Chapter 42: Principal, Would You Like to Buy a VVVIP Ticket?

Although Elder Li and Elder Sun were both Class-A awakened powerhouses, the principal still felt uneasy.

He decided to head to the Beast Taming Department's plaza to see which student was so audacious, not only calling him bald, but also daring to pull such a suicidal stunt right here on school grounds.

The principal slipped on his coat and bolted out the door, only to find Su Ang walking right toward him.

Su Ang paused, and seeing the principal's hurried expression, assumed a magical beast had broken out of its nest nearby. "Principal, what happened?"

"A major event, a catastrophic event! Come on, follow me first!" The principal glanced at the time on his optical computer, terrified he wouldn't make it in time to stop the match, and dragged Su Ang toward the Beast Taming Plaza.

By the time the two arrived, quite a few students were already lined up to enter the plaza. The principal looked around and was startled to spot several familiar figures in the crowd.

Elder Zhao? Elder Zhou? Elder Wu? Wait, even Elder Zheng was here?

What was going on? Were these old seniors holding a competition in the Beast Taming Plaza? But with something so major, why hadn't anyone given him a heads-up in advance?

The principal hastily smoothed his suit, preparing to go and ask what on earth was happening, when halfway through a step, his arm was grabbed.

"Principal?!"

Qian Qi’s pleasantly surprised voice suddenly rang out from behind. "Oh my! Why are you here, sir?"

"Qian Qi?" Seeing Qian Qi, the principal’s mouth twitched involuntarily, and he suddenly felt a dull ache in his arm.

It was hard to tell whether it was due to Qian Qi's formidable physical strength or the psychological shadow left by some rather unpleasant memories.

"Are you here to watch the match too?" Qian Qi asked cheerfully, her gaze sweeping past the principal and landing on the silver-haired young beauty, Su Ang, standing beside him.

My, the principal was something else. Coming to watch was one thing, but why did he have to bring along a little beauty?

From the moment Qian Qi appeared, a sense of impending doom washed over the principal. He looked at Elder Sun, who was standing at the plaza entrance winking at him, and then at Qian Qi, who wore the expression of a smiling tiger. His lips began to tremble.

"You couldn't possibly... be the main event of this match, could you?" The principal's voice nearly cracked.

"How could that be?" Qian Qi instantly denied.

Just as the principal breathed a sigh of relief, he heard Qian Qi correct him with a stern expression, "The main event is clearly me and my Class-D contracted beast. Principal, you can't just ignore a contracted beast's animal rights just because it's a magical beast. That's racial discrimination!"

Principal: ???

What the hell, why are my hands itching so much right now?

"Principal, want to come in and watch the match?" Qian Qi looked left and right to ensure no one was watching, then stealthily shoved two tickets into the principal's hand. "VVVIP front-row seats! Buy a ticket and get right in!"

The principal laughed out of pure anger. "Qian Qi, the entire school belongs to me, and you're trying to charge me money?"

Hearing this, Qian Qi's little face shifted slightly. She ruthlessly snatched the tickets back from the principal's hands and cast a look of utter disdain. "No way, Principal? The students are all following the rules and paying for their tickets. As adults, we can't be freeloading right in front of the students, can we?"

The principal's mouth twitched: Who the hell is "we" with you, you brat?

Just as he was about to retort, Qian Qi sharply clapped her hands together. "But you're right! After all, you're the principal, so you deserve your special privileges!"

Qian Qi pointed at the beauty Su Ang beside him. "How about this! I'll sell you two tickets for the price of one—400 bucks for a buy-one-get-one-free deal, and this senior's ticket is basically my treat. How does that sound?"

Upon hearing this, the principal decided that Qian Qi actually showed some common sense after all, and he nodded in agreement. "Fine, I suppose I'll support your little venture."

With that, he transferred 400 yuan to Qian Qi.

Confirming the payment had arrived, Qian Qi immediately stuffed the two tickets back into the principal's hands and enthusiastically ushered both the principal and Su Ang through the gates of the Beast Taming Plaza.

