Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
His suspicion couldn’t be mere paranoia; that scumbag, Milán, had to be behind this.
He had no proof, nor did he fully understand the motives behind such cruelty, but Milán was the only person he could think of who possessed such a toxic obsession with Augustine.
Just yesterday, for the very first time, Augustine had set a firm boundary with him.
Was it truly possible that a single rejection had been enough to incite such a vicious retaliation?
Milán’s dorm room was empty, just as Alderian imagined it would be at this hour.
The computer—the primary tool for committing this act of cyber-violence—sat dark and lifeless on the desk.
Nothing out of the ordinary caught his eye; it was a pristine, orderly room that perfectly mirrored the spotless image Milán projected to the world.
But the facade did not deceive Alderian for a second.
“You’re in my territory,” a voice rasped behind him.
Antian, Milán’s A’aruin, was leaning against the doorframe, watching him with a veiled threat gleaming in his eyes.
“Well, you’re in the human world for a change. Now that is a novelty,” Alderian replied sharply, his lips curling into a mocking smile.
Antian’s fists clenched tightly as he stepped into the room, approaching slowly. “What business do you have here?”
“I think your human has been misbehaving,” Alderian pointed out, circling the other spirit while keeping his eyes locked onto him. Any flicker of recognition, any microscopic shift in his expression, would be enough to confirm his darkest suspicions.
Instead, Antian laughed loudly—a harsh, grating sound that sent chills down Alderian’s spine because of the sheer malice it held.
“Do you know what I’ve realized over these years?
” Antian asked, his voice dripping with amusement.
“We truly vibrate at a similar frequency to the A’aruin we are bound to.
Milán and I are more alike than you think.
And I’ll tell you one thing: that boy is capable of terrible things.
If you’re afraid, Alderian, you have every reason to be. ”
Alderian tensed his muscles, his imposing black wings unfurling with a sharp snap as he prepared to attack.
“And what are you going to do?” Antian continued, completely unfazed by the display of aggression.
“Rather, what can you do? Do you think that because you pulled off your little stunt a few days ago, you’re special?
Do you honestly believe you can intervene if one human attacks another?
You can’t do a damn thing, Alderian.” Antian laughed with pure, sadistic pleasure before adding, “Try whatever you want. You are tied to your precious Silver Thread, anchored in A’aru permanently.
You can’t come here even if you wanted to.
Better do as I do and stay over there entirely.
In this world, there is nothing we can do. ”
With that final taunt, he vanished, leaving Alderian entirely alone in the empty room. It was for the best; if Antian had stayed even one minute longer, Alderian would likely have been taken prisoner shortly after for murdering a fellow protector.
* * *
Class finally ended, and Alderian was still nowhere to be seen.
His absence weighed more heavily on Augustine today, precisely because she felt so utterly vulnerable.
As she packed her things, a couple of her classmates brushed past her desk.
Making no attempt at discretion, they immediately began to jeer.
“You never know when a meek little thing is actually a viper,” Cynthia said loudly.
“I mean, with that innocent face, it turns out she sleeps with everyone,” Mila, the other girl, replied with a snort.
An unknown, blinding fury suddenly ignited in Augustine's chest. She stood up abruptly, her chair scraping harshly against the floor.
“Repeat what you just said,” Augustine demanded.
The chatter in the classroom died instantly, plunging the room into a suffocating silence.
“I’ve said nothing that everyone else isn’t already whispering,” Cynthia replied, turning around fully to face her. “You think just because you’re a bit pretty you can go around snatching other people’s boyfriends.”
Augustine pressed her lips together tightly, but to everyone's surprise, she let out a soft, humorless laugh.
“Wow, look at that. Two paragons of moral and ethical behavior for every woman to follow,” Augustine said, her voice dripping with biting sarcasm. “Who are you, exactly, to judge my life? If I sleep with one person or another, what is it to you?”
“You’re not even trying to deny it!” Mila said, her eyes widening in stun.
“And why should I?” Augustine huffed, crossing her arms.
Alderian was suddenly at her side, his form materializing as he watched the scene, quickly trying to catch up to what he had missed.
“First of all, I don’t have to give explanations about my private life to you or anyone else,” Augustine continued, her voice ringing clear across the room.
“And second, I think we’re long past the time where women should be ashamed of their sexual freedom.
I won’t be ashamed of my body or myself because of backward comments from the last century.
You two should be the ones feeling ashamed. ”
She didn’t wait for a response. Grabbing her backpack, she stormed out of the room.
Augustine marched down the hallway straight toward the restroom. Behind her, she could hear David frantically calling her name, but she didn’t stop or turn around; she couldn’t bear the thought of him seeing her cry.
Bursting into the bathroom, she found it crowded, but she managed to slip into an empty stall and lock the door behind her. Two minutes passed, then five, until the fading sound of footsteps and chatter told her she was finally alone.
She stepped out of the stall cautiously. Alderian was already waiting for her, leaning casually against the tiled wall. He watched her inquiringly, his expression soft, but he waited for her to speak first before approaching.
“Speaking up made it worse, didn’t it?” she asked in a thin, trembling voice. The fierce heat in her chest that had compelled her to strike back was still there, but now she was forced to process the reality of what she had done. “Now everyone will think the worst of me.”
Alderian smiled sweetly, his entire demeanor softening as he stepped away from the wall. He approached her, leaning down slightly until their eyes were perfectly level.
