ã€ŠSweet Revenge: My Sweet Life With You!ã€‹


 Chapter 1 - Back To The Past

    CRACKLE! BOOM!

    The thunder roared loudly and the rain poured heavily, as if crying and resonating with the woman who was lying down on the ground, slightly trembling, with a pool of blood beneath her.

    Gasping and Panting, the woman tried to stop the tears streaming down her cheeks. She bit her lips and gritted her teeth, as if to stop feeling the coming from her chest.

    "Yanna!" Screamed the man who quickly got off the black maybach car. He ran towards the woman and embraced her tightly.

    "¡­C-Cole¡­" Breathing was already hard for Yanna, yet with the power of love, she managed to say Cole''s name.

    "Shhh¡­ Don''t speak anymore. I''m here¡­I''m here¡­" Cole spoke softly. Then, he heard a cold voice in front of him.

    "I''m also here. Did you forget me? Ugh, just watching your stupid drama makes me puke rainbows and makes me gouge my eyeballs. You guys are so cringe!" It was said sarcastically.

    There was a woman standing in front of them, with a gun pointing towards the both of them.

    "Ayami¡­" Cole stared at the woman in front of him with a sharp gaze. Ayami giggled, like a child that finally got an attention after annoying that said person.

    "You still remember me? To think His Majesty, who have a serious case of amnesia, would be able to remember this lowly me. I''m honored~" Ayami spoke, not dropping the sarcastic tone in her voice.

    "Ah, are you sure that you still want to stay here talking to this humble me, while you''re lover is bleeding for your life." Ayami giggle and continued to taunt Cole.

    Cole''s face reddened. He was really pissed at Ayami and wanted to kill her, but it might put Yanna, into more danger, so he just stood up and was about to turn around, when¡­

    "Ah, do you think I will let you go?" Ayami said coldly, her eyes were glaring at them icily.

    The burly men, surrounding them pointed their guns at Cole and Yanna, which made Cole stop in his tracks.

    "You¡­" That was only what he could say, before they were barraged with guns firing towards them.

    "Aw~ Too bad. Hahaha¡­" Ayami laughed out loud like a lunatic.

    But then, the men stopped firing. They turned their bodies towards her and aimed at her.

    "Haha¡­Ha¡­ Huh?" Ayami stopped laughing.

    A bunch of helicopters appeared, and many cars probably amounting to a hundred started arriving one by one.

    Black mens in suit, with guns on their hands started to come down from the car.

    "W-what is this? What''s the meaning of this!" Ayami started to panic.

    Isn''t this too much?

    Then from the smoke, appeared a perfectly fine Yanna and Cole with a shield protecting them from the bullets. Ayami was speechless.

    How?

    She closed her eyes and calmed down. I''m dead¡­

    Is it because of their power of friendship? Love?

    Too much... This is too cruel!

    Ayami complained inside. But if I''m gonna die, why not bring someone with me?

    Oh, there''s a good target~

    Ayami opened her eyes and smiled. There was madness in her eyes, which made the people surrounding them flinch. A cold aura started to seep put of her.

    "Ayami, please, stop this! You won''t get anything from this. So please, won''t you listen to me, your friend?" An innocent looking girl stepped out from the crowd.

    "I don''t want to?" Ayami smirked and pointed her gun to Yanna. She put her finger on the trigger and fired it without hesitation.

    But sadly¡­ She missed.

    F for me!

    She wanted curse the heavens for helping the two of them. How could she miss, when she was called the ''Goddess of Perfect Aim''!

    "Kill her and throw her body to feed the sharks." Cole coldly said and left the scene with Yanna in her arms.

    Ayami looked down and smiled bitterly. She felt bitter. The Gods must have hated her for all the deeds she have done.

    Bang! Bang!

    The guns started firing towards her. She stood still, not wanting to bow down to them.

    Maybe she wasn''t destined to have a happy ending¡­

    Coughing out blood, her vision started to blurry.

    The hatred in her heart started to seeth agitatedly.

    "Aren''t you persistent?" She heard a male voice, but she couldn''t see who it was. But judging from the tone, she could guess who it was.

    It''s all your fault! It''s all your fault!

    Ayami screamed in her heart, that was full of anguish and grief.

    She fell down on her knees. Her eyes, started to be filled with madness. There was no more return.

    Why? Why would you people do it?

    Slowly, she was starting to lose her mind.

    "H-Ha¡­Cough¡­ Ha-Haha, Cough!" Even as she coughed, she laughed. She laughed at the people watching her downfall.

    She laughed at her foolishness. She laughed at her worthless life, that was like a drop of water in the ocean.

    "You''re still laughing?"

    In my next life, I will get my revenge! No matter how many times I die¡­ I won''t give up!

    Madness. Lunacy. A never ending laughter resounded through the area.

    Chills run down on their spine as they watched Ayami laughing, as she slowly died.

    Cole watched it with a frown, while Yanna couldn''t bear to watch.

    Memories started to flash through her eyes as if mocking her. Those memories were things she wouldn''t want to remember. Her whole life was filled with despair.

    "Haha¡­Cough¡­ K-Kil-ll¡­ m-me, Cough. Y-You Wi-will re¡­gret¡­t-this¡­" Ayami, with the last ounce of her strength spoke her last words.

    Her body was lying down on the ground, reaching out to the moon, which was not visible due to the clouds covering it.

    The moon that she liked so much¡­ Where is it?

    Even the last thing she wanted to see, she was not allowed.

    Then slowly, her eyes dimmed, with no life left. Her body lay motionless.

    Her death was meaningless, with no one to remember her, as all of them were already gone and went ahead of her.

    The wind howled, the rain poured more heavily as if to mourn her death. The blood started to wash away.

    In the endless silence, she stayed drowning in the pool of darkness.

    "Ayami¡­ Forgive me, I was too late¡­"

    Gentle like breeze, warm like summer, a hope that shined on this endless darkness, the voice spoke to her.

    She reached out. Warm light covered her entirety as if to embrace her and give her hope.

    Her heart that stopped, started beating. Her breathless body, started to breath constantly. Ayami could feel her whole body.

    Ayami abruptly sat up, tears streaming down her face.

    "¡­What¡­?

 Chapter 2 - Im Back?

    The morning rays coming from the window illuminated the room. The girl abruptly sat up from the bed, with tears streaming down her cheeks.

    Her chest heaved up and down, as if she ran through a marathon without resting, while her whole body was drenched in sweat, as if she was splashed with water.

    What?

    With shaky eyes, Ayami looked around and saw a familiar room. It was the room that she used when she was still staying in her family''s home.

    "Is this the afterlife?" She mumbled to herself. But that can''t be! Why would the afterlife look like this?

    "I must be dreaming?"

    Is that even possible?

    Ayami stood up from the bed and looked around the room. That was until she stopped in front of a mirror.

    A girl wearing a nightgown, with wide eyes and pale complexion was reflected from the mirror.

    The girl looked beautiful, but there was coldness emanating from her, making her look difficult to approach.

    She had a pair of deep blue irises and a straight black hair.

    "A-A Magic mirror, perhaps? H-haha¡­" Her voice trembled as she spoke. Ayami laughed. A moment later she stopped laughing.

    Magic mirror my ass!

    Right now, Ayami looked like a patient that escaped from a mental hospital, based on her behavior. If one were to see her, they would think she was crazy.

    "I think I''m going crazy. What the heck is going on?" She mumbled to herself.

    "For now, let''s get out of this room."

    Knock, knock!

    Following the sound of the knock, the door opened. A person dressed in a servant''s clothing came inside.

    "Young Miss, it''s time to¡­" The maid trailed off as she stared with wide eyes at Ayami, who was already up.

    At the same time, Ayami felt that the person in front of her was familiar. She pointed at the maid with trembling hands.

    "N-No way¡­ Marie?" She spoke with trembling voice. She couldn''t believe that she was seeing the young Marie right before her eyes.

    That can''t be!

    Marie was already dead!

    "Is something wrong, Young Miss?" The maid, Marie composed herself.

    "I¡­ I missed you¡­" Ayami suddenly lunged towards Marie and embraced her tightly. Tears started to roll down on her cheeks as she hugged Marie.

    To think she would be able to meet Marie once again, no word could describe the relief and happiness she was feeling right now.

    Ayami had many things to tell her, but she could only cry right now.

    Marie, she was the one who sacrificed herself and died in the place of Ayami.

    Marie and Ayami were close. She was also Ayami''s close confidant.

    "Young Miss, did you have a nightmare" Marie didn''t know what to do in this kind of situation. She could only pat her back, as Ayami cried into her arms. "There, there. Everything will be alright."

    But Marie was really surprised, to think that the Young Miss would be able to show this kind of emotion. The Young Miss she knew was usually distant and cold.

    After calming down, Ayami washed her face and cooled down.

    "If Marie is here, then this is the afterlife right?" Ayami said while wiping her face.

    "Excuse me?" Marie frowned at her and had an expression that says ''What nonsense are you talking about?''.

    "Hmm?" Ayami tilted her head. The both stared at each other.

    "Marie, if this isn''t the afterlife, then where is this?" Ayami asked. She was really confused right now.

    "Young Miss, I think you are not yet awake." Marie stiffly spoke.

    "Where are we?" Ayami asked seriously. Marie replied, wondering what the heck is wrong with the Young Miss today. "Have you forgotten, Young Miss? We are currently in the Golden Hills Residence, where the master, your father''s home is situated in. You just came back just a week ago from your vacation."

    When Ayami heard that, she froze. Came back from vacation? Wasn''t it that time when she was eighteen years old?

    "H-haha¡­ Is this some joke? Marie, today is not April fool''s, I''m not falling for that." Her voice wavered, even she could tell that Marie was not joking base on her serious expression.

    "That''s right! The date! What date is it today?" Ayami frantically asked her. Marie told her the date.

    Plop!

    "Young Miss!" Marie shouted as she tried to help her.

    Her leg''s lost strength and gave up. Her eyes shook as she stared at Marie, who was worriedly looking at her.

    18 years¡­ 18 Years ago?

    Then did she went back in time?

    Why? How?

    No, if she really went back in time, then¡­

    Ayami abruptly stood up and ran out of her room.

    "Young Miss!" Marie ran after her.

    In the dining room, a family of three was eating their breakfast when they heard a commotion.

    "What is going on?" asked Dennis, Ayami''s father.

    "I don''t know either." Beside Dennis, was Elsa, Ayami''s mother. Sitting right beside her was her youngest daughter, Allina.

    Just as they were about to check it out, their eldest daughter ran inside the dining room.

    Her hair was a mess and her complexion was pale, like she was being chased by a monster, and she was only wearing a nightgown. Her appearance were unlike what she was usually.

    "Dad¡­" Ayami muttered softly as soon as she saw her father alive and well. Her trembling heart calmed down.

    "What''s wrong? Did something happen?" Dennis asked his daughter worriedly. Her behavior was really unusual.

    She took a deep breath and spoke with a smile. "It''s nothing, just a bad dream."

    "A-Are you sure?" Dennis said, while taken a back with her smile. It had been a long time since he last saw her smile.

    "Yes, it''s nothing. I apologize for the commotion I caused. Uh, I''m going to change first."

    With that, she returned back to her room like nothing happened. She pondered over her situation.

    So I really went back in time. Ayami thought as soon as she went back.

    But maybe all of this isn''t real, Come on, How could returning back in time happen? It only happens in novels or movies.

    Maybe this is just a dream. A long dream¡­

 Chapter 3 - Am I Able To Accept Reality?

    Three days¡­

    That was the time she holed up in her room. After returning back to her room three days ago, she locked herself in her room, although she still ate her meals.

    Ayami sank into deep confusion. She didn''t want to step in a world that was unknown to her.

    She even had a thought if this was still the same world she lived in.

    Calm down, calm down¡­

    For now I should calm down. Ayami said to herself. She took a deep breath and sat down on her bed.

    Her trembling hands touched her forehead. She felt warmth coming from her palm.

    Ayami is alive. She is alive.

    Ayami was utterly confused. She had to sort out everything that was on her mind as it was a mess.

    She could not believe that she was in the past at the same time, she wanted to believe that she was really back.

    Back before misfortune befall unto her¡­

    If this is a dream, then she would like it that she never wakes up.

    Even if she had to live in a false reality, she would make sure to make the best of it and have her revenge on those who wronged her.

    But at the end, will she be able to face reality?

    No, she didn''t know. But she knows for sure that she will get her revenge and happy ending.

    With a great unmovable determination, like a mountain, and eyes burning with passion, Ayami decided to live a happy life while taking revenge on those sc*ms and b*tches.

    It was time to sort things out!

    Finally after three days, she would be finally stepping out of her room.

    Marie was outside on standby just in case the Young Miss needs something.

    "Young Miss, do you need something?" Marie asked.

    "I want to take a shower."

    "Alright, Understood."

    After that, she went inside the bathroom and took a cold shower, best for waking up in the morning.

    It had been a long since she was in a good mood, so Ayami hummed.

    "Fufu¡­Fuahahahahaha! Lalalala~" Ayami hummed and laughed. Honestly, she was acting like a crazy person right now.

    Outside, Marie stared at the bathroom door with fear and worry in her eyes. ''Oh no! I think the Young Miss is losing her mind. I have to report this to master later!'' Marie was determined to report this.

    After 10 minutes, Ayami finished her cold shower. Perhaps, because she was in a good mood, there was a smile on her face as she went out and she was even humming!

    ''I think I''m hallucinating.'' Marie thought.

    The Young Miss that was like a cold block of ice that never shows any emotion, was smiling!

    To think a day would where she would be finally able to see the Young Miss make an expression, Marie felt lucky. She have got to brag this to the other servants later.

    Oh how she wished she captured her expression right now and secretly sell it. That way, she could earn tons of money.

    "Marie, clothes." Ayami said, and Marie followed her orders and took out some clothes in her large walk in closet filled with branded clothes and accessories.

    After changing her clothes, she went to the dining room. Food was needed to have energy and make the brain work, so of course, she wouldn''t miss the important meal, which is breakfast.

    She glanced at the mother and daughter pair with an indifferent expression.

    "Good Morning, Father, Aunt and Allina." She greeted with with no emotion, like she usually did.

    Back then, she didn''t really care about this family, but after what happened, she was able to finally realize their importance in her life.

    Of course, she had to act like usual, or else they would think something is wrong and send her to a psychologist for a check-up. Ayami wouldn''t want that to happen.

    "Good morning to you too, sister! I''m glad to see that you went out of your room. I was worried that you will stay there for the rest of your life." Allina cheerfully greeted with a smile. Ayami could easily see that her smile was fake though.

    "How are you feeling? Are you alright now?" Elsa asked with a worried tone.

    "What are standing there for? Come, come. Sit and eat with us." Dennis said warmly.

    Ayami nodded her head and sat not too far away from them, but also not to near them. It was where she usually sat when she joined them for breakfast.

    Ayami didn''t join much to their conversation and just sat there, eating elegantly. Her mind was currently preoccupied.

    "Oh, right. Ayami, school is reopening next week. Everything has already been prepared so you don''t need to worry about anything." Dennis spoke.

    "¡­Alright." Ayami nodded her head and stood up as she was finished eating.

    Afterwards, she went back to her room to plan her course of actions¡­

 Chapter 4 - Meeting Again

    Cole Filburn, the CEO of Gold Star Enterprise, the top enterprise in the city and the young master of the Filburn household, one of the prestigious family in the country.

    He was known as a cold and ruthless man that showed no mercy to anyone.

    Cole was one of the top in the business world. He had a title ''Emperor of the Business World'' due to his talents and ways he managed his business. His name was enough to instill fear onto anyone.

    He was an ideal man, handsome and perfect. But the only problem was he was cold and emotionless.

    Many girls sought after him and have tried to slept with him, but no one had ever succeed. He never approached a woman and would be disgusted by them, which made people think that he likes males.

    News and rumours started to spread, pressured by his family, with no choice left, Cole had to pick a fiancee from one of the prestigious family.

    And the person he picked was the eldest daughter of the Gardner Family, Ayami.

    Everything was smooth sailing and they were supposed to get married when Ayami graduated and completed her studies, but then¡­

    A sly fox appeared and stole the happy ending that she wanted.

    If only that fox didn''t appear!

    But even so, that sly fox wasn''t the only one at fault, but also that stupid jerk that only thinks with his bottom.

    When they were about to be wed, that fox suddenly made a dramatic entrance and stopped the wedding, of course, that jerk also cooperated.

    The humiliation she felt at that time!

    She just wanted to grab her gun and shot the two of them.

    How thankful she didn''t get married to that jerk!

    A jerk and a vixen, the two of them certainly match each other.

    And when she demanded an explanation to the both of them, they said it was fate and true love.

    Fate?

    True love?

    What are you, characters in a fairy tale?

    I am the evil witch who forcefully separates the main characters?

    Don''t make me laugh!

    If she really was the evil witch, then she had no choice but to play that role.

    Scheme like a villainess, do bad things, threaten, abusing her position, that was just an example of what she had done.

    In the end, the evil witch was punished and the main couple live happily ever after, like most endings in a fairy tale.

    But the most annoying thing was, he had to involve her family and her loved ones. Ayami had to watch them die in front of her eyes one by one.

    Of course, she knew she did many evil things, but was there even a need to involve an outsider?

    "Ahhhh! Damn you all!" Ayami screamed under the blankets. She just wanted to let out all the anger and injustice she felt.

    She punched the poor pillow until she was satisfied. After punching the pillow for a while, she got tired.

    Then as she lay down on her bed, she heard a knock on the door.

    "Young Miss, it''s time to prepare." Marie said as soon as she opened the door, behind her was three maids following her.

    "Prepare for what?" Ayami asked, what did she need to prepare for?

    "Did you forget? You''re having a lunch date with Young Master Cole today." Marie said excitedly.

    "Aren''t you lucky, young miss? Many have dreamed to meet the CEO, yet you can meet him anytime. What''s more, you''re going to have a lunch date with him!" A maid said as she dreamily imagined it.

    Lucky your face!

    Ayami''s lips twitched. She didn''t really want to have dinner with that jerk.

    They started preparing her clothes to wear and accessories.

    After a while, they finished her make-over. A beautiful female appeared in front of the mirror.

    There really wasn''t much change from her appearance. Just a light make-up and a dress was enough.

    Ayami left her room with a foul mood. She didn''t want to go.

    Her footsteps were heavy as she stepped inside the car. There was no one to see her off as everyone was busy, except for a few servants.

    ***

    Inside the luxurious restaurant, there sat Ayami, waiting for the oh-so important person who thinks people needs to wait for him first.

    I''m hungry!

    She tapped the table impatiently as she waited. After an hour of waiting, it seems that person forgot they were having lunch.

    So Ayami just ordered some food for her lunch. It was also a good thing as she didn''t know how to face him at the moment.

    Ayami might strangle him to death the moment she sees him¡­

    Lunch was serve after waiting for a few minutes. Just as she was about to eat, that person arrived.

    Ayami suddenly froze when she heard that person''s voice. She felt like someone splashed a cold bucket of water with ice on her.

    "Impatient, aren''t we?" The voice coldly said. It was so cold that it was enough to freeze the whole place.

    "Ah, dang it. Forgot my jacket." Ayami mumbled to herself. Her body was slightly shaking.

    She should have brought her jacket as everytime she met this guy in the past, there was a blizzard.

    "What was that?" The ice cooler in front of her spoke.

    "Nothing. I was just thinking about the weather. I saw the weather forecast today, it said it will sn¡ª I mean, rain." Ayami said an excuse.

    Although she may look compose, inside her heart was shaking in anxiety. Her heart was beating so fast in panic.

    Her hands were trembling under the table, she felt she was sitting on a thorn.

    Ever since he arrived, Ayami never once look straight into his eyes.

    The trauma of facing the person she feared the most, the anxiety and fear was instilled in her heart.

    He was her biggest fear, as he was the one who made her life like hell.

    The cold look he gave that day made her shiver. But she have to make her resolve firm. Even if she fear him today, that doesn''t the same will happen tomorrow.

    So Ayami decided, that the first thing she will do is overcome her trauma.

 Chapter 5 - Golden Spoon Academy

    They ate silently like they always do. From afar, they looked a painting. They look like nobles with how graceful and elegant they were eating.

    They went to dinners because they were obligated to, nothing more nothing less. It was just their duty to do this things.

    Throughout the meal, Ayami couldn''t taste any of the dishes.

    "¡­If you are not feeling well, you should say so." Cole coldly spoke.

    "Excuse me?" Ayami said dumbfounded. Cole continued to coldly speak. "Your complexion is pale."

    He really should stop speaking like that, it felt like the temperature around had already gone below zero degrees.

    "Alright, I will do so next time." Ayami spoke apathetically.

    Cold, so cold!

    The waiter that collected the bill shivered. As they were already finished in their ''Lunch date'', it was time to separate. Cole left first as he had something to do, while Ayami stayed for a while.

    The chauffeur opened the door for him and Cole entered the black Maybach.

    Inside the car, Cole looked outside the window and recalled Ayami''s features earlier.

    She was pale and trembling like a kitten, like she was afraid of him. Cole had never seen another expression from her, aside from her poker face that was hard to crack.

    "Interesting¡­ so she was able to make another expression." Cole mumbled to himself. For some reason it made him smile.

    The chauffeur driving saw Cole''s smile from the mirror and almost overturn the car.

    "Watch it." The expression on Cole''s face instantly disappeared. The chauffeur quickly apologized fearfully, afraid that he would get fired as this was his only livelihood. "I apologize, young master. It won''t happen next time."

    If Ayami saw what happened, she would have applauded the chauffeur for making a spectacular move, she would even give him a promotion!

    ***

    After Ayami went back home, she plopped down on her bed. She felt like a whole year''s worth of energy was spent on something that was not worth it.

    And so¡­

    A week have passed. Ayami spent her days like she usually did in the past. Nothing have changed, except for her training in overcoming her trauma, which was punching a pillow with a picture of Cole.

    "Young Miss, time to wake up or you''ll be late to school!" Marie shouted as she banged the door, which interrupted Ayami''s sleep.

    Ayami groggily sat up from the bed, while Marie prepared her uniform and bag.

    "Come on and wash up now, young miss." Ayami lazily sat in front of the bathroom door.

    "Can I not go?" Ayami grumbled, which earned a sharp glare from Marie. Then, she started to nag. "Young Miss, do you know the importance of studying? Studying is¡­"

    "Enough, I get it already." Ayami interrupted her. She had enough hearing about it from the past and even until now. Just because she missed Marie, doesn''t mean she missed her nagging.

    Gee, Marie can be such a mom sometimes.

    Marie was only a few years older than her, yet she took care of Ayami like she was her daughter.

    After taking a long bath in the morning, which usually takes thirty minutes, Ayami changed into a school uniform.

    A white dress shirt, on top of that was a black blazer with golden buttons and a black skirt that was above the knee, with a golden embroidery at the end, also wearing a black high knee stockings.

    A golden emblem on the chest part, a black necktie with a golden embroidery at the middle with the same design as the emblem. Two golden buttons at the end of the sleeve.

    "Hoh~ How nostalgic." Ayami mumbled as she twirled on her uniform.

    Then after that, Marie styled her hair into a cute twintails, which made her look like a childish girl.

    "Change it." Ayami instantly spoke after she saw her hairdo. So, although Marie was sad, she still adhered to Ayami''s orders.

    She styled her hair like usual, which was just a simple long straight hair.

    After that, she went to have breakfast with her family. She acted the same as usual, so her father heaved a sigh of relief.

    He was really worried that Ayami locked herself inside her room for three days straight, and they didn''t get to interact for a week as he was busy with company affairs.

    "Sister, let''s go together~" Allina spoke sweetly to Ayami as she ran after her. Ayami could feel her fakeness from afar.

    What a sweet child~

    The servants thought as they saw the scene in front of them.

    Then, as soon as they got inside the car, the smile on Allina''s face faded.

    "¡­" Ayami didn''t say anything as this was the usual thing they do.

    Allina would act like a caring and sweet sister while Ayami was the cold and unapproachable sister.

    Absolute silence¡­

    "Hey, don''t talk to me at school and when you meet me, just ignore me." Allina said.

    "I know." Ayami spoke indifferently as she stared outside the window. After that, they didn''t speak to each other again.

    Golden Spoon Academy.

    It was the most prestigious academy in the country and an academy for the riches and powerful.

    Most people that go here are the most successful people that was at the top of the country.

    Thus, most of the successful and at the top of the country studied in this academy.

    They also held a special admission for common people yearly, and that is as long as they take the special exam and met the requirements needed, they would be able to enter the academy as a student.

    There would be no need to pay for stuff related to the academy, the academy will provide them all.

    But as the requirements and the test were too hard, there wasn''t anyone who passed for the last three years.

    Standing in front of the gate, with a pamphlet on her hand, was an innocent looking girl that was as pure as a white a lotus.

    Her beauty was refreshing as she stood there, looking at the entrance, that made people around her stop to look at her beauty.

    Just then, a black Maybach car stopped in front of her.

 Chapter 6 - A Fateful Encounter

    Yanna stared at the entrance of the academy with nervously. She tightly held the pamphlet in her hands.

    Finally, after her hard work, she was able to enter the most prestigious academy in the country.

    Her eyes glimmered with excitement as she anticipated her days at the academy.

    A black Maybach stopped by in front of her. Following that, the window of the car opened and revealed a handsome man.

    It was enough to make her heart flutter just seeing his face. For some reason she felt like it was fate as soon as she stared at his eyes, that was deep as the ocean and seemingly sucking her in.

    "If all you''re going to do is stand there and stare, then you might as well just become a stone. But I would prefer it if you get out of the way and let people pass." The man coldly said.

    It seems that his heart wasn''t as handsome as his face. Her late mother was right, all just because a man is handsome doesn''t mean they have a beautiful heart.

    "What did you say?" Yanna''s face flushed as she asked him the question angrily.

    "Are you deaf or simply didn''t get it? Then let me simplify it for you. You''re in the way." The man said and shut the window close. He told the chauffeur to drive off.

    What! The entrance was clearly as wide as a river, so she wasn''t in the way.

    Yanna watched the car leave speechlessly. A moment later, everything seem to sink in and she stomped her feet angrily.

    "That arrogant bastard! The next time I see you, you''re dead!" Yanna shouted at the direction where the car left. She huffed and puffed as she pointed towards his direction.

    Yanna made sure to burn his face onto her mind. She won''t forget his face!

    "¡­" Ayami silently watched the scene with no expression seen on her face. Throughout the whole scenario she was silently observing.

    This was their fateful encounter? Pathetic.

    Where is the romantic scene? There was clearly nothing. Nothing at all!

    All she could see was an argument between an individual who stood in the way and another one who wants to get out of the way.

    How was she so blind to not see this back then?

    When this happened in the past, Ayami acted like a villain and stood in between them.

    For some reason, back then, her body move on its own and stared harassing Yanna, who was a new student at that time.

    That caused Cole to help the poor student who was suddenly harassed by his fianc¨¦. Her image went down the drain as soon as she acted like a villainess.

    Her hands trembled in anger as she watched the two of them, get in the car and go inside the academy.

    This caused her to even be more angry and act irrational. She harassed Yanna inside the academy until she was expelled, one day, making her stop for a while.

    She didn''t know the reason why, but whenever she saw Yanna and Cole being lovey-dovey, it set ablaze on her heart and turned that feeling into pure obsession.

    The two got closer and closer, while Ayami went insane, slowly falling into the abyss.

    "¡­Aren''t you going in yet? We are going to be late." Allina said standing beside her, while looking at her with a complicated gaze.

    When they arrived earlier at the entrance, Ayami said she wanted to get off when they were still far away from the building they were suppose to enter.

    Allina looked at her weirdly, before deciding to follow her. And after following her, what she saw was her fiancee arguing with someone.

    "What are you still doing here? I thought you went in already." Ayami said when she noticed that Allina was actually beside her.

    "Whatever." Allina shrugged her shoulders and went inside the academy entrance. She showed her Identification Card and the guards let her enter.

    Ayami soon followed after¡­

    Ayami went to her morning classes and studied diligently like an honor student.

    Lunchtime, Ayami went to the cafeteria to eat lunch with her ''friend''. On her way, she happened to pass by a scene she didn''t really want to see.

    A girl was being drag by three girls on a inconspicuous spot, where people don''t normally pass through.

    They pushed her on the cold hard floor, which made the girl hiss in pain.

    "Ah, look at that¡­" Her ''friend'', Celine, spoke softly, almost to the point where Ayami couldn''t hear her.

    This ''friend'' of hers is a very good friend who is very nice and had a heart of a saint. Her kindness almost blinded Ayami, to the point where she didn''t want to be friends with her, but since she have some use, she decided to keep their relationship instead of severing it.

    This girl was also the one who was keen on convincing her to stop her revenge. Yes, this girl wanted to stop her self-destruction. She didn''t mean any harm to her and was purely helping Ayami, even though she gains nothing from it.

    "Aren''t we going to stop them?" Celine asked. Oh, she really is a kind-hearted girl!

    "Let''s not stick our nose into other''s business. We might the one to get in trouble instead of them." Ayami kindly gave advice, as the girl beside her was too naive.

    "But¡­"

    "No, buts! If you want, we can just watch and see if we could do anything to help." Ayami said with no room for objection, so Celine could only nod her head.

    Though, you could just call a teacher, but that thought never passed through Celine''s mind. They silently watched the scene unfolding before their eyes, not far away from them.

    They started to surround the girl, with arms crossed uniformly.

    All of the three girls were ferocious, while the girl they were surrounding was pure and innocent looking. That girl was Yanna.

    "Who do you think you are?"

    "Tsk. You dare talk to our prince?"

    "Slut, you''re so ugly that you don''t even deserve to live in this world. The only thing you have is your slutty body to seduce men."

    All three of them simultaneously spoke spitefully. In novels, these people were most likely cannon fodders, who was used by the villains.

    While Yanna was the female lead and Cole was the male lead. Ayami was of course a supporting character. She was used as the one who advances the development of the main leads.

    Thus, Ayami wanted to watch what was about to unfold. She hoped that the mean girls would win, though.

    Ah, but to think that she was able to cause an incident on her first day, how marvelous Yanna was!

    Due to Yanna''s personality, she would, of course, never back down when taunted.

    "Huh? You think I wanted that bastard''s attention. You can have his attention if you want. I don''t need trash!"

    And then blah blah, yadah yadah, they fought like cats, with words scratching each other. A literal face slapping scene was about to occur.

    With Cannon Fodder No. 1, the one who first spoke to her, about to burst in anger, and Yanna still continuing to diss them, cannon fodder 1 couldn''t hold her anger and slapped her.

    But before her slap could even land on Yanna''s delicate cheeks, a hand stopped her from doing so.

    "It''s you!"

 Chapter 7 - Day By Day, Her Hatred Will Grow Stronger

    "It''s you!"

    Yanna screamed. It was the man she met earlier this morning. It was a face she swore to never forget, not like his face is unforgettable.

    There was no need to watch anymore as it seems that the knight in shining armor have arrive.

    Even though she didn''t see this scene in her past life, she could still easily predict how it would go on.

    Even up until now, Ayami didn''t know what was that guy doing in the academy. She didn''t know why he was here.

    "H-hey¡­ Isn''t that your fiance?" Celine softly spoke, with her eyes wide in surprise. Ayami didn''t answer and turned around.

    "Let''s go." Ayami said with no trace of emotion in her voice. As expected, it was boring and a waste of time.

    There is no need to get involve with them yet¡­

    ***

    At night, Ayami was organizing her stuff inside her dorm¡­ Not really.

    Her father did say that everything was taken care off.

    She lay down on the bed, that wasn''t as soft and fluffy as her bed.

    She was alone inside the two-person dorm room, right now as her dormmate still haven''t returned. Ayami still haven''t change her clothes and was still wearing her uniform.

    Her dorm composed of two private bedrooms, a small lounge, a kitchen connected to the dining room and a bathroom. The appliances and furnitures were already prepared.

    Ayami''s room composed of a bed, a closet, a dresser and a desk. Her own room were quite small, compared to her room back in their home, it looked like a doghouse.

    Her dormmate was Allina, as her father thought it was good for the sisters to be together and get along, but unfortunately for him, Allina won''t ever use the dorm and just go back home.

    Ayami preferred it this way, so she can be alone. She also didn''t go back to their home right now.

    All her clothes were neatly organized inside the closet.

    Ayami turned her head and her gaze landed on the small cute pink box.

    A small cute pink box was placed on top of her desk. It looked quiet old, yet it also looked like it haven''t been opened for years, she always had it on her table and have never touched it.

    Hmm? A box? Since when have that been here.

    She stood up from the bed and went towards her desk.

    ''Do not open!

    -Ayami''

    On top of the box, were a handwriting of a child. It was messy, but at the same time cute.

    It made her chuckle, how different were her handwriting was from her childhood, comparing it to the current her, whose handwriting was elegant and neat.

    Now that she thought about it, she has never once opened the box ever again in her past life. She had already forgotten what was the content of it.

    Ayami wondered why she didn''t notice this box and opened it until now. Her hand reached out to the box.

    Just as she was about to open it, the doorbell rang.

    Ayami put the box back on the table, while wondering who would visit her at this hour. And then¡­ a certain memory flashed through her mind.

    She furrowed her brows as she finally knew why she couldn''t open the box.

    Right that happened, just like now she got distracted by the doorbell.

    She also knew who was ringing the doorbell. Ayami chuckled and ignore the ringing doorbell.

    Stay there and rot!

    She plugged her ears with an earphones and listened to some music in high volume.

    A fox and a scum. There was no need to entertain those who were not humans.

    She lost the mood to open the box. She will open it later when she wakes up.

    She lay down on her bed again. Before she knew it she fell asleep and went into dreamland¡­

    ***

    A shrill scream reverberated throughout the whole room. Following that scream was a painful cry.

    Torn books and paper, messy bed and pillows that were scattered in the room, shredded clothes that and other things were smashed to bits.

    The room was a mess, like chaos ensued inside. In the middle of that messy room, was a delicate girl sobbing on her knees. It tugged the heartstrings of the onlookers if one were to see her.

    As for the reason why she was crying¡­

    Earlier, her fiance, Cole and the new student suddenly knocked on her door.

    Cole suddenly asked for Ayami to let Yanna stay in her dorm. Of course, Ayami instantly refused. Why would she stay with a girl she hated?

    She also felt pain in her heart, when she saw the two of them together. She didn''t even know the reason why.

    "Why would she even stay here?" Ayami asked Cole. There was no need for her to offer a helping to a stranger. "There are other rooms!"

    Where is the logic in that?

    He could have just used other dorms and have it prepared. He is from an affluent and powerful household, he could have just arranged a thing as simple as a dorm in a matter of seconds.

    Was it just to annoy her? Make her feel pain?If so, he really succeeded.

    If he really hated her that much, then he could have just broken the engagement!

    Ayami chased them away in anger. As soon as the door closed, there was burning feeling in her chest.

    The pain she was feeling right now was like a thousand needles stabbed her heart. It was excruciating.

    It was much better to die than feel this type of pain. For Ayami, who have never been exposed to heartbreak and betrayal, it was her first time feeling this kind of pain.

    Ayami have never expressed her feelings freely, so perhaps because of her bottled feelings, it added much more pain to her.

    But she didn''t know at that time, that was just only the beginning of her pain and sufferings.

    Day by day, her hatred grew stronger, until it was to the point of no return.

 Chapter 8 - A Bookmark, A Ring And A Key

    It was already midnight when Ayami woke up from her nap. Her face was ghastly pale as she had a terrible nightmare. No, it was more like a memory, a memory she wanted to forget.

    It was better to dream being chased by ghosts and zombies.

    She went to the bathroom to wash her face. As everything was dark, except for her room, she had to find her way to switch the light.

    Click!

    With the lights on, the whole place was illuminated. Then, she went to the bathroom and washed her face.

    After that, she changed to a more comfortable clothes as she was still wearing her uniform.

    She wore a cute pink pajamas with strawberry prints on it and tied her hair into a messy bun.

    Then, after changing, Ayami went to the kitchen and made a hot chocolate milk with marshmallows on it. She took the pink box from her desk and sat on the bed.

    Finally, she could open it without any interruption and won''t forget about it.

    Opening the lid of the box, what appeared inside was a red ringbox with an exquisite design. Beside it was a bookmark with a design of the flower red lily of the valley. But what caught her eye, was the small black key.

    It had a unique design, with a star and moon on the bow, while the bit part had a design of clover. A blue ribbon was neatly tied to the shaft of the key. A bear keychain was attached to it.

    That was all the contents of the box. She could remember where she got the bookmark but she can''t remember much from the two items.

    Ayami took the exquisite ringbox and opened it. Inside, was a rose gold color ring with a red gem designed like a rose with blunt thorns surrounding it, and a leaves.

    Ayami could faintly remember who she got it from. She vaguely remember that they promised to return the things they exchange when they meet again.

    His face was blurry but she could still remember his distinct feature, the boy was fat.

    As for the key, she didn''t know where to use it.

    Ayami returned the items back into the box. She really liked the ring though, but as it was too precious, she couldn''t wear it, in fear that she might accidentally lose it.

    She could ask a jeweler to make a replica of it. Right! She was free this coming Saturday, so she can go and look around the mall.

    Ayami had never much free time in the past, so she might as well use this chance to relax and have fun.

    The next morning, Ayami woke up, feeling refreshed. When she checked her phone, there were many missed calls, mainly from scum, while a few of them were from her father and Marie. Ayami called back to her father first.

    "Why couldn''t I contact you last night?" Her father spoke worriedly. He was afraid that something must have happened to his daughter. Ayami''s heart felt warm.

    "I was asleep and muted my phone because I don''t want anyone to bother my sleep. Sorry for making you worry, dad. I''m fine here on my own. Allina can come here whenever she wants, after all this is her dorm too."

    "Hmph, if you are going to sleep, won''t you at least say your goodnights to your family? Making us worry like this." Elsa spoke sharply, as if reprimanding her. It felt like when a parent showed their care through scolding.

    "Alright, just call us if you are in trouble or in need of anything." They said their goodbyes and ended their call.

    What great parents! How could she shunned them in her past life, when they are this caring and loving!

    Next, she called back Marie. She reassured Marie so that she wouldn''t worry needlessly.

    "Don''t worry, Marie I can do things alone."

    "Young Miss¡­ If you ever need me¡­ Just call me and I will come running to you!"

    After that she ended the call.

    She didn''t call back to scum because there was no need to. Oh right, she should change his name to scum.

    So Ayami tapped the phone and changed his name on the phonebook to Ice Block Scum. After that, she prepared for her classes. In a good mood, she went out of her dorm.

    Just as she opened the door, a handsome young man appeared into view, Pweh! Pweh! Scratch that, A cold block of ice was standing right in front of her door while leaning on the wall.

    Her lips instantly curved down, before it disappeared. As she didn''t want to waste any time, she monotonously asked. "What are you doing here?"

    "Why didn''t you answer your phone last night?" Cole didn''t answer her question, not surprisingly.

    "I was sleeping." Ayami calmly answered. "If that is all you need, then I''ll be going now."

    "Wait, I''m not done yet." Cole grabbed her wrist. It felt like a current flowed through her as she felt his hand on her wrist.

    But¡­

    The feeling of his hand touching her instantly disgusted her. Ayami wanted to vomit just from his touch. She forcefully took back her hand while screaming.

    "You¡­!"

    "Don''t touch me!" She trembled and she felt nausea. It was like she was allergic to his touch.

    His gaze darkened as he stared at her trembling figure. He coldly spoke to her. "¡­I''ll let this slide." And then he left.

    Her legs wobbled, like the strength have left her. Her face was pale as a sheet, while covered in cold sweat.

    Why is she feeling this way? She never felt this helpless.

    Get yourself together!

    She slapped herself hard to snap out of it. She could only do this.

    Ayami firmed her resolve. She must not waver and overcome her enemy.

    Ayami decided, that once she was strong enough, only then would she exact her revenge, corner them with no room to escape and fire a barrage of attack, just like the way she died.

 Chapter 9 - I Dont Want To See Your Face!

    Ayami was in a daze as she wandered around the hallway of the the faculty building. She wasn''t focused in her surroundings so she didn''t notice a person running towards her direction.

    Ayami bumped into that person. Her butt landed on the floor. She looked up and her eyes met with a a pair of brown hazelnut eyes.

    Ayami observed his face as he felt familiar to her. He was a young man with a pointed nose, sharp jawlines, red luscious lips, and thick eyebrows.

    His unruly hair was dyed with red, as if we was in his rebellious phase. He had a bunch of piercing in his ears. His uniform wasn''t buttoned up and under his uniform was a black t-shirt with a grotesque design.

    "Tsk." He clicked his tongue and his gaze sharply glared at Ayami, before he ran away. Ayami looked at him in disbelief.

    The person didn''t even apologized and even ran away before she could get angry.

    As Ayami looked at that person''s back, the teachers were chasing after him. She could finally remember who that person was.

    Devin Heisman, the handsome bully of the academy, he was also the second son of the powerful Heisman family.

    Even though he was notorious, many girls still fawn over him, as he was tall and handsome. He was the badboy type that makes girls cry.

    Even though he was a consistent rule breaker, the academy have never expelled him, due to fear from the Heisman family.

    Ayami really hated his type. In fact, she wished that she never ever crosses with this kind of person.

    Ayami stood back up and dusted off her buttocks. Then she headed towards the Fashion Design Department.

    It was the course that she chose when she entered college, while Allina entered business so they never really met inside the academy. Ayami and Allina were the same age, but they never got along well.

    Golden Spoon Academy offers an education ranging from primary to tertiary education, but only people from the prestigious family and special students can enter.

    Ayami was a first year in Fashion Designing. They were currently in the second semester.

    Ayami knocked on the brown mahogany door, with a golden plaque with words written Fashion and Design Department Dean''s Office.

    "Enter."

    The office was normal and typical of what was found inside of an office of a dean. Except, there was a mannequin wearing an elegant and neat clothes by the side.

    Ayami greeted the dean. The dean was a woman in her mid-forties. She had a sharp features that would make one scared of her.

    "Student Ayami, what can I do for you?" The dean asked as she stared at Ayami like she would eat her, of course, that was what only Ayami felt whenever she met this dean.

    The pressure she was emitting would make one felt like they were carrying a big rock over their shoulders, it was no joke facing this dean.

    "I want to take a special exam for graduating." Ayami managed to choke out the words she wanted to say, despite the pressure from the dean.

    "¡­Student Ayami, do you know what you''re saying?" The dean spoke with a sharp tone, the pressure increased. Gosh, she really hated facing this dean.

    "¡­I won''t stop you from taking the test, but are you sure you are ready?" The tone became sharper and her eyes gazed at Ayami like a hawk. It was terrifying and burdensome, to the point where her legs almost gave in.

    Her body felt stiff as she stared at the dean''s eyes without looking away, with great determination.

    The dean smiled, amused at Ayami for trying her best. "Very well then, I''ll recommend you to the board of directors and they approved of it, then you may take the test in five months."

    "What about the interview and

    qualifications?" Ayami asked, there was confusion on her tone as she looked at the dean with shaky eyes. The dean smiled with delight. "You already passed, as for your qualifications¡­ I know you could easily pass the review."

    She wanted to break into a smile right then and there but she forced herself with a poker face, though she failed. She didn''t notice that she was already breaking into a bright smile, so bright that it might be able to blind that rotten couple forever.

    The dean chuckled in amusement. Ayami apologized for her rude behavior and excused herself.

    "Then I will call new if I have news." The dean said.

    Outside, she jumped in delight with her hands waving and punching the air while silently screamed in her heart. If someone were to see her right now, they would think she was crazy, luckily no one was around.

    First step is a success!

    There was a reason why she wanted to graduate fast. First, she didn''t want to see that despicable couple, it was best to stay far away from them. Second, she didn''t want to waste four years studying again, it was better to use it in completing her revenge, the earlier the better. And third, it could give her more time to plan or relax.

    Ayami walked down the hallway in a good mood, she was even humming a song. But her good mood was soon ruined when she bumped into the person she didn''t want to meet.

    Of all persons out there¡­ why do I have to bump into you?

    Why is it you! I don''t even want to see your face!

    "I''m sorry, are you alright?" A sweet flowery voice came out from her mouth, making Ayami feel chills run down her spine. Her eyes shook as she started at Yanna with wide eyes.

    Yesterday, when Ayami saw Yanna fighting with a venomous tongue, she felt like it was normal as she always encounter it in the past. But now, Yanna was being nice to her?

    Yanna was like a ferocious beast with a vicious tongue enough to kill a person out of anger, when the person she met picked a fight with her. While she was nice to those who didn''t do anything bad to her.

    It felt weird receiving a nice treatment from her, when in the past they fought with an intent to kill.

    "Hello? Excuse me?" Yanna spoke with a worried tone.. Her big round eyes cutely blinked like an innocent girl.

 Chapter 10 - The Heroine Of The Story

    Yanna Jin, a pure and innocent girl that came from a common household, and someone who manage to pass the exam of the most precious academy in the whole country.

    On the outside, she might have come from a warm and caring family, but in actuality, she was abused and neglected.

    Even though she had a venomous tongue and a fierce personality to those who wronged her, she could never face the family that raised her like an animal.

    After years of hard work, she was finally able to escape and was even accepted in the most prestigious academy.

    Life was hard for her, but thanks to her perseverance she managed to live and even catched the attention of the ''Emperor of the Business World''.

    She was like the heroine of the story, after living a harsh and difficult life what awaits her was a wonderful world full of colors.

    Ayami managed to find out her background after digging around, wanting to find out who managed to thaw the cold heart of the CEO.

    "Excuse me, are you alright? Did I injure you?" A voice so sweet and flowery entered her ears.

    The girl in front of her was so beautiful and pure as her golden brown eyes blinked at her. Her face was a little bit flush from panic as she waved her hand in front of Ayami.

    Ayami stared at her face, she could tell that she really was beautiful and could make a man''s cold heart warm, it was also enough to stir the urge to protect her.

    Her ink black hair was tied into a ponytail. She was cute and petite, like an animal at the same gorgeous when styled right. She was fat in the right parts and slim on the right places.

    As Ayami stared at her, the face of Yanna from the future overlapped.

    Standing in front, held at gunpoint, was a woman so mature with her beauty so outworldly and make people breathlessly gawk at her.

    "I gave you a chance¡­" Yanna softly whisper as she looked at Ayami with a downcast glance. Over and over, she tried to give her a chance to repent, but sadly, Ayami never changed.

    Was it their destiny to be enemies for life? If only she hadn''t fallen in love, then maybe the catastrophe they were facing right now wouldn''t happen.

    "¡­Hey, why don''t we stop this now." Under the rain, her charms was even doubled. Ayami stared at her with a dangerous glint, she smirked as if she was sneering at her nonsense.

    "Stop? We are already at this point, so why should we stop now?" Her voice was sharp as a dagger, enough to kill someone because of the sharpness.

    "You''re right. We can''t stop now. If only¡­ If¡­" Yanna softly muttered to herself, as if reminiscing the past, the past they spent together.

    "Shut up!" Ayami screamed, with her voice hoarse. It was evident that she was angry as she glared at Yanna icily. Ayami scoffed at her. "Hah! You''re regretting it now?"

    There was a point in time where Ayami and Yanna got along, the time when Yanna cleared the ''misunderstanding'' that nothing was happening between Cole and her.

    But that was only for a short time. One day Ayami found them in an intimate position.

    "I''m sorry Ayami¡­ I am in love with Cole and he¡­is also in love with me."

    "I always wanted to be happy and I realized that I could find my happiness in him."

    Every word was like a hammer crushing her heart. Ayami felt like she couldn''t breathe. She felt like the world had stopped.

    "¡­I put my trust on you, and yet¡­ you betrayed me?" With great difficulty, she managed to speak.

    Ayami''s heart was crushed a thousand times, no it felt like it was broken into a million of pieces. It felt like someone rebuilded her broken heart, only for them to destroy it so hard and worse than the last heartbreak.

    "I have to say, I got fooled by you real hard. Congratulations! You are the best! I bet you were laughing at me while you watch me, foolishly trying my best to win his heart!"

    After Ayami said that, they were over. She never thought she would be betrayed after she finally trusted them.

    Her ''love'' for Cole had already disappeared the moment she knew of their relationship and the only thing remaining was anger.

    On that day, she labeled them as a sly fox and a cheating scum.

    The only reason she was chasing them was for revenge, and she won''t stop until she completely destroyed them!

    Revenge¡­ it was the only thing that was fueling her desire to live. If not, then Ayami doubted that she would still be in this world.

    "Ayami¡­I''m tired of this. So let''s end this." Tears were streaming down her eyes as she spoke with melancholy. The rain started to get heavier as the two stayed there.

    Why¡­ why are you playing the victim when I am the real victim?

    Her hand that was holding the gun was trembling in anger as she clenched it tightly, making her hand pale white.

    "¡­I''m sorry¡­" She calmly whispered to Ayami as she smiled with great difficulty. Her eyes were calm and serene as words came out of her mouth. "Come, shoot me. If my death is enough to quell your anger, then I don''t mind you killing me."

    Ayami''s closed her eyes and opened them again, the trembling stopped and her resolve was firm. What was there to hesitate?

    BANG!

    Ayami pulled the trigger with no hesitation. Yanna slowly fell to the ground. The muddy ground, was soaked with rain and blood.

    Just then, Ayami heard a car engine coming towards their direction.

    Ayami coldly smiled. It was always like this, being saved by her knight in shining armor, just like the heroine of a story.

    Tiring¡­ The life she was living was so exhausting. Ayami calmly thought about her life as she waited for the car to arrive.

    She could have escaped on that day, but she didn''t.

    The car arrived and Ayami watched Cole ran frantically towards Yanna and dramatically hugged her. Ayami smiled.

    "I''m here too."

    And the rest was history¡­

 Chapter 11 - Black Leopard

    The academy was so wide and big that one wouldn''t be able to finish exploring it in a week, yet how could the two of them meet. in this vast and spacious place?

    "I¡­I''m f-fine¡­" Ayami spoke with trembling voice. She stood and smiled weakly at Yanna.

    "Are you sure?" Yanna asked worriedly. Ayami assured her. "No, really. I''m fine. I have to go now."

    After Ayami spoke, she ran away. She felt terrible. Just breathing the same air as her was disgusting.

    Ayami didn''t know how much she ran. The only thing in her mind was to get away as far as possible.

    When Ayami got tired, she stopped running. Her chest was heaving up and down, sweat was trickling down her forehead as she catch her breath, with her hands on her knees.

    Ayami wiped off the sweat using the handkerchief she took from her pockets. After stabilizing her breathing, she looked around her surroundings.

    That was when she realized that she was in an unfamiliar area. Trees were surrounding her, with no road on sight. It was eerie and quiet, no sounds could be heard.

    Ayami hated the deafening silence, so she started walking back to the direction she came, but unfortunately, she couldn''t remember the direction.

    It was quite dark as the tall trees were blocking the sunlight. It was scary and sent chills down the spine.

    A cold wind blew, making the trees sway to and fro. Ayami shivered slightly due to the cold wind that brushed past her.

    Snap!

    The sound of a branch breaking echoed through the deafening silence. The sound was clear as a day, so of course, Ayami heard it.

    Ayami looked around, with shaky eyes her legs trembling slightly, and clasped hands.

    "¡­H-ha-haha¡­ I-I-I-I¡­ m-must ha-have heard it¡­ incorrectly¡­" She mumbled to herself with trembling voice.

    Snap! Snap!

    She heard the branches breaking again. That made her shriek. "Eek! I''m hallucinating¡­ I''m hallucinating¡­ It''s must be because of those two¡­"

    "Groowwlll ¡­" A low growl was heard throughout the area. Ayami''s face started to lose color while she bit her lower lip.

    Ayami wasn''t thinking straight anymore. The last of her braincell disappear due to immense fear. She covered her ears and hummed. "Lalalala! I don''t hear anything! I don''t hear anything!"

    "Growl¡­"

    Just then, a big black animal came out under the shadows of the forest. It was terrifying to see that kind that of animal.

    What the heck is that doing here! Ayami exclaimed inside as she stare at the huge creature in front of her with wide eyes.

    Walking towards her majestically, while breaking the branches on the ground, was a huge black leopard enough to put pressure on her. It''s golden eyes was glowing as it stared at Ayami with an arrogant eyes.

    It''s black fur shined majestically and the white whiskers were long and thin. The black leopard had sharp claws, enough to kill a human from a single slash. It has fangs that was sharp.

    While Ayami stared at it with wide eyes, she didn''t notice that she was already kneeling on the ground. Her legs lost strength with her face drained of its color, and shaky eyes that wouldn''t leave the black leopard, in fear that once she lose sight of it, it might attack her.

    She didn''t dare turn around as she was afraid that it would suddenly attack once she had turn her back on it.

    She couldn''t waste the second chance she got. Ayami still haven''t finished her revenge and live happily yet, so she can''t die just yet.

    The black leopard let out a low growl as it circled around Ayami, while sniffing her. Ayami stiffened like a statue, not moving an inch, while she forced her trembling hands to stop and held her breath.

    ''Just think of it as a big cat that''s sniffing you. Just think of this as a game where you move your dead.'' Ayami thought in her head while she closed her eyes. At this moment, she wanted to faint.

    Then the black leopard went closer to her and then¡­

    ¡­It licked her face which made her flinch. Ayami felt the rough texture of its tongue as the black leopard licked her.

    Slowly, she opened her eyes and instantly regretted it. The black leopard''s face was so close to her that it made her shut her eyes again.

    But the its next action made her open her eyes. The black leopard suddenly put its mouth to her collar.

    "W-W-What are y-you doing? I''m not delicious at all!" Ayami was on the verge of tears as she spoke.

    It then dragged her body to another area. Ayami was panicking inside, but she couldn''t do a thing as she was afraid of the black leopard.. She was staying still and just let the black leopard drag her to who knows where.

 Chapter 12 - Secret Garden

    The black leopard stopped dragging Ayami and released her. Ayami heaved a sigh of relief. It was a miracle that she didn''t faint. What was even more of a miracle was that the black leopard didn''t eat her right away.

    Wait, is it gonna eat me here?

    Aahhhh! I should have just kicked it and run for my life.

    To my dearest family, your eldest daughter is leaving now. I am expressing my regrets through¡­ and so on¡­

    Ayami cried in her heart. At least let her write a dying will!

    As Ayami was distracted, she didn''t even notice the beautiful area surrounding her.

    The black leopard let out a low growl, only then did she snap out of her thoughts and looked around.

    The sight in front of her made her gape and widen her eyes. A big beautiful garden that made people take their breaths and stare at it with awe, was in front of her.

    It had a peaceful and tranquil mood, that made people relax while gazing at the garden.

    It was also enchanting, like a magical garden behind the eerie forest. It felt like it came out of a fairy tale book.

    Ayami wondered how a garden like this exist like this in the academy, even though she studied here for four years in the past.

    Ayami wanted to look around, but she hesitated. She looked at the black leopard, who was rolling on the grass. Thinking that the black leopard won''t probably attack her, she started looking around cautiously.

    Ayami was so absorbed in the garden that she didn''t notice that the black leopard was following her quietly.

    The garden was divided into parts, the plants and flowers were designated into a certain area. The garden had a small pond at the center with koi fishes on it and a bench in front of it. There was also a picnic area inside the garden. There was a well made pathway with a flowerbed on each side leading towards an exquisite wooden cottage.

    Truly a haven for relaxing!

    Ayami went towards the cottage, wondering if there was somebody there. She climb the wooden steps that were only two steps.

    On the front of the cottage, were wooden chairs and a wooden table. There was a wall lamp on each side of the door. The flower vine was snaking on the wooden fences.

    "Hello?" Ayami knocked on the door and then peeked inside the cottage through the window.

    It seems like nobody was there as there was no answer. Ayami sighed, she wanted to ask for a way back. Although she liked the garden, the black leopard was really unsettling.

    She was alone right now and who knows if it suddenly attacks her. But her being afraid doesn''t mean she can''t fight.

    Anyways, seeing as there was no human in sight here, Ayami decided to just go towards the pond and look at the fishes.

    How boring!

    Although the garden was pleasing to the eyes, it was enough to easily bored her when she had been doing nothing but look around for three hours!

    How unlucky she was to forget her phone today!

    It was only now did Ayami realize that she didn''t bring her phone with her. If she did, then she would have gotten out of this forest a long time ago.

    "Grooowll~" It was certainly not the black leopard growling, but it was her stomach. Ayami looked at her watch, it was already lunchtime. She missed her morning classes because this happened.

    The black leopard was beside her playing in the grass. Ayami deemed it as someone friendly after spending time with it.

    "I wonder if you have a name." Ayami mumbled as she reached out to the black leopard, feeling brave. Surprisingly, the black leopard didn''t bite off her hand, but rubbed its head to her hand.

    Ayami smiled, but her stomach grumbled again. "Ah, I''m hungry¡­"

    Then, she heard a voice that was soothing to the ears, akin to an angel.

    "Then, have this." A delicious yummy bread was handed to her, Ayami, of course, accepted it without thinking and ate it.

    But then, she suddenly realized that something was wrong. So she almost choked on her food.

    "Cough, cough!"

    "Woah, easy on your food. Here, water." The angel-like voice was heard from the side as she saw a bottle of water being handed to her. Ayami turned her head abruptly and saw a young man with hazelnut brown hair and dark forest green eyes that were hidden under the bangs and a big round glass.

    "Hello!" The young man cheerfully greeted her while smiling gently. Ayami instantly backed away as she screamed while panicking.

    "What the heck! Who are you?" Ayami asked as she pointed her trembling fingers towards the young man.

    Looking at him now, she realized that he was a student and not some wandering spirit. He blended in so naturally that Ayami got creeped.

    "That''s what I should be asking you. You shouldn''t be here. Didn''t you know, this area is strictly forbidden to those who doesn''t have special access? It was even written on the sign in the entrance." The young man explained.

    "Huh? What are you talking about?" Ayami asked while confused.

    "Are you new here?" The young man asked the question, to which Ayami shook her head.

    "Huh? Then why didn''t you know? Wasn''t it explained during the start of the year that there were some restricted areas? You weren''t listening? They even gave a map with the restricted areas circled. If someone were to enter the restricted areas, then they would be punished, at worst expelled."

    What? There was something like that? Ayami thought. How could she even remember something that was already in the past?

    "Was there something like that? I can''t remember¡­" Ayami played dumb.

    "Alright, by the way I''m Kayden Clyde. And you are?" The young man introduced himself.

    Ayami reluctantly gave her name. "Ayami Le¡­Gardner."

    "Le Gardner? I don''t think I''ve heard that name before." Kayden mumbled to himself. Ayami corrected him. "It''s Gardner."

    "Anyways, do you know the way back? I got lost." Ayami spoke pitifully. Kayden tilted his head to the side with a frown on his face as he spoke. "How could you get lost?"

    "Huh?" Ayami exclaimed.

    "You don''t understand, huh. I''ll show you then." Kayden guided Ayami back. It was so simple, just walk a straight line for a short while and then you''re out.

    "See, you won''t get lost in here."

    Ayami was astonished. She was out of that forest for a short while? Then why did she stay there for a few hours if that was so simple.

    On the entrance, just like Kayden have said, was a warning. Ayami could see the faculty building just near them.

    "Then why is there a forest in the academy?" Ayami mumbled to herself. Kayden heard her mumbled and kindly explained. "It was for visual effects. They made it eeriely so students who wanted to enter would be scared and feel lost, just like you. It was also made so the students wouldn''t be able to easily go to the garden. There was also Midnight, the black leopard, guarding and patrolling."

    "By the way, you should check out the map of the academy. The academy is so big that you might get lost, if you''re not yet familiar."

    Kayden explained a bunch of things she didn''t know. As she was not really interested in the academy and just study in her own world, she didn''t know a lot of things in the academy. She was also busy dealing with the couple so she had no time for gossips.

    "Thank you, Mr. Clyde for showing me the way out." Ayami thanked him sincerely.

    "No worries, just don''t get lost again." Kayden smiled gently while waving his hands.. He went back inside the small forest.

 Chapter 13 - The Five Families

    Ayami stared at Kayden''s leaving back. Come to think of it, how could that person enter the forest so nonchalantly?

    Who is he actually?

    She never met him in the past, so she doesn''t have any information on him. His name was also unfamiliar and she didn''t think there was a powerful house with the name Clyde.

    Ayami didn''t ponder over it anymore when she heard her stomach grumbling for food. Ayami ran to the cafeteria and bought some food.

    "There you are, Ayami!" A pretty girl with bright blonde hair flowing through her back and a pair of blue eyes shining like a gem, with pointy nose and thin red lips, wearing the school uniform of the academy, approached her.

    "Celine." Ayami softly spoke and continued to eat her food elegantly. Celine sat down in front of her and spoke worriedly. "Where were you? I didn''t see you in the morning class earlier. Did something happen? Is someone bullying you? Tell me and I''ll make sure they never appear in front of you again."

