Chapter 7: Ideal type
Bianca stopped right in front of our table, her group of third-year girls spreading out behind her like they owned the entire snack hall.
To be fair, they practically did.
The smile on her face looked sweet enough to fool a stranger.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t a stranger.
"Well, well," Bianca said, loud enough for the nearby tables to hear. "Looks like someone actually listened for once."
Her gaze traveled over the cat ears and tail.
"I was honestly expecting you to take them off the moment when the first period ended."
A few of her friends laughed.
Heat crawled up my neck.
The cat ears suddenly felt a lot more noticeable.
Bianca stepped closer and flicked one of them with her finger.
"Good boy."
The words made my eye twitch.
Behind her, one of the girls walked over to Ryan and casually shoved his shoulder hard enough to make him shift in his seat.
"Still hanging around together?" she asked. "You boys really don’t learn."
Another girl stopped beside Marcus and poked him in the chest.
When he ignored her, she did it again.
Harder.
The message was obvious.
None of them were here because they had a reason.
They were here because they could.
A few students glanced over.
Most didn’t bother.
Nobody looked surprised.
Nobody looked concerned.
This was normal.
That was probably the most disturbing part.
Bianca’s attention returned to me.
"I have to admit, Adrian, the outfit suits you better than I expected."
I remained silent.
Her smile widened.
"What’s wrong? No thank you?"
A familiar notification suddenly appeared at the edge of my vision.
______
[Choose Response]
[1] "Thank you, Senior Bianca."
[2] Remain Silent
[3] "I don’t want to wear this."
______
My stomach sank.
Not this again.
The system wasn’t forcing me.
It never forced me.
But my experience with Bianca this morning had already taught me what happened when I ignored the safer choices.
Option three was practically begging for trouble.
I remembered the slap.
I remembered her hand around my throat.
Easy choice.
"Thank you, Senior Bianca."
The words tasted like poison.
A notification flashed briefly.
______
[Choice Accepted]
Story Deviation: Minimal
______
Bianca looked pleased.
"There we go."
She patted my head like I was a pet.
I hated how familiar the gesture seemed.
The original Adrian had clearly gone through this countless times.
Behind me, Ryan shot me a look.
Not judgmental.
Just tired.
The kind of look someone developed after watching the same thing happen for months.
Bianca leaned down slightly.
"See? That wasn’t so hard."
Her voice lowered enough that only I could hear.
"If you behaved like this more often, I’d have a much easier time dealing with you."
I wasn’t sure whether that was a threat or a promise.
Knowing Bianca, it was probably both.
She straightened and brushed imaginary dust from her sleeve.
"Enjoy your snack break, boys."
Then her eyes settled on me one last time.
"And don’t forget. After school."
A chill ran down my spine.
Another notification appeared immediately.
______
[New Event Scheduled]
Time Remaining: 06:42:18
Associated Character: Bianca Hartwell
Danger Level: Unknown
______
Bianca smiled.
Then she turned and walked away with her group.
The moment they disappeared into the crowd, the tension around the table eased.
Marcus rubbed the spot where he’d been poked for the third time.
"One day," he muttered, "I’m moving to another country."
Ryan fixed his hair and sighed.
"Same shit, different day."
I barely heard him.
My eyes remained fixed on the system window.
Danger Level: Unknown.
For some reason, that felt a lot worse than seeing a number.
The notification remained in my vision for several seconds before finally disappearing.
I wasn’t sure what worried me more.
The fact that Senior Bianca had plans for after classes.
Or the fact that the system couldn’t even tell me how dangerous those plans were.
The table remained quiet for a while.
Marcus was still rubbing his shoulder.
Ryan was fixing his hair for what felt like the tenth time.
Ethan looked annoyed.
Daniel looked exactly the same as always.
Honestly, I was starting to suspect nothing short of a natural disaster could change that expression.
Eventually, Ethan broke the silence.
"You know what?"
Ryan glanced at him.
"What?"
Ethan pointed in the direction Bianca had disappeared.
"I’m still getting married one day."
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
"That came out of nowhere."
"No, hear me out."
Ethan leaned back in his chair.
"I want a sweet, innocent girl. Someone kind. Someone caring."
Ryan nodded.
"That’s surprisingly wholesome."
Ethan continued.
"Also, a big butt."
The entire table stared at him.
Ethan shrugged.
"What? I can have standards."
Marcus immediately started laughing.
Ryan nearly choked on his drink.
"Of course that’s where this was going."
"It’s important."
"No, it isn’t."
"It absolutely is."
Marcus shook his head.
"You think way too much about this stuff."
Ryan pointed at Marcus.
"Alright, what about you then?"
Marcus thought for a moment.
"I like thicc girls."
The table immediately erupted into laughter.
"What?" Marcus asked.
"You said that way too confidently," Ryan replied.
Marcus crossed his arms.
"I stand by it."
"Of course you do."
Ryan looked toward Adrian.
"I feel like we’re learning way too much about each other."
Ethan pointed at Ryan.
"Your turn."
Ryan sighed dramatically.
"Fine."
He paused for a second.
"I like girls with big boobs."
Nobody looked surprised.
Ryan frowned.
"Why does everyone look so unsurprised?"
"Because that’s the most Ryan answer possible," Ethan replied.
"Fair."
Daniel slowly lowered the snack he was eating.
