Apart from Marian La Trimm, the other girls in Dorm 404—Elena La Loannou, Chica, and Noemi—had all reaped considerable benefits through their association with Xanthia, earning themselves a pce in the spotlight.

  However, unlike Marian, who was known for her boastfulness and tendency to show off, the three others had quite different personalities.

  Elena La Loannou, a former rich girl whose familia had fallen on hard times, had a retively broad worldview. Her character was also notably mature for her age. She had no interest in impressing peers of the same gender or age, especially those with whom her retionships were only superficial.

  Of course, if it were a boy of the same age and have good potential, she would still make an effort to impress him—just in case he took the bait and become another part to her connections.

  Those who didn’t know her well often saw her as distant, aloof, and hard to approach. Only when she deemed someone worthy of her friendship did she gradually open up.

  At the heart of it, Elena was someone with a strong sense of self-preservation, always cautious and unwilling to reveal too much about herself. She had kept quiet about everything reted to Xanthia.

  Elena was even more cautious and respectful of their Xanthia's retionship to Dionysius.

  As for Chica, the freeloader, she preferred to quietly amass wealth without drawing attention to herself. A miser at heart, she would even hide under her bnket to eat snacks, sharing none of them with others. Naturally, she had no desire to shout about the benefits she’d gained, lest someone try to take advantage of her.

  Noemi, on the other hand, had long been accustomed to keeping a low profile. She enjoyed being ignored by others, which allowed her to “disappear” into the background. In such a state, she could do as she pleased, experiencing the joy of being untouchable—a feeling too delightful to expin.

  It was only when Hannah learned from Marian La Trimm that the other three roommates had also gained plenty of benefits that she pretended to be indifferent, though inwardly, she was heartbroken. She regretted not having lowered her guard earlier.

  Hannah had always believed that, within the rather quirky dorm, she ranked second in terms of both comprehensive abilities and charm, just behind Elena.

  Though she outwardly aligned with Elena’s group in the dorm, unlike Yannis, who was devotedly loyal, Hannah pyed the cssic role of the unloyal ally. She liked to leave herself an escape route and secretly hoped for a day when she could repce Elena.

  Indeed, Hannah had high aspirations. She envisioned herself establishing her own faction, but aside from Yannis, none of her roommates had taken her seriously up until now.

  Now, it turned out that Elena, Noemi, Chica, and Marian had all benefited from Xanthia’s influence, while Hannah found herself stuck in the dorm with undy-like dormmates. Needless to say, this sent her into a fit of despair.

  When Xanthia was enjoying a takeaway dinner in the adjacent dorm with Luciel and others, she unwittingly harvested Hannah’s pain, which was a pleasant bonus.

  Hannah’s ck of self-awareness and poor judgment had led to her missing the chance to “change colours” in front of Xanthia, failing to position herself properly. It wasn’t Xanthia’s fault for not bringing her along for the ride.

  Xanthia, a mere day student who wasn’t even part of the Hannah's dorm, had somehow managed to conquer half of the so-called forbidden dorm. It was, indeed, a very peculiar and fascinating phenomenon.

  After finishing her meal with Luciel in the dorm, Xanthia and the others returned to css, instantly becoming the centre of attention.

  Xanthia’s status in Css 1-3 had already risen significantly. After all, she was a “double threat”—performing well academically while also winning gold for her css at the sports meet. Her athleticism and strong will had inspired her peers.

  Additionally, among the girls, she was constantly accompanied by Luciel. While Elena didn’t publicly make a show of her retionship with Xanthia like Luciel, anyone with eyes could tell they had a strong bond.

  Among the boys, Xanthia had Dematero as her protector. Anyone who dared to challenge her would face divine retribution of sorts. The Poop King and Fart King who were infamous figures, had already been forced to transfer, with the Pee King Kenny also a source of sympathy for their peers.

  With so many buffs stacked in her favour, how could Xanthia not enjoy high status in her css?

  However, what surprised many of her cssmates was that Xanthia’s influence soon spread beyond her css. She had even become friends with the legendary Dionysius of Css 1!

