SS-Class Guide - Chapter 26

Rong Xiushi pushed the glasses up the bridge of his nose and refused decisively, “No.”

The crowd looked at him with suspicious eyes.

Rong Xiushi remained calm. “Do not overthink it. I am just an ordinary D-class Guide.”

Hearing the words “D-class,” the group immediately lost interest. Indeed, he seemed very ordinary.

While chatting and laughing, the group walked past Wen Xiuyu. Rong Xiushi resisted the urge, but in the end, he could not help but steal another glance back at him. He really wanted to ask him if Mrs. Wen was doing well. What about Wen Xiuyan? According to news reports, Wen Xiuyan appeared to remain single to this day, though he seemed to be currently going on blind dates.

Besides them, there were others. Were the lords in the Temple doing well? No matter what, he hoped these old acquaintances, whom he could no longer acknowledge, were living better and better lives.

Beside him, Yu Tianlu patted Rong Xiushi and whispered to him, “Do not think about it. He has never been in the same social stratum as us.”

Rong Xiushi looked at Yu Tianlu.

Yu Tianlu said, “I heard news that Lord Xiuyu is very likely to become the fifth Double-S Sentinel of the Se’an Temple.”

The others perked up and immediately crowded around. One of them asked, “Why the fifth?”

Yu Tianlu replied, “I am not entirely sure, but I heard there is already a fourth Double-S Sentinel who just has not been announced yet.”

Rong Xiushi wondered in his heart who the fourth Double-S Sentinel could be.

Amidst their conversation, they entered the teaching building. Although they were in the same department, their specific courses differed. Rong Xiushi and Yu Tianlu walked together to attend their class. When class ended, students often gathered around Rong Xiushi to ask about the Fifth District. People who entered the other four districts from the Fifth District were a minority, and many were curious about the rumored wasteland. Rong Xiushi answered everyone’s questions one by one.

In the blink of an eye, it was noon. Yu Tianlu invited Rong Xiushi to lunch, but before he could respond, Rong Xiushi received a private message from Wei Hetai saying he was coming over.

Rong Xiushi looked at Yu Tianlu and asked, “Is it okay if Ah Tai joins us?”

Yu Tianlu’s eyes lit up, and he nodded vigorously. “Of course! Wei Hetai is so hard to approach. I managed to add him as a friend before, but he blacklisted me after just two sentences. It would be great if I could add him back this time.”

The three met at the cafeteria. Taking advantage of the occasion, Yu Tianlu successfully got Wei Hetai to remove him from the blacklist.

After lunch, Rong Xiushi headed to the campus library while the other two followed along. Rong Xiushi stared at his books until he saw stars, his head throbbing. Every time he studied, his head would throb, but he had a dream: he wanted to win the scholarship.

Yu Tianlu whispered to Wei Hetai, “Xiushi is amazing. He manages to get a scholarship every academic year.”

Rong Xiushi felt the pressure. He knew he had to work extremely hard to maintain that streak.

That evening, Rong Xiushi went to the home of his student, Xing Mingxu, for tutoring. Wei Hetai offered to escort him, but Rong Xiushi refused. He stated plainly that they were far from graduation. Wei Hetai could not be by his side every moment for the next few years. He had managed fine on his own before, and he could do so now. Besides, this was the Central District, not the Fifth District.

Wei Hetai urged him to call immediately if any problems arose.

Rong Xiushi arrived at the Xing residence by bus. He felt a bit nervous, thinking he might run into Xing Lulu. However, he learned that she was very busy and seeing her was not easy. He taught the young boy his lessons, feeling deeply grateful to the Xing family for not firing him despite his long absence in the Fifth District.

Before leaving, he thanked Mrs. Xing earnestly. She smiled and said, “Of course. Xiushi has always been patient. However, if you take another leave that long, my child won’t be able to wait anymore.”

Rong Xiushi replied with a hurried “Yes” and left the house. Outside the complex, he found Wei Hetai waiting on an electric scooter.

