Chapter 94-Displinary hearing (2)

Chapter 94: 94-Displinary hearing (2)

"What we’re you thinking?" Professor Primrose asks in disappointment.

It was starting to feel like her students were tired of living. Why did she think so? Easy, they all seem to target Maisa despite knowing that powerful vampires stand her.

For reasons unknown to her, the princess was hellbent on protecting and defending Maisa. The student council stood with her, and even Kayden Krauss, the most indifferent vampire she had ever met, was on board with defending the redblood.

Now, she was curious about Maisa and what makes her so special that every simple thing with her turns into a major event.

"How can you target a new vampire and interfere with the Dark Forest?" she demanded, her voice growing sharper as she laid out the possible consequences. "This could escalate quickly. The Blood Council could get involved, especially since this concerns the nation’s prison. Can you handle the consequences of that?"

Sophia, Kriza, and Jane visibly shivered at the mention of the Blood Council. Their fear had nothing to do with punishment alone. An investigation of this magnitude could jeopardize their futures, their positions, and even bring unwanted scrutiny upon their families.

Kriza’s gaze slowly shifted toward Maisa. There was no envy left in her eyes. There was only fear.

For the first time, she was beginning to understand just how catastrophic her mistake had been. She had thought getting rid of Maisa would be simple. Instead, she had targeted someone who apparently had far more power and protection surrounding her than Kriza had ever imagined.

And the worst part was that someone had actually come for her, she was saved.

A redblood wouldn’t be able to escape the Dark Forest on her own, and yet Maisa had returned alive. Someone powerful enough to enter the forbidden grounds and bring her out had intervened, and it could only be the princess breathing down fire at them for it.

Kriza swallowed hard. All she had wanted was to get rid of a redblood who, in her eyes, had been shamelessly overstepping ancient rules governing bloodlines; rules that had existed for centuries. Yet somehow, she was the one standing there looking like the villain.

The rules had always seemed to apply when they were used against her. She was a blackblood without the powerful Challan name behind her, and when she had tried to become the princess’s study partner, guard, or even confidant, she had been rejected.

When she applied for a position on the Student Council, she had been turned down again. Even when she had gone out of her way to befriend the Fiery Four and earn a place within their circle, she had been judged as desperate, called a nuisance, and accused of trying too hard.

But when a lowly redblood did the exact same things, suddenly the rules seemed to disappear.

Maisa could overstep boundaries, and no one seemed to care. She could draw the princess’s attention, and instead of being reprimanded, she had Varitreya fighting for her and protecting her as though she were some priceless treasure belonging to the entire nation.

How was that fair?

Kriza’s resentment twisted painfully with the fear now sitting in her chest. She knew what she had done was wrong, but beneath that knowledge was another question she couldn’t silence.

Why had the rules always been rigid when they applied to her, yet somehow bendable when they applied to Maisa?

She had wanted Maisa gone. Now, she could only pray that this small mistake doesn’t cost her future.

Maisa sat completely still, meeting Kriza’s gaze without saying a word. She had spent the entire night wondering whether anyone would believe her, replaying everything that had happened and fearing that her words would be dismissed simply because she was a redblood.

Now she realized she hadn’t needed to worry. The princess had already decided to make sure the truth was heard.

With Varitreya herself raising the matter, no one could simply brush it aside or dismiss Maisa’s account because of her bloodline or status. Whether they chose to see her as a redblood, an outcast, or someone they considered insignificant no longer mattered. The issue would be addressed, and guilty parties would be punished.

For once, Maisa didn’t have to fight to make herself heard. The princess had already decided to speak for her.

Varitreya turned toward Maisa. "Maisa!"

Maisa looked up. Every eye in the garden turned towards her. The students started murmuring among each other again.

Once again, Maisa was the centre of attention again. It was scary how her presence alone was enough to bring such heavy waves on those who target her.

"Stand."

Her legs felt strangely weak as she rose. Every eye in the garden continued to watch her every move. It’s almost as though she was a displayed art, and they were the critics.

Varitreya’s voice carried across the gathering. "Tell them what happened. Leave nothing out."

Maisa swallowed hard. Tell the truth? Yes, the students would listen. They would have no choice when Princess Varitreya herself was the one demanding the hearing.

Her words carried enough authority to make even those who might otherwise dismiss Maisa take the matter seriously.

But what happened afterwards? That was what frightened her. Once the hearing ended and the attention faded, she would still be the one left standing in the middle of the storm, surrounded by enemies who now had every reason to resent her.

Being believed in front of everyone wouldn’t necessarily make her safer once the crowd dispersed.

Her gaze shifted toward Kriza, Sophia, and Jane. She remembered the deception, the betrayal, and the moment they had abandoned her in the Dark Forest without mercy, knowing exactly what kind of monsters and dangers waited within its depths.

They hadn’t hesitated when they left her behind. They had simply walked away and left her to fend for herself. Something inside Maisa finally changed. She was tired of being afraid of them.

She looked at the three girls again, and this time, she didn’t lower her gaze. She didn’t shrink beneath their stares or wonder what they might do next.

Whatever happened after the hearing, she would face it. They had already shown her what they were capable of. She refused to let fear give them power over her anymore.

"They came to me in the cemetery and told me that Lumi was waiting for me. I had no clue about the forest...."

"Wait, what?" Lumi stepped out from behind Varitreya, her expression changing instantly. "Who was waiting for you?" she demanded. Though the question was directed at Maisa, her narrowed eyes were fixed firmly on her best friend, Sophia.

"You were," Maisa answered honestly. "I didn’t know what the forest was, so I crossed the primrose border without thinking much of it..."

"Who was waiting for her?" Lumi’s voice thundered across the garden, silencing everyone. She was still processing that piece of information.

There was one thing about Lumi that left absolutely no room for negotiation, lies. Trust meant everything to her. It was the foundation upon which she built every friendship she had, and discovering that her own best friend had used her name to deceive Maisa felt like a profound betrayal.

Her gaze locked onto Sophia, and the hurt in her eyes was quickly being buried beneath something far more frightening.

"I asked you a question, Sophia. Who was waiting for her?" Her voice had become terrifyingly calm, but heart was burning with anger her magic erupted.

The air around the garden seemed to tighten beneath the sudden pressure of her power. Leaves trembled, flowers bent, and the atmosphere itself grew heavy enough to make everyone instinctively hold their breath.

Meanwhile, around Sophia, Kriza, and Jane, the air became venomously charged, carrying the unmistakable threat of Lumi’s magic.

For the first time, Sophia looked genuinely afraid. "Lulu, I..."

"Who. Was. Waiting. For. Her?"