Chapter 7: Gossip, Changes in the Original Female Lead, Snowy Owl Mimicry

Chapter 7 The Original Female Lead Transforms into a Snowy Owl Mimicry

The two-hour major class passed quickly. The instructor kept perfect timing in reviewing the exam, finishing the last major question just as the bell rang.

With few classes as a third-year Mimicry major, this meant no more classes for the day. The classroom soon filled with the sounds of books being packed and chairs scraping as students chatted about their exam scores and made plans for where to hang out later, gradually filing out the door.

Before long, the room was nearly empty except for a few special admit students still buried in their studies. Qi Heyin finished packing her bag and checked her watch—11:30 a.m. She decided to head to the academy cafeteria for lunch.

“Leaving already?” A reluctant voice came from beside her.

Turning, she saw Jiang Yanche still seated, making no move to leave.

Exam papers and scratch paper lay messily across the desk. He tilted his head, propping his chin on one hand, locking eyes with her. “Mind giving me some extra help?”

After a moment’s thought, she shook her head decisively. “No. It’s almost lunchtime.”

She was recovering and needed to eat on schedule.

Jiang Yanche: “…Then let me treat you? As thanks for helping me in class.”

“No need, thanks.” Qi Heyin stood, her tone indifferent. “If you have more questions, hit me up later—but preferably before 9 p.m.”

With that, she strode out of the classroom.

Jiang Yanche watched her disappear through the door with an intense stare.

“My childhood friend really is something else,” he suddenly chuckled.

“But… did I come on too strong today? Why does it feel like she’s avoiding me…?”

Rubbing his chin in puzzlement, he eventually gave up and stretched back with a yawn, slapping some bills down on the special admit student’s desk.

The scrawny special admit hunched over his work jolted upright at the sound. “Y-Yong Master Jiang!”

“Hey.” Jiang Yanche smiled amiably. “Did you say something to her, special admit?”

His tone was casual, as if discussing the weather, but those familiar with him could detect danger underneath.

The student vigorously shook his head and waved his hands. “N-no, Yong Master Jiang! I didn’t say anything to her!”

“We only talked about some problems—I never mentioned you at all, I swear!”

Jiang Yanche studied the boy’s terrified face for a long moment before narrowing his eyes slightly.

“Whatever. You know better than to lie to me anyway.”

With a faint smirk, he straightened up and stretched with a yawn, muttering to himself, “Then what’s the reason… Ah, not worth thinking about.”

Slinging his bag over his shoulder, he commanded from his standing position, “Have today’s notes compiled for me by 6 p.m.”

The student eagerly nodded.

“Also—” He paused. “I’m claiming this seat.”

“No one else sits in this row except me and her. Understood?”

The special admit student quickly responded, “Yes, Yong Master Jiang. I’ll let the others know.”

Jiang Yanche finally withdrew his satisfied gaze and turned to beckon his lackey still waiting obediently in the back row: "Chen Shuo, let's go."

"You got it, Young Master Jiang!" The dark-skinned, burly boy immediately rushed down the steps and grinned as he approached. "Where are we off to next?"

Jiang Yanche pondered for a moment. "Let's hit the court."

"Sounds good, Young Master Jiang!"

Qi Heyin had only taken a few steps out of the classroom when she was approached by several classmates asking for her socials.

She was a little surprised, but since most of them were polite in their requests, she didn’t refuse.

She had already added Jiang Yanche and one special admit student as friends earlier that morning—adding a few more wouldn’t hurt. After all, one of her goals in attending this prep school was to meet more people her age.

She just wondered if any of them could, as Jiang Yunxin had put it, pass the "friendship filter" and become someone she genuinely considered a new friend.

Qi Heyin silently hoped so.

After exchanging contacts, the group of students surrounding her didn’t immediately disperse. These were all noble students, and during class, many of them had been discussing her. Some had even wanted to ask for her digits earlier but had been too intimidated by Jiang Yanche sitting beside her. Only now, after class had ended and the crowd had thinned, did they dare sneak over when they saw her leaving alone.

"Heyin, you’re so pretty! Your skin is so fair and smooth—what skincare products do you usually use?"

