Chapter 25: Beauty Is a Sin (Please Follow!)

The atmosphere suddenly became somewhat strange.

Xiao Ze Shuangye's face wore a complex, unreadable expression; her long, curled eyelashes trembled slightly before she widened her eyes and looked at Niino Li: "Never mind. Since I promised you before, as your teacher I must keep my word."

She turned and tore off a sticky note from the desk, scribbled a few lines quickly, and solemnly handed it to him.

"Your painting skills are good—you can tell whether this string of numbers is real or not. Take it."

"What is this?" Niino Li hesitated a moment, then reached out and took the sticky note.

"My bust-waist-hip measurements." Xiao Ze Shuangye turned her face away.

Fortunately, it was the first day of school and the other teachers in the dorm hadn't arrived—but would this again be some abnormal beginning?

"Huh?!" Niino Li grew flustered, leaping up from his chair, the sticky note in his hand already crumpled into a ball.

"Actually... what I wanted to ask wasn't this." He took a deep breath and clearly voiced the question he had prepared.

What strange promise had Xiao Ze Shuangye made to the previous owner of this body?

"Oh, so that's it—you should've said so earlier." Xiao Ze Shuangye straightened her posture, lifting her left leg, the black tapered pants accentuating the length and straightness of her legs.

"You want to submit a manga to a publisher but can't find the right channel? I have a friend who's an editor at Yoneyama Publishing—I can help you get information."

She paused, then asked seriously: "Have you decided what kind of manga you want to draw yet?"

Xiao Ze Shuangye worried he might use next week's rivalry match as practice material for his manga, so her thoughts grew unusually meticulous.

Seeing this, Niino Li pulled a file folder from his backpack—the kind used to bind exam papers: "Inside are a hand-drawn cover page and the first chapter. If you don't mind, take a look."

To compensate for possible gaps in his memory, he had packed ordinary sketch paper and drawing paper in his backpack, to repeatedly refine any details he might have missed.

The first scene that met her eyes was the manga cover Niino Li had mentioned.

A misty, eerie fog cradled a beautiful girl in a white top, a barely noticeable beauty mark beside her eye...

As if it could suck in a person's soul.

No other elements explained the story's setting.

The girl's features were delicate and sharp; her narrow, slanted phoenix eyes resembled a deep, dark pool, compelling one to meet her gaze and slowly sink into it.

"Xiao Ze teacher?" Niino Li noticed Xiao Ze Shuangye holding the folder motionless for a long time and gently reminded her.

"Huh?" Xiao Ze Shuangye snapped back to awareness, her heart pounding as if her most hidden secret had been glimpsed; a fine sheen of sweat faintly surfaced along her smooth back.

"How do you feel? Is the art decent enough?"

"It's... fine."

Maintaining a calm exterior, Xiao Ze Shuangye turned to the first page.

"My friend Tomie died tragically. When they found her body, she had been dismembered—her parts scattered everywhere."

At the top of the first page, this narration appeared on both sides.

In the center was a photo of the girl from the cover, smiling brightly—so vivid in the black-and-white manga that it was hard to tell whether it was a portrait or a posthumous image.

Murdered?

Xiao Ze Shuangye felt deeply saddened; as a teacher herself, seeing a girl as radiant as a blooming flower die in such a horrific way left a bitter taste in her mouth.

The story begins at Tomie's funeral—there were monks chanting prayers, reporters chasing the news, and police gathering clues for the investigation.

The next day, the homeroom teacher Takagi comforted the frightened, grieving students with a long speech; when he said, "Tomie won't be coming back again"—

The door creaked open.

Tomie, wearing her school uniform, apologized to all the staring eyes: "I'm sorry I'm late."

The oppressive atmosphere vanished instantly; Xiao Ze Shuangye's curiosity surged at once, compelling her to see what came next.

The news that Tomie was alive spread rapidly through the school; soon, every teacher and student was talking about it—except the person herself.

Then, homeroom teacher Takagi privately found Tomie, his gloomy face tinged with fear, asking her true identity.

Before he could finish, Tomie suddenly lunged at him, clutching his body tightly: "Teacher, I love you! When I graduate, you'll be with me, right?!"

Gradually, Takagi's eyes grew vacant; the scene instantly shifted to Tomie's classmates gathered together, discussing.

Xiao Ze Shuangye felt as if she were watching a 3D movie, as if she herself had become one of Tomie's classmates, sharing their fear.

The incident settled for now; Tomie and her friend Reiko walked together along a path lined with dead trees.

"Why is Yamamoto so cold to me? Even though I transferred my feelings to the teacher—I was wrong to begin with..." Tomie held her handbag, her tone troubled, yet her expression did not match.

She was smiling...

Xiao Ze Shuangye felt a chilling sensation, as if a fine bristle had lightly brushed her skin.

Reiko lowered her head, her face pale, her mind churning like boiling water. When she finally mustered the courage to believe Tomie's death had been a nightmare, she looked up—and saw Tomie's hands resting on the bridge railing—she collapsed—

That was where she had been cut into pieces!

Reiko's expression in this panel starkly contrasted with the previous one, where she had bravely believed in Tomie.

The speed was like a tooth choking your throat—you had to cough desperately to swallow it down.

Bold, ingenious paneling...

Xiao Ze Shuangye grew even more uneasy and couldn't help turning another page.

The story continued.

Reiko found Tomie's "boyfriend," and the two discussed how to escape Tomie's control.

The narration unfolded: Tomie's entire class climbed a small hill near the school called Inari Mountain, where they would hold a study session at the Inari Shrine.

The eerie, horrifying atmosphere eased slightly.

During the group activity, Teacher Takagi stepped aside to smoke—unbeknownst to him, Tomie followed stealthily behind.

Remembering his sudden heart attack, Teacher Takagi had no choice but to let Tomie come close.

Their affectionate gestures quickly drew whispers and stares from the students—including Tomie's "boyfriend," Yamamoto.

"Teacher, you'll definitely be with me, right?"

Tomie linked arms with Teacher Takagi.

"Divorce your wife..."

Tomie pressed her body tightly against the back of Teacher Takagi, her small chin resting on his shoulder.

"Otherwise, I'll expose our relationship to the school."

Tomie leaned gently toward Teacher Takagi's ear and whispered softly.