Vic munched on popcorn, enthusiastically swinging his legs. He was dying to join the high-stakes, potentially deadly academic debate.
For instance, he could share his personal experience of accidentally tasting a certain tropical fungus and, along with Venom, watching twelve hours of colorful, crawling slug hallucinations. So, when Miss Thornhill picked up a small shrub with metallic blue leaves and blood-red berries, Vic immediately raised his hand, answering before being called: "I know!
It's 'Blue Blooded Lady'! The sap tastes like a mix of rusty nails and raspberries, with a hint of..." Before he could finish, he usually picked one of the blood-red, tempting berries and tossed it into his mouth, chewing it a few times, and even offered it to Enid beside him: "Hey, Enid, want to try it?
The texture's quite interesting!" Bianca in the front row almost failed to maintain her haughty expression.
Wednesday's lips twitched almost imperceptibly, as if witnessing something extremely stupid yet entirely predictable. "Victor Black!" Miss Thornhill's voice was immediately sharp, bringing an unprecedented level of alarm.
She practically teleported to the back row, slapping the potentially disastrous berry out of Vic's hand, her voice trembling: "Spit it out! Now! Immediately! This can cause tetanic muscle contractions throughout your body until your spine breaks!
" Startled by the outburst, Vic obediently spat out the residue, hitting his lips in evaluation: "No wonder my neck feels a bit stiff..." Venom squirmed in discomfort inside him: "Blech! Disgusting! It tastes like chewing on a used bicycle!
You idiot, Vic! Can you ask me before tasting something next time?" Miss Thornhill's face turned pale.
She held her forehead, looking like she desperately needed oxygen. Pointing a shaking finger at Vic, she declared: "You! From now on! Do not answer any questions! Do not touch any teaching aids! Do not taste anything, including your own fingers!
" She took a deep breath, her gaze shifting to the equally stunned Enid beside him, her tone like a grave, as if entrusting a great responsibility: "Miss Sinclair! Watch him! If he tries to eat anything that's not normal food again, I permit you...
to use any means necessary to stop him! Including, but not limited to, knocking him down!" Enid jerked back to reality, immediately straightening her posture as if receiving a military order: "Yes! Miss Thornhill!
" She instinctively reached out, grasping Vic's wrist tightly, as if guarding a large, dangerous child who might decide to gnaw on a cactus at any moment.
Vic blinked innocently. He looked at his captured wrist, then at the still-shaken teacher on the podium and the mix of contempt and schadenfreude from the front row, and finally down at the box of chocolate popcorn.
He shrugged, grabbed a handful of popcorn, and stuffed it into his mouth. Fine, then.
Can't join the debate, can't taste new plants. But at least he could still watch the show while snacking.
This botany class was still quite interesting. Especially when watching the almost electrically charged spark between Wednesday and Bianca—which was far more entertaining than the inedible berries.
At the dormitory that night. The gloomy evening atmosphere formed a stark contrast with the bright, sunny morning.
Enid Sinclair, who was once a bright and cheerful golden sunflower in the morning, now resembled a small, battered blade of grass, completely wilted. She paced back and forth in the middle of the dorm, almost in tears.
"Oh God, oh God," she repeated incoherently, her voice choked with sobs.
"Why did this have to happen? Can someone explain? They just went to get pizza! How could they end up in the hospital from eating too much ice cream?!" Her two main teammates were currently hospitalized due to acute gastroenteritis and sugar overload.
Forget rowing; they could barely stand upright. The Poe Cup was the day after tomorrow, and she had just lost her entire crew.
Tears finally became uncontrollable, rolling down her cheeks in large drops. "Oh, Enid, calm down." Vic stepped forward, his voice unusually gentle, trying to soothe her.
He reached out, his fingertips lightly brushing against her cheek, wiping away her tears. "I'll be more than happy to join your Ark," he promised, his tone serious.
"B-but we're still short two!" Enid sobbed, gesturing desperately.
"The race requires at least four people per team! Now it's just me!" Vic immediately added, "I think Venom would be more than happy to help." As if to prove it, the black, viscous mass quickly and almost completely detached from his body, coalescing into Venom's muscular form.
It twisted its neck, letting out a low growl: "Although I'd rather be a spectator and have all the losing teams for dessert... but fine, for Little Wolf Girl." The thin, squirming black threads that still connected it to Vic signified their inextricable bond.
"W-we're still short one!" Enid counted on her fingers, her tears temporarily stopped, but her anxiety unabated.
This time, Vic was also stumped. He scratched his head, a genuine look of distress on his face: "Uh... I..." It seemed he had been orbiting around Wednesday and Enid for the past few days, without any time to expand his social circle.
He couldn't even find a recruit at the last minute. Just then, the dormitory door opened.
Wednesday walked in, having just finished her solo investigation for the night, carrying the cold scent of the old book section of the library and the night wind. She immediately sensed the unusual atmosphere in the dorm, especially when three pairs of eyes—Enid's tear-filled blue eyes, Vic's sparkling "help-me" eyes, and Venom's large white eyes filled with ominous anticipation—all focused on her like spotlights.
"What do you want?" She raised an eyebrow, her voice full of wariness and foreboding.
This kind of collective gaze usually meant trouble, and trouble was often directed at her. Vic quickly put on his most brilliant and innocent smile and stepped forward: "Hey, Wednesday! We're having a bit of a human resource crisis...
" Enid, as if grasping a lifeline, rushed over and explained vaguely: "My teammates! They're in the hospital because they ate ice cream! The Poe Cup! We're short one person! Please, Wednesday, just this once!
You don't have to do anything! Just sit in the boat to make up the numbers! Please!" Venom nodded in agreement beside them, its large mouth splitting to reveal sharp white teeth: "We can decorate the boat like a moving coffin! It's perfect!" Wednesday's gaze shifted from Vic's charming smile to Enid's pleading, tearful eyes, and then to Venom's malicious suggestion.
She remained silent for a few moments, no emotion visible in her dark pupils. Then, she spoke very slowly and clearly: "Give me one reason not to nail the three of you, along with that ridiculous canoe, to the shame pole."