Chapter 13: A Voice Worth 998 Affection Points
By the time Tessa dragged her nearly disassembled body back toward the entrance of Room 407’s dorm building, it was already past seven in the morning.
Riley Summers’s “devil transformation plan” had been a hundred times more terrifying than Tessa had imagined. Every muscle in her body was screaming with soreness. Her useless thighs were especially bad, soft as noodles and ready to go on strike at any moment.
However, the moment she thought of the three “little temptresses” probably still sleeping peacefully in the dorm, an extremely unbalanced desire for revenge rose in Tessa’s heart.
Following the great principle of “if one person suffers, the whole dorm ascends together,” she gritted her teeth and bought four steaming, fragrant deluxe breakfasts from the dining hall breakfast counter.
Hmph. You all like laughing at me, right? Then be punished by the calories of delicious food.
Carrying the breakfast bags, Tessa climbed upstairs one painful step at a time. She had just taken out her key when the door to Room 407 creaked open from the inside.
A sexy, curvy figure leaned against the doorframe. It was Vanessa Rose, wearing only a silk robe, her long pale legs fully exposed to the air.
She yawned lazily. The moment she saw Tessa, her teasing eyes lit up. She pulled Tessa inside at once and pushed her down into a chair.
“My, my. My little Tessa went out early in the morning and got dragged off by that ‘Riley’ for a very intense workout. Did your body… survive?” Vanessa deliberately put extra weight on the word “workout.” Her eyes swept over the breathtaking curves outlined by Tessa’s fitted athletic clothes, and a wicked smile curled at her lips. “Come on, don’t move. Let me inspect you properly and see if she hurt you anywhere.”
As she spoke, that suspicious hand reached toward Tessa’s waist.
“Vanessa!”
Tessa turned pale with fright and quickly shoved the breakfast bag into her arms. “I-I brought breakfast for everyone!”
“Whoa! Breakfast sandwiches!” Chloe Hart, drawn over by the smell, still had a toothbrush in her mouth as she joined the chaos. “Tessa, your face is so red! Did you sweat a lot? Was doing exercise while being held by an athletic big sister like Riley super safe and comforting?”
Tessa felt like she was about to socially die again.
Flustered, she stuffed the other two breakfasts into Chloe’s hands and then into Iris Lane’s as Iris came out of the bathroom, desperately trying to use food to block the mouths that kept producing dangerous comments.
Just as the dorm was descending into complete chaos, Chloe bit into her breakfast sandwich and looked at the class schedule on her phone. Suddenly, she let out a miserable scream.
“Oh no! We’re doomed! First class is Professor Blackwood’s Music Performance! We’re going to be late!”
The words “Professor Blackwood” struck Tessa like a bolt of lightning from the heavens.
Her body instantly turned to stone. The color drained from her face at visible speed.
In the next second, deep inside her mind, she began screaming at the system at a rate of a hundred curses per second.
System! You useless scammer! You forged an identity for me as a music performance student in the Arts Department, so why didn’t you just pour singing skills into my brain while you were at it? I can’t even read staff notation. My music theory knowledge is basically zero. If that Professor Blackwood calls on me in class, I’m dead on the spot!
Inside her head, the chibi devil UI twisted its hips with unbearable smugness, and that syrupy mature voice rang out.
[Oh my, my dear Host. Knowledge requires payment. Would you like a temporary [Voice of Heaven]? It’s not expensive at all. Fair and honest pricing, only 998 Affection Points. Or… the Host may choose to complete a small, harmless task that will make this system very, very happy.]
Tessa looked at her Affection Point balance, which was barely enough to keep her alive, and fell into despair.
“Stop wasting time. Change and get to class!”
Using the excuse that “a major class requires a professional look,” Vanessa transformed into a fashion director and forcibly opened Tessa’s already tiny closet. She rummaged through it, then finally pulled out a pure white dress with an extremely fitted cut.
“This one. This best shows off our Tessa’s tiny waist and amazing curves. I guarantee that after class today, Professor Blackwood will remember you forever. And certain upperclassmen who keep watching you like they want to steal you away will probably want to wrap you up and hide you immediately.”
Under the combined suppression of Vanessa and Chloe, Tessa was ultimately forced to put on the dress that made her feel uncomfortable all over.
Looking at the mirror, she saw a stunning girl with a graceful figure, innocent-yet-dangerous charm, and a face full of nervous resistance.
Iris, who had been quiet the entire time, walked over and handed her a bottle of warm water.
“Adjust your breathing. Don’t be nervous. Don’t hold your body so stiff.”
Her voice was as cool as ever, but it carried a calming force. As she spoke, she reached out and placed her hand directly on Tessa’s soft lower abdomen.
“Feel that? Breathe from here. Slow your rhythm.”
Her warm palm pressed against Tessa’s lower abdomen through the thin fabric. That firm, steady heat made Tessa’s body tremble lightly beyond her control, and her cheeks reddened even more.
