Asher looked at the woman in front of him, a sly smile curling at the corner of his mouth. “Yes, I’m waiting for my girlfriend. Do you need something?”
“No, I just find you quite handsome and unfamiliar. You must not be from our school. How about I show you around our school?” Ivy, who was quite the celebrity at school, had always had an eye for handsome guys. If there had been someone as attractive as Asher, he would certainly have caught her attention by now.
“Wouldn’t my girlfriend be unable to find me if I wandered off now?” Asher replied, still smiling. His mixed heritage gave his smile a hint of roguish charm that women found irresistible.
“Handsome, how do I compare to your girlfriend? I can be your girlfriend anytime you want,” she said, striking a pose in front of him. Asher continued to smile and then replied, “What if I told you that you couldn’t even compare to one of her fingers?”
Ivy’s face gradually turned cold at his words, having never been spoken to in such a manner before!
At that moment, Aurora had returned to her dorm room. Gemma, who had just woken up, was startled by Aurora’s sudden return as if she had seen a ghost. “Au… Aurora, why are you back?” Gemma stammered. Since transferring schools, Aurora had only appeared in the dorm room twice.
With most of her face hidden behind glasses, Aurora’s expression was hard to read, but Gemma could feel the gloom. “It was you who did that thing that night, wasn’t it?” Aurora cut straight to the chase, referring to the incident from the other night.
Gemma’s face filled with fear, and her response was stuttering. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Which night?”
“Fine, I’ll remind you again. The night of the lecture,” Aurora repeated, maintaining her composure.
“I didn’t do anything that night. I went straight back to the dorm. What happened to you that night?” Gemma tried to hide her inner fear.
Unknowingly, Aurora slapped her across the face. “Remember now?” Her voice was chillingly clear.
Gemma was left stunned, Aurora’s usually low-key demeanor not hinting at such a temper. This slap left her disoriented and made her stand frozen in place for a long while.
“What’s going on here?” Penelope peeked out from her bed, having been half-asleep and not catching their conversation.
“It’s none of your business.” Aurora glared at her coldly, thankful for the glasses that shielded her eyes.
Even without seeing the cold glare, Penelope could feel the tense atmosphere in the room, which was now filled with a chilling aura.
Gemma finally reacted when she snapped, “What right do you have to hit me?”
“The first time at the cafe, I let it slide, but this time, you thought it would be funny to have those thugs mess with me?” Aurora confronted her.
“What thugs? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Gemma stubbornly denied.
“Is that so?” Aurora delivered another slap, “Does that jog your memory?”
Gemma had just been slapped twice in succession by Aurora, and anger flared within her instantly. She lunged at Aurora, her hands clawing towards Aurora’s face. “How dare you hit me? Even my mother has never hit me!” Her attacks were wild and unfocused. Aurora, who had trained in judo, quickly subdued her.
Aurora grabbed her by the neck and pinned her against the door. “I do not start conflicts, but I will not shy away if provoked. Consider these slaps a lesson. If you continue to harm me, I will respond in kind next time, Gemma. It would be as easy as squashing a bug.”
Gemma, chilled by Aurora’s icy demeanor, trembled uncontrollably, truly sensing the coldness emanating from Aurora. “Did you hear me clearly?” Aurora asked, seeing Gemma’s frightened expression.
“Y-Yes…” Gemma nodded repeatedly.
Seeing her nod, Aurora released her and promptly left the dorm. Gemma felt as though she had narrowly escaped death, her whole body shaking violently.
Aurora was not joking with her. It had been a close call, but fortunately, nothing serious had happened. Had something truly bad occurred that night, Aurora would not have let Gemma off so easily today. Gemma had no significant background or wealth, and for the affluent, manipulating someone like her would be trivial. However, Aurora disdained such actions, though she wouldn’t easily forgive any blatant disrespect.
“What happened to you?” Penelope, startled by Aurora’s fury, asked from her bed. “Has she turned into someone else?”
“It’s nothing.” Gemma, fearing further questions from Penelope, quickly left the dormitory.
As Aurora descended, she noticed Ivy, who appeared upset. Perhaps something Asher had said had angered her. Aurora approached, adjusting her glasses, and Asher, seeing her, smiled warmly. “Look, this is my girlfriend,” he said, affectionately pulling Aurora away. Ivy, failing to recognize Aurora at first, was repulsed by her unfashionable appearance.
As the couple walked away hand in hand, Ivy scoffed, “What a shame to see a hunk have such poor taste in women.” This was a new and unpleasant experience for her. She couldn’t fathom why someone would choose an unattractive nobody over her, and she felt deeply insulted. “I wonder when our school started admitting such eyesores, dragging down our average looks,” Ivy remarked coldly.
Gemma, overhearing this downstairs, still felt the sting on her face. “Aurora, I will never let you go!” She glanced at Ivy, plotting anew. Since she couldn’t defeat Aurora herself, perhaps Ivy could. After all, Ivy was the daughter of the Montgomery family, a notorious tyrant at school.
“Was that Aurora from our class bothering you?” Gemma approached Ivy and asked.
“Your class? Which one are you from?” Ivy looked at her dismissively, clearly not considering the poorer students worth her attention.
Gemma leaned in to whisper something to Ivy, and a sly smile slowly formed on Ivy’s lips, hinting at emerging schemes.