Chapter 228: These Girls

Then her gaze shifted past his shoulder and she pointed.

"Aren’t those the two girls from earlier?"

Jax turned.

And immediately regretted it.

Roxana and Elira stood with their backs straight, radiating enough murderous energy to wilt the nearby flower stalls.

In front of them, half-hidden behind a row of bushes, sat Seris and Astrid. Frozen like two rabbits caught chewing through the queen’s garden.

Jax pressed his palm against his forehead. "Now what the hell are these idiots planning?"

Jennifer laughed softly. Genuinely amused. "I’ll leave you to handle this. Consider it a light warmup."

She began walking away. Then paused.

Her voice turned playful. Mocking.

"Oh, and one more warning." She glanced over her shoulder. "Be cautious. If you keep collecting trophies at this pace, you’ll drown in a mess even your genius can’t untangle."

Her grin sharpened.

"Speaking of which, the tournament is going to be quite the spectacle with all these girls circling you like vultures. And to make it even more entertaining..."

Her eyes sparkled with something wicked.

"I’ve pulled some strings to throw a few more yanderes your way."

Jax’s blood ran cold. "Wait!"

He called after her. "At least finish your sentences! And what trophies? I didn’t mean it that way! And if you think these women are obsessed with me, you couldn’t be more wrong. Most of them actively want to murder me!"

But Jennifer had already dissolved into the crowd. Swallowed whole by the sea of worshippers who parted like obedient waves for their beloved Saintess.

"Tsk."

’That woman is more dangerous than every champion combined. And she’s supposed to be on my side.’

He turned and moved toward the commotion.

Roxana stood with her arms crossed. Her face wore a smile. A beautiful, elegant, perfectly composed smile.

But her eyes were furnaces. And her fists clenched so tight the knuckles had gone bone-white.

Anyone who had spent more than five minutes with this woman knew that smile meant someone was about to have a truly terrible evening.

"Care to repeat that lovely theory, dear students?"

Her voice was honey drizzled over a blade.

Seris processed the danger first. Self-preservation kicked in long before pride could interfere.

"I sincerely apologize on behalf of my friend, Professor." Her bow was swift and practiced. "She has been behaving rather unusually lately. Well, to be precise, ever since meeting Professor Jax she has completely lost her sense of judgment. Please don’t take it to heart. I will speak with her father and have things sorted out."

Astrid’s head snapped toward Seris so fast her neck cracked.

"Seris, you TRAITOR!" Her voice carried genuine betrayal. "I believed in you more than anyone! More than my own blood! And now you stab me in the back the second pressure hits?!"

Then, like a switch being flipped, her panic evaporated entirely.

She turned toward Roxana and Elira, eyes shifting from terrified prey to calculating predator in half a breath.

"And why exactly are you two so pissed at us?" Her chin lifted. "Mad because I stated facts? Or mad because we were stalking him?"

She crossed her arms.

"But weren’t you doing the same. Because we saw you. Both of you. Following him all the way to that café like two lovesick puppies."

Roxana’s eye twitched. Her mouth opened to deliver what would surely have been a legendary verbal execution.

But a voice from behind cut through everything.

"Elira. We need to talk. Right now."

All four girls turned toward the voice.

Leon.

He stood with the posture of someone who believed the world owed him everything. Jaw clenched. Eyes locked onto Elira with an intensity that reeked of obsession wrapped in entitlement.

Before Elira could respond, his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. He pulled hard, forcing her a step in his direction.

But Elira yanked back.

Not gently. Not with hesitation. With a force that shattered his grip like wet paper. His fingers were ripped loose and his balance crumbled.

And in that exact moment of shock, her palm connected with his face.

SLAP.

The sound cracked across the festival street like a whip.

Heads turned. Whispers erupted. Eyes went wide.

Leon’s face whipped sideways. A red handprint bloomed across his cheek like a fresh brand.

Elira’s voice was ice. Absolute. Final.

"Touch me again. And I will make sure that hand never reaches for anything ever again."

Leon’s chest heaved. His fists trembled at his sides. The burn of humiliation crawled across every nerve as his eyes scanned the surroundings. Nobles. Commoners. Students. All staring. All whispering.

His teeth bared in a twisted grin.

"What do you think you’re doing?" His voice shook with barely restrained fury. "Have you completely lost your mind?"

Then a laugh escaped. Hollow. Mocking.

"That professor, huh?" His eyes darkened. "Seems like he’s been manipulating you. Poisoned your little head and made you believe you’re something more than what you really are."

The laughter died. What replaced it was far worse.

A maniac’s grin stretched across his features. His voice dropped to something between a whisper and a death sentence.

"But that won’t change a thing. You are mine. And you are in no position to reject that."

His stare bore into her.

"You know that too. I’m eager to see what His Majesty does to you once this little rebellion leaks."

Elira didn’t flinch. Not a single muscle betrayed fear.

"Then do it."

Her voice was steady. Unshakable.

"I won’t be threatened by those words anymore. I won’t kneel to you. Not to your bitch of a mother. Not even to my own blood."

Her crimson eyes blazed with defiance that could have set the sky on fire.

"I refuse to be the currency that gets traded for someone else’s ambition. Even if it costs me everything I have."

Leon’s grin didn’t falter. If anything, it widened.

He closed the distance. Face inches from hers.

"You’ve truly lost it." His voice was a serpent’s hiss. "Fine then. I just need to kill that professor first. And after that, I’ll personally show you your place."

His hand reached for her jaw.

Crack.

The sound of fingers being caught mid-air echoed through the street.

Jax stood there. Leon’s fingers trapped in his grip, knuckles grinding against knuckles.

His expression was calm. Almost bored.

But his eyes told a completely different story.

"I believe my student made her position clear."