Chapter 15: An Han Is Too Cute
Based on what An Han had learned about the system so far, its task difficulty clearly wasn’t determined by the task description. It was based on the reward instead.
But still… a “Transformation Magic Wand”? Was that supposed to be like Ultraman’s transformation device? That thing would be useless to him.
There were no monsters in this world, so what would he even fight?
Or maybe it meant another kind of magic wand… like the one from Cardcaptor Sakura?
An Han went through all the things he could remember that looked like a magic wand...
Wait, no way. Could it actually be the kind used by magical girls? Like that twin-ponytailed anime one?!
“What’s wrong with you?” Su Peng asked when he noticed An Han staring at him blankly. Thinking maybe some of the spilled snacks had landed on him, Su Peng looked down and checked his pants and sleeves.
“N-nothing.”
An Han shook his head.
Whatever kind of magic wand it was, as long as it couldn’t turn things into gold, it wouldn’t be of much use to him.
After all, he couldn’t use magic anyway.
But if he chose the “random attribute point,” he’d have to let Su Peng help him.
Putting on women’s clothes and meeting his roommate, with a friend watching, that was definitely the harder option! Was the system trying to destroy what little pride he had left?!
“What can you even help with?” he asked, his face turning visibly red. He was starting to wonder if he had completely misunderstood how the system worked.
Just by looking at the options, refusing Su Peng’s help should’ve been the easiest one!
Su Peng smiled and kept walking beside him. “You haven’t even told me what you’re doing yet.”
“Crossdressing.”
An Han forced the word out, his shame rising like a fever that made his cheeks glow a bright red, almost dangerously charming.
“Oh, that... So you really do like dressing up as a girl?”
“Of course not! It was just an accident!” He quickly denied it. “I’m a perfectly healthy and normal person!”
Su Peng didn’t push further. After thinking for a bit, he spread his hands and said helplessly, “Well, everything else I can handle, but crossdressing isn’t really something I know much about.”
“Huh?”
“But if you’re going to do it, you should at least cover your Adam’s apple, right?”
Instinctively, An Han touched his throat and nodded thoughtfully.
Even though the system had made his figure look less thin and frail, his Adam’s apple was still quite noticeable. If Long Xing spotted that, he’d definitely start asking questions.
“Then I’ll need to buy a ribbon or something to cover it,” An Han muttered to himself.
【Task completed. Gained +1 Appearance attribute point. Additional reward: +5 Su Peng Favorability.】
Wait, how did Su Peng’s favorability go up?!
He was puzzled for a second, but quickly pushed that thought aside. There were more important things to deal with.
“What else?”
“Leg hair?”
Right, that too.
Even though black stockings could hide leg hair a little, that only worked in dim lighting. And the ones he bought were the summer version, not thick enough to cover much at all.
Su Peng’s help could make sure An Han didn’t reveal any flaws in his disguise.
An Han hooked his arm around Su Peng’s neck and pulled him toward the same small hotel they’d gone to before. “Come on! Be my advisor!”
After all, Su Peng had already seen him in women’s clothes on the balcony last time. With his shame level now lowered, An Han felt fearless.
“So, what are you even crossdressing for?”
“To meet with Brother Long,” An Han replied. But as soon as he said it, the shame came rushing back again, almost too much to handle.
Just thinking about how his crossdressing had somehow turned into his roommate’s first love, no matter how he looked at it, that was way too absurd.
“Long Xing?”
“Yeah, that time you saw me dressed as a girl on the balcony. After that, I ran into Brother Long outside the school, and then…”
An Han covered his face with one hand. “He fell for me at first sight.”
Su Peng was speechless. He just stared at An Han’s face, which was now red all the way to his ears, and didn’t know what to say.
“He even secretly took a photo of me in women’s clothes. Later, he realized that the girl he liked looked a lot like me.”
“Then Chen Junjie kept teasing him about it, and now Brother Long is starting to suspect that the girl he likes might be me in disguise.”
An Han could hardly believe how ridiculous his own life had become.
“If he finds out it really was me in women’s clothes, I’m finished~” He let out a dramatic groan, then suddenly grabbed Su Peng’s hand and asked with burning eyes, “Can you beat Brother Long in a fight?”
Startled, Su Peng leaned back to put some distance between them, unable to handle that expectant little look. “Definitely not.”
“My dear student~ You should work out more, protect your teacher, okay?”
An Han’s face was still bright red, but he kept teasing anyway, patting Su Peng’s shoulder like some smug old official.
“You’d better think more about how to fool Long Xing instead,” Su Peng replied dryly.
“Yeah, true.”
An Han’s shoulders slumped as he sighed weakly, “Go buy me a scarf, I’ll tie it around my neck later.”
“And stockings, get thicker ones.”
“What about a hat or mask? You could cover your face,” Su Peng suggested.
An Han thought about it for a moment, then shook his head. “If I cover my face on purpose, it’ll look suspicious.”
The wig already helped hide his features, and since it would be nighttime, it should be fine. Long Xing had stared at photos of him in women’s clothes all the time and never noticed anything wrong, this time shouldn’t be different.
When they reached the small hotel again, An Han noticed the owner giving him a strange look.
He didn’t think too much about it and led Su Peng straight into the room.
“You go buy the stuff. I’ll change into the outfit,” he said calmly. After all, Su Peng had already seen him dressed as a girl once. “Meet me back here after you’re done.”
“Alright,” Su Peng said, scratching his head. He still didn’t really understand why he was getting involved in this.
How did he end up helping someone crossdress to fool their roommate?
He was just about to leave when An Han suddenly grabbed his wrist. Turning back, Su Peng met a pair of big dark eyes staring right at him.
Those deep eyes carried a mix of pleading and helplessness, something that stirred up a strange protective instinct in Su Peng.
“Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone,” he said softly.
“I was just going to say… your grilled cold noodles…”
Su Peng looked down at the food in his hand, he had almost forgotten he bought it before coming back.
“It’s already spilled a bit anyway. It’d be a waste to throw it away, right?” An Han smiled, taking the food from him. “I don’t mind. I’m hungry anyway.”
“What about me?”
“But you’ve got stuff to do. You’re going out anyway, just buy more later.”
Acting totally confident, An Han carried the noodles to the small table and waved a hand. “Go on, hurry.”
Su Peng couldn’t help but laugh. He’d never met anyone so shameless.
“Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell everyone you like dressing up as a girl?”
“I was wrong! I’m sorry!” An Han instantly bowed, holding the noodles up with both hands. “Big brother, please eat.”
“What’s wrong with you?” Su Peng knocked on his head with his knuckles. “Eat it. I’ll be back in about half an hour.”
An Han sat up straight at the table, looking obedient as he lifted his face and said sweetly, “Okay!”
Before, he’d thought this guy was just crazy. But now, Su Peng couldn’t help feeling that An Han was actually kind of… cute?
Shaking his head, Su Peng turned and left the room.