An Han's system was always unpredictable—sometimes popping up three times in a single day, other times vanishing entirely for days on end.
It couldn't be summoned by voice command, nor could it display anything directly inside his mind; he could only wait for it to appear of its own accord.
Not intelligent at all.
He'd been counting on the system to grant him more attribute points, yet for the past two days, it had stubbornly refused to show up.
At noon, An Han stood before the mirror on his wardrobe, frowning as he scrutinized his reflection.
Ever since gaining the "Physique" attribute, his frame no longer looked frail—but now he appeared somewhat soft and pudgy. Apparently, the system had only added fat without building any muscle, leaving him looking slightly bloated.
Maybe a few more points in Physique would fix this. After all, being slightly chubby was still better than looking weak and sickly.
At the very least, he'd be able to take a couple more punches before going down, right?
Moreover, the pain in his chest had only worsened—it hadn't faded as he'd hoped it would after a couple of days. When wearing short sleeves, the two distinct points were faintly visible, which made him increasingly anxious.
Could it be… that the Physique attribute was actually nudging him toward becoming more feminine?
This suspicion kept creeping into his mind, but An Han had no solution. He could only force himself to stay optimistic and shove the thought aside.
"Tonight's the night I meet Long Xing."
He'd practiced voice modulation for two days straight, yet made zero progress. Whenever he tried adjusting his voice to sound feminine, it came out weak and affected—utterly unnatural.
And still, not a single girl had approached him.
Wasn't the system supposed to make everyone automatically gain +10 Affinity toward him, on top of his already high Charm stat? How was it possible that not a single girl had shown interest?
Unless… the base Affinity started at triple digits?
"An Han, wanna go on a date with me tonight?" Long Xing sidled up beside him, striking exaggerated poses in front of the mirror and flexing his muscular torso.
Who said anything about dating?! We only agreed to meet in person online!
An Han shot him an envious glance at his pecs.
Someday, my pecs will be bigger than yours!
"What if I just wear a tank top tonight? Let the girls get a good look at my body?"
"You'll scare her off."
"How about a tight-fitting T-shirt, then?"
"That'll just attract guys." An Han didn't hold back his sarcasm.
But Long Xing didn't seem to care at all. Lost in his own little world, he wore a blissfully goofy grin on his face.
An Han caught just a glimpse of that expression—and instantly broke out in goosebumps.
After all, Long Xing's head was full of fantasies about An Han in women's clothing.
Tonight, this whole mess had to end—once and for all!
Glaring fiercely at Long Xing, An Han stormed out of the dorm.
He had no classes this afternoon, giving him plenty of time to prepare for his cross-dressing rendezvous.
Unfortunately, he had no idea how to apply makeup.
"Next time I get a skill-related quest, I really need to think it over carefully."
Muttering to himself, An Han headed downstairs. After glancing around cautiously, he hurried toward the nearby parcel pickup station.
"Hey boss, the package I dropped off this morning hasn't been shipped out yet, right?"
"Yeah… actually, I'm canceling that shipment."
Earlier that morning, before class, he'd brought his women's clothing to the station specifically to have the shopkeeper hold onto it.
Since he had no afternoon classes and his roommates rarely left the dorm, carrying women's clothing openly in front of them would've raised too many suspicions.
He'd briefly considered asking Wu Dongming to keep it for him—but that guy was competent at everything except handling people. Absolutely untrustworthy.
After retrieving his women's clothing, An Han headed straight off campus.
He and Long Xing had agreed to meet under the broken streetlamp by the sports field—but there was no guarantee they'd stay in that dimly lit spot. If they moved somewhere brighter, the risk of being exposed would skyrocket.
If only he knew how to do makeup…
He sighed again—then suddenly everything went black, and he slammed straight into something.
"Ow!"
Staggering backward, An Han clutched his forehead, glaring furiously ahead.
"You watch where you're going!" Su Peng's snacks had spilled all over the ground, and he was clearly distressed—but seeing An Han's teary, pained expression, he softened. "You okay? Does it hurt?"
"It's your chest! What are you even wearing?!" An Han winced, pointing accusingly at Su Peng's torso.
Su Peng blinked, then looked down at his own chest. "Nothing. Just muscle."
"But I've never seen you work out!"
"I've got some old muscle memory, okay?"
An Han glanced down at his own soft chest, rubbing his forehead in frustration.
Why did every random guy he ran into have a better build than him?
"Where are you off to?" Su Peng stepped closer, pulling out a tissue from his snack bag. "Here, wipe your tears."
"I'm not crying!"
The sudden impact had overwhelmed his tear ducts, but An Han quickly swiped away the tears threatening to spill, still glaring at Su Peng with indignation.
Su Peng just shrugged with a grin. "Not my fault—you ran into me."
"Couldn't you dodge?!"
"I was on my phone."
As he spoke, Su Peng leaned in curiously toward An Han's shopping bag. Only then did An Han realize his mistake—he hastily tightened the bag's opening and shot Su Peng a wary look.
"Cross-dressing gear?"
"No!"
"I saw the wig."
An Han's face darkened—but then he remembered Su Peng already knew about his past cross-dressing incident, so he relaxed slightly. Still, he warned firmly, "Don't go telling anyone about this."
"Got it. It's our little secret, right?"
"Exactly! Just between us two!" An Han nodded emphatically.
But Su Peng's eyes sparkled with mischief. "You don't… have a thing for cross-dressing, do you?"
"Of course not! It's just… an accident. I'm just going somewhere to throw all this stuff away."
An Han refused to admit the truth. He sidestepped Su Peng and hurried off campus, head down and steps quick.
Su Peng jogged after him. "Need a hand?"
"As if I'd ever ask you for help!"
[Option 1: Stay silent and refuse Su Peng's offer. Reward: Transformation Magic Wand
Option 2: Confess your feelings dramatically and beg for his help. Reward: Tea Art Skill
Option 3: Accept his help. Reward: Random Attribute Point]
The system actually showed up now?!
An Han turned back toward Su Peng in shock, his unfocused gaze filled with sudden hope and longing.
Su Peng's heart skipped a beat under that intense, expectant stare. "Whatever's wrong—I'll help you fix it!"
But An Han wasn't looking at him at all—he was staring at the system interface.
"No… no thanks."
He gave Su Peng a gentle, enigmatic smile—one that sent chills down Su Peng's spine.
A quest had appeared!
But the rewards made no sense: "Tea Art"? "Magic Wand"? All utterly baffling.
Still, Option 1—simply refusing help—seemed to offer the best reward, and it aligned perfectly with what he wanted to do anyway.
But here was the problem: Option 1 was always the hardest challenge, despite seeming straightforward…
An Han couldn't figure it out. How could merely saying "no" possibly be the most difficult task?