Chapter 10

Noelle stopped, greeting the Liddell brothers politely but distantly. "Frank, Blake, Lucas," she said. Skipping the greeting would only invite more accusations about her attitude, and she lacked the energy for their drama.

"How was the exam today?" Lucas asked, raising an eyebrow. "Since you chose your studies over joining the team, let's see just how well you did!"

His taunts no longer bothered Noelle. Her brothers would always find reasons to criticize her.

"I'll do my best," she replied simply, knowing she was doing her best to get into Yole University and away from them all.

"Noelle's never been academic material," Blake scoffed. "She barely scraped by in Grades 10 and 11. This last-minute studying is just for show. She'll still rank below Xenia!"

Smiling sweetly, Xenia chimed in, "Blake, don't say that. Noelle's been working really hard lately, and even the teachers praise her. Besides, rankings aren't everything."

Noelle gripped her bag tightly, rage building. In her previous life, her poor grades had been deliberate. Whenever she outscored Xenia, Xenia would create problems that turned her brothers against her. She intentionally performed poorly to avoid their disapproval, but that didn't mean she was incapable. During her previous college entrance exams, she'd tried to outperform Xenia, but despite qualifying for better colleges, Donovan had forced her to apply to the same mediocre one as Xenia.

Determined not to repeat her mistakes, Noelle suppressed her anger. "I'm going to my room," she stated coldly.

The next day, a Saturday, Noelle slept in. When she finally went downstairs for breakfast, the house was quiet. The others had probably left for training camp.

Unbothered, she ate quickly and returned to her room, checking her phone for gaming tournament news. As expected, the official page announced a repechage round, just as in her previous life. Last time, Lucas had been fired up about the repechage, seeing it as his chance for revenge against Magnus Greene in the finals.

Team Luminark had won the championship in her last life, but it had been a stroke of luck. Magnus mysteriously withdrew at the crucial moment, allowing her brothers' team to snatch victory. Even until her death, Noelle never figured out why Magnus dropped out. Some claimed illness; others speculated family business obligations. Magnus never clarified.

Noelle felt an itch to join the action, but Cedric's voice echoed in her mind. They had agreed to wait for her exam results. Sighing, she decided to hold off. She only needed to hang on a little longer.

After much deliberation, she texted Cedric: "Sir, I couldn't come to the infirmary last week because Frank noticed I wasn't coming home on time. I was worried he'd discover my secret study spot."

After hitting send, she stared at the screen, awaiting a response that never came. Frustrated, she clicked on Cedric's profile and opened his feed, finding nothing.

Meanwhile, Cedric glanced at the message, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Ced, who's texting you?" someone asked.

Cedric simply locked his screen.

Alfred raised an eyebrow at Cedric's phone. "Judging by the profile picture… It's a girl, huh? Must be that Noelle you helped the other day, right?"

"You talk too much," Cedric stated.

"You're just being defensive! You've been spending all your time at the infirmary last week and then suddenly stopped. Plus, you've been walking around with a grumpy expression. Did you two have a fight?"

Cedric shot Alfred a warning look. "Stay out of my business."

"Come on. We grew up together! I know everything about you, so stop pretending," Alfred teased.

Cedric moved to the balcony with his phone and looked at her message again. The thought of her considering the infirmary her "secret spot" made him smile. He scrolled through her social media, noting typical teenage posts and daily life updates. Catching himself lingering too long, he felt slightly uneasy.

Cedric quickly composed himself and closed the app, heading back inside.

Meanwhile, Noelle waited all day for his response. She wondered if he was angry, but dared not send another message, deciding to wait until Monday's test results.

Noelle spent the weekend studying at home while Xenia and her brothers remained at training camp.

Monday morning, Noelle found Xenia and her brothers chatting and laughing downstairs. Their bond was clearly stronger than ever.

Noelle was unfazed. She said nothing and headed straight to the kitchen for breakfast.

"Results come out today, right?" Lucas asked mockingly.

"Yes," Noelle nodded.

Lucas continued, "I told you to join the team. With your grades, you won't get into any good schools anyway. Instead of wasting time studying, you could've trained to go pro. The Liddell family's resources would've made you famous. Too bad you threw away that chance, and now it's Xenia's."

Remembering the humiliation of being replaced in her previous life, Noelle responded calmly, "I don't mind."

After breakfast, she left the living room. Lucas fumed at her indifference. "I can't wait to see these 'great' test scores of hers!"

Xenia secretly felt relieved Noelle hadn't joined the team. She knew about Noelle's natural talent for gaming and worried about losing her position. Still, she smiled sweetly. "Lucas, don't be angry. She's just being stubborn. I'll give her my spot when she agrees to join."

"You're always so thoughtful!" Lucas beamed.

His reply made Xenia's smile falter. She'd trained relentlessly for Lucas' approval, but he still seemed to prefer Noelle. Xenia silently vowed to prove herself through the upcoming competition. She would secure victory and make Lucas give up on bringing Noelle onto the team.

Lucas, on the other hand, was growing anxious about the upcoming repechage tournament; losing meant no second chances. Despite Xenia's dedication, her gaming skills weren't developing fast enough, especially since they only had a month left. To beat Magnus, they needed someone talented. Noelle was their only option, but his pride stopped him from asking for her help. For years, she'd orbited around him, eager for his approval. He'd grown too comfortable with their dynamic, and the sudden change felt unnatural.

He wondered how long Noelle would keep up this attitude. Was she really going to force him to swallow his pride?

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