After Being Coaxed And Seduced By A Yandere Omega Heartthrob - Chapter 10

The schools in this world were somewhat different from those in the world Song Zhao had originally lived in.

For example, what people here called an “academy” felt more like a combination of high school and university to Song Zhao.

Students of the appropriate age entered an academy after passing the annual admissions examination, but for the first two years, their main courses consisted of four standardized general-education subjects taught nationwide. Every semester, there was a large-scale unified examination.

After that, students chose professional electives according to their interests, such as Connaught History or Pheromone Engineering, and those subjects became part of the assessment used for advancement in the third year. Once they entered a “university,” they studied subjects fully related to their chosen specialization, though that stage only lasted two years.

Rounding it all up, she was going to spend five years as a high school girl in this lifetime.

Song Zhao’s general-education scores ranked within the top five percent nationwide. Compared with that, her professional-subject grades dragged her down a little. Combining the two, getting into the very top universities was probably a pipe dream, but she could practically choose among the rest with her eyes closed.

Although Sylvia wasn’t in the same class as her, fortunately, their elective majors belonged to the same department. Most of the time, they would attend classes in the same room, so it wouldn’t interfere with Song Zhao’s duties as her companion student.

The shuttle traveled smoothly along its designated route, passing sightseeing paths and the student plaza along the way.

Even though Song Zhao had mentally prepared herself beforehand, she was still slightly surprised when she saw the musical fountain in the square.

A solemn white-marble statue of the academy’s founding principal stood majestically at the very center. The sculptor had captured the dynamic movement of her clothes billowing in the wind, the cape behind her seeming to snap sharply, while even the veins on the hand she extended forward were clearly visible.

It was unmistakably a work of art.

Seeing that Song Zhao seemed interested, Sylvia asked gently, “Do you like it?”

“It really is beautiful.” Song Zhao nodded, remembering that Saint Drian’s School of Art was also quite famous, especially for sculpture. “Was this statue made by one of your school’s alumni?”

The Omega’s brows lifted slightly.

She didn’t correct Song Zhao that, starting today, it should be “our school.”

“Mm. And not just this. Every statue, mural, ceramic piece, even the design of the uniforms you see at Saint Drian came from the School of Art.”

“If you’re interested, I can take you to see the Sculpture Gallery. The works there are all excellent. And every semester, whoever is selected as an ‘Ilota Star’ gets a bust of herself placed in the Hall of Honor alongside outstanding alumni from previous years.”

Sylvia paused, then added as though mentioning it casually,

“I have one there too.”

“Wow—”

Song Zhao gave her a sincere smile, a tiny dimple appearing beside her lips.

“Syl, you’re amazing.”

Sylvia lifted her chin slightly into the sunlight. The faint down on her skin was barely visible.

She waved a hand as though it were nothing, but the sparkling light in her eyes simply couldn’t be suppressed.

It took about five minutes by shuttle to get from the school gates to the teaching building.

Song Zhao didn’t forget the rules her sister had taught her. She still got out before her employer, then extended a hand for Sylvia to use as support.

Sylvia didn’t stand on ceremony either.

The moment the soles of her shoes touched the ground, she withdrew her hand at exactly the right time and let it fall naturally by her side.

As they walked shoulder to shoulder, their arms occasionally brushed lightly together.

Song Zhao assumed she was standing too close and awkwardly shifted half a step in the opposite direction.

Naturally, Sylvia noticed the tiny movement.

But she said nothing, walking as though she hadn’t noticed at all. She passed between rose bushes on either side and followed the cobblestone path toward the teaching building.

Every department at Saint Drian had a fixed lecture hall for each year level. They were generally used for department meetings and general-education classes.

There were no assigned seats, so students could sit with whoever they wanted.

They did, however, need to pay attention to the time.

If they arrived late, the only seats left would usually be in the first two rows.

Song Zhao and Sylvia’s classes were held in Lipu Building A.

From the outside, it resembled a magnificent European castle. The cream-white exterior walls gleamed warmly beneath the clear blue sky.

