"Money, or credits!"
A leather boot landed on the table, clean and decisive, revealing a slender leg. Dark red hair slipped down as cold eyes locked onto him-sharp, oppressive, almost tangible. If the word "credits" were swapped with "life," she could easily pass as a bandit queen.
Faced with such a terrifying presence, the boy's choice seemed obvious-
"I want it all!"
"You can only pick one!"
"Money." Morin chose without hesitation.
"...Credits let you graduate sooner." Nono pulled her leg back, staring at him as if he were some rare specimen. "With your abilities, making money should be easy, right?"
"Not necessary." Morin frowned. "That much money isn't a good thing for me right now. And I'm not interested in playing house with kids. Someone like the one who played StarCraft with me that day is more suitable."
"That was Norma, a super AI. If you're interested, you can play games with it every day once you're a formal Cassell student!"
Nono pulled a brand-new Toshiba Qosmio G501 from her bag and slammed it onto the table.
"But for now, here. Freshly bought. Start coding."
"You're not planning to have me write that model right now, are you?" Morin looked at her as if she'd lost her mind.
"Why else?" Nono widened her eyes. "I bought this laptop just for you! The most expensive one on the market. Desktop-level performance! Aside from being heavy, it's more than enough!"
"The problem is, don't you already have Norma?" Morin countered. "I can just write the model and let her handle remote computation. What laptop can compete with a supercomputer's validation capacity?"
He paused.
"Also, I'm not a Cassell student yet."
"Can't you work before you are?" Nono stared.
"Are you a corporate overlord?" Morin pointed at the red scarf nearby. "I'm a future successor of socialism. Corruption by capitalist forces is impossible."
"Which capitalist is this willing to spend money!" Nono ground her teeth. Even that looked pleasant on her. "And is that red scarf even real? The performance is way too obvious!"
"You want me to work like a dog after giving me a bit of sweetness?"
Morin made it clear he would never bow to evil capitalism.
"You've misunderstood. I'm not the one benefiting-you are!"
Nono wore an expression that said this is for your own good.
"Sigh."
Morin suddenly sighed, looking like someone who desperately wanted to do something but was restrained by fate.
"So what's the 'but'?"
Nono crossed her arms and took two steps back, alert.
"Did you think of something bad?" Morin glanced at her.
"No. Go on."
In the time it took to say that, she took two more steps back, nearly reaching the door.
"Have you heard of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?" Morin asked seriously.
"OCD?" Nono stopped.
"Yeah. I probably have a bit of it. Since sophomore year, after changing my strategy, my grades have stayed firmly at number one. Scholarships just kept falling on me."
He raised his right hand, thumb and index finger forming a tiny gap.
"You're not about to say your OCD is..."
Nono already had a guess, and it left her speechless.
"Exactly." Morin nodded solemnly. "I'm only interested in money earned through scholarships."
"...?"
"So I plan to design the model after formally entering Cassell College."
He added calmly, "And there's a small requirement. The payment must be issued by the school as a scholarship."
"What are you even aiming for?!"
Nono was genuinely shocked. Was this OCD real? It was absurd.
"People destined for greatness often have traits normal people don't."
Morin was very composed.
"That's normal, right?"
"Right!" Nono rolled her eyes. "You're the first person I've met with scholarship OCD."
She still tried one last time.
"But that doesn't stop you from writing a bit in advance, does it?"
"True. It doesn't."
"Then write it."
"I don't know how to program yet."
Morin said it as calmly as listing breakfast.
"WHAT?!"
Nono snapped.
...
Watching the furious yet powerless red-haired girl drive away in her Ferrari, Morin withdrew his gaze and tapped the heavy laptop on the table.
It wasn't that he was deliberately making things difficult.
The [Student] profession only allowed him to earn money through scholarships.
He had been briefly stunned when the profession panel appeared:
[Student · Entry Level]
[Title Bonuses:]
* [CON] +10 (You need more stamina to study hard!)
*
• [Descendant of the Yan and Huang] (We are descendants of the Dragon! [What kind of ugly creature, merely covered in scales and horns, dares to call itself a Dragon?!])
• [Model Student] (A student must act like a student! You can only gain professional experience through scholarships! However, experience gained per unit of money is tripled!)
Only three bonuses.
But Morin was satisfied.
Leaving aside the experience multiplier and the minor stamina buff, the most valuable was clearly [Descendant of the Yan and Huang].
This time, it didn't feel like the system was forcibly granting him power.
It felt like something ancient had awakened.
A bloodline that already existed within him.
A descendant of the Dragon.
A Dragon.
But this "Dragon" was not that "Dragon."
Morin was starting to look forward to using the power rooted in his bloodline.
Before that, though, he still had to play-
No.
Truly immerse himself-
In the role of an ordinary A-rank student who only possessed Spirit: Predictive Logic.
Some problems could be solved quickly with brute force.
But what meaning would that have?
...
Lu Mingfei slumped in his chair, eyes unfocused.
Tomorrow was the interview.
