Chapter 42: Not Meant to Be! (4K)

“His Highness Ruixin, First Prince of the Demi-Human Lion Empire, has arrived!”

As the thunderous announcement echoed through the classroom, the previously noisy environment instantly fell silent.

All eyes turned toward the person entering through the doorway.

Sinclair was no exception.

He stopped struggling with the other two, frowned, and looked toward the entrance, inwardly thinking that things were about to go bad.

The Lion Empire was the second-largest empire among the demi-human nations.

Ruixin was one of the candidates for the throne.

He inherited his father’s gleaming golden lion head and powerful physique, radiating authority and presence.

Having been enrolled for six years already, he had reached the peak of Tier 5 and could break through to Tier 6 at any moment.

As Ruixin strode into the classroom, both freshmen and upperclassmen subconsciously made way for him.

No one dared to block his path.

Ruixin’s steps were bold and imposing.

He domineeringly walked to a spot slightly in front of Keke’s seat.

After seeing Keke, he nodded and said bluntly, without any attempt at discretion,

“Hahaha, although she’s a weak catfolk, with this beauty and the faint energy she gives off, she’s suitable to be my wife!”

“This trip wasn’t in vain!”

As he spoke, he roughly yanked away the two students sitting on the outermost edge of Keke’s row, intending to walk straight to her side.

“What kind of savage lion-dog crawled out here?”

“Do you think Caldeia Academy is your own dog kennel?”

“To be so rude in front of a beautiful lady—truly a desecration of her beauty.”

With that slightly effeminate voice, the lion-man Ruixin halted his movement.

He turned around, straightened his body imposingly, and retorted in a voice like muffled thunder,

“Haha, so a pretty boy who only knows how to wag his tongue has shown up.”

“What, want to fight?”

When Sinclair heard the voice of the one who stopped Ruixin, his heart sank.

He turned his head and saw the newcomer wearing luxurious white European-style menswear.

The badge on his chest bore the exquisite student number 66.

A golden cloak draped over his shoulders, embroidered by hand with intricate and magnificent patterns, studded with colorful gemstones highlighting countless details.

His features were so refined they bordered on effeminate.

His long golden hair was so beautiful even women would feel inferior.

Behind him followed six beautiful maids, all third-year students.

Roz.

His strength was merely mid Tier 5, yet no one in the academy dared to underestimate him.

He was the only grandson of the owner of the largest bank on the Western Continent.

His wealth was so immense he could buy half of the Western Continent.

He had countless ties with the Holy Church behind the scenes.

Personally, he was notoriously promiscuous.

It was said that fifty percent of the female students in the Performing Arts Institute’s idol department had complicated relationships with him.

Even so, many female students still flocked to his side, yearning for something to happen so they could enjoy wealth and glory for life.

Roz elegantly walked up to Ruixin, tapped his chest lightly with a pure-gold folding fan, and said in a mocking tone,

“Oh my, as expected of a wild dog—always biting.”

“In front of such a beautiful demi-human lady, you should really try not to be so crude.”

“If you scare her, how heartbroken I’d be.”

“So tell me, you’re both demi-humans—why is the difference between you and this lady so vast?”

“A savage country like yours really should hand over its land sooner rather than later.”

Although Roz’s strength was far inferior to Ruixin’s, he showed not a trace of panic.

The six maids beside him were all Tier 5, with one having just reached the Earth tier.

Every month, Roz spent over ten thousand gold coins on these six alone.

An amount others could never earn in a lifetime.

To him, it was nothing more than pocket change.

While speaking, Roz glanced at Keke, who was diligently reading her notes.

His eyes lit up, and he inwardly decided that this maid was a must-have.

Even one hundred thousand gold coins a month would be worth it.

“Hahaha, hiding behind women again.”

“A pretty boy reeking of money dares dream of trampling on our demi-human lands.”

“Go home and raise children instead!”

“Our demi-human women—don’t even think about them, you hypocritical humans!”

Because they didn’t want to disturb the demi-human girl, Roz and Ruixin restrained themselves from actually fighting.

But verbally, neither gave an inch.

They even escalated their conflict into a clash between races, causing the demi-humans and humans in the classroom to glare at each other.

Keke, who had been focused on her book, heard the growing noise beside her.

She frowned slightly, her little cat ears drooping, and looked at Roz and Ruixin in confusion.

They wouldn’t be… arguing because of me, would they?

Keke had grown up in a viscount’s household.

Aside from recently going out into the wider world with Yiluo and seeing different customs, she had little experience with being admired by the opposite s*x.

