The air conditioning Eldest Female Cousin turned on stayed on until the end of the school day.

It kept Class 15 blissfully cool all afternoon.

For the entire afternoon, aside from bathroom breaks, basically no one ventured outside the classroom.

Everyone stayed put in the classroom, studying diligently.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to do other things, but because of the tryhards.

The ultimate skill of the Painful Sacrifice was further enhanced under the influence of its Pain Followers.

Divine Human Kingdom: Moutan Factory!

Breaks between classes were completely canceled!

English test papers were forcibly spawned on everyone’s desks, and anyone who failed to finish within the time limit would be cast into Vocabulary Hell!

They could only escape after copying and memorizing an entire unit’s worth of English vocabulary.

Repent before the report card! Weep before the scores!

As for why it was English, the reason was simple: the air conditioning had been turned on by the English teacher.

This was a test-grinding combo move from the Painful Sacrifice and the teacher of the subject.

When the school day ended and the central air conditioning shut off, the Divine Human Kingdom dissipated along with it.

Although enjoying the air conditioning felt great, to be honest, grinding through practice tests was truly painful.

When the door to their classroom opened, the students of Class 15 emanated an aura of vocabulary so potent it left the students from the neighboring honors classes completely stunned.

’Wait, your class is this tryhard now?’

However, upon feeling the cool breeze wafting out of Class 15’s room, everyone realized this wasn’t a case of voluntary scholasticism, but a forced compromise made in the name of central air.

And so, their gazes toward Class 15 became filled with scorn.

’How could anyone study seriously for the sake of mere air conditioning?’

’Then again, if it were me, I’d be studying too.’

’Who can possibly say no to air conditioning in the summer?’

"Let’s go, let’s go! Cafeteria! Lao Yuan! Ai Muyu! You guys coming?!"

"Let’s go!" Chen Mingyu shot up from his seat.

Shen Yuan glanced at Ah Jie, then over at Li Zhi. Seeing that Young Master Li had no intention of moving, he stood up.

"Need me to grab you anything from the store?"

Young Master Li shook his head. "No, I’m good."

Shen Yuan then headed to the cafeteria with Ah Jie.

Yang Ze teased, "Jie, it’s a rare sight to see you heading to the cafeteria. The lunch ladies must have missed you."

"Pah! Like hell they have! Those lunch ladies have never even seen my face!"

It was true that Zhou Shaojie rarely went to the cafeteria.

His family lived nearby and was in the restaurant business, so it was very convenient for him to just go home for lunch.

Unless it was a rainy day like today, or he was struck by a sudden whim, Ah Jie always insisted on going home.

’How can vat-cooked slop ever compare to a fresh stir-fry?’

Zhou Shaojie looked at Shen Yuan. "Yuan, what’s good at the cafeteria? Give me a recommendation."

"Stir-fried tomatoes and mooncakes?"

Ah Jie’s knees went weak.

"What the hell is stir-fried tomatoes and mooncakes? Are the mooncakes cosplaying as eggs? Damn it, is our cafeteria that depraved?"

Shen Yuan laughed. "It’s not that bad. The stir-fried tomatoes and mooncakes only show up around the Mid-Autumn Festival, mainly to get rid of unsold stock. Nowadays, it all depends on when the cafeteria chefs feel like going crazy. But that flavor... I mean, you just have to taste it for yourself."

At the mention of this, Yang Ze also started to laugh.

"Jie, you’re really missing out on the fun by not eating here. You really have to try dishes like dragon fruit with shrimp or ribs stewed with orange."

Hearing this, Ah Jie was already regretting his decision to go to the cafeteria.

"How the hell did you guys survive eating at a cafeteria like this?"

"It’s not like there isn’t anything good to eat. The salt-and-pepper chicken with Bugles is pretty decent. Except for that one time they used tomato-flavored Bugles, which really ruined the taste."

When he heard "salt-and-pepper chicken with Bugles," Ah Jie raised an eyebrow.

’Now that sounds like something worth trying!’

"Let’s go! Should we go look for it?" Ah Jie was suddenly full of enthusiasm.

