SCOM - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

In just one week, the Disciplinary Committee had deducted countless points, and the new students, having just arrived, suffered quite a bit.

As for the older students, they could be divided into two groups. One group had always abided by the school's rules and regulations, never giving the Disciplinary Committee any reason to catch them, determined to protect their academic credits. The other group had an itch in their bones, always looking to stir up trouble, yet not daring to go too far and risk expulsion. So they committed minor infractions while desperately participating in various school competitions to earn credits. In short, they were both cowardly and arrogant.

"Zuo Luohuan has always been enthusiastically supported by the latter group," a thin, fair-skinned boy chattered endlessly to the person bent over, tidying their bed.

Yan Yan's hands and feet hadn't fully healed, so his movements were a beat slower than a normal person's. After folding his quilt into a perfect square, he straightened up and stared at his roommate. "Zuo Luohuan is number one on the First Military Academy's red list. She's cowardly?"

"That's not what I meant." Ding Wuming smiled good-naturedly. "Haven't you heard? For the last two semesters, she earned enough credits to cover all the deductions from the Disciplinary Committee and teachers within the first month of school, then she skipped class and left, not returning until the final exams."

This made Yan Yan pause. "How does she earn credits?" He had been docked fifteen points at the school gate last time, leaving him with only five. He hadn't dared to make any rash moves these past few days.

"The school has a Challenge Hall. There are small matches for one point, and big matches for hundreds or even thousands of points." Seeing his interest, Ding Wuming leaned closer and lowered his voice. "On her first day, Zuo Luohuan went straight to the Challenge Hall and challenged the top ten on the red list and the top ten on the Alpha list. She won every single one. The upperclassmen lost all the credits they had saved up for so long, left with only their initial points."

A spark of excitement flared in Yan Yan's eyes. Clearly, he had developed a keen interest in the so-called Challenge Hall. He immediately turned and headed out.

"Hey, Classmate Yan, where are you going?" Ding Wuming asked, following behind him.

"To challenge someone!"

"Are your injuries healed?"

...

While the new students were still familiarizing themselves with the campus, the older students had already started their official classes.

Before class began, the teacher scanned the classroom, his gaze landing on a certain student in the back. He said with an ambiguous tone, "Elective courses will begin early next month. I hope some students don't think they can exploit the credit loophole for a third semester and continue to promote this kind of behavior. To be frank with you, the school administration is already discussing ways to reform the credit system."

"Why doesn't he just call you out by name?" Jiang Hong said to Zuo Luohuan beside him, his hands crossed lazily behind his head as he leaned against the wall.

Zuo Luohuan held a pen between her fingers, tapping it idly on the desk, with no intention of answering Jiang Hong. Her gaze was fixed on the person in the front row, whose back was ramrod straight. Her eyes slid down from his clean, slender nape, following the line of his black military uniform. It was clear that everyone's uniform was the same, but she felt that the uniform on the person in front was darker, more attractive than the others. A moment later, she realized it was because the skin of his nape was exceptionally pale.

She couldn't see anything further down, as he was blocked by the desk behind him.

Zuo Luohuan withdrew her gaze, somewhat disinterested, and turned her head to ask, "Is his coming-of-age ceremony soon?"

"Whose?" Jiang Hong replied instinctively. When he noticed whose direction Zuo Luohuan's gaze had swept, he suddenly realized. "Ji Yuezhi? It's on the twenty-eighth of this month. The Ji family will definitely throw a huge celebration, but..."

Jiang Hong said with a hint of schadenfreude, "He's about to come of age, but he still hasn't successfully differentiated. Isn't the Ji family being a bit pretentious by throwing such a lavish ceremony?"

"He managed to kick Xiang Chengping down without even differentiating. What does the Ji family have to be pretentious about?" Zuo Luohuan lowered her eyes to the pen between her fingers, then after a moment, used her other hand to take it and set it down.

"You're not at school much, but you know a lot," Jiang Hong muttered upon hearing this.