Most of the spotlight had always been taken by Yiluo.

At this moment, she felt like she might be the cause of the argument, yet couldn’t quite believe it.

But… these people are so annoying…

“Mm, she really is beautiful.”

“Like she stepped straight out of a comic.”

“But she’s not a demi-human—she’s a demon.”

“The strongest hero marrying a beautiful demon lady—what a classic plot.”

Just as Roz and Ruixin were about to truly come to blows, a young man appeared between them.

He had handsome, protagonist-like features.

Black hair, black clothes, and a black sword strapped to his back.

With his arms crossed, he looked at Keke, nodding as he spoke to himself.

His appearance was so sudden that both Roz and Ruixin stepped back two paces, exclaiming at the same time,

“You are—!”

“You are—!”

The black-clad youth nodded naturally at their reactions and said casually, without even looking at them,

“It’s me.”

Seeing the black-clad youth, Sinclair clenched his teeth.

He felt that his chances of winning the demi-human girl were shrinking by the second.

The black-clad youth was a hero from the Eastern Continent, named Chen Yu.

A genuine Earth-tier existence.

Summoned less than two years ago, he came to Caldeia Academy to study continental fundamentals and hone his combat skills.

Though a bit chuuni, with his good looks, Earth-tier strength, and cursed kindness, he had completely captivated countless female students.

Yet he maintained good relations with all of them without developing further.

Even when confessed to, he would simply smile and shake his head, leaving the rejected girls not heartbroken at all, but eager to try again.

Compared to the powerful Ruixin, royalty of the second-largest demi-human empire.

Compared to Roz, whose wealth rivaled nations.

This Eastern hero, Chen Yu, made Sinclair feel the greatest sense of danger.

“Hey, you two.”

“Arguing here isn’t very nice, and it’s meaningless.”

“Why don’t we ask this lady herself who she’s more interested in?”

Chen Yu spoke gently, wearing a friendly smile as he addressed the two beside him.

“Since little brother Chen Yu has spoken, I’ll refrain from arguing with this lion-dog for now.”

“Hahaha, scared is scared. Don’t dress it up.”

“If you’ve got guts, come duel me in the training grounds later.”

“But since Hero Brother has spoken, and our lionfolk respect the strong, I’ll give you face.”

Chen Yu replied,

“You flatter me.”

See?

This was the cursed kindness.

Even Roz and Ruixin temporarily ceased their verbal battle.

In truth, neither Roz nor Ruixin truly feared Chen Yu’s Earth-tier strength.

But the title of “Hero” was something they couldn’t ignore.

Heroes summoned from the Eastern Continent all started at a minimum of Tier 5 and possessed at least one innate talent.

Some were absurdly powerful.

If a hero was bullied, several other powerful heroes would surely come seeking revenge.

There was a saying that always circulated on the Star Continent.

On the Western Continent, don’t provoke the Holy Church.

Outside the Western Continent, don’t provoke heroes.

This showed just how terrifying heroes were as a group.

With so many influential figures from the academy present, the students two rows beside Keke had already read the situation.

Knowing they stood no chance compared to these people, and fearing being caught in the crossfire, they retreated far away.

Thus, Chen Yu nodded to the two beside him and walked toward the confused-looking Keke with his signature confident, gentle smile.

However, at that moment—

Someone beat him to it!

“My name is Sinclair!”

“I fell in love with you at first sight this morning!”

“I’m willing to give up all my honor to be with you!”

“Please go out with me!!!”

Sinclair knew that if this continued, his chances would only grow slimmer.

Having truly fallen for her, he decided to go all in and confess before Chen Yu could speak.

Though it was somewhat of a sneak attack.

And though he might face retaliation from three powerful factions within the academy.

For true love—

This time, Sinclair was going all out!

Sinclair’s sudden appearance surprised Chen Yu and the other two.

After sizing him up, none of them seemed particularly angry.

After all, no matter how they looked at him, he wasn’t their opponent.

Letting him test the waters first was fine.

Thus, the entire class focused their attention on Keke and Sinclair, eagerly awaiting what would happen next.

Keke was startled by Sinclair suddenly leaning in from behind to confess.

After a brief moment of panic and confusion, her expression suddenly cleared.

She finally confirmed that she really was the cause of the classroom’s chaos.

She hurriedly scanned the room.

Only after confirming that Miss Yiluo was not present did she relax.

If Miss Yiluo saw this…

Would she dislike me?

That was the first thought to surface in Keke’s mind.

