Time: 3:23 PM.
After the burden training session, the Fire Tooth Dog came to stand before Qiao Sang. Over the past few days, the dog had grown stronger, managing to stand upright even after training. Qiao Sang took out a bottle of Qi Yuan Milk she always carried with her and offered it to the dog. The recent training meant that the Fire Tooth Dog needed to drink eight or nine bottles of Qi Yuan Milk each day.
Watching the dog gulp down three bottles in one go made Qiao Sang worry a bit about her finances. Money flowed too quickly; within a week, she was down to around thirty thousand Alliance Coins. By the end of the day, her assets would likely start with a two. She really needed to find a way to earn some money.
Though Qiao Sang had considered asking her mother directly for money, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Seeing her mother leave early and return late, only to cook and prepare energy meals for the beasts, made it hard for her to ask. However, focusing on the upcoming High School Entrance Exam was more important now; earning money could wait.
Once the Fire Tooth Dog finished the Qi Yuan Milk, Qiao Sang took it onto bus number 28.
…
At New Sea Bookstore.
Since it was a rest day, the bookstore was bustling, mostly filled with students. Qiao Sang browsed the middle school section on the second floor, looking for a set of practice papers for the entrance exam.
Just as she was finishing up and headed downstairs, a voice called out to her.
“Beautiful lady!”
“Hero!”
“Heroine!”
“The lady with the Fire Tooth Dog!”
It was only then that Qiao Sang turned her head. It seemed she was the only one in the store with a Fire Tooth Dog. A girl with a bun hairstyle and wispy bangs approached her in quick steps.
“Why didn’t you acknowledge me?” the girl complained.
She looked a bit familiar… Qiao Sang couldn’t quite remember where she had seen her, but it was certain.
“Yah!” The Fire Tooth Dog let out a bark, clearly recognizing the girl.
The dog knew her?
“It’s you! I didn’t notice before,” Qiao Sang said calmly.
“I recognized you right away, especially your Fire Tooth Dog, it’s so eye-catching!” the girl replied with a smile.
Qiao Sang blinked, signaling her to go on.
“I still haven’t had the chance to thank you for what happened on the bus. I messaged you, but you didn’t reply,” the girl continued.
Qiao Sang suddenly remembered. It was the girl who sat beside her that day when she won fifty thousand Alliance Coins. Her name was Bai Yunmiao.
“I haven’t checked my messages much recently,” Qiao Sang explained.
She had been busy training the Fire Tooth Dog and studying, so she hadn’t looked at her phone much.
“The heroine is truly different; you can even resist looking at your phone! I can’t do that!” Bai Yunmiao said admiringly.
Then she noticed the materials in Qiao Sang’s hand and asked curiously, “Why are you buying practice papers for the entrance exam?”
“Isn’t it just a few days before the exam?” Qiao Sang replied with a question.
“The entrance exam and you buying… What the heck!” Bai Yunmiao exclaimed.
Unlike her previous subdued voice, this time she shouted it out loud, catching the attention of many nearby readers.
Bai Yunmiao quickly covered her mouth and looked at Qiao Sang in disbelief, lowering her voice as she asked, “You’re still a middle school student?”
“Don’t I look like one?” Qiao Sang responded somewhat irritably. Did she seem older?
“No, no, it’s just that I didn’t expect it,” Bai Yunmiao hurriedly shook her head.
Now that she thought about it, the girl looked indeed younger than herself. But she had never associated her with being a middle schooler. Who would have thought that the one who had successfully captured the thief and contracted a Fire Tooth Dog was a middle schooler?
The fact that an ungraduated middle school student had contracted a beast showed that she was a talent with self-awakening!
Such talents were nonexistent in their school. No wonder she had the courage to contract a fire-type beast as her first, and managed to train her Fire Tooth Dog this well. Bai Yunmiao discreetly cast a glance at the Fire Tooth Dog.
“Why are you still taking the entrance exam? A genius like you should be directly offered enrollment!” Bai Yunmiao asked.
“Do you have a misunderstanding about geniuses?” Qiao Sang replied helplessly.
Which genius needed to worry about whether they could meet the minimum score requirement for the entrance exam?
Bai Yunmiao thought she was being modest and asked, “Which school are you planning to take?”
“Holy Water Middle School,” Qiao Sang answered.
Bai Yunmiao looked at her with a knowing expression.
Qiao Sang didn’t feel like explaining how poor her grades were, thinking time was precious, she bid farewell, saying, “I need to go home and practice, see you.”
As she turned, Bai Yunmiao grabbed her arm and said pitifully, “Genius, you haven’t told me your name yet.”
Qiao Sang: “…”
…
On the bus ride home, the Fire Tooth Dog enjoyed the outside scenery as usual, while Qiao Sang took out her phone, preparing to note down Bai Yunmiao’s name.
As she opened the messaging interface, she was startled to see a glaring red “99+” in the top right corner.
Qiao Sang blinked, opening it up to find her classmates, whom she hadn’t contacted much, sending her messages, each wondering what was going on.
From their perspective, taking such a long leave right before the entrance exam meant something serious had happened.
Feeling touched, Qiao Sang replied to each of them, assuring them she was fine.
After that, she noticed a message from her mother that had been sent two hours ago.
[When is the special enrollment time for Hanggang Sixth Beastmaster Middle School? I called the teacher to help you take a leave.]
Qiao Sang panicked and quickly dialed her mother’s number.
After a while, the call connected.
“Mom, did you call the teacher?” Qiao Sang asked, a bit embarrassed.
“I did.”
“Mom, actually I…”
“But it didn’t go through.”
Qiao Sang immediately gave up what she was about to say.
“What were you going to say?” her mother asked.
“I actually want to take the entrance exam for Holy Water Middle School,” Qiao Sang changed her approach.
There was silence on the other end for a moment, “Is the special enrollment time for both schools conflicting?”
“No, Hanggang Sixth Beastmaster School is on June 9th, and Holy Water Middle School is on June 10th, just a day apart,” Qiao Sang replied.
“Then that’s great; you can go to both,” her mother said.
Ye Xiangting hadn’t asked about the special enrollment time for Holy Water Middle School earlier because she didn’t pay attention.
That day, she simply couldn’t bear to see the school teachers' attitudes towards that woman, and in a moment of impulsiveness, she suggested her daughter apply for Holy Water Middle School’s special enrollment.
A couple of days later, once she calmed down, she understood her daughter had a 99.99% chance of not getting in, so she stopped bringing it up.
But her daughter clearly still cared about the special enrollment for Holy Water Middle School, and since she had first mentioned it, Ye Xiangting had no choice but to handle it.
Now, she was just relieved that the special enrollment time for Hanggang Sixth Beastmaster School was before Holy Water Middle School's, or else if Holy Water Middle School had theirs first, it might affect her daughter's mindset for the entrance exam for Hanggang Sixth Beastmaster School the next day.
“Mom, you don’t need to make any calls, I already asked for leave with the homeroom teacher,” Qiao Sang advised.
“Oh, I understand now,” Ye Xiangting responded.
Since she had already made the call, she naturally wouldn’t call again. If it weren’t for her daughter, she wouldn't want to deal with these teachers at all.
(End of Chapter)