The p resonated crisply in the silent ssroom, turning heads and dropping jaws.
Oriana clutched her cheek, disbelief painted across her face as she stared at Malvina.
Pride had always been Oriana''s cloak, worn since childhood; never once had she faced such public
humiliation. Fury quickly reced her shock.
"Are you insane? Hitting me, here? Which department do you even belong to? I''m reporting you!
Good luck trying to study here after this!"
Malvina''s reply dripped with sarcasm. "Oh wow, such a big deal, huh? Telling me I can''t study here.
Geez, you must really think you''re something. Why don''t you just ban me from Earth while you''re at
it? What, you think you''re the dean now? Or maybe the queen of Earth? I wasn''t aware you were
the dean Garrick''s secret love child. Oh wait, are you... the nanny?"
"What did you just say!"
Malvina covered her mouth, barely suppressing a chuckle. "I meant, you must be hard-working.
Where did your mind wander off to?"
Oriana, red-faced and fuming, could barely muster a response. "You''re shameless!"
Malvina''s retort was swift and dismissive. "Rebound."
Having mastered the art of verbal sparring since she could barely walk, Malvina had always been
the bane of the Gruber family. Her wit and sarcasm was honed to perfection. How could a
bookworm like Oriana ever hope topete?
Oriana, burning with anger, turned only to find Noe as serene as if the altercation hadn''t urred.
Noe’s calm demeanor stood in stark contrast to the chaos, her elegance making her seem almost
ethereal. She appeared to be bathed in a light that seemed to favor her alone.
It was infuriating! What was Noe trying to prove?
Why should her be the viin in contrast to Noe''s saintliness?
"I just wanted to genuinely apologize to Noe," Orianamented amid tears.
"I didn''t mean to upset her. Noe, please don''t force Stirling to leave me."
Malvina, feigning innocence, nced at the book Noe was reading and the offensive photos
sprawled across the desk before letting out a whistle.
"Go on, report me. A p might cost me a fine for medical expenses, but your nder? The
Schnabel family''swyer is no joke.
I could see through your little ys because I used to put on such acts as well. But I’m smarter than
you. You worked hard to get into college, so why not just focus on your studies?"
Knowing she was at fault, Oriana could do nothing but retreat with tears streaking down her face.
Noe hadn''t been sleeping well, regretting her decision to agree to Horatio’s request for her to go
out, which now left her exhausted.
Just as she was about to leave with Malvina, a few people approached them.
Noe raised an eyebrow in confusion, her beautiful eyes shimmering with fatigue, which made her
look pitiful in the eyes of others.
While they knew Noe was attractive, they had only seen her from a distance. Being confronted
with such a face made several of them blush.
Noe casually inquired, “Is there something you need?”
One of the girls blushed and apologized, "I''m sorry, Noe. Oriana spoke ill of you, and we didn''t
intervene. We''re really sorry!"
"I don''t mind what was said. What you believe doesn''t concern me," Noe replied with a dismissive
grace.
"No! Allowing someone to tarnish a fellow ssmate without knowing the full story, disying poor
judgment, which led to you being harmed, was our mistake, and we deeply regret it!"
Looking at their sincere and innocent faces, brimming with the vibrant energy and growth typical of
student life, Noe also smiled gently. “I’ve encountered such situations before, and I truly don’t hold
it against you. However, I appreciate your apology.”
The lead girl, Ingrid, spoke earnestly, "I’m the ss president. Feel free to approach me if you ever
need anything!"
"Got it, I''ll keep that in mind."
Ingrid added, "We''ll inform the teachers about Oriana''s matter and handle it together. We hope it
won''t affect you, and we look forward to seeing you in ss in the future!"
Content ? N?velDrama.Org.
Noe raised a slight eyebrow. Were they assuming she skipped sses due to malicious rumors?
Noe didn''t bother to rify, but she heard Malvina, seated beside her, speak in a sweet tone. "Ah,
our dear Noe mustered the courage to attend ss, only to encounter such a situation. Noe is
naturally reserved and timid. How is she expected to cope? If I hadn''t been here today, would you
have left her, a gentle and lovely youngdy, to face malice alone?
Ingrid, if I''m not mistaken, you all deliberately avoided sitting next to Noe. Don''t say it’s a
coincidence. When I was in college, the most coveted seats were always in the back row."
The back row seats were always the most sought after; it was normal for the front row to be empty,
even for students at Imperial University. They had deliberately isted Noe!
Malvina scoffed, "I''ve seen my fair share of people hurling insults at me. I usually brush it off as
nonsense. But just because Noe prefers not to dwell on such matters doesn''t mean you all can
turn a blind eye to it, understand?"
Upon Malvina''s remarks, Ingrid recalled Oriana''s earlier nder against Malvina.
"We sincerely apologize!"
"Let it go. I''m not even part of your ss. Noe is the one owed an apology."
Ingrid and a group of ss representatives then offered their heartfelt apologies.
"No need to dwell on it. I''ve already epted your apology. The me doesn''t solely rest on you,
so let''s leave it at that."
Lacking sufficient evidence to judge, they had relied on Oriana''s casual remarks and fabrications.
Besides, Noe herself hadn’t beening to college these days, so even if they wanted to verify,
they wouldn’t have had the chance.
People naturally tend to seek advantage and avoid harm, so it''s understandable for them to keep
their distance from Noe.
"I hope what you''ve witnessed today was an eye-opener. The fact that you came to apologize
shows you have a basic sense of right and wrong. I''m not one to hold grudges."
Ingrid''s eyes sparkled with admiration!
Noe, with her stunning beauty and her talent on the zither that had be a staple across the
music department, not to mention her wealthy background and kind personality, was truly
understanding!
The thought of Noe, such an exceptional student, feeling uneasy abouting to college
because of Oriana''s issue made Ingrid deeply upset.
Noe handed a book to Ingrid. "Could you please pass this on to Ms. Darcy for me? I''ve got to
head out."
She had already taken photos of the book''s content and sent them to Jasper.
"Of course, you can count on me! We won''t let this kind of problem happen in our ss again!"
"We''ll see."
As Noe and Malvina left the ssroom, Noe raised an eyebrow slightly, just in time to see a boy
approaching them, presenting Malvina with a bouquet of roses!
"This for you."