He had been nervous at first, but after receiving Chen Wenwen's message, he was suddenly full of energy. She only replied with five words and said nothing else, but that was more than enough for him to imagine countless possibilities.
Riding that momentum, he found his American friend Old Tang and practiced English interviews over voice chat. After that completely ineffective last-minute effort, he planned to play a round of StarCraft, crush some newbies, and sleep contentedly.
Then a message popped up.
From someone named "Nono."
"A round?"
"I'm in!"
Lu Mingfei didn't think much about when he'd added her. The nickname sounded like a girl's, but right now, as "Sir Lu"-someone who had received a reply from Chen Wenwen and was about to interview at a top American university-he wasn't wasting brain cells on that.
He was already satisfied.
One more StarCraft win and the day would be perfect.
When expectations are low, happiness comes easily.
But that also means one keeps lowering the bar, living humbly and without confidence.
Lu Mingfei was exactly that kind of person.
Then he lost.
Five minutes in, he sensed something was wrong. He finally plugged in his mouse, but still got crushed within half an hour, with no chance to fight back.
Every move he made.
Every thought he had.
Everything he was about to do.
It was all seen through.
This was the second time in his life he felt this way.
The first time had been because of Morin.
So Lu Mingfei quickly made the connection.
Even though the opponent used a girl's name like "Nono," he'd done the same thing before. He once registered an account called "Scar of the Setting Sun," used a cute short-haired girl's photo, set the age to sixteen, and used it to flirt with his cousin Lu Mingze online.
It was hilarious.
And Morin's StarCraft skills were several tiers above his own. He could massacre him every round.
So this had to be Morin, using a female account to get revenge.
The logic was flawless.
But Lu Mingfei wasn't in the mood to play guessing games.
He typed directly:
"Morin, stop pretending. I recognize you."
The other side went silent for two seconds.
Then a message came back.
"I'm your daddy!"
A voice message.
Lu Mingfei clicked it and jumped in fright. Thankfully, his headphones were still plugged in, so there was no midnight catastrophe.
But from the voice alone, it was clearly a girl.
And she sounded furious.
Lu Mingfei froze for a long moment before weakly typing, "Who are you, exactly?"
The avatar turned gray.
After waiting a minute or two, the bored Lu Mingfei opened his chat with Chen Wenwen again. All confusion vanished instantly.
He was full of fighting spirit.
As Morin would put it, like he'd taken a bottle of aphrodisiac.
He went to bed.
On the other side, the red-haired girl clenched her teeth in front of her screen.
She'd been in a bad mood and wanted to crush Lu Mingfei, show him there was always someone better, and observe this so-called "S-rank."
She never expected to be mistaken for that black-hearted guy.
"Black-hearted guy."
That was Nono's private nickname for Morin.
She couldn't fully profile him yet, but she was certain of one thing-
He was not as sunny and gentle as he appeared.
From the past two days alone, she was convinced he was black-hearted, with the rest just a facade. With his ability, maintaining appearances was trivial.
She didn't dare say the nickname out loud.
You don't offend someone like that.
Especially when you suspect every thought and move of yours is already within his predictions.
The past two days had taught her that lesson well.
The most irritating part?
If he called again next time, she'd still have to go.
So why had she been so curious to observe him in person?
Was she stupid?
Nono rolled around on her bed.
This was the first time she'd been completely handled by someone.
For the credits.
For a super human-computer interface she could use anytime after building a good relationship.
Nono took deep breaths, analyzing the benefits over and over, until she finally calmed down.
Only then did she notice several messages from "Sonic."
"Is it handled?"
"Anything special about Lu Mingfei?"
Her anger flared again.
Then her thoughts shifted, and the Little Witch stirred.
She grabbed her phone and replied:
"I don't see anything special at all. There's no one more pathetic than him."
"Isn't that a bit harsh?"
"I have to say, this is the most impartial evaluation I've ever made."
"But he's an S-rank."
"I know. But this S-rank shows no signs of danger."
She paused.
"If anything, the other prospective freshman is more suspicious."
"Another freshman?"
"The one I dealt with today!"
Her vicious tone almost leaked through the screen.
"He's simply a freak!"
"A freak? It's rare for you to give that evaluation."
"There's no one else. You were only 'acceptable' back then."
"Then I really should thank you for choosing me, an 'acceptable' person."
Sonic sounded helpless.
"So what makes him a freak? Any chance of recruiting him into the Student Union?"
"Forget recruiting him. If we do, I suspect your position as president won't be safe."
Nono replied coldly.
"Someone like him, even in a low position, could control the entire big picture."
"Interesting."
Sonic's tone sharpened.
"Then we must recruit him even more. Someone like that absolutely can't fall into the hands of the Lionheart Society."
"And your position?"
"If he can take it, I'll be happy."
This lion-like man feared no challenge.
Nono's words only fueled his pride.
"I'll do my best. Interview tomorrow. I'm out."
The Little Witch disappeared as soon as her goal was reached.
As for actually inviting Morin into the Student Union?
Nono would have to be insane.
With his black-hearted nature, she was sure she'd just get blackmailed again.