    "No, nothing like that happened." Ayami spoke monotonously, devoid of any emotion. "You sure? Just tell me if you have any problems and I''ll come rushing to you."

    "So, anyways, I met this new girl and her personality is really interesting." Celine spoke with thrill in her voice. But as she spoke, Celine didn''t notice that Ayami''s expression darkened.

    Her gaze was so cold to the point that it would freeze even in summer. A murderous intent leaked out of her subconsciously. Rage was burning inside her uncontrollably. This ''new girl'', it was obvious that it was Yanna Jin. Ayami laughed inside.

    "Ah, wait, do you know the new girl? You know, the girl we saw yesterday." Celine asked, as she was sure that Ayami doesn''t pay any attention to the academy affairs.

    When Celine looked at her, she froze as she felt chills running down her spine, it felt like she was looking at a monster. There was a wicked smile on her face, as if she was ready to mess someone up.

    Hah! I won''t let you snatch her away from me this time!

    In the past, Yanna befriended Celine on her second day. That caused even more rift to Ayami and Celine.

    Celine came from a family of lawyers, so the couple used her in the sake of ''justice'' and bringing to light Ayami''s ''sins''. They used her for investigating big cases that put them into a lot of danger.

    This time, she won''t let that pair of scummy lovebirds exploit Celine!

    The look on Ayami''s face was so terrifying to the point that she wanted to run away. Then Ayami''s vicious gaze landed at her. Celine gulped the lump on her throat and felt cold sweat on her back.

    "¡­I know her. Don''t get close to her and stay away from her." Ayami coldly spoke, the tone of her voice felt sharp, as if warning her.

    Celine had no choice but to agree to her overbearing voice. "Alright milady, I''ll run away from her whenever I see her."

    Anyway, Ayami surely had a good reason and for the first time, she didn''t feel like she was talking to a wall. Most of the time, Ayami was silent or just say yes or no.

    "Oh, by the way, do you know Kayden Clyde?" Celine almost choked on her saliva as soon as Ayami finished her question. Ayami raised her eyebrows, she thought that her reaction was weird.

    Celine gulped down the Ayami''s and asked to repeat it again. "Sorry, I think I misheard. Could you repeat it again?"

    This time, she repeated it a little bit louder than before. "Do you know Kayden Clyde?"

    Celine sighed and started to speak. "Before that, do you even know the five most powerful families in the country?"

    Ayami nodded her head and listed the names from descending order. "They are Roswell, Lein, Yun, Yanai, and Filburn families. I heard all of them graduated in this academy."

    "You''ve probably never heard of the Clyde household, right? That''s because they belong to the upper-middle class and was not that well-known."

    The academy mostly consist of people coming from the upper class family, so people below them were rare.

    "Then how can he enter a restricted area?"

    "That''s because Senior Kayden has special access. He was friends with the three young masters and was also their junior. Though, he is alone right now as all the seniors already graduated."

    "I see¡­ But why are you calling him ''senior Kayden''?" Ayami nodded her head.

    "Duh, isn''t it because he''s older than us? He is a graduating student."

    "Ah, is that so?" Then she guessed that she will have to politely speak to that senior later, if they meet that is.

    "Why are you interested in that senior?" Celine smiled playfully at her as she spoke.

    "Nothing, just curious." Celine looked at her seriously after that. "But really, you should be careful around him. Nobody has ever gotten near him because he was under the protection of the three young masters and was tightly guarded. I heard that they treasure each other, so if you anger senior Kayden, then I''m afraid that you won''t see the light of the day."

    "One last thing, can you do an investigation to a certain group?" Ayami finished eating her meal and went onto the desserts, which was strawberry macarons. Celine quickly snatched one and ate it.

    "Ah, you¡­" Ayami glared daggers at her. Celine smiled cheekily. "Of course, I can. Just treat me to Sucr¨¦ le Desserts'' as a payment. So whose group do you want to investigate?"

    Before Ayami could answer the question, a voice interrupted her, a huge nuisance at that.

    "Um¡­ C-Celine, can I eat with you?" Blushing like a maiden, was a beautiful girl standing in front of them, that creature was named Yanna. Celine awkwardly smiled while Ayami''s face darkened like a shade.

    Who are you! Get lost!

    The sweet dessert Ayami was eating suddenly tasted bitter and disgusting.

 Chapter 14 - Pretty Please~

    Yanna!

    Ayami screamed in her heart. Why does this fox keep appearing wherever she was?

    "Uh, um¡­" Celine awkwardly smiled at her, while looking at Ayami and Yanna back and forth.

    Just a few moments ago, Ayami told her not to get close to Yanna and she responded to run away whenever she meets her.

    ''Why aren''t you running away?'' was what Ayami''s eyes was telling Celine.

    Ayami''s expression was like she ate something bitter, as her face contorted into a frown.

    "Yanna, I¡­ I''m sorry, I can''t right now. I''m having lunch with my dearest friend here." Celine spoke carefully, afraid she might hurt the other person.

    "Then, d-do you mind¡­?" Yanna timidly to Ayami, like a shy kid.

    "I''m sorry miss, but my friend and I have something important to talk about." Ayami coldly spoke with sharp eyes that stared at her soul.

    Seemingly realizing something, Yanna pointed to her, with eyes shining with glee.

    "Ah, aren''t you the girl I bumped into this morning? Then all the more reason that I should join you. Let me treat you to lunch!" Yanna cheerfully spoke, like she never heard Ayami reject her.

    You don''t know when to give up do you? Are you deaf or delusional? I clearly said that you can''t!

    Truly a sly fox, manipulating people to get what she wants!

    "Look, Miss, you can treat us later. But my friend and I need to have an important talk right now. It can''t wait!"

    "T-then, when can w¡ª" Before Yanna could finish what she was going to say, Ayami cut her off. She spoke like a cool ice queen while flipping her hair. "When fate allows, let us meet again."

    With that, she stood up and dragged Celine to a secluded space, more like her dorm as no one would bother them or hear their conversation, unless someone put a listening device which was highly unlikely.

    "You know, you''re acting unusual lately." Celine asked she tilted her head while sizing her up from head to toe.

    Ayami merely laughed it off and shrugged her shoulders. "Haha, must be your imagination!"

    "You''re right." Celine nodded her head and didn''t press any further. Ayami looked at her with a serious expression. "Can you lend me some money?"

    "How much?" Celine instantly asked.

    "A Hundred Million."

    "Eh, so much. When do you need it? I''ll find a way to get that sum."

    What a gullible friend, at this rate she might be scammed.

    "Aren''t you afraid that I''ll run off with that money and never pay you back?"

    "I''m sure you wouldn''t do that. I trust you. It is up to you to break that trust." Celine smiled innocently, just like back then in their school days, so innocent and naive, knowing nothing about the dark parts of the life.

    Even when Ayami pushed her away, Celine kept pushing on, even if she got hurt, even if her life was destroyed. What a great friend¡­

    But Ayami wasn''t happy with that. So this time, she would make sure she wouldn''t fall to the hands of that scheming couple.

    "Anyways, that''s not what I was going to talk about. I need you to investigate this group." Ayami pulled out a piece of paper from her pockets.

    Coiling Snake Gang.

    Celine''s eyes widened in surprise. Her hands trembled as she looked at the piece of paper, fear struck her like lightning.

    Her trembling lips bobbed before she finally managed to spat out her words with great difficulty. "T-this¡­W-why would you need information about them?"

    "You can''t?" Ayami asked with no expression on her face.

    "It will be difficult." Celine spoke.

    "Fine, first find out if there are any students here who are connected to this gang. Then all the members of the gang, including their background. I want every information about it."

    "W-What? That will take a long time!"

    "How long?"

    "About half a year, at most a year."

    "That long? Shorten it." Ayami spoke like a domineering CEO, there was no room for objections. "Within a week, I want you to find the students connected to that gang. Within a month, I want you to find all the members of the gang and all of their information."

    "B-but¡­ That''s impossible!" Celine shouted anxiously. How is she gonna do all that within a month?

    "Then find a way to make it possible." Ayami smirked wickedly. In Celine''s eyes, Ayami was like a devil making her work like a slave. Seeing that Celine was reluctant, Ayami had no choice but to use ''that'' technique.

    "Pretty please~ You said that you would, are you going back on your word now? Ahh~ How could I have a friend like this?" Ayami begged cutely. Honestly, she was pretty embarrassed on the inside.

    My gosh¡­ How did even Yanna do this?

    Ayami sometimes saw Yanna acting cutely to get what she wants.

    "You¡­" Celine had a frown on her face. Ayami gulped, nervous to what she was about to say next. "What did you say? Did you just say the word ''please''?"

    "Is the world ending? I heard the ice queen say please!" Celine mumbled to herself. She looked at Ayami with horror. "She was even acting cutely! Is this really the Ice Queen I know?"

    "I¡­ Fine. I''ll make it work somehow." Celine said with a defeated tone after contemplating it for a while.

    "Really! Then I''ll treat you to whatever you want for a whole year!" Ayami delightedly spoke. That much cash is nothing for the sake of revenge!

    With that, Celine had no way out of this situation. Who wouldn''t like free things in this world!

    It looks like Celine would have to do an all-nighter for a month and work like a slave¡­

 Chapter 15 - Coiling Snake Gang

    Coiling Snake Gang is a notorious gang known around the city. They were a dangerous gang where one would certainly avoid. They always fought and do heinous acts.

    Just hearing the name ''Coiling Snake'' would make one tremble in fear. That was how notorious they were.

    They are a gang who were able to escape the police as they were slippery and hard to catch. They were hard to track and most members were unknown.

    But most difficult of them all, was the leader. Nobody, not even the top executives of the gang were able to see who was the leader. The head was always hiding behind the members, like a snake hiding in a tall grass.

    It would be difficult work for Celine but it was manageable, who was able to solve more difficult problems than this.

    "By the way, you didn''t answer my question. Why do want to know about them? Don''t tell me you''re just curious?" Celine asked seriously, while staring at Ayami like she wanted to know what was going on inside her.

    "How did you know?" Ayami smiled, playing dumb. Wasn''t it also the truth? She was curious about the Coiling Snake Gang and wanted to know more.

    Celine frowned, of course she would not believe that reasoning. Ayami wouldn''t do this things without a reason.

    "Fine then. Let''s leave it at that."

    After that, they went to their respective classes as lunch had already ended.

    Ayami waited until the classes ended and wandered through the academy aimlessly. When she suddenly saw a black thing, no, it was a huge cat.

    "Ah, Midnight!" Ayami called out to it and decided to approach it. What was Midnight doing here?

    Ayami wondered as she approached Midnight. Even though she was scared of it earlier, that fear was now replaced with adoration after spending time with it. She even confirmed that the black leopard was harmless.

    Now looking at it again, the black leopard was no longer scary and looked cute.

    Midnight looked majestic as he lay down the grasses just beside a signboard, with trees just behind them. Wait a minute!

    Ayami looked at the signboard and read it.

    <Warning! Restricted Area Ahead. Those who do not have special access will face the consequences for breaking the rules.>

    Ayami didn''t notice that she had approached the forest again.

    "I''m here again¡­"

    It should be okay if she doesn''t enter, right?

    Ayami wanted to play with the black leopard because she was bored and have nothing to do back in the dorm.

    "Midnight~ Come here~" Ayami treated it like a cat. Wasn''t it just a big cat anyway?

    Midnight ignored her and turned his face to the side. Ayami pouted her lips and stood up.

    ''Nevermind.'' She lost the mood to play with the black leopard.

    "I''ll be going now."

    Just as Ayami was about to stand up, she heard a gentle voice speak in front of her. "Oh. We meet again."

    Kayden stood in front of her with a warm smile on his face. Ayami hurriedly stood up and greeted him in a flustered manner.

    "H-Hello, Senior."

    "¡­You can drop the honorifics and speak casually to me." Kayden said nonchalantly. Of course, Ayami would happily oblige, she casually spoke to Kayden. "Okay, Kayden. You can also speak casually to me."

    Kayden was taken aback by her words. After all, he didn''t think she would accept it so fast as they were still strangers to each other. But since Ayami already said so, Kayden spoke to her casually. "¡­Alright. By the way Ayami, what are you doing here? Are you lost again?"

    Ayami shook her head. "No, I was just wandering aimlessly."

    "I see. Enjoy your walk then and don''t get lost." Kayden said as he patted Midnight''s head. Ayami stared at his hand intensely. I''m so jealous!

    "Then, I''ll be going." Ayami said. Kayden nodded his head and waved his hand. Ayami awkwardly waved back her hand.

    A week later, Celine, who worked her ass off finally got the name of the students who was involved to the Coiling Snake Gang.

    Three students whose name was unfamiliar was in the file sent by Celine. Each person had information about them, their age, birthdate, bloodtype, their personal information, even their most deepest secrets were there, with a picture attached to it.

    Celine really dug deep!

    The first student that was on the top of the list was Liana Faker. She was secretly bullying the weak students as, of course, bullying was not allowed and she would get expelled immediately. In the picture, she wore a thick makeup that she almost looked like a clown.

    Next was a male student named, Noxus Mole. A bastard who extorts money from the weak students. He was accused of assaulting some of the female students but was never found guilty. He was suspected to be using drugs, but found no evidence. In the picture, he looked like a drug addict that and was in a gang. He didn''t like around his age, it was more like he aged ten years.

    Lastly, Hailey Pierrot. Hailey Pierrot was considered a model student and was famous around the academy. She was seen hanging out secretly with Liana Faker and Noxus Mole weekly, every friday night. Unfortunately, there was no black stain on her. In the picture, she looked graceful and elegant like she hailed from an affluent family.

    Among the three, Ayami suspected that Hailey was the team leader. Hailey was too suspicious. The only way to find was a stake out, which she would do starting tomorrow.

    There was one thing in common about them, though. That is, their family have high expectations to them, if they fail, then their support would turn into dust. Their family didn''t know about their misdeeds as they were purposely keeping it from them.

    ''All of them are graduating students, if somebody exposes them, I wonder what would happen?'' Ayami laughed wickedly in her own room. Just thinking about it made her excited!

    What an amazing blackmail material!

    Good Job, Celine!

 Chapter 16 - Blackmail

    Ayami yawned as she walked towards the faculty building. She was called by the dean as there was news for her.

    "Congratulations, they approved. You are going to take a practical exam, a written exam, and a final interview in five months." The Dean congratulated her with a warm smile and applause.

    "Really?" Ayami tried to sound enthusiastic and excited. "Thank you!"

    "Try not to do anything troublesome that will affect and still attend your classes. It would be bad if you got a record." After speaking, the dean let go of her.

    "¡­I will." Unfortunately, she will be doing something troublesome later. But it should be okay as long as she doesn''t get found out.

    In a good mood, her lips curved up into a smile, with eyes shining brightly. She won''t have to sit in that boring class for another three years anymore. She just have to endure it in five months.

    Just as she was about to exit the building, she saw a figure she didn''t want to see. How come every time she comes here, the people she wanted to avoid so much were here?

    "¡­What a coincidence to see you here, my fiance." His voice was so chilly that it could freeze even in summer. Ayami felt like the temperature around went down after she heard his voice.

    Her merry mood suddenly vanished in just a second. Her happy daydreams were shattered after she met this man.

    Ayami''s whole body shuddered in disgust. She had goosebumps after hearing the word ''fiance'' come out of his mouth.

    Right, she still had to beg the one who was responsible for this engagement.

    Ayami stared at him after clearing her expression.

    Cold dark obsidian eyes that mesmerized people. High and pointy nose, red cherry lips, a sharp jawline, thick black eyebrows, ink black hair that was slicked back. His face was so perfect that it was outworldly.

    Ayami didn''t want to admit it, but he really looked a perfectly sculptured human. He looked like one of those male leads in a CEO novels that Celine gave her to read.

    "Yes, truly a coincidence." Ayami spoke monotonously, while hiding her trembling hands behind her back.

    For some reason, Ayami felt like he was angry, as she doesn''t want to be with him for another second she decided to leave. "It seems that you have business here. I won''t take too much of your time. Then, I''ll be going now."

    Ayami walked passed him and was about to leave when he suddenly spoke.

    "Wait." Ayami stopped in her tracks and turned around, hiding her annoyance. She opened her mouth to speak. "What is it?"

    "Why aren''t answering my calls?"

    Instantly, Ayami thought of an excuse on the spot and shamelessly spoke without batting an eye. "I broke my phone. I didn''t bother getting a new one because I was busy with my class. Do you need anything from me?"

    The actual truth was that Ayami blocked him.

    "¡­No, it''s nothing." Then, after that he turned around and left, leaving behind Ayami, whose face contorted into a frown after he turned around.

    ***

    Friday, night.

    "Are you sure we should be doing this?" Celine whispered beside Ayami with a sharp tone. "Let''s stop and go back before it''s too late. We might get caught in something dangerous!"

    "Shush! I hear footsteps. They''re coming!" She shushed Celine. Ayami put her forefinger to Celine''s lips to shut her up.

    They quickly hid behind the large objects on the alleyway. This was the meeting place for the students who was involved with the Coiling Snake Gang.

    It was not far away from the academy and it was also hidden. People won''t normally pass through here, so even if they scream no one would come.

    That is why Celine was worried about her. The place was desolate and what was worse was that it was nighttime. What if they get caught and these people do bad things to them?

    "Hey, how much did you get this week?" Liana asked as she took out a cigarette and lighted it with a lighter.

    "Not much, only around ten thousand." Noxus nonchalantly spoke as he also started to smoke.

    They started talking about the wicked things they did and how badly they wanted to be officially recognized as a member of the Coiling Snake Gang.

    They were loose lips as the both of them knew that there was nobody to listen. They babbled on and on for an hour, but only Hailey didn''t speak and remained silent until the end.

    "A month from now, we will be called in the Coiling Snake Gang." After some time, Hailey finally spoke. "It is probably some kind of meeting and who will be recognized as a new member."

    Then, Hailey too, started to smoke like a bad girl. Her eyes were threatening as she spoke with a warning in her voice. "Don''t drag me down on that day, got it?"

    "Of course."

    "''Kay."

    They simultaneously agreed. She was the leader after all.

    Hiding behind the large objects, Ayami was smiling wickedly. Everything, from the start of their conversation up to the end, she was able to record it all clearly, in high definition.

    Ayami specially bought this just for today. Of course, it would still be useful in the future.

    "Dang, I did not know that she was the leader." Celine, who was just beside her, quietly whispered, afraid to be discovered by them.

    After they finished, the trio left.

    "Pfft¡­ Ha¡­!" Ayami was trembling from holding back her laughter. She was struggling to hold back her laughter, but she couldn''t endure it anymore and just let it all out. Ayami laughed like a lunatic doing some wicked things.

    She thought of the plan again. She would use another account and send it to them anonymously to blackmail them into submission.

    Celine, on the side, was creeped out.

    "What''s wrong with you?" Celine shook her shoulders to snap her back.

    Ayami immediately stopped laughing as she seemed out of character. "Sorry, I just remembered something funny."

    "Oh, I see. Anyways, we need to go back. It''s already past our curfew."

    "Alright."

    They sneaked back to their dorm and returned safely.

 Chapter 17 - Her Favorite Steamed Buns

    The next morning, Ayami got up early even though it was weekend. She groggily sat up from the bed while rubbing her eyes, as her gaze landed on the phone placed on top of the bedside, ringing non-stop.

    <5:30 AM>

    Ayami scratched her long black messy hair as she removed the blanket covering her body. She somehow made her way to the bathroom with her body swaying.

    "¡­Sleepy¡­" She mumbled to herself as she stared at the shower, with droopy eyelids. She lazily took off her clothes and took a cold shower to wake herself.

    After showering, her whole body is awake. She changed into a warm oversized gray sweatshirt with a hoodie on it, while for the bottom was a pair of black sweatpants, and a pair of maroon sneakers.

    She first blow dried her hair before tying it up into a ponytail. Ayami wore a thick round glasses with black rim and a gray cap. Then she pulled her hood on top of the cap.

    It took her thirty minutes to prepare.

    After looking at the mirror, she smiled at herself. Nobody should be able to recognize her from afar.

    Then after that, she took out a small backpack and stored her phone, wallet and some devices.

    And now, it was time!

    Today, she was planning on scouting the area where it was possible for the trio to meet secretly, as after blackmailing them, there was a high possibility of them moving to another place.

    Ayami went out of her dorm and shivered after feeling the chilly morning breeze of January. It was a bit dark outside and the sun have not risen yet.

    "Cold¡­!"

    Ayami hurriedly went back to her dorm to get her gray checkered muffler that she wrapped around her neck, a black overcoat and a black gloves. Ayami looked at the mirror, her clothes only consisted of dark colors.

    Maybe she could shop later for clothes.

    After making sure she was warm enough, Ayami went out again.

    She let out a deep breath on her hands, which sent warmth to it. Then after locking her dorm, she jogged outside outside the academy, which took her about half an hour.

    A bit tired from her jog, she panted for a bit before regaining her steady breath. She took out an ID card while she cheerfully greeted the guards standing by the gates.

    "Good morning!"

    The guards also greeted her back, but there was a weird look on their face.

    "Is something wrong?" Ayami asked.

    "No, Miss. It''s just that, it''s unusual to see another student leaving this early. Can you tell us, why you are going this early?" The guards politely asked, as they were afraid to offend somebody from a prestigious family.

    "I wanted to eat some steamed buns because, you know, whenever I try to buy it, it was already sold out. So I''m heading there early." Ayami explained.

    The guards nodded their head. The guards looked at her ID before giving it back to her and letting her pass.

    "Alright, you may go."

    Ayami walked past the gate and headed towards a street, not far away from her school. The streets were still empty and desolate as people were still waking up and preparing. She put her hands that were trembling slightly on her pockets as it was too cold.

    Then, after a while of walking, she stopped in front of a small eatery with a plain signboard.

    <Bon Bon Eatery>

    It brings back her memories on the time where she accidentally discovered this eatery, when she was graduating. At that time, she was filled with stress from the couple and her schoolworks, so discovering this eatery made it feel she found a hidden gem.

    The eatery served a variety of dishes that was mouth-watering and will make you come back for more. She fell in love with their steamed buns with variety of flavors and chicken broths.

    Ayami walked inside with a smile on her face. The atmosphere inside was warm and ambient, with a relaxing music playing in the background.

    She felt nostalgic, like she went back to the past. Oh wait, she literally went back to the past.

    "Welcome." She was greeted with a warm smile by an employee. Ayami nodded her head and walked towards the counter.

    She ordered her favorite pork steamed buns and a warm chicken broth to dine in, while also adding red bean steamed buns and coffee milk steamed buns and a hot chocolate, for take out.

    After that she waited for her order and paid over the counter. She took a seat on one of the empty tables, while taking off her coat, muffler and gloves. She also took her hood off, but didn''t remove the cap.

    As she sat down, she suddenly realized the presence of a familiar person, happily eating a variety of foods on the table.

    "Kayden?" Ayami spatted out after recognizing who he was. The other person stopped eating to look at the person who called out to him.

    "Isn''t this my junior? Wow, you look so different that I almost didn''t recognize you." Kayden cheerfully greeted her. He beckoned her over his sit. "Come, join me for breakfast."

    "Ah? That''s your whole breakfast?" Ayami walked towards him and sat on the opposite chair, as she looked at the food that was on his table. It was too much for a single person to eat.

    "Yes. Then please help yourself." Kayden offered a delicious looking dish. Though Ayami wanted it, she must refuse out of courtesy. "No, thank you. I already ordered, so¡­"

    "Here''s your order, ma''am." The employee placed the pork steamed buns and chicken broth in front of her. Her take-out order was placed a brown paper bag while the hot chocolate was separated.

    "Well, if you think that is not enough, you can help yourself with mine."

    "Since you insist, then I won''t decline." Ayami happily spoke. Free food? Sure, why not?

    They started to dig into their food. Ayami bit into the pork steamed buns. She felt the softness and meaty pork of it as she bit into it. It felt like it was melting inside her mouth. Then she scooped the chicken broth and brought it into her mouth.

    Ah~ It was still the same taste!

    Ayami ate with delight, a smile slowly appeared on her face as she continued to eat, completely forgetting the presence of the other people.

 Chapter 18 - Internet Cafe

    After eating her steamed buns, only then did she focus towards the person in front of her.

    "By the way, do you frequent here often?" Ayami asked, as he looked like a regular.

    "On weekends." Kayden simply answered. "If you are asking why I''m so early, because there is not much people going in here in the morning. What about you?"

    "My favorite steamed buns are always sold out whenever I come to buy, so I had to go early." Ayami used the same excuse.

    "Really? I don''t think I''ve heard of them being sold out." Kayden mumbled to himself.

    "A-Ahahaha, Of course not. That was just an exaggeration!" Ayami laughed nervously as she panicked inside. She made a mistake.

    Although this eatery is desolate and not popular, in the future, this store woul be well-known and would overtake the whole food industry. So whenever she goes here to buy her steamed buns, it was always sold out.

    "A-Anyways, d-do you know where I can find a good Internet cafe here? One with a private room?" Ayami tried to change the topic. She would be going there later, so it would be helpful to know.

    "Are you going to play? Hmm¡­ There is one around here. Here, I''ll give you the location." Kayden took out his phone. "I''ll send it to you, so let''s exchange contacts."

    Ayami took out her phone from the bag and gave him her contact details. They exchanged their contact details. Ayami saved his number in her contacts.

    Ping!

    A sound came out from her phone. Ayami looked at her messages and saw that Kayden sent a hello and after that the location of the Internet cafe.

    Ayami sent him a thank you message. Kayden smiled and spoke. "You''re welcome. By the way, do you use MInstant?"

    "MInstant?" Ayami tilted her head as she looked at him. "Is that a brand name for noodles?"

    "Pfft. Of course not. Are you kidding?" Kayden stifled his laughter, but when he looked at Ayami''s serious face that didn''t look like she was joking, he also turned serious.

    "You¡­ You really don''t know?" He asked with a frown on his face. Ayami shook her head. "Just which rock did you live under?"

    "What about your friends, do they not tell about this? Surely you have some friends that use MInstant, right?"

    Ayami didn''t speak after a long time. Kayden started to look at her with pity.

    Kayden looked back to the day they first met, Ayami was lost and didn''t even know about the forbidden areas. It was impossible for someone to enter that area without knowing anything. There was even a rumor going around, everyone in the academy surely heard it. Ayami must have spent her days in the academy alone.

    Worry not, my junior, for I, your senior, is here!

    "I''ll be your friend. So if you need anything you can come to me." He spoke with a bright smile on his face and extended his hand.

    "I do not need your pity." Ayami coldly spoke. "And also, I have friends, alive and well. It''s just that I don''t pay attention to news that much and I also just recently got a phone, so I don''t know what to with it much."

    "I see. Then you are behind times. I just noticed but your phone''s model is quite old. Do you want to change it to the latest? I can help you! By the way, MInstant is a Social Media platform and you can also do variety of things there, like messaging and video chat. Oh, do you want to know the latest gossips in the academy, just visit the forum and you can find hundreds of scandals and rumors. And also¡­"

    Kayden completely blabbered on and on, without waiting for her answer. So basically, he wanted to help Ayami adjust to modern times.

    "Enough. I''ll be your friend, so I can ask you whatever I want to know at any time?"

    "Really? Yay! Cheers to our newfound friendship!" He spoke with delight, happy to find a new friend. "Come on, eat with me."

    After that, they finished their breakfast and went out of the eatery with full stomachs.

    "I have something to do, so I''ll be going now." Kayden smiled warmly as he waved his hand. Ayami also smiled and waved her hands.

    Ayami looked at his leaving back. He really was a talkative and friendly person with a high energy. Ayami couldn''t believe they became friends easily. This wasn''t in her plan!

    Ayami checked the time on her phone. It was already 8 AM. She wasted time hanging out with that guy, but why does it feel like time wasn''t wasted at all.

    It felt like time quickly passed by when she was with him.

    Ayami shook her head and snap out of her thoughts. Kayden have already left long ago, how much time is she going to waste?

    Ayami pulled down her cap and hood to hide half of her face.

    Ayami went to the internet cafe Kayden told her. It was a normal internet cafe.

    "Welcome." The staff warmly welcomed. Ayami was troubled on the inside as it was her first time going. She gained her composure when she remembered what Kayden told her about internet cafes.

    "Uh, um. I-I would like 3 hours for a private room."

    "Alright. Do you have a membership card? You can have a discount if you have it."

    "I don''t have one."

    "If you don''t have one, you can register. The members here have privileges, like discount, longer hours, You can also schedule your time and have a reserved private room in advance and etc. So would you like to register?"

    "I''ll think about it." That was all Ayami could say as she was given a card and a key. Before she left, the staff warned her. " Be sure not to lose the card or the key."

    Ayami went to the second floor and went to the private room with the number 7. She inserted the key and after that she locked the door.

    It was just a small room with a computer and headphones on top of the table and a comfortable chair.

    Ayami looked around, in case there was a hidden camera. After confirming that there were no hidden cameras, Ayami sat down on the chair and turned on the computer.

    Then, she took out her phone and a USB, stored inside was the materials she would use for blackmailing.

    It was necessary to go to an internet cafe than use the one inside the academy, as there is a high chance that she would get caught.

    After the computer turned on, she inserted the USB stick on it.

 Chapter 19 - "Rose"

    Ayami created a dummy account with the name "Rose", which she picked randomly and searched the trio''s account.

    She opened a software called ISpy, which she installed last night on the USB. It was used to look at the chats or messages of other people secretly.

    Then she typed on the keyboard and fiddled with the computer like an expert, before she finally found their group chat.

    She entered the group like a spectator, not visible to the trio as she could only do something simple as this. Ayami looked at their message log.

    All of them have are not using their real names and their codenames were based on animals.

    Chicken, Pig, and Bunny. It was hard identifying which is which, so Ayami had no choice but to chat.

    <Rose entered the group. Say hi to Rose!>

    Rose: Hello?

    Ayami typed in a hello. One by one, messages started to pop out.

    Pig: Huh? Who is this?

    Chicken: Who invited this person?

    Bunny: Definitely not me!

    Chicken: Kick them out.

    Pig: Roger that, milady.

    Bunny: ''Kay Pig, u do it.

    Rose: Kicking me out? Unfortunately, you won''t be able to do it~ ??????????????

    Pig: Huh? What the¡ª

    Pig: She''s right! What the hell is going on.

    Rose: *Laughing GIF*

    Chicken: Who are you?

    "Hmm¡­ Guess it''s time." Ayami mumbled to herself as she clicked the mouse with a smile on her face.

    Then Ayami sent out a picture of Liana Faker bullying one of her classmates.

    Bunny: What!

    Bunny: Where did you get that? Who are you?

    The next thing she sent was Noxus inhaling drugs with his friends.

    Pig: B*stard! If I ever found out your identity your dead!

    Pig: Delete that!

    Pig: If you don''t, I''ll find you and make sure your life is a living hell.

    Rose: Ohh~ Scary~ ????????????

    Since there Celine couldn''t find any dirt on Hailey, Ayami could only send the picture she took last night, where all three of them were smoking.

    It was stated in the rules of the academy that students are strictly prohibited from smoking. So they might get suspended for a month or worse get expelled. In Noxus case, he might go to jail.

    Rose: I see¡­

    : So Pig is Noxus Mole, Bunny is Liana Faker and the last one, Chicken, is definitely Hailey Pierrot.

    Chicken: How did you know that was us?

    Rose: Because I can see everything~

    : Look out, because I might be behind you~

    :????????????

    But what Ayami wanted to type was: "Uh¡­ Because you''re stupid?"

    It was pretty stupid of them to indirectly reveal themselves. Well, they were panicking, so they were not in their right minds.

    Chicken: ¡­

    Chicken: Just who are you and what do you want from us?

    Rose: Eh? Asking my objectives already? But I have more stuff I wanted to show you guys. Oh, well, I guess I''ll tell you what I want after I send your dirty laundry.

    Ayami sent a link that will lead them to a download page. There they needed to download before they can view the file. Of course, Ayami added a trojan horse that would be able to bypass the firewall, though incomplete as Ayami created it in a hurry, so it can only track their IP while also stealing some of their data.

    It would be nice if she could completely hack their computers, but this will do for now. She doubt that there was anything useful about the Coiling Snake Gang.

    Ping!

    Ping!

    Ping!

    That sound indicated that all three of them have downloaded the file. Ayami smiled wickedly. She could quickly see the trio''s location.

    The two girls was in the dorm, while the other one was inside a gambling den so early in the morning.

    On the other chatroom, where only Hailey and Liana were there.

    Liana: Hailey, What do we do?

    : I knew it was a bad idea to join that gang!

    : Now what? My parents will disown me if they found out.

    Hailey: Calm down, Liana.

    : I''ll find a way out of this.

    : That person is probably just want money or something.

    Liana: What about Noxus?

    Hailey: Leave that useless guy out.

    <Rose joined the chat. Say hi to Rose!>

    Rose: Leaving me out?

    : Bad people!

    : Hmm¡­ My, my~ What''s this? ????????????

    : Betraying your friends left and right?

    : Hailey, you''re truly evil. I like it~

    On the other chats, were Hailey and Noxus chatting with each other leaving Liana out. Hailey wasn''t planning on helping the two to begin with. They returned back to their group chat.

    Pig: Hailey, what the hell!?

    Bunny: You¡­ I trusted you, how could you do this?

    Chicken: Rose, is this your objective? To tear us apart?

    Rose: Not quite~ Hihihi~

    Chicken: Do you think this is a joke?

    : We were doing just fine and you suddenly entered and destroyed our bonds!

    Rose: ¡­

    : Check the forums.

    Ayami smiled as she checked the forums. Written on the very top, was an article featuring delinquent students.

    It was the picture of the three, but their faces was blurred.

    Iamthegreatimmortal9999: Woah! Someone is actually brave to defy the academy rules.

    Flowerbloominginthevalley: Lolololol! They''re dead, like, so dead dead!

    Nerd_Glasses: Anyone wondering who they are?

    69696969: Seggs

    FunnyDude127: Popcorn, porcorn! Anyone?

    Rin_no_1_Fan: The academy is probably investigating it right now. The academy would probably set an example using them.

    ¡­

    Behind the computer, Hailey suddenly felt like her strength left her whole body as she stared at the computer screen, face ashen. It felt like her soul had left her.

    Her face was so white like a paper and her lips were blue, like she had seen a ghost. Her hands trembled as she stared at the forum.

    The same thing happened to the other two.

    Everything is crumbling. Just like that, their future is gone!

    Ping!

    Just then, a notification popped out in front of their computers.

    1 new message unread.

    Rose: Now then, are you ready to follow my command?

 Chapter 20 - Her Plans

    Ayami typed on her conditions in exchange for keeping her lips tight.

    Her first order was follow all her orders no matter what time or what place. Do not question her command as her words are absolute. Failure to complete her command will be instant death.

    Ayami had to assert dominance and be ruthless in order for them to follow her without further questions.

    The second was to keep watch over a student named ''Yanna Jin'' and give her a report in intervals.

    The last, was to let her enter the Coiling Snake Gang. Ayami also demanded that they give her the information they know about the gang.

    As nobody replied, Ayami typed on the keyboard and pressed the enter button after finishing the words she wanted to say while munching on the red bean buns and coffee milk buns, occasionally sipping on the now cooled off chocolate drink.

    Rose: Since nobody is replying, then I will take it as a yes. It''s not like you have any other choice but to follow me. Remember this, your lives are nothing but a mere bug, I can easily crush them if I wanted to, but I''m giving you a chance. Use this chance to make yourselves useful and redeem yourselves.

    Chicken: Just what did we do for you to take action against us?

    Rose: ¡­You took the wrong side. That is your mistake.

    Rose: That is all. I hope you will follow my instructions.

    Ayami logged out and disconnected from the computer.

    "¡­"

    Unbelievable¡­

    To think that she had to resort into blackmailing. If it were in the past, Ayami could have easily dug into something small as Coiling Snake Gang. Heck, Ayami could even get information about a big organization, although it comes with a price.

    But now¡­ she had to rely on this kids to enter the gang.

    It would be nice if she could meet the head of the gang easily, like she did in the past.

    Ayami closed her eyes and recalled the vague memories to when a big incident took place.

    ***

    It happened in the same year, Ayami was studying without a care in the world in the library, while Celine was beside her browsing through her phone.

    Not too far away from her, Ayami could hear the conversation between the two students.

    "Hey, hey. Did you hear? Three students were caught joining a gang, not just any gang, but the most notorious of them all. I heard they were expelled and one of them were even sent to jail."

    "What? Really?"

    "I also heard that they did something shady. I wonder who they are? The academy didn''t disclose on their identity."

    "Wait, I heard a rumor that¡­"

    At that time, Ayami didn''t pay much attention to them and just studied like there was no tomorrow.

    But that was only the first step for Cole and the Coiling Snake Gang to get closer. Cole helped the gang in a condition that the head must change.

    The gang underwent a reform after the head changed. It was said that the one who replaced the current head was one of the top executives and Cole''s close confidants.

    Then the gang evolved into an organization and rose to the top. It created more power to Cole making it difficult to reach him.

    So Ayami decided to first prevent the trio from getting caught and finding the current head and the close confidant of Cole.

    It would be best to take the power that made him rose to high heavens and make it hers.

    With that thought, Ayami slowly opened her eyes. But then, her gaze turned sharp as her face darkened. Her lips were pressed into a thin line as if she was upset, while her hands was continuously tapping on the table.

    It was upsetting to know that even when she viciously schemed and planned with caution and many back-up plans, it always failed.

    Ayami planned with absolute certainty, and even if there was only a tiny chance it would fail she still made back-up plans, but they still managed to completely destroy her plans, and while they are it, they also destroyed her. They would always make a comeback and utterly crush her in defeat.

    Now that she thought about it, it was weird.

    It was as if the world was protecting them. Like some kind of plot armour commonly found in novels. It was as if they have a protagonist halo¡­

    "Haaah¡­ What am I thinking? It''s not like world is a novel. I think my brain is not working properly due to thinking. I should rest¡­" Ayami sighed as she mumbled to herself.

    Before she shut down the computer, she looked at the maps and searched for a desolate place where people don''t usually go to.

    Ayami jotted it in her notepad on her phone. Then, she lowered her hood and cap while adjusting her glasses.

    After that, she exited the room and headed towards downstairs.

    "You still have more than an hour left, are you sure you are leaving?"

    "Yes." Ayami shortly answered and left after handing the key and the card.

    Then, she went to the places she jotted down on her notepad and put a listening device and a hidden camera where it wasn''t visible.

    There was a possibility that the trio will move to another location to secretly meet since a stranger intruded in their chats.

    So Ayami had to go to the possible places they will meet.

    Now then, her next step was to meet, or more like ambush a person, together with Celine as she had a friendly aura surrounding her.

    Of course, that said person is one of Yanna''s circle of friends. Ayami planned to weaken their powers while strengthening hers, before confronting them head on.

    She also have the advantage of knowing the future. But there is a limit to changing it, so Ayami had to plan for the worse.

    Ayami went back to her dorm and changed clothes. Ayami also took out the ring. But thinking that she might accidentally lose it, Ayami only took a picture to show to the jewelers. It''s not like she wanted it to be perfectly the same, she just wanted the ring to look similar.

    After that she sent a message to Celine asking her to meet in a mall near their academy.

 Chapter 21 - Rina Young

    "Haa¡­Haa¡­"

    Hiding behind the character cardboard of a diner, was a girl crouched down while wearing a blue dress that reached up to her knees and black heels.

    She had light blue wavy hair that was like the ocean water flowing until her waist. A pair of blue eyes that were like a deep ocean, a cute pointy nose, with thin pink lips. Her whole face was a bit pinkish from running too much.

    She was panting while her heartbeat was running wild. She held her breath as she heard footsteps and voices coming near her.

    "Search over there!"

    "We must find Young Miss or else¡­"

    "Have the security help in searching."

    Men dressed in black were frantically searching the area. They entered the stores one by one, looking for the person they were trying to find.

    She put her hands on her mouth as she tightly closed her eyes, making her vision dark. Sweat trickled down her forehead, nervous from being found out.

    She counted in her mind, trying to calm herself down.

    "It looks like she is not here either."

    "Damn it! We''re dead if we don''t find her!"

    "Increase the search area."

    She flinched when she felt the men dressed in black suddenly stopped in front where she was hiding.

    ''Hurry up and go away!'' She thought.

    Then, when she heard the footsteps going away, only then, did she relax.

    The girl sighed as she didn''t know what to do in her situation.

    Rina Young, that was her name and she was currently being chased by her father''s men. Her father was a strict man and didn''t tolerate any mistakes, he also did anything in order to achieve his goal.

    With his personality, he would no doubt try to manipulate his own daughter. Even her mother was a tool for him to achieve his own gains.

    Rina didn''t like the life she was living right now, always following her father''s orders, like a puppet being controlled by a puppeteer. She wanted to be free, being able to do whatever she wanted.

    Whenever she looked outside the car, a scenery of people living in peace and having freedom to do whatever they wanted was what passed through her eyes.

    She envies those people. She wanted to be like them. Free.

    Then, one day, an opportunity arose. When the bodyguards weren''t looking and were distracted by something, Rina took this chance to escape.

    It was the first time, the first time she opposed her father.

    With her heart thumping in excitement, her lips curved upwards, eyes glimmering with elation, she ran away from them and reached this mall that was near where the car was parked, though Rina knew that she would be caught any minute now after knowing that they were fervently looking for her.

    Rina looked around discreetly from the place she was hiding. When she confirmed that there were no bodyguards around, she slowly got up.

    Then she ran again and stopped when she saw a man dressed in black were looking around. She turned around, but another one was behind her.

    Rina anxiously looked around for a place to hide. Then she found a jewelry store with the name ''Lux Jewelry Palace'' just in front of her, so with no choice left, she entered the store.

    "Welcome! Are you looking for something?" A female staff member warmly welcomed her. She randomly spewed her words.

    "Uh, brooch! I would like to see the brooches." Rina quickly spoke as she nervously looked behind her. The staff member nodded her head and took out the brooches they were selling.

    While waiting for the staff member to take out all of the best brooches they have, Rina heard the conversation between a chubby person who seemed to be the manager and a girl who seemed to be eighteen years old.

    "Miss, your order will take a week to finish. Please leave your contact info here, so we can contact you when it is done."

    The girl nonchalantly nodded her head as she wrote her contact details. Then, while she was at it, she also started looking around for jewelries while the manager had his assistant take her to look around.

    "Here you go." Rina''s attention was turned back again to the staff member as she showed the brooches they were selling.

    All of them were exquisite and uniquely designed. It was beautiful and enough to complement the beauty, that is¡­ depending on the wearer.

    The staff member explained the quality of the brooches one by one. It was all made with expensive materials and an expert artisan.

    Rina wasn''t listening much to it as she was nervous that they would enter any minute now.

    Speak of the devil!

    Just as she was thinking about them, two men dressed in black entered.

    In a high-pitched voice, so as to not be found out easily, she calmly tried to speak. "Please pack this one up."

    Then, she quickly hid somewhere people won''t easily notice as she saw two bodyguards coming in.

    "Welcome! What are you looking for?" A staff member welcomed them, but that welcome was ignored by the two bodyguards, whose eyes were wandering around the store.

    "Dear Sirs, if you are not here to shop, then please get out." The staff member sharply spoke.

    Staffs of ''Lux Jewelry Palace'' were highly trained to deal with customers. But if the ''customers'' are not here to buy anything, they must kick them out no matter the consequences. It was their policy and it was even written on the entrance of the shop.

    "What? Do you know who we are? Do you know who we take orders from?" An intimidating aura came from the two of them, making the people

    "Dear Sirs, I do not care who you are or who your boss is nor do I need to know. What I do know is that you are bothering us and the customers in this place, look at how scared they are after you intimidated them. You are obstructing our business. All you have to do is step out of this place and never come back." With a smile still on the staff member''s face and voice that never wavered even under the pressure of the two men, the staff member continuously spoke a barrage of words that was like an insult.

    The bodyguards'' faces turned red from anger. Just as they were about to speak again, a nonchalant voice interrupted them.

    "Misters, you should probably follow their words or you''ll regret it." The girl was staring at them nonchalantly like she didn''t care. The words she said sounded like a joke.

    "Tsk. What are you still doing? Didn''t I already teach you to kick those kinds of customers out!" The manager furiously shouted.

    The staff member immediately followed the manager''s words and literally kicked them out of the store.

    The bodyguards who were on the floor, looked at the staff member with a dumbfounded look on their faces.

    "Next time, please read our policy. Ah, wait. You can''t come here anymore as you are banned from coming here again or any of our branches. Dear sirs, we offer no next time here." The staff member ruthlessly spoke.

    The staff member turned around and left the two dumbfounded men, who were now a laughing stock, hanging.

    People pointed at them and laughed at their foolishness. The people who frequent here, all knew that they could mess with any store but never ever mess with ''Lux Jewelry Palace''. The staff members would hunt you down and do whatever it takes to make sure they get back at you tenfold.

    They shouldn''t have challenged that store¡­

    Inside, after the commotion died down, Rina was still hiding in her spot.

    Clack, clack.

    Rina heard a clacking noise coming towards her. Then, it stopped right in front of her. In her line of sight, she saw a pair of two inches high heels with a color beige.

    Looking up, she noticed that it was the same girl who was at the counter earlier, while talking to the manager.

    Dressed in a white off shoulder for the top while a navy blue plaid skirt for the bottom showing off her milky white skin. She was holding a branded maroon handbag. Her ink black hair was tied up into a ponytail with window bangs.

    The girl''s blue crystal eyes stared at her, as a smile slowly formed on her thin luscious red lips.

    "Hello?" The girl spoke to her. Her voice was melodic, pleasing to the ears. "Um, I was just wondering if you are alright."

    "I-I''m fine!" Rina stuttered as she fidgeted with her fingers.

    "Really? You look pale¡­ Are you sure you''re alright?" The girl worriedly asked.

    "This is just my natural complexion." Rina said. It was also because she doesn''t get much sunlight because she was always locked up in her room, as her father rarely allows her to go out.

    She didn''t even go to a school but was just homeschooled, as her father feared that she might get influenced by other kids.

    It was only when she turned into an adult could she go out, but with permission from her father. She also had to agree to bring bodyguards wherever she went so that they can protect her, but to Rina, it was more like placing an eye on her.

    She couldn''t even go out and make friends. All the friends she had were arranged by her father. All her actions and movements were restricted.

    "Okay. Would you like to join me in that room? We can look through the jewelries without any interruption." The girl said.

    "Why?" Rina knew that she shouldn''t follow a stranger so casually.

    "Why? Hmm¡­ How do I put this? Well, when I saw you enter the store, I suddenly felt like it was fate. I want to be friends with you!"

    Eh? Why does that sentence sound wrong?

    Rina felt confused at her explanation. So simply put, she just wanted to be friends with her. But Rina felt like she couldn''t trust her yet. She felt like it was too sudden and suspicious.

    Who would want to be friends with someone they met for the first time?

    Seeing the doubtful look on Rina''s face, the girl smiled. Then, as if remembering something, she went ''Ah!''.

    "By the way, I haven''t introduced myself yet.. I am Ayami¡­ Ayami Gardner."

 Chapter 22 - Mission Success!

    Ayami smiled sweetly as she introduced herself.

    "And your name is?" She asked after introducing herself.

    "Rina Young." Rina subconsciously answered.

    Acting like a pushy friend, Ayami led her towards the private room where they could browse through the jewelries and started chatting with her.

    This meeting of theirs was purely a coincidence, but it was much to Ayami''s favor as she didn''t have to wait and ambush for her in another location.

    Ayami just didn''t expect that she would meet Rina when she went to order a custom-made ring.

    As this was Rina''s first time meeting another person beside the people her father chose, she was easily led by Ayami, who had a friendly personality at the moment.

    Ayami was planning to befriend Rina Young, so that she could lessen their powers.

    As someone who never socialized much, she knew that befriending another person wasn''t easy and nerve-wracking, especially in Rina''s case, she was also a socially awkward person.

    That was why she called for backup, a bubbly and friendly person named Celine.

    Ayami abruptly texted her to meet in this shop after seeing Rina Young, while she was at it, she changed her plans.

    Shortly afterwards, Celine arrived, dressed in a pink polka dot blouse and ripped jeans, while wearing sneakers.

    Celine cheerfully greeted Ayami, but then she noticed another person sitting in the private room. She  stared at Rina then to Ayami with an inquisitive gaze.

    "And this is¡­?"

    "Celine, this is Rina, my new friend. Rina, this is my friend, Celine. Get along with each other." Ayami cheerfully spoke while Celine looked at her like she was weird.

    "Hello, nice to meet you." Celine, as a natural friendly type, hugged her like she was a long time friend. Rina awkwardly hugged her back as she fumbled to speak. "Y-yes, uh, n-nice tu meet you t-too."

    As Celine hugged her, she was staring at Ayami with a gaze that said ''Restroom, now!''

    Ayami first excused herself saying that she needed to go to the restroom.

    While Celine spoke to Rina first as it was rude to leave her all alone when this is just the first time they met.

    "Ayami, what''s the meaning of this? Can you explain what''s going on?" With one of her brows raised, Celine askee her, but not in a harsh tone. She couldn''t be harsh with her friend. "Why are you with Senator Young''s daughter?"

    "I want new friends and like I would know that she was a Senate''s daughter." The warmth on her voice was gone and the friendly personality was replaced with a cold one. Of course, all of the words she spat were lies.

    Celine looked at her, doubtful. She could not believe that Ayami wanted new friends.

    After knowing her for two years, with her personality,  she could say it was impossible, unless there was a purpose. But as she didn''t know her that much, Celine thought that maybe she had changed without her knowing.

    "It is up to you to believe me." Ayami said, ending their conversation.

    Ayami was right, for now, Celine will believe in her. There must be a good purpose on why she approached Rina.

    Back in the private room, the three started to chat again. The three of them easily cozied up to each other and became friends.

    Celine was a bit bothered by how Ayami was acting. It felt like she was facing a different person.

    "By the way, I want to shop for new clothes. Want to join me?" Ayami said, of course, with the purpose of ''coincidentally'' bumping into someone.

    Celine agreed, while Rina contemplated before reluctantly agreeing, as she thought of her father''s men who were still searching for her.

    Ayami smiled brightly, while on the inside she was repeatedly putting her plan into motion.

    "Okay, let''s go to the third floor. I know a good shop there." If she remembers correctly, they should be there at this time because that was where they coincidentally met Rina.

    "W-wait!" Rina abruptly stood up as she stopped the both of them. "Actually¡­" Rina told them her situation.

    "Huh? That''s it?" Ayami said like the story she heard was nothing.

    "That''s no problem." Celine said as she smiled. "Just put on a disguise."

    With that, Celine played with her like she was a dressing doll. She tied Rina''s hair into a ponytail, put makeup on her and then a black contact lens.

    Then they exchange their clothes as Ayami didn''t really want to change.

    "Her blue hair stands out. Maybe she should wear a wig?" Ayami suggested it after seeing Rina, who was done with her makeover.

    "Ayami, you go buy it since you haven''t done anything yet." Celine said.

    Ayami grumbled on the inside as she chose a short brown wig. She thought it was the most suitable one so she bought it.

    Ayami returned back and gave Celine the wig. It was easy to put on, so it didn''t take much time.

    After Rina''s makeover, she totally looked like a different person.

    With this much, the bodyguards shouldn''t be able to find her.

    They then proceeded to the third floor and went to the shop Ayami recommended. But then¡­

    "Hey, isn''t that your fiance and the new student?" Celine said as she squinted inside the store.

    "You have a fiance?" Rina asked as she looked inside too. She pointed at the handsome man dressed in a black business suit. "Is it that man?"

    "Yes. It is him." Ayami spoke with a little bit of sadness in her voice. Celine looked at her worriedly.

    ''Proceed to full acting mode.''

    "Maybe the girl is just helping him pick clothes for me, his fiance. Let''s not misunderstand him." Ayami benevolently spoke.

    "What nonsense are you talking about? That guy never gave a gift to you!" Celine said as she glared at Cole and Yanna.

    Rina raised her hands, while her voice was starting to get agitated. "Um. I-I just noticed something too. Aren''t they too close?"

    "Look, I have never seen your fiance smile, but look at him. He''s smiling at that girl!" Celine said angrily.

    Ayami looked down, like she was hiding her pain and sadness in her eyes, as she spoke gloomily. "Please don''t say that maybe we just misunderstood them."

    I hope not!

    "I know that man wouldn''t do such a thing." Ayami mumbled to herself, with her voice slightly cracked.

    That mumble of hers was heard by the two. Rina frowned. What she hates the most is making her precious people sad.

    Although they only met today, after getting to know each other, Rina already considered the two of them to be her friends.

    Even though she didn''t know Cole and Yanna that much, she hated them already for making her new friend sad.

    "Ayami, you should break off your engagement with that bastard." Celine said with anger and frustration in her voice.

    Ayami shook her head as tears formed in her eyes. "I can''t. The elders wouldn''t let me, unless I found a better man than him."

    Ayami sneered on the inside as she remembered what the elders said when she said she wanted to break off the engagement.

    ''Better doesn''t mean just in wealth and power, the most important thing is their personality. You must also love them and they must also love you equally or much more.''

    Ayami peeked at Rina''s expression. She seemed to be controlling her anger as she looked at the happy couple who was shopping for clothes without a care in the world.

    Mission success!

    Ayami clenched her hands secretly. She successfully befriended Rina and made Rina hate the scheming couple, although Ayami wasn''t sure how much her degree of hate was.

    But it was fine, she was going to make Rina hate them little by little.

 Chapter 23 - A Gullible Person

    Celine and Rina both stared at each other and understood their intent. They each grabbed Ayami''s arm and were about to drag her away from the store, but before they could¡­

    "Ayami! Celine! Is that you?" An overfamiliar voice interrupted them, a voice they didn''t want to hear so much, that they would rather be deaf.

    The three''s gazes fell towards the source of the voice, in particular, Rina''s gaze was now hostile as she instinctively knew that kind of woman is an enemy, while Celine didn''t know what kind of expression to make.

    Yanna started to approach them from inside the store with Cole behind her. Her ink black hair flowed through her back and her golden brown orbs were shining brightly as she waved at them. She was wearing a pure white dress that flowed until her knees, making her look like a pure white flower.

    The dress she was wearing looked new. Ayami guessed that it must have been bought by that Ice block.

    They just met just a few days ago and their relationship already progressed to that stage?

    Talk about fast!

    "Are you close with her?" Rina whispered to Ayami, after noticing the overfamiliar tone of Yanna. The way she spoke was like she was meeting a long-time friend.

    "No, actually I wanted to be friends with her at first because she was a new student and I was afraid that she wouldn''t be able to adapt easily. But¡­" Ayami purposely trailer off as she stared at the approaching Yanna with a gloomy look.

    Ayami was raising herself to high heavens while dragging Yanna down to the depths of hell.

    Rina thought Ayami was a good girl! How could Yanna do that to her!

    "You don''t have to be friends with someone like that. You have to choose your friends carefully so you won''t befriend someone bad." Rina whispered an advice to her.

    "But, haa¡­, I''m worried about her." Ayami said while letting out a deep sigh.

    Celine stared at her with disbelief. Who the heck is this?? Where is the Ice queen? Why are you acting like a pure-hearted person?

    Though she does hate that Yanna and Cole were close as the man already had a fiance, which was her best friend. But¡­ Why is her friend acting like this?

    Nevertheless, Celine still supported her act as there might be a good reason, probably.

    "Gosh, Ayami. I wonder who is more gullible, you or me?" Celine snorted as if mocking her. Then she let out a sigh. "Haa¡­ This is really a problem. Ayami, you are too innocent. Someday, you''ll get backstabbed if you continue to act like this."

    When it comes to love, Ayami is really innocent, so technically Celine wasn''t lying.

    "You¡­ Really¡­" That was all Rina could say, before she let out a sigh. As the eldest of the three, she felt the need to protect these two gullible people, especially Ayami, who befriended a stranger she just met.

    ''Good thing she met me.'' Rina thought. ''If not, then Ayami might meet a bad person and exploit her.''

    "Hello!" After how many years, Yanna was finally able to reach them. She was so freaking slow like she was walking on a moon.

    "What were you guys talking about?" Ayami asked. Celine awkwardly smiled while Rina put Ayami behind her back.

    "Uh, I do not think we are that close to be familiar with each other." Celine stiffly spoke as she laughed awkwardly.

    Yanna''s smile froze as she looked down like she was hurt by Celine''s words. "Haha... You''re right. I''m sorry, I got too ahead of myself."

    Begging for pity? Well, two can play that game!

    Ayami smirked behind Rina as she thought of a brilliant idea. She immediately wiped it off afterwards

    "Y-Y-Yanna¡­ Don''t be sorry, we can be friends if you''d like. You even said that you''ll treat me." Ayami said as she smiled brightly.

    Hey! Who was the one who said to stay away from that vixen?

    Celine thought as she recalled their conversation in the cafeteria.

    "Oh, but that is, if you want to¡­" Ayami fidgeted on her fingers as she looked anxious on Yanna''s answer.

    Rina stared at Yanna with eyes saying ''You better say ''yes'' or else you won''t see the light of the day!''. Yanna didn''t notice her gaze.

    "Of course I do!" Yanna immediately spoke as her expression brightened in delight.

    Rina was frowning while Celine didn''t know what to do. Ayami then turned to Cole.

    "Uh, um¡­" Ayami suddenly looked at Cole, eyes filled with delight. "I-I didn''t expect to see you here."

    "Mm."

    "''Mm''? That is all you have to say to her?" Rina said as if her emotions were on the verge of exploding.

    "Rina, please¡­ don''t scold him." Ayami said in a soft voice, almost in a whisper with teary eyes.

    Why are you so nice? Are you an angel?

    Rina thought after seeing the look on Ayami''s face. Now, Rina hated them even more.

    My friend is too gullible, I need to protect her from this wicked couple.

    Unbeknownst to Cole, he was actually smiling as if he was entertained. He was entertained by Ayami''s action.

    "You''re even smiling in this?" Rina looked at him like he was weird. She gritted her teeth. Even if she was hated by her new friend, she had to do this, for the sake of her safety.

    "Ayami let''s go. You don''t need to waste your time on these kinds of people." Rina forcibly dragged her away from them. Celine looked at Yanna before hurriedly chasing after them.

    "H-huh? But¡­!" Ayami seemed like she was protesting as she was dragged away, but inside she was celebrating.

    Ayami looked back and stared at Yanna and Cole. She waved her hands to them as she thought of her plan. Since they were already faraway, the both of them couldn''t see the wicked smile on her face.

    Her plan was to befriend the both of them and develop their relationship, then crush that friendship so painfully that wouldn''t want to interact with another human again.

    It sounds simple, yet hard and will take a long time. Ayami didn''t need to worry about feeling guilty when she cut ties, though.

    When she thought about what they did in the past, why would she even feel guilt in the first place, much less, develop feelings for them.

    But compared to what they did, it wasn''t enough. That was just the beginning.

    The duration of that plan is until her graduation, which will happen in five months.

    ¡­

    Standing in front of the shop, Yanna and Cole didn''t move an inch.

    "¡­Interesting." Cole mumbled to himself as a smirk appeared on his face subconsciously. Throughout their whole conversation he was observing them.

    What piqued his interest was Ayami. She was acting differently. It felt like her personality changed.

    He couldn''t believe that an emotionless girl like her would be able to make various expressions.

    She even defended him from that woman.

    It looks like their meetings from now on won''t be boring.

    If Ayami had heard what he was thinking, then she would have smashed his head and cracked it open to see what was inside and what his brain was made of, to think like that.

    Who would want to meet an ice block like him?

    Of course, only Yanna would!

 Chapter 24 - Her Sister, Allina

    "Ayami, why did you do that? You even told me to stay away from her." Celine asked as soon as they sat down in a private room of a restaurant they chose.

    "Did what? I have no idea what you are talking about." Ayami played dumb as she smiled while tilting her head, but her gaze was telling Celine not to mention anything related to her.

    "You¡­ Nevermind. Sigh, seriously¡­" Celine shook her head and looked at the menu in a sulky mood. Ayami never tells her anything.

    What? Does she expect me to guess what she is thinking every time? Celine thought.

    As her friend for only two years, the only thing she knew about Ayami was only basic information. She didn''t know much about her family situation. She also only knew about her fiance only recently, when she accidentally saw them out on a dinner.

    Her favorite foods, places or anything she loved to do, she didn''t know much about it. Though she tried to probe into her life, it was always a failure as Ayami managed to deflect every single question.

    Whenever she talked to her, it was like she was talking to a wall, but even so, Ayami never pushed her away.

    So Celine thought that she was a nice and sweet girl on the inside, just that she was shy and had a hard time socializing with people.

    But that Ayami , who was like a wall, suddenly changed and became more proactive. She was still the same yet different.

    It made her wonder what changed her, or more like she questioned her identity.

    It was fine to change, but to change overnight? It was too weird.

    Isn''t this some kind of plot in the romance novels that she read, where the female lead gets a second chance to be reborn?

