It seemed that when enemies meet, their eyes burn even brighter with enmity.
The moment the two locked eyes, the atmosphere instantly turned tense and explosive, as if they might break into a fight at any second.
“Why is Airella with you?”
Lin Yue raised an eyebrow and was the first to ask.
According to the plot of the original novel, Airella should have activated the underground Taboo Beast days ago, letting it escape, and then Avelina would have been forced into a period of weakness for maintenance.
But her appearing here meant Airella hadn’t actually gone to activate the Taboo Beast after all?
And she was even hanging out with Charles—logically, it just didn’t add up.
Lin Yue was a little confused.
Oh, and it was a double helping of drama—a full-blown love triangle, what a show!
Maple, standing to the side, seemed very much to be looking forward to this turn of events.
She covered her barely-contained grin with one hand, curious to see whether these two men would really fight over Airella.
“I should be asking you—why is Miss Maple here with you, in such a remote place…”
Charles suddenly shifted his focus and locked his gaze on Maple.
Eh… Don’t tell me this has something to do with me?
Maple suddenly remembered that this good-for-nothing young master was still pursuing her.
She’d been focused on Lin Yue lately and hadn’t paid much attention to Charles’s gaze.
Recalling that fleeting encounter at the previous ball, Maple could only sigh at the unpredictability of life.
It was all her father’s fault for insisting on organizing such a gathering. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been tangled up like this.
Airella, seeing Maple’s looks fully unleashed now that her “seal” was off, showed a look of shock.
Maple was actually that pretty without her glasses!
No wonder Charles was so taken with her.
In Airella’s private rankings, Maple’s appearance instantly shot up from nearly the bottom to faintly surpassing her own…
But after a closer look, she realized Maple’s eyes were like limpid spring water, with a subtle, alluring charm—she was more uniquely attractive than Airella herself.
Alright!
Sitting at the same table as Leah is fine!
But that’s as high as she goes!
Airella’s girlish stubbornness wouldn’t let Maple overshadow her too much!
While Airella’s mind was in turmoil, she suddenly realized Lin Yue was looking at her with an utterly contemptuous gaze—one she’d never seen before.
Ah…
Because of the church incident, she felt somewhat guilty toward Lin Yue, so she hadn’t dared face him lately.
But, truthfully, most of it was because this playboy Charles had suddenly come looking for her…
Still, she was curious—how did Lin Yue really see her?
Would he… be jealous because of her?
“You should just act like you don’t care about him and flaunt a new flame! Lin Yue keeps playing hard to get with you—you can’t let him control you!”
The little demon Airella in her mind jumped out, urging her.
“No, no! You have to explain everything clearly—don’t let something like this become a crack in your relationship!”
The angelic version of Airella also appeared, as if scolding her for suddenly having such strange thoughts.
“Both of you, shut up!”
Compared to seeing Lin Yue’s sullen face because of her attitude, she hated the idea of being misunderstood by him even more!
But right now, nobody seemed to care what she thought—most of the attention was on Maple.
….
Meanwhile, Lin Yue and Maple were whispering in voices only they could hear: “Hey, your trouble magnet, you handle it.”
“Ha, he’s here to mess with you, isn’t he?”
The smile Maple had been faking was getting stiff.
She had just said they were in this together, and now this guy wanted to bail—scumbag!
Seeing the two bickering and pulling at each other, Charles took a deep breath, suddenly tossed out his handkerchief, and shouted, “Let’s duel, Lin Yue!”
Again?
First Yuan, now Charles—isn’t he attracting way too much hatred?
But it was Lin Yue himself who’d agreed to spread the word about the rewards on the back hill, so he had no one to blame.
Charles glanced at the group of students gathered by Lin Yue’s side and said, “Surely, Hawk, you don’t want the school to find out about your ‘fishing’ activities.”
He still had a trump card up his sleeve.
Even if Lin Yue refused at first, he wasn’t afraid Lin Yue wouldn’t take the bait.
Are you the typical blond jerk from those NTR stories, being able to spout such classic lines?
Lin Yue wasn’t afraid of Charles’s threats; he just hated going to all this trouble for little gain.
“If I win the duel, I won’t make you announce anything publicly like last time with Yuan. Just have Miss Maple… join me for dinner, how about that?”
“Otherwise…”
Charles stared hard at Maple, as if hinting at something.
He knew Maple’s background wasn’t simple—anyone who could attend that ball was either top nobility or a prized treasure of a major power, never an ordinary person.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t lower himself to pursue a commoner.
Her being here with Lin Yue on the back hill meant they definitely had some kind of plan.
But he didn’t care—he just wanted to achieve his goal.
For Charles, bringing up Maple was only a pretense to goad Lin Yue into accepting the duel.
