Yura folded her arms tightly across her chest, her eyes sharpening with a blazing intensity that looked ready to scorch the world itself, while her lips pursed in a thoroughly irritated pout.

Ever since that Alasia car drove off, the scorching sunlight felt inexplicably harsher than before.

And on top of that, a chilling aura radiated from her, perfectly counterbalancing the oppressive heat beating down on them.

The murderous aura emanating from Yura smoldered so fiercely that the other four involuntarily shivered despite the blazing midday sun.

Perhaps this—this bizarre mix of searing heat and bone-chilling cold—was the true definition of 'hot and cold.'

Yura swiftly shifted her gaze toward the four girls, and the abrupt movement alone startled them.

"This is… incredibly strange and unbelievably irritating," she muttered sharply.

"I waited for him since morning, and the moment he finally walks out, he doesn't even come toward me?" she growled in frustration.

"Just throws a light greeting and leaves? Seriously?"

Dila tried to ease her tone, even if only a little.

"Yura, isn't that normal? Miss Aiza is his sponsor. And Al was just helped with his case too, right? Maybe to maintain proper etiquette he had to go with Miss Aiza," she explained carefully.

But Yura refused to accept such reasoning so easily.

"But his status right now is my boyfriend. How could he not come to me?" she complained.

"But that's just acting, Yura," Karen countered innocently.

"Yup. It wouldn't be ethical for him to approach his pretend girlfriend and leave his benefactor behind." Rina added.

Yura shot Karen and Rina a razor-sharp glare, instantly forcing those girl's head down in fear.

Yura then let out a long exhale, attempting to regain a sliver of rational thought.

"Fine, that part makes sense… but why did he look that close with that girl? Miss Aiza, huh?" she complained.

"It's not normal—absolutely not normal—for a scholarship student to be that close to a high-profile CEO."

Her voice still crackled with restrained annoyance, simmering beneath the surface.

Rina and Dila exchanged uncertain glances, not knowing how to respond. Devy, meanwhile, simply continued to observe.

Inside Yura's mind, the unease surged violently.

Their distance… was way too close. Their way of speaking… far too natural. And Miss Aiza's expression toward Al…

She bit her lip.

…for some reason my instinct is screaming that there's something between them. Something that shouldn't exist.

Yura narrowed her eyes toward the road where the car had vanished, her expression darkening like gathering storm clouds.

Then she turned back to Rina and Dila, the ones who supposedly knew Al best among the five of them.

"Rina. Dila," Yura called, her sadistic tone leaking out, "do you two know anything… about their relationship?"

The question carried the weight of a threat. Rina slowly raised both hands before waving them in a helpless gesture.

"Uh… I… don't really know. I only recently met him, and I don't know much yet—"

"Yeah! Same here," Dila jumped in quickly, equally terrified of being scolded.

"We only know him in the context of school, nothing beyond him being a scholarship recipient from Alasia."

Rina nodded again.

"Our knowledge about his connection to the Virellano family itself is still vague—pretty much a total mystery."

She sighed. "Let alone anything with Alasia Group."

Yura's frown deepened. She felt like exploding. Her attitude grew increasingly aggressive.

Noticing this, Devy—who had been quietly paying attention—walked closer and leaned in. With swift precision, she whispered something into Yura's ear.

"Lady Yura, allow me to remind you… I believe you're being a little excessive," she whispered gently, but firmly.

"Unless you want them to know your real feelings about him, then it's fine. But if not, I suggest you restrain yourself a bit."

Hearing that, Yura flinched faintly. She froze, inwardly lamenting,

Huff… this annoying feeling nearly made everything come out. Thank goodness Devy was here, she thought.

But wait—why am I this angry to begin with?

Her expression softened just slightly…

Then she abruptly averted her gaze, mumbling with fake indifference,

"I just can't hold this irritation in right now," she grumbled, pretending not to care.

Rina, Karen, and Dila didn't quite hear what Devy had whispered, but seeing Yura's expression relax even a little, they assumed the crisis had passed.

The three simultaneously gave Devy a discreet thumbs-up, silently declaring her the savior.

Devy found it amusing and simply nodded back at them.

Before long, the five of them were seated again on the garden bench, taking shelter from the relentless sunlight, with no intention of leaving yet.

Because clearly, the discussion about Al was nowhere close to finished.

The police officers stationed inside the building, as well as those patrolling the front courtyard, occasionally glanced at them and whispered among themselves.

Seemingly confused about why the girls were still there even though the person they had been waiting for had long since left.

But the five girls didn't care in the slightest, simply surrendering themselves to Yura's fluctuating mood.

Dila then began speculating about who Al really was, evidently still amazed by the potential scope of his connections with elite circles.

"By the way, seeing how Al could look that familiar with Miss Aiza… I feel like that kid has some kind of natural charm toward the elite," she remarked, starting the new thread.

Rina nodded.

"I'm actually really curious about all his connections with elite people," she said thoughtfully.

"Even more so with his relationship with the Virellanos. Both he and the Virellano side seem to be hiding their connection."

At that, Devy and Yura exchanged a look—both of them currently assuming that Al was actually the Virellanos' biological son.