    ''Ridiculous¡­ What am I thinking?'' Celine kept her thoughts to herself and decided to watch over Ayami.

    "You know, although I became your friend just today and barely know each other, I think you really should choose your friends wisely. Who knows, they might stab you in the back someday." Rina patted Ayami''s shoulders as she offered advice like a good friend or what a mother would say.

    "Alright, I''ll be careful." Ayami nodded her head. And then she smiled brightly and let out a giggle. "But, Hehe. Rina you''re like a mother."

    It was unnoticeable, but there was a slight pain in her gaze as she spoke the word ''mother''. It reminded her of some unpleasant memory she decided to forget.

    "I''m only 24! I''m not a mother yet. Obviously, I''m the eldest, so I should give advice so you won''t be led astray." Celine glared at her sharply.

    "But that is what a mother would say!" Celine teased, not in a bad mood anymore as she thought it was petty to get angry over a small thing. Even if she doesn''t tell her, Ayami would still be her friend.

    Maybe someday, Ayami would tell her a bit about herself. But Celine didn''t know that her wish of hers would come true, but in the worst time of her life.

    Their meal ended up in a jolly mood as they teased and got closer to each other. After they finished their meals they headed back to their dorm, Rina decided to tag along with them as she was still being chased and wanted to be free just for a while before returning back to her family.

    Of course, they also had to sneak her in as it was forbidden to bring guests inside the academy without permission.

    "You''re back."

    Standing outside of Ayami''s dorm, was an unexpected person. Allina, her sister, was waiting for her. She had a bored look on her face as if she had been waiting for a while.

    She stared at Rina as she spoke, which made her flinch. "Quite a rule breaker. But don''t worry, I won''t snitch. It would damage my reputation if my sister were to be known as a delinquent."

    "Do you need something from me?" Ayami got to the point as there was no need to beat around the bush.

    "Here, Dad said to give you this." Allina handed out an invitation card.

    It was an invitation for a birthday celebration of a CEO of a well-known company.

    "I''m done here." Allina turned around to leave, it was the only thing she was supposed to do.

    "You should come home once in a while. Dad is missing you and also your maid." She said as she walked away and suddenly stopped.

    Allina turned around and stared at Ayami for a long time before she opened her mouth to speak. "¡­By the way, Your fiance¡­ you should keep a tight leash on him if you don''t want him to get stolen."

    Then she turned around and completely left them.

    "Who is she?" Rina asked, as soon as Allina was out of sight. Ayami smiled that didn''t reach her ears. With a bit of hesitation, she spoke. "She''s my¡­ sister."

    As she said the word ''sister'' a certain memory flashed through her mind.

    "I''m sorry¡­ *cough* w-wi¡­th¡­ this¡­ I r-re¡­paid¡­ *cough* b-back my debt. I¡­ didn''t mean¡­ to steal your¡­only family. I-it¡­ w-wasn''t my *cough* f-fault too¡­ We should be even with this¡­ ri¡­ght¡­?"

    In a pool of blood, Allina continued to speak. Her gaze was warm as she apologized for something she didn''t need to, before it slowly closed. Her once bright and fierce eyes were slowly losing their luster.

    "Idiot! Why are you sacrificing yourself to me! Am I that worthless of a big sister, huh!" Ayami shouted as tears fell down on her cheeks, feeling immense sadness as she felt Allina''s body turned cold.

    It was only then, did she feel strong emotions surging inside her like a violent tide. This was the second death she witnessed.

    "Hey, wake up! The ambulance will be here soon! Didn''t you want to get along with me? Come on, I''ll even call you my cute little sister!"

    "I won''t accept it! I won''t accept your half ass apology. You have to prove that you''re sincere¡­ so, please¡­"

    "You have to live, please."

    When the ambulance came, Allina''s body was already cold.

    Allina, in the past, Ayami couldn''t call her sister, even though they were related. Allina and Ayami were born to different mothers, they had the same father.

    Ayami was born a month earlier than Allina so she was the older one. But that meant, her father committed an act of adultery when she was only a month old, though he claimed it was only an accident.

    Ayami only found out when she went home one day, when she was sixteen years old. An unknown woman and a girl, the same age as her were happily chatting with her father.

    When Ayami saw that scene, she felt devastated. She felt like she was looking at a family that was complete and warm, something she wished for.

    It was like her whole world was collapsing again. Someone precious to her was being stolen.

    No! She must stop them!

    Ayami had the urge to drag that woman and girl out of her home. She wanted them to taste hell.

    But she stopped when she saw her father, who was always depressed and had no life in his eyes ever since her mother''s death, was full of life.

    If her father was this happy in their company¡­

    ''Then it''s fine, as long as they don''t have any hidden motives and could make my father happy.''

    It was normal for people to remarry so that they wouldn''t feel alone.

    But this thought only made Ayami build a stronger wall in her heart and locked away her feelings.

    But, just one thing. She wanted to ask one thing.

    "Did you ever love mom?" Ayami asked, hoping that his answer would be the one she wished to hear.

    "Yes, I love her. She will always be a part of my heart."

    And so, Ayami decided to live with this ''family''.. Though their interactions were cold, Ayami saw that they don''t have any hidden motives.

 Chapter 25 - Dreams

    Tick. Tock.

    The sound of a clock ticking and tocking made Ayami open her eyes.

    What greeted her was a bunch of bookshelves with books neatly arranged on it, seemingly no end to it.

    Tick.

    Ayami stood up from the smooth cold hard floor that was polished to the point that she could see her reflection.

    Tock.

    Looking around while wondering where she was, Ayami found a book lying on the floor. It seemed like it fell, as it was half opened with its cover facing upwards.

    Tick. Tock.

    Slowly, Ayami walked towards the book to pick it up.

    Thump.

    As soon as she touched the book, she could feel her heartbeat was struck by a hammer.

    Strange. This book¡­ Where had I seen it?

    This book with a red hard, she clearly had never seen it before but why does it feel familiar.

    Thump. Thump. Thump.

    Her heartbeat started running wild and strange emotions swirled inside her.

    Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

    Once more, she heard the sound of a clock ticking and tocking with the same speed as her heartbeat.

    Ayami turned the book around, to read, but just as she was about to¡­

    THUMP. THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

    Her heartbeat started running wildly as if telling her not to read the book. Pain suddenly assaulted her head, as if it were splitting into two.

    She felt like everything was spinning. Until¡­

    THUD!

    "Ow~!" Ayami groaned in pain as she rubbed her forehead. She frowned as she got up from the floor and looked at the two women occupying all the space of her bed.

    She fell from the floor because of these two. Ayami looked at the time and saw that it was still early. Looking at the bed which had no more space, Ayami grimaced inside.

    Ugh! Why did she even agree to sleep with them in the small bed?

    They were up partying last night to commemorate their friendship. Celine decided to stay in Ayami''s dorm for the night too.

    Ayami was still sleepy so she decided to sleep again, but in the other room.

    Her lips were pressed into a thin line as she took her pillow and went to the other room to go back to sleep.

    As she lay down on her bed, trying to sleep again she suddenly felt like she dreamt of something but couldn''t remember.

    ''It''s probably nothing important.'' Ayami thought and soon, her eyes slowly closed.

    ***

    At the same time, in a certain dorm room, far away from Ayami''s dorm, a girl was pacing back and forth while biting her fingernails.

    "Weird. This is weird. Why is she so different? Why isn''t this going in the same route?"

    The girl murmured to herself, anxious. She then stopped in the mirror and reached out to it.

    A girl with an outworldly beauty, yet pure and delicate, reflected on the mirror.

    She had a silky ink black hair that flowed until her waist, a glazed golden brown eyes making her pure and innocent, a pointy nose and pink lips with a mole underneath.

    Every time she stared at the mirror, she couldn''t believe that she went back in time.

    A smile formed on her lips as she clenched her hands.

    "This time¡­ If it is this time, I could stop the tragedy from happening. Maybe, Ayami would even forgive me."

    That girl who said that, was the same girl that Ayami wanted to take vengeance on, Yanna Jin.

    ???

    "Here, take this ring. Whatever you do, you must not lose it. In exchange, I''ll take your most precious necklace so when I come back you can return the ring, while I return this."

    With a cute smile on his chubby face he placed the box of ring, with the rose inside, on top of Ayami''s palm. Then, Ayami gave him her most precious necklace.

    "¡­Den¡­*hic*¡­ Are you really *hic* leaving?"

    "Sheesh, you are still a crybaby."

    He wiped her tears away as he smiled warmly at her.

    "Ayami, wait for me. I''ll definitely save you. So, you must not¡ª"

    "Ayami! WAKE. UP. ALREADY!"

    "Chop, chop, lazy bum! It''s already noon."

    Her peaceful dream was interrupted by the two loud voices that were like a megaphone.

    Angrily, she opened her bloodshot eyes and furiously glared at them for interrupting her dream.

    They even interrupted the most important part!

    "H-huh? Are you crying?" Celine asked in horror after seeing the glazed eyes of Ayami.

    "Did you dream of something bad?" Rina asked out of concern.

    "Get out." She coldly spoke in a deep threatening voice, obviously angry.

    Rina and Celine looked at each other and scurried outside.

    Ayami wiped the tears in her eyes and brushed back her hair using her hands as she sighed and recalled the contents of her dream.

    The boy''s face was a little bit blurry, but she could see his figure was chubby.

    Den¡­

    For now, that was the only thing she could remember about the boy who gave her the ring. She still needed to get back her most precious necklace.

    That necklace was a gift from her mom, so she really wanted to get it back from him.

    "Sigh, no need to fret over it right now. I can just find him later."

    As her goal right now was revenge, she decided to focus on it. Anyways, she has a lot of time after her revenge.

    After preparing herself, she went to join Celine and Rina who were already eating their lunch, which they ordered as they were too lazy to cook. Not that they know how to.

    "Why were you crying earlier?" Celine asked as she prepared plates for Ayami.

    "Dunno. Forgot about it." Ayami simply lied like it was a breeze.

    "That happened to me too! I was dreaming and suddenly woke up crying. I didn''t remember what I was dreaming about." Rina said as she gobbled down the food in an unladylike manner.

    Ayami smiled while she stared at Rina''s behavior, with a thought.

    ''Is this the same Elegant Rina Young, the role model of many ladies, that I know of?''

 Chapter 26 - Birthday Celebration (1)

    Ayami looked at the invitation card that was on her table as she tapped on it continuously thinking whether she should attend or not.

    Ayami didn''t feel the need to attend this birthday party, in short, she was feeling lazy.

    It was a birthday celebration of the CEO of a well-known oil company, also one of her family''s business partners. The event would happen on Wednesday evening.

    Even if she didn''t attend, parents and sister would be there.

    ''Should I attend or nah?''

    If she did, she would have to go back home and make some preparations like preparing her dress. She would also have to smile all day while also entertaining the other guests.

    Ayami didn''t want to do something tiring as socializing.

    ''But that couple would also be there. Isn''t this a chance to destroy their reputation little by little?''

    Even if the negative impact on their reputation is small, if it accumulated over time, it would have a large impact.

    If she could successfully embarrass those two, then maybe it would be worth it to waste her time. Even if she failed to do that, there were still many chances where she could ruin their reputation.

    Ayami contemplated for a while before finally deciding to attend.

    There was nothing to lose anyway.

    ???

    On Wednesday, luckily Ayami had no afternoon classes so she was free to go home early and had time to prepare for the celebration.

    She went back to her home as soon as she finished her classes.

    "Oh, you''re back." Her father, Dennis, smiled at her warmly. While her stepmother, Elsa, had a sour look on her face. "Hmph! Good to see that you still remember that you have a home."

    "¡­Yes, I''m home." Ayami flashed a tender smile on her face as she hugged both her father and mother, making the two stunned as they looked at her, bewildered.

    "What''s wrong Ayami? Is someone bullying you?" Dennis worriedly asked as he thought his daughter was acting weird. Even Elsa was worried about her.

    Sure, Ayami would hug her father, but even her, a stranger who just barged into their lives?

    "Did something happen? You can tell us. Anything that worries you, we''ll make sure to solve them." Elsa said.

    Ayami laughed it off while shrugging her shoulders. "Come on, can''t I hug my family?"

    "By the way, did you guys have lunch yet? I''m hungry~ Let''s eat together, please~" Ayami acted like a spoiled child as she pouted her lips.

    Her parents were speechless.

    Who am I? Where am I?

    "¡­D-Did you do something wrong?" Dennis asked. He often heard from his friends who were also parents, that their child would act like this when they did something wrong.

    "Huh? What are you talking about? If you already ate, just say so. I''m hungry, so I''ll eat." Ayami reverted back to her original attitude.

    She broke free from the hug and stood there with no expression on her face, like she never did any cutesy act.

    Welp, it didn''t work.

    Maybe it was too sudden for them. They looked like they were about to make an appointment with a psychiatrist.

    Ayami went to the dining room and left her parents who were still shocked. She ate her lunch alone and afterwards went to her room to choose what dress she would wear.

    There were hundreds of her dresses hanging inside her walk-in-closet, all of them were the latest.

    In the end, after an hour of picking, she finally decided what dress she would wear. Then onto the next one, her shoes. She would have to choose what shoes can be partnered in her dress. She spent another hour picking.

    This is why she hated going to the parties, she had to prepare and waste a lot of time thinking about what to wear.

    After she finished picking what to wear, Ayami took a long, essential bath. After taking a bath, she had her maids dry her and her hair.

    Ayami was beginning to feel lazy to do anything.

    Afterwards, Ayami wore the clothes she picked earlier.

    Ayami just wore a cream colored one-shoulder dress and a black stiletto. Then she tied her hair into a neat bun with braids. She applied light make-up on her face.

    After she finished preparing herself she walked out of her room, at the same time she bumped into Allina, who just came back from the academy.

    "Sister, you''re already back~?" Allina asked cutesily, different from how she acted when they were in the academy.

    Keep doing your role, pretentious brat!

    "Yes, my cute little sister~ I''m back!" Ayami pretended like she was a kind older sister who came back home because she missed her family.

    Allina''s face contorted in disgust, but only for a second, which made Ayami think that she saw wrong.

    "Sis~" Allina opened her arms and hugged her. Then she leaned to her ears and whispered. "What do you think you''re doing?"

    "Sis, is it just me or you look even more beautiful than usual?" Allina flattered her, along with her signature fake smile.

    "I have no idea what you''re talking about. I just wanted to get along with my cute little sister of mine~" A smile bloomed on Ayami''s face, which looked like a mocking smile from Allina''s perspective. "No, no! My little sister is the most beautiful and cute sister in the world!"

    "What nonsense! My sister is the best and most amazing person in the world." Allina''s hug tightened around her as she spoke. "And since you are the best and most amazing, could you please go to my room and help me choose what to wear?"

    Allina was basically telling her to go to her room and have a talk.

    With eyes pressuring her not to say no, Ayami chuckled slightly. "Of course, if it is a request from my cute little sister, how could I say no?"

    They broke away from their hugs and went to Allina''s room.

    The servants on the side smiled warmly as they watched the sisters, who didn''t get along well before, now on good terms.

 Chapter 27 - Birthday Celebration (2)

    "What are you planning?" Allina asked as soon as she closed the door of her room. She immediately dropped her act.

    Ayami smiled as she looked at her fingers while tilting her head. "Hmm? I just want to adore my cute little sister~"

    Allina shuddered as she heard the words that seemed impossible to come out of her mouth.

    "All right, all right. I won''t beat around the bush anymore." Ayami said after seeing the disgusted look of her sister.

    Then her face became serious as she started to tell her about what she was planning later at the birthday celebration.

    A while later, the two came out, both were now dressed suitable for the occasion. Allina was clinging to Ayami like a clingy sister.

    "Wow, you two look so close. I''m glad that both of you are getting along." Dennis said after seeing the two sisters come down together.

    "Of course we are!" Allina said as she giggled and clinged even more to Ayami. She made eye contact with Ayami.

    ''This is not necessary.'' Ayami said with her gaze, which was ignored by Allina.

    "Let''s go, we''ll be late if we continue to dawdle around here."

    ***

    The party was held in a famous five star hotel in the middle of the city. Many of the guests had already arrived when the Gardner family got inside the venue.

    All of the guests were from a prominent family.

    "Are you sure your plan will work?" Allina whispered to her.

    "Yes." Ayami said with absolute certainty. She was sure and confident it would work.

    "Well, if you fail, I''ll save you. But don''t even think about failure, got it?" She said with a threatening voice, like there was no room for mistakes.

    "Now go and make some connections." Ayami ordered her. This was also not just a simple birthday party, it was also a chance for people to socialize and make connections.

    Of course, Ayami would also do her part as the eldest daughter of the Gardner family.

    Many flocked towards Ayami as she was a daughter of the Gardner family, the same goes for Allina.

    While they were not on the same level as the five families, they also had some power and influence in the city. Their businesses were spread towards the end of the city.

    Ayami faked a smile as she started a conversation with the other guests, while she waited for the main event to start.

    "What a shame though, I wish I could have a daughter-in-law like her."

    "She really is perfect. If only my daughter could at least get half of her attitude, then I can be free from my worries."

    "Ugh, who is that man who is so fast to steal our future daughter-in-law?"

    "Shhh, don''t you know who her fiance is? We can''t afford to offend him."

    Ayami could hear some whispers not far away from her.

    ''You just want me to be your daughter-in-law because I acted like an ideal one.'' Ayami thought.

    In the past, when she still hadn''t met Yanna, she attended these kinds of parties too.

    She acted elegantly, like a woman that hailed from a great family was supposed to.

    When Yanna barged in her life, everything was ruined. She had to face all kinds of rumors everyday and had to deal with it.

    She still has to act like an elegant lady on the outside, while Yanna could act however she wanted.

    It was tough to act like that whenever she attended these social events. Now, she decided to do it moderately.

    ''There is still time.'' Ayami thought as she excused herself, tired from dealing with the people.

    She went to the balcony to get some fresh air, but it seems like there was already someone there.

    "Ah." Ayami let out a gasp, as she looked at the person she least expected to see.

    "Oh, it''s my cute junior." The bright full moon shined behind, as the warm smile appeared on his face, making him look charming, if not for the fact that he was still wearing those stupid big round glasses and long bangs. He should seriously get a haircut!

    Kayden was sitting on a chair while holding a champagne on his hand, with legs crossed. He was wearing a black tuxedo.

    Ayami was surprised to see him here, but there was one thing she wanted to clarify.

    "Kayden¡­ I¡­" Ayami trailed off as she looked straight into his eyes.

    "I am not cute, FYI! I am the most fabulous and beautiful person in the world!" Ayami proudly boasted without any shame.

    "¡­Okay." Kayden agreed with a dumbfounded look on his face.

    "Anyways, what are you doing here?" Ayami asked as she nonchalantly sat on the opposite side of Kayden.

    "I was given an invitation by my friend."

    "Uh, huh. You know I didn''t really want to attend, but then, I suddenly thought ''why not?''" Ayami spoke.

    And then before she knew it, she rambled on and on about something random.

    "So then I¡­"

    Kayden didn''t mind listening to her though, actually, no he was not listening.

    Ayami wanted to let everything out because there was too much burden in her heart, and it seems like Kayden was the perfect target because he looked like a loner and wouldn''t spill someone''s secret out easily.

    "Oh, look at the time! The event will start any minute now. By the way, I forgot to ask, did I disturb you?" Ayami asked after she finished talking, with a smile she would use for business.

    After thinking about it, she was embarrassed to show a side she never showed easily to others. It was like showing them your naked body.

    "No, not at all. I didn''t know that you were talkative. It seems that I discovered another side of my cute little junior." Kayden said with a smile on his face.

    "This conversation here, make sure this won''t get out. Understand?" Ayami said with a threatening tone.

    "Alright." Kayden nodded his head.

    "Oh well, it''s not like you have somebody to tell." Ayami said with a teasing smile.

    "It doesn''t really hurt." Kayden sarcastically said.

    After that, they went back to the venue as the party was starting.

 Chapter 28 - Birthday Celebration (3)

    Ayami sat down on the table her family was designated to, while Kayden sat down on a table where a few elite looking men were.

    "Hey, who is that?"

    "I don''t think I''ve seen him before."

    "He must be someone''s assistant."

    A few whispered when they saw Kayden sitting down with the group of elite men. But it all died down as it was normal to send a representative when they were too busy to come.

    "Oh my, Mr. Gardner, is that your daughter?" A woman wearing a red champagne dress spoke as she smiled seductively. She looked young, probably around Rina''s age.

    She looked familiar, but Ayami couldn''t remember where.

    "Yes, she is my daughter."

    "She''s beautiful. I feel like her beauty came from you." She said while showing her cleavage, but it had no effect on her father as his previous wife and current wife were superior to her.

    Ayami didn''t bother listening to the woman''s failed seduction. The woman was clearly aiming for her father, a married man.

    She tapped her hand on the table, waiting for the event to start.

    "Miss Yun? The event is about to start, could you please return to your seat. You may talk later." A staff member said to the woman.

    "Then, I will talk to you later." The woman, called ''Miss Yun'' winked at Dennis.

    It was unfortunate that Elsa and Allina weren''t here. If they were, then Ayami could have witnessed that woman being embarrassed in front of everybody.

    Soon after, Elsa and Allina returned to their seats, and so did everyone else. With everyone seated, the event finally started.

    The event started with the opening remarks. The host entertained the guest before proceeding to the main highlight.

    "Now let us welcome today''s star, Mr. Arnold Wang!" The host spoke with enthusiasm as he welcomed Arnold Wang up to the stage.

    Arnold Wang was a middle-aged fat and chubby man with a big belly. He had a lot of gold accessories placed all over his body, as if showing off his wealth.

    The audience clapped their hands as Arnold Wang stood up on the stage. Ayami also played along, clapping her hands, with a bored look on her face.

    "Haha! Thank you, thank you! First of all, I would like to thank¡­" As Arnold Wang spoke, Ayami''s thoughts wandered about.

    "Hey, are you sure they will come?" Allina, who was beside her, whispered.

    "They should be here after that fatso finishes his speech." Ayami whispered as she insulted Arnold Wang without batting an eye.

    "¡­" Allina was speechless and didn''t speak anymore.

    Under the table, Ayami had her phone turned on, as she waited for a reply to her message.

    Rose: I want to know where Yanna Jin is currently at and who she is with. Reply within 2 minutes.

    After a minute, she got a reply. She got a picture of Yanna trying on a dress at a high end store, with Cole''s back facing the camera. Then she returned it back to her handbag with satisfaction in her face.

    Good, it was proceeding like it was in the past. But really, trying a dress at this time?

    Now that she thought about it, there was one thing she found in common whenever there were parties or events, and that is, they always arrived in the middle of the event.

    Of course, nobody could say anything to that as they were afraid of angering Cole, who belonged to a powerful family and also had power himself.

    Soon, Arnold Wang finished his long speech and it was now time to present the gifts for his birthday, yet the two were still not here.

    "Mr. Wang, I wish you a happy birthday and long days ahead." With a flowery smile on her face, Ayami handed him a box with gold accessories inside. She randomly picked the most expensive thing when she bought it.

    "Mr. Wang, I hope you will like my humble gift. I noticed that you liked unique accessories, so I bought these, in hopes that you will like them." Ayami said, while on the inside, she was feeling disgusted.

    Arnold Wang was staring at her with a pair of lecherous eyes, looking like he was gazing at her naked body. He took the box, while at the same time ''accidentally'' touching her hand and feeling it.

    ''This Fatso!'' Ayami boiled inside. She was about to speak when somebody was faster than her.

    "Mr. Wang." A calm voice stepped in between them. It was Kayden. He appeared calm and composed as he spoke. "Mr. Shawn couldn''t come so he sent me here in his stead."

    "Ah, is that so?" Arnold Wang spoke, but with a bit of displeased tone in his voice as he was suddenly interrupted.

    To appease him, Kayden praised him to high heavens and chatted with him merrily.

    Ayami took this chance to take back her hand.

    ''Maybe, I should have not come.'' Ayami thought as she took back her hand and secretly wiped it when he was not looking.

    Kayden was a big help. If not for his intervention, she would have¡­ well¡­ still get out of this situation by indirectly insulting him and that would make their relationship sour and might impact their partnership.

    ''Speaking of which, have the two not arrived yet?''

    Rose: Where is Yanna Jin?

    Noxus Mole: Couldn''t take a picture anymore as they were inside the car, but I''m discreetly following them. Yanna Jin is wearing a party dress, so they are probably going to an event. I am not sure where they are going as of now.

    Rose: Alright. Make sure not to get caught.

    Ayami placed her phone back in her handbag.

    "What a perverted old man." Kayden whispered beside her after he finished speaking with Arnold Wang. He shuddered as he uttered the next word like he ate a horse manure. "Ugh, he even took interest in me."

    "Pfft. What? You?" Ayami stifled her laughter as she looked at Kayden''s face.

    Kayden just clicked his tongue. "Tsk. Whatever. I''m your senior yet you treat me like this. I saved you from that lecher and you didn''t even say ''thank you''?"

    Ayami just grinned at him, which made Kayden more annoyed.

    "Ah, whatever, whatever! I''m gonna go now." Kayden said his goodbyes as he was done with his business.

    It was a shame, he would miss on a good show. Not like, he''ll enjoy it that much.

    "See you at the academy." Ayami said as she waved her hand with a wide grin on her face, while Kayden''s expression looked like he didn''t want to see her again. Then he spoke after a long pause. "¡­If fate allows."

    After Kayden left, she felt her phone vibrate inside her handbag.

    Noxus Mole: They''ve arrived in front of Golden Star Hotel.

    Rose: Good. You don''t need to follow them inside.

    Soon, she heard a commotion at the entrance. They have arrived. The main actors of the show have arrived.

    Ayami signalled Allina, who was not far away from her.

    She smiled wickedly as she looked at the two who were garnering more attention than the birthday celebrant.

    ''I hope you will put on a good show today.''

    Actors on stage.

    Curtains rise.

    Ready.. Set. Action!

 Chapter 29 - A Good Show (1)

    The two who just arrived garnered the attention of the people inside the hall. Even the main star of today went to greet the bigshot who arrived.

    "Haha! Mr. Cole, you came!" Arnold Wang smiled ear to ear, as if he was happy that he came. He didn''t care if Cole garnered the attention of the masses.

    Then, after Arnold Wang greeted him, as if a huge tide was coming, a crowd started to gather around them.

    "Oh my, I didn''t know that Mr. Filburn is coming."

    "Gosh, if I knew I would have put more effort in my make-up!"

    "Hello, oh my, what a beautiful girl. The two of you suit each other."

    Dressed in a blue party dress with her hair tied into a fishtail crown braid, Yanna, smiled amicably as people from all sides greeted the both of them.

    While Cole was exchanging greetings to the guests, her eyes wandered and scanned the faces of the people inside the venue, but sadly, she couldn''t find the person she was looking for.

    ''Why isn''t Ayami here?'' She thought as she looked for her again. If she remembers correctly, Ayami should have attended this party.

    Yanna could see Ayami''s parents on a table but there was no Ayami on sight, she didn''t care much about her sister, Allina.

    "I''ll be leaving for a while." Cole leaned to her and in a gentle voice with a slight smile on his face. But that action made Yanna blush and back away for a little bit.

    Even though she was already used to it, reverting back to when she was eighteen, made Yanna feel like she was experiencing her first love again. She felt like her mind reverted when she went back in time.

    "A-Alright. Just go already." Yanna said, with her ears red as tomato as she pushed him away.

    After Cole left, she touched her cheeks and a gleeful smile surfaced on her beautiful face.

    But, she didn''t know, this fleeting happy moment would be utterly crushed later as trouble came to find her.

    "Hi there!" A woman cheerfully greeted her, but Yanna, based on her experience and memory, could tell that this woman had a hidden intention.

    Then, she realized that she was surrounded by women on all sides with no way out. They were all smiling, but she could tell that under their eyes, was a malicious intent.

    ''What? This never happened before!'' She thought while she pretended to be calm.

    "Um, may I ask what''s your business with me?" Yanna smiled while observing them.

    "Goodness. Why are you so wary?" A woman from the crowd said.

    "You look like a scared chick. Don''t worry little girl we won''t eat you." In a sarcastic tone, another one spoke.

    "We just want to know what''s your relationship with Mr. Filburn." A woman, who seemed to be the leader, stepped in.

    "Yeah, you know, it''s weird that Mr. Filburn would suddenly bring a new partner, instead of his fiance."

    At the mention of the fiance, Yanna flinched for a little bit as her eyes shook a little, before she became calm again.

    Yanna closed her eyes and opened them again a moment later.

    Would she be intimidated by the likes of this? Of course not!

    She had already experienced a lot of things worse than that so why would she be intimidated. If it were in the past, sure she would be intimidated a little bit.

    "It is none of your business." She said with a fierce look on her face.

    "W-What?"

    "You! How dare you say that!"

    The atmosphere became tense as Yanna glared at them.

    Meanwhile, Allina who was on the side thought.

    ''Sister! What the heck? She didn''t even look intimidated, not even in the least bit!''

    Allina then thought back to when she was threatened to do what her wicked sister requested.

    "Allina, I want you to do something for me later." There was a bright smile on Ayami''s face as she spoke, that smile of hers felt refreshed.

    "Why do I have to?" Allina complained as she went to her walk-in-closet.

    "You don''t want to?" Ayami tilted her head. Then she sighed as she put her hand on her cheek. "Haa¡­ What a shame¡­ I even painstakingly took your beloved crush''s photo. Oh well, I guess I''ll just delete it. Ah wait, maybe I should show this to father and aunt first."

    Then, Ayami waved her phone with a picture of a man in front of Allina with a victory smile on her face. "So what will you do, my cute little sister?"

    "¡­Y-You¡­ How? And where did you get that!" Allina shouted as she tried to grab Ayami''s phone from her.

    "Hmm? Lil'' sis, I have my connections."

    Yeah right, she had her stalkers, uh, informants to find out her crush. Ayami have to admit, their services are really good, fast and accurate.

    "Wait, I just thought of a good idea! Maybe I should post this on the forums. The title should be¡ª" Before Ayami could even finish, Allina covered her mouth and glared at her.

    "What do you want me to do?" In a grave tone, Allina spoke. She felt like she lost to a lottery after spending her last amount of money on it.

    Ayami wiggled her index finger. "Simple. Do you know Yanna Jin?"

    "The new student?"

    "Yes, I want you to gather your ''friends'' and intimidate her. The rest, I will handle it. If it doesn''t work¡­"

    She trailed off as the tone of her voice became seriously cold, she was smiling yet her eyes were not, there was a dangerous glint in her gaze which sent chills down her spine.

    "Do you want to know what would happen?"

    So that led her to this situation. Allina didn''t even want to think about what would happen if she failed.

    She had no choice but to follow that wicked demoness'' order.

    So, Allina decided to execute another plan and intimidate her even more as her current plan she spontaneously came up with didn''t work.

 Chapter 30 - A Good Show (2)

    Something is¡­ wrong.

    Ayami thought as she felt cold chills running down her spine, her palms getting sweaty with her fingertips slowly turning cold.

    "Miss Gardner, is something wrong?" A petite woman in front of her spoke, looking up to her. This woman in front of her was one of their business partners.

    She shook her head and spoke. "No, it''s nothing."

    Just as she finished speaking a shrill scream resounded throughout the hall, making her turn her head towards the source.

    A crowd was forming towards the source, making it the center of attention.

    "What''s happening over there?" The petite woman asked as she looked over the crowd.

    "I wonder¡­" Ayami said but inside she somewhat knew what was happening.

    That sister of hers¡­! She clearly told her to just intimidate Yanna, not cause a scene!

    "I''m going to check it out." Ayami said to the petite woman.

    Clack, clack, clack.

    Ayami was almost running towards the crowd, with her heart beating fast, feeling nervous even though she didn''t know why.

    Tick.

    [¡­You¡­ Can¡­ not¡­]

    Tock.

    Ayami immediately stopped as she heard a faint whisper in her head, it was so faint that she felt like it was just a hallucination. Her head throbbed a little bit for a second and disappeared.

    A warm touch on her shoulders brought her back to reality.

    "Sis! I finally found you!" Allina said to her in a hurry.

    "What are you doing here? What happened? What did you do?" Ayami continuously asked Allina questions like a machine gun. Allina quickly told her what happened.

    Apparently, Allina accidentally tripped someone before she could approach Yanna. Then Yanna had a misunderstanding that they planned it and argued to the woman. Allina even told her that it was an accident and apologized to the woman but Yanna didn''t believe her. Yanna stated some believable facts like how they approached her in a group and she was feeling some hostility from them, making the people somewhat believe her.

    ''Why is it always like this? My plan always goes awry whenever they are involved. Do the heavens favor them that much?''

    Ayami hurried to the scene. It was supposed to be a good show and now it was ruined.

    When she went near, she could hear women''s voices loudly arguing. Ayami could tell that Yanna was winning the argument with words that hit right where it hurts the most.

    But something is wrong? Was Yanna really that smart at this time? If Ayami remembers correctly, at this time, Yanna was still a pure and naive girl whose head was always in the cloud.

    Maybe she''s overthinking.

    Ayami sighed, she didn''t want to step in right now. She was planning on having others act on her behalf, but it looks like she has no choice.

    It''s fine. She could still turn this around.

    "Y-Yanna?" Ayami spoke a bit loudly and interrupted the two women arguing over a pointless thing.

    "Miss Gardner!" The woman smiled at her like she was happy to see her. She approached Ayami and spoke amiably. "Good timing, you see, this girl over here¡­"

    "Ayami, don''t listen to her." Yanna said, her face a little bit pale. Ayami wondered why.

    "Hmph, how dare you order Miss Gardner you lowly commoner!" The woman shouted back at her.

    "Please don''t be like that, she''s my friend." She said while gazing at Yanna, observing her from head to toe.

    The audience whispered to each other after hearing that the two were friends. One wouldn''t be able to be friends with the eldest young miss of the Gardner family that easily, and yet that girl looked quite close to the young miss.

    Yanna was fidgeting and looked nervous. Weird, this wasn''t how she was supposed to act. Why does she look anxious? Where did the fierce tigress go?

    "Oh my, your friend? Gosh, then do you know who she came with?" The woman took out a fan from who-knows-where and hid half of her face with it.

    "S-Stop¡­!" Yanna paled even more. Ayami knew something was weird, it felt like she was trying to hide something to be guilty about.

    "Your fiance! She came with your fiance!" The woman looked at Yanna with scorn on her face.

    "Hm? That can''t be. My fiance told me that he wouldn''t be able to come as he was busy." Ayami blinked her eyes as she rubbed her chin.

    "Perhaps you have not seen him earlier when he arrived, but I saw him enter with this girl earlier."

    "Even if he did, I''m sure he did with pure intention. Yanna doesn''t really know my fiance, but I trust¡­" Ayami looked at Yanna''s expression, she looked guilty.

    It was weird. Yanna should have just known by now, but why does it feel like she knew it way before?

    "Y-You knew¡­?" Ayami covered her mouth as tears started to form in her eyes, with her voice trembling.

    "No! I-I-I¡­" Yanna paled even more, the color of her face was drained, like her life was sucked out of her. She couldn''t speak clearly, as if her voice was taken away from her.

    "Miss Gardner, you should stay away from her. Gosh, who knows, she might have hidden intentions. Those social-climbers are like that."

    "W-What? Did you approach me because of that? I can''t believe it! I thought we were friends!" Ayami''s whole body trembled as she spoke.

    "N-No¡­ I-It is not like that!" Agitated, Yanna screamed as her eyes roamed, looking for someone. "I¡­"

    Just as she found the person she was looking for, her savior, she heard whispers all around her. She then noticed the disdain on the gazes that fell on her.

    "I can''t believe it, she betrayed her friend."

    "The eldest young miss doesn''t easily befriend someone, but look at that shameless woman, she had the audacity to trick her."

    "Shameless! Her whole body stinks of shamelessness. Ugh, who even let her in?"

    "Shh¡­ Mr. Filburn is coming."

    All noises ceased as soon as Cole arrived. He calmly approached Yanna.

    "What happened?" Yanna quickly calmed down after he asked that.

    "What are you doing here? I thought you said you wouldn''t come?" Earlier, she sent him a text message asking him if he would come and his reply was ''I''m not going.''

    The crowd whispered again. Their gazes were not friendly anymore.

    "Sigh, if he is gonna pick a mistress, at least hide it. He is so bold to do it so openly. And he even picked a woman with unknown origins?"

    "Poor Miss Ayami, she was tricked by her friend."

    "I wonder what the elders would think of this."

    Discussion from left and right, but the topics were the same.

    Ayami smiled beneath her covered mouth.

    Yanna had to face all the scorn from all sides while Cole had to protect her.

    Even though this wasn''t her intention, Ayami thanked this woman for making a greater scene than what she had in mind.

    ''Thank you woman whose name I can''t remember!''

 Chapter 31 - Drama At The Party

    During the three days she was at the academy, Ayami befriended Yanna. Though short, she was able to get closer to her. Yanna was able to join her circle of friends with Ayami''s help.

    Rina and Celine were hostile to Yanna, although they didn''t show it as they were afraid it would sadden Ayami. Of course, they didn''t know that Ayami was the one who hated her the most.

    As Ayami watched the two people at the center of attention, the smile underneath her covered mouth faded as soon as she removed her hand. Ayami, with moistened eyes and pale face, looked at the two.

    Her chest tightened as she saw Cole protecting Yanna. A disgusting feeling aroused inside her, a feeling that she loathed so much that it was maddening.

    ''Huh?''

    Her body swayed for a little bit, making her lean to a random woman.

    "Are you alright?" The woman asked Ayami.

    Ayami had yet to notice that her complexion was as white as a sheet, like she had seen a ghost.

    "I¡­"

    Her head throbbed like someone was hammering it. Slightly feeling faint, Ayami staggered to go towards the two.

    "Tell me, Yanna! It''s a lie, right? You didn''t really approach me with malicious intentions, right?" Her voice trembled in a desperate plea.

    "Yanna! Why aren''t you speaking? Come on, you just need to say it, say it''s a lie!" Her voice cracked as she started screaming.

    With a tinge of pain in her heart, Ayami recalled some memories she didn''t like as she acted the same way as she did in the past when she was betrayed.

    Just like that day, Yanna was pale and didn''t speak at first.

    "Yanna¡­ You, I really can''t believe you would betray me. I already thought of you as my precious friend, and yet you¡­"

    ''Stop.'' Ayami trailed off as she heard a small voice inside her head, as if warning her. Ayami paid no heed to it and continued her act.

    "Yanna, I¡ª"

    ''Do not speak any further than this.'' Ayami''s complexion paled as she felt an indescribable pain in her head. Her heartbeat started to beat faster.

    Ayami felt something looming behind her. Her palms started to get sweaty, with her back getting drenched in cold sweat. Curious, Ayami wanted to turn her head around.

    ''You must not.'' The voice warned her, before she could completely turn her head.

    Ayami quickly turned her head back when she heard Yanna''s voice.

    "No! You''re¡­" With moist eyes and trembling lips, Yanna spoke. It was able to tug the heartstrings of the onlookers. She had a look that made one garner pity and protect her.

    It looked like Ayami was bullying her if one didn''t know the situation.

    Pity, pity, you always act like that. You would always act innocent while pinning the blame on others.

    "Enough." A cold voice spoke, coming behind Yanna. His eyes were brimming with intense coldness as he stared at Ayami.

    Ayami bit her lower lip as she looked down. She clenched her fish, nails almost digging in.

    You always look at me like that, eyes that look at an ant that would be squashed. You acted like you were superior to me.

    Her stomach churned just by thinking that she was being looked down on by that damn bastard.

    As she had thought that plan was impossible.

    From the start, befriending them was impossible, even if it was fake.

    Her body trembled with her head down. But in the eyes of the onlooker, Cole was pressuring her.

    She opened her mouth, even though she was feeling weak she continued on.

    ''Any further and you''ll die.'' The voice once said as if it foresaw what she was going to do. But before she could, there was someone faster than her.

    "¡­She''s right." Yanna raised her head and looked at Ayami straight into her eyes. Her eyes were filled with curiosity and animosity.

    Ayami''s pupils dilated, not expecting her to admit. Murmurs started once again between the onlookers, they were clearly enjoying the drama they were witnessing. Ayami too, would have been in the spectator''s seat, enjoying the drama.

    "What do you mean?" It was Cole who spoke, he also didn''t expect her answer.

    "That''s right, I first approached her with ill intent." Yanna, with her head held high proudly admitted, her eyes brimming with confidence.

    "Huh?" Ayami could only gape at her.

    With Yanna brimming with confidence, Ayami almost thought that she was telling the truth. If Yanna was able to almost convince Ayami, what more of the onlookers.

    If she says that, then the people would most probably likely think that Ayami was one-sidedly accusing her, while Yanna would be the victim, playing along with her.

    The gears inside her head spun around, trying to calmly think of a way to escape.

    No, no, it wasn''t supposed to go this way. Even if she changed the future a little bit, Yanna shouldn''t act like this. Her personality was completely different.

    Weren''t you supposed to stay silent and be protected by that damn bastard? Why are you acting like this? Why did you show your true colors early on when you never even showed them to me?

    Many thoughts flashed through her mind uncontrollably.

    "Is that something to be proud about?" Suddenly a voice spoke amidst the crowd. It was Allina.

    "You tricked and hurt your friend and now you''re proudly declaring it?" Her tone was as sharp as a dagger. "Did you know? My sister easily gets shy and doesn''t know how to make friends, that is why she always has this stone cold face because she is always nervous when she is facing the other party. My sister is a naive fool!"

    ''Stop your sister. Now.'' Even if you tell me that, I can''t! Ayami thought.

    Her body was frozen in place, with her mind being assaulted with pain. Her heartbeat was getting uncontrollably fast, sweat trickling down her forehead, face so pale that it was drained of color. Her whole body felt cold. She felt her consciousness fading away as her breathing ragged.

    "I didn''t trick her! I did approach her with ill intent at first, but¡ª"

    Yanna wasn''t done yet when Ayami suddenly collapsed.

    "AAAHHHHH!"

    "Miss Ayami, are you alright?"

    "Sister!" Allina screamed. "You! Look at what you did!"

    Allina hurriedly approached her while thinking that it was an act too. She didn''t know that it was real when she touched her cold body. Her temperature was too cold, with her body unmoving, she looked like a corpse.

    "Sister!" Allina panicked. "Somebody, hurry up and bring her to the hospital!"

    Yanna also panicked. She didn''t mean to do this. She didn''t know that her words would bring shock to Ayami to the point that she would collapse.

    Yanna only meant that she did have ill intent but after befriending Ayami it vanished.

    The whole party was put in chaos.. That was how poor Arnold Wang''s birthday party ended.

 Chapter 32 - Nightmare

    Drowning under the sea, a place where she couldn''t breathe properly, that was what she was feeling as soon as she felt her surroundings with her eyes closed.

    She felt like she was floating mid-air yet something was pulling her downwards.

    Ayami immediately regained her consciousness and found herself in a dark area, so dark that she couldn''t see anything. Strangely, she was able to see her own body.

    She couldn''t breathe properly, it was like she was deep under the ocean. Ayami hurriedly swam up.

    "Gasp! Cough, cough!"

    As soon as she reached the surface, Ayami gasped for breath and coughed.

    She then looked around, only to freeze on the sight she saw. She felt cold chills running down her spine.

    Her eyes shook, filled with trepidation as she looked at the woman who looked exactly like her. It was just not one, but tens of them, were floating on a big black gooey liquid, motionless and still, with eyes blank and lifeless.

    A thick slithery thing, the size of her arm, was wrapped around their bodies.

    ''I-Is that me?'' Ayami trembled as she stared at the body who looked like her with wide eyes, she had no time to think as¡­

    "Eek!" She let out a yelp as she felt a slimy thing slowly slithering on her feet under the black liquid.

    Slowly, it coiled from her feet, to her thighs, then to her waist up to her neck. A black slimy tentacle thing then emerged from the black gooey liquid and made its way to her.

    It slithered through her whole body, covering her mouth and one of her eyes. Then, it dragged Ayami down to the bottom, slowly submerging.

    ''No!''

    "Mmm¡­" Ayami struggled from its grasp. She tried to grab the black tentacles but it was all for naught. Her hand passed through it. She felt like she was grabbing a liquid substance.

    The tentacles tightened around her for a little bit as if telling her to stop struggling.

    Seconds passed, Ayami was completely submerged under the black liquid. She stopped struggling as she deemed it useless and let it drag her down.

    Ayami closed her eyes and had a thought.

    ''This must be a nightmare.''

    ¡¸???.¡¹

    Just as she was about to accept that this was just a nightmare, Ayami then heard a small garbled words on the surface.

    A handle of an umbrella appeared, like a hook, it grabbed her towards the surface.

    "Gasp!" Ayami gasped once again and quickly opened her eyes.

    There, standing atop the black liquid, was a woman wearing strange clothes, holding the end of the umbrella. A hat with a veil was covering half of her face.

    But this was not the time to know who the woman was!

    The black tentacles were tightening around her body to the point that she could not breath.

    ''Help me.''

    She screamed inside as she felt an unbearable pain.

    As the handle of the umbrella was still attached onto her, the woman dragged her away from the black slimy tentacles with brute force, making her feel more pain, at the same time, the black tentacles released her.

    The black tentacles slithered violently and moved towards them.

    ¡¸????!¡¹

    Like magic, a portal appeared in front of them. The strange woman threw her inside it. The woman also entered it and closed it immediately.

    When Ayami opened her eyes, she was already in a different place. The black gooey liquid sticking to her immediately separated and disappeared from her.

    "What just happened?" Ayami voiced out her thoughts.

    Ayami was bewildered as she watched what happened. It felt like everything was unreal.

    The woman silently sat down on a sofa and picked up a book while also sipping tea.

    Now that everything was calm, Ayami had time to look around the room.

    The familiar scent of books and ink mixed with an aroma of chrysanthemum tea wafted her nose.

    Looking around, Ayami knew that she was in a strange place. Yet, she didn''t feel scared, strangely she felt calm. Ayami felt that this place was familiar, like she had been here before but she couldn''t remember where.

    The room had bookshelves with books lined up on it with incomprehensible titles. The texts were garbled so she couldn''t really read it.

    Outside the window was a deep pitch black darkness, it felt like it would engulf her the longer she stared at it. Far away, stars were shining faintly.

    Ayami looked away from the window and fell into deep thought.

    ''What happened?'' She thought back about what happened. She felt a buzzing pain in her head as she recalled what had happened.

    Ayami remembered that before she collapsed, Allina and Yanna were arguing. Ayami wondered what happened afterwards, but seeing that she was in a strange place, she wouldn''t be able to know what happened right now.

    But that wasn''t what she wanted to know right now, what she wanted to know was¡­

    ''Where is this place? What was that thing earlier? Who is this woman?''

    Clack.

    The sound of the teacup clacking as it was placed down on the table entered her ears making her snap back to reality.

    Ayami looked at the woman, before she sat down on a sofa that was across her with slight hesitation.

    She looked at the woman in front of her with curiosity. The woman dressed in strange clothing had a peculiar smile on her face while she sat on a red vintage sofa. She couldn''t clearly see her face as it was covered with a huge black veil. All Ayami could see was her black colored lips.

    Ayami had a gut feeling that the woman was familiar, it was like she had met her before.

    Ayami let out a sigh as she felt like this situation was complicated, like she shouldn''t really be here.

    Although she couldn''t understand what was happening right now, she knew that the woman in front of her saved her.

 Chapter 33 - Awake

    ''Did you know that people can die if they don''t breathe? And did you also know that people can die underwater?''

    Ayami was thinking of the randomest things in the world as she danced with the silence. She was slowly accepting the situation right now.

    "You are oddly calm." A flowery voice, so smooth like butter, entered her ears. "In situations like this, humans tend to panic or be wary of me."

    The peculiar smile on her face widened as she stared at Ayami with an intense gaze under the black veil.

    "It''s better to think calmly and assess the situation rather than to panic and do useless things." Ayami answered calmly.

    "¡­You''re right."

    "But you know, If I arrived a second later, then, ??? would have swallowed you. So, what is a human like you doing here?"

    Hm? Ayami felt like she heard something strange in the middle of her sentence.

    "I¡­ don''t know how I got here, actually. By the way, what was that thing earlier?"

    ¡¸???.¡¹

    Again, Ayami couldn''t hear what ''???'' was. It was like the words were garbled and she was restricted to hear it.

    "Who are you?" Ayami asked, curious about her identity.

    The woman didn''t speak but just smiled at her meaningfully, which made Ayami frown. The woman stood up and went to the bookshelves, filled with books.

    "Fufu, What you should be asking is ''what am I?''" The woman said as she picked up a book with a title Ayami couldn''t read.

    "Then what are you?"

    "Well, since you look so curious and look like you''re about to die out of curiosity, then I will answer your question." The woman answered as she flipped through the pages of the book. "Fufu, but I don''t really know what I am. I guess you would call me a ''Guide''."

    "What about your name?" Ayami asked. The woman immediately closed the book and created a loud sound.

    "How innocent of you. But take my advice, you shouldn''t get too close to an entity like me. And¡­ It would also be best if you forget everything that happened earlier."

    It was spoken nicely, but Ayami could feel that something bad would happen if she didn''t take that advice.

    "Enough about me." The woman said after returning the book back to the bookshelf.

    "Ayami Gardner, or was it Lein or whatever it is? With the way you are going, I wouldn''t be surprised if you suddenly died."

    "The actions you are doing right now would only hasten your death."

    "You already felt earlier right?"

    "Please be aware of the consequences of challenging ????."

    "Today is just a warning. After you leave this place, ???? will target you. Beware of the dangers that surround you."

    "I advice you to lay low for a while."

    "What are you talking about?" Ayami could not understand anything she was saying. It was like she was listening to nonsensical words.

    "¡­That''s right, you wouldn''t be able to understand right now. Time will tell." The woman flashed smile with thousand meanings.

    Then, the woman walked towards her and slowly reached out to her.

    ''Huh?''

    Ayami was frozen on the spot, she couldn''t move her body. She watched as the woman touched her head, slowly losing consciousness.

    Before she could completely black out, she heard the woman murmured something.

    "I wonder how long you''ll last this time¡­"

    "¡­"

    ***

    Her eyelids quivered for a second, before she slowly began to open her eyes, only to be greeted by a blinding white light, making her squint and adjust.

    ''Where is this?'' Ayami thought as she tried to get up. There was an IV Drip attached to her.

    She presumed that she was inside a private hospital room, judging where she was laying down and the equipments she saw.

    "Oh, you''re awake."

    Ayami heard a gentle voice beside her making her turn her head towards the source of the voice.

    She widened her eyes in shock as she saw the person she didn''t expect to first see.

    Kayden was nonchalantly sitting on a one person sofa wearing casual clothes. He was holding a phone on his hand, while on the other was a¡­ donut.

    The box of donuts sitting on his lap caught her attention. Seeing that Ayami was eyeing his donuts, Kayden glared at her.

    Ayami rolled her eyes at him. It was not like she was going to steal it¡­

    "¡­What are you doing here?" Her voice hoarse as her throat was dry.

    "Drink some water first." Kayden handed her a glass of water, to which Ayami downed in one gulp.

    "Ahem." Ayami cleared her throat first before she started speaking again. "What are you doing here?"

    "Can''t I visit a friend?" Kayden started munching on the donuts as soon as he finished speaking.

    "Of course, you can." Ayami smiled sweetly at him. "But next time you visit me, make sure you bring a visiting gift."

    "I did bring one." Kayden rebutted.

    "Then where is it?" Ayami looked around and couldn''t find anything.

    "On my stomach. You took too long to wake up, so I just ate it and I was also hungry." He answered nonchalantly as he ate the donuts one by one.

    "Even if you were awake, I would still eat it because you are not allowed to eat heavy meals yet."

    Ayami was speechless. What a glutton!

    "Then treat me after I fully recover."

    "Sure." Kayden nonchalantly answered. It wasn''t a big deal to him anyway.

    Their conversation ended there as the doctors started to arrive, three of them to be exact. There were nurses walking behind them.

    "Miss Gardner, you''re awake. How are you feeling?" The doctor immediately asked and checked her body condition.

    "We already informed your family, they will be here soon." One of the doctors spoke.

    They did they work fast and efficient. After checking that her condition was ok, the doctors instructed the nurse and immediately left afterwards.

    "Were they in an emergency? They were in a hurry." Ayami remarked after they left.

    "Who knows.." Kayden smirked playfully as he remembered what happened earlier.

 Chapter 34 - A Week

    "What are you smiling about?" Ayami asked after seeing the smile on Kayden''s face.

    "I just remembered a funny incident. Pfft." He stifled a laugh after he finished speaking. Ayami was curious about that incident that made him look like a crazy man. "Tell me."

    "It''s not really funny for you." Kayden said truthfully. Not really caring about whether it was funny for her or not, Ayami beckoned him to tell her.

    "Alright. I''ll tell you. When I heard you fainted last week, I immediately went to the hospital you were sent to. Then I saw¡­" Kayden trailed off, keeping Ayami in suspense.

    Ugh, just tell me already. Ayami thought and rolled her eyes.

    "¡­I saw your family threatening the doctor. You should''ve seen the scene with your own eyes. Your family was making a mess in the reception desks, while threatening the employees. That went on for a week. Each time a day went by, their threats started to get more and more serious. I was just thinking it was funny that the doctors were trying out every single method to wake you up." I also took a small part in it too. Kayden added in his mind.

    "That''s it?" It was not really funny. Maybe the expression of the doctors as they panicked to wake her up was funny, but sadly she didn''t get to see it.

    Then suddenly, as she mulled over his story, she suddenly realized something. Wait, what?? Last week?

    She turned her head and looked at Kayden with a serious expression. "How long have I been out?"

    "A week." Kayden replied nonchalantly and continued speaking while Ayami was shocked. "Actually, I was surprised that you fainted during Mr. Wang''s party after I left. I heard that you fainted from shock. Rumors says that your friend stole your fiance and betrayed you."

    It felt like it was only an hour, but a week has already passed.

    "What happened after I passed out?" Kayden shook his head and shrugged his shoulders at her question. "I don''t really know, you should ask your sister, she knows the full details. But I heard your father cursing the CEO of Gold Star Enterprise. I also heard that your engagement with the CEO was broken-"

    "What? Why!?" Ayami exclaimed. She knew that someday their engagement would be broken, but this fast?

    She wasn''t yet finished in her plan. Her plan was simple. Ayami would break off their friendship and while she was at it, she would tarnish Cole''s reputation by making people misunderstand him. Then, after everything calms down, Ayami would befriend Yanna again.

    It seems like that plan failed.

    "I don''t really know the reason why. Ask your family." Ayami woke up from her stupor when Kayden spoke again. He then continued. "So anyways, I heard your ex-fiance was being punished and the board directors were pressuring him. Oh right, the stocks of the company also went down, although only by a little bit."

    "Turn on the news." Kayden did as she ordered and started peeling an apple like an expert after he turned the television on and put it on a business news.

    There was nothing notable on the news. She didn''t see any news about the Gold Star Enterprise taking damage. If what Kayden said is true, then it won''t be on the news.

    "Switch the channels." With a bored look on her face she once again ordered Kayden as if he was her servant.

    He stopped peeling the apples and did what she ordered. Just for today. Kayden thought and switched the channels randomly.

    Her thoughts wandered as she stared at the television, not paying attention.

    ''If Cole was under punishment, then what is Yanna doing right now?'' Ayana thought. It was weird that there was no news about her.

    It must the heavens favoring them again. Ayami let out a sigh. It felt like they had a cheat on them.

    Suddenly, a news flash suddenly appeared on the television

    ["This just in, A sudden landslide occured on Mt. Starlite. There were no casualties but 8 were reported to be injured and 6 are reported to be missing as of now."]

    The name Mt. Starlite caught her eye. It was a place she would never forget as it was the place where she died.

    Her face darkened and contorted into a frown as she remembered what happened.

    Seeing the obvious dampening of the mood, Kayden opened his mouth.

    "Here." Ayami turned her head towards Kayden and saw a plate of neatly cut bunny apples on his hand. He was holding a bunny apple on his other hand.

    Kayden handed it to her. It was close to Ayami''s mouth, so she just took it using her mouth.

    Kayden widened his eyes in surprise as he didn''t expect that kind of action while Ayami was chewing the apple inside of her mouth with a smile on her face.

    Delicious and sweet~

    "Ahh~" Ayami opened her mouth again expecting another apple to come to her. Kayden had no choice but to feed her the apple again.

    Ayami continued to eat while Kayden fed her bunny apples.

    "¡­" Kayden kept quiet as he continued to feed her.

    Does she not realize it? He thought as the gesture he was doing was intimate especially they were opposite sex. It would have been fine if it was a family or lover.

    Oh well, maybe her arms were just to weak to hold anything right now.. That was the conclusion he came to.

 Chapter 35 - Discharged

    Three days passed and only then, was Ayami discharged from the hospital because her parents were so adamant that she must stay in the hospital, even though the doctor said it was okay for her to be discharged.

    Ayami had to use an amount of energy to persuade her parents to let her out of the hospital.

    And finally, after a long war of words, she was able to get out of the hospital.

    "Congratulations on your discharge." Kayden said with a smile and handed her a box of donuts.

    Ayami took the donuts with a displeased look. She was annoyed that Kayden didn''t even help her persuade her parents and just sat back and enjoyed watching their war.

    What''s worse was that he was even eating popcorn while watching.

    "Thank you." Ayami said with a monotonous tone.

    "Well then, I''m gonna leave now. I''ll treat you some time later." Kayden left in a hurry. He looked really busy these past few days.

    "Ayami!" A cute sunny yellow was running to her at the speed of light and tackled her down to the ground.

    "Touchdown." Kayden mumbled but Ayami was still able to hear seeing that she was glaring at him fiercely.

    "Celine, you might injure her. She just got discharged." Rina spoke behind them. Celine was hugging Ayami tightly.

    The both of them really looked happy seeing Ayami was discharged. Her family also had happy smiles plastered on their faces.

    Only the person who was discharged was unhappy. Her lips were pressed into a thin and her brows were furrowed.

    How could she be happy?

    "Traitors." Ayami unhappily spoke. When she and her parents were in the war of words, what did they do? Nothing!

    Ayami expected them to help her but that expectation of hers was betrayed. It was fine though, as she was used to it.

    Celine chuckled and stood up. She reached out to Ayami and pulled her up. "Come on, don''t be like that. We can''t really join your battlefield. We''ll die the moment we step in."

    You could have been cannon fodders. She thought but didn''t say out loud, afraid that they might take it the wrong way.

    But even though they didn''t help her in her war, she was still happy deep inside. After all, they did cry the moment they saw her.

    They were really worried about her after hearing that they visited everyday. It was nice to see that there were people worrying about her.

    "Hmph." Ayami puffed her cheeks and ignored them, but there was a faint smile on her face.

    Seeing her expression they all smiled warmly.

    Afterwards, Ayami and her family went to a high-class restaurant to celebrate her discharge. Celine and Rina left as they didn''t want to get in the way of their family time.

    An escort showed up and guided them to the private room her father booked.

    They first had a toast, of course Ayami and Allina only had fruit juice. Even though they were already adults, their parents prohibited them from drinking until they graduated.

    As they ate merilly, her father cleared his throat before opening his mouth to speak.

    "Ahem, Ayami. You and that boy¡­ ahem, ahem."

    Seeing that Dennis had a hard time asking the obvious question, Elsa had no choice but to do it.

    "Your father is asking about your relationship with the boy." Elsa said with a straight face.

    "Yes, that. I am not prohibiting you from getting into a relationship, but I hope that you will choose the right man."

    "¡­" When did she ever say that she was in a relationship. She hasn''t yet even answered the question.

    "Ahem. Anyways, I won''t spoil the mood for today, so I''ll talk about it on another day." Dennis said after seeing the expression of Ayami.

    He then changed the subject while Ayami ate the food with a bitter taste in her mouth. For some reason she wasn''t happy.

    ***

    "Young Miss, please call for me if you need anything." Marie said while forcing a smile on her face.

    Her eyes were swollen from crying too much, worrying about her Young Miss well-being day and night.

    "Alright." Ayami nodded her head at her. She was surprised when she found Marie after getting to their home.

    Mary was on a vacation and was supposedly in her hometown right now. When Marie heard that Ayami collapsed, she hurriedly went back from her vacation.

    "¡­Young miss, please take care of your health." Marie said and took her leave after she finished speaking.

    After the door closed, Ayami let out a sigh.

    ¡¸With the way you are going, I wouldn''t be surprised if you suddenly died.¡¹

    Those words were stuck inside her mind as Ayami laid in bed, unable to forget the words the guide told her.

    Ayami didn''t know whether that was a dream or not but, everything felt realistic that she chose to believe that it was real.

    It was better to lay low for now. Ayami thought.

    Her plans would have to be put on hold.. Although she wasn''t particularly happy with it, she decided it was for the best.

 Chapter 36 - Death Threat

    Ayami took her phone and charged. She didn''t have much chance to use it as she was resting in the hospital.

