Volume 1 Chapter 9: The Homeroom Teacher

“Attention! At ease! Headcount!”

“Everyone’s present. Two laps around the track—move it! Stay in formation!”

The afternoon sun was even harsher than before, beating down relentlessly. The air above the track shimmered with heat, and the moment they stepped into the sun, their skin started sweating like crazy—sticky and gross.

Because of his height, Ning Chu ended up in the front row of the formation, running right next to their terrifying drill instructor. That alone was enough to scare him into behaving, so he obediently kept his head down and ran.

Thankfully, the pain in his lower stomach had eased up quite a bit by the afternoon. It didn’t get in the way anymore.

He’d had a solid lunch—two meat dishes, one veggie, and even a cup of yogurt. He’d eaten until he was nearly stuffed and then took a nap.

As long as he ate and slept well, he was confident he wouldn’t pass out embarrassingly during training again.

After two full laps, Ning Chu’s breathing became labored. The moment the instructor shouted “rest,” he plopped straight down onto the grass, massaging his sore calves and guzzling half a bottle of water.

“God, I’m dead tired.”

Wang Jie, a total couch potato who never exercised, looked half-dead after the run and was grumbling non-stop beside him.

“What’s the point of killing us with this first thing in the morning? Do they want us dead?”

Ning Chu gave him a quick glance, but that one look was enough to get noticed.

Wang Jie scooted over beside him, asking, “How are you holding up?”

“Much better. Doesn’t bother me now.”

“Ohh...” Wang Jie sighed in envy. “If it were me, I’d definitely ask for a few days off.”

“I heard military training counts toward our GPA. If you skip it, you have to make it up with the freshmen next year.”

“For real?”

Ning Chu didn’t say anything definite—just pursed his lips. That’s how it worked at his old university in his previous life, anyway.

During their break, Ning Chu casually scanned the rest of the field—and his eyes eventually settled on a lively girl from the class next door.

Hmm… maybe it was time to get a girlfriend.

In this world full of gorgeous girls, it wasn’t unreasonable to think about dating—especially when his job wasn’t just surviving, but disrupting the plot. Might as well enjoy life too.

But that girl looked like she was about 160 cm tall—a bit taller than him.

Most short girls had cute, youthful, almost doll-like faces. Even though Ning Chu knew all the girls here were over eighteen, this wasn’t the 2D world—making a move on loli-faced girls just felt... morally wrong.

Besides, he suddenly remembered what he noticed in the shower earlier—how there seemed to be more soft flesh on his chest.

The second that memory hit, any romantic thoughts he had completely vanished. Sighing, he laid flat on the grass, staring blankly at the blue sky above.

It had only been a week since he’d transmigrated here. First, the little red bumps on his chest appeared, and now they’d already developed into noticeable... well, dumplings.

There had to be a connection, right?

“Hey, why’s the homeroom teacher here?”

That murmur nearby snapped Ning Chu out of his thoughts. He turned his head just in time to see their homeroom teacher walking toward them, carrying a cardboard box.

Images of the homeroom teacher’s arc from the original novel flashed through Ning Chu’s mind, instantly souring his mood.

He muttered under his breath, “Fucking closet perv…”

“Hey everyone!” The homeroom teacher greeted cheerfully. “I brought you some water and snacks—bread and stuff. It’s all in the box here.”

His smile was bright, and with his clean-cut look and gentle demeanor, he quickly won the students’ affection.

“I’ll leave the box here. Grab what you need when you're on break,” he continued. “Train hard, and once we’re done with this, let’s all go out for a big meal together.”

Ning Chu yawned and lazily watched the homeroom teacher from under lidded eyes. He noticed the man quietly walking over to the drill instructor, where the two began whispering about who-knows-what.

If memory served, the homeroom teacher’s plotline didn’t kick off until much later, so there was probably no immediate danger. 

Probably.

Still… what if, like Zhang Shaoqing, the homeroom teacher hadn’t turned bad yet?

What if he could be saved?

And if not—well, why wait around for some morally bankrupt subplot to unfold?

Why not just send him straight to jail and cancel his entire storyline early?

The thought lit a spark in Ning Chu’s eyes.

There was no need to sit around waiting for disaster to happen—he could be proactive, take out the problem characters before the plot began.

Just as Ning Chu had that sudden spark of inspiration, a chill shot down his spine. He glanced up—only to catch the drill instructor and the homeroom teacher looking straight at him, whispering.

Are they talking about him?!

He hadn’t even become a girl yet—why were they already targeting him?!

‘Don’t tell me— he swings both ways? That sick bastard!’

Ning Chu’s whole body tensed. His once casual posture instantly straightened like a startled cat, muscles tight and on alert. His eyes remained glued to the homeroom teacher with full suspicion.

Fortunately, their attention didn’t linger long. The two adults exchanged a few more words, then the homeroom teacher strolled forward and addressed the students.

“Class meeting tomorrow at 5 PM in Room D203. If anyone’s interested in running for class president, feel free to prepare.”

Yeah, no thanks. Only an idiot would want to be a class pres.

Especially for roles like class president or vice president. No perks, just a bunch of errands and people-pleasing. And whenever something goes wrong, it’s your ass on the line.

Ning Chu glanced at his three roommates. They were all glued to their phones, looking completely uninterested. He figured no one in their room would bother signing up.

Training resumed.

After the warm-up jog, it was back to standing at attention under the sun.

Their section of the field was near the edge, so some shade from the surrounding trees spilled onto the track. Unfortunately, only Ning Chu’s feet managed to sneak into the shadow. The rest of him—especially his poor head—was still baking under the scorching sun.

“Hey, Ning Chu,” a whisper came from behind. 

It was Wen Yang. 

“You thinking of running for class president? I heard you get bonus credits and it’s easier to qualify for scholarships.”

Ning Chu was just about to shake his head—until something clicked in his mind.

If he wanted to prevent the story’s plot from happening, he’d need to keep a close eye on the major characters. That meant getting closer to the homeroom teacher... and what better cover than becoming a class president?

And right now, he still hadn’t triggered his transformation into a girl, so he could approach the homeroom teacher without any immediate danger.

Without overthinking it, he gave Wen Yang a small nod.

“You’re running too?” Wen Yang asked, a little surprised.

Too?

Curious, Ning Chu turned his head to look at Wen Yang’s expression—only to get a light slap on the back of the head from the drill instructor.

“What are you squirming for?!” the man barked.

Ning Chu flinched. The guy was at least 190 cm tall. He immediately stood straight again, too scared to twitch.

In the original novel, Wen Yang’s background wasn’t very fleshed out—but after spending a week around him, Ning Chu had picked up on a few things.

Wen Yang clearly didn’t come from money.

He was always the one joining Zhang Shaoqing in ordering takeout together just to get the group discount.

And for a guy his size—tall and solidly built—he only ever ate simple meals: one meat, one veggie, usually costing no more than 9 yuan. He never touched snacks, fruit, or bubble tea either.

Meanwhile, Ning Chu, at a tiny 160 cm, always made sure to get at least two meat dishes every meal—worried that if he didn’t keep up his nutrition, he’d never grow taller.

“You’re eyeing the scholarship, huh?” Ning Chu guessed aloud. “Then you run for pres—I’ll vote for you.”

“Mm.” Wen Yang nodded.

Perfect. Let him get close to the homeroom teacher and gather intel.

This way, Ning Chu wouldn’t have to get too involved himself—and could avoid becoming tiger bait if the homeroom teacher did turn out to be a predator.

“Hey, you two over there! Can’t keep your mouths shut, huh?!”

Ning Chu immediately shut up, face turning pale. He didn’t dare say another word.