Mature Fantasy Power Invasion

Chapter 16

Today's Yan Huan was no longer the same person he was yesterday.

It was a kind of sophistry, and although Yan Huan didn't agree with it, he still felt a tinge of regret over the decision he had made the day before.

It was like making a wish for something fantastical at the age of six, only to be hit with a harsh dose of reality by high school—a modifier that brought him to his knees.

In short, he truly regretted it now.

After washing up, Yan Huan stood in front of the mirror adjusting his appearance. Meow-chan ran over with its tail raised, circling around his feet.

He wore a white cotton T-shirt, layered with a loose floral shirt-jacket, and long denim pants—his standard Monday school outfit.

As he continued to look, the boy in the mirror yawned, a trace of laziness softening his handsome features.

Only then did Yan Huan realize what that persistent drowsiness truly meant.

Splashing cold water on his face and eating breakfast—no matter what he did, he couldn't shake the feeling.

It was mild, yes, but it left him sluggish and unfocused.

Only when he was deeply engaged in something did that drowsiness fade—but how often could someone be truly focused throughout the day?

Around 7:10, he slung his backpack over his shoulder and said to Meow-chan behind him,

"Meow-chan, I'm heading out."

"Meow?"

Meow-chan always appeared when he called, but Yan Huan still felt the need to say goodbye before leaving. It really did feel like he was stuck in a sleepy haze.

He grabbed his phone and headed downstairs. The school bus stop was about a 7 to 8-minute walk away. When he arrived, several classmates were already waiting—fellow students from the southern district.

"Good morning, President!"

"Hello."

Yan Huan smiled and greeted them, then leaned against the platform and started scrolling through his phone. Not long after, a bus with the Yuanyue school crest arrived.

He pulled out his school ID, queued up to scan it, boarded the bus, and took a familiar window seat.

The ride to school, with all its stops, would take around forty minutes. He would arrive by eight, and class began at 8:30.

Yan Huan’s stop was one of the earlier ones in the southern district, so the bus was nearly empty when he boarded.

At the next stop, Yaqiao Mu got on with his phone in hand—he took the same line as Yan Huan.

"Yo, morning, President."

"Morning."

Scanning the bus, Yaqiao Mu quickly spotted Yan Huan leaning against the window. He greeted him and naturally took the seat beside him.

The moment he sat down, he couldn't wait to turn his phone sideways and launch a certain 2D "wife-raising" game.

"Ah, the leader's already working this early? So diligent! Then Yuanxing-chan has to work hard too~"

(*) Note: "Wife-raising" games are mobile games where players develop relationships with virtual characters, often in romantic or nurturing roles.

The mascot girl on the screen greeted him sweetly. Wearing a Bluetooth earpiece, Yaqiao Mu smiled unconsciously.

"A new gacha pool is about to launch—the new character has insane thunder powers. I’ve saved so many stones; I have to get her!"

(*) Note: "Gacha" refers to a game mechanic where players spend in-game currency for a chance to obtain rare items or characters.

As he burned stamina and completed daily tasks, he declared boldly.

Yan Huan glanced at Yaqiao Mu's screen, propped his face on his hand, and said,

"You got both characters in the last pool, and you're pulling again? Just how much have you spent?"

"Just my entire allowance—it’s worth it for my wife! I even got her exclusive weapon. Look, President, this sword—"

On the screen, a well-rendered female character moved with realistic physics. Her body jiggled slightly as dazzling special effects exploded across the screen, numbers flooding out as she slammed into the boss.

Yan Huan yawned, didn’t reply, and simply leaned back against the window, preparing to nap.

"I didn’t sleep well last night. I’ll close my eyes—wake me up when we get to school."

"That’s rare. President, actually resting on the school bus? Was Aunt’s house that much fun—left you wanting more?"

"Heh."

'You tell me—is getting hypnotized supposed to be fun?'

He was still shaken by how Ye Shiyu had pulled open his door on Saturday night.

With that thought, Yan Huan closed his eyes and let the drowsiness pull him under.

Meanwhile, Yaqiao Mu continued tending to his digital bonsai. Every morning, he logged in for these routine tasks—it had become a habit.

As he played, a hand suddenly reached out from the aisle and gently tugged at his shirt.

"Hmm?"

Yaqiao Mu turned and saw a girl looking at him, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"..."