Ever since he’d lost to Lin Yue in that exam, he’d brooded about it—so much that he couldn’t sleep at night.
He simply couldn’t understand how someone who seemed so weak could, in a crisis, save everyone’s lives.
Mediocre talents were what he hated most.
But Lin Yue, right in front of him, had shattered everything he’d believed.
So he had to get to the bottom of it.
Lin Yue closed his eyes, weighing the pros and cons.
He didn’t want to waste effort dealing with these characters at such a crucial time.
Charles probably still couldn’t beat him, but the guy wasn’t exactly a pushover—he was, after all, a genius from the elite class.
Last time, Lin Yue’s win had a lot to do with knowing information Charles didn’t.
Now that Charles knew his fighting style, things could get trickier.
But then again, he’d come here to make some quick money.
Turning down such a good opportunity would just feel wrong.
He’d avoided making trouble before—first to hide his strength, second because he really didn’t have the ability.
But now, things were different, and the tables had turned.
Just as he was about to speak, Maple tugged his sleeve with an uneasy look.
“He… might expose my real identity…”
Maple knew she’d just created trouble for Lin Yue, so she softened her tone, hoping he’d step in.
“Could you… agree to his terms?”
Maple could have refused—strictly speaking, Charles challenging Lin Yue to a duel had nothing to do with her.
She was just caught up in it.
But it was likely Charles already suspected she wasn’t ordinary.
He was a typical rich playboy, but unlike Lin Yue, he wasn’t a real villain.
Besides the Valiana sisters’ mess, he hadn’t done anything truly bad since entering the school…
Otherwise, Maple wouldn’t have changed her mind and chosen to cooperate with Lin Yue.
If Charles got ruthless and ruined her cover, she might not be able to hide at the academy anymore.
The title of Chris’s daughter had never been mentioned before—she was the secret of the Chris Chamber of Commerce and its future direct heir.
Now, she was experiencing firsthand what it felt like to be under someone else’s thumb—it was truly unpleasant.
Seeing Maple like this, Lin Yue didn’t have much else to say.
In the original story, Maple didn’t get much time in the spotlight—anything could happen going forward.
She’d risked her faction’s exposure to help him out; paying her back was only fair.
Besides, it seemed Charles was after him, not her.
“Alright… fine…”
Seeing Charles determined to keep pressing the issue, and Maple’s pleading look, Lin Yue knew he couldn’t refuse.
“But… when this is over, you have to tell me how he started chasing after you.”
This side story outside the main plot intrigued him—who knew, it might even accidentally affect the main storyline.
Hearing Lin Yue agree, Maple breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, “Okay…”
If they couldn’t escape, they might as well raise the stakes like last time with Yuan.
This incident should have been Alan’s to deal with, but since it had fallen on his head, he wasn’t going to settle for just a little profit.
“I’ll accept your duel. But… if I win, all the privileges you’ve bought at school go to me. Deal?”
When Lin Yue said that, all three people present were shocked.
Those were the top-tier perks reserved for the nobility—even Charles had to think carefully about the cost of agreeing to that.
From the super-luxurious private villa, to the academy’s personal maid service, to unlimited access to the library, it was all highly tempting.
Not to mention various other minor perks and discounts.
Avelina’s specialty was fleecing rich, foolish nobles for their money.
Even if Lin Yue hadn’t been expelled from the Hawk family, it would’ve been tough for him to get those privileges—he’d have to pay dearly.
Charles was silent for a moment, but didn’t look unwilling.
“How arrogant. But fine—I accept.”
“It’s a deal.”
Lin Yue immediately tossed down a handkerchief of his own, afraid Charles would change his mind.
Once his purpose was achieved, Charles stopped lingering, glanced at those around him, and finally said, “Four days from now, right here at this time. No third party present.”
With that, he brushed past Airella and left.
After Charles left, Maple quietly said to Lin Yue, “Thank you…”
Lin Yue hadn’t expected this little fox to have such a helpless side.
He smiled slightly and, mimicking her tone, replied, “You’re welcome.”
Now that Charles was gone, was it finally time to deal with the panicked, ready-to-run Airella?
A “川” appeared on Lin Yue’s forehead as he forced a wry smile.
“Ai! Rei! La?”
He’d given Airella space these last few days so she could recover from the church incident and have a chance to trigger the first scene—not so she could run off with Charles and mess things up for him.
If it weren’t for the difference between men and women, Lin Yue really wanted to give her a good spanking.
Airella looked like a child who’d gotten in trouble, her hands fidgeting nervously as she struggled to explain herself to Lin Yue: “Um… Lin Yue, it’s not what you think…”
Airella was the first to speak, not sure how to explain things to Lin Yue.
That day, she’d been called out by Charles—he’d said it was about Lin Yue, something very important…