    PING!

    PING!

    PING!

    The moment the phone turned on, she received a lot of messages. It mostly came from Celine and Rina, as well as the trio who was sent to observe Yanna''s movement.

    She started to read Celine''s message that was sent last week, but only received now. Then she went to Rina''s message. The both only consisted of worried messages so she just skimmed it. As she scrolled through her phone, she saw Kayden''s message.

    Kayden: Still alive?

    Sent a week ago.

    She frowned and ignored his message.

    Ayami paid attention to the trio''s message. Yanna was currently staying inside the dorm. She also checked the forums, but there were no scandalous incidents posted, just a bunch of boring topics.

    It looks like it didn''t spread. Probably that ice cube''s doing. Ayami thought.

    Hailey: The meeting has been moved to next week. Whether they are a small group or big, all leaders must attend. The leader is allowed to bring only one assistant.

    Sent a week ago.

    Ayami stared at the phone and started typing. The meeting she was moving for has been moved. How lucky she was right now.

    Rose: Alright, bring me along as your assistant.

    Then she scrolled again. It was annoying as a bunch of strangers were wishing her good health and congratulating on her discharge. Like, who are these people!?

    Lux Jewelry Palace: Your order is complete. You may pick it up at our store.

    Sent a week ago.

    Ayami: I will pick it up tomorrow afternoon.

    After she finished replying to most of the important messages, she turned off her phone but then, a notification message popped up.

    Unknown: I''ll kill you.

    A death threat? That''s strange¡­

    She didn''t do any actions that would lead someone to threatening her with death, but there is one person. Ayami didn''t think that Yanna would do that though.

    Must be a prank.

    Ayami didn''t pay any mind to it and just went to sleep.

    The next day, Ayami went back to the academy and met with Celine and Rina in the morning.

    "Seriously, I can''t believe that girl was vicious enough to do that." Celine complained, talking about what Yanna did to Ayami, while Rina calmed her down.

    Ayami wondered how Rina was able to nonchalantly step inside the cafeteria full of students, while she stuck out like a sore thumb.

    They were currently in the cafeteria eating their breakfast. Ayami was silently eating and observing the students around.

    Nobody was talking about the Yanna Jin, except their table. It looks like nobody knows or at least one of them knows but keeping their mouth shut.

    "Um, e-excuse me? Are you Ayami Gardner?"

    A meek girl appeared before them and spoke in an almost quiet voice. Ayami observed her from head to toe. The girl was pale and her knees were trembling slightly.

    "Yes, I am. What do you need?" Ayami spoke in a flat tone. The meek girl handed her a piece of paper. After Ayami took the paper, the girl dashed away as if she was being chased by a monster.

    Weird girl.

    Ayami thought while watching the girl flee in a hurry. She looked at the piece of paper and opened it.

    "Yikes." Celine said as soon as she saw the content of the paper.

    "Who would do such a horrible thing?" Rina worriedly looked at Ayami who might be affected by this letter.

    There were cut out letters pasted on the paper and formed words. It looked like one of those death threats in detective movies.

    I will kill you!

    "Childish." Ayami murmured and ripped the paper apart. But this didn''t mean that it didn''t bother her.

    Who would do this to her?

    Ping!

    Ayami took out her phone and looked at the notification. Unknown sent her a message with a picture attached to it. It was her looking at the death threat in the cafeteria.

    Unknown: Have you received my love letter?

    So it was them who sent her that childish threat. Ayami blocked the sender and turned her phone off. She didn''t have time to play with kids.

    "Don''t mind it. It''s just a prank." Ayami assured them. She was the victim yet the two of them were the most affected, almost like they were the victim.

    "Ayami."

    Just as they were about to resume their meal, another one approached them. Due to her annoyance, Ayami didn''t realize that the voice was familiar. Why are they bothering me!!!

    "What?" Unhappy that her breakfast was interrupted, Ayami coldly spoke.

    Frowning, she turned to look at the person in displeasure. To her surprise, it was Yanna. Ayami didn''t expect that she would approach her after what happened.

    "May I talk to you?" Yanna spoke to her seriously. Ayami had a feeling that something was different in her. It was as if she was talking to Yanna of the future.

    "We are talking right now." Ayami sarcastically responded to her.

    "I meant somewhere private." Seeing that Yanna looked serious, Ayami decided to talk to her. There was really something weird about her and she wanted to confirm her suspicions.

    "Alright." Ayami stood up, only to be stopped by the two. They both firmly grabbed her arm, not intending to let her go.

    "Are you serious, Ayami?" Celine glared at her, clearly showing her anger at Ayami''s decision.

    "It''s fine if you want to talk to her, but we''ll go with you." Rina didn''t want a chance for Ayami to be swayed by this fake.

    The situation fell into a stalemate, with both of them glaring daggers at Yanna, while there was no change in Yanna''s expression.

    Ayami let out a sigh and shook her arms. She groaned in pain as their grip tightened. "It hurts."

    "Sorry." Celine and Rina apologized and let go of her arm.

    "Then it looks like my friends want to join. Would that be okay?"

    Seeing that there was no choice, Yanna compromised.

    "It''s fine, but they mustn''t interrupt me."

 Chapter 37 - Pleaseâ€¦ Help Meâ€¦

    Inside their dorm, the four of them sat in the living room, with Celine and Rina on Ayami''s side facing Yanna in front of them.

    It has already been ten minutes since all of them sat together with not one speaking.

    "How long are you intending to stay silent?" With a sharp voice, Celine was the one to ask.

    Ayami observed Yanna''s demeanor. It looks like Yanna wouldn''t be able to tell her what she wanted to say if Celine and Rina continued to stay.

    Ayami stood up, not intending to waste time anymore in this staring contest. "Come with me."

    Ping!

    Suddenly, a notification bell resounded throughout the room.

    Huh? I already turned it off. Ayami checked her phone and saw that it was still turned off. It wasn''t hers. Then whose was it?

    Ayami looked around and made eye contact with everyone in the living room, but all of them shook their heads.

    Ping!

    When the sound came again, Ayami was able to pinpoint where it was coming from. It was inside her room. The door was wide open and she could see a phone on top of her table from where she was standing.

    That''s weird, the door to my room should be locked.

    Ayami turned to look at Celine and Rina with an inquiring gaze. "Why is my room open?"

    "Huh? Didn''t you leave your room open?" Rina scratched her head. "I saw that it was open this morning, so I thought you already went back."

    "No, I didn''t go back this morning. I met up with you guys first. Must be a burglar. I''ll go check if there is something missing." Ayami said and went to her room.

    Ayami looked around and checked if there was anything missing, but everything was the same as before and her things were left untouched. The only odd thing is the phone that was on top of her table.

    Ayami took the phone and observed it. The phone''s model was unknown and looked brand new. It looked like it was custom-made.

    Ayami pressed the power button and opened it. A messaging interface appeared the moment she opened it.

    You have two unread messages.

    Unknown: I can see you~

    Attached on that message was a picture of Ayami, with the others sitting in the living room. Normally, one would feel scared if they received something like this, but Ayami was oddly calm.

    Unknown: Like my gift?

    A scowl appeared on her face. How the hell did she gain a stalker??

    As much as she wanted to deal with the stalker right now, there was something she needed to take priority first.

    Ayami put the phone back on the table and left her room. She locked her room to make sure nobody would go in.

    "Nothing was missing, but I''ll file a report." Ayami said after she locked her door.

    "You should. Someone trespassed and that is illegal." Celine said while nodding her head. "If you need help, just say it."

    "Okay, a favor then. The two of you stay here. It looks like Yanna won''t be able to speak if the two of you are here." Ayami firmly said, no room for discussion.

    "But¡­"

    "No buts." Ayami dragged Yanna out of the dorm and left the two alone.

    They went to a secluded place, a place where nobody dared to go, the restricted area. Ayami saw the familiar looking sign and the black leopard, Midnight, guarding the entrance. Onwards was the small artificial forest.

    "H-hey, we are not allowed to go here." Yanna spoke with a trembling voice as she looked at the black leopard warily. Ayami nonchalantly spoke to her. "I know. And so?"

    Yanna was flabbergasted as a thought flashed in her mind. Does she want to get expelled or is this one of her schemes?

    "Come on, hurry up." Ayami urged her. The black leopard that was supposed to guard ignored the two as if they didn''t exist. Ayami pointed on Midnight. "See, that guy is on our side."

    "Nobody can go here so that means there won''t be anybody who will listen to our conversation." Ayami spoke on the way to the secret garden. Well, except for that guy.

    Shortly afterwards, they arrived at the secret garden. It was still the same, still looking beautiful and relaxing. Perfect for a conversation.

    Ayami sat down on the bench by the pond while Yanna stood up, anxiously looking at Ayami.

    "So, what do you need?" Ayami started the conversation because if she didn''t, then they would just waste time doing a staring contest.

    "¡­" There was hesitation on Yanna''s face, as if the topic she was about to bring was too complicated. Ayami patiently waited for her answer while looking at her nails.

    Then, as if the idea struck her, Ayami clapped her hands and looked at Yanna with a benevolent smile. "You want to apologize for last week? Don''t worry, don''t worry. I was just shocked. I already forgave you. I know that you have some reasons why you did that, but it''s fine."

    "No¡­ that''s not it, but still, I''m sorry." Yanna looked down and fiddled with her fingers. "Actually¡­"

    Just say it! Ayami was slowly losing her patience.

    "Please¡­ help me¡­" Yanna spoke in a small voice. Thankfully, Ayami was able to hear it.

    "Help you with what?" Ayami tilted her head as she asked that question, while blinking her eyes at her. Yanna looked at her straight into her eyes.

    "It hasn''t happened yet but it will happen in the future and this involves you. You might deny it at first but I know¡­" Yanna looked at her seriously, while the smile on Ayami''s face froze. Yanna continued on without faltering.

    "But I know¡­ that you also came from the future. So please help me."

    The smile on her face slowly faded. A dangerous glint flashed through her eyes as her expression slowly darkened. Slowly, in a dreadful voice she asked Yanna, who was terrified from her expression.

    "What do you mean by that?"

 Chapter 38 - Lets Have A Talk

    ''I know that you came from the future.''

    It was weird that Ayami was acting differently from her past life. She didn''t act hostile to Yanna or harass but instead, Ayami befriended her. She was even acting friendly to her current friends.

    Ayami let her join her circle of friends, but even so, Yanna felt like she didn''t belong there. It was as if she was being excluded. Ayami acted like a good friend while making Yanna look like a bad person.

    Even the incident last week, it was as if everything was planned. These days, Yanna felt like she was also being watched.

    It was just a hypothesis at first, but Ayami''s reaction right now confirmed her suspicions.

    "What do you mean by that?" Immediately, after seeing the frightened Yanna, Ayami changed her expression.

    "Ah, sorry. Did I scare you?" Ayami''s voice softened while her expression brightened. "I was just surprised. Was that a joke? It wasn''t really funny though."

    "Huh?" Yanna dumbfoundedly looked at Ayami. "No, it''s not a joke."

    "It''s not? Then, you called me out to tell me this? What nonsense." Ayami frowned at her, displeased by her nonsense.

    "I''m serious. Could you please drop the act?"

    "Wow. I can''t believe this! Me, from the future?" Ayami laughed at her nonsensical words. "Yanna, we are already past that age."

    "I''m telling the truth. Keep acting and all your precious people will die."

    "And now you''re threatening me?" Ayami looked at her seriously. "Even if I do came from the future, why should I trust you?"

    Ayami wanted to laugh at the absurdity of Yanna. Is she serious?

    Yanna wasn''t able to find a comeback. After another long period of silence Yanna spoke. "Fine, if that''s how you want to act then I''ll go along. Let''s just say that I know the future, while you don''t."

    "In the future, you will be controlled by an organization. You weren''t aware of it, but they used you to make Cole fall from his position. They used your friends and family to rile you up and make it look like it was our fault. In fact, they were the ones who killed them. I''m telling you, you''re taking your revenge on the wrong person. I am not your enemy."

    "What are you talking about?" Ayami looked at her with disbelief, brows furrowed, like she could not understand her.

    "Drop the act, Ayami."

    "Shut up!" Ayami let out a growl. In a hoarse voice she growled louder while pointing at Yanna. "Liar! You''re a liar! You have never once told me the truth!"

    "Ayami, you have to believe me." Yanna tried to convince her. With a firm voice she spoke. "I''m telling the truth."

    Ayami let out a loud laughter containing anger and sadness. She soon stopped, sitting on the bench weakly.

    If that was true, then was she a fool for taking her revenge on the wrong person?

    "But you were also indirectly involved, weren''t you?"

    Ayami finally dropped her act while staring at Yanna with empty eyes. Because of Yanna''s foolish naivety, innocent people got involved.

    Yanna looked away, guilt filled her entirety while Ayami sneered.

    But while that was also true, Ayami was also at fault. If only she hadn''t acted like a madwoman, then it''s possible that nothing would happen between them in the first place.

    "¡­Leave. I need some time to think." Ayami spoke weakly, not even looking at Yanna.

    "Please tell me if you have decided."

    Yanna understood that it was too much of a shock for her and needed some time alone, so she turned away and took her leave.

    In a dazed state, Ayami looked at the koi fishes at the pond, swimming without a care in the world.

    Yanna also knows the future like me and said that I was used by an unknown organization. Then wouldn''t that mean that the future has already changed. No, the future already changed the moment I went back.

    So the reason why Yanna was acting differently was because of this. She even knows that I was going to take revenge on her. Then my plans will go down the drain.

    Ayami ruffled her hair in annoyance and confusion.

    And Yanna was asking for help. Help her with what?

    Tell you if I decided what?

    Stupid! I became stupid after returning!

    At times like this, I have to be calm.

    "Ahhhh! I don''t know anymore!" Ayami screamed and stood up. Then she ran to chase after Yanna.

    Although she didn''t really want to, Ayami needed to. Even if Yanna cleared that they weren''t clearly enemies, Ayami would still not get along with her.

    After getting out of the garden, Ayami saw Yanna''s figure not far away.

    "Wait!"

    Ayami ran past her and blocked her way. She composed herself before opening her mouth to speak. "We''re not done yet with our talk."

    "But you were the one who told me to leave." Yanna raised her brows while speaking innocently.

    "Don''t care!" Ayami dragged her back to the garden calmly.

 Chapter 39 - Pinky Promise

    Ayami told Yanna to explain everything without missing a single detail. Yanna did what she was told to do.

    Apparently, a secret organization suddenly emerged out of nowhere. They still don''t know what the name of the organization was but they have something in common and that is, they all have a tattoo. The tattoo had a design of a big red star with a circle surrounding the star, and outside the circle was five stars surrounding it with a silver line connecting each other.

    But when it comes to the executives of the organization, their tattoos were different. It was a big skull with rose and thorny vines surrounding it.

    Their target was supposedly Cole Filburn, but seeing that he was tightly guarded, they decided to target Yanna, who was not yet under protection.

    But soon after, Yanna was also tightly guarded so they decided to ''help'' the former fiance, which was Ayami. She was the only one able to damage Cole, although it wasn''t that lethal.

    So, while they were distracted by dealing with Ayami, they proceeded with their plans slowly. When their guards were down, that was the moment they struck.

    They only knew when they were at death''s door. The enemy was stupid enough to tell their whole plan.

    Ayami calmly listened to her, taking the information dump in and analyzing it.

    That secret organization, good job! Ayami merrily thought to herself. Even though she was not happy with her being used, Ayami still wanted to applaud them for being able to destroy Yanna and Cole.

    Putting that aside, there was one thing she wanted to know.

    "Why do you even need my help? Couldn''t you just ask ''him'' for help?"

    "I don''t think he would believe me right now." Ayami snorted at her response. She responded to the naive fool in annoyance. "Oh please, he''ll believe you even if you lie."

    "So, will you help me?" Yanna waited for her response.

    "You never told me what you need help with." Even though she said that, Ayami knew what Yanna was going to ask her for help. It''s probably something like helping destroy that organization.

    "Help me destroy the organization." And her guess was right.

    "I''ll think about it." After their conversation, Yanna took her leave while Ayami stayed in the garden.

    Ayami sneered at the leaving back of the sly fox.

    Yanna didn''t answer why she needed my help. There must be something she was hiding. Ayami thought, watching the koi fishes. When Yanna grew up and matured, of course that naivety of hers disappeared. She became more smart and sly.

    Now that Ayami knew that Yanna also knew the future, she had to be more careful. There was an unspoken agreement between them as they conversed with each other. They were on a temporary truce.

    There''s a high chance that she''s using me to destroy that obstacle-like organization and discard me later on.

    Ayami knew of her true nature. As Yanna grew, Ayami witnessed the growth of the fox, becoming more sly. Although innocent at first, Yanna grew corrupted, hiding under an innocent mask. They were the same and Ayami hated that.

    Ayami looked up. Her vision was filled with green leaves of the tree and the sun shining faintly above.

    It was high noon. The sun was high up in the sky, thankfully, there were trees that hid her from the blazing heat of the sun. It was cool under the shade of the tree, making her feel sleepy and relaxed.

    The sound of the warm breeze felt like a lullaby.

    Unknowingly, she relaxed and slowly closed her heavy eyes.

    ***

    "Hm~ Hm~ Hm~"

    A woman''s soft humming resounded throughout the room, while gently tapping the child beside her on the bed.

    "Go to sleep, my child~" The woman continued to hum, but the child was still wide awake with its big round eyes staring at the woman.

    "But I don''t want to, mommy." The child spoke in a high pitched voice, and raised her arms like she still had more energy.

    "Hm¡­ Why doesn''t my baby want to sleep?" The woman asked her child softly with a warm smile on her face, but she didn''t stop patting the child.

    "Because¡­ because, if I close my eyes then mommy will disappear." The child innocently blinked her eyes, while speaking in a cute voice.

    The woman chuckled, but the words the child said made her heart warm. "Don''t worry, my baby I won''t disappear."

    "Liar, you already disappeared once." The child grumbled but her eyes contained sadness and grief, unfit for a child her age. The woman didn''t understand what her child''s words meant.

    "Mommy is not lying. Look, I''ll tell you a secret. Mommy is a leader of a big organization. Hehe, so if mommy disappears, then that organization will help my baby find mommy. It''s name is ''Rose Garden''. If you need help, then you just have to show the necklace I gave you. But you have to keep shush about this. You cannot tell anyone, not even daddy or else they would eat you up. Rawr!" The woman acted like a wolf gobbling down its food, while the child giggled. They played around on the bed until they both got exhausted.

    They soon settled down. The child, tired from playing with her mother, was laying on the bed with droopy eyes.

    "Sleepy?" The child shook her head. The woman patted her child in a constant manner. She even sang a lullaby, but the child was stubborn. Even though she was sleepy, she was still fighting her drowsiness.

    "I won''t sleep!"

    "You have to sleep, my baby or else you won''t grow up."

    "But, but, if I sleep, you''ll disappear." The child was still stubborn even though the woman tried various things to coax her to sleep.

    "How about a pinky promise?"

    "Pinky promise?"

    "Yes, pinky promise. If one of us broke their promise then they would swallow a thousand needles, do you want that?" The child shook her head rapidly.

    "Then let''s do a pinky promise." The woman intertwined her pinky finger to the child''s pinky finger. "Mommy promises that she won''t disappear and will be there once my baby wakes up. My baby must also promise that she won''t tell about ''Rose Garden'' to anyone."

    "I promise!" The child excitedly spoke. After doing a pinky promise, the child tiredly lay down on the bed.

    There was no need for the woman to do anything to coax the child to sleep, as the child slowly closed her droopy eyes.

    The woman smiled at her child, who was sleeping soundly. She quietly tucked her child and kissed her on the forehead. The woman softly whispered to her child.

    "Sweet dreams, Ayami."

 Chapter 40 - Scaredy Cat

    Ayami woke up with tears streaming down her eyes. "Liar." Ayami mumbled to herself as she wiped the tears.

    Ayami looked around, by the time she woke up it was already night time, which surprised her. She didn''t expect that she would sleep that much, when she intended to think and not take a ''nap''.

    Thankfully, there were night lanterns making her able to see the beautiful landscape of the garden at night. She rubbed her eyes, still in a groggy state. A cloth slid down from her body as she sat up.

    "Hm?" There was black jacket covering her. It was the academy''s uniform jacket. Now that she thought about it, her position changed. She was sitting earlier, but now she was laying on the bench. Ayami didn''t have much time to think about it when she realized what time it is.

    Ah, right, my phone. Ayami took out her phone, thinking that it was bombarded with messages and calls as she didn''t return to the dorm after their conversation.

    Ping!

    Ping!

    Ping!

    And just as she guessed¡­

    Ayami didn''t bother to read their messages and just directly replied: ''Sorry, fell asleep.''

    Celine instantly replied to her.

    Celine: That''s all you have to say?

    Ayami felt cold sweat trickling down her back. For some reason, Celine felt like a mom asking her daughter where she went off too at the dead of the night without permission.

    Rina: Lol, come back. Mother Celine is angry. Lolololol!

    Rina: But seriously, get back here young lady.

    ¡­Rina made her even more nervous.

    Ayami let out a sigh, she didn''t really expect that she would fall asleep and would worry her friends again. She could understand them.

    They were probably traumatized by last week''s incident. They must have thought that I passed out again.

    That aside, Ayami couldn''t go back even if she wanted to. That is because of the dark path, with not a thing lighting the way. It was, of course, scary to walk down that path alone.

    Ayami wondered if she should call Celine or Rina to pick her up, but she didn''t want to trouble them anymore.

    Tap, tap.

    Ayami was struggling to decide so she didn''t hear the footsteps coming towards her. It was coming closer and closer, but still, Ayami had yet to realized until¡­

    "Hey." A familiar voice whispered on her ears, with a presence leaning over her. Ayami felt a hot sensation from her ears, making her shiver.

    But then, she realized that she should have been alone and that no one was allowed to come here.

    "Uwaaaa!" Ayami screamed and stood up and turned around to slap the ''person'' behind her. As she did so, in her groggy state, she lost her balance and fell backwards.

    Ayami closed her eyes and waited to fall to the pond. But nothing happened. She waited a couple of seconds later, still, nothing happened.

    "What are you doing?" Ayami felt the person''s breath near her face and also their arms grabbing her waist and left arm.

    Wait, that voice. Kayden?

    Ayami opened her eyes and met with a pair of forest green eyes. Kayden was holding her so that she wouldn''t fall to the pond. They were so close to the point that they could almost kiss.

    It made her heart thump. Ayami felt like there was someone drumming her heart, with how loud it was beating. She didn''t notice that her ears were red. It was night so it wasn''t visible that much.

    It was the first time she had been this close to a man. Ayami was flustered, making her eyes wander around.

    "K-Kayden¡­" Ayami trailed off as she looked at his position, while stifling her laughter. "Are you alright? That position¡­"

    "Obviously not." Kayden grumbled. He was in an awkward position because of the bench in between them, making it hard for him to stand up.

    "Then, could you stand up already?" Ayami steadied her position, then when Kayden confirmed that she was fine he also properly stood up.

    "You should''ve just let me fall into the pond. Wait, this is your fault for suddenly surprising me."

    "I''ve been calling you, but you didn''t respond." Kayden took the black jacket on that fell on the ground and dusted it off, after that, he wore it.

    So it was his.

    "Really? Sorry I didn''t notice." Ayami apologetically smiled at him.

    "Be more aware of your surroundings. What are you doing here anyway?"

    "Sleeping?"

    "You skipped class and came here without permission?"

    Ayami shrugged her shoulders. It''s not like she would die if she missed a day in class. Kayden couldn''t speak. Not because of how shameless she was, but because he also did it in his early days. Well, he was also doing it sometimes.

    "Well, that''s fine. But don''t do it frequently." This time, it was Ayami who was speechless. Who the heck advises their juniors to skip class sometimes?

    "You need to go back to your dorm by the way. There''s still time before the curfew so you could still go to your dorm."

    Ayami looked at the way back, her expression not looking good.

    "Scaredy cat." Kayden chuckled as he teased her while Ayami glared at him. "Hey, scaredy cat, come on. I''ll lead you the way out."

    Of course, even though she was annoyed, why would she refuse. Kayden continued to tease her. "Too scared? Then why don''t you hold my hand?"

    He offered his hand to Ayami. Kayden was only joking but he didn''t expect that Ayami would actually hold his hand. He was expecting her to refuse.

    Was she that scared?

    And so they walked on the path while their hands holding each other.

 Chapter 41 - Leaving

    Kayden walked her up to the front of her dorm.

    "Honestly, I was surprised you were sleeping on the bench. Next time, please get permission or tell me before you go there." Kayden said as he let go of her hand. Ayami grinned at him.

    "Does that mean I can go there again?"

    "¡­Just get permission and don''t do it frequently."

    Kayden said his goodbyes and left her. Ayami turned around and looked at the dorm. As she did so, she saw Celine standing by the door with her arms crossed on her chest.

    There was no expression on her face, making Ayami nervous. She felt like she was going to get scolded as she walked to her with a nervous smile.

    Sometimes, Celine is like a mom. She thought.

    Celine slowly opened her mouth to speak, making Ayami clench her fist as she cursed inside, waiting for Celine to scold her. But the words that came out of Celine''s mouth weren''t the one she expected.

    "What''s your relationship with that guy?"

    "Eh?" Ayami blurted out, confusion written on her face.

    Now that she thought about it, the two of them never crossed paths. Kayden always comes in the morning and leaves shortly afterwards, while Celine visits at night.

    "Friends?" Celine massaged her forehead at Ayami''s answer. She spoke with a frustrated expression.

    "Ayami, a man and a woman cannot be friends. It always leads to something. Anyway, be careful and don''t trust that guy yet."

    "I''m going now." Celine said as she started walking back to her dorm.

    Surprisingly, Ayami didn''t get scolded, in fact she felt like everything went smoothly. But there was one more boss inside her dorm. Ayami went inside her dorm nervously and saw Rina with luggage packed beside her.

    "Oh, you guys are done? That''s surprising. Celine was really angry earlier. Anyways, did your talk go smoothly with that girl?" Rina asked, languidly laying on the sofa.

    "What''s with the luggage?" Ayami pointed at the luggage.

    "Oh that, I''m going to leave tomorrow morning. I thought that it was time to go home. I already told Celine about it."

    "Why?"

    "You have so many questions." Rina complained, but even so, she still answered her question, while Ayami was thinking that it was only two. "Well, I can''t just run away forever, right?"

    "Actually, it was fun to hang out with you guys. But still, I have some responsibilities I need to do. And I would be found out sooner or later if I stayed here. I would prefer to walk back on my own than to be dragged against my will. My punishment would be severe but I think it would be better if I returned now. I could think of ways to lighten my sentence."

    Rina smiled at her, then a moment later she stared at her sharply, making her flinch. What''s with that expression?

    "But young lady, do you know what time it is, huh?" Ayami ran straight to her room and locked the door as she almost shouted. "I''m sleepy, let''s talk tomorrow morning!"

    Rina snorted at her, but there was a complicated thought going inside her mind.

    Inside her room, Ayami changed her clothes. She wasn''t really sleepy as she already slept all day.

    Now then, time to deal with this stalker.

    Because of her talk with Yanna, Ayami almost forgot about this stalker. She even forgot to report the trespassing incident.

    I''ll just report it tomorrow.

    Ayami took the phone and opened it again. There was one unread message.

    Watch your back. I will start tomorrow.

    It was sent an hour ago. Ayami knows that her movement inside the academy is being watched.

    She felt eyes staring at her from the darkness as she walked back to her dorm with Kayden.

    Ayami doubted that this person was working alone. To be able to go to this academy, then they would need connection.

    Now, the problem is, Ayami didn''t know who they were or why they wanted to kill her.

    She didn''t do an action so grand that it would take the attention of this group.

    Wait, is this that group that Yanna was talking about?

    That was possible, but why would they need to kill her if in the past, they planned to use her? Was it because of her actions?

    Ayami sighed. It was a headache to think about it. She was already busy thinking about the secret organization but this damn stalker added to that problem.

    If they were connected, that would have been great. She could just destroy the both of them at the same time.

    There was also one thing that was weighing on her mind. Her necklace that her late mother gave her. She needed it to access the ''Rose Garden'' so that she could find out about the secret organization.

    If she remembers correctly, they have a mark with a rose on it and they were really hidden and difficult to find. Ayami could remember some of their location, but she also doubted that they stayed in the same location.

    There was also another problem: she exchanged it with a boy from her childhood and got a ring. She would have to search for him.

    But Ayami didn''t even know where to start!

    Ayami couldn''t even remember that fat boy''s face and what if that boy''s appearance had already changed.

    And she doubted that boy would wear the necklace. So the best thing would be to wear the ring he gave her.. Well, she wouldn''t really wear it but she would wear the fake one, who knows maybe he would be able to recognize it.

 Chapter 42 - Watch Your Back

    As she thought about it, Ayami realized that she forgot to pick up the ring.

    There was also the meeting at the Coiling Snake Gang that will happen in a week.

    Ayami massaged her forehead and let out a sigh of frustration. So many things to think about.

    What is the best solution for this? Sleep.

    Ayami decided to sleep again and not care about the problems right now.

    The next morning, when Ayami woke up, Rina had already left. She didn''t even get to see her off. There was a note left on the table.

    Take care of yourself and have healthy meals. I''m not leaving for good, don''t worry. Will visit some time.

    -Rina Young.

    Ayami put the note back down and prepared her breakfast.

    Ayami silently ate her breakfast, but something felt wrong. It was like something was missing.

    Ayami looked down at her food, not having any appetite at all. Maybe it was because she got used to having a meal together with her friends.

    It looks like she needed to get used to this loneliness once again.

    Ayami changed her clothes to a casual one. She was planning to skip another day in school.

    Ayami locked the door to her dorm, when¡­

    Swish!

    A knife came flying at the door, no, specifically towards her. Ayami immediately crouched down, making the knife go to the door.

    If she was a second later, then she would have been on the ground in a pool of blood as the knife was aimed at her heart.

    Ayami looked around, but the preparator was already far away. Ayami clicked her tongue. Too bad. But she didn''t let her guard down as she slowly stood up.

    Ayami closely examined the knife. It was a kitchen knife. Thankfully, it was only a knife. If it was a gun, then she would have difficulty dodging it.

    Ayami guessed that they couldn''t bring in a gun inside the academy grounds.

    She needed to be careful now. That stalker of hers, she would surely find them.

    Before she left the academy, she first filed a report. She described the incident that happened yesterday up until this morning.

    With that, they would surely increase their security, after all, the students here were people from affluent families.

    Ayami picked up the ring at the ''Lux Jewelry Palace''. She closely examined the ring, it looked exactly the same.

    They really did their job well, so Ayami added a tip.

    Ayami wore the ring on her ring finger. With this, he should be able to recognize it.

    Ping!

    Ayami heard a notification bell from her phone. It came from Celine so she read the message.

    Celine: Again? Where are you?

    Ayami: Skipping class. I have an urgent thing I need to do.

    Celine: I don''t know what to say¡­

    Ayami locked her phone and calmly looked around. She could still feel like she was being watched.

    Ayami wandered around the mall and finally settled down at a shop.

    Ayami ordered her food and after ordering, she took out her phone. She sent a message to Marie, her maid.

    Ayami: I think I''m being watched.

    While Marie is a maid, she is also a bodyguard. Marie was trained to protect Ayami from dangers.

    "Please don''t worry, young miss. Send me your location and I''ll be right there. And also, don''t let them notice." Marie texted her back.

    One, two, three¡­

    There were a total of three people watching her. She knows, because she was sensitive and highly trained.

    "Young miss, I''m here. Are you alright?" Marie sat down with a smile in front of Ayami nonchalantly, to look like Ayami was meeting with a friend. From the outsider''s perspective, it looked like they were friends meeting for the first time in a while.

    "What do you want me to do with them?" Marie asked as she drew a map and pinpointed where the three people who were watching her were.

    Two were inside the shop, a man and a woman, sitting far away from each other acting like a customer, while there was one man outside watching her from a distance. They were able to see as she was just sitting beside the window.

    "I want to know who is behind them."

    "Understood." Marie took out her phone and spoke in a subtle way, as to not let others know if they accidentally overhears her.

    Ayami''s order soon arrived. She ordered for two people, of course, the other was for Marie.

    Ayami looked at the window. The man who was watching her was being dragged away by two men in black.

    "Here."

    Ayami offered her the plate. Marie hesitated as she spoke. "I wouldn''t dare eat with the young miss."

    "Hm? Are you rejecting my offer? If it is an order, then would you eat it?" Ayami asked as she smiled at her. Still the same as ever.

    "Fine then, young miss. Since you insist."

    They both ate their meals, while the people who were watching them, one by one disappeared.

 Chapter 43 - Kidnap

    In a big dark place, three people were seated in a chair, all tied up. One was a woman while the other two were men.

    The first one to wake up was the woman. She opened her eyes and looked around, but sadly, she couldn''t see a thing.

    She grew nervous as she tried to move, but unable to, due to her being tied up. She tried to scream for help, but only a muffled voice came out as her mouth was gagged up.

    Just what happened? The woman wondered, as she slowly started to go crazy from fear.

    Just what started this?

    It all happened when the woman whose name was Nina, received a text message from a stranger. She didn''t know who it was but she didn''t care when she saw the amount of money the stranger would give her when she completed the task.

    The task was to only stalk a rich young miss and report to them what she was doing. Blinded by greed, Nina accepted, without knowing that she was used as a pawn.

    "Are they not awake yet?" A voice belonging to a woman entered her ears. It was cold and apathetic, yet it sent chills down her spine.

    "The woman is already awake, while the other two are not yet awake." A woman answered her.

    "Then, let''s start with the woman first." As soon as Nina heard that, she felt fear creeping up to her.

    What do I do? What do I do?

    Nina panicked as the blindfold covering her eyes was slowly removed. She was slightly blinded from the sudden light directed at her. She couldn''t clearly see the people hidden under the shadows.

    "Remove her gag." The woman whose voice she heard first, spoke again. It was like she was finding this situation a pain.

    Nina knew what she needed to do and that was to beg for mercy.

    As soon as the gag was removed from her mouth, Nina immediately screamed and cried. "I don''t know! I don''t know anything!"

    "Please spare me, I really don''t know anything." She pleaded for mercy to the people that captured her.

    "Shut it." It was spoken normally but it felt like if Nina didn''t follow her, she would instantly die. Biting her lower lips, she tried to force the words back inside her.

    Silence engulfed the whole room, nobody spoke a single word nor made a sound. Even they held back their breathing.

    Nina felt like she was being stared at. If she made a single movement or sound then she is as good as dead. Her knees were trembling as she endured the pressure coming from the woman.

    "Wake the two men. The woman is useless. Dispose of her." The woman spoke like she was bored.

    "W-What¡­?" Nina couldn''t believe it. The color of her face went pale. As the men dressed in black started to approach her, she shook her head and shouted. "N-No. P-please¡­! I''m still useful!"

    Seemingly annoyed by the shouts of Nina, the woman sharply spoke. "Silence her."

    "N-No! W,What are you¡­? Mmpphh¡­! Cough! H-hel¡ª!"

    A moment later, it was quiet again. Nina was sitting on the chair, motionless. There was a white foam from her mouth, her lips were blue, her eyes wide open, her whole demeanor was pale and there was blood on her clothes.

    The men dressed in black carried her away from the room to dispose of her.

    "Next time, do it fast." The woman spoke languidly.

    The men dressed in black gulped as they understood what would happen next time they failed to satisfy the young miss.

    After Nina''s body was carried out, the two men who were unconscious were woken up by the bucket of water splashed onto them.

    Just like Nina, the two men were wondering where they were and what just happened. Their blindfolds were slowly removed as per the young miss'' order.

    Like Nina, both of them were also panicking wondering what they would do to the two of them, no, only one of them was truly panicking.

    "Dispose of the other man. The one with the weird haircut." The woman ordered.

    Now, only one man was left. He looked like he was panicking, but he wasn''t even in the least bit afraid. His eyes were wandering around observing the situation he was in.

    "Strip him." The woman ordered and the men followed her orders.

    They stripped him one by one until he was only wearing his underwear.

    He trembled as he spoke. "W-What are you going t-to do to me? P-Please¡­ I-I h-have a wife and a c-child."

    The woman sneered at him. "What does your wife and child have to do with this? Ah, do you want me to kidnap them? Well, as if they ever existed."

    The man instantly shut up.

 Chapter 44 - Marie Is Strong

    "Find this tattoo on him." Ayami gave the men in black a drawing of the same tattoo that Yanna told her about. She drew it by hand, like what Yanna described.

    Honestly, she wasn''t particularly fond of what she was doing right now. As much as possible she didn''t want to get her hands dirty in this life.

    Ayami adjusted the mask she was wearing. Currently, she was wearing a black and white masquerade mask that covered her entire face with a rose design. She was also wearing a black dress.

    She sighed inside. They were currently in the warehouse with a lot of expensive goods that her grandfather from her mother''s side gifted her. She never really used it in the past as she felt conflicted whether to use it or not.

    After all, they came from the father of her mother, which she was not really close to. Ayami wasn''t that close to her maternal family.

    So in her past life, it became an abandoned warehouse. So Ayami had thought that why not use it, if it was going to go to waste.

    Although she really felt uncomfortable being in this place.

    The men too, were sent by her maternal grandfather for her to use. Even Marie was sent to her side by her maternal grandfather.

    In the past, even though she was already being slowly destroyed, she never asked for help from her maternal family.

    Ayami thought that there was no need to bother someone who doesn''t really want to help.

    While the men were searching for the tattoo, Marie leaned to her and whispered. "Young miss, will you be returning?"

    Ayami pressed her lips into a thin line as she looked down with a grim expression. She still hasn''t decided whether to return to that family yet. But if push comes to shove, then she would really return.

    "I''ll only be visiting them for a moment." Ayami replied to her question, albeit with an uncomfortable expression.

    "¡­Young miss, it''s fine if you don''t visit." Marie was worried for her young miss, she clearly looked uncomfortable but she still forced herself.

    "Young miss, we couldn''t find a tattoo anywhere in his body." A man interrupted them.

    What? Was I wrong? Ayami thought as she rubbed her chin. She squinted her eyes and examined the man.

    He was being held by two burly men, with his hands tied.

    If he was truly afraid, then he should have been trembling and panicking. Ayami looked into his eyes oddly enough, it was calm. Although it was also possible that the man could stay calm in this kind of situation, that kind of person was rare, unless they were trained.

    Ayami picked up a combat knife that was on the table filled with weapons near her. She then threw it towards the man, specifically towards his knee with great accuracy. The speed of the knife was fast but it wasn''t that fast where the naked eye couldn''t see.

    Tang!

    The combat knife hit the floor, while the man was in a combat position. The men who were holding him were already knocked down to the ground in an instant. The ropes tied onto his hands were destroyed.

    "Well, well. Looks like we now know who holds the information." Ayami spoke with a playful tone. Then she sharply said her next words. "Knock him down."

    "Understood." Marie instantly vanished, a few seconds later she appeared behind the man. The man didn''t even have time to react as Marie raised her hand and hand chopped his neck ruthlessly, making him pass out.

    "¡­" Ayami silently watched Marie place the man on the ground.

    Marie is strong. But even if she was strong, if faced with hundreds of enemies, then she would also be defeated. That was clearly what happened in the past.

    "Are you done?" Ayami asked once Marie returned back to her side. Marie nodded her head at her.

    "You did well."

    Ayami turned her head and spoke to the man on her side. "Check his body again. It might be hidden really well. They might have used some things to hide it. Whether or not it''s the same design, tell me if you find a tattoo."

    "Understood."

    Moments later, the man came back again. "Young Miss, we found a tattoo on his body. It was the same as the one you showed us."

    The man showed where the tattoo was found. It was found on his nape. They used some kind of material to hide it, like the ones used for cosmetics.

    "Then I''ll leave the investigation to you." Ayami said as she stood up from the comfortable chair made for her. She spoke to the man in a low voice. "I hope that I will get useful information."

    "Please rest assured, young miss. We will finish this as fast as possible and send you valuable information." The man, although calm on the outside, his back was drenched with cold sweat. Ayami stared at the man with apathetic eyes for a few seconds before turning to leave.

    "I hope so." After that, Ayami left with Marie following behind her.

    The man finally relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.

    "Dang, that made me nervous.." The man muttered to himself.

 Chapter 45 - Forget It All

    "Young miss, when will you visit the family?" Marie asked with her head down.

    Ayami thought for a moment before she answered. "Maybe, next week."

    "I''ll inform them."

    "Alright." Ayami nodded her head. Marie left after dropping her off to her dorm.

    Ayami looked at the kitchen knife that was still stuck on the door. She left it be and opened the door to her dorm.

    As she opened the door, she was greeted by a desolate place, making her heart feel empty from the sudden loneliness. After getting used to the vibrant life, it was hard getting used to this hollow lifestyle.

    Everyday, when she goes back to the dorm, she would be greeted by either Celine or Rina.

    Celine was still in her afternoon classes so she was not back yet.

    Ayami shook her head and tried to ignore the void in her heart. She looked around her dorm, trying to look for something the stalker ''dropped''.

    After searching every corner of her dorm, not surprisingly, she found several hidden cameras and a microphone.

    As there was no use to it, Ayami decided to destroy it.

    Ting!

    Ayami took out the phone the stalker gave her as she set a different ringtone from her phone.

    "What a shame you''re not dead yet. Look forward to tomorrow then. It''s more deadly than today." The stalker said in their message.

    "Yes, it''s also a shame that I wasn''t able to find out more information from your subordinate." Ayami sent a reply.

    "Hm? I don''t have a subordinate?" The stalker replied. "But I do have puppets I could use. But you still haven''t caught them yet."

    What?

    Ayami widened her eyes at their reply. Then the organization and this stalker weren''t connected?

    Then what''s their motive then? Why would they want to kill her?

    "Why do you want to kill me?"

    "You want to know? Pretty late for you to ask questions. Well, I expected that from you."

    This person knows me, but who?

    "Well, you''re a threat to this world so I need you to disappear." The stalker responded a second later. Their response made Ayami think that they were crazy.

    How did she become a threat to this world?

    "You''re crazy."

    "Think whatever you want but that won''t stop me from killing you."

    Ayami frustratedly threw the phone away. To think there was a lunatic out there who wanted to kill her just because of their insane thinking.

    Why the heck would she even become a threat to this world when she hasn''t done anything grand??

    Ting!

    The countdown to your death has started!

    If you are able to survive until the end of the time limit, then congratulations!

    You win and destroyed this world.

    So which will you choose:

    Your survival or this world?

    Time left: 5d 10h 21m 2s.

    Ayami furiously typed in a reply. "What crazy things are you doing!?"

    Then the interface changed into a deadlier looking one. A chibi mascot wearing a red robe and a white mask appeared and replied to her in text.

    Wow, they really put effort in making this. Ayami sarcastically said in her mind as she rolled her eyes.

    "If you think this is crazy, then feel free to die. You just have to throw this phone away again and BOOM! It will explode."

    "Are you kidding me??"

    Seriously? I''ve had enough of this!

    "Does it look like a joke to you?" Probably, they were listening and using the camera''s and microphone they replied those words. The mascot became menacing as the letters started to appear one by one.

    Good luck surviving tomorrow~

    Ayami cursed a lot inside her head as she almost threw the phone away but stopped.

    "What is this? A death game?"

    First, a damn Cinderella story then second it became a mystery, then it became a freaking death game!

    Ayami felt like her head was going to explode from jumping from one genre to another one.

    This world really likes to mess with her, huh?

    "Why does this feel like I''m living inside a novel?" Ayami laughed at the absurdness of what she was thinking. She was being influenced by that crazy stalker. "Pfft. Ridiculous."

    Ayami stopped thinking about ridiculous things and started mulling over what the stalker said.

    ''You are a threat to this world.''

    Why did they say that?

    Was it because she knows the future?

    Now that she thinks about it, why would she return back in time?

    What was her purpose in this life?

    It was¡­ strange¡­

    A person like her who has many sins, wouldn''t it be better for her to go to hell instead of giving her a second chance?

    All she wanted was revenge, why does it feel so complicated?

    A frown contorted on her face as many questions started to appear on her mind making her mind a mess. In the midst of her thinking, suddenly, she felt something crack.

    "Fufu~ You''re thinking about complicated things."

    A person suddenly emerged in front of her. That woman was familiar. It was the woman she saw in her dreams, ''The Guide''.

    Ayami stood up and warily backed away from her. As she did so, she noticed that the time was stopped. It was quiet, like there was no sign of anything in this world.

    The woman stood up and approached Ayami. There was a voice screaming inside her to get away from this woman. Ayami wanted to run away from her but couldn''t move, it was like she was stuck in the place. Fear crept up to her as she watched the woman slowly come to her, while words flowed out of her mouth. Ayami wanted to scream and protest, but no words came out of her mouth.

    "There is no need to do that. All you need to do is get your revenge."

    The woman stood in front of her. She raised her hand and placed it on her forehead.

    "Forget what you are thinking but remember, you were the one who picked this choice."

    Ayami slowly forgot what she was thinking. It was like everything was being erased. Her whole existence was slowly being erased.

    "It is not the time yet.." The woman said as she placed Ayami on the bed and disappeared.

 Chapter 46 - Ambushed

    Beep, Beep!

    Ayami slightly opened her eyes, waking up to the alarm continuously ringing loudly, telling her that it was time to wake up and get ready for another day.

    She stared at the same ceiling she always sees whenever she wakes up. The alarm continued to ring loudly. It was the only sound that was breaking the deafening silence.

    For Ayami, the day was the same as usual, if not for the fact that her head felt like it was splitting from the pain. Ayami massaged her temple as she got up from the bed and turned off the alarm. She sat back down on the edge of her bed while groaning in a low voice.

    Then, the next thing she did was to check her phone for messages. Celine texted her saying, "Let''s eat breakfast at the cafeteria. You. Must. Come. Okay?"

    Then she checked the other phone. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the interface.

    Time Left: 4d 16h 27m 12s

    Ayami let out another groan as she felt an intense headache. She clicked her tongue and stood up.

    Did I sleep too much? Ayami thought as she searched on the cupboard for medicine for headache.

    All she could remember yesterday was being followed by random people and dealing with and then she went home afterwards, then, after having a pointless conversation with the stalker, she fell asleep and didn''t wake up afterwards.

    Ayami heard that sleeping too much could also cause headaches. Her stomach was empty from not eating a proper meal, so she felt slightly dizzy.

    "Found it." Ayami mumbled as she took the tablet and drank it. It should be enough to alleviate the pain.

    Then, she took a quick shower and wore her uniform. Ayami went to the cafeteria after she finished preparing. She couldn''t skip today because she might get suspended or worse, expelled.

    The academy is strict after all. Skipping more than 3 days continuously without a valid reason could get the student suspended or expelled, unless they have a valid reason like in Ayami''s case where she was hospitalized for a week.

    Ayami still felt a slight headache as she left her dorm. She locked her dorm and looked around. There was no one around, no flying knives either.

    Ayami expected that there would be some as they did say it would get more dangerous. So, she headed to the cafeteria with a light heart. But suddenly¡­

    Swish! Swish!

    Halfway through, two men dressed in all black from head to toe, only their eyes were visible.

    "A-A ninja!" Ayami exclaimed, bewildered by the ninja-looking men suddenly appearing in front of her. There are ninjas appearing in broad daylight?

    No, wait. They must be cosplayers. That should be the normal thought of a person when they see one, but Ayami felt a dangerous aura coming from them. Killing intent. Was this the people the stalker sent?

    "Are you sent by that guy?" Ayami knew that there was no point in asking that question, as usually, they wouldn''t speak. She was just buying time for herself to run away.

    For them to be able to appear before her, undetected, their skills must be higher than hers. Ayami would be able to deal with them if only she had the same body from the future. Although she could still do some self-defense, her strength wasn''t enough to take the two experts down.

    So the best way is to run away right now. There was no way there would be a third chance. She didn''t want to experience death again. But unfortunately for her, there was no way out, as two men wearing the same outfit as the other two, appeared behind her.

    Her gaze sank as she looked at the two new players who joined the game. Even so, that didn''t mean she would give up. Her brain started to rack out ideas at a rapid pace.

    The four of them looked at each other. Using their eyes as signals, they started to attack Ayami, giving her no chance to escape.

    Ayami took a deep breath and started preparing for the incoming attack. Two men threw a throwing knife at her in a quick motion, while the other two tried to knock her.

    She nimbly dodged two out of the four throwing knives thrown at her and the fist that was aimed at her head. Unfortunately, she wasn''t able to dodge the two knives and got a shallow cut on her right arm and left leg. She was kicked in the guts, making her hunch down to the ground and vomit a clear liquid.

    Ayami hissed, as she felt her eyes getting blurry from the tears slowly forming. It was really painful and nauseating to the point that she preferred to pass out. That kick was too powerful for her current body.

    But she didn''t have time to feel the pain as they started to attack her again, without wasting any time for her to recover.

    Ayami tried to dodge all of their attacks even in her current state, but sadly, she could only dodge some of them, earning more injuries.

    That freaking bastard!!!

    I swear I''ll kill that damn stalker!

    Ayami cursed inside her mind, dodging some of the incoming attacks directed at her, while her movements got slower.

 Chapter 47 - A Guest?

    "Haa¡­ Haa¡­" Ayami panted as she dodged the incoming onslaughts, her stamina couldn''t keep up with the four experts. She had cuts and bruises all over her body, her once fine and neat clothes were reduced to tatters.

    She was holding on her left arm, slightly slouched. She squinted her eyes, as everything started to blur and a dizziness started to assault her. Her legs were trembling from trying to stand up, even though there was no strength left.

    Ayami had difficulty in defending, much less counterattacking.

    Ayami held on, thinking that there would be someone to help her. She hoped that there would be at least some student that will pass by and witness this incident, sadly, no student ever passed by, as if this path was blocked. There were other paths that she could take other than the one she was in, however that doesn''t mean that the ambush wouldn''t happen.

    All of this was planned. She didn''t expect that they would ambush her on the academy grounds.

    If they were to successfully kill her, then that would paint the academy in a bad light for having an unsafe environment. Furthermore, she was also a daughter of an influential family. If their plan were to successfully happen, then the academy''s reputation would be ruined.

    There''s an insider helping them. If not, then how could they casually stroll inside and kill a student.

    Ayami looked at the four men and observed them. She bit her lips in frustration after seeing their condition. There was no trace of them being tired. It was like they were just playing around with her as she saw amusement in their eyes.

    "I think it''s enough playtime." The man responsible for throwing knives, spoke. The three men nodded their heads and started to attack her seriously, obviously aiming to kill her.

    "W-wait!" Ayami said one last time before they could land an attack at her. They stopped, indicating that they will at least listen to her last words. Ayami gulped the lump in her throat. "Why do you want to kill me?"

    The man chuckled and looked at her with amusement. "Buying time, little missy? Unfortunately, that won''t work on us."

    The man snapped his fingers and immediately, the men started rushing to her. Ayami bit her lips until it started to bleed. Her brain was rapidly thinking of ways on how to escape. It was like time was slowed down, her heart beating loudly as her brain went into overdrive mode, sweat trickling down her forehead.

    D-Do I have to use this? Ayami took out the phone in her pocket. It was the phone the stalker gave her.

    You just have to throw this phone away and BOOM! It will explode.

    Her hands were shaking as she held onto the phone. She was unsure whether it would work or not, or what the range of explosion was. She could not trust the words of the one who sent people to kill her.

    She took a deep breath and closed her eyes as she turned around and started to run. She didn''t know if she could outrun them or not but she didn''t have time to care about it now.

    "Trying to run? That is futile!" In a matter of seconds, they were already in front of her, making her immediately stop.

    It''s over.

    Ayami lost the strength on her legs. She looked at the four men with despair, as she awaited her impending doom. But behind her back, there was a throwing knife in her hand. She had to act like this to let their guards down and wait for an opportunity to strike.

    "You should have just been this obedient since the beginning." The man said, unaware of what would happen to him later on.

    At this time, their guards should be low as Ayami doesn''t have any energy to continue. Ayami waited for the chance, gripping and loosening the throwing knife. Just then, an opportunity striked.

    "Leader! We have to hurry!" This time it was a woman, dressed in the same outfit as them. The man, who was supposed to kill her, is actually the leader.

    Now!

    Distracted by the sudden appearance of the woman, the leader frowned and spoke to her. "What''s the ru¡ª"

    Swish!

    In a smooth motion, the throwing knife pierced the leader''s neck using her last bit of strength. I did it!

    The leader fell down, coughing up blood, while his hand was on his neck. He didn''t know what happened as everything happened at lightning fast speed.

    The leader''s subordinate was silent, no they stood still as if they were frozen. They couldn''t fathom what just happened. Finally, snapping out of it the woman screamed.

    "L-leader!!!" The woman turned her head and viciously glared at Ayami. "You, what have you done?"

    Ayami didn''t have any strength to speak so she could only smile at them.

    The men approached the collapsed leader, while the leader was glaring sharply at Ayami. "Cough¡­! K-Kill¡­ H¡­er¡­!"

    Ayami smiled as she watched the ninjas rushing to her. So this is it¡­ this is the end.

    Ayami closed her eyes, waiting for her death. As she did so, she heard a familiar voice enter her ears.

    "A guest?"

 Chapter 48 - Embarrassing

    "A guest?"

    Ayami quickly opened her eyes and looked towards the source of the familiar voice. Standing not far away from them, was Kayden wearing a formal suit. He looked like he was going somewhere important. He had the air of a businessman. But in contrast to his looks was¡­ the lollipop that was in his mouth and that goofy smile of his.

    Ayami wondered what he was doing here. No, putting that aside, he needs to get out of here.

    "K-Kayden¡­" Ayami tried to shout but all she could was whisper. Her eyes wandered around.

    Kayden was alone making it even more dangerous for him to be here. They would surely kill him if he continued to stay here.

    Ayami looked at the five who were distracted by the sudden appearance of Kayden. She hurriedly took out her phone and messaged Kayden. Ayami couldn''t do this earlier but now that they were distracted, she had time to message someone.

    "You have to get out of here!"

    "You also have to call for help."

    She sent the messages in rapid succession. Ayami glanced at Kayden. He should have received the message but there was no reaction from him.

    Kayden furrowed his brows and rubbed his chin, as if he was in deep thought, ignoring the vibration coming from his pocket.

    "Hmm¡­ I don''t think there were guests today, intruders then?" After saying that, he took out his phone. He smiled as he glanced at Ayami, but his eyes weren''t smiling. "A dangerous one at that."

    "Tsk. Tsk. We can''t have that." Kayden shook his head, then he looked at them with a bright smile. "That is why¡­ Seize them."

    No, what are you saying?? You have to get out of here. Ayami panicked inside. While he was having his monologue, the five of them were discussing and they decided to obviously kill Kayden.

    But then, something surprising happened that made her drop her jaws.

    All of the assailants were pinned down on the ground by burly men, looking like bodyguards.

    "We also caught some rats hiding." The bodyguards showed three more men tied up. Kayden only nodded his head. His voice sounded a bit upset as he spoke. "Search every corner of the academy."

    To think that rats would be able to enter the academy. It looks like we need to strengthen the security.

    He approached Ayami, who had a dumbfounded look on her face. He smiled faintly but that smile disappeared as he looked at the cuts and bruises all over her body.

    "I apologize for being late." Kayden said with an apologetic expression. Ayami shook her head and waved her hand frantically. "It''s fine, it''s fine."

    "Are you alright?" Kayden asked as he crouched down with one knee on the ground.

    ''Do I look like I''m alright?'' That was what her expression said which made Kayden chuckle a bit. Ayami frowned at him, why is he laughing?

    Kayden pinched her chin and closely examined her face that had some bruises and cuts. But even so, it didn''t hide the ethereal beauty she had.

    It would be bad if this gets a scar. After all, a face is also a woman''s pride, especially with her status.

    Kayden gently touched the cut on her cheeks, making her wince in pain a little bit. "Does it hurt?"

    Teary eyed, Ayami looked at Kayden and nodded her head. Then Kayden took out a lollipop inside his pocket and offered it to Ayami. "Want one?"

    Ayami weakly nodded her head. She could only do this kind of action since her body was too tired to speak.

    "It might ease your pain a little bit." Kayden took off the wrapper and fed her the lollipop.

    Ayami tasted the sweet flavor of the lollipop. It did help her relax for a bit.

    "Delicious?" Kayden asked to which, Ayami nodded her head. Kayden smiled brightly and patted her head. "Good."

    Seeing that smile, Ayami fell into a daze. She could feel her face heating up and it intensed when he patted her head.

    "Now then, excuse me." Ayami was just about to ask what he was excusing for. Without warning, Kayden carried her like a princess in front of the bodyguard and the assailants.

    Embarrassing. It was too embarrassing.

    Ayami felt like burying herself to the ground due to embarrassment.

    Even the bodyguards were surprised by Kayden''s sudden action, but they didn''t show it on their face.

    "Let''s go."

    And so, they headed to his car while Ayami was being carried by him.

 Chapter 49 - Shadow Guards

    Ayami waited for the nurses to finish applying ointment and bandages while Kayden was languidly laying on the sofa, talking to someone. They were currently in a private hospital room. Ayami refused as it wasn''t necessary but Kayden insisted.

    After the nurses finished their jobs, they quietly left. Ayami waited for Kayden to finish his call before she talked to him.

    Seeing that Kayden hanged up, Ayami opened her mouth to speak. "Those people¡­ who are they?"

    "If you are talking about the intruders, we still don''t have any clues. The one who apprehended them are shadow guards. They are not known to ordinary students as they are well hidden and that shadow guards are there to protect the students from danger, just like what happened earlier. Although we apologize for being late as there are also other rats aside from the one who attacked you." Kayden briefly explained. "Any questions?"

    "Is it alright to tell me this? After all, you did say that they are not known."

    "Well, it should be fine as long as you don''t tell anybody else."

    "Then why did you tell me? And how did you know?"

    "Just because" Kayden was unsure of his answer. "And because I''m a special student. There are many privileges a special student has." Kayden triumphantly smirked at her, as if he was above her.

    Ayami nodded her head, after that silence ensued as she was thinking what to talk about. Her eyes wandered around until her gaze stopped at his suit. "Are you going somewhere important?"

    Kayden scratched the back of his neck as he sighed like he encountered a big dilemma. "Actually¡­ The company I worked for is facing a problem. I was actually going to ask you for a favor."

    "Sure, you did save me after all." Ayami then started looking around for a pen and paper, but seeing where she was, of course there wouldn''t be any. "Pen and paper please."

    Kayden handed her a piece of paper and a pen, coming from his pockets. Ayami jotted down her father''s assistant''s contact information. After she finished, she handed it to Kayden.

    "You can contact this guy and tell him the details. He''s my father''s assistant."

    "Uh, can you also persuade your father? There are some risks involving the project." Ayami agreed to it, but suddenly a question popped in her head.

    "You''re working already?"

    "Mm." Kayden answered as he saved the number on his phone. "I just joined a newly established company last year."

    "Which company?" Ayami asked, it might be useful to get it on her side if she knew which company it was. Kayden just smiled at her. "You wouldn''t really know which company it is even if I told you."

    Ayami could tell that there were some details he couldn''t really tell her. She understood that, so she didn''t press any further

    "Wait, if your company is in trouble, what are you still doing here?"

    "Eh? Isn''t it obvious? I''m slacking." Kayden proudly spoke, while nonchalantly sitting on the sofa. Would that be fine?

    Kayden changed the topic as easily as he breathed. "Anyway, are you alright now? Do you have the strength to stand up?"

    "I think so." Ayami moved her legs and started standing up. She was still a bit wobbly as she was still regaining her strength.

    Kayden examined her. It would be best for her to take a rest first.

    "You should rest some more." Kayden said as he patted her head. Ayami felt irked for some reason. It was like he was treating her like a child when she is obviously a fully grown adult. Pushing his hand away, Ayami asked Kayden.

    "Did you tell my parents?"

    "No, not yet."

    "No, don''t tell them."

    "Alright. It would be for the best to do that."

    The academy''s reputation would take a hit if ever news reached their parents that a student was attacked inside the academy grounds.

    After they finished their conversation, Kayden did his own business while Ayami checked her other phone.

    You have two unread messages.

    "It would be a shame if you died just from this, don''t you think?" It was sent thirty minutes ago, when she was being attacked by the intruders.

    "I didn''t expect the academy to have ''Shadow Guards''. Well, that''s unfortunate." It was sent after the shadow guards appeared and apprehended the intruders.

    Ting!

    All of a sudden, Ayami received another message.

    "Oh well, good luck defending yourself in that hospital~"

 Chapter 50 - Please, No.

    Huh?

    Ayami almost dropped her phone as she read the message. They weren''t done yet and possibly, they would bring forth stronger resources.

    That can''t happen! I need to get out of here!

    With her current state, she doesn''t even have the energy to walk, let alone run and escape. She bit her lips and ruffled her hair in frustration.

    This damn stalker!!!