He paused, adjusted his glasses, and asked in confusion,

"You don’t usually take this route, right? I’ve never seen you before."

"Hehe, sorry. I stayed over at a friend’s house yesterday—she takes this line. So, um, Yaqiao-kun, would you..."

As she spoke, she pulled a scented envelope and a can of candy from her chest and handed them to Yaqiao Mu.

Her face blushing, she subtly pointed at Yan Huan sleeping beside him—the message was clear.

Yaqiao Mu turned to look at the peacefully sleeping boy by the window. It seemed almost a crime to disturb him.

Understanding her intent instantly, he accepted the gift and said,

"When the President wakes up, I’ll give it to him. Don’t worry."

"Thank you! You’re such a good person, Yaqiao-kun!"

"...That’s really not a compliment that makes me happy at all."

As the girl turned and left, Yaqiao Mu muttered the complaint while preparing to launch another game.

Then, another hand quietly reached in from the aisle and poked his shirt.

Yaqiao Mu looked up in a daze—this time, it was another upperclassman girl holding out chocolates.

"Haha, Yaqiao-kun, you know what this means."

"..."

"From now on, President, you sit on the outside seat on the school bus. I want the window seat."

At school, after getting off the bus, Yaqiao Mu suddenly said that.

Yan Huan, arms full of gifts, looked at him helplessly.

"I usually don’t accept them, so you could’ve just rejected them."

Yaqiao Mu turned red, flailing his arms as he replied,

"H-how could I reject them?! I’m not you—I don’t have that kind of experience! And wouldn’t it be rude to turn them down?!"

"Not at all. Or you could just ignore them and wait until I wake up..."

Amid the noisy chatter of classmates, a rhythmic construction sound rang out—*ding ding dong dong*—catching Yan Huan’s attention.

Following the sound, he looked toward the northern end of the campus and saw the outline of a nearly completed building.

"The school’s building again? So noisy this early in the morning."

"Seems like it’s a new teaching building. Construction started over winter break—it should be done this month."

Chatting idly, Yan Huan and Yaqiao Mu walked to the top floor of one of the teaching buildings—this floor was dedicated entirely to the student council.

At the end of the corridor, the sign on the door read:

[Yuanyue Academy Student Council Office]

Yaqiao Mu reached into the mailbox hanging beside the door but came up empty.

"Huh? That’s strange. No documents this week?"

"How could that be? It’s Monday."

Every Monday morning, the student council held a meeting. That’s why Yan Huan and Yaqiao Mu didn’t attend homeroom and came here instead.

Usually, the school administration would send documents over the weekend to inform them of the week’s schedule, allowing the council to prepare.

So why was the mailbox empty now?

Yan Huan walked to the door, motioned for Yaqiao Mu to open it, and said with a smile,

"Vice President Yinggong is already here."

"Huh? So early?"

Yaqiao Mu pushed the door open, revealing an office of about thirty square meters.

A wool carpet covered the wooden floor. A glass coffee table was flanked by two black sofas, with a pot of green plants placed on top.

Against one wall stood another sofa, and across from it were cabinets filled with documents and books.

At the far end, the curtains were open, and morning light streamed through floor-to-ceiling grid-patterned windows onto a slightly larger desk.

On the desk, a golden nameplate read:

"Yuanyue Student Council President"

Standing by the bookshelf was a girl in a black, British-academy-style uniform.

Her black hair was tied into a bun at the back, adorned only with a simple white ribbon.

The ends of her temple hair were tinged with a faint cherry blossom pink.

A dark green coat and white blouse wrapped her petite figure. A white bow at the collar added a touch of elegance.

Beneath her long dark green skirt were fair calves, white ankle socks, and black leather shoes with slightly raised heels. She was dusting the bookshelf.

Due to her height, she had to stand on tiptoe to reach the higher shelves.

When she heard the door open, she stepped down and turned around, revealing a delicate face.

Her bright eyes sparkled with life as they landed on Yan Huan, who had just entered the room with his arms full.

She smiled, radiant and ethereal—like an elf.

"Good morning, President Yaqiao."

"Morning, Yinggong."

"Good morning, Vice President Yinggong."

Yan Huan walked over to the coffee table and placed the large pile of items he was carrying onto it.

"Yinggong, see if there’s anything you’d like to eat. Let’s all share these together."

Yinggong Tong set down the duster. Her attention was immediately drawn to a pink envelope among the snacks, without even glancing at the food.

