<b>Chapter </b>84


    Bring was apletely different person in ss todaypared to her energetic self during yesterday’s public lecture. She looked on and drowsy.


    Barely five minutes into the lesson, her head was nearly buried in her book, eyes open wide in a desperate attempt to stay awake.


    Yet Joshua, who was teaching at the podium, simply smiled at her, even when he caught her sneaking in a quick nap. He looked at her with the warmth of someone watching over their own child.


    Sitting behind her, Thomas had been quietly observing the whole time. Ever since the public lecture, Briar’s talent and name had spread like wildfire across Shoneport University.


    Those who used to mock her behind her back now didn’t even dare whisper.


    Unexpectedly, she had gained quite a following. Many students were now considering joining the Traditional Medicine Department thanks to <b>her </b>captivating performance<b>. </b>


    She had be the department’s unexpected poster girl.


    Briar had used her abilities to p back at those who <b>once </b>mocked her, forcing even those who used her past grades to criticize her to fall


    stent


    Still, Thomas couldn’t help but feel uneasy. He knew that Abbie’s anonymous post smearing Briar on the school forum was still up to see.


    He had tried reaching out to the forum administrator to have it removed, but the response was baffling. They imed they didn’t <b>have </b>the


    authority to delete it.


    That didn’t make sense. The administrator should have had the highest level of control. If even they couldn’t delete the post, then it probably


    meant no one could.


    It could only mean one thing the storm stirred up by that post <b>wasn’t </b>over <b>yet </b>


    He had a strong feeling that Briar was behind it. Maybe she had told the admin not to delete the post because she wanted to track down the person responsible.


    That was why Thomas had been closely watching her ever since she stepped into theb building. Every time she left his sight, he would call Abble and tell her to stay away.


    Now that Briar had Ashton on her side, dealing with Abble wouldn’t take much effort.


    However, nearly an hour had passed, and Briar was still either nodding off or shifting in her seat<b>, </b>changing her sleeping position every <b>so </b>often. She showed no sign of leaving midway.


    From the looks of it, she didn’t seem interested in doing anything about the malicious post on the forum.


    “Was I just overthinking it? Thomas wondered,


    After her nap, Briar slowly sat up and leaned back in her chair. She crossed one leg over the other with casual ease, looking for all the world like someone in charge. But that nonchnt look was just a cover, her legs were numb


    From the corner <b>of </b>her eye, she noticed Thomas, who had been stealing nces at her for the past hour. A sharp glint briefly shed acro her expression.


    Of course Briar had noticed. Anyone would after being <b>stared </b>at for so long


    <b>1/3 </b>


    Chapter 84-


    But really<b>, </b><b>she </b>felt this <b>guy </b>gave his sister too much credit.


    <b>If </b><b>she </b>really wanted to deal with Abble, all it would take was a few taps on her phone


    <b>He </b>would find out soon enough, once ss ended, Thomas would receive the little surprise she had prepared


    Meanwhile, Abbie was also distracted in ss. She had been on edge, waiting for friar toe after her. But with not just around theer, nothing had happened yet.


    Lydia had ss with Abble that day. While jotting down notes, she nced over and asked with concern, “Wbble, are you okay? You look kind of upset.”


    “I’m fine,” Abbie said with a forced smile. “Just still thinking about Briar’s performance in the public lecture yesterday. She was surprisingly impressive.”


    Lydia’s expression soured. “Impressive? Please. That was just a stunt to get attention. If Ashton weren’t backing her now, no one would even look her way.”


    Abbie’s smile stiffened. “Yeah… Ashton is her support now,”


    And that was exactly what made her so anxious.


    She wasn’t afraid of Briar herself, but if Briar managed to say something that swayed Ashton, things could get messy


    “What are you so worried about?” Lydia said casually. “Ashton might be powerful, but he doesn’t go around picking fights for no


    <b>a </b>reason.”


    She thought Abbie was nervous about Ashton retaliating. Trying to reassure her, Lydia added, “Honestly, Ashton acts cold, but as long as you don’t cross him, he won’t bother with nobodies like us.”


    But the more Lydia spoke, the heavier Abbie felt inside. “Yeah, I get it


    “Alright, that’s all for today’s ss. I’ll send the homework to the public email. Don’t forget to clock in and download it,” the professor said.


    One good thing about university lecturers was that they never dragged things out. When ss time ended, they didn’t stay a second longer.


    Most of them left in a rush, lesson ns in hand, or sometimes not even bothering to take them.


    Abble and Lydia’s next sses weren’t in the same room, and Lydia had to hurry to grab a good seat. She quickly packed up her things, ready


    to leave.


    Just then, someone shouted<b>, </b>“What the hell! Guys, hurry and check the forum, there’s new drama!”


    The students who were still in the ssroom immediately pulled <b>out </b>their phones and opened the forum, in no time, gasps and exmations


    filled the room.


    Then, all eyes turned to Abbie, eyes filled with curiosity, mockery, and disgust.


    Under those strange and judgmental gazes, Abbie’s face slowly went pale. She didn’t even dare to take out her phone to see <b>what </b>was going


    Lydia, sensing something was off, quickly pulled out her phone and opened the forum. What she saw immediately caught her attention


    There were two pinned posts at the top. The first one was the old post defaming Briar,plete in a luxury car, entering a mansion.


    e with secretly taken photos of her with


    But the second post was brand new. The scene and angle were identical, but this time, the girl in the photo had been swapped for Abbie.


    O <b>Mug </b>


    Even the timestamp on the image was clearly visible,


    In the first photo, <b>taken </b>in the evening, Abbie was shown getting into a car with a fat, middle aged man.


    The second photo, timestamped just past midnight, showed her entering a house with a greasy looking man


    The whole thing had to be <b>fake</b>, Abbie didn’t even know these two men. But no matter how long Lydia studied the images, she couldn’t <b>spot </b>a


    single trace of editing.


    Stunned, Lydia turned to her. “Abbie, is this…”


    Abbie’s eyes were already red as she nished to exin. “Lydia, that’s not met I didn’t do any of this?”


    Lydia didn’t need convincing. She knew this wasn’t something Abble would get involved in. Abbie might suck up to people now and then, but she was still the Cooper family’s eldest daughter. She wouldn’t lower herself like that.


    But whoever posted those images knew what they were doing. By pinning both posts at the top; one of Briar, one of Abbie, they forced the Comparison. And no matter how you looked at it, Briar came out ahead.


    The worst part was that the people on the forum didn’t know the real Abbie. Lydia could only imagine what they were thinking now


    ?