<h4>Chapter 247 Chapter 58.1 - Crossing Hearts </h4>


    People tend to getfortable when things start turning into monotonous ones. It is calledfort zone, and it is one of the traits we humans have developed over the course of evolution.


    Whenever we find something or somewhere safe, we would stick to it to survive. But as the time passed, this type of evolution became something different.


    It became a trait symbolizingziness. After all, the more you getfortable, the more you will get stagnant.


    And being stagnant means being content with yourself.


    And this is not something I can ever ept.


    THUD! THUD! THUD!


    Standing in front of the training dummy, different kinds of thoughts passed through my head.


    "Huff….."


    Sweat was pouring from my face. It was the usual routine for me at this point. I woke up after sleeping for around three and a half hours and then started to train instantly.


    "This should be enough for now."


    I mumbled, reaching out the towel utilizing the form I had been working on.


    「Telekinesis」


    It was the name, though the definition itself is a lot moreplex. First-ranked magic spell that enables the user to control the forces by creating fields.


    As I left the training room, the chill of the winter night embraced me, and the darkness loomed overhead.


    The academy''s corridors were quiet, the only sound echoing being the soft tap of my footsteps against the cold tiles.


    "Huff…."


    ''It had been a while, had it?''


    It was exceptionally cold this time, contrary tost year. However, it was doubtful that I could even remember it correctly. Sometimes I wondered, was my memory even right?


    ''Whatever.''


    Then, I decided that thinking like this was pointless.


    I walked briskly through the empty roads, my breath visible in the frigid air.


    The dimly lit pathways and the asional gusts of wind rattling the windows – it was a stark contrast to the bustling activity during the day.


    As I ventured outside, the silence of the night was broken by distant sounds.


    THUD! GIGGLE!


    Intrigued, I followed the noises, my steps muffled on the snow-covered ground. As I approached, I could discern hushed voices and asionalughter.


    Peering around the corner, I saw a group of students gathered in an open area.


    ''Hmm?''


    They seemed engrossed in a ndestine activity. Curiosity getting the better of me, I silently moved closer to eavesdrop on their conversation.


    It was unusual for any students to even be awake at this hour of time. Unless people are training maniacs like me, their motives would be shady.


    That was my own analysis, though, as nothing was certain.


    "I didn''t do anything like that….Please...Why don''t you believe me?"


    However, as I had concealed my presence utilizing my trait [Shadowborne], I finally crossed enough distance to be able to hear everything I needed to know.


    "Sob….Please….Sob…."


    "Heh, look at this little thwart."


    As I witnessed the disturbing scene unfolding before me, my brain looked for any information for the people in front.


    The girls, with a malicious glint in their eyes, circled around another student, theirughter echoing in the cold night air.


    The victimized girl, visibly distressed, tried to defend herself with a meek voice, denying the usations hurled at her.


    ''I see….''


    This was amon case that happened in the world. People tend to be cruel when they hold power.


    After all, we are all beings with egos inside them, and that ego is something that continuously encourages us to be something.


    ''It is a human''s desire to be a god, but that desire is what makes them sink.''


    SLAP!


    As the sound of a p echoed around the ce, giggles followed.


    "Shut up, bitch. Who are you to lie before me!"


    SLAP!


    "Hick…..I didn''t do it…..I didn''t do it…..I didn''t do it….."


    "Oh, look who''s denying everything! We have proof, you little tramp! Or should I say, Mia?"


    At the mention of the name ''Mia'' specifically, the girl flinched.


    "You thought we didn''t know, right? Nobody would notice, right? Our little M….I….A….."


    "Nooo...."


    The girl continued to shrink while grabbing her knees with her arms. It was amon response to trauma, especially when it was something that the mind recognized as a threat to life.


    The gesture of fetal position is an instinct that almost all humans have the moment they are born.


    "Look at her Emma….She can''t even take it…." One of the other girls came forward while looking at ''Mia'' like she was a bug.


    My mind, devoid of empathy or guilt, continued its dispassionate analysis.


    It recognized this pattern as amon manifestation of power dynamics among humans. The desire for dominance, for asserting one''s ego, often led to the degradation of others.


    In times like these, I always found myself different from any general people out there, as if something inside me was always missing itself.


    Like I was a person that came here as a silent observer.


    The torment of the bullied girl escted as one of the girl''s leaders grabbed her by her hair, cruelly forcing her to face the damning evidence on the smartwatch.


    The screen is illuminated withpromising images, capturing moments of Mia''s vulnerability.


    "See this, Mia? This was you, wasn''t it?" The girl named Emma taunted sadistically, her voice dripping with contempt. "Look how happy you were, sitting on theps of those boys. Selling yourself like a cheap thrill."


    ''Mia,'' now physically restrained and emotionally battered, struggled toprehend the gravity of the situation. Tears streamed down her face as she vehemently denied the usations, her voice reduced to desperate sobs.