But choosing not to reveal anything and instead allowing the others to speculate within their limited knowledge.

Dila nodded again.

"Regardless of their relationship, Aurielle Virellano publicly brought Al into the spotlight, even if she introduced him as her assistant," she continued. "It sounds absurd, but honestly… anything could happen."

Yura nodded; she had heard that information before, yet still found it baffling.

Rina snapped her fingers as if suddenly remembering more.

"Oh, right! There's also that," she added.

She leaned forward slightly, looking like she had a whole stash of elite-related gossip stored up.

"And now that I think about it, Al's connections with elites aren't limited to the Virellanos," she said

"Back at the café, he also knew and seemed close with one of the members of that mysterious group, 'The Phantom of Bantiamur.' Her name's Clara."

She touched her chin.

"And when I looked her up later, it turned out she's one of the daughters of the Eliga Family—pretty well-known in Barebar City."

"You guys probably know that family. They're quite stable and can compete with the elites in Makazhar even though they're based far away."

The three girls nodded—except for Devy.

"I'm familiar with the Eliga Family," Yura replied. "They have business relations with my family. And that girl named Clara—while we're not close—I do know who she is."

"I seriously didn't expect Al to have any connection with her. I guess he really does have quite a significant reach into elite circles."

Karen abruptly clapped both of her hands together, as though she had just recovered a monumental piece of information she should have mentioned from the very beginning.

"Oh! Oh! And that rumor from back then! The one with the selfie in front of the jewelry store!"

The others immediately turned toward her.

Karen continued with an enthusiasm that was almost obnoxiously bright.

Rina and Dila instantly remembered it too. They looked like they would rather not revisit that topic, and they even contemplated stopping Karen before she went any further.

But in the end they reluctantly decided to let her talk.

"What was that?" Yura asked, curiosity rising.

"You should know this—Al went viral for being the top scorer in the mock exam, right? And because of that, we… well, we looked into him from time to time." Karen said, opening that box deliberately.

"Which means we've stumbled across quite a lot of rumors. Including one that—unfortunately—has been verified as true."

"What is it exactly?" Yura asked again.

"Well, at that time, a girl from the afternoon class took a selfie in front of a jewelry store. And accidentally, in the background… Al showed up together with a certain very famous socialite aunt. What was her name again? Lutin—Lutana—"

"Lutinta Aruna," Dila supplied quietly, as though she were invoking the name of a demon.

Of course Yura shivered; she knew that name. Her mouth fell open as if she had just forcibly swallowed a bitter pill.

"Al… with that vicious socialite aunt?" she muttered in disbelief.

She shot a look toward Rina and Dila—two people she considered more reliable when it came to information—and both simply nodded, confirming the statement without hesitation.

Dila murmured, "Yeah… the evidence was undeniable."

"I'll send you the photo later if you want," Rina added calmly.

Yura… did not move at all.

Her jaw tightened.

Her left hand clamped down on her right arm so hard the knuckles turned stark white.

Not just her—both Rina and Dila, as well as Karen who had already known about that story since long ago, still felt a chill crawling down their spines whenever that rumor was mentioned.

Even now, not a single soul had the slightest clarity about what kind of relationship Al actually had with that woman.

But the mere fact that Al had ever spoken with that infamous aunt… that alone was already terrifying enough in their minds.

Of all the elites out there, why did it have to be that aunt? Yura thought, her expression darkening.

The atmosphere around them grew unbearably heavy because of it.

Trying to either lighten the atmosphere—or perhaps, unintentionally, to worsen it—Devy spoke up with an air of serene neutrality:

"But I think we shouldn't forget there's still one more elite figure who seems to be interested in Al."

They all snapped toward her at once.

"Who?" Karen asked.

"You also know something, Devy?" Yura questioned, disbelief coloring her tone.

Devy nodded without hesitation.

"Yup. And that person certainly isn't you, Lady Yura. Hehe," she said with a mildly teasing lilt.

Every gaze in the room shifted instantly and relentlessly toward Yura.

Yura narrowed her eyes, her expression darkening like a storm cloud gathering weight.

"Arghh… I thought it was something serious," she grumbled. "But… I'm not interested in him. So don't put me in that group." Her protest rang entirely false.

Because it was painfully obvious she cared.

She cared far too much.

Yura exhaled sharply through her nose, forcibly dragging the conversation back to its original track.

"From what you've all said… it actually sounds like there's now an even bigger chance that Al could get closer with Miss Aiza… But—ugh! No matter how hard I try to accept that, it still feels ridiculous."

She clenched her teeth.

"If he can have a connection with you, and even pretend to be your boyfriend, then it's honestly more reasonable that he'd also know Miss Aiza—she's his benefactor after all." Rina commented plainly.

Yura only nodded, her mind drifting in a dozen unstable directions.

But that only makes things worse for me… she thought.

I hope these girls would help calm me down, but instead they're practically proving that Al has an even higher chance of having connections with that girl.

What does she even have that I don't? We're the same age.

That irritated train of thought began stimulating the return of her sadistic aura. Karen felt a chill creeping up her spine.