"If we find it, we have to eat it. No matter what, everyone gets a serving. Are you in or not?"

The master of bright ideas was born!

Shen Yuan and Chen Mingyu glanced at each other, both seeing the deep regret in the other’s eyes.

’We never should have come out to eat with these two clowns.’

"Let’s just get one serving to share. Getting more would be a waste of food."

Hearing this, Zhou Shaojie and Yang Ze both nodded in agreement. "Every grain of rice comes from hard work, after all."

The four of them arrived at the first floor of Cafeteria No. 1. Experience told them that this was where the infamous fruit-based dishes usually appeared.

But there were none to be found today.

The group then wandered up to the second floor, then over to Cafeteria No. 2’s first floor, and then its second. After scanning all the available dishes, they confirmed that there were no fruit-based culinary abominations on the menu today.

After gathering at the cafeteria entrance, they all looked at each other. Ah Ze was the first to break, pointing at Zhou Shaojie as he burst out laughing.

"You were scared! You were scared just now, weren’t you!"

Ah Jie cracked up too. "Damn it, who the hell would actually want to eat that crap!"

"AHAHAHA!!"

The dumbass kids laughed joyfully at the cafeteria entrance.

The group ended up getting rice bowls on the second floor of Cafeteria No. 1.

Shen Yuan managed to hunt down Li Zhi.

Seeing Shen Yuan sit down beside him, Li Zhi asked in surprise, "Didn’t you guys leave a long time ago?"

Chen Mingyu, sitting nearby, explained, "Ah Jie said he wanted to try one of the fruit dishes, so we took him on a little tour to find one."

Hearing about their little quest, Li Zhi and He Zhiyu, who were in the middle of their meal, felt their brains short-circuit for a second.

’People actually go out of their way to find that stuff?’

"Well, you guys are certainly brave."

"Haha!"

"It’s a rare occasion for Ah Jie to eat at the cafeteria, so we had to make sure he had the full experience!"

Guys tend to eat fast. So even though Shen Yuan and his friends had arrived late, they finished their food relatively quickly.

"I’m heading to the store."

"We’ll go with you!"

The group huddled under two umbrellas, arms slung over each other’s shoulders, and made their way to the store. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"I’m getting iced tea. Polyphenols for life," Chen Mingyu declared. He was a loyalist of the Iced Tea Faction.

"Forget polyphenols, it’s gotta be Coke. Soda is justice! Lao Yuan, what’s your pick?"

Shen Yuan grabbed a bottle of Assam Green Milk Tea from the shelf. "I choose sugar content."

"You’re going to sugar-crash and die."

Ah Jie stood before the shelves, frowning in concentration.

"In that case, let the Holy Grail War begin!"

With that, Ah Jie reached out and grabbed a bottle of Genki Forest.

"Cyber-ascetic! The zero-calorie label! This is the ultimate health drink!"

"Annihilated."

Yang Ze held up his can of Coke. "If it doesn’t say it has calories, it’s zero-calorie. Mine is a health drink too."

Hearing this, Ah Jie swapped his drink for a bottle of Oriental Leaf. "The Zen of Buddhism! Let the polyphenols neutralize your anxiety!"

Chen Mingyu smiled faintly and brandished the one-liter bottle of iced tea in his hand. "Mine has polyphenols too. And for a cheaper price and a better taste. You’re dead!"

Ah Jie’s hand trembled, and he nearly dropped the bottle of Oriental Leaf.

Shen Yuan, holding his Assam, smiled at Ah Jie. "Come on. What other moves you got?"

Ah Jie’s eyes darted across the shelves, and inspiration struck.

"Americano! The path of the suffering monk! Embrace the caffeine!"

The other three exchanged a glance and nodded at Ah Jie. "Very well. You are permitted to join this Holy Grail War!"

The other students shopping in the store watched the four of them, all thinking the same thing.

’Are these guys insane?’

"Let this week’s quiz be the prelude to our Holy Grail War! We’ll start with Chinese class! Whoever ranks last has to offer up their drink as tribute!"

Damn it!

’Why are there tryhards everywhere?!’