For the first time all conversation, he looked genuinely disappointed in everyone.
"Really?"
Ryan immediately pointed at him.
"Don’t start."
"No, seriously."
Daniel gestured at the entire table.
"We spend every day dealing with people like Senior Bianca."
Marcus nodded.
"True."
"Most of the women in this Academy are terrifying."
"Also true."
"Some of them seem one bad day away from committing a felony."
Ryan rubbed the back of his head.
"That’s probably true too."
Daniel stared at all of us.
"And after all that, this is what you’re discussing?"
Nobody answered.
Daniel slowly shook his head.
"I don’t understand any of you."
Ethan pointed toward him.
"That’s because you’re weird."
Daniel ignored him.
A few moments later, Ryan suddenly lowered his voice and leaned closer.
"Alright."
The grin on his face immediately made me suspicious.
"What?" Marcus asked.
Ryan pulled out his phone.
"Lately, I’ve been into thicc goth girls."
The entire table leaned forward.
"Of course you are," Ethan said.
Ryan opened a photo and turned the screen toward us.
The picture showed a woman at a beach wearing a black bikini. She had long dark hair, dark makeup, and a confident smile. Her figure was undeniably eye-catching, with a curvy build that matched exactly the type Ryan had been talking about.
Marcus stared at the screen for a few seconds.
"...You know what?"
"What?" Ryan asked.
"I get it."
Ryan immediately pointed at him.
"See? Finally, someone understands."
Ethan nodded.
"No, no. I get it too."
I looked at the photo again.
Then at Ryan.
Then back at the photo.
"Isn’t that bikini a little too small?"
Ryan stared at me in disbelief.
The table went silent.
Then Ryan groaned and leaned back in his chair.
"Here comes the party pooper."
Ethan burst out laughing.
Marcus nearly dropped his drink.
Even Daniel looked mildly amused.
"I was wondering how long it would take Adrian to say something like that," Marcus said.
"I’m just saying," I replied. "It doesn’t look very practical."
Ryan looked personally offended.
"Nobody is looking at that photo and thinking about practicality."
"Apparently one person is."
Ryan pointed at me.
"Exactly. One person."
The table erupted into laughter again.
Daniel slowly shook his head.
"This conversation is lowering my IQ."
Ryan quickly hid his phone when a group of students walked past.
For the first time since arriving in this world, I found myself relaxing slightly.
The academy was still insane.
The system was still mysterious.
Senior Bianca was still planning something for after classes.
But sitting here with the other guys, listening to them argue over completely pointless topics, almost felt normal.
Almost.
Then a new notification appeared.
______
New Information Available]
[Sin Points: 10]
[Requirement Met]
Unlock Basic Function?
[Yes] [No]
______
My smile immediately vanished.
Apparently the system had finally decided to explain what Sin Points were for.
And judging by the timing, it couldn’t have chosen a worse moment.
I stared at the notification.
The others continued arguing.
Ryan was defending goth girls.
Marcus was defending thicc girls.
Ethan was somehow still talking about butts.
Daniel had given up and was eating in silence.
Meanwhile, I was staring at a floating screen nobody else could see.
After a moment, I mentally selected yes.
The notification flickered.
Then another window appeared.
______
[Basic Function Unlocked]
Sin Point Exchange
Available Balance: 10
______
A second screen immediately followed.
______
[Available Purchases]
Observation Lv.1 — 10 Points
Memory Enhancement Lv.1 — 10 Points
Negotiation Lv.1 — 10 Points
[Additional Functions Locked]
______
I blinked.
Then blinked again.
So the points were currency.
That was useful.
Actually, that was very useful.
For the first time since waking up in this world, I felt genuinely optimistic.
Then I remembered my current balance.
Ten.
Exactly ten.
Just enough to buy one thing.
Not enough to buy everything.
Naturally.
The system apparently enjoyed forcing difficult decisions.
I examined the options carefully.
Observation.
Memory Enhancement.
Negotiation.
All three sounded useful.
Especially in a place like Sinners Academy.
A Academy full of manipulative, obsessive, and occasionally insane rich girls didn’t exactly encourage careless decision-making.
I was still trying to decide when Ryan suddenly elbowed me.
"What are you staring at?"
I nearly jumped.
"Nothing."
Ryan narrowed his eyes.
"You keep saying that."
"Because it’s true."
"It never sounds true."
Fortunately, Ethan interrupted before Ryan could investigate further.
"Forget that."
He pointed toward the entrance of the snack hall.
"Look."
The entire table turned.
Several students had gathered near the doors.
The crowd wasn’t large.
But it was noticeable.
A few people were whispering.
Others were looking excited.
Marcus frowned.
"What’s going on?"
Ryan stood slightly to get a better look.
Then his expression changed.
"Oh."
"What?"
Ryan sat back down.
"Apparently Noah’s coming back tomorrow."
The table immediately became quieter.
Even Daniel looked up.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
The protagonist.
The center of almost every major route in the game.
The person whose return the system had already warned me about.
A familiar notification appeared.
______
[Important Character Notice]
Noah Walker
Arrival Confirmed
Time Remaining: 00:18:36:42
______
The screen vanished.
I stared at the empty space where it had been.
One day.
Noah Walker would return in one day.
And if there was one thing every player of Sinners Academy knew, it was this:
The moment Noah Walker entered the story, nothing stayed peaceful for long.
