NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 42: Casual Conversations
Temptation... temptation of evil...
Forcing himself to regain his composure, Dematero redirected his focus back to his overdue holiday homework. Yet, despite his efforts, his peripheral vision kept drifting toward Xanthia on his right.
He couldn’t help but glance downward occasionally. Her legs, wrapped in black over-the-knee socks, were incredibly alluring.
Though these socks weren't quite "speed gear," they were close.
Dematero found that Xanthia's profile had also become more captivating.
Her skin had always been smooth, fair, and flawless, brimming with collagen. Now, with her meticulously styled hair, the combination could only be described as "exquisite."
Her unconscious gestures of tucking her hair behind her ear and adjusting her airy bangs appeared graceful and charming to him.
Demoness of temptation...
In summary, every move of this beautiful girl seemed pleasing to the eye.
Dematero even considered secretly buying a hair clip for her. Perhaps it would make it easier for her to read—she could clip back all her bangs and not have her vision obstructed.
He thought that Xanthia's face, with her forehead exposed, would be just as stunning.
Her fair complexion alone could overshadow any imperfections, not to mention her delicate features: soft crescent eyebrows, clear large eyes, long lashes, a cherry-like mouth, white teeth, and a faint fragrance about her...
Her "I feel so sorry for her" frail aura largely stemmed from her "picture-perfect" brows and eyes—such an endearing combination.
Luciel La Lebrador, the class beauty, was also attractive, but her eyebrows were the classic "sword brows," paired with confident phoenix eyes, giving her a queenly, imposing presence rather than a fragile one.
As for Elena La Loannou... well, she had excellent grades, a good temperament, and was the English class representative with outstanding speaking skills.
Ohh my pearl of the east...!
Dematero's pen came to a halt again. Coming back to his senses, he slapped himself—what was he thinking?
He had actually considered buying a hair clip for Xanthia. He hadn’t even given Elena a gift yet!
The worst part was that if he compared the two girls solely on their looks, Xanthia seemed superior in every aspect. This was extremely biased. After all, a girl with good grades was far more attractive. He was definitely not just about appearances!
At this moment, his heart was filled with guilt, his face reflecting his inner turmoil. Perhaps he had slapped himself too hard just now.
Meanwhile, Xanthia was leisurely reading a manga magazine. She had already finished her holiday homework before the break.
As for reviewing her studies, she wasn’t in a hurry. She was confident that she had mastered her high school subjects thoroughly and was eager to prove herself in the upcoming monthly exams.
Her soul was again interrupted by the system's notification sound, indicating an increase in Dematero's pain value.
Huh?
What?
She couldn’t help but glance sideways at Dematero, seeing his pained expression as he worked on his holiday assignments.
Xanthia couldn’t help but wonder why Dematero was earning her coins. It wasn’t her fault he hadn’t finished his homework. She had no idea his guilt stemmed entirely from her—her excessive beauty!
But even if she knew, Xanthia would still think that this artistic youth had a convoluted thought process. He and his goddess Elena hadn’t even started anything yet, so why the guilt?
Never mind. Earning coins is always good. Xanthia wins again!
Xanthia’s classmate, Crissante, who sat behind her, had already arrived in the classroom. Seeing Xanthia reading manga leisurely, she tapped her on the shoulder.
Xanthia turned her head gracefully. “What’s up?”
Crissante took out a few fruit candies and offered them to Xanthia. “Would you like some candy?”
Xanthia smiled and accepted the offer. “Thank you.”
Crissante found Xanthia’s smile healing. Don’t think only boys appreciate pretty girls; in reality, girls are visual creatures too.
“Xanthia, your outfit today is amazing. At first, I couldn’t believe my deskmate was such a stunning beauty!” Crissante said sincerely.
Crissante secretly thought it was a pity that Jimmy wasn’t there yet. She would have loved to see the regret on his face for betraying Xanthia.
Xanthia, hearing Crissante's compliments, felt her spirits lift even higher. Who doesn’t love being praised?
"It’s nothing special. I just thought since we're in high school now, it was time for a change," Xanthia replied.
Dematero overheard Xanthia and couldn’t help but wonder why she suddenly wanted to change herself. He didn’t dare think too deeply about it; her changes were none of his business.
Crissante nodded vigorously. "The change is incredible! Especially your hairstyle. And I really admire your courage to wear such unique, anime-inspired clothes to school. Aren't you a romani imperial by citizenship, right?"
Xanthia's purple outfit, produced by the system, was a traditional JK uniform, nothing scandalous, but in reality, no high school girls rarely wore such popular outfits outside Japan, let alone with over-the-knee socks.
This made Xanthia’s attire exceptionally eye-catching, causing a stir among her classmates.
Xanthia and Crissante continued their cheerful chat, much like other students in the class, but Xanthia’s every move now drew much more attention.
In the midst of their conversation, a boy abruptly sat down at Jimmy’s seat and rudely interrupted, "Xanthia, Crissante, how’s your review for the monthly exam going? Do you need me, the class study monitor, to tutor you?"
Crissante rolled her eyes in exasperation and snapped, "Henry, it's been three minutes since you last mentioned being the top scorer in the placement test. What does our exam review have to do with you?"
Henry, the class study monitor, sat in the same row as Crissante but across the aisle from Jimmy. As a top student, he was often someone Jimmy liked to butter up.
Whenever Jimmy had trouble with a question, he would ask Henry, who always made sure to remind everyone that his explanations came from the class top scorer’s perspective and should not be questioned.
Crissante couldn’t stand people who constantly boasted about their grades, even if they were the top of the class.
After all, the placement test only covered middle school material. Now that they were in high school, the true results were yet to be seen.
Henry, with his unimpressive looks, frameless glasses, and a grin showing uneven yellow teeth, gave off a vibe of a “sleazy intellectual.”
“Hey, Crissante, are you the top of the class? If you don’t need my help, just shut up! Got it?” Henry retorted sharply.
Then, turning to Xanthia with a fawning smile, he said in a disgustingly gentle tone, "Señiorita Xanthia, I know your grades aren’t great, but I don’t look down on you for that. High school is long. If you take my guidance, you won’t have to worry about your grades. Trust in my professional tutoring skills! Heh heh heh…”