"Miss Qi, is your family the famous Qi family? I know your mother is a renowned mystery novelist from Philos—I even read her works in high school!"

"Miss Qi, what’s your relationship with Young Master Jiang? He kept staring at you in class—does he like you?"

"Heyin, there’s a rumor on the Faros Forum that you’re the mysterious childhood crush of Young Master Shang. It’s said that two years ago, he—ah, the post disappeared again! So is it true, Heyin?"

"And also, are you really that kind of genius girl? When I was little, my mom told me you could compose couplets at one, tackle calculus problems at three, and speak eight languages by six—"

Qi Heyin: "......"

The students buzzed around her, making her dizzy.

Since when did news spread so quickly within Faro Prep School? She had only been in class for three hours, yet it felt like her whole life story had been exposed.

"First of all..." she struggled to debunk the rumors, "I did not speak eight languages by six."

"What about Young Master Jiang?" "Then what about Young Master Shang?"

The tangled connections with the top-tier men of Faro Prep School—this was the gossip-hungry, status-obsessed students' favorite topic.

They could already imagine the storm of drama that would erupt on the Faros Forum if they posted Qi Heyin’s answers.

—Assuming the post didn’t mysteriously get deleted, of course.

Qi Heyin could tell these questions were driven by curiosity rather than aggression, but she had never dealt with such a chaotic, chattering mob before. For a moment, she didn’t know where to start.

Never mind. It was better to refuse. She wasn’t keen on having her privacy pried into.

Calmly, she began, "I—"

"What are you all crowding around her for?"

A voice rang out from the front of the hallway—honeyed, yet carrying an edge of frost.

Qi Heyin turned toward the sound and saw a beautiful girl with chestnut-brown waves. Her face lit up as if spotting a savior. "Yunxin!"

Jiang Yunxin strode forward, pushing through the crowd in full view of everyone, and grabbed Qi Heyin’s hand.

"Didn't we agree to meet after class and go to the cafeteria together? Why the delay?" Jiang Yunxin muttered, casting a quiet grumble as she glanced at her face before lifting her gaze to cast an icy glare across the crowd.

That single glance packed such intense energy that everyone around instinctively took two steps back, their hearts quivering.

"You should know that for someone still in recovery, eating on time is essential."

Yunxin drawled with a sweet smile, "You've delayed my friend's meal."

The students exchanged uneasy glances, unsure how to react.

Someone piped up timidly, "Sorry, Miss Jiang..."

But Yunxin paid no further attention, simply hooking her arm through He Yin's before swiftly leading her away from the crowd.

Only after putting some distance between them did He Yin slowly lift her head, her gaze drifting over their tightly clasped hands before settling on Yunxin with surprise. "You..."

That aura just now was so intimidating—was this really the same gentle, timid heroine described in the original novel?

It seemed that as the plot changed, so too did the characters' personalities.

Facing He Yin, Yunxin's expression softened back into its usual tenderness.

Her liquid eyes gazed at her warmly. "Do I seem really different to you, He Yin?"

He Yin nodded. "You seem self-assured and glowing now."

"Really?" Yunxin chuckled. "But I was just flexing my privilege. They fear the Jiang family's influence, so when I showed displeasure, they naturally backed off."

"If I were still just a scholarship student..." She paused, sighing unconsciously. "Who would've thought that in just two years, I'd become the very kind of entitled snob I once despised back in the lower districts."

"There's no need to say that, Yunxin," He Yin replied earnestly. "As your friend, I only want to cheer for every positive change in you. I don’t care what brought it about."

"Besides, if you only credit the Jiang family for your transformation, doesn’t that erase all the hard work you’ve put in these past two years?"

Hearing this, Yunxin fell silent for a moment before looking at He Yin with misty-eyed gratitude, leaning closer against her. "He Yin, you're too good to me."

Sticking close together, the two finally arrived at the school cafeteria after another five minutes.

Farrow Academy's cafeteria had three floors: the first offered free meals, while the other two served regular and fancy meals, respectively.

