“You know graduation is just a few months away, right?”
Louis Bentley twisted his lips into a crooked smile.
“Aaron Helverto, who’s always hanging around you, is graduating too.”
So what?
That was the meaning in Lennox’s gaze, and Louis snorted as if dumbfounded.
“How do you expect to survive when you can’t even grasp the situation? There’s no one to cover your back anymore.”
A cold sneer, far too icy for a fourteen-year-old boy, briefly passed Lennox’s lips.
As you said, the academy was sufficient for laying the foundation.
If that foundation was patience, then the academy was an excellent place to build it.
It wasn’t as if everyone here was like Clemence Jacqueline.
Lennox found that disappointing, but he figured Clemence would have handled it wisely.
Just like the time she freed him from the bullying of the seniors with a single lie.
Then Louis, noticing a passing girl, smirked and mocked her.
“Oh? Isn’t that your fiancée?”
He realized picking a fight with Lennox wasn’t working, so he changed targets.
To Melin Jacqueline, who was close to Lennox.
And he had plenty of excuses to attack her.
“Ah, right! Your sister cheated on her graduation exam, didn’t she?”
Even at Esclan Academy, Clemence Jacqueline’s alleged cheating was a hot topic.
“I heard she was practically a slave to those professors from the Elder Council just to cover up her poor grades.”
Melin’s face turned red with anger.
“My sister never cheated!”
“Eh~? Seems like you’re the only one who thinks that.”
He wasn’t wrong.
Except for Lennox, most of the students firmly believed she had cheated.
‘Yeah, it was weird. She was always just an average student, then suddenly passed an exam even the seniors struggle with.’
That was the general reaction around the academy.
Unable to argue further, Melin could only clench her fists as her face flushed. Then a spirit whispered to her.
[Mel, want me to blow that guy away with the wind?]
Melin was tempted.
At this moment, she wanted nothing more than to flatten Louis Bentley.
‘Melin, if you want to go to the academy, there’s one condition. Never, ever use the spirits’ power.’
But remembering her sister’s words, Melin hesitated and just gripped her skirt tightly.
That’s when it happened.
“I don’t agree with what you said.”
A familiar voice rang out.
“Who the hell—?!”
Startled, Louis turned around, angry.
“Oh, it’s you?”
Once he saw who it was, Louis smirked.
“What, you can’t just walk past when your lover is crying?”
“Such a touching love story! Hahaha!”
“I’m not crying!” Melin shouted, but Louis and his gang ignored her.
Lennox looked at them with a cold gaze and calmly spoke.
“About that cheating—you’re wrong. She didn’t do it.”
“Oh, so you’re defending her like a good little boyfriend…”
Melin wasn’t even his girlfriend, and she couldn’t understand why that mattered in this argument.
Lennox barely managed to suppress the look of contempt rising on his face at Louis’s stupid remark.
He was concerned that his reputation might eventually reach Clemence.
As the confrontation between Lennox, Melin, and Louis’s gang escalated, nearby students began to gather, sensing drama.
Before long, a crowd had formed. Lennox asked:
“What’s your evidence?”
“Do I really need to tell you that?”
“Yes, so go ahead.”
Louis flinched at Lennox’s firm reply but forced a laugh.
“I-It’s just common sense! How could someone who barely maintained average grades pass a graduation exam that even seniors struggle with?”
The more he talked, the more confident he became, thinking he sounded logical.
“Plus, the supervising professor got disciplined for taking bribes! Doesn’t that say it all?”
“…So that’s it?”
Lennox sighed as if it was pathetic.
No one had actually seen her cheat.
‘There are always flies buzzing around talented people.’
This felt just like that.
If anything, it proved Clemence was exceptional, and Lennox didn’t entirely dislike that idea.
Had Melin known his thoughts, even she—who adored her sister—might have been repulsed by Lennox.
But Melin didn’t know, and she was just grateful he was taking her side for once.
“Yeah! You can’t just throw out accusations without proof!”
Melin fired back, and Louis snapped.
“Then do you have proof she didn’t cheat?!”
“No.”
Lennox’s instant, firm reply made Louis falter.
“T-Then how can you be so confident…!”
He figured no one could be that bold without evidence.
“But I can say one thing for sure—Jacqueline-sunbae isn’t the type of person who would cheat.”
A graceful smile appeared on Lennox’s lips.
It was arrogant, yet somehow unarguable.
His firm tone made the surrounding students murmur.
“…Is that true?”
“If Lennox-sunbae says so, maybe it is…”
Louis loved to stir up gossip and exaggerate everything.
In contrast, Lennox never spoke carelessly.
Compared to their usual behavior, Lennox’s words carried much more weight.
“Ugh! You have no proof either!!”
As the crowd clearly took Lennox’s side, Louis began to stomp in frustration.
“Damn it! So this was your plan all along, picking a fight with me?!”
Lennox said nothing, simply ignoring him.
As if to say, I’ve already dealt with you.
He turned to Melin, signaling that they were done here.
That’s when Louis, unable to contain his rage, lunged at him.
“You bastard!!”
“…?”
Lennox swiftly dodged Louis’s punch.
With a movement so fast it was nearly invisible, he tripped Louis with a kick.
-Thud!
To others, it looked like Louis had just fallen by himself.
The sudden scuffle shocked the students, but when they saw Louis sprawled on the ground, laughter erupted.
“Hahaha!”
“What even was that?!”
“Damn it!! You tripped me on purpose!”
Lennox looked down at Louis with cold green eyes filled with boredom and disdain.
‘Not even worth responding to.’
His handsome face clearly said so.
When Louis saw that expression, he felt like a bug.
‘He always pretends to be so decent…’
That attitude made Louis hate him even more.
Look at this—there’s a difference between you and me.
That was what Lennox’s gaze seemed to say, and Louis trembled in humiliation.
Then, Lennox’s voice dropped like a stone on his head.
“If you want, let’s make a bet. See who’s telling the truth.”
At those words, a strange glint appeared in Louis’s eyes.
“…Fine! But I get to set the stakes!”
A nasty grin spread across his face.
“Loser has to strip naked and dance in the middle of the plaza!”
Clearly, he just wanted to humiliate Lennox to recover his pride.
Lennox raised one eyebrow.
As he stayed silent, Louis became bolder.
‘He’s backing down, huh? I knew it!’
After suggesting a bet himself, backing out now would look even more pathetic than when he tripped.
Gaining confidence, Louis pointed and shouted:
“If you’re scared—!”
“Sure. I’m in.”
Contrary to Louis’s expectation, Lennox accepted calmly.
“Lennox…! What are you thinking?!”
Panicked, Melin grabbed his arm to stop him. Lennox answered, unfazed.
“Didn’t you say you don’t believe those rumors either?”
“…Of course I don’t. But still…”
Melin trailed off at his confident reply.