Rong Xiushi: “…”

Electric scooters were common in the Five Districts, but they looked completely out of place with Wei Hetai, especially while he was wearing the Fanse Academy uniform.

Wei Hetai complained, “I actually wanted to buy a motorcycle, but my parents and brother would not allow it.”

Rong Xiushi smiled and sat on the back. “This is my first time riding an electric scooter.”

“Wait until I buy a real car to drive you,” Wei Hetai promised.

“An electric scooter is very real. It is great,” Rong Xiushi replied.

Before bed, Rong Xiushi called his sister, Rong Xiujia, to check on her health and ask about Rong Xiuxi, specifically if he was studying and not secretly working part-time. Rong Xiuxi was there and answered excitedly, “Sister is doing well and will be discharged soon!”

Rong Xiuxi then prattled on about their life. “Brother, before, the students used to bully us because we were poor and smelled. But since you and Brother Ah Tai came to the school, they know you are a student at Fanse Academy. They think you are the pride of the Fifth District! They do not bully us anymore!”

Rong Xiushi frowned slightly. Only now did he realize how bad things had been for the twins, yet they had never complained to him. In the Fifth District, children without parents lived difficult lives and grew up far too quickly.

Rong Xiujia then took the phone and shared the latest gossip. “I heard they did a carpet search of the Fifth District, but even with so many hunters, they could not find that S-class Guide. People suspect that Guide can hide their pheromones very well.”

Rong Xiushi blinked. Hide pheromones? How does one do that? He was not sure, but he knew he had protected his mental landscape well.

“Many suspect the Guide has already left the Fifth District,” Rong Xiujia added. “Because of that, security in all regions might get stricter.”

Life continued peacefully. Rong Xiushi’s main income came from stabilizing Wei Hetai. He had not wanted to take the money, but he had to since he owed Wei Hetai a large sum. He tutored three days a week and occasionally accepted orders to stabilize C-class Sentinels at the academy for 50 credits a session.

Curiously, his decent compatibility with various C-class Sentinels was exposed. He worried it might cause trouble, but he realized he was overthinking it. As a mere D-class Guide, no one paid him much attention.

Still, his finances were dire. Despite Wei Hetai’s disapproval, he took weekend part-time jobs: working at a milk tea shop in the afternoon and selling movie tickets at night. One perk of the cinema job was getting two free tickets a week, which he could sell or give to friends.

He kept many old habits. For instance, when stabilizing others, he disliked holding hands and preferred touching their wrists. In reality, holding hands was more effective, and kissing was even better. Some in the Guide Department used kissing for a quick and dirty stabilization.

He also found himself frequently visiting convenience shops. By the time he realized it, he would always have grape hard candies in his hand. Wen Xiuyu loved them, and Rong Xiushi’s habit of feeding the boy had never left him. Since he could not eat them all, he distributed them to friends, leading them to believe he was a fan of grape candy.

In November, Wei Hetai suggested a risky operation. He mentioned his older brother, Wei Heshu, had a weakness: whenever he drank too much, he suffered from memory blackouts. The younger brother calculatedly got his older brother drunk and took him to a place without surveillance. Rong Xiushi understood the plan, quietly stabilized Wei Heshu, and then fled.

When Wei Heshu woke up, Wei Hetai reached out his hand. “What?” Wei Heshu asked, confused.

Wei Hetai, showing no mercy to his brother, said, “Brother, you were not looking well. On the way home, someone claiming to be a Guide said they were good at their job and asked if we needed stabilization. I said yes and paid them.”

“How was the effect?” Wei Hetai asked.

Wei Heshu narrowed his eyes. “I should say, it was better than ever before.”

Wei Hetai continued to hold out his hand. “That Guide asked for a lot of money. Pay up, brother.”

Wei Heshu transferred the money but asked, “I am more curious about that Guide’s identity. Our compatibility seemed very high.”

Wei Hetai’s eyelid twitched. “Just someone we met on the road. I do not know them, but they wore a Se’an Temple uniform.”