  In addition to the gossip queen Lhoraine and boastful Marian La Trimm, a small group of boys led by Marcus was also eager to spread Xanthia’s name far and wide.

  Some students from Css 3 were also connected to Dionysius’s inner circle, as they were former cssmates from middle school who had attended his private parties. They had long been privy to the test gossip.

  As soon as Xanthia returned to her seat, several cssmates gathered around her, eager to learn more about the juicy details.

  Xanthia had always had a friendly, approachable image in css. Anyone who saw her smiling face would immediately feel at ease, so it was no surprise that so many students felt comfortable approaching her for gossip.

  “Xanthia, I heard your piano skills are amazing. Did you really impress Dionysius?”

  “My middle school cssmate in Css 1 told me you’ve brought honour to our school! That girl from the Foreign Languages High School, Seranthalia La Magenta, was completely overshadowed by you!”

  “Is Seranthalia La Magenta just a css beauty? Isn’t she supposed to be the school beauty at Foreign Languages High?”

  “Not at all! The only recognised school beauty at Foreign Languages High is Susan La Papadopoulos, who is in her second year. She’s the older cousin of Dionysius.”

  “Xanthia, is it true that Dionysius recognised you as his god-sister? I’ve always admired him. Could you introduce us? No other reason—I just want to be friends with him!”

  …

  Despite the barrage of questions from her cssmates, Xanthia remained calm and composed. With a gentle smile, she answered succinctly, exuding a humble and restrained aura.

  “My piano skills are nothing special.”

  “As for bringing honour or stealing the limelight, that’s a bit of an exaggeration. Miss Seranthalia is actually a very interesting person, and I’m happy to be friends with her.”

  “I haven’t been recognised as a god-sister. I found out after his birthday that I’m actually older than him, so it’s more like he’s the younger brother.”

  “There’s no need for introductions. He’s someone who enjoys making friends, so just approach him directly.”

  The style in which she answered the questions left the gossipmongers somewhat disappointed. They were hoping that Xanthia would exaggerate a bit so that they would have more material to spread around.

  However, her modesty and restraint won her the genuine admiration of many cssmates.

  "Xanthia truly lives up to the rumors. No wonder such a girl, who always faces adversity, has caught the attention of Dionysius. If I were in his shoes, I would appreciate her too."

  "If it were anyone else who had received the friendship of Dionysius, they would have had their tails up by now. But Xanthia has managed to stay true to herself. It’s rare, truly rare..."

  "Compared to someone like Dematero, who becomes arrogant as soon as they achieve something, Xanthia is much more likeable. She’s definitely the hidden gem of our css—and I dare say, of the whole school! She’s the one who truly deserves to be the unofficial school belle!"

  "It’s a pity though, compared to Dionysius and Susan La Papadopoulos, these incredibly wealthy heirs, Xanthia may share the same surname, but her background is worlds apart. If she were also a young dy, she’d be unbeatable!"

  "Xanthia is such an interesting character. She actually brought up the topic of age and wants Dionysius to call her ‘sister.’ Doesn’t that make Dionysius look bad?"

  Though they didn’t get any more dramatic gossip from Xanthia herself, the gossip brigade quickly shifted their focus to Lhoraine and Marian, the real experts when it came to details.

  Through their eborate and exaggerated stories, Xanthia’s image became even more towering. Of course, the gossipmongers were thrilled; they loved hearing tales full of twists and turns, stories that were suspenseful and built up slowly.

  In fact, aside from Css 3, the gossip had also spread to Css 1. Xanthia’s name had already been circuting there, considering she was the top student in Css 3, and her grades could easily rival those in Css 1.

  Now that the test gossip was out, her fame had certainly grown louder.

  During the break after the evening study session, a daring student from Css 1 approached Dionysius and asked, “I heard from some old cssmates in Css 3 that you’ve taken Xanthia as your ‘god-sister’. Is that true?”

  Of course, it wasn’t true! Dionysius thought to himself.

