Chapter 5 - Nurse X

"Little tyrant, I thought you knew the way! Do you rely on your lackeys for everything? Do you have lackeys? Hmm, what if there's a map in the infirmary?" FengXin pushed the door aside with an air of undeniable confidence, striding in without waiting for YueYing to follow.

And on an empty cot sat…

"Oh! Nurse X!" FengXin's face brightened like a light upon seeing the nurse.

Nurse X had an androgynous appearance, with peridot green eyes and long white hair tied into a ponytail. He sat hunched on the bed, tinkering with his thin oval glasses, minding his own business. When FengXin strutted in, the nurse patted the blanket next to him, motioning for FengXin to take a seat without even glancing up.

YueYing blanched. What if this intimidating Nurse strangled him just like the Librarian did?

"Little Tyrant."

The Nurse's voice had a soothing quality, like lilacs on idle grass. Surprised, YueYing looked up to see Nurse X's gentle gaze.

"Who strangled you?" He continued, pointing to YueYing's throat. "You can file a lawsuit against them."

His bluntness coupled with his soft features and kind tone startled YueYing, who turned his head back to the floor.

"Hey, look at people when you talk to them." Nurse X growled, placing his hands on the cot and leaning back. "How else will you thank me for hiding your ligature marks and treating your bloodied feet?"

YueYing stared at his stilettos. Bandages hid the ugly red tears on the backs of his ankles. He hadn't noticed at all….

So the Nurse had helped him walk the school with FengXin without tripping or feeling pain.

Before YueYing could speak though, FengXin had already sidled up next to the nurse.

"Nurse X! Thanks for treating YueYing! We're best friends now! I made a friend!"

"Wonderful news." The Nurse sounded a bit sarcastic, nothing like FengXin's cheery and genuine declaration.

"Right? Right?" FengXin kicked his legs in joy.

"Mhm. Anyways." Nurse X stood, towering over both FengXin and YueYing, and pulled up a chair. "Little Tyrant, sit here. We need to talk."

YueYing's legs shook as he took a seat.

"About your strangulation, if I had to take a guess, that… tsk… that, grr… Librarian…"

The Nurse's face scrunched, struggling to say 'librarian.' YueYing wondered what grudges the two held between each other.

"Was it him?"

YueYing gave a small nod.

"I figured. He tried to kill me the first week I started working here. Almost quit." He ran a hand through his hair and sat back down on the cot.

"He did?!" FengXin stared agape at the nurse.

"Mmm-hm. I sued him for it. The case was called off though, something about government secrets… tsk."

YueYing just listened, figuring he wouldn't get a chance to speak at all amidst Nurse X's straightforwardness and FengXin's energy.

"If you report him, you might get him fired. Then the both of us would be safe!" Nurse X stared at YueYing with a clap, his eyes exhibiting high expectations.

The System Statistics window invaded YueYing's line of sight. The screen sparkled, one progression aspect in particular standing out:

[ 'Binding Character: Librarian NPC {DETAILS HIDDEN}' ]

YueYing understood the System's blatant warning.

He shook his head at the Nurse, opening his mouth to finally speak—

"Aaaah, so you're the introverted type. I thought you'd at least get revenge as the school tyrant. Explains why there's this black aura around you." Nurse X interrupted YueYing, who slunk back into his chair.

[ 'WARNING ONE: Someone found out.' ]

"?" YueYing sat up. Could Nurse X sense the system?

[ 'Storyline Progression: -104%' ]

[ 'Penalty initiating.' ]

Nurse X's eyes turned fierce.

"You. Little Tyrant. You have something weird attached to—"

Before he could finish his sentence, a large, black mass grabbed and swallowed the nurse whole. His glasses dropped to the ground from the force of the attack. The cluster wriggled, digesting, before disappearing with a pop into thin air.

YueYing stood, eyes wide, chair flying back in his shock.

"Little Tyrant?" FengXin shot a concerned look at YueYing.

"Did you see that?! Nurse X—"

"Nurse X? What's that? A video game character?" FengXin tilted his head.

"You… don't know?" YueYing faltered, stepping back.

"Little Tyrant, what are you talking about? We don't have a school nurse yet, so the student council takes over the infirmary from time to time. How else could we have treated your neck and feet? Don't worry, Mr. Librarian will get written up by the council! We'll get you justice, promise!" Fengxin started rambling again, about a timeline that never happened for YueYing.

[ 'Be careful.' ]

With a final message, the System window faded away.

YueYing froze.

"So Nurse X doesn't exist?" A bead of sweat trickled down YueYing's face.

"Of course not! Did you hit your head too when Mr. Librarian choked you? Your head did hit the floor though… Should I call a council member for you?"

"You really don't know what I'm talking about? Long white hair and light green eyes?"

"Does your head still hurt? Looks like you did hit it. I'll go call someone." FengXin stood up and stretched out his arms. He shuffled to the door, taking cautious glances back at YueYing. "Don't leave, ok?"

YueYing had no choice.

In his confusion, combined with his muddled state of mind at having witnessed the System murder a man, he could only manipulate FengXin to prevent him from alerting other people. Furthermore, YueYing disliked FengXin's eyes—like watching a sick patient's memory wither.

He strode to FengXin's side and took the sophomore's arm.

"Stay here… We're friends, aren't we?"

He dragged the sophomore to the edge of the bed and sat down, trying to calm his own mental turmoil whilst acting somewhat normal.

Meanwhile, all of FengXin's reason disappeared.

"Friend… you called me a friend… called…" He stammered, falling onto the bed with his gaze distant.

Both students had absent expressions when a person walked into the room. She had fierce orange eyes and cropped blonde hair. Upon seeing the two spaced out on the bed, she sighed and began an immediate conjecture.

The school tyrant, Li YueYing.

Her recent-transfer brother, Zi FengXin.

Had Li YueYing forced FengXin into doing drugs with him?!?! The female student's sharp eyes rounded in shock.

She'd have to give her brother a harsh beating later.