They Hated Me in My First Life, But Now I Have the Love System

Chapter 458: Since When do you Support Nnenna?

"Ahem."

Emily cleared her throat meaningfully.

It was only then that Nnenna realized she hadn’t properly introduced Emily to anyone. She turned around with a sheepish look.

"Oh, guys! This is my friend and study partner, Emily."

She gestured at her. "Emily, meet my big brother Carl, his best friend Arthur, and my..."

Nnenna paused, suddenly unsure what to call Ava. Her mouth opened and closed.

"...This is Ava," she finally said, voice trailing off.

Ava’s smile froze, then fell into a slight frown. Why didn’t she call me her sister? Or at least her friend? she wondered, feeling a tiny sting in her chest.

It’s because you’re always so mean to her, whispered a small voice in her conscience. Ava swallowed, unable to deny it.

Meanwhile, Arthur raised an eyebrow, distinctly dissatisfied. Just Carl’s best friend? That’s all I am to her?

Emily, on the other hand, had her mouth hanging open in pure shock.

"H-how long have you known them?" she stammered, eyes darting between all the royal faces she had only ever seen on the news.

Nnenna scratched her cheek awkwardly. "Well...it’s been some months now. Almost a year."

Emily looked like she might faint.

"You’re kidding," Emily blurted out in disbelief. "You’ve had these people in your life all this time and you still let yourself be bullied since the day you started here? Why didn’t you just ask them to stand up for you?"

"You were bullied from your very first day?"

Arthur and Carl spoke in perfect unison, their voices ringing out together.

Then again, in eerie synchrony

"Why didn’t you tell me?"

Nnenna blinked at them, taken aback by the identical reactions. She could understand Carl’s outrage, he was always protective of her. But Arthur... what was his deal? noveldrama

She tilted her head, genuinely puzzled. She wasn’t the only one confused, either. Carl turned to Arthur slowly, giving him a long, searching look that seemed to ask, What exactly is going on in that head of yours?

Arthur met his gaze blankly, as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

Only Ava didn’t think it was strange. She had watched her brother treat Nnenna kindly ever since she arrived at their castle. To her, Arthur’s concern was perfectly natural.

But she was completely clueless about the chaotic, sometimes unreliable picture of Arthur that existed in Carl’s and Nnenna’s minds.

Nnenna decided it was easier to just reply to Carl, the one person she was sure genuinely cared.

"I knew I could handle it. That’s why I didn’t say anything." She held up her hands quickly as she saw his face harden. "Don’t get angry. I’m fine, really. And now that you’ve all finally ended the rumors, my days will be much more peaceful."

Carl nodded slowly, though a shadow still lingered in his eyes. He understood she wanted to grow on her own, that she didn’t want to lean on him forever. But honestly, he didn’t like it one bit.

He missed when she had been in the hospital, when she had needed him more than anyone.

Even though he knew it was selfish, he preferred those days. Still, he was proud of the woman she was, and the woman she was still becoming.

Emily finally understood the whole situation. "Alright, I’m going home too," she said with a sigh.

"We’ll drop you off," Nnenna offered kindly.

"No, thank you," Emily blurted, a little too quickly. Then she cleared her throat and tried to look casual. "My direction isn’t the same as yours," she added in a calmer voice.

Nnenna raised an eyebrow but guessed Emily simply didn’t want to squeeze into a car with so many top figures. It would probably make anyone nervous.

"Okay then. See you tomorrow," she said with a soft smile.

With that, the group finally parted ways.

As the remaining four headed toward the parking lot, Nnenna suddenly remembered something important. She stopped in her tracks and turned to Carl, her expression serious.

"There’s something I need to tell you."

"What is it?" he asked gently, already bracing himself.

"I want to skip years," she announced firmly. "Year four is fine for now, since it’s already so much work...but I can’t do that without your support. And I’ll also need your help to prepare. Omniora Academy isn’t exactly a walk in the park."

The group fell silent, stunned.

Nnenna hadn’t even been here a full year. She hadn’t finished year one. Yet she was calmly planning to jump straight to year four?

"Why do you want to skip grades?" Arthur asked before Carl could open his mouth.

Nnenna paused for a moment, then lifted her gaze to meet his. "I’m studying a six year course, but...I don’t want six whole years of my life tied to it. If I can skip ahead to senior year, I really want to. Not to mention, in year three I’ll have to take the first board exam for this program before they’ll let me move up. After that, I can focus on years four, five, and six, the senior years. It just makes sense to me to write the exam with the current year three and move to year four with them."

Arthur nodded slowly, but his thoughts had already drifted somewhere else.

Nnenna’s determination reminded him of something he had suspected for a long time: that the person he was searching for might try exactly this once she got into Omniora Academy.

He had spent countless late nights here, combing through all the student records from year one to six, looking for any clue about her. So far, he had found nothing.

But he refused to give up.

"If that’s what you want to do, then I fully support you," Carl said, nodding with a serious expression.

"Me too," Arthur added calmly.

His words earned him yet another long, puzzled look from both Carl and Nnenna. Carl’s brows drew together as if to ask, Since when do you support Nnenna?