"You know Ella," Lyka was the fist to speak, which surprised me. "She and her group loved putting on a show. Last week, they cornered a scholar after rehearsal. Said scholarships were charity cases... That we didn't belong here."
Rika shook her head, letting out a bitter laugh. "They also make scholars run errands for their social circles. Me and Lyka got off easy, but some kids were even forced to quit school. Others got bullied so much their grades tank. Bullying existed before, sure, but when she came here… it just got worse. Way worse."
I nodded along as they talked, letting them vent. I thought she came here to learn, but all she does was play the role of Queen. A big fish in a very small pond.
This could work in my favor: record her in the act and blackmail her.
Others might fear doing such a thing, but not me.
Looking straight, I noticed Lyka gripping her phone far too tightly.
"Do you… maybe have a video of the bullying?" I asked.
She bit her lip, hesitating for a moment before tapping her screen. A video played.
Inside a classroom, a thin-looking boy crouched on the floor, pleading with Ella to stop. She ignored him, smirking, and motioned for her friends to join. Together, they forced him down, and his head slammed against the floor.
Lyka kept swiping through her phone, and more videos appeared — each one showing a different act of bullying, all linked to my rotten step sister. This was it. This was exactly what I needed.
"Can you send me all those clips? If I show them at home, she'll be in serious trouble. Don't worry , I won't tell anyone you gave them to me."
Her eyes flashed.
With the videos and their contact numbers locked in my phone and Ella's hangout mapped, I set off by myself.
Her social circle had their own four-story building for their club. Stepping inside made me feel like I walked into a hotel lobby. A bunch of male students hung around, lounging and laughing.
"Hey, what are you doing here? Outsiders are not—" one of them started, then froze when he saw my ID.
"Take me to Ella," I ordered.
"Why the hell should I—"
Before he could finish, my fist stopped inches from his nose, enough to create a shockwave that ruffled his green hair.
"Oh, it seems my dear sister didn't tell you I've awakened my abilities. Cross me, and I'll beat the crap out of you, then have the Mercer group bury your whole family financially."
He hit the floor hard, scrambling to sit up. "I'm so sorry! Please — don't drag my family into this."
"Who I drag is my choice. Don't fucking tell me what to do." I clenched my fist; the sharp snap landed as a warning to everyone.
"Who's smart enough to lead the way?" I called.
Hands shot up. I picked the nastiest-looking kid.
"Hurry up." I smacked the back of his head lightly to assert more dominance.
Why was I doing this?
I told myself this was justice, but really, it was payback. Every punch I couldn't throw to the bullies in my past life landed now.
On top of that, it worked in my favor: fear made my ability more likely to work.
There was a door at the end of the third-floor hallway. One girl stepped in front of me, hand raised.
"Ella's busy—"
I didn't bother answering, and kicked the door.
BANG!
The frame gave way under the force and the door crashed inward.
Inside, Ella sat half-dressed on the edge of a sofa with a good-looking young man with purple hair.
"Who are you?" he asked.
I grabbed him by the throat, my fingers digging into his flesh as I hauled him up until his feet left the floor. His eyes bulged from the pressure.
"Sorry about this. I need to talk to my sister. Give us a minute." I flung him out into the hall; he hit the floor hard.
Ella scrambled for her uniform furiously.
"Ace, what do you think you're doing ?" she blurted out.
"Oh? Shouldn't you be asking yourself that?" I stepped forward until we were inches apart. "Who gave you the right to drag the Mercer name through the mud, huh? You're just a girl born to a worthless father — so stop acting high and mighty in front of me."
Her face went white. "You..."
"Are you seriously going to act like bitch right now? I already have all the evidence of the bullying you've done — even videos of the boys you slept with. What do you think Father will say if he sees all of it?"
Her eyes went wide, mouth opening and closing like she was trying to find words, but none came out.
"You—you can't!" she stammered. "That's… that's not true! I… I didn't—"
Her hands trembled as she clutched her uniform tighter around herself, and for the first time, the arrogance and confidence she always carried crumbled.
"Ella, we both know you're a two face whore. And the videos I have? They're more than enough to put you on a bad light."
I picked up my phone and shoved the screen in front of her, showing one of the clips.
Her eyes went wide with horror as she stared at the screen.
"Give me that!" she lunged for my phone.
I pulled it back, holding it just out of reach. "Not happening,"
Her hands flailed for a second, gripping at air.
"You wouldn't...You can't do this to me!"
"Why not? I'm not the cripple you remember. You and your twins suck up to Father to get ahead — maybe it's time the public saw who you really are. I would post this and destroy your name."
Ella dropped to her knees and grabbed my legs, clutching them tightly.
"Please, no, Ace… no, Big Brother, let's talk about this first!"
"So now you're calling me Big Brother, huh?" I sneered.
Deep down, though, I couldn't hide the satisfaction creeping through my heart— this was exactly the reaction I wanted.