She reached out, picked it up, and examined the writing on the front.

"To the adorable President Yan Huan, personally addressed!"

Pinching the envelope between her fingers, Yinggong Tong focused on the name signed below the message.

"Class 1-C, Pu Shuwen."

A few creases unknowingly formed on the envelope under her grip. After a moment, she spoke.

"Mm, but let’s wait for You’an Lina and Aishili to arrive before we start eating."

She then placed the letter back on the table and went to the nearby tea table to pour some tea.

"Alrighty."

Behind her, Yan Huan and Yaqiao Mu sat on the sofa, sorting through the snacks.

Yinggong Tong returned with two cups of steaming black tea and placed them in front of Yan Huan and Yaqiao Mu.

"Please enjoy, President. Yaqiao."

"Ah, thank you, Yinggong."

"Thanks, Vice President!"

Yinggong Tong then placed two more cups on the coffee table and sat across from them, holding a cup herself.

Not long after, the door swung open and a cheerful female voice called out.

"President! Yinggong! Yaqiao! Good morning!!"

Turning toward the door, they saw a girl wearing a JK-style uniform walk in with her hands on her hips. Her hair was dyed pink and red.

(*) JK-style uniform: A Japanese schoolgirl-inspired fashion, common in anime and Japanese pop culture.

Her face bore striking mixed-race features, and her broad grin matched her confident pose—hands on hips, chest out, fully flaunting her curvy figure.

Behind her followed a tall girl with short golden-blonde hair. Her face was blank, clearly used to the other's flamboyant behavior.

"Good morning, everyone."

These two were the Student Council Secretary, You’an Lina, and the Discipline Chair, Aishili.

"Morning, You’an Lina. Aishili."

"Ohh! So many tasty treats! Where did all this come from?"

Ignoring You’an Lina, who was now squatting by the coffee table with sparkling eyes, Aishili sat down next to Yinggong Tong. Glancing at a heart-shaped sticker on a candy jar, she remarked,

"This is from a girl to the President, right? It even has his name on it."

"Eh?!"

You’an Lina shot up like a startled cat, her eyes sparkling as she stared at the still-lazy-looking Yan Huan.

"President, are you in love?!"

"You’an Lina, we’re about to begin the meeting."

Yinggong Tong cut in just in time, casually getting up to retrieve some documents from the desk.

"What?! Yinggong, aren’t you the least bit curious? Aishili, what about you? Who's going to win the President's heart—hey, why is everyone acting so indifferent?! The Student Council is practically a singles' den, and it’s all your fault!"

Having sat back down, Yinggong Tong didn’t respond. She simply lifted her teacup and took a sip.

Aishili pulled out her phone and started scrolling through short videos.

"The President and Vice President probably get plenty of attention. But the President is always so busy, he probably doesn’t have anyone he likes. And didn’t Vice President Yinggong say when she joined the council that she’d never fall in love?"

"I have to work part-time too. Between Student Council and schoolwork, I’m already swamped. And Yaqiao? Isn’t he perfectly happy with his 2D wives?"

(*) 2D wives: A humorous reference to fictional female characters from anime or games that someone is infatuated with.

Yinggong Tong paused slightly as she sipped her tea, while Yaqiao Mu adjusted his glasses with a "she’s not wrong" look.

Still unwilling to give up, You’an Lina leaned toward Yan Huan and whispered,

"President, tell me secretly if you like someone—I promise I won’t tell anyone~"

Yan Huan yawned and smiled.

"Mm, I like you, You’an Lina."

Yinggong Tong continued sipping her tea, her blurry eyes reflected in the rippling surface of the cup.

You’an Lina’s face turned beet red. Waving her hands frantically, she shouted,

"No no no! I absolutely can't be with the President! If that happened, I’d be paranoid every day thinking he’d cheat! I’d definitely fall into depression! And if we got married and had kids, I’d cry every day and wouldn’t live past twenty-five!"

Aishili rolled her eyes and retorted,

"You’re seriously considering it? How much sugar did you eat to get this deep into fantasy land?"

Shocked, You’an Lina turned to Yan Huan in disbelief.

"President, were you joking with me?"

"Weren’t you the one who started the joke?"

Yan Huan spread his hands, unable to keep teasing the innocent You’an Lina.

