Chapter 66
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Volume 3 + Chapter 66: Playing Hard To Get
If possible, Xia Yi would prefer to avoid Lia unless absolutely necessary.
The situation was just too awkward for her.
So, she quickly made up an excuse to leave.
But just as she passed by Lia, her little sister dropped a bombshell in a soft, eerie tone.
She knows my secret?!
Xia Yi’s heart nearly stopped.
The fact that she was now a dragon couldn’t be revealed to anyone.
Letting the fox girl know was already pushing it—she wasn’t human and had no ties to human factions, so unless she went around blabbing, it wouldn’t affect Xia Yi.
But Lia was different. She was a member of the Schubert family.
“Wh-what are you talking about?” Xia Yi played dumb. “Lia, what do you mean by ‘my secret’? I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
“So unwilling to admit it?” Lia’s tone was teasing.
Xia Yi’s mind raced in panic.
What exactly does Lia know?!
This was way too unsettling.
“Lia?”
“Xia Yi, if you have things to do, go ahead. Don’t let me hold you up.”
Lia stepped aside, making way as if she had no intention of pressing further.
Xia Yi was stunned.
What’s with this little sister of mine?!
If you’ve discovered my secret, just say it outright! Don’t leave me hanging like this!
People who love to tease like this are the worst!
“What exactly are you trying to say, Lia?!”
“Oh? You’re finally calling me by my name?” Lia glanced back with a faint smile. “But isn’t this something you should know best, Xia Yi? There’s no need to ask me.”
“…”
“Well then, goodbye for now, Xia Yi.”
With that, Lia walked away, leaving Xia Yi staring at her retreating figure.
Hehe~
The young lady of the Schubert family was quite pleased with herself.
She had done this on purpose.
Truthfully, Lia was also very curious about Xia Yi’s secrets and wanted to uncover everything.
But instead of confronting her directly, she had chosen to play hard to get.
This way, Xia Yi would likely spend the next while obsessing over her words, turning them over and over in her mind, trying to decipher their meaning—and in doing so, she’d become very aware of Lia.
That was exactly the effect Lia wanted.
Before, she had always felt that Xia Yi was deliberately avoiding her, unwilling to engage.
Next time, things would be different.
—
“Young Lady Lia, welcome back.”
Lia returned to her residence, where her attendant bowed in greeting.
Unlike other students, she didn’t live in Laurel Academy’s dormitories. Instead, she had rented an entire estate in Laurel City as her residence.
Of course, other students could do the same—there were plenty of wealthy individuals at Laurel Academy.
But doing so was expensive.
The daily rental fees were astronomical, so exorbitant that even some nobles from smaller kingdoms couldn’t afford them.
After all, Laurel Academy’s autonomous district was limited in space, and the academy set its own rules. No matter how outrageous the prices, the students had no choice but to accept them.
But Lia? She was backed by the Schubert family, one of the four great noble houses of the Rhine Kingdom. Such extravagant expenses were nothing to them.
She didn’t even pay out of pocket—she just sent the bills back to her family. At worst, she’d get scolded, but the money would always be covered.
“Have you finished compiling the investigation materials I asked for?”
Lia leaned back on the sofa.
“Yes, though it took some time. Everything is ready for your review.”
The attendant placed a stack of documents in front of Lia.
Earlier, Lia had tasked her attendant with investigating Xia Yi’s background.
Now, the attendant had returned with the findings.
Skimming through the documents, Lia’s expression shifted.
“Young Lady, you previously asked me to investigate the Lawrence family in Bellen. I found some irregularities—do you recall?”
“I remember,” Lia nodded.
“The Lawrence family had fallen into decline, but they stubbornly clung to their noble pride. They began selling off assets, but if this continued, they would eventually collapse. Just as the Lawrence family was on the brink, a mysterious woman appeared and provided them with financial support.”
“That’s correct. The head of the Lawrence family has been tight-lipped about this matter.”
“Then, a few years later, Xia Yi suddenly appeared. The Lawrence family head claimed she was a distant relative from the countryside and helped her register a noble identity. But before that, no one in Bellen had ever seen or heard of Xia Yi. It was as if she appeared out of thin air!”
The attendant continued.
“Young Lady, your orders to investigate Xia Yi’s identity led me to an even bigger secret! I discreetly bribed local officials to access Xia Yi’s records and visited the rural area she supposedly came from. But after interviewing many locals, I found that no one recognized her—some had never even seen her before. The rural officials also had no records of her existence. In other words, the Lawrence family fabricated Xia Yi – Lawrence’s identity through shady means!”
“So Xia Yi has been hiding these secrets from everyone.”
Lia narrowed her eyes.
Her attendant had actually reported these findings earlier in the morning, but Lia had wanted a more thorough compilation before reviewing them.
Xia Yi’s identity was highly suspicious.
Why would the Lawrence family go to such lengths—even risking exposure—to create a brand-new noble identity for her?
…Wait.
Lia suddenly remembered something.
There was another person involved—Norma Lawrence, the legitimate young lady of the Lawrence family.
But how did Norma act toward Xia Yi at Laurel Academy?
Like a servant. She was excessively deferential.
Norma was the only heir of the Lawrence family in her generation. On paper, she and Xia Yi were cousins.
Since when would a noble family’s true heiress act so subserviently toward a “distant relative”?
There was likely only one explanation for this kind of behavior…
Lia’s gaze drifted to a calendar on the wall, settling on an important date. After a moment of thought, a faint smirk curled on her lips.
“There’s no escaping now, Xia Yi… After all, you were the one who rejected me in front of everyone back then.”
—
[Author’s Note: Dammit, who was it that kept saying I always hit pity on my pulls?! Today, I got triple hard-pity on Hu Tao and Yelan’s banner—I’m so devastated QAQ.]