After realizing Yiluo wasn’t there, Keke’s expression grew cold.

She shook her head and rejected Sinclair.

“I’m sorry.”

“I can’t go out with you.”

Hearing Keke’s straightforward answer, Sinclair gave a bitter smile and shook his head.

“It’s okay… it’s okay…”

For some reason, he felt a bit lighter.

At least he had tried.

He had fought with all he had, right in front of three influential figures of the academy.

The two people who had been fighting him earlier now unexpectedly patted his shoulder in unison and gave him a thumbs-up in admiration.

Just as Sinclair was about to thank them for the encouragement, he turned his head and saw they were barely holding back laughter, clearly gloating.

Ah, this…

Sinclair was speechless.

Chen Yu said,

“This classmate Sinclair’s courage is also worthy of praise.”

“Let’s give him a round of applause!”

With Chen Yu’s words, applause erupted throughout the classroom.

The atmosphere was instantly lifted.

The applause was sincere.

After all, seeing Sinclair suddenly rush out and get rejected really did make people happy enough to clap.

Ruixin didn’t feel much about it.

But Roz cursed Chen Yu thoroughly in his heart, realizing that this man was indeed his greatest rival.

Now that the atmosphere was just right, Chen Yu, brimming with confidence, finally stepped forward.

He stood beside Keke, placed a hand over his chest, and bowed.

Then, wearing a gentle smile, he scratched the back of his head shyly and said,

“Miss, my name is Chen Yu.”

“I’m just an ordinary hero.”

“The two behind me are Prince Ruixin of the Lion Empire, and Roz, the future richest man on the continent.”

“We’d all like to be friends with you.”

“If possible, we’d like to take it a step further.”

“Which one would you choose?”

With that speech, most of the people present were moved by Chen Yu’s kindness.

He introduced himself modestly, while praising his two rivals so highly.

Combined with his handsome looks and bright, sincere smile, the female students watching from inside and outside the classroom felt their hearts pounding.

They fell for him on the spot.

The male students inside the class felt that even if the demi-human girl chose Chen Yu, they would bless them wholeheartedly.

Such a good man—

They couldn’t even feel jealous.

Chen Yu maintained his innocent, cheerful smile on the outside.

But inside, the corner of his mouth was already rising toward the heavens.

This move of his was simply god-tier.

How could he possibly lose?

In this situation, could the demon girl really reject him?

If he lost, he’d livestream doing a handstand, spinning three hundred and sixty degrees while eating shit on the spot!!!

Yes.

That confident!

Keke looked up at Chen Yu, frowned slightly, and said,

“I want to study seriously.”

“Could you please stop disturbing me?”

Pfft—

Chen Yu never expected such a response.

It felt as if an invisible sword had stabbed straight through his heart.

The smile in his mind froze mid-rise.

“Ah, then I’m really sorry, indeed…”

But it was fine.

Chen Yu’s greatest strength was recovery.

Tsundere girls weren’t unfamiliar to him.

Several had been hopelessly charmed.

Maybe this girl was tsundere too?

“I don’t need any friends.”

“I already have a master!”

Pfft—pfft pfft—

Before Chen Yu could finish speaking, the girl interrupted him.

And stabbed his heart several more times for good measure.

“Ah, this…”

This was the first time Chen Yu had been rejected so decisively.

His mind stalled as he desperately thought of how to recover.

But then the girl stood up.

With utmost seriousness, she addressed everyone in the classroom.

“Everything I have was given to me by my master.”

“And I’ve already given everything to my master.”

“Please stop disturbing me.”

“Thank you.”

Pfffttttt——

The sound that couldn’t be heard echoed in the ears of the male students, leaving them riddled with invisible wounds.

At this moment.

Keke.

Went on a killing spree—

.

.

Homeroom teacher Edward returned to the office, leisurely drank a cup of coffee, and boasted a bit with a colleague about how attentive and studious his students were this semester.

After reading the newspaper for a while, he returned to the classroom once it was about time.

Looking at the students below, who should have been full of vigor but now appeared haggard and slumped everywhere, he was utterly confused.

Describing the scene as corpses strewn everywhere wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

Could it be that just missing his lecture once had reduced them all to this?

“Teacher Edward, please continue the lesson!”

Seeing the only student still full of energy—Keke—Edward couldn’t help but smile in satisfaction.

The white-haired catfolk girl looked unfamiliar.

She must be a new student.

What a good student.

He needed to teach especially well.

And so, homeroom teacher Edward began the second class…