Based on this, Wei Heshu spent the next day at work trying to match with every B-class and above Guide from Se’an Temple, but the highest compatibility he found was only 72 percent. Thanks to this operation, Rong Xiushi earned a large sum, more than a whole night at the Black Market.

At the end of November, a small banquet was held at Fanse Academy. It was not a masquerade, but Rong Xiushi needed money, so he decided to attend. Wei Hetai helped him buy a phone card using a fake identity from the Fifth District and disabled the GPS. They bought disguise materials through shady channels: women’s clothing, wigs, mascara, and even colored contact lenses.

This time, Rong Xiushi disguised himself as a girl with black, chin-length hair and a simple dress. He was relieved that Wen Xiuyu did not attend. It was his first time operating as a fictional person. He was undeniably beautiful in the disguise, attracting many eyes the moment he entered. When asked about his grade and class, he pinched his throat and replied he was a fourth-year student. The operation was a success. He stabilized three Sentinels and accepted payments via QR code before slipping away.

Soon, rumors spread about a beautiful, mysterious B-class Guide who had appeared at the banquet. Yu Tianlu complained to Rong Xiushi multiple times about missing the event, saying he would have done anything to add her as a friend. Rong Xiushi agreed outwardly while thinking how lucky it was that Yu Tianlu had not been there to blow his cover.

As the year ended, exams arrived. Most students were dreaming of the two-month winter break. Rong Xiushi looked at his bank account and realized he could not afford any vacations. When asked to join a trip to a warmer region, he declined, citing his part-time jobs and lack of a visa.

“I have to work too,” Yu Tianlu sighed. His family was not wealthy either, and he often found temporary jobs for them both.

Then, a student reminded them, “Before the holiday, you have to think about the year-end exams.”

For Guide students, exams consisted of three parts:

1. 1. Normal written exams.

1. 1. Practical stabilization of a Sentinel.

1. 1. Team missions with students from the Combat Department.

The team missions took place in Danger Zones, the strongholds of Zerg and fierce beasts. While dangerous, junior students were usually protected by seniors or the academy’s combat teams. In his past life as An Yuan, he never had to worry about this. High-talent Guides were too precious to risk. But now, as a regular student, he had to participate. Teams were formed freely, but those left over were randomly assigned.

As a D-class Guide, Rong Xiushi predicted no one would invite him. The notification arrived: teams would consist of twenty Sentinels and two Guides. Combat students were very picky about their Guides. The homeroom teacher gave them five days to submit their team lists.

Yu Tianlu slumped on his desk. “Being a Guide and having no team want you, that is the saddest thing.” He sighed heavily. “I have to find a team to sneak into. I won’t be the shame of the Guide Department!”

Rong Xiushi looked at him with envy. That was the advantage of having a social network. He felt that he, a D-class Guide, was destined to be the shame.

For the next few days, they went to the Combat Department to market themselves. While many found teams, no team wanted a D-class Guide like Rong Xiushi. He even heard students complaining that Fanse Academy should not even accept D-class Guides. One Sentinel student glared at him. “What are you looking at? I am talking about trash Guides like you.” Before Rong Xiushi could do anything, that student was beaten up by others. Most Sentinels protected Guides by instinct, even D-class ones.

Ultimately, Rong Xiushi was randomly assigned to a team, the same one as Yu Tianlu. The team consisted of C-class Sentinels and two D-class Guides. It was mockingly called the Salted Fish Team. Wei Hetai had tried to swap into the team, but no one in the Salted Fish Team was willing to join Wei Hetai’s original team. His teammates looked too fierce and high-level; the salted fish feared they would be bullied if they swapped.

With the team set, the focus shifted to studying. A few days before the exam, Yu Tianlu took Rong Xiushi to a print shop near the academy and bought a large stack of key review materials from the owner.

Rong Xiushi was shocked. “…” You can do that?

Yu Tianlu held his chin high with pride and began cramming. The exams began, covering both open-book and closed-book portions. Rong Xiushi realized Yu Tianlu was right; many of the questions were directly from those review materials.

Support