Chapter 6: I Regret Agreeing to Study Without Studying

Shen Min invited me to her house.

Not romantically. Academically.

Worse.

"You said yes to a study session?" Ye Lin asked as I put on my cleanest hoodie, the one with only two visible food stains.

"I said yes to a regret opportunity," I corrected.

"You can't just farm emotions like crops."

"That's exactly what I'm doing."

She rolled her eyes. "You're going to crash and burn."

"I've already unlocked 'Classroom Cringe Shield.' I fear nothing."

Shen Min lived in a house so clean it probably had a GPA.

Books lined the walls. There was classical music playing. A bonsai tree judged me silently from the corner.

I sat on the edge of a perfectly arranged sofa like a nervous intern.

"Let's start with algebra," she said, placing her notes between us.

I blinked. "Right. Math. Symbols. Trauma."

[REGRET QUEST ACTIVE]"Survive Study Session Without Actually Studying"Progress: 0%Bonus Reward: Flirt Fail Immunity (30 min)Timer: 59:58

I stared at the timer like it was a bomb.

Shen Min looked over. "You okay?"

"Yes," I said. "I'm just… overwhelmed by your handwriting. It's beautiful. Like calligraphy had a baby with geometry."

She blinked. "You're weird."

"Correct."

She sighed and started explaining equations.

I nodded, made eye contact for 0.7 seconds, and then stared at a wall. The bonsai was still judging me.

I reached for a pencil. It snapped in half.

[REGRET DETECTED]"Regret: Tried to Impress with Fragile Pencil" – +2 RP

"Do you always look this confused?" she asked.

"This is my focused face."

"You look like you're buffering."

"I regret nothing."

She leaned back, slightly amused. "You're seriously not going to study, are you?"

"That depends. What's your policy on regret-based learning?"

[NEW PASSIVE UNLOCKED]"Academic Evasion – LV1"Effect: +5% charisma when avoiding responsibilities in front of smart people

We made it 37 minutes before Shen Min gave up on teaching and made tea instead.

She handed me a cup.

"You're lucky you're entertaining," she said.

"Is this what they call chemistry?"

She snorted. "More like physics. Full of resistance."

[REGRET QUEST COMPLETED ✅]+10 RP EarnedBonus Unlocked: Flirt Fail Immunity – Extended 10 minsNew Title: "Smooth Moron"

As I left her house, Baozi floated beside me, glowing smug.

"You survived," he said.

"Barely."

"And she likes you."

"She also tried to kill me with math."

"She's complicated."

"I'm regrettably intrigued."

Study session failed.Regret harvested.And somewhere between algebra and awkward flirting…I might've gained a stat in something suspiciously like feelings.