    "What''s wrong?" Kayden asked after seeing her distressed expression. Ayami turned to look at him while trying to look as pitiful as an abandoned cat. "Um, I don''t want to stay here."

    "Then I''ll send you home." Ayami widened her eyes as she panicked. I can''t let that happen!

    "No!" Her sudden outburst caught him by surprise. Ayami tried to muster up her strength and approached Kayden in a panicked state. As her legs were still wobbly, she lost her balance and fell on top of Kayden. Not having any choice, Kayden could only grab her waist to make sure she wouldn''t fall off.

    Ayami leaned closer to his face and pleaded with him, not noticing their embarrassing position. "Please, no."

    "My parents will worry if I go home with bandages all over my body." Ayami pleaded with puppy eyes, while leaning more closer as Kayden was backing away. She was intent on not going back to her home.

    "Then, let''s go back to your dorm?" Ayami shook her head. That was a big NO. "Celine would find out and tattle on my parents."

    "Then why not stay here?"

    "I hate it here." Ayami looked even more pitiful as she said that but on the inside: Nope, not really.

    She had to hurry or else they would get here, no they might already be here.

    "Then where?" Kayden furrowed his brows. Ayami shrugged her shoulders, she didn''t know either. "Somewhere safe?"

    Kayden thought for a moment before he smiled brightly. "Then how about my place? Are you okay with that?"

    "Eh, won''t I trouble you?" Kayden shook his head. "It''s fine. We''re also gonna have some fun. So fun that you would pass out from exhaustion."

    "So do you agree?" Ayami eagerly nodded her head, as long as she could get out of here. Unbeknownst to her she would regret it later on.

    "Then, could you get off now?" Ayami didn''t seem to realize how close their bodies were. Then, as if realization dawned to her, Ayami''s face flushed.

    The smile on Kayden''s face didn''t fade, as he found her reaction amusing. Ayami''s face was as red as a tomato. She tried to get off him in a flustered manner.

    "I-I''m sorry..."

    Before she could get off him, a man looking like an assistant entered and saw the scene. He cleared his throat, making his presence known to the both of them.

    "Ahem. Sir, sorry to interrupt. I have brought the miss'' change of clothes." He spoke with a straight face as if he wasn''t bothered by the lovey-dovey scene in front of him. But on the inside, he was screaming.

    What in the world am I witnessing? Is this¡­ Is this¡­

    Ahhhhh¡­ To think there would come a day where he would witness a lovey-dovey scene which he could only see in romance fictions. Truly, this day was the most memorable day to him!

    Ayami immediately got off him as soon as the assistant entered. The assistant handed her the bag of clothes. Ayami thanked him and went to the restroom that was also inside the private room to change.

    Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked at the brand of the clothes. It was LINK, the most sought-after brand in the country. It''s single piece cost millions of money. She heard that they must first have a reservation and had to wait for a year before they could get their order.

    Inside the bag, was a casual green dress that flowed until her knees and a pair of green flat shoes that matched with the dress. After she finished dressing up, she confidently walked out of the restroom.

    "It looks good on you." He said while checking her out from top to bottom with a thumbs up. While the assistant was nodding his head in satisfaction.

    "By the way, how were you able to buy this dress from that brand?" Ayami narrowed her eyes. It would have been accepted if the one who bought it was from the five families. Kayden scratched his cheeks. "It was a gift from a friend."

    "Why would they give you a dress?" Ayami thought his friend was weird.

    "Actually, they wanted me to wear that¡­" He seemed embarrassed as he continued on. "They said I would look more beautiful if I wore that¡­"

    After hearing the reason, Ayami blurted out, "Are they perverts?"

    No, it''s more like they were bullying him.

 Chapter 51 - Lux Residency

    "Well then, let''s go."

    Kayden excitedly spoke like a little kid, which made Ayami wonder what he was excited about. The assistant took care of all the matters concerning the hospital bills.

    As they went through the hospital corridor, Ayami felt like she was being watched again. They weren''t even hiding their killing intent, so she was able to roughly pinpoint where they were.

    "Sir." The assistant, who was introduced as Alfred by Kayden earlier, leaned closer to his boss and whispered something, which Ayami couldn''t hear. Kayden let out a small chuckle after hearing what Alfred said to him. He whispered back to him.

    For a boss and assistant, they are oddly close¡­

    But Ayami had no time to think about it as the people watching her were a distraction for her.

    Swish!

    "Huh?" Ayami was pulled by Kayden, making her lean onto him. From the outsider''s viewpoint, it looked like she suddenly tripped. "Woah, are you alright?"

    "Ah, yes, I''m fine." Ayami spoke, while deep inside she was thinking. What was that?

    Ayami faintly saw an object that was flying to her, but suddenly it vanished into thin air. And the people watching her, they were gone.

    "Excuse me, Sir, Miss, with our pace right now it would be night by the time we left this place. I suggest that Sir would carry the Miss so that we can go back home, fast." Alfred said, as usual, with a straight face.

    "You''re right." Kayden agreed to his suggestion. Ayami stuttered as she spoke. "H-huh? No, wait. It''s embarrassing!"

    She couldn''t protest anymore as she covered her face and was already being carried by Kayden. As her face was covered, she didn''t notice the exchange glance between the two.

    Alfred nodded his head and carefully hid the throwing knife he caught earlier. Alfred went with them until they reached their car.

    Alfred opened the door for them. Ayami sat down in the car, pouting like a grumpy child. While Kayden was amused by her expression.

    "Then, I''ll be staying here. Sir." Kayden nodded his head as he spoke with a smile on his face and a dangerous glint in his eyes. "I hope you''ll take care of all of them."

    "Yes, sir." After that, Alfred closed the door and watched as the car left. Then, he turned around and walked inside the hospital.

    Meanwhile, Ayami was looking outside the window, the frown on her face never left, while Kayden didn''t care much about it as he was thinking about some matters.

    The driver in front kept glancing at the girl who was brought by the young master, wondering who she was. But of course, he was still careful when driving. He didn''t want to lose head over some useless curiosity.

    After a few minutes of doing nothing, Ayami started to get bored. She opened the car''s window in order to get some fresh air. Then, she noticed a black car just beside them a distance away. It''s window was slowly opening.

    "Close the window." Kayden said hurriedly, looking behind anxiously. Seeing that Ayami was staying still, he had no choice but to pull Ayami towards him and duck, while also closing the window as fast as possible.

    Tang! Ayami heard a familiar sound hit the closing window. It was a bullet.

    "Step on it." Kayden ordered the driver. The car sped up, expertly avoiding the cars in front of them. Behind them, two black cars were chasing after them.

    Ting!

    Ayami checked the phone and a new message was sent to her. "Good luck avoiding that. Hehehe~"

    After she finished reading that, she immediately apologized to Kayden. "Sorry. I dragged you into this. Actually, I''m their target."

    "It''s fine, there''s no need to be sorry. It''s more fun this way." Kayden gently smiled at her.

    Eh? You''re having fun in this situation??

    Ayami was speechless. To think there was someone who enjoys situations like this.

    Behind their car, the two black cars were speeding up, almost catching up to them. In a distance away, their pursuers started to bring out the guns and shoot them.

    Tang!

    Tang!

    Tang!

    It felt like it was raining bullets as Ayami continuously heard the bullets hitting the car. Thankfully, the car seems to be bulletproof.

    But that didn''t they were completely safe. They could have shot their tires and they would lose control, unless the driver could do the impossible.

    "Sir, Miss, please hold on tight." The driver drove even faster than before, while Kayden tried to ease her. "Don''t worry, we''re almost near."

    A few meters away, they could see the entrance to their residence.

    [Lux Residency]

    They were a resident there so the guard was able to recognize their car and let them in.

    Thankfully, their pursuers weren''t able to chase after them as they were stopped by the gatekeepers.

 Chapter 52 - On The Final Day

    Tap, tap, tap.

    In a grand and luxurious room, a person was sitting elegantly on a one-seater sofa that faced the ceiling to floor window, while swirling a glass of red wine on their hand. Their face were covered with a half-mask with a design of black skull and roses with thorny vine. They wore a robe that covered their body from head to toe, making their gender unknown.

    Behind them, was a man kneeling and begging for his life, stripped naked and their assistant, punishing the man.

    "So you failed your task, eh?" A crisp voice came out of their mouth. Their tone was sharp enough to immediately shut the loud man up. "Dispose of him, then."

    "Report." A single command made the assistant stand straight and report what happened. "The men we sent failed to kill Ayami Gardner. According to them, after she got treated at the hospital, she entered a car with an unknown man. They entered the Golden Hills Residence, so we couldn''t do anything."

    "Who is the man?"

    "That¡­ We are still finding out." The assistant timidly spoke, afraid that an object might come flying to him and be subjected to his boss'' wrath. Surprisingly, no objects came flying at him. "Too slow. I want every information regarding him

    The masked person looked at the wine glass as if they were deep in thought. It was unknown what they were thinking but a moment later, a smile escaped from their lips with their eyes turning like a crescent moon.

    "Ayami Gardner, no matter how many people you gather, you will still fall under my hands and die." The masked person laughed and raised their wine glass as if offering a toast to the world. They then ordered their assistant. "Cease all of the activities right now. On the final day, we will surprise her."

    "Ayami, I wonder how long you''ll last¡­"

    ***

    The car stopped in front of a huge villa. They have arrived. When the car stopped, Ayami heaved a sigh of relief.

    It was the most extreme car ride she experienced in this life. Thankfully, she could finally relax and calm down, although she still didn''t let her guard down.

    Kayden got down first and offered his hand to Ayami, who was stepping down after him. Ayami thanked him.

    As she got off, she saw an old man hurriedly walking towards them in an elegant manner¡­

    Now that she thought about it, his employees are kind of¡­ eccentric¡­

    "My apologies young master, I didn''t know that you would arrive at this time. It seems I still lack some skills." The old man, dressed like a butler, did a ninety degree bow. Kayden just laughed it off. "Old man, how many times do I tell you? You don''t need to greet me."

    "It is my job, young master." The old butler stood upright and that was when he noticed the girl beside his young master. Bewildered by the girl, the old butler who had many years of experience lost composure. But that didn''t last for long.

    "Ahem. And this lady is?" The old butler asked. It was unusual for the young master to bring home his male friends, much more a girl.

    "My friend, Ayami." Kayden happily introduced her like an excited little kid.

    "Oh, I see. Then please enjoy your stay here Miss Ayami." The old butler bowed to her. Ayami couldn''t say anything but thank you. "Uh, t-thank you."

    "Then, I won''t hold you here any longer." The old butler made way to them. Kayden and Ayami entered the villa.

    After they left, the old butler, Sebastian, immediately went inside. He ran through the hallways, forgetting his elegance. Then he shouted at the top of his lungs, which surprised the other employee working here because they have not seen him once cause a ruckus.

    "The young master brought home a girl!"

    Hearing that news, it really was a great reason to cause a ruckus. Sebastian went to his master''s study, where the madam and the master were currently staying.

    "Madam, Master!"

    "Seb, why are you causing a ruckus?" His master asked after seeing Sebastian looking all worn out. It was unusual as that guy was really obsessed with elegance.

    "The young master¡­ The young master brought home a girl."

    After he said that, the madam who was calm, dropped the book she was reading and looked like she faced a great crisis. While the master slammed the table and stood as he shouted.

    "What?!"

    His hands were pale from clenching them too tight. This is a problem!

    "Where are they? Lead me there."

    Meanwhile, unaware of the ruckus they caused Kayden and Ayami were happily wandering through the hallways.. Ayami was excited to see a man''s room as she had never entered one before, except for her father''s.

 Chapter 53 - Lets Do Bad Things Together

    "Wow, so this is your room." Ayami said as she looked around his room. It was a pretty normal room, although it was a little bit bigger.

    "I''ll go get us some snacks, you stay here." Ayami nodded her head. Kayden examined her complexion. Thankfully, she was fully relaxed. She didn''t notice earlier, but she was really pale even though she looked calm. After making sure she was comfortable, Kayden left.

    What a surprise. To think he lived here.

    Lux Residency, it was one of the most prestigious places to live. It''s residence came from a prominent and influential family. They also boasted their tight security and the crime rate was almost nonexistent.

    It was on the opposite way to where she lives, which was called Golden Hills Residence. They were almost the same when it came to the residence.

    Anyways, I can finally take a breather.

    Ayami took out her phone. Celine was asking where she was. Ayami sent her an apology message. While she did so, she contacted her father to help Kayden, which his father readily agreed. It surprised her that he would actually agree to her request which had some risk.

    Ting!

    "Do you think you could hide there like a rat?"

    Ayami ignored their message. Oh well, I think I should take this chance to relax and have some fun.

    Ayami started to look around his room. It was really ordinary and nothing stood out. His room was painted with boring black and white colors, surprisingly. She expected that his room would be flashy considering his goofy personality. He had a big king sized bed, with a nightstand on either side. Ayami looked through the drawers of the nightstand, even though she knew it was rude. But all it had was¡­ chocolates¡­

    There were another two doors in his room, probably one of them leading to a bathroom and the other to his studies, as her room was also like that.

    Speaking of, wouldn''t this look like he was bringing his girlfriend home to introduce to his parents?

    At that thought, Ayami immediately slapped herself. What the heck are you thinking? Ayami scolded herself inside.

    "Hey, I''m back." Kayden said with a woman dressed in maid''s clothing following behind him, while pushing a trolley cart with tea and a variety of snacks on it. The maid bowed and quietly left the room.

    They both sat on the edge of the bed with the trolley cart in front of them. Kayden picked up a cookie and offered it to Ayami while also leaning closer to her ear.

    Ayami could feel his hot breath near her ear, making her feel tingly and weird. For some reason, her chest was tightening like she couldn''t breathe.

    Then he whispered to her ear, making it feel like she received an electric bolt. His voice was gentle, yet at the same time charming and playful, enough to make thousands of women get charmed just by his voice alone.

    "You have to eat lots and rest well, because later we will do lots of bad things together."

    We will do lots of bad things together.

    Lots of bad things together.

    Bad¡­

    The word bad things echoed in her mind like a broken record. Ayami felt like her brain started malfunctioning. Why¡­ does that sound suggestive¡­?

    "Fuuu¡­" As if that wasn''t enough, Kayden blew through her ears, making her yelp and touch her ears.

    Then, as if nothing happened, Kayden smiled and put the cookies in her wide open mouth. Then he turned to the trolley cart to get more cookies to eat.

    Ayami could only eat the cookies in a daze. She couldn''t even taste it. She took a peek at Kayden, who was stuffing the snacks into his mouth like a glutton.

    For some reason, she felt like something shattered as dark lines appeared on her forehead.

    "Why aren''t you eating? Here. We will need energy later."

    Hey, I''m a patient and still need to recover, have you forgotten?

    Ayami could only eat the cookies while grumbling inside.. She was already tired.

 Chapter 54 - Smiling Devil

    "Haa¡­ No more¡­ Haa¡­" Ayami looked tired as she heavily breathed, while touching her belly.

    "No more¡­ I won''t eat cookies anymore¡­" Ayami said, laying on Kayden''s bed.

    After gobbling all the cookies, their stomachs were full. Ayami felt like she couldn''t eat anymore and she felt like she could see cookies dancing in front of her, making her nauseous while Kayden was doing fine and was still energetic.

    Knock, knock.

    "Young master, I''m coming in." They both heard Sebastian''s voice coming through the other side of the door. "The master and madam are here."

    Behind Sebastian was a man and a woman in his forties. They both looked sharp and serious, in contrast to Kayden, who was indifferent.

    The master and madam? That means they are his parents.

    Kayden''s father looked at Ayami with a scrutinizing gaze. He shook his head and sternly looked at Kayden.

    "I see you brought home some random girl you picked off the streets. Are you that desperate?"

    Ayami''s expression darkened, offended by the words that came out of his mouth. Kayden didn''t speak a word, as if it was a waste talking to them.

    "Haah¡­ I expect nothing less from a freeloader. Tsk." The madam said, sighing disappointedly.

    "To think you would actually bring a dirty thing home."

    Kayden yawned, not really interested in hearing their so-called ''scolding''. But noticing the dark expression of the person beside him, he went closer to her and covered her ears. Ayami was surprised while Kayden signalled her with his eyes to not worry.

    Then he turned his head to look at his ''father''. The next moment, his aura changed.

    Kayden was still smiling yet, they could feel the suppressing aura coming from him. In an instant, the room''s temperature dropped down.

    Cold sweat dripped down the master''s forehead, it was like he was looking at a smiling devil, ready to eat its prey. He bit his lips, but still he didn''t falter. He couldn''t let this continue, he couldn''t let him be the one who holds authority.

    "I¡­" The ''master'' couldn''t continue speaking as Kayden calmly spoke to him in a relaxed manner, but the weight of his voice was too heavy, as if he had the authority of a king.

    "Are you gonna talk back now? Have you already forgotten who''s the master of this house?"

    The ''master'' couldn''t talk back to him and could only submit to him. Kayden stared at him coldly, it was a contrast to his usual nonchalant attitude. He was staring at him viciously, if he did one wrong move then he''s a goner. The ''master'' gulped down the lump on his throat.

    "Get lost."

    As if they were pardoned by the king, they all heaved a sigh of relief and immediately scurried out of the room.

    Kayden sighed as they left the room, his aura dissipated in a single second. It seems like he was too lax.

    While Ayami, she was wondering what just happened. She couldn''t hear anything they were saying as Kayden was covering her ears. And he covered her ears really well, as she couldn''t really hear anything at all.

    Kayden removed his hands from her ears. Then he apologized to her. "Sorry, you had to see that."

    "Eh, it''s fine. But if you don''t mind me asking, does it happen often?"

    "No." It was probably because he brought home a girl. Kayden thought, while Ayami thought so too, making her feel bad. Seeing that the mood has been splashed by mud, Kayden thought of something to do.

    "Ahhh! This mood is too depressing. Let''s go play games!" He stood up and dragged her to a room connected to his room. It had a lot of game consoles placed neatly together. There were also movies, games, and other stuff to have fun.

    Kayden immediately sat down on a cushion and set up the game. Like an excited kid, he patted the cushion next to him.

    "Let''s play! Let''s play!"

    At this moment, Ayami didn''t know whether or not he was a man or a child.

 Chapter 55 - Bad End

    Ayami laid on the floor, tired from playing games too much. She screamed frustratedly after losing for the 999th round of the game. It has been three days since they started and Ayami had to stay here to beat the game. She was finally regretting coming here.

    "This is too much!!!"

    Bad, this is the bad you are talking about? This is just childish bad!

    All they did all day was slacking, playing games, and eating junk foods. They also pranked some of the employees. And now, it was already past midnight.

    Ayami felt like she was disappointed, she was expecting something else. Wait, why was she disappointed?

    Ayami blushed and covered her face.

    "Come on, why don''t we try one more time?" Kayden urged her and handed her the console, "Maybe this time we''ll win?"

    They were playing an RPG game and were set on extreme mode. Everything was ridiculously hard and they were on it from the time they started playing.

    Before they could even face the final boss, they would have to defeat the mini bosses. Every time they lose, they restart from the very beginning. Which was very annoying as they would have to face the mini bosses again.

    "Fine, this is the last one."

    And so, they went on a conquest to defeat the game. It was already dawn by the time they defeated the final boss.

    Staring at the screen with bloodshot eyes, Ayami and Kayden celebrated.

    Congratulations!

    You have defeated the final boss on your 1000th round¡­

    After that, the credits rolled. But there was still something called the after credits and it was shown right after the credits.

    And so the hero lived a peaceful life. But¡­

    Was it really the end?

    An unknown creature has arrived!

    Warning!!!

    Please defeat it or else your saved data will be permanently erased.

    "What!?" Ayami felt devastated. It wasn''t the end yet? Who the hell made this game!? I''ll find them and kill them!!!

    The screen shook and the world inside the game started to crumble. Their characters were slowly vanishing, as if they were being deleted.

    Then, the screen turned black. Words in red color started to appear.

    B A D E N D . . .

    It is unfortunate. You may only defeat the real boss when you defeat every enemy on your first try.

    Ayami almost threw the console on the screen, but Kayden managed to stop her. All the time they spent on it was wasted!

    This can''t be!

    Then why the hell did we even play this game if we couldn''t even defeat the real boss? Why the hell was this game invented when we couldn''t even have some fun?

    This game¡­ is an embodiment of frustration and rage¡­

    After playing the game three whole days without sleep, Ayami felt like she just wanted to crawl on a bed and sleep.

    "The game you chose is the worst." Ayami commented.

    "Sorry, I didn''t know that this would happen." Kayden was also tired and disappointed at the ending. Oh well, they can''t change anything now and they can''t return the time they wasted. There''s nothing they could do about it.

    And so, they were just about to sleep when Ayami received a text message from Marie.

    "We have finished interrogating the man."

    "Sorry, I need to make a call." Kayden nodded his head and went back to his room. This room was soundproof so she didn''t have to worry about being heard.

    "Tell me the details."

    Marie started telling her what they found out from the man. There was only a little bit they could find out as the man only knew a little. Of course, he was only in the lowest part of the organization.

    "Come pick me up tonight." Ayami told Marie her location. "Understood.

    Ayami hung up and then looked at the other phone. There were no activities for the past three days, they didn''t even send her a message. Ayami thought they must have given up, but the timer was still bothering her. It felt like it was calm before the storm.

    Time Left: 1d 18h 59m 21s

 Chapter 56 - A Painful Scream

    Ayami slept first in the guestroom and woke up when it was already dinner time. She stretched her arms and did a small warm up.

    After sleeping for the whole day, she felt refreshed but her stomach was empty.

    "Are you awake yet, sleeping beauty?"

    Kayden asked as soon as he opened the door. "Someone is here to pick you up."

    It must be Marie. Ayami thought.

    It was time to leave the happy moments and start to get serious. It was also a perfect timing as she had already recovered from the wounds she suffered the other day. "I have to leave now. Actually, I was just going to stay here for a day."

    They went down to the sitting room. Inside the sitting room was Alfred and Marie. Ayami was wondering what Alfred was doing here, but she thought that he must be here for Kayden.

    "Young miss." Marie smiled sweetly at her, but her eyes were vigilant as she was in an unknown territory. The most she was wary of was Alfred. She couldn''t even read this man as she conversed with him while waiting for the young miss.

    "Mr. Kayden, thank you for taking care of our young miss these past few days. We brought some gifts in token of our appreciation." Marie showed him the gifts she brought while maintaining a courteous distance.

    "There was no need for this, but thank you anyways." Kayden smiled perfunctorily.

    "Then we have bothered you for long enough, we will be taking our leave."

    "Let me see you out."

    They were both smiling and looked like they were getting along with each other, but actually they were checking each other out.

    Are you even worthy of our young miss?

    Then, the atmosphere changed when Alfred and Kayden switched places. With a straight face, he spoke towards Marie. "You have not really bothered us, in fact we welcome your beloved young miss with open arms. We would like it if you visit us often."

    The tension in the air increased, but Marie was still calmly smiling.

    "Yes, when the young miss have time, she will visit you." Marie spoke for Ayami like a spokesperson.

    "You two get along well. But Marie, we have to go." Ayami impatiently spoke.

    "The young miss has some business to attend to, so we will be taking our leave."

    The four of them left the room and went outside, where a car was parked. Sebastian was also there, seemingly waiting for them. He bowed ninety degrees after seeing the four of them.

    "We apologize for letting you see an unsightly thing on your first day of stay here. We''ll make sure it won''t happen again." Then after that Sebastian took his leave.

    "I''ll be taking my leave." After saying their goodbyes, the car left Golden Hills Residence.

    Marie was the one driving the car. They didn''t head home, instead they went back to the warehouse. Fortunately, there weren''t any pursuers on the way home.

    Ayami wore a mask that covered her whole face. They then entered the warehouse, which was guarded by hundreds of men.

    The men confirmed that he was part of the unknown organization that Yanna was talking about, but as he was low-ranked, they couldn''t find any useful information. All they could find out was the content of his mission and the basic information. Ayami expected that finding information from a tight lipped organization is difficult.

    But she knew that there were still some more the man wasn''t telling them.

    Facing the man who was terribly worned out from torture, Ayami frowned.

    "I told you¡­ I don''t have any more I can give you¡­" The man, whose name was John, spoke. Poor John didn''t know what his fate awaits if he continues to be like this.

    Ayami couldn''t believe she would be the one who would personally interrogate.

    A painful scream reverberated throughout the warehouse that night.

 Chapter 57 - The Leader

    Ayami was in a good mood after she woke up. She slept at a hotel since she didn''t want to go home or get back to her dorm. She was all alone in the room, with no one to protect her.

    Ayami gave the phone the stalker gave her to Marie, so that she could use it to investigate.

    She had her breakfast and ate merrily. She was all lax all day and waited for time to pass.

    "At 10 PM, it will start. It would happen in Crimson Hotel. Where should we meet?" Hailey, the one who she blackmailed messaged her last night. She just replied after a good night''s sleep. "I''ll be waiting at the lounge."

    She also picked Crimson Hotel after she read her messages.

    And so, she did all the various things the hotel could offer and played around all day. While doing so, she also went to gather some information, until it was already 9:30 PM.

    Apparently, a masquerade party was going to happen at the top floor, which was made for large events. Only the ones invited could enter.

    Ayami prepared herself and changed her clothes. She wore a short wig, a simple white mask that covered her entire face, and a black suit. It was better to disguise myself as a male right now.

    "Ahem. Hello, hello." Ayami tried to test her voice. She tried to make it deeper, but not awkward. Her voice was fine and she won''t probably get found out.

    Finally, after she finished her preparation, she went down the lounge and waited for Hailey to arrive.

    Fifteen minutes later, Hailey arrived and was looking around, looking for someone. She realized that she didn''t really know what their appearance was so she sent a message to that guy. "Where are you?"

    "Near the emergency exit." Hailey hurriedly went to the emergency exit. There she saw an enthralling man wearing a white mask with a dignified aura. She couldn''t believe that this man was her blackmailer.

    "Invitation?" A smooth and seductive voice came out of the man''s mouth. With just his voice alone, it was enough for her legs to weaken.

    Hailey scurried and took out a black invitation card from her bag. She handed it to the man, shyly.

    "Then, let''s go." The man offered his elbow like a gentleman, while Hailey dazedly took it. Then as she touched the man''s arm, she felt like a shock electrocuted her.

    What is wrong with me today? Hailey thought.

    They both proceeded to the venue and showed the invitation card, then they entered and sat to the farthest seat away from the front as it was the one reserved for them.

    They waited for the event to start. They had to wait thirty more minutes before the event started. All of the people were seated in their respective places.

    Hailey was nervously fidgeting on her seat, while secretly glancing at the calm and elegant man beside her. She glanced one more time again and this time, their eyes met. Hailey immediately looked away, while her heart was beating rapidly like there were some people in there drumming.

    Ayami, who was just there not thinking about anything in particular, felt that Hailey kept looking at her. But when their eyes met, she immediately looked away, which made Ayami think that she was being weird.

    Soon after, they entered the main event. The host spoke merrily and welcomed a man.

    "Now then, let us welcome the leader of the gang! Mr. Heisman!"

    What? The guy who always hid himself was now showing himself?

    A familiar looking man stepped on the podium. Ayami was so surprised that she almost fell off her chair.

    What was he doing here?

    That guy¡­ was her former fiance''s uncle. He was also one of Cole''s long list of enemies. The gears on her head started spinning.

    "I thank you all for gathering under my request¡­" Ayami didn''t bother to listen to the formalities.

    "I have news for you. The leadership will now be passed¡­"

    Her hands clenched tightly to the point it went pale. That can''t be! Was I too late?

    "¡­To my dearest son, Devin Heisman. Although it is not this year, I hope everyone will support my decision."

    The people inside the venue murmured to themselves. This was too sudden!

 Chapter 58 - Revenge

    Ayami heaved a sigh of relief, the outcome was okay. A few moments later, after the leader finished his speech, the event ended and everyone was now free to go home.

    Ayami stood up and immediately stood up, while Hailey was saddened as the man had already vanished.

    Ayami quickly finished changing back to her own clothes. She checked the time and it was now 11:42 PM.

    Then, all of a sudden her battery died. Ayami scratched her head, she forgot to charge it. Oh well, I''ll just take a walk. But she didn''t know that she would regret her decision.

    At the same time, Marie received a message from the phone Ayami gave her.

    "Are you ready for your final moments?"

    Time Left: 17m 12s

    Marie''s eyes widened in surprise. She had to contact the young miss!

    Marie tried contacting the young miss but to no avail. She couldn''t reach her phone.

    "The young miss! We need to go to the young miss!" Marie screamed desperately. She ordered the men to prepare the car. But there was a problem. The cars they were supposed to use were sabotaged.

    "Isn''t there any vehicle we could use?"

    "Ma''am, we found a working motorcycle."

    Marie immediately grabbed a helmet and rode the motorcycle. She drove at max speed so that she would be able to reach the young miss in time, but she was too far away.

    Ting!

    "How unfortunate that you''ll be meeting with your young miss'' cold and lifeless body. Ayami Gardner is destined to die."

    As she was driving, Marie could not see the message that they sent.

    Meanwhile, Celine, Rina, Yanna, Allina and all of Ayami''s close people, simultaneously received a link for a live broadcast.

    "Hm? What''s this?" They all clicked that link and what they saw was Ayami, happily walking by the roadside in the middle of the night. She was even skipping, as if unaware of the dangers she was in.

    "What the heck is this?" Celine had a bad feeling after seeing the live broadcast. She went and call Ayami''s parents and they too received a notification. They don''t know what was happening and why they were shown a live broadcast of Ayami.

    However, they instinctively thought that Ayami was in danger. But first, they needed to find her location first.

    Meanwhile, not far away from Ayami, a girl the same age as her was wearing a black coat, was watching her.

    In her eyes, was an intense bloodlust and a desire to kill. A desire to kill the woman who killed her beloved sister, Nina.

    A few days ago, her sister went missing. She tried searching everywhere but, unfortunately no matter how hard she worked, she couldn''t find her sister.

    Then one day, a strange person barged into her home, saying that her sister was already killed. Her brain stopped functioning and her heart dropped as soon as she heard the words that her sister was already dead.

    At first, she convinced herself that it was a lie. But after seeing her sister''s dead body, she had no choice but to believe the strange person.

    The strange person also said that she knew who killed her sister and she will help her get revenge on that person.

    And that person who killed her sister, was now in front of her. That is why she got a tattoo on her neck; A skull with roses and thorny vines.

    The plan was simple: once they got near the intersection, she would send a signal then stab Ayami, then push her to a speeding car.

    But unexpectedly, Ayami turned around as if she knew she was following her.

    That was right, since earlier, right after she left the hotel, Ayami knew that she was being watched and followed. "What do you want?"

 Chapter 59 - You Lost, Ayami

    The girl was surprised, but she remained composed, until¡­

    The girl started running towards her. If there was one thing she could boast about, that was her fast speed.

    The girl ran fast, so fast that Ayami wasn''t able to keep up, and then she stabbed her. Ayami tried to block it with her hand, but unfortunately, she wasn''t fast enough to do that. It stunned Ayami, as she didn''t expect that the girl would suddenly attack her.

    Splurt¡­

    Blood spurted out of her abdomen, before Ayami could even react, the girl pushed her away.

    As planned, a speeding car passed through them and hit Ayami''s body. Her body flew away from the impact and rolled and rolled until she hit a wall.

    There was no one who would be able to survive that¡­

    But still she checked. Ayami was slowly losing her life. It should be fine, if she left her alone now.

    Finally, she got her revenge!

    The girl hopped onto the car and they immediately left the scene.

    Meanwhile, the live broadcast finally ended and everything was deleted. Everyone who watched it was shocked. Their heads remain blank for a long time.

    W-Was Ayami killed?

    After a long while, they snapped out of it and hurriedly left their homes to check. Marie, who just arrived at the scene, was way too late.

    "Young Miss! Young Miss!"

    Tears were streaming down her face as she saw her young miss'' body laying on the ground bloody and lifeless.

    "No,no,no! This can''t be happening! This can''t be happening! Wake up, young miss!" Marie screamed and shook her body.

    But no matter how many times she screams, the young miss'' she once served would never wake up again.

    One by one, Ayami''s close people arrived at the scene. They could not believe it. They could not believe that Ayami was already dead.

    Soon, the ambulance and police arrived. All of her close people were devastated, they could not believe that Ayami was really dead.

    They couldn''t even find the culprit as the only evidence has been deleted they have no more evidence to show.

    ***

    "Have you finished your mission?"

    The masked person asked the girl in front, swirling the wine glass in their hands.

    "Yes, I have successfully eliminated the target." The masked person smiled underneath their mask after hearing her response. They nodded their heads, satisfied by the turn of events.

    They looked at the time left.

    Time Left: 3s

    "You lost, Ayami." The masked person laughed until they choked.

    They then turned on the news channel and waited for the news report about the ''hit and run'' case of Ayami.

    Breaking News: Just in, the eldest daughter of the Gardner family was stabbed and hit by a car. It is unfortunate, but she was reported as dead on arrival.

    Ayami''s face was plastered in front of the screen.

    "You are truly an unfortunate girl, Ayami."

    The masked person laughed again. They achieved their goal. Now then, the next target would be her¡­

    Before this world collapses, they must finish everything.

 Chapter 60 - A New Beginning

    It felt like the world slowed down, as life flashed before her eyes. This has happened before. Yes, she was dying, once again.

    It was unfortunate.

    She was still not yet done and she had to die. She was filled with grief and regret. Maybe, she shouldn''t have been so focused on revenge. Maybe, she should have just spent her time enjoying her peaceful life with her friends.

    But a part of her didn''t want that. She still wanted to fulfill her promise to herself. To slay the one who made her life miserable.

    It wasn''t Yanna who did it, but someone else. An existence she didn''t know about, an existence that didn''t exist in her past life.

    And finally, she reached a conclusion, it was that stalker of hers who made her life miserable.

    She still didn''t know who they were or find out even at least one strand of their hair.

    It was like she was fighting an unknown, an indescribable existence.

    Ayami blinked her eyes, and there she saw on the girl''s neck the mark she was familiar with, yet the design was different.

    As the girl pushed her, she saw a blinding light on the corner of her eye. It was a car speeding up to her. It was gonna hit her.

    It would probably be painful. But that pain was nothing compared to the experience she suffered and the bitter regret she was feeling right now.

    I''m scared. Ayami thought, as a surge of what-ifs questions flooded her mind.

    As the car hit her, she felt her bones cracking, blood gushing out of her, while the world slowly turned around like a hand in the clock.

    Am I dying?

    As soon as that question popped up, the world completely stood still. Every movement in the world stopped, every noise was quieted down, and everything was motionless.

    She blinked her eyes, and then she saw the bright night sky. Then she blinked them again, she wanted to rub her eyes as all she could see was red. She desperately tried to see the beautiful night sky one more time. She squinted her eyes and then she saw¡­ a cracked world.

    Crack!

    Under the thousand stars twinkling in the sky, was the strange woman she met in her dreams, walking towards her with an umbrella in her hand. The Guide.

    "You died really early this time. Should I say this is a new record." The guide spoke, chuckling at the pathetic state Ayami was reduced in. "A truly unfortunate child, they say. Heh, they were really right."

    Ayami could not understand what the guide was talking about. The guide then examined her, before nodding her head.

    "I warned you, didn''t I? You should lay low for a while." The guide sneered at her, looking like she was mocking her existence. "Well, you have always been stubborn so it can''t be helped."

    "Let''s go." Ayami felt like her soul had been taken by the reaper.

    "Remember, this is your last chance. Don''t screw it up." The guide said as she did something to her.

    What do you mean?

    Since earlier, Ayami could not understand her. But then, scenes started to flash before her.

    "As a bonus, I''ll show you a few years of the aftermath."

    The first scene was her in a hospital, with her family and friends crying. Then, the next, was her funeral. Her close people still couldn''t get over her death. Then, a year passed, then another, and then another, until¡­

    Everything blacked out. Ayami could only wait, waiting until a light of hope shone over her. Her wait didn''t last long as a beacon of hope shone over her.

    And thus, a new beginning has been created.

 Chapter 61 - Running A Fever

    Laying down on the bed, a girl was breathing heavily, while sweating buckets. Her forehead wrinkled from the discomfort she was feeling. She let out a groan as an intense pain assaulted her head.

    Why is my head hurting this much?

    Ayami thought, trying to move her body but to no avail. Her body didn''t listen to her commands and continued to lay stiffly on the bed, bringing discomfort to her. She couldn''t even do something as simple as opening her eyes. It was as if a heavy object was weighing down on her, making her unable to move. She was in this situation for almost an hour.

    What is happening to me?

    Ayami could feel her body heating up like she was in hell, then cooling down as if she was in a blizzard. Ayami knew what this was a moment later.

    Ayami was running a high fever.

    Ayami experienced this more than once in the past. It was the same as right now. There was no one to take care of her, while she was alone inside her so-called home with dangers lurking outside. She could only grit her teeth and endure the pain until she recovers, as she doesn''t have anyone she could trust.

    I need to get up.

    Ayami forced her body to move. She first tried to open her eyes. It quivered for a bit before she was able to manage to take a peek. It was still the same familiar ceiling she woke up when she regressed for the first time.

    As her eyelids were still droopy, it almost closed the moment she relaxed. Ayami opened her eyes wide in an instant.

    That was close!

    If her eyes closed again, she would have to open them again with great effort. She can''t afford to relax right now, not until she knew her situation. It was strange as when she first woke up on the first round, she didn''t have any fever. And why did that guide send her back again?

    There were so many questions she wanted to be answered, but that was not the time for that. She would slowly find answers later. For the time being, she needed to recover.

    The thing she wanted the most right now was water. She could feel her throat parched as if she was walking on a desert with no water to drink.

    Ayami tried to move her right hand, then her left. She wiggled her fingers and then her toes. Unfortunately, her body was still heavy and won''t get up.

    Ayami was on the verge of giving as her progress remained stagnant for an hour already.

    Dong¡­ Dong!

    Suddenly, she heard the chime of a grandfather clock. It felt so ominous, it sent chills. Wait a minute¡­ They have never owned a grandfather clock¡­

    Then whose is it?

    Ayami felt chills running down her spine. She felt afraid. She just got here and strange things were already happening? Naturally, Ayami wanted to get up right now and run away from this house.

    It was always the unknown that made her afraid.

    A few seconds later, it stopped. At the same time, she could feel the heavy burden on her body slowly disappearing while her high fever gradually cooled down. Ayami thought that she could finally get up.

    Ayami tried to get up, fortunately, her body was now listening to her, though it felt like it was still a little heavy. As her body was sticky, she wanted to take a shower as soon as possible after hydrating herself. Finally, she could drink some water!

    Ayami raised her head and was bewildered by what she saw. Although it was dark, Ayami could still clearly see what became of her room.

    It was utterly wrecked!

    It was as if a tornado suddenly appeared in her room and made it into a mess before disappearing.

    All of her things were scattered around, with some of them broken. But what caught her attention was that her precious water was spilled on the ground!

    This sight stunned her. She didn''t expect that she would be greeted by this scene.

    Just what happened to her room?

    Ayami shook her head, this wasn''t the time. She''ll find out about it later. Ayami sulked as she had to go down and fetch some water.

    Ayami slowly got up and staggered for a bit before regaining her balance as she was feeling a bit dizzy, while her whole body was feeling weak.

    Ayami slowly made her way to the door, tottering as there were some pieces of glass shard from an object that was thrown. She carefully walked over the objects as she didn''t want to get hurt, before finally, she reached the door. She heaved a sigh of relief when she realized something.

    Why does it feel like she crossed a river and trekked over a mountain, when all she did was walk to the door?

    "¡­" Ayami didn''t think about it any longer and went down to get some water. The hallways were dark and there were no sign of people walking along.

    It was difficult for a normal to see in the dark and yet she was able to walk nonchalantly without bumping to a wall or an object, albeit slowly as she was still running a small fever.

    Then she headed to the kitchen to get some water, while she was at it, she also searched the whole spacious kitchen in hopes to find some cold medicine. Ayami remembers that they would usually store some here, thankfully, there really were some stored in one of the cupboards. She didn''t have much apetite so she didn''t get any food, like there was any ready-to-eat in the first place.

    After drinking medicine and water, she was feeling a bit better. She headed back to her room. It would be bad if she was caught sneaking around by the guards walking on their patrol.

    They would surely question why their young miss was still up in the middle of the night, when she should have been in bed, resting. The two daughters of the Gardner family were strictly prohibited in wandering around at night. Her father would surely punish her. She only did this because she was so thirsty. Was it her fault that the water jug inside her room was spilled?

    So, the best course of action was to sneak around and avoid them. It would be troublesome if she wasted some of her time dealing with them, even if she had some excuse.

    Time was precious to her after all.

    While she was walking back to her room, carefully avoiding the guard patrols, she lamented inside. Why does she have to sneak around in her own home!

 Chapter 62 - Reputation Hits Rock Bottom

    When Ayami returned back to her room, she quickly searched for her phone. She didn''t dare open the lights as she might get caught.

    Really, why does she have to sneak around?

    After searching for a few minutes, she found it buried under a drawer that was overturned. There was a large crack on the screen looking like a spiderweb. Luckily, it could still be turned on. To think her phone was still alive¡­

    Ayami first checked the time. On the cracked screen, the time shown was [12:14 AM]. Underneath the time, the date was shown. Ayami widened her eyes in disbelief, then she rubbed her eyes and still saw that it was the same. [February 26].

    Ayami was stunned, it wasn''t the same date when she regressed for the first time. In fact, it was twice the days she spent on the last round. Could it be a coincidence?

    Like hell it was!

    Ayami firmly believed that there was no such thing as coincidence in this world, as such she concluded that there must be a reason why she woke up at this time.

    Although she didn''t know why she was given a third chance, she''ll take this chance and won''t repeat the same mistakes again.

    Unlike when she first regressed, she didn''t panic. Her expression was calm like a sea, but inside was a raging storm.

    Ayami put away the phone and looked at the mess inside her room. She tried to remember what happened at this time, but it was difficult to remember as it happened a long time ago. Adding to that, she was already slowly starting to go crazy at that time.

    Wait¡­ Wouldn''t that mean she already met with Yanna and was already ruining her own reputation at this time?

    Ayami cursed out loud and turned on her phone in a hurry. She started browsing the recent articles rapidly. She quickly scanned the recent events. As she did so, her expression darkened each time she read an article.

    Ayami finally remembered what happened. On this day, she bullied Yanna along with her entourage, then suddenly, Cole popped out of nowhere and reversed the situation.

    All the articles were related to her, there were even some criticizing her behavior. There were even some comments that she was an embarrassment to her family.

    Obviously, that bastard was also involved in this. Many people would want to get in his good books, and he too, also added fuel to the fire.

    In a single night, her reputation hit rock bottom.

    That made her unhappy, but what can she do? His beloved lover was insulted, with his pride so high like a mountain, there is no way he would let it slide.

    Her plans were ruined and she would have to make another.

    Ayami wanted to return back before she even met Yanna, but she couldn''t really choose, could she? She was already lucky enough that she could start another life.

    Ayami sighed, she could easily deal with these matters if she goes back to her maternal grandfather''s care, but she was really uncomfortable in returning. Even so, something trivial as this wouldn''t really affect her. She could just work her image back again. If the worst comes to worst, she would use them as a final resort.

    Thinking about it, Yanna also knows the future. Ayami wanted to talk to her, but she was not in a hurry to do so. Wait, Now that she thought about it, it would be difficult to approach Yanna as there would be someone who suddenly pops out and protects her.

    Ayami swayed to the side as she felt dizzy. She held onto her head and felt it was slightly warmer than her usual temperature. She momentarily forgot that she was sick.

    Ayami frowned as she knew what the cause of her high fever was. At that time, after being humiliated, Ayami couldn''t bear it and ran outside the venue while it was raining heavily. She walked home while she was being soaked in rain. When Ayami got home, she was dead tired and drenched like a wet kitten. Then she dashed to her room and slammed the door. Behind the closed doors, a terrible mess happened.

    So, the culprit behind this mess was her¡­

    Ayami didn''t dwell on it much longer and stood up. Her temperature was rising up again and that was not good. And so, she went back to her bed and slept like a log.

    By the time she woke up the next morning, she was feeling better. A good night''s rest was all she needed. Furthermore, her room was already clean and the broken objects were replaced, as if her room weren''t wrecked in the first place.

    Standing by the door, Marie was staring right at her which startled her. Ayami was wondering what she was even doing there staring at her young miss.

    Marie was quietly observing her, no particular expression could be seen on her face. Marie narrowed her eyes into slits, then she shook her head. It was as if something was bugging her.

    Ayami had no idea what she was thinking right now, so she asked her bluntly. "What''s the matter?"

    "You are oddly calm today, young miss. Usually, you would be making a fuss." Marie thought that there was someone impersonating her young miss, but that was impossible.

    "Would you rather I make a fuss?" Ayami asked her unhappily. Marie quickly shook her head and answered ''No''.

    Ayami wasn''t emotional this time and didn''t act like a crazy person now that she knew that this was real.

    "By the way, what did my parents say in this? And what happened after I left last night?"

    Ayami roughly remembers her parents'' reaction to this. They didn''t get angry at her nor scold her. Although to them, it just happened last night, to Ayami, it was already years ago.

    Marie only answered her first question. "The master and madam didn''t say anything." She deliberately did not answer her second question.. Ayami didn''t probe any further as she already knew what had happened.

 Chapter 63 - A Different Time

    Ayami looked at the calendar in a daze. Two months¡­

    Almost two months have already passed since she met Yanna in this 3rd life. During that short time span, she would have surely clashed against Yanna.

    That was one of her problems. The main problem is that stalker, no, the mastermind. They would surely have killed her already as their goal was her death, right? So why was she still alive? What was different this time?

    After asking Marie, she only said that Ayami was safe and didn''t suffer from any attack. Surprisingly, the Ayami in this life didn''t get attacked as if the mastermind in her second life didn''t exist in this time.

    "Young miss, if you keep staring at the calendar then I''m afraid you''ll be late." Marie said, snapping her out of her daze. Ayami frowned, who cares if she''s late? She won''t be late if she doesn''t go to school, anyways.

    As much as she wants to skip school, her father won''t allow it. Although he cherishes his daughters, that didn''t mean he would not impose a strict discipline. Then, she suddenly thought of an idea.

    Ayami turned her head and looked at Marie. She beckoned her to go to her. Then, she happily ordered Marie to help her prepare and go to school.

    Marie was stunned when she heard what she said. She couldn''t help but feel skeptical at the way the young miss was acting. Ayami sternly warned her that if she didn''t follow her order, then she would deduct her salary. It was only a threat though, she wouldn''t really do it.

    With no room for discussion, though hesitant, Marie could only agree to her. She knew that whenever the young miss was brewing ridiculous plans like this, she wouldn''t take no for an answer and stubbornly pester her all day.

    A moment later¡­

    All of the people inside the dining room were staring at the spectacular sight in front of them. They were staring at the person who was at the center of attention, unable to speak due to the sight they could not comprehend. They even rubbed their eyes as though to escape from the hallucination.

    It was real¡­

    The young miss in front of them was dressed in an odd way, while the usual elegance was nowhere to be found.

    At the center of the attention, donning the academy''s uniform and thick round glasses with her hair braided, was Ayami. She ate casually, without a care at the strange gazes aimed at her.

    Her father couldn''t say anything, no, it was more like he didn''t know what to say. He was at a loss for words staring at his daughter who was acting oddly. He was worried that yesterday''s incident might have affected her too much.

    Ayami quickly finished her breakfast and stood up after saying, "I''m going." Just as he was about to speak. He quickly shut his mouth before opening them again.

    "You won''t go with your sister?" Her father asked, to which Ayami just said ''no''.

    "Alright. Just tell me when things get hard on you." Her father reluctantly let her go.

    "Young miss, your mask." Marie handed her a surgical face mask, as per her request earlier.

    After Ayami wore it, she was unrecognizable. She looked like a prim and proper student who forced herself to go to school after just recovering from her cold.

    With this, no one should be able to recognize me.

    After yesterday''s incident, some brave students would flock to her, craving some gossip and some who had malicious intentions. It would be annoying to deal with them and waste time. As such, she could only wear a disguise.

    "Let''s go." For today, Marie would be her chauffeur, of course, in a promise that she would be given a raise. She couldn''t possibly give her more work and refuse to give a raise, can she?

    They got into the car and started heading towards the academy. After a while, they finally reached the academy. The car stopped outside and didn''t enter the academy.

    "Young miss, are you sure you want to do this? If the master finds out¡­" Marie trailed off as she didn''t really know what would happen if the master found out the stunt she was about to do. He would surely mete out a punishment. To what extent, she wasn''t sure about it.

    "Relax, he won''t find out." As Ayami smiled, her eyes turned crescent. Marie could only let out a sigh in defeat. "Well, let''s meet later."

    Ayami stepped out of the car and headed to the Academy gates. The entrance was desolate as the students were already inside, staying at the dorm.

    The guards checked her ID and were stunned at the obvious difference between the picture and the one in front of them. The guards laughed in annoyance.

    Does she think she could fool them?? Furthermore, she stole the ID of the eldest young miss of the Gardner''s.

    "Miss, we cannot let you enter." The guards stared at her suspiciously. Why would this young woman have the ID of Ayami Gardner?

    "I''m a student here and have an ID, why can''t I enter?" The guards didn''t respond to her, while the other guard was trying to contact someone. Probably the higher-ups. Her expression darkened.

    They were going to report her? She won''t let that happen!

    Ayami clicked her tongue, it was obvious that they didn''t believe it was her. She removed her face mask and glasses. After the guards saw her face, she quickly wore it again.

    "Y-young miss Ayami?" The stunned guard spoke while stuttering. She coldly glanced at them. "May I enter?"

    The guard stepped aside in a hurry. Ayami entered while shaking her head. She couldn''t believe that she wasted her time proving her identity. Anyways, they were just doing their job, they were even competent about it. It''s not like they were at fault.

    Ayami didn''t think about it anymore and hurried to her dorm. On her way, she saw some students, as she was wearing a mask and thick glasses, they weren''t able to recognize her. If they did, they would surely stop her in her tracks and mock her due to yesterday''s event. After a few minutes of walking, she reached her dorm.

    Ayami first examined the door with a sharp gaze, afraid that she would miss out some details. She was looking for a small slit on the door. After examining it, there was no trace of a knife cut. It was still the same old door, like that incident where a knife suddenly flew towards her didn''t happen in the first place.

    That''s weird.

    If there are no traces of a knife being penetrated to the door, then that means the mastermind didn''t send anybody to attack her. In the past two months, nothing happened.

    In her previous life, the mastermind came out of nowhere. They suddenly popped out and started sending out people to assassinate her. In this time, there were no signs of any mastermind coming into play. It was as if they didn''t exist in this life. She''ll have to ask Yanna about this later.

    Ayami opened the door to her dorm and was greeted by an empty place but¡­

    She frowned as she saw the dorm that was like being attacked by a typhoon. It was in an even worse state than her room last night.

    As there were no maid servants to clean up the place, Ayami only left the mess alone. Ayami lamented in her heart not because she would clean it up but because it would be difficult to search in this mess.

    Ayami decided to clean it up, not today but some time later. But of course, she would not be the one who would do it.

    Why would she when she could hire some cleaners?

    In this mess, Ayami tried to find the black phone, cameras or anything suspicious. In the end, after searching every corner of her dorm, she couldn''t find anything. She did find her precious pink box, which was a good thing. Thank goodness it wasn''t in tatters.

    Ayami put the box in her small backpack. Then, she checked the time. She wasn''t surprised when it was already late. Usually at this time, she would be in class, listening to the lecture.

    That being said, she''ll also have to wait for Yanna to finish her class to talk to her. Ayami wasn''t planning to attend her class today. The Academy would only report it to the parents if the student skipped class for a total of three days. As such, it was fine for her to play truant.

    Shortly afterwards, Ayami left her dorm and headed to the back of the academy. As it was already time for class, it would be impossible to leave the academy grounds.

    The academy had a wall towering about 2 meters and had a barb wire on top of it to prevent trespassers as well as preventing students from leaving the school grounds without permission. The walls were smooth and slippery, made to prevent people from climbing up the walls.

    It would be impossible for Ayami to climb up, so she decided to find an alternative way.

 Chapter 64 - Just You Wait!

    At the back of the academy was a desolate space and an old dusty building with no signs of life inside. There was a bit of a distance between the wall and the old building. In that distance, there was a lone girl walking towards the wall.

    Ayami slowly reached the walls while looking around, particularly, her interest was in the old building. It made her wonder what kind of secret the building has for it to be put under restricted access. But that interest wasn''t to the point where she was dying in curiosity. Whether there was a secret or none at all was not her business.

    Ayami just brushed it off and started looking for the exit. In the past, she would often use this exit to leave. For what reason? She could not remember much. She didn''t even know how she found it.

    Her memory was starting to get hazy and could only remember bits of it. She was already lucky enough to remember some of her memories from 18 years ago.

    "Let''s see¡­ It should be around her somewhere." Ayami murmured to herself, her eyes darting around, when it abruptly stopped in front of a rusty steel gate, hidden under the vines. There were also some vines growing on the wall, so unless they looked closely, they wouldn''t be able to notice it.

    Also, no normal students could enter a restricted area. So Ayami broke the rules yet again. Only some students had the guts to do this, but even so, the entrance was heavily guarded. Luckily, there were no people guarding the entrance and the exit.

    If she accidentally meets a person, then she could just knock them out. She was also in disguise so there was no chance they would recognize her.

    With that in mind, she happily walked to the rusty steel gate. Her hair bounced as she lightly skipped while she swayed her arms with a bright smile on her face until¡­

    "Hello." Ayami suddenly heard an angel-like voice behind her. Based on the voice, she could tell that it was a man.

    Ayami froze in mid-air. Damn it. Her thoughts ran wildly as she stood there comically like time was frozen for her. No, wait, isn''t this voice very familiar?

    "Hello?"

    Ayami took a deep breath before decisively turning around to face the man. In front of her, a young man was smiling in front of her named Kayden. It didn''t even surprise her as she already knew him by his voice.

    Although he was smiling, it was just a polite one, just like what Ayami would use when socializing. Ayami felt a small prick in her heart as she realized that he wouldn''t remember any of the time they spent together. Although they only spent a short time together, it was enough to make up for the bad memories she had.

    "Um¡­ I¡­" Ayami fiddled with her fingers, unable to say anything. Her lips bobbed, while her palms started to get sweaty. This is bad. Ayami was nervous and didn''t know what to say.

    From the other''s perspective, she looked like a goody two-shoes who was caught skipping class, trying to say an excuse.

    "It''s fine, you don''t need to explain. Although I don''t really know where you got the guts to enter a restricted area, please don''t do this often." Kayden casually advised her. It was the same as when they first met. He was still the same kind senior who advises his junior.

    "Aren''t you going to stop me?" Kayden widened his eyes at her question like what he just heard was ridiculous. "No, it''s not my job. Oh, but make sure not to get caught by the discipline committee."

    Scratch that.

    "And also, be careful out there. I heard there''s some abduction case going around here. Well, it''s not like they''ll do it in broad daylight." Kayden waved his hand and left her. Just like that, he was gone like the wind.

    Ayami pursed her lips. Though they were strangers today, that wouldn''t mean it would stay the same in the future. It was a shame that he could not remember anything, especially the time he tortured her mentally when they were playing. Oh well, she''ll just make new memories and pay him back.

    Ayami looked at Kayden''s direction with a determined look on her face. Just you wait!

    After that, she turned around and brushed off the vines, then she opened the rusty steel gates. There were no locks on it, but as it was rusty, she needed to force it. After a few minutes of kicking, she was able to open it.

    There was no road leading to the back of the academy, so she was not worried about cars coming and going. It was just a desolate land with a dead end.

    Ayami was able to easily spot the black car as it was the only thing around. The black car driven by Marie, drove and stopped right in front of her.

    Ayami entered the car and sat on the passenger seat, which bewildered Marie. The young miss has never once in her life sat on the passenger seat!

    Ayami took off her mask and glasses while untying her hair.

    "Have you done what I told you to do?" Ayami asked, ignoring the odd look on Marie''s face. Marie quickly composed herself and replied to her young miss. "Yes, I have done it, young miss."

    Ayami''s lips curved upwards while her eyes turned crescent.

    "Good, let''s go then."

    Marie started the car engine and drove. She knew where she needed to go and that was the warehouse. The one Ayami''s grandfather gifted her.

    Marie didn''t know why the young miss was involving herself again with them again. Was she planning on returning?

    Marie wasn''t sure, but what she was sure about was that she needed to follow her young miss. She believed that she was doing this for a reason. Ayami wouldn''t really do this just for the sake of destroying that girl, wouldn''t she?

    While Marie was driving, her thoughts were spinning around. There was a complicated look on her expression while glancing at the silent young miss beside her through peripheral view.

    "Focus on driving. You can think later."

    Marie easily cleared her thoughts away and just focused on driving as it would be bad if they get into an accident.. With Marie''s careful driving, they were able to safely reach the warehouse.

 Chapter 65 - Not A Regressor

    It was already five in the afternoon. Students were playing around playing soccer on the field, with some of the girls cheering for them. There were some who played around with their friends, loners who sat quietly while reading a book, and some who were showing their affection to each other publicly and secretly.

    This scene could be described as peaceful.

    In the distance was the female dormitory where they could see the full view of the field. A girl stood there with her arms crossed below her chest emphasizing the lump of fat in front of her. She was wearing thick round glasses and a face mask, which made the students passing by her unable to discern her identity.

    The only thing that made her stand out was her elegant and sophisticated aura, which made people stay away from her due to the vibe she was giving out. There was a contrast between her good-student looks and her vibe.

    "Yanna, I know that Ayami did the wrong thing but could you please forgive her?" The girl spoke with a trembling voice, pleading to the girl beside her. This was Celine, pleading for Ayami''s wrongdoings on her behalf. Her eyes were red while her expression was one pitiful, enough to tug the heartstrings of the onlooker. The two of them were garnering the attention of the students passing by.

    Yanna glanced at her coldly, before opening her mouth to speak. "If she really wants to beg for my forgiveness then she should come personally."

    At Yanna''s response, a troubled look arose on Celine''s face. That was the problem. There was no way she could drag the prideful Ice queen against her will, to come and apologize to her sworn nemesis.

    Not far away from them, the girl''s eyes were now open and was looking at the two of them intently, quietly observing their conversation from the sideline. With her sharp hearing, she was able to hear their conversation. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Yanna.

    "Then if Ayami apologizes, would you help clear the nasty rumors surrounding her?" Celine looked at her with hope shining in her eyes, but that was crushed as soon as she heard Yanna''s answer. "That depends if she is sincere enough. I don''t need an empty apology."

    There was no way that Ayami would sincerely apologize. They wouldn''t really go to so much trouble if the one they offended wasn''t a powerful CEO. Even if they did clear it, it would take at least a week and by that time Ayami''s reputation would be in the negatives.

    "If that''s all you want to ask, I''ll be going now." Yanna turned and left, heading towards the dormitory. Celine wanted to reach out to her to stop her, but she stopped midway. She shook her head, then left with a complicated look on her face.

    As Yanna walked towards the dormitory, she passed by the girl wearing thick round glasses.

    "Miss Yanna Jin." The girl called out to her. Yanna turned her head to look at the girl. Due to the mask that covered half of her face, she was unable to identify who that student was.

    "Who are you?" Yanna looked at her warily, as she stepped back and subconsciously gripped the strap of her bag. For some reason, she was getting bad vibes from this girl. The girl did not answer her question. "This is not a good place to talk, so how about we go to your dorm?"

    Before Yanna could even answer her, the girl was already walking to the direction of her dormitory. She could only follow this stranger as she wanted to know her identity, even though it might lead to her harm. Curiosity got the best of her. That was how naive she was in the earlier years.

    Yanna would always attract all sorts of danger. It was as if she was a magnet of danger. Even so, she was still able to safely untangle away from them unscathed as there was always someone who would save her or even sacrifice their life for her.

    The girl stopped right in front of the 10th dormitory building, which consists of 6 floors. Her dorm room was on the last floor. It was a single flat unit that solely belongs to Yanna.

    Normally, there should be at least two tenants who occupy a single flat unit, but there are some special exceptions.

    Yanna opened the door and let the girl in. The girl scoffed at her as soon as she entered. "You really are a naive fool."

    Then the girl casually headed to the sofa as if she owned the whole dorm. She sat with her legs crossed and arms resting at the backrest of the sofa.

    Yanna sat down across from her and offered her some tea. The latter refused and just casually looked around before sneering.

    "Must be nice to have a lover pampering you." The girl commented, not really meaning it. Then she stared at Yanna for a second before asking. "Aren''t you afraid that I might bring harm to you?"

    "Who are you?" Yanna asked warily, her guards were up while there were warning signs going off her head.

    The girl didn''t respond to her but instead, she took off her mask and glasses. Yanna widened her eyes in shock and disbelief with her mouth wide-open.

