Soulless Players

At noon, Philip left the class, exhausted. Following him from behind were his classmates discussing the topic earlier.

"No. To find the derivative of 25 cos sin squared tan x, you should multiply them first with d over dx to get 50 sec squared x…."

"Wait! Where did you get d/dx?"

"Idiot! That is the derivative solution!"

"I know. But how did they arrive with that?"

"I don't know. Shouldn't it be given?… Let's ask Conrad!"

When Philip heard his name, he quickly sneezed and fluttered his eyes weakly.

"Ahh. I really can't make my brain work with this weak body of mind," Philip complained, acting like he was sick and needed immediate medical attention.

"Sorry, I think I should leave first." Philip turned around, covering his mouth. His eyes were watery and his arms trembled slightly.

"See you in the next class." He said goodbye and hurried away without waiting for a response.

Once he was far enough away, he stopped pretending and chuckled bitterly.

'Even if I have a photographic memory, it will still be hard for me to understand math. After all, I lack the necessary foundation.'

It was then Philip realized why some kids dislike going to school. School is difficult to understand, especially for him who had jumped directly into college without prior knowledge of primary and secondary education.

Philip sighed and strolled around the campus. He still remembered his plan to roam and search for more information.

But when he was about to head to a different building, his stomach grumbled.

'Should I return to the inn first?' Philip pondered while taking a bottle of milk from his shoulder bag.

'This is not enough…'

Philip's forehead wrinkled as he finished the bottle and realized he was still famished. He looked around and saw other students heading towards the west part of the university.

Curious, he followed them and arrived at a huge single-floor building. Many students were entering the building, while some were leaving with a small wooden box in their hand.

'What is that?' Philip took off his eyeglasses and focused his sight on one of the students. She stepped out from the stone pathway and sat on the grassy field nearby. Later, she grabbed some utensils from her bag and opened the box.

Filled within was hot and steamy shrimp red pasta. On the corner of the container, fresh slices of cucumber and two small boiled eggs could be seen.

Philip slapped his forehead and said, "Oh, I almost forgot. A school is not complete without a cafeteria."

He then took his sight away from the girl and glanced at the building across. It was then he realized why the place was so crowded.

'Well, I guess I should visit next time,' Philip thought while touching his stomach. Seeing the crowd, he hesitated first before ultimately deciding not to go.

Philip then turned around and ran towards the university gate, planning to eat at the inn. However, as he approached, someone called out to him from behind.

"Conrad!"

Philip jerked and hesitantly looked back. Then from the green grassy field, his eyes caught the sight of a tall man waving at him. The man sat on a stone round chair with a table in front. Held in his hands were a spoon and fork with a packed lunch box on the table.

"Are you returning to your hotel?" Adolf said while chewing food in his mouth.

"Yes, I am going to eat," Philip replied while observing him. Adolf was still the same tall and bulky young man with a cold expression. If Philip did not know his personality, he would have mistaken him as a goon with his stature and face.

"I saw you staring at the canteen earlier. Why don't you eat with me? My mother prepared so much for me." Adolf said softly, totally unlike his daunting expression.

Upon seeing the food on the table, Philip's eyes glowed in delight. What Adolf had said wasn't an exaggeration. His mother had really prepared three towering lunchboxes for him.

"Are you sure? Is that even enough for you?" Philip answered while scanning Adolf's body. Bulkly wasn't enough to express his figure, it might be more on the colossal side.

Adolf's cheek became red as he replied shyly, "Yes, I am trying to diet."

'What diet?! Diet won't solve your issue!' Philip had almost said this to Adolf.

Adolf per se wasn't fat. It was that his genes were so excellent that Adolf produced firm muscles without exercising.

"If that is the case, then I'll gladly accept your invitation," Philip sat across from him and dived for the food.

Philip was really famished. He had been experiencing this since he upgraded his physique to the maximum.

'This must be the downside of a strong body.'

Philip took the extra utensils Adolf had out of nowhere and had him thinking whether Adolf kept extra with him all day.

Philip glanced at Adolf suspiciously. 'Was the lunchbox a lie and Adolf has always been packing more to share?'

Adolf noticed Philip's gaze and pinched Philip's cheek unhesitantly.

"Cute," Adolf said without a hint of shame on his face. He tried to smile but it even made his face scary.

Philip's eyes widened. 'What is he doing? Why the hell does this person like to pinch someone's face so much?'

"Uhm Adolf. Can you stop that?" Philip could no longer control himself from bursting.

Hearing Philip's stern voice, Adolf quickly dropped his hands. He bowed his head pitifully. He was like a wet dog. No, he was more of a big pit dog on the street.

"No. What I mean, why are you always pinching my cheeks and telling me I'm cute?" Seeing Adolf like this, Philip's heart pounded guiltily.

"Well, my mother is always like that to me. I thought if I did it to you, you would also be my friend."

Philip's eyes almost popped out from disbelief. 'What nonsense is that?' he thought. But when he saw Adolf's sincerity, he stopped himself from bursting out.

Philip had always known from the start that Adolf was not a bad person. He was just not good at communication and was socially inept.

'Why is he like this?' Philip mulled internally while watching a huge nineteen-year-old adolescent man shaking and biting his lips.

"If you want to be friends, just say so. You don't need to do those things."

However, this didn't make Adolf feel better. Instead, he was even more untrusting of Philip's words.

"Don't you remember? I told you last year during the first-year orientation that I wanted to be friends with you." Adolf looked up with an unintentional condescending expression.

"And you just ran away from me."

"Damn…" Philip wanted to hit Conrad. Well, he could not blame Conrad for misunderstanding. With Adolf's scary face, even the most perceptive person would be restless. How much more with Conrad who was introverted and shy?

"I always envy you, you see." Adolf sighed and continued, "People crowded to you without you making any effort. Even when you are not talkative and always running away, they will still come to you."

"Unlike me, even if I give my all, people would still avoid me. I could not help but ask, what is wrong with me?"

Philip stared at Adolf, and shortly, glanced at his reflection in the spoon.

Conrad has blond hair and blue eyes. On his cheek, slightly under his left eye, a tiny mole was seen, making him less manly.

'Probably it is all about face,' Philip answered him internally. He had no guts to answer his question.

"Well stop thinking about the past. Now we can be friends."

Adolf smiled, this might be the first time Philip had seen him smile without looking scary.

"I have been thinking this since yesterday, but I really felt that you've changed."

Upon hearing this, Philip almost threw the food in his mouth.

'Man, you are not entirely wrong…'

Adolf continued, "While I liked you in the past, I think the present you is better."

It was then Philip recalled that he was supposedly acting as Conrad and should have not let his real personality affect his undercover.

'If I was Conrad, I should have quickly run away from Adolf. Moreover, I have no right to decide for Conrad. After all, I am just an imposter....'

This made him think whether he was getting rusty again.

Philip's eyes flashed slightly in disappointment. 'I can't let that happen. I should train my skills again.'

After thinking this, Philip suddenly saw a man in his early 40s surrounded by students.

Adolf saw him staring at the man and asked, "Should we leave?"

"Huh, why?" Philip asked back in confusion.

"Oh no. I just thought you might be uncomfortable with Professor Evans."

Philip almost jumped from his seat and quickly asked, "What? Evans? There is an Evans in school?"

Adolf answered, "Don't you know? Of course, there is. In fact, he isn't just a teacher but the dean of the College of Business and Economics."

Hearing this, Philip scowled, yet his lips curled up slightly.