Xiang Chengping was the former head of the Disciplinary Committee, ranked third on the red list and second on the Alpha list, one spot ahead of Jiang Hong. He rarely managed the Disciplinary Committee, and before Ji Yuezhi took over, it was a complete mess.

"That's all for this class. Certain students had better restrain themselves a little," the teacher pointedly remarked once more before leaving.

After the teacher left, the students also departed one by one, all discussing the elective courses for the beginning of next month.

As Ji Yuezhi finished packing his things and stood up to leave, his path was blocked.

The well-tailored black military uniform fit his tall, slender body perfectly, every button fastened neatly. Only the skin of his neck was exposed at the collar. Seen up close, it was even more coldly pale and delicate.

"What did you give me for my coming-of-age ceremony?" Zuo Luohuan stood before Ji Yuezhi, sizing him up before raising an eyebrow. "I hear Classmate Ji's ceremony is coming up. I should return the gift."

Ji Yuezhi's eyes were cold. "As you wish." With that, he walked straight around Zuo Luohuan and left the classroom.

Jiang Hong, who had followed, clicked his tongue a few times as he watched his retreating back. "The Winter Army just finished competing with the Seventeenth Army for a year's worth of military machinery, and you two are already at odds today. But what gift did he give you last year?"

"I don't know." Zuo Luohuan reached into her pocket, fumbled for her cigarette case, and said thoughtfully, "I haven't seen my coming-of-age gifts yet."

...

The new students of the First Military Academy were all eagerly anticipating the rumored challenge, wanting to witness Zuo Luohuan's strength. But two weeks into the school year, there was still no activity in the Challenge Hall.

"I heard Zuo Luohuan was warned by a teacher, so she's not planning to earn all her credits and skip class anymore."

"Really? She wouldn't listen to a teacher that easily, would she?"

"Zuo Luohuan hasn't been to the Challenge Hall this semester."

The Challenge Hall was bustling with people, and nine out of ten conversations were about Zuo Luohuan. But soon, these voices gradually died down as everyone's gaze shifted to the entrance: ...Zuo Luohuan had arrived.

The silence lasted only a moment. After Zuo Luohuan entered, the entire Challenge Hall erupted. Everyone naturally assumed she was here to take on another big match to earn credits.

"I want to challenge you!" Before anyone else could react, Yan Yan stepped in front of Zuo Luohuan. His eyes blazed with intense excitement. Over the past few days, he had fought his way up from an initial 5 points to over a hundred, and his confidence had swelled immensely.

"You?" Zuo Luohuan's gaze swept over his left leg and right hand, and she suddenly smiled. "Not worthy."

"Worthy or not, we'll know after we fight!" Yan Yan threw his points into the challenge pool and charged forward.

The smile hadn't yet faded from Zuo Luohuan's face. She took a step back, dodging Yan Yan's attack, her hands not moving at all.

Seeing her retreat, Yan Yan's confidence surged. So this was all Zuo Luohuan amounted to...

His vision blurred, and he felt a sharp pain in his jaw, nearly biting off his own tongue. It turned out Zuo Luohuan had raised her knee and struck him under the chin.

"You!" A sudden chill ran down Yan Yan's back, the instinct of an Alpha warning him of danger. But before he could retreat, Zuo Luohuan had already closed in and kicked, breaking his right leg.

Fury surged through Yan Yan. He gritted his teeth and propped himself up on his other leg, lunging at Zuo Luohuan with both hands, trying to bring her down. But just before he was kicked again, he heard a light, disdainful sneer. "You're still not good enough."

Then, his left hand was stomped on and broken.

Zuo Luohuan glanced at the crowd. "I'm looking for someone. Don't bother me." With that, she headed for the second floor.

Yan Yan lay on the ground, slamming his remaining good hand on the floor. From start to finish, Zuo Luohuan's upper body hadn't moved. She had taken him down with just one leg.