"You said you wouldn’t tell anyone, but if I actually confessed to liking someone, the news would be all over your group chats before first period even starts."

"I—"

You’an Lina pouted, ready to argue, but Yan Huan had already taken the documents that Yinggong Tong handed over.

As he glanced through them, his expression turned serious.

"Alright, let’s begin the meeting. Everyone, please look at your respective documents."

The documents were distributed. Since Yinggong Tong had already read them, she just sipped her black tea and said,

"There are only three items. First, the results of last week’s entrance exam will be released tomorrow. I heard they’re pretty tragic."

"Grading done over a weekend? No surprise—they brought in special instructors from Longguo."

(*) Longguo: A fictional or symbolic name often used to refer to China in Chinese literature.

Yaqiao Mu curled his lip as he said this.

Yan Huan, long used to this, began assigning tasks.

"Posting the results will be the same as usual—You’an Lina, that’s your job."

"Got it!"

Yinggong Tong continued,

"Second, the [Club Wars] is coming soon. This is the second time our Student Council is hosting such a large-scale event. Last semester’s sports festival had some issues, and the school board is still skeptical about us."

(*) [Club Wars]: A school-wide competition between student clubs.

"I object! Why should they doubt us?"

Before Yinggong Tong could finish, Secretary You’an Lina raised her hand to speak.

"Filling the swimming pool with cola for a swim race and the half-naked boys' basketball game were all based on student votes, even if the board didn’t approve! And I still think the 5km teacher marathon was totally fair. The vice principal getting wrecked by students was his own doing!"

"You were the one who put the vice principal in the Track and Field Group," Aishili pointed out with her usual precision.

"He said in his opening speech that he was an athlete! What’s wrong with making him prove it?!"

Yan Huan glanced at the document and smiled at Yaqiao Mu.

"Anyway, it starts in two weeks. Yaqiao, confirm the budget this week. Yinggong and I will notify the clubs. We’ll work out the event schedule later."

"OK, President."

The first two matters came from school notifications. But the last document wasn’t from the school.

It was issued by the Linmen Education Bureau.

Yinggong Tong glanced at the header: "Linmen’s Notice Regarding the Prevention of School Bullying."

She immediately held up the document and asked,

"Does our school have bullying problems?"

That fool You’an Lina immediately shook her head and said,

"Nope! I think everyone’s really friendly. There’s never been any fights between students."

"It’s not just physical fights that count as school bullying, you know?"

Yaqiao Mu shot her a glare.

"Fighting is already a serious issue, but it’s also the easiest to detect and deal with. What’s more dangerous are the hidden things—insults, defamation, exclusion, suppression. Those are hard to define. Even asking the victims directly often leads nowhere."

Aishili nodded and added to Yaqiao’s explanation.

"I heard that last semester, a second-year student dropped out due to depression. And the neighboring Xiuzhi Academy even made the news for a suicide. This document probably stems from that."

"During the follow-up investigation, it turned out the school had already conducted a prior check, but the students fooled everyone by playing innocent. It had no preventive effect at all."

After being refuted by both, You’an Lina pouted and suddenly threw herself into Yinggong Tong’s arms, wailing,

"Waaah, Yinggong! They’re bullying me! Do something!"

Yinggong Tong patted her back, speechless.

Meanwhile, Yan Huan looked at the document and recalled a line from his past life, full of dialectical thinking.

"Subjectively, no. Objectively, maybe?"

As he pondered this, his brows suddenly furrowed.

Because he suddenly thought of Ye Shiyu.

She had also come to school today—transferred in unexpectedly.

With her peculiar personality, would she really be able to fit into a class she just joined after being gone for over a year?

She even got into a fight with someone who had a modifier, just from visiting an aquarium. If she clashes with someone again, you'd better hope Ye Shiyu doesn't activate Hypnosis on you—you're doomed.

"Amen. Second-year students, may you fend for yourselves."

"President?"

Just as Yan Huan was imagining Ye Shiyu going wild with the modifier and slaughtering everyone, Yinggong Tong's voice rang out, pulling his drifting thoughts back.

"Sorry, I was just thinking about something."

Yan Huan looked at Yinggong Tong and gave a slight smile.

"Mm, luckily this problem wasn't dumped on us. The Education Bureau has taken the lead. This document clearly outlines the measures they want the school to implement—we'll just follow it."

"Understood, President."

