Chapter 43: I Am a Teddy Bear

Hearing the alarm, Chen Fan immediately grew alert, keeping a close eye on any suspicious figures outside. Yet the system's warning tone soon faded away.

"Hey, do you think I should stop being passive and teach Wei Youlong a lesson myself?" Chen Fan sipped his cool water, speaking with earnest gravity.

Li Peijun, having ordered an extra can of herbal tea, suggested, "What do you want to do? I still think it's best for both sides to take a step back. After all, we're living under the same roof—no good comes from hurting each other."

Chen Fan shrugged. "What do you mean, same roof? That guy was making a racket last night about changing dorms. He dragged his suitcase out in the middle of the night."

"Oh? That's hilarious. I heard from our classmates he was caught two-timing, and now it’s become a running joke during military training. Everyone's talking about it—even videos are up on Kuaishou."

Right in front of Chen Fan, Li Peijun started playing a series of trending short videos. Not only was the Jiangnan Leather Factory meme going strong, but now there was even a “Crossing Blades and Fire” remix version.

"Look at these view counts—Wei Youlong is practically a viral star now. People who don’t know the truth affectionately call him MC Youlong." Wiping the grease from his screen, Li Peijun slipped his phone back into his pocket.

After a hearty laugh, Chen Fan realized things were getting serious. With Wei Youlong now the butt of every joke, he certainly wouldn’t let things slide.

"Have you got any ideas to deal with him? I’d rather strike first," Chen Fan asked, wary of the uncertainty of his own abilities and wanting to play it safe by seeking Li Peijun’s advice.

Li Peijun shook his head. "Who knows? I'm nothing like him. We don’t even hang out. He likes to show off, but he’s actually terrified of his family."

"Is that so? Then I’ll just have to play it by ear," Chen Fan said, unsure of the timing and hoping he’d soon draw a useful card—then he could settle all accounts at once.

The Bear card seemed powerful, able to sense hidden dangers much like Spider-Man’s famous spider-sense, but it could only offer passive defense, not actually solve the root of his problems.

If only he could draw the Wolf card again, Chen Fan was sure he could wipe the floor with Wei Youlong.

Looking at his palm, he felt nothing of the Bear’s strength; it was no different from a toy bear in a gift shop.

"What do you think is the most powerful kind of bear?" Chen Fan withdrew his gaze, hoping his abilities might mutate into something stronger.

"I wouldn’t know—black bears, brown bears, grizzlies, polar bears—there are so many kinds, and they all live in different places. No one’s ever thrown them into a ring to fight. If you ask me, the cutest toy bears are the strongest—girl magnets, you know?" Li Peijun replied offhandedly, unsure how to answer.

Chen Fan glanced at the time, wanting to hurry back to the dorm before dark. Raising his hand, he said, "Forget it. If anything happens, blame Wei Youlong. If he pushes me, I’ll just go all out, consequences be damned."

"Boss, check please," Chen Fan called out, sneaking a glance at the door.

The owner looked over the order slip and grinned. "Alright, that’ll be sixty-seven yuan."

Chen Fan blinked in surprise, turning to Li Peijun. "How much did you order? I only had three skewers."

Li Peijun looked a little sheepish. "Heh, that first plate was piled high. The one you saw when you arrived was already my second."

Chen Fan’s smile froze. Checking his wallet, he realized he hadn’t brought enough cash. "Boss, can I pay with WeChat?"

The owner nodded. "Of course, but there’s no online discount now—full price only."

Li Peijun picked his teeth and said, "Chen Fan, let’s hang out again sometime."

Grumbling as he paid, Chen Fan forced a wry smile. "I’d better not go out eating with you all the time, Mr. Moneybags. For the next twenty days, I’ll stick to the cafeteria."

"Hey, that’s not fair—I’m just a budget spender, not a tycoon," Li Peijun corrected earnestly.

Just as they were leaving, Li Peijun remembered something important and called out, "Oh, by the way, the club fair’s coming up soon. Any news from the student council? If not, maybe check out the clubs."

Chen Fan stopped and waited for Li Peijun to catch up before saying, "Looks like it’s not happening. I’m not interested in clubs anyway. I’ll just focus on my studies and try for grad school after graduation."

Xu Changhui and Lai Guangyi had both received invitation messages from their departments that morning, but Chen Fan had heard nothing. He’d come to terms with it, no longer interested in chasing after glory or status.

Li Peijun pressed on, "I heard there’s a Werewolf club—the president and core members are all top-tier players. If you’re interested, you could learn a thing or two. It’s not like the student council, with things to do every day. I heard it’s pretty relaxed, with little oversight."

Hearing this, Chen Fan remembered his agreement with Xiao Yuhuo and replied, "I’ll think about it. Just hope they don’t pick members by ranking—if so, I’ve got no chance."

Li Peijun slapped Chen Fan’s back reassuringly. "Don’t worry. Worst case, you join as a regular member, pay a small annual fee, and pick up some skills."

Chen Fan edged away, not wanting to be roped into anything else by Li Peijun. "I really am useless—rejected by the student council, banned from club competitions, and won’t be unbanned until the Werewolf King tournament."

Li Peijun encouraged him, "No worries, the hardest part’s getting started. At least you study well—just keep your original intentions. These are just hobbies for your free time, so don’t stress about it."

Without realizing it, they reached a fork in the road—Chen Fan lived at the bottom of the slope, Li Peijun at the top.

"Hard to imagine that someone who only started working hard in the last two months of senior year ended up with a Gaokao score just ten points lower than mine. Li Peijun, your natural talent leaves most top students in the dust."

Li Peijun smiled, "You never change, Chen Fan. Even when you compliment someone, you find a way to include yourself. Not that I mind—it’s good having a friend like you."

"If you’d treat me to meals more often, I’d count myself truly blessed."

They bumped fists and went their separate ways.

"Peanut caramel chocolate, TV sets, fridges, water heaters, black bears, grizzlies, polar bears—they’re all just teddy bears," Chen Fan chanted one of his own tongue-twisters, ready to go back and study how to use and upgrade his powers.

"Warning, danger…"

The alert grew more urgent. Chen Fan jerked instinctively but didn’t react in time—a brick came crashing down behind his head.

P.S. Many thanks to Our King Ji and "This Qin Is Not Sentimental" for your support, and to all the readers for your feedback. Writing a Werewolf novel is tough—even though I’ve played many games, if I transcribed all the dialogue it would become tedious and drawn-out, and just picking out the highlights is challenging. I’ll try to incorporate more VR elements and richer environmental and psychological descriptions in future games. I know my writing is still clumsy, but I’ll do my best to improve.

I’m a new author and haven’t read many novels myself, so there’s much I don’t understand. The hotel WIFI was bad today and I couldn’t upload, so I’ll post everything together tomorrow. Thank you all for your support.