    "No... It''s not me... I never..." Mia''s words were choked by the vice-like grip on her hair.


    No, it wasn''t because of the grip. From her eyes and the small gestures of her body, it was evident.


    ''She gave up.''


    Her tensed body suddenly rxed as if she had already epted her fate.


    ''…..''


    For some reason, it reminded me of previous Astron and his interactions with other students when he entered. Even though he was no longer herepletely, he was still a part of mine.


    Something….


    A feeling appeared inside me.


    The other girls, reveling in the spectacle, intensified their verbal assault, feeding off the power they held over Mia.


    "Pathetic liar!"


    SLAP!


    "You thought you could fool everyone, huh?"


    SLAP!


    "I hate bitches like you the most! Do you know Ken dumped me because of you? He said she no longer liked me, and when I asked him if he had someone in his mind, he looked at you."


    The usations and physical blows rained down on Mia, who was trapped in a nightmarish cycle of humiliation. The girls, fueled by a toxic blend of resentment and power, reveled in their role as tormentors.


    "You are always getting on my nerves. Were you seducing guys with this hair? They call this silky?" one of the girls mocked, grabbing a handful of Mia''s hair with malicious intent.


    People tended to ignore this fact because of the general conception of male aggressiveness. However, the reality of the female world is a lot more cruel than you would ever expect.


    A woman''s grudge and methods to undermine others are not just limited to physical aspects. They not only destroy their enemy in physical form but also in social form.


    They destroy the target''s reputation with gossip and use mental tormenting methods to torture.


    And this was the perfect example of this case.


    The viciousness of the assault seemed boundless, an unrestrained manifestation of the darker facets of human nature.


    As the vile spectacle unfolded, Emma, the orchestrator of this twisted drama, called forth another girl into the malevolent spotlight.


    ''Hmm?''


    The timid figure with sses and visible bruises on her body stumbled forward, casting furtive nces at the tormentors who had summoned her. It looked like she was another victim of a


    "Look who we''ve got here! Our dear Mia''s not as innocent as she pretends," Emma dered with a triumphant smirk. "This one here," she gestured toward the bruised girl, "is the result of Mia''s little outburst when they were alone. Turns out our precious Mia has a darker side."


    The revtion injected a different shade ofplexity into the situation. Mia, the seemingly helpless victim, had a side that contributed to the cycle of violence.


    After all, there was no need to doubt that the girl named Emma was lying since she had no reason to do so.


    The bruises on the timid girl testified to a narrative of reciprocal harm, blurring the lines between perpetrator and victim.


    "Now, Mnie, it''s time to show Mia what she deserves," Emma goaded, addressing the timid girl with the bruises. "Don''t let her get away with it. Give her a taste of her own medicine."


    Mnie hesitated, torn between the fear instilled by her tormentors and a glimmer of reluctance. The pressure to conform to the cycle of violence weighed heavily on her fragile shoulders.


    "Come on, Mnie! Don''t let her off easy. Show her we won''t tolerate her crap!" Emma''s encouragement,ced with cruelty, pushed Mnie to the brink. With a hesitant resolve, she raised her hand, her palm trembling.


    SLAP!


    The sound echoed through the deste night, mingling with the cold wind that whispered through the empty streets.


    "How does it feel?" Emma taunted, her voice dripping with sadistic satisfaction. The air seemed to thicken with tension as Mnie, caught in the web of coercion, gazed at Mia with conflicted emotions.


    Mnie''s initial reluctance morphed into a grim determination. The smile that spread across her face, while unsettling, mirrored the twisted satisfaction Emma and the others derived from this macabre disy.


    On the cold winter night, under the indifferent gaze of the stars, Mnie raised her hand once again. The second and then third psnded with a resounding crack, the sound reverberating through the silent darkness.


    SLAP!


    Mia''s anguish was palpable, and the cycle of violence continued unabated. Each blow inflicted seemed to further erode any semnce of humanity in this cruel tableau.


    "Keep going, Mnie! Make her pay for what she did to you," Emma goaded, reveling in the power dynamics she orchestrated. Mnie, now fully sumbing to the dark currents around her, unleashed a barrage of ps.


    The once timid girl, now consumed by the perverse satisfaction of power, delivered each blow with a disturbing sense of satisfaction.


    ''Bully-turned-bully behavior.''


    It was a typical case and a behavior that contributed to the problem itself. The cold wind carried the sounds of violence and sadisticughter, creating an eerie symphony under the starlit sky.


    Despite my detached demeanor, a subtle urge to intervene flickered within me. It was an instinct, perhaps a trace of normality, trying to resist the apathy that usually governed my actions. However, my rational mind swiftly overruled this impulse.


    ''No. It is pointless.''


    This was humanity''s own nature, and I was no saint. Intervening offered no tangible benefits.


    ''But….''


    However, at that moment, from the corner of my eyes, something appeared in my vision from very far away.


    ''I guess this is the hero''s job.''


    It was the perfect tailored job for our hero, after all.