Chapter 4

Hearing what Elise and the others said, a crowd immediately swarmed around them.

"You actually saw the answers on the test?"

"No doubt about it. I'm getting into a university for sure. You should've listened to El. Have fun failing."

"El is so generous. She's helping even us struggling students get into college."

The moment those words sank in, regret hit the crowd like a wave.

Noticing the remorse on their faces, Elise turned to me with a smug smile.

"Nova, if you hadn't intentionally held everyone back, our whole class could have gotten into top universities this year."

Then she sighed dramatically and shook her head.

"But don't feel too bad. If you can't get in this year, there's always next year."

Her words only made things worse. Even the classmates who had stood by my side yesterday were now glaring at me with resentment.

"Nova, you're vicious! You intentionally ruined our chances of getting into college!"

"I studied for over ten years for this! If I can't get into university, I'll never let you off!"

Countless insults and curses rained down on me, but I tuned them all out.

Only one thought kept echoing in my mind.

Did Elise and the others really see the answers?

While I was still trying to process everything, one of my classmates suddenly shoved me hard.

"Nova, you bitch! You destroyed my future! If I don't get into college, I might as well be dead!"

Elise stood nearby, openly enjoying the chaos.

"You can't really blame Nova," she said with fake sympathy. "She was probably scared your scores would end up higher than hers, so she stopped you from buying the poisonous mushrooms."

Elise's words only made the crowd angrier.

Several classmates stared at me with bloodshot eyes and dragged me to the edge of the school wall.

"You ruined me! I'm taking you with me!"

I clung desperately to the railing and shouted, "Don't just believe Elise's side of the story! The exam results aren't even out yet. Calm down!

"And besides, murder is a crime! If I die, you'll all go to prison!"

Nobody listened. They kept shoving me toward the edge.

I looked down at the drop below. It was over a hundred feet high.

Just as I thought they were really going to push me off, the principal, Mr. Bruce Langley, arrived with several police officers.

When Mr. Langley saw me dangling half over the wall, his face went white.

"What are you doing?! Let go of Nova right now!"

Elise immediately stepped forward.

"Mr. Langley, you can't blame them. Nova ruined their futures and stopped them from getting into college."

Noticing Mr. Langley's bewildered look, the students all started talking at once, quickly filling him in on what had happened.

When they finished, a strange expression crossed his face.

Elise didn't notice this and kept chattering away.

"This was all Nova's fault in the first place. If she hadn't been selfish and afraid that our scores would surpass hers, all of us could've gotten into top universities. She deserves this. Even if she dies, it wouldn't matter!"

The crowd immediately agreed, shouting that I should die to atone for my sins.

Mr. Langley frowned and looked at Elise.

"Let me get this straight. You ate poisonous mushrooms and saw the answers on the test?"

Elise raised her chin, brimming with pride.

"That's right, Mr. Langley. Don't worry. I'm going to be the first student in this school's history to get a perfect score on every section of the SAT. When the results come out, you'll see I wasn't lying."

Jealousy burned in the eyes of those who hadn't eaten the mushrooms. When they looked back at me, the hatred in their eyes had intensified into something far more dangerous.

Mr. Langley repeatedly told everyone to calm down, but nobody listened. The crowd continued screaming for me to die.

Finally, Mr. Langley gave in.

"Nova's safety depends on these results. In that case, I'll make an exception today and let all of you see Elise's results."

Elise's eyes instantly lit up with excitement.

Under everyone's gaze, Mr. Langley pulled up the surveillance footage from Elise's examination room.

On the screen, Elise was writing furiously the entire time.

But the moment Elise saw her own answer sheet, she froze in shock.