“You were amazing,” he praised, his smile widening with genuine pride.
“Don’t mock me; I was terrible,” she groaned, covering her face. “My reputation just went down the drain.”
“But you are freer,” Alderian countered gently. “You don’t need to please anyone, Augustine. You can do exactly as you wish, whether they approve or not. Remember, you are a cat, and they are all just mice.”
Despite herself, Augustine couldn’t help but smile at the analogy.
When they finally left the restroom, the bustling hallway had emptied out, leaving only one person waiting at the far end of the corridor. As he caught sight of her, he approached with a deeply sympathetic smile plastered across his face.
“There you are,” Milán said.
Beside her, Augustine felt Alderian instantly bristle, his posture turning lethal. She didn’t return the smile; she simply kept walking, but Milán quickly fell into step right next to her.
“Wow, a lot has happened,” Milán continued, his voice laced with feigned concern. “I wanted to tell you that I’m not like your so-called ‘friends.’ I actually support you, and I’ll defend you from anyone who dares speak a single word against you.”
Augustine stopped dead in her tracks, turning to look him squarely in the face.
“I appreciate the thought, but I don’t need you to defend me,” Augustine replied coldly. “If you don’t want to get caught up in these rumors, I suggest you stay far away from me.”
Milán’s smile only widened. “Are you worried about me?”
“Get lost already,” Alderian snarled at him.
Augustine couldn’t have agreed more with her guardian's silent sentiment. She let out a heavy sigh, trying to control her temper. “Listen, Milán. I’m in a very uncomfortable situation right now. I have neither the headspace nor the desire to worry about anyone else, so I’m asking you to keep your distance. ”
“No, I want you to feel my support during this difficult time,” Milán insisted, taking a step closer. “I’m willing to face whatever consequences come our way.”
“Well, I don’t know if having you near me helps much, given the specific rumors circulating,” Augustine pointed out dryly. “Didn’t you actually read the post?”
“I did, but it’s all a lie,” Milán replied smoothly. “No one knows you like I do, Augustine. I know you’re innocent.”
“We’ve barely met in class,” she countered, her suspicion flaring. “What makes you think you know anything at all about me?”
Without waiting for an answer, she turned and walked away from him. Because she didn’t look back, she missed the enigmatic, sinister smile that spread across his face—but Alderian caught it perfectly.
“You better not be behind this. I’ll be watching you,” Alderian threatened, glaring at the boy before turning to follow Augustine down the hall.
Augustine entered her next lecture hall with far less confidence than she wanted to project.
No one looked at her; quite suddenly, she had become entirely invisible.
The brutal, icy indifference of these adults felt far more shocking than the whispered insults from earlier.
Scanning the rows, she spotted Amanda sitting a few meters away. David was nowhere to be seen.
As if sensing her gaze, Amanda raised her head, but the moment their eyes met, she immediately looked away, deliberately avoiding eye contact. That slight, silent gesture wounded Augustine deeper than any verbal insult could have.
Rebellion flared. Augustine stood up and walked right out of the room. The scorching heat in her chest, which had briefly subsided in the bathroom, flared up again, searing her from the inside out.
What was this overpowering feeling? It was rage. It was pure wrath.
She struggled to recognize her own emotions simply because she had never allowed herself to experience them so rawly before. She had spent her entire life adapting, swallowing her anger, and trying to please everyone around her.
But she was done. Enough was enough.
“What will you do now?” Alderian asked.
He could feel the fire burning in Augustine running through his own veins. Their connection had grown profoundly intimate lately, to the point where the violent waves of her emotion engulfed him as if they were his own.
“I’m going to get to the bottom of this,” Augustine replied with grim determination. “I’m not willing to let people walk all over me for free. Whoever did this left digital tracks. If you look closely enough, you can always find the first move that started the chaos.”
Alderian stepped directly in front of her, cutting off her path and forcing her to meet his intense gaze.
“Be careful, Augustine,” he warned softly. “The human world is full of broken people… monsters who aren’t afraid to cause immense pain for their own perverse pleasure.”
“I know that as my A’aruin, your job is to keep me out of trouble, but I can’t just sit here with my arms crossed,” Augustine said, her eyes flashing with fire. “Be my man right now, Alderian, not my protector. If you truly care about me, then come with me… but do not ask me to stop.”
A dark, dangerous look crossed Alderian’s face, and he leaned in.
“Make no mistake about it, Augustine—wherever you go, I go with you. Do whatever you want. Literally. If you want to burn this world to the ground, I’ll burn it with you.
If you want to turn it into hell, I’ll gladly be the one to open the gates of the abyss for you. ”
For the first time that day, a genuine, radiant smile broke across Augustine’s face.
“Good boy,” she replied, turning on her heel and marching directly toward the campus library.
She locked herself inside a computer cubicle, logged in, stretched her fingers, and dove headfirst into the search.
It took several hours of meticulous digging, but she finally uncovered the identity of the person running the anonymous Campus Confessions account: it was Isaac, a senior from an entirely different major.
She didn't know him personally, but she vividly recalled crossing paths with him several times in the corridors.
With cold, mathematical precision, she pulled up and investigated his class schedules. He wasn’t on campus today, but according to the registry, he would be tomorrow morning.
Augustine stood up from the computer, her expression resolute and unyielding. They were about to see what she was truly capable of when pushed to the edge.