Chu Xin stared at the sentence, furrowing his brow.
“When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.”
He murmured the phrase to himself, wondering what it meant.
This ability seemed to be a result of the ‘Permission Level Upgrade,’ but it was still unclear.
In Chu Xin’s previous life, this quote was from Nietzsche’s ‘Beyond Good and Evil,’ but in this world, there was no such phrase, only similar ones.
According to Chu Xin’s understanding, combined with certain intuitive insights, it meant, “When you focus intensely on something, it may lead to a deeper understanding and influence, but you might also be influenced and transformed by it.”
However, the basic description of the ‘Perception’ skill was unclear.
Moreover, this skill had appeared in the original simulator, but it could only be used on the ‘self’ within the simulator, with no real-world effects. However, the name ‘Perception’ had never been encountered before.
The basic meaning of ‘Perception’ seemed to be the ability to discover something new within something else.
Could it be similar to this basic meaning? Combined with the skill description, Chu Xin initially guessed that it might allow him to sense someone’s gaze or improve his own sensitivity?
He tried tapping other keys or repeatedly clicking on the skill description, but there was no response. It seemed that upgrading the permission level only had this one effect.
He sighed. The tasks given by this mysterious replacement for the original simulator were becoming increasingly strange, but trying new things was the only way to understand them.
Regarding the ‘Withdrawal’ task, Chu Xin was also unsure. He had wanted to think it through, but with the noise of his female classmates increasing as class approached, he had to stop thinking and chat with someone on his messaging app.
But… he thought, since that person mentioned having something to do at the club in the afternoon, he could use this time to visit the kendo club.
As for what Tina had whispered to him that morning, he didn’t think she had said it in front of the entire class…
So, it should be okay to skip it…
Hasegawa Ten’i, who was leaning over Shimizuma’s desk, appeared to be poking her face, trying to wake her up. In reality, her peripheral vision was stealing glances at Chu Xin.
Since Chu Xin had carelessly turned his phone screen towards Hasegawa Ten’i, she could clearly see his hand movements and part of the message displayed on the screen.
‘His hands are so nice…’ Hasegawa thought, but quickly controlled her wandering thoughts.
She needed to focus on something else.
For example, who was Chu Xin chatting with?
Or, what was Chu Xin thinking about, with that strange expression on his face?
He seemed to be lost in thought, his gaze fixed on the empty desktop. What was the point of staring at it?
She couldn’t figure it out.
Her attention was drawn to something else…
Who was Chu Xin chatting with?
But no matter who it was, Hasegawa felt a pang of jealousy. She had only interacted with Chu Xin for a few days when he first enrolled, but her uncontrollable fantasies had driven her to avoid him.
So, there was no contact information…
But what if there was? They could exchange morning and evening greetings, talk about daily trifles, and even discuss topics that boys might enjoy…
Although she wasn’t sure if she had the confidence to send her photo to Chu Xin, that was a different matter.
With this in mind, she decided to be brave and left Chu Xin’s desk. She cupped her hands around her mouth and softly called out, “Chu Xin… Chu Xin…”
Chu Xin, who was playing with his phone and waiting for the class president to wake up, seemed to hear someone calling him. He replied to the other person that class was starting and put down his phone. He looked up, scanned the room, and noticed Hasegawa Ten’i in an odd pose.
When Chu Xin’s gaze shifted to her, she reacted like a startled bird, her body trembling slightly, confirming that she hadn’t been imagining things.
Chu Xin sighed internally. Hasegawa’s reactions were so obvious, she wore her thoughts on her sleeve. He asked, “What is it, Hasegawa?”
And every time she saw him, her face turned red. Was it possible that, despite being a ‘delinquent,’ she still blushed when talking to people?
He found it amusing.
But Hasegawa, noticing Chu Xin’s attention, ignored the strange expression on his face and the strange feelings in her heart. Her face turned bright red, but she composed herself and said, “Chu Xin, can I have your con…”
Before she could finish, a soft, girlish “Nn~hm” interrupted her.
Chu Xin looked toward his seat, where Shimizuma was stretching, a contented smile on her face from a good sleep.
Her well-developed chest was about to burst out of her already tight short-sleeved shirt due to the stretching motion.
Chu Xin panicked and tried to look away, but Hasegawa, who was about to continue speaking, was interrupted by this action and quickly covered Chu Xin’s line of sight with her hand.
Shimizuma returned to her usual lazy demeanor, and the two of them relaxed, regaining their composure.
