Chapter 113 Three Incidents That Rocked the School
Asher had never thought Amelia and Zander looked alike. Not until tonight.
Now that he knew they were half-siblings, the resemblance was impossible to ignore.
The same refined features. The same intelligence and abilities that crushed the average person. The same façade of ordinary high school students hiding multiple identities. The same unshakable aura that made them seem untouchable.
If anything, Amelia might even be more formidable than Zander.
She was a six-star member of K.A., meaning she had mastered six different fields to an elite level. No one knew exactly what the other five were, but her combat skills alone were enough to leave them stunned.
Tonight, on the ring, Amelia had launched a single kick that sent Rocky—a man weighing over two hundred pounds—flying. The sight had burned itself into Asher's mind.
Until now, Zander had been the most capable person Asher had ever met. But it turned out his sister could shatter that belief without even trying.
"Zander, are you going home tonight?" Amelia asked.
"What about you?" He paused, glancing at her.
"If I leave that girl alone in the apartment tonight, she'll probably be scared. I'll stay here."
"I'm going to Asher's place," Zander replied. "I haven't told Kevin I'm back yet. I'll go home tomorrow night."
"Alright." Amelia nodded naturally, as if this was the most ordinary exchange in the world.
Blood was a strange thing.
It seeped into your bones, creating bonds that could never be cut away.
When Zander had first received Kevin's message overseas, telling him he suddenly had a half-sister he'd never met, there had been no ripple in his heart.
He had always believed that relationships built solely on blood were meaningless. You didn't choose them—you were simply bound to someone without consent.
If you didn't want to be bound, you had to strip yourself away completely—like Chris had done.
But Zander knew Chris's detachment wasn't born of indifference. On the contrary, Chris longed for family. He simply knew that in a noble household, affection was rarely pure or sincere. It could never offer the warmth he craved, so he kept his distance.
Beneath that cold, proud shell was a hollow, fragile core. Chris was cold on the outside but warm within.
Zander, however, was different.
His heart was as cold as his expression—or so he had always believed.
He had never hoped for salvation from his family or anyone else. In truth, he didn't need saving.
At twelve, he had devoured the world's greatest books, searching for answers. Eventually, he realized there was no universal solution to life. No one's experiences could apply to everyone, and no famous quote could untangle every knot. Loneliness, pain, doubt—they all came from a heart not strong enough to bear them.
If your heart was strong enough, solitude stopped hurting. Staying apart from the crowd wasn't about escape—it was about staying clear-headed.
Blood ties meant nothing to him. People with shared DNA were no different from strangers.
And yet… tonight, after everything he had gone through with Amelia, after seeing those dark eyes that mirrored his own, he felt something.
Perhaps blood did have its mysteries.
Otherwise, how could he explain the quiet understanding between them?
After Asher and the others left, Amelia walked back into the apartment alone.
The girl she had brought home wasn't sitting on the couch as Amelia expected. Instead, she was huddled in a corner, knees pulled to her chest, looking timid.
"Why are you sitting on the floor?" Amelia crouched down beside her.
"I…" The girl looked embarrassed. "My dress is filthy. And I haven't showered in five days… I didn't want to dirty your couch."
"I'm sorry," Amelia said softly. "I should have set up the hot water for you first before talking to my friends."
The girl shook her head quickly. "No, no… You brought me here. I'm already so grateful. Thank you!"
Amelia took her hand and helped her up. "Don't mention it. I'll get the shower ready for you."
She adjusted the water temperature in the bathroom, then returned to the couch and opened a delivery app to order clothes.
This apartment was one she had bought just days ago.
Last time, to thank Dorian, she had made twenty pills herself. Ten had been sent to Dorian, and the other ten sold to an old client from her previous life. She had given a new bank account, and five million dollars had arrived without effort.
After that, she had searched for properties near the Martinez mansion and bought this fully furnished unit outright, intending it as a temporary resting spot.
She hadn't expected it to be useful so soon.
The place had furniture but no other essentials—no spare clothes, nothing.
So now, she ordered a couple of T-shirts and shorts for the girl to wear after her shower, along with some food.
After placing the orders, a thought struck her. She sent Dorian a message.
[Dorian, I need to ask you something.]
Dorian replied instantly. [What's wrong?]
Amelia: [Tonight, in THE DEEP's parking lot, when you and Asher arrived, you went straight to Zander.]
Amelia: [Asher checked him over like crazy—asking if he was hurt, if he had any cuts. What was that about?]
Dorian's reply came just as fast.
[Well… you've only just met Zander, so you probably don't know. He has hemophilia.]
Amelia's eyes froze. [Hemophilia?]
[Yes. It's a congenital bleeding disorder—his blood doesn't clot properly. Even a small cut can bleed endlessly and be life-threatening.]
[Asher said Zander showed signs of joint bleeding not long after birth. Your family spent a fortune to treat him, and his condition is relatively controlled.]
[But it's dangerous. Even the smallest bump could have serious consequences. When he was little, no one dared get close. If a child tried to play with him, the Martinez family's bodyguards would drive them away.]
[So Asher said Zander grew up completely alone. No friends. When he got to Prestige High School, Asher made the effort to get close, and that's how they became friends.]
Amelia hadn't expected Zander, a prodigy, to suffer from two incurable conditions.
Hemophilia. Congenital asthma. Either one could kill without warning. If an attack wasn't treated in time, he could be gone in minutes.
And yet, he had joined an organization like Highridge Covenant, taking on dangerous missions every day—living constantly on the edge of death.
For a moment, Amelia thought of his beautiful, quiet eyes.
That stillness wasn't indifference to the world. It wasn't that he didn't care about others' lives—it was that he didn't care about his own.
A self-destructive streak.
If the alternative was living in constant fear to protect a fragile life, then better to hold that life in your own hands. At least then, every day was truly yours.
Amelia drew a deep breath.
The sound of water from the bathroom stopped.
She looked up to see the girl emerge, her damp golden curls clinging to her cheeks, wrapped shyly in a towel.
Just as Amelia had imagined, she was beautiful—fair skin, blue eyes, delicate features. Fresh from the traffickers' basement, yet after a shower she looked like a princess.
The delivery arrived at that moment. Amelia took the clothes and the pile of instant meals, handing the T-shirt and shorts to the girl.
"I just grabbed these from the app. Wear them for now. Tomorrow after school, I'll take you shopping."
The girl accepted them with gratitude. "Thank you, Amelia. I don't know how to repay you…"
"Don't worry. You can stay here until your memory comes back."
Amelia lifted the food in her hands. "I'll make instant noodles. And when you're alone, remember to eat."
"Mm!" The girl nodded quickly.
The night passed.
The next morning, Amelia left the apartment for school, a white band-aid on her face.
After the piano competition two days ago—and the online buzz that refused to die—she had become the center of attention at school.
After all, finding out your classmate was a mysterious figure with fans worldwide, and a close friend of world-class pianist Osborne, was enough to make anyone giddy.
But before the excitement could fade, three new things set the campus ablaze today.
First, word spread that Zander and Asher had returned from the world math competition in M country, having taken first and second place.
Second, a beautiful new transfer student had arrived in Class A, a senior from Aurora College's affiliated school.
Third, Prestige High School's anniversary celebration would be held in just one week—and this year, it would be a campus fair.