Meanwhile, in Class 1-C—

"Hey, Shuwen, did you really give the letter to the President this morning?! Doesn't he usually reject those? How did you manage it?"

Since class officially started at 8:30, students were still milling about the classroom, minding their own business.

Toward the back rows, several girls gathered excitedly around a seated girl.

The girl, called "Pu Shuwen," covered her mouth and grinned mischievously.

"Really! The President fell asleep in the car today. The student council treasurer with him looked like a total otaku—super easy to deal with. I just acted cute, and he got all flustered and agreed to pass it to the President~"

"Eh? The President fell asleep in the car?"

"Seriously! Look, here's the photo I took—handsome, right?"

"That's a candid! Come on, don’t hold out—send it to me, send it!"

As they chatted, a girl quietly walked past the nearby aisle.

Her head was lowered, thick black hair partially covering her pale face and dampening her presence.

Though it wasn't a formal occasion, she was still in Yuanyue's school uniform, making her stand out awkwardly among the others in casual clothes.

Even more eye-catching was how her uniform was stretched tight over her chest, almost bursting at the seams.

The buttons on her shirt and jacket seemed to be straining, as if blushing and shouting—

"I can't take it anymore!! Command center! Tell the lower buttons—I love them!!"

The name tag on her uniform read:

"Class 1-C, An Le"

As she walked past with her head still down, a certain word in the girls’ conversation seemed to catch her ear.

Her steps slowed, and her pink lips parted slightly.

The chatting girls also noticed the gloomy girl who had stopped. Pu Shuwen glanced at a friend and suddenly snorted with laughter.

"Hey, do you girls smell milk?"

"Haha, yeah, such a strong milk smell."

The girl with her head lowered heard their words. She pursed her lips slightly, but still gathered her courage to speak to the girl sitting behind Pu Shuwen.

"This seat... is... is mine."

The girl in the seat chuckled but didn’t move.

"Just sitting for a bit. Don’t be so stingy. Try being generous for once."

*Pfft.*

Surrounded by the others, Pu Shuwen snorted and turned her head away, too lazy to bother with the downcast An Le.

Just as she was about to share Yan Huan’s photo with her classmates, the homeroom teacher entered the classroom.

"Quiet down. I have an announcement. Class will begin five minutes early."

"What?!"

"None of the other classes are doing that!"

But the teacher ignored the complaints and shouted,

"Quiet! Everyone, back to your seats!"

Under the teacher’s authority, the students begrudgingly returned to their seats.

Like birds scattering, they dispersed, and An Le was finally able to return to her own seat.

She lifted her head just enough to glimpse Pu Shuwen’s phone screen in front of her—and spotted the candid photo of Yan Huan sleeping from earlier that morning.

An Le's eyes were instantly drawn to the image of the handsome, sleeping boy. Her throat tightened, and a blush crept up her cheeks.

Sensing the stare from behind, Pu Shuwen turned around and shot An Le a look of disgust.

She then sat up straighter and quickly hid her phone screen.

"Disgusting."

"..."

An Le pursed her lips in embarrassment and lowered her head once more.

Beneath the desk, her pale fingers nervously gripped the hem of her skirt, visibly shaken by Pu Shuwen’s words.

But under her sleeve, a phantom snake-shaped tattoo seemed to react to her emotions, beginning to writhe on her skin.

*Gurgle~*

Huh?

What was that sound?

An Le blinked and looked up in confusion, trying to locate the source of the strange sound—when the teacher on the podium spoke.

"So, Class C has a new transfer student today. Please come up and introduce yourself. Everyone, give her a warm welcome."

*Clap clap clap*

A sparse round of applause followed, and An Le joined in.

Then, in An Le’s line of sight, a beautiful girl with long golden hair, a proud figure, and a confident stride walked in through the doorway.

She stood on the podium, sweeping her gaze loftily over the students below.

She chuckled, revealing a prominent canine tooth.

Casually, she said,

"I'm Aruiya Spencer, and from now on, I’ll be your classmate, okay? Please take care of me."

[End of this chapter]

(*) Note for line 207: The "Education Bureau" refers to a government agency overseeing the administration of education—similar to a local school board.

(*) Note for line 223: The exaggerated button dialogue is a comedic way of personifying the stress on the uniform due to tightness.

(*) Note for line 253: The "phantom snake-shaped tattoo" implies a supernatural or magical element responding to An Le's emotions.