Typically, the free cafeteria was frequented by scholarship kids, while most students from wealthy families opted for the second-floor standard dining hall. As for those from wealthier homes, they naturally dined on the premium third floor.

Yunxin had initially wanted to treat He Yin to the third floor, but He Yin said she needed lighter meals, so she declined.

Passing by the first-floor free cafeteria, He Yin noticed today’s menu included a fragrant chicken and vegetable porridge that smelled delicious. Thinking it looked good, she pulled Yunxin to sit down there.

"I think the free cafeteria is pretty good," He Yin remarked after taking a sip, satisfied. "I could eat here every day."

Yunxin gave her a helpless look. "The free cafeteria only serves porridge and greens. Wouldn’t you get tired of it?"

"I'm easy to please food-wise," He Yin replied.

Having been sickly since childhood, she’d never got to enjoy decent meals.

He Yin focused on her porridge while Yunxin, not very hungry, nibbled on some vegetables before setting down her chopsticks to gaze at her adoringly.

She thought she was just...

too cute.

"By the way," Jiang Yunxin suddenly asked as if remembering something, "He Yin, did you add many classmates today?"

He Yin hummed in response, "A few."

Just as I thought...

Jiang Yunxin gritted her teeth inwardly but maintained a smile as she probed further, "Any you might want to be friends with?"

He Yin: "Not sure yet. I’m not familiar with any of them."

"Those classmates gossiping about you at the classroom door aren't worth your time," Jiang Yunxin said casually. "They're too superficial. You prefer quieter people, right?"

He Yin thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.

Jiang Yunxin silently sighed in relief. Recalling the photos of you on FF earlier, she guessed it was those classmates who had posted them. Though it might seem like harmless gossip, who knew if any of them had ill intentions? Besides, posting photos of unfamiliar classmates on a forum was pretty inappropriate.

Even though those posts had eventually been deleted... she knew exactly who'd done it. Damn it, how could Shang Wenze, over in the Western Continent, still have such a far-reaching influence? Absolutely infuriating!

Jiang Yunxin’s mind raced before she ended up cursing Shang Wenze in her mind.

Noticing the strange shifts in her expression, He Yin arched an eyebrow, puzzled.

After lunch, they went their separate ways.

Though her third-year classes were over for the day, He Yin still had to attend some freshman and sophomore courses in the afternoon to make up missed credits.

About the credits, she had contacted several professors. Some agreed to let her skip regular classes and only take the final exams, while others still required her attendance.

Her first class in the afternoon was with the freshmen majoring in Mimicry.

The course was called "Fundamental Practices of Mimicry Linking," one of the most basic subjects in the Mimicry program. It mainly covered general knowledge about spirit Mimicry and helped students establish and summon their spirit Mimics.

He Yin found an empty seat in the classroom and sat down discreetly.

Glancing around, she noticed from the students' name tags that a surprisingly high number of freshmen in the Mimicry program were special admits—almost half the class.

This didn’t surprise her. In recent years, Mimicry applications had developed rapidly, and the prestigious Velitas Research Institute had publicly stated that "spirit Mimicry is the next evolutionary direction for Blue Star humans in the interstellar era."

With strong support from the Institute and the royal family, Mimicry researchers had become a highly respected profession, and the influence wielded by this title was enough to leap across class barriers, rocketing people to the top overnight.

So, unsurprisingly, it was clear that Mimicry would become the most popular major among special admits at Faro Academy in the coming years.

At the podium, the professor was counting how many students had yet to undergo Mimicry Awakening. Those who hadn’t yet established a Mimicry link would soon be taken to the Velitas Research Institute for the procedure, free of charge—another benefit for special admits. After all, most noble students studying this major had already undergone Mimicry Awakening with their families back in elementary school.

The so-called Mimicry Awakening involved the Institute using specialized equipment to train and develop a person’s psychic energy, then linking it to a specific creature’s spiritual form. By summoning the Mimic of that creature, individuals could unlock potential abilities related to it.

He Yin had awakened her Mimic—a Snowy Owl—at the age of ten.

Since then, her sensitivity to her surroundings and her vision had improved dramatically.

When conducting research, she would summon her Snowy Owl Mimic to stay hyper-focused.