She yawned, her mouth still glistening with the remnants of sleep. She rubbed her eyes and looked at the two of them, “Good morning, Chu Xin and Ten’i.”
Chu Xin sighed, “It’s already afternoon, Class President.”
Shimizuma grinned, “Oh, it’s already afternoon?”
Hasegawa complained, “Shimizuma, why didn’t you wake up when I called you? Is Chu Xin’s seat really that comfortable?”
After all, Shimizuma, who usually slept on a bench in the shade of the rooftop, had returned to the classroom after lunch and fallen asleep in Chu Xin’s seat.
Chu Xin found her words strange, but didn’t dwell on it. As his gaze shifted downward, he noticed that the corner of the girl’s skirt, which had ridden up during her restless sleep, had not been smoothed down.
He chose to be a gentleman and decided not to look further at the glimpse of her mystery.
He hoped Shimizuma would notice soon.
But Shimizuma seemed completely oblivious, merely staring blankly at Hasegawa as she spoke, “It’s really comfortable, you know? It feels like Chu Xin is… no, now he’s the vice-class president, so it feels like he’s hugging me, Ten’i. Want to try it?”
Chu Xin couldn’t ignore that anymore and interrupted, “Class President, you can’t say things like that.”
Shimizuma turned her gaze to Chu Xin, tilting her head, “But it’s true!”
Chu Xin felt a mix of exasperation and amusement. He just couldn’t get angry at that expression.
But Hasegawa, hearing Shimizuma’s words, stared at the seat Shimizuma was sitting in and swallowed hard. Hugging while sleeping?
At that moment, she seemed to have forgotten her original purpose and began to daydream.
But she quickly snapped back to reality, “Shimizuma, how could you say that in front of Chu Xin? And you’re the class president, how could you say such things?”
Shimizuma waved her hand dismissively, “It’s okay, Chu Xin won’t mind.”
Chu Xin nodded reluctantly.
Hasegawa was stunned. Did that mean she could do the same next time?
But her thoughts were interrupted by Shimizuma’s next action.
Shimizuma grabbed the collar of her shirt, opening and closing it, and fanned herself slowly, as if dispersing heat. Her smooth, fair neck was glistening with sweat, and she said, “Chu Xin’s seat is comfortable, but it’s so hot…”
Through his current line of sight, Chu Xin could see Shimizuma’s cleavage, barely concealed by her shirt.
Shimizuma, unaware of the concept of indecency due to her all-girls school, continued her actions. Chu Xin quickly averted his gaze, faster this time, and coughed lightly to alert Hasegawa.
Hasegawa yelped, “Shimizuma, what are you doing?” and grabbed her hand.
“It’s so hot!” Shimizuma replied. “And Chu Xin won’t mind, right?”
‘Now it does!’ Chu Xin thought, but didn’t shift his gaze.
Before Hasegawa could finish her next sentence, a stern, bespectacled middle-aged woman entered through the front door. Seeing the chaotic classroom, she frowned.
She picked up her textbook and tapped it on the lectern, shouting, “Quiet! Class is about to start. Class President, maintain order!”
Hasegawa released Shimizuma’s hand and turned back around.
Only now did she remember her purpose, but it seemed too late. She decided to observe when no one was looking and wrote in her ‘Daydream Journal,’ “3 PM: Chu Xin will give me his contact information.”
Although it was unlikely, what if it happened?
Just as she closed her notebook, Shimizuma stood up and said, “Okay!”
…
Under Shimizuma’s gentle management, the classroom returned to quiet, and Chu Xin settled back into his seat. The stern teacher nodded in approval and began her lecture after the bell rang.
This stern teacher was Chu Xin’s language teacher, Yan Ping. Although she seemed stern, she was actually very kind, and her classes were engaging. The whole class enjoyed her lessons and paid close attention.
So, Hasegawa was listening attentively.
Chu Xin returned to his seat, feeling the lingering warmth from the girl who had just left. His mind suddenly went blank, and he saw flashes of Shimizuma’s earlier actions.
He shook his head, wondering why he was feeling so strange.
He took out his book from the desk drawer, intending to arrange it on the desk, but noticed a glistening pool of liquid on the desk.
He guessed it was the girl’s drool from her nap.
Normally, people might have impure thoughts or feel disgusted by such a sight. A pervert might lick it and savor its taste as a delicacy.
So, what did Chu Xin do?
Of course, he carefully…
used his handkerchief to wipe the drool away.