There were relief sculptures so intricate that it was hard to look away, elaborate cornices over the arched windows, and red-brown spires rising at different heights.

It was ornate, old-fashioned, and extravagant.

Song Zhao kept feeling less like she had come here to study and more like she was acting in Syl Took Me to Metersbnwe*.

She raised a hand and adjusted the position of her hearing aid.

Then she suddenly heard Sylvia call her name.

It really was strange.

Plenty of people called her by her full name in daily life, but Sylvia’s voice was somehow the most distinctive.

At first, her tone sounded light, like thin snow in early spring that had not quite melted.

Yet the ending of each word curved upward slightly, carrying an unconscious hint of allure, like a kitten with its claws tucked away pressing softly against someone with its paw.

It made you want to put down whatever you were doing and listen carefully until she finished speaking.

Song Zhao lifted her eyes toward her and curved her lips very slightly.

“If you go left on the first floor of Lipu Building A, there’s a small museum. You can take a look if you’re interested.”

“No one uses the classrooms there for regular classes. They’re usually temporary study rooms and group discussion spaces. You’ll probably come here often in the future.”

Oh.

So that was what she meant.

Song Zhao raised her brows and told her that before school even started, she had already memorized Saint Drian’s entire map.

There was no need to worry about her being unfamiliar with the campus.

In other words, if Sylvia needed anything—running errands, bringing her food, or whatever else—Song Zhao could handle it.

Sylvia fell silent for two seconds after hearing that.

For a moment, she genuinely didn’t know what to say to her.

She had originally planned to take Song Zhao around after the opening ceremony, which would also create an opportunity for them to grow closer.

Who could have expected this straight-laced idiot to have nothing but her companion-student duties in her head?

Her sense of boundaries was strong, too.

She hadn’t even considered “troubling” Sylvia for anything.

Truthfully, aside from the few people at school who opposed her for various plot-related reasons, this was the first time Sylvia had ever been treated this way.

And precisely because of that, she became even more interested in Song Zhao.

Was Song Zhao’s attitude also something determined by the “plot”?

Or was it because she was too insignificant to exist within the plot at all, making her attitude toward Sylvia different from everyone else’s?

Sylvia became so absorbed in thought that she nearly walked right past the classroom.

If Song Zhao hadn’t reached out and tugged her back, she would already have entered the room next door.

Not many students had arrived yet.

They were gathered in small groups, talking loudly about all sorts of things.

Luxury cars.

Luxury watches.

Designer handbags.

Which countries they had traveled to over vacation.

How they still hadn’t managed to spend all the allowance their mothers had given them that month.

Occasionally, someone mentioned last semester’s unified-exam rankings, but not many people seemed interested in that.

Song Zhao behaved exactly as she had before.

After briefly making physical contact with Sylvia, she let go with perfect restraint, obediently stood to one side, and waited for Sylvia to enter first before following behind her like a shadow.

…She might as well have pasted the words I AM SYLVIA’S MAID directly across her face.

There had previously been cases of students bullying companion students at the academy.

In one case, the student who brought the companion to school not only failed to stop the bullying, but actually joined in.

And it wasn’t only companion students.

Poor students admitted through special recruitment, those whose families lacked real influence, and anyone who could only survive by depending on the charity of others were equally likely to become entertainment for the powerful.

This aristocratic academy, regarded by outsiders as both the Connaught Federation’s ivory tower and its Ivy League, had indeed produced plenty of the nation’s top talent.

But there was just as much filth hidden inside it.

That was why students from ordinary backgrounds tried their hardest to reduce their presence after coming here, or raised their status by befriending nobles.

Even becoming someone’s little follower was better than having no one backing them at all.

But clearly, the newly arrived Song Zhao had absolutely no awareness of this.

Almost the instant the two of them entered the classroom, the originally noisy room abruptly fell silent.

Countless gazes turned toward them.

Then came one smiling greeting after another.

“Good morning, Winters!”

“Morning, Sylvia—”

“Good morning to you.”

Sylvia responded to each one.