  But out loud, he said, “She does give off a ‘younger sister’ vibe. She’s a very excellent girl. If you ask me if I’d want her as a sister, I’d say yes, of course. But I’m not fond of those who use the ‘sibling’ bel to flirt. That’s my stance. You’re welcome to gossip, but if I find out anyone is deliberately tarnishing her reputation… hmph.”

  Dionysius's pure brotherly affection for Xanthia couldn't tolerate any unjust snder. To him, the bond with his sister, the blood ties, came first; he owed her too much.

  The student who had asked about it thought to himself, "As expected of Dionysius, the boy who’s firm on rejecting early retionships and stays far from opposite-gender flirtations. If even Xanthia can’t get close to him like that, what kind of charm must she have to win him over?"

  With Dionysius’s firm stance, the gossipers in Css 1 wisely decided not to stir the pot. They all knew that, even if Xanthia wasn’t officially recognised as Dionysius’s ‘god-sister,’ her status in his eyes was crystal clear.

  No one would dare to offend Xanthia from Css 3, lest they face the his wrath.

  ...

  The weekend of gossip and excitement had finally passed, and a new week began.

  Mondays were typically when students were in the most id-back learning state, even though Sunday only offered a half-day break. Many students still felt like they were in holiday mode, and getting back into the rhythm of focused study wasn’t always easy.

  However, Xanthia didn’t face this problem. As soon as she opened her “academic” mode, she could focus entirely on her studies.

  And truthfully, she could almost consider every day a holiday. After evening study sessions, she would casually slip her hands into her uniform pockets and head back to the dormitory, without bringing anything with her. Once home, studying was the st thing on her mind. She’d much rather indulge in various distractions.

  Her learning rhythm never really changed, so the transition from holiday to weekday didn't affect her at all.

  As for the big event everyone was waiting for this Monday morning, it was the fg-raising ceremony during the major break. The two infamous troublemakers from Css 3, who had caused a ruckus by “throwing feces” in the back of the cssroom, were now going to make their public apology in front of the entire school.

  “Poop King” Matthew Tan, the transfer student, had become famous overnight, especially after even the sternest teacher, Director Dublin El Murrin—was hit with a flying mess, tainting his sungsses permanently.

  This was an unprecedented record, and it was unlikely to ever be surpassed.

  There had been no reports of students daring to throw feces at teachers before, though foreign news had mentioned bizarre incidents, like a French man defecating on the ptform and throwing it at passers-by, causing a scandal, or a Canadian woman causing chaos in a café by doing the same.

  Matthew’s antics were definitely of a simir nature.

  As a result, many students who had caught wind of these “defecation superhero” tales were keen to see what “Poop King” looked like in person.

  For those who couldn’t resist the humour in bodily functions, just imagining the scene of Matthew hurling feces at Dublin would have them in fits of ughter. They were dying to hear what sort of apology he’d offer.

  Additionally, the principal of Thessaloniki High School, Hercuno, would also be giving a speech under the national fg, where he would announce his pns for the cafeteria reform.

  In the past, he had justified the subpar state of the cafeteria by ciming it was part of fostering students’ resilience, but now he would use the phrase "people-oriented" as his excuse for the upcoming reforms...

  Of course, the underlying reason was more likely to be the result of behind-the-scenes bargaining, where the powers that be would only reform when it was absolutely necessary.

  The real driving force behind the cafeteria reform was none other than Matthew and Hera.

  They needed to find someone to bme for their antics in the cssroom and salvage their reputations, so it made sense to unch an attack on the cafeteria.

  Unfortunately, Dematero’s mysterious powers couldn’t be used to publicly take the fall, and bming Dematero would be pointless. If a conflict arose, it would likely trigger an automatic backsh.

  After consulting with their families, Matthew and Hera had decided that this was the best way to handle the situation.

  At 6:50 AM on Monday, Hera arrived at the cssroom first, followed by Matthew.

  As the two figures entered Css 3, the previously noisy cssroom fell into a brief, stunned silence...