    Sitting in front of her was the person who tried to bully her yesterday only for it to fail. Why was this person here?

    Ayami raised her brows and chuckled. "What? Have you already forgotten my face?"

    Yanna could not answer her question as her lips bobbed, looking at Ayami with a horrified expression like she was seeing a ghost. "Y-you¡­ Why are you here? What do you want?"

    Yanna looked at her resentfully, which made her wonder what she did wrong.

    "Look Yanna, is it about how I acted these past two months? I''m sorry, okay? Let''s get along now, we''re fellow regressors after all."

    Yanna frowned at her as if she could not comprehend the language she was speaking. Ignoring the half-assed apology, what did she mean by ''fellow regressors''?

    "What are you talking about?" This time, Ayami was stunned. The look on Yanna''s face was serious which made her take this matter seriously.

    "You know the future, right?" Yanna looked at Ayami like she was crazy. The words she spat out were absurd. "Who would know their future? I could understand it if you said that I can predict the future."

    Then, wouldn''t that mean Yanna didn''t regress this time?

 Chapter 66 - Im Sorry

    Ayami did not expect this, she truly did not expect this. She thought that since she regressed with her memories intact, Yanna would be the same since in her previous life, she also had future memories. But that was not the case this time.

    Ayami took a deep breath and released it and leaned back on the sofa. She massaged her forehead as if suffering from an intense headache.

    "Um¡­ If you''re done then could you get out of here?" Yanna spoke with a frown on her face. She was really uncomfortable with letting her bully inside her place.

    "Shut up." Ayami glared at her, making Yanna frown even more. With a huff, Yanna gave her a pointed look, while containing her irritation. "What? Do you think you own this place or something?"

    "Obviously, I don''t." Ayami rolled her eyes and continued with a smirk on her face, "I want to stay here for a while. What are you gonna do about it?"

    Speechless at her shamelessness, Yanna could only stand up with her face ready to fight with her. "Are you picking a fight?"

    "Haa¡­" Ayami only let out a sigh and looked at Yanna like she was a brat. She didn''t really want to go in a war of words with her at the moment. If only Yanna knew the future like before then, she wouldn''t have to face this naive brat in front of her.

    "Well, ''Young Miss'', I think you should be on your way as the sun is already going down."

    "But I don''t want to?" Ayami tilted her head and continued while making Yanna exasperated. "Besides, I want to experience this pajama party or something between friends."

    "F-friends?" Yanna felt like she heard the most unbelievable thing coming out of her mouth. In fact, when she associated the word friend with a person like Ayami, who uses them for benefits, she almost wanted to puke out of disgust.

    Take for example, the innocent Celine. The two of them were friends, yet it seemed one-sided. Yanna lamented the fact that Celine, who was nice and innocent, was friends with this wicked witch who only knew how to take advantage of her friends. Of course, that was just her own speculation based on what she observed these past two months and that was enough time for Yanna to judge her character.

    Ayami nodded her head, "Yes, friends."

    Yanna''s shoulders shook as her breathing ragged, while her face was burning with anger. Her eyes almost turned red as she looked at Ayami, who continuously bullied her.

    Yanna scoffed at her. "Now you want to be friends with me? Is this one of your schemes, huh? Befriending me then once you gain my trust you will betray me?"

    Ayami was ticked from the words that came out of her mouth.

    Oh. Didn''t she use that on me in my first life? Does she know that because she used it on me? I was going to use the same method in my second life. Though she wild-guessed about my plans on my second life, unfortunately, this time she''s wrong.

    Ayami narrowed her eyes as she observed Yanna''s demeanor. There was hostility seething out of her, as if they were just in a life-long feud. It seems like this Yanna wasn''t different from the future Yanna. There was something missing and that was her memories.

    Meanwhile, Yanna didn''t know why she was so opposed towards Ayami. Though she hates Ayami because of the bullying, it wasn''t to the point where she felt enmity towards Ayami.

    "Eh? What are you talking about? I came here to apologize and befriend you. Why are you speaking ill about me? Do I look like that kind of person?" Ayami widened her eyes while her lips formed an ''o'' shape. She shamelessly lied through the skin of her teeth.

    Yanna knew that Ayami was not obviously here to apologize and become the best of friends with her. Why would she believe her lies?

    "Yes, you look like that kind of person." Yanna replied with her face dead-serious.

    Seriously, they would never get along. Just thinking about it made the both of them shiver at that thought. The two of them were like oil and water.

    Ayami smiled mockingly at her. "Well, between the two of us, which one betrayed the other''s trust?"

    Yanna was suddenly confused. What was she talking about? But soon her heart started palpitating as headaches assaulted her. "You¡­"

    "Wasn''t it you?"

    Yanna looked at her with confusion and started to get muddle headed.

    "I was really sad when you betrayed me. Maybe that was when the last thread hanging on to my sanity snapped. I thought at that time, ''Why must it be this way?''"

    Ayami started ranting. Perhaps she was angry by the fact that Yanna was able to spout some ironic things, or perhaps she just wanted to vent the bottled-up feelings inside of her, Or perhaps both?

    "You know, if you had just confessed that you love him, then I wouldn''t have gone to the lengths of destroying the both of you. And maybe we could have something like a friendly rivalry."

    A bitter smile appeared on her face as she continued, "I was also once a naive fool like you."

    "At first, I thought we were the same. But then, as time went by, I realized we weren''t. You were like a light. You still retained some of your innocence. Even though you were shrouded by the darkness, you shined. I was envious of you.

    "While you were the light, I am the darkness. After all, a shadow cannot exist without light." Ayami chuckled. "I wanted to be like you. So I tried to steal him away from you, in the process, I fell but there was no one to catch me. I tried to scheme against you, sabotage your relationships, and ruin your reputation. As you guessed, it always backfired.

    "I didn''t want you to be happy and pinned every blame on you. I hated you while at the same time, I admired you. I thought that if I can''t be happy, then nobody can. I was¡­ swallowed by the darkness and went insane.

    "Isn''t it funny? You were like a heroine while I am the villainess." Ayami laughed although there was nothing funny about it.

    "At the time of my death, I cursed at you, in hopes to at least remember the wicked woman as there was no one to remember me anymore. I swore at that time to get revenge on you. I scared you, saying, ''You will regret this!'', so that you would know that even if I was dead, I would still haunt you.

    "Actually, I wanted to say sorry too, but my prideful self didn''t want to. And so, this time, I¡­" Ayami trailed off as she stood up and went towards Yanna, who sat down in confusion.

    "Even though I''m sorry, I still hate you and that will never change." She muttered as she raised her hand and delivered a cold hard slap on Yanna''s face. An audible sound of a slap resounded throughout the four corners of the room. Ayami didn''t notice it but a small spark ignited as soon as she touched Yanna''s cheek.

    While Yanna was feeling shock, the girl in front of her started speaking profanities.

    "You f#$#$ b#(@)!" Ayami smirked at her. "Feeling guilty? Make up for it because you deserved it!"

    "Ha! You think I''m gonna suddenly do a friend hug and then say sorry? In your dreams!

    "Ahhh~ I can''t believe slapping you was the best feeling I could ever imagine. I must remember this for the rest of my life.

    Ayami laughed happily as she had always wanted to do this but didn''t get the chance last time as she was too busy thinking.

    "This is revenge, b****!"

    "Betray me again and I''ll go to the next life to slap you. No wait, I could just do this again." And so, she turned her head with a wide grin on her face to Yanna who was still stunned and confused.

    "Let me slap you again. I forgot the feeling and want to relish it again so I can remember it this time." Ayami raised her hand again.

    Before she could hit her target, the dazed girl finally snapped out of it and defended herself in reflex by grabbing Ayami''s wrist. Yanna glared as she shouted at her. "Are you crazy!?"

    All the while Ayami was blabbering her nonsense sob story, Yanna was feeling a strange headache. At times, she could feel her heart getting squeezed while an indescribable feeling of guilt swallowed her. But then, all of that disappeared when Ayami suddenly slapped her.

    What is wrong with this lunatic?

    "No, I''m not! Let go!" Ayami tried to fight back and grabbed Yanna''s hair. Of course, Yanna also retaliated. They got into a tussle and made their appearance a mess.

    As they were too busy in the middle of a cat-fight, they didn''t notice the spark appearing around them. Only when the spark was large enough and was affecting them, did they stop. But it was too late!

    Before they could even react, the sparks struck them at lightning speed.

    Crack!

    The two of them felt like they were struck by lightning bolts as they slowly lost consciousness. Soon, the sparks disappeared and the only remaining thing were the two girls laying on the ground side-by-side.

    At the same time, on Mt. Starlite, the place where Ayami died, clouds were starting to form making it seem like it was going to rain.

    People who were on a drive on the mountain started to hurry due to the fact that it was slippery there whenever it rains.

    A few minutes later, rain started pouring like there was no end, then thunder came after that.

    CRACKLE! BOOM!

    The bright lightning struck down on the middle of the mountain. It was so bright that it felt like it was blinding. The people who were on the surroundings of the mountain flinched due to the thunder that was like a punishment from the heavens.

    That was a really strange occurrence but they soon returned to their normal lives.

    On the middle of Mt. Starlite, there, a strange person was laying on the muddy ground wearing a cracked mask and a worn-out outfit. The rain droplets continuously hit that person, making them frown.

    Their eyes suddenly shot open when it realized something was wrong. It revealed their dark obsidian eyes that were like a void, yet there was also a dangerous glint found inside it. Their eyes carefully eyed the surroundings. That person opened their mouth and muttered under their breath with a trace of disappointment.

    "Why¡­ am I back here again?"

 Chapter 67 - Did You Regret It?

    What the heck is going on?

    That was the thought that was swirling in her mind when Ayami regained her consciousness. Standing in front of her, a person wearing a robe and a half-mask, making their identity unknown, was pointing a gun at her.

    Ayami wanted to move but she found out that she could not do so. She could only stare and observe the person in front of her.

    Her breathing was ragged and she could feel some pain in her abdomen, she wanted to look down but she couldn''t.

    From her view, behind the person pointing at her, there were countless dead bodies lying down on the ground. All of them were dressed like a bodyguard.

    They were in an open area and the sun was almost setting. It was unknown where they were.

    The person in front of her just stared at her without doing anything, as if time seemed to have stopped. If Ayami could move then she would get away from here as far away as possible.

    The person seemed to be void of any emotion as they stared at her. Their black obsidian eyes had a glint of loneliness and forlorn. It was as if they had experienced countless tragedies. And yet, those same void eyes were able to suck her in.

    Suddenly, her mouth moved against her will. A single word came out of her mouth.

    "¡­Why?" ''She'' spoke, her voice filled with anguish and grief. And that was when Ayami realized that this body was not hers, but the voice was familiar.

    Simply put, it was like she was watching a movie in first person.

    The person didn''t speak but Ayami noticed the tight grip on the gun. After a while, the person let out a sigh. "It is needed for the world to be saved."

    "I don''t understand."

    "Of course, you don''t" The person shook their head. They looked at their watch and smiled. "Well then, it''s time for you to die."

    They pulled the trigger without warning creating a loud bang. Ayami watched as the bullet escaped from the gun and slowly spun, heading to her head in slow motion.

    ''She'' closed her eyes and waited for the bullet to hit her. As ''she'' closed her eyes, Ayami could only see darkness. But she felt like something was changing.

    Before long, Ayami felt like she was being dragged down. She still couldn''t move.

    THUD.

    Ayami fell to the ground and created a sound. The body she was occupying stood up and dusted off her body.

    Ayami observed the surroundings. She was shocked to see that she was inside a library. This library looked familiar to her. No she saw this somewhere before in her dream, but this library was smaller and she could even see the center not far away.

    Her body bent down and picked up a book that seemed to have fallen and beside it, was a step ladder toppled down. She fixed it and used it to place the book on the top-most part of the shelf.

    The shelf had no books on the bottom, only the top-most part had books. Even so, there were still some empty spaces.

    Her body hopped down and didn''t bother returning the step-ladder back to its own place. She walked for a bit and reached the center.

    There were books scattered around and a table which had papers and pens with some neatly placed and some scattered. There was also an umbrella lying on the ground.

    Her gaze landed on the floating woman with a peculiar outfit, with open books flipping itself at a rapid pace, surrounding her and a big round glass ball. The glass was still clear and you could see the inside, which was a world, although there were some cracks on it.

    Somehow, it reminded her of the shattered sky she saw in her last moments.

    What stunned Ayami was the fact that she knew this woman. This woman was the guide.

    "¡­Soon¡­ Just a bit more¡­" The guide muttered under her breath. Ayami could only hear bits of pieces of what she muttered.

    Noticing the eyes that were staring at her, the guide stopped what she was doing and floated down.

    "Are you done?" The guide said as soon as she landed on the ground.

    "Yes."

    "As expected of you, Ayami."

    Ayami''s brain almost stopped working as soon as she heard her name. What does this mean?

    But before her thoughts ran wild, she felt nauseous. The world around her started to blur and slowly, it darkened.

    ***

    When she opened her eyes, an unfamiliar ceiling greeted her. Suddenly, she heard a groan beside her, making her turn her head.

    Ayami almost screamed in surprise as she jolted up. She quickly backed away until her back hit the sofa.

    What was I doing?

    Ayami looked at Yanna who also did the same action as her. They both glared at each other.

    On the inside, Ayami was confused. Her mind was a mess after seeing that dream or was it a memory?

    Ayami immediately got up from the ground and sat back down on the sofa. The lights were on, so even if it was already night time, the surroundings were still bright.

    "You¡­" Yanna let out a sigh before doing the same action as her. Yanna stared straight into her eyes, before speaking. "¡­My memories have returned."

    "Okay." As she was still out of it, Ayami said ''okay'' subconsciously. Then, as if realizing something, she looked at Yanna with wide-eyes. "What!?"

    "My memories have returned." Yanna repeated again. Ayami looked like she couldn''t believe it.

    Just earlier, Yanna was looking at her like she was crazy because she was spouting nonsense like knowing the future, but now, she was saying that her future memories returned?

    "Where did I die?" Ayami suddenly asked as she just wanted to be sure. Yanna knew her intention so she immediately replied. "Mt. Starlite."

    Just as she thought it was over, Ayami suddenly threw her a question that made her tongue-tied.

    "Did you regret it?"

 Chapter 68 - A Lonely Night

    "Did you regret it?"

    "Regret what?" Yanna asked with a smile on her face. Based on her expression, Ayami knew that she was playing dumb. Ayami clicked her tongue at her before rolling her eyes. Of course she wouldn''t.

    "Nevermind."

    Ayami was pertaining to the day Yanna betrayed her.

    An awkward silence followed after that, making it unbearable for the both of them. Yanna was the first one to speak. "Aren''t you going to go now?"

    "No?" Ayami shook her head. "Didn''t I say that I''ll stay here?"

    "You were serious about that?" Yanna looked at her in surprise. She could only sigh and agree. There were still some things to talk about and she didn''t have the energy to argue as the sudden flood of memories attacked her mind, making her a little bit confused. "Fine."

    ***

    While laying down on the bed, Ayami pondered about the dream she had earlier. Her brows were knitted together as she tried to recall it. It was really a headache as it was difficult to remember.

    She could vaguely remember the person wearing a half-mask and a robe. She did not know who it was, but she had an inkling feeling that it was the mastermind.

    ''It is needed for the world to be saved.''

    The words that person said kept lingering on her mind.

    ''You''re a threat to this world so I need you to disappear.''

    The words that the mastermind said in one of their messages and that person had the same feeling.

    Seriously though, how did she even become a threat when all she did was scheme against Yanna. Is there something she didn''t know? Obviously there is.

    The guide probably knows what that is but unfortunately she didn''t have any ways to contact her. If she had to die to see her again, then she''d rather find out herself. And who knows if that woman would still let her live again.

    What confused her the most was the library. It didn''t feel like a dream and was more like a memory. It didn''t happen in either of her life.

    So she speculated that the guide must have erased her memories or something and it happened from one of her lives. Or, it was possible that it was just really a dream and she was just overthinking things.

    "The first one is possible, but why would she even erase my memories?" She mumbled to herself.

    Thinking about it, that guide was suspicious. She didn''t know anything about her. Ayami decided that she would be wary the next time they met. Hopefully, they won''t meet when her life is at the death''s door like last time.

    The next morning, Ayami and Yanna had breakfast together inside their dorm in a sour mood. Seeing the other''s face first thing in the morning made her mood plummet down to the ground. There was no helping it as Ayami was the one who decided this.

    "What will we do now?" Yanna asked, munching on the toast with strawberry jam on it.

    "Take over the Coiling Snake Gang."

    Yanna almost choked on her answer. She immediately grabbed the glass of water beside her and chugged it down. Then, she glanced at Ayami with a bewildered look on her face.

    "Are you serious?"

    "Do I look like I''m joking?"

    Yanna shook her head and continued her breakfast. "Hm¡­ Okay. But do that yourself."

    "I''ll be going now." Ayami didn''t bother eating the breakfast made by Yanna. Who knows if that fake secretly poisoned her meal?

    Classes finally started and Ayami went to her classes for the whole day without skipping. When the two crossed paths, they acted like they didn''t get along.

    And when the day ended, Ayami would sneak inside Yanna''s dorm to brainstorm and plan.

    Three days later.

    In the dead of the night, inside a warehouse, a girl was surrounded by burly mens with a woman beside her. The girl, Ayami, was humming as if in a good mood while she was assembling the gun.

    The sight terrified the burly men and it was enough to make their knees soften like slimes. The smile their young miss was flashing, terrified them to the bone.

    Usually, the young miss was mostly expressionless. But when she did smile, it was an evil one.

    "Gentlemen, I hope you are ready." Ayami said in a bone-chilling voice, enough to make them submit to her in fear. They were nervous because if they committed a single mistake, they didn''t know what the young miss would do to them.

    They had heard terrifying rumors about the young miss from the main house, so now, they confirmed that the young miss wasn''t much different compared to the rumors.

    "Let''s go and ki¡ª oops, I meant visit." Ayami giggled at her clumsy mistake. While the burly men: their hearts were shaking and some wanted to faint right there.

    Even though the young miss didn''t finish the word, they knew what word it was. ''Kill''.

    Today was the first time they received a mission so naturally, their reactions were mixed. Anxious, scared, and excited.

    Ayami didn''t care about their feelings and led the group outside, with Marie following her like a loyal puppy.

    At the same time, inside a luxurious room, a person wearing a mask that covered half of their face and a black robe was sitting on a sofa, with their legs crossed.

    In front of them, a fat man with tattoos on their body was prostrating, their bodies shivering from fear.

    "P-Please¡­ I''ll do a-anything you say¡­" The fat man pleaded, tears and snot streaming down his face.

    "Anything?" The half-masked person smiled, amused at the words that came out of the fat man. "If I say that I want you to die right now, will you do it?"

    The fat man couldn''t answer and could only lower his head to the floor. The person snorted. "You said you''d do anything. Now look at you going back on your word."

    "Oh well, I''ll forgive you only this time. You still have some use, after all."

    "T-thank¡­ you, f-for your generosity."

    "First, I''m the leader now. Second, you''ll obey everything I say. And third, hm¡­, what should I add?" They rubbed their chin, deep in thought, before waving their hand. "Oh forget it."

    "My first task is for you to keep an eye on Ayami Gardner and report to me if she is behaving suspiciously." The person smiled but their looks were threatening. "You know what will happen if you fail this simple task."

    The fat man nodded his head and once he was dismissed, he quickly scurried out of the room, almost tripping.

    The whole room was enveloped in silence. The person looked outside the window. The full moon was shining brightly under the clear sky.

    Their gaze remained on the moon for a long time. There was a hint of sadness in their eyes, as if reminiscing about a sad past. Their back were hunched as if they had been carrying the burdens of the world.. Soon after, they turned away.

 Chapter 69 - A Hot And Steamyâ€¦ Not!

    Inside a room, a middle-aged man was sitting on the bed, waiting for someone as he gulped. There were some wrinkles in his face due to the age and the stress accumulated over the years, while his hair was slowly turning grey.

    The man''s name was John Heisman, the father of Devin Heisman and the leader of the Coiling Snake Gang. John was continuously tapping the floor with his legs due to the anticipation.

    He was barely able to contain his excitement as a smile came over his face, while his nostrils were widening and narrowing for every second that passed by as his imagination went wild.

    The appearance he had was different from the stern and serious leader implanted within the hearts of his subordinates.

    Beside him were a bunch of toys used for¡­ ahem¡­ playing around, of course.

    In another room, a woman was humming as she lay down on the bathtub filled with essential oils. Her pearl white skin was smooth and delicate, while her face was beautiful and seductive like a temptress and her bosoms were big enough to entice men. There was a smile on her face, obviously she was in a good mood. She only got out when she was done bathing.

    The woman wore a sexy lingerie before putting on a bathrobe. She grabbed something lying on the sink and hid it underneath, deep within the bathrobe. Then she wore thin brown thighs that covered almost the entirety of her legs. She knew the man waiting for her liked this and would excite him further.

    Her thick red lips were smiling seductively as she left the bathroom heading towards the man who couldn''t wait to get a taste of her. Her smile was enough to make the men''s legs feel weak as soon as they saw the smile.

    John smiled as soon as he saw the woman. He stared at her with a perverted gaze, seemingly already stripping her inside his mind.

    The woman glanced at him coldly for a brief moment, but John was so distracted by his perverted thoughts that he didn''t notice it.

    "Come here, baby girl." John said as he licked his lips. You wouldn''t really associate him to the cunning leader of the Coiling Snake Gang.

    The woman did as he ordered and even straddled him, rubbing his crotch, making it enough for his thing to harden.

    John started rubbing her back before trailing down to her butts. He grabbed those soft melons, causing the woman to moan. "Oh~ You¡­"

    The woman teased him, circling her finger on his chest, while she did a small lap dance on him. The air around them started to feel hot and steamy. It seems like John has reached his limit as he tossed the woman on the bed. He tore apart her bathrobe and revealed the sexy lingerie. Coupled with her flushed face and misty eyes along with the sexy lingerie, he couldn''t hold it in anymore.

    As if a starved beast, he started digging in, licking every part of her, making her moan. He didn''t even notice her secretly taking out a small knife from the torn robe. Her eyes were filled with disgust, but she had no choice but to do this kind of thing with this man in order for her plan to succeed.

    The woman hugged him, getting ready to stab him. She raised the small knife with her hands trembling. The small knife twinkled for a bit before it started heading towards John''s chest.

    Unfortunately, before she could even graze him, his subordinate suddenly barged in with a frantic expression.

    "B-Boss! Intru¡ª Khuack!"

    Before the subordinate could finish his sentence, he was shot to the chest making him cough blood before falling down on the ground. They couldn''t hear the sound much, probably because their gun was equipped with a silencer.

    The woman''s shrill scream reverberated throughout the room as she stared at the fallen subordinate with wide eyes, while John looked at the subordinate with a cold expression. Gone was the perverted man earlier.

    Earlier, unknown to the two who were in the room, while they were making out, John''s subordinates were falling down one by one silently. The subordinate who witnessed the death of the other couldn''t even run away and report as he was already shot from the shadows a second later.

    Burly men started to appear one by one. One crashed through the windows while the other used the door. They surrounded John and the woman and tied the both of them up.

    John did not even try to resist as he knew reinforcement would come. Even if they did take down the men inside his own home, there were still some outside.

    John had his men contact the others every thirty minutes just in case something happened. If the people outside suddenly lost contact then they would surely know that something was wrong.

    The burly men were pointing their guns at them. The woman bursted into tears and started pleading for her life. She was just here to kill this man, okay! She had nothing to do with him!

    Suddenly, they heard a soft hum coming from the hallways. There, they could see a silhouette of a girl wearing a black cat mask, walking over the dead bodies lying around.

    "Kitty kitty, Nyang Nyang~ is a cutey cute little cat~"

    The girl sang, mercilessly stepping over the bodies like they were stone. Behind her, a woman dressed in latex was carrying a struggling man with a sack on his head.

    It was an odd combination.

    "Did you wait long?" The girl asked as soon as she entered the room. She sat down on the edge of the bed with legs crossed. She took out a gun and pointed it at John''s thigh.

    She shot it without warning. John immediately screamed as he felt the intense pain in his thigh while the woman beside her also screamed, shutting her eyes tight as she bit her lips. The girl tilted her head and smiled devilishly. "Answer when asked."

    "This is just a warning shot. The next time, it will be your head."

    "And there seems to be an extra here." The girl glanced at the woman coldly.

    "P-please¡­ I d-don''t know anything¡­ P-please let me go¡­" The woman begged. "I-I was just here by coincidence."

    "What shall we do to you? We can''t just let you go. Ah." The girl seemed to notice something as she hurriedly stood up and crouched down in front of the woman. She reached out to the back of the woman and took the small knife from.

    The woman''s eyes shook as she stared at the small knife in the girl''s hand with a ghastly expression. She started feeling cold like a bucket of cold water with ice was splashed at her.

    "Tsk. Tsk. We can''t have this. As punishment¡­" The girl pointed her gun at her thighs and fired without hesitation.

    The woman screamed in pain, tears flowing out like a river as she felt an intense pain. Her mouth foamed before she passed out.

    "A pity. Your skin is smooth and flawless, looks like you''re gonna have a scar." The girl talked to the unconscious woman. "Oh well, it''s quiet now."

    Just then, the woman who was carrying a man on her shoulders, threw the man on the ground. She removed the sack that was on his head and revealed an unconscious beaten up young man. The woman had knocked him out earlier.

    "D-Devin¡­?" John uttered in shock. What was his son doing here? Shouldn''t he be staying inside the dorm where it was safe?

    "Aiya~ what a touching reunion." The girl said in glee. "The two of you did not meet in four years after all."

    "You!" John glared at the girl, eyes bloodshot. "Just who are you and what do you want!?"

    Who are they? They are, of course, Ayami and Marie with their subordinates.

    "Eh~ Why should I tell you?"

    "Anyway, enough about our identities. You are probably wondering why we are here. I''ll make it short. Give me your position." Ayami opened her arms, welcoming his agreement.

    "That''s too short, young miss." Marie commented on the side.

    "M-my position?"

    "Yes, the leader of the Coiling Snake Gang."

    "Why?"

    "You don''t need to know." Ayami glanced at him coldly. She asked impatiently, "So, do you agree or not?"

    "Of course n¡ª!"

    Before John could even finish his sentence, Ayami shot his son''s leg. Devin groaned in pain. Ayami tilted her head to the side. "Eh? What was that?"

    "Devin!"

    "Ah, oopsies. I accidentally pulled the trigger because I felt like I heard something I didn''t want to hear. I hope I just misheard it." She said with an apologetic smile on her face.

    "Do you think I wil¡ª!"

    For the second time, he was interrupted. This time, Ayami shot Devin''s abdomen. "Um, I think there''s something wrong with my gun? It keeps targeting your poor son. At this rate he might die."

    John''s face reddened in anger with veins popping out. He really wanted to skin this b***h alive!

    "Ha! Do you think that threat¡ª!"

    Ayami was about to pull the trigger again when she was stopped.

    "Wait! Fine, I agree, I agree!"

 Chapter 70 - How Embarassing!

    "Fine, I agree, I agree!"

    With no choice left, John could only agree. Based on where the gun was pointing, John knew that the girl would shoot his son''s head next. This girl would really kill his precious son if he did not agree to her wishes.

    John is, in fact, a coward. His stern and serious expression that he showed towards his subordinates was only a brave front. Why else would he hide for years as the leader of the gang? It was because he was afraid of being assassinated. He did everything for him and his son to be safe.

    "That''s good. I thought that I''ll have to kill your son first before you agree." The girl giggled, but the words coming out of her mouth were scary.

    "I''ll let you go for now. Your son needs treatment after all." Ayami said as she pointed at Devin. Then she stood up and ordered her men to stay here and keep an eye on the father and son. She also asked to investigate the woman. "Let''s talk again when you have calmed down."

    After that, Ayami, along with Marie left the Heisman''s manor. Only after they left did the people inside the room heave a sigh of relief.

    Inside the car, the atmosphere was cold and quiet. Marie gripped the steering wheel and glanced at the rearview mirror, which reflected her expressionless young miss.

    Marie sensed that she was in a bad mood. Even so, she steeled herself and bravely asked Ayami a question she didn''t like. "Are you going back?"

    As expected, Ayami''s mood worsened. There was a scowl on her face as she glanced at Marie. "You already know the answer to that."

    "But young miss, after using them, the head will call you back to the main house." Marie glanced at her worriedly.

    "And?" Ayami raised her brows nonchalantly like she wasn''t in big trouble.

    "Young miss, I''m just afraid that they would do anything just to drag you back. We can''t have you get in trouble or we will both be punished."

    "Just because of that, I should be afraid?" Ayami scoffed. "They should be the one who''s afraid."

    Marie let out a sigh. So troublesome, but when has it never been troublesome when she was with her? The young miss has only behaved for the past two years and now, it looks like she''s ripping off the elegant young miss facade.

    Marie didn''t ask anymore and continued to drive towards the academy. Ayami sneaked back inside Yanna''s dorm.

    "How''s it going on your side?" Yanna immediately asked. They were both seated on the sofa.

    "I''m done on my first goal. You?"

    Yanna let out a surprised gasp. "That fast?"

    "Yes, that fast." But there is a consequence. Ayami didn''t say the last part out loud.

    "I''m still not done. I have yet to conquer his heart and body. You know it takes time to do that. Oh wait." Yanna smiled at her mockingly. "You''re a baby when it comes to love."

    "Ha? Did you say something? Sorry, I wasn''t paying attention to your useless gibberish."

    They were starting, yet again. Over the past three days, they would attack each other using their sharp sWords1. And so, the two ended up saying their goodbyes with a glare.

    ***

    A few days later, Ayami was inside the Heisman manor. They were in the sitting room, with John kneeling in front of Ayami, who was sitting crossed legs and still wearing the cat mask. The burly men were surrounding them, their guns pointed at John in case he tried something.

    "How is your son?"

    "Fortunately he is doing fine." John said as he lowered his gaze. To this day, he was wondering who this girl was. This girl was able to hire powerful elites under her command to protect her.

    "I see." Ayami nodded her head. She looked at Marie, who immediately noticed her signal. Marie took out a stack of papers and handed it towards John.

    "From today onwards, I am now the boss." Ayami said like a domineering boss, her eyes had a glint of danger as she smiled. "You will follow my every command.

    "That paper is just for formalities. But I still hope that you will read it. Once you sign it, the contract will take effect. Of course, you know what will happen if you refuse right."

    John carefully read the paper, afraid that he would miss a single detail that would result in death. As he read it, he realized something. Isn''t this basically a slave contract?

    A few minutes later, he finally managed to read through all the stack of papers. Normally, he wouldn''t be able to do it, but due to fear he was able to do it. He read the last part. It was basically a warning to him.

    Once you violate at least one of the terms and conditions, be prepared to be hunted down and suffer once we catch you. Even if you run away and hide, there is no escape!

    John immediately felt his back get blanched in cold sweat. His hands shook as they held onto the paper.

    There is no doubt, this girl would really hunt him down to the ends of the world. And once they catch him, they would surely torture him. Just thinking about it made him gulp.

    What kind of devil did I offend?

    "Are you done yet? If you are, sign it already." Ayami asked with an impatient tone. Ayami yawned and laid on the sofa with a bored look on her face.

    Left with no choice and under a threatening pressure, John picked up the pen and started signing with trembling hands. After this, his fate was sealed.

    "Well then, we are done with formalities." Ayami clapped her hands. "I''ll get straight to the point. I want you to find out about the organization with this tattoo."

    Ayami showed him a picture. "Be discreet and lay low. If you get caught, then you''re dead. Got it?" John frantically nodded his head.

    It was a funny scene. If one were to see it, then they would think it was weird and funny. A middle-aged man was submissively kneeling in front of a girl, who was ordering him around.

    "Next, I want you to bring Liana Faker, Noxus Mole and Hailey Pierrot to a student of Golden Spoon Academy named Yanna Jin. Tell them that they will be acting under her orders from now on."

    "No, actually, I want you to make them kneel in front of Yanna Jin and make them say some cringey lines like ''Milady, we, the three musketeers, will follow your orders from now on.'', something like that."

    Ayami smirked, thinking about Yanna''s reaction to her ''gift''. "If I don''t hear anything that happened like that, then say bye bye to the world."

    "Another thing, your son. I heard he is like a rebellious teen. I heard he already repeated a grade. I hope you''ll be able to control that wild son of yours after he wakes up."

    "Oh, and forget about doing illegal activities for now like drugs and kidnapping for now." Says the one who trespassed into private property, assaulted his son and threatened him.

    "I guess that''s all." Ayami left with Marie while the men stayed.

    The next morning, Yanna received the shock of her life. Three senior students suddenly kneeled in front of her while she was headed to her class. Students stared at them, with some even taking a video.

    Hailey nudged Noxus, the only male from the three. His face reddened as he spoke with a trembling voice.

    "M-Milady¡­ w-we, from now on¡­" He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth as he looked down on the ground, his face filled with embarrassment. "We will follow your orders from now on!"

    "H-ha? What?" Yanna was stunned and looked at the three with a confused expression.

    The students passing by, murmured to each other. They decided to watch the show even if they were late. It wasn''t everyday that they could witness a show!

    "What''s going on?"

    "Dunno, they suddenly kneeled in front of the new student."

    "Woah, that new student is pretty cool. They made someone kneel to them!"

    Hiding behind the crowd was Ayami, eating popcorn and enjoying the show. She woke up early and cooked caramel popcorn just to enjoy and watch the show.

    "I think you got the wrong person." Yanna said, before backing away from them. Liana immediately chased after her and begged. Tears streamed down her face, ruining her make-up and making her ugly. She didn''t care about her appearance anymore as she grabbed onto Yanna''s clothes.

    "N-no, milady, we did not get it wrong. We are really here to serve you."

    Yanna looked into her eyes. This senior was really scared, as if someone threatened her. Yanna looked at the crowd, and there she saw Ayami eating popcorn and enjoying the show. She finally knew who was behind this. Yanna fumed inside.

    AYAMI!!!!!!

    "Uh, I think I need to go now or I''ll be late." Yanna ran aw¡ª no, left hurriedly. Inside, she was spitting a bunch of curses towards Ayami.

    Students started to disperse, some of them even mocked them and those who took a video uploaded it on the internet. The three who were left could only stand up with their face flushed in shame.

    How embarrassing!

    A while later, Yanna''s name and the trio were spread like wildfire throughout the whole academy.

 Chapter 71 - I Dont Want To!

    "What was that earlier?" Yanna asked, fuming in anger as she stood up in front of Ayami with both her hands on her waist.

    Currently, they were in an emergency exit to eat their lunch. Ayami tilted her head with a confused expression. "What do you mean?"

    Yanna knew that there was no use talking to this girl. Ayami always play dumb whenever she was confronted after messing with Yanna.

    "Forget it." Yanna sat down on the stairs and brought out her own boxed lunch, while Ayami just took out the bread she bought.

    "How are things going on your side?" Ayami asked as she tore apart the seal of the bread.

    "Things are going well. Soon, he''ll fall in love with me." Yanna smirked. Ayami asked her skeptically. "Are you sure?"

    "Of course." Yanna said with a confident look, not thinking that she would even fail.

    "Don''t you think things are going too well?" Things are happening too well, too well, that Ayami was afraid that this was just calm before the storm. She hoped that was not the case.

    Everyday was peaceful. It was so peaceful that it was making her afraid that this was just an illusion. Ayami was not used to this peace. She could not delude herself again like last time.

    There is no way that things will continue to be peaceful. Soon, dangers will start to appear. One day, she might die again because she let her guard down.

    Ayami can''t let that happen. There was no way she would be given another chance to revive. The guide even said that this was her last chance.

    "You''re thinking too much." Yanna replied to her after some thinking. How naive.

    Ayami let out a sigh as she mumbled to herself. "I hope this peace will go on for a little longer."

    ***

    "Young miss Ayami, the head is asking you to come back to the main household."

    A man dressed in a navy blue suit and slick back hair spoke to Ayami in a respectful way. Ayami narrowed her eyes in the teacup she was holding. She saw her reflection from the liquid, it was sour.

    Earlier, she was called by the academy''s office and when she arrived, she saw this man. He was her grandfather''s assistant. They moved into another room to talk.

    Truthfully, Ayami wanted to pour this tea to the assistant who was just following her grandfather''s order. She knew that, even so she was annoyed at this man who was like a loyal puppy.

    Can''t you disobey the head for once?

    Frustrated, Ayami could only tighten her grip on the teacup. She faced the assistant with a cold expression. "I don''t want to."

    The assistant had a troubled look on his face, "Young miss, please don''t make this difficult. You''ll just have to come back to the main house."

    "Easy for you to say." She scoffed. "I won''t come back and that''s final."

    "Young miss, you don''t want us, the innocent, to be wrongly punished, right?" The assistant tried to persuade the stubborn young miss, but it only angered her. One of the things she hates was guilt-tripping her into submission.

    "Didn''t you hear what I said? Get lost." She glanced at him coldly. The liquid from the teacup shook slightly as her hand trembled from anger.

    "I¡­ haa¡­" The assistant sighed, then he looked at Ayami with a stern expression. "Young miss, the head said he will give you three days. If you don''t come back within that time, then be prepared for what''s to come. Hopefully, we won''t have to drag you back to the main house."

    The assistant stood up and left, leaving Ayami alone inside the room. A moment later she received a call from her father.

    "Yes?"

    "I heard¡­" Dennis said with a gloomy tone. "You should follow the assistant''s word and return back to the main house. I''ll go and¡ª"

    "I''m not going!" Ayami hissed.

    "Ayami, whether you like it or not , you have to come back and at least see your grandfather." Dennis spoke with a stern tone and acted like a strict father. "I don''t even understand why you left the main house."

    "And I don''t understand why you left me alone in the main house. Also, he is not my grandfather!" Ayami rebutted, which made Dennis silent for a moment.

    "Ayami, this is for your own good. I''m worried that they will do anything to drag you back. Please, just go back for a while before you get harsher punishment."

    "I. Don''t. Want. To." Ayami hung up the call in a huff.

    Why are people so keen on making her go back when she doesn''t want to?

    Ayami had some bad memories in that house and she didn''t really want to go back. They didn''t even bother helping her in her last life when she was in trouble, well she was at fault anyway. But still, they could have at least helped just a little bit, even just a tiny bit, they were her relatives after all. Not anymore.

    Ayami went back to her dorm and grabbed a backpack. She put a change of clothes inside it and wore a face mask and thick round eyeglasses.

    She decided to skip her afternoon classes.

    Ayami sent a message to Marie, then she went to the back of the academy, the place where she always goes whenever she wants to leave the academy grounds.

    Ayami sat down and leaned back to the wall as she waited for Marie to come. She looked up and saw the clear blue sky. The weather was good and it was making her sleepy.

    Ayami let out a sigh again. Three days. They would surely find any means possible and drag her back.

    Where should I escape to?

    Ayami didn''t regret using her grandfather''s men to take over the Coiling Snake Gang. Why should she? Her grandfather said it was a gift, it was only right for her to use it.

    The only problem was that after using the gift, she would face her grandfather''s questioning and then force her to stay back in the main house after using his men.

    Even if I hide, the head would just use his resources just to find me, unless I hide inside the home of one of the most powerful people in the country.

    A certain ice block popped inside her head. Ayami immediately waved that thought off. She shuddered in disgust. Ew, ew, what are you thinking!?

    Even if I die, I won''t ask for his help!

    And what about her classes? If she fails at least one of her classes, then she would be held back or possibly get expelled. She can''t have that!

    Ayami must graduate no matter what! She wanted to grant her little wish and that is, to graduate at this academy. In the past, she never achieved it as she was expelled just before she could graduate.

    Suddenly, a pair of black leather shoes came into her view. She widened her eyes and slowly looked up, horrified.

    They already sent someone to keep an eye on me this fast? I couldn''t even feel their presence!

    "Miss, you look troubled."

    Ayami was stunned silly. The pair of feet belonged to¡­ Kayden.

    Ayami snapped out of it and avoided eye contact with him. But then, Kayden sat down beside her nonchalantly. He examined her face closely.

    "You look familiar." He rubbed his chin while furrowing his brows, trying to remember where he had seen her. Then he flicked his finger and smiled brightly. "Oh, I know! You were that weird student who was skipping class."

    Excuse me? Weird?

    "Are you skipping again?" He tilted his head. He was still the same as ever. Ayami decided to be honest with him as she nodded her head.

    "I see, but don''t skip often. The teachers might notice and call your parents."

    "But your face looks like¡­, did you get caught?"

    "No, not yet. But soon." Ayami smiled bitterly. She''ll get caught three days later to be exact.

    "Don''t worry, leave this to your senior. I''ll make sure you won''t get caught." Kayden proudly patted his chest.

    "¡­ Senior is very reliable."

    A minute later, Ayami received a message from Marie saying that she had arrived. Ayami stood up and bid her farewell to Kayden. "I think I have to go now.

    "Okay." Kayden stayed seated on the ground and watched Ayami use the rusty iron gate to leave. Ayami waved her hand like she was saying goodbye to a friend. Of course, Kayden cheerfully waved back.

    When Ayami was gone, Kayden snapped his finger. One by one, men dressed like a bodyguard started to appear.

    "Have someone follow that student. She might be involved in a gang." Kayden ordered. The once warm and cheerful expression were replaced by an indifferent look. Five men immediately set off to follow the student.

    "Have you already found the identity of the student?" A man stepped out and handed Kayden a piece of paper.

    In the piece of paper, there was information about Ayami Gardner. He narrowed his eyes as a smile escaped his lips.

    "Ayami Gardner, huh."

 Chapter 72 - Hostage

    "Young miss, we''re being followed." Marie reported after taking a glance at the rearview mirror. Ayami opened her closed eyes, she asked softly, "How many?"

    "There''s only one car. It seems like they just intend to follow us."

    Who are they? Is it the matermind''s?

    Ayami furrowed her brows and clenched her fist. She looked behind and saw a black car keeping their distance constantly. A normal person would not be able to discover that.

    "Shake them off." She ordered.

    This seems familiar¡­

    It kinda reminded her of a situation in her past life. A memory where Kayden was holding her as the car being driven by the professional driver sped past through the road while they were being chased by five cars, who were also raining bullets on them. Unknowingly, her lips curved upward making her features feel soft and gentle like an angel.

    But¡­ this situation was safer than before. There was no Kayden, no chauffeur who mastered the skills of driving, no raining bullets or four more cars chasing after them. For some reason, she felt an empty feeling inside.

    Was it because it wasn''t as thrilling as before?

    The car kept their distance and didn''t attack them or rain bullets on them which somehow disappointed her.

    Soon, they arrived at their destination, Neon City. It was the neighboring city of Gold Spoon City, the capital and where Ayami and her family lived.

    They were currently in the bustling downtown of the Neon City. As they were still being followed thanks to Marie''s skill, the both of them had to be careful. Ayami had already changed her clothes inside the car.

    Ayami was wearing a gray denim jacket over a black t-shirt, coupled with a navy blue skinny jeans and blue denim shoes. There was a black belt bag slung onto her shoulders. Ayami lowered her cap and adjusted her glasses.

    As if they had a silent agreement the two glanced at each other, with the other nodding their head. Ayami separated from Marie and walked into the crowd to blend among them, in that way, they would have difficulty in trailing her.

    "¡­"

    Ayami walked through the crowd silently, her gaze heavy, feeling uncomfortable from the lively atmosphere. She walked past a couple of stores. She wanted to enter a clothes store but unfortunately, she doesn''t have enough money for that. Her family would find out that she skipped classes once she used the card.

    ''Ugh, I should really open my own account.''

    After walking a while, she found a cafe from an inconspicuous corner. She took a look inside the cafe and saw that there were only a few people there, making it even more perfect.

    She ordered first before sitting down in the corner, enjoying the quiet and peaceful atmosphere inside the shop, unlike the outside, which was bustling with people.

    Ayami sent her location and waited for Marie to come. She sent Marie off to serve as a distraction, only when she completely shakes them off would she be allowed to return to her side.

    "Marriage, hm¡­" Ayami mumbled to herself. She was thinking about the three days deadline.

    She has no way of escaping that old man, so she considered breaking off the engagement if she was coming back. She thought, why not take this chance to break off the engagement?

    The problem is that she could not just pick any random person and force them to marry her, then drag them to her family affairs. She had to prove that she really loved the lucky person she picked to the point of marrying them at an early age.

    I wonder who is a good candidate?

    As she was thinking, two men entered the shop with one of them looking nervous as they fidgeted. The man beside him acted normally. The duo was weird.

    Ayami could sense something wrong, but instead of leaving immediately, she waited for something to unfold. Ayami took out her phone secretly.

    "Hurry up! You might miss something interesting." Ayami happily tapped ''sent'' and the message was delivered to Marie.

    The duo were behaving suspiciously, she could tell as their eyes were moving around to the point that it was unusual. Amateurs.

    After the calm man reached the counter, both of them took out their guns and fired a warning shot, creating a loud bang. The hands of the nervous man were trembling as he held the gun in his hand and held a hostage in his other hand pointing it at the unlucky customer, which was Ayami.

    Ayami coldly glanced at him while thinking, ''Why me?''

    "Nobody moves! If anybody dares to call the police, then I''ll blow their heads up." The calm man shouted. The customers in the shop were frightened to the core after hearing the gunshot and the threatening shout of the man. They trembled in fear, with some of them even weeping and begging.

    The nervous man dragged Ayami near his partner. He pushed her to his partner, while the calm man catched her and roughly tied her up. "Tie the others and collect their phones, rookie."

    "Y-Yes!" The nervous man hurriedly tied the others, some of them were sloppy. If they tried then they could have removed it, but so what? The other party had a gun on them.

    "You, call the police." The calm man said to the staff that was trembling over the counter.

    "H-huh?" Earlier, they said that they will kill the person who calls the police and now they''re saying to call the police? Isn''t this too contradictory? Is this a trick question? Would they be killed once they call the police?

    "Just do it!" The man roared, making the staff intimidated. Though confused, the staff still did what he was told. Even Ayami was confused as she didn''t expect this development.

    The staff dialed the police and soon it was picked up. "Hello, how may I help you?"

    "Say what you want to say. Ask for help or something. Just get the police here. Make it seem big."

    "P-please¡­ *sob* h-help us¡­*sob*" The staff bursted into tears. The person on the other side tried to calm the staff. "W-We''re being held as hostages!"

    The staff told them the situation and the place. The peace was destroyed as soon as these two entered, making the atmosphere turn glum.

    "Uh, can I eat?" Ayami calmly asked under the threatening situation. She didn''t want to waste the food she ordered. The calm man laughed and then he tossed Ayami to the ground. Ayami hissed in pain as she fell on her butt.

    "Little Missy, I don''t think you understand the situation here." The man pressed the gun to her cheeks while looking at her coldly.

    "Obviously, I don''t." Ayami rolled her eyes.

    "Are you f**king serious?"

    "Don''t shout on my face, your saliva is spitting out. Gross." There was a disgusted expression on her face and her eyes¡­ it was as if she was looking at a bug that could be crushed in a second.

    "Hahahaha! Very fun¡ª!" Ayami kicked him in the stomach before he could even finish his sentence. The man writhed in pain as he clutched his stomach. She already told him not to shout and yet he had the audacity to laugh loudly in front of her face. Disgusting!

    Before the man could recover, she kicked his hand that was holding the gun. Then, she quickly removed her rope easily before retrieving the gun.

    "Hey, you!" His partner, who just watched the whole thing in a daze, jolted in shock and pointed at himself with wide eyes. "Give me your gun."

    The nervous man immediately handed her the gun with trembling hands. Then she ordered the man like it was natural. "Free them all."

    Ayami turned around and saw the calm man who was still in pain rushed to her with a knife in his hand. She calmly fired a shot to his legs with great precision. Then she mercilessly kicked him in the crotch repeatedly. The male customers and the nervous man hid their crotch in reflex. Just watching it made them feel it.

    Ayami started beating him black and blue. After beating the man, she turned her head and looked at the nervous man fidgeting around. She grinned at him. "You, come here."

    The man knew that it was his turn, but what can he do? He could only let himself be beaten up by the girl and be humiliated.

    Ayami decided to change location after beating the both of them up. She left the cafe with no hesitation after she was done.

    "W-wait, m-miss! May I know your name?" The staff blushed as he asked her. Ayami lowered her cap as she thought of a name. She definitely could not tell this staff her real name or else she might get caught.

    "I cannot tell you my name." After saying that, a wind suddenly blew almost taking off her cap. Ayami lowered her cap in annoyance and left the staff who was in awe.

    By the time the police arrived at the scene, the duo were on the ground with their faces swollen.

 Chapter 73 - Neon City

    Ayami wandered through the busy street, venturing into the unfamiliar place she had never gone throughout her life in the past. She glanced at the clock. 3 PM. She sighed as there was still a lot of time before she went to her ''business'' in the city.

    Maybe she should have just gone after class.

    Ayami removed her face mask, revealing her thin pink lips with a slight shade of red and her cute pointy nose. She lowered her cap and adjusted her glasses and fixed her hair as it was messed by the wind earlier.

    As she wandered around aimlessly, memorizing each street and places that caught her eye, she saw a familiar man surrounded by girls flirting with him.

    Blonde hair shining like the sun and a pair of charming blue eyes like the blue ocean, with a playful smile on his face, a perfect chiseled jawline, he was someone you could call perfect and this man was someone Ayami knew.

    Her eyes turned cold as soon as she laid her eyes on him.

    This man was Oliver Yun, Cole''s best friend.

    ''You think you deserve him? What a funny joke.''

    ''Remember this, sl*t, you are less than a bug. Don''t think about getting together with him. Just thinking about it is disgusting!''

    Ayami started recalling the terrible memories she shared with him. This man didn''t even think of her as human.

    She could not understand this man. Was there even a need to dehumanize her?

    Well, thinking about her actions, she did a bunch of wicked things. But she didn''t think that it was enough to treat her that way.

    Seeing the smile on his face, she just wanted to grab her gun and shoot him in the head. Or maybe something better, like smashing his face to the point of being unrecognizable or maybe, castrating him.

    But then, something unexpected happened. A slight frown appeared on her face as she wondered. ''What is he doing here?''

    "Kayden, over here!"

    In the distance, Kayden, wearing casual clothing, was walking towards Oliver with a slight smile on his face. The two were in contrast to each other as one wore casual clothes while the other wore stylish clothes.

    Ayami watched as Kayden approached Oliver and greeted him. The two acted like they were friends and not just acquaintances who coincidentally saw each other.

    Her gaze darkened, yet there was a tint of disappointment hidden within those eyes when she saw Oliver wrap his hand around Kayden''s shoulder, but all she could was watch from afar as she was afraid of getting her identity found.

    Ayami hid behind a post not far away and also not enough for them to notice her. She focused on the two of them.

    "Yo, it''s been a while bro." Oliver said as he slightly patted his back. The women who surrounded him earlier still didn''t leave. Oliver smirked and leaned his head to whisper to Kayden. "Which one of them is your type?"

    Kayden glared at him. "None of them fancies me."

    "Aw, man. I thought I''ll finally see you getting a girlfriend. Come on, you''re already an adult yet I still haven''t seen you with a girl. Why don''t I help you with losing your V-card?"

    "No thanks, I''m cool with this." Kayden removed the arm on his shoulder as he spoke.

    "Haa¡­ alright. By the way, why did you suddenly decide to join us today?"

    "Just because." Kayden slightly smiled.

    As the two conversed, Kayden could feel a stare as if burning a hole on him. He then turned his head and met the eyes of the girl he met at the back of the academy earlier. Though he couldn''t completely see her face earlier, he could tell that it was the same crystal blue eyes that stared at him.

    ''Found you.''

    The girl yelped in shock and fumbled as she tried to act normally. She lowered her cap and looked down, while fidgeting on her phone. Kayden chuckled lightly at her actions.

    "Hm? Is there something funny?" Oliver asked after Kayden chuckled. Kayden shook his head and denied.

    The two entered a private establishment meant for high class. Unfortunately, she could not enter as she first needed to make a reservation. She could only watch them go inside.

    Well, it was none of her business anyways. Ayami decided to kill time in another cafe, unfortunately, it seems that robbers like to target the cafes these days and she was a victim of hostages again.

    Ayami wondered what was going on today. This time, Ayami stayed still and didn''t do anything until the police arrived. Like earlier, the robbers consisted of two men. One, an experienced while the other, an amateur.

    Is there something going on in this city?

    It looks like Ayami picked a bad time to enter the city.

    After being saved by the police, Ayami decided to avoid cafes and kill time in the park.

    ***

    At nighttime, various neon lights started to illuminate the whole city. There was a reason why it was called Neon City.

    The shade of neon added to the color of the girl wandering through the busy streets with all sorts of people wandering around with some of them in a hurry to head home now that it was night.

    The girl lowered her cap as she navigated through the crowd, swiftly avoiding every single contact from the other people.

    Then, she stopped right in front of an alleyway and waited for someone as she sucked on the lollipop. Ayami narrowed her eyes, observing every single person passing.

    To every ten people walking past her, there was a chance that one of them is a criminal blending among these normal people. The crime rate increased as the sun went down. The people who have no power started locking their doors, hiding inside their homes.

    At night, Neon city would turn into a dangerous city. In contrast to the colorful lights it was giving, it was also the darkest place in the country. Neon City had another name and that was, Underworld City.

    It was the place where gangs and criminals lived and hid during the day. Gangs would start to pop out and gang wars would suddenly start. The police would not intervene, no, they did not dare do so.

    "You''re late." Ayami said, squinting her eyes at Marie. Marie quickly apologized to her. "I''m sorry, young miss. They were very hard to shake off."

    "Hm." Ayami nodded her head and beckoned her to come inside the alleyway. They entered the dark alleyway, which was one of the most dangerous places you shouldn''t go when it was night in Neon City.

    Throughout the darkness, Ayami treaded the path. Left, right, straight, turn right, then left again. Ayami remembered the direction that John told her.

    The two who were walking through the dark alleyway like they were walking in a park, didn''t notice the five shadows that were following them. Soon, it became six as a new one joined them.

    After walking for a while, the two reached a bar, without noticing the tails that were watching them. It was a shabby two story-building.

    Marie wore a mask that covered her whole face and a black latex suit so that she wouldn''t be easily recognized, while Ayami still wore the same outfit.

    Tok, tok.

    Marie was the one who knocked on the door. The wooden door creaked and revealed an old man with wrinkled skin and a white beard on his face.

    "What is it?" The old man asked, the air around him was eer.

    "Is this the Red Sun of the West?" Marie asked and the old man replied. "No, I think there is a mistake."

    "I see, then do you know where I could find the Stars of the Night?"

    It''s starting. Ayami thought and sucked on the lollipop. She stood on the side and impatiently waited for their conversation to end.

    Couldn''t they just ask ''what''s the password?'' and get done with it? Do they have to use such an old-fashioned way?

    The old man glanced at the girl behind the woman, but the woman immediately blocked him.

    A few minutes later of talking back and forth of nonsensical conversation, the old man let them in and welcomed them. The look on the inside was different from what it looks from the outside. It was the very definition of don''t judge a book by its cover.

    The interior was clean and neat, looking like a high-end modern bar. There were some women wearing a mask and a sexy bunny outfit serving some men.

    Ayami pressed her lips into thin line and stood behind Marie, as the men gawked at them like they were seeing a strange creature. Some of them gazed at the two with a perverted gaze, as one had a voluptuous body and the other was a cute girl.

    "Tsk. Don''t wear that kind of thing if you know you''re going to a bar. Their gazes are annoying." Ayami grumbled to Marie. Marie just chuckled and answered ''Yes''.

    The two headed to the counter to order some drinks and of course, another one of those ''passwords'' just to talk to the boss. Marie didn''t allow Ayami to drink even though she had high alcohol tolerance.

    Ayami grumbled again and just sourly drank the juice the bartender gave her.. Thankfully, there was no one who approached them, yet.

 Chapter 74 - Do You Want To Hear A Secret?

    "Boss, someone is here to see you." A burly man said after knocking to his boss'' office. A middle- aged man raised his head and glanced at the burly man before nodding his head.

    Soon after, two people entered the room. One was a woman with a voluptuous body wearing a mask that covered her whole face and the other, a girl wearing a cap and glasses. He noticed that both of them were wearing gloves, which made him wonder if they were using it for fashion or maybe¡­ something different.

    "What can I do for you?" The middle-aged man asked with no expression on his face, as if he always experienced this kind of situation and had gone numb from it.

    "Not even gonna offer us some tea? Or let us sit down?" The girl asked nonchalantly, yet the middle-aged man felt pressure from her words. The girl continued to speak, but this time, there was a trace of disappointment in her voice. "Is this how you treat your new boss?"

    The middle-aged man widened his eyes in shock, before color drained from his face.

    "B-boss?" He asked with a voice trembling to the girl he thought to be the assistant of the woman. It seems like it was the other way around. He had heard that the gang had a new boss. No one could have expected that this young girl was the new head of the gang.

    "I apologize. I did not hear a notice about your visit." The middle-aged man lowered his head after gaining back his composure. He needed to apologize quickly, afraid that he might anger this new boss.

    "It''s a surprise visit or you could say, an inspection." The girl looked around the room and casually sat down on the sofa meant for guests while the woman remained standing by the door.

    "I''ll go prepare some tea." The middle-aged man quickly stood up and rummaged to the cabinet. He took out a clean teaset and started boiling some water at the corner of the room. There was a part where you could prepare your tea anytime.

    As he was busy preparing tea, he didn''t notice the exchanged glance from the two of them. The woman quietly approached the middle-aged man from behind. Her footsteps were quiet like a cat, making it harder for him to notice.

    The woman took out a white laced with sleeping drugs and carefully went behind him.

    By the time he noticed the woman, his mouth was already covered with a white cloth and inhaled a sleeping drug, his hands were grasped by the woman tightly. He wasn''t able to make a sound or even resist.

    Eventually, he slowly closed his eyes as his body turned limp and succumbed to the sleepiness he was feeling.

    Ayami glanced at Marie who was tying up the unconscious middle-aged man, before standing up from her seat and looking around the drawers and taking a look at the documents, while she was at it she made a mess.

    When she finally found what she was looking for she hid it inside her belt-bag. Then, she took out a piece of cloth with a big red star and a circle and small five stars surrounding it, embroidered in it. She placed it on the table before going to the window and peering over it.

    She narrowed her eyes, calculating the height from the ground up to this floor. Luckily, it was not that high, but she might get some sprain if she makes a mistake. She can''t let that happen as they still needed to run. She can''t let that happen as they still needed to run.

    Afterwards, she turned her head to look at Marie, who was now carrying the middle-aged man. "Let''s go."

    Ayami let Marie go first. After making sure that she had already landed, Ayami purposely knocked down the vase on the table, creating a loud sound and alarming the people outside. Ayami quickly went out of the window and skillfully landed on the ground.

    "Let''s meet later. Don''t get caught."

    "Please be safe, young miss."

    The two separated from each other. Their direction was opposite to each other. Ayami navigated through the dark alleyway, avoiding the dangerous people lurking out.

    "They said the boss was kidnapped. It was two people, a young girl and a woman."

    "Whoever catches them would receive a great reward."

    "Then, what are we waiting for, let''s hunt them down. They are only two, but we are hundreds."

    Just as she was about to turn on a corner, she heard voices talking to each other. They completely described both Ayami and Marie, making it even harder.

    Why did it spread this fast?

    Ayami quickly made a stop and turned around. But then, she also heard footsteps coming her way.

    A sandwich!

    Ayami panicked for a little bit before calming down. As much as possible, she didn''t want to use her gun and silence these people. Such a waste of bullets if she killed these small fries. Besides, it would still cause a commotion even if she had a silencer.

    Now what to do? Knock them out? I am not fast enough to¡ª

    Suddenly, something unexpected happened, interrupting her chain of thoughts. A hand covered her mouth while there was another grabbing her waist, leading her to the darkest path of the alleyway. She was just about to struggle but immediately stopped when she heard a familiar voice entering her ears.

    "Shhh¡­ please don''t struggle, Miss Ayami. It''s me."

    "K-Kayden¡­?"

    What is he doing here?

    "Sorry, but please go along with my act. You might not like what I''m about to do." Kayden looked at her with an apologetic expression. He removed her cap and glasses, took a clear look at her as if he was able to see her completely under the darkness.

    Kayden pushed her lightly to the wall, as if her delicate body would get hurt. Then, he put his right arm on the wall, leaning towards her while the other touched her waist, sending a warm feeling to it.

    It all happened so fast that Ayami could not even react. Kayden leaned to her ears and softly whispered. "Moan please."

    "Eh?" Her ears reddened, no, in fact, her whole face was red like tomato. Ayami could only dumbfoundedly stare at Kayden. Kayden sighed as he heard the footsteps approaching them. "They''re coming."

