NOVEL NEXT Chapter 45: Betrayed
"Alright, just spit it out—what's wrong?" I asked, staring at Selena, who had been frowning at everything like the world owed her money.
"Tsk, this place isn't safe," she muttered.
"What? Why do you say that?" I asked, looking around. All I could see were fellow students heading back to the academy and vendors closing up for the day. Well, not all of them, but most.
Selena turned to me, her eyes narrowing before she muttered something under her breath. "You were already good-looking enough—why did you have to get more handsome?"
"Say what?" I asked, raising an eyebrow, but she just looked away.
Hah. Whatever.
Anyway, the real reason I'm pursuing alchemy is because of a certain potion. In the novel, one heroine made a groundbreaking discovery in alchemy: a potion that allowed survival in the corrupted zones for a short period.
Setting foot in a corrupted zone meant certain death—instantaneous mana pool combustion. No two ways about it.
But the potion she created changed that. And I need to replicate it before the semester ends. It's the only way I'll make it to the Elven Empire. Many might not know this, but corruption has already taken over the elven land. Even the elves themselves are oblivious—they're no longer in this world anyway.
That's why I'm diving headfirst into alchemy. But knowing my luck, things rarely go as planned. Still, I can only hope this time will be different.
If I succeed, I'll need to improve the potion's duration. That will require advanced knowledge—or perhaps I can find the heroine and manipulate her into doing it for me.
Hmm. I hadn't considered that before.
"Hey," Selena interrupted my thoughts, pulling me toward a vendor.
"You want to buy something?" I asked, but my eyes landed on a hair clip with a delicate flower design in amber—the exact shade of her eyes.
"Hey, how much for this?" I asked, pointing to the clip.
"Twenty points," the vendor replied with a professional smile.
Fair enough.
"I'll take it," I said, transferring the points. He handed it to me, and I turned to Selena, who was staring at me, wide-eyed.
"Here," I said, pinning the clip in her hair.
Her cheeks flushed as she looked down, suddenly shy. "Thanks," she murmured.
Oh, welcome back, docile Selena. How did she switch moods so fast?
But then I noticed she had bought something too.
"What's this?" I asked, holding up the item.
"My gift," she said, grinning as she placed oversized glasses on my face and plopped a sketchy-looking cap on my head.
"Oh my god, so cute!" she said with a self-satisfied smile.
'Yeah, you'll never look cuter than this. Hahahaha!' Nelia's voice chimed in my head.
Great. I must look like an idiot.
There was no way I was keeping this on.
"Wait, don't take it off!" Selena said, her tone suddenly serious.
I paused, skeptical.
"I'll send you 500 points daily if you wear this every day," she offered.
I stared at her, shocked.
"…When do I start?"
...
...
Knock, knock.
"Huh? It's almost curfew," Eloisa murmured, glancing at her metawatch. A bathrobe was still draped loosely over her as she had just stepped out of the bath. "Who could it be at this hour?" she wondered aloud. She walked toward the door, and upon twisting the knob, was greeted by the tear-streaked face of the girl she called her friend.
"Ria?" she blurted out, quickly ushering the girl inside. She guided her to the bed and sat beside her, concern etched on her face. "What's wrong, Ria?" she asked, her voice soft yet urgent.
"I remember…"
That was all Ariana said. Eloisa frowned, her expression darkening.
"You… you remember what?" she asked cautiously, trying to suppress the dread rising within her. Perhaps she was jumping to conclusions too quickly. Perhaps it wasn't what she feared.
"I remember everything!" Ariana grabbed Eloisa's hand, her gaze piercing.
"Why?" she asked, and Eloisa could only look back, unable to hold the weight of her friend's accusatory eyes.
"I-I…" Eloisa stammered, her voice faltering. She couldn't bear the judgment.
She had acted out of desperation, blinded by possessiveness. She didn't want to lose him. She didn't want to lose her friend either. But if things continued as they were... she would have lost them both.
"I told you those things in confidence. I told you because I thought you were my friend. I told you because I was scared of what I was becoming!" Ariana's voice rose, her words sharp and cutting. "But it turns out you were just a selfish bitch!"
"I… I'm sorry," Eloisa whispered, her voice barely audible.
"Keep it to yourself. I can't believe you got so desperate that you even used forbidden magic on me, on your friend! Forbidden magic, Eloisa! FORBIDDEN!" Ariana screamed, her rage palpable.
"I didn't know what to do! Everything was falling apart!" Eloisa pleaded.
"Oh, shut it, you liar! Just admit it—you're selfish! You knew what would happen if I told him, so you wiped my fucking memories!" Ariana's voice broke with anger and betrayal.
"Just… listen to me, please," Eloisa begged.
"Stay away from me, Eloisa. I'll only warn you once," Ariana said coldly before storming out of the room.
"…I had no choice… I… I had no other choice," Eloisa muttered to herself, the voices in her head whispering insidiously. Darkness seeped further into her heart, already clouded with guilt and despair.
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Premium from next chap🤗