Chapter 38 Not An Ordinary Girl
Mariah and Bella glared at Lea as if challenged, while Nami and Sydney remained silent, watching the potential argument unfold.
"I have nothing to do with you, Lea. I have business with her!" Mariah said, turning her gaze to Nami, who was standing behind Lea.
"Me?" Nami pointed to herself in surprise. She hadn't realized that her fight with Mariah in the dining room hadn't ended. She hadn't even retaliated, fearing her identity would be revealed.
"Yes, you! I was surprised that you were able to fend off all of His Highness Prince Jacob's attacks, even though he's considered the strongest human being due to his extraordinary strength and abilities. But why didn't you fight me?" Mariah asked arrogantly. Jealousy and hatred were clearly visible in her eyes.
"T-that's because—"
"That's because Nami knows you're no match for her, so she doesn't need to put up with your nonsense, rubber girl!" Sydney declared boldly. She still harbored a personal grudge against Mariah over the incident the other day in the dining room.
Mariah glared so angrily that her eyes looked like they were about to pop out of their sockets. She felt Sydney's attitude had changed and she was becoming too bold.
"Are you getting cocky now?"
"No, but I realize that dealing with someone as arrogant as you requires arrogance as well."
"What did you say?"
"Is it still unclear?"
"Hey, Sydney, come on!" Nami said. For some reason, she wasn't ready to get into another fight. But when she glanced at Lea, who was standing beside her, she realized that Lea had no intention of stopping Sydney. She actually looked like she wanted to challenge Mariah and Bella.
"It's okay, Nami! I want her to stop thinking she can bully us!"
"Sydney is right, she always thought she was the one in power because of her father's status as an important official and how she was part of George's group. But this time she should know that in this place she is nothing but an insignificant commoner and-"
"Damn it, how dare you...!" Mariah screamed, enraged, and immediately extended both arms and gripped Lea's neck tightly.
"Lea...!" Sydney tried to stop her, but Mariah's left hand immediately grabbed Sydney's neck and grabbed it just before Sydney could use her ability to become transparent and invisible. Even though Sydney had that ability, she couldn't do it quickly; it took her seven seconds to become completely invisible. She was outpaced by Mariah's ability to stretch her limbs into elasticity.
Lea and Sydney struggled to be freed. Nami, who was initially hesitant to get involved in another fight after what happened today, had no choice but to do something to save Sydney and Lea.
"Hey Mariah, can you let them go? You said you had business with me, right? How about we settle this together without involving Lea and Sydney?"
"Hahaha...what's wrong? Are you afraid of Mary? You're saying that because you know you can't beat Mary, right?" Bella giggled. She was a girl who loved to watch a commotion and considered it a fun pastime.
"Ugh..." Lea and Sydney were getting more and more squeezed. Mariah's grip was as tight as a snake's coil.
"Damn it, fine, if that's what you want," she thought. Nami, unable to let her friends get hurt, decided to take action. She quickly darted behind Mariah and hugged her tightly.
Creek...
One movement made Mariah feel her bones creak, and she froze, feeling a sharp pain throughout her body. She had never experienced such a strange attack before, one that seemed to paralyze her muscles in an instant.
"Uh...it hurts." Maria winced in pain. She fell to her knees and was forced to release her grip. Bella, seeing her wince in pain from just one small attack from Nami, began to feel scared.
"M-Mary? Are you okay?" Bella tried to help Mariah up, who was sitting on the floor. Mariah's face had turned completely pale.
"Hey, what did you do to her?" She shouted angrily, as if she couldn't accept that her friend had been the victim.
"I didn't do anything! I just wanted to make her stop, that's all!" Nami said. She didn't want to be blamed.
"Hey, why are you blaming Nami? She was the one who attacked us first!" Lea protested. This time, she wasn't going to just stay silent and resigned like before.
"That's right, she was the one who strangled me first!" Sydney immediately followed Lea's lead.
Bella growled in annoyance, at a loss for words. She knew this was all because of Mariah's jealousy of Nami. Ever since George had begun to pay attention to Nami, he had begun to ignore her. This made her jealous, and she intended to challenge Nami directly. Even though she had seen how Nami was able to stand up to the powerful Prince Jacob, it still didn't deter her, and she continued with her reckless plan.
"Damn you all! Mary, can you walk? Let me help you!" Bella said as she tried to support Sydney.
"It hurts so much..." Mariah winced in pain. It seemed the pain was so bad that she couldn't move.
"So what? I'll call the dormitory guard to take you to the hospital."
"How about I carry her?" Nami volunteered to help carry Mariah to the hospital. She began to feel guilty because she was sure she hadn't used her powers to stop Mariah.
"Nami, why do you want to help her?"
"Yeah, just let her fend for herself!"
Lea and Sydney protested, believing Mariah deserved it. But Nami wasn't the kind of cold-hearted person who could ignore someone in need. Seeing Mariah's increasingly pale face, she had no choice but to pick her up and run through the corridor.
"Lea, Sydney, I'm sorry...!"