    "Sorry in advance" Kayden bit her ears and licked them. "Ah!", A loud moan escaped from her lips. Due to her surprise, she wasn''t able to control the volume of her voice. Ayami subconsciously moaned as Kayden continued to nibble on her ears, before slowly trailing towards her neck. His hot breath made her body feel like she was receiving an electrical shock.

    The footsteps neared them and shone a flashlight on the wild couple making out in an alleyway.

    "Woah!"

    "Sh*t!"

    "That''s hot and all, but go get a room, you two!"

    "Man, I''m so jealous."

    "Lemme join, man."

    Kayden stopped his action and glanced at them sideways. His arm were blocking Ayami''s face, making them unable to see her face. He stared at them coldly like those eyes were trying to pierce them.

    "Tsk. Let''s go."

    "Sorry for interrupting your hot time."

    "I wish I was him."

    After they left and their footsteps couldn''t be heard anymore, Kayden let go of Ayami and nervously apologized. "I-I''m sorry¡­ Are you alright?"

    Ayami felt her legs weaken from his action. It was too surprising.

    "I''m fine. By the way, how do you know who I was? More importantly, why are you here?"

    "I asked the guards who the girl wearing a face mask and a pair of glasses was. And I am here to observe a certain student. Miss Ayami, could you tell me why you are here?"

    "Drop the miss. And why should I tell you?" Kayden was quiet for a moment before smiling brightly. "I see. Then do you mind if I follow you?"

    "I mind."

    "Well, you see the academy can''t have its students get involved with a gang or any dangerous group. We cannot have our reputation be stained. But I couldn''t care less whether or not a student is involved with dangerous people."

    "You are not part of the student council or discipline committee so why are you doing this?"

    "I just wanted to make sure that the students are safe."

    Ayami frowned at him. She could not understand this man at all. "You are not making any sense."

    "Oh, you believe that nonsense?" Kayden asked in surprise. Ayami stared at him, once again, dumbfounded. Kayden contemplated for a while before asking her.

    "Do you want to hear a secret?"

    "What kind?" Ayami asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

    "I''ll tell you if you let me follow you." Kayden grinned. He had nothing to lose. If Ayami agrees, then he could just tell her one of the secrets of the academy. It wasn''t his secret anyways. Even if she refused, he could just secretly follow her while she might die from curiosity.

    "¡­Alright."

 Chapter 75 - Apology

    Ayami agreed without thinking and regretted it a moment later. She couldn''t take it back as Kayden had already opened his mouth to speak.

    "The academy is under the Roswell Family." And that was it. It was just one sentence. He didn''t speak anymore.

    Ayami didn''t consider that information as valuable or useless. The information he gave wasn''t enough to satiate her curiosity, so she blurted out, "That''s it?"

    Kayden smiled at her. "I did say ''a secret'', right? That means I''ll only tell you one."

    Ayami was at a loss. She felt like she lost a great amount in this transaction. It felt like she lost a lottery after betting all her money on it.

    Kayden patted her head and grinned at her. "You should pay attention to the words of the other party, especially if they are offering a deal. And also try to take as much as you can without suffering any loss. In fact, you should just take everything."

    Of course she knows that! And yet, she let her guard down in front of this man.

    "I know¡­" grumbled Ayami while there was a cute pout on her face. Kayden chuckled and put back the glasses on her and the hat.

    "By the way, how do you know my name?" Kayden suddenly asked, making Ayami flinch. Ayami could tell that he was observing her reaction. "And you are acting too casually for someone you barely know."

    "I¡­" Ayami couldn''t come up with an explanation. She could not just tell him, ''I came back from the future and you were my friend.'' That would have been ridiculous and no sane person would believe that.

    "I''m always like this! That''s right, this is the way I usually act." Ayami said with a straight face and didn''t bat an eye when lying. Kayden narrowed his eyes before nodding his. "¡­Okay."

    "Aren''t you the same?"

    "Hm, maybe?"

    "The academy, I thought they don''t take orders from anyone?" Ayami swiftly changed the topic.

    Although the academy gave special privileges to the five families, they weren''t one to take orders from them. If the academy refuses, then there is nothing they could do about it. Ayami was wondering why they had so much power, it turns out there was a powerful backing behind them.

    "Yes, they don''t. But there''s always an exception. I can''t tell you anymore than this. I can get expelled for being a snitch. It would be embarrassing to get expelled for that reason."

    I kinda want it to happen.

    "Anyway, let''s go."

    "Where are we going?"

    "Outside the alley." Ayami led the way, while Kayden followed after her like a chick following their mother. Ayami didn''t know that there were five more people following after her secretly in the shadows.

    From the looks of it, she needs to postpone her plan for today as there was someone following after her. It was unfortunate, oh well, there''s still tomorrow.

    As Ayami was walking through the dark path in front, she couldn''t help but still feel a little scared. It was the same earlier when she was alone, thankfully, she had Kayden following her. At least, she was not alone.

    After walking through a dark narrow path, they finally reached outside. Ayami turned around and faced Kayden. "I''m going ''home'' now."

    "Oh, okay. See you tomorrow." Kayden cheerfully spoke. Wait, tomorrow?

    "Are you going to follow me again?" Seeing the look in his eyes, she could tell that was the case. Ayami shook her head. "Not allowed." But then, she shrewdly smiled. "But if you tell me another secret, then I might let you follow me."

    "How can you guarantee that? You might leave me behind as soon as I tell you another secret." Kayden raised his brows.

    Darn it. He''s sharp.

    "That depends on the value of the secret you are telling me."

    "Alright, I''ll tell you another tomorrow." He said as he walked past her. Then he turned around and smiled at her. "You''re a quick learner."

    Ayami felt like the world slowed down as she stared at Kayden. That gentle smile of his made her heart beat faster than it should have. A feeling slowly crept to her, but it wasn''t uncomfortable in fact it made her feel something different, somewhat giddy and warm, no it was her face that was heating up.

    Thankfully, the neon shade hid her bright red face. The world that slowed down continued to flow normally a moment later.

    "Hey, are you alright?" Kayden waved his hand in front of her, while his brows furrowed. Ayami quickly left her dazed state and spoke. "I-I''m fwine!" She spoke in a hurry that she bit her tongue. Ayami blushed in embarrassment. "Uh, I mean, I''m fine."

    "Are you sure?" Ayami nodded her head. Kayden examined her face. There was nothing wrong with her, except she looked out of it. That won''t do. He can''t let her go ''home'' defenseless like this.

    "Where are you staying tonight?"

    "Ah?" Ayami looked at him with confusion. "Where to? Of course, the dorm!"

    "And you''re gonna go back here tomorrow? Isn''t that a hassle?" Ayami blinked her eyes. He has a point.

    "Are you not going to at least stay in a hotel or something?"

    "I don''t have any money."

    This time, Kayden was the one who was confused. "Don''t your father give you an allowance?"

    "He''ll find out that I''m not staying inside the dorm." Ayami explained.

    "Are you that scared of your father? Is he strict?"

    Ayami looked down and shook her head. "No, I¡­ it''s complicated."

    Kayden looked at her pitifully. She had probably never gone to an amusement park in her life or even at least going to the cinemas. How sad is her life.

    "Don''t look at me like that." Ayami hated that look. She hated getting pitied. Sensing the drastic change in her mood, Kayden immediately apologized.

    "Sorry. You must have hated being pitied and I subconsciously just did that. I''m sorry."

    "It''s fine but, apology not accepted. Since you just said to get a hotel room, why don''t you treat me as an apology. Get me the presidential suite." Ayami grinned at him. There was no way he would be able to get that kind of room unless he was from a powerful family. That way, when he says he can''t, she could just ask her to tell another secret.

    Kayden knew what she was thinking. How unfortunate. Her expectations were not fulfilled because the next moment, Kayden was already dragging her to the most luxurious hotel in the city.

    "Young master Kayden, welcome, welcome." The person who seemed to be the manager, warmly welcomed the both of them. There was a disgusting smile plastered on his face as he rubbed his hands while his eyes felt like it was shaped like money from the way he was looking at the two.

    "The presidential suite is always open for Young Master Kayden." The manager said and gave him the keycard. He then noticed the girl wearing a cap beside him. "And this is?"

    "There is no need for you to know. Oh and don''t tell my friends about this." Kayden smiled at him but his eyes were intimidating the manager. Afterwards, Kayden dragged Ayami to the elevator. Then they went to their room.

    Kayden was smirking at her as he closed the door, "You truly are a quick learner."

    "You''re unfair! You''re taking advantage of your friends." Ayami pointed at him and grumbled.

    "I''m just enjoying the privilege of being their friend. What''s wrong with that?" He tilted his head.

    That''s wrong! That''s not the right way! You should squeeze them dry¡ª uh, forget it!

    "Are you angry because you couldn''t get another secret?" Kayden spoke to her in a teasing manner. Ayami lay down on the soft bed that felt like clouds, while Kayden took a chair and dragged it in front of her before sitting down with legs crossed.

    "How many secrets do you even have?" She asked while massaging her forehead. Kayden smiled at her mysteriously. "More than you could imagine."

    "Why do you know that much?"

    "Secret." Kayden playfully smiled at her.

    "If you know that much then do you know the secrets of the world?"

    Kayden suddenly froze for a moment before he mysteriously smiled again. That change of expression was so fast that Ayami could not see it.

    "Hm¡­ Maybe~ Why don''t you guess?"

    "As if you know something like that." Ayami rolled her eyes and yawned. "Aren''t you leaving yet?"

    "Originally, this is supposed to be the place where I''m supposed to sleep tonight."

    "And?"

    "I''m saying that you already got the presidential suite you wanted, but that doesn''t mean you will sleep on the bed."

    Ayami glared at him while she stretched out her body and gripped on the bed tightly. "Are you really going to let your cute junior sleep on the sofa?"

    "Alright. You get the bed." Kayden sighed. It was not good to argue with women as they are unreasonable creatures. Sometimes, it is best to give way and live in peace.

    But he wasn''t done yet. Ayami watched him take off his shoes and get on the bed nonchalantly. He smiled at her like he was victorious.

    "And I''ll get the bed too."

 Chapter 76 - Black Dragon And White Tiger

    Ayami was dumbfounded from what he said, but she recovered later on. She shrugged it off. "Suit yourself."

    Then she turned around and closed her eyes, while her back faced Kayden. Kayden frowned at her actions.

    ''Does she have no self-awareness?''

    Unknown to him, Ayami was caressing the gun hidden in her belt bag. If he tries anything funny, then she''ll just shoot him.

    Moments later, she heard Kayden speak to her. "Are you sleeping?"

    "¡­" No response.

    Kayden got off the bed, making Ayami tighten her grip on the gun. Minutes later, she heard the sound of the door opening and closing.

    Ayami opened her eyes and looked at the closed door in surprise. "I wonder where he is going at this hour." She muttered to herself, before shaking her head. Not my business.

    It was a relief that he took the initiative in going out, or else she would have waited for him to fall asleep, before leaving. Ayami took out her phone and sent a message to Marie, telling her to lie in wait in some other place.

    "We''ll continue this tomorrow."

    Marie wondered why there was a change of plans. Something must have happened.

    ***

    Black Dragon. A notorious group well-known to Neon City. Black Dragon is a group that controls a third of the underworld and was equal in strength to another group named, White Tigers.

    The White Tigers were different from the Black Dragon. They were well-known for their good deeds, but that was only on the surface. The two groups'' ideals always clashed, making it difficult for the two to get along.

    The last group, the most powerful of them all, were not-known except for the two bosses of the group. The two bosses kept a tight lip on the third group, afraid that the hidden group would erase their existence even if the two worked together.

    Not like it will ever happen.

    Even if the two were on the brink of extinction, they would NEVER get along. The two groups fought ferociously, with not one of them raising a white flag.

    These days, the two groups were in a temporary truce. The two will not interfere with each other, as long as they don''t attack the other first.

    But now, it seems like the peaceful times will come to an end.

    On the main base of the Black Dragon group, the executives were having their meeting.

    "I heard that a branch of ours was attacked." An old man with a wide beard and an almost balding head spoke with a grim expression. This old man was one of the executives of the Black Dragon.

    "What''s more, is that the manager of that branch was kidnapped."

    "Tsk. It''s already been three days and they still haven''t caught the culprit. Haa¡­ What a useless bunch."

    The executives complained and complained, but one man remained silent. He was seated on the head seat, behind him was the symbol of the Black Dragon.

    This man was the boss of the Black Dragon, Luke. A perfectly sculpted face that emitted a great amount of coldness to the point you could freeze from being stared upon, a well-built body and long legs.

    Luke cleared his throat, making the people inside the meeting room quiet to the point you could hear a pin drop. "Report." A one word order made the assistant report everything in full detail.

    The assistant handed him a white cloth with a big red star and circle and five small stars surrounding it.

    "Boss, I suspect that this belongs to those white pussies." An executive said. "Based on our intel, they were contacting another group not based in this city. And I don''t think there is any group living in this city that has a symbol like this. So it''s either it was an outsider helping those white pussies or a small group that we have yet to find, but the latter is not likely as they won''t have the power to do that."

    "So it was those white pussies, eh?"

    "Then what are we waiting for, let''s attack them!"

    "No. We should plan first before facing them head on. There is a possibility that they will declare war on us. We don''t know how strong the other group is." The old executive said. Then he turned and looked at his boss.

    "What do you think, boss?"

    "We should observe the other party for a while." Luke said. Then he commanded like a domineering king. "Gather all the forces and keep an eye on the White Tigers. Keep a small part to keep an eye on the city."

    "Yes, Boss!" The executives excitedly spoke with a shrewd smile on their faces. ''Finally, some action!'' was what they thought.

    Meanwhile, sneaking around the city, was a pair, a young man and woman, walking discreetly to make sure they weren''t caught.

    "Ayami, are we there yet?" Kayden asked in a whisper after yawning. There was a bored look on his face as he walked behind Ayami. Ayami didn''t respond to him as he had already asked this for the nth time, and also, she was frustrated with him. She didn''t want to speak to him as much as possible.

    "Are you still sulking? It''s not my fault it wasn''t the secret you want to hear." Three days before, Ayami was excited to hear the secret about the academy. She was curious about the secrets and she also wanted to sell this information for a high price in the future. Who knows? There might be someone who had a grudge with the academy.

    ''The academy has a lot of dealings with the underworld.''

    Aren''t you just saying that the academy has an even stronger backing!?

    And so, Ayami decided to postpone her plans as she wasn''t in a good mood. But three days passed and the time of her deadline came.

    Ayami had Marie come back to Golden Spoon City to deal with her family and now she was stuck with this guy. She didn''t know how long Marie could stall for time so she needed to hurry and finish her business here. It was her fault too. She couldn''t bear the guilty conscience from seeing Marie getting punished in her stead.

    If only she didn''t get her emotion ahead of her.

    They arrived at another part of the city which was the White Tiger''s den and headed into the alleyway. They walked through the alleyway, avoiding the patrol. It was much harder to infiltrate than the Black Dragon.

    They then arrived at a two-story building. This time, Ayami didn''t knock and went through the entrance, instead, she went straight to the manager of this small branch through the window with the help of Kayden.

    Tap.

    Ayami landed lightly at the manager''s office. The manager didn''t notice a single thing as he buried himself in the paperworks the higher-ups forced him to do.

    Slowly, Ayami went behind him and then covered his mouth with a white cloth laced with a sedative. The manager struggled, making a mess and creating a loud sound.

    Ayami smiled. Good, the more noise you make the better. Struggle more and more.

    A moment later, Ayami let go of the manager, who lost his consciousness. If she could, she would have carried this man for a more dramatic effect. Unfortunately, it will get in the way when they run away later.

    Ayami quickly searched through the documents and grabbed something she found useful. Then she made an even more mess in the room.

    Ayami could hear the footsteps coming near. She had no time to waste, so she simply dropped the white cloth with embroidery. She quickly ran to the window and jumped.

    She had nothing to worry about as there was someone who would catch her. The next moment, she softly fell on the arms of the young man.

    "Are you crazy!?" He whispered shouted and glared at her. "Next time, warn me if you''re going to do that."

    Woah there, next time? Why are you so sure that I will let you follow me again?

    Kayden quickly dashed away with Ayami in his arms. "Hey, put me down!"

    "No, we have no time." He said seriously. But then, he smiled at her and spoke in a joking manner. "Just kidding, I just want to know what it feels to be in a rush while carrying a girl and being chased."

    "Do that later! You can do that as many times as you want, but not now!" Ayami growled at him. But then, she realized what she just said and quickly facepalmed.

    "Aren''t you crazier than me? Why are you doing this at a time like this?" She said after calming down. "Ugh, just put me down now! It''s faster that way."

    "Over there!"

    "We found them!"

    Ayami panicked in Kayden''s arms. "They found us!"

    What should she do? Shoot them?

    "But can they catch us?"

    "They have guns, idiot!"

    As Ayami shouted at him, the people chasing after them started shooting.

    Now what?

 Chapter 77 - Instigator

    Now what?

    The gears in her mind spun as she tried to think of a way out. As much as possible, she didn''t want to shoot to avoid making a noise. Unfortunately, the opponent has already done that, so why should she still hide the fact that she has a gun.

    Ayami swiftly took out her gun and shot the two with great precision. They both fall down, with gunshot wounds in their heart. If they''re lucky, they could still live. The commotion they made would surely attract all of the enemies.

    As she was deep in thought, she didn''t notice Kayden''s eyes narrowing at her. He didn''t look that surprised with the fact that she could easily kill people.

    After some time passed, Kayden put down Ayami gently. Ayami looked around the surroundings and was surprised when she saw that they were already out of the alley.

    Did he take a shortcut?

    "Let''s go." Kayden said, dragging her away in a hurry. He removed his mask and hers before entering a nearby store that was still open at night hours.

    It was a weird shop as there were a lot of unique things and old antiques. The store owner seemed a bit crook, as he eyes the both of them with an odd expression.

    "Welcome, dear customers." The store owner said with a smile. "You must be looking for something. I have the right thing for you."

    He took out a weird doll and started babbling. The store owner seems like a scammer.

    Surprisingly, Kayden seemed interested in the doll as he asked about it. Ayami glanced outside and saw three looking around like they were chasing someone. It was obvious that they belong to the White Tiger.

    Kayden placed his arms around Ayami and asked, "What do you think? Do you like it?"

    "Huh?" Ayami looked at him like he was crazy. Kayden signalled her with his eyes to just go along with him. Behind him, Ayami could see the three men entering the store.

    The door opened and three men entered with intimidating auras that could only work with normal civillians, but not for them. The store owner seemed used to this and just focused on the two dearest customers in front of him.

    "I like it very much." Ayami smiled naturally. "Do you have any more interesting products you could show us?"

    "Of course, of course." The store owner took out another unique item. Before the store owner could proceed explaining nonsense, one of three men called out to the two.

    "You two over there." Kayden made a surprise expression while Ayami clung to Kayden looking like she was afraid.

    "Us?"

    "Yes, you two. Have you seen a young girl and a woman?"

    The two looked at each other before Kayden shook his head.

    "Tsk. Not here either."

    "Let''s go."

    "Search every shop, they must not have gone that far."

    With that, the three of them left the store.

    "How strange." Ayami murmured to herself. They must have heard about the infiltration in the small branch of Black Dragon. Well, it was in her favor.

    "Indeed." Kayden nodded his head. "Well then, we''ll take this with us." He pointed at the weird doll and took out his wallet to pay for it.

    "Eh? Why are you buying that?" Ayami asked, bewildered. Kayden looked confused too. "Didn''t you say you like it? You''re very weird liking this kind of stuff."

    I do not!

    Ayami could only helplessly watch as Kayden bought the doll. It was not her money anyways.

    ***

    Ayami looked at the middle-aged old man who was tied and looked pale and weak, like he was starved. This man was the person they kidnapped three days ago. Ayami had him brought by Marie to the hotel she was staying yesterday.

    There was really no use in kidnapping this man. It was just to show that they could infiltrate and kidnap the manager of their branch easily. Blame himself for being unlucky.

    This was just the start if her plan. Unfortunately, it looks like it wouldn''t proceed smoothly.

    Ayami glanced at her phone. On the interface was Marie''s message to her that said, ''Young miss, they are coming tomorrow at the hotel. I apologize, I could not do anything.''

    Ayami looked at the weird doll Kayden bought earlier with a down-cast look. The doll was staring at her, making her feel the creeps, so she looked away and made eye contact with Kayden, who was still chilling in ''her'' room. Ayami had already taken this room for hers.

    "Hey, why do you look like that?" Kayden asked after noticing the expression of Ayami.

    "It looks like I have to go tomorrow."

    "You really need to go back. You''ve been absent for three days straight. I''m afraid you will get expelled if you continue." His words didn''t help at all. She expected him to at least motivate her.

    "What about you? Don''t you have class?"

    "I don''t need to go to class anymore." Ayami clicked her tongue and looked at him with envy. "What about work?"

    Kayden glanced at her sharply as a smile appeared on his face. "Did I ever tell you that I was working?"

    Ayami froze and panicked. Then she tried talking her way out of it. "I thought that graduating students are already starting to work? Was I wrong?"

    "That makes sense."

    Ayami sighed in relief. Kayden looked at her and thought about her actions these past few days. He looked at her seriously. "What are your goals? Why are you doing this?"

    "To take over the underworld in this city." Ayami said nonchalantly, like what she said wasn''t a big deal. Kayden accepted it. "What are you planning?"

    "I was planning to create a war between the gangs."

    "How will you do that?" Ayami smiled at him and started explaining her plan to him. At this point, she didn''t realized that she was slowly trusting him completely as she told him her plans in a detailed way.

    "First of all, this great me, infiltrated the Black Dragon''s branch. Then, the White Tiger''s branch. I will slowly attack all their small branches until the Coiling Snake arrives." Ayami spoke proudly while opening her arms wide.

    "Wait, Coiling Snake?"

    "You know them right?" At that question, Kayden nodded his head. "Well, actually they are under me. I took over them a few days ago. They were the one who told me where the small branches where.

    "The moles don''t really hold a high position so they could only tell me the small branches'' location. Well then, I plan to unsettle them until I find both of their main branch. Wouldn''t you be annoyed it if happened over and over again? Furthermore, they were being attacked by unknown forces."

    Actually, Ayami just left the cloth with that embroidery because, why not? It wouldn''t trouble her, but instead it would be directed towards that organization. She did not know that an organization with the same symbol was helping the White Tigers.

    "And then what?" Kayden asked like a curious kid, his eyes were twinkling as he looked at Ayami.

    "Of course, once I found their main branch I will reveal it to the two and instigate a war. I will have Coiling Snake to negotiate with the Black Dragon''s because they seemed easier to deal with.

    "Then, we would make sure that Black Dragon would win before back stabbing them. After the war, their forces would have surely weakened so we will attack them at that time."

    "What if you failed?"

    "There is always a back-up plan."

    "What about the hidden group?"

    "I don''t think they''ll interfere." Ayami wasn''t sure about the hidden group as they have never appeared on the surface. They have always worked under the shadows, not living any trace.

    Ayami continued on to her back-up plan while Kayden enjoyed and even suggested something to her plan to make sure it won''t fail.

    Meanwhile, at the White Tiger''s main headquarters. Several executives were gathered together in a meeting room. Just like Black Dragon, they were discussing the recent attack.

    The boss looked at the white cloth with an embroidery on it.

    "Damn those bastards!"

    "Did they betray us?"

    "That''s unlikely, it must be those bastards!"

    The boss, Garan, had a shiny golden hair while his eyes were blue. He had a dark expression as he held the white cloth.

    "Be wary of the other group and that organization. They are too suspicious. Why would they suddenly offer help to us?" Garan muttered, tapping on the table as his brain continued to think.

    "Investigate both of them." He ordered his subordinate and roared loudly, different to the boss of the Black Dragon who was calm and calculating. "I want the result by tomorrow or else face death!"

    The two groups were looking out from each other. The peace they had these past few years were slowly being replaced by chaos. Each of them were wary, slowly trying to gather all of their forces.

    And the cause of this all, Ayami, was laying on the bed, sleeping casually like there was nothing to worry about.

 Chapter 78 - Is It Really This Easy?

    [Three more restaurants have been robbed this morning. The total cases are now 38. Citizens are concerned by the sudden robberies all over the cities, specifically the restaurants. As of now, the police have been mobilized to investigate it. The police department stated that they will get down to the bottom of this and the citizens do not have to worry. Several police have been deployed to patrol and protect the citizens. Additionally, a curfew will be implemented. All citizens that are still outside after the curfew will be apprehended and will be brought by the police for questioning.]

    The local morning news spread throughout the city with the use of televisions and the internet. The lives of the people went unperturbed as if this kind of incident is normal. Well, they get news of people getting shot to death in the city and gang wars, so this kind of thing was nothing much.

    Deep down, the people knew that the police would just take care of it for a while before washing their hands of this case. There was nothing new about it, people would just go on with their lives, while the victims would just shake in fear or anger.

    On this day, many restaurants closed down, afraid that they would be the next ones to be targeted.

    At the same time¡­

    "You still haven''t found her?" The cold voice echoed throughout the room. A number of people were kneeling with their bodies shaking in front of a person wearing a mask. There was no hint of amusement in their eyes even though they were smiling.

    "It''s already been three days." They said, putting emphasis on ''three days''. Cold laughter came out of their mouth. Nobody dared to speak and only waited for the person to stop laughing.

    "Do you think of me as a joke?" They slammed the table, making the table shake for a bit and creating a loud noise. The temperature in the air decreased, making the people shiver. The people couldn''t help feeling that the grim reaper was coming to reap their souls as they felt the masked person stare at them. "Your task is simple. Just keeping an eye on a simple 18-year old girl. What''s so hard about that?"

    They said ''simple'', but was it really that simple? The girl they asked to keep an eye on was a student studying at an elite school where the security is top-notch and almost at the same level as the president''s security force. If they forced their way in, then there is no guarantee that they would still be able to get out there.

    This task is not easy at all!

    The people complained in their hearts. They could only swallow their complaints as their new boss scolded them. They were already lucky enough that they weren''t killed, much less punished.

    "Is it that hard to infiltrate the academy?"

    "You people are useless!"

    "B-boss Y-Yue, w-why don''t you calm down first." A fat man interjected. It was the same man who gave her the authority to become the boss. Now, he was their assistant. The high and mighty him was no more.

    Bear was his name, and probably, he would stay as an assistant for long enough as they told him to call them, ''Yue''.

    Yue squinted their eyes at him, making Bear cower in fear. Yue shook their head before ordering them.

    "Nevermind. Keep searching for her. If she is really not in the academy, then look for other places. I''ll give you a month to find her."

    There was no way that Ayami would let herself get kidnapped. Even if she was kidnapped, she would be rescued a few hours later. Then, there''s also a possibility of her hiding.

    "Did her memories return?" Yue mumbled to themself, under those cold eyes was fear. Bear looked at them with wonder before organizing the team.

    "By the way, how''s the plan going on in Neon City?"

    "It''s doing well. The White Tiger is starting to prepare for war. It seems like it will start in a month."

    The two discussed for a while before going back to their respective jobs.

    ***

    Ayami glanced outside the window of the hotel before turning her head back to the television with the news playing on it. It made her wonder, ''Why are they targeting the restaurants? Shouldn''t it be a bank?''

    This incident happened in the last three days she was in the city. Ayami was even a victim of this robbery, twice. She heard that the robbers were different each time they robbed a restaurant.

    Do they work together or just coincidentally robbing the restaurants at different places? If it happened once, then it may be just a coincidence. But it happened more than once, consecutively.

    There is a possibility that they are working together or under an organization. It would have been fine if they were just working together, robbing the people all day long, but if they are under an organization then that would be a problem.

    Ayami eliminated the possibility of them working together, because why would they want to share their ''hard'' earnings? They would rather keep it to themselves.

    The only possible choices are either they are working under an organization or Ayami is just thinking too much about this.

    If they are working under an organization, then what is their purpose of robbing the restaurant? Is there something valuable there? More importantly, which organization is it?

    Ayami shook her head and let out a deep sigh. It would be a problem if it interfered with her plans so she needed to quickly remove them.

    Another one. Why do they keep piling up?

    Ayami glanced at her phone. She had blocked her family and friends in order to not receive their calls. They must have been worried sick as they could not contact her.

    Should she have at least sent them a message? The answer is no. Cold as it might seem but Ayami thought it was better to cut ties with them for now and disappear. She didn''t want to see them lose their life in front of her again. They deserve to live better lives than not living at all.

    Only when she eradicated all of the threats surrounding her, only then, could she come back to them or maybe just watch them from afar. After all, there is no hope that she could go back to her normal and peaceful life after going through this dark path.

    There is no choice left but to do this. There is no turning back.

    It was a shame though. It looks like she would never be able to graduate even in this life.

    Speaking of that, how come she still has not received any notice of expulsion or even a warning. Usually, the academy would issue a warning to the student if they were absent twice but there was nothing like that. It was already the third day, but there were still none.

    Maybe they still haven''t noticed?

    Even if they did not notice today, they would surely notice the next time.

    Now then, her three days time limit was up and surely there would be someone knocking on the door of the hotel, if the one has manners, but if they don''t, then they''ll just barge in without warning. The family could pay for the damages after all.

    Oh well, she had done her preparations and it could be done without her. There were also possible variables coming into play, even so, she still prepared for that. If this plan fails then it is just due to her lacking or the fault of an outsider. It''s not like this was a grand of a plan or something that would affect her future plans. And it''s not like she would be depressed for a few days if the plan did fail. Definitely not.

    And so, she chilled on the sofa with the manager of the Black Tiger''s small branch beside her, still tied up. He has bags under his eyes and it was obvious that he lost tons of weight.

    "Mister, are you hungry?" Ayami smiled at him sweetly, but all the man could see was a demoness smiling at him, making his body shake subconsciously.

    "Would you like beef or soup?"

    What the manager heard was: "Chopped into pieces or drowned into boiling hot water?"

    Due to fear, hunger, lack of sleep and anxiety, he could not think straight. All he thought was his impending death. Everyday was torture for him as he imagined his death. He did not want to do this anymore. The manager shook his head.

    "You don''t want to eat? That can''t happen. You''ll die at this rate."

    His interpretation: "You have to live longer and suffer."

    He imagined that the demoness in front of her was laughing happily while torturing him. Ayami didn''t know what he was thinking and casually had a meal delivered to the room.

    "You know, if you were only a bit smarter then you wouldn''t have been captured." She commented and that was the truth.

    They both knew that a new young boss was appointed half a year ago. But, to be fooled just like that, he was truly stupid. He did not even wonder why the boss would visit something as useless and small as their branch.

    They didn''t talk anymore after that. In a blink of an eye, the day passed peacefully without anyone disturbing her peace. There were no people barging inside and not even a notice of expulsion. This was not what she expected.

    Ayami thought that there must have been a delay. And so, days passed until it became a week. Her plans were going smoothly and nobody bothered her peaceful days.. The outside was in chaos though.

 Chapter 79 - Temporary Lovers Became Permanent

    "To think you would be able to win this round, impressive. I have to say, you did well but it''s unfortunate. Enjoy your short victory."

    BANG!

    Ayami blinked her eyes as her gaze was locked onto the ceiling, her body in an odd position. She had realized that she fell from the bed. Before she could even register the pain from falling, she heard a voice speak that seemed to be stifling the laughter. "Nice fall. Must be nice to enjoy dreaming while free-falling."

    Ayami turned her head and glared at the man sitting down on the sofa inside the hotel room. Kayden was holding a phone in his ear, there was a person talking on the other side. Of course, she wouldn''t be able to hear what the other person was saying as she was a distance away from them. The room was large after all.

    What was odd was the manager sitting down in front of him. He was no longer tied up and was eating vigorously, unlike when she offered him food. She didn''t miss the small fear in the manager''s eyes as he ate like his life depended on it.

    Ayami got up from her position and massaged the back of her head. These days, she has been having a lot of headaches and weird dreams.

    She let out a disappointed sigh after looking at Kayden once again. "You''re back already."

    A few days ago, Kayden left saying that he had some matters to take care of. Probably something related to his company.

    Kayden ended the call after saying a few words. Then he smiled at her. "Nope, I''m not. You''re just hallucinating."

    "Haha, very funny."

    Ayami rolled her eyes at him. She entered the bathroom to wash her face, only then did she notice the icky feeling down there. It''s that time of the month again.

    "..."

    Ayami was stuck in a dilemma. She didn''t bring any sanitary pads with her because she didn''t remember that it would come around this time.

    With no choice, she decided to ask the person who has been providing her with her needs. She didn''t pack any clothes as she ran away on a whim, so Kayden bought her some clothes. Ayami opened the door for a bit and stuck her head out.

    "Um¡­" Kayden looked at her after hearing her meek voice. He was stunned after seeing her face bright red. "What''s wrong? Are you sick?"

    "N-no! I¡­ It''s that time of the month¡­ so, so¡­ c-could you get me some¡­"

    Ayami couldn''t help stuttering, her face getting redder and redder as she continued to speak. It was embarrassing to say it to a man.

    Thankfully, the guy is not that dense. He stood up while saying, "Okay. Wait for a while." Then he left the room while Ayami waited inside the bathroom.

    " "

    After a while, Kayden returned holding a sanitary pad. He didn''t say anything as he handed her the pad.

    "Sorry for the trouble." Her face was still red as she spoke. "It''s no big deal."

    It took her a while before she went out of the bathroom. Kayden acted like nothing happened as he watched the news. There was no need to talk about it.

    "Do you have time later?" Kayden suddenly asked. He gazed at her like he was expecting a yes.

    "I''m free. Why?"

    "I need you to come with me somewhere later." That was what he only said. Nothing about the location or even why she needed to come with her. It''s not like she can''t say no, but this guy has been taking care of her for the past few days. She was indebted to him so she agreed to come with him.

    "Also, do you still need this guy?" He pointed at the manager who had already finished eating. His eyes held fear, no, something terrible than that.

    "No. Take him if you want."

    ***

    Alfred, Kayden''s assistant, came to the hotel room after he left, saying he still had some matters to take care of.

    Alfred was still the same Alfred. Not like she knew him long enough. Alfred scrutinized her before speaking.

    "The young master has told me to take care of you for a while."

    No, it''s more like, keep an eye on her.

    Ayami furrowed her brows for a moment before straightening them again. Just like that, silence ensued and the both of them stared at each other for the whole day, observing the other. It was unknown what the other was thinking.

    Kayden came back after the sun had set and witnessed the two of them locked into a staring contest. He wondered what the two were doing before interrupting them.

    "That looks fun, mind if I join."

    Ayami was the first one to look away. Kayden laughed at her, "You lost."

    Ayami didn''t mind it and just asked, "Where did you go?"

    "It''s a secret." Kayden smirked at her. "But I''ll tell you if you become my wife."

    Ayami knew that he was just joking, but she did consider it. Her eyes sparkled for a moment before it disappeared. What was she thinking?

    "We''re not at the stage where you could propose yet." She teased him back.

    "¡­Anyway, it''s time to prepare. Let''s go."

    Following that, they went to a clothes shop using his car, along with Alfred driving the car. They tried out the navy blue evening strapless dress and it was perfect. The only problem was "It''s tight on the chest part." They quickly adjusted the size into something that fit her.

    Afterwards, they went to a salon to get her hair and makeup done. It was just a light make-up while her hair was tied into a fishtail braid.

    Kayden put a mask on her that covered half of her face. He has the same one as her and put it on. Their clothes were matching as if they were a couple.

    "Later, don''t speak when you don''t need to, okay? Just smile occasionally." He gently instructed her as if coaxing a child. Ayami nodded her head in affirmation.

    They arrived at a luxurious villa and were stopped at the gate to check whether they were truly guests. They did so by checking the invitation that was sent out to a number of people.

    They were guided by a butler as soon as they entered. In the main hall, a number of people wearing masks were chatting with each other. They only stopped for a moment to look at the two guests who entered before chattering again.

    "What kind of event is this?" Ayami leaned onto him and whispered. Kayden raised his brow and poke her forehead. "You only asked now?"

    "Well, there''s someone I need to talk to and they are the one who invited me here. Just think of this as a masquerade ball."

    "There are some who come here to play around or find the fire of their life while not exposing their identity, though they fail miserably. I recognize some people here. Take that guy for example. Doesn''t he look like a senator''s son?"

    He pointed at a tall guy who was chatting with some women. Ayami recognizes some of the women. Indeed, they fail at hiding their identities. He also pointed at the others and told her their exact identities.

    "You have sharp eyes." Ayami commented, not really caring about their identities. No wait, she could use this as a blackmail material in the future.

    "They''re just stupid." He sneered. "There are also some smart ones here, but they''re not smart enough for me."

    The both of them didn''t stay in the hall that much and the real party was somewhere else. As they were led by the butler, Ayami couldn''t help asking, "Why am I needed here?"

    "I need you to be my temporary lover. Actually, when I was negotiating with that guy, he suddenly said that he would agree under the condition that I must have a lover. It must not be a fake one. So, I said that I have a lover. He said to show me proof"

    "Then, aren''t we fake?"

    "Nope, we are temporary lovers so it doesn''t count."

    They entered a large and spacious room, this time the people could be counted by hand. There are some people who wore masks and while some removed theirs.

    At the center was a man wearing a white suit. It was neatly ironed and no stains could be seen. The man had long silver hair that was tied into a ponytail and a pair of blue eyes. He was handsome, but Ayami was already numb to it to the point that seeing that kind of face was perfectly normal.

    "Ah! Mr. K, over here." The man beckoned the two of them. The man''s gaze fell onto Ayami. "Oh, is this the lover that you were talking about?"

    Kayden nodded his head.. The man smiled brightly. Then he suddenly asks them, "So, when is the wedding?"

 Chapter 80 - A Strange Development Leading To An Intense Quarrel

    ''W-Wedding? Wait, who even is this guy?''

    Ayami could not recognize the man no matter how deep she dug her memories. That meant that she did not meet this guy in the past.

    Kayden let out a hollow chuckle as he responded back to the man. "Sorry, you''re not invited."

    The man was dismayed at that. "What a shame." The man glanced at Ayami and smiled widely. "Won''t you introduce me to your dear lover?"

    "You''re not worthy to know her name." Kayden smiled, though his eyes were as sharp as a dagger. Then, he casually introduced the man. "This stupid looking guy is Klein Silverfang."

    I thought that you were here to negotiate, why are you being mean to him? Though I do admit, he looks stupid.

    "Little miss lover, your dearest is bullying me." Klein pouted like a child. Seeing a grown adult act like that, she couldn''t help but frown in disgust. A man-child is what they call.

    Klein put his hand on his chest and acted like he was hurt. "Ahh~ I''m hurt. Even your lover is looking at me like I''m worse than trash."

    "Isn''t that the truth?" Kayden looked at him like he was stupid. He casually sat down beside them, while dragging along Ayami. The two sat side by side, sticking closely to each other. Kayden''s hand was on her waist to make it more believable.

    "Well then, let''s continue our talk."

    They started their tedious talk. Her eyes darted around in boredom.

    The room they were in was filled with luxurious things. There was a small golden statue at the corner. Behind the place they were sitting, a floor to ceiling was there and the garden could be seen. Only one red curtain was drawn for a bit making the outside scenery only be seen in a half-view. There was nothing notable and everything was extremely ordinary for the wealthy.

    After observing the room, her gaze then started looking at the people. She could not recognize any of them but there was something she noticed. All of them were staring at the two of them. They were talking with each other but their eyes were discreetly looking at them.

    For some reason, she had a bad feeling as she felt shivers down her spine. Ayami glanced at Kayden, who was too absorbed in their talk, seemingly not noticing anything.

    Her gaze then landed on Klein and his eyes were also staring at her. Their eyes met and Klein smiled.

    "Your little lover seems bored, why don''t you let her go for a bit? The others here are easy to talk to and could entertain here."

    Kayden glanced at the people with an unreadable expression, before shaking his head. "I don''t want to be separated from my dear. And she also doesn''t want to be separated from me, right?"

    Ayami noticed his grip tightening around her waist, before nodding her head.

    "See? We''re stuck together 24/7."

    "That''s so romantic~" Klein clasped his hands and rubbed them on his cheeks. His gaze felt like it was burning with passion as it stared at the two.

    "Hey, just having this kind of talk is boring. Why don''t you tell me the story you two first met? Hm, how about it?"

    "The story of when we first met¡­" Kayden looked at the window. He narrowed his eyes for a second before smiling. His expression was still unreadable. As their gazes were on his face, they didn''t notice the small gesture he made. Even if they did notice, they would think nothing of it.

    "I still remember that one faithful day¡­ It was winter at that time. The land was filled with pure white snow. Everywhere was white as I walked down the road. That was when I noticed a girl balling her eyes out¡­"

    Why are you reciting a story that seems like it came from a novel? Did you freaking memorize a backstory?

    Ayami looked at him with disbelief, although her expression wasn''t really noticeable.

    "I¡ª"

    BOOM!

    Kayden hadn''t finished what he was saying when an explosion happened. Ayami heard the people screaming in terror while the people in the room started to be vigilant, their eyes still on the two of them.

    "Oh my, I wonder who did that?" Klein didn''t look panicked at all, instead his lips were curved upwards as if he was enjoying this. He sat back and relaxed, as if waiting for the enemy to come and barge inside the room.

    A few minutes passed, and nobody came. The reason? Because the rat had already entered. More specifically, two of them have already entered.

    "Mr. K, I could not believe that you would be a rat. It doesn''t suit you at all." Klein said with his arms raised, while a gun was pointed at him. The one who was holding the gun was, of course, Kayden, while half of the people were pointing their guns at Kayden, the others stayed neutral and observed the situation. Ayami was one of them as she was not yet needed. She did not expect this kind of development.

    Hey! What about negotiating?

    Ayami fidgeted around, her eyes darting around, not because she was nervous or anything like that. In fact, she was calm. She was just acting to lower the enemies'' guard as per Kayden''s instructions.

    Earlier, while they were distracted by the sudden explosion, Kayden whispered into her ears to act like a naive and innocent maiden. Though she wondered why, she didn''t question him. In the eyes of the other people, Kayden was calming down his lover so nobody thought anything out of it. Everything was fine until Kayden suddenly stood up and pointed a gun at Klein.

    "It''s unfortunate but I can''t come to terms with you. I guess we are just not meant to be ''business partners''." There was a devilish grin on Kayden''s face. He looked quite scary with that face on, yet he looked handsome on Ayami''s eyes. She couldn''t help but be drawn to this unexpected side of him.

    And here I thought he was just a gentle prince, turns out he was capable of being a ruthless tyrant.

    "Aren''t you putting your little lover in danger?" Klein glanced at the ''scared'' Ayami, his smile widened after seeing her panic stricken from the guns. Kayden glanced at her and uttered his next words in a calm manner. "Well, truthfully, we broke up a couple of seconds ago."

    Her eyes reddened as Ayami covered her mouth. For the first time since she came here, she spoke, "Y-You¡­ are tossing me aside!?" It was evident in her voice that she was trying her best not to sob, which in reality was her trying her best not to laugh.

    Klein shook his head and looked at Ayami with an annoying pitying gaze. "Oh really? What a pity. Kill her first, then. Since you said that you broke up, then you don''t care about her anymore, right?"

    After Klein finished speaking, the guns that were pointed at Kayden turned to her.

    Where''s your pity?

    Her legs turned into jelly and soon, she collapsed on the floor. Ayami wailed and begged for her life, which she thought was really disgusting.

    If the girl is really important to him, then he would gain his weakness. On the other hand, if the girl was deemed useless then it was fine to get rid of some waste. So there was nothing to lose. Though he may look stupid, he at least has some brain but unfortunately, his opponents were not his match.

    "I-I''ll do anything¡­*sobs* just let me live¡­"

    The complete sentence was: ''I''ll do anything to kill you. Just let me live and you''ll never see the light of the day.''

    "So noisy, why don''t you just kill her already?" It was Kayden who said that, not Klein. Ayami looked at him with wide-eyes, resentment grew as she looked at him with bloodshot eyes.

    "Why am I first? Ah!? Damn it! He has a gun while I don''t. Don''t you think you should remove the threat first? Why did you have to drag me in this place! This is all your fault!" Ayami pointed at Kayden, aggrieved. It looked like she was doing this out of revenge.

    "Having a lover''s quarrel? There, there. Why don''t we mend our relationships? It''s normal to have lover''s quarrel when you love each other too much."

    Truthfully, he also wanted the negotiation to be a success as it was beneficial to both sides. Sadly, there won''t be anymore negotiations in the future.

    Clang!

    Just then, a small black can was dropped on the floor towards the center of the room where Ayami, Kayden and Klein was. It was a smoke bomb that released a gray smoke. It created a smoke screen between them. Kayden, with his fast speed, dashed towards Klein, grabbed his neck and slammed him down on the ground before the smoke could completely swallow them.

    Various smoke bomb also magically appeared throughout the room. The room was now filled with smoke and the people could discern who was who.

    And so, another night of chaos¡­

 Chapter 81 - Ones Nature Is Hard To Change

    Two silhouettes ran throughout the halls, footsteps ringing as guns were shot in succession, leaving behind a trail of bodies. Ayami led the way, not even gasping for breath as they ran at full speed, while Kayden was the same even when carrying the unconscious Klein.

    The two of them were quiet, not even bothering to speak with each other, only glancing at the other once in a while.

    "Turn left." Kayden instructed, to which Ayami followed.

    Although Ayami was wondering what he was planning, she didn''t question him. Along the way, there were some unknown intruders who were lying mixed along Klein''s underling.

    They reached the back and quickly entered the black that was waiting for them at an inconspicuous spot. Kayden tossed Klein at the back without any care and restrained him with some cable ties that came out from his pockets. Then, he took out a cloth and shoved it inside Klein''s mouth.

    Another explosion went off as the two went inside the car. Alfred was still the person who was driving the car.

    After setting off, neither of the two of them, much less the assistant. Kayden glanced at Ayami, who was calmly looking out the window, before taking off his mask. Seeing her calm look, Kayden hesitated for a moment before speaking.

    "You''re not gonna ask anything?"

    Ayami turned to look at him. With a smile on her face, she asked him, "What do you think?"

    "What do I think?"

    Ayami kicked his leg and glared at him. Of course, she wanted to ask! She has been holding it off because the situation looked urgent.

    Kayden let out a chuckle and shook his head. "It''s confidential."

    Ayami didn''t react as much as she had expected this. Her interest faded after he said that. It was silent once again. The two of them were deep in thought so it didn''t really matter. Only Alfred, the poor assistant, was drenched in cold sweat as he subtly glanced at the rearview mirror once in a while.

    He kept wiping off his sweat using a handkerchief, his hand was gripping and loosening the steering wheel.

    This odd behavior didn''t go unnoticed under Ayami''s keen eyes. She couldn''t help asking Alfred with a worried tone.

    "What''s the matter?"

    Alfred stiffly smiled at her. "It''s nothing, Mada¡ª Ahem, Miss."

    "It''s nothing? Then why do you look like you''re running away from a monster?"

    "It''s really nothing. It''s just that, ahem, you know¡­"

    Ayami narrowed her eyes, before patting his shoulders. "I understand. It must have been tough holding it in."

    Alfred could only scream in his heart, ''It''s not that!''. But he could not say the real reason out loud, afraid of making the young madam panic. He took a deep breath and looked at the mirror again.

    On the dark road, a black inconspicuous car was being driven, surrounded by tens of cars from front to back and on both sides.

    Ayami stared outside, watching the scenery, thoughts unknown.

    "I''ll be leaving the city." Kayden spoke casually like he was saying it in a passing. She nodded her head, replying, "Oh."

    "When?"

    "Right now. I''ll drop you off at the hotel. You can stay there for how long you want." Ayami could feel his gaze on her, as if observing her reactions. Ayami languidly replied an affirmation to him.

    "By the way, are you not going back to the academy?" From the corner of her eyes, Ayami could see Kayden taking out his phone while he spoke.

    "No, I''m probably expelled by now."

    "Hm. Not yet. You have a month until you can return. If you still haven''t, then the academy would file it as a drop out."

    Ayami frowned. "That''s not what the rules says."

    "What a good girl. But it''s unfortunate that you live under a rock. The rules were changed a month ago." Kayden typed something onto his phone, but Ayami could not see it, unfortunately. "The academy decided that they would lessen the strictness."

    "But it''s already mid-year. What about the people who got expelled during the previous month? They didn''t say anything?" She said that, but it doesn''t really matter to her.

    "Would they dare say anything?" The corner of his lips curled up. Ayami couldn''t say anything. So what if the academy wanted to loosen up a little? What could they do?

    Anyway, it''s not like it''s any of her business.

    "So, are you going to return or not? If not, please inform the academy."

    Ayami pursed her lips, unsure of what she needed to decide. To go or not to go? Cut off the last remaining thread to her dreams or not?

    "You don''t have to think that hard. You still have a month. If you still haven''t decided after a month, then come to me." Kayden patted her head and smiled gently at her, making her feel warm in her heart.

    "Alright." Ayami nodded her head, and finally, she smiled genuinely.

    That being said, Ayami was not planning on going back anymore. She previously vowed that she won''t drop out and fulfill her dream, but look at her now, playing delinquent.

    Ayami turned her head and looked outside again. She looked far away and smiled once again. This time, her smile was a sneer.

    She was being indecisive again. Maybe that was why she failed in her previous lives. This kind of nature was hard to change and probably, she''ll fail again. She''ll die by the hands of the mastermind again.

    What was her purpose in life again? Right, her revenge. A meaningless revenge. But it seems, there is another purpose growing slowly in her heart. A sweet one at that, one that would make her life bliss, not just an empty goal.

    As her thoughts wandered aimlessly, she heard Kayden''s voice.

    "Alfred, you don''t have to worry about them. They are my allies." Kayden spoke to Alfred, who was still nervous. Then, they talked about some matters to which Ayami could not understand.

    It doesn''t matter anyway. It''s not like she finds it interesting.

    A few moments later, they were now in front of the hotel. Ayami got out of the car and waved her hand. Kayden saw her off but didn''t leave the car.

    "I guess we won''t see each other for a while." Her voice was soft as she smiled bitterly. She looked like a wife who was sending her husband off to a war.

    Kayden chuckled and reached out his hand to pat her head. He seems used to doing this to her.

    "It seems so. Will you miss me?"

    Ayami stared at him for a long while, as if she was imprinting his face to her brain. Their eyes met. Her lips bobbed then she looked down. It wasn''t noticeable as it was dark, but her ears were really red. Her soft voice resounded after a few seconds, "¡­Yes."

    Kayden paused and looked at the girl in front of him. Then, he smiled brightly as he dropped off the words: "I''ll miss you too."

    Ayami stood rooted to the ground, her heart beating fast as she felt an indescribable feeling inside. It didn''t make her uncomfortable but it did make her happy.

    "I-I will go now."

    Ayami ran inside in a hurry, her hands both on her reddened cheeks.

    Kayden looked at her back with a deep gaze, his thoughts unfathomable. He stayed still for a few minutes before ordering Alfred.

    "Let''s go."

 Chapter 82 - Night Is The Time To Devour

    ¡¸Time is on the side of the destined.¡¹

    A month has passed in a blink of an eye.

    On this clear and sunny day, a meeting was being held in the newly formed Night Devourers. Inside the former headquarters of Black Dragon, the executives on both sides were seated, their nerves tense.

    The long table was the only thing dividing the two gangs who once ruled over Neon City.

    Seated in the head seat was a girl wearing a mask. Only a pair of golden brown eyes were seen under the mask. Beside her, a gruff looking man was standing with his hands behind his back.

    How interesting¡­

    The former leader of Coiling Snake was now reduced to a mere bodyguard of a representative of his boss.

    Yanna Jin, the representative, snorted and started the meeting.

    "I am a temporary representative sent by the boss." A short introduction, nothing more, nothing less, but she couldn''t hide the tone of disgust when she mentioned the word ''boss''.

    "If you have any complaints then throw them out. No, if you dared to have any complaints or problems the boss said that they will deal with you. That is, if you dared."

    "For now, the boss doesn''t have any instructions. Just wait for the boss to return. Also, get along with your new comrades."

    Yanna clapped her hands to get all of their attention, which she didn''t need to do.

    "Alright. Meeting adjourned."

    She stood up nonchalantly and left the meeting room along with John, leaving the confused and anxious executives.

    They have no idea on what was happening nor what is going to happen to them. Just a few days ago, the two were at odds with each other and now, they were forced to act buddy-buddy with their enemies.

    What the hell is this???

    They all lamented in their hearts.

    And the former bosses? They don''t know what happened to them. They just both disappeared.

    It happened all of a sudden. Just a few days ago, the two gangs were engaged in a city scale gang war. When all of a sudden, an unknown force mercilessly crushed both sides.

    And then¡­ There was no then.

    The two were utterly defeated and acquired. They suspected that it was the unknown group controlling half of Neon City.

    How else would they be easily defeated? They couldn''t even put up a fight once this unknown group showed up.

    Furthermore, there were also sightings of a few members of the unknown group helping under the shadows. The unknown group must have wanted to take this chance to devour the whole Neon City.

    They must have sent an outside force and helped them so that it might look like it wasn''t them who took control of the other half. The other will be working under the shadows while the other will be the face.

    "I wonder¡­ what''s going to happen to us?" Somebody murmured in despair.

    ***

    "Have you finished?"

    "Duh. Why else would I call you?"

    Ayami took a sip of tea before answering Yanna, "To tell me that you''ve failed?"

    After saying that, Ayami heard a series of curses from the other side.

    "What a funny joke." Yanna laughed sarcastically after cursing her. "I can easily complete this kind of task AND FYI, I. am. Not. Your. Servant."

    "Oh, you don''t like being a servant. A pet, then."

    On the other side of the phone, Ayami heard Yanna''s exasperated sigh.

    "By the way, how did you do it?"

    "Do what?" Ayami poked on the cake before slicing it. She looked outside the window from the caf¨¦ she was in. Her eyes wandered, looking for a certain person.

    Her eyes reflected a rare excitement within.

    "Tsk. How did you easily take over the two gangs in one night?"

    Her eyes paused and dulled. "It''s a secret." Though she says that in a teasing tone, her face says otherwise.

    What a great question! How did she take over them so easily?

    Does anyone know the answer?

    Because I don''t.

    It also came as a surprise to her when she heard the news. Even if the operation was fast, it shouldn''t take a day. It should at least take three days to complete.

    The strength of Coiling Snake isn''t strong enough to take down two large gangs in under a night.

    What happened was a complete mystery to her.

    "I knew you wouldn''t tell me." Yanna''s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "And you''re naming sucks. What are you? An eighth-grader?"

    "So what? It doesn''t matter." Ayami muttered and started scanning again, occasionally sipping tea and poking the cake. "At least it''s better than ''The Immortals Ascending through the High Heavens'' or ''Pink Powers.''"

    It was quiet for a while on the other end. "¡­Did you seriously just think of naming an organization like that? A-Are you serious?"

    "Nevermind. You do you. I''m hanging up." Yanna abruptly cut off the phone call.

    "Yes, it doesn''t matter."

    There wasn''t any special meaning to the name. That''s right. There isn''t any¡­

    Now that she has successfully taken over Neon City, even though she was suspicious, it was marked as done on her checklist.

    Now then, she''ll have to find Rose Garden. She''ll have to find the owner of the ring. She will also have to visit her family''s old house. The house they lived in when her mother was still alive.

    Ayami subconsciously touched the rim of the teacup and rubbed it. Her eyes were fixedly staring outside but they were blank and looked lost.

    That didn''t last long as someone she knows entered the caf¨¦. Ayami looked at the person and smiled slightly.

    "You''re here."

    "Young miss, it''s been a while."

    It was Marie, who she had not seen for more than a month.

    "It took a while to shake them off." Marie didn''t sit down. Ayami noticed that something was off after noticing her solemn look. She couldn''t help but tighten her grip on the teacup.

    "Looks like you have some bad news." Ayami said calmly. Marie didn''t hesitate to drop the bad news after Ayami spoke.

    "Celine has been captured."

 Chapter 83 - Bound By Fate

    [The family of Lawyers: Is this a fraud?]

    [Those who were supposed to serve justice were criminals! Masses in an uproar!]

    [Masses are questioning the court of justice and law.]

    She closed the articles containing the latest scandal where her friend was involved. She tiptoed and quietly looked outside from the tall window. Then, on the other side of the building she saw her friend standing atop of the railings with a blank expression on her face. Her friend¡ªthe look on her eyes from behind the dry and unkempt hair were dull and lifeless. Her thin and malnourished body was swaying lightly. A slight nudge could make that person fall from the high building.

    As she looked at her friend with a worried look on her face, their eyes met. Her friend smiled slightly then a single second pass, like a strong wind blew past her, she fell.

    She looked down and saw her friend''s face. Her friend was smiling as if sneering at her while her eyes were blaming her, saying ''This is all your fault''

    That''s right¡­ this was all my fault. If only¡­ if only¡­

    There is no what ifs. What already happened has happened.

    There is nothing I can do to change it¡­No matter how many times I repeat¡­ As this is her fate.

    ???

    Ayami covered her eyes using her forearm and let out a deep sigh. After a while, she got up from her bed.

    She had been having the same dream every night, though each start was different, all the endings were the same. It really made her mood plummet after having that dream, especially since that dream involves an important someone; the person she needed to save right this very moment.

    Celine.

    It must have been because she heard that Celine was captured yet she didn''t do anything about it. It would really ruin her plans if she went and saved her.

    Ayami rolled to the side of the bed and asked Marie, who was sitting not far away from her. "Marie, do you think I''m a bad friend?"

    "Young miss, you''re pretty dense. You wouldn''t even notice that someone likes you until they straight up say it. Oh no, maybe not. You wouldn''t even notice that you are already dating with how dense you are."

    Ayami raised her brows: ???

    "Tsk. What I meant to say is, you don''t know how to read the feelings of others. Even a dog can know their owner''s mood. Young miss, you''re pretty cruel, you know? You left your friend to fend for herself." Marie sneered at her, at the same she felt helpless. It can''t be helped. Ayami ended up that way because of the house she grew up in. The people who raised her were inhumane.

    "Young miss, it has been two years since you left. Do you still not know how to get along with others? No, are you still treating humans as tools?"

    Marie let out a sigh. The memories of the past flashed through her. The young emotionless Ayami who needed to follow orders like a puppet.

    "Please remember this young miss. You are not in that house anymore. You don''t have to act like the way you were back then. You are free, young miss¡­ At least for now."

    There was no saying that they wouldn''t take her back. Looking at the situation now, they would forcefully take her back.

    Ayami smiled bitterly. She could not do it. Even after years of living she felt she was bound in shackles, restricting her every movement. It felt like she needed to bow down to her fate¡­

    Wait¡­

    Ayami held her throbbing head, her pupils shrinking and she saw a memory.

    "You cannot escape. This is your fate, Ayami."

    This voice¡­ That peculiar smile and strange clothing¡­ The Guide!

    "Soon¡­ you''ll lose your memories. Isn''t this what you have always wanted? Once you lose your memories, you will be just like a puppet following your fate. You will repeatedly die. You will suffer for eternity. You will be bound to fate until you are sealed in this world. Then, I''ll return your memories. Until you break, you will continue to suffer."

    The guide laughed, there was a trace of madness in her eyes that gazed upon Ayami, who was chained from all over. Purple glowing letters were inscribed on her body. It told her story and her fated end.

    "W-Why¡­?" Ayami asked, her consciousness dwindling, fragments of memories disappearing.

    "You chose this yourself. Don''t blame me. I tried to guide you towards your destination but you deviated from the path. Now look at your state¡­ Fufu¡­ what a sight to see~"

    "Now then, don''t worry. You''re in good hands. I will guide you to the right path, to your ''End''."

    Ayami sneered, "You just want to seal me away and take this ''thing'' away from me."

    "Eh? No, no. The ''higher-ups'' ordered this. This is your punishment¡­" Then the Guide pointed at the center of her body. There was a large distortion and a powerful energy was leaking through it. "As for ''that''¡­ It''s such a shame that I''ll have to wait for you to weaken. If you only gave it to me, then this wouldn''t have happened."

    Such a bitter smile was expressed briefly through the madness. Maybe it was just her imagination.

    "Yes¡­ this wouldn''t have happened if you just let me do what I want¡­ ~~~" The Guide mumbled to herself. She couldn''t hear the last part.

    "Young miss! What''s wrong?" Marie shook her body. Her whole body was trembling while her eyes were unfocused. Marie was worried about the Young Miss'' state.

    Ayami blinked her eyes. Memories continued to flow. She could not stop it. Each repeats. Each tragedy. They continued to flow. Various strong emotions filled her heart. Anger. Madness. Grief. All she wanted to do was destroy everything.

    However, they suddenly stopped like a restriction was put. A wall was there and she could not pass through it.

    "You can''t. At this rate, you''ll be corrupted."

    This gentle and familiar voice woke her up. Ayami felt a thing dangling down on her neck. When she looked down, her eyes widened.

    From behind, Kayden had a serious expression on his face.

    "I was just gone for a month and you''re already in this state.." He said with a sigh.