In a flurry of panic, Tessa and her roommates rushed to the academic building. They charged into the lecture hall at the very last second before the bell rang.
The moment Tessa sat down, her phone vibrated.
It was a text from Seraphina Frost.
[Tessa, I heard you have a major class today. Good luck. I’m looking forward to hearing your heavenly voice.]
Looking at that gentle message, Tessa felt as if she had received a death notice from the underworld. Her legs went weak, and she almost slid out of her chair.
The lecture hall for Music Performance was filled with handsome and beautiful students from the Arts Department. On the stage, the legendary Professor Blackwood had already begun teaching.
She was a woman who looked to be in her forties, dressed in a proper suit with an elegant air. But behind the gold-rimmed glasses on her nose, her gaze was as sharp as a hawk’s. She was famous for being strict, merciless, and brutally direct. The atmosphere of the entire classroom felt especially tense and oppressive because of her presence.
Tessa shrank into a corner in the very last row, desperately curling herself into the smallest possible shape, trying to lower her presence to the absolute minimum. At the same time, she frantically called for the system in her heart.
“What’s the task? Hurry up and say it. Stop dragging this out! As long as you don’t make me kiss a man or undress in public, I’ll do anything!”
[Ding! Hehe. Host is getting better and better at this. Limited-Time Quest issued.]
[Quest Name: A Moist Plea]
[Objective: Choose any female classmate near you with an appearance rating of at least 70. Look at her with wet, pitiful eyes, lean close to her ear, and whisper in a tempting, barely-there breathy voice, “Classmate… my throat is so dry, and my lips are dry too… Could I have a sip of your water to wet them?”]
[Reward: [Voice of Heaven] Temporary Trial Card, 10 minutes.]
[Failure Penalty: [Broken Gong Voice] debuff activates. The moment you speak, your voice will become a harsh, cracking squawk for one full day.]
Tessa’s face flushed completely red.
What kind of ridiculous, dangerous task was this?
She stiffly turned her head and looked at the girl sitting beside her. It was a quiet-looking short-haired girl wearing black-framed glasses, carefully taking notes.
Her appearance rating was definitely above 70.
Professor Blackwood had already finished her opening remarks. Her sharp gaze began sweeping across the students as if she might call on someone at any moment.
Tessa knew she had no time to hesitate.
She hardened her heart, gritted her teeth, and quietly leaned closer, inch by inch.
As Tessa approached, that strange scent unique to her, a mix of orchid and peach nectar, seemed almost alive as it slipped into the glasses girl’s breathing.
The girl’s hand paused slightly over her notes. Puzzled, she turned her head.
In the next second, she met a pair of watery amber eyes beautiful enough to pull anyone under.
Tessa silently thought, Activate skill.
[Sweet Whisper] instantly took effect.
Her voice gained a deeply wronged softness, mixed with a nervous rasp that made her sound heartbreakingly fragile. Just hearing it was enough to make the heart ache.
She leaned close to the girl’s ear. Her hot, damp breath brushed over the girl’s small, sensitive earlobe.
“Classmate… my throat is so dry, and my lips are dry too… Could I have a sip of your water to wet them?”
The glasses girl felt an electric current rush from her ear through her entire body. Her mind went blank on the spot.
Her cheeks went red with a rush, her heart pounding like a drum. Flustered, she pushed her pink insulated tumbler over without managing to say a single word.
[Ding! Quest complete! Congratulations, Host. You have obtained a [Voice of Heaven] Temporary Trial Card, 10 minutes. The timer begins after use.]
Tessa felt as if she had been granted mercy. She was just about to shrink back into her seat when, from the corner of her eye, she noticed a familiar figure.
At some point, the back door of the classroom had opened.
Seraphina Frost was standing there quietly.
Today, she wore a sharp Student Council uniform, her long black hair tied high behind her. A gentle, proper smile rested on her face. As Student Council vice president, it was normal for her to sit in on classes and evaluate teaching quality.
Her appearance instantly drew every eye in the room.
She smiled and nodded politely to Professor Blackwood on the stage. Then her gentle eyes began searching the classroom. Finally, they crossed countless heads and landed precisely, with a faint trace of amusement, on Tessa, who had just completed her “evil deed” in the corner.
When Professor Blackwood saw Seraphina, she seemed to be in a good mood. She pushed up her glasses, apparently wanting to demonstrate the quality of her teaching in front of the Student Council vice president.
Her gaze swept across the entire room.
It passed over the students actively raising their hands, eager to try. It passed over the students who had buried their heads and were desperately pretending to be dead to avoid eye contact.
Finally, her gaze crossed the full length of the classroom and landed squarely on the girl curled up in the corner.
Tessa.
The girl was so beautiful she almost did not look real, yet she radiated the faint aura of someone silently begging, Don’t look at me. Please don’t look at me.