"You're the first, you know," Ding Wuming came over and helped Yan Yan up. "Ji Yuezhi broke your left leg and right hand, and Zuo Luohuan broke your right leg and left hand."

Yan Yan: "..."

"By the way, you challenged her without her consent, so Zuo Luohuan didn't take your credits," Ding Wuming patted Yan Yan's shoulder. "According to the Challenge Hall rules, all the credits you've earned here will be wiped clean."

Yan Yan: "..."

"Classmate Yan, you'd better figure out the school rules before you act."

The boxing room on the second floor.

Just as Zuo Luohuan pushed the door open, a boxing glove was thrown at her. She raised a hand to catch it and stepped inside. "I need to see you about something."

Jiang Hong looked up, tossed the other glove on the floor, and grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat from his face. "I was wondering who came in. My optical computer was just smashed. What's up?"

"I need to get into the Military Armaments Database." Zuo Luohuan tossed the glove back to him.

"If you're going, just go. You need me to go with you?" Jiang Hong caught the glove with a smile. Seeing her expression, he suddenly fell silent. After a moment, he asked, "What do you mean?"

Zuo Luohuan sat down as if it was her own place. "The twenty-eighth is a good day."

"..." Jiang Hong stared at her. "You're going to sneak in?"

Zuo Luohuan turned her head to look at him. "Can't I?"

The boxing room was so quiet only their breathing could be heard. Jiang Hong suddenly asked, "Have you decided what gift to give Ji Yuezhi?"

Zuo Luohuan smiled. "Not yet."

She didn't stay in the boxing room for long before Jiang Hong kicked her out. Zuo Luohuan didn't mind and headed back to her dorm.

She was alone in her room, a single room specially assigned to her by the school. It wasn't just her; the top ten students entering the First Military Academy each year were given single rooms.

Zuo Luohuan leaned against the wall, pulled a cigarette from her pocket, lit it, and took a drag. She smoked half of it, the rising smoke ethereal, almost blurring her features. After a while, she took off her military jacket, revealing a large red stain on her white shirt. Unbuttoning the shirt, she saw that the gauze on her abdomen and waist had long been soaked through.

Tsk, what a hassle.

Zuo Luohuan, with the cigarette butt between her lips, reached out and opened a drawer, rummaging inside for gauze. Only then did she undo the soaked dressing on her abdomen and waist, revealing several wounds so deep the bone was visible. She reapplied medicine before changing to fresh gauze.

After changing into a clean military uniform, Zuo Luohuan's expression returned to normal. If one ignored the faint sheen of sweat on her forehead, she looked no different than usual.

After staying in her dorm for a long time, Zuo Luohuan seemed to remember something, and finally got up and walked towards the school exit.

The gates of the First Military Academy were only open on weekends. Without a leave pass, one couldn't get out. Zuo Luohuan couldn't be bothered to ask a teacher for leave, so she walked directly to the perimeter wall, planning to find a spot to casually climb over.

Just as she reached the corner of the wall, before she could climb over, a clear, cold voice came from behind her.

"Climbing the wall to skip class is a 5-point deduction."

Zuo Luohuan turned around and, sure enough, saw Ji Yuezhi standing behind her, his pair of dark eyes fixed on her.

Ji Yuezhi walked towards her until they were only a few steps apart. He suddenly frowned and added, "Smoking on campus is a 2-point deduction."

"Did Classmate Ji see me smoking on campus?"

"I smelled it."

Zuo Luohuan suddenly stepped forward, leaning towards Ji Yuezhi. Just as their faces were about to touch, she tilted her head and leaned close to his ear. "How do you know this isn't my pheromone?"

Before Ji Yuezhi could react, Zuo Luohuan stepped back, turned, and instantly vaulted over the wall, leaving behind a single sentence: "Deduct whatever you want. I have plenty."

Ji Yuezhi stood rooted to the spot, his eyes lowered, staring fixedly at the ground. After a long moment, as if speaking to himself, he said, "...I know it's not."

---

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