Song Zhao, meanwhile, simply continued following her as though she hadn’t noticed anything.

It was exactly what she expected.

Standing beside a heartthrob protagonist meant getting caught in the radiation of everyone’s attention.

Song Zhao had prepared herself for that long ago.

But she couldn’t tell whether it was her imagination—

those burning gazes seemed to be landing on her even more than on Sylvia…

The corner of Song Zhao’s mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

Still, she pretended not to notice and continued following.

When Sylvia finally sat down, Song Zhao took one extra step and sat directly behind her.

Several relieved exhalations sounded around the classroom.

Sylvia turned around with a strange expression, apparently wanting to say something.

Unfortunately, someone else was faster.

Before the Omega could speak, a voice called out to her.

“Long time no see, Winters.”

Even though the person wasn’t addressing her, Song Zhao instinctively looked over.

The girl wore silver-framed glasses and a knee-length skirt uniform.

“Someone outside is looking for you.”

“Morning. I understand, thank you.”

Sylvia glanced toward the girl peeking around outside the doorway.

Then she turned to Song Zhao and said, “I’ll be back soon,” before getting up and leaving.

Her tall, slender figure quickly disappeared from view.

Song Zhao lowered her head, intending to take out her phone.

At that moment, someone lightly patted her on the back.

She instinctively looked up.

Thanks to the tiered layout of the lecture hall, her gaze naturally landed on the girl who had just spoken to Sylvia.

“Hello. Is there something you need?”

The other girl was extremely outgoing.

The moment she realized Song Zhao didn’t seem opposed to her presence, she quickly sat down beside her and said excitedly,

“Hi! I’m Adele Von, Sylvia’s friend. Let me guess—you’re that Song Zhao, right?”

Song Zhao noticed the suppressant patch on her neck.

Combined with that name, she slowly pulled this character out of her memories of the original novel.

Mm.

In the early part of the story, she really was Syl’s friend.

Later, however, she sold Sylvia’s whereabouts to one of the main love interests for her own benefit.

After Sylvia was captured and taken back, she received no shortage of “loving” discipline.

The troublesome part was that, at this point in the timeline, Adele genuinely treated the heroine exceptionally well.

She was one of the very few people Sylvia could actually confide in.

Song Zhao’s expression stiffened.

She had no idea what attitude she was supposed to take toward her, but still answered politely,

“Mm. That’s me.”

Her words were like hot oil thrown into a pot of water just about to boil.

Steam exploded upward instantly.

More curious students crowded around her.

Regardless of whether their intentions were friendly or malicious, they all began chattering questions at her.

“Hey, what exactly is your relationship with Sylvia?”

“Are you really only Winters’s companion student?”

“How much does the goddess pay you? If I offer double, will you give me the job? Triple works too.”

“Can I get your contact information, Miss Song Zhao?”

“Your earpiece looks really old. Why haven’t you replaced it? Are you sentimental about it?”

“Boss, did you really rank in the top five percent nationwide on last semester’s unified exam? Can I hire you as my tutor?”

A group of young ladies and gentlemen who had been protected all their lives had absolutely no sense of restraint when asking questions.

For a moment, Song Zhao felt as though she were standing in the busiest, noisiest market in the Central District.

Voices came from every direction.

She was being squeezed so tightly she could barely breathe—

“Excuse me. Please let me through.”

A familiar female voice suddenly sounded from within the crowd.

It wasn’t loud.

Yet the weight carried by that voice was enough to make everyone present fall silent.

The tightly packed crowd in front of Song Zhao quickly split down the middle, opening a path.

The girl walking toward her against the light looked slightly blurred.

But as the distance shortened, the first thing Song Zhao noticed was still those bright blue eyes.

Sylvia, who had left and returned as quickly as possible, walked straight up to Song Zhao in front of everyone.

Then she held out a box whose packaging alone looked exquisitely expensive.

A faint smile rested at the corners of her lips.

Her voice wasn’t loud, but it was clear enough for everyone nearby to hear.

“Here.”

“It’s for you.”