But just before Yura's aura ascended into the 'I feel like killing someone' category, Rina suddenly clicked her tongue, as though struck by a brilliantly stupid idea.

"Uh… but… if we really think about it…"

She shifted her gaze between Yura and the others in slow succession.

"Al is actually kind of weird…"

"Weird? What do you mean by that?" Yura asked.

Rina nodded firmly.

"Yeah. Every single one of his interactions with women feels… off."

"And why do you think that?" Devy asked as she leaned in, just as curious.

"Just think about it. He rejected Yura outright. Then whenever he talks to me or Dila, half the time his words turn razor-sharp."

"And he never once seemed interested in that way—never even looked at us as the opposite sex," she explained in detail.

Dila nodded as well.

"He really doesn't discriminate. Whether it's a guy or a girl, his treatment is exactly the same," she remarked.

"And, coincidentally, I once went on a date with him—well, a fake one, but still. And honestly, throughout the entire day he never once acted like I was his date. He just muttered and grumbled the whole time."

Rina nodded again, accompanied by the growing discomfort of the others.

"And then there was that one incident," Rina continued.

"Back during the school ceremony. The whole school freaked out because the principal mentioned Miss Aiza's name. Everyone immediately started thinking about that beautiful figure."

Karen nodded eagerly.

"The entire school went wild. Every guy there had some wild fantasy about Miss Aiza—some teachers too."

Rina pointed at herself.

"Right. I even asked Al back then if he wasn't interested as well, since Miss Aiza is extremely pretty. But… he just didn't care. Then he lectured me about how beauty is relative."

Her gaze sharpened slightly.

"And… not long after that, for some reason he suddenly got mad at me. I still don't get why."

Yura froze.

"He got mad… because you said Miss Aiza was pretty?"

"I don't know," Rina answered flatly.

"But if you put all of it together—plus the fact that there's that rumor about him being alone with Aunt Lutinta…" Rina paused.

Everyone's eyes widened.

"Don't tell me?" Yura whispered.

Rina shook her head, unsure of her own thoughts, but continued anyway.

"I don't know. But I really hope… he's not gay."

Even though they had braced themselves for that possibility, the shock still hit them hard.

Silence.

The air froze.

Four seconds. Five seconds. Six.

Karen was the first to speak. "Gay?"

Dila reflexively looked up at the sky, her expression blank.

"Your explanation sounds logical enough… but Al, a gay guy? Ugh… I don't know why, but I just can't believe it," she groaned.

Yura blinked.

Slowly. Very slowly.

"Gay?" Yura repeated, her voice dangerously flat. "You're telling me… Al is gay?"

Rina could only shrug helplessly.

"It's just some weird idea I had, haha. You don't have to take it seriously."

But Karen, being Karen, responded with pure honesty,

"But… it's possible, right?"

Yura covered her face.

"If it's true… I… I don't even know how I'm supposed to react…" she lamented.

"But… it'd be extremely ironic if someone like me—someone who's constantly accused of being a lesbian—ended up dating a gay guy instead."

Devy… simply exhaled, suppressing a tiny laugh.

She knew the theory was absurd. But she also knew something the others did not.

Al was not the type of human anyone could categorize easily, and his connections to the elite… were far too wild to explain with normal logic.

She understood perfectly why Al disliked dealing with troublesome human interactions, especially with young women who sometimes behaved in utterly irrational ways.

For someone who had lived a life as dark and exhausting as his, the fact that he even interacted with people like this was already commendable.

Most people with burdens like his often ended up avoiding social contact entirely.

Still, she held back her smile and spoke softly:

"It might be too early to jump to conclusions, but… that theory is definitely amusing," she said.

"Especially since Lady Yura and I have both experienced it—being accused of nonsense for no reason. Even now, it still sticks," she added.

"It's better if we ask him directly rather than spinning wild theories."

Yura and the others nodded. They understood.

A bit ironic, really—despite knowing exactly what Yura had been accused of, they were the ones now coming up with ridiculous ideas about Al.

But still… for someone who was trying to work toward something, Yura couldn't help feeling slightly irritated by the thought.

She closed her eyes.

Silent. A long stillness.

I have to confirm this. I can't let this go unanswered. And even if he is gay… I'll make him normal!

The determination surged inside her, reigniting her resolve to chase after her love.

Yura abruptly stood up and straightened her clothes.

"Enough. Whatever the case, Devy's right. We shouldn't be throwing around wild speculation," she declared firmly.

She then looked at Devy and the others.

"Let's go home. The longer we stay here, the more ridiculous theories we'll come up with."

She turned around sharply.

Devy, Rina, Dila, and Karen all rose as well, nodding and naturally falling into step behind her like subordinates following their superior.

And as they began walking further away from the police station, Yura grumbled again, her voice low but overflowing with emotion:

"But still… Al and Miss Aiza… they're just too close… it's annoying…"

Her footsteps hit the ground a little harder than usual.

Devy smiled faintly.

And with that, they all headed home—each one sinking into their own swirling thoughts about Al, the most mysterious, most baffling, and most drama-inducing scholarship student in the entire city of Makazhar.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

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