Chapter 125: Evaluation

The first thing Li Mo encountered after an unnamed time traveler arrived was the "anti-addiction system" brought by the system. He couldn't understand which system manufacturer would create something like an eight-hour anti-addiction feature.

Could it really be made in China?

Li Mo's first friend was someone he met in this small club room. Although he soon spent several years in the world of *Demon Slayer*, the rural lifestyle and tools there felt completely alien to him.

He considered himself an ordinary urban youth, a pacifist. Look, he didn't even abuse the monster-slaying and leveling-up functions. Instead, he spent his time reading books at the Narukami Shrine. See? He was truly a lover of peace.

After the club activities ended, Li Mo set out to accomplish his goal.

—He needed to find another rental apartment and move.

The landlord's reasoning was something Li Mo had already forgotten. The only thing he remembered was that the landlord said the apartment would soon be sold, giving him a one-month deadline to move out.

Was it one month?

"Anyway, I'll start by finding a real estate agent."

Li Mo's bank account had quite a few zeros in it. Daily expenses were more than covered, so he didn't need to worry about convenience stores or part-time jobs.

Suddenly, he realized his parents were just tools for sending money...

Well, that wasn't so bad.

Not needing to communicate to receive living expenses—what could be better than that?

Li Mo decided to raise his standards for the apartment.

At the real estate agency, he obtained video materials and leisurely watched them at home. After finding a few rooms he liked, he quickly communicated with the agent online, and they agreed to visit the properties in person over the weekend.

Then, he delved into the study of *Yin-Yang* arts, training the three shrine maiden spirits he had contracted at an abandoned shrine. Kanna Hiromitsu had left these spirits there to guard and guide the information about the sacred cherry tree purification. Since Li Mo had already taken that information, the spirits had lost their purpose and were casually picked up by him.

This way, he didn't have to go through the trouble of creating spirits himself. Although it wasn't impossible to ask Yae Miko for some fox spirits or *Sesshou Sakura* to use as shikigami, Li Mo wasn't too keen on that idea.

After finishing his *Yin-Yang* studies, he checked the consciousness space within Hanachirusato's mask and found it as stable as ever. He turned off the lights and went to sleep.

Student life was repetitive.

Li Mo liked this repetitive life. At least it was much simpler than repeatedly slaying demons or studying *Yin-Yang* arts.

The former made one numb, while the latter made one realize the limits of intelligence.

The next morning, Li Mo arrived at school almost at the same time as Yukinoshita Yukino.

The morning classes were as bland as plain water, and Li Mo spent most of the time daydreaming. There were various reasons for this—either he didn't need to listen to math because he was ahead, or he simply couldn't keep up with the Japanese literature class.

If he could keep up, he wouldn't need Yukinoshita Yukino's tutoring.

"What—? No tutoring at noon today?"

In the clubroom, Li Mo sat in his seat, surprised by the words of the beautiful girl beside him.

"Are you a child? Your emotions fluctuate so much."

"I'm a child in front of Yukinoshita-san," Li Mo said.

Yukinoshita Yukino replied, "Sometimes your level of disgust is higher than the cockroaches in the kitchen."

"Because I'm bored. Are you going to meet Yuigahama-san? She hasn't shown up yet. Actually, I should step aside and give you two girls some space," Li Mo leaned back in his chair.

"No need. I can treat you like air."

Time passed, and Yuigahama Yui still hadn't appeared. Yukinoshita Yukino stood up, preparing to leave the clubroom, seemingly to look for the absent Yuigahama Yui.

Li Mo asked, "Yukinoshita-san, will you come back to the clubroom later?"

"No, you can go back to the classroom on your own later. Just close the door behind you; no need to lock it."

"Understood... Yukinoshita-san, be prepared for potential conflicts when you go. I think Yuigahama-san is probably caught up in her own group's issues and missed the appointment."

Li Mo rested his head on the table and said, "She's not like us, who don't have many friends. By classification, she belongs to the 'popular' group, but the kind that flatters others."

"Flattering is too harsh. Yuigahama-san is just used to accommodating others," Yukinoshita said.

"True, Yuigahama-san is used to accepting tasks from others. In other words, she finds it hard to say 'no.' Sometimes, refusing is the hardest thing."

Li Mo's evaluation of Yuigahama Yui was tinged with a hint of his own past. He had learned the beauty of refusal only after experiencing setbacks and frustration.

Compared to the pack-living wolves, the solitary bears aren't so bad either.

Yukinoshita Yukino left the clubroom. Not long after, she returned with Yuigahama Yui, followed by Hachiman from a distance.

"Li-san, your evaluation of me is really too harsh! Am I really as bad as you say?" Yuigahama Yui began with a reproach, but her gentle tone made it sound more like a casual question.

"Yuigahama-san, do you need me to bow like a politician and say, 'I sincerely apologize'?"

When Li Mo said "I sincerely apologize," his tone became oddly exaggerated, mimicking a politician's apology.

Yuigahama covered her mouth, "Pfft, no, no, that's not necessary. That would be too strange."

"Is that so? How did it go? Were you kicked out of that little circle, Yuigahama-san?" Li Mo asked.

Yuigahama replied, "How could that happen? I just had to explain things to Yumiko!"

"Oh, it seems like a thick wall has formed between us and Yuigahama," Li Mo said with a bitter face. "Aside from Yuigahama-san, none of us in the Service Club have any friends."

"Huh?" Yuigahama Yui was stunned for a moment, then cautiously asked Yukinoshita Yukino, "Yukinon, is that true?"

"To put it bluntly, yes. Aside from the members of the Service Club, the three of us don't have any other friends."

Yuigahama Yui looked at Hachiman, "Hikki, is that true for you too?"

"Yeah... Wait, what kind of nickname is that?!"

Yuigahama Yui got her answer and then said, "It's fine. As long as everyone in the Service Club is friends, that's enough."

Then, she gave a silly smile.

The lunch break passed just like that.

The afternoon classes ended quickly, and Li Mo and Yukinoshita headed to the clubroom together. However, they noticed the door was slightly ajar.

"Did you not lock the door, Yukinoshita-san?"

"No."

"Could it be Hiratsuka-sensei?"

Their conversation didn't yield an answer, so they approached the door and saw a chubby figure standing inside.

Oh, it's that guy who writes light novels.

Memories flooded back from the depths of his mind.

Because this guy's writing was the kind that could be sentenced to death on the spot.

In other words, a total flop?