed in exasperation as her phone started beeping with alerts.
Ying Gong’s body was far too weak—as long as her emotions remained stable, she was fine. But under extre stress, her body collapsed imdiately.
She was so weak, she couldn’t even pull along her younger sister.She got out of breath just standing on her tiptoes.
Ying Gong had been born premature, and her health had always been fragile.
Compared to her tall, strong older brothers, she had always been the delicate one, the one everyone was extra careful with.
Even coming to Linn had been a struggle, and she had been assigned a personal security, dical, and dietary team just to make sure she stayed alive.
She and Spencer both wore ergency health wristbands.
"Tsk, we don’t have a choice. Your health alarm went off. A doctor will be here in a few minutes, and they’re probably going to send you to the hospital."
Taking the vomit bag, Nara stepped back and sighed.
Sure enough, the Bluetooth earpiece crackled with an incoming transmission.
"Nara, are you with the Young Miss?"
"Yes."
"What is her condition?"
"Severe physical distress, irregular heart rate, signs of fainting and palpitations."
"Understood. We’ll be there in five minutes."
"......"
Hanging up, Nara looked at Ying Gong—panting, trembling, but still determined.
Then, with a shaky voice, Ying Gong said—
"Take to school, Nara."
"......"
Nara groaned, rubbing her temples.
For a mont, she hesitated.
Then—slam.
She shut the car door.
Click.
Belted herself in.
Then said—
"Fine. If you’re willing to risk it, I’ll risk it with you."
"Buckle up. We’re going full speed."
The next second, the black sedan launched forward, racing toward Yuanyue Academy.
"VROOOOM!"
Back in the Student Council Office—
Yan Huan flipped through the notebook, one page at a ti, reading every note, every annotation.
Each page added another layer to his understanding of Ying Gong.
Maybe... this wasn’t that big of a deal?
At least she wasn’t as terrifying as so of the other Modifier hosts.
Maybe... this wasn’t the worst thing that could happen?
Yan Huan exhaled, lost in thought—
Until.
"Huff... huff..."
Outside, despite it being class ti, urgent footsteps echoed down the hallway.
Yan Huan’s ears twitched.
Casually, he shut the notebook, slid it back into the drawer, and left everything exactly as it was—as if he had never touched it.
BAM!
The door burst open.
A panting, pale-faced girl stood in the doorway.
Sweat dotted her forehead, and her neatly arranged pink bangs had co loose.
"Huff... huff..."
The door swung shut behind her.
Yan Huan lifted his gaze.
Looking at her.
Looking at Ying Gong Tong.
Soone... help .
I don’t want this...
Is there any other way?
Anything to make the President accept this—anything to just go back to how things were, even if it’s just pretending to be normal...
I don’t want him to hate .
Like a drowning person flailing for anything to keep her afloat, Ying Gong Tong desperately searched for sothing—anything—that could save her.
Nara wasn’t here.
Yan Huan was sitting right across from her.
What else could she rely on?
The Barrier.
It didn’t work on Spencer, but against the President...
Ying Gong’s eyes lit up slightly.
If she could alter his perception, just a little, just enough for him to gradually accept everything...
Then maybe—maybe he wouldn’t hate her.
Maybe he wouldn’t reject her outright.
"President, actually, I..."
As she spoke, her fingers subtly pressed against the sofa beside her.
The Barrier—
Activated.
"Kong kong kong~"
A strange, unfathomable shadow swept over the entire room.
"President, actually, I’ve always been watching you, monitoring you..."
Ying Gong gritted her teeth and forced the words out.
Hearing this, Yan Huan actually felt relieved.
At least—at least she was admitting it.
That was a good thing, right?
If she could admit it, then maybe they could work things out—
Even if this was sothing completely unreasonable—
Wait.
Unreasonable?
Is it really unreasonable to spy on the person you like?
Isn’t it just a normal way of expressing affection?
Wouldn’t anyone do this for soone they love?
Doesn’t this just prove that Ying Gong really, really likes ?
Shouldn’t I be... happy?
Yan Huan’s mind blanked out for a second.
Then, thoughts started flooding in, one after another—twisting, shifting, reshaping—until, finally, he arrived at the conclusion:
"This is fine."
"This is normal."
"This is love."
"ROAR!!"
The very next mont—
"Fwoosh!!"
The phantom of ow-chan suddenly materialized, fur bristling, claws digging into Yan Huan’s shoulder.
A sharp, ear-piercing screech shattered the eerie silence, slicing through the murky haze that had settled over Yan Huan’s mind.
The sound ripped through his skull, sending a sharp wave of pain crashing into his brain.
His thoughts twisted in agony.
Sowhere deep inside—
His resistance kicked in.
An unseen force clashed violently with the shifting reality around him.
Yan Huan gasped, inhaling sharply.
And then—he realized.
He understood.
Slowly, he turned his gaze toward Ying Gong Tong—
Who sat there, head lowered, fingers clutching her skirt, voice trembling as she confessed her "feelings."
"Creak, creak, creak."
Beyond the Student Council windows, the world darkened, shifting into a void as black as deep space.
Everything—every single law of reality—was being deconstructed and rewritten according to her will.
"Common sense..."
Yan Huan’s eyes darted toward the sealed doors and windows, toward the suffocating, isolated space where reality itself had begun to warp.
And in that mont—
A single mory resurfaced.
That day in the infirmary.
Back then, he and Ying Gong had been trapped together.
At the ti, he had assud it was Spencer’s Modifier ability that had locked them in.
But now—
Spencer wasn’t here.
And yet, reality was shifting again—this ti, bending entirely in Ying Gong’s favor.
And that’s when Yan Huan finally realized—
It was never Spencer’s Modifier.
The real Modifier host was—
Ying Gong Tong.
A spike of cold terror shot through Yan Huan’s skull, like a steel nail driving deep into his brain.
His resistance held—barely.
It kept him conscious, kept him from falling completely under her influence.
But still—
He sat there.
Frozen.
Watching.
Staring at the girl across from him—
The girl shrouded in shadow, her delicate hands clenching the hem of her skirt.
"......"
The Barrier swirled.
The final straw—
The weight of it crashed down upon Yan Huan’s mind like an avalanche.
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