 Chapter 84 - Until Our Last Breath

    In the middle of this whirling storm, only you brought tranquility.

    ???

    Wish Upon the Star.

    It was the name of the necklace dangling from her neck. It was the thing she was looking for. It was her mother''s keepsake which she gave away.

    There was a uniquely crafted blue sapphire-colored star, just like the color of her eyes. If you look at it close enough, you can find a moon shape in the middle of it and small stars scattered around it.

    There was a special detail and that is, the color will change to purple amethyst if placed under the moonlight. This intricate design, if placed in an auction, surely its price would skyrocket and might even be considered as a family heirloom.

    Ayami did not have plans to do that. The craftsman was unknown. It was amazing that her mother knew some of the hidden legendary figures.

    Back to the point, she was looking for the person she gave it to. She wanted him to return it. Of course, that''s not the only reason. She also wanted to meet him again.

    "This¡­ Why do you have it?"

    The answer was obvious.

    "You gave it to me years ago."

    Ayami did not expect that the one who kept the necklace was him. To think that the chubby would turn into a slim man, people do change over the years.

    But¡­

    It''s strange. Why did he appear in the previous and current life but not the first one? What does he know?

    As if sensing her thought, Kayden smiled and nodded. "Are you confused? Don''t worry I''m not an enemy. Trust me."

    Wow. Very reassuring.

    Kayden laughed at her obvious expression that didn''t hide any doubt. "That''s good, Ayami." He patted her head and praised her. Ayami pushed his hand away with face flushed.

    "Ahem." Marie cleared her throat in hopes that they would notice that there was still another person in the room. She looked like she was about to throw up.

    "Marie¡­ What is it? Not feeling well?"

    "Actually, I want to get away from this room as far as I can." Marie retorted. She looked at Ayami and then Kayden, scrutinizing the two before finally letting out a sigh. "Young man, you have a long way to go."

    "I don''t think so." Kayden let out a laugh. Ayami looked at the two of them alternately with furrowed brows. What are they talking about?

    "Well Marie, right?" Marie nodded her head. "Since you want to get away from this room, I''ll let you step out of the room." Kayden pointed at the door with a mischievous grin on his face. "You might not want to hear our ''talk''. Ah, but if you are fine with it, then I''ll let you."

    Marie scowled at him before leaving. Kayden turned around and faced Ayami.

    "What do you want to talk about?" There was no need to beat around the bush and there was also no need to be cautious.

    "Let''s go save Celine."

    Ayami pursed her lips. She stayed silent for a moment and opened her lips after a while. "Why?"

    "You don''t want to change her fate?"

    Ayami shuddered, her eyes had a glint on them. Seriously, what does he know?

    "This will also change your fate, our fate. Not everything is set in stone yet. There''s still hope."

    "We''re in a hurry so I can''t explain everything. There is a faster way for you to understand everything but¡­" Kayden paused and held her hand. He smiled bitterly, saying the words, "¡­As much as possible, I don''t want you to remember painful memories."

    Painful memories¡­ The things she saw earlier, they were part of those painful memories.

    You were trying to prevent me from remembering my painful memories. However, not once did I see you in those memories. Why? What''s your relationship with me?

    "Ayami, do you still have the ring?"

    Ayami nodded her head and stood up, heading towards the drawer. She took out the exquisite ring box. She took it with her a month ago. Practically, she is living in this hotel room and treated it like an apartment.

    "Do you remember our promise?"

    When I come back you can return the ring, while I return your necklace.

    "The truth is, I came back a while ago but¡­ well, stuffs happened and I couldn''t find you. Since I''m here now, we can fulfill our promise."

    Ayami handed him the box. As she did so, she asked him a question that bothered her. "By the way, what do you mean when you said you''ll definitely save me?"

    The hand that was reaching out to the ring box, froze mid-air. That didn''t last for long as Kayden took it back with the box on his hand.

    "Curse and Fate." He opened the box and took the ring out. Then, he gently pulled her hand and put the ring on her left ring finger. Her delicate hand with the ring on it was so beautiful he couldn''t help but kiss it. He looked at Ayami with a warm gaze.

    He flashed a satisfied smiled while nodding. "Now, the promise has been fulfilled." Slowly, he intertwined their hands.

    As for Ayami¡­ she was standing still, processing what just happened. Kayden was not yet finished on his vicious attack.

    "This ring is a family heirloom passed down through heirs for generations. The heir gives this to their spouse whom they choose to be with for the rest of their lives." He pulled Ayami closer to him and whispered to her reddened ears, "Do you understand what I mean?"

    "Stop joking around."

    She pushed his face that was too close, away. Kayden chuckled and pulled her into an embrace. Ayami didn''t choose to struggle, instead she lay stiffly on his embrace. He hugged her tightly, but no too much to let her breath. He buried his face on her neck.

    "You may not remember me, everyone else and the past. Even so¡­ this time, I''ll be by your side until we reach our end."

 Chapter 85 - Only The Two In This World

    "You may not remember me, everyone else and the past. Even so¡­ this time, I''ll be by your side until we reach our end."

    It was too overwhelming. Various kinds of emotions fluctuated inside her. Yet, it also felt natural as if she was waiting for this moment. It was difficult. It''s unfair.

    Without thinking, she pushed and pinned him down. Surprise by the sudden action, Kayden couldn''t react on time, allowing her to be on top of him.

    "Ayami?"

    Ayami gritted her teeth and pressed him down. Her blurry eyes locked onto him with anger. Kayden gently caressed her cheeks while also wiping away the tears that were spilling from her eyes.

    "It''s unfair."

    "What is?"

    "I want to remember too."

    She wish to remember too, no matter how painful it is. Ayami could not tolerate him bearing all the burdens. It was frustrating not knowing anything.

    Even if there is pain in the forgotten memories, there is also warmth and happiness.

    I don''t want to forget.

    Ayami is not that stupid. Their relationship in the past is obviously those of lovers. Even if she could not remember him, the times they spent, her beating heart could.

    "You can''t. You''ll fall in the darkness." His gaze was serious, a faint feeling of pain were mixed. Ayami did not move. Seeing that, Kayden couldn''t help but sigh. "If you really want to¡­ there''s nothing I can do about it. Let''s recollect it, slowly but surely."

    "Mm." Ayami mumbled a syllable. Her tense body relaxed. While she was not paying attention, he reversed their position. Kayden grinned mischievously.

    "Let''s start."

    Ayami confusedly stared at Kayden, whose face is inching closer by the second. Their eyes fixedly gazed at each other. It was like they were the only ones left in this world.

    Beautiful. These pair of vibrant green eyes were the most beautiful eyes that she has ever seen. They gave her the feeling of peace and security.

    His lips inched closer. Just a centimeter away and they would kiss.

    It only took a second for him to claim her lips.

    As she indulge herself in the warmth of his lips, she remembered a fragment of her memory.

    ¡­

    ...

    ...¡­

    Ayami¡­ Goodbye¡­

    Why are you leaving me? Don''t go! I won''t forgive you!

    I''ll destroy this world! I''ll destroy them¡­ even at the cost of my life, I''ll make sure that they will disappear¡­

    So please¡­ don''t leave me¡­

    There''s no point in living without you.

    ***

    "Are you sure about this, young miss?" Marie asked for the nth time, making Ayami feel a bit annoyed. How many times is she going to repeat this?

    "Yes, yes. I''m sure."

    "Little Maid seems to worry a lot. Don''t worry, I''m going with her."

    "That is the reason why I''m worried." Marie rolled her eyes.

    Currently, they were on their way to save Celine. Kayden gave them an intel from who-knows-where. He assured them that there was nothing to worry about.

    Celine was captured inside the old man''s place. They have not done anything to her or her family. It was a good thing that she was not harmed or else she would have caused a ruckus instead of going there peacefully.

    Yep, peacefully¡­

    Just going there with a bunch of guns loaded with ammo to talk. What could go wrong?

    "Aren''t you glad? Thanks to me we could resolve this peacefully, instead of you planning to gather resources and attack the old man''s home."

    Seriously, how did he know something that even Ayami didn''t know?

    "Marie, were you planning that?"

    "No, no. Young miss, don''t listen to his nonsense." Marie chuckled nervously, cold sweat trickled down her back while enduring the piercing stare of her young miss. Marie smiled nervously as she pointed outside. "Oh look, we''re here."

    Ayami looked outside. They were parked in front of an eastern styled-mansion, no, it was more like a traditional palace. They walked inside, the guards didn''t stop them and took out a walkie-talkie.

    As they walked in, they occasionally walked past a person wearing a traditional servant uniform. They have been walking for a while now but they still haven''t reached the internal part.

    "Maybe we should have just drove inside." Kayden complained as he yawned lazily.

    "That''s not allowed." Marie chided him.

    "Hm¡­ This place is pretty nice."

    "I''ll show you around later." Ayami smiled sweetly. Marie looked at the two of them. Did something happen last night? Their atmosphere is weird.

    Marie just shrugged it off. Even if there was, there is nothing she could do about it. It already happened.

    Marie decided to make her presence less, afraid to disturb the two who was walking lovey-dovey. She doesn''t want to be a third wheel, okay?

    After walking for a while on the stone paved path, they finally reached the main entrance. When they walked in, they were greeted by servants that were lined in a row. At the end was a sharp-looking man. He was, of course, the head of the servants.

    "Welcome back, young miss." He made a perfect seventy-five degree bow and so were the other servants.

    Kayden nonchalantly walked in like he was the one being greeted. The head looked at him with a dumbfounded look on his face. Ayami''s lips twitched uncontrollably, suppressing her urge to laugh.

    Ayami followed after him and controlled her expression. She maintained a cold and indifferent expression.

    "Ahem. Young miss, please follow me. The patriarch is waiting for you inside." Then, the head stared at Kayden with a sharp gaze and also glanced at Marie who was standing at the back. "As for the uninvited guests¡­ please go back. We do not have time to entertain you."

    Kayden squinted his eyes and smiled. "Oh? But the patriarch invited me though?"

    The head looked confused, then frowned. "I have not heard of anyone visiting except the young miss. Young man, don''t lie. There will be terrible consequences if you do."

    "I''m not. You don''t believe me?" Kayden let out a sigh. Then, he took out a gold pin with a unique Rose symbol on it. The pattern seems familiar¡­ it looks like the rose ring she was wearing.

    "T-This¡­!" The head looked so shocked that his jaws were almost dropping. Beads of sweat started forming while he paled. His attitude easily flipped and apologized to Kayden sincerely, giving him a deep bow. "My apologies. I have been rude to the esteemed guest of the Patriarch. This servant did not recognize the Honorable Sir. Please punish me for making a mistake."

    Kayden patted him on the shoulder. "It''s alright. I''ll let you off this time."

    "Many thanks for letting this servant off." The head bowed again and finally lead them to a room.

    "The servants here is weird." Kayden whispered to Ayami on their way. "They were trained that way."

    "The patriarch sure has a weird fetish." He commented.

    "Over here." The head servant opened the door for them.

    Ayami went in along with the two. She made sure not to falter. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

    The door closed, at the same time, she released her breath and opened her eyes. She stared in front with an unreadable expression.

    Finally, it was time to face them again.

 Chapter 86 - Princess Of The Lein Family

    The Lein Family, in terms of wealth and power, they come in second. The patriarch was Oujiro Lein, an unknown man who suddenly came out of nowhere and shook the entire country. Nobody knows how he got wealth and power, he just suddenly rose to the top, claiming the second spot sitting right below the first spot, which was the Roswell Family.

    It was rumored that in the past, when the world was in the state of war, he stepped up and made great contributions for the country. And that was the start of his foundation. From there on, he grew his roots and became one of the most influential person in the country. Nobody doubted him anymore.

    Wealth, power, influence, anything you could get, he owned it, but only, he could not and that is, the top spot. Many flocked towards him. He was reachable, unlike the mysterious and unknown Roswell Family who works under the shadow.

    Although it may look like he was the top, in actual fact, he wasn''t. There was still the Roswell''s. No matter how affluent he was, he could never reach them. Their power, influence, wealth, he could not be compared to them. No matter how hard he worked, he would never reach them.

    It almost drove him crazy. Due to his arrogance, he almost disappeared from this world. The only thing he did when he was at his wit''s end was to bow his head to the true leaders and beg for his life. Whenever he met one of the members of that family, he had no choice but to shrink himself. That was the most humiliating act he had ever experienced in his life.

    There was no way he would let this go. This humiliating act he would never forget it. He swore to get revenge. He swore to take them down. From then on, he stayed inside his home and invited numerous women.

    The patriarch produced many heirs from different mistresses. To produce a perfect heir, he trained them, brainwashed them and made them his own puppet. They must be better than them. Like a bird trapped in a cage, their freedom was taken away from them.

    He was a control-freak. If an heir was deemed as useless, he would not hesitate to throw them away. That was not the only thing that happened inside, there were many more cruel things that an innocent child had to do. Something as cruel as taking a person''s life, especially if this said person was a family member, whom opposed the patriarch''s way, was made normal like it was the most natural thing to do.

    This was how the current Lein Family was made to be twisted on the inside. No one knew how cruel a Lein could be.

    Until one day, when the patriarch was taking a walk, he found a little girl lying in the middle of the street. This said girl had smooth silky snow white hair and a pair of dark purple amethyst eyes with milky pearl-like skin. Once he saw those captivating eyes, he felt like he was staring at a galaxy far away. It was entrancing, he couldn''t get enough.

    This girl piqued his interest and so, he decided to take her home. Surprisingly, Oujiro, the man who was cruel and had not even an ounce of care on a lifeform, took great effort to care for the girl. Of course, once they saw the girl they would understand it. The girl was cute enough to melt even the coldest ice.

    Little by little, he started to change. He was a little lenient than before. He wasn''t hell-bent on revenge anymore.

    Taken over by the warmth feeling, Oujiro decided to adopt the girl. Yue, the name of the girl, became the pampered princess of the Lein Family. Anything she wanted, she could get. Even so, she didn''t get full of herself. Yue was nice and caring, unlike the cruel and cold-hearted patriarch.

    The other children, who was unfortunately born as a girl of a Lein, were envious of Yue. Why does she get to be like a princess, when they have to suffer? Why does she get the patriarch''s only to herself.

    Even though they knew it was wrong. Even though they knew that they shouldn''t do this. Even though they knew that they would get the worst punishment. They still showered her with misfortune everyday. Curses, isolation, and even bullying. They all kept a tight lip and worked together, and Yue bear it all without a single complaint.

    One day, the patriarch found out. He summoned all of the members and made them kneel under the scorching sun while their hands were raised with heavy rocks tied on it. No matter old or young, disable or sick, they were made to bear this light punishment. It was only the start of their hell, thankfully, the princess with a caring heart stopped it all.

    "It was all my fault. If not for me, then their lives wouldn''t be in disorder. Father, if you want to punish someone, then please, it is I, who should be punished. Not them, who are innocent and have not done anything wrong."

    Of course, Oujiro could not bear to punish her own beloved daughter. He warned his sons and daughters, there would be no next time.

    A benevolent princess, it was etched onto their hearts. This incident was soon forgotten and they started to be nice and careful around Yue.

    Years passed, yet the supposed adult Yue was not found. She was still the same little girl. She had not grown at all, maybe she did, but it was not noticeable. While her brothers and sisters grew up, she did not. Her father was getting old, maybe thrice her age, but still she was the same.

    Yue¡­ is not a normal girl.

    It was like time had stopped for her. Then comes the time where it started ticking again. It was a miracle. She grew up to a fine teenager, captivating the hearts of boys. Her father was old enough to be called a grandfather. Still, their relationship was still the same of those a warm family.

    Another years passed and she became an adult. But she stopped growing after that. Even so, she didn''t mind and the world continued to be peaceful.

    How she wished that it would be like this forever.

    However, it seems like fate has something stored for her.

    On a fateful day, she met with a young man named Dennis Gardner. Fate brought the two together and the two fell in love. Their feelings developed into an intense and passionate one, until they could not hold it in any longer and made love to each other.

    The problem is their family. Their family were natural enemies, being that the Gardner''s were friends with the detestable Roswell''s.

    Naturally, they didn''t want the two to be together. They were not deserving of each other.

    For the first time, the gentle princess rebelled and for the first time, she was locked up for punishment. The two could not see each other for a while. The house felt like it was under a state of war due to the tight security and men walking around with guns on their body.

    Yue, at that time, felt her body was abnormal. She kept puking in the morning and her tastes seems to have changed. Her emotions were fluctuating, she could not understand herself. She felt scared and lonely.

    It was also that time when Dennis came to save her, no matter how dangerous it was.

    Yue was forced to choose between her father, whom she spent the longest time with and her lover, whom she loved whole-heartedly.

    Yue chose Dennis.

    Oujiro looked onto his beloved daughter, running away with arms linked by the man who stole her away from him. He ceased the chase and they were able to successfully escape. Disappointment filled his heart and he slowly returned back to the way he was, before he met Yue.

    The couple who ran away, fled to a far away village and built their little home there. Later, they found the cause of Yue''s sickness.

    She¡­ Yue was pregnant.

    It was a mistake. This shouldn''t happen. This child shouldn''t be born¡­ Or else¡­ this world is done for¡­

    I''m sorry¡­

    Yue kept apologizing to the soon to born child. Surely, in the future, she would suffer. As days passed, she slowly began to love the child she was carrying on her stomach.

    ''Honey, What will you name the baby?''

    ''Hmm¡­ Ayami. I''ll name her Ayami.''

    ''Why?''

    ''Hehe, doesn''t it sound like ''I am me.'' A-Ya-Mi. See?''

    ''Honey, you''re too adorable.''

    Soon, the baby who should have never been born, was wailing loudly as the wet-nurse gave the baby girl to the mother who was weakly lying on the bed. Dennis was beside her, smiling happily with tears streaming down his cheeks.

    Ayami, I want to be you to be just you. Not a person who is controlled by fate. I don''t want you to lose sight of yourself and forgot who you truly are.

    Yue held her baby gently.

    No matter if you are a calamity that will destroy this world, Mommy will protect you, even if I''m gone in the future.

    That was how the person who destroyed the world in the future was born.

    ***

    The Guide took a sip of the tea. The scent of chrysanthemum flower wafted her nose.

    "Yue¡­ I hope you are doing well and learned your mistakes¡­"

    The Guide smiled at herself bitterly and closed the book she was reading.

    The Guide could not go on and see the end that Yue chose, instead of the path that she chose.

 Chapter 87 - Here For A Hand In Marriage

    Inside a room designed in an eastern setting, an old man seated at the head seat was emitting a dangerous aura. A man was whispering to his ear. The poor man who was unfortunately chosen to serve the demon king was almost pissing himself as words came out of his mouth.

    "Bring her here when she comes." The old man, Oujiro, ordered in a cold voice. The man nodded his head and dashed out of the room, of course, he remained calm and quiet on the outside.

    After the man left, Oujiro was left alone in the room. He let out a sigh while he looked outside, where the garden could be seen.

    A greenhouse would be sighted once you entered the garden. And that greenhouse was where Yue liked to stay. Remembering the bitter events in the past, his heart tightened.

    He looked away. It has been years, maybe he should demolish it and replace it with another building.

    How long would he still be caught up with the past?

    He let out another sigh. He is already old. There are some matters that he could not take care of. He should pass the seat to the heir.

    "Cough¡­"

    He let out a cough of blood. His time is nearing. Regrets were piled up behind his back. He did too many unspeakable things, sins that can''t be cleared. Even if he apologize, kneel, he could never be forgiven.

    That is why, today, he will settle things with her. It might end up peacefully, hopefully¡­

    There was a knock on the door. "Enter." Oujiro said and the door opened slowly.

    He clenched his fist before slowly loosening them. He straighten his back, raised his chin, like the dignified man he was.

    ***

    Ayami took a deep breath and entered the room. Her gait, calm and confident as she walked in. Kayden nonchalantly followed behind her, this time the head butler did not stop him. Marie stayed behind and will wait for them to come out.

    "Nervous?" Kayden whispered in her ear. Ayami glanced at him and shook her head. He made a thumbs up and smiled at her.

    "Grandfather, it has been a long time." Ayami briefly smiled and bowed her head. This is what she was taught whenever she had to stand in front of the patriarch, of course, she has the privilege to call him grandfather. But it was not something she was happy about.

    "There''s no need to do that anymore." Oujiro casually said. He poured out a tea for the both of them. "Take a seat and have this tea. You must be tired after travelling."

    Ayami felt weirded out by the unusual things Oujiro was doing. To pour a tea for them, that was something he would never do. He is the patriarch, the head of the family!

    What the¡ª? Who are you? An impostor?

    Furthermore, he was showing concern. Did you get an amnesia? Or somebody possessed your body?

    Kayden sat down and took a sip of the tea. He even casually commented, "This is good. Whose the manufacturer?"

    "It''s one of the Lein''s high-quality produced tea, of course it would be good."

    "Oh? That''s a shame then."

    "Why? You want to buy the company and make it yours? As expected of your kind." Oujiro sneered.

    "Why, thank you for the compliment."

    The two casually conversed with each other like they were old-time friends. Meanwhile, Ayami:

    Who am I? Where am I?

    ???

    "What brings the honorable young master here?" Oujiro asked after taking a sip of the tea.

    Come to think of it, how come her grandfather seems polite with Kayden? What is his true identity?

    "I''m here to ask for your granddaughter''s hand in marriage. And by granddaughter, I meant Ayami."

    Before Ayami could ponder over his identity, a bomb was casually dropped. She almost fell on the chair by how surprised she was. Even Oujiro was shaken seeing how he was coughing and almost choking.

    "Grandfather, are you alright?" It was Kayden who asked out of concern.

    "Whose your grandfather!? Shameless brat! Out! Get out, if you''re gonna talk nonsense!" Oujiro shouted at the top of his lungs, face red. Due to anger, he didn''t bother keeping his polite attitude.

    "Kayden, what are you saying? Whose getting married? To whom? To grandfather?" Ayami''s brain malfunctioned due to shock.

    Kayden was speechless. Aren''t you guys overreacting?

    After a while, the two calmed down. Oujiro was massaging his forehead. This brat is gonna be the death of him.

    "Like I said, earlier, I want to marry your granddaughter."

    "Not allowed."

    "Oh, okay. Then we''ll just elope."

    "You¡­" A vein popped on Oujiro''s forehead. He almost vomited blood on the spot. "We''ll talk about this later."

    Kayden nodded his head, satisfied. Ayami''s lips twitched. They were talking like the subject was not here.

    "Grandfather." Ayami called out in a soft voice, seeing that the two were finished conversing with each other.

    "Speak." Oujiro, the cheapskate when it comes to word, spoke.

    "Celine¡­ my friend¡­ I heard that she was here." Ayami was reluctant to speak. She just wanted to know where Celine was, take Celine and get out of here.

    "Guest room."

    Unlike when he was conversing with Kayden, he was speaking like his words were gold. What is with the difference in treatment?

    Anyway, what he meant was that her friend was inside the guest room, completely unharmed. It was a good thing that Ayami was a maxed-level decipherer that she honed over the years, only exclusive to her cheap grandfather.

    "Go. We''ll talk later."

    It looks like he wanted her to leave because he wanted to talk to Kayden.

    "Understood."

    Ayami left the room to find Celine. Before she left, she took one last look at her grandfather and Kayden. They were talking again and it seems like their conversation was deep. It made her wonder what they were talking about for them to make grave expression. Though she wanted to listen in, she could not eavesdrop.

    One thing she noticed was that her grandfather seemed gentle today.

 Chapter 88 - Best Friends Forever

    Ayami trotted through the familiar hallways that she always saw in the past, while Marie quietly followed after her.

    After walking for a while, she reached a large room that was meant for guests. There were two guards guarding the door and when she entered, there were eight of them stationed by the wall.

    She scanned the rooms and finally the person she was looking for. Celine¡­ She¡­

    Celine was pigging on the donuts that was served to her¡­

    This sight made her baffled, what had she been worried for?

    "Ahem." Ayami cleared her throat to catch the attention of the woman who was continuously shoving donuts to her mouth.

    Celine turned her head. At first, she was surprised, then happy, before her face finally turned into a scowl. Her face was so scrunched that it looked ugly.

    "What took you so long? Do you know how nervous I was?"

    "You were nervous?" Ayami raised her brows while her gaze stayed at the empty dozen of box of donuts that were once filled with 6 pieces per box.

    "Isn''t it obvious!?" Celine spoke, frustrated to the point of screaming. Then, she continued to stuff donuts in her mouth again. Sensing Ayami''s gaze on her, she glared at her. "What are you looking at? Never heard of stress eating?"

    "All of you, leave." Ayami ordered the guards. The guards followed her orders and left in an orderly manner. Ayami widened her eyes when Celine also stood up, ready to leave. Ayami shook her head and sighed. "Not you, too."

    "You said, all. That means I also need to leave." Celine pointed to herself, her chin raised up.

    "Look, why don''t you calm down?" Ayami forced her to sit down and stuffed a box of donuts to her hand. "Tell me what happened to you during your stay here."

    Celine threw away the box of donuts and abruptly stood up. She pointed her fingers at Ayami. "You¡­!" Looking closely, her eyes were red and glazed.

    "Is this how you treat your friend? Am I even your friend? I waited for you for days, hoping that you would come since I thought we were friends. Everyday, those stupid guards were watching me while I could only stay here anxiously. They were even threatening my family! Do you know what I''ve been through!?"

    Her shoulders were trembling and tears started spilling out. Celine was anxious for the past few days, waiting for Ayami. The longer she waited, the more the thought ''Am I her friend?'', sink inside her mind.

    "You just had to show your face here and come pick me up. Why is it so difficult for you?" Celine''s outburst surprised her, no, it stabbed her where it was the most painful.

    Then, the next moment, Celine gasped. Through her blurry eyes, she saw Ayami, who had shown a painful look. This was the first time she had ever seen this kind of emotion from her. She felt like someone pinched her heart.

    What had she done? She just said some hurtful words to Ayami, when she didn''t even know what Ayami had gone through.

    During her stay here, she learned a bit of her past. Even with just that, it was enough to make her feel bad.

    "I¡­ I''m sorry¡­ It''s just¡­ I didn''t mean to¡­" Celine apologized. Ayami shook her head. "No, it''s all my fault. I got you involved with my family affairs. I understand. You were anxious. Your family was involved too, so you have the right to be angry at me."

    Then, she smiled. Obviously, it was a forced one. "Don''t worry, you won''t have to experience this again."

    Celine frowned. She might look na?ve, but she knew what she was implying. "Are you going to stop being my friend?"

    Ayami pursed her lips. For a moment, she didn''t open her mouth.

    "I¡­" Ayami closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them and look straight into her eyes. "I had never once thought of you as a friend."

    "You were more like a tool for me. So, I''m sorry. But¡­ lately, I realized your importance. I wanted to sort my problems first. But then, you got caught. I''m sorry."

    Celine bobbed her mouth, before finally deciding not to talk and use action. She hugged Ayami, who was surprised by her.

    "I''m sorry too. I vented my frustrations to you. I just thought I was one-sidedly forcing a friendship relationship and I felt really bad about that." Celine broke the hug first and pinched Ayami''s soft cheeks. "It was partly your fault, you know."

    "Aw~ It hurts~" Ayami whimpered. Celine laughed for a while before letting her go. Ayami massaged her cheeks, which were red.

    "..."

    Silence came over them. Ayami glanced at Celine. She offered her hand and said the following words, "I''m Ayami Lein-Gardner, nice to meet you. Let''s get to know more about each other."

    Since she was still part of the Lein Family¡ªthough she didn''t like it¡ªat the same time, the Gardner Family, she used both last names.

    Celine flashed a bright and cheery smile as she offered her hands. "I''m Celine Lawyers. Let''s get along well."

    The two shook hands and smiled. Finally, they were officially friends as the two acknowledged each other. There was no more one-sided relationship, no more using the other, just a pure friendship.

    "This means that we will be best friends forever. No keeping of secrets or else they will suffer the consequences." Celine grinned. "Do you swear?"

    Ayami nodded her head. Although childish, they did a pinky promise. "Whoever breaks the promise will swallow a thousand needles."

    "By the way, where were you since last month? I couldn''t contact you at all. Even your parents started to worry about you."

    "I went into hiding in Neon City."

    "Oh. But, I am surprised. I didn''t expect you to be part of the Lein Family. I was really scared at first because they kept threatening me and my family. Then, they said they would keep me as a hostage and bait you to come here." Celine hesitated for a while, however, after a brief conclusion that it was fine, she finally asked. "Uh, can you¡­ Can you tell me about your life? I heard that you lived here until you turned sixteen. I wanted to know more about you."

    Ayami nodded her head and turned serious.

    "Well, I can tell you but it''s a long story."

 Chapter 89 - Childhood (1)

    12 years ago.

    The sky was dark, small bits of rain came pouring over the small village, situated just behind a mountain. Luckily, it was not pouring hard or there will a landslide.

    A little girl skipped happily over the puddle of water as rain poured down from the sky. She was on her way home from the village''s local elementary school, which was the only school they have.

    The little girl was wearing a green raincoat, with a design of a frog cartoon character, coupled with a green boots. She was holding a green umbrella with the same design as her raincoat.

    "Little Ayami, are you going home alone? Where''s your mom and dad?"

    A villager asked out of concern. It wasn''t that it was dangerous in the village, in fact, it was completely safe here. Still, seeing a little child going home alone, the villager couldn''t help but worry.

    "Aunty Su, I''m fine, I''m already a big girl. I''m going to surprise mommy and show her that I can go home alone." Ayami smiled brightly, showing her clean and white teeth. The villager also smiled and nodded her head.

    "That''s great. Be careful on your way home."

    "Okay~"

    Ayami waved her hand and started skipping on her way home. In her mind, after she got home she would be praised by her mother. She broke into giggles as she thought about that.

    "Hm~ Hm~" She hummed a nursery rhyme, excited to go home.

    She passed by a few worrying villagers as she went home. What Ayami didn''t know was that she was being watched by them, worried that she might get lost even though the village was small.

    In their eyes, Ayami was a cute little girl who was also smart and responsible. They liked this little girl very much.

    After a few minutes, Ayami finally reached her home. Their home¡ª well, comparing to her parents'' house in the past¡ªit looks like a doghouse. In reality, this was the average size of house in a normal family and this was the same size of the village chief''s house.

    Once the villagers saw that she was in her home, they sighed in relief and went back to whatever they were doing.

    "I''m home~"

    Ayami shouted, after opening the door. She waited for a while but there was no response.

    ''Mommy must not have heard me.'' She thought. She closed the door and took off her raincoat and boots. She set aside the wet raincoat along with the umbrella, and yelled again.

    "Mommy! I''m home~"

    There was still no response. Ayami puffed her cheeks and stomped her feet towards the kitchen. It was where her mother was usually in when she went home with her father.

    Noon was the time when her father took breaks from his job and on his way home, he would take Ayami back home to have lunch. After they were finish, he would take Ayami back to school. Since it was just near, they didn''t have to worry about being late.

    "Mommy?"

    However, when she stepped inside the kitchen, there was no one there. Ayami tilted her head. "Is Mommy playing hide and seek?"

    And so, she started her search on the first floor but she couldn''t find her mother. She tiredly sat down on the floor while her stomach growled.

    "Mommy! I''m tired and hungry. Please come out~"

    Ayami pouted when her mother still didn''t come out. She stood up and went to the second floor of their house.

    When she stepped on the stair, she stopped. For some reason, she felt afraid of going up.

    THUD!

    She heard a loud sound coming on the second floor.

    "Mommy?"

    Ayami called out, however, she could not hear any noise again. Although afraid, slowly she stepped on the stairs and climbed.

    *CRACKLE* *BOOM*

    She flinched at the sound of thunder. The rain seemed to have gotten stronger.

    "*hic*¡­ M-Mommy¡­" Her voice trembled as she called out to her mother. Tears welled up on her eyes.

    She reached the second floor, it was eerily quiet. The small raindrops knocked on the windows of the hallways.

    Ayami called out to her mother in a soft voice. She couldn''t even properly stand as her legs were trembling.

    One step. Two step.

    She took one step at a time towards her mother''s room. Another thunder came down, making her stop for a second before continuing.

    Finally, after what felt like years, she reached her mother''s room. She opened the door, which created a loud creak.

    Then¡­

    Everything went black.

    ***

    "Then, what?" Celine asked.

    "Then¡­" Ayami furrowed her brows. She could not remember what happened after she opened the door. Beads of sweat started appearing on her forehead. "I don''t know."

    "It''s fine if you don''t remember."

    "Let''s continue, then."

    ***

    "Honey, I''m home." Dennis shouted, but he didn''t hear any response. Strangely, there was no kid running to welcome him home.

    He heard from her teacher that Ayami went home by herself. He glanced at the raincoat and boots, sure enough, she had already gone home.

    He saw both of his daughter''s and his wife''s shoes, so they must have not gone out. So, why was there no response?

    "Honey? Little Sweetie?"

    Something is weird.

    He walked in the kitchen; No one was there. There was no sign of it being used, so he crossed out the possibility of them pranking him.

    His heart thumped. Dennis had a bad feeling.

    He hurriedly ran to the staircase and climbed to the second floor. He checked his daughter''s room but she was not there.

    Dennis ran to his wife''s room, but before he could even near it, he saw his daughter lying on the ground in front of his wife''s room.

    "Ayami!" Dennis roared out, his footsteps quickening their pace. He hugged his daughter, whole body trembling.

    Her body was cold, thankfully, she was still breathing. Before he could sigh a relief, he saw the state of his wife''s room through the open door.

    Her room was a mess. But what caught his eyes were his wife, lying down beside a shattered mirror, with cuts on her body.

    Her eyes that were staring just right at him was lifeless. Her hand was positioned like she was reaching for them.

    Dennis felt like the his world shattered just like the mirror, as he screamed his wife''s name.

    "YUE!"

 Chapter 90 - Childhood (2)

    "Y-Yue¡­"

    He felt like a bucket of cold water was poured onto him, as he approached his wife while carrying his daughter.

    "No, no, no¡­ This can''t be happening."

    His hands were trembling as he touched his wife''s cold body. She wasn''t breathing anymore.

    In a normal day like this, she was gone just like that.

    Dennis screamed in agony.

    Who did this? Who was it?

    His eyes were filled with anger and madness. His heart was screaming to find the person who did this and exact vengeance on them.

    But before that, he was reminded of his daughter, the only one left in his life. He hugged her tightly and whispered to his wife, "I will come back." Then, he ran outside the house.

    It was still raining when he went out, so he protected his daughter from the rain. There was a small clinic in the village. He doubted that they would be able to do anything, but it''ll do for now.

    However, he was stopped by a black luxury car. He frowned and cursed at them.

    The door the backseat opened and showed an old man that had an imposing look.

    "You''re..."

    Dennis recognized this old man. He was none other than his father-in-law, Oujiro Lein.

    "Mr. Lein, I do not know why you are here but I''m in a hurry and can''t afford to entertain you." Dennis said with a solemn look. Oujiro sneered at him.

    "For someone who stole someone else''s daughter, you are quite bold."

    Dennis decided to ignore him. His daughter was his priority. He turned around to run again but was stopped once again.

    "Mr. Lein, what''s the meaning of this?" He asked as he looked at the few burly men who was starting to surround them.

    "Get them." Oujiro said in a cold voice.

    Of course, Dennis would not go down without a fight. He fought back even though he would still get captured.

    A while later, Dennis was knocked out but he was still holding Ayami in his arms, protecting her.

    "So that''s my granddaughter." Oujiro mumbled to himself. Then he ordered his men to search for his daughter.

    When Ayami opened her eyes, she was lying on an unfamiliar room. There were a few people wearing outfits she hadn''t seen before standing by the wall.

    Seeing that the little girl woke up, one went out while the others started approaching her. It made Ayami scared seeing these strangers so she called for her mother and father.

    The strangers looked at her in pity, but they still did their jobs. They bathed Ayami and dressed her up. Next, they led her to a room.

    All the people inside the room were unfamiliar to her. All of their gazes were on her, making her shrink. Some were hostile, some were a look of pity while some were neutral, but Ayami could not understand all of this yet.

    Her gaze landed on a familiar figure. She ran to him with tears on her eyes. "Daddy!"

    Dennis carried her and patted her back, making Ayami feel comfortable. Dennis looked at her with gentle eyes for a brief second. His face returned to the stern gaze he wore since coming here.

    "Patriarch, I can''t allow this."

    "The moment that woman left, she became an outsider. She''s no longer part of the family."

    "She doesn''t even have the blood of the Lein."

    "Furthermore, why did you bring that man here? And why isn''t that woman here?"

    "Why would she become part of our family? That useless child will be nothing but a burden."

    "Patriarch, please think about this carefully."

    "SILENCE!" Oujiro roared out in anger as he slammed the table violently, making it rock for a second. His relatives quietened down.

    "*Hic*¡­" A hiccup interrupted the silent room. Everyone turned their gaze towards the source of it.

    Ayami held her mouth, her face pale from the suddenness of the situation, while tears were on the verge of falling down.

    "Tsk. My decision is final. I would like to see who would dare challenge my authority."

    They could not say anything in response. They could only lower their heads as it was the final decision of the head.

    Oujiro stood up and beckoned the father and daughter to follow him. They walked up to the main entrance, where Oujiro stopped.

    "5 minutes."

    Dennis put down her daughter and squatted. He patted her head as he spoke the following words, "Ayami, this will be your new home."

    "Wow, really? We will live here?" Ayami smiled brightly. The hand that was patting her froze while his face looked sad.

    "No, Ayami. It''s not ''we'', it will be only ''you''. I can''t live here."

    Ayami didn''t understand it at first, but as Dennis explained, tears started to stream down her cheeks.

    Her face was devoid of any expression as she asked him, "Daddy, why can''t you live here? Are you leaving me behind? Is it because I''m not a good girl? What about Mommy? Where is Mommy? Did she already left me behind?"

    So many questions that could be answered by a simple ''yes'' or ''no'', yet Dennis could not answer them. He pulled her into a hug, a tight hug.

    "Time is up." Oujiro interrupted their emotional parting.

    "Please, just give me one more minute. Even a few seconds is fine." Dennis begged, not letting go of her daughter.

    "Drag him out." Oujiro ignored his plea.

    A few men started to separate them. Ayami tightly clutched to her father''s clothes, desperately screaming, "No!" "Daddy!" but Oujiro coldly separated them.

    The men dragged Dennis out of his home. Ayami watched them, as they took away her father.

    Ayami glanced at the old man. She collapsed on the floor as she imprinted this old in her mind, who had a twisted smile on his face as he separated them.

    "Well, kid today you will start living here."

    He left as soon as he said those words.

    This was the start of her hell.

 Chapter 91 - Childhood (3)

    "Well, I guess that''s how I became a part of the Lein Family." Ayami touched the blue flower growing out in the garden of the Lein Family.

    Ayami and Celine were currently taking a walk in the garden. It was getting stuffy inside so they decided to take a walk while Ayami was telling her past.

    ***

    On her first day, Little Ayami was asked to rest in her room. A servant told her that she would greet her other relatives in the evening.

    When evening came, the servants dressed her up and led her to the function hall.

    Once again, their gazes fell on her, making her feel intimidated. The room had more people compared to earlier.

    There were a few kids around her age, the others were older than her. The servant escorted her to a table where the patriarch was seated, along with a few important-looking people and a teenager, who seemed indifferent.

    Oujiro glanced at her before turning his gaze away. The others also ignored her, like she doesn''t exist.

    ''Look, that''s her.''

    ''I wonder why the patriarch brought her here.''

    A few people whispered to each other. Ayami looked down, she fidgeted with her fingers. Her lips were quivering for a bit as she whispered to herself.

    ''Mommy¡­ Daddy¡­''

    After a few minutes, the door to the function hall closed. Oujiro stood up and cleared his throat.

    "Now that everyone is here, I would like to introduce our new family member." Oujiro dragged her up to the chair to stand up. The family members clapped, except for the indifferent youth.

    He let her go abruptly, making her lose her balance and almost falling down to the floor. Luckily, she didn''t fall down, instead she sat down unintentionally.

    Ayami saw with her own eyes as the old man grabbed a tissue and wiped his hands.

    Ayami lowered her head. All she wanted was to go back home, where her mother and father was.

    Why did she need to stay here?

    It was something she could not understand.

    "Let''s make a toast for our new relative. Let''s enjoy ourselves today."

    Oujiro raised his glass and toasted with the others. This went on for a while. Ayami felt bored. Nobody was talking to her, much less approach her.

    They were avoiding her like she had some kind of virus and it was making Ayami feel glum.

    Meanwhile, the youth, which the others deemed as the heir, remained seated. Apparently his name was Shun. He was her cousin.

    Among the others his age, he really stood out, making him suitable to be the heir.

    Shun stood up and quietly left the function hall. Oujiro didn''t say anything about it.

    Seeing that, Ayami decided to follow him. She stood up and followed after him; nobody stopped her.

    Shun went to the garden with Ayami following behind him.

    "How long are you going to follow me?" Shun asked in a cold voice, making Ayami flinch.

    "I¡­ I am not following you!" Ayami pouted and continued to explain. "We are just going in the same direction."

    "Whatever." Shun turned away and continued his walk. It''s not his business whether she follows him or not, as long as she doesn''t do anything like assassination, which was a common occurrence in this household. He experienced it so many times that he could not count.

    Soon, this child will also experience that. He hoped that she would survive a month here or maybe it was better for her to die than to live in this hellhole.

    Shun stopped right in front of the greenhouse built inside the garden. This was the place where his most beloved aunt liked to stay. This was also the place where they often played around.

    "Kid." Shun turned around, the little girl was still following him. "If you have any big troubles that you can''t handle yourself, come to me. I''m always around here at this time. Do you understand?"

    Ayami nodded her head.

    "Good. Now, then, I''ll give you a test whether you''re suitable for the Lein family or not. Go back to your room safely. That is your first test."

    "Okay." Ayami nodded her head even though she only understood a little bit of it. But first, she asked for directions before she embarked on a journey to her room.

    Na?ve Ayami didn''t know that there were many dangers lurking around the shadows. If one was not careful, it would cost their life.

    The first one, she luckily avoided stepping on the trap that was placed on the pavestone. The second one, she tripped on a tripwire, due to her small stature, she managed to avoid getting stabbed by the sharp knives that flew out of nowhere. The same thing happened over and over again until she reached her room.

    Perhaps, this is what you call a beginner''s luck.

    Of course, Shun was watching her from the shadows. He was amused seeing her manage to avoid all those deadly traps with luck.

    That is to say, she successfully completed her first test.

    Ayami spent her night alone. She missed her mother and father. She wondered how long it would take to see them again.

    And so, she drifted to sleep while thinking about that.

    The next day, she was awoken by the servants, asking her to prepare for the day. She was told that she was to attend a private class¡ªexclusive only to the children of the Lein¡ªfrom a renowned teacher, along with cousins about her age.

    She was lead to a room that was set up like a classroom. There were four children beside her.

    "Hm. It seems like we have a new student joining us. Would you introduce yourself, young miss?"

    "Um¡­ I''m Ayami¡­ Lein." She felt uncomfortable saying a last name different from her parents.

    "Very good, now sit down."

    Ayami sat down on the empty seat. The teacher took out a test paper and started passing it to the students.

    "Now, before I begin my lessons. I would like to know your capabilities. Start answering the questionnaires. You have 10 minutes." Of course, she already knew the other''s capabilities, she just doesn''t want the new student to be left out.

    Ayami looked at the test papers. She could not understand any of it. She lost all her colors, knowing that she will fail.

    10 minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

    The teacher collected the papers. That was when she noticed the blank papers from Ayami. The teacher frowned as she asked Ayami.

    "Young miss Ayami, why did you pass a blank test paper?"

 Chapter 92 - Childhood (4)

    Ayami pursed her lips and looked down, her cheeks were flushed red. She could not bear to look at the teacher''s eyes, which was filled with disbelief and scorn.

    The other children were giggling to themselves.

    "Young miss Ayami, this¡­ this isn''t even hard. This is just an evaluation test, so why did hand a blank paper? We''re you nervous?"

    "I-I¡­"

    Ayami could not answer her question. Her face lost their colors. The teacher let out a sigh.

    It was true that it was easy for those who were born in the Lein Family and the adults, but for Ayami, an outsider who was just brought in, she could not answer them. Any normal child would not be able to answer it.

    Those who were born in the Lein Family were brought up to be an elite. Education starts at the age of four, whether you''re a genius or not. Of course, those geniuses receive harsher education.

    An evaluation exam will be held once a child turns six. Those who did not pass will receive punishment while those who got top scores will be rewarded.

    By the age of eight, the children should have finished the primary education. By the age of sixteen, all must have finished tertiary education.

    For Ayami, who was not a genius and just a normal child, she wasn''t able to keep up with the Lein''s strict education. So she, who was deemed as a failure, was bound to suffer while living under the Lein''s.

    "I''m sorry, young miss Ayami but you cannot join today''s class. I''ll talk to the patriarch about this. For now, please go back."

    The teacher kindly said but her eyes could not hide the disappointment and contempt. The other children whispered to themselves which Ayami could hear.

    ''Pfft. This test was so easy and yet she could not even answer it.''

    ''What an idiot.''

    ''I''ll tell my mom about this.''

    Ayami weakly stood up and left the room. Her legs were wobbling as she walked out but she could not pass out here because, by instinct, they would look down on her even more.

    She walked back to her room in a daze, still luckily avoiding all the traps set around the whole place.

    When she arrived in her room, her legs gave and that was when her dam of tears broke.

    "Wuu¡­ Mommy¡­ Daddy¡­"

    She curled up into a ball and stayed like that for the whole day, not even bothering to eat.

    Then, the time came when she was called by the patriarch. When she arrived in his room, she bore his contempt that was obvious from his eyes.

    "What a useless child." He loudly muttered for her to hear. Oujiro took a quick look on her face.

    Except for the hair and eye color, Yue and this child looked the same. And that was what irritates him.

    "You''re clearly her child, but why are you polar opposites?"

    Oujiro shook his head. It doesn''t matter.

    "Have her study the basics first and slowly increase the difficulty." Oujiro ordered his assistant before dismissing the both of them.

    However, after a year of studying, her results was unsatisfactory in the eyes of the elders, especially the patriarch. So her education became harsher and stricter.

    Just like the other Lein children, she lost her childhood. She spent her days studying.

    Sometimes, she would sneak out and go to the garden to meet up with Shun¡ªwhom she treats as her big brother¡ªto ask for advice. Shun treated her like a little sister but what he could do for her was limited as he, too, is controlled by the patriarch. He gave her advices on what to do and what not to do.

    On her way back, she overheard the elders talking about her mother. That was when she found out that she no longer had a mother.

    Luckily, Shun was there to send her back and comforted her. Seeing her look sad, he decided to go to the patriarch to ask for permission to visit Ayami''s father.

    Oujiro approved on a condition. He was to leave and study abroad while broadening his connections.

    Shun took Ayami to her father. Though, he hates him to the core for taking away his aunt, he, at least greeted him and showed basic manners.

    On their visit, Ayami saw her father''s state, which Dennis would obviously not show to his daughter. Of course, Dennis was surprised by their sudden arrival.

    To think that her father was suffering, Ayami decided to hug him and show her affections. She cried and hugged him tightly.

    "Why are you here?" Dennis asked in disbelief. "Did you get permission?"

    "Of course, we did. We don''t want to suffer from any punishment after all." Shun replied.

    "Enjoy your reunion. I''ll come pick her up later." Shun left them alone.

    The two spent their day together. They decided to enjoy the short time they had.

    Soon, Shun came back and picked her up like he said. Ayami, though reluctant, said goodbye and left.

    Then the day came when Shun was sent to abroad to further his studies and also deepen his connections to the foreigners. This time, Ayami was truly alone with the pack of hyenas waiting to devour her.

    Although the elders did not know why the patriarch still did not kick her out, the chance of her becoming the favorite of the patriarch was there, and their resources that was supposed to be theirs would go to Ayami as what happened when he pampered the ''princess''.

    The elders saw her as a threat and so, they schemed against an innocent child.

    One day, someone broke the patriarch''s favorite vase¡ªa gift from Yue. A child pointed to Ayami and blamed her. The others started testifying. The more they spoke, the more paler Ayami became, making her look like she was guilty.

    "Lock her to the punishment room for three days to reflect! Do not give her food or drinks! Those who are caught doing that will receive a worse punishment." Oujiro ordered in a thundering voice.

    "I-I¡­ I didn''t do it! It wasn''t me!"

    Even when she cried, begged, and screamed, the servants dragged her away with no expression on their faces. If there was, that would be annoyance.

    There, on the punishment room¡ªa place where there are no lights or anything¡ªAyami was locked there for three days.

    On the first day, she was crying and screaming for help. On the second day, she calmed down and completely became quiet. On the third day, her personality had a great change.

    This incident made her realize how cruel they can be and nobody will be on her side. After she came out, there was no more expression on her face.

    "Have you reflected on yourself?"

    "Yes."

    "Good. Leave then. I hope there is no more next time."

    Similar incidents occurred again and again. Slowly, she became accustomed to it and started to counter their schemes.

    The time came when the children was taught combat training, martial arts and assassination arts. Ayami was able to complete the trainings without getting injured. There was also a possibility of them being killed due to the intensity of the training.

    It only went on for a year. Others were free to continue on their own or focus on their studies. Of course, most would continue as it would be beneficial. Ayami chose to occasionally train herself.

    Compared to her mother''s life while living here as a princess, her life was the polar opposite.

    Ayami became smarter and twisted. She could not trust anyone anymore. Emotions disappeared as time went on.

    Even Marie, who became her servant after she turned eight, was someone she did not completely trust.

    From the bright and cheerful child to the cold and indifferent teenager, her experiences made her like that. As she aged, the more colder her heart became.

    Perhaps that was the one of the reason why she acted like that in her past life. Irrational and twisted from the jealousy of the others experiencing love, which she could not have.

    When she turned sixteen, that was when she was allowed to leave the place but she was still bound to the Lein Family.

    ***

    "Wow, that was a really long story. Long story short, your mother died, you got captured by the Lein Family, then you were trained to be an elite. After all that, you finally left, had a reunion with your father and met your step-family, and enrolled in the academy where I met you. No wonder you were so cold."

    Celine clicked her tongue and shook her head. "If not for me getting caught by your grandfather, I would not have known this and continue to be your tool." Celine looked at Ayami and sighed. "It''s hard to break down the wall of an Ice Queen."

    "Who''s an Ice Queen?" Ayami pouted and left her behind.

    "Ah, wait for me!" Celine followed after her with a chuckle.. They ran around the garden like they went back to their childhood.

 Chapter 93 - Wifey

    "It''s nice to see you two getting along." A man said after seeing the two friends running around like children.

    He was sitting on the bench of the garden. The man had jet black hair and red blood eyes, his face perfectly sculpted. This was the typical features from the Lein Family.

    "Shun!" Ayami said in surprise. She did not expect to see him here. Even so, her eyes brightened. "When did you return?"

    "I returned just yesterday. I was called by the patriarch." Though Shun was indifferent, towards his little sister, he would become gentle. Of course, his facial expression did not change but the look in his eyes did.

    "Oh, I see."

    Shun looked at the person who was behind Ayami. "I''m glad you found a friend you could trust and you even took her home to play. Won''t you introduce her to me?"

    Ayami introduced the both of them.

    "This is Shun whom I told you about. Shun, this is Celine."

    "Hello." Celine flashed her bright smile which showed her perfectly lined white teeth.

    Shun politely extended his hand; Celine took it. They shook hands quickly.

    "Then I won''t bother the two of you any longer. Go play over there, I''ll watch you." Shun said, sounding like a mom who brought their kids to a playground to play.

    "Okay~" Ayami childishly responded, giggling a little bit.

    To Ayami, Shun was the only person she could trust inside the Lein Family, the same goes to Shun.

    "So this where you guys were."

    Suddenly, a voice interrupted them. It was Kayden. Shun seemed shock seeing Kayden in his own home.

    "Kayden?"

    "Oh, Shun. Ah, no. I should call you brother-in-law from now on." Kayden smiled and teased him.

    Of course, Shun was confused by the way he addressed him. "What brother-in-law? I don''t have a sister for you to marry."

    "Isn''t she your little sister?" Kayden said as he intertwined his hand with Ayami and showed it to Shun.

    "Eh? You two know each other?" Ayami finally reacted after processing what just happened.

    "Of course, we do. Your brother and I are friends."

    "Who''s your friend?" Shun said while removing their intertwined hands.

    "Aw~ Brother-in-law, you''re just jealous because I''m going to get married earlier than you." Kayden continued to tease. Of course, he still did not let go of Ayami''s hand even though Shun looked like he was about to cut his hand off.

    "You! Get away from my little sister."

    "It''s okay, brother. You''ll learn to accept it soon."

    "Wait, wait!" Ayami stopped the two of them.

    Celine? She was over there, enjoying the show. How she wished she had a popcorn or even brought the donuts she got by force (by throwing a tantrum and wreaking havoc which luckily didn''t get her in trouble). After the patriarch heard that, she got a truckload of donuts.

    "How do you know each other? Why don''t I know about this?"

    "Well¡­"

    "Oh right. The patriarch is calling you, Ayami. How about we explain this later?" Kayden said and led her to the patriarch, leaving behind the two in awkward silence.

    "Uh, I have something to do, so I''ll be going then." Before Shun could leave, Celine grabbed him by the wrist.

    "Wait!"

    "What is it?"

    "I don''t know how to go back. Can you show me the way back?" Celine looked at him with puppy eyes.

    It was not that she was lost or anything. But hearing the fact that there were traps set in this place, she was scared to go alone. So having someone who lives here and knows the place reassures her.

    "..."

    "..."

    ''Why isn''t he saying anything?''

    It was awkward for Celine to stay like. It was so awkward that her face was slowly reddening. What''s more is that he was just staring at her like she was an odd species.

    She slowly let go of the wrist that she was clasping tightly.

    "I''m sorry." She said with her head down, her face bright red.

    "¡­Okay."

    "Huh?"

    Celine couldn''t process it at first, but when she realized, she happily smiled and thanked him.

    "Thank you."

    Meanwhile, the pair headed to Oujiro''s office was chatting about random stuff.

    "Why do you have to tell me later?" Ayami pouted.

    "Because it''s a long story."

    "Then, can''t you shorten it?"

    "Haha, no."

    "Okay. But, you know, I didn''t expect you to ask for a hand in marriage from me in front of my grandfather. He''s really scary, especially if he''s angry. You''re courageous." Ayami looked proud as she nudged him. "Plus ten points for my future husband."

    "Hm~ How many points until I get full marks?" Kayden pulled her closer to the point that they were almost hugging while their face was close to each other.

    Ayami was shaken. Her ears hidden behind her hair was red. She muttered with shaky voice, "A million."

    "Then¡­ if I kiss you, how many points will I get?" He said as his face got closer and closer. Ayami panicked. They can''t do this here! Especially with many eyes watching them.

    That''s right.

    Since the moment they entered the grounds, all of their movements were being monitored, except inside the garden.

    Ayami immediately covered his lips with her palm. "Minus 100 points." She said, as she glared at him. She removed her palm and started stomping away.

    "Why? Are you shy with being watched by so many people?" Kayden let out a sigh. He glared at the people who were hiding before catching up to Ayami.

    "Ayami¡­" Kayden called out but she ignored him. Seeing that, Kayden had a bright idea.

    "Honey?"

    No response.

    "Baby?"

    Still no response.

    "Sweetie? Darling? Deserts? Little Cakey? MOO1?"

    If there is still no response, how about¡­

    "Wifey?"

    Ayami turned around with her face red, as she glared at him with glazed eyes.

    "Would you stop that!?"

    Kayden let out a chuckle. Ayami looked so cute right now, that he wanted to tease her more.

    Luckily, Ayami didn''t have to suffer any more torment as she arrived in front of the patriarch''s office.

 Chapter 94 - False Truth Shall Be Fed On Ignorant Humans

    Ayami sat across Oujiro. No expression could be seen on her face. Kayden stayed outside as he didn''t need to listen to their boring talk.

    "You''ve grown into a fine young lady." Oujiro said, making a small talk.

    "Grandfather, please don''t beat around the bush. What do you need?"

    They would only be wasting time if they continued their meaningless small talks. Oujiro snorted at her before finally getting down to business.

    "Regarding using my men, I won''t talk about it. You''re free to use them as you like. I did give them to you as a birthday gift after all. Now¡­" Oujiro paused and looked straight into her eyes, looking intimidating. "You''re marriage with that brat, I accept it. I''ll break the engagement agreement between the Lein and Filburn."

    "We will formally break off the engagement tomorrow. You have to be there or else¡­" There was a dangerous glint in his eyes as he gazed at her. "¡­You know what will happen."

    "I understand. I will be present tomorrow and of course, I won''t do anything shameful that will embarrass the name of Lein."

    Oujiro nodded his head and dismissed her. Before she could completely leave the room, Oujiro spoke.

    "One more thing. You are free to do anything you want as long as it''s not anything that would tarnish our reputation."

    Ayami waited for a while to hear what more of what he wanted to say but he didn''t speak any further so she left.

    "Live a happy life from here on." Oujiro muttered to himself.

    ***

    "How did it go?" Kayden asked as soon as he saw her.

    "It was okay." Ayami smiled at him. "Now that we''re done, how about I show you around."

    Then, without waiting for his answer. Ayami held his hand and dragged him.

    They toured around the whole place. Ayami acted like an enthusiastic tour guide while Kayden acted like a tourist who was visiting the spot for the first time.

    "And this place, over there¡ª Watch out for the traps. So anyways, this place is called the punishment room."

    The contents of their tour was dark in contrast to the bright and enthusiastic tone of the tourist guide and tourist.

    ¡­All is good if they are enjoying it.

    When the day ended the guests joined the Lein Family''s dinner, which only consisted of Oujiro and his heir, Shun. The other relatives were out as per the patriarch''s instructions.

    Oujiro sat at the head seat of the long table. Shun sat alone on the left side while Ayami was in between Kayden and Celine on the right side.

    "So, how did the two of you meet?" Ayami asked in the middle of the oppressive mood.

    "Ah, that¡­" Shun seemed reluctant to tell her that, especially in front of the patriarch. Kayden leaned in to her and whispered, "I''ll secretly tell you later."

    Shun glared at him. "What did you tell her?"

    "I just told why you were embarrassed to tell her the story when we first met."

    "You¡­!" Shun felt his head throbbing. This annoying junior of his has become even more annoying than before.

    Good thing that the patriarch was there or else it would have escalated into a food fight.

    "Shun."

    Shun stopped his behavior and became quiet. Just the patriarch saying his name rendered him into this state.

    "Party pooper." Kayden spoke to himself. His voice was audible enough for everyone to hear.

    This brat!

    Oujiro''s lips twitched. He wanted to kick out this brat but he could not do so. He could only lament in his heart.

    Ping!

    Just then, everyone heard a ringtone. All of them looked towards the source¡ªKayden''s pockets.

    "No phones at the table." Oujiro chided.

    "Sorry, forgot to mute it."

    Though he said that he still fished out his phone and checked it nonchalantly. The others went back to eating.

    His face turned frosty when he read the contents of the message, making Ayami look curious. Before she had the chance to look at it, he shut it off.

    "Sorry, I have some urgent matters to deal with. Enjoy your dinner." He said dryly as he stood up. Kayden stared at Ayami for a few seconds. It made her wonder if she has something on her face.

    Then, in front of everybody, Kayden kissed her cheeks and ran away before she could even manage to react.

    Shun''s angry fit of cough as he choke on his food and Celine''s small squeal, brought her out of her daze. Oujiro, in particular, had no reaction.

    Ayami touched her cheeks, that were red from embarrassment. She cleared her throat and spoke.

    "Ahem, Shun, I think you need some water." She said and passed him a glass of water with shaky hands. He clearly looked like he was about to die.

    "Let''s continue eating."

    ***

    On the web, various articles were circulating¡ªwhich Ayami was still unaware of. This particular search was on the no. 1 trending searches.

    The contents of it¡­ it was about Celine''s family which were accused of doing under the table deals, accusing the wrong person to send to jail, and being a fraud. What''s more was Ayami''s family¡ªthe Gardners¡ªwas involved.

    Of course, none of it was true. But is the truth really important for those who want to see the world burn? No, they would even add fuel to the fire.

    Those netizens who did not know the truth would be swayed, blindly following the mass. And when the truth did come out, how many of them would believe it? Perhaps, there would be many if there were strong evidences. Even so, they would soon forget it and go on with their daily lives and new scandals would emerge for them to throw dirt on.

    Those people who were thrown in the spotlight were for their own entertainment. They would wear mask, and enjoy the show as an audience.

    Nobody hopes to be thrown on the stage where millions of people will throw negative comments.

    People will not realize how lucky they are until they receive a punishment for being ignorant and a hypocrite.

    "Humans are really interesting toys."

    The person wearing a mask¡ªBoss Yue¡ª smiled while scrolling on the web reading the comments of the people sitting on high seats.

    Their preparation was complete and it was time to start.