"Oh my, Principal, you're here to watch the match too?" Grandpa Sun, sitting in the duty room chair, greeted them with a cheerful smile. "Did you buy a ticket?"

Principal: ......

Do you find it amusing to play along with her schemes?!

The principal placed the two VVVIP tickets in front of Elder Sun. Grandpa Sun meticulously inspected their authenticity before flashing the principal a deeply meaningful smile.

At that moment, the principal still did not understand the true meaning of that smile.

Having passed ticket inspection, he and Su Ang entered the Beast Taming Plaza together.

Su Ang walked in silence the entire way. It wasn't until they reached the plaza stands that he finally spoke softly, "Principal... what was this major crisis you mentioned?"

Principal: ......

Principal: ???

What the hell?

The principal finally snapped back to reality: Wait a minute? Didn't he come here to stop this match?!

The principal silently wiped away a cold sweat. This definitely wasn't because he was careless; it was simply that Qian Qi, that little monkey of a girl, was so crafty she had completely driven the matter from his mind.

However...

The principal stroked his chin and muttered gravely, "If it's her, could she actually pull it off?"

The kid was sharp as a tack; it was impossible she would knowingly march to certain death in a duel with a Class-D contracted beast.

Besides, after talking with Mo Yinqiu over the past few days, he discovered that Qian Qi was genuinely a magical flora genius. Not only had she cured students' dying magical plants, but she had even cultivated Fire Kirin Lotus plants that were immensely beneficial to Flame Hounds.

Even the Fire Kirin Lotus found in dungeon domains could produce at most a single fruit, yet the ones Qian Qi cultivated directly bore three top-tier Fire Kirin fruits. Applying a label like "genius" to her felt almost stingy.

Not to mention that hemostatic magical potion...

"Could it be that the reason she used to smash those magical plants to pieces before was because she thought they were just trash?" The principal couldn't help but feel he had stumbled upon the naked truth.

"Principal?" Su Ang halted, interrupting the principal's wild train of thought. He pointed toward the front-row seats and said in a flat tone, "We've arrived."

The principal uttered an "oh" and took his seat. Just as he was about to answer Su Ang's previous question, he overheard a young couple nearby quarrelling.

"Why did you come here!" the boy snapped harshly, clearly displeased by his girlfriend's arrival.

"Why shouldn't I be here!" The girl remained entirely unfazed by his foul temper, offering a slight, sarcastic sneer. "It seems I worried for nothing. Your relationship with Qian Qi isn't even that close after all—you actually had to buy your ticket at full price."

The principal, accidentally eavesdropping, stroked his chin, thinking that Qian Qi actually had a shred of human decency after all, knowing to give her friends a discount.

Still, her discount couldn't possibly beat his—after all, he had gotten a buy-one-get-one-free deal!

Beside them, the boy frowned and asked, "How much did you pay for this VVVIP ticket?"

The girl gave a light huff. "Half of what you paid, 100 yuan!"

"What?!"

"What?!"

Two outraged voices rang out back-to-back. The first belonged to Chen Tong, whose eyes were filled with jealousy and irritation. "If I'd known, I would have bargained too! Damn it, I'm the one who sponsored this whole match!"

The second belonged to the principal, who slammed his hand down on the armrest and shrieked, "Student, what did you just say the original price of a VVVIP ticket was?!"

"Principal?" Chen Tong turned around, startled to see the principal, and hastily answered, "200 yuan, what's wrong?"

Principal: !!!

200 yuan?!

Doesn't that mean I spent 400 yuan to buy two VVVIP tickets at full price?

The principal instantly realized he had been played for a fool. So much for a buy-one-get-one-free deal—it was just a trick Qian Qi used to dupe him into buying tickets!

The more the principal thought about it, the angrier he became, his head practically fuming with rage. No wonder Elder Sun had smiled so strangely earlier; the old fox knew all along that he had been scammed!

Wait a second? That didn't make sense either. He had been quite far away from Elder Sun at the time—how could Elder Sun possibly have known that he spent 400 yuan and got taken for a ride by Qian Qi?