Chapter 3: An Unexpected Encounter
An Han paced back and forth in the room like an ant on a hot pan. He was anxiously trying to contact Wu Dongming through his phone, but the call wouldn’t go through, and his messages weren’t answered. That guy was probably hiding somewhere, laughing at him right now.
“Damn it!”
He threw his phone on the bed and sat down at the edge, face dark, trying hard to think of what to do next.
He wasn’t actually that angry. After all, this was exactly what he expected from Wu Dongming. He really shouldn’t have counted on that guy to ever act like a decent person.
If it weren’t for the fact that the mission was related to Wu Dongming, he wouldn’t have trusted him in the first place.
The mission had failed! He got nothing out of it!
He originally thought it didn’t matter if he failed, since there wouldn’t be any punishment. But now, he had basically trapped himself.
Still, he didn’t have time to regret it. There was a bigger problem right in front of him.
He looked down at the short skirt, short-sleeved shirt, stockings, and shoes he was wearing, and his eyelids twitched a few times.
“Should I ask Brother Long to bring me some clothes?”
Muttering to himself, An Han picked up his phone, ready to call his roommate for help, but suddenly froze. His head lifted as a new mission screen appeared in front of him.
Gradually, his expression turned excited.
【Option 1: Go back to the dorm in your current outfit (female clothes).
Reward: “Charm” Trait】
【Option 2: Ask a friend to bring you men’s clothes.
Reward: High-quality women’s outfit】
【Option 3: Wait for Wu Dongming to come back and make things right.
Reward: Random Attribute Point】
【Countdown: 30 seconds】
“Trait?”
It was another term he didn’t quite understand. But if he thought of the system as a game, then a “trait” was probably something like a permanent buff.
“Charm?”
Would that make people naturally like him?
Charm was a mysterious thing. It could make someone fall for you at first sight, trust you for no reason, or even increase your chances of being spoiled by a rich woman...
If he got this trait, then in theory, everything in life would become easier.
Imagine at work, his boss would find him pleasing to the eye, clients would instantly think he was reliable, and colleagues would all get along with him.
Even if he didn’t work and went to grad school instead, during interviews, professors would subconsciously prefer him.
As long as he wasn’t far behind other candidates, he would always end up being the first choice.
“Is it really that powerful?”
He muttered while glancing at the other two options.
The second one matched his original plan, but the reward, a high-end women’s outfit, was totally useless. Even selling it would be a hassle.
The third option was just a joke. Wu Dongming wouldn’t even bother helping him if he was dying, let alone “realize his mistakes” and come back to help.
“It’s just going out in women’s clothes! I’ll choose the first one!”
Even though going outside dressed like this for the first time was a bit too much, as long as the reward was worth it, his sense of shame could definitely “adjust itself” to fit the situation!
After all, it was only a short run back to the dorm. It would take ten minutes at most, right?
【Option 1 selected. Please complete the mission as soon as possible.】
As the mission panel faded, he took a deep breath to calm himself and then, feeling strangely excited, rushed into the bathroom.
Since he was going out like this, he couldn’t afford to look sloppy. If anyone on the street noticed he was actually a guy, that would be beyond embarrassing, it’d be social suicide.
He was willing to embarrass himself for the reward, but only as much as necessary.
He carefully fixed his wig and tucked his shirt neatly into the skirt...
An Han had worked part-time at a hair salon for two summers, so even though he wasn’t very skilled, trimming a wig wasn’t a big deal.
After a few minutes of adjusting, he looked into the bathroom mirror and realized, surprisingly, he didn’t look half bad.
Of course, he definitely couldn’t be called pretty either.
Indeed, his facial features were quite delicate and his skin wasn’t bad. After putting on a slightly curled wig, the soft hair framed his face, smoothing out his originally sharp features and making him look like a handsome, slightly masculine girl.
“Barely okay, I guess?”
Even though you could still tell his gender from his facial features, with his outfit, most people would probably just think he was a tomboy.
An Han stood in front of the mirror for a full ten minutes, carefully fixing every little detail. When he finally couldn’t make any more adjustments, he sat down on the bed, his heart uneasy.
He decided to wait until after midnight, when his roommates were asleep.
It was only a bit past ten now, so he figured he’d have to wait until around two in the morning.
To avoid running into them, An Han had no choice but to be patient.
After several hours of waiting, he drifted off, only to suddenly wake up. He rolled out of bed, fixed his outfit again, and went to the door.
But the moment his hand touched the doorknob, fear crept in again.
What if I run into a classmate or a friend and they recognize me...?
No, that shouldn’t happen, right?
And it’s so late, there shouldn’t be many people outside anyway. It would be crazy to bump into someone he knew.
He already accepted the mission. There was no point regretting it now.
After taking several deep breaths to calm himself down, he muttered to himself,
“Once I check out, I’ll just keep my head down and run straight to the dorm. No matter who calls me, I can’t stop.”
“The hotel owner doesn’t know me anyway. Even if he realizes I’m crossdressing, that’s fine. What matters is not getting caught by anyone I know.”
An Han rested his hand lightly on the doorknob, pressed his lips together, and, expressionless, opened the door to step into the hallway.
Holding his room card, he walked straight to the front desk of the small hotel.
Behind the counter was a bald middle-aged man who didn’t even look up as he took the card. When he finally did glance at him, his eyes stayed calm and unreadable. “Checking out?”
An Han nervously nodded without saying a word.
His voice wasn’t exactly deep, but it definitely didn’t sound like a woman’s either.
If possible, he preferred not to talk at all.
“Alright, you’re good to go,” the man said.
An Han let out a silent sigh of relief and quickly jogged out of the hotel.
The boss probably noticed something strange. After all, when they checked in, it was two men, and now only one woman was leaving. That was suspicious no matter how you looked at it.
But since the boss didn’t say anything, he’d just pretend not to notice.
It was already three in the morning, but since it was the weekend, the dorms didn’t have curfew checks, and there were still a few students walking around the late-night street market.
Keeping his head down, he jogged quickly, only glancing up now and then to make sure he didn’t trip.
“Good thing it’s nighttime,” he whispered to himself.
The darkness blurred everyone’s faces.
This mission was so damn easy!
The back gate of the school was already in sight. An Han clenched his fists and punched the air in excitement.
So thrilling!
It felt just like when he was a kid, sneaking around trying to watch TV behind his parents’ backs.
He knew the hardest part would be getting into the dorm building. If he went through the main entrance, the dorm manager might think he was either a girl sneaking into the boys’ dorm, or a pervert. But if he tried climbing the wall, someone might see him from the hallway.
Still, it wasn’t like no girls had ever snuck into the boys’ dorm before on weekends...
As he thought about his next steps, he kept walking, occasionally tugging up his thigh-high stockings that had slid down to his knees.
But gradually, his steps slowed, and his eyes widened in disbelief as he looked ahead.
At the school’s back gate, someone was leaning weakly against the wall.
“Huh?”
Even from a distance, An Han recognized him.
It was his roommate, Brother Long, the very person he had planned to call for help earlier.
At the same moment, Brother Long seemed to feel his gaze. He turned around suddenly, and their eyes met.
Brother Long’s mouth dropped open as he froze completely.
An